Creamy Chicken Soup with Rice

Source: adapted slightly from Quiche the Cook blog

Ingredients:
1 small chicken breast, diced
3 medium-sized carrots, sliced
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 Tbs oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 cans chicken broth
~1 cup water
1/2 cup rice
1 teaspoon rosemary (I just shaked a few shakes - it was probably less than a teaspoon, but I don't really know)
1 teaspoon sage (I don't have sage, so I subbed marjoram - and it was, again, probably less than a teaspoon)
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 Tablespoons flour
3/4 cup milk (or you could use cream)

Directions:
In a medium-large pot, heat the oil and cook chicken pieces (seasoning with salt and pepper to taste).  Once chicken is cooked through, remove from pan and set aside.  Saute the carrots, celery and onions in the residual oil and chicken juices until the onions become translucent.  Add the garlic and cook another minute.

Add the chicken broth, water, rice, diced chicken, rosemary, sage, salt & pepper and let the mixture come to a boil.  Continue to cook until the carrots can be pierced with a fork and the rice is cooked (10-12 minutes) (I actually let it simmer low and slow for a good long while - like an hour, but if you don't have that kind of time, a few minutes is probably fine).

In a small bowl, whisk together the milk and flour until there are no clumps.  Stir this mixture into the soup and stir until fully incorporated.  Cook another 2 minutes (or another hour if you have the time), or until it thickens slightly.

Notes:
Ever since I saw this recipe I couldn't get the poems by Maurice Sendak out of my head.

"In January

it's so nice

while slipping

on the sliding ice

to sip hot chicken soup

with rice."

In fact, as I made this soup tonight, I recited every month of chicken soup poems that I could remember (I did have to peek at the book a few times because I got stumped on April and June and July).

Let me just say, this soup is awesome.  I didn't really change a ton from the original recipe - mostly just upped some of the ingredients so we would have more to eat (and more leftover for lunch tomorrow).  Gregg, Cal and I all had second helpings tonight - it was just so flavorful and warm and hearty.  Served up with a fat slice of some crusty artisan bread (homemade, and oh-so-easy, no less) we had a magnificent dinner on a chilly January night.

Crusty Artisan No-Knead Bread

Source: Mel

Ingredients:
3 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (about 17 ounces) (I used her whole wheat version and subbed 1 cup of the all-purpose with white whole wheat flour)
1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups room temperature water
2 Tablespoons honey (for the whole wheat version)

Directions:
In a medium bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix until the dough is combined and has a shaggy, sticky texture (it's easiest to just get in there with your hands and do the job).

Cover the bowl with lightly greased plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature for 12-18 hours. It
will get puffy and bubble.

Scrape down the sides of the dough and let it gentle deflate. Turn it out onto a lightly greased piece of parchment paper (I didn't lightly grease mine because it said on the box that it was nonstick or something - I thought that would be good enough, but next time I'll for sure spray a little nonstick spray on the paper because it was really sticky dough) and using your hands (lightly grease them if the dough is sticking too much) pat it into a thick oblong shape.

Fold one of the long edges to the middle. Fold the other long edge over the top, forming a thick log.

Take one short end and fold it in toward the middle and repeat with the other short end - basically like folding up a blanket or towel.

Carefully and quickly flip the mound of dough over so the seams are on the bottom. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap and let rise until puffy and doubled, about 2 hours.

About 30-45 minutes before the dough is ready, heat the oven to 450 degrees. Place a 6- to 8-quart heavy cast iron pot (like the popular enamel covered ones) (she also mentioned that her aunt uses a pyrex bowl or a crock pot insert - I didn't try them, but it's worth looking into if you're interested - just make sure they're oven safe to 450 degrees!) in the oven as it heats and let it stay there for 30-45 minutes.
When the dough is ready, remove the pot from the oven and take off the lid. Lift up the corners of the parchment paper and set the bread and parchment paper right into the pot. Cover with the lid and return to the oven to bake for 30 minutes.

Remove the lid from the pot and bake for another 10-15 minutes (I did it for 5 because it was already pretty brown and I didn't want it burned black) until the top of the loaf is browned and lovely.

Carefully grab the corners of the parchment paper and remove the bread to a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes:
First of all, this bread looks and tastes pretty dang awesome, if you ask me.  It's different than any bread I've ever made, but it tastes much like something you'd get in a restaurant bread basket.  It's really soft in the middle, with a nice chewy/crispy crust all around.  And it looks so pretty!

I admit, I was nervous to try this recipe, even though I really shouldn't have been.  Mel made it seriously so easy (and really, you should go to her site and look at the step-by-step instructions; they're super helpful).  I don't have an enameled cast iron pot, but I do have a lodge Dutch oven (you know, the kind you cook with outside over coals, size 12) and it worked just great.  Also, I've never bought/used parchment paper till now, but it really was a life saver.  My dough was much, much stickier than Mel's looked in her pictures, and it really just turned into an amorphous blob after its rise on the parchment, but you'd never know how ugly it was as dough after it came out of the oven.

Yummo-rama!  This will definitely be making many more appearances in our house, especially on soup Thursdays (which is what we did tonight - paired with a delicious Creamy Chicken Soup with Rice, we had a mighty fine dinner if I do say so myself (and I do)).

Peach Salsa Pork Roast with Sweet Potatoes (Slow Cooker)

Source

Ingredients:
1 (2 - 2.5 pound) boneless pork roast
salt and pepper
1 tablespoons oil
5 small peeled sweet potatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 cups peach salsa

Directions:
1. Scatter the cubed sweet potatoes in the bottom of a slow cooker/crock pot. Put the lid in place and set the slow cooker to high.
2. Sprinkle the pork roast generously with salt and pepper on all sides.
3. Sear the pork roast in a skillet over high heat. Set the pork roast on top of the cubed sweet potatoes. Pour the peach salsa over the top, put the lid in place, and cook on high for 4-5 hours or low for 7-9 hours. (The pork is done when it measures 145 F on a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the roast.)

Notes: Oh my heavens. This was delicious. I served it with garlic-mushroom couscous and green beans and it was one of the best Sunday dinners that we've had in a while. A few notes/adaptations:
- I think the outcome of this recipe is quite subjective to the quality of the salsa you use. As much as I wish I had home-bottled peach salsa in my pantry, I don't (but making some is now on my to do list for next summer!), so I picked up some fresh mango salsa from my grocery store's deli, then added a can of peaches (drained) into the crockpot. When making this in the future, I'll definitely always use something as yellow as possible (as opposed to tomato-based salsa with a few chunks of peach tossed in).
- This didn't have as much flavor as it smelled like it would. I was expecting more of a saturated, stand-alone flavor, but it wasn't like that. We had to top each piece with some salsa for it to have enough flavor. It worked out nicely though because the kids liked how plain it was and gobbled it up. This may also have to do with the fact that I used a huge roast (almost 4 pounds) so that we would have lots of leftovers to freeze for lunches and future pizza nights.
- The sweet potatoes were very soggy, delicious (maybe even my favorite part), but more mashed than cubed by the end.

Ham and Cheese Tortilla Roll-Ups

Source: adapted slightly from here, via Pinterest

Ingredients:
1 block cream cheese, softened
1 can diced green chiles
1 small can sliced black olives (I didn't have any olives, but I would have loved to add them if I did)
1 tablespoon fresh chives (or one green onion, sliced) (I did the onion)
6 slices of ham (I doubled the ham to fit better on each tortilla - so two per instead of just one)
6 flour tortillas
~1/2 cup or so shredded cheddar cheese
a squirt of mustard
a sprinkle of garlic powder

Directions:
Mix your softened cream cheese with the mustard and garlic powder (you don't need much of either, just a little to give it a good flavor) in a large mixing bowl.

Drain black olives and give them a rough chop.  Slice green onions or chop chives (both are tasty so use what you like best).  Place green onions (or chives), roughly chopped black olives, canned green chiles and cheddar cheese in the bowl with the cream cheese mixture.  Stir to combine.  You'll really have to work it all in so it's completely combined.

Now for the roll-ups.  Using a spatula, spread 1/6th of the mixture evenly on top of a flour tortilla and place a piece of ham (or two) on top.  Roll up your tortilla tightly.  Slice each roll with a sharp serrate knife into about 1 1/2 inch pieces.  (Eat the ends that don't really stay together and look ugly.)  Refrigerate till you're ready to eat.

Notes:
I remember my first ever introduction to Tortilla Roll-Ups (and only experience ever, really, until I made some for Halloween last year (those ones were salsa flavored and were a big hit)) was at the Cannon's home in South Weber after they moved away from being our back-yard neighbors.  This must have been years ago.  I'm sure I was no more than 12 when it happened.  I don't know why my family and I were at their house eating Tortilla Roll-Ups, but I remember loving them so much.  Now whenever I see them pop up on food blogs or pinterest, I pin away.

After my successful foray into the Roll-Ups world a few months ago, I've kept my eyes especially alert for new flavor combinations to try.  I happened to have a half block of cream cheese and most of the other necessary ingredients (minus the olives, which I was bummed about, but honestly they were fine without) hanging out in the fridge on New Year's Eve, so I decided at the last minute to add these little beauties to the menu.  I whipped up a half-batch and it was the perfect complement to our other apps we ate that night.  So quick and so easy and oh-so-delicious are these little morsels.  I foresee the Tortilla Roll-Up becoming a staple treat/snack/meal/appetizer in our house!

Honey-Orange Glazed Ham in the Crock Pot

Source: here

Ingredients:
1/2 cup apple juice (I didn't have any apple juice so I just left it out - I had plenty of liquid)
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1 ham, bone-in or boneless, spiral or not, probably the most important key is that it fits in your crock pot

Directions:
Place ham in the crock pot.  Cover with juices, sugar and honey.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours, brushing with glaze occasionally.

Notes:
Couldn't be easier than that.  We had this for Christmas dinner with a good ol' hash brown casserole (i.e. funeral potatoes), rolls, and a green salad.  Simple, hearty, leftovers for days (the ham freezes great and can be used in soups, sandwiches, pizzas, whatever you want).

Bacon Wrapped Chicken Bites

Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Ingredients:
2-3 pounds boneless, skinless, chicken breasts or chicken tenders
16-ounce package sliced bacon, thick cut or regular
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 Tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano (I went with the larger amount on each of these ranges)
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. If you have it, place an uncoated metal cooling rack inside a foil-lined large rimmed baking sheet and lightly coat with cooking spray. If not, line a baking pan or broiling pan with foil and lightly grease with nonstick cooking spray.

Cut the chicken breasts into large bite-sized pieces. If using chicken tenders, cut them in half (you can fold over the chicken tender pieces when wrapping so they'll be thicker). Place the chicken pieces in a medium bowl and toss with the salt, pepper, oregano, thyme, garlic powder and red pepper. Let it hang out while preparing the rest of the ingredients (you can cover and refrigerate up to a day).

In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar and chili powder together. Cut the entire slab of bacon into thirds.

Wrap each chicken piece with small strip of bacon and holding tightly, dredge them in the brown sugar/chili powder mixture. Place the chicken pieces in a single layer on the baking sheet (or rack set inside the baking sheet). If the bacon isn’t staying put, you can secure with a toothpick.  (I made mine ahead of time and stored the pan in the fridge for most of the day till it was time to cook.  So when it came time to cook them, they took closer to 30-40 minutes to cook since everything was so cold.)

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the bacon is crisp and the chicken is cooked through. Flip it once if the chicken is laying directly on the baking sheet. Serve immediately.

Notes:
I was looking for new appetizer recipes that I could serve for Christmas Eve or New Years Eve or just your average Thursday Eve.  And of course, Mel came through for me again.  These were delicious!  I loved the slight spicy-sweet coating that came from the brown sugar-chili powder dusting over the top of these little delights.  My only complaint is that the bacon never really got crispy.  I don't know if it's supposed to, but I guess I was expecting it to, so when it stayed pretty soft and chewy, I was a little bit bummed.  But, they were delicious.  And they actually warmed up great in the microwave for the next few days as we ate them for lunch.  We even sliced them in half and used them as the meat in a sandwich, which was really quite delicious.

Tomato Basil Soup

Source: here, via Pinterest

Ingredients:
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 - 14 oz. cans crushed tomatoes
1 - 14 oz. can whole tomatoes
2 cups stock (chicken or vegetable)
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1/4 cup heavy cream (I used 1% milk - loved it)
3 tablespoons of fresh basil, julienned (I didn't have any fresh, so I used 1 1/2 Tablespoons dried basil)
parmesan cheese

Directions:
In a saucepan, saute garlic in olive oil on medium heat for 1 minute - being careful not to burn the garlic.  Add the crushed tomatoes.  Add the whole tomatoes one at a time, squeezing them into the pan to break them up.  Add the juice from the whole tomatoes, as well.  Add chicken stock, salt, pepper and sugar.  Cook the soup on medium at a simmer for 10 minutes.

To finish, reduce the heat to low and stir in heavy cream and basil.  Serve topped with parmesan cheese or a grilled cheese sandwich (which is exactly what we did - both!).

Notes:
Every Thursday in the winter I like to make soup.  Of course I have my favorites, but sometimes I like to find a new recipe (I have so many to choose from on Pinterest) to test out.  I'm so glad I tried this one!  I loved it!  It's a thick-ish consistency due to the crushed tomatoes and there's a bit of chew from the whole tomato chunks in there.  Very hearty for a tomato soup.  And lots of flavor!  The perfect complement to a good grilled cheese.  I will be making this one again.

Raspberry Almond Thumbprint Cookies

Source: Sally's Baking Addiction

Ingredients:
for the cookies:
1 cup (230g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature (I only ever have salted -  it was fine)
2/3 cup (134g) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups + 2 Tablespoons (264g) all-purpose flour (measured correctly)
1/2 cup (160g) raspberry jam

for the glaze:
1 cup (120g) confectioners' sugar
1 Tablespoon (15g) cream or milk
1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract (optional) (I left it out)

Directions:
Make the cookies: Using a handheld or stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Switch mixer to medium speed and add the the sugar, vanilla, and almond extracts. Scrape down the sides and the bottom of the bowl as needed. Turn the mixer off and pour the flour into the wet ingredients. Turn the mixer on low and slowly beat until a very soft dough is formed.  Press the dough down to compact it and tightly cover with plastic wrap to chill until firm, at least 4 hours.  (Mine chilled for closer to 9 hours.)

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats (silicone mats preferred to reduce spreading) (I don't have either so I just skipped it - maybe I lightly sprayed with cooking spray?  I really can't remember now.). Shape the cookie dough into balls about 1 Tablespoon of dough each. Make sure they're nice and smooth. If you find that the balls of dough are sticky and/or have gotten a little soft after rolling- place the balls of dough back into the refrigerator to firm up. You absolutely DO NOT want soft dough. Make an indentation with your thumb into each ball. The dough may crack slightly when you press your thumb into it. Simply smooth it out with your fingers if you can. Otherwise, it's perfectly fine to have a few cracks. Fill each with a scant 1/2 teaspoon of jam. (Or however much it can hold.)

Bake the shortbread thumbprint cookies for 13-15 minutes, or until very lightly browned on the edges. The cookies will puff up and spread slightly. Do not overbake.  (I stayed toward the lower limits to keep them soft.)  Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes before glazing.

Make the glaze: stir together glaze ingredients until smooth. Add more liquid to thin out or add more confectioners' sugar to thicken to your desired consistency. Drizzle over cooled cookies. Glaze will set within a couple hours.

Store cookies covered at room temperature for 3 days or in the refrigerator for 6 days. Shortbread cookie dough may be frozen up to 2 months; baked cookies (without glaze - or with - ours were fine with glaze in the freezer) may be frozen up to 2-3 months.  Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Notes: 
I had this one saved on my Pinterest desserts board for a long, long time.  Finally I decided it would be one of my Christmas cookies this December (mostly to eat by ourselves at home, but we did share a few with our neighbor, Betty).  I was pleased with how easily the dough came together.

There is a note in the recipe about making sure the dough didn't get too soft.  I found I had the opposite problem - because my dough had chilled for so long the dough was rock hard and I had to chisel it into chunks, which I then had to hold in my hands to warm up a bit before I could even roll them.  What I should have done is put them back in the fridge after I rolled them, but I didn't, and when they cooked they spread a bit more than I was wanting at the edges.  So, it is true that you don't want your dough to get too warm.  But you do need it to be pliable enough to roll into ball, so next time I'll pull the dough out and let it soften for about 15 minutes, roll it into balls, and then pop it back in the fridge for a bit so it they're nice and cold and will hopefully not spread when baked.

BUT - despite the fact that my cookies did not look like the photos on the blog, they really did taste amazing.  I anticipate that these little gems of cookies will be making repeat appearances in my kitchen for many Christmases (or any other cookie-making times) to come.  I'd love to give them a try with other jam flavors, too - blueberry, apricot, strawberry - so many options!

Salisbury Steak in the Slow Cooker

Source: allrecipes.com, via Pinterest

Ingredients:
2 pounds lean ground beef
1 (1 ounce) envelope dry onion soup mix
1/2 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup (I used cream of mushroom soup instead, as per some suggestions)
1 (1 ounce) packet dry au jus mix
3/4 cup water
a handful of mushrooms, chopped

Directions:
In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, onion soup mix, bread crumbs, and milk using your hands. Shape into 8 patties.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Dredge the patties in flour just to coat, and quickly brown on both sides in the hot skillet. Place browned patties into the slow cooker stacking alternately like a pyramid. Add chopped mushrooms.  In a medium bowl, mix together the cream of chicken (or mushroom) soup, au jus mix, and water. Pour over the meat. Cook on the Low setting for 4 or 5 hours, until ground beef is well done.

Notes:
This was really great.  My only complaint is that it is quite salty.  Not sure how to overcome that with all the packaged salt (basically) that you add, but just be aware.  Other than that, this made a yummy, warm, easy Sunday dinner served over mashed potatoes with some mixed steamed veggies.

Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins

Source: Sally's Baking Addiction

Ingredients:
3 cups (375 grams) all-purpose flour (very careful not to overmeasure)
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 large eggs, at room temperature
¾ cup (150 grams) granulated sugar
¼ cup (50 grams) light brown sugar
1 cup (240 ml) milk, at room temperature (she prefers buttermilk, so I used my handy-dandy buttermilk substitution with 1 Tablespoon lemon jucie + milk to 1 cup and let it sit for 5 minutes)
½ cup (120 ml) canola/vegetable oil (or melted coconut oil)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup (120 grams) dark chocolate chips, (or semi-sweet)
1 and ¼ cup (215 grams) fresh raspberries (I used frozen with great results)
coarse sugar (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425F degrees. Spray muffin pan with non-stick spray. Set aside.

In a large bowl, gently toss together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Mix until all dry ingredients are combined - a 20 second toss to disburse everything together. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until combined. Mix in milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Mixture will be pale and yellow. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix everything together by hand. Avoid over-mixing, which will produce tough, dry muffins. Gently mix until all the flour is off the bottom of the bowl and no big pockets of flour remain. The batter will be extremely thick and somewhat lumpy. Fold in the chocolate chips, then very gently to avoid them from leaking their color, fold in the raspberries.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins, filling all the way to the top. Sprinkle with coarse sugar if desired (I didn't have any so I left it off, and the muffins were great). Bake at 425F degrees for 5 minutes. Keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce oven temperature to 375F and continue to bake for 13-14 minutes until tops are lightly golden. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes. Muffins taste best fresh the same day. Store muffins at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Notes:
I had a goal last year to make a new muffin recipe each month.  I'm proud to say I was successful in that goal!  What a delicious resolution, let me tell you!  Well, for December I decided to make these little beauties since I had some frozen raspberries in my freezer.  Oh my!  So delicious!

Pumpkin Cheesecake with White Chocolate Mousse

Source: my good friend Mel (ha - in my dreams we're friends, anyway)

Our Blanchard Family Thanksgiving Dessert Spread
The Cheesecake is the one in the middle.

Ingredients:
for the crust:
2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 14 rectangle crackers)
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
8 Tablespoons butter, melted

for the cheesecake:
3 (8 ounces each) packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sour cream
3 Tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pinch of cloves
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree (or about 2 cups if using homemade)

for the white chocolate mousse topping:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch ground nutmeg
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 ounces white chocolate, melted

Directions:
For the crust, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir in the melted butter and mix until combined and it looks like wet sand.

Press the crumbs into the bottom and just a bit up the sides of a 10-inch springform pan (I used a 9-incher since that's what I have, but it worked fine; it was just really full and in the end took quite a bit longer to cook the cheesecake - see later for details). Place the springform pan on a foil-lined larger baking pan and bake for about 8 minutes until the crust is just lightly golden and smells fragrant. Remove from the oven and let cool. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F.

For the cheesecake batter, in the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or in a bowl with a handheld electric mixer), whip together the cream cheese and sour cream until just combined. Add the cornstarch, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves and mix until incorporated. Mix in the vanilla and pumpkin until just combined.

Spread the batter evenly over the crust and bake (keeping the pan still on the foil-lined baking sheet; helps prevent any leaking butter/batter from dirtying your oven) for 45-60 minutes (because mine was in a 9-inch pan, it took almost an hour and ten minutes and even then it still seemed too jiggly too me so I just turned off the oven and let it sit inside for a while as the oven cooled) until the edges are set and the center slightly jiggles. Let the cheesecake cool completely.

For the white chocolate topping, in a medium bowl, beat the cream and vanilla with an electric mixer (handheld or stand mixer) until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix until combined and the peaks are slightly stiffer. In a separate bowl, beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Add the white chocolate and mix until smooth and creamy. Fold in the whipped cream, taking care not to deflate the whipped cream, and mix gently with a rubber spatula, lifting and turning the cream, until the mousse is combined and creamy. (Mine never mixed smoothly - when I was done it looked more like whipped cream with a tiny clumps of cream cheese speckled throughout.  So it looked weird, but it tasted great.)

Spread the white chocolate topping on top of the cooled cheesecake. (It was really nice to have the mousse to cover my sunken top on my cheesecake - I tend to mix my cheesecakes too much, so they get too much air and then sink when they come out of the oven.  If you do the same thing, then you don't have to fret because you can just fill in the hole with the mousse!)  Refrigerate for at least 1-2 hours or up to a day.  (I made mine the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.  When it cooled, I covered it in a layer of plastic wrap and then a layer of aluminum foil and then popped it in the freezer.  It traveled to Utah a few days later in the cooler and then lived in the fridge until it was time to eat dessert on Sunday afternoon.) Garnish with a light dusting of freshly grated nutmeg, if desired.

Notes:
If you want a showstopping dessert, especially in the fall when it's pumpkin season, look no further than this awesome cheesecake.  Luckily, it looks way impressive and tastes way impressive, but it does not require major feats of culinary excellence to create it.  Sign me up!  Sure, it takes a little time and a lot of cream cheese, but really it's worth every minute!  One of the greatest things about cheesecake is that it can/should be made a day or two (or more if you want to freeze it) ahead of time, leaving you free to make the rest of your meal on the big day.  Bonus.

Creamy Black Bean Chicken Soup

Source: here, via Pinterest

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts (I used 1 small one and it was totally chickeny enough)
1 cup chicken broth (I think I probably used one can, which is closer to 2 cups)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, drained (I used about a cup of frozen corn kernels)
1 cup salsa
1 package taco seasoning (I used a few tablespoons of a homemade seasoning mix)
1/2 cup sour cream (optional)
1/2 cup cheddar cheese (optional)
Tortilla chips

Directions:
Place chicken in crock pot. Pour broth, beans, corn, salsa, and taco seasoning over chicken.

Cook on low for 6 hours (or high for 3 hours).

Remove chicken and shred. Re-add chicken.

If desired, add sour cream and cheese to crock pot. Stir until smooth. (Or add desired amount to individual servings)

Serve with tortilla chips.

Notes:
I stumbled across this little recipe on pinterest one day and immediately changed my plans for that day's dinner and made this instead.  It was super easy, super delicious and super small.  Which actually was perfect for us on the Thursday before Thanksgiving since I didn't need lots of leftovers to deal with before we left town for a week.  So yeah, it doesn't make a ton, but it easily could be doubled in a bigger crock pot.  Yum!