Cream Cheese and Bacon Stuffed Chicken

Another great recipe from Kayotic Kitchen, both Randal and I really liked this, although we both thought there was a little toomuch cream cheese for our tastes, but that's easily changed next time we make this!


4 chicken breasts
4 puff pastry sheets
4 oz cream cheese
2 slices of bacon
flat-leaf parsley
1 spring onion
1 large egg
pepper
salt

Preheat the oven to 400

Cook the bacon and leave to cool

Chop the spring and parsley and mix that into the cream cheese, as well as the crumbled bacon and black pepper

Make a deep cut into each chicken breast and stuff with a quarter of the cream cheese mixture

Place each chicken breast onto a pastry sheet, cream cheese side down and season with salt and pepper

Brush the edgesof the pastry with a beaten egg, and fold the pastry over the chicken, turn the pastry bundles seam side down and brush remaining eggon top, and bake for 35 minutes.

Creamed Spinach

Randal actually made this for me while I was making the beer and cheddar risotto. I gave him the Pioneer Woman's recipe to follow, which he did along with a few of his own additions.


1 stick Butter
8 tbs Flour
1/2 an Onion, Finely Diced
1 garlic clove
1 1/2 cups Milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 pinch Nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
3 tbs Butter
24 ounces Spinach

In a medium pan, melt the 1 stick of butter, add the flour and stir together. Cook the butter and flour for 5 minutes, add the onion, garlic and allspice, cook for another few minutes. Pour in the milk and cream and heat for another 5 minutes.

In a seperate pan, melt the 3 tbsp of butter and add the spinach. Cook until wilted.

Season the cream sauce with salt, pepper and the nutmeg. Add spinach and serve.

Beer and Cheddar Risotto

Just a couple of days after saying I would post more often this year, my computer went and died. I've been going crazy the last 10 days without it, but after spending most of yesterday afternoon trying to bring it back to life, I finally have it back. So now I am playing catch up, trying to get the recipes I've made in the last couple of weeks posted.

I found this recipe over at Made In Mel's Kitchen. I ended up liking this a lot more than Randal did, he said it tasted like the cheese fondue at the melting pot restaurant, which is delicious so of course I loved this risotto!


1/2 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups Arborio rice
12 oz. bottle of beer
48 oz of chicken broth
5 ounces sharp cheddar cheese
1/3 cup mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Warm chicken broth over low heat

Heat large pan over medium heat, add the butter and olive oil, when butter has melted add the onion and cook for 3 minutes, add garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Add rice, cook for 2 minutes, add beer and once it starts to simmer add the chicken broth 1/2 a cup at a time, stirring until absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup of chicken broth. Keep stirring and adding the broth until the risotto is creamy and the rice is cooked.

Remove from heat and stir in the cheese and cayenne pepper.

Menu Plan Monday

I am determined that for 2012 I am getting back to menu planning, trying new recipes and actually posting them to my blog.

Monday: Steak, beer cheddar risotto and creamed spinach

Tuesday: Chicken pastry bundles, green beans and salad

Wednesday: Bacon wrapped meatloaf, mashed potatoes and peas

Thursday: Eating out - cafe adobe

Friday: Chicken tikka, jasmine rice and mango chutney

See other menu plans over at Organizing Junkie

Chocolate Christmas Pudding Cakes

I got the idea for these little dome cakes from pinterest. Christmas pudding is very traditional for us Brits, but I have to admit that I actually don't like it, so these little chocolate puddings were perfect!


¾ cup plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
6 tbsp. valrhona cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
½ cup black coffee
½ cup buttermilk
1½ tsp. vanilla extract

In a small bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt, whisk to blend and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the sugar, vegetable oil and egg. Beat on medium speed until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, blend in half of the dry ingredients, beating just until incorporated. Blend in the coffee, buttermilk and vanilla just until smooth. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated. Fill each dome about half way and bake at 350 for 22-24 minutes.

Icing
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
3 cups icing sugar
4 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix together until smooth, pour 1 tablespoon of icing over each dome cake, allowing the icing to run down the sides of the cakes, decorate with red and green jelly candies, to look like holly.

Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes

Another christmas cupcake, made using my favourite chocolate cupcake recipe, changed slightly with the addiction of peppermint!


Chocolate Cupcakes
¾ cup plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
6 tbsp. valrhona cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
½ cup black coffee
½ cup buttermilk
½ tsp. peppermint extract

In a small bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt, whisk to blend and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the sugar, vegetable oil and egg. Beat on medium speed until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, blend in half of the dry ingredients, beating just until incorporated. Blend in the coffee, buttermilk and peppermint just until smooth. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated. Divide between baking cups and bake at 350 for 22-24 minutes.

Peppermint Swiss Meringue Buttercream
2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 large egg whites
1 cup + 2 tbsp of sugar
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
pinch of salt

To make the frosting, put a few inches of water in a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Put the egg whites and sugar into a bowl that will fit over the pan of water and whick until it reaches 150 degrees and the sugar has all melted. Transfer mixture to the bowl of your stand mixer and whisk on medium speed until the bowl feels cold (this can take up to 10 minutes) add the butter 2 tablespoons at a time, then beat in the peppermint.

Frost cooled cupcakes with the peppermint buttercream, top with Andes peppermint pieces, and a peppermint candy.

Cappuccino Fudge

This recipe was a last minute addition to my Christmas baking. I have been needing to use up a couple of containers of marshmallow fluff that Randal bought last month (for a frosting recipe that I never made), so when I saw this fudge recipe over at Annies Eats, and how quick and easy it looked, I thought I would give it a try.


1 (7 oz.) jar marshmallow cream
½ c. sugar
2/3 c. heavy whipping cream
¼ c. butter
1 t. instant coffee (I used 1 packet of Starbucks via)
¼ t. cinnamon
¼ t. salt
1 (12 oz.) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Line an 8” square baking pan with foil. In a pan, combine marshmallow, sugar, cream, butter, coffee, cinnamon and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Let boil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips until smooth. Pour into pan. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours. Cut into squares.