Kitchen Witchin'

A page totally dedicated to the deliciousness I create in my kitchen? YES PLEASE ^_^

I hope these recipes bring as much joy to you, your family, and your friends as it did to mine!


Spinach, Chicken, and Pasta Bake

This meal was to die for!! If you are cooking for two, I suggest cutting the recipe in half. This is A LOT of food... we still have leftovers!

8 oz uncooked rigatoni

1 T olive oil

1 c chopped onion

1 (10 oz) pack frozen spinach, thawed

3 c cubed, cooked chicken breasts

1 (14 oz) can Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained

1 (8 oz) container Philadelphia chive & onion cream cheese

½ t salt, ½ t pepper

1½ c shredded mozzarella cheese

*I added half a package of bacon, fry it up nice and crispy. Break it up into pieces and add to the mixture before putting it in the pan.

*Also, I used a 13x9 pan, if you have the option, use the bigger pan.

Prepare rigatoni according to pkg directions. Spread oil on bottom of 11×7 in baking dish; add onion in a single layer. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes or just until tender. Transfer onion to large bowl, set aside.

Drain chopped spinach well, pressing between paper towels. Stir in rigatoni, spinach, chicken, & next 4 ingredients into onion in bowl. Spoon mixture into dish & sprinkle evenly with shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake covered at 375 for 30 minutes; uncover & bake 15 more minutes or until bubbly.

*I also made garlic Parmesan breadsticks to go with this dish.



Chicken Salad
BEST CHICKEN SALAD EVER!!!





• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• salt (to taste)
• pepper (to taste)
• 1-1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1-1/4 cup sour cream
• 4 stocks celery, chopped
• 1 bunch green onion, chopped
• 4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts; cooked and shredded

Directions:
Mix vinegar, salt, pepper, mayonnaise and sour cream together. Mix celery, green onion and chicken in separate bowl. Mix all ingredients together. Let set overnight or for a few hours for the best flavor. Serve on buns or rolls.

*The rolls are from Costco, I think they are called Torta Rolls (absolutely delicious!!) Although this would be really good on pita bread as well.
*I also added Romaine Lettuce to the sandwiches.


Garlic Bread Wrapped Meatballs!!
Super easy and super delicious!!

1 can Pillsbury golden layers biscuits - each pulled into 2 layers
16 frozen fully cooked Italian style meatballs
2 sticks string cheese - cut each into 10 pieces
1 T. Parmesan cheese
1/2 t. Italian seasoning
1/4 t. garlic powder 

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Separate biscuits into 2 layers. Place 1 meatball and one piece of cheese into each biscuit, wrap dough around it and seal edges. Place seam side down on to cookie sheet. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Bake 14-17 min or until golden brown. Serve warm with warm sauce.

*I served my meatballs with a side of spaghetti

Sausage and Egg Casserole

The whole family LOVED this!

1 package crescent rolls

1/2 – 1 pound sausage

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

5 eggs,1/4 cup milk

1 Tsp oregano or rosemary

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Press crescent rolls into the bottom of a pan, working the dough up the sides of the pan. Brown sausage and spread the sausage on the the layer of crescent rolls. Mix the rest of the ingredients and pour over the sausage. Bake @ 400 for 15-20 min.

Cheesy Potato Burger Stuffed Biscuits!

This was whipped up with what I found in my fridge! And boy oh boy did it turn out yummy!!

1 can Pillsbury golden layers biscuits - each pulled into 2 layers
16 frozen fully cooked Italian style meatballs
2 handfuls of Cheddar Cheese

2 handfuls of shredded potatoes (I used the frozen hashbrown style)

Enough Sour Cream to make the cheese and potatoes stick together in a paste.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix cheese, potatoes, and sour cream in a bowl. (I think I added a little bit of garlic to the mix too.) Separate biscuits into 2 layers. Place 1 meatball and one  spoonful of cheesy potato mix into each biscuit, wrap dough around it and seal edges. Place seam side down on to cookie sheet.  Bake 14-17 min or until golden brown.

Cheesey Chicken and Veggie Rice Casserole

(Yummy one dish week night dinner)

1 can Cream of Chicken condensed soup
2 cups of water (I use the empty can of soup and fill it 1 1/4 times)
1 1/2 cups of rice  (I use a mix of white and long grains)
1 package of mixed veggies
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
4-6 chicken breasts (basically however many you need to feed your family and can fit in the pan)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a 13x9 pan mix all the ingredients except for the chicken. Place the chicken on top of the veggie rice mix. Bake for about an hour or until the chicken is done. Top the chicken with any extra cheese. Bake for an additional few minutes (until the cheese is melted). Salt and pepper to taste.

**Depending on my mood, I sometimes spice up the rice mix with either rosemary or garlic, sometimes both. And I've been known to spice the chicken too with a Cajun blend.  Have fun with it!!**


Heirloom Dill Dip
(This is a family recipe that has been passed down through the generations. It's super simple and uber delicious!)

16 oz sour cream
16 oz HELLMAN'S mayo (do not substitute... it doesn't come out right.)
1 Tablespoon Onion Powder
2-3 Tablespoons of Dill Weed
1 Tablespoon Accent (if you don't have it, don't worry.... it's sorta optional)

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Refrigerate left overs.

** I suggest making this at least a few hours before hand. It is AMAZING the next day! **


~Creamy Crock Pot Chicken and Rice~

2-4 Frozen Chicken Breasts
1 container of Philadelphia Cooking Cream (Italian Cheese and Herb flavor)
8-12 ounces of Sour Cream
1 pkg of chopped broccoli
Enough rice for however many you are feeding (I use 1 cup uncooked)

Mix all ingredients in Crock Pot. Cook on High for 4-6 hours, until chicken is cooked through. Cook Rice according to directions on package. Serve chicken on top of rice.

**I scoop extra sauce over the top of my chicken and rice. Also, I paired my meal with Pillsbury Crescent Rolls. **

Elephant Ear Pull Apart Bread

Oh yes... it is as yummy as it sounds! **The recipe looks harder than it really is**

Dough2 3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast (1 packet)
1/2 tsp. salt
4 Tbsp. butter
1/3 cup whole milk
1/4 cup water
2 eggs (at room temperature)
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Filling
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg (if you don't have any just add a little more cinnamon)
4 Tbsp. butter, melted

In a large mixing bowl, mix 2 cups of flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Set aside.

In a small sauce pan, melt the butter and milk. Once the butter is completely melted take off the burner and add the water and vanilla. Let the mixture cool for 5 minutes.
Pour the milk mixture into the large bowl with the dry ingredients and mix well. Whisk together the eggs and add to the batter. Keep mixing. Add 3/4 cup of flour and mix well. The mixture will be very sticky which means it's perfect. Place the dough in a medium greased bowl. Cover with wrap and let it sit in a warm place to rise for about 30-45 minutes. Once the dough has doubled its size, knead in 2 tablespoons of flour. Cover the dough again for 5-10 minutes.
Meanwhile, start on the filling. In a medium bowl, mix together the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a small bowl. Set aside.
Once the dough is ready, roll it out on a floured surface. Brush the melted butter on the dough and add the sugar mixture. Make sure everything is covered. Using a shape knife or pizza cutter, cut the dough into equal sized strips (about 2 to 2 1/2 inches wide). Then cut the strips into equal sized squares. Stack the squares on top of each other to make 3 to 4 piles and place them in a bread pan.

Take any sugar that fell off squares and sprinkle over the top and around the sides of dough. Cover the dough for another 10-15 minutes to rise.
While dough is rising, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Place a cookie sheet under bread pan and bake for 30-35 minutes until outside of bread is golden brown.

Stuffed Shells with Wine Sauce!

Alright, this one is slightly more involved than the previous recipes. I make my own sauce for this so there are going to be two recipes here. Don't get discouraged though... it is REALLY easy. Even if sounds hard, it's really not.

Ok, so what you are going to need:

Shells:
1 box of jumbo shells
1 package ground Italian sausage
1 box frozen spinach (thawed)
1 tub ricotta cheese
1 package Italian blend shredded cheese

Sauce:
5-6 Tablespoons Butter
1-2 Tablespoons Minced Garlic
Flour (amount will be determined as you cook)
Bottle of White wine
Chicken Broth
Heavy Cream
Chicken Bouillon

You are going to start by boiling water for your shells and preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cook shells according to directions. If you want to leave your shells slightly undercooked that is ok. They will finish cooking in the oven.

While that is going, brown up your sausage. Make sure it's cooked all the way through. Set aside to cool.

While Sausage is cooling mix together the ricotta cheese, 2 handfuls of shredded cheese, and spinach. Mix thoroughly. Add sausage.

Drain shells and let them cool for a few minutes so you don't burn your hands.

Take a spoonful of sausage mix and stuff a shell. Place it on the bottom of a well greased 13x9 pan. Repeat until all the mixture is gone. My shells took up my 13x9 pan and my bread pan (which I took to my neighbors)

Now to start the sauce. Trust me, it sounds more complicated than it really is.

In a large skillet (the bigger the better) you are going to start your sauce by making a roux. Which is a fancy way of saying sauce base. Start by melting your butter and add your garlic. You can either put it in a garlic press and mash up 4-5 cloves or just buy the jar of minced garlic
**I buy a big jar and keep it on hand because I use a LOT of garlic.**

Once you can smell the garlic in the air begin adding some flour one table spoon at a time until you have a paste like mixture.

Stir constantly so you don't get lumps and so the roux doesn't burn. 

When it starts boiling (although it looks more like bubbling) add a decent helping of wine. I mean like almost half the bottle.
**I used a Moscato for this sauce, but a Pinot Grigio would work wonderfully too. I like the Barefoot labels, they are cheaper and still taste really good**

Add another decent helping of chicken broth. It adds some flavor and tones down the wine.
**Sometimes the chicken broth alone is not enough. You can add chicken bouillon after the cream if it still requires more**

Bring back to a boil. Add enough cream to thicken the sauce (I use about half of the small container)

TASTE THE SAUCE!!

If it needs a little more saltiness, add some chicken bouillon, 3-4 cubes or a tablespoon of the loose stuff. You can add pepper if you think it needs a kick. If you think it needs more wine, by all means, add it! :) Just add things slowly. It's easy to add more... you'll be throwing it out if you add too much!

Once you have the sauce to your liking, spoon it over the shells. Pop the pan(s) into the oven and cook for 30 minutes. At the end of the 30 minutes, sprinkle the rest of your shredded cheese over the top of the shells and bake for 5-10 minutes more. You want the cheese melted and bubbling. I like my cheese to be a little browned.

Let stand for a few minutes while you set the table. Dig in and ENJOY!!

**Now if you don't like sausage you can always substitute shredded chicken breast or ground beef. I like the flavor that the sausage gives it though**


Not-So-Sloppy Sloppy Joes
Awesome Monday night dinner!

This is a super easy throw together dinner!

Needed: Muffin tins (each make 12 muffins)

Ingredients:
1 can flaky layer biscuits (told you this was easy)
pan of sloppy joes! (use whatever recipe your family likes, I will add my own recipe later on)
1 pkg of shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)

Preheat oven according to directions on biscuits. Divide biscuits in half. In one half of the biscuit add some cheese and top with a spoonful of sloopy joe. Place in muffin tin and repeat until out of biscuits or sloppy joe. Bake according to directions on package of biscuits.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

About 16 biscuit cups


Honey Needs Some Spice Chicken~
Even my 9 year old begged me to keep this recipe!

Needed: Crockpot

Ingredients:
1 pound of chicken (thawed and cleaned)
salt and pepper
1/2 cup honey
1/4 soy sauce
1/4 ketchup
1/8 cup onions (I used 2 tablespoons of onion powder)
1 clove garlic, minced (I used 2)
1 TBS vegetable oil
1/4 tsp red pepper chili flakes

Salt and pepper lightly before tossing in the crockpot. Mix the rest of the ingredients in a small bowl (I used my 2 cup measuring cup and plenty of room to spare). Add sauce to crockpot and cook on low for 3 hours or high for 1 1/2 hours.

And done!

I also made a Chicken Garlic rice to go with the chicken that I topped with leftover sauce from the crockpot. Choose a rice of your family's liking. Cook according to directions, but use chicken broth instead of water and add a minced clove of garlic while rice is cooking.


Roll-up Apple Pie!

This is a super simple recipe that can be tossed together in a matter of minutes!

Ingredients:
1 can of crescent rolls
cinnamon
sugar
An apple sliced into 8 pieces

Preheat the oven according to the directions on rolls. Dust the inside of the of the crescent with cinnamon and sugar. Place an apple and roll up the crescent. Bake according to the directions on package and voila! Done :)


Easy Chicken Pot Pie

Super simple and quick throw together meal!

Ingredients:
1 pound of chicken
1 package frozen mixed veggies
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of potato soup
1 cup bisquick
1/2 milk
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Dice thawed chicken. Mix chicken, veggies, and both soups together in baking dish. I used a 2 quart casserole dish. Bake for 45 minutes. **also, I spiced mine up a bit with poultry seasoning and a dash of rosemary**

Crank the heat on the oven up to 400 degrees, stir the chicken mix. In a small bowl mix remaining 3 ingredients (it will be soupy and that is ok). Pour over the chicken mix and bake for another 20-30 minutes.


Bacon and Egg Cups

Makes 12 cups
12 slices bacon
8 eggs
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
pinch of salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin tin *I sprayed mine with Pam* Line cups with bacon. Mix eggs, cheese, salt and pepper. Fill bacon lined cups 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 30-35 minutes.

Enjoy!!

Crockpot Applesauce!

Needed:
11 apples of your choice *I prefer McIntosh*
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar

*You can spice to preference, I used a smattering of cinnamon*

Peel and dice apples. Toss in crockpot with sugar and water (add spices too if so desired) Cook on high for 4 hours (do NOT uncover) at the end of 4 hours give a good stir.

*You can leave it lumpy which my family and I prefer, or you can use a hand mixer to smooth it out*

Enjoy!!

Old Fashioned Glazed Pumpkin Cookies
(My eldest says they are the best cookies EVER)

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
• 1 cup pure pumpkin *NOT THE PIE MIX*
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Glaze (recipe follows)

 

Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease baking sheets. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in medium bowl. Beat sugar and butter in large mixer bowl until well blended. Beat in pumpkin, egg and vanilla extract until smooth. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until edges are firm. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Drizzle Glaze over cookies.
FOR GLAZE:Combine 2 cups sifted powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons milk, 1 tablespoon melted butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract in small bowl until smooth.