Dill Pickle Dip

My husband loves dill pickles. We have SO many jars in the pantry, and we always seem to "need more" when we go to the store. Maybe this wouldn't be such a big deal, but I have a ridiculously small pantry and his collection of jars takes up a lot of space! So anyway, Hubby loves pickles. When I showed him this recipe, his response was, "YES. We need to make this." (I love that he says "we." We both know that I will make it, but he likes some credit, too. He grated the cheese, he's yelling at me.)

We only slightly adapted this recipe. It needed more pickles and I baked it for almost double the amount of time the initial recipe called for, then stuck it under the broiler to make it nice and brown. It was delicious, which warranted a blog post so I don't forget how we did it. You have to love pickles to enjoy this one, but if you do, this will be a huge hit! My whole family loved it!

Dill Pickle Dip
*Adapted from Lemons for Lulu

4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded Parmesan
1 cup mayo
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups dill pickles, diced
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan
2 tablespoons melted butter

Preheat oven to 400º. Grease a 1 1/2 quart oval baking dish. Add cream cheese, Parmesan, mayo, garlic. and dill pickles to a food processor and pulse until just combined. Pour into the prepared baking dish.

Mix breadcrumbs, 1/2 cup Parmesan, and melted butter in a medium bowl and sprinkle over the dip. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Pop under the broiler for a minute or two to brown the top and enjoy!

Jalapeño Popper Dip

It's all about football in our house on this overcast Sunday. Hubby got up early to watch the Packers and Bears play, but he will miss the Steelers and Jets game later because he has to go to work. He's a huge Steelers fan, so Hubby isn't happy he has to go to work and miss his team play. Frankly, I couldn't care less about the Packers/Bears game, but after watching the Dennis Byrd clip on Sportscenter this morning, I'm rooting for the Jets. Hubby isn't happy about this, so I made him jalapeño popper dip to appease him a little bit. I think he's forgotten all his anger, as right now he's got a bit of dip on his chin . . . Happy football day!

Jalapeño Popper Dip

*From Tasty Kitchen

2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 4-ounce can chopped green chilies, drained

5 jalapeños, seeded and diced (or sub two 4-ounce cans of diced jalapeños, drained)

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 400º. Stir together sour cream, cream cheese, and mayo in a large bowl until combined.

Finely chop jalapeños.

Add green chilies and jalapeños to cream cheese mixture and stir.

Add Panko and parmesan cheese in a small bowl and mix to combine.

Pour cream cheese mixture into an oven safe dish.

Sprinkle Panko mixture on top.

Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes, then put it under the broiler for 1-3 minutes to brown the top.

Serve with chips, pita chips, crackers, veggies, and bread. Enjoy!

Parmesan Crusted Cod and Sauteed Zucchini

Sometimes I get a little burned out on chicken. We don't eat much red meat in this house (thank goodness my husband is understanding!) so our options are chicken, fish, chicken, pork, and chicken. We eat a lot of chicken. So yesterday I wanted fish, but not our usual lemon pepper fish and I didn't want anything fried. So I came up with this baked fish recipe that took almost no prep work and was crispy and flavorful. This is one that I can make while Nick's at work instead of my standard baked potato or pasta. It's that good. And the sauteed zucchini, what can I say about that? Is there any way to make zucchini that doesn't taste good? I don't think so. The only thing this one needed was a little fresh chopped basil, which I will be picking up at the store today so I can try it again. Ah, I love zucchini!

Parmesan Crusted Cod (or any other white fish like tilapia or halibut)

3 white fish fillets like cod, halibut, or tilapia
1 1/2-2 cups panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
margarine

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Melt about a tablespoon of margarine in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add panko and toast until brown, 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and pour in a mixing bowl. Add parmesan cheese and stir. Line a baking sheet with foil (for easy clean-up) and place thawed or frozen fillets (I used frozen). Season with kosher salt and pepper and spread a little bit of margarine over each fillet. This will help the coating to stick and the fillet won't dry out.

Press breadcrumb mixture on fish to desired thickness. Leave 2-3 tablespoons of breadcrumb mixture for sauteed zucchini, if desired.

Bake in preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the fish is cooked through and flakes easily.

Sauteed Zucchini

2 medium zucchinis
Salt and pepper
Margarine
Garlic powder
Chopped fresh basil
2-3 tablespoons of toasted panko and parmesan cheese mixture from above, optional

Slice off ends of zucchini and cut in uniform medallion slices, about 1/4 inch thick. Melt 1-2 tablespoons of margarine in the same skillet used to toast the panko. Add zucchini and season with salt and pepper and a little bit of garlic powder, to taste.

Saute for 5-10 minutes over medium-high heat until seared as desired. Add panko mixture for texture.

Serve with parmesan crusted cod and enjoy!

Baked Zucchini Fries

Whenever we go to Mama Stortini's in Sumner, I always get the zucchini fries for an appetizer. I love the crisp, fried breadcrumb coating and the fresh, not oily taste of the thick-cut zucchini inside. So delicious. I wanted to make them, but needed the fries to be healthier, so I opted to bake them. Although the zucchini tasted good, the coating didn't stick well and wasn't very crunchy. Next time I will probably toast the panko breadcrumbs and refrigerate the coated fries before baking in the hope that the coating will stick better. Overall, the flavors were good, but the execution needed work.

Baked Zucchini Fries

1 large or 2 medium-small zucchini
2 egg whites
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup panko
1/2 cup grated parmesan

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut the zucchini into fry-sized pieces about 3 inches long. You do not need to peel the zucchini. Beat the egg whites with a splash of water. In a separate dish, mix panko and parmesan. Dust the zucchini in flour and dip in egg white. Then coat the fries in the panko and parmesan mixture. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet (don't crowd) and bake 10 minutes. Carefully flip the fries and bake an additional 10 minutes or until crispy and lightly browned. Sprinkle the hot fries with additional parmesan and serve hot. These are good with the garlic feta spread too!

Honey Dijon Chicken with a Toasted Almond Crust

This recipe started out with toasted almonds, which I did not have. So I toasted my own. It was easy and made the house smell amazing! After cooling, I put the almonds through the food processor and now have leftover toasted almond pieces that I am so excited to use in some new recipes. This one in particular from Tasty Kitchen was so delicious. From honey, dijon mustard, toasted almonds, and parmesan cheese, you have so many flavors smacking you in your taste buds that your head may spin a little bit. Now, for those who don't like dijon mustard, I don't either. The flavor of the dijon is underlying and wonderful, so use it. And try this recipe. Now. Go!

Honey Dijon Chicken with a Toasted Almond Crust
*Adapted from Tasty Kitchen

8 chicken tenders (or 3-4 chicken breast cut in strips)
1/2 cup dijon mustard
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 cups panko
1 cup roasted almonds, finely chopped-recipe to follow
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
Kosher salt and pepper, to taste
Olive oil to coat pan and drizzle on chicken

To roast almonds: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread almonds on a baking sheet lined with foil.

Drizzle a little bit of olive oil on almonds. I would guess I used about a tablespoon. A little goes a long way.

Bake for 10 minutes. When the almonds are done, remove from pan and place on a plate lined with paper towels to allow excess oil to drain. Let the almonds cool and then process or store for whatever purpose.

Meanwhile, combine dijon mustard and honey in a bowl. Add in chicken and marinate in the fridge for 1/2 hour or more.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and place a baking dish or sheet in the oven to warm. In a shallow bowl, combine the finely chopped almonds, panko, parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. Remove chicken from honey dijon mixture one at a time and dredge in the almond mixture.

Place these on a plate as you complete them and place in the fridge for about 10 minutes. This allows the chicken time to "dry out," which will make the coating crispier.

Once the chicken is ready to come out of the fridge, remove the pan from the preheated oven. Drizzle a little olive oil in the bottom of the warmed dish.

Place chicken in the dish and drizzle with a little more olive oil. I also pressed on some extra almond coating at this point.

Cook for 10 minutes and flip then cook 10 minutes longer. This goes great with pasta in a garlic cream sauce!

Fontina Mac and Cheese

I love mac and cheese. I love anything smothered in cheese, but pasta is the ultimate in cheesy deliciousness. Usually I go for a sharp cheddar with a little mozzarella thrown in for the stringy cheesiness, so I wasn't too sure about this fontina mac and cheese. Fontina isn't a very strong cheese, but it does have a wonderful flavor. Overall, I did like this mac, but it didn't reheat well and things must reheat well in this house! I might make it again, but I think I'd use a different cheese. The method was great though and the only major change I made was to use half and half instead of heavy cream. Less fat from cream=no guilt when adding in extra cheese!

Fontina Mac and Cheese
*From Annie's Eats

1 pound small or medium shells (I used rotini)
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1 cup heavy cream (I used half and half)
8 ounces fontina cheese, shredded
Salt
Pinch of grated nutmeg
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cook the pasta in salted water until 1-2 minutes shy of al dente. It will finish cooking in the oven, so don't worry if it has a little bit of a bite. Warm up the cream in microwave. Cut up 4 tablespoons of butter and add to the cooked and drained pasta. Stir in the warm cheese and the fontina cheese until it all starts to melt. Here's some yummy shredded fontina:

Mix in salt to taste and add in the nutmeg.

Pour the mixture into a buttered 2-quart casserole dish (I used an 8x8 dish). In a small bowl, melt the butter and add the panko and parmesan cheese. Stir together and then sprinkle on top of the pasta. Bake until the sauce is bubbly and the top turns golden brown, about 20 minutes. Serve immediately.

Crispy Yogurt Chicken

Okay, let me start out with this fact: Nick liked this dish. I wasn't the biggest fan. With all the flavors we infused in the yogurt, I expected more of this chicken. It just didn't deliver. However, the idea of dipping the chicken in seasoned yogurt instead of milk or buttermilk was great. The panko adhered very well to the sticky yogurt and the whole dish tasted a little like sourdough bread, which is good in my book. But I didn't get the garlic or the lemon that was in the yogurt, so on the whole, I was disappointed. I think I expect the most amazing dished from the Pioneer Woman, so my expectations were maybe (insanely) high. Not every dish can be a winner though. But, the good part: I will use this yogurt idea in the future. So score one there!

Crispy Yogurt Chicken
*From The Pioneer Woman

2 cups plan, unflavored yogurt
2-3 cloves of garlic, finely minced
Parsley to taste
Kosher salt to taste
1 whole lemon, juiced
Chicken tenderloins or breasts or legs, etc. (I used 10 tenders)
2 cups panko breadcrumbs
Butter-1 pat for each piece of chicken

Pour yogurt into a mixing bowl. Add minced garlic. Chop up some parsley and add to the mixture. Squeeze in some fresh lemon juice and stir to combine.

Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Sprinkle with salt. In another bowl, place breadcrumbs and season with salt. Butter a baking dish. With a pair of tongs, place the chicken one piece at a time in the yogurt mixture. Turn to coat thoroughly.

Then roll completely in bread crumbs and place in the baking dish.

Pace a slice of butter on each piece of chicken.

Cover with foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for 50 minutes. Remove the foil for the last 15 minutes of cooking time. Breadcrumbs should be nice and brown when done.

Simple Chicken Divan

This is another simple and quick meal. The bonus is that it is elegant enough to serve to guests, which I'm sure I'll be doing soon!

If you wanted to make it even easier, you could use canned chicken instead of the two chicken breasts, but if you partially thaw the breasts and cut them into pieces and boil for a few minutes, it takes no time and you're looking at a lot less sodium. Healthier is better!

Simple Chicken Divan

1-2 cups of broccoli, cut into bite-size pieces
2 medium chicken breasts, cut into chunks and cooked
1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup of mayonnaise
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 tbsp margarine
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8x8 baking dish or 2.5 quart Corningware dish with cooking spray and then layer the bite-sized broccoli. Sprinkle a generous amount of parmesan cheese over the broccoli. Top with artichokes and cooked chicken. In a medium bowl, mix cream of chicken soup and mayonnaise. Pour over the artichokes and chicken. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add in Panko breadcrumbs and saute for a minute or until a little brown. Spoon over the top of the casserole and then sprinkle another generous amount of grated parmesan on top of the breadcrumbs.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Serves 3-4. This would be great served over rice as well!