Traditional Slaw Salad

I love Cole Slaw and was introduced to Broccoli Slaw last year - not bad! I found the recipe below on a bag of Broccoli Slaw and tried it out. It's pretty good!


(I know this isn't some fancy recipe, and it came off the back of a bag of shredded broccoli, but remember that this is a place to compile recipes)


Like all Cole Slaws, you could definitely add raisins, golden raisins or dried cranberries to the mix.


Ingredients
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 1/4 cup vinegar (I used cider vinegar)
2 tsp sugar
salt and pepper to taste
12 oz Cole Slaw or Broccoli Slaw mix


Directions
Blend together first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Add slaw mix and gently toss until coated. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Asparagus with Lemon Vinaigrette

A friend told me about a recipe he found in a grocery store magazine for a lemon vinaigrette for asparagus and it sounded amazing. I decided to give it a shot for Easter dinner and it was fantastic!

Ingredients

1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

3/4 teaspoon fresh Thyme leaves, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

3/4 teaspoon coarse salt or sea salt

pinch fresh cracked pepper

2 pounds fresh asparagus stalks, washed and trimmed

Directions

In a jar, combine olive oil, lemon juice, Thyme, garlic, salt and pepper. Cover and shake vigorously until combined. Store in the refrigerator and serve at room temperature.

Steam asparagus until crisp-tender; do not overcook! 

Drizzle vinaigrette over asparagus to coat lightly.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Easy Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots

Found these for Easter dinner.


Ingredients
16 ounces baby carrots
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup water
dash salt
pepper, to taste


Directions
In a medium saucepan, combine the baby carrots with remaining ingredients. Stir to blend ingredients. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and continue boiling (uncovered) for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until carrots are tender and the liquid has evaporated.
Serves 4 to 6.

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Dark Chocolate Truffle Center and Vanilla Bean Frosting

Found these for my dad's birthday. Added the truffle center that I saw in another cupcake recipe because I'm just that awesome!


This was my first time using a real vanilla bean for something. It has an amazing aroma and was pretty easy to use!

Ingredients

Cupcakes

1 box chocolate cake mix

3 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup stout beer

Frosting

1/2 cup butter, softened

4 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup milk
1 vanilla bean

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups.
2. In large bowl, beat cake mix, eggs, oil and beer with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.
3. Bake about 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cut an "X" in the top of the cupcakes and insert a truffle into the center. Cool 10 minutes; remove cupcakes from pans to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
4. In medium bowl, beat butter and powdered sugar with electric mixer on medium-low speed until combined. Gradually beat in milk. Cut vanilla bean in half and scrape out seeds. Discard bean; add seeds to frosting. Beat on medium speed until fluffy. Pipe or spread frosting on cupcakes.

Original recipe from Betty Crocker.

Spicy Honey-Roasted Chicken and Sweet Carrots

Both of these recipes were crazy easy and very delicious. I hated carrots as a kid, but have learned to love them as an adult.

I cooked my chicken in the Deep Covered Baker (remember, we talked about that earlier) and when it was done, I took it out of the oven and put the cover on it till the rest of dinner was done. Perfection!

Spicy Honey-Roasted Chicken (recipe from AllRecipes.com)

Ingredients

• 1 (6 pound) whole roasting chicken
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Rinse and pat dry the chicken; place in roasting pan.
2. In a bowl, mix together the honey, chili powder, cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, and garlic powder. Using your hands, rub the honey mixture all over the chicken. Baste chicken with the melted butter.
3. Roast the chicken in the preheated oven until the skin begins to brown, 30 min. Baste the chicken with juices in the roasting pan.
4. Reduce heat to 350F, and roast until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Baste occasionally during roasting. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180F. 
5. Remove the chicken from the oven, cover and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 minutes before slicing.

Sweet Carrots (recipe from AllRecipes.com)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups baby carrots
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon butter or stick margarine
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar or cider vinegar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon minced chives

Directions

1. Place carrots in a steamer basket. Place in a saucepan over 1 in. of water; bring to a boil. Cover and steam for 5-8 minutes or until tender. 
2. Transfer carrots to a bowl. Add the brown sugar, butter, vinegar and salt; toss until butter is melted and carrots are coated. Sprinkle with chives.

Easy Garlic Chicken

Another recipe found on Pinterest. It was pretty good, but keep your eyes open for a Take 2 version sometime in the future. 

Original recipe found on Food.com


Ingredients
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

3 teaspoons olive oil

4 garlic cloves, minced

4 tablespoons brown sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 500°F and lightly grease a casserole dish.
2. In small sauté pan, sauté garlic with the oil until tender.
3. Remove from heat and stir in brown sugar.
4. Place chicken breasts in a prepared baking dish and cover with the garlic and brown sugar mixture.
5. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Bake uncovered for 15-30 minutes.
7. Broil on high until garlic and brown sugar topping start to brown and caramelize.