Chicken Alfredo

I had a request for Chicken Alfredo, so it was my first meal of September.

I used Pioneer Woman's recipe, but added a few touches of my own.  I added some garlic & herbed butter to the regular stick of butter. I also added a little sprinkle of garlic powder.

If you are on a low-fat diet, this is not for you!  But it is very tasty and it's ok to splurge every now and then!  Gotta enjoy life while you can. 

The recipe I used can be found here.

Cookbook & Recipe Review

The Pioneer Woman Cooks

If you haven't heard of the "Pioneer Woman" well let me introduce you!  I discovered the Pioneer Woman while we were living in Naples, Italy back in 2006-2008.  Back in Italy, it was the good life, I had plenty of time to browse online and try new recipes, relax by the pool and enjoy my kids.  I had a housekeeper, a very small house and life was simple and good. I miss those days.  It was then I discovered her simple, delicious, "man pleasing" recipes that my whole family enjoyed.  The Pioneer Woman is not just a great cook, she is very funny and entertaining.  She refers to her husband as "Marlboro Man".

Some tried-and-true recipes that I suggest are:

The Malboro Man Sandwich

The Best Chocolate Sheet Cake Ever

Malboro Man's Second Favorite Sandwich 

Chicken Spaghetti

Pan Fried Ribeye Steak

Apple Dumplings

I could seriously go on and on.  Go check out her recipes and try some, you will not be disappointed!

The Pioneer Woman's real name is Ree Drummond, she is married with 4 children and lives out west on a ranch.   She now has her own cooking show on Food Network appropriately called "The Pioneer Woman".

This is a picture of Ree and her family

Photo shared from Food Network, Pioneer Woamn

She has a couple of cookbooks out now, the one above is her first.  I love her cookbooks because she goes into simple, but great detail in her recipes.  There are photos of every recipe and detailed photos with instructions.  It is a beautifully written and photographed cookbook.  That even tells stories, which I love!

Sample page from cookbook, showing detailed photos.

Twice-Baked Potatoes

Twice Baked Potatoes, Pioneer Woman Recipe

The recipe that I chose from the cookbook to prepare is Twice-Baked Potatoes. I was making these anyway for a meal, so I thought I would just go with this.  These are very simple and easy to make and they taste delicious!  They can go with anything as well.  My whole family loves them.  The recipe can be found here.  

Chocolate Sheet Cake

This dessert will be my dessert of the week soon, but today I just had to  bake one for my open house tonight!  It is a chocolate cake from scratch that is so delicious!  The homemade icing is something special.  I usually add finely chopped walnuts or pecans, but I was out.  Even without the nuts its still the best.  Recipe courtesy of Pioneer Woman: Recipe