Butterscotch Blondies! YUM!!!

I haven't posted anything in forever (it's been a crazy busy summer!!!) but I will definitely be able to post a bit more often now. Thanks for your patience. :)

I'm 21!!!!!!!! Wooooooooooo!!!!!!!! As I was perusing the liquor section of the local grocery store, I came across a bottle of Butterscotch Schnapps. It's a large bottle for only about 8 bucks. The drink is really yum and so sweet that just a little bit with milk and ice is fantastic. This drink inspired me to make Butterscotch Blondies. So, I pulled out my Good Housekeeping Brownies cookbook (Yes, a whole cookbook dedicated brownies. Heaven!) and looked at their recipe for this. I pretty much used this recipe and added the schnapps and butterscotch morsels. This has a delicious buttery taste. The morsels sink to the bottom and make the base a gooey sweetness. The schnapps add a great taste but I think it would be just as good without.

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 t baking powder

3/4 t salt

6 T butter

1 3/4 cups packed light brown sugar

2 t vanilla extract

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 cup Butterscotch Schnapps

1/2 cup butterscotch morsels

1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 13" b

y 9" baking pan.

2)In a small bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt.

3) In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Remove saucepan from heat and stir brown sugar and vanilla into butter. Add eggs and stir until well mixed. Stir in Butterscotch Schnapps.

4) Stir in flour, pecans, and butterscotch morsels until just blended.

5) Bake 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out almost clean. Blondie will firm as it cools.

6) ENJOY!!!!!!

Pork Tenderloin Wrapped in Bacon with Blackberry Chutney

The original recipe is from the New South Grilling cookbook by Robert St. John. I have slightly altered it.

I had been pouring over cookbooks and food blogs for about a week trying to find the perfect recipes for Easter. Finally, a beautiful light shined from heaven and landed upon the wonderful New South Grilling cookbook in my pour bursting at the seams bookshelf. Yes, when I opened the book to this recipe, angels did start singing. You're wondering about my sanity now, but when you make this your mouth will dance for joy. :D After being marinated in the apple juice mix and baked in bacon, the pork is slightly sweet and very juicy. Couple that with a slightly spicy, beautiful deep red raspberry sauce and you will be a very happy camper. Very happy.

PORK 

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup apple juice

1 T red wine vinegar

1 bay leaf

1 T brown sugar

1/8 t cinnamon

1/4 t black pepper

1 t salt

2 pork tenderloins

8-10 slices thin cut bacon

1 recipe blackberry chutney (recipe follows)

DIRECTIONS:

1) Combine all but last 3 ingredients in a small saucepan and heat just until the sugar is melted. Allow to cool.

2) Place tenderloins in a container and pour marinade on the pork. I marinaded the pork for 2 days but the original recipe says 2-3 hours. Turn the pork several times to ensure that all surfaces are covered.

3) Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

4) Starting at one end of the tenderloin, firmly wrap the bacon around the meat in a spiral direction. Cover all surfaces.

5) Cook in preheated oven for 45 minutes and check. It will be ready when the middle is light brown and the edges are pink. You may need to increase the 

temperature.

6) Slice the pork and serve with blackberry chutney.

CHUTNEY

INGREDIENTS:

I cup finely chopped green onions

1 cup medium diced yellow onions

2 cloves minced garlic

1 T unsalted butter

2 cups blackberries

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup blackberry preserves

2 T apple cider vinegar

1 T black pepper

1 T powdered ginger

1 T cinnamon

2 pinches Lowry's Seasoned Salt

1 pinch paprika

1 pinch cayenne

1 pinch garlic powder

1 t dry mustard

1 t dry oregano

1 t dry thyme

DIRECTIONS:

1) In a saucepan, cook green and yellow onions and garlic in butter over moderate heat,stirring occasionally, until golden. 

2) Stir in remaining ingredients and simmer, uncovered , stirring occasionally, until berries burst and chutney is thickened, approximately 20 minutes. Remover from heat.

3) The original recipe says to strain the chutney through a fine mesh sieve. I didn't do this step because I don't have one but the seeds were a little annoying, so if you have one then use it. If you don't the it's still really delicious.

The chutney is best when made a few days in advance. I made it 2 days early. It will hold in the refrigerator for 1 week.

Apple Scones

I was introduced to scones at a tea party when I was about 8 (Yes, tea parties still exist). It was so much fun for a young girl. An excuse to wear my best dress, drink in  pretty teacups, and eat sandwiches and pastries! So, I have to thank my cousin Lauren and Aunt Cheryl for introducing me to such a fantastic treat! :D

This recipe is so flexible and easy. I looked at a bunch of scone recipes and created a one that used ingredients that I already had. I'm sure if you don't have whole milk you can use evaporated milk and butter or regular milk, butter, and a little extra sugar. If you don't have apples, pretty much any not-too-juicy fruit will do. The result is a wonderful, lightly sweet, fluffy on the inside, crunchy on the outside, fuss-free scone. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups flour

1 1/2 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

1/3 cup sugar (I used raw sugar but white sugar would be fine)

6 tablespoons plus 1 tablespoon cold butter, cut in pieces

1 cup apple, diced (about 2 small apples)

1 egg, beaten

1/4 cup plus 1/8 cup evaporated milk

1/4 cup whole milk

1/2 t vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

1) Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2) In a medium bowl, mix together flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Rub butter into mixture with your fingers until it resembles course crumbs. Stir in apple pieces.

3) In a separate small bowl, whisk together egg, evaporated milk, whole milk, and vanilla extract. Add milk mixture to flour mixture all at once and stir until moistened.

4) Drop spoonfuls of mixture onto a buttered pan and press flat to about 3/4 inch thick. The mixture will be very sticky. It should yield about 10 scones.

5) Melt 1 tablespoon butter into 1/8 cup evaporated milk. Brush this over scones ad sprinkle with course sugar.

6) Bake for 15 minutes or until scones are golden brown.

Thai Chicken Pot Pie

I don't know about you, but when I tell my stomach it's going to get something and it doesn't happen, it becomes relentless. It makes me crave that item until it tastes victory. Most recently the item was chicken pot pie. My boyfriend and I were supposed to make it together a few weeks ago, but one thing led to another and we just didn't have time. Lets just say I did not have a very happy stomach. It's been forcing me to think, dream, and smell phantom chicken pot pie! Poor me! So if I've been totally zoning while we were in the middle of conversation, it's probably because I was thinking of juicy chicken coupled with peas and a flaky crust. Im sorry.

Luckily for me, and my stomach, when i did finally get the time to indulge in this fantasy, I happened to already have a box of thai chicken broth and a couple bags of cubed grilled chicken. So this is a really quick and yummy recipe. The chicken broth I used came from Publix but if you can't find it, it would probably work just as well with regular broth, curry powder, and coconut milk.

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound chicken, cubed and cooked

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 t black pepper

1 medium onion, chopped

1 cup carrots, sliced

1 cup frozen peas

1 can cream of mushroom soup, condensed

1 32oz box thai chicken broth

2 pie crusts

DIRECTIONS:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2) Place the garlic, onion, black pepper, and carrots in a medium to high heat skillet. Pour in enough broth to cover the vegetables. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer for about 10 minutes.

3) In a large bowl, combine the chicken, peas, cream of mushroom soup, and the chicken broth mixture. Pour mixture into 1st pie crust and cover with second pie crust.

4) Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, the at 400 degrees for about 10 more minutes or until crust is golden brown. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.