Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken

Here's another recipe from Becca, and she said it turned out awesome! I like that it's baked not fried, be sure and try this. It's another good one from Six Sisters' Stuff.

Ingredients:
Chicken:
3-4 boneless chicken breasts
salt & pepper, to taste
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup canola oil

Sweet and Sour Sauce:
3/4 cup sugar
4 tbs ketchup
1/2 cup vinegar
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tsp garlic salt

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Rinse your chicken breasts in water and then cut into cubes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Dip chicken into the cornstarch to coat then dip into the eggs. Heat your 1/4 cup oil in a large skillet and cook your chicken until browned but not cooked through. Place the chicken in a 9x13 greased baking dish. Mix all of your sweet and sour sauce ingredients in a bowl with a whisk and then pour evenly over the chicken. Bake for one hour and during the baking process you will need to turn the chicken every 15 minutes.

Chinese Fried Rice

Okay, Becca has been busy cooking up a storm! She sent me this recipe for fried rice that she saw over at Six Sisters' Stuff. How can you go wrong with fried rice?! Both Becca and her whole family loved it!

Ingredients:
3 cups cooked white rice
3 Tbl. sesame oil
1 cup frozen peas and carrots (thawed)
1 small onion, chopped
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/4 cup soy sauce


Preparation:
On medium high heat, heat the oil in a large skillet or wok. Add the peas/carrots mix, onion and garlic. Stir fry until tender. Lower the heat to medium low and push the mixture off to one side, then pour your eggs on the other side of skillet and stir fry until scrambled. Now add the rice and soy sauce and blend all together well. Stir fry until thoroughly heated.

Optional: You could add diced ham and green onions to this depending on your preference.

Slow Cooker Orange Chicken

Becca made this for her family and it turned out to be a hit. The only thing she said she would change would be to add a little less than the 6 oz. orange juice concentrate, I made that adjustment in the ingredients list. I know lots of people love orange chicken and you can't get easier than a crock pot recipe during the summer! This idea and picture comes from Six Sisters' Stuff.

Ingredients:
• boneless chicken breasts, chopped into small chunks (I used about 4)
• 1/3 cup flour
• olive oil
• 1/2 Tbl. salt
• 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
• 3 Tbl. ketchup
• 3 - 6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate (thaw or throw it in the microwave for 45 seconds),
• 4 Tbl. brown sugar

Preparation:
In a bowl, mix the orange juice, brown sugar, vinegar, salt, and ketchup. Pour the flour in a small bowl. Cover the chicken breast chunks in flour and shake off the excess.
Pour a small amount of olive oil in a skillet and brown the flour-covered chicken.
The chicken doesn't need to be fully cooked since it's going in the crock pot.
After the chicken is done cooking, pour the pieces into the crock pot. Then cover the chicken with your sauce mixture and give the pot a stir.
Cook on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 2-3.
Serve over rice and even add veggies if you want a healthier meal.

No-Bake Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

We haven't had a snack recipe posted in a while! Becca made these granola bars and told me that they were really easy and tasted great. The idea and photo are from Lauren's Latest. Her site is full of gorgeous photos and yummy ideas.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups quick cooking oats {not rolled oats!}
1 cup crispy rice cereal
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons mini chocolate chips

Preparation:
In a large bowl, stir oats and rice cereal together. Set aside. In a small pot, melt butter, honey and brown sugar together over medium high heat until it comes to a bubble. Reduce the heat and cook 2 minutes. Pour in vanilla and stir. Pour over dry ingredients and mix well to moisten all ingredients. Pour into lightly greased small jelly roll pan {about 12x8x1} and press out to be about 3/4 inch in thickness. {If your pan isn’t small enough, pack the mixture into one side. You really want to press them down so they stick together.} Sprinkle with mini chocolate chips and press down lightly. Cool on a countertop to room temperature for two hours or until the chocolate chips are set before cutting into bars. Wrap in parchment or plastic wrap and store at room temperature.

Recipe Notes: If your granola bars don’t seem to be staying together when you cut them, you may have made them too thin or you didn’t pack them in tight enough. Stick them in the fridge for 20 minutes and that should help keep them together. {Be sure not to keep them in there too long or else they’ll become super hard!} The next time you make them, try reducing the butter to 3 tablespoons and really packing them down.

Potato Rounds

This fun recipe was made by cute Becca. She made these as easy appetizers and said they turned out really good! This idea and the photo is from Allrecipes. I was so happy she sent me this recipe, because it's one I had bookmarked to try too! Thanks Becca!

Ingredients:
4 baking potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch slices
1/4 cup melted butter
8 slices bacon - cooked and crumbled
8 ounces shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup chopped green onions

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Brush both side of potato slices with butter; place them on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in the preheated 400 degrees F oven for 30 to 40 minutes or until lightly browned on both sides, turning once.
When potatoes are ready, top with bacon, cheese, and green onion; continue baking until the cheese has melted.