Serve over white rice!

Directions
Season the chicken with 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. In a heavy, large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, cook the chicken until browned on both sides. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Keeping the same pan over medium heat, add the peppers and prosciutto or bacon and cook until the peppers have browned and the prosciutto is crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, wine, and herbs. Using a wooden spoon, scrape the browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Return the chicken to the pan, add the stock, and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 20 to 30 minutes.

If serving immediately, add the capers and the parsley. Stir to combine and serve. If making ahead of time, transfer the chicken and sauce to a storage container, cool, and refrigerate. The next day, reheat the chicken to a simmer over medium heat. Stir in the capers and the parsley and serve.

1 cup kalamata olives, pitted
1 cup large green olives, pitted
1 cup California olives, pitted
1 red bell pepper, roasted and cut into 1″ pieces (see instructions below)
5 cloves of garlic
4 to 5 Tbsp. parsley, loosely chopped
5 to 6 leaves fresh basil, loosely chopped
5 tsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp capers
5 Tbsp good quality olive oil I get mine at Grapevine Olive Oil Company

To roast the red pepper:
Wash pepper and dry and brush with olive oil. Using tongs place pepper on open flame on the stove top turning as the skin blackens once blackened on all sides immediately place in a bowl while hot and cover with plastic wrap to allow the pepper to sweat, after 15 to 20 minutes remove pepper and remove and discard the skins.
*Do not do this on an electric stove burner and do not leave the pepper unattended when it is on the stove top. If you do not have a gas stove you can do this under the broiler or on a grill*

Tools Needed to make the tapenade: A Food Processor or lots of patience and chopping skills

Place olives, garlic, roasted red pepper, garlic, and capers in the food processor and pulse 10 to 15 times then scrape down the sides. Next add the herbs, lemon juice, and olive oil Add the herbs, lemon juice and olive oil. Pulse another 5 to 10 times, stopping in the middle to scrape down the sides of the bowl. In the end, you want the pieces to be 1/8″ to 1/4” in size and you want to see all the colors of the olives and peppers. Do not over-process it or it will turn into a smooth gray/brown paste.

Serve with pita chips, crackers, or sliced bread. This tapenade is also excellent on a turkey melt, ham sandwich, or muffaletta. Store in the refrigerator.

Yield: 3.5 cups

Helpful hint: When rolling out pie dough lay out two long pieces of plastic wrap side by side slightly overlapping, place dough ball on top place another two sheets on top and roll out the dough between; no extra flour needed. to put the dough into the pie plate remove the top layer of plastic wrap and use the bottom to move your crust.

Roll out crusts and place in two deep dish Quiche pans, refrigerate crusts while you prepare the filling.

Bacon Mushroom Quiche
7 large eggs
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1/2 Tbs. dried parsley
7-8 pieces or cooked bacon (see my post for baked bacon)
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped fresh mushrooms
1 cup Swiss cheese, shredded
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

Melt butter in a large skillet add onions and mushrooms, sauté until softened. Remove from heat and cut bacon into bite sized pieces into the same pan. Combine eggs, cream and seasonings whisk until smooth. Place bacon mixture into the bottom of the chilled crust add Swiss cheese and pour egg mixture on top. Sprinkle mozzarella on top and bake at 400 for 50 to 60 minutes, tent with foil for the first 40 to 45 minutes to prevent over browning, then uncover to finish browning.

Spinach Mushroom Quiche:
Prepare the same as the bacon mushroom, but substitute 5 to 6 large handfuls of fresh spinach for the bacon. Place fresh spinach in the cooking pan with the mushrooms after they are softened cook spinach just until wilted then proceed as listed above.

Directions
Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper cook in a few tablespoons of hot vegetable oil in a fry pan start on high once first side is brown about 5 minutes turn thighs over and lower heat to low cover and cook 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool a bit and cut into small pieces set aside.

In a large stockpot over medium-high heat, cook the bacon and olive oil until the bacon is crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and reserve. Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions and butter to the fat, and cook for 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent.

Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, parsley and cayenne and cook for 3 minutes. Add the stock and potatoes, bring to a boil, and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Add the corn and chicken to the soup bring back to a boil, then add the half-and-half and cheddar. Cook for 5 more minutes on medium low, until the cheese is melted. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Serve hot with a garnish with green onion and more cheese if desired.

2 cups cooked crumbled sausage (1 lb)( I used the hot version)
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese
1 cup ranch dressing
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 small can (2.25 oz) sliced black olives
1 package wonton Wrappers

Cook and drain sausage, and combine with cheeses, salad dressing, olives and pepper.
Press 1 wonton wrapper in each muffin tin cup. Lightly brush each wonton wrapper with veg. oil and bake for 5 minutes until golden. Remove from tins; place on baking sheet. Fill with sausage mixture. Bake 5 minutes until bubbly.

Perfect Pie Crust
3 cups flour
2 1/4 cups butter cut into small pieces
6 tbsp cold shortening
1 1/2 tsp salt
3/8 cup ice-cold water
In a food processor:
Add the flour and salt into the bowl add butter and shortening and process until it resembles corn meal. With processor running slowly drizzle in the cold water. Turn out onto plastic wrap and using the wrap form into a disk. Place in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Helpful hint: When rolling out pie dough lay out two long pieces of plastic wrap side by side slightly overlapping, place dough ball on top place another two sheets on top and roll out the dough between; no extra flour needed. to put the dough into the pie plate remove the top layer of plastic wrap and use the bottom to move your crust.

9 medium to large granny smith apples & 3 fuji apples ( I use 6 G. Smith and 3 Fuji) peeled, cored, and sliced into eighths
Juice of 1 lemon
½ cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp butter, in small pieces

Fit the bottom pastry into a 10-inch pie plate.
Roll out a circle for the top.
Preheat oven 400° F.
Fill the pie with the sliced apples. Mound them up high. Sprinkle with the lemon peel and juice, sugar, and cinnamon. Dot with butter. Cover with the pastry top, making vents, sealing and crimping rim. Brush with milk and sprinkle with sugar. Place the pie in the oven and lower the temperature to 375° F. Bake 60 to 70 minutes, or until crust is brown (loosely tent with foil once it is as brown as you like it) and juices in the center of pie are bubbling. Cool before serving.

Thinly slice:
1 cup carrots
1 cup celery
1 cup mushrooms
set aside

Measure out:
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 package medium egg noodles

Bring the broth back to a boil add carrots cook 5 minutes add celery cook another five minutes. Add the egg noodles and cook 7 minutes, add the mushrooms, Parmesan, and cream. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to your liking. Cook for 4 more minutes and serve with crusty bread. I make my Shiner Bock beer bread with it and it is AWESOME!

Preheat the oven to 350F. Arrange the nuts on baking sheet in a single layer and toast them for 7 to 9 minutes, until golden brown and aromatic. Chop the nuts. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Boil the sugar, corn syrup, and water without stirring in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan until it registers 223F to 234F on a candy thermometer, or it forms a thin thread when dropped into a small glass filled with cold water. While the syrup is cooking, use a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment to beat the egg whites on high speed until stiff peaks form. Pour the heated syrup into a 4-cup glass measuring cup. Slowly pour half the syrup into the egg whites. Return the remaining syrup to the saucepan and boil over medium-high heat until it reaches the heard crack stage, 300F to 310F, or turns into hard, brittle threads when dropped into a small glass filled with cold water. Slowly pour the syrup into the egg white mixture, mixing constantly on medium-low speed. Add the fruits, nuts, and chocolate; combine on low speed until a small portion of the mixture drops slowly and easily from a spoon (mine took about 10 minutes of mixing). Drop tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet.
The divinity will cool quickly and should be stored in an airtight container with waxed paper between the layers. it should be eaten within 2 days.

We like to drizzle Valentina hot sauce on to make it extra spicy !