Who doesn’t love a good won-ton?  Right?  I know that’s one of the first things on my order when we stop and get Chinese food.  And this at-home version is super scrumptious and totally worth a little time to make.  The sweet, creamy filling is set off by the crunch of fresh shrimp and a little zing of  shallot.  These shrimp and cream cheese won-tons are a great appetizer option for your dinner parties and summer entertaining.

I actually wanted to call this post Olive Garden in a pot, but didn’t think that was real professional… so there you have it.  “Olive Garden Inspired” it is.  Olive Garden is one of my favorite restaurants.  I have a thing for pasta smothered in creamy sauces… have you seen my hips?  Yeah, me neither.  But I definitely don’t have the budget to frequently eat out.  So, it comes down to making it at home.

Mr Napping bought a whole bunch of meat last summer and included in it was some precooked jumbo shrimp.  Like the kind you eat cold and dip in marinara sauce.  Okay, the kind that other people eat cold and dip in marinara sauce.  I don’t cold shrimp or marinara sauce, it makes me shudder.  Anyway, obviously, I had to come up with some other way to use this shrimp.  And, if I may, I totally scored with this dish.  It was amazing… we fought over the leftovers.

We were recently introduced to Biscoff butter.  And my life is now complete.  The end.

No, just kidding.  We were also told that it’s fantastic on waffles… So, we had to test that out ourselves.  But not with just any waffle recipe.  Something as delicious as Biscoff butter needs something just as magnificent to compliment it.  And, since we’re spreading cookies on top, it’s a little healthier with applesauce instead of oil, like most of recipes.  These were so good that I am seriously thinking about making more right now… writing about them is making me salivate.  And with that mental image in your head… let’s make waffles!

– 2 cups all-purpose flour
– 2 eggs
– 1 3/4 cups milk
– 1/2 cup applesauce
– 1/2 Tbsp white sugar
– 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar
– 4 tsp baking powder
– 1/4 tsp salt
– 1 tsp vanilla
– 1 tsp cinnamon
– Sliced strawberries (optional)
– Biscoff Butter spread (optional – can be found at Wal-Mart, WinCo and other grocery stores)
– Whipped topping (optional)

Directions:
– Preheat waffle iron. This also makes good pancakes.
– In a medium bowl, whip the eggs until fluffy (approximately 2 mins or so).
– Add remaining ingredients and beat until smooth and well combined.
– Spray or butter preheated waffle iron.
– Pour a circle of batter in the middle of the iron, approximately half the diameter of the waffle iron. Cook until golden brown.
– Serve with Biscoff butter, fresh fruit, whipped topping (or other toppings), if desired. Enjoy.

Serves approximately 6.

I recently found a pie crust recipe that I wanted to try.  And I love pie as much as the next person, but it’s not my preferred dessert.  So I used the recipe for chicken pot pie instead.  After all, I didn’t think Mr. Napping would be too thrilled if I served the family chocolate cream pie for dinner.  He’s of the opinion that if it doesn’t have meat, it’s not a meal.  I will say that this pie crust is a winner… and might just make an appearance at Big J’s birthday dinner coming soon.  It was even still flaky the next day.

Directions:
–  Thaw the chicken breasts and dice.  In a large pot on the stove, combine the chicken dices and the cup of chicken broth.  Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mostly cooked.
– Add the flour, shortening, and salt in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine.  Add the orange juice and mix well until dough is formed.  (I just throw it all in my stand mixer and release the beast to it’s own mixing devices while I check the chicken)
– Chill the dough in the fridge while you mix the rest of the filling up.
– When the chicken is mostly cooked, add the cream of chicken soup (don’t add milk or water) and the mixed veggies.  Heat until the veggies are no longer frozen together and you can mix the filling.  Stir to mix evenly.  Remove from heat.
– Roll out half of the dough and spread in a 9-inch pie plate.  I am absolutely terrible at rolling pie crusts, completely horrendous.  I almost always end up pressing it into the plate and skipping the whole rolling process completely.  It still tastes yummy and no one knows I cheated.
– Pour filling into the pie plate and spread evenly across the pie crust.
– Roll out the remaining dough to cover the pie.  Cut any decorative vents if that’s your thing.  Slits cut after it’s on the pie work just as well (and make the transfer to pie plate a little easier). I have no tricks here.  Just do the best you can and use a pancake turner to help lift it off the counter if you have to.
– Use a fork to press the edges down and seal the pie.
– Bake in the oven at 375 degrees for 45-60 minutes.
– Let set 5-10 minutes.  Serve.

Yields approximately 8 servings.

* You can use this recipe at Buns in My Oven as a substitute for the soup if you’d rather, the comments say it’s pretty delicious.