Chicken Gloria Casserole (Little Cook Style)

Ingredients

• 6 chicken tenderloin pieces or 3 chicken breasts, filleted in half lengthwise
• 1/3 c all-purpose flour
• 3  tbsp  vegetable oil

Sauce:

• 2-3 tbsp butter
• 1 c canned or fresh green beans or fresh mushrooms (we prefer beans)
• 3  tbsp flour
• 1/2c chicken broth (low sodium)
• 1/2  c sherry, apple juice, or applesauce 
• 1 c milk
• a   pinch of dry thyme or Italian spice
• 6 slices of mozzarella cheese
• 3 tbsp parsley and a dash of salt and pepper to top

Instructions: 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1. Oil a 13x9 baking dish.
2. Dredge the chicken fillets with flour in a plate to coat both sides, shaking off any excess flour.
3. Heat oil in a medium frying pan. Brown chicken on both sides, then transfer to the baking dish.
4. Sauce: Melt butter in the same frying pan, add mushrooms or green beans, and cook until light brown.
5. Sprinkle with 3 tbsp flour and cook for 1-2 minutes before slowly adding the chicken broth,  sherry (or juice/applesauce), and milk. Cook, stirring often until it thickens and bubbles. Season with salt/pepper and Italian seasoning or thyme
6. Pour sauce over the chicken in the baking dish, and top with mozzarella cheese 
7. Cover with aluminium foil and bake for 30-45 minutes in the preheated oven, until it browns.
8. Remove, garnish with parsley if desired, and serve.

Little Cook Notes:

Mike is on a low-sodium diet, so I tried to cut back on the salt as much as possible from a previous recipe I found. I now only buy low-sodium chicken broth. That being said, we prefer butter to margarine and find it healthier. I used applesauce because that was what I found in the cupboard; ditto the low-sodium green beans, which seemed a good alternative to mushrooms! Don't be afraid to make the recipe your own.  We certainly enjoyed it, and it gave us 3 meals for the two of us. Bon appetite!

                                       Cheesy Potato Cassserole

                                                     (aka "Funeral Potatoes"}

This is an easy, tried, and true recipe (thanks to my friend, Dona) that is perfect for a special meal, a treat for your family, or especially for a potluck! The ingredients are reasonable in cost, the prep time is quick and all you have to remember is to give it a bit more time in the oven if your stove is as slow as mine. It got a rave review at our last potluck here at our complex.

Ingredients

1lb package of shredded hashbrowns

1  can of Condensed Cream of Potato Soup

16 oz tub of sour cream

 2 c shredded Cheddar Cheese 

1/4 c green onions

1 tsp salt  (approx.)

1/2 tsp pepper

Optional: 1/2 c of crushed French Onions

Preparation

Butter or spray a 13x9-inch baking pan or casserole dish. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all the ingredients together. Pour into the pan and cover with foil. Bake for approximately 45 minutes to one hour. Remove foil and allow to brown for 15 minutes. PLEASE NOTE: Topping with panko, crushed cornflakes, or French Onions before baking adds a bit of a crunch! 

 Hi! Welcome to my Little Cook Blog. I have missed you all. Mike's stroke a while back cast a shadow on any time I had to do much but fuss with him, and now the addition of a new pup to our home caused a bit of chaos over the holidays, as you may well imagine. But I am back with a vengeance, so to speak. Thanks to my new refurbished desktop computer, I will post frequently from now on (thanks, Mike!).I hope you have all been well and baking on, and that you are ready to tackle some "new and reimagined" recipes this year. Love and hugs and HAPPY NEW YEAR from Sharon ("The Little Cook"), Mike (creative computer innovator), Charlie (our first 'boy') and Romey ("the newbie).

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER MARSHMALLOW SQUARES (aka CONFETTI SQUARES)

 CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER MARSHMALLOW aka CONFETTI SQUARES

True confessions: I didn't take a photo of just my chocolate/marshmallow/peanut butter squares (aka "confetti") so I am sharing a photo of our Christmas Cookie "Tree" display. Lots of goodies on there - some recipes I have previously shared, some yet to come. But anyway, this is our variety, and if you look carefully, on the bottom part of the cookie stand, you can see (left to right), cherry coconut slice, spritz cookies and yes, lurking to the right my ultimate favorite, chocolate confetti. So easy, so much fun to make a SO delicious!

I decided to get smart and make stacking the dang thing a bit easier, so I packaged the variety of baking, tucked into cupcake liners, into freezer bags for easier filling. We do love our cookies! The Chocolate Marshmallow Squares have a prominent place on the bottom right of the bag since I like big chunks of this square - ok I admit it, it is an addiction! But the packed bag is so pretty that I had to share it, too. Just think, all the years I have done Christmas baking and have never thought of this little time and space-saver! Whoah!

So, what is the difference between "Chocolate Confetti" and Chocolate Peanut Butter Square? In my opinion, "Confetti" uses colored mini marshmallows while my square uses white marshmallows. Traditionally, Confetti uses milk chocolate chips while my square - this year - was a mix of half dark and half milk chocolate, which made all the difference. Whichever you prefer, all I know is that I have trouble stopping at one piece, hence only having 2 on the tray at once! Oh, and I prefer making it in a foil pan lined with foil so it's easier to remove and cut without issue. Just a little hint there. This year, I also added about half a cup of marshmallows to the pot while the mixture was still quite warm, so they added a bit of gooeyness, a chewier texture that we liked.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/4 c unsalted butter
• 1/2 c cup creamy peanut butter
• 3/4 c semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 c dark chocolate chips (or use all milk or semi-sweet if you prefer)
• 5 c white mini marshmallows (rainbow marshmallows for Confetti slice)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Line an 8x8 or 9x9 foil pan (or baking pan) with aluminum foil. 
2. In a medium saucepan, over low heat, combine butter, peanut butter and chocolate chips. Melt, stirring until smooth and completely combined.
3. Remove from heat and stir in 1/c marshmallows - just for the square, not the Confetti.
4. Let cool slightly and then mix in the remainder of the marshmallows.
5. Spread in prepared pan and let set at room temperature. 

Note: The slice can be frozen at this point, but I find it much more attractive if sliced into squares with a sharp knife when set, then stored in the freezer in a freezer bag (as pictured above). Don't forget to save a few slices for the baker and a helper to sample! SOMEONE has to taste-test the goods!