Guilty Pleasure Pepper Poppers

This is a really simple appetizer that you don't really need a recipe for, but they are just so stinking delicious that I had to post them.  After I made them the first time, I couldn't stop thinking about them for days!  Try them, and see for yourself how good they are.

Yields: 12

Ingredients:

6 Sweet peppers or Jalapeno peppers
1 Block Cream Cheese
6 Slices of Bacon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Cut peppers in half and remove seeds.  Fill pepper halves with cream cheese.  Cut bacon slices in half.  Wrap each cheese filled pepper with a half piece of bacon.  Bake in oven for about 10 min or until bacon is fully cooked and cheese is melty. 

Tips:

I tried adding garlic salt and thyme to the cream cheese for added flavor, but to be honest it did not really add to the taste.  I mean you can't really top the flavor of bacon... so I suggest just leaving it unseasoned.  I also tried fire roasting the peppers before halving them, which added a really nice char flavor.  I make mine with sweet peppers most of the time because that I what I usually have in the fridge and I am sort of a wimp about spicy stuff.  That being said, they are yummy both ways!

Crispy Homemade Pizza

My husband recently requested that I make pizza for dinner, but I had no pre-made crust or yeast to make pizza dough.  With this challenge before me, I took to the internets in search of a possible solution.  What I found was this great yeast-free pizza crust recipe.  It makes for a super fast and really crunchy pizza. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2/3 cup milk
6 tbsp. olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°F.  In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and stir well until the dough begins to form a ball and pull away from sides of bowl.  Knead dough by hand until smooth. Roll out dough to desired thickness and transfer onto greased baking sheet or pizza pan leaving a thicker edge to hold fillings in.

 

Pre-bake crust for about 10 min before adding toppings.  Remove from oven and cover with sauce, cheese, and all of your favorite toppings.

 

Bake for about 20 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and edges are golden brown.

 

Tips:

I added some herbs and garlic seasoning to the crust to add a little extra flavor.  Don't be afraid to play around with seasonings and toppings.  That is what is great about making  your own pizza.  The sky is the limit!

 

 

 

Easy Chicken Pot Pie

 

This is a recipe that I have developed from a combination of different recipes.  I basically wanted to find the easiest way to make this dish without compromising the taste.  The end result was a great success.  I always get compliments on this dish and requests for the recipe.  Now you can make it too!



Yields: 4 Servings

Ingredients:

1 box refrigerated unroll and fill pie crusts (it comes with 2 crusts)
2 cooked chicken breasts shredded
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can chicken gravy
1/4 cup milk
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables (I get the one with carrots, green beans, peas, and corn)

Directions:

Pre-heat oven according to directions on crust box.  Roll out bottom crust and press into greased pie pan.  In a sauce pan add all other ingredients.  Warm over medium heat and stir to mix all ingredients together.  Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Pre-bake bottom crust for 5 min.

Remove crust from oven and fill with soup mixture.  Roll out top crust over pie filling and press together on sides.  Cut slits in top crust to vent.  Cover edges of crust with foil to avoid burning. 

Bake in oven for 40 min or until filling begins to bubble through vents.  Remove foil 5 min before removing pie from oven.  Allow to cool before serving. 

Tips:

If you want to get all fancy, you can brush top of pie with 1 egg beaten and 1 tbls water before baking to add shine.  Try adding herbs like rosemary and thyme to soup mixture for a nice flavor addition.  I have also seen this made with different kinds of mixed vegetables and or cheese.  I have tried it different ways, but always come back to this version as my favorite.  I sometimes make it with canned chicken or precooked rotisserie chicken to save time.  Both turned out just as good in my opinion (and totally worth it as a time saver).  I once made it with my own homemade pie crust too.  It turned out delicious, but for the time spent I would just assume use the pre-made roll out kind.  Oh, and one last thing.  This makes for excellent leftovers... in fact, I sometimes think I like it best the next day (although that could simply be because I didn't have to cook that day).

*The above photo is not mine. It looks similar to the one that I make, but I don't have any pictures of my own dish to post just yet. I borrowed that photo from here.