Mini Heart Biscuits - bacon, egg and cheese

So I was recently asked to bring a snack for the Ladies Bible Study that I attend on Wednesday mornings, and I was happy to do it. I signed up for a specific week, and was ecstatic to learn that there was someone who would be calling to remind me it was "my week." I need those kinds of reminders. :) Anyhow, so the day I signed up, my friend Brie asked me what I was going to bring, and I opened my big fat mouth and described some crazy adorable, mini bacon egg and cheese biscuits - WHAT WAS I THINKING?!?!?!? So, I did get the reminder call, which was good, because I had forgotten. And I had everything I needed in the house after I went grocery shopping, so that was great. So . . . then came Tuesday, and a bit of craziness, and well . . . at about 11pm when I sat down to do my week's worth of Bible Study (not a great idea, I know, but just how it usually works out these days,) I suddenly remembered that it was "my week" for snacks. Normally I would've gotten up a little early and headed to the store before the study, BUT, my big fat mouth had already spoken, out loud, what I was going to bring, so I felt obliged to do it. I remembered a little ways into the process, that I should be taking pics, so I'll do my best to describe what I forgot to capture with my phone.

So, to start with, I used 1 tube of refrigerated biscuits (8 count). I opened it, and separated the biscuits, then one at a time, I pressed them as flat as I could with my hands. I then used a small heart shaped cookie cutter (from The Pampered Chef's - Creative Cutter Set) to cut the biscuits into mini heart shaped pieces. I placed them on a Large Metal Sheet Pan, also from The Pampered Chef, and got them in the oven . . . following the directions from the tube . . . I think I took them out only a minute or so before the "timer" was up. While that was in the oven . . .

I got started on the cutting of cheese! Teeheehee - there will always be the heart of a child in me, and I can't help but laugh at the thought of "cutting the cheese!" :) So, I used the presliced cheese, as it melts faster than most block cheeses that you would have to cut. It also eliminated the need to slice the cheese. I was able to get 5 heart from each slice!

Here's a picture of the tin the Creative Cutters Set comes in. It's super handy for storage, as the cutters are small and we wouldn't want to lose them in a drawer of randomness, and yes, we all have those!

Next, I have a picture of my Pampered Chef Bar Pan . . . it is stoneware, so it's gets darker and darker in color and also more non-stick the more you use it. This stone is not super dark, but it is super well seasoned, as my favorite thing to make on it is bacon, in the oven! It comes out perfect every time!

So, here you can see how I lined the top rack with aluminum foil, to reduce the grease splatter on my already not super clean oven. :/ Anyhow, then I lined up the bacon on the Bar Pan and set it in the oven at 350. It doesn't take too long for it to start smelling like yummy bacon, but it took about 30-35 minutes for it all to be done to perfection! So Yummy!

Next step is to cut the biscuits, which have now cooled, in half, through the middle. Easy! So while the bacon is cooking away, there's a couple of things to do. You'll want to scramble some eggs and cook them up, kindof like an omlette, so that it's a solid piece of "egg" - from which you'll cut again, mini heart shaped egg pieces. :) (I used 4 eggs in a skillet, twice, and had leftovers.)

If you still have time, you can get prepared for the great bacon blot. :) We all know that in order to have the flavor of bacon, you don't have to consume all the grease that comes with the bacon, so start by taking a plate and lining it with a couple of layers of paper towels. When the bacon is done, set a couple slices of bacon on the paper towels, add more paper towels and then more bacon (over and over until it's all on there), then cover the last bacon strips with more towels and press on them, to blot the grease off. Okay, so now the biscuits are ready, the cheese is cut ;), the bacon is blotted and the eggs are made up. If you haven't had time to cut the eggs into heart shaped pieces, you'll want to do that now. Also, you'll want to cut the bacon into little pieces, about 1-1/4 inches long. Now comes the fun part . . . Assembly! To me it seems obvious, but you'll want to stack all your pieces together to make your mini biscuit sandwiches. I put the bacon on top, then the cheese and the egg, with the biscuit halves on top and bottom. :)

So here is the almost end result . . . I actually added a little "special touch", but I didn't get a picture of it, so I'll see if I can do a reasonable job of explaining it. I didn't have those cute, extra long toothpicky things with the frazzle at the end, you know the things that restaurants use to hold sandwiches together, so I had to improvise, and the mini sandwiches are a little tall and skinny, so they needed a bit of help to stay upright. Anyhow, so I have toothpicks, and scrapbook paper and stickers! I dug through my sticker stash for the most grown up ones, some had encouraging words, some had verses, and some were just cute. I then cut cute, kindof "matchy" pieces of scrapbook paper and used the sticker to hold a toothpick to the paper and stabbed the adorable little picks right through the Mini Heart Biscuits! They were adorable, they tasted good, and they were a hit! I fit 32 into this serving dish, which is about 8x8. I wish I would have taken a picture of the end result, but hopefully between my "Not the Perfect Chef" kind of explanation and your creative mind, you were able to picture the cuteness. :)

Oh, and just in case you were wondering, I reheated them for about a minute in the mocrowave before serving them. Just to warm them a bit. What a fun breakfast treat for a Valentine's Day breakfast, or a Mother's Day tea, or a church brunch! I will definately be making these again.

Sloppy Chicken

So, most of you know that I have a home-based business. I am a Team Leader with The Pampered Chef. I love the company, but I LOVE the products. I've been buying the products for about 12 or 13 years, and I still have the first product I ever purchased! (The Food Chopper) So over the years my collection of PC products has grown and grown. My favorite item ever, ever, EVER, is the Deep Covered Baker! (DCB) My consultant and now Director, Suzanne forced me, against my will ;) to order from a show a couple of years ago . . . I think I got it with free $money$ from being a host, but it may have been a half price item . . . I don't rightly remember. I was just convinced that I was not going to like it. Boy was I ever wrong! I love it so much, that I now own two, and could certainly use another, to keep in my show kit. I love cooking in it, it's so fast and easy, especially in the microwave! Yes, the microwave. One of my favorite things to cook in it is what our family calls "Sloppy Chicken" . . . kind of like Sloppy Joes, but with chicken - duh! Anyhow, so this is what you do . . . you take chicken (boneless, skinless), thawed or frozen and put them in the DCB, sprinkle them with our Smoky Barbeque Rub, put the lid on and put in the microwave on high. Either way, frozen or thawed, start it for about 8 minutes in the DCB. After that, check it and see if it's done - it won't be, unless you used 2 small chicken breasts. Then maybe it would be done. If they are not done, you may want to rearrange them just a bit, and add more time . . . repeat until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. (I make 2.5-3 pounds of chicken at a time, and that takes anywhere from 20-30 minutes) While that is cooking, whip up some BBQ sauce - the homemade kind! it's the best. So, you'll need 1 cup of catsup/ketchup, 1/4 cup brown sugar - doesn't matter light or dark, 2 tsp apple cider vinegar (or white if that's all you have), and 2 TBS of our Smoky Barbeque Rub. Mix it all up and just revel in the wonderful smell for a moment! Yu-u-mmy! Okay, so the chicken is done - cooked through, to 165 right? Take a minute to check out how juicy and tender it is - if you've ever had microwaved chicken before, this will change your mind on it! So, the next step is to shred the chicken . . . if you have The Pampered Chef's Salad Choppers, that is perfect! They will shred right through that chicken! And, it's so easy . . . if you don't, you'll have to double fork the chicken to death. Once it's shredded/chopped up nice and small, add the sauce and serve on buns. My kids love this recipe, and I love that my daughter can make it all on her own. It's so easy and so good, that anyone can do it. Even me, and I am certainly Not the Perfect Chef. Enjoy! Just in case you were wondering . . . my PC website is www.pamperedchef.biz/trinette Check it out if you want, if not, just stay tuned here for more of the little bit I know. I'm sure the DCB will be an item that is mentioned often, because as I said before . . . it is my favorite!

Scratch Soup

So, for the past couple of years, we lived in Maryland and I was FINALLY close enough to North Carolina to be able to get to know my cousins (Abby, Rachel and Jeremy - who live there. and Hannah and Heather - who don't), along with my Uncle Dave and Aunt Joyce. Growing up, we lived in Oregon and they lived all the way over in North Carolina! So, as children, we talked on the phone once or twice a year and exchanged gifts if funds allowed, and got to meet . . . ONCE. We spent a wonderful week at Grandma and Grandpa's house in Arizona. By wonderful I mean that each family loaded up and drove for days so that we could finally meet each other. And while we were there, we enjoyed running around together as though we had known each other for years. I was in the eigth grade at the time, and what I remember most about the trip was that I got pneumonia. I was so sick and so tired. I missed almost 2 weeks of school when we got back. It was quite a trip. What I learned though, from that trip, is that I could love people I had never met, so much more than I thought was humanly possible. We were all so much the same, and so different at the same time. I mean yes, each family had 5 kids - 4 of which were girls, and we were all pretty close in age, but we were more than that. We were cousins! But, I digress . . . So, back in Maryland, Karl, the kids and I were all so thankful for the opportunity to know them more. So on one of our many trips to see Aunt Joyce and Uncle Dave, I asked Aunt Joyce - "What was your kids' favorite meal when they were growing up?" and before she could answer, Rachel and Abby both said something about soup. So, I just had to know about this soup. The truth is, our family meals were sort of getting stuck in a rut and we needed to shake things up a bit. Anyhow . . . Aunt Joyce proceeded to tell me all about this soup. I'm sorry, I can't remember if she had a name for it - We call it Scratch Soup - at our house. So here's how to make it . . . there's no recipe. (Sorry for all you detail oriented people out there.) So, you need a gallon ziploc bag or a good size freezer safe plastic bowl. Each day, you will be adding to your bag/bowl, any leftovers that "aren't worth saving" because you think no one will eat them, or there just isn't even enough for a serving. (Store your bag/bowl in the freezer.) We are talking veggies, pasta, rice, meat scraps, potatoes, the leafy part of the celery that no one eats anymore, ANYTHING! Just add a little each time you have any bit of leftovers . . . don't be picky and think "I added chicken yesterday, I don't think I can add ground hamburger today." That won't work. Just add it. Then, when you bag/bowl is full, put it all in a large pot on the stove. Start it out about medium heat until everything is thawed. You will likely have to add some water or broth and maybe some seasonings. Then allow it to simmer for well, however long you have . . . I would suggest an hour or more. You can always add potatoes, pasta or rice if the "balance" seems off in the soup. I have made this many times over in the past couple of years, and my kids (all four of them, and Karl too.) ALWAYS rave about it! It's never the same, it's always different, but it's always good too. For our family of six, it takes about a month to come up with enough leftovers for a big pot of soup, but I like to think about it this way . . . that's one FREE meal a month! Now who couldn't love a free meal?

Not the Perfect Chef

So here I am, wondering what in the world this "so-not-a writer" self just commited to by starting a new blog . . . Well, hot water, that's what! So, for those of you who don't know how to BOIL water, this is the place for you. I desire to share what I know about cooking . . . which isn't much, but it's something, along with what I learn and love about my business with The Pampered Chef. Whether you have all the products or not, it doesn't matter. Not everything I have to share will be about that. For starters, I am going to share my favorite soup recipe . . . but get ready, it'll take you about a month to make it. Yes, you heard me. A month! But trust me, it's SO good that it's worth waiting for. And, you will never look at leftovers the same way again. So, join me and maybe I can at least share with you why I'm "Not the Perfect Chef."