Tastykake® Kandy Bar Kakes

I am participating in a testing program called VoxBox from Influenster.  I received a really fun box of goodies to test out and share my opinions.  I know this blog isn't really designed for this, but since it's food related, and Mr. Picky Pants related, I figured I give it a shot.

The first thing Mr. Picky Pants saw when I opened the box was the Tastykake Kandy Bar Kake - S'mores flavor.  He grabbed it out of the box before I knew what happened.  I've been trying to prevent him from eating it for a couple days, but gave in today.  I didn't even get a picture of the cake, just a sad, empty wrapper.



Having had MANY S'mores treats before, Mr. Picky Pants expected this to be messy - as most are.  Usually the graham cracker portion crumbles when you bite into it.  He was pleasantly surprised when it was a moist, soft cake surrounded in chocolate with a marshmallow filling.  Needless to say, we'll be looking for these in the near future.

Visit http://www.tastykake.com/ for more information.

**I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.**

Cheesy Chicken Biscuits

This is a new take on Chicken Tortilla Bake but slightly more Picky Pants friendly.  The cheesy chicken mixture is the same as in the chicken tortilla bake.  The biscuit part is literally just canned biscuits (though I suppose you could make your own if you're cool like that).  It was actually pretty easy and they came out much better than I expected.

Ingredients:
1 can refrigerated biscuts
Boneless Chicken
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 small onion
1-2 cups cheddar cheese (enough for the tops reserved)
1 cup peas/broccoli or any other frozen or canned veggie

I don't have pictures of making it, but it's pretty simple and you can refer to the Chicken Tortilla Bake recipe for help.

To start, spray a muffin tin with cooking spray.  Cut the biscuits in half like you would when they are baked so you have two discs for each one. 

Roll each half biscuit into a disc large enough to fill one muffin cup.

Press into the muffin cups so they come up the sides as far as possible.

Bake these unfilled following the directions on the can of biscuits for about 8-10 minutes.  About half way through pull them out and push down the middles since they puff up (you need this space for the filling).

While the biscuit cups are baking, brown the chicken and onion and combine the remaining ingredients in a bowl.

Pull out the biscuit cups when they are done baking and push down the middles again.

Fill each biscuit cup just to the top with the filling (don't overfill or you'll make a mess).  Top each cup with a little extra shredded cheese.

Bake for about 5 minutes more - keep an eye on them so the biscuits don't get too brown.  Remember you're just heating the filling through and melting the cheese.

Once they are done, they should pop right out and be ready to eat.

The Verdict:
Mr. Picky Pants really liked these.  They were devoured quickly and were easy to eat.   These were definitely a meal fit for a 4-year-old since they combine all the food groups into one little package that's fun to eat.  I will definitely be making these again and will probably try new fillings.  I'm thinking of a sloppy joe biscuit next.

Chicken Tortilla Bake

My mom adapted this recipe from one she found in a magazine years and years ago.  This dish is like a chicken pot pie with tortilla shells as lasagna layers.  It's creamy and cheesy and really yummy.  It was a little chilly today and this was a nice fall meal to warm you up and satisfy.
The nice thing about this recipe is that you can adapt it however you like.  My mom used to make it with broccoli, but now we make it with peas.  Put anything you like in here to make it your own.

I learned something about myself recently: I have a compulsion for buying tortillas every time I'm at the grocery store.  This is what is currently in my fridge.  Notice I buy a different kind each time.  I think I need some kind of therapy...


I also learned that I'm not very good at keeping up with this blog.  Hopefully I can improve on that in the near future.

Ingredients:
Boneless Chicken
Flour Tortillas
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 small onion
1-2 cups cheddar cheese
1 cup peas/broccoli or any other frozen or canned veggie

Here's how it all comes together:

Cut chicken into small chunks and brown in some olive oil (and splatter it all over you stove).  Use whatever seasoning you like.  I used seasoning salt, but you can just use salt and pepper or anything you like.  Towards the end of the chicken browning, add the 1/2 onion diced to soften it and mellow the flavor a bit.

Combine the cooked chicken/onions, soup, broth, and peas in a bowl.

 Ignore the blurriness of this photo.  Line the bottom of a pan with tortillas (cut to fit).  Spread 1/2 of the chicken/soup mixture over the tortillas.

Top the layer of chicken/soup mixture with 1/2 the cheese.  You can make this as cheesy as you'd like.  

 Add another layer of tortillas over the cheese.

 Repeat the layers again, ending with cheese on top.

 Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.

 The result is a delicious, creamy, cheesy, hearty dish.

The Verdict:

Mr. Picky Pants didn't remember having this before, but he ate it willingly and enjoyed it.  He wasn't the biggest fan of the tortillas, but he never is.  He said it would taste better over biscuits so we may give that a try next time.  Overall, this was a hit and he agreed it was good and he would eat it again.  That's a win in my book.

Turkey Meatloaf Muffins

Mr. Picky Pants and I are trying to eat better and lose weight.  So far he's lost 22 lbs and I've lost 15 lbs.  Our main focus is eating a lot of veggies and lean meats.  This is a recipe I came up with to use ground turkey and incorporate some veggies without a lot of fat.

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground turkey
Chopped Mushrooms
Chopped/Diced Onion
Creole Seasoning (I used Tony Chacheres)
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
Cooking spray

Here's how to make it:

Saute the onions and mushrooms in a little olive oil to soften.  Add about 1/2 tsp. of the Creole Seasoning to help draw out the liquids and continue to brown them.

Make sure to thoroughly spray your muffin tin.  You will never get them out if you don't do this!

Combine the ground turkey, onion and mushrooms, additional Creole Seasoning (to taste), and 1/2 cup of shredded Mozzarella cheese.  Mix it with your hands to make sure it's well combined.

Form into balls and press into the muffin tin.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes.

This is what they look like when they are done.

Serve with veggies to complete the meal.  We're not doing separate starches with dinner (like potatoes or rice), so we had cauliflower and corn on the cob.

The Verdict:

Mr. Picky Pants enjoyed this.  He put ketchup on his muffins, which is fine.  We both thought there was a bit too much seasoning in them, so I'll dial it back a bit next time.  Overall, this meal left us feeling satisfied and full and provided plenty of flavor.  The Tony Chacheres that I used has a fair amount of sodium, but they do make a salt-free version so I'll be looking for that soon.  Overall, this is a great way to use ground turkey and add lots of flavor to make a satisfying meal.

The Stir-Fry Incident

Last night I made a simple chicken stir-fry in an attempt to have a healthy dinner made relatively quickly.  I used a bagged stir-fry with the sauce packet (yes, I cheated) but I used my own chicken so that stands for something, right?  So, I make this lovely stir-fry with all sorts of veggies and chicken in a sweet teryaki sauce and serve it over white rice.  Mr. Picky Pants first asked me if it smelled good or like feet?  What?!?  I assured him it did NOT smell like feet.  We sit down to eat and he picks at it and eats the chicken out leaving all the veggies and rice in the bowl and disappears into the kitchen.  A few minutes later he comes back with a plate of hot dogs and tater tots.  Needless to say, I think this sums up my taste in food versus Mr. Picky Pants' taste in food.  I prefer to eat a flavorful, healthy stir-fry, and he prefers to eat a kids meal off the Denny's menu.  I can't win!