Windex

So, this isn't technically a food recipe, but I ran out of Windex today while we were cleaning our mirrors and windows so I Googled a DIY recipe and the results were great.  This is just as good as Windex and a lot cheaper too.

Windex

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of WARM water
• 1 tablespoon of corn starch (yes, that's right-- cornstarch)
• 1/4 cup of rubbing alcohol
• 1/4 cup of white vinegar
• Small squirt of dishsoap

Mix the ingredients together in a spray bottle and tada! Done! Just make sure you always shake it before you use it because the cornstarch may settle a bit.

Cranberry Almond KIND Bars

These are super yummy granola bars.  And lots cheaper than buying Kind Bars... holy mackerel!!  I'm going to add some oats and cut down on the nuts a bit to make them even cheaper so I'll post that recipe if it's a success...
You can swap out the nuts and add things like coconut etc. to customize these to your tastes.

Cranberry Almond KIND Bars

Prep time: 10 minutes       Cook time: 20 minutes       Yield: 15 bars

Ingredients

2 cups (230 g) raw whole almonds

1/2 cup (70 g) raw macadamia nut pieces (or cashews)

2 cups (60 g) crisp rice cereal

1 cup (140 g) dried whole cranberries

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

3 tablespoons (42 g) canola oil

1/2 cup (168 g) honey

1/4 cup (84 g) corn syrup

Directions

• Preheat your oven to 300°F. Line a quarter sheet pan (a shallow rimmed 9 x 13-inch baking sheet) with unbleached parchment paper and set it aside.
• In a blender or food processor, place about 1/4 of the whole almonds and grind into a mostly fine powder.  Toast the remaining almonds and then chop them just a bit (some will still be whole).  In a large bowl, place the ground almonds, the remaining whole almonds, cashews pieces, rice cereal, cranberries and salt, and mix to combine well. Add the oil, and toss to coat. Add the honey and corn syrup and mix to combine well. The mixture will be very thick and sticky.
• Scrape it into the prepared pan and spread into an even layer. Use the back of your spoon to press down evenly with as much force as you can muster to compress the mixture into an even layer. Be careful not to allow large clusters of almonds to gather in the corners of the baking sheet, or they will not hold together when you slice the whole thing into bars.
• Bake until the mixture is lightly browned and bubbling (about 20 minutes). Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Without removing the bars from the baking sheet and using a butter knife, score the bars into 3 equal rows of 5 rectangles each. Allow the bars to cool for another 10 minutes before placing in the refrigerator until completely chilled (about 30 minutes).
• Remove the bars from the refrigerator and invert the bars onto a cutting board, with the parchment paper now on top. Peel off the parchment paper, and finish cutting 15 bars. Wrap each bar tightly in wax paper, and store in the refrigerator or freezer.

Chicken Cannellini Bean Tacos

These tacos are simple and delish - a good crock pot recipe for a busy day.  I used Great Northern beans.

Chicken Cannellini BeanTacos

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (or 1 1/4 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs)
3 Tbsp taco seasoning
1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
1 can chopped green chilies
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp crushed coriander
1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
Taco shells
Shredded Mexican blend cheese
Shredded lettuce
Sour cream
Salsa

Place chicken in crock pot and sprinkle with taco seasoning.  In a small bowl, combine tomato sauce, chilies, cumin and coriander; mix well. Pour over chicken. Top with beans.  Cook on low for 7-8 hours.

Remove chicken and shred. Return to crock pot and stir to get sauce on all the chicken. Allow to warm through if needed. Serve with toppings as desired.

Fresh Cherry Tart

I love, love, love fresh cherries so I was super excited to try this tart. And very happy that it was so deeee-lish!  :)  Also, I used strawberry jam since that's what I had opened and it was just fine.

Fresh Cherry Tart

9 graham cracker (2 1/2 x 5" each)
2 Tbsp plus 1/4 C sugar, divided
6 Tbsp butter, melted
6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 C heavy cream
1 lb fresh sweet cherries, pitted and halved
1 Tbsp seedless raspberry jam
1 tsp water

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  In a food processor, pulse graham crackers and 2 Tbsp sugar until finely ground. Add butter and process until combined. Transfer to a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Using the base of a dry measuring cup (or your hand), firmly press mixture into bottom and up sides of pan. Bake until browned, 10-12 minutes. Let cool completely on wire rack.

In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, vanilla and remaining 1/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add cream and beat until soft peaks form. Spread mixture into cooled crust. Arrange cherries on top.

In a small microwavable bowl combine jam and water; heat 30 seconds at a time until liquified. Using a pastry brush dab cherries with glaze. Refrigerate tart at least 30 minutes.  Can store, covered, up to 1 day.

Muddled Lemonberryade

I made this berry lemonade for our July 4th cook out and it was delish!  The original recipe calls for club soda but we really don't like club soda so we used 7-Up instead and it was great.  I should have taken a picture cause it does look pretty cool. Maybe next time...

Muddled Lemonberryade

4 lemons, sliced
1/2 C mint leaves
1 C sugar
1 pint berries (quartered strawberries & blackberries)
1 quart water
7-Up

Place lemons in bottom of a large pitcher.  Add mint and sugar on top. With a wooden spoon mash the mixture for 1 minute. Add the berries and lightly mash.  Add water and refrigerate until chilled.

Fill tall glasses 3/4 with lemon mixture then top off with 7-Up.  Serve.

Serves 6-8.



Altered slightly from a recipe from Food Network. 

Chicken Supreme Pasta Bake

As usual, Jeremy and I disagreed on our dinner tonight.  I liked it and he only sort of liked it.  But we all know know that I have a more sophisticated pallet... ;)

Anyway, I thought this was a yummy new addition to my casserole repertoire (Mandy, you can feel free to stick with the "Bake" terminology). :)  Oh, and I left the chicken out.

Chicken Supreme Pasta Bake

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

16 ounces pasta, cooked al dente

2 cups grilled chicken, cubed

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup diced red, yellow, or orange bell pepper

1/2 cup diced mushrooms

1 teaspoon minced garlic

3 Tablespoons butter

3 Tablespoons flour

2 cups chicken stock

1 cup plain greek yogurt

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 - 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes

salt and pepper

oregano

Instructions

1. Place the onion, bell pepper, mushrooms, garlic and butter in a skillet and saute for 2 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Whisk in the chicken stock. Stir until the broth thickens slightly.
2. Whisk in the yogurt. Add 1 cup cheddar cheese and 1 cup mozzarella cheese and stir until melted. Stir in the cooked pasta, chicken, and can of tomatoes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Spoon the pasta into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Top with the remaining cheese and sprinkle with oregano. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until cheese is melted and browning. Serve hot. Makes 8 servings.

Notes

*This can also be made into a freezer meal. Place the skillet dinner into a glass freezer container and top with the remaining cheese and oregano. Freeze 2-3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Bake according to directions.

http://insidebrucrewlife.com/2014/03/chicken-supreme-pasta-bake/

Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

This is the first strawberry-rhubarb pie I've ever made.  I've only had rhubarb once and it was good but I never really think of making anything with it.  Dad asked for this for Father's Day so I made this and a peach pie.  This recipe is so good.  I used my favorite pie crust recipe.  I also forgot to buy a lemon so I just used refrigerated lemon juice and of course didn't have the lemon zest.  I don't think I'll worry about the zest next time because I liked this pie just the way it was.  Do make sure to crimp the edges together well because I didn't and some of the filling leaked out leaving me with a stinky, burnt mess on the bottom of the oven.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

1 Recipe of Becky's Perfect Pie Crust, separated into two equal sections and refrigerated
Filling:
2 1/2 cups chopped red rhubarb, fresh
2 1/2 cups de-stemmed, washed and cut strawberries (in larger pieces)
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons minute tapioca
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest (optional)
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons butter, cubed small
1 egg white beaten with 1 teaspoon water
Large granule sugar

Roll out 1 piece of the pie dough to make a bottom crust.  Place it into a 9-inch pie plate.  Place the plate in the refrigerator to chill.
For the filling:
Mix the rhubarb, strawberries, sugar, tapioca, flour, zest and lemon juice, cinnamon and vanilla.  Mix well in a large bowl and pour out into chilled crust.  Dot the top of the filling with the butter.  Brush edges of pie crust with egg white wash.  Roll our the other piece of dough and place over filling.  Crimp tho seal edges.  Brush with egg white wash and garnish with large granule sugar.  Collar with foil and bake at 425° for 15 minutes.  Decrease temperature to 375° and bake for an additonal 45 to 50 minutes or until the filling starts bubbling.  Higher altitude will take 450 degrees F and 400 degrees F respectively.  Let cool before serving.  

Recipe altered slightly from foodnetwork.com