Butter Flaky Pie Crust

The pie crust recipe I usually use has shortening in it.  Well, I was just at the store and I forgot that I needed more shortening.  So I decided to look online to see if I could find a recipe using butter and I did!  I found this recipe on allrecipe.com.  That is my go-to recipe finding place.  This recipe sounds sooo yummy because....well you know butter is much much more yummy than shortening!  and I'd rather cook my pies in the morning, so this is perfect for me.

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, chilled and diced
1/4 cup ice water

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in water, a tablespoon at a time, until mixture forms a flattened ball. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. Roll dough out to fit a 9 inch pie plate. Place crust in pie plate. Press the dough evenly into the bottom and sides of the pie plate.

So I have my water in the freezer getting really really cold.  Guess I should go put my flour in the freezer too.  I because I know the secret is having extremely cold ingredients.  I hope my pies turn out well!  Oh, I'm making an apple pie and a pumpkin pie.  I'll add those recipes if they're good later.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

I found this recipe on melskitchencafe.com.  I will be making this tonight.  I hope its a hit....it looks soo yummy!

*Serves 4-6

Chicken:

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Salt and pepper

1 cup cornstarch

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup canola oil

Cut boneless chicken breasts into chunks. Season with salt and pepper. Dip chicken in cornstarch and then in egg. Fry in a little oil until brown but not cooked through. Place in a single layer in a baking dish. Mix sauce ingredients (below) together and pour over chicken.

Sauce:

¾ cup sugar

4 tablespoons ketchup

½ cup vinegar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon garlic salt

Bake for one hour at 325 degrees. Turn chicken every 15 minutes so it is evenly coated with the sauce. Serve the chicken over rice. 

*Note: if you like extra sauce, double the sauce ingredients - pour half over the chicken and follow the baking directions in the recipe and pour the other half in a small saucepan. Cook the sauce on the stovetop at medium heat for 8-10 minutes until it simmers and thickens. Serve it on the side of the chicken.

UPDATE - I made this and I loved it!  I'm glad I had leftovers for the next couple days!  I wasn't a big fan of using the sauce for dipping....it was definitely very vinegary.  But I felt the chicken was saucy enough for us.  I served it with white rice and broccoli on the side.  Definitely a keeper!

2nd UPDATE - The first time I made it I could it at a higher temperature and for less time.  It was absolute yummy.  The second time I followed the recipe's time and temp.  But they were way too cook and it was not as good as the first.  Maybe that's because I cut my pieces truly bite-size. So I think I will from now on cook it at 350 or 375 for 20-30 minutes (I'm pretty sure that's what I did the first time.)

"Rotisserie" Slow-Cooker Chicken

Yet another recipe from ourbestbites.com.

1 whole chicken, small enough to fit in your slow cooker

Salt-based seasoning (Seasoning salt, Cajun seasoning, lemon pepper with salt in it, etc. Just make sure salt is one of the first ingredients on the label.)

OPTIONAL:

Whole garlic cloves, peeled

Fresh herbs

Make 3 balls of aluminum foil and place them in the bottom of your slow cooker. These hold the chicken off the bottom so the hot air can circulate all around the chicken and so it's not stewing in its own juices.

Rinse chicken, including the cavity, and pat dry with paper towels. Place the chicken on its back so the breast is facing up and the legs are on the plate. If you want (and I actually strongly recommend that you do UNLESS you're looking for a neutral flavor), pull the skin up all around the chicken. This does involve sticking your hand between the skin and the breast.  Slice a few garlic cloves in half lengthwise and stick them under the skin. You can also arrange a couple sprigs of fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme, and/or sage under the skin. This makes a very pretty chicken when it's all cooked and adds a lot of flavor.

Rub salt-based seasoning VERY liberally onto the skin of the chicken. Place chicken breast-up on the foil in the slow cooker, cover, turn heat to low, and leave it alone for 7-8 hours.

Key Lime Pie and Graham Cracker Crust

I found this recipe on allrecipes.com.  I made this for a women's religion meeting tonight.  It was rich, but very yummy!  I even used fat free milk and sour cream.


1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
2 cans sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup key lime juice (or half lemon juice and half lime juice)
1 tablespoon grated lime zest



-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
-In a medium bowl, combine condensed milk, sour cream, lime juice, and lime rind. Mix well and pour into graham cracker crust.
-Bake in preheated oven for 5 to 8 minutes, until tiny pinhole bubbles burst on the surface of pie. DO NOT BROWN! Chill pie thoroughly before serving. Garnish with lime slices and whipped cream if desired.


*I forgot to get a lime to zest, so I didn't add that and it was still good.  I'm sure it would yummy to add it in, but don't stress if you don't have it.  I also did half lemon and half lime juice b/c I didn't see key lime juice in the store and I didn't feel like juicing 20 key limes.


Graham Cracker Crust

1 1/2 cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup white sugar
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, melted butter or margarine, and cinnamon until well blended . Press mixture into an 8 or 9 inch pie plate.  Bake at 375 degrees  for 7 minutes. Cool. If recipe calls for unbaked pie shell, just chill for about 1 hour.

Guitless Alfredo Sauce

I found this recipe on bestbites.com!  I think I will trying this one very soon.  We love alfredo in our house! We might have to reduce or cut out the garlic in this house....for the picky eaters!

2 C low-fat milk
1/3 C (3 oz) low fat cream cheese
2 T flour
1 t salt
1 T butter
3 garlic cloves
1 C grated Parmesan cheese


Toss the milk, cream cheese, flour, and salt in a blender.Process until smooth and set aside.

In a non-stick sauce pan, melt butter on med-high heat and add garlic. Stand above the pan (but not close enough to scald your face) and inhale. Ahhh...butter and garlic. Okay, now get cooking again. Let the garlic saute for about 30 seconds, you don't want to burn it. It should be nice and bubbly.

Then add milk mixture to the pan. Stir constantly for about 3 or 4 minutes or until it just comes to a simmer. Keep stirring and let it cook for a few minutes more. It should be much thicker now.

When it's nice and thickened remove the pan from the heat. Add the cheese, stir it up and then cover immediately. Let stand for at least 10 minutes before using. It will continue to thicken upon standing. Also, if you have leftovers in the fridge, the sauce will thicken almost into a solid. Just re-heat and add a little milk and it will be back to normal again.

This sauce can used for so many things. Here's a few ideas:

-Over pasta (obviously)
-As a dip for breadsticks
-As a sauce on pizza (this is the garlic cream sauce I was referring to in this recipe) and a half batch of sauce covers 2 medium pizza's.
-Mix it with pesto for a creamy pesto sauce
-Mix it with marinara for a creamy marinara sauce

**UPDATE/REVIEW - I made this the other night and the kids loved it!  Dylan said it tastes just like Brick Oven!  I guess it must be good!  I only used 1 clove of garlic and it was good for us.  Next time I might experiment and put in 2 cloves and see if we can handle it.  I also forgot to put the salt in it and I think it needed it.  It was really easy to make and we will make it again!