Parmesan Scalloped Potatoes

Ohhh yum did we hit on something good here.  Scalloped potatoes.  In classy looking little towers.  Crispy top layer and soft bottom layers.  Parmesan cheese flavor throughout.  Earned a "They're *really* good" from my husband.  Mmmmm starch.
Caveats:

• You will have a scorched muffin tin you may consider throwing away afterward.  Don't despair.  A good soak with some dish soap and the gunk comes off with a scrub.
• Because of aforementioned muffin tin, you may consider just making these plain old scalloped potato style in a casserole dish.  Don't.  It's baking them in the muffin tin that gets that awesome Parmesan sauce to seep into each dreamy potato stack, so don't go fighting it.
• Let us all give a slow clap to Insockmonkeyslippers for this recipe.

Makes 6 stacks; enough to serve as a dinner side for 2 adults

Ingredients

• 1 garlic clove
• 1/2 shallot
• 1 cup half and half
• 1/2 cup + 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, plus extra for garnish
• 2 medium baking potatoes

Directions

1. Spray a muffin tin with copious amounts of nonstick spray.  Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Peel and mince the garlic and shallot.  Transfer to a medium mixing bowl.  Stir in the half and half, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese, and the salt, pepper, and thyme.  Set aside.
3. Peel the potatoes and slice with a food processor.  You may need to cut the potatoes a bit to fit.  [Sidebar: I am a food processor potato slicing convert.  I really love my mandolin slicer for softer things, but trying to slice potatoes on that thing is a workout.  Use the food processor's slicer disc and be done with the slicing in 10 seconds.]
4. Stack 7-10 potato slices in each muffin tin cup.  You may need to trim some slices to fit nicely into the tin.  I just weeded through the slices for the "good" sizes.  Do not stack potatoes higher than the cup.  Spoon about 1/4 cup of the half and half mixture into each cup, pouring over the stacked potatoes.  Do NOT overflow the cups.  Tent the muffin tin with aluminum foil.  If the foil is too close to the potatoes, it'll stick to them, and you don't want that.
5. Bake for 35 minutes.  Remove the foil and sprinkle each stack of potatoes with the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.  Put back in the oven and bake 10-15 minutes more, until the tops are golden brown and the liquid is absorbed into the potatoes.
6. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool.  Carefully slide a knife around the edges of each stack to loosen the potatoes, then gently remove and serve.  I used a spoon to lift mine out, and damaged the bottom layer or two in the process.  Share any improvements you have on removal method!
7. Add additional thyme as a garnish, if desired.

Crock Pot Potato Soup

I absolutely love potato soup.  Sadly, I'm the only one in my house who eats soup.  The boys are weirdos.  So I made a big vat of potato soup in the crock pot today and it's ALL MINE, losers.  Ok, my mom will likely have some with me, but how could I be sad to have a week of potato soup in my future, plus more in the freezer?  The answer is: I couldn't.  Especially with this awesome recipe, courtesy of my friend Mel, who shared it courtesy of this recipe.  Easy and amazingly delicious: hits the spot.  Though I had a hard time waiting for it to be done.  I wanted to dive right in a whole 18 minutes after putting everything in the crock pot.  Patience is difficult for me.

Ingredients

• 30-ounce bag of frozen, shredded hash browns (I used Ore Ida)
• 42 ounces of chicken broth
• 1 can of cream of chicken soup
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
• 8-ounce package of cream cheese, cut into chunks (approximately 1-ounce pieces)
• 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese, plus more for topping
• Green onions, bacon, or sour cream for topping (optional though highly recommended!)

Directions

1. Add hash browns, chicken broth, chicken soup, onion, and pepper to crock pot.  Stir and set on low for 6-8 hours.
2. 1 hour before serving, add cream cheese and 1 1/2 cups of cheddar cheese.  Stir occasionally until both cheeses are melted and incorporated into soup.
3. Serve with desired toppings.

Spiced Honey-Brushed Chicken

My family's favorite chicken recipe is this one, adapted from Cooking Light.  Simple, fast to cook, and packed with tons of flavor.  I served it tonight with roasted potatoes and Brussels sprouts.  YUM.  If you've made it to adulthood without learning that Brussels sprouts are actually delicious, just try making them the way I do.  Once.  That's all I ask!  What do you have to lose?  A few dollars on produce?  Just dooo iiit.

For the Brussels sprouts
Ingredients

• 1/2 to 1 lb small Brussels sprouts (the smaller the better)
• 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425°.  Trim stems off sprouts, cut in half vertically (stem to top, as seen in picture), and remove any loose outer leaves.
2. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil.  Scatter sprouts in a single layer on sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss to coat.
3. Roast for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally so they cook evenly.  Some leaves will blacken and fall away, but that's fine.
4. Set aside while you broil chicken.  Put sheet back in oven last 2 minutes while chicken is cooking to keep the sprouts nice and hot.

For the Chicken
Ingredients

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar

Directions

1. Preheat broiler.  Combine spices in a small tupperware container and shake to mix.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place chicken on top.  Sprinkle spice mixture generously on both sides of chicken breasts.  Use ALL of it!
2. Broil chicken 5-7 minutes on each side.  While broiling, combine honey and vinegar in a small prep bowl, stirring well to thoroughly mix.
3. Brush 1/2 of the honey mixture on the chicken.  Broil an additional 1 minute.  Take chicken out of oven, flip to other side, and brush with rest of the honey mixture.  Broil 1 additional minute or until chicken is done.

Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

I love to make this for dinner once fall gets here and there are so many great veggies to cook!  Really the only staple ingredients are chicken, vegetables, salt, pepper, garlic, and olive oil.  The rest can be changed around however you like and to your tastes.

Ingredients

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 acorn squash, seeds removed and cut into slices
• 3 carrots, sliced
• 6 red potatoes, quartered
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 stalk of celery, sliced
• 1 zucchini, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Penzeys Old World Seasoning (or poultry seasoning or season salt)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Add the vegetables and garlic to a large roasting pan or casserole dish.  Drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper, and seasoning.  Toss to coat.
3. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables.  Season generously with salt, pepper, and seasoning.
4. Roast at 425 degrees for 30 minutes.

THAT'S IT.  I swear this is the best meal to make.  10 minutes of chopping veggies followed by a half hour to relax while your house smells amazing and you get such a great meal with so little effort.

Stuffed Pork Chops and Roasted Red Potatoes

This is a recipe I've been making for a while now, and it's my family's favorite way to have pork chops.  I got some basics of the recipe from What's for Dinner?  I added more seasoning to the pork chops and have my favorite type of stuffing to use.  I also love serving them with my roasted red potatoes- a recipe I made up when I was first learning how to cook as a newlywed.

Roasted Red Potatoes
8-10 mini red potatoes, quartered
1 tsp olive oil
Garlic powder, rosemary, and salt to taste (I usually use about 1/2 tsp each)

Directions
Wash and quarter the potatoes.  Place in an oven-safe, lidded dish.  Drizzle with olive oil, then season with garlic powder, rosemary, and salt.  Toss to coat.  Cover, and place in 425 degree oven for 40 minutes.  Stir, cover, and return to oven for 15 more minutes.  Stir and serve.

Stuffed Pork Chops
Ingredients:
4 lean boneless pork loin chops, relatively thick cut
1 serving Pepperidge Farm stuffing, prepared according to quick stove-top instructions
Garlic powder, rosemary, salt, and pepper for seasoning the meat to taste
1 tsp olive oil

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare the stuffing per instructions. 

Slice pockets into the pork chops by slicing horizontally in the side, but be sure not to cut all the way through.
Season the pork with garlic powder, rosemary, salt, and pepper, then stuff with stuffing.

Heat 1 tsp olive oil in a large oven safe skillet at medium heat. Sear the pork chops on one side for 3-4 minutes until golden brown. Flip the chops and place the skillet in the oven for 9 minutes or until cooked through. Remove from the oven and let the meat rest for 3-5 minutes before serving.