Be our Guest...

Kaelyn and I love working in our home, cleaning and organizing and preparing meals. With four guests arriving, we had lots to do. Earlier in the week we had planned our menu and run our errands. The house was cleaned but we weren't done yet. With the guests arriving around lunch time, Kaelyn and I began to put the finishing touches on everything.

We wanted to make sure that everyone had a warm welcome so we made guest baskets for each room. In each basket we put fresh towels and wash cloths and for this occasion we made special wine labels to commemorate our Walk for Lupus.


I am big on preparing simple dishes when company is around. All too often I am over-ambitious with cooking and end up in the kitchen when I would rather be sitting with my company enjoying the conversations. So now I keep it delicious but simple. We grilled chicken and corn brushed in olive oil and paprika and complimented it with a spring salad. I also grilled extra chicken to make chicken salad for lunch the following day. I also keep fresh fruit and vegetables on hand for quick snacks.

Almond Trail Mix Recipe
3 cups Almonds
1 cup Dark chocolate chunks or chips
1 cup Craisins

Mix together

At the Holiday Bistro...

This week my sister came in to town for a short visit and we prepared a delicious meal. She brought fresh baked bread from the Seattle market and a beautiful spring bouquet of flowers for our centerpiece. Unfortunately there were no leftovers for us to enjoy the next day.



Oven Chicken Risotto

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup uncooked Arborio rice (short-grain)
• 1/2 small onion, diced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups chopped deli-roasted chicken
• 1 (8-oz.) package fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
•  1/4 cup shredded fresh basil

Preheat oven to 400°. Place butter in a 13- x 9-inch baking dish; bake 5 minutes or until melted. Stir in broth and next 3 ingredients.



Bake, covered, at 400° for 35 minutes. Remove from oven. Fluff rice with a fork. Stir in chicken, mozzarella, and tomatoes; sprinkle with shredded basil. Serve immediately

courtesy: Southern Living

At the Holiday Bistro...

Chocolate Cupakes with White Truffle Frosting

Cupcakes

• 1 box devil's food cake mix
• oil, water, eggs as directed on box

Frosting

• 1 cup white vanilla baking chips
• 1 container vanilla frosting

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make and cool cake as directed on box.
• In medium microwaveable bowl, microwave baking chips uncovered on High 45 seconds. Stir if necessary. Microwave in 15 second increments stirring after each until chips are melted. Cool 5 minutes. Stir in frosting until well blended. Frost immediately or pipe frosting on cupcakes.

Courtesy of http://www.bettycrocker.com/

At the Holiday Bistro...

Creamy Potato Soup with Garlic

This has become a fast family favorite, perfect for company or just a lazy Sunday afternoon.

• 4 12-oz. cans of chicken broth
• 2 12-oz. cans of evaporated milk
• 5 lbs. potatoes peeled and cubed
• 3 garlic cloves, diced
• 5 1/2 cups yellow or white onions, chopped
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 pint whipping cream
• 9 slices of bacon cooked and crumbled

Saute the garlic and onions in butter until translucent. Spoon in to large kettle. Pour in chicken broth or evaporated milk. Cook over medium heat. Add the potato pieces, bay leaves and whipping cream. Periodically smash potatoes against side of kettle. Stir them in to the soup. Heat until hot.

Serve with shredded cheddar cheese, bacon bits, and chopped scallions. We also enjoy fresh sourdough bread and salad with our soup.

At the Holiday Bistro...

HOLIDAY BISTRO
Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls








As a young girl, Christmas time was a special time filled with traditions at our house. One of my favorite things was spending the afternoon with my grandmother making peanut butter balls. After she passed away I continued the tradition and now my girls are helping me.

Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup butter
1 lb. confectioners sugar, sifted
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup coconut
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1 24 oz. chocolate chips

Melt butter and peanut butter in medium saucepan. Once melted add confectioners sugar. Transfer mixture to a large mixing bowl. Add graham crackers, coconut, and nuts to mixture. After mixing all the ingredients together, mixture should form soft balls.

Roll into 1" balls and place on a cookie sheet.

In a double boiler melt chocolate chips. Once melted drop peanut butter balls into chocolate and roll around until completely covered. Place on wax paper. Allow to harden before storing.

Makes about 80 peanut butter balls

The Holiday Bistro...

This year with the holiday season as inspiration, we have been creating atmosphere by eating dinner under holiday lights with Christmas music playing softly. So I thought I would add a new section to my blog and share some of our more adventurous meals here. ..

Last week we invited some friends over for dinner this week so in typical Shelley-fashion I googled recipes, filled my shopping cart full of goodies, donned my polka dot apron, and began cooking. The menu was Garlic Roasted Chicken with white wine sauce, roasted potatoes, salad, sourdough bread with olive oil and rosemary and for the most important course (yes, I love dessert!)...red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting.

Ingredients:

1 4 lb. whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2-3 whole heads of garlic, cloves seperated (40 cloves) but not peeled

Olive oil

1 1/4 cup dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc

3 large sprigs of fress tarragon

3 large sprigs of fresh thyme

Method:

1. Lightly smash the garlic cloves with the side of a heavy chef's knife, just enough to break the cloves. Leave peel on.

2. Trim the chicken pieces of excess fat. Pat them dry and sprinkle pieces generously with sale and pepper. Heat 3 Tbsp olive oil in a Dutch oven (or a large thick-bottom pan with a tight fitting cover) on medium high. Working in batches, brown the chicken pieces on all sides. Lay the chicken pieces on the hot oil, do not move until browned, then turn over to other side using tongs. Remove from pan when browned.

3. Add a little more olive oil to the pan if necessary. add the garlic and saute until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Add the wine and the herbs. Bring to a boil. Add the chicken pieces. Reduce the heat to medium low. Cover the pan and simmer until the chicken is cooked through. Move the chicken pieces from top to bottom every 5 minutes for about 20 minutes.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer chicken pieces to a platter; spoon garlic sauce over the chicken.

courtesy: http://www.simplyrecipes.com/