Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s #22

Posted on May 12, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

Wowza! Last week was a fabulous week from all of you! I love that this Party keeps growing! Let’s keep that growth going as it helps us all!

I really think that a Linky Party should benefit all those involved and not just the Host. I hope that you have all seen The Pins on my Pinterest Page under Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s. If you link up you WILL BE PINNED! As this party grows and the word is spread that means really great exposure for all of you! So please Grab a button and spread the word about this linky party the more that see this, the more that will see YOU!

As each week goes by I can see that this is going to be harder and harder to highlight some of the amazing recipes and crafts that you link up! I am trying really hard to make sure that I spread the love around. There may be some weeks where you will see the same blog with different posts highlighted two weeks in a row. I am going to do my best to keep that to a minimum so that everyone gets their time in the sun. I have a featured on Board on Pinterest. So again the more traffic that you can help me drive to my Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter pages the more people that will see your wonderful creations!

I hope that after you link up you stay and party with us! I know how great it is to see everyone stopping by. Stay and play and party with us. Visit each other and let them know you found them on Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s!!!

Now on to the Features!The link with the most views was

Joyful Healthy Eats Skirt Steak and Chimichurri Sauce

Mostly Homemade Mom Crock Pot Portabella Mushroom Sandwiches

I Dig Pinterest and I did it too’s Sweet Shoppe Candy Party

Wilderness Wife’s Maple Walnut Tart

Everyone Featured Grab a Featured On Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s Button located on the side bar of the home page!

Funfetti Pancakes

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

Who doesn’t love Funfetti? I mean really these tiny colorful pieces of sugar can brighten up the cloudiest day. It just so happens that the morning I made these it was a super cloudy day and I was so bummed that I was not going to be able to photograph them. Well no sooner than breakfast was done and I had my plate of pancakes off to the side to take pictures of if the sun ever returned…… it came out!!! Look at all that beautiful Sunshine in the picture. I think that it makes me happier than the funfetti… almost. Like I said who doesn’t love funfetti?!

I know that you are asking yourself what is the occasion for these celebration style pancakes? Nothing much just that I love my husband so much and he has a childlike joy at the sight of colored sprinkles. Most Sunday mornings here are pancake mornings and this Sunday just needed a little bit more fun thrown in.

I know that funfetti EVERYTHING has been all over the blogosphere and that these pancakes are nothing new. Would it be ok if I told you that I don’t care I am still going to share with you my fun little breakfast that made my Hubby so very happy? . It is so funny to see a grown man who has been in 5 wars get silly happy over something so small. His face just lights up like a kid {or he} just heard the Ice Cream Man!

Do you know what the best part of these are? I don’t even need to write a big recipe for this. Are you ready? Take a box of your favorite Pancake Mix and a hand full of sprinkles! Viola you are done! How’s that for Super Fancy Gourmet Cooking? You just want to have fun, not spend all morning in the Kitchen. So get out there Celebrate the Loved ones in your life and the Sunshine!!!

Funfetti Pancakes

This is a Super Fun and Super Easy Celebration Breakfast!

Ingredients

your favorite Pancake Mix and the ingredients it calls for
1 handful of Colored Sprinkles
Whipped Cream

Instructions

make the batter according to box directions
mix in the colored sprinkles
make pancakes as you normally would
top with whipped cream
have a blast!!
Enjoy

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Here are some other breakfasts you may enjoy:

Cinnaminy Cinnamon Rolls and Cream Cheese Frosting

Banana Bread Blondies

Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s #21

Posted on May 5, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

Welcome to this week’s Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s! Thank you for all the support and entries to the Contest last week! We had 175 entries and 62 new Facebook Likes! Rafflecopter randomly picks a winner out of all the entries and the Congratulations go to Diana of Diana Rambles.com!!! She has already received her prize of $25 Gift Card to Amazon! I am so thankful to all of you and especially my long time readers! I am sending a special Thank you to Sharonjo who has been with me almost since the beginning She is always leaving me such nice comments and I really appreciate the loyalty. Really this why we blog! To know that all our hard work is touching lives. So Thank You Sharonjo!

Due to the overwhelming growth this party has seen these recent weeks I am very sad to say that I will not have the time to leave comments on each post. What I still promise to do is to Read and Pin Every Post that links up!

I really think that a Linky Party should benefit all those involved and not just the Host. I hope that you have all seen The Pins on my Pinterest Page under Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s. If you link up you WILL BE PINNED! As this party grows and the word is spread that means really great exposure for all of you! So please Grab a button and spread the word about this linky party the more that see this, the more that will see YOU!

I hope that after you link up you stay and party with us! I know how great it is to see everyone stopping by. Stay and play and party with us. Visit each other and let them know you found them on Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s!!!

Now on to the Features! This weeks most viewed post was:

3 Peppers Recipes Old T Shirt Rosebud Bracelet We are all loving her Tutorials on these flowers and all the Fun Things that we can make with them!

Here are a few of my favorites

The Best Blog Recipes Orange Push Up Smoothie I am so ready for summer fun and this smoothie screams Summer!

Sweet Twist of Blogging German Chocolate Meringue Cake Does this really need any other explanation other than Oh My Yum! ?

Busy Mom’s Helper Caramel Banana Cream Pie

Everyone Featured Grab a Featured On Button on my homepage sidebar!

Crock Pot Carnitas and Southwest Broccoli Slaw

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

Here is another installment to the Plaid and Paisley Originals!

Let’s face it we all love a night off from cooking but we hate the guilt of getting take out for our families. Crock pot recipes were invented for this very reason. You can rub the meat and sear it first thing in the morning and let that baby slow cook all day while you are at work. You will be welcomed home to the most amazing scent of cooking meat and spices all melding together!

Tell me you don’t want to dive right in and start to chow down? True to it’s name and it’s flavor combination you are looking at the easiest way to make Carnitas. Traditionally Carnitas take all day on the stove top cooking and cooking and rendering and rendering. This little trick with the crock pot takes all the work out and you don’t have to keep skimming all that yucky foam off that your get when you cook pork. Once you take the meat out of the pot and it all just tears apart so easy leaving you with tender juicy seasoned meat. A quick pop in the broiler and you have that perfect crispy texture that Carnitas are famous for! The best accompaniment to these tacos is a fresh and tangy Broccoli Slaw.

This slaw is tangy and spicy and just a little bit sweet. A true spin on the classic picnic cole slaw. This is made with broccoli and carrots. You can buy the broccoli slaw already julienned and ready to season. Then you have the same spices that you season the meat with some lime juice and the easiest part…. Ranch Salad dressing. This slaw is great on it’s own but even better when place in the taco with the carnitas.

I hope that you have a Fun and Safe Cinco de Mayo this year! Along with all the fun Margarita’s you drink it would be great to have this no fuss meal for everyone!

Crock Pot Carnitas and Southwest Broccoli Slaw

This is a Plaid and Paisley Original Recipe

Ingredients

For the Meat
1-3 lbs pork shoulder roast
1 tbs of each salt, cumin, chili powder
1 tsp of each black pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder
1 onion quartered
1 12 oz bottle of light beer like a Corona
1 cup water
15-20 corn or flour tortillas
for the slaw:
1 package of raw broccoli slaw
1 tsp of cumin and chili powder
juice of one lime
1/2 cup ranch salad dressing

Instructions

in a small prep bowl mix all the seasoning together for the meat
rub the meat generously with the seasoning mixture
in a skillet over medium high to high heat sear all side of the pork roast giving a nice caramel color
remove from the heat and let rest
place the quartered onion in the bottom of your Crock Pot. {this will act as a bed for the meat}
place meat on the onions
pour in the Corona or any light beer and the water
place the lid on and cook on low for 6-8 hours and high for 3-4 hours
when done the meat will just fall to pieces
place the shredded meat on a large jelly roll pan and broil for 5-6 min to crisp up
I like to place my tortilla's right on the gas burner on low to warm and char them
For the Slaw:
mix the slaw and cumin and chili powder in a bowl
add the lime juice and the Ranch Dressing and mix to combine
you can make this the night before so it can chill and the flavors combine with the pork is cooking
Enjoy!

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Here are some other recipes you may enjoy

Federale Potato Casserole A spice Treat for the whole family

Chicken Fajita Enchiladas

Federale Potato Casserole

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

This is the last day to enter to win the $25 Amazon Gift Card!!! Check it out here and enter to win!!!

It’s really warming up here in the Mid West! It was 85 the other day! That is my kind of weather. So in honor of the rising mercury and that Cinco De Mayo is only 3 days away I bring you one Spicy Dish! This recipe is the latest in my Plaid and Paisley Original Recipe series. This dish was a super huge hit with the boys and I have to say I really loved it also. You can temper the heat to your families taste. This uses Fire Roasted Tomatoes and if you want to dial the heat down just used regular diced tomatoes. Want to heat it up even more {that may be more than you bargained for} add a second can of green chiles. This is a big bold recipe and true to a casserole you really don’t even need to make a side dish. Well, a nice green salad would be great with this.

Can you just see the flavor bursting out of the picture? We have all sorts of great things on this plate. Ground Beef, Potatoes, Red and Yellow Peppers, Tomatoes, Chilies, and don’t forget the Cheese! What would a casserole be without cheese? This is a perfectly easy throw together in a hurry weeknight meal. You can even buy your peppers already cut up for you to help with the prep time. There is nothing better than being able to serve the family a wonderful dish that comes together in 15 min and bakes up in 30! That 45 min sounds like perfect homework time to me.

So make this tonight, or for Cinco De Mayo or anytime a fun easy tasty spicy dish is in order!!!

Federale Potato Casserole

This is a Plaid and Paisley Original Recipe

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef
1 envelope taco seasoning
5-7 yukon gold potatoes diced
1 red and 1 yellow pepper diced
1 4 oz can green chilies diced
1 14 oz can roasted fire tomatoes {or just diced for less heat}
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

Brown the beef in a skillet and drain the grease
Mix in the taco seasoning and set aside
in a mixing bowl add the remaining ingredients except for the cheese and mix to combine
mix in the beef
pour into a 9x9 baking dish
cover with foil {the steam will help cook the potatoes}
and bake at 350 for 30 min
remove the foil check potatoes for doneness
it they are still under cooked replace foil and bake for 50-10 more
if they are done sprinkle the cheese and bake for 5 min
remove from oven and serve!
Enjoy!

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Here are some other recipes that you may enjoy if you like this one

Tequila Lime Green Chile Chicken Roll Ups

Easy Rotel Casserole

Cinnaminy Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting

Posted on April 30, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

Have you entered to win the $25 Amazon Gift Card?!!! Hop over right here to enter! Good Luck!

Cinnaminy is not a Word!!! It is when you add extra extra cinnamon in the rolls! You know what? I just happened to do that! These rolls are exploding with Cinnamon and Sugar! This is not a breakfast for hard core Dieters that is for sure. If you want to start your day off on a sweet note then these are the Cinnamon Rolls for you! They are very reminiscent of Cinnabon but I didn’t use a copycat recipe. I found this recipe from Just Love Cookin’ Ana Maria has a beautiful blog in Italian. {Thank heavens for Google Translate}

I made this recipe when I had friends from out of town and everyone went Gah Gah over it. So I knew that I needed to make it again for you all. Happy Tuesday and Happy Breakfast!!!

The dough makes a light and airy roll. The layers and layers of Cinnamon make it delightful! The trick to a really gooey yummy middle is melted butter and brown sugar! Oh and don’t forget the Cinnamon. Speaking of the middle…. That is my favorite part! I can leave the sides behind and eat the middle out of each roll!!!

Hmmmmm The middle……… Best Part of the Roll!

One of the great things about this recipe is how beautifully it bakes up. The dough rises easily and it bakes to a perfect golden brown. Just look at that bottom. So Tasty! Well I do suppose I have to confess that other than the middle the Cream Cheese Frosting might really be my favorite!

It is so thick and creamy and sweet! You can see the cinnamon peaking through the frosting. Other than the insane amount in the middle I also added a layer on top. Just before baking brush melted butter on the tops of the rolls and sprinkle more brown sugar and cinnamon! You have the Perfect Cinnaminy Cinnamon Rolls!

Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting

This recipe is adapted from Just Love Cookin'

Ingredients

For the Dough
1 tsp sugar
1/2 cup lukewarm water
1 tbs dry active yeast or 1 envelope
1/8 cup melted butter 1 egg yolk
2 cups AP Flour
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 tbs + 1 tsp milk
For the Filling:
1/4 cup melted butter
1/8 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tbs cinnamon
For the Frosting:
3 oz cream cheese soft
2 tbs butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar

Instructions

In a mixer with the dough hook attachment
place the yeast, sugar and lukewarm water
let sit for 10 min till bubbly and foamy
add the egg yolk, melted butter and the salt
slowly add the flour in
let the machine knead the dough until a ball forms
if it is dry and not coming together add the milk 1 tbs and tsp at a time
in a greased bowl place the dough with a moistened towel with warm water over it
let sit and rise in a warm place for 1 hr it should double in size
preheat oven to 350
gently remove the dough and lay out on a floured surface
with a rolling pin roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch thickness
brush on the melted butter and sprinkle on the brown sugar and cinnamon
{you can save some for the top or use it all and just put more on the top.}
roll the dough into a log shape
cut about 2 inch pieces and place in a greased {not spray} pie plate
brush with more butter and sugar and cinnamon
bake for 30 35 min
to make the frosting just cream together all the ingredients and spread on cooled rolls or just slightly cool for a melty effect
Enjoy!!!

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Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s #20 {$25 Amazon gift card Giveaway!}

Posted on April 28, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

Hello!!!! I am so very excited to tell you that we have hit our First Milestone here at The Plaid and Paisley!!! We have 500 Facebook fans!!!! Jumping up and Down and whoo hooing!!! This calls for a party! I also think this calls for a nice little Giveaway to thank you all so much for your Loyalty! How does a $25 gift card to Amazon sound? Pretty snazzy huh? Well you have earned it! Go ahead and enter right here in the rafflecopter form!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Now on to the Party!!!! We are getting more links every week! It is so exciting to see this party grow and I hope that you all are really enjoying yourselves! I really think that a Linky Party should benefit all those involved and not just the Host. I hope that you have all seen The Pins on my Pinterest Page under Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s. If you link up you WILL BE PINNED! As this party grows and the word is spread that means really great exposure for all of you! So please Grab a button and spread the word about this linky party the more that see this the more that will see YOU! I hope that after you link up you stay and party with us! I know how great it is to see everyone stopping by. Stay and play and party with us. Visit each other and let them know you found them on Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s!!!

Now on to the Features! The Most Viewed Link was:

Simple Sue’s Butterscotch Fluff

Some of my Favorites were:

Crazy for Crust’s Sopapilla Cheesecake Hand pies

Crumbs and Chaos Butterfinger Muddy Buddies

3 Peppers Recipes Old T-Shirt Flower Tutorial

Chocolate Chocolate and More’s Mini Lemon Cheesecakes

Everyone Featured Grab a Featured On Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s Button located on the side bar of the home page!

Tequila Lime Green Chile Chicken Roll Ups

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

Cinco De Mayo is just around the corner! Whether you are Mexican or not it is a fun day filled with food, margarita’s and pinatas. Tonight I am bringing you another installment to the Plaid and Paisley Original Recipe page. I know that Roll Ups are all the rage in Dinner Time right now. I wanted to bring you one that is not the traditional Italian flavors but a great twist on traditional Mexican flavors. I don’t really need any excuse to use tequila for anything but, hey May 5th is Mexico’s Independence Day and it’s a great Party to be had. You will love the tang of the lime and tequila and the slight heat of the green chiles. I used my frozen Hatch Chiles for this, but you can also just replace them with a 4 oz can of chopped green chiles. If you are a long time reader of the blog then you will know of my obsession with Hatch Chiles. If you are new feel free to jump over here and here to read about these amazing green goodies!

This recipe is a great use of leftover chicken. Just shred any chicken breast or roasted chicken that you may have and warm in a skillet with a little taco seasoning. For this recipe I did start with fresh chicken breast and I include my spice rub in the ingredients, but if you have leftovers that you are looking to use up by all means this is a go to recipe for you.

If you are worried about the Tequila and little ones, don’t fret all the alcohol is cooked out and you are only left with the flavor. {I suppose if you are really concerned you could always leave it out, but you would really lose one of the key flavor components.} As long as you have that Tequila bottle out anyway go ahead and mix up a Margarita or, three! You already have the limes ready to go. I don’t think I would advise doing shots until you take your dish out of the oven though.

This is another dish that you will save your sanity if you only parboil your noodles first. You will need them to be soft and pliable but not cooked to the point they break when being handled. Boil for 7 min only and then rinse with cold water. You won’t need to use toothpicks or anything to keep them rolled up if you follow this step. The sauce that you make is where all the flavor is at! We are talking serious creamy delight! Kick up the heat and add more chile’s, tone it down by holding back. The one thing you don’t want to do, is to Not Make This. Seriously you have to make this! It is THAT GOOD!

Tequila Lime Green Chile Chicken Roll Ups

This is perfect for leftover Chicken. Just shred the chicken and warm in a saute pan with 3 tbs taco seasoning or start from scratch and follow my recipe!

Ingredients

3 boneless skinless chicken breast OR 2 cups shredded leftover chicken
1 tsp each of salt, cumin, and chili powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tbs olive oil
10 lasagna noodles {not the oven ready kind}
1 can of cream of celery
1/4 cup Tequila
zest of one lime and the juice reserved
3 Hatch Chiles Chopped OR 1 4 oz can of chopped green chiles
1 14 oz can green enchilada sauce
cilantro for garnish

Instructions

preheat oven to 350
in a baking dish
Season the chicken breast with the salt, cumin, chili powder and black pepper
drizzle the olive oil on top
bake for 30 min
remove from oven and shred with two forks
par boil noodles for 7 min drain and rinse with cold water
in a saucepan combine the cream of celery, tequila, zest of the lime, and green chiles
bring to a boil reduce heat and simmer 5-7 min
in a 9 x13 baking dish
spoon 1/3 of the of the green enchilada saucesauce on the bottom of the dish
take each noodle and spread 2 tbs of chicken lengthwise
roll up and place seam side down on the sauce
repeat till all noodles and chicken are used
pour the remaining sauce on top
then pour the reserved lime juice
then pour the tequila lime sauce on top
bake at 350 for 30 min
serve with cilantro as garnish
Enjoy!

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Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

Posted on April 25, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

I know that you have read where I am really trying to develop my own personal recipes versus just rehashing a cookbook recipe. So I am proud to announce a New Page here at the P and P Kitchen, Plaid and Paisley Original Recipes. You can find this new page at the top of the header. This page will take you to all the posts that have my very own recipes. I am really excited about this and I hope that you will spend some time perusing through the recipes. As time goes on more and more recipes will appear on this page so I hope that you will come back and check them often! Today’s recipe is an amazing dinner that you will love serving to your family.

You can use any combination of vegetables that you like. The addition of spinach would be amazing. For this meal I used Eggplant, Red and Yellow Pepper, Portabella Mushrooms, Zucchini and a Red Onion. Roasting them in the oven first really brings out the flavors and the sweetness of the peppers and onion. I know that it is an extra step and that it takes a bit more time than sauteeing them, but you will really notice a flavor difference and it really is a step worth taking. You can roast them the night before or that morning if you are pressed for time. One tip on the Eggplant, always Sweat them out first! Eggplant has a tendency to be bitter. Slice it and lay out the slices on paper towels, sprinkle with salt and let sit for 30 min. This will sweat all the bitterness out.

Another step that you can make ahead of time is the sauce. I almost recommend that you do make this the day ahead. Everyone knows that Italian always tastes better the second day. The reason for this is the flavors have had time to really combine and blend together. This is a really easy sauce and you will have no trouble whipping it up that evening but for a deep layer of flavor make it the day ahead. Another quick tip on an easy foolproof way to make Lasagna: par boil the noodles only. Boil for 7 min they will be pliable but not soft and break and make you pull your hair out! Trust me this will save your sanity for any dish that you have to Handle the pasta.

Don’t get scared off by the length of this recipe. There are a few steps but when you cook from scratch there always are. You will be so glad that you took the extra time and really created something wonderful and amazing tasting.

Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

Ingredients

1 medium sized eggplant cut into 1/4' rounds and sweated out
1 red pepper sliced
1 yellow pepper sliced
2 portabella mushrooms cleaned
1 red onion quartered
3tbs olive oil
1 tbs salt
1/2 tbs black pepper
1 package lasagna noodles {not the ready to bake kind}
For the sauce:
1 can of 14.05 oz diced tomatoes {drained}
1 can of 6 oz tomato paste
1 can on 8 oz basil garlic oregano tomato sauce
1 tbs concentrated tomato paste
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic and onion powder each
1 tbs oregano
For the cheese layer:
8 oz low fat ricotta
1 egg
1/2 tsp dried parsley
1/4 cup shredded parmesan

Instructions

preheat oven to 375
on a baking sheet lay out all the vegetables and drizzle 3 tbs olive oil and 1 tbs satl and 1/2 tbs black pepper and roast for 20 minutes
let cool
for the sauce:
combine all the sauce ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil
reduce heat and simmer for a min of 15 minutes and up to 30 {taste during this and adjust seasoning as needed}
for the cheese layer:
mix the ricotta cheese and egg and dried parsley in a bowl
bring a pot of salted water to a boil and boil noodles for 7 min
drain and rinse with cold water
preheat oven to 350
in a 9 x13 baking dish spread 1/8 cup of sauce on the bottom
layer the first layer of noodles
then vegetables
then sauce
then noodles
then cheese
then noodles and so forth till the dish is full
make sure to end with a layer of noodles
cover with foil and bake for 30 min
remove foil and spread the parmesan cheese on top and bake for 10 more min
I gave it a quick broil at the end to give it color
let sit for 10 minutes before slicing
Enjoy!!!

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Striped Summer Fruit Tart

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen

When you make Lemon Curd, you must make a tart to eat it with. This is a rule in life, really it is. I love Tarts! I make sweet and savory ones and I just adore them all. I was so happy that I used my new tart pan for this one and it was so pretty that I just had to leave it in the pan for the pictures! This is a wonderfully simple tart to make. The presentation is gorgeous so you can take it anywhere to show off how talented you are in the kitchen. Just think how all your co-workers, or committee members will ooh and ahh over the delightfulness and beauty of your tart. You will be showered with praise! Really how could you not want to dive right in and eat every luscious bite of this?

Be sure to use the freshest berries available. Fresh quality ingredients really make a difference. The types of fruit that you can use are endless. One of my favorite combinations is green and red grapes and kiwi. For this tart I wanted bright big bold colors to help welcome Spring into Kansas City! When it rains, and it’s raining a lot, I keep telling myself not to complain it could be snow!!! When you take a bite of this all you will think about is soft summer breezes and sun filled days. When you are laying your fruit down on the tart think of interesting patterns. If you use a round tart pan make a spiral pattern. The only trick to a tart is making sure that you have created something that is visually appealing. Get Creative and have fun with it! Here’s a closer look at my choice in a pattern.

The beauty of this tart is it’s simplicity. A simple shortbread crust, luscious Lemon Curd, and fresh berries. What more do you need?

Striped Summer Fruit Tart

The amount of dough you need will depend on the size of your tart pan. This batch will fill and 8x4 tart pan. If you have left over dough just make cookies with the extra.

Ingredients