Pumpkin Pie by Guest Chef Tara

Ingredients

1 small can pumpkin

1/2 c brown sugar

1/2 c granulate sugar

1 t cinnamon

1/4 t cloves

1/4 t ginger

2 eggs

1 c milk

Instructions

Mix all together and pour into unbaked pie shell. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and cook for an additional 40-50 minutes.

Amy's Delight

I've mentioned before that this blog is about tried and true recipes.  And if I find a new delicious recipe, I must make it twice to make sure it's as good as I thought the first time.  This week I was all ready to post a menu around a main dish I loved growing up, but when I made it I turned to my husband and said, "Is this as good as I've always thought it was?"  I could see the relief on his face as he was finally able to speak his truth as he exclaimed, "No!"  

Luckily for my faithful readers, I am ahead of the game and have some recipes and photos ready for just such an occasion as this.  And so I bring you: Amy's Delight.  (Remember Amy?  Of Brown Sugar Pork Loin fame?)

MENU

Melinda's Spinach Salad

Chicken Florentine (Amy's Delight)

Spaghetti

Lemon Asparagus with Pine Nuts

Garlic Bread

Dessert Crepes

Melinda's Spinach Salad

From the lovely Melinda Cameron.  My mom and Melinda have been friends since college, maybe just so that one day I would get the recipe for this salad.

Ingredients

1 large bag baby spinach

1 bag shredded carrots

1 bag shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 stick butter

1-2 oz sesame seed

1 bag sliced almonds

Oriental flavor Ramen Noodles

Sweet Vidalia Onion Dressing

Instructions

Saute butter, sesame seeds, almonds, Ramen Noodle and seasoning packet until brown.  Cool.  Mix bag of spinach, carrots and cheese.  Add sauteed topping, then toss with dressing.  

Chicken Florentine (Amy's Delight)

Abram was so taken with this dish he named it Amy's Delight in her honor.

Ingredients

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1 T Italian dressing seasoning

1/4 c butter

1/2 c half-and-half

3 t minced garlic

1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese

1 T lemon juice

1 big bag of fresh spinach (sauteed)

1 can cream of mushroom soup (I use half chicken, half mushroom - if you double the recipe you can also use cream of roasted garlic)

1 c shredded mozzarella cheese

4 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced (sauteed)

2/3 c bacon, crumbled

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place the chicken breast halves on a baking sheet; bake 20 to 30 minutes, until no longer pink and juices run clear (sometimes I marinade the chicken in Italian dressing and then grill it outside).  Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees.  Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Stirring constantly, mix in the garlic, lemon juice, cream of mushroom soup, Italian seasoning, half-and-half, and Parmesan cheese.  Arrange the spinach over the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.  Cover the spinach with the mushrooms.  Pour half the mixture from the saucepan over the mushrooms.  Arrange chicken breasts in the dish, and cover with the remaining sauce mixture.  Sprinkle with bacon bits, and top with mozzarella cheese.  Bake 20 to 25 minutes in the 400 degree oven, until bubbly and lightly browned.  Serve over pasta.   

Lemon Asparagus with Pine Nuts

This is sort of a fancy side dish, but I'm telling you, little kids love it.  Weird, I know, but I've had several kids shock us by demanding seconds.  What is better than a dish everyone loves?  Not much.  

Ingredients

1 lb. fresh asparagus

3 T pine nuts

1/4 c olive oil

1 T lemon juice

1 clove garlic

1/2 t salt

1/2 t dried basil

1/2 t dried oregano

freshly ground pepper, to taste

Instructions

Snap off tough ends of asparagus.  Remove scales from stalks with knife or vegetable peeler, if desired.  Place spears in a steaming rack over boiling water; cover and steam 4-5 minutes or until spears are crisp-tender.  Transfer to a serving platter.  Saute pine nuts in a small skillet over medium heat 2-3 minutes, until browned.  Set aside.  Combine olive oil and remaining ingredients in a medium saucepan; stir with a wire whisk to blend.  Cook over medium heat 2-3 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring constantly.  Pour over asparagus.  Sprinkle with pine nuts.  Let stand to room temperature before serving.  

Dessert Crepes

Abram cringes every time I say I'm going to make crepes because he knows I'm about to bust out my crepe maker.  Having spent 2 years in France, he is a bit of a crepe snob and has let me know in no uncertain terms that my crepes are not real crepes.  So maybe we can convince him to be a guest chef and give us a real lesson, but in the mean time, I am fairly confident that you will love this recipe: 

Wrap a crepe around two scoops of mint chocolate chip and top with hot fudge sauce.   If you are my mom, whip up some cream to top it all off. 

All Purpose Crepe Recipe

Ingredients

3 eggs

1/4 t salt

2 c flour

2 c milk

1/4 c melted butter

Instructions

Combine ingredients and blend for about 1 minute.  Refrigerate batter at least 1 hour.  You may want to add 1 or 2 T of milk or water if you like thinner crepes.  Makes about 30 crepes.

Hot Fudge Sauce

Ingredients

6 T butter

2 c confectioners sugar

2/3 c Baker's Cocoa

1 c evaporated milk

Instructions

Melt butter in saucepan.  Add sugar and cocoa and mix well.  Add milk gradually, beating until smooth.  Bring to boil over medium heat.  Cook and stir about 5 minutes, or until sauce is thick.  Serve hot.  Makes 2 cups.