#290_Easy Creamy Chicken Casserole

Creamy Chicken with Broccoli

My niece, who recently became interested in cooking
requested that I post some chicken recipes.
So here it is... I'm posting an old family recipe here
which is very simple and easy to make even with a beginner cook.
My American family enjoys this dish
over mashed potatoes as well as over white rice.
This dish is similar to the
Swedish Meatball Casserole recipe, click here.

The chicken pieces after marinating them overnight....
I don't remember how many pounds of chicken I made on this occasion,
but it is a bigger than the recipe I'm posting here.


The chicken pieces coated with Panko crumbs


Here's the recipe:
4 chicken breasts
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. seasoned salt or garlic salt
1 tsp. Mrs Dash seasoning
Freshly cracked black pepper

1) Clean and rinse chicken and pat dry with paper towel. Slice them into pieces (I like to cut mine into big chunks) and put them in a bowl.
2) Drizzle some cooking oil on the chicken.
3) Combine seasoned salt, Mrs Dash and black pepper and sprinkle on the chicken pieces.
4) Cover bowl and refrigerate for few hours or overnight.

5) Mix bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese and coat chicken pieces with this mixture.
6) Arrange chicken in a deep dish or deep pan. (use a pan that is at least 2 inches high to avoid the gravy/sauce from overflowing).

7) Bake in a pre-heated 375 degrees oven for about 25 minutes. While chicken is baking,

make the Cream Sauce:

1 can Cream of Chicken
1/2 pint sour cream
3 cans broth or milk or water
salt, optional
Mix all ingredients.
(Note:Salt is optional...there's already too much salt in the cream soup and Parmesan cheese)

8) Take the chicken out of the oven and pour the sauce over it.

9) Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees then put back the chicken to bake for about 1 hour or until the chicken are fork tender.

Serve hot over rice or mashed potatoes.

Adding broccoli in this recipe is optional, but a very delicious idea.

I don't particularly want to bake the broccoli with the chicken as they can become over cooked. I like my broccoli nice and crunchy. If you want to add in some broccoli, the best way is to cook the them separately.

About 1/2 hour before the chicken is done baking, steam the broccoli, then melt some butter in a pot and toss in the steamed broccoli. Before serving, either mound the steamed broccoli on the chicken or stir them in with the chicken.

ENJOY!!!

Notes from MaMely: If using the Panko flakes, you need more broth or water in the dish. Panko flakes absorb a lot of liquid, therefore you'll have a thick sauce or gravy. Also easy on the Parmesan cheese because it contains a lot of salt.

Some of the ingredients used in this recipe

#289_Hummingbird Cake

Hummingbird Cake
I'd simply call this Banana Pineapple Cake

This cake is very similar to the Carrot Cake recipe #237, click here,
the main difference is that the Carrot Cake has of course, carrots
while the Hummingbird Cake....no, it does not have hummingbirds in it,
but has pineapple and bananas! Amazing!
Then why is this cake called Hummingbird cake
if it's not made with the bird?
To read about the legend of this cake go to this link below:
http://ezinearticles.com/?Legend-of-the-Hummingbird-Cake&id=1119079

A bite of this cake will make you want to sing/hum
like a Hummingbird (^..*)

I usually don't brag about the outcome
of my cooking or baking adventures,
but I can't help to tell my readers here that this one came out so good.
Yes, so good that my dear hubby was so delighted with it that
he was the one who bragged how good it was
to the family and guests at our Easter dinner.
Now, he has listed this dessert on his top 3 favorites.
His other favorites are No-Bake Cheese Cake and the Carrot Cake.

I adapted this recipe from from Oprah.com.
with a little bit of plus and minus in the ingredients.
In other words, I modified the recipe
and made it a little like a spice cake. It's really an easy recipe to make,
basically combining the wet and dry ingredients together.

Toasting the Nuts
Spread 2 cups of nuts (pecans or walnuts) on a baking sheet and
bake in a 350 degrees pre heated oven until they become fragrant,
about 8-10 minutes. Let cool, then roughly chop. Set aside.

Preparing the pans:

Grease bottom of two 9" round pans with shortening,
then line with parchment paper. Grease the papers.

Dry ingredients:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp salt
Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl,
then stir using a wire whisk (or sift them together)
to blend the ingredients together. Set aside.

Wet Ingredients:
1 cup canola oil
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 can pineapple tidbits, drained,
then reserve 1/2 cup of the juice
2 large bananas, chopped

Procedure:
In a bowl, combine the bananas and pineapples. Set aside.

In another bowl, cream together canola oil and the sugars,
then beat in the eggs, one at a time.
Stir in the reserved pineapple juice and the vanilla extract.
Mix in the dry ingredients and 1 cup nuts.
Stir until everything is just blended together.
Blend in the pineapple/bananas.
Do not over mix.

Pour batter evenly between the prepared pans.
Bake in a pre-heated 350 degrees oven for 35-40 minutes.
Let cool completely before frosting the cakes.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 stick butter, room temperature
1-8oz. cream cheese, room temp.
4 cups powdered sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
2-3 Tbsp milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
(add more milk if necessary to achieve a spreading consistency)

Beat butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in powdered sugar and gradually add milk and vanilla. Continue to beat until creamy and spreadable.

To assemble the cake:

Place one cake, top side down, onto a serving platter. Spread with about 1/3 of the frosting. Place the other cake layer onto the frosted cake and spread the rest of the frosting over top and sides of the cake. Garnish with the rest of nuts. Chill for a few hours before slicing the cake.

ENJOY!!!

Note from MaMely:
I want to make sure there's not more than 1/2 cup of pineapple juice used in the mixture, so I thought draining the pineapple then saving 1/2 cup would be playing safe.

#288_LolliCakes for Easter

A CakeBall within a CakeBall...

This Cake Ball pictured above is a combination of
Banana Cake and Chocolate Cake,
where I encased a little ball of chocolate cake with banana cake,
and then dipped in melted chocolates.

These are Cake Balls and LolliCakes or CakePops
I made for Easter this year.
If you want to check out the recipe or procedure on
how to make these fun treats,
please click on the link below:

http://pinoyamericanrecipes.blogspot.com/2009/03/cakeballs-and-cakesicle.html

#286_Kung Pao Sauce for Stir Fries

Kung Pao Sauce can be made ahead of time then refrigerated until needed. I like to double the recipe so I always have the sauce ready anytime I want to make stir fries. You can find plenty of different versions for this sauce on the web, there's the authentic Chinese version and Westernized version, but here's my sister's version which I find perfect for my taste. I don't know exactly where this recipe falls under, whether Chinese or Western version, but its the way I like it.

1/4 cup Rice Vinegar
1/4 cup regular soy sauce
1/4 cup light soy sauce
1/2 cup Sweet Chili sauce*
1 Tb. peanut oil or sesame oil
1/8 tsp Chili paste**
Dash of Five Spice Powder
Ground pepper
3 Tbs. cornstarch dissolved in 1-1/2 cups water

Mix all ingredients in a saucepan.
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened,
but pourable, meaning not so thick.
That's it!!
Now you have the Kung Pao Sauce! You can use it on stir fry right away or....

Store sauce in jars or plastic containers and refrigerate for later use.

Recipe for Beef and Brocolli Stirfry with Kung Pao Sauce

coming up....also Kung Pao Chicken.

Notes from MaMely:
*Sweet Chili Sauce is the lumpia or egg roll dipping sauce. My favorite brand is "Pantai".
**Chili Paste is the bottle pictured on the left. The brand name (I think) is Sambal Oelek. It is very concentrated, so if you're like me, start with just a little bit, about 1/8 of a teaspoon then add some more if you want a spicier sauce.

#285_Fruit Salad with Buko

Fruit Salad with Buko
(Buko is young coconut)

My friend, Lisa made this fruit salad for her dinner party
last weekend and she sent with me a big bowl of it
so now I have pictures to post here.
I didn't bother to ask her how she made it because
I was pretty sure she made it the same way I do.
It's really good! Thank you, Lisa!!

This is an all-time Filipino favorite dessert and is prepared by combining different kinds of canned and bottled fruits. Some people add some cheese to it, which I don't care for at all.

Here's my favorite fruit combination:
2 cans (15.25 oz. ea.) Fruit Cocktail, well drained
1 bottle Nata de Coco, well drained*
I can Buko, well drained (young coconut)**
Fresh green grapes
Fresh peaches, cubed
(ripe Manila mangoes instead of peaches would be great if available)

For the Fruit Dressing:
Mix 1 can of condensed milk and 1 can of Nestle Cream
then lightly stir in with the fruit.
Chill for several hours before serving.

Here's my husband's favorite Fruit Medley:
Mix and match:

Fresh peaches
Fresh strawberries
Fresh red and green grapes
Fresh raspberries
Fresh cantaloupe
Fresh Honeydew
Fresh bananas
or mix and match any fresh fruits available or in season.
Topped with freshly-whipped cream (heavy cream + sugar)

Another option for Fruit Dressing for fresh fruits:
2 cups fresh orange juice + 2 Tbsps. cornstarch.
Cook until thick enough to pour over fruits.

Notes from MaMely:
*Nata de Coco are available in red, green colors and natural.
**Of course if you're in the Philippines or a place where Buko or young coconuts are available, you don't need to use the canned ones.

#284_Hors d'Oeuvres, Appetizers or Finger Foods

Hors d'oeuvres/ Hor'derves/ Horderves....
In plain language, PARTY FINGER FOODS

Here's some Finger Food recipe ideas to feed and please a crowd.....

1) Pinoy Style Chicken Sandwich Fillings
on Ritz Crackers.
(For the Chicken Sandwich Filling recipe, click here)

2) Chicken and Cream Cheese Fillings
on Ritz Crackers

2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded or chopped
mix with softened 1 bar of cream cheese.
Spoon fillings on top of crackers, then top with sliced green or black olives.

just an idea:
Slice some cheddar or American cheese about 1-1/2 inch squares.
Place a piece of cheese on top of crackers,
then spoon a dollop of chicken fillings on top of cheese,
then place an olive ring (either black or green olives) on top.

3) Tuna Fish Sandwich Fillings
on Ritz Crackers

(not shown)
Recipe:
1 can tuna fish, drained well
1/4 cup Mayonnaise
2 Tb sweet mixed pickles
1 tsp. white sugar (optional)

Mix everything together.
Put a little slice of cheese on top of crackers,
then top with the Tuna fillings.
Garnish with sliced olives.

4) Ham and Cheese on crackers
Slice ham and cheese into little squares and
stack them the way you want on top of crackers.

#283_Birthday Cake for a Dear Friend

Happy Birthday, aling Leyte!!

My friend, Erlinda cutting her Mom's birthday cake

Top tier cake has 3 layers of Banana Chocolate Cake, each layer
is filled with Cream cheese Frosting.
The bottom tier is a 2-layer Carrot Cake, also filled with Cream Cheese Frosting.
The whole cake is crumb-coated with the same frosting.

More pictures here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=10150123397034578&id=102145934577&aid=295903#!/album.php?fbid=10150124902699578&id=102145934577&aid=296488

#282_Mom-Daughter Birthday Cake

"Two for One Cake"
A dear friend, Nieves and her daughter were
celebrating their birthdays on the same day,
so I made this cake for both of them with "fence" as a partition.


On this side of the fence is for 3-year old Eya

On the other side of the fence is her mom's cake.

The cupcakes are Chocolate Banana Cake,
(extra from making the cakes)
frosted with Buttercream Frosting

The flowers I used on the cake are the sugar flowers
which I learned to make from Youtube.
(see previous post)
The cake is a 10-inch 2 layer Banana Chocolate Cake,
frosted with Cream Cheese Frosting,
while the picket fence is made of melting chocolates,
melted then cut out.

My friends, Stella and Yaye posed with the cake at the birthday party.

More pictures here:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/PinoyAmericanFavoriteRecipes/102145934577?ref=nf#!/album.php?fbid=10150123397034578&id=102145934577&aid=295903

#281_Sugar Flowers for Decorating Cakes

I took the Basic Wilton Cake Decorating Course (course 1)
but that was it...."basic decorating", but an essential course.
This rosettes design will be on Course 2 which I will have yet to take.

Two weeks ago I wanted to make these flowers to decorate
2 birthday cakes that I was making
for friends who were celebrating birthdays,
so I watched this step-by-step flower making video on
YouTube where I learned to make them.
It takes some practice and a lot of patience,
but it was a lot of fun making them.

To those who are interested in making this sugar flower design,
let me share the link with you:

.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7gvetgdNnw&feature=related

#280_Tinolang Manok (Chicken Stew)

Chicken Tinola with Chayote and Chili Pepper Leaves

One ingredient that makes this dish so distinctive is ginger.
Gotta have ginger in this dish or it is not Tinola.

This is a very popular dish in the Philippines and I believe every body knows how to make it,

so I'm not going to bother to write down the recipe. The only thing that I want to share is a technique that I learned from my mother.

In order to have that good tasting broth and chicken as well, my dear mother advised that patience is the key when working with meat...be it chicken, pork or beef. I used to use the quick method which is: saute the meat quickly then add water right away. She said that's a "no-no", don't rush it. My mother would cook this dish twice as long as I would like to, but she is right, her dish comes out tasting delicious all the time because she lets the salt penetrates into the meat.

Her secret is to "saute the meat really well" on medium low fire stirring frequently, click here.
To "saute real well" is to saute in the garlic then onions in hot oil, cook the onions until translucent then add the meat, in this case the chicken, then saute until the chicken renders its own fat. This would take around 20 minutes just sauteing the chicken, and then she would add some salt. More stirring to avoid scorching. Add a little water or broth, and a piece of ginger, cover the pan, simmer, hum, hum, stir, stir, one hand on the hip, add a little more water, cover the pan, simmer...then the final liquid is added. Hindi pa tapos.... put lid back on, simmer some more, check the saltiness. Put the veggies in and cook til they are done, in this case the Chayote in first then the Spinach or Sili Leaves.

FINALLY DONE! TIME TO EAT!!

Tinola with Chayote, Spinach and Enoki Mushrooms