Creamy Mashed Potatoes

Hey everyone! I am back from out of town and cannot wait to share this creamy, delicious recipe with you. I pulled it straight from the Pioneer Woman's cookbook. OH. MY. GOSH. We had our friends Jorge and Tricia over for dinner and Jorge put these in his mouth and said, "These are the best mashed potatoes I have ever had." and let me just say I have to agree. In my next post I will show you what I served them with which is also divine southern food. Any guesses on what it will be? So for those of y'all craving some good southern cooking stay tuned...this is just the beginning. From the Splendid Kitchen enjoy!!!

Ingredients:
5 pounds Russet Or Yukon Gold Potatoes
¾ cups Butter
1 package (8 Oz.) Cream Cheese, Softened
½ cups (to 3/4 Cups) Half-and-Half
½ teaspoons (to 1 Teaspoon) Lawry's Seasoned Salt (I used Accent)
Salt to taste
½ teaspoons (to 1 Teaspoon) Black Pepper

Begin by peeling and slicing your potatoes. I would recommend cutting them in fourths or just a bunch of small piece; this will just allow them to cook quicker. Also as I cut them I go ahead and put them in the pot so that it will be easy to transfer them. So wash them off in cold water and place in a large pot of water.




Bring the water to a boil and allow to cook for 20-30 min. You will know they are done when they pass the fork check. Bear with me because the picture showing how it should be is 1) extremely blurry 2) the little mermaid plate is making an appearance again...



Drain your potatoes and place back into the pot.


Turn your heat on low. Now you can begin to mash them. If you have a potato masher more power to you. If you are like me and do not then simply improvise with either a fork or spoon. They are "mashed" when all the lumps are out. Turn heat off.


Time to make this dish sinful! Add two sticks of butter and mix it together.



Now I am going to ask you to add the cream cheese. It's OK you can do this. It is no calories...I..um...promise ;) Mix together!



So I am going to ask you to add one more thing that just might make you either elated because you know the outcome is going to be fantastic or feel more guilty. I choose to feel happy about it. Half and Half. That's right...go ahead...pour in in, mix it in.


Add seasoned salt (I used Accent), salt and pepper to taste. You know the drill...mix it on in!



All that is left is to scoop those savory mashed potatoes into a 2-quart baking dish. Smooth out the top and if you feel compelled to add a few tabs of butter to the top, which, I think you should, then please do so. It might even melt on top before you put them in the oven like mine did.



So you can cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days or simply pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees and cover with a lid or foil and bake for about 25-30 min.
All done.... :)

Pure bliss. and I served it with.... well you will have to wait for the next post to see that :) Happy mashing from the Splendid Kitchen!

Printable recipe:
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/11/delicious_creamy_mashed_potatoes/

Honey Raisin Bran Muffins

Hey everyone! I am about to leave town one last time before school starts (a final hoo-rah) but before I leave I wanted to share with y'all a little recipe that is easy and yummy. Now I am normally not a huge breakfast person unless it includes pancakes, bacon, chocolate milk and coffee (yes, I like to drink both) the sad part is that I rarely get to have that sort of breakfast; however, I do love muffins. My mom had gotten this recipe and while her and my dad were on a date I decided to make them. I knew she would be excited to see them when they got home. They got home and for some reason she walked into the pantry and saw the Raisin Bran cereal still sitting on the shelf. Turns out I had accidentally used Raisin Bran Crunch (oops!) It ended up being no big deal and the muffins were delicious! So either way you shake it they will be good. In fact if you are feeling like living on the edge make both! Just a thought....From the Splendid Kitchen Enjoy!

Yields: 12 servings

Ingredients:
1 1/4 Cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 Cups Kellogg's Raisin Bran cereal
1 Cup milk
1/4 Cup honey
1 Egg
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil

To start off these muffins go ahead and pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.

Combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.


Mix together and set aside.


In a large mixing bowl, mix together the cereal, milk and honey.


Let stand for about 1-2 minutes just so the cereal can absorb some of the milk and honey.

Add egg and oil and beat well.




Time to add the flour mixture! Be sure and add slowly until it is all incorporated.


Perfect!


Grab your muffin pan and either spray with some PAM or put cupcake liners in. Distribute the batter evenly. Note you can really use whatever size muffin tin you like it will just slightly alter the cook time and the serving size. The recommended size is 2 1/2 inches. (12 muffins)


Pop 'em in the oven for about 18-20 minutes or until you notice the tops browning....and sooner than you know it they are done!



They should come out fairly easily if you followed the directions 2 steps ago :) Sometimes it helps to just get a knife and run it around the edges and then they will pop out easily. The picture is a little fuzzy but it is still a cute lookin muffin.


Simply set them onto a cooling rack and there you have it!


These are great warmed up and you will not have to concern yourself with eating them quickly. Mine lasted a little over a week. Bringing great muffins to you...until next time happy baking from the Splendid Kitchen!

Printable Recipe:
Stir together flour, baking powder salt and sugar. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together Kellogg's Raisin Bran cereal, milk and honey. Let stand about 1-2 minutes or until cereal is softened. Add egg and oil and beat well.
Add flour mixture, stirring until combined. Pour batter evenly into 12 greased 2 1/2 inch muffin tins.
Bake at 400 degrees for about 18-20 min. our until slightly golden. Serve warm.

Favorite Blogs

Hey Y'all so I know that I am seriously slacking on posting new recipes but I have been crazy busy and I am about to leave town yet again. I am still hoping to get the muffin recipe posted before I leave but until then I thought I would share some of my favorite blogs that I go to for great recipes. Keep checking back! I promise a new post will come soon! From the Splendid Kitchen let the blog viewing begin. :)

www.thelittlekitchenthatcould.blogspot.com

www.thepioneerwoman.com

www.whatmegansmaking.com

www.amanda.fakeginger.com

www.annies-eats.com

www.browneyedbaker.com

www.smells-like-home.com

www.whippedtheblog.com

www.homesicktexan.blogspot.com

These are just a few that I have discovered. If you have a blog or know of any other good cooking blogs please let me know! Happy August from the Splendid Kitchen!

To Keep You Entertained...

Ok so I am back in town and will be back to blogging but until I get the next post to yall I thought I would share a funny picture. So as I mentioned in the last post, which was about the amazing frozen cookie cake, I did not take pictures of me and my friend Shannon making it but I did happen to take a picture of Kendall with the cake. The only thing is she does not know I am posting this so yes I put a black bar over her eyes...Don't worry Ken no one will know who you are...Funny times from the Splendid Kitchen!

P.S. Check Back soon...I have a good muffin recipe coming :)






Now go and look at some more recipes!

Divine Frozen Chocolate Cookie Cake

Hey everyone so I am about to go on vacation but I wanted to leave you with something that my friend Shannon and I made for my friend Kendall. You are probably thinking "Didn't you make her that cookie cake for her birthday already?" well yes I made that and actually gave that to her on her birthday but we had not gotten together to give her her gifts so we had a birthday dinner and this georgus cake was the cherry on top to a great night of food and friends...It was unlike any ice cream cake I have ever had. The cake was so moist and then with the cookies and cream ice cream in the middle and the ganache...wow.... You have to try it to believe it! Anyway I did not document this on my own but I have posted the link and a picture just to give you a little taste of wgar I would highly recommend! I will without a doubt make it again! :) From the Splendid Kitchen enjoy!!!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sandra-lee/frozen-chocolate-cookie-cake-recipe/index.html

Meaty, Cheesy Homemade Lasagna

Hey everyone! Today's post is one that is time consuming but totally worth it. Our friends, Jorge and Tricia, have been coming over this summer to try my new recipes. It has been so much fun and I am so thankful for their friendship. Good times....Anyway onto the recipe...this was the first of many meals I have made and will be making this summer. I had a blast making it and will make it again. I got it from my Pioneer Woman cookbook and when I saw it I knew it was a must have. Another thing that is so great about it is that you can assemble it and freeze until ready to bake. So if you are in the mood for amore you will fall in love with this...all it takes is one bite of this cheesy goodness and you will be sold.

Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon olive oil
Salt
10 Oz. lasagna noodles
1 Lb. mozzarella Cheese
1 1/2 Lbs. hamburger
1 Lb. hot breakfast sausage
4 Finely chopped garlic cloves
2 14.5-Ounce cans whole tomatoes
2 6-Oz. cans tomato paste
Freshly ground black pepper
10-12 Basil Leaves
1/4 Cup flat-leaf parsley
3 Cups low fat cottage cheese (I used ricotta cheese)
2 Beaten eggs
1 Cup grated parmesan cheese

Begin by pre-heating your oven to 350 degrees
Now you can kind of do this recipe in a few different orders. In my cookbook it said to make the noodles and then make your sausage mixture; however, I decided to make the sausage mixture first so here it goes....

Grab a large skillet and combine your hamburger, hot sausage, and garlic cook until brown. You should be able to get this done over medium heat. When done drain off fat.


Wipe skillet clean and place meat back into it. Add tomatoes(with juice), tomato paste, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Stir together and let simmer, uncovered, for about 45 min. I would recommend stirring occasionally just to make sure everything is getting cooked properly.


While this simmers, cut up some flat-leaf parsley and fresh basil. Add about half to the meat mixture.


Stir it all together and it should begin to look very yummy. Once done just set aside.


At this point it would be a good time to grate all your cheeses and have them ready.


In a medium sized bowl combing the cottage or ricotta cheese. Personally, I cannot handle cottage cheese which is why I substituted it for ricotta which is a great alternative but if you love it go for it! So before I went on my cottage cheese rant, I was saying that you add that, eggs, 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, and the other half of the herbs.


Stir together well and all that is left is for you to make your noodles.


Simply get a large pot of water and add olive oil and a dash of salt. Allow to come to a boil and cook noodles until al dente (which basically means still a tad soft) I learned that from Italian cook Giada from the Food Network. Funny what you can learn from t.v...


When done drain the noodles and lay them on a plate covered with foil. Now all you have to do is assemble and cook! Take a deep rectangular pan. I used a 13 X 9 and it was perfect but whatever you think will work. Be sure and spray with PAM so that your lasagna does not stick. Place 4 noodles on the bottom of the pan. It is ok if they overlap. Then spread half of your cottage(ricotta) cheese mixture on top.


Sprinkle half of the mozzarella on top...It is beginning to look wonderful!!!


The last step is to add half of the meat mixture and then repeat beginning with the noodles...When everything is assembled the last thing to do is to add the other half of the parmesan on top... it should look like this...


Stick into the oven for about 35-45 min. The lasagna should be bubbly and a wonderful aroma should be coming from your oven. Allow to cool about 10 min. before serving.

When it is all said and done the finished product should make your mouth water.


OH MY GOODNESS.... this is so incredibly sensational. I also made some garlic bread which I was going to post the link for if you wanted to make it but the reason I am not posting it is because it was not very good. If you are really curious I believe it was called "Gotta Have it Garlic Bread" from Aaron McCargo Jr. However, I could not find the recipe online to post and it simply was not good enough to type out.


Oh man...


Enjoy and I know you will have love at first bite! Lots of amore from the Splendid Kitchen! See yall later!

Printable Directions:
Note that these printable directions are slightly different but all in all essentially the same especially since they are made by the Pioneer Woman too.
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/the_best_lasagn/

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

ATTENTION ATTENTION! You will want to make this next recipe! These cookies are phenomenal! and wait for it...they are Weight Watcher which means they are not bad for you! Could it get any better than that? You would never know these were Weight Watchers...scouts honor. :) Also I double the recipe because if not they disappear in one night! Anyway, sorry it has been a while things have been very busy around here! I thought I would have tons of time this summer? Oh well...keep checking back I have some really delicious things to post...slowly but surly they will come up...I promise! Hope everyone has a fantastic week! From the Splendid Kitchen enjoy!

Ingredients (not doubled):
2 Tbsp. softened butter
2 Tsp. canola oil
1/2 Cup dark brown sugar
1 Tsp vanilla extract
1/8 Tsp. table salt
1 Large egg white(s)
3/4 Cup all-purpose flour
1/4 Tsp. baking soda
3 Oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips (about 1/2 cup)

Begin by pre-heating your oven to 375 degrees
In a medium bowl, cream butter, oil and brown sugar together. Add vanilla, salt and egg white and mix together thoroughly.


Mix together flour and baking soda. Add chocolate chips and stir to distribute evenly. A little side note: sometimes if I have the mini chocolate chips I like using those better in this recipe simply because the cookies are on the smaller side so I feel like I am getting more chocolate. Whether that is true or not who knows but ya know whatever floats your boat!



Make about half-teaspoon sized pieces of dough (or a little bigger) onto a non-stick baking sheet.


Bake cookies for 4-6 min. and let cool on a wire rack.



Yum! These are so good! Of course I already put some on a plate for my dad and realized that I had them on the ariel plate again! (Not exactly the best for photography) So I still have a Little Mermaid Plate? No big deal...who am I kidding I love Disney.


Now if you are on WW it is 2 cookies for one point...if not eat however many your heart desires :)
From the Splendid Kitchen get baking! See Y'all soon!

Printable Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 375. In medium bowl, cream butter, oil and brown sugar together. Add vanilla, salt, and egg white, and mix together. Mix together flour and baking soda. Add chocolate chips and stir to distribute evenly. Drop rounded half-teaspoons of dough onto a non-stick baking sheet. Bake cookies for 4-6 min. then cool on a wire rack.