Apple-Cinnamon Breakfast Smoothie

I've been drinking this smoothie for breakfasts this week and I have really enjoyed it. For my lactose-intolerant sisters: you can substitute the milk for almond milk. There's not a great non-dairy substitute for Greek Yogurt, but hopefully it wouldn't be too much dairy. 

Picture and recipe from Fit Sugar

Harley Pasternak Apple-Cinnamon Breakfast Smoothie

INGREDIENTS

5 raw almonds
1 red apple
1 banana
3/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup nonfat milk
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

1. Place all ingredients in a blender. (Depending on how powerful your blender is, you may need to chop the apple and almonds into small pieces before blending.)
2. Blend on medium-high for 30 seconds (or until desired consistency).

White Bean and Potato Soup

I love love love this soup!  It's very tasty and quite healthy.  A roommate in college made it and I've made it a few times since.

White Bean and Potato Soup

2 Carrots peeled and grated
2 Garlic Cloves chopped
1 TBS. Butter
4 cups Chicken Broth
4 Potatoes peeled and cut into chunks
16 oz. can White Great Northern Beans
1/2 cup Sour Cream
Thyme

Saute garlic and carrots in butter until soft.  Add broth and potatoes.  Boil gently for 30 minutes.  Mash about 1/2 of the potatoes with the back of a spoon.  Add drained beans.  Bring to a boil just to heat the beans. Add a little thyme and stir in sour cream right before serving

Oven Fajitas

This is a dinner that we have pretty often. We all love it, but what makes it one of my favorites is that I can put it together ahead of time so I'm not standing over a stove during Crazy Hour. It would probably make a great crock-pot recipe, although I've never tried it. You can use store bought fajita seasoning or make a big batch of this seasoning and keep it in the cupboard.

In a greased 9x13 pan, toss 1-2 lbs chicken breasts, a sliced onion and a couple of peppers, seeded and sliced. Drizzle a bit of olive oil and 2 T of the fajita seasoning below. Bake at 350 until the chicken is done. Serve with tortillas, sour cream and limes

Here's the fajita seasoning. This makes enough for several batches.

1/4 cup cornstarch
2 T chili powder
4 tsp salt
4 tsp paprika
4 tsp sugar
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp cumin

Simplicity in Meal Planning

I do not like meal planning.  It takes FOREVER!  I know it shouldn’t be that hard.  I should just put recipes I like into a recipe box and when I go to meal plan, pull out 7 recipes and… Done!  Some people are really bad at math.  I am really bad at meal planning.  It is so hard!  Many people make a recipe out of a cook book or online and if they like it, they write it down, print it out or just remember where it is for future reference.  I don’t do that.  Why?  If it takes too much time to make, I don’t bother keeping it.  If it doesn’t taste REALLY good, I don’t bother keeping it.  If a recipe requires too many ingredients, if it is good, but the leftovers are not, if it doesn’t fit in my budget, I don’t keep it.  Unless a recipe is healthy, easy, delicious, inexpensive, heavenly, makes a great leftover, quick… I don’t bother keeping it.  Even if it meets all these criteria, sometimes I don’t have ink in my printer so I don’t print it and then I forget about it.  Can we say PICKY?  So, without a compilation of recipes, when it comes time to meal plan, it takes 10 hours of pouring through cook books and online cooking sites.  I could go on for hours about why meal planning is so complicated for me.   Whatever the cause of this mental block/pickiness/whatever you want to call it, the point is, I do not like meal planning.

In Thomas S. Monson’s biography “To the Rescue,” Heidi S. Swinton says “Sunday dinner was a big event in the Monson home, featuring roast beef with gravy and mashed potatoes.  On Monday the family ate leftovers from Sunday dinner.  On Tuesday they had stew from the end of the roast.  Wednesday they had pork chops, and on Thursday a sirloin steak that fed everyone at the table.  Friday was lamb chops or fish, and Saturday link-sausage sandwiches.  Variations included lima beans and ham one night, homemade meat pies another.”  Oh my word!!!  When I read this I seriously think I heard angels singing!  Can you imagine repeating the same menu every week?  It could be a bit boring, but you'd be done meal planning for life!!!  Imagine only having to stock ingredients for seven meals.  In our culture, it's Mexican food one day, Italian the next, American the next, Chinese the next, and some sort of mix of all of them the next.  We probably only repeat the same dinner twice a year.  How wonderful and tasty, but how complicated!  I'm all for variety, but something about the simplicity of Sister Monson's menu is so refreshing. 

Any thoughts?  Could you eat the same things week after week?  If you had to eat a repeating menu every week for the rest of your life, what would you cook?  I would LOVE to do this.  This isn’t to say I would never eat anything different.  I could switch out a meal anytime I wanted to try a new recipe or make something out of my non-existent recipe collection.  It would just be a base that I would not have to modify, but could if I wanted.  I really want your input.  What is a meal  you could eat once a week for dinner? 

Beef and Cheese Manicotti

Beef and Cheese Manicotti

This recipe was great. It comes from a recipe by Giada de Laurentis on FoodNetwork.com. I find myself getting most of my online recipes from Food Network. There are many great recipe sites, but this is just the site I am comfortable with. 

4 t Olive Oil

1 medium Onion, coarsely chopped

1 lb Ground Beef

Salt and freshly ground Black Pepper

14 (8oz package) Manicotti

1 (15 oz) container Whole-Milk Ricotta

3 cups shredded Mozzarella

1 cup grated Parmesan

2 T chopped fresh Italian Parsley Leaves

2 Garlic Cloves, minced

3 cups Marinara Sauce

2 T Butter, cut into pieces

Heat a heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 t of the olive oil, onion, and ground beef. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until the meat browns and the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, and cool.

Brush 1 t of oil over a large baking sheet. Cook the manicotti in a large pot of boiling salted water until slightly softened, but still very firm to the bite, about 4 to 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to the manicotti from the pot to the oiled baking sheet and cool. 

Meanwhile, combine the ricotta, 1 1/2 to 2 cups mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan, and parsley. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper to taste, and mix. Stir the cooled meat mixture into the cheese mixture.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Brush the remaining 2 t oil over a 13 by 9 2-in glass baking dish. Spoon 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce over the bottom of the prepared dish. Fill the manicotti with the cheese-meat mixture. Arrange the stuffed pasta in a single layer int he prepared baking dish and spoon the remaining sauce over.

Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, then the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan over the stuffed pasta. Dot entire dish with the butter pieces. Bake the manicotti uncovered until heated through and the sauce bubbles on the sides of the dish, about 30 to 35 minutes. Let the manicotti stand 5 minutes and serve.

Lion House Rolls

Lion House Dinner Rolls with Honey Butter

To set the record straight, I did not bake these with whole wheat to be healthy. It was the only flour I had on hand. They still turned out soft and light with whole wheat, but I was definitely craving the white.

I know these aren't very pretty, but I go through the reason why at the bottom of this post. They still tasted great, though.

ROLLS

2 T Yeast
2 cups Warm Water
1/3 cup Sugar
1/3 cup Shortening, Margarine, or Butter
2 t Salt
2/3 cup Nonfat Dry Milk (get this in the baking section of a store)
1 Egg
5 to 6 cups All-Purpose Flour
Butter or Margarine, Melted

In a large bowl, mix yeast and water and let stand 5 minutes. Add sugar, shortening, salt, dry milk, egg, and 2 cups of flour. Beat together until smooth. Gradually add remaining flour until soft dough is formed.

Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. Place into a greased bowl; cover and let rise until dough doubles in bulk. Punch down; divide into thirds.

Roll out one third of dough into a circle; cut into 12 pie-shaped pieces. Starting at the wide end, roll up each piece into a crescent. Place on greased baking sheet with point on bottom. Repeat with remainder of dough.

Brush tops with melted butter or margarine. Let rise until double in size. Bake at 400 F for 15 minutes. Serve warm with honey butter, if desired. Make 3 dozen rolls.

HONEY BUTTER 

1/2 cup Softened Butter
1/4 t Vanilla
1 Egg Yolk
1 cup Honey

Whip butter. Add in vanilla and egg yolk. Gradually whip in honey until light and fluffy. Makes 1 1/2 cups.

Learn from my mistakes:

1. I didn't read the instructions before I made the honey butter and I ended up mixing all the ingredients before whipping the butter. It didn't work. The butter still tasted good, but it was more of a thick sauce than a fluffy butter. 
2. I must have had my brain working backwards when I read about how to roll up the dough. I started with the small end instead of the wide end. My rolls aren't very pretty, and I think this is the main reason why. 

Chocolate and Caramel Dipped Apples

Chocolate and Caramel Dipped Apples

Fall is a very quick season in Utah, so in an efforts to recognize the couple weeks of it we do have, I decided to make caramel apples. I used to make caramel apples at Zwahlens, but I was never involved in actually making the caramel or prepping the apples; I only dipped the apples. My co-worker made some recently but the caramel did not stick to the apples because of the wax that comes on apples to make them shiny and appealing. I was worried I would suffer the same fate, but they actually turned out great.

At few notes:

• Non-Stick Pan It is very important that you place the apples on a truly non-stick surface once they are coated. This could be a silpat (silicon baking sheet), parchment paper, or buttered wax paper or pan. I got two silpats for Christmas last year and I never bake without them. I never have to scrub a baking sheet, unless something goes over the edge.
• Refrigeration I don't like to refrigerate chocolate-dipped items because the chocolate gets dew on the outside and then when you put it at room temperature, the chocolate is discolored where the dew was. This may not happen for you, but it is what I've experienced.
• Wax on Apples This may not be good for you, but I washed my apples with dish soap, hoping it would remove some of the wax. If I had been at Sprouts I would have purchased organic apples because they are not much more expensive and  they will not have wax on them. I have also heard the suggestion to rub the outside of the apples with sand paper to remove the wax and create more surface area for the caramel to stick to (like scoring both ends of clay before attaching them together...).
• Type of Apple I don't know about different types of apples, but I'd advise using a crispy apple. I used fuji, which was nearly at the point of being too soft, but were okay. Stay away from red delicious apples. There is nothing worse than a mushy caramel apple. Well, maybe a few things are worse.
• Variety Have fun with these: use different types of chocolate on the outside, dip them in candy corn or M&Ms or nuts, dip the caramel apples in white chocolate and then in cinnamon sugar

Chocolate and Caramel Dipped Apples

Makes 5

5 Apples, washed, well dried

1 pkgs (13oz) Caramels

2 T Water

1/2 cup Chocolate (I recommend Ghirardelli Melting Wafers; these are sold in white and dark at most grocery stores)

1. Insert wooden skewer or Popsicle stick into the stem end of each apple. Prepare a surface to place the caramel apples on (silpat, parchment paper, or buttered wax paper).

2. Cook unwrapped caramels and water in a small or medium saucepan on medium-low heat until caramels are completely melted, stirring constantly.

3. Dip apples in caramel. You can tip the pan to the side so the caramel gathers in one spot. Then spin the apple in the caramel, about 1/2" from the stem. Set the pan flat and hold the apple till it stops dripping. Scrape the caramel from the bottom of the apple, then place on the non-stick surface.

4. Refrigerate for 1 hour. This will help cool the apple after being placed in hot caramel and will help cool and solidify the caramel.

5. Melt chocolate according to directions. Dip the same way as the caramel, except dip a little further away from the stem to give it the nice layered look. 

6. If you can wait, let the chocolate cool before eating. 

Best Brownies in Great Valley 2.0 aka One-Bowl Brownies

I'm in the process of making a brownie mosaic cheesecake and I wanted to let you all in on a stream-lining tip I discovered. The cheesecake involves making a batch of brownies, cutting them into cubes and folding them into the cheesecake batter. I really wanted to use BB in GV, but balked at the idea of using three mixing bowls to make just one component of the cake. The one-bowl brownie suggested in the recipe I was using (smitten kitchen) used baking chocolate, which I don't have. So, I used her one-bowl method with the BB in GV ingredients and...it totally worked! I'm never using three mixing bowls again.

Here's what you do:

350F

greased 9x13

In large mixing bowl, heat 2.5 sticks of butter until just melted. Mix in 3/4 cup cocoa. Add 2 cups sugar. Add 4 eggs and 1tsp vanilla, mixing until smooth. Add 1 1/3 cups flour and sprinkle in 1 tsp each salt and baking powder. Mix until smooth (I recommend using a wooden spoon) then add chocolate chips or nuts. Bake 30 min.

Fresh Mozzarella, Prosciutto, Arugula Pizzettas

FRESH MOZZARELLA, PROSCIUTTO, AND ARUGULA PIZZETTAS

With grilling seasoning nearing its end, I decided to back away from my traditional pepperoni and cheese grilled pizzas. Lettuce on a pizza may not sound extremely appealing, but  arugula adds a peppery flavor, a fresh taste, and crunchy texture to a pizza. Any topping can be used, but if you want a unique pizza for a special dinner, this is a great option.

Fresh Mozzarella, Prosciutto, and Arugula Pizzettas

Rhodes frozen roll dough balls, thawed

Olive oil

Tomato-based sauce (we use Traditional Sweet Basil from Classico, but any pizza or pasta sauce should work)

Mozzarella, sliced thin or shredded

Fresh Basil, chopped, optional

Tomato, sliced thin

Prosciutto 

Arugula 

Directions: 

1. Preheat grill, then lower to medium heat. Preheat oven to 450 F.

2. Thaw rhodes rolls according to directions (or any homemade or store-bought pizza dough). Stretch and flatten each dough ball to approximately 4-5 inches diameter. 

3. Lightly coat both sides of the dough with olive oil to add flavor and keep the dough from sticking to the grill. 

4. Place flattened dough onto grill. Check every minute to see if the dough if the down-facing side is cooked well enough. Then, turn and grill the other side.

5. Pull cooked pizza rounds off the grill and place on an oven-proof baking sheet.

6. Place toppings on the pizza, except arugula. We did it in this order: sauce (small amount), tomato slice, mozzarella, fresh basil, prosciutto.

7. Bake in the oven until the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes (baking times may vary).

8. Serve immediately with a small handful of arugula on top.

Crispy Coconut Chicken Fingers

This one is from Our Best Bite's recipe book. They are delicious! If you don't like coconut, I think you'll still like this recipe because there's not a strong coconut flavor or texture.

Crispy Coconut Chicken Fingers
from Our Best Bites
1 cup sweetened coconut flakes
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1-1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon table salt
3/4 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup flour
2 eggs
Boneless, skinless chicken breast (this will make about 1-1/2 large chicken breast halves) in small pieces, or use about 12 chicken tenders

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
2. Chop coconut so it's roughly the same size as the bread crumbs.
3. Combine the coconut, bread crumbs, and spices in a shallow dish. Stir well to make sure everything is evenly distributed.
4. Place the flour in a shallow dish and the eggs in another shallow dish. Whisk the eggs.
5. Working with one chicken piece at a time, dredge the chicken in flour, shaking off any excess. Then dip in the egg, again shaking off any excess. Roll in the bread crumb/coconut mixture, gently pressing the mixture onto the chicken. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining chicken tenders. To add a little extra crunch, you can drizzle each one with a tiny bit of olive oil (I like to do this).
6. Bake for about 20 minutes or until juices run clear, being careful not to overcook them. Cooking time may be less or more depending on the size of the chicken pieces. The coconut and bread crumbs will be lightly golden brown and crispy.

We really like dipping these in honey mustard. I've used both Litehouse and Ken's honey mustards and they are both delicious.

While an easy meal to make, it is not that quick as breading the chicken takes forever. Once I had Adrian and the kids take care of that part and it went really fast, but usually it's just me so it goes really slow.

Three Packet Slow Cooker Roast

I got this recipe from my old boss who said it makes the best roast ever. It is certainly wonderful and very easy too! The gravy I made with the leftover juice is yummy.

Three Packet Roast
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/three-packet-slow-cooker-roast/

1 cup water
1 (.7 ounce) packet dry Italian dressing mix
1 (1 ounce) packet ranch dressing mix
1 (.75 ounce) packet dry brown gravy mix
3 pound boneless beef chuck roast
Whisk together the water, Italian dressing mix, ranch dressing mix, and brown gravy mix in a bowl until smooth. Place the beef roast into a slow cooker, and pour the sauce over top.

Cook on low until the roast is easily pierced by a fork, 6 to 8 hours.

Gravy
1/4 cup fat drippings (use butter to make a total of 1/4 cup of fat if there aren't enough drippings)
1/4 cup flour
2 cups drippings (use boiled water and beef base to make a total of 2 cups if there aren't enough drippings)

Make a roux. Melt fat from meat and butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add flour and mix with a whisk. Cook until it becomes bubbly and thick.

You need two cups of the remaining drippings. If you're short, use boiling water and beef base (1 cup water to 1 teaspoon beef base) to make up the difference. Add your drippings and water/beef base mixture to the roux if needed. Cook on medium heat until thick, stirring often. If you're not serving immediately, turn on low heat and stir occasionally. I strained the gravy before putting in the gravy boat to remove any lumps.

Makes 2 cups

Creamed Eggs on Toast

This is something I remember Grandma Cleo making when I would visit during college. Since then I've learned to make it and I love it! It's a pretty quick meal to prepare (probably about 30 minutes including the egg boiling.

I would say that these quantities would feed 2-4 people, depending on their appetites. I'm satisfied with about a third of this so I'd go 2 eggs, 1 T butter, 1 T flour and probably about 1/2 cup of milk.

Look at that yumminess!

And that homemade whole wheat bread underneath?

Delectable! :)

Creamed Eggs on Toast
6 hard boiled eggs
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Toasted bread

Boil your eggs. I've found that it's easier to peel them if they're still warm so I prefer to cook them right before I'm making this. Peel the eggs and chop up into big chunks. You'll want to complete this step before starting the next step, unless you take the next step super slow.

Make a roux by melting butter in a saucepan on medium heat then adding flour (I included some amounts here but if you want to make more or less, it's equal parts butter and flour). Once the mixture starts to bubble and thicken, add milk. Continue to stir; the sauce will begin to thicken. Add the eggs. If they're cold, you'll want to let them cook long enough to warm up. Add salt and pepper to taste.

A note about the roux...I'm always afraid of using too high heat, but I've found that using a medium-low heat takes forever. I put it on medium and just watch it closely. Don't be afraid to be a little aggressive with the heat.

Toast your bread then spoon the egg mixture on top.

While my homemade whole wheat bread is really good with this, I find that my homemade French bread makes it extra delicious. I'll post those recipes one of these days.

Brown Sugar Muffins

I've made these muffins for years ever since a roommate in college gave me the recipe. They are the only muffin recipe I use. You can use all-purpose flour, but recently I discovered King Arthur white whole wheat flour. It's an easy way to make anything whole-grain, and works really well in this recipe. Sometimes I add oatmeal. Lately, I've been mixing together 2-3 apples, peeled and chopped, 3T sugar and 1T cinnamon and folding it into the batter. This will add a few minutes to your cooking time but you'll yield twice as many muffins

350F

2 cups flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup melted butter
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup milk

Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix just until combined. Fold in apple mixture (optional) Bake in lined muffin pans for 15-20 minutes. Makes 12 muffins or 24 apple muffins

Ham and Pasta Skillet

Otherwise known as THE BEST use for leftover ham. I don't know about you, but leftover ham after a holiday always left me stumped. The only idea I could ever come up with was some kind of chowder that nobody really ate. This recipe comes from MelsKitchenCafe.com and makes a seriously tasty dinner. The key is good ham, like the leftovers of a spiral cut ham. Make the ham for Sunday dinner and have this later in the week. If you get yourself a red pepper and some fresh parsley, you probably have the rest of the ingredients in your pantry waiting to make this.

Here's the link:

ham-and-pasta-skillet-dinner

Am I too lazy to type it out myself, since I didn't make any changes? Yes. Yes I am.

Best Brownies in Great Valley

Ah, yes, the legendary Best Brownies of Great Valley. Looks like I'm the first to post this one. :) I won't include the story, but if someone else wants to add it to my post, I'm OK with that.

1-1/4 cups butter
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1-1/3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
12 ounces chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make the following mixtures in three separate bowls:
1) Cocoa Mixture-In the largest bowl, melt butter then stir in cocoa.
2) Flour Mixture-Mix together flour, salt, and baking powder.
3) Egg Mixture-Mix together eggs, sugar, and vanilla.

Alternately add the dry mixture and the egg mixture to the cocoa mixture. Stir just until smooth. Add chocolate chips and chopped nuts. Bake in a greased 9x13" pan for 30 minutes. *Put into the refrigerator immediately.

*The keys to success are to not overcook (they will not look completely done at first), and to let them cool completely before serving.

A couple of notes..
-I made this recipe twice over the last year or so and they were really bitter - I was using regular cocoa and semi-sweet chocolate chips. So unless you want really bitter brownies, it looks like "dark chocolate" doesn't work. I used milk chips this time and they turned out perfectly.
-Also, normally I do not like nuts in things, but I love nuts in brownies. I know I'm a little strange, but you're all used to me.
-Since moving to Arizona (both in Phoenix and where we are now), brownies and bar cookies take much longer to cook than they did back east. Sometimes up to 30 minutes longer. Anyone know why this is? I haven't taken the time to experiment with different temperatures and baking times.

White Chicken Chili

This is Mom. I made a variation of the white chicken chili recipe from Our Best Bites. If you want the original, you'll find it at http://www.ourbestbites.com/2008/09/white-chicken-chili/. 

The soup was delicious! It's got some kick, but mellow Dad still loved it. We've been eating off it for 3 days, and I was going to warm up the last of it for our Sunday lunch today. But Dad said, "No, wait, I was hoping I could take that for lunch the next couple of days." A bowl of that soup, four or five saltines, and a little container of berries make a great lunch for him. Becca, you can see we're violating the 72-hour rule, but it still seems good.

White Chicken Chili

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 medium onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)
2 (15-ounce) cans Great Northern beans
3 cups chicken chunks cut from rotisserie chicken
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (3.5-ounce) can green chilies
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 (16-ounce) can chicken broth

1. Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook for about 2 minutes, just until it starts to become translucent.
2. While the onions are cooking, drain the beans and rinse with cold water; set aside. Cut up the chicken. Add the garlic to the onions and cook another 2 minutes (but don't brown the garlic!).
3. Add the chicken, the green chilies along with all of the juices in the can, the beans, oregano, salt, and a few turns of freshly ground black pepper. Stir to combine and then add the chicken broth.
4. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer uncovered about 10 minutes to blend flavors.

The original recipe called for 1 pound raw chicken that you then cook with the onion, a full onion, 1/2 tsp. cumin, 1/2 tsp. coriander, the juice from one lime, and 1/2 cup chopped cilantro. I didn't have any of those, so I didn't use them, yet we still loved the flavor. The original recipe also suggests possible toppings of sour cream, chopped cilantro, shredded pepper jack or Monterey Jack cheese, avocado, tortilla chips, lime wedges. We didn't use any of those items, but it was still delicious.

Sweet Pork

This is one of many versions of Costa Vida's sweet pork I've seen. This one came from the Gilbert Ranch Ward cookbook.

This is my first foray into posting pictures and it makes me wish I had a nice granite countertop and lots of pretty serving dishes. But alas I'm just a normal gal in a normal house.

Sweet Pork
3-7 ounce cans tomato sauce
2-7 ounce cans El Pato tomato sauce (found in Mexican food section)
2 cups dark brown sugar
4-5 pounds pork roast (again, I prefer the boneless type)

Mix the sauces and brown sugar then pour over pork roast in a crockpot. Cook on low about eight hours. Shred and serve on burritos, nachos, or salads.

I like to top it with lettuce, tomato, onions, black or pinto beans, rice, cheese, and a creamy salad dressing.

A note about quantity: I only used about 3 pounds of pork and we've eaten this for three meals and we still have quite a bit of meat left.

We had burritos the first day and I made these delicious nachos today.

And...a note on leftovers: We've been making a lot of fried rice with leftovers. This is not good as fried rice, not sure why. :)

The dressing I tried is from Our Best Bites. The pork is so flavorful that you don't really taste the dressing much but it does have a little bit of a kick to it. Adrian also adds sour cream to his, but I'm fine without it.

Creamy Cilantro-Lime Ranch Dressing
from Our Best Bites
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup milk or buttermilk
1 lime, juiced (about 2 tablespoons lime juice)
1 packet of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix (just the dry mix)
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro
1/4 cup green salsa
Hot sauce (I used 1 teaspoon of Tabasco)

Combine mayonnaise, milk, lime juice, and the contents of the packet of ranch dressing in a blender. Add garlic, cilantro, and green salsa and blend to thoroughly mix all the ingredients. Season with hot sauce, if desired. If possible, refrigerate for several hours to allow the dressing to thicken and the flavors to meld.

Makes about 2 cups.

Chicken Tostadas

After spending 18 months in the San Diego area, working mostly among Mexicans, I got to the point where I craved Mexican food and could have eaten it three times a day and been happy.  Well, 8-ish years later, it's been a while since I've tried cooking real Mexican food.  This recipe for chicken tostadas is AMAZING and took me right back to eating the authentic food cooked by the Mexican families I worked with.  The leftovers were great.  I ate them for about 4 consecutive meals and could have kept going.  For the leftovers, make sure you fry up the tortillas fresh.

Check out the recipe at Epicurious  Chicken Tostadas Recipe

Tortilla Bowl Taco Salad

So, this is the first real meal I've cooked in a long time. AKA not pasta, pizza, or grilled cheese.

My mother-in-law gave us these pans a couple months ago and I honestly thought they were the actual taco bowls, not pans to bake taco bowls in. I figured out the truth when I was cleaning my pantry this past weekend and took a closer look. 

First, I thawed and trimmed a frozen boneless skinless chicken breast.

I am pretty picky with my chicken (along with most of the Schows), so I ended up cutting it into little chunks for quicker cooking and to clear all veins and fat.

I greased the pan with spritzes of olive oil and seasoned the chicken with Johnny's seasoning. 

You can use butter or oil to keep the meat from sticking to the pan and you can use whatever seasoning you prefer.

While the chicken cooked, I diced a small tomato and 1/4 of a white onion.

I cooked the onion in a small pan with olive oil. Craig and I aren't big raw onion fans, so I generally cook them.

I used raw tortillas, so they needed to be slightly cooked in a pan before I placed them into the shaped pans. I cooked the tortillas in the oven at 400 F for 7 minutes so they would hold their shape.

For the whole assembly: tortilla bowl, iceberg lettuce, chicken, tomatoes, cooked onions, sour cream, and salsa.

I ended up throwing some ranch dressing on top for a little extra flavor and moisture. Then I dipped the extra tortilla in the salsa and sour cream.
Overall I was very happy with the tastes and textures. One thing to put it over the top is to sprinkle the tortilla with shredded cheese before baking it.

Tortilla-Bowl Taco Salad

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

1 Chicken Breast, cut into 1" chunks

1 T Olive or Canola Oil

1/4 White Onion, diced

1 Tomato, diced

1 Head Iceberg, sliced

4 Tortillas

Seasoning for Chicken (taco seasoning, Johnny's, salt & pepper)

Salad Dressing, optional 

Sour Cream, optional

Salsa, optional

Shredded cheese, optional

1. Trim chicken and cut into bite-sized pieces. Cook in a pan with oil and seasoning.

2. Dice onion. Cook in pan with a little oil.

3. Dice tomato and slice lettuce. Place in fridge to keep cool until all ingredients are assembled.

4. Warm tortillas. If you have tortilla bowl pans, follow instructions.

5. Place tortilla in a bowl and top with lettuce, tomato, onion, and cheese (optional).

6. Serve with dressing, sour cream, and/or salsa. 

Do any of you have different ingredients you like to add into taco salad??

Yellow Chicken - An Indonesian Specialty

This is a favorite recipe of Adrian's family, from their Indonesian father. It's absolutely delicious! You'll find the lemongrass and galanggal at the Asian market (galanggal is a spice, lemongrass is a grass that comes in a bag in the freezer/produce section). I just made a discovery: lemon grass in the produce section at Wal Mart. It is in a squeeze tube by the fresh herbs.

2 chicken breasts, cubed or thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon lemongrass
1/4 teaspoon galanggal
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cans coconut milk

Sauté onion and garlic in oil. Add all the spices to the onions and stir. Add the chicken, cook on medium/low heat stirring occasionally until cooked through. Add coconut milk, bring it to a soft boil, then remove from heat. Serve over cooked white rice.

It will seem like there's not enough liquid to cook the chicken in, but the chicken adds enough liquid. Adrian's dad would use a whole chicken (and perhaps make more of the sauce) but I'm not a fan of bone-in meat so I just used chicken breast.

The final product has a lot of sauce which is really good to put on the rice. You could probably add more chicken without affecting it too much. Adrian's dad used a whole chicken.

It's a really quick and easy recipe to make.

Best-Ever Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I recently discovered a really delicious chocolate chip cookie recipe. Adrian says it's the top one or two chocolate chip cookies he's ever had. I usually make the Mrs. Fields recipe but he doesn't like oatmeal in chocolate chip cookies, thus my search for an equally delicious (and successful) oatmeal-less recipe.

The problem I've found with many recipes is that the cookies end up really thin, crunchy, and flat. But these are perfect! I think the trick that I've missed before is to refrigerate the dough balls before baking.

 

The dough is extra soft and messy, so the next time I make it I may refrigerate it in the bowl for a little bit. Also I start by placing the balls on a cookie sheet then chilling before I put into a plastic container to freeze until ready to bake. I've found that it's best to first chill them for a while on a cookie sheet otherwise the balls become one big mass that you have to chisel from and then re-form into balls.

 

I do not use European style butter and they turn out fine. I also haven't used unsalted butter which I would recommend trying if you have it as they are a little salty. I used the Kirkland brand dark chips from Costco...that's as fancy as I'll get with the chocolate.

 

Best-Ever Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from Baking at Home with the Culinary Institute of America

Found at http://shine.yahoo.com/shine-food/best-ever-thick-chewy-chocolate-chunk-cookies-144100966.html

2-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup European-style unsalted butter, room temperature
1-3/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups dark chocolate chunks

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt until well combined.

In a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter with the sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing between additions and scraping down the bowl as needed. Add the vanilla extract and mix. On low speed or by hand, stir in the dry ingredients until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips, mixing until just incorporated. Do not over-mix. Scrape down the bowl as needed.

Using a cookie scoop, ice cream scoop, or two spoons, form dough balls and place on prepared cookie sheets with a few inches of room in between. Refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 F with rack in the center. Line cookie sheets with parchment or silicone baking mats.

Bake for 10-13 minutes (depending on the size of your dough balls), until they are golden brown around the edges and puffy in the center. Let cookies cool a few minutes on baking sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool completely. They are best if not over-cooked and are very gooey.

A note for higher altitude baking: We are at about 4000 feet which makes a difference from baking in Phoenix. We lower the temperature to 350 F and bake for 11 minutes.

 

Happy baking!