MmmMmm Mac 'n Cheese

I tried this recipe on my family this Christmas and everyone told me they loved it. Well, everyone except my aunt. I'm sure she liked it, but she claims her mac 'n chees is better. Her dish is certainly tasty, but she got hers from the food network. My recipe is orginial. (so there, Aunt Sharon!) Of course, most mac 'n cheese is essentially the same. I just picked some of my favorite cheeses. Feel free to substitute these ingredients with your favorite cheeses. But if you've never had fontina, give it a try. I think you'll love it!

Ingredients:

1 box macaroni noodles

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 tablespoons butter

2-3 tablespoons all purpose flour

2 to 3 cups milk

about 1 cup bread crumbs

2 big handfuls shredded sharp cheddar cheese

2 big handfuls shredded fontina cheese

2 big handfuls shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:

Heat oven to 350.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt the water liberally. Toss in the pasta and let it cook until al dente and drain. In a medium sauce pot, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour to make a roux. Let the mixture cook for a couple minutes, then whisk in milk. Let sauce simmer for a few minutes until it starts to thicken a little. Season with salt and pepper. Then pour in one handful each of the cheddar, fontina and parmesan. Stir the sauce until all the cheese is melted. Mix the pasta with the cheese sauce and taste test it. You may need to add more salt at this point. Then spread it into a greased baking dish.

Topping:

In a smaller sauce pot, melt the other 2 tablespoons of butter and pour in the bread crumbs. Stir until all the bread crumbs are coated in butter. (the bread crumbs should still be relatively dry, not wet) Sprinkle bread crumbs over the macaroni. Then sprinkle the remaining handfuls of cheddar, fontina and parmesan on top. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the cheese on top starts to brown.

Try this: Sprinkle some chopped, cooked bacon on top with the bread crumbs and cheese.

Garlic & Basil Roasted Chicken

I used to make the mistake of buying fresh basil in the store and it always went bad before I could use all of it. So I decided to try basil in a tube. You can find it in the produce section where they keep the bagged lettuce. Surprisingly, it's not bad. In fact, it's perfect for this recipe. And it lasts a lot longer. You can put the cap back on, and store it in the fridge up to six months.

Ingredients:

4 chicken thighs, bone in, skin on
3-4 tablespoons basil (from a tube)
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1-2 teaspoons olive oil

Directions:

Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Mix the basil, garlic and oil in a bowl with a dash of salt and pepper. Then liberally salt and pepper the chicken. Separate the skin of the chicken from the meat with your fingers. You want to create a pocket. Stuff the garlic and herb mixture under the skin with your hands. Heat an oven-safe skillet on the stove with a little olive oil in it over medium-high heat. Place the chicken skin side down in the skillet. the chicken should sizzle as soon as it hits the pan. Let the skin crisp (about 3 minutes) then pop the skillet in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes until the juices run clear.
Try it with: garlic-parmesan mashed potatoes.

Mama's Sweet Slaw

My mother gave me this recipe and I absolutely love it. It's super easy (only takes about 10 minutes) and delicious. And it's a great alternative for people who don't like mayo. Plus, in my humble opinion, this dish is really great the next day. So you could make it the day before a party and stress less.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup sugar

1/8 cup white vinegar

1 package ramen noodles (chicken flavor)

1 small package slivered almonds

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

2-3 green onions, chopped

1 package cole slaw mix

Directions:

Turn your oven to broil. Before opening the ramen noodles package, break up the noodles as much as possible in the package. You want them to be in tiny pieces. In a small bowl, mix oil, sugar, vinegar, and the seasoning packet from the ramen noodles. Set aside. In a bigger bowl, combine cole slaw mix, green onions and sunflowers seeds. Pour the broken ramen noodles (uncooked) on a cookie sheet along with the almonds. Broil them until golden brown. Be sure to watch them carefully because this only takes a few minutes. When the noodles and almonds are done, add them to the cole slaw mix. Then pour in the oil and vinegar mixture and mix together so everything is evenly coated. Be sure to do this when the noodles are hot.

Try it with: burgers, barbecue, sandwiches, or anything else you would normally eat with cole slaw.

Black Bean & Corn Salsa

My husband Daniel thinks I should jar this stuff and sell it. He loves it so much that one batch lasts less than a day. It's fresh, sweet and has a little zing at the end from the chipotle chiles. The recipe sounds complicated, but it's really just a little chopping and dropping and then letting everything simmer. It takes less than half an hour to make. Try it at your next gathering. I'd be surprised if there are any leftovers.

Ingredients:
1-2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, finely chopped (seeds removed)
1 tablespoon honey
juice of one lime
2-3 tablespoons butter
half a red onion, diced
1 small red bell pepper, diced
1 cup corn kernels (frozen)
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
half a teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
half a teaspoon paprika
half of a 15 oz. can of black beans (with liquid mostly drained)
1 15 oz. can roasted tomatoes (do not drain)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Directions:
In a small sauce pan, bring about 2 cups of water to a simmer. Add chipotle chiles, honey and lime juice. Let it reduce by about half. Meanwhile, in a larger pot, melt about 2 tablespoon of butter (or oil if you prefer) over medium heat. Add corn and let it get brown around the edges. Reduce heat a little and add garlic, onion, red bell pepper, cumin, chili powder, paprika, salt and pepper (to taste). If the pot is a little too dry, just add another pad of butter or another splash of oil. Let all the veggies soften (3 to 5 minutes), then add the tomatoes and the black beans. Bring to a simmer. Now take the chiles and the liquid in the smaller pot and add it to the larger pot. Let it all simmer together until the liquid has reduced by about half. Then, add the vinegar and let it simmer for another 5 minutes.

Optional: You can also stir in some chopped cilantro at the end.

Try this: This salsa is delicious on top of a piece of breaded and fried fish fillet. I like to add a little chili powder and lime zest to the bread crumbs. Dunk the fish in egg, then in the bread crumbs and pan fry it. Then pour the salsa on top and enjoy. Yummy!

Made with love from the Phelps kitchen.

Welcome to Chez Phelps. Party of two?

If there's one thing my family and friends know about me, it's that I love to cook. I have no formal training. I'm not an expert by any stretch of the imagination. But I absolutely LOVE food. A delicious dish brings me excitement and joy! (In fact, I don't trust people who don't get excited about food, and I really hate picky eaters. ) I'm almost always willing to try something once, including new recipes. As a result, I don't think my husband eats the same meal twice in a month's time. However, I'm starting to build a collection of favorite recipes. They're usually simple and made with affordable ingredients. And many times they involve a technique that can be used with a variety of ingredients so you can make the dish different every time if you like.

My husband always says my best dishes are the ones that I make up on the fly, either out of necessity or boredom. But what fun is a family recipe if you don't share it, right? (people with so-called secret recipes are just narcissists)

So here I go - jumping on the blog bandwagon with my very own cooking blog. Greetings and love from the kitchen of Laura Phelps, better known as "Chez Phelps."
Stay tuned for recipes.