Bourbon Chicken

I ran across this recipe. Boy, was I glad I tried it! It was awesome, it is as good, if not better than what you get in a Chinese restaurant. The only thing I would change about the recipe, is I would double the sauce and serve it with a vegetable.

Serves 4

2 lbs. boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch
1-2 Tablespoon olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 teaspoon ginger
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup apple juice
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 Tablespoons ketchup
1 Tablespoon cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup soy sauce
3 Tablespoons bourbon or to taste

Heat oil in a large skillet.

Dredge chicken in the 1/3 cup cornstarch. Add chicken pieces and
cook until lightly browned. Remove chicken.
Add remaining ingredients, heating over medium heat until well mixed
and dissolved.
Bring to a hard boil. Reduce heat and add chicken back into pan,
simmer for 20 minutes.
If sauce is not your desired consistency. Take the remaining 2
teaspoons corn starch, add a little sauce to it (making a slurry). Add
cornstarch mixture to the bourbon sauce. Bring to a boil & sauce will
thicken.
Serve over hot rice.

Zucchini Bread

Well, it's summer time & I am sure you have way to many zucchini's coming from your garden. This is an easy & yummy recipe to use some of it up. The best thing? Kids don't even know they are eating their veggies. I think some chopped apples would be a great addition to this recipe. Also, you could top this with cream cheese.

I made muffins & mini loafs, but you could make regular loafs if that suited you better.

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/4 cups white sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)


Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.
Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. (It will be thick, like play dough) Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.
Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. If baking muffins, bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.

Baked Ziti

Well, I love pasta & was wanting something just a little different then your normal spaghetti with meat sauce. This was a pretty good recipe. The hubs gave it better reviews than I did. I do think it needs the tomato sauce (I didn't have any, so I did 2 cans of diced tomatoes). I also would increase the garlic & probably buy the oregano, basil, garlic tomatoes if I make this again.

Serves 6

1 pound lean ground beef (ground chuck or ground round)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 green bell pepper, chopped, about 1/2 cup
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon dried leaf basil, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon dried leaf oregano, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder or small clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
8 ounces ziti or elbow macaroni, cooked and drained
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided


Sauté ground beef, onion, and green bell pepper in a large skillet until onion is tender and beef is lightly browned. Drain off excess fat; add tomatoes, tomato sauce, basil, oregano, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Stir well; stir in ziti or elbow macaroni and 1 cup of the cheese; transfer to a 2 1/2-quart casserole. Top with the remaining cup of cheese. Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

Seven layer Hummus Dip

I was looking for something different for a party. Well, this was it! It was a hit. I used greek hummus, so I did not add the garlic or cumin.


1 1/2 C. prepared hummus
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 C. marinated sundried tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup chopped cucumber
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tbsp. minced fresh parsley
2 tsp. minced fresh oregano
1/2 C. crumbled feta cheese
1/4 C. chopped kalamata olives
1/4 C. chopped green onions

1. Stir cumin and garlic into your prepared hummus. If your hummus is already strongly flavored, this step may not be necessary. Spread your prepared hummus in the bottom of a pie plate.

2. Top your hummus with your chopped sundried tomatoes. Top those with cucumber and season cucumber with freshly ground black pepper. Sprinkle the parsley and oregano over.

3. Sprinkle the feta over. Sprinkle the olives over. Finish off with the green onions.

4. Cover and chill until ready to serve. Serve cold.