Leftover Magic - Velveeta Weenies

There's something so deliciously creamy and cheesy about Velveeta isn't there?! It was a staple in our home growing up, and my children loved grilled cheese sandwiches with Velveeta slices. I haven't bought any for about 10 years or more though because I thought it had more calories and was more expensive than regular cheese. At least that used to be the case.
I found out over the holidays that Velveeta actually has 1/3 less calories than regular cheese, and now, it's as inexpensive or less than cheddar depending on the week. We used it for our Christmas Eve bash when we usually have cheesy bean dip. I like to use Cheez Wiz so the dip is nice and smooth but the local store was out so I decided to use Velveeta, oh yum! Okay, I realize it's a cheese product, but hey, why split hairs when going for taste and creaminess?
What is this all leading to? In my quest to not let food go to waste I had some leftover items in the fridge that needed to be used. Nathan dogs, Velveeta, leftover sour cream and yogurt, potatoes, and onions that we bought way back in October at 25# for 3.84. Can you see where I'm headed? Well here's what my hubby dubbed Velveeta Weenies.

Velveeta Weenies
2 T canola oil
3 Nathan dogs or any other hot dogs sliced into coins
3 medium potatoes, cubed
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 cupped cubed Velveeta
1 can Mexi corn with liquid or 1 cup frozen corn plus 1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
Tabasco, a dash or two
pepper

In a large frying pan over medium heat, saute onion in oil for 5 minutes. Add hotdog pieces and brown lightly. Add the cubed potatoes and corn liquid. Cover and turn down heat to medium low and let simmer for about 10 minutes or until potatoes are done. Add cheese and corn. Stir to melt cheese. Add sour cream or yogurt and stir in with a dash or two of Tabasco. Taste and season with a dash of salt and pepper if needed. Serves 6.

Enjoying the fruits of the season

What could be better than fresh bread warm from the oven? A nice big pot of creamy soup to go with it!
It's cooled down a bit here, which inspires me to come up with some cool weather dishes. We had some dutch oven chicken left over from a dinner last week, but not enough to take care of the both of us. So I took a boneless, skinless chicken breast and threw it in a 2 qt. pot with some fresh Rosemary, Sage, and 1 1/2 quarts of water, along with 1 cup of wild rice mix. I let that simmer while I sauteed 1 chopped onion in 3 T. butter and 1 of oil in a large soup pot. I also took half each of one very large green, and one very large orange bell pepper and roasted them in the oven. After the onion was nice and caramelized, I added the mixture in the small pot, as well as 2 more quarts of water. I cut up one large carrot, and cut the kernels from one ear of fresh sweet corn. I added 2 chicken bullion cubes, and one small can of diced green chilies. I seasoned with 2 tsps of seasoning salt, and 1/2 t. garlic powder. Then I added 1/2 tsp thyme as well as 1 tsp course ground pepper. One bay leaf went in as well. This simmers until the rice was done. I turned down the burner and pulled out the chicken to cut up. I added the leftover dutch oven chicken from last week, and that gave the soup a nice creamy consistency. I also chopped up and added the roasted bell peppers at this point. For anyone who would like to try this or a variation, I would add a can of either cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup since you probably won't have dutch oven chicken sitting around. I would also use 2 chicken breasts, plus 2 carrots.

The bread was a variation on my Italian bread recipe. I'll make this easier to follow here. The one thing I noticed about this bread is that it is so soft and delicious. I think it may be because we used actual best for bread flour instead of unbleached flour. My husband raved about it.
Place in mixing bowl of mixer fitted with a dough hook:
1 1/2 c. warm water
2 T. yeast
1 t. sugar
Let sit in bowl to proof or get foamy. Add:
3 T. oil
1 t. salt
1/4 c. corn meal
1/2 c. oats
3 cups of Best for Bread flour
Mix well. Gradually add more flour, 1/4 of a cup at a time, until dough forms a nice smooth ball.
Place in well oiled baking dish or casserole. Let rise until doubled and bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Let sit for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

This bread is not only great for soups, but makes a fabulous french toast for breakfast. As an added healthy topping for our french toast this morning I took about 1/2 cup of maple syrup and warmed it up in a small pot, added a small chopped, unpeeled, granny smith apple, and a handful of walnut pieces. This was so wonderful over the french toast, you should really give it a try!