Naan

This Indian flat bread is one of my favorites. We had it with some korma and rice.

2 TBS. active dry yeast (or a packet)
1 c. warm water
1 egg, beaten
1/4 c. sugar
1 c. milk
2 tsp. salt
4.5 cups all purpose flour
Butter/Vegetable Oil
2 tsp. minced garlic (optional) - I do some plain, some garlic

Mix yeast and warm water, let it sit for 10 minutes, or until it becomes frothy. Add egg, sugar, milk and salt. Slowly mix in flour (more or less) until you get a soft dough - Knead on lightly floured surface for 6-8 minutes. Place in well oiled bowl. Cover with a warm, damp cloth until the dough doubles in size (about 1 hour). After dough has risen, punch down and pull off small handfuls of dough and place on greased tray or cookie sheet, add garlic if desired. Cover tray with towel. Let handfuls rise again until double in size (about 30 min.).
Heat grill on med-high heat. Press out balls of dough until you have a flat piece of dough. Spray grill, place dough and let it cook for 1-2 min., meanwhile, butter uncooked side of dough, and flip to cook other side for another 1-2 minutes.

About 10 servings.

Hot Pizza Dip by Guest Chef Jamie

1 brick cream cheese, softened
1 t. Italian seasoning
1 C. shredded mozzarella
1/4 C. shredded parmesan
1 can (8oz) pizza sauce
2 T. chopped green bell pepper
2 T. sliced green onion
Valtrompia bread slices

Preheat oven to 350. In 1 qt. batter bowl, combine cream cheese and Italian seasoning mix well. Spread in bottom of baking dish. Combine mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Sprinkle half of cheese mixture over cream cheese. Spread pizza sauce over cheese. Top with remaining cheese, pepper and onions. Bake 15-18 minutes or until bubbly. Serve with Valtrompia bread slices, bread sticks or fresh vegetables. So YUMMY!

Maple Glazed Baby Carrots by Guest Chef Jamie

2 lb. baby carrots
1/4 C. Kraft Light Done Right! Catalina Reduced Fat dressing
1/4 C. maple-flavored or pancake syrup
1 T. butter
1/2 C. Planters Pecan Pieces, toasted

Cook carrots in saucepan, in enough boiling water to cover, 12-14 minutes or until tender. Drain; set aside.

Mix dressing and syrup in saucepan; cook on medium heat until mixture is bubbly, stirring occasionally. Add coarrots; cook until glaze is thickened to desired consistency, stirring frequently. Add butter, stir until melted. Stir int he pecans.

Tomato Basil Tart by Guest Chef Jamie

Hi All, I told you that I stole recipes from guest chef Jamie. One of her favorite 5's is one that I've already posted, so here's the link for her famous Tomato Basil Tart. Yum! Perfect for brunch, or a baby/bridal shower. Best with fresh garden tomatoes in the summer!

Roquefort Pear Salad by Chef Jamie

1 head leaf lettuce, bite-size pieces
3 pears- peeled, cored and chopped
5 oz. Roquefort (bleu cheese) crumbled
1 avacado- peeled, pitted & diced
1/2 C. thinly sliced green onions
1/4 C. white sugar
1/2 C. pecans

Dressing:
1/3 C. olive oil
3 T. red wine vinegar
1 1/2 t. white sugar
1 1/2 t. prepared mustard
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 t. salt
ground pepper to taste

In a skillet, over medium heat, stir 1/4 c. sugar together with pecans. Continue stirring gently until sugar has melted and caramelized the pecans. Carefully transfer to wax paper to cool. Break into pieces.
For dressing: mix dressing ingredients in blender. In a large bowl, layer lettuce, pears, cheese, avacado and onions. Pour over salad and nuts.

Smoked Turkey Chimichangas by Guest Chef Jamie

1 lb. turkey from deli, chopped
1/2 T. chili powder
2 C. shredded slaw cabbage
1/2 chipolte in adobo sauce
1 C. tomato sauce
3 scallions chopped
salt and pepper
6 tortillas
1 1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese or pepper jack
2 T. vegetable oil
1 C. sour cream
2 T. cilantro
1 tomato finely chopped

Place turkey in a bowl and season with chili powder. Add cabbage, chipolte, tomato sauce, scallions. Toss filling and season with salt and pepper.
Place cheese near top of tortilla dn add 1/6 filling. Roll. Brush with vegetable oil and bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes. Top with sour cream, parsley/cilantro and tomato. Fast, easy and delicious!!

Best Bagels

I am a bagel lover. Let me reiterate....these bagels are AWESOME. I made them again this weekend. This time I doubled the recipe - which made 24, so I could freeze individual servings and have them ready for a quick grab in the morning. I did some cinnamon sugar, parmesan cheese, salt, and plain ones, and they were all good. My favorite combo - cinnamon sugar bagels with whipped honey nut cream cheese. Mwaaah! I also liked the parmesan cheese ones for a savory lunch-time bagel - with some deli ham, garden veggie cream cheese, lettuce and tomato. Mmmmmmmmm. Try them. They do not disappoint.

Introducing Guest Chef Jamie

Not only does this lady know how to cook, but she has the kitchen of my dreams! It even won the "Parade of Homes Kitchen of the Year" award (see for yourself in the picture below!)! I will not lie. I am so jealous. But...she deserves it! This cook is fun, crafty, and can put together some of the best party food out there. This is no exaggeration. I've stolen tons of recipes from her - she has some of the best easy recipes that I've come across, and most of them are SIMPLE! Plus, look how cute she looks in this stylish apron that she won from a blogger contest! Stay tuned this week for some of Chef Jamie's recipes!
As always, if you're interested in being a guest chef, just drop me an email and we'll go from there!

Yummy Sweet & Sour Chicken

6 boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into cubes
2/3 c. corn starch
1/3 c. flour
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. MSG/Accent
4-5 eggs, beaten
1 c. chicken broth
1 1/4 c, sugar
1 c. drained, crushed pineapple
1 c. vinegar
8 TBS. catsup
1 TBS. soy sauce
S & P to taste
1 red pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
Oil for frying

Combine corn starch, flour, garlic powder and accent. Dip chicken pieces in mixture. Then dip in eggs and fry in skillet until well-browned. Set in greased glass 9x13 pan with chopped onions and peppers.

In another bowl, mix remaining ingredients. Pour over chicken. Bake at 375 for 45-60 minutes, or until sauce reaches thickness desired and bubbles. Turn chicken pieces over halfway through oven time.

Serve over rice with a sesame ginger salad.

Yummy Pineapple Chicken Curry

* My sis Em gave this recipe to me, and I modified it a bit based on what I had and what I needed to get rid of. It was delish!

3 T EVOO
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
5-6 T curry powder (add more or less to taste)
1 t ground cinnamon
1 t paprika
1 bay leaf
2 t FRESH ginger root
¼ c. sugar
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into cubes
2 potatoes, par-boiled
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 yellow pepper, chopped
1 can tomato paste
6 oz. plain fat free yogurt
1 can coconut milk
1 lemon, juiced
1 t cayenne pepper
1 can pineapple tidbits (drained)
Salt to taste

Heat EVOO in skillet over med heat. Saute onion until translucent. Stir in curry powder, garlic, cinnamon, paprika, bay leaf, ginger, sugar and salt. Stir for another min or so. Add chicken pieces, potatoes, pepper, carrots, tomato paste, yogurt and coconut milk. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.

Stir in lemon juice and cayenne pepper. Remove bay leaf and simmer 5 more min

Delicious served with warm naan and rice!