Italian Buffalo Chicken Dip

Today I have another new recipe from my Little Italy Housewarming Party. These days I couldn’t possibly throw a party without a recipe involving buffalo sauce! For this party I transformed my beloved Buffalo Chicken Dip into an Italian masterpiece!

I started by replacing the original cheeses of cheddar and blue with mozzarella and parmesan.  I also added Italian dressing to the buffalo chicken for an extra Italian kick!  I then topped the dip with sliced pepperoncinis for a bit more spice!

Ingredients

• 1 lb chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup Franks Red Hot Buffalo Sauce
• 1/2 cup Italian dressing
• 16 oz cream cheese
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese (shredded)
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese (grated)
• 1/4 cup sliced pepperoncinis

Start by pressure cooking then shredding the chicken breasts.  Next, toss the chicken with the buffalo sauce and Italian dressing.

Begin putting the dip together by placing the cream cheese in the bottom of a deep casserole dish. I used my 2 quart Longaberger casserole dish which is perfect for this recipe.

Next, add the shredded Italian buffalo chicken.

Finally, top with the mozzarella and parmesan.

Place in the oven at 350° for 20-25 minutes.

Remove from the oven and top with the sliced pepperoncinis.

The dish can be served with chips for dipping or placed on a sliced baguette!

I chose both because, well, I like options!

♣ Vegetarian Option: Substitute “veggie crumbles” for the shredded chicken.

♦ Gluten Free Option: This recipe is gluten-free when served with gluten-free bread or chips on the side for dipping.

Italian Baked Potato Soup

For my Housewarming party last weekend  I went with a new menu planning approach.  I went to the grocery store with no list, no ideas and simply let the ingredients do the planning for me.

I arrived home with two giant bags of potatoes. Potatoes are an excellent way to feed a lot of people on a budget. One three-pound bag of potatoes was $.99.  You just don’t see those kind of prices anymore!

Then it was time to decide what I was going to do with those potatoes! I knew I wanted to make a couple of crockpot recipes for the party as they’re easy to put on in the morning and ready when guests arrive. That was when I got the idea for baked potato soup.  Of course it had to be Italian style as that was the theme of the party!

The result was a creamy, rich, flavorful soup that would be perfect for upcoming fall evenings and cold winter weekends!

Ingredients

• 3 lbs potatoes
• 1 onion (chopped)
• 10 cloves garlic (minced)
• 8 cups chicken stock
• 1 tbsp rosemary
• 1 tbsp thyme
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup sour cream
• 4 tbsp butter
• ½ cup diced pancetta
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese
• ½ cup parmesan cheese

Start by dicing the potatoes into cubes.

Next, add the potatoes, onions and garlic into the crock pot.

Then pour in the chicken stock.  There should be just enough chicken stock to cover the potatoes.

Next add in the thyme and rosemary.

Cook on high for 4-5 hours or until potatoes are soft when poked with a fork.

Ladle out 2 cups of the chicken stock.

Pour in the milk, sour cream and butter and blend with an immersion blender or hand mixer.

Stir in the mozzarella, parmesan and pancetta.

Cook on low for an additional 2 hours.

This is one of those recipes that makes the whole house smell like rosemary thyme amazingness!

Lets zoom in…

… then dig in!

♣ Vegetarian Option: Omit the pancetta and replace the chicken stock with vegetable stock to make this recipe vegetarian.

♦ Gluten Free Option: This recipe is gluten-free.

♥ All pottery seen on the littleleopardbook can be purchased by visiting www.longaberger.com/muffetbond or e-mailing keepsakebl@sbcglobal.net.

Chopped Challenge Thursday: Mozzarella, Thyme, Sun Dried Tomatoes and Rhubarb

It’s that time of the week again, time for “Chopped Challenge Thursday”!

This week the first four responses came from Miss Muffet Bond (yes, my Mom!) with Mozzarella, Amanda Kamermayer with Thyme, Liz Ragland with Sun Dried Tomatoes and technically the fourth came from DeAndre Matthews with Kumquats.  Unfortunately kumquats don’t come into season until November, so I had to go with my number five response from Amy Black with Rhubarb.

I had already decided on a Kumquat Thyme Chicken with Sun Dried Tomato and Mozzarella Risotto when Rhubarb came into my life.  Now what? I decided to stick with the plan yet replace the kumquat with lemon and top the chicken with the rhubarb.  I cooked the rhubarb in red wine vinegar, brown sugar and lemon to give it a sweet, tart and acidic bite on top of the chicken.  The result ended up being so delicious, I was actually glad I was thrown that Rhubarb curve ball in the last hour!

The final result of “Chopped Challenge Thursday” Week Two: Lemon Thyme Chicken topped with a Rhubarb Date Chutney on a bed of Sun Dried Tomato Mozzarella Risotto

Ingredients

Lemon Thyme Chicken

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lemon (juiced)
• 2 cloves garlic (crushed)
• 1 tbsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 large chicken breasts

Rhubarb Date Chutney

• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 lb rhubarb (sliced thin)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 1/2 cup dates (pitted and chopped)

Sun Dried Tomato Mozzarella Risotto

• 1 onion (chopped)
• 2 cloves garlic (minced)
• 2 cups arborio rice
• 6-7 cups chicken stock
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese (shredded)
• 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes
• 2 tbsp fresh basil (chopped)

Start by making the marinade for the chicken.  Combine the first 6 ingredients in a small mixing bowl. Pour over the chicken in a large Ziploc bag or shallow dish.

Coat well then place in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes.  Next, begin making the chutney.

Start by bringing the red wine vinegar, water and brown sugar to a simmer.  Next, add the rhubarb.

Simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the rhubarb has softened.  Next, mix in the chopped dates, lemon juice and thyme sprigs.  Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Now, it’s time to throw that chicken on the grill! The grill should be heated to medium and chicken should be cooked 10-12 minutes per side.

While the chicken is grilling, it’s time to get going on the risotto.

Start by bringing the chicken stock to a boil in a large sauce pan.  On the next burner heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook down for 5-7 minutes.

Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute. Next, add the rice and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Now start adding the chicken stock in one ladle at a time.

As soon as the rice has absorbed all of the liquid, add another ladle of chicken stock.  Continue this process for the next 15-20 minutes or until the rice is soft and the risotto is creamy. Continue stirring throughout the process so that the rice does not stick to the bottom of the pan and burn.

Don’t be scared of risotto, it’s not hard to make, it just takes some love and attention (like me, hehe!)

Taste the risotto as you go, if you run out of chicken stock and it still isn’t to your creamy, delicious standards, don’t fret, just add water to the boiling pot and ladle that in until the risotto is perfect. You will know,  I did a little happy dance when I tasted mine and it was perfect!

Also, don’t forget about the chicken on the grill while making the risotto.  It only needs to be flipped once, so I give you permission to leave the risotto unattended for 60 seconds to flip the chicken!

To finish the risotto add in the salt, pepper, cheeses, sun-dried tomatoes and basil.

Stir to combine well.

At this time the chicken should have those perfect grill marks and be ready to go.

Plate up the dish by placing the risotto on the side or under the chicken breast, then spoon the sauce from the chutney over the chicken, it gives it an amazing juiciness.  Next, place the chutney on top of the chicken and serve!

I’m loving the results of these Chopped Challenges, I could definitely eat this dish over and over again!

If rhubarb is out of season or not available in your area, tart apples can be substituted.

♣ Vegetarian Option: Use vegetarian chicken breast substitutes and vegetable stock instead of chicken stock.

♦ Gluten Free Option: Since rice is naturally gluten-free, so is risotto, that makes this entire recipe gluten-free!

♥ All pottery seen on the littleleopardbook can be purchased by visiting www.longaberger.com/muffetbond or e-mailing keepsakebl@sbcglobal.net.

Caprese Quesadilla

While I do love all types of food from Mexican to Thai and Brazillian to French, Italian will always have a large place in my heart. Sometimes I like to take a dish from another country and make it into an Italian masterpiece, such as this recipe, the Caprese Quesadilla.

Ingredients (serves 1)

• 1 flour tortilla
• 2 roma tomatoes
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup basil
• 1 cup marinara sauce

Start by slicing the roma tomatoes and topping the flour tortilla with the mozzarella cheese and sliced tomatoes.

Next, top with the basil and parmesan cheese.

Then fold the tortilla in half and place over medium heat on the stove top. Brown on the first side then flip.

Heat up the marinara sauce while the quesadilla is cooking. Once browned on both sides remove from the skillet and cut into slices.

Serve with marinara sauce on the side for dipping.

A delicious new way to eat a traditional mexican dish, Italian style!

♣ Vegetarian Option: This recipe is vegetarian.

♥ All pottery seen on the littleleopardbook can be purchased by visiting www.longaberger.com/muffetbond or e-mailing keepsakebl@sbcglobal.net.

Butternut Squash and Mozzarella Salad

Today’s lunch was inspired by a lovely salad I had at the fabulous La Piazza Ristorante Italiano at The Grove.

The salad is sweet, salty and Italian, so pretty much a combination of all of my favorite things!

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 12 oz butternut squash
• 1 tbsp Enzo Meyer Lemon Olive Oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/4 cup toasted walnut pieces
• 1 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 4 oz mozzarella cheese balls

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees, then prepare the butternut squash.

I am fortunate enough to live within walking distance to Trader Joes (which is pretty apparent in all of my ingredient shots!) so I purchased pre-cut ready-to-go butternut squash cubes.  If you aren’t so fortunate (holler to my Oklahoma peeps!) just buy a couple of medium size squash and cube them yourself. Place them on a baking sheet (I like to line with foil bc I HATE to do dishes and it prevents them from sticking to the baking sheet so easier clean up!)

Drizzle the Enzo olive oil over the top.

Next, sprinkle with salt, pepper and cinnamon.

Then on to my favorite part… BROWN SUGAR!  I feel that everything in life would be better if it had a little brown sugar involved!

Now the squash is ready to go in the oven for 25-30 minutes. Toss them about half way through.

While the squash is roasting prepare the balsamic reduction for drizzling over all of this yummy salad! Heat a skillet over medium-high heat then add 1 cup of balsamic vinegar to the skillet, followed by 2 crushed garlic cloves. Bring it to a boil then lower the temperature and allow it to reduce by half.

Next, toast the walnuts.

Once again, I bought already chopped walnut pieces from Trader Joes, but if you have whole walnuts just give them a nice chop and you’re ready to go!

Throw these on some foil on a baking sheet and in to the oven for 3-4 minutes, these little babies toast up quick in the 400 degree oven!

Once the squash and walnuts are out of the oven and the balsamic is reduced it’s time to put it all together. Use tongs to move the squash on to a plate in a nice little pile, then top each pile of squash with 4-5 mozzarella balls, next sprinkle a few toasted walnuts on top, then it’s time for that yummy, syrup-y, balsamic reduction goodness to get drizzled all on top!  Your plate should end up looking something like this ↓

But are those two plates I see?!??!

Yes those are two plates of deliciousness you see!  So if you are thinking back to yesterdays blog and thought “didn’t she say she experimented with cooking at lunch because she was only cooking for herself” why yes, yes I did say that so now I guess I’m a liar, but all in good reason!!

Time to introduce my best friend Erin, she’s the kind of girl who will drink a case of bud light with you and enjoy an enormous burrito all while wearing 5-inch heels and approximately 68 pieces of jewelry, needless to say she is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!  Well I had the fortune of feeding her lunch today after she arrived home early from a work trip and had the day off! Watch as she intently stares at her food, raising her fork in anticipation of that first magical bite:

And here she goes… time to dig in!

Mmm delicious!  Definitely recommend this dish for a great appetizer or lunch salad, or I was thinking I might skewer a ball of mozzarella between two pieces of the roasted butternut squash and drizzle with the balsamic reduction for cocktail parties! Who wants to come to my next cocktail party now, huh? Yeah I know you do

♣ Vegetarian Option: This recipe is vegetarian.

♦ Gluten Free Option: This recipe is gluten-free.

♥ All pottery seen on the littleleopardbook can be purchased by visiting www.longaberger.com/muffetbond or e-mailing keepsakebl@sbcglobal.net.