Proverbs 19:21 "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails." I read this short and simple verse of Scripture the other day and wondered why I have not kept these words near and dear to my heart since I could first compose a to-do list?? What an awesome reminder of who exactly is in charge of your life! When I get stressed or worried about the future, when I can't turn my mind off from the "but what ifs" and the "but why didn'ts" I just remind myself that a plan without the Lord is futile. God's purpose for our lives, which luckily is a wonderful purpose since we serving an awesome God who loves us beyond our own comprehension, is the only plan that can and will always fall into place. And on that note....relax, God's got it all under control. :)
First off I'd like to apologize for my lack of posts recently. Life became extremely busy after Easter with the end of the semester and all and we had James' graduation and my sister's wedding within a week of each other! Both events were absolutely wonderful and amazing! I've had these recipes on my list of things to share forever and I'm finally able to share! I'm a preschool teacher...I'm all about sharing...
Baked Chicken Parmesan
4 chicken breast halves, sliced in half (horizontally)
3/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp butter, melted
3/4 cup mozzarella cheese
1 cup marinara sauce
Cooking spray
1. Preheat oven to 450. Spray large baking sheet lightly with cooking spray.
2. Combine breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese. Melt butter and lightly brush onto chicken. Dip chicken into breadcrumb mixture and place on baking sheet. Repeat with remaining chicken.
3. Lightly spray a little more cooking spray on top of chicken and bake for 20 minutes. Turn chicken over and bake for 5 more minutes. Remove from oven, spoon sauce over chicken and top with shredded Mozzarella. Bake 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted.
Incredibly good and incredibly easy! Why didn't I think of this before??
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Ground Beef Enchiladas
Sauce:
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 Tbsp flour
1 (28 oz) can enchilada sauce
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped (I omitted)
Filling:
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
2 (4 oz) cans chopped green chilies
1/2 tsp salt
12-14 white corn tortillas
3 cups cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 cup black olives, chopped (I omitted)
1 cup green onions, chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped (I omitted)
1. Heat large, deep skillet over medium high heat. Pour in oil, followed by flour, whisk together.
2. Pour in enchilada sauce, chicken broth, cilantro, salt, and pepper. Whisk together to combine.
3. Bring to a boil, then reduce and let simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Heat separate skillet and add ground beef, onion, and salt. Brown the meat over medium high heat, stirring occasionally.
5. When meat is done and onions and transparent, (drain excess fat if necessary), remove from heat and add green chilies.
6. Chop green onions, olives, and cilantro.
7. Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray and pour 3/4 cup of sauce in bottom.
8. Heat up large griddle, spray with cooking spray, and cook tortillas until each side is crisp and golden, about 2 minutes per side. This will make it easier to fill them and less likely to crack.
**I didn't want to have to clean another thing so I just stuck my tortillas in our toaster oven for a while to get them cooked a bit on both sides. But it really does help with the whole tearing thing that corn tortillas always insist on doing**
9. Take tortillas one at a time and dip them in the red sauce mix, making sure to coat each side. Lay tortilla on a cookie sheet (or a plate like I used) and cover it with meat, green onions, olives, cilantro and cheese.
10. Roll tortillas up and place seam down in the 9x13 pan. Pour remaining sauce over all enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. You can also top with any remaining onions or olives.
11. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until bubbly.
It looks like a lot of steps but it's really not! And totally worth it!
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So I wanted to make James a cake for his graduation/commissioning celebration and wanted a challenge. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Duncan Hines, Pillsbury, and my good friend Betty C. but I wanted to see if I could make a yellow cake completely from scratch. (Didn't forsee staying up til all ends of the night the night before on a total frosting high the night before the big day but it's whatev..) This one was really not hard at all and came out super fluffy and light. I made the cake ahead of time and froze it until I was ready to frost it a few days later and it was a little more crumbly by the time we ate it. But that first night straight out of the oven...oooh mama was it fluffy! And the frosting...so fresh and so chocolatey. Is the overly obese kid trapped inside of me coming out? I try to reign her in but it's impossible!
Homemade Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting
Frosting from: my Grandma Mary Jane
Cake:
4 cups plus 2 Tbsp cake flour (not self-rising)
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 cups buttermilk, well-shaken
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour (or just spray with cooking spray) cake pans (either two
9-inch round pans or one 9x13 rectangular pan).
2. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
3. In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, then beat in vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl after each addition. At low speed, beat in buttermilk until just combined (the mixture will look curdled).
4. Add flour mixture to wet mix in three batches, mixing until each addition is just incorporated.
5. Spread batter evenly in cake pan, then rap on counter several times to eliminate air bubbles. Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden and toothpick test comes out clean.
6. Cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge of the pan. Invert onto rack and cool completely, about 1 hour.
Frosting:
1 pound powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup evaporated skim milk
2 tsp vanilla
dash of salt
4 unsweetened baking chocolate squares
1 stick butter
1. Cream together powdered sugar, milk, vanilla and salt.
2. Melt butter and chocolate in top of double broiler; blend into creamed mixture.
3. Frost cooled cake.
Seriously, I could not stop myself from licking the bowl after every spread on the cake. I'm pretty sure I'd make this even with a boxed cake mix. And my self control? Head butted out the window by that inner overly obese child I was telling you about earlier. Too bad we're BFF.
Happy eating sweet friends!
