Cooking - for a new lifestyle (Our Test Kitchen)

I was having a rummage through the sale tables at the book store at the mall and picked up a new recipe book, The $10 Gourmet  by Ken Kostick.  Picked this chicken recipe to try tonight and it was simple, I had all the ingredients and it is delicious. 2 Tbsp olive oil 2 chicken breasts, skin on, bone-in (of course I used no skin boneless) 6 shallots, chopped 1/2 cup cranberry juice 1/2 tsp dried basil 1/2 tsp sea salt 1/2 tsp ground black pepper 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 1/2 cup dried cranberries Heat the oil in a medium-sized saute pan.  Brown the skin side of the chicken breast on medium heat for 8-10 minutes.  Turn and brown the other side for another 8-10 minutes. Add the shallots, cranberry juice, basil, salt and pepper.  Cook for another 4-5 minutes. Add the balsamic vinegar and dried cranberries.  Allow the sauce to reduce by half.  Serve and drizzle with the reduction.

Followed the recipe... basically... Ingredients 1 pound macaroni 1 (11 ounce) can condensed cream of Cheddar cheese soup 1 1/2 cups milk 14 ounces extra sharp white Cheddar cheese, shredded, divided* 1 (14.5 ounce) can stewed tomatoes** 1/4 cup dry bread crumbs *I used whatever cheese we had left in the house. The mixed flavors were delicious. **I used diced tomatoes with Italian seasoning, gave the mac n cheese a bit of a bite. Direction...

These are delicious! Ingredients -1lb ground beef -2 containers of Pillsbury crescent rolls 2Tbsp onion soup mix 2cups shredded cheddar cheese -several dashes of worcestershire sauce -Italian, oregano, herb spices for taste. Preheat oven to 375 In a skillet heat a small amount of spices and brown meat. Drain excess fat. Add onion soup mix and 1/2cup cheddar cheese. Unroll the crescents. Place a rounded tablespoon of the meat mixture towards the larger end of the crescent dough Roll – I personally made them into little pockets. Place crescents onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15 minutes. Sprinkle remainder of cheese on pockets and pop into oven for 30secs.