Author Archives: cookingwithcandi

Goodbye 2013 and Hello 2014–Top Ten Viewed Recipes

photo 4 (2)It’s hard to believe that a new year is upon us –2014! Happy Healthy New Year to all of you. Thanks for reading Cooking with Candi and helping to make 2013 an even better one than the last 2 years. My readership is up and my daily average is way up. I am so happy to have this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for your support. I thought this year I would do something new and allow you to see my Top Ten Recipes by views  and my Top Ten Countries by views. There are so many stats that go along with writing a blog and sometimes it’s just amazing to me that someone in Pakistan is actually reading a recipe that I wrote! It also amazes me that out of 475 published recipes these 10 recipes get the most hits. The top ten countries are also a kick to think that people all over the world are reading my blog!

Again, thanks for following me and supporting me through this adventure of mine. I’ve enjoyed doing it for 3 years now and hope I have many more years to come. It has truly been a labor of love for me. If I’ve helped you to cook more then I have achieved my goal.  I am also so very happy for those of you who’ve reached out and written to me when you have attempted some new recipe and I especially love that some of you send me recipes to try.  Keep it up and pass on the word to friends and family. If some of these recipes look new to you,  look them up by putting the title into the little search box on my site.

Happy Healthy New Year from my kitchen to yours.

Top Ten Recipes by Views for 2013:

1. Baked Salami (Oldie but Goodie)

2. Creamy Butternut Squash Soup (no cream)

3. Vinaigrette with Maple Syrup – the new Salad Dressing you’ve been looking for

4. Baked French Toast- all time best

5. Quinoa Salad with Red Wine Vinegar Dressing ( so good for you)

6. Chicken with Mushrooms

7. Chicken Cubes with Rosemary, Lemon and Garlic

8.Chicken Marbella

9. Pumpkin Walnut Bread (no butter)

10. Peach Farfel for Passover-crowd favorite

There you have it , those ten recipes got the most hits on my blog. Don’t even try to figure it out. Can’t argue with statistics.

Top Ten Countries by Views:

1. United States

2. Canada

3. UK

4. Australia

5. South Africa

6. Philippines

7. Germany

8. Pakistan

9. Singapore

10. Italy

Cream Cheese and Lox/Salmon Appetizer

Re-blog Monday and what’s more perfect than this perfect little appetizer? Having people over and looking for something to make as an appetizer that doesn’t take a lot of time or ingredients? Everyone will be impressed with your skills, and everyone (at least those who like salmon) will devour this. Enjoy this super simple recipe and Happy New Year!

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Winter '13 colorado 023Winter '13 colorado 020Winter '13 colorado 021Winter '13 colorado 022This is an appetizer that I used to make all the time and then for some reason stopped making and am now starting to make again! It’s funny how that happens. It couldn’t be easier and it looks so good. It’s good if you’re looking for something new to make, very few ingredients and all you’ll really need is a good sharp knife for cutting rolls. Out here in Colorado I was able to get very soft extra large tortillas, they work really well. If you can’t find very soft ones, just use regular tortillas or wraps. If you can’t get large just use small ones.  Look at photos, just lay salmon on top of cream cheese in a row starting at the top and go to just before the bottom of tortilla. One 4 oz. package will probably go for 3 large tortillas and 4 small. Good for 4 –…

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Seven Layer Dip

This is a re-blog from last February (Super Bowl) . I love this recipe and if you’re having a lot of people over this is so nice to serve. Not so much work and just an awesome appetizer to serve.

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Winter cont'd 021Seven Layer Dip 005This is a super easy and beautiful dish to entertain with. It’s great in a glass bowl where you can see all of the layers. I prefer to make this without meat but if you would like make one of the layers ground beef or ground turkey. Just drain the meat before adding and make sure that the meat has cooled before adding all the other ingredients. Feel free to play around with ingredients, whatever works for you. This recipe is best served at room temperature, I’ll usually make it earlier in the day and take it out of refrigerator an hour or so before serving. Another thing I would suggest is to go to a local Mexican restaurant that you like and buy your refried beans, guacamole and salsa there. It’s usually the best. Sometimes I will make my own guacamole etc. If you’d like to you can double…

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Lemony Chicken Thighs–Pan Roasted

photo 2 (11)photo 2 (12)photo 1 (18)photo 4 (7)I made this for dinner the other night and it was absolutely delicious , it is a bit complicated sounding but honestly it wasn’t .  This recipe is really all in the technique of pan roasting. You will cook the thighs skin side down in a cast iron skillet or a Le Creuset type of pan. The fat from chicken will render out and make the skin nice and crispy. It just was a lot of in and out of oven onto stove-top kind of thing. Worth the effort for sure. I served with brown rice and burnt broccoli . If you’re feeling ambitious give it a go.

Ingredients:

1 and 1/2 lemons, 1 lemon will be sliced thinly and other lemon you’ll just need about a quarter of.

4 large or 8 small skin-on boneless chicken thighs

Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

2 teaspoons olive oil

3 sprigs oregano

1 tablespoon minced shallot

1/2 garlic clove, minced

1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup chicken broth

Directions:

Preheat oven to 475 degrees.  Slice up  1 lemon thinly, discard all pits. Cut up the second lemon into wedges, you’ll only need 1 wedge. Dry and pat chicken with paper towels, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Spray your pan with Pam and 1 – 2 teaspoons olive oil.  I heated up oil a little bit at medium-high heat and added chicken side down, letting skin render and brown ,cooking on medium-high for about ten minutes. Nestle chicken thighs in to the pot as pictured.  Don’t play around with chicken while its browning.

I then removed chicken to a warm plate using tongs, a fork will pierce the skin and let go of some of those wonderful juices.  ( heat the plate  in microwave for 1 minute) I poured off excess fat from pan and kept a thin coating of oil placed 1/2 of lemon slices on bottom of pan and placed chicken back in skin-side down and scattered other 1/2 of lemon slices over the chicken. The slices on the bottom of the pan will caramelize and the ones on top of chicken will soften. Transfer skillet to oven , leaving chicken skin side down. Roast until chicken is almost cooked through about 8 more minutes.

I then removed chicken again from pan onto a plate skin side up, remove lemon slices from bottom of pan as well. Return skillet to stove top and at medium heat add oregano sprigs, shallot, garlic and red pepper flakes, cook, stirring frequently for about a minute. Add wine, cook down for about 2 minutes, add broth and cook for another 3 minutes or so. Squeeze one of the lemon wedges from second lemon and season sauce with salt, pepper and juice from another lemon wedge if desired for a very lemony flavor. Return chicken to skillet skin side up and place back in oven till skin crisps up , I probably cooked for another 13 – 15 minutes, checked internal temperature with a meat thermometer for 165 degrees. Skin should be crispy not blackened, if temperature is too high you can lower to 425 degrees.

* if you don’t want to do sauce and just want to pan roast chicken thighs. Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in pan over medium-high heat , heat till oil is hot not smoking. Nestle chicken in pan, skin side down and cook for a few minutes. Reduce heat to medium , continue cooking skin side down, until fat renders and  skin is golden brown , about 12- 15 minutes. Then transfer to hot oven and cook for another 13 minutes or so. Flip chicken, continue cooking until skin crisps and meat is cooked ( 165 degrees) , this should take between 5 – 8 minutes.

I served over brown rice but any rice will do . Add caramelized lemon slices to top of chicken before serving.

Cookie Dough with Nutella and Peanut Butter

Re-blog of another great cookie recipe because it’s cookie time. I love Nutella and I love Peanut Butter so here you go. This is my last cookie recipe for xmas , promise. If you’re looking for some others go to cookingwithcandi.com and search for cookies and cakes! Enjoy the holidays and stay safe.

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Fall is in the air , there is that little bit of crispness in the morning and for some unknown reason I feel like baking cookies.  This is a great cookie dough which is easy to prepare and contains  Nutella and Peanut Butter, so really how bad can this be? anything with Nutella and Peanut butter has to be good in my book. As I said I was in  a bit of a mood for baking cookies and made this recipe, baked up some of the dough and left the rest in freezer. Luckily I am not a cookie dough eater because this dough is pretty good. You can make this dough and leave it in the freezer for when you’re ready to use it.  Original recipe is from The Pioneer Woman. I left out the M&M’s but will add when I make for the kids. This is just simply a great little cookie. Perfect Halloween cookie, and…

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Oatmeal Raisin Cookies – Old Fashioned Goodness

For my Monday morning re-blog I figured I would stick with the holidays and post one more cookie recipe. Oatmeal Raisin–Old Fashioned goodness in every bite. Raisins, butter, oats, and brown sugar help to make these cookies perfectly delicious. This dough freezes up wonderfully and you can then take it out as you need it. Who doesn’t like a good cookie? Enjoy! and Merry Christmas to all.

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Misc. dinners and New Years Eve 054Misc. dinners and New Years Eve 061Oatmeal Raisin 002

I have made many oatmeal raisin cookies in my day, but this one just suited me perfectly. I like a crispy cookie and I really think the secret behind this one was refrigerating the dough. This is a combination of many years of baking oatmeal raisin cookies. No chocolate in this one and no nuts, I do it differently when I add chocolate to my oatmeal cookies. I made this for New Years Eve because if you just want a little something sweet , it’s perfect. Who doesn’t like a cookie? I actually had this dough in my freezer from another time. I just put dough into a freezer bag, if you put it in smaller amounts you’ll be able to take dough out for a dozen cookies at a time. If you would like you can double this recipe ( this recipe should make 2 dozen) This cookie bakes…

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Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting (very easy)

Original post of this recipe was a year ago. It is one of my most favorite banana cakes mostly because of the frosting. What could be bad with cream cheese frosting on top of it? The cake is very moist and the orange zest gives it great flavor. If you have a few over ripe bananas lying around check out this cake. Nothing is easier than a sheet cake to make, almost fool proof. Check it out and Enjoy!

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I love Banana Cake and since I always seem to have rotting bananas in the house it’s the perfect thing to make. I have tried so many recipes over the years and have posted mostly loaf style banana breads. I decided to make this one a sheet cake in a 9×13 Pyrex and I also decided to frost it with a delicious cream cheese frosting! I think this is a super easy cake to bake, perfect for beginner bakers. The orange zest gives it a distinct flavoring, it met with raves in my house tonite. Making it in the sheet cake style takes out the room for error. A 9 inch round cake would be perfect as well and you can frost just the top or sides and top. Just follow the same directions. I baked cake in the afternoon and frosted it that night for the next day. I kept it…

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Tuscan Shrimp with White Beans

Here is an awesome recipe that I made last winter for New Years Eve dinner. If you’re looking for a delicious shrimp dish for Christmas you need to look no further. It’s easy and delicious. Enjoy! Happy Holidays to all.

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Misc. dinners and New Years Eve 071Misc. dinners and New Years Eve 073Misc. dinners and New Years Eve 074  This is a wonderful and very simple meal and perfect for the upcoming Holidays or any time of the year. By very simple, I mean the ingredients are as simple as the preparation. I cooked this whole recipe up in a 1/2 hour–very little prep and you’ll look like a chef! So great. This is my kind of recipe. The original recipe comes from Michael Chiarello and I highly recommend it.
The beans are a perfectly healthy alternative to pasta.

Ingredients:

*this is for 4 servings

3 cups canned Cannellini white beans

1/4 cup plus tablespoons olive oil

app. 16 large shrimp ( this would be 4 per person, so adjust depending on size of shrimp) cleaned and deveined — I sometimes like to leave the tail on the shrimp –as you can see but it is totally up to you.

4 cloves garlic, sliced

1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon crushed…

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Creamy Mashed Potatoes

photo 3 (7) photo 2 (9)This is my go to recipe for the creamiest mashed potatoes around. I make them a few times a year and mostly on the holidays. Occasionally I’ll whip them up for dinner . They are rich and delicious and just the way mashed potatoes ought to be. I’d like to tell you that I don’t use butter and cream but I do. These are pretty easy to make, all I would say is to buy a good potato masher they come in pretty handy for a lot of other uses as well ( great for egg salad) .  I like to work with Yukon Gold Potatoes. This recipe is for 5 lbs. and feeds about 10 – 12 people , just perfect for a holiday dinner.

* see also Mashed Potato Casserole with Sour Cream and Chives for another way to go.

Ingredients:

5 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes or Russet Potatoes

3/4 cup unsalted butter

1 8 oz. package of Cream Cheese, softened

1/2 to 3/4 cups half and half

1 /2 to 1 teaspoon Lawry’s Seasoned Salt ( more to taste) I used at least 1 teaspoon you’ll have to taste for yourself.

1/2 to 1 teaspoon crushed black pepper. ( more or less to taste)

Directions:

Peel and cut the potatoes into pieces that are generally the same size.

In a large enough pot to cook all of the potatoes fill pot with cold water to cover the potatoes. I bring to a boil and cook for about 30 – 35 minutes. When potatoes are cooked through, a fork should easily slide into the potatoes without resistance, potatoes should be soft but not falling apart.

Drain the potatoes in a colander. When the potatoes have finished draining, place them back into the dry pot and put the pot back on the stove. Mash the potatoes with masher over very low heat, allowing the steam to escape, before adding the other ingredients.

Turn off the stove and add 1 1/2 sticks of butter, an 8 oz. package of cream cheese and about 1/2 cup of half and half. Mash, mash and mash away.

Add about 1/2 teaspoon of Lawry’s Seasoning Salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper.

Stir well and place in a medium-sized baking dish and taste for salt and pepper. I ended up using at least a teaspoon of salt, and a bit more pepper.  Place a few pats of butter over the top of the potatoes and place them in a 350 degree oven and heat until butter is melted and potatoes have warmed through.

* if making a day or two in advance–place potatoes in baking dish,  leave covered in fridge. Take it out of the fridge about 2 – 3 hours before heating up to bring to room temperature. Place your butter pats on top and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 1/2 hour or so till completely warmed through.

*

P B and J Bars (Peanut Butter and Jelly) Real Comfort Food

Re-blog Monday and here’s a dessert sure to please . If you’re looking for something new to bring to a friend’s house or for your own house during the upcoming holidays. This one is super-decadent and super-delicious. I originally posted back in Sept. ’11, so if you missed it or never made it take a look. Enjoy!

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These bars definitely fall into the decadent category. They are super rich, super dense and super delicious. You kind of have to be a PB&J type to really like these and since I am, I love them. This is the time of year for baking and some real comfort food baking seems to happen around the Holidays.

The trick to this recipe is to let it cool completely before even attempting to cut them. Actually, this time I put in refrigerator for a few hours, used a knife with a cup of water to cut. I cut them into very small pieces because they are so rich. Pour a glass of milk, sit down with a small piece and enjoy! The original recipe comes from Ina Garten and I’ve made a few small, personal changes. This time out I omitted the chopped peanuts on top, wanted to make it without , and they were perfect. The…

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