Recipe - Stuffed Garlic Chicken Breasts (in a cast iron skillet)

Here is a recipe that I just cooked up today, for the first time, and let me tell you it was very very good.  I used a cast iron skillet, but I am sure if you do not have one you could just cook it in a regular pan on the stove, and then transfer the chicken into a casserole, but I would highly recommend using a cast iron skillet.  

Stuffed Garlic Chicken Breasts (in a cast iron skillet)
Ingredients:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
4 boneless chicken breasts
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons canola oil
1/4 cup salted butter
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons barbecue sauce
1/3 cup parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine the cream cheese, 3/4 the garlic and onion, and the red pepper flakes. 
Cut each chicken breast almost in half, to create a pocket for stuffing.  Stuff each chicken breast with cream cheese mixture, and secure breast closed with toothpicks.  Season each side of chicken with salt and pepper. 
Heat oil over medium heat in a cast iron skillet.  Sear chicken on each side for 3-4 minutes.
Transfer to oven and bake covered for 25 minutes.
Meanwhile melt butter in a small skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic, and cook until almost translucent.  Add vinegar and barbecue sauce, and heat through. 
Remove skillet from oven and pour the sauce over the chicken.  Sprinkle the parmesan cheese over the chicken.
Return the chicken to the oven and bake covered for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until done.


To be served with the chicken I made some rice, but not just plain ordinary white rice.  Instead of adding water to the rice I added a can of my homemade vegetable stock and a can of homemade turkey stock.  I will have to explain in a future post how I make my homemade canned stock.  I use them in everything. 

Recipe - Slow Cooker Creamed Corn

This recipe is the perfect Thanksgiving recipe because it is so easy, all you have to do is throw it all together in a slow cooker and mix it every now and then.  It can pretty much stay in the crock pot on low until you are ready to serve.  So easy, and so much better than plain sweet corn.

Slow Cooker Creamed Corn
1 quart and 1 pint of canned corn (or an equivalent amount of frozen corn or store bought canned corn)
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker.  Cook on high for the first hour, then lower temperature to low for 2 to 4 more hours.

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!

Recipe- Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake

This is one of the pumpkin pies that I make for Thanksgiving this year, and I know pumpkin time is pretty much over now, but it was so good that I just have to share the recipe.  I was not sure how I would like the idea of a pumpkin cheesecake, it just did not sound to great to me, but boy was I wrong.  It is very good, and so easy to make.

Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 (9 inch) deep dish prepared graham cracker crust
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground cloves
1 pinch ground nutmeg

In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla.  Beat until smooth. Blend in eggs one at a time.  Remove 1/2 of the batter and spread into the bottom of crust, and set aside.  To the remaining batter in the bowl add pumpkin, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, an stir gently until well blended, and spread over the batter in the crust.  Bake in a preheated oven at 325 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes, or until center is set.  Allow to cool, then refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight.  Enjoy!


Graham Cracker Crust
(use for Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake)
1 1/2 cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup white sugar
6 tablespoons butter, melted

Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter until well blended.  Press mixture into a 9 inch (for above recipe deep dish) pie plate.  Bake at 375 degrees for 7 minutes.  Cool.  If recipe calls of unbaked pie shell, just chill for about 1 hour.  (For above recipe I did not chill.) 

Recipe - Toasted Garlic Bread

Someone has brought it to my attention that I need to post some of my recipes from Thanksgiving.  I use to post recipes, but have not done so for a long time, so now that I have been inspired, here we go.  I have decided to try and post a recipe every week (at least for the next couple months, since I do not have any shows or markets to attend), so here is my first recipe of the week:  Toasted Garlic Bread

I made this the first time for Thanksgiving this year.  It is sooo easy and sooooo good!  After Thanksgiving I made this again to use up some french bread I had sitting around.  I cooked up about a half a loaf of french bread and me and my parents ate the hole thing  right away.

Toasted Garlic Bread
 about 1/2 a loaf of my French Bread (sliced)
5 tablespoons butter, softened
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic (minced)
2 teaspoons fresh oregano
salt and pepper to taste
shredded mozzarella cheese for to of bread

In a small bowl mix butter, olive oil, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper.  Spread the mixture on the bread slices.  Low broil for about 5 minutes, or until bread just starts to brown.  Watch carefully to make sure they do not burn.  Remove from oven and top with cheese, return to broiler for 2 to 3 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bread is desired brownness.  Enjoy! 

Thanksgiving Pics!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!  It took me a while but I am finally getting around to posting my pictures from Thanksgiving!  Like always we made way too much food, but it all tasted so good!

Our Thanksgiving Turkey!

From Fair View Meadow Farm in Wellington.

Creamy Cheesy Turnips

Steamed Cabbage

Homemade Gravy

Mashed Potatoes with Chives

 Creamed Corn

 

Sweet and Sour Green Beans

 

Spaghetti Squash

 

Steamed Purple Cauliflower and more Steamed Cabbage

 

Macaroni Salad

Roasted Chinese Cabbage with a Chive-Mustard Vinaigrette

Garlic Bread Stuffing

 

Roasted Delicata Squash

 

Garlic Bread (Made out of my French Bread)

 

My plate at Thanksgiving, full of a little bit of everything!

 

 

My dad carving our turkey.

 

 

And my mom, having fun and toasting the camera, and waiting to eat.

 

This years pies.  

For some reason when I got up on Thanksgiving Eve and started to think about what kind of pies I was going to make that day for Thanksgiving, I must have lost my mind.  I was planning on making three regular pumpkin pies, but for some crazy reason, I decided that was not enough pies, for four people.

So I made 3 pumpkin pies, 1 honey pumpkin pie, and 1 cheesecake pumpkin pie. 

 

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I hope everyone had a very Happy Thanksgiving!

From everyone at Real Veggies Farm!

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Upcoming Events - Saturday, November 4, 2017 & Sunday, November 5, 2017

Come see us this weekend at:

We will have:  pasta, bread, garlic, and some vegetables!
Hope to see everyone there!