Sweet and Sour Chicken

Chinese food is my favorite and so being able to make some really good at home is something I am working on. I have found my new favorite Sweet and Sour Chicken recipe. The sauce is sweet with the perfect amount of tang and the chicken is crispy outside and moist and delicious inside. Its so good!

Sweet and Sour Chicken
Recipe Source: mandysrecipebox.blogspot.com

Chicken
4 Chicken Breasts
Salt & Pepper
1 1/2 cup Cornstarch
2 Eggs, beaten
1/4 cup Vegetable Oil

Sweet & Sour Sauce
1 1/2 cups Granulated Sugar
8 Tablespoons Ketchup
1 cup Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
2 teaspoons Garlic Powder

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Rinse your chicken breasts in water and cut into cubes. Season with salt and pepper. 

2. Heat 1/4 cup of oil in a large skillet. Dip chicken into the cornstarch to coat then dip into the eggs and place in the hot oil. Cook your chicken until just browned, don't cook through.  Place the chicken in a greased 9x13 baking dish.

3. Whisk together all of the sweet and sour sauce ingredients in a medium bowl and pour evenly over the chicken. Bake for one hour. During the baking process you need to turn the chicken every 15 minutes.

I shared this at
Sweet Treats and Swanky Stuff

 

No-Bake Oreo Cheesecake

I am usually not a fan of no-bake cheesecakes but this was so delicious! This is the most smooth, the lightest, and the creamiest no-bake cheesecake I have had.

No-Bake Oreo Cheesecake

Recipe Source: BakersRoyale.com

Crust:
1 1/2 cups Oreos, crushed
3 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar

7 Tablespoons Butter, melted

Cheesecake:
2 1/4 cups Heavy Cream
2 - 8oz pkgs Cream Cheese, softened
2/3 cup Granulated Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
2 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

3/4 cups Oreos, crushed

Crust: 

Combine the Oreo crumbs with the sugar. Add melted butter and blend until combined. Press into a springform pan and set aside.

Cheesecake:
1. Beat heavy cream until they form medium peaks and set aside.

2. In a separate bowl add cream cheese, sugar, salt, vanilla, and lemon juice to a bowl and beat with a paddle attachment until smooth.

3. Add cream cheese mixture to heavy cream and beat until incorporated. Fold in Oreos.

4. Fill pan and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight for best results. Serve with whipping cream.

Soy Glazed Salmon

This is one of my favorite ways to eat salmon. I love the flavor of soy based sauces so this is right up my ally. The sauce is sweet and salty and the salmon is tender and flaky. Its a nice change from grilled salmon.

Soy Glazed Salmon

Recipe Source: MarthaStewart.com

1/4 cup Brown Sugar
1/4 cup Olive Oil
3 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons fresh Lemon Juice
2 Tablespoons Dry White Wine, or water
2 lb Salmon Fillet, cut into 4 pieces

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl, stir brown sugar, olive oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, and white wine until the sugar has dissolved.

2. Arrange salmon, skin side down, in a single layer in a baking dish. Pour glaze over the fish, and turn to coat evenly.

3. Bake until fish is opaque but still bright pink inside, basting every few minutes with glaze from baking dish, 15 to 20 minutes.

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cake

As soon as I saw the picture of this recipe I needed to taste it. It was a bit of work so I made it over 2 days, cause the cheesecake had to cool, but it was so worth it. This cake is amazing! There is no other way to describe it. The cake is moist and so chocolaty and the cheesecake is smooth and creamy. The chocolate frosting and ganache pull it all together. You need this cake in your life... Seriously!

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cake

Recipe Source: BirdOnACake.blogspot.com

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake
3 - 8oz pkgs Cream Cheese, room temp
3/4 cup Granulated Sugar
3 Eggs
1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
1 cup Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

1. Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. Line the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan with wax paper. Grease the sides.

2. Use an electric mixer to beat cream cheese and sugar together. Mixing by hand, add eggs one at time. Blend in vanilla. Fold in chocolate chips and pour in to pan.

3. Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce temperature to 250 degrees and continue baking for 35 more minutes. Remove from oven and run a sharp knife around the edge of the pan to release the cheesecake. Cool completely in the pan, then chill in the refrigerator.

Chocolate Cake
1 cup Boiling Water
2 cup Granulated Sugar
1 3/4 cup All-Purpose Flour
3/4 cup Cocoa Powder
2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Salt
2 Eggs
1 cup Buttermilk
1/2 cup Vegetable oil
1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottom of two 9 inch round pans with wax paper and grease the bottom and sides. Bring some water to a boil and keep it simmering while you mix the other ingredients.

2. In a largebowl combine the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add the eggs, buttermilk, oil and vanilla. Beat with mixer until combined.

3. Add 1 cup of the boiling water and carefully stir until it is mixed in. Beat for 1 1/2 minutes with mixer. Pour the batter into pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
1 cup Butter, room temperature
6 cups Powdered Sugar
1 1/2 oz Unsweetened Baking Chocolate, melted
1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup Milk

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar on low. Add chocolate and vanilla and mix well. Gradually add milk until you reach desired consistency. Keep covered.

Chocolate Ganache
1 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

Place the chocolate chips in a heat proof bowl. Heat cream over medium heat. Remove from heat when it starts to boil. Pour over chocolate chips. Let sit for 1 or 2 minutes. Then slowly stir the mixture. Continue to stir until all the chips have completely melted. Stir in the vanilla.

Assembling Your Cake:
Level the tops of the chocolate cake layers. Place one of the cake layers on top of the cheesecake in the springform pan. Invert the pan onto a cake stand, release the spring and remove the pan and wax paper. Top with the second layer of cake and spread your frosting over the entire cake.

Press mini semi-sweet chocolate chips onto the sides of the cake. Put the cake in the fridge for about an hour, then pour ganache on top and smooth with a spatula.

Cottage Cheese Jell-O Salad

We always have this at summer barbeques and it's the easiest jell-o salad I know how to make. Its got texture from the cottage cheese and it has refreshing juicy bursts from the mandarin oranges mixed through.

Cottage Cheese Jell-O Salad

1 - 16oz carton Cottage Cheese
1 - 8oz carton Cool Whip

1 - 3oz pkg Raspberry Jell-O
2 small cans Mandarin Oranges

Mix cottage cheese with Jell-O until it dissolves. Fold in thawed Cool Whip. Fold in mandarin oranges. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Light & Crispy Waffles

My husbands favorite breakfast are waffles. He makes them at least twice a week. This recipe makes a light, crispy, delicious waffle that you don't want to stop eating.

Light & Crispy Waffles

Recipe Source: Cuisinart

2 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour

2 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar

1 Tablespoon Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 teaspoon Salt

2 cups Milk

1/3 cup Vegetable Oil

2 Large Eggs, lightly beaten

Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl until blended and smooth. Coat waffle plates with non-stick cooking spray. Pour about 1/4 cup of batter for 1 square of waffles. Let bake for about 3 minutes. Serve immediately.

Baked Carrots

One of my favorite vegetables are carrots. I love the sweet flavor they have. This recipe and its an easy way to make carrots with some extra flavor.

Baked Carrots

Recipe Source: AllRecipes.com

3 cups Carrots, cut 1/4 inch thick
1 – 14oz can Chicken Broth
Garlic Powder
Salt and Pepper

Place carrots in a 9x13 inch pan and pour can of chicken broth over top. Sprinkle generously with garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Mix to combine. Bake at 325 for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Raspberry Pretzel Jell-O

It has been warm this week and that makes me want summery foods. Jello is one of those foods. This jello is sweet, tangy, and creamy with some crunch from the pretzels. Its at the top of my favorite Jell-O's list.

Raspberry Pretzel Jell-O

Recipe Adapted From: MandysRecipeBox.blogspot.com

2 cups Pretzels, crushed
1 cup Granulated Sugar, divided
1/2 cup Butter
1 – 8oz pkg Cream cheese, room temp
1 – 8oz container Cool Whip
1 – 8oz can Crushed Pineapple
6oz pkg Raspberry Jell-O
2 cups Boiling Water
3 cups Frozen Raspberries

1. Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar and butter in a small saucepan and melt on low until sugar has dissolved. Let cool slightly and mix with crushed pretzels. Bake at 350 for 6 minutes and let cool.

2. Cream together cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, and pineapple. Add cool whip, mix, and spread on top of cooled crust.

3. In a medium bowl add packet of Jell-O and pour boiling water an whisk until dissolved. Add raspberries and mix well. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes and pour on top of cream cheese layer. Refrigerate until set, about 4 hours.