Cream Cheese Chicken and Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:
2 Tbl butter
1 yellow onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 stalks celery, diced
1/2 cup diced carrots (or a lot more)
3 cups chicken broth
2-3 potatoes, peeled and finely diced (sometimes I leave on the peel)
1 cup milk
4 Tbl flour
1 (8 oz package) regular or light cream cheese
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and diced

Directions:
In a large pot, melt the butter and add the onion, garlic, celery and carrots.  Saute, stirring often, for 3-4 minutes, until the veggies are slightly tender and the onions are translucent.  Add the chicken broth and potatoes.  Bring the soup to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until the potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.

In a liquid measuring cup, vigorously whisk the flour and milk together until smooth.  Whisk the mixture into the soup, stirring quickly, and cook over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, until the soup begins to thicken slightly.  Stir often to ensure the soup doesn't burn.

Soften the cream cheese in the microwave until it is very soft/melty.  I (Mel) usually place the unwrapped cream cheese on a plate and microwave it for 1 minutes at 30% power.  I (Mel) like it really, really soft so it doesn't leave lumps in the soup.  Add the cream cheese to the soup in small tablespoon-size pieces.  Let the pieces sit in the soup and warm through, then whisk the soup until the cream cheese melts and mixes in well. (I, as in me... Steph, have never been very good at this part and I don't care about lumps...)

Add the cooked chicken and heat through.  Season with salt and pepper. Serve.

Original recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

Lemon Poppy Seed Bread

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder

6 Tbl unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, room temp
1/2 cup milk

Zest from a lemon
1/4 cup poppy seeds

Glaze:
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
juice from one lemon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a 9x15 in loag pan (or 4 small bread tins)

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder.  Set aside.

In a larger bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter, sugar and eggs until it's light and fluffy.  Add milk and flour mixture in two parts, mixing well.  Stir in the grated lemon peel and poppy seeds.

Pour batter into into prepared baking pan(s).  Bake for 50-60 min (the little tins took 40 min) (rotating pan half-way through bake time from even browning), OR until a toothpick or tester inserted into center of bread comes out clean.  Allow bread to cool for 5 minutes.

Prepare the glaze by mixing sugar and lemon juice, poke wholes into bread with fork and drizzle over warm bread and allow to cool or serve warm.

So yummy :)

Original recipe click here

Beef or chicken Schnitzel

So... I of course changed this recipe too...

(4-6)Some thin pieces of meat (if you have a thick piece of meat slice it in half)
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
2 cups dry breadcrumbs (more or less with the amount of meat you have)
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp salt
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
some oil to cook the schnitzel in.

After you get your thin pieces of meat pound both sides with a meat tenderizer thing.  (thin pieces of meat make it easier to cook)

Mix egg and water in one bowl.  Mix breadcrumbs, garlic powder, salt, and cheese in another bowl.  Coat the meat well with egg mixture first then breadcrumbs then put in pan with oil (make sure pan is heated with oil in it.

Cook until cooked through and the schnitzel is browned.  It is really good :)

Original recipe is found here.