Recipe Catch Up - Week of 7/12 - Mystery Chicken and Neiman Marcus Bars

So, it turns out that I actually made two things the week of 7/12. I kinda thought I had, but I could only specifically remember the Neiman Marcus Bars. But, a look in the camera revealed a picture of a chicken sandwich. I could only guess it was Mexican-style, since the photo showed chips & salsa as a side dish. So the question was, where did the recipe come from? I checked my "recipe box" on the Food Network website and my "starred items" on my Google Reader. Nothing looked familiar. I glanced through a couple of cookbooks. Didn't see anything. I checked in all the spots (other than where they belong) where I stash the recipes I print out. I didn't find it. So, I have picture with no recipe. I guess I might never know.

So on to the Neiman Marcus Bars. My first experience with this delicious dessert was several months ago. My husband and I went to a small town nearby for a sausage festival. In addition to the sausage (which I of course didn't eat) there was a bake sale. We had received free tickets for the sausage meal, so we decided to buy something from the bake sale to support the organization. Okay, that's not the only reason. We picked out a yummy looking plate of something called "Neiman Marcus Bars." We had never heard of them, so we decided to give them a try.

They were delicious! I started looking for a recipe, and I found quite a few, but none of them sounded exactly like what we bought. I never made them, and I kind of forgot about them for a while.

Until I was getting ready for my mom to come visit and trying to pick out some recipes to try while she was here. I pulled out a cookbook she gave me a long time ago, but I had never used, called "An Appetite for Art" which was published by the NC Museum of Art. As I was leafing through it, what did I see but a recipe for Neiman Marcus bars! So, I decided to give them a try.

Neiman Marcus Bars
from "An Appetite for Art" complied & edited by Elizabeth K. Norfleet for the NC Museum of Art.

Ingredients
1 box pound cake mix
1/2 c. butter
3 eggs, divided
1 c. chopped pecans
1 lb. confectioner's sugar
1 8-oz block cream cheese

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9-inch x 13-inch pan with butter.
In medium bowl with electric mixer combine cake mix, butter, 1 egg and pecans. Press mixture into pan bottom.
In another bowl, beat with mixer to combine: sugar, cream cheese and 2 remaining eggs. Spread over cake mixture.
Bake for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool and cut into bars. Makes 16 bars.

The Verdict
First of all, it made way more than 16 bars! I sent my husband to the office with about 1/2 of them! They tasted yummy, but I vaguely remembered a different texture from the ones we bought. It seems like maybe those had pecans in the cream cheese mixture as well as the base, or maybe just sprinkled on top. I will probably try another version next time!

Recipe Catch Up - Week of 6/28 - Roasted Chicken Breasts with Lemon, Rosemary, Garlic & Seasoned Potatoes

I'm way behind on my blogging, so I'm trying to catch up. I have two weeks in June that I can't remember for the life of me what I made. I tried to scan through my camera for pictures to jog my memory, but I couldn't find any for the missing weeks. I thought maybe it was because I forgot to take pictures. But, what I actually forgot was that our camera was broken. So that would explain why there are no pictures. I guess those two weeks are just gone forever.

Anyway, the week of 6/28 I made this:

Roasted Chicken Breasts w/ Lemon, Rosemary, Garlic & Seasoned Potatoes
from Good Things Catered by Katie

Ingredients
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of excess fat
1 1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened but not melted
Zest of 1/2 large lemon, lemon reserved
2 large cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
2 tsp fresh rosemary leaves
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
3 russet potatoes, washed thoroughly and cut into 3/4 inch cubes
Kosher salt ground pepper

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line large baking pan with foil for easy cleanup.

Pat chicken breasts dry, season liberally with salt and ground pepper, and place breast-side up at least one to two inches apart in pan.

In small bowl combine butter, lemon zest, garlic, and rosemary and stir with spoon to thoroughly combine. With back of spoon, spread butter mixture on top of chicken breasts evenly.

Slice reserved lemon and place slices in pan around the chicken.

In medium bowl place cubed potato and toss with 1 tsp olive oil, parsley and salt and pepper.

Scatter potatoes around chicken breasts.

Place baking dish in oven and cook about 30-40 minutes or until thickest portion of chicken breast has reached 175 degrees.

Remove from oven, take chicken breasts out of pan onto a warm serving platter and tent with foil.

Take one pinch more of Kosher salt to sprinkle over potatoes, toss and place back in oven for 5-10 minutes.

Remove potatoes and serve with chicken.

The Verdict
Of course, I have no idea if I substituted anything. More than likely, I used either Yukon Gold or red potatoes. I have a vague recollection of picking up the Russets in the grocery store and my husband's requesting something different. How I remember that, I don't know. I remember the most random things.

Anyway, I do remember it was good, and I will probably make it again!