Apple Stuffed Chicken Breast

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/2 c chopped apple
2 tbsp shredded Cheddar cheese
1 tbsp Italian-style dried bread crumbs
1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tbsp chicken stock (would of used apple juice but I didn't have any)
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 tbsp rubbed sage
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp apple pie spice,  divided
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 apple sauce

Combine apple, cheese, bread crumbs, cinnamon, 1 tbs apple pie spice, nutmeg and sage.  Set aside. 

Flatten chicken breasts between sheets of waxed paper to 1/4 inch thickness. Divide apple mixture between chicken breasts, and roll up each breast. Secure with toothpicks.

Melt butter or margarine in a 7 inch skillet over medium heat. Brown stuffed chicken breasts.

 Add chicken stock. Cover. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink
Transfer chicken to a serving platter. Combine 1 tablespoon water and cornstarch; stir into juices in pan, add 1 tsp apple pie spice and any extra apple you had from stuffing.  OK now this is were I had to figure out what to do the gravy was too corn starchy for me , so I added 1/2 cup of apple sauce. Stir until thickened, Pour gravy over chicken

This recipe developed from one I found on allrecipes.com posted by Behr. Thanks Behr for sharing your recipe!

Blackberry Muffins

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1-1/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 2 cups fresh  blackberries (you can use Frozen)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 

In a large bowl, cream butter and 1-1/4 cups sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt; gradually stir into creamed mixture alternately with milk. beating well after each addition. Fold in blackberries. Fill greased or paper-lined  (I recommend using paper-liner these were very sticky and hard to get out of the pan)  muffins cups two-thirds full. Sprinkle with remaining sugar. Bake at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. 

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Fresh from our garden!!

Charlie  was so proud of himself last week because he

 picked Strawberries for all of us. Sadly they 

were not ripe. But today we did get some nice juicy ripe ones!!

Blackberry Pork Tender Loin

I haven't food blogged  in some time and last night I decided I was going to make something new today!! I found this great recipe and with a few changes. This has replace my cranberry pork as a favorite,  it was that  good!!

• 1 pork tenderloin
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp  ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp  dried rubbed sage
• 1 tbsp crushed dried rosemary, or to taste
• 1/2 jar (8 oz) seedless blackberry jam
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tbsp red wine (I substituted  grape juice)
• fresh Blackberries 
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• Season the pork tenderloin on all sides with salt, pepper, sage, and rosemary. Place the tenderloin into a slow cooker, and spoon the blackberry jam, 1/4 cup honey, and 2 tablespoons of  grape juice over the pork. Set the cooker to Low, and cook until very tender, 4 to 5 hours
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• Sauce
  • 1/2 cup grape juice
  • 1/2 cup meat drippings
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 cup fresh blackberries
  • 1 tbsp corn starch
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• About 15 minutes before serving time, pour 1/2 cup dripping , grape juice mixed with corn starch, honey, and the fresh blackberries into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat, and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly and some of the berries burst, about 15 minutes. Slice the tenderloin and spoon blackberry-wine sauce over slices.

Recipe came from allreciepes.com but i made a couple of small changes.

UPDATE 1/10/12 : Made this again and this time I also sliced blackberries 

in half and place them on top of the jam before I started cooking. 

Turned out very nice!

Red Lobster's Cheddar Bay Biscuits Recipe

                                          Ingredients:

                             ¾ cup cold whole milk

         4 tablespoons cold butter (1/2 stick)

 ¼ teaspoon garlic powder

1 heaping cup grated cheddar cheese

Bush on Top:

2 tablespoons butter, melted 

¼ teaspoon dried parsley flakes

½ teaspoon garlic powder

pinch salt

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

2. Combine Bisquick with cold butter in a medium bowl using a pastry cutter or a large fork. You don't want to mix too thoroughly. There should be small chunks of butter in there that are about the size of peas. Add cheddar cheese, milk, and ¼ teaspoon garlic. Mix by hand until combined, but don't over mix.

3. Drop approximately ¼-cup portions of the dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet using an ice cream scoop.

4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until the tops of the biscuits begin to turn light brown.

5. When you take the biscuits out of the oven, melt 2 tablespoons butter is a small bowl in your microwave. Stir in ½ teaspoon garlic powder and the dried parsley flakes. Use a brush to spread this garlic butter over the tops of all the biscuits. Use up all of the butter. Makes one dozen biscuits.

Recipe courtesy of Todd Wilbur,

 "Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 2," 

Oatmeal Cranberry White-Chocolate Chip Cookies

2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
11/4 cup  dried Cranberries
2/3 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375

Using an electric mixer, beat butter or margarine and sugar together in a medium mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs, mixing well. Combine oats, flour, baking soda and salt in a separate mixing bowl. Add to butter mixture in several additions, mixing well after each addition. Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate chunks.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack. 

Chewy Cocoa Brownies

1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup butter, melted
2 tbsp water
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract  (oops forgot to get this in the picture)
1 1/3 cups all- purpose flour
3/4 cup baking cocoa
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup chocolate chips
Powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 13 X 9 inch baking pan.

Combine sugar , butter and water in large bowl. Stir in eggs and vanilla.

Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in medium bowl; stir into sugar mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread into prepared pan.

Bake for 18- 25 minutes or until wooden tooth pick inserted in center comes out slightly sticky. Cool completely in pan. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.