Outback Steakhouse Walkabout Onion Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups yellow sweet onions, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 (15 ounce) can chicken broth
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh pepper, ground
• 2 chicken bouillon cubes
• 1/4 cup Velveeta cheese, cubes, diced (compressed in measuring cup)
• 1 1/2-1 3/4 cups white sauce (below)
• cheddar cheese, shredded (for garnish)

White Sauce

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk

Directions

1. In 2 quart sauce pan place 3 tablespoons butter and sliced onions.
2. Cook at low to medium heat stirring frequently until soft and clear but not brown.
3. Add chicken broth from can, chicken bouillon cubes, salt, pepper, and stir until completely heated through.
4. Add white sauce and Velveeta cheese. White sauce will be thick because it has been removed from the heat. Simmer on medium low heat until the cheese is melted and all ingredients are blended, stirring constantly.
5. Turn temperature to warm and let cook for additional 30 to 45 minutes.
6. Serve with a garnish of shredded cheddar cheese, and a couple of slices of warm dark Russian Bread.
7. Thick White Sauce:.
8. In a 1 quart sauce pan melt butter and add flour, cook on medium heat until the flour turns thick and comes away from the sides of the sauce pan.
9. Pour milk in flour a little at a time and stir constantly, add salt. Mixture should thicken and become like thick pudding.
10. Remember to stir constantly taking care not to let mixture lump, set aside off from heat until ready to use for the soup.

Serves 4

TGIF Spinach and Artichoke Dip

I love spinach and artichoke dip on ritz crackers and I needed an appetizer to take to a party that my husband and I were going to so I tried this recipe from TGIF.  It was very easy to make and tasted wonderful!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese (grated)
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese (cubed)
• 1-2 teaspoon minced garlic
•  1 (10 ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed of it’s juices
• 1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, chopped

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Place in shallow casserole dish.
3. You can either bake the dip for about 15-20 minutes at 325 but it can also be heated in the microwave for a few minutes.

Serves 6

Applebee’s Quesidillas

This is my sister’s favorite dish from Applebee’s.  She orders it every time.

So I thought I would try to make it for her when we all got together to play cards one night.  It turned out great and she loved it.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon hormel real bacon bits (black label)
• 2 8-inch flour tortillas
• softened butter (for spreading on tortillas)
• 1 tablespoon pico de gallo
• 1/4 cup shredded colby-monterey jack cheese
• sour cream, for dipping (optional)
• salsa, for dipping (optional)
• guacamole, for dipping (optional)

Direction

1. Be sure to have everything handy, as these move quickly.
2. Spread butter lightly on one side of flour tortilla.
3. Place buttered side down on heated non-stick skillet.
4. Immediately add bacon bits, cover with cheese and spoon on pico de gallo.
5. Spread butter lightly on one side of another flour tortilla.
6. Place second tortilla buttered side UP on top of fixings in skillet.
7. Check underside of first flour tortilla.
8. If browned to your satisfaction, carefully flip quesadilla over to brown second tortilla.
9. When second tortilla is browned sufficiently, remove quesadilla from skillet.
10. Serve warm, with dipping condiments of your choice.

Hope you like it too!

Red Lobster Cheddar Biscuits copycat recipe

My husband loves Red Lobster!  And everytime we go, of course we have to have the cheddar biscuits.  About a year ago, he tried to make them at home.  He spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out all of the ingredients and how much of each was needed to create the same taste as when we ate them at Red Lobster.  He got pretty close but not quite. 

Then I found that  you could buy cookbooks with copycat recipes from your favorite restaurants.  I decided to start this blog to share some of those recipes.

Red Lobster Cheddar Biscuits

serves 12

Ingredients

• 2 cups Bisquick reduced-fat baking mix
• 3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk (1% fat)
• 1 cup shredded low-fat cheddar cheese
• 2 tablespoons fleischmann fat-free margarine or fat free butter substitute or I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley flakes, crushed fine

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine the baking mix, milk and cheddar cheese in a medium bowl.
3. Mix by hand until well combined.
4. Divide the dough into 12 equal portions (about 3 tbsp each) and spoon onto a lightly greased or nonstick cookie sheet.
5. Flatten each biscuit a bit with your fingers.
6. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until the tops of the biscuits begin to brown.
7. In a small bowl, combine the buttery spread with the garlic powder and the parsley flakes.
8. Heat this mixture for 30 seconds in the microwave, then brush a light coating over the top of each biscuit.

If you get a chance to try this recipe, let me know what you think by posting a reply to this blog.

Happy cooking!