Too Shai Shai

Cilantro Chicken

2011-08-31T12:53:00.000-04:00

I put this dish on the menu because my cilantro plant had been thriving. Notice I said "had been thriving." When I went outside to clip some cilantro, I realized my once thriving plant was barely clinging to life. I managed to snip enough cilantro to make this dish, but I think my cilantro plant has finally succumbed to the extreme heat we've been dealing with. And that's a shame because this dinner was fantastic. I can't wait to make it again, even if I have to buy cilantro from the grocery store. (My herb garden is on hold until the weather turns slightly cooler.)

My version of the recipe is below. I did not serve it over cabbage. Instead I threw in some steamed broccoli when I added the soy sauce mixture. I also left out the peanuts, and I don't think I was missing anything.

Cilantro Chicken
8 ounces skinless, boneless chicken-breast halves, cut into 1-inch strips
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Steamed broccoli, optional
3/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
cooked brown rice, if desired

1. In a medium nonstick skillet, cook chicken in oil over medium-high heat 3 to 4 minutes, or until chicken is tender and no longer pink.
2. Mix together soy sauce, vinegar and red pepper flakes. Add to skillet with broccoli, if using. Cook and stir 1 minute more.
3. Remove from heat. Stir in cilantro. Serve over rice if desired.

Chipotle Pork--2 Ways

2011-08-19T12:11:00.000-04:00

I used to shun recipes that had chipotle peppers in them, thinking they were too spicy for my tastebuds. Then one day I broke down and bought a can of chipotles in adobo sauce. I was hooked. I loved the smoky flavor. Yes, they can pack a punch. Make sure you remove the seeds when you use them. Since one can contains way more peppers than I would use in one recipe, I freeze the remaining peppers and sauce in ice cube trays, pop out when frozen and store them in a Ziploc. Then I can just defrost what I need. I had bookmarked two recipes that would help me use up my stock of chipotle peppers. Both were excellent, and I can't decide which one I like better. I used boneless pork loin chops, but I'm sure they would be good with chicken as well.

Orange and Chipotle Pork Kabobs
1/2 C orange juice
1 T light brown sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 chipotle peppers in adobo, seeds removed, peppers minced
1 T vegetable oil
2 boneless pork loin chops, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 onion, cut into chunks
1 orange, cut into wedges

1. Mix together orange juice, sugar, garlic, peppers, and oil in a ziploc bag. Add pork to bag and turn so meat is fully coated in marinade. Refrigerate at least 4 hours.
2. Heat grill to medium. Remove pork from marinade. Discard marinade. Thread pork, onions and oranges onto skewers. Cook kabobs, turning often, 10-12 minutes or until pork is fully cooked.

The second recipe came from Prevention magazine. The online version is slightly different from the print version I followed. The recipe with my changes is below.

Mexican Pork Tenderloin
1/2 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 chipotle peppers in adobo, finely chopped and seeds removed
3 TBLSP cider vinegar
2 TBLSP lime juice
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp canola oil
1 tsp chopped fresh oregano
2 boneless pork loin chops
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1. In a dry skillet, cook the onion and garlic over medium-high heat for 7 minutes. Puree in a food processor with the chile peppers, vinegar, lime juice, sugar, oil, and oregano. Reserve half of the mixture and place in a separate container from the pork. Place the pork in a shallow dish and cover with the remaining mixture. Cover and marinate overnight.
2. Preheat grill to high heat. In a small bowl, combine cumin and pepper.
3. Remove pork from marinade; discard marinade. Rub pork with cumin mixture.
4. Grill pork for 10 minutes over high heat. Lower heat to medium. Baste pork with reserved pepper and onion mixture. Grill pork for 10 more minutes over medium heat, or until cooked through. Serve.

I served this with the side dish from Prevention magazine too: Grilled Corn with Lime and Red Pepper. Even though I used frozen corn on the cob (no idea why that was in my freezer!), it was still really good.
Grilled Corn with Lime and Red Pepper
2 ears of corn on the cob, husked
olive oil spray
red pepper
salt
lime, cut in quarters

1. Bring large pot of water to a boil and preheat grill to medium high.
2. Boil corn 5 minutes and remove to plate. Coat lightly with olive oil spray and grill 10 minutes, turning every 2 minutes.
3. Combine salt and pepper in small bowl. When corn is done, rub each ear with lime wedge and sprinkle with salt and pepper mixture.

Summertime Grilled Chicken

2011-08-17T19:57:00.000-04:00

There is a little elf at work who keeps bringing in bags and bags of mangos and leaving them in the lunch room for everyone to help themselves to. I am forever grateful to this person, because without their generosity, I never would have been introduced to the wonders of mango salsa. First, I made grilled pork chops with mango salsa. Then I made grilled fish with mango salsa. Tonight, I made my favorite protein--chicken--with mango salsa. I marinated the chicken in a combination of citrus juices and various spices. While the chicken was delicious on its own, the mango salsa really made it special. This was a perfect summertime dinner.

Citrus Chicken Breasts
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/2 TBLSP brown sugar
1 TBLSP canola oil
1 TBLSP lime juice
1/8 cup orange juice
2 chicken breasts

1. Combine all ingredients in a plastic bag or glass bowl. Coat chicken with mixture. Marinate in refrigerator for 30 minutes to 2 hours.
2. Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Remove chicken from marinade, discard marinade. Grill chicken, turning often, for 12-15 minutes until cooked through. Serve chicken with mango salsa.

Mango Salsa
1 mango, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1 TBLSP lime juice
1 TBLSP red wine vinegar
2 TBLSP olive oil
chopped, fresh cilantro
dash of hot pepper sauce

1. Mix all ingredients together. Cover and let stand for 30 minutes to allow flavors to blend.

Outback Bread

2011-08-10T13:30:00.000-04:00

I haven't eaten at Outback since I was in college (i.e., many many years ago). I don't remember much about my meals there except for a dessert called the Chocolate Thunder from Down Under. That I have many fond memories of. So I can't explain why when I saw this recipe for a copycat version of Outback's Honey Wheat Bushman Bread my mouth started drooling.

I wish I could tell you that this is an exact clone of the bread served at Outback, but even after eating this, I still don't remember what they serve at Outback. I will tell you though that this bread was very, very good.

Honey Wheat Bushman Bread
I made a half batch of dough--leaving out the food coloring--which yielded two loaves of bread. I didn't mix up the honey butter that the original called for, but I would imagine that would be very good as well. The recipe with my changes is below.

5/8 cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
1-1/8 teaspoons yeast
1 cup bread flour
7/8 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tablespoon cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1/4 cup honey
cornmeal, for dusting

1. In a small bowl, combine the sugar and warm water; add the yeast and let this mixture sit until it is foamy.
2. While the yeast proofs, combine the bread and wheat flours, cocoa and salt in the bowl of a Kitchen Aid mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter and combine well. Add honey and mix together.
3. Add the yeast solution and stir until thoroughly combined.
4. Switch to dough hook and knead for 10 minutes. Roll the dough into a ball and place in an oiled bowl, turning to coat all sides.
5. Cover bowl, put in a warm place and let rise for 90 minutes or until doubled in size.
6. Divide the dough into 2 equal portions and roll into a small loaf. Coat the dough with cornmeal. Put the shaped loaves on a baking sheet and cover to rise again, one hour or until doubled in size.
7. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake the loaves for 35-40 minutes. Let cool for 10-15 minutes on a wire rack before serving warm with butter.

Back from the Dead

2011-08-01T18:32:00.002-04:00

Wow, long time, no blog!

Commitments at work and home led me to push the blog to the back burner and before you knew it, almost 2 years had gone by with not a word from me. I thought about abandoning blogging completely, but I realized I liked blogging. I missed not having an outlet for my thoughts or a place to record my recipes and meals and the general minutiae of everyday life. I thought about starting a new blog, but I figured it was best to jump right back into blogging at this address. I didn't want to risk telling myself I would set up a new blog "someday" and then never get around to it. So, I'm back here for now. Hopefully, I'll stick around this time.

Crockpot Mexican Chicken

2009-08-24T12:51:00.000-04:00

Since I had just made a fresh batch of tortillas, I needed something to stuff them with. This Mexican Chicken fit the bill. Of course, I did make a few changes. I substituted a sweet potato for the butternut squash and left out the rice. I served the chicken with the tortillas and corn on the cob.

Crockpot Mexican Chicken
1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 medium green bell pepper, cut into 1- inch pieces
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (frozen is okay)
1 can (14.5 oz) stewed tomatoes, undrained
1/2 cup salsa
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cumin

1. Place chicken in bottom of crockpot. Add sweet potato and green pepper.
2. Mix together tomatoes, salsa, cinnamon and cumin. Pour over everything in crockpot.
3. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-7. When chicken is done, use two forks to shred the chicken. Mix well.
4. Serve chicken in tortillas if desired.

Mexican Tortillas

2009-08-23T12:43:00.000-04:00

Last month we took a fabulous vacation to the Cancun area of Mexico. We stayed at an all-inclusive, but we did venture off the resort one day to one of the new wonders of the world, Chichen Itza. It was an amazing experience, and something I highly recommend you see if you vacation in the area. Our tour included lunch at a local restaurant where I ate the best meal of my vacation. The food at the resort was good, but didn't seem very authentic. This meal on the other hand seemed like authentic Yucatan food. The servers brought around baskets of tortillas which tasted nothing like the packaged ones I buy in the store.

Those tortillas inspired me to try my hand at making my own from scratch. I've made these twice now, and they were unbelievably good both times. I don't know if I will ever buy tortillas again. I did make a few changes from the original recipe. I used less whole wheat flour and more bread flour only because I couldn't find any whole wheat bread flour in the stores. I also swapped out the shortening for oil. My dough was a little sticky, so I added more flour (which I didn't measure). I just eyeballed it until the dough came together in a ball. I used the Kitchenaid dough hook to mix and knead the dough. Also, one time I fried the tortillas in oil--not the healthiest option, I know--and we liked those slightly better. They were more flavorful of course, because they were more fattening! Now I just need to perfect my dough rolling technique. My tortillas were shaped more like footballs than circles.

Mexican Tortillas
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1-1/3 cup bread flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 TBL + 2 tsp canola oil
1/2 cup boiling water (might need to add a little more to get dough to come together)
flour for rolling

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together the flours and salt. Make a well in the center and add the oil and boiling water. Mix until all the liquid is evenly incorporated. Sprinkle with a bit of additional flour, and knead until the dough does not stick to your fingers. The dough should be smooth.
2. Make balls the size of golf balls, about 2 ounces each. Place them on a tray, and cover with a cloth. Let stand for at least 1 hour, or up to 8 hours.
3. Heat a griddle or large frying pan over high heat. On a lightly floured surface, roll out a tortilla to your preferred thinness. Fry one at a time. Place on the griddle for 10 seconds, as soon as you see a bubble on the top, flip the tortilla over. Let it cook for about 30 seconds, then flip and cook the other side for another 30 seconds. Roll out the next tortilla while you wait for that one to cook. Repeat until all of the balls have been cooked.

Contradicting Myself

2009-08-14T11:53:00.000-04:00

So in one post, I'm on my soapbox about eating healthy and avoiding processed foods. Then in the next post, I'm presenting you with a dessert recipe made with a convenience item. I can't say much in my defense aside from the fact that I have a sweet tooth. Actually, not only did this satisfy my sweet tooth, it served as part of my use it up challenge. I liked this, but since I don't plan on buying Bisquick in the future, I searched for an alternative and found this. If I use it, I'll let you know how it turns out. I found the cake to be very sweet. If there is a next time, I will cut back on the sugar in the topping mix. I've made the change below.

Chocolate Chip Crater Cake
2 cups all-purpose biscuit baking mix
1/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup semi-sweet Chocolate Chips
TOPPING MIX
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose biscuit baking mix
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Mix all topping mix ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside.
2. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 8-inch square baking pan.
3. Combine biscuit mix, sugar, milk, egg and vanilla in large bowl; beat on low speed of mixer until moistened. Increase speed to medium; beat 2 minutes until smooth. Pour half of batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips over batter. Top with remaining batter, completely covering chips. Sprinkle topping mix evenly over batter.
4. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until top springs back when touched lightly. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.*

*I liked this served warm with a scoop of ice cream on top.

Bisquick Substitute
1 cup flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon shortening (or butter?)

1. Mix all dry ingredients together. Cut in butter/shortening using a pastry blender. Makes 1 cup of Bisquick equivalent. Store in the refrigerator.

Starting from Scratch

2009-08-10T13:57:00.000-04:00

I mentioned yesterday how I am challenging myself to use up the random bits of food in my pantry and freezer. My reasons for that challenge are twofold: one to save money and two to become a more creative/adventurous cook. Once I use up some of the convenience foods I have in the house, I hope to not buy them again. Instead, I'd like to try my hand at making more things from scratch. Obviously the more foods I make from scratch, the more money I'll save and the more aware I'll be of what I'm actually putting in my body. I do have a few convenience type items that I'm considering just throwing away because they're not that healthy (Bisquick, I'm looking at you.).

Chicken stock is one of those items that I used to buy without really thinking. I'd buy the low sodium variety because it's healthier. But have you actually ever read the label? It still contains way more sodium than a human being needs. Once I made a whole roasted chicken, I decided I would try to make my own chicken stock. I saved the chicken carcass in the freezer until I had the time to let this simmer for a good chunk of the day.

Honestly, this was so simple (and cheap), that I don't know if I will ever buy chicken stock again. I got about 6 cups of stock out of my chicken and they are lined up in the freezer waiting for me. I can't wait to use them in my cooking because judging from the little bit that I taste tested, this is really good.

I looked at a number of recipes to get ideas, but this is really my own creation. I didn't want to use strong flavors since I plan to use this in cooking. You can season it with anything you'd like.

Chicken Stock
1 chicken carcass with some meat still left on the bones
water, enough to cover carcass in pot
1 onion, quartered
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
bay leaf
dash salt
dash pepper

1. Place chicken carcass in a stockpot. Add enough water to just cover carcass. Cover pot.
2. Bring to a boil and then simmer over medium heat for one hour.
3. Skim any fat from the top of the broth. Add remaining ingredients and continue simmering for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.
4. Remove pot from heat and allow to cool uncovered for 30 minutes to an hour.
5. Strain stock into storage containers. Refrigerate overnight, skim the fat from the top and freeze if not using immediately.

Crab Bites

2009-08-09T16:30:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite websites/blogs is Small Notebook. A couple of weeks, the author was talking about food that never gets eaten in her house. She termed it "pantry clutter." I started looking through my cabinets, fridge and freezer, and I was shocked by how much food I had in there. Yet, I always seem to think we have nothing to eat in the house, and I go to the grocery store to buy more. I'm challenging myself to use up the food that's lurking in my house while only buying minimal groceries (fresh produce, dairy and staples we run out of).

That's how this recipe for Crab Bites came to be made. I found this in the Publix Grape magazine, but I can't find it online. I still had wonton wrappers to use up, plus a can of crab in the pantry. I also happened to have an avocado on hand thanks to the kindness of a coworker with an avocado tree. We enjoyed this appetizer; it's fancy enough to serve to guests.

Crab Bites
12 wonton wrappers
1/2 ripe avocado, seeded and peeled
2 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 Tbsp finely chopped red onion
1/2 tsp finely shredded lemon peel
1 Tbsp lemon juice
4 tsp chili powder
1 (6-oz) can crabmeat, drained and flaked
cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in quarters

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat 12 muffin cups with cooking spray. Press a wonton wrapper in each cup. Bake for 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from cups and cool on a wire rack.
2. For filling, in a medium mixing bowl mash avocado. Add cream cheese; beat with a fork or whisk until smooth. Stir in mayonnaise, onion, lemon peel, lemon juice and chili powder. Fold in crabmeat.
3. To serve, spoon filling into wonton cups. Top each with a cherry tomato quarter.

Chili Sauce Chicken

2009-08-09T11:27:00.000-04:00

I think I've mentioned before that I am a big fan of the Ingredients search on All Recipes. I had a bottle of Heinz Chili Sauce that had been in my fridge for who knows how long that I wanted to use up. My search on All Recipes turned up this recipe for Chili Sauce Chicken. I used 2 chicken breasts instead of thighs, scaled back on the chili sauce and eyeballed everything else. This was so good that I'm thinking chili sauce needs to become a staple in my refrigerator.

Chili Sauce Chicken
1/2 cup chili sauce
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
fresh basil
salt and pepper
2 chicken breasts

1. Combine all ingredients except chicken in a large bowl. Mix well. Remove 1/3 cup of sauce for basting and reserve. Add chicken to bowl and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

2. Preheat grill to medium heat. Remove chicken from marinade, discard marinade. Grill chicken for 10-15 minutes depending on how thick your breasts are. Baste with reserved marinade and continuing grilling for 10 minutes until sauce caramelizes on chicken and juices run clear. Serve.

Chocolate Raspberry Cobbler Cake

2009-08-07T13:10:00.000-04:00

I had a bag of raspberries sitting in my freezer that needed to be used up. Since I love the combination of chocolate and raspberry, I googled chocolate raspberry cake and found this. But in the interest of trying to eat healthier, I didn't want to make an entire cake for the two of us. Instead I cut the recipe down and made two servings in individual ramekins. This was really good! I loved the combination of the tart raspberries and the sweet chocolate. The best part is I still have more than half of that bag of raspberries in the freezer so I can whip this up again in the near future.

Chocolate Raspberry Cobbler Cake (makes 2 servings)
1 TBLSP butter
1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup raspberries, fresh or frozen
1/4 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Add 1/2 TBLSP butter to each ramekin and place in preheating oven to melt.
2. Mix flour, baking powder, salt, milk, vanilla extract and brown sugar.
3. Add 1/4 of the batter to each ramekin. Top with raspberries and chocolate chips.
4. Pour remaining batter over berries and chips. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until center is set. Cool at least 10 minutes before serving.

Summertime Spread(s)

2009-08-07T10:30:00.000-04:00

On the weekends, we often lounge by the pool and soak up the sun. Well, we lounge until the afternoon thunderstorms roll in. *sigh* I like to make some munchies for us while we're chillaxin. I had a little bit of ricotta leftover and a little bit of goat cheese, so as soon as I saw this recipe, I knew I had to make it. I didn't measure anything since I was trying to use up random ingredients, and it still came out great! The lemon and basil make this perfect for summertime.

Ricotta and Goat Cheese Spread
olive oil
crumbled goat cheese
ricotta cheese
chopped fresh basil leaves
finely grated lemon peel
Salt and pepper
crackers

1. Mix all ingredients (except crackers) together in a small serving bowl until smooth and creamy. Serve with crackers, bagel chips, etc.

I also whipped up this Fresh Herb Bean Spread to take advantage of my bountiful basil plant. This one was also good. I loved the fresh lime juice in it.

Fresh Herb Bean Spread
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained
1.5 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil
1/2 tablespoon minced thyme
dash of salt and pepper

1. With the motor of a food processor running, drop garlic clove into food processor. Add beans, lime juice and olive oil. Puree until smooth. Add herbs and salt & pepper. Pulse until fully incorporated.
2. Serve chilled with crackers, breadsticks or fresh vegetables.

Caponatina

2009-08-06T12:30:00.000-04:00

When I was a young girl, my grandfather Vito would come to our house every Sunday for dinner. Most Sundays he would arrive bearing gifts: a dollar or two for my sister and me, fried zucchini and cauliflower for my mom, fresh tomatoes from his garden, and occasionally a special treat: caponatina. I credit Vito’s caponatina with solidifying my love for eggplant. This practice continued until the Alzheimer’s began to rob him of his memory and he grew older and more frail. How I only wish that I had asked him for his recipe and more importantly, listened to his stories and life lessons before he was taken from us. I had plenty of opportunity to; he lived until he was 99!

No one in the family had the recipe for caponatina. This recipe from My Italian Grandmother comes the closest to Grandpa’s that I can remember. So Vito, this one’s for you. I miss you.

I’m sure he didn’t measure anything out, and I didn’t either. Instead I added “a little of this” and “a dash of that” to suit our tastes. I left out the capers and raisins because Grandpa never used them. I also deviated from the recipe in that I kept adding ingredients to the pot instead of removing and then adding back in later.

Caponatina
1 lb unpeeled eggplant, cut into 1” cubes
1/4 cup oil (I used canola)
1/2 large onion, chopped
2 stalks chopped celery
tomato paste (enough to coat everything)
1/2 cup water
green olives, salted and pitted
salt and pepper to taste
1 heaping tsp. sugar
¼ cup red wine vinegar

1. Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion and celery, cook until almost tender. Add eggplant and sauté eggplant until light brown. Add tomato paste and water. Cook and stir over medium heat until dissolved. Add olives, salt and pepper. Mix well. Bring to a boil over high heat. Lower heat and simmer from 5 minutes or until eggplant is fully cooked.
2. Add sugar and vinegar. Cook for another 3 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
3. Caponatina can be served cold or at room temperature. I’ve been known to eat it with a spoon straight out of the fridge. The recipe says it will keep refrigerated for up to 6 weeks, but it’s never lasted that long in my house.

Baked Eggs

2009-08-04T18:37:00.002-04:00

I make these Baked Eggs often for brunch on the weekends. They are quick and simple to prepare, but fancy enough for guests. I got the original recipe from the Sun Sentinel Food section [no longer online], but I have adapted it to our own tastes over time. The great thing is because the eggs are baked and served in individual ramekins, you can make as many or as few as you need.

Baked Eggs
cooking spray
1/4 cup dried bread crumbs
2 eggs
dash nutmeg
dash hot pepper sauce
salt and fresh ground pepper
2 tablespoons half-n-half or heavy cream
2 tablespoons shredded cheese of your choice (cheddar or gruyere recommended)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two small ramekins or custard cups with cooking spray. Distribute bread crumbs evenly around bottom and sides of cups.
2. Crack an egg and place it in the center of each cup. Sprinkle each egg with nutmeg, hot pepper sauce, and salt and pepper. Spoon a tablespoon of cream on top of each, then 1 tablespoon of cheese on top of that.
3. Bake eggs about 10 minutes or until fully set. Serve.

Roasted Chicken with Gravy

2009-08-04T09:54:00.005-04:00

Considering the amount of chicken we eat, it's somewhat surprising that I've never made a whole chicken before. I've always been intimidated at the thought of cooking the whole chicken. I'm intimidated no more! It really couldn't be simpler. I took elements from a couple different recipes to come up with a delicious roasted chicken recipe that I will make again.

Roasted Chicken and Gravy
1 4-6 pound roasting chicken, neck and giblets removed from cavity and reserved if desired
1 orange, cut into wedges
1 lemon, cut into wedges
1 onion, cut into wedges
fresh oregano sprigs
unsalted butter, melted
thyme
salt and pepper
Gravy:
pan juices
3 TBLSP butter
3/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove the package containing the chicken innards from the chicken cavity. Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Place the chicken inside a large roasting pan. Place the orange and lemon wedges, onion and oregano in the main chicken cavity. Scatter whatever doesn't fit inside in the roasting pan. Tie the chicken legs together.
2. Stir together melted butter, salt and pepper and thyme. Rub butter mixture all over the chicken and between the chicken meat and skin.
3. Roast the chicken for 20-25 minutes per pound, until juices run clear. (Check the thickest part of the thigh.) Remove chicken from oven and roasting pan. Tent with foil and let rest for 20 minutes while you make the gravy.
4. Strain the juices from the roasting pan into a saucepan. Skim the fat off the top. Bring juices to a simmer. Add butter and wine. Whisk in flour, stirring constantly until thickened. (You may have to add more or less wine and flour depending on how much juice you have.) Season with salt and pepper.
5. Carve chicken and serve with gravy. Delicious!

Grilled Chile Rellenos

2009-08-01T13:20:00.005-04:00

When we go to dinner at our local Mexican restaurant, we like to order the Chile Rellenos. The ones we get at the restaurant are stuffed with cheese. In this recipe, the chiles are stuffed with beans which I think makes them a little more filling. I served these as a light main course with a salad on the side. It was a good meal for a hot summer night.

I only made 2 chiles and I cut the filling down accordingly (indicated below). I did have a little bit of filling left over. Don't overstuff the poblanos!

A word of caution. Watch out for the poblanos. Some are mild, others are not quite so mild. Be ready for anything! ;-)

Grilled Chile Rellenos
2 Large poblano chiles
Extra virgin olive oil
1/3 Medium onion, finely chopped
1 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
1 Jalapenos, seeded and chopped
1/3 bell pepper, finely chopped
1/4 c Chopped fresh cilantro
1/3 tsp Ground cumin
1 small can
Hot sauce
1 cup shredded cheese (Mexican 4 cheese blend)
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Cut chiles in half lengthwise to create a boat for filling; scrape out seeds.
2. Heat olive oil in a nonstick skillet, Add onion, garlic, jalapenos, bell pepper, cilantro and cumin and cook over medium heat until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Remove pan from heat and stir in baked beans, hot sauce and 1/2 cup cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spoon the mixture into the hollowed chiles and sprinkle with remaining cheese.
3. Preheat grill to medium. Arrange chiles on grill away from heat. Cook until chiles are tender and cheese is browned and bubbling, 30-40 minutes. Remove from grill and serve at once.

Veneto Chicken

2009-07-28T11:55:00.003-04:00

Once again I'm going to sing the praises of the ingredient search option on AllRecipes. I had celery to use up, plus chicken defrosting in the fridge for tonight's dinner. The search engine came up with Veneto Chicken and saved the celery from the trash can. This was a simple, easy dinner. I made a couple of changes to accommodate what I had on hand.

Veneto Chicken
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1/4 cup flour
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1 pinch salt
1 pinch ground black pepper
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1. Dredge chicken lightly in flour. Heat oil over medium-high heat. Fry chicken pieces briefly, turning to brown evenly. Add onion and celery; cook 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in chicken broth and tomatoes. Season with oregano, and salt and ground pepper to taste. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer gently 10 minutes or until chicken is almost cooked through.
2. Pour in balsamic vinegar and and cook another 5 to 10 minutes. Serve over rice or mashed potatoes.

(Jennifer's) English Muffins

2009-07-17T11:15:00.003-04:00

I will never buy store bought [Thomas'] English muffins again. Never.

These are so good. They are relatively simple to make. (If a novice bread maker like me can make them, then anyone can.) Mine did not come out as pretty as the original author's, but that's okay. They tasted great and that's all that matters.

English Muffins
2-1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 Tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1-1/4 tsp instant yeast [I used one packet of rapid rise yeast.]
1 Tbsp butter (at room temperature)
3/4 – 1 cup milk (at room temperature)
cornmeal for sprinkling

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Mix in the butter and 3/4 cup of milk. Add just enough of the remaining milk to form a dough and incorporate the dry ingredients. Switch to the dough hook and knead on low speed, about 7-8 minutes. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and roll to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for about an hour.
2. Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces and shape into balls. Lay parchment paper on a baking sheet and spray or coat lightly with oil. Sprinkle with cornmeal. Move the dough balls to the baking sheet, spacing them evenly with room to rise. Cover the pan loosely with plastic wrap and allow to rise another hour.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Heat a skillet on medium heat on the stovetop. Brush the skillet lightly with oil and gently transfer the dough balls to the skillet a few at a time. Allow them to cook for 5-8 minutes or until the bottoms are lightly browned. Carefully flip and cook the other side for 5-8 minutes more. They should flatten as they cook.
4. Remove the muffins from the skillet and transfer them to a [greased] parchment- or silpat-lined baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 5-8 minutes.
5. Transfer the baked muffins to a cooling rack and let cool at least 30 minutes before slicing or serving. Store in an airtight container.

Apple, Gouda & Prosciutto (Oh My!)

2009-07-16T12:46:00.003-04:00

I saw this recipe in a copy of Prevention magazine while waiting at the doctor's office. There were too many people in the waiting room for me to rip out the page without anyone noticing, so I scribbled it down on a scrap of paper that I carried around in my purse for weeks. While digging in my purse for something the other day, I found the piece of paper and decided to finally make these sandwiches. These were a great weekend lunch! I skipped the step of frying the proscuitto and these still came out great. The flavors went so well together. I didn't measure anything though. Is there really any need to measure when making a sandwich? I don't think so.

Enjoy!

Apple, Gouda & Prosciutto Panini
prosciutto, thinly sliced
Dijon mustard
whole grain baguette [big enough for 2 sandwiches], sliced in half
1 McIntosh apple, halved, cored, and thinly sliced lengthwise
sliced Gouda cheese

1. Spread mustard on the bottom slice of the bread. Layer apples, prosciutto and Gouda on top. Cover sandwich with remaining bread slice. Coat both sides of sandwich with cooking spray or melted butter.
2. Heat same skillet over medium heat and toast sandwiches 4 to 5 minutes per side, pressing down with spatula (or another heavy skillet) often, until golden brown on both sides and cheese is melted.

Chocolate Filled Wontons

2009-07-07T12:32:00.003-04:00

Holy deliciousness Batman! These were so good. Just ignore the fact that there is nothing healthy about them. Wait, I used dark chocolate. That's good for me, right?

I had half a package of wonton wrappers taking up prime real estate in my fridge, and no plan on how to use them. Off to google I went, where I found this idea. But I took it a step further and added a little bit of cream cheese to give it a fried cheesecake-like flavor. It was heaven on a plate and since they probably wouldn't reheat well, we polished off the entire batch in one sitting.

I haven't listed measurements here, because there is no reason to be precise. And the combinations are endless too. I'm thinking of trying peanut butter and chocolate next time. Mmmm...my mouth is watering just thinking about it.

Chocolate Wontons
wonton wrappers
cream cheese
chocolate chips
water
canola oil
powdered sugar

1. Lay a wonton wrapper flat on a cutting board. Coat the wrapper with cream cheese, leaving a border around the edge. Place chocolate chips in the center of the wrapper.
2. Dip your finger in water and dampen the edge of the wonton wrapper. Fold the wrapper in half diagonally. Seal the edges tightly.
3. Fill a saucepan with canola oil. Heat the oil to around 300 degrees. [It's hot enough when a wonton turns brown almost instantly in it.]
4. Place the sealed wonton into the hot oil. Brown on the bottom, flip and brown on the other side. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.
5. Repeat the process with remaining wontons and wrappers.
6. Dust wontons with powdered sugar. Try to let them cool before serving.

Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Muffins

2009-07-02T10:33:00.003-04:00

I must have my seasons mixed up, because for some reason I was craving pumpkin in the middle of summer. (Okay, I know it's not technically the "middle of summer" since the first day of summer was 6/21, but since we really only have 2 seasons down here, cut me some slack.) ;-)

I decided to make muffins and used this recipe from the Very Best Baking website. The only change I made was to cut the recipe in half because I did not need 36 muffins in my house! I made 12 standard size muffins and then used the rest of the batter in my mini muffin tin. These were really good and I'm sure I will make them again. The halved recipe is below.

Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Muffins
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs or 1/2 cup egg product
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 can pumpkin (eyeball it)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease 18 standard size muffin cups or line with paper bake cups.
2. Combine all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in medium bowl. Combine eggs and sugar in large bowl. Add pumpkin and oil; mix well. Stir in flour mixture until moistened. Stir in morsels. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
3. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched. Cool in pans on wire racks for 5 minutes; remove from pans.

Cheesy Chile Chicken

2009-06-02T14:39:00.004-04:00

This recipe was a quick and easy one-dish meal. Perfect for a weeknight! It's nothing fancy or gourmet, but we enjoyed it. I made a few changes from Mary Ellen's version. My adaptation is below.

Cheesy Chile Chicken
2 chicken breasts, trimmed and cut into bite sized chunks
1/2 tsp each: chili powder, cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder
olive oil
1 green pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small can diced green chiles
1 cup instant brown rice, uncooked
1-1/2 c chicken broth
1/2 c shredded cheese - I used a Mexican blend
Handful of freshly chopped cilantro

1. Coat chicken with spices. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large pan; add chicken and brown on both sides. Transfer chicken to a dish and keep warm.
2. Add 1 tsp oil to the pan. Add onions, garlic, and peppers. Saute 3-4 minutes. Stir in chiles.
3. Add rice and stir. Return chicken to the pan. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce to a light simmer, cover, and cook until the rice and chicken are done and liquid has completely absorbed, about 15 minutes.
4. Stir in the cheese and cilantro and serve.

Slow Cooker Latin Chicken

2009-05-25T20:53:00.001-04:00

Since it rained the entire weekend and washed out our plans to barbecue, I had to come up with a Plan B and decided to throw dinner in the crockpot. I found this recipe for Latin Chicken on AllRecipes which used ingredients I almost always have on hand. I didn't want to be bothered browning the chicken though, so I just threw it in the pot. I'm sure if you brown yours, it would give it another layer of flavor. I only made a few changes to the ingredients: I subbed a green pepper for the red one and used one can of black beans instead of two. I completely forgot the lime garnish, but I would add that in next time. I also added a cup of instant brown rice to the crockpot about 30 minutes before I served dinner. This was really good and made a ton. We ate it for dinner two nights and I still had some left to take to work the following day. I loved the sweet potato and black bean combo! My version is below. Enjoy!

Crockpot Latin Chicken
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pounds skinless chicken thighs
salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 large sweet potatoes, cut into chunks
1 green bell pepper, cut into strips
1 (15.5 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
1 cup hot salsa
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
3 large cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup instant brown rice
lime wedges, for garnish

1. Arrange the chicken in the bottom of a slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper. Place the sweet potatoes, bell pepper, and black beans on top of the chicken. Mix together the chicken broth, 1/4 cup cilantro leaves, salsa, cumin, allspice, and garlic together in a bowl; pour into the slow cooker.
2. Cook on high for 4-6 hours. Half an hour before serving, stir in instant brown rice. Garnish with lime wedges to serve.

Cinnamon Buttermilk Muffins

2009-05-21T10:29:00.002-04:00

As soon as I saw these Cinnamon Buttermilk Muffins, I immediately started craving them. The stars must have been in alignment that day because I had buttermilk in the fridge, something I usually never have on hand. I made these as soon as I came home from work, before I even considered what to make for dinner. For the record, we did not eat muffins for dinner. ;-)

I only made a couple of changes. I added 1/2 cup of cinnamon chips to the batter, and I omitted the topping. The original link says it makes 9 muffins, but I was able to squeeze out 10. My version is below.

Cinnamon Buttermilk Muffins
7 Tbs. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup cinnamon chips

1. Preheat an oven to 350°F. Grease 10 standard muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray; fill the unused cups one-third full with water to prevent warping.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, combine the butter and sugar and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat well until pale and smooth.
3. In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg. Add to the butter mixture in 2 additions, alternating with the buttermilk and vanilla. Stir just until evenly moistened; do not overmix. Add the cinnamon chips.
4. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each three-fourths full. Bake until the muffins are golden, dry and springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Unmold the muffins and let cool completely.

Smothered Pork Chops

2009-05-01T23:27:00.002-04:00

I'd love to have a Food 911 and have Tyler Florence show up at my doorstep. Unfortunately my food 911 will have to wait because this recipe was easy and terrific. Other than cutting the recipe down to 2 servings and using boneless chops, I didn't make any changes. I served it over mashed potatoes to sop up the delicious gravy.

Smothered Pork Chops
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 pork chops, 3/4-inch thick, bone-in (or boneless)
1/8 cup olive oil
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup buttermilk
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

1. Put the flour in a shallow platter and add the onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne, salt, and pepper; mix with a fork to distribute evenly. Pat the pork chops dry with paper towels to remove any moisture and then dredge them in the seasoned flour; shaking off the excess.
2. Heat a large saute pan or cast iron skillet over medium heat and coat with the oil. When the oil is nice and hot, lay the pork chops in the pan in a single layer and fry for 3 minutes on each side until golden brown.
3. Remove the pork chops from the pan and add a little sprinkle of seasoned flour to the pan drippings. Mix the flour into the fat to dissolve and then pour in the chicken broth in. Let the liquid cook down for 5 minutes to reduce and thicken slightly.
4. Stir in the buttermilk to make a creamy gravy and return the pork chops to the pan, covering them with the sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes until the pork is cooked through. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with chopped parsley before serving.

Better Left to the Pros

2009-04-28T19:22:00.002-04:00

The very first time I went to a Thai restaurant, I had no idea what to order. My friend suggested Pad Thai. I ordered it. Loved it. And I have ordered it ever since. (I really need to branch out and try more things on the menu.)

When I saw this recipe for Pad Thai, I was excited to try my hand at making it at home.

I failed miserably, and I've decided that some things are better left to the pros at the restaurants. I'm not sure where I went wrong, but something didn't taste quite right. Perhaps it was the lack of tamarind in the recipe? Perhaps one of my ingredients was spoiled?

I probably won't make it again, but I encourage you to check out the recipe on the Savory, Spicy, Sweet blog. Her blog is one of my favorites.

Strata with Cheese, Tomatoes and Herbs

2009-04-20T19:03:00.001-04:00

I'd never had a strata before, and I really wasn't sure what it was. But when I saw this recipe from Ivillage, I decided to give it a try. I made a few substitutions based on what I had on hand, stuck it in the oven and hoped for the best. It reminded me of a savory bread pudding. I liked that it is something I can easily throw together with random ingredients in the fridge. My version is below.

Strata with Cheese, Tomatoes and Herbs
1/2 pound stale country bread, sliced about 1/2-inch thick, toasted
2 large cloves garlic, 1 sliced in half, the other minced
1 pound fresh tomatoes (about 3 medium) sliced, 1/3-inch thick
2 zucchini, sliced
1/3 cup Colby Jack cheese, grated
1/2 cup goat cheese, crumbled
1/2 tablespoon dried rosemary, crushed
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 large eggs
2 cups milk

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 2-quart baking or gratin dish with cooking spray. 2. Rub the bread slices with garlic halves. Mix the minced garlic with the tomatoes and zucchini, season with a pinch of salt and pepper, and set aside.
3. Layer half the bread slices in the baking dish. Top with half the reserved tomatoes, half the cheeses, half the herbs and half the salt and pepper. Repeat the layers.
4. Beat together the eggs and milk. Pour over the bread-tomato mixture. Place the dish on a baking sheet and bake for 40 to 50 minutes until puffed and browned. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T19:51:00.002-04:00

My contribution to Easter dinner was loosely based on Ina Garten's Vegetable Tian recipe. Very loosely based. I offered to bring a vegetable for dinner, but my aunt was already making potatoes. Therefore, I left the potatoes out of this and instead added yellow squash. Also, the tomatoes at the store were awful so I used a can of diced tomatoes and mixed that with the onion and garlic. I used good ol-fashioned Swiss cheese instead of the fancier Gruyere which was too expensive for this bargain shopper. This was a great springtime vegetable dish that looked fancy, but was simple to make.

My version is below:

Vegetable Tian
olive oil
1 large yellow onions cut in half and sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
3/4 pound yellow squash, sliced
3/4 pound zucchini, sliced
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
grated Swiss cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 2 quart oval baking dish with cooking spray.
2. In a medium saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil and cook the onion over medium-low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the diced tomatoes and allow some of the liquid to cook out. Spread the onion mixture on the bottom of the baking dish.
3. Layer the squash and zucchini alternately in the dish on top of the onions, fitting them tightly, making only 1 layer. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and thyme, and drizzle with 1 more tablespoon of olive oil. Cover the dish and bake for 30 to 40 minutes.
4. Uncover the dish, sprinkle the cheese on top, and bake for another 20-30 minutes until browned. Serve warm.

Chicken Diane

2009-04-04T16:25:00.002-04:00

My mom handed this recipe down to me. I'm not sure where she got it from originally, but I'm sure she adapted it over time. I like to serve this over mashed potatoes.

Chicken Diane
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin
fresh ground pepper
2 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp. chopped green onions
Juice of half a lemon
2 Tbsp. brandy
chopped parsley
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 Tbsp. butter

1. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Season chicken with pepper and add to pan.
2. Cook chicken for 4 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate and keep warm.
3. Add green onion, lemon juice, brandy, parsley and mustard to pan. Cook 30 seconds, whisking constantly.
4. Whisk in broth. Stir until sauce is smooth. Whisk in butter.
5. Pour sauce over chicken and serve immediately.

Cafe Mocha Cake

2009-04-04T11:53:00.000-04:00

My mom is a coffee lover, so for her birthday cake, I wanted to make something that incorporated coffee. I found three different recipes that used coffee and a chocolate cake mix and took a little bit from each one to come up with this.

Yes, I know, I made my mom a cake from a box for her birthday. I'm a bad daughter. In my defense, she didn't even want a cake originally. I whipped this up at the last minute when I decided everyone needs a cake on their birthday.

Cafe Mocha Cake
1 (18.25 ounce) package moist, dark chocolate cake mix
1 (3.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs (or 1 cup egg substitute)
1 cup sour cream or nonfat yogurt
3/4 cup coffee
1 cup chocolate chips
chocolate ganache

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together cake mix , pudding mix and cinnamon. Make a well in the center and pour in oil, eggs, sour cream and coffee. Beat on low speed until blended. Scrape bowl, and beat 4 minutes on medium speed. Stir in chocolate chips.
3. Pour batter into prepared 10 inch Bundt pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.
4. Top with chocolate ganache if desired.

Goat Cheese and Apple Phyllo Triangles

2009-04-02T12:56:00.002-04:00

My inspiration for trying this recipe came from a big bag of Granny Smith apples that I bought for some unknown reason. I think I had every intention of eating "an apple a day" with my lunch, but I quickly tired of them. The recipe below is from the Sun Sentinel Food Section. I'm not sure when I cut it out, but I can't find it online, so it's probably from awhile ago.

This was my first time working with phyllo dough. It wasn't quite as tricky as I was worried it would be. You do have to work quickly while preparing these though, and make sure you keep the unused portion of the phyllo under a damp cloth.

We enjoyed these and I would make them again.

Goat Cheese and Apple Triangles
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup diced onion
1 granny smith apple, diced
1/2 tsp dried rosemary leaves, crushed
fresh ground black pepper
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
phyllo sheets
1/3 cup butter, melted

1. In a skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook 2 minutes until translucent. Add the apples and rosemary and cook until the apples soften. Season with pepper and remove from heat. Set aside to cool.
2. While apple mixture is warm but not hot, fold in goat cheese until incorporated. Chill mixture.
3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On waxed paper, spread out 1 sheet phyllo and brush with melted butter.Top with another sheet of phyllo and brush with melted butter. Repeat with a third sheet of phyllo. Cut the dough lengthwise into 3 equal strips. Place 1 tablespoon of filling on 1 end of a strip and fold the end over to form a triangle. Fold again to form a triangle. Continue folding in the same manner to preserve the triangle shape until you reach the far end of the strip. Repeat until all the filling is used.
4. Place triangles on a greased baking sheet. Brush tops of triangles with butter. Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool a few minutes before serving.

St. Patty's Day Feast

2009-03-22T15:07:00.007-04:00

We celebrated St. Patrick’s Day a few days late this year since I was sick on the 17th. I made corned beef and cabbage, Irish soda biscuits and chocolate whiskey and beer cupcakes. Everything was fantastic!

This year I used a different soda bread recipe, and I think this will be my “go to” recipe from now on. My only change was not sprinkling them with sugar before baking them. They tasted great without it. You can see the link above for the original; my version is below.

Irish Soda Biscuits
2 c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1 c. buttermilk
2 tablespoons honey

1. Preheat oven to 375. Grease a baking sheet. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk and honey. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the flour mixture. Stir until all the flour is moistened.
2. Scoop dough onto the prepared baking sheet to make 8 (roughly 2 1/2-inch wide) biscuits.
3. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes (mine took 17), until bottoms are light brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a rack and cool completely. Serve at room temperature.

As soon as I saw the recipe for these chocolate whiskey and beer cupcakes, I knew I wanted to make them for St. Patrick's Day. Each component of these cupcakes was so good and tasted wonderful together. I had a brief moment of panic when I took the Baileys out of the fridge; it smelled "off." I didn't want to run to the store, so instead I googled and found a homemade version of Baileys. It worked in a pinch, and the next day the homemade Baileys tasted pretty close to the real thing.

The cupcake recipe I posted below makes 12 cupcakes. See the link above for the original recipe.

Chocolate Whiskey and Beer Cupcakes
Guinness Cupcakes
1/2 cup stout (such as Guinness)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
3/8 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/8 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/3 cup sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 cupcake cups with liners. Bring stout and butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
2. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined.
3. Divide batter among cupcake liners, filling them 2/3 to 3/4 of the way. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 17 minutes. Cool cupcakes on a rack completely.

Ganache Filling
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon butter, room temperature
1/2 tsp Irish whiskey

1. Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until simmering and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for one minute and then stir until smooth. (If this has not sufficiently melted the chocolate, you can return it to a double-boiler to gently melt what remains. 20 seconds in the microwave, watching carefully, will also work.)
2. Add the butter and whiskey and stir until combined.

Fill the cupcakes:
1. Let the ganache cool until thick.
2. Using a 1-inch round cookie cutter or an apple corer, cut the centers out of the cooled cupcakes. (I used a knife and a spoon.) You want to go most of the way down the cupcake but not cut through the bottom. A slim spoon or grapefruit knife will help you get the center out.
3. Use a spoon or a piping bag to fill the holes in the cupcakes to the top.

Baileys Frosting
1-1/2 cups confections sugar
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1-1/2 tablespoons Baileys

1. Whip the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, for several minutes. You want to get it very light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar, a few tablespoons at a time.
2. When the frosting looks thick enough to spread, drizzle in the Baileys and whip it until combined. If this has made the frosting too thin, beat in another spoonful or two of powdered sugar.

Ice and decorate the cupcakes.

Homemade Baileys Irish Cream
1 cup heavy cream
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1-2/3 cups Irish whiskey
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
2 tablespoons chocolate syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. In a blender, combine heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, Irish whiskey, instant coffee, chocolate syrup and vanilla extract. Blend on high for 20 to 30 seconds. Store in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator. Shake well before serving.

Fettuccine with Prosciutto, Tomatoes and Cream

2009-03-20T12:33:00.004-04:00

This epicurious recipe was so simple, yet it seemed like something you would get at a restaurant. I changed the proportions of some of the ingredients to accommodate what I had on hand. My version is below. I will make this again.

Fettuccine with Prosciutto, Tomatoes and Cream
12oz fresh fettuccine
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/4 pound thinly sliced prosciutto, cut crosswise into 1-inch-wide strips
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans petite diced tomatoes in juice, drained
1/3 cup whipping cream
coarsely chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/2 grated Parmesan cheese plus additional for serving

1. Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain. Transfer pasta to large bowl.
2. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add prosciutto and sauté until crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer prosciutto to paper towels. Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to same skillet. Add garlic and sauté 15 seconds. Add tomatoes and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cream, parsley, and 1/2 cup cheese. Bring to boil; season with salt and pepper.
3. Add sauce to pasta in bowl; toss to coat. Sprinkle with prosciutto and serve, passing additional cheese alongside.

Dijon Herbed Pork Chops

2009-03-18T12:06:00.001-04:00

I subscribe to an email list from Ivillage that sends a recipe a day to my inbox. This one for Southwestern Pork Tenderloin caught my eye, but I found it strange that it was called “Southwestern.” When I think Southwestern, I think cilantro, not basil. I was concerned about burning the fresh herbs, so I used dried. I also made a few other changes, which I have indicated in the recipe below. Actually I made enough changes to the recipe that I feel comfortable calling it my own creation. Let’s call it Dijon Herbed Pork Chops, shall we?

Dijon Herbed Pork Chops
2 boneless pork loin chops
¼ cup Dijon mustard
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 TBLSP dried Italian seasoning
Olive oil
Chicken broth

1. Brush each pork chop with mustard. Season each chop with garlic powder and black pepper. Coat chops in Italian seasoning.
2. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add chops and brown on each side.
3. Add enough chicken broth to pan to make sure chops are wet and deglaze the pan. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat approximately 10 minutes or until chops are cooked through.
4. Serve chops with a bit of the sauce on each chop.

Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onion and Spinach Quesadilla

2009-03-13T23:18:00.001-04:00

On Fridays during Lent, we observe the Catholic tradition of abstaining from meat. I'm always looking to expand my repertoire of meatless meals beyond eggs, fish and pasta, but at the same time, on Friday nights, I want to prepare something quick. This recipe fit the bill. It was tasty and healthy too.

Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onion and Spinach Quesadilla
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced onion
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
9 ounces baby spinach
2 medium tomatoes, diced
4 8-inch whole-wheat flour tortillas
4 ounces semisoft goat cheese

1. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, sugar and salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is dark golden brown.
2. Add the spinach and 1 tablespoon water to the skillet; cook 2 minutes, or until spinach is just wilted.
3. Add diced tomatoes to pan. Remove from skillet and turn off heat.
4. Spread a quarter of the goat cheese on each tortilla and top with onion mixture; fold closed and press lightly. Heat the skillet and place two folded quesadillas in it; cook two minutes per side, or until golden brown and lightly crisp. Repeat.

Balsamic Lentils with Chicken Sausage

2009-03-12T23:07:00.000-04:00

For tonight's dinner, I took a leap of faith and cooked with two ingredients that I had never tried before: lentils and chicken sausage. I'm happy to report that this recipe from Savory, Spicy, Sweet did not disappoint. I am eager to add lentils to my cooking rotation, and I'd love to try more varieties of chicken sausage. I used Archer Farms Italian chicken sausage in this dish, but I think a spinach variety would be great too.

Balsamic Lentils with Chicken Sausage
olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves of minced garlic
1/4-1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
3 links fully cooked chicken sausage, sliced
2T balsamic vinegar, divided
14oz can diced tomatoes
pinch of dried basil
freshly ground salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup dry lentils
3/4 cup chicken broth
5 oz fresh spinach, roughly chopped

1. Heat about 1T olive oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onions and cook for about 5-8 minutes, until softened.
2. Add 1T balsamic vinegar, garlic, chicken sausage, crushed red pepper, basil, salt and pepper and sauté 1-2 minutes more.
3. Add the lentils, canned tomatoes, and water, and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 25 minutes.
4. Add spinach and cook 10 minutes more, until spinach is wilted and lentils are tender.
5. Stir in remaining 1T of balsamic vinegar, and serve.

Maple Chili Glazed Pork

2009-03-04T14:47:00.004-05:00

I found this recipe on Sweet Tea from Texas. It was good, a little bit spicy and a little bit sweet. I left out the chipotle since I didn't have any, but I will use it next time to add a bit more kick. I also subbed chicken broth for the apple cider.

Maple-Chili Glazed Pork Medallions
1-1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper (I omitted.)
2 boneless, pork loin chops
2 teaspoons canola oil
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1. In a large Ziploc bag, combine chili powder, salt and chipotle. Add pork to bag and shake until covered.
2. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Add the pork and cook until golden, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Pour in broth, syrup and vinegar. Bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook, turning the pork occasionally to coat, until the sauce is reduced to a thick glaze, about 1 to 3 minutes.
3. Serve the pork with a drizzle of the glaze.

Chocolate Tres Leches

2009-02-20T11:48:00.000-05:00

I believe that chocolate has some therapeutic qualities. I decided to make this Chocolate Tres Leches in the hopes that it would lift us out of our funk. Unfortunately, it wasn't chocolatey enough for me. I used a yellow cake mix, but next time I might use a chocolate cake mix and leave the cocoa out of the milk mixture. Or I would use chocolate syrup in place of the cocoa. I omitted the rum extract that the original called for, but I don't think that had a huge impact on the final product. Brian loved this though, so I think with some tweaks this can be a great shortcut version of tres leches.

Chocolate Tres Leches
1 (18.25-or 18.5-ounce) package chocolate or yellow cake mix
1 (14-ounce) can Sweetened Condensed Milk (I used reduced fat.)
3/4 cup whipping cream, unwhipped
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Prepare cake mix as directed.
2. Combine the 3 milks and extract. Remove 1/2 cup mixture to a smaller bowl; whisk in cocoa powder and cinnamon until smooth. Slowly whisk chocolate mixture back into larger milk mixture.
3. Remove baked cake from oven. Cool slightly and transfer to a larger baking pan or deep serving dish. Using a fork, poke holes liberally in top and sides of cake. While cake is still warm, pour half the milk mixture over the top. Wait one minute and pour remainder over cake.
Cover and chill 1 hour. Garnish as desired.* Store leftovers covered in refrigerator.

*I think it could use some frosting or whipped cream on top.

An Eeyore Kind of Week

2009-02-20T09:25:00.001-05:00

For the past week, I have felt like Winnie the Pooh's friend Eeyore. There has been a black cloud of bad news hanging over us. We've been dealing with family illnesses and the heartbreaking diagnosis of inoperable brain cancer for a friend. Add to that the gloomy economic outlook and it's enough to make you want to crawl into bed and stay there. Unfortunately, that's not an option. We still have to go to work and live our lives. And we still have to eat. In times like these, I tend to make easy, comfort foods. This Italian Chicken Chowder from Kraft fit the bill.

Hearty Italian Chicken Chowder
2 TBLSP extra virgin olive oil
1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast tenders, chopped
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) stewed tomatoes, undrained
1 cup reduced sodium chicken broth
1 medium zucchini, chopped
1/2 cup orzo, uncooked
1 tsp. dried basil leaves
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1. Heat olive oil in large saucepan on medium heat. Add chicken; cook 3 min., stirring once.
2. Add tomatoes, broth, zucchini, orzo and basil. Bring to boil on high heat.
3. Reduce heat to medium; simmer 8 min. or until macaroni is tender. Sprinkle with cheese.

Crockpot Bloody Mary Chicken

2009-02-15T21:50:00.002-05:00

A friend of mine sent me this link to Bloody Mary Chicken in the crockpot. While I thought it sounded good, I did not want to buy a bottle of Bloody Mary mix when I had V8 sitting in my fridge. (I'm frugal.) A quick google search turned up many different recipes for Bloody Mary mix. I used this one, and 4 hours later, dinner was served.

Crockpot Bloody Mary Chicken
2-3 small potatoes, diced
4 boneless skinless chicken thighs
18 oz. low sodium V8 vegetable juice
3 tsp. Black pepper
3 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce
juice of 1 lemon
Dash of Tabasco pepper sauce
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped carrot

1. Place potatoes and chicken in slow cooker.
2. Mix together juice, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice and Tabasco. Pour over chicken and potatoes.
3. Add celery, onion and carrot. Cook on high for 4 hours.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T21:23:00.000-05:00

For Valentine's Day this year, we decided to go on a "date" during the day instead of fighting the crowds at night. We headed up to Blowing Rocks Preserve in Jupiter. At high tide, the sea forces the water up against the limestone rock formations that line the coast and "blows" into the sky. We didn't time our visit very well though, because we never got to see the blowing rocks. Regardless, we enjoyed our walk along the beach and the coast, checking out the sea caves and the tidal pools.

When we left the preserve, we headed south to Palm Beach Gardens and stopped for lunch at Panama Hatties. We got a table outside--overlooking the Intracoastal--and enjoyed some fruity cocktails and fresh seafood. If you go, I'd recommend the Raspberry Mojito and the Crab cakes. Very good!

We never take advantage of all that South Florida has to offer. It was really nice to relax and spend some time playing tourist in our backyard.

Breakfast or Dessert?

2009-02-12T11:38:00.002-05:00

I made the Vanilla Chocolate Chunk Muffins from the Delish blog the other day. Brian and I disagreed over whether they should be called muffins or cupcakes. I say cupcakes, he says muffins. Whatever you call them, they are delicious! I would highly recommend this recipe. Other than using chocolate chips instead of chunks [which I have indicated below], I did not make any changes.

Oops, I lied. I did make one more change. I omitted the vanilla sugar dusting since I didn't have any vanilla sugar on hand.

Vanilla Chocolate Chip Muffins
1-1/2 c all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
8 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 c granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 c sour cream
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with liners.
2. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Set aside.
3. Using the paddle attachment of your mixer, cream the butter and vanilla together for about a minute. Gradually add in the sugar, then mix for an additional minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
4. Blend in the eggs, one at a time, then mix for another minute. With the mixer on low, stir in about half the flour mixture, then the sour cream, then the remaining flour mixture. Gently stir in the chocolate chips.
5. Portion the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 23 - 25 minutes, or until the muffins are golden brown and the tops are springy to the touch. Let the muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then remove from the pan and place on a rack to cool further.

Source: Adapted from Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More by Carole Walter, 2007.

Pork Chops au Poivre

2009-02-12T10:18:00.002-05:00

I did not waste any time making this recipe. I saw it on Tuesday and cooked it up on Wednesday. I usually never have sour cream on hand, but I had a little bit left from Sunday's dinner, so the timing of finding this recipe was perfect. The sauce was so good. It came out a little thick, so I added a splash of chicken broth to thin it out. I noted my changes below.

Pork Chops au Poivre
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
2 4-ounce boneless pork chops, 1/2 inch thick, trimmed
1-1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, minced
1/4 cup brandy
splash of chicken broth if desired
1/8 cup reduced-fat sour cream

1. Combine pepper and flour in a small dish. Dredge each chop in the flour, shaking off any excess.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chops, reduce heat to medium and cook until browned and just cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add onion to the pan and cook, stirring, until softened, about 1 minute. Add brandy and cook, stirring and scraping up any browned bits, until most of the liquid has evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Add chicken broth if using. Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream. Serve the pork chops with the sauce.

Crockpot Provencal Chicken

2009-02-08T15:10:00.001-05:00

This was a very hearty and easy crockpot meal. I threw some potatoes in there as well, and I used boneless skinless chicken thighs instead of breasts. My version is below. I would recommend serving this in bowls since it is more of a stew. Enjoy!

Provencal Chicken
2 small white potatoes, diced
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 teaspoons dried basil
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 cup diced bell pepper [I used green.]
1 can cannellini beans or other white beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14-oz) can crushed tomatoes

1. Spray the inside of the slow cooker with cooking spray. Place the potatoes and chicken in crockpot; sprinkle with basil & black pepper. Add the bell pepper, beans and tomatoes. Cover with lid; cook on low-heat setting for 6-8 hours. [Mine was done after 6-1/2 hours.]

Side Dishes Steal the Show!

2009-02-08T11:35:00.003-05:00

I made enchiladas for dinner last night with two new side dishes: Cilantro-Lime Rice and Refried Red Beans. We loved both side dishes, and I think they actually stole some of the thunder from one of our favorite meals.

For the rice, I didn't use a blender to mix the ingredients together. (I'm lazy and did not want to have to wash the blender container.) Instead I just stirred everything into the rice. It seemed to work fine, but next time, I would probably use my immersion blender. Also, I used instant brown rice cooked as directed on the box.

Cilantro Lime Rice
1 cup instant brown rice, cooked as directed on package
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
salt and pepper

1. When rice is finished cooking, stir in cilantro, lime juice, olive oil and garlic. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Fluff rice with a fork. Serve.

The beans would be really good as a dip. Publix did not have poblano peppers. I substituted a jalapeno pepper that I removed the seeds from, and I left out the red pepper flakes. Also, I only used one can of beans.

Refried Red Beans
1 poblano chile or jalapeno pepper
1 (15 oz) can kidney beans, drained
1 tblsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 small yellow onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

1. Place poblano under hot broiler, blister & char the skin. Place in bowl; cover and let stand to cool
2. Add beans to food processor/blender; pulse until mashed.
3. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic. Saute until soft, 6-7 minutes.
4. Stir in beans, tomato sauce, and pepper
5. Peel, seed & chop poblano; add to skillet. Simmer 10 minutes and serve.

Disclaimer: This Is Not an Authentic Recipe

2009-02-05T12:01:00.001-05:00

I had a jar of olives sitting in my fridge, so I thought I could incorporate them into a Picadillo. Picadillo is a Cuban dish. This is where the disclaimer comes in. I am not Cuban. I am Italian-American. I combined many different Picadillo recipes to come up with my own version. I'm sure my version was not authentic. For one thing, it used ground turkey instead of ground beef. I'm sure that's a sacrilege on par with using jarred spaghetti sauce in an Italian household. Authentic or not, this was a good meal. I served it with rice, plantains and sweet potato fries.

Unauthentic Picadillo
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 large white onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
1 pound ground turkey
3/4 cup sliced drained pimiento-stuffed green olives (from 5-ounce jar)
1/2 can diced tomatoes, undrained
1/8 cup tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon cumin
salt and pepper

1. Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic, and bay leaves; sauté until onion is soft, about 5 minutes.
2. Add turkey; sauté until cooked, breaking up with back of fork, about 7 minutes.
3. Add all remaining ingredients. Simmer until picadillo thickens, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Discard bay leaves. Serve picadillo warm.

Fruity Curry Chicken Salad

2009-02-04T11:10:00.003-05:00

A while ago, I went to a bridal shower where I had the best chicken salad sandwich I had ever had. It had grapes and nuts in it, but along with the mayonnaise dressing, it had other seasonings that I couldn't place. The hostess wasn't willing to share the secret ingredient, so I was out of luck. But then I saw this recipe and decided to try it. I think the curry powder was the flavor I was looking for. It's not an exact match, but it's pretty close to what I remember. I changed up some of the ingredients, but the curry is key to this salad. Don't leave it out! It's even better the next day.

Curry Chicken Salad
1 10 oz can of chicken breast
1 stalk celery, chopped
1/3 cup seedless red grapes, halved
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
3/4 cup mayonnaise

1. In a large salad bowl combine the chicken, celery, grapes, pepper, curry powder and mayonnaise. Mix all together, tossing to coat. Serve on a bed of lettuce or sandwich buns.

Super Bowl Sunday

2009-02-02T09:40:00.004-05:00

Like most of the rest of the nation, our television was tuned to the Super Bowl on Sunday. Although we didn't have a party, I used the big game as an excuse to make some goodies. First up, I set out some cheese and crackers to munch on during the pre-game festivities. I also threw some ingredients together and made some crescent roll pinwheels. These turned out really good even though I overstuffed them. My concoction is below.

Cheesy Pinwheels
1 can refrigerated crescent rolls (I used reduced fat.)
1/4 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
salsa for dipping

1. Unroll crescent roll dough and separate into 4 rectangles. Firmly press perforations to seal.
2. Sprinkle cheese over each rectangle, leaving a border around the edges. Sprinkle bell pepper on top of cheese.
3. Starting with one short side, roll up each rectangle; press edge to seal. Refrigerate rolls for at least 30 minutes.
4. Heat oven to 350°F.
5. With serrated knife, cut each roll into 6 slices; place cut side down on ungreased cookie sheet.
6. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet. Serve warm with salsa on the side for dipping.

Our main course could not have been easier. I made Buffalo Chicken in the crockpot, shredded it and served it on sandwich buns with celery sticks and blue cheese dressing on the side. These were definitely spicy, so you may want to adjust the wing sauce/melted butter ratio accordingly.

Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast
3 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1/4 cup Frank's Buffalo Wing sauce
2 tablespoons melted butter
sandwich buns
blue cheese dressing*

1. Place chicken in crockpot. Mix together remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. Cook on low for 6 hours.
2. Shred chicken in crockpot and stir to fully coat with sauce mixture.
3. Serve chicken on sandwich buns. (*I added blue cheese dressing to my sandwich which I highly recommend.)

For dessert, I made Oatmeal Cinnamon Chip cookies. I had purchased a bag of cinnamon chips since they were on clearance at Publix, but I wasn't sure what to make with them. When I came home, I googled for recipes and found this one. The cookies were good, but they had a very strong flavor from the spices and the cinnamon chips. I think next time I might cut back on the spices. My version is below.

Oatmeal Cinnamon Chip Cookies
(Makes approximately 2 dozen cookies)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/8 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1-1/2 cups coarsely chopped old-fashioned oats*
1/2 cup cinnamon chips
1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Beat butter, brown sugar and sugar in large bowl at medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in egg until well-combined. Add water and vanilla, beating well and scraping down sides and bottom of bowl, if necessary.
2. Combine flour, salt, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg in medium bowl until blended. Stir flour mixture into batter, along with oats. Stir in cinnamon chips and chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto baking sheets 1 inch apart.
3. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until just set and pale brown. Cool on baking sheet on wire rack 1 minute. Place cookies on wire rack; cool completely.

(*To coarsely chop oats, pulse in food processor.)

On a Mustard Kick

2009-01-30T14:02:00.006-05:00

Lately I've been on a mustard kick in the kitchen. I've made two dinners that are very similar where Dijon Mustard is a key ingredient. The funny thing is that I'm not even a mustard lover. I don't use it on my sandwiches, but I really like the flavor it lends to the chicken in both of these dishes. The first dinner was Rosemary Mustard Chicken.

Rosemary Mustard Chicken
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt and pepper
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
2 tblsp Dijon mustard

1. Spray a nonstick pan with cooking spray. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Sauté chicken over medium-high heat until browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
2. Deglaze pan with white wine; stir in rosemary and mustard.
3. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes, or until chicken is cooked.

The following week I made Maple Mustard-Glazed Chicken. I can't find it online, but it came from a magazine called Cuisine at Home.

Maple Mustard Chicken
3 tblsp Dijon mustard
1 tblsp maple syrup
1/2 tblsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp dried thyme
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
fresh ground pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil.
2. Combine Dijon mustard, maple syrup, brown sugar and thyme in a small bowl.
3. Season chicken with pepper. Place on prepared baking sheet and brush with 3/4 of the mustard mixture.
4. Bake for 25 minutes. Baste chicken with remaining mustard mixture and return to oven for 10 minutes.

We enjoyed both of these dinners, and I especially liked the fact that they were quick.

Happy (Belated) Anniversary to me!

2009-01-30T10:23:00.003-05:00

Wednesday the 28th marked my third wedding anniversary. I can't believe it's been that long already. I can remember many details about that day so vividly. It feels like yesterday. I guess time really does fly when you're having fun. We've had our share of ups and downs, but I'm very lucky to have Brian by my side.

The kitchen is closed tonight. We're going out and celebrating with dinner at The Melting Pot. My mouth is already watering just thinking about it. Give me a pot of melted cheese and a pot of melted chocolate and I am one happy girl.

Pork Chops with Vinegar Sauce

2009-01-29T23:37:00.001-05:00

Tonight's dinner was a little more work than I usually put forth for a weeknight meal. I usually like to cook the main dish either on the stovetop or in the oven, not both places. This recipe called for browning the chops on the stove and then baking them in the oven, then finishing the chops in the sauce on the stove. It was good, but next time I will make these when I have more time or I will alter the cooking method.

Pork Chops with Vinegar Sauce
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
4 cloves garlic, minced
1-1/2 tablespoons dried rosemary
2 boneless pork chops
salt & ground black pepper

1. In a small bowl, combine the vinegar, garlic and rosemary. Set aside for at least 15 minutes or up to several hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
3. Season both sides of the pork chops with salt and black pepper. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over high heat until it is very hot. Add the pork chops to the pan. Cook 3 minutes per side. Transfer the skillet to the oven for 15 minutes.
4. Carefully remove the pan from the oven and return to the stovetop over high heat. Pour in the vinegar mixture and swirl it, turning the chops to coat them in the sauce on both sides. Cook until the sauce has a syrupy consistency and chops are fully cooked, about 4 minutes. Serve immediately with a little sauce dribbled on each chop.

Pasta with Tomatoes and Goat Cheese

2009-01-24T22:17:00.002-05:00

I absolutely love pasta, and I'm always looking for new pasta dishes to make. This recipe from Giada (by way of It's Melissa's Kitchen) for Pasta with Sun Dried Tomatoes and Goat Cheese caught my eye. I'm not a fan of sun dried tomatoes though, so I used a can of petite diced tomatoes instead. I also used whole wheat rotini and added spinach to the dish. We both enjoyed this. My version is below.

Pasta with Tomatoes and Goat Cheese
extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 cup dry white wine
1 can diced tomatoes
1 pound pasta
fresh spinach
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3-4 ounces soft fresh goat cheese, coarsely crumbled

1. Bring a large pot of water for the pasta to a boil. Cook pasta as directed on package until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.
2. While pasta cooks, heat olive oil in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the wine and diced tomatoes and simmer until the liquid reduces by half, about 2 minutes. Add spinach and heat until wilted.
3. Add the pasta to the tomato mixture and toss to coat, adding some reserved pasta water to moisten if necessary. Season the pasta with salt and pepper. Mound the pasta into bowls, sprinkle with the goat cheese, and serve.

Lazy Chicken

2009-01-23T13:22:00.005-05:00

I have no idea why Racheal Ray calls this Lazy Chicken, but it was a good, easy, one pot meal. In true Rachael Ray fashion, I eyeballed my measurements. ;)

Lazy Chicken
balsamic vinegar
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 T extra virgin olive oil
2 medium potatoes, thinly sliced
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick
1/2 cup chicken broth
14 0z. can crushed tomatoes
1 small zucchini, thinly sliced
fresh basil, torn or coarsely chopped
oregano
1/2 cup shredded Italian cheese blend

1. Rub a little splash of vinegar to each chicken breast. Heat 1 T. olive oil in a deep skillet on medium heat. Brown chicken for 2 minutes on each side. Remove chicken.
2. Add 1 T. olive oil. Add a layer of potatoes and onion. Sprinkle potatoes and onion with Montreal seasoning. Let cook, turning occasionally, but maintaining layer, until they brown all over.
3. Add broth to the pan. Spread zucchini across the pan on top of potatoes and onion. Sprinkle with more seasoning. Top with layer of chicken breast. Dump crushed tomatoes evenly over the top. Sprinkle with basil and oregano. Cover and cook until potatoes are tender, about 10-12 minutes.
4. Sprinkle the cheese on top. Cover and heat until cheese melts. Serve.

Cranberry Overload

2009-01-21T13:32:00.004-05:00

Sometimes I buy things at the grocery store with no clear idea of how I'm going to use them. Fresh cranberries are one such item. They were on sale, so into my shopping cart and freezer they went. I pulled out a bag this past week to make Creole Crab Cakes with Cranberries. Although we didn't care for the crab cakes, the recipe for Cranberry Nut Pilaf in the same article caught my eye. While continuing to search the internet, I found a recipe for Pork Chops with Cranberry Sage Chutney. What better to complement the cranberry pilaf than more cranberries?!? It was probably too much cranberry in one meal, but that's okay, they're good for you! One note of advice. Read the entire recipe before you start cooking. I didn't, and I didn't realize until I had already started cooking that the pork called for cranberry sauce not just fresh cranberries. Oops. I threw some sugar and water in with the cranberries, but I don't think I let it cook long enough to get "saucy." It still came out good, just a little on the tart side.

Pork Chops with Cranberry Sage Chutney
2 boneless pork loin chops
1/4 t. pepper
1 tsp dried sage, divided
1-1/2 T. butter, divided
1/4 c. minced onion
1/2 c. white wine
1/2 c. canned or fresh whole-berry cranberry sauce

1. Sprinkle both sides of chops with pepper and 1/2 tsp sage.
2. Melt 1 T. butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add chops and cook 6 to 8 minutes, until golden brown and lightly pink at the center, turning once. Remove to plate and keep warm.
3. In the same skillet, melt remaining butter. Add onions and cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add wine and bring to a boil, scraping pan. Boil 1 to 2 minutes, until reduced by half. Stir in cranberry sauce and remaining sage and bring to a simmer.
4. Return chops to pan and simmer 1 to 2 minutes, until meat is fully cooked and chutney is slightly thickened. Serve chutney over chops.

Cranberry Pilaf
I omitted the nuts since I didn't have any on hand. This is my version.

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cups instant brown rice, uncooked
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup dried cranberries (sweetened)
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

1. Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add minced garlic and cook 1 minute. Add instant brown rice and cumin and cook 1 minute more, until cumin gives off a fragrant scent.
2. Add broth, cranberries, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 5 minutes. Remove pan from heat and let stand 5 minutes, until liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork. Serve immediately.

Easy Cheesy Mac

2009-01-16T14:37:00.003-05:00

Last night we needed a quick dinner before heading out for the evening. Rather than grabbing fast food or dinner from a box, I whipped up a quick mac and cheese. This was so easy, tasted good, and thanks to the fact that it only uses one pot, cleanup was a breeze.

Easy Mac and Cheese
1-1/4 cups uncooked macaroni
1 cup 1% milk
2 tbsp all purpose flour
1-1/4 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
a few grinds of a pepper mill

1. Cook pasta in a medium saucepan according to package directions. Transfer to a colander.
2. In the same saucepan, combine the milk and flour over medium heat, stirring with a whisk.
Cook, stirring constantly until thickened (about 2 minutes).
3. Add cheese, salt, and pepper, and continue whisking until all the cheese is melted.
4. Turn off heat, stir in the pasta, and let sit for a few minutes before serving.

Tomato Baked Chicken and Vegetables

2009-01-13T23:49:00.000-05:00

Tonight’s dinner was inspired by this recipe and some items that I needed to use before they got tossed in the garbage. I served the chicken and veggies with a side of leftover spaghetti.

Tomato Baked Chicken
½ an eggplant, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons ricotta cheese
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF.
2. Mix together eggplant, zucchini, onion and garlic. Place in bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.
3. Place chicken on top of vegetable mixture. Spoon 1 tablespoon of ricotta cheese onto each breast.
4. Combine tomatoes and balsamic vinegar. Pour over chicken and vegetables. Sprinkle grate cheese over everything.
5. Bake 30 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.

Christmas Goodie Bags

2009-01-12T12:50:00.001-05:00

My sister is wonderful in the kitchen, very Martha Stewart-like. Everything she makes tastes great and looks great too. While most things I make taste good, they don’t look very pretty. My cookies are never a uniform size….some meals look like “slop on a plate”…etc. There’s a reason there are no pictures of food on this blog. So when my sister suggested we exchange holiday goodie bags this year, I agreed and then panicked. What could I make that would look presentable enough to give as a holiday gift? Here’s what I came up with:

Seasoned Oyster Crackers
Spiced Nuts
Cinnamon Roasted Almonds
Chocolate Mint Brownies
No Bake Chocolate/Peanut Butter Cookies (These did not look pretty, but they were too good not too include!)
Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cookies (I didn’t care for these. Therefore there is no blog post, but I did link to the recipe.)

I’m happy to report that everything got rave reviews. My sister has already requested the brownies for next year.

No Bake Cookies

2009-01-12T12:42:00.002-05:00

These cookies were a last minute addition to the goodie bags. After cooking and baking all day and telling Brian he could not eat anything I had just made, I felt bad. But I didn't want to turn the oven on again. A quick search of various food blogs led me to these "no bake" cookies. They were quick and good, and since they made so many, into the goodie bag they went.

No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies
2 c granulated sugar
4 Tbsp cocoa powder
1 stick butter
1/2 c milk
1 c peanut butter
1 Tbsp vanilla
3 c quick oats

1. In a heavy saucepan bring to a boil, the sugar, cocoa, butter and milk. Let boil for 1 minute then add peanut butter, vanilla and oatmeal. Remove from heat.
2. On a sheet of waxed paper, drop mixture by the teaspoonfuls, until cooled and hardened.

Chocolate Mint Brownies

2009-01-12T12:07:00.005-05:00

These brownies could not have been any easier! I used the Baker's One Bowl Brownie recipe and added Andes Mint chips to the batter. They had a nice minty flavor, but it was not overpowering.

Chocolate Mint Brownies
4 squares Baker's Unsweetened Chocolate
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter or margarine
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup flour
1 cup Andes mint chips

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 13x9-inch baking pan.
2. Microwave chocolate and butter in large microwaveable bowl on high 2 min. or until butter is melted. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Stir in sugar. Blend in eggs and vanilla. Add flour and chips; mix well. Spread into prepared pan.
3. Bake 30 to 35 min. or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out with fudgy crumbs. (Do not overbake.) Cool in pan on wire rack. Cut into squares. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature.

Savory or Sweet?

2009-01-12T11:56:00.004-05:00

I included two types of nuts in the goodie bags: a savory option and a sweet one. I had seen both recipes on the Culinary Kicks blog. While I enjoyed both types of nuts, the cinnamon roasted almonds were my favorite. The spiced nuts didn't have enough kick for me. Perhaps it's because I used mixed nuts instead of just pecans? I'm going to play with that recipe for next year.

Spiced Nuts

2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 cups mixed nuts
1 tablespoon chili powder

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. In a medium bowl, mix butter, Worcestershire sauce, red pepper, salt and garlic powder. Mix in the pecans and mix until well coated. Then mix in the chili powder and toss until coated.

2. Spread onto a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 45 minutes, stirring every 10-15 minutes, watching closely so the spices don't burn.

Cinnamon Roasted Almonds

1 egg white
1 teaspoon cold water
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 cups whole almonds
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg white, water and vanilla until very foamy and frothy. Pour in the almonds and mix until well coated.

2. In a smaller bowl, mix the sugars, cinnamon and salt together, pour over the almonds and mix until all coated well.

3. Spread onto a baking sheet and bake for 1 hr, stirring every 15 minutes.

Seasoned Oyster Crackers

2009-01-12T11:44:00.004-05:00

A savory addition to the gift bags. The original recipe called for Ranch dressing, but my family doesn't care for Ranch. Instead, I used a copycat recipe for Good Seasons Italian Dressing Mix. These were super easy, and I will make them throughout the year.

Seasoned Oyster Crackers
1 (14oz box) oyster crackers
1/3 cup canola oil
3 Tbls dry Italian dressing mix

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
2. Place oyster crackers in a large bowl. Add oil and stir to coat. Add dry seasoning mix and mix well.
3. Dump onto cookie sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes or until oil has absorbed into the crackers. Let cool and enjoy!

Make Your Own Takeout

2009-01-09T11:34:00.002-05:00

As much as I dislike Rachael Ray, I have to agree with her that “making your own takeout” is often quicker than actually ordering takeout. It’s also a great way to eat healthier and save money. This recipe—not a Rachael Ray recipe—came together very quickly and it’s originally from Weight Watchers so it is healthy too.

Brian always orders General Tso’s Chicken when we get Chinese. He thought this dish was very similar to what he would get in a restaurant. One note of caution. Go easy on the red pepper flakes. I didn’t measure the red pepper and I threw way too much in there. This was so spicy! Next time I will definitely measure out the ½ tsp! I served it over brown rice and tossed some steamed broccoli in there too.

General Tso’s Chicken
3/4 cup canned chicken broth, reduced-sodium
2 Tbsp cornstarch
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp canola oil
2 medium scallion(s), chopped
2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 2-inch pieces

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together broth, cornstarch, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar and ginger; set aside.
2. Heat oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Add scallions, garlic and pepper and cook 2 minutes. Add chicken and cook until browned all over, about 5 minutes.
3. Add reserved sauce and simmer until sauce thickens and chicken is cooked through, about 3 minutes.
4. Serve chicken and sauce over rice.

Buffalo Chicken Rolls

2009-01-09T09:45:00.000-05:00

If you’ve read my blog before, you know that I have a soft spot for chicken wings. Especially for buffalo wings. So as soon as I saw this recipe for Buffalo Chicken Rolls, I knew I wanted to make it. But I made a few changes, namely changing the provolone cheese to blue cheese. This satisfied my wing craving and they were much less messy to eat. These were a little on the spicy side. You may want to adjust the amount of hot sauce accordingly.

Buffalo Chicken Rolls
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - pounded to 1/4 inch thickness
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/3 cup hot sauce (I used Frank's Buffalo sauce.)
1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese

1. In a small bowl, stir together the melted butter and hot sauce. Place chicken breasts in a glass bowl, and pour the sauce over. Turn to coat, cover and refrigerate for 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Remove chicken breasts from the hot sauce. Reserve hot sauce. Place 1 tablespoon of cheese in the center of each one. Roll up, and secure with a toothpick.
3. Place the chicken rolls seam side down in a glass baking dish. Pour reserved hot sauce over the top. Bake for 30 minutes, or until chicken is fork tender. Remove toothpicks and serve.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-09T09:09:00.015-05:00

Happy New Year everyone! Better late than never, right? 2009 got off to a busy start for me thanks to a new project at work. I’m not complaining though. I am very grateful to have a job in this economy. I started a new exercise routine which hopefully will stick this time around. And I am still cooking and trying out new recipes which will (hopefully) be appearing on this blog very soon.

In the meantime I will leave you with a book and movie recommendation. Go read The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. Even though he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he did not let it break his spirit. Reading his book reminded me what is really important in life. I think that is a lesson we could all stand to be reminded of during these uncertain economic times. And for a movie that was totally enjoyable, I recommend Across the Universe. I am a fan of musicals and this one uses Beatles songs to tell the story. It wasn’t your typical musical though; it was very original.

Here’s wishing everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous new year!

Let's Eat Cake!

2009-01-07T10:27:00.003-05:00

Sorry to disappoint you, there is no recipe for cake attached to this blog post. :)

My friend Kim asked everyone to post the following on their blogs. It's for a great cause, so please, blog it forward. You can read more here.

Let’s Eat Cake, an amazing fundraiser hosted by the equally amazing Melissa Margarita-DiStefano, is coming up quick: Tuesday, February 17th at the Plaza Paramount Hotel! Let’s Eat Cake is a cake decorating competition with all proceeds going to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Learn more about the fundraiser right here.

In an effort to make sure we get the word out to everyone (and raise money), we are starting this chain-blog (Ok, not sure if that is correct terminology. But it’s like a chain letter so let’s just go with it, shall we?)

Here’s what we need you to do…Repost this post (or create your own new version) on your blog and ask others to post it on their blogs. Melissa will donate one dollar to the fundraiser for EVERY BLOG that posts on Let’s Eat Cake this week! With the power of the blogosphere, that can QUICKLY add up! Let’s make Melissa Pay! Once you have reposted it, leave a comment letting us know that you posted it along with the url to the blog. It’s for a great cause and it will be fun to see how far it will go! So lets do it… Lets blog it forward and raise money for a great cause!!!

**Kudos to Unique Designs for creating this fun chain-blog effort!**

Yet Another Super Easy Chicken Dinner

2008-12-18T15:15:00.001-05:00

Inspired by this recipe, this is another super quick dinner. It's nothing fancy, but it kept us from eating out during a very busy week. I made a few changes which I have noted below.

Herbed Tomatoes, Chicken and Rice
extra virgin olive oil
2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)
1 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (14 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
Italian seasoning
1 cup water
2 cups instant brown rice, uncooked
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
fresh spinach

1. Heat olive oil in large skillet on medium heat. Add chicken and garlic; cover. Cook 5 min. on each side or until chicken is browned on both sides. Remove chicken from skillet; set aside.
2. Add canned tomatoes, Italian seasoning and water to skillet; stir in rice. Bring to boil; simmer, uncovered, on low heat 10 min. Add spinach and return chicken to skillet. Sprinkle with cheese; cover.
3. Cook 5 min. or until spinach is wilted and cheese is melted. Serve.

Cabbage Salad with Peanut-Ginger Dressing

2008-12-16T19:32:00.002-05:00

Brian was out of town last week, and I didn't feel like cooking. I picked up sushi at the grocery store for dinner, but I still needed a little something with it. I had a bag of coleslaw mix to finish up, so this recipe was perfect. I don't have a link to it because I have no idea what magazine I ripped it out of, and google is no help. If I make it again, which I probably will, I might add a little oil to the dressing. I did measure the dressing ingredients, but not the coleslaw mix. Enjoy!

Cabbage Salad with Peanut-Ginger Dressing
coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots)
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
pinch of cayenne pepper

1. Place coleslaw mix in a large bowl. Whisk remaining ingredients together until fully incorporated. Pour dressing over salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately.

Applesauce Chicken

2008-12-14T19:41:00.002-05:00

Have you checked out the Year of Crockpotting Blog? If you haven't, you should. Aside from the fact that she has all these ingenious ways of using your crockpot, her commentary makes me laugh every time I read it. I couldn't decide what to make for dinner, but I came across this recipe for Applesauce Chicken, had everything on hand and popped it all in the crockpot. A few hours later (I cook on high), dinner was served. Oh, and the house smelled wonderful while this was cooking.

Applesauce Chicken
4 chicken thighs (frozen is okay)
1-1/2 cups of applesauce
1 yellow onion, chopped finely
1 T apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1. Place chicken in crockpot. Add the onion. In a bowl, mix the applesauce, vinegar, garlic, and spices together. Pour on top of the chicken.
2. Cover and cook on low for 5-7 hours, or on high for 3-4.

I served this with leftover mashed potatoes. It was not a very colorful meal, but it sure tasted good! :)

Super Easy Chicken Dinner

2008-12-03T12:59:00.003-05:00

I cannot believe the holiday season is upon us. I have no idea where this year has gone! I'm sure we're all busy at this time of year; I know I am. At times like these, I turn to simple, quick recipes like this one. I modified the cooking method slightly to make it even easier. I hesitated before posting this, because it is another one of those, "Why didn't I think of that?" type dinners. But I decided to post it, because we can all use some easy meals in our recipe box, especially at this time of year.

Cheesy Baked Salsa Chicken
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 large onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup thick and chunky salsa
1/3 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded cheese (I used a Mexican blend.)
*additional shredded cheese for topping

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a baking pan with cooking spray. Season chicken with salt and pepper and place in baking dish. Top with onion.
2. Mix cheeses, sour cream and salsa together. Pour sour cream mixture over chicken. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.
3. Remove chicken from onion and sprinkle additional cheese on top. Place back in oven for a couple of minutes until cheese is melted.

Drunken Bananas

2008-11-24T11:20:00.002-05:00

I don't know what it is with bananas. I buy a couple when they are green, and the next day they are spotted brown. Neither of us will eat them when they are like that, so they usually wind up in the garbage. I hate throwing food away, but at the same time, how much banana bread/muffins can two people eat? I was thrilled to find this recipe for Rummy Bananas. I think this will become my go-to recipe for when I have one measly banana left. There were no measurements provided, so I had to eyeball everything. It came out really good!

Rummy Bananas
banana, sliced
rum
brown sugar
cinnamon
vanilla
butter

1. Preheat broiler.
2. In a baking dish, add bananas. Top with a mixture of: Dark rum, brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla. Top with thin slices of butter (about 2 TB). Broil about 15 min (turning bananas halfway).

More Pancakes!

2008-11-19T20:18:00.002-05:00

I've already blogged an oatmeal pancake recipe, but I found another one that I like just as much. This one was in the food section of the Sun Sentinel and is not available online.

Oatmeal Pancakes
1/2 cup uncooked oats, quick or old-fashioned
1/2 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup egg substitute
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour

1. In a medium bowl, combine oats, yogurt and milk. Set aside 15-20 minutes to let the oatmeal soften.
2. When the oatmeal is done soaking, beat in egg and oil. Mix well. Add sugar and salt, then baking powder and flours. Stir until just moistened. Let batter rest 5 minutes before cooking.
3. Heat a lightly greased skillet or griddle over medium high heat. Pour about 1/4 cup batter onto the griddle for each pancake. Turn when the tops are covered with bubbles and edges look dry.

Makes 6-8 pancakes

Avocado Lime Tuna Wraps

2008-11-19T20:10:00.004-05:00

Another new idea that I tried for lunch. I never would have thought to try the combination of tuna and avocado, but I am glad I did. Once again, I combined tuna and avocado for this wrap, but with a little Tex-Mex flair.

Avocado Lime Tuna Wraps
1 Haas avocado, halved and seeded
1/4 cup salsa
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 can or pouch of tuna, drained
tortillas
lettuce
shredded cheddar cheese

1. In a medium bowl, mash together avocado, salsa, onions and lime juice. Add the tuna and mix gently to combine.
2. Divide tuna mixture evenly among tortillas. Top with lettuce and cheese. Roll up and serve.

Caribbean Pork

2008-11-18T12:05:00.006-05:00

I suppose the addition of rum to this dish makes it Caribbean. :)

I found this recipe in the newspaper and immediately tried it since I had (almost) everything on hand. The recipe called for an orange, but I only had a can of mandarin oranges. I used those but wish that I hadn't. I think the can had been sitting in my hurricane supply box a little too long. The oranges definitely tasted like the tin can! Regardless, this was still a good meal and one that I will make again.

Caribbean Pork
1 large orange, peeled and divided into segments, seeds removed and white membrane removed
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 boneless pork loin chops
fresh ground black pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 bell pepper (any color), seeded and diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup light or dark rum
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
Juice of 2 limes
Cooked rice for serving, if desired.

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season pork with pepper. Add to pan and cook, turning once, 5 minutes until pork loses its pink color. Remove from pan and set aside.
2. Heat butter in skillet. Cook onion and peppers 3 minutes until softened. Add garlic, cook 1 minute. Stir in broth, rum, brown sugar, ginger and lime juice. Cook 3 minutes to reduce by half. Return pork to pan. Add oranges. Cook 3 minutes to heat through.
3. Serve over rice if desired.

Quesadillas

2008-11-18T12:05:00.004-05:00

Quesadillas are great for those nights when you don't really feel like cooking, because they come together in no time. Plus you can put virtually anything in them. For tonight's dinner, I made chicken, spinach and roasted red pepper quesadillas.

Quesadillas
olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, diced
ground black pepper
fresh spinach
chopped roasted red peppers (from a jar)
monterey jack cheese
4 flour tortillas
Salsa (optional)

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and saute 5-7 minutes until cooked through. Season with black pepper. Add spinach and heat through until spinach is wilted. Add roasted red peppers and combine thoroughly.
2. Place 2 tortillas on a work surface. Scatter cheese on top of the tortillas. Divide the chicken mixture among the two tortillas. Top with more cheese and place a tortilla on top of each stack.
3. Heat a griddle or grill pan over medium heat. Cook each quesadilla 2 to 3 minutes per side or until it lightly browns and the cheese melts. Cut into wedges and serve with salsa if desired.

The Easiest Bread Ever.

2008-11-02T11:43:00.001-05:00

The King Arthur Flour website calls this "No-Fuss Focaccia," and they don't lie. This was so easy to make that I will probably make it on a regular basis. I didn't add the pizza dough flavor or the cheese powder that the recipe called for. Instead, I sprinkled a little Italian seasoning on top before baking. The bread was good on its own, but I liked using it as sandwich bread for lunches during the week.

Focaccia Bread
1-1/2 cups warm water
3 tablespoons olive oil (plus additional for drizzling)
1-1/4 teaspoons salt
3-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 packet rapid rise, active dry yeast
Italian seasoning

1. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan, and drizzle 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil in the bottom.
2. Combine all of the ingredients, and beat at high speed with an electric mixer for 60 seconds.
3. Scoop the sticky batter into the prepared pan, cover the pan, and let it rise at room temperature for 60 minutes, till it's become puffy.
4. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
5. Gently poke the dough all over with your index finger.
6. Drizzle it lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle with Italian seasoning.
7. Bake the bread till it's golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes.
8. Remove it from the oven, wait 5 minutes, then turn it out of the pan onto a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Chicken, Spinach and White Bean Stew

2008-11-02T10:50:00.004-05:00

Today's dinner was inspired by this recipe. However, I changed quite a few things. I cooked it in my crockpot, and I used less liquid to make it more stew-like and less soupy. It was still quite liquidy though, so I would probably cut back on that even more or use some flour or cornstarch to thicken it at the end. I also added potatoes to make it a little heartier. This served as our dinner for two nights, and there was still a little left over for lunch.

Chicken, Spinach and White Bean Stew
2 large baking potatoes, peeled and diced
boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 cups chicken broth
1-1/2 cups tomato sauce
1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
pepper
6 ounces spinach, prewashed
grated Parmesan cheese

1. Place potatoes and chicken in bottom of crockpot. Add remaining ingredients--except spinach and Parmesan cheese.
2. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours. Add spinach and cook approximately 30 minutes or until spinach is wilted.
3. Serve each portion topped with Parmesan cheese.

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T16:01:00.001-04:00

At work today we had our annual Halloween Potluck party. I brought Pumpkin Cheesecake Brownies. I had seen this recipe pop up on various blogs and thought it would be the perfect Halloween dessert. However, I managed to screw it up. The original recipe only made a square pan. I decided to double the recipe since I needed to feed a crowd. No problem, right? Wrong. I read the recipe wrong and didn't buy enough cream cheese. I only used 80z of cream cheese, when I should have used 120z, so my brownies were more pumpkin than cheesecake. They weren't bad, just not what I was expecting. I came home with an empty plate from the party though, so that's always a good sign. :)

I'm planning on trying these again, sticking with the original recipe which is written below.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Brownies
(Source: Cara's Cravings)

Brownie Batter
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon

Cheesecake Batter
6 oz cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbsp flour
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp each ground ginger and ground cloves

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8x8" square metal baking pan.
2. Beat together melted butter, sugar, and vanilla, then beat in eggs one at a time. Combine dry ingredients and then gradually stir into butter mixture with a wooden spoon. In separate bowl, beat together cheesecake batter ingredients.
3. Spread about 2/3 of chocolate batter into prepared pan, and spoon cheesecake batter over. Dollop remaining brownie batter over cheesecake batter. Swirl the batters together by running a butter knife back and forth through the pan.
4. Bake for 40 minutes, or until center is set. Cool completely on wire rack and chill before cutting and serving.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

2008-10-29T16:01:00.002-04:00

Brian liked this meal more than I did. He said it was good "recession food." I guess it was a relatively cheap meal, plus I was able to stretch it and get two night's worth of dinners out of it. I only made a couple of changes to the recipe. I used egg noodles tossed with a little bit of butter and half & half instead of the heavy cream.

Cajun Chicken Pasta
6 ounces pasta
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, sliced into thin strips
1-2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 small onion, diced
1-1/2 cups half and half
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup shredded Italian Cheese Blend
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente; drain. Meanwhile, place chicken and Cajun seasoning in a bowl, and toss to coat.
2. In a large skillet over medium heat, saute chicken in olive oil until no longer pink and juices run clear, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add green bell peppers and onions; cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Reduce heat, and stir in half and half. Season the sauce with basil, garlic powder and ground black pepper, and heat through. Add Italian cheese blend. Simmer.
4. In a large bowl, toss pasta with sauce. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.

Dreaming of a Vacation

2008-10-27T14:02:00.005-04:00

I get antsy when I don't have a vacation planned. Other than a camping trip after Christmas, we don't have any travel plans, and thanks to the craptastic economy, we're not sure if we should take a summer vacation this year or not. I've been scouring the Internet for travel deals, and now I'm trying to convince Brian that we can go to Mexico for relatively cheap. The problem is, he wants to stay at an adults only, all inclusive resort. Those are not cheap. The good news is we still have 8+ months to find a deal and figure out our vacation plans. In the meantime, I made Margarita Chicken for dinner, inspired by this recipe. Eating this on our back patio with the tiki torches lit, I tried to convince myself I was on vacation. It didn't work. But at least the chicken was good.

Margarita Chicken
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tablespoons gold tequila
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 Haas avocado, sliced

1. Mix together all ingredients, except avocado, in a Ziploc bag. Marinate chicken in refrigerator for at least one hour.
2. Preheat grill over medium high heat. Remove chicken from marinade. Discard marinade. Grill chicken 10-15 minutes or until cooked through.
3. Serve chicken topped with avocado slices.

Crockpot Thai Chicken

2008-10-26T14:01:00.003-04:00

I knew I wanted to use my crockpot for tonight's dinner, but none of my usual recipes appealed to me. I went searching on All Recipes and this one for Crockpot Thai Chicken caught my eye. I wasn't sure about the peanut butter at first, but I decided to go ahead and make it. I'm glad I did, because we both enjoyed it. I made a couple of changes--noted below. I used thighs instead of breasts and I added broccoli to the crockpot towards the end of the cooking time.

Crockpot Thai Chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 large green bell pepper, seeded and sliced into strips
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 cup lime juice
*broccoli
*cooked brown rice

1. Place the chicken, bell pepper and onion into a slow cooker. Pour in the chicken broth and 1/4 cup of soy sauce, then season with cumin, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Stir to blend, then cover and cook on Low for 4-1/2 to 5 hours.
2. Remove 1 cup of the liquid from the slow cooker, and mix this with the cornstarch, peanut butter, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and lime juice. This should blend into a fairly thick sauce. Stir the sauce back into the slow cooker. Add broccoli to pot. Replace slow cooker lid.
3. Cook on High for 30 minutes. Serve over rice.

Update: This was even better the next day for lunch!

The Very Balsamic Meal

2008-10-25T14:01:00.002-04:00

If you like balsamic vinegar, then you will probably like this meal from Rachael Ray. I found the recipes for the Rosemary Chicken Breasts and Balsamic/Brown Butter Ravioli in her 30 Minute Get Togethers cookbook. I am not a fan of Rachael Ray's personality, but I do like a lot of her recipes. This meal was no exception. I especially loved the ravioli. I did change the preparation method for the chicken though. I marinated it and then baked it, because I didn't want to deal with 3 pans on the stovetop at once. My version is below.

Rosemary Chicken Breasts
2 pieces boneless, skinless chicken breast, 6 to 8 ounces each
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
Salt and coarse black pepper
2 cloves garlic, crushed

1. Mix together all ingredients in a plastic bag. Marinate chicken in refrigerator for 30 minutes to one hour.
2. Preheat oven to 350.
3. Remove chicken from marinade. Discard marinade. Bake chicken for 25-30 minutes or until juices run clear.

Brown Butter and Balsamic Ravioli
1 package, 12 to 16 ounces, fresh ravioli, any flavor filling
3 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 handfuls grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Drop ravioli in water and cook 8 minutes or until raviolis expand, float to top of water, and are al dente.
2. Heat a skillet over medium-low to medium heat. Add butter to the pan and let it begin to brown. When the butter has browned, add cooked ravioli to the pan and turn in butter to heat through.
3. Add balsamic vinegar to the ravioli and cook a minute or 2 longer to reduce the vinegar and glaze the ravioli. The vinegar will become thick and syrup like.
4. Add cheese, parsley, salt and pepper to the pasta and remove the pan from the heat.

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies?

2008-10-20T23:40:00.002-04:00

I was craving chocolate after dinner, so I decided to make chocolate chip cookies. I searched on AllRecipes and found this one called Best Chocolate Chip Cookies. With a name like that, I had to try them. The recipe for half batch that I made is below. These were good and satisfied my craving, but I don't know if I would call them "The Best." I had to cook mine for longer than indicated in the recipe. Closer to 12-14 minutes. Either my oven is off or I made my cookies too big. Most likely, it's the latter. :)

Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon hot water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg, then stir in the vanilla. Dissolve baking soda in hot water. Add to batter along with salt. Stir in flour and chocolate chips. Drop by large spoonfuls onto ungreased pans.
3. Bake for about 10-12 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are nicely browned.

Blackened Chicken

2008-10-20T19:32:00.005-04:00

I ripped this recipe out of a magazine, but I don't remember which one so I can't properly cite it! Oops! Anyway, this was good especially if you like spicy foods. Make sure you top the chicken with the creamy yogurt sauce. (It called for sour cream, but I used yogurt.) It provides a nice, cooling contrast to the spiciness of the chicken.

Blackened Chicken With Yogurt-Cilantro Sauce
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tsp paprika
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 TBLSP vegetable oil
1/4 cup plain, fat free yogurt
chopped fresh cilantro
salt and pepper

1. Mix all dry spices together. Dip both sides of chicken breast into spice mixture, turning to coat.
2. Heat the oil in a skillet over high heat. When hot, place chicken in hot oil and cook for about 2 minutes.
3. Once the chicken is blackened, turn and continue cooking for another 2 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Remove from pan.
4. Mix yogurt, cilantro, salt and pepper together. Serve chicken topped with a spoonful of the yogurt sauce.

I served this with a spinach salad dressed with a Spicy Citrus Dressing. The dressing recipe was from the same magazine as the chicken recipe.

Citrus Dressing
1 TBLSP lemon juice
1 TBLSP lime juice
1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 cup vegetable oil

1. Whisk together all ingredients except oil.
2. Slowly whisk oil into mixture to finish dressing.

*This keeps refrigerated for a couple of days at least.

Is It Still Hummus if There Are No Chickpeas In It?

2008-10-19T16:01:00.005-04:00

I always use chickpeas (garbanzos) when I make hummus. I thought that was what made it hummus, but a coworker told me she uses white beans, either great northern or cannellini. She gave me this recipe, and it was great. Very creamy and Brian liked it too which was a plus since he's not usually a fan of hummus.

White Bean "Hummus"
2 large garlic cloves
1 can great northern or cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
Large pinch dried red pepper flakes
¼ cup canola oil
fresh-ground black pepper,

1. In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, finely chop the garlic. Add the beans to the work bowl with the lemon juice and red pepper flakes. Process the mixture until smooth and creamy.
2. With the motor running, add the oil through the feed tube in a steady stream. Scrape down the side of the bowl, add salt and pepper and process again until smooth.
3. Transfer to a serving bowl, cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours or preferably overnight so the flavors meld. Keeps well refrigerated up to 4 days.

And to answer my question in the post title, wikipedia says hummus is made from chickpeas. So, I guess I'll have to call it white bean dip. :)

"Secret Family Recipe" Wings

2008-10-19T15:51:00.006-04:00

Brian received this recipe when he attended his family reunion. His aunt is famous for her wings and was kind enough to share the recipe after Brian raved about them. However, when I made them, Brian thought something was missing. So now I'm wondering if perhaps Auntie Flo did not share all the ingredients in her famous wings. Regardless, I thought these were pretty good. And what goes better with friends and Sunday football than wings? :)

Chicken Wings
20 chicken wings
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup oil
3/4 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon garlic
1/2 cup brown sugar

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a 9x13 baking pan with foil.
2. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Pour into prepared pan. Cover with foil.
3. Bake covered for 1 hour. Uncover, and continue baking for 10 minutes.

Italian Poached Eggs

2008-10-15T19:50:00.005-04:00

This is one of those meals that I ate fairly often as a child, but I forgot about it until I saw it mentioned in Women's Health magazine. I immediately wanted to make it, but Brian thought the combination of eggs and tomato sauce sounded weird. Is it really any different from putting ketchup on eggs though? I bided my time and as soon as Brian wouldn't be home for dinner, I made this for myself and was transported back to my childhood. Enjoy!

Poached Eggs in Tomato Sauce

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 large clove garlic, minced

1-1/2 cups tomato sauce

2 eggs

*Italian bread

1. In a skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant and golden. Add tomato sauce, raise heat to medium high, and bring to a vigorous simmer. Cook 5 minutes, adjust seasoning to taste with additional salt or red pepper flakes, and reduce heat to medium low.
2. Crack one egg into a saucer. Using a spoon, make a small well in tomato sauce on one side of pan and gently slide the egg from the saucer into well. Repeat with the remaining egg.
3. Cover pan and cook until egg whites are fully cooked but yolks are still runny, about 5 minutes (or 8 minutes if you prefer your yolks fully cooked). Serve each egg with a generous spoonful of tomato sauce. Use Italian bread to sop up all that sauce!

Slaving Away in the Kitchen

2008-10-12T13:53:00.010-04:00

I have no idea what got into me today, but I spent almost the entire day in the kitchen. I made homemade bread--without using my bread machine, brownies from scratch, and chicken cacciatore for dinner.

First up, the bread. I've never made a yeast bread without using my bread machine. I've always been intimidated by the kneading steps. But I found this recipe which gave step-by-step instructions for kneading the bread using a mixer. Other than halving the ingredients to only make one loaf of bread, I followed the directions exactly. The bread came out great, and we used it for our sandwiches all week long. The recipe below is the half version which will yield one loaf of bread.

Honey Oatmeal Bread
Kitchen Aid Mixer
2 1/2-3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup quick cooking oats
1 teaspoon salt
1 package active dry yeast
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup butter
1 egg
1/2 tablespoon water
1 egg white
oatmeal

1. Place 2-1/2 cups flour, oats, salt, and yeast in mixer Bowl. Attach bowl and dough hook. Turn to speed 2 and mix for 30 seconds.
2. In saucepan, combine water, honey, and butter. Heat to 120 F to 130 F.
3. On Speed 2, slowly add warm liquids to flour mixture, mixing for about 1 minute. Add eggs; mix an additional 1 minute. Still on Speed 2, add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until dough clings to hook and cleans sides of bowl, about 3 minutes.
4. Knead on Speed 2 for 7-10 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic.
5. Place in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover; let rise in warm place, until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch dough down. Shape into a loaf.
6. Place loaf into a greased 8 1/2x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2-inch bread pan. Cover; let rise in warm place till doubled, about an hour.
7. Combine 1 TBSP. water and egg white. Brush tops of loaves with mixture. Sprinkle with oatmeal.
8. Bake at 375 F for 40 minutes. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

Next came the chicken cacciatore. I make chicken cacciatore fairly often, but today I made a new recipe that will replace my old one. The recipe is from the Palm Beach Post and not available online. This was really good and came together quickly. I served the chicken over pasta.

Chicken Cacciatore
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 pound boneless skinless chicken (breasts, thighs, whatever)
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cups sliced bell peppers (I used a combination of red and green)
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup dry red wine
tomato sauce (I didn't measure this, I just made sure the chicken was covered in sauce)
1 bay leaf

1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a ziploc bag, add chicken and toss to coat.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook 5 minutes or until browned, turning once. Add remaining ingredients and lower heat to medium low. Cover and cook 8 minutes.
3. Uncover and cook 3 more minutes or until sauce is thickened. Discard bay leaf and serve.

While we were eating dinner, I had dessert in the oven. It's very rare for me to make brownies from scratch because the box mix is so convenient. Plus they're always on sale buy one get one at Publix, so I always have a box or two in the house. I found this recipe in the Sunday coupons next to a coupon for Domino sugar. I can't find it on their website. Anyway, as soon as I saw it, and saw that I had all the ingredients on hand, I immediately whipped these up. I love brownies. I love how fudgy they are. These had a different texture that I discovered I also love. These were light and almost airy. They almost melted in your mouth. Sadly this recipe only made an 8x8 pan. They didn't last long in our house.

Brown Sugar Brownies
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs (or 1/2 cup egg substitute)
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 325. Grease an 8x8 baking pan.
2. In large bowl, beat sugar and butter until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Beat in chocolate, then flour. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour into pan.
3. Bake 25 minutes. Cool in pan and cut into bars.

Stuffed Chicken and Orzo Pilaf

2008-10-09T23:25:00.002-04:00

Both of tonight's recipes came from Women's Health. They are both very basic, but good. And they come together pretty quickly which is always nice on a weeknight. I used feta cheese instead of the goat cheese since I had feta on hand. Next time I'd like to add roasted red peppers to the stuffing mixture and try it with the goat cheese. The potential combinations are endless.

Spinach and Feta Stuffed Chicken
1/2 cup fresh spinach, cooked with olive oil and garlic
2 ounces feta cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup chicken broth
splash of white wine

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F . Mix spinach with cheese; season with salt and pepper.
2. Place chicken breasts between two sheets of wax paper and pound into thin cutlets. Place half of the spinach mixture at wide end of one breast, fold in sides, and roll up, securing with a toothpick. Repeat with the second breast.
3. Place chicken rolls in a baking dish, add broth and a splash of wine, and cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

Toasted Orzo Pilaf
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup orzo
diced onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup chicken broth
Salt and pepper to taste

1. In a large skillet, heat oil on medium high. Add orzo, onions, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until orzo is golden brown, about 4 minutes.
2. Add broth and salt and pepper. Cover, lower heat, and simmer until broth is absorbed and orzo is tender, about 15 minutes.

French Onion Pork Chops

2008-10-08T13:51:00.002-04:00

I'm on the fence about this recipe. I'm not sure why its called "French Onion" because it doesn't seem very "French Onion-y" to me. Also, I'm not sure why they included stuffing in the recipe. It seemed like nothing more than an attempt to buy another Kraft product. I left that out, and I don't think I was missing anything. The flavor wasn't bad, but it wasn't anything extraordinary either. I'm not sure if I'll make it again. The recipe with my changes is below.

French Onion Pork Chops
2 boneless pork chops (1-1/2 lb.), 1/2 inch thick
1 onions, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 slices Swiss Cheese

1. Heat a large nonstick skillet sprayed with cooking spray on medium-high heat. Add chops and onions; cook 10 min. or until done (160°F), turning chops and stirring onions after 5 min.
2. Remove chops. Cook and stir onions 5 min. or until golden brown.
3. Stir in Worcestershire sauce. Return chops to skillet. Top with cheese. Cook 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
4. Serve chops topped with onion mixture.

Chicken with Paprika Sauce and Fall Salad

2008-10-07T23:11:00.000-04:00

I had a small amount of sour cream that I needed to use up before it turned on me. This recipe from Martha Stewart's Everyday Food caught my eye. Because I only had about 1/3 cup of sour cream, the sauce wasn't as creamy as I would have liked. However, it was still good. I served the chicken over buttered egg noodles.

Chicken with Paprika Sauce
6-7 boneless, skinless chicken tenderloins
2 tablespoons paprika
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 can diced tomatoes [do not drain]
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream

1. In a medium bowl, toss chicken with 1 tablespoon paprika, 1-1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook, tossing occasionally, until opaque throughout, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
2. Heat remaining tablespoon butter in same skillet over medium heat. Add onion; cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits from bottom of pan, until softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Add remaining tablespoon paprika, and cook, stirring, 30 seconds.
3. Add can of diced tomatoes; cook until saucy, 4 to 5 minutes. Return chicken (and any accumulated juices) to skillet. Stir in sour cream, and cook just until heated through (do not boil). Season with salt and pepper; serve over egg noodles.

I make myself salad with dinner every night, but tonight I wanted something different. I used this recipe as my inspiration. I measured the ingredients for the dressing, but eyeballed everything else. I left out the bacon in the dressing because bacon is not something I usually keep in the house. Plus I think once you add bacon to a salad, the healthy factor goes right out the window! :)

Spinach and Apple Salad with Maple Vinaigrette
1/2 tablespoon maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1/8 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
julienne-cut Granny Smith apple
thinly sliced red onion
fresh baby spinach

1. Combine first 3 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Gradually add oil, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Add salt and pepper; stir with a whisk until well blended.
2. Combine apple, onion, and spinach in a large bowl. Drizzle with vinaigrette; toss to coat. Serve immediately.

I've Come a Long Way...

2008-10-05T23:21:00.001-04:00

When I was growing up, I never cooked. My mom always cooked for me. She is a wonderful cook, but I didn't pick up any techniques from her. She would shoo me out of the kitchen while cooking. When Brian and I moved in together, my mom said "I hope he cooks." And he did, but I also decided that if I wanted to eat my favorite foods, I was going to have to make them. I started out with simple things like mac and cheese. See, even just boiling a pot of water was a big accomplishment for me! I've come a long way since then. I'm not a gourmet chef by any means, but I have moved beyond dinners that come from a box. My mom came over for dinner today and I was proud to serve her this meal.

Giada's lasagna roll ups were delicious! The prosciutto added a nice, salty taste to the filling. I skipped the bechamel sauce because I preferred to use all homemade tomato sauce. My version is below.

Lasagna Rolls with Spinach and Prosciutto
1 (15-ounce) container part skim ricotta cheese
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry
1 cup Italian cheese blend (mozz, fontina, parmesan)
3 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, chopped
1 large egg, beaten to blend
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
12 uncooked lasagna noodles
2 to 2-1/2 cups tomato sauce
1 cup shredded mozzarella
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Whisk the ricotta, spinach, 1 cup Italian cheese blend, prosciutto, egg, and pepper in a medium bowl to blend.
3. Add a tablespoon or 2 of oil to a large pot of boiling salted water. Boil the noodles until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Arrange the noodles in a single layer on a baking sheet to prevent them from sticking.
4. Pour about 1 cup of tomato sauce over the bottom of a 13-by-9-by-2-inch glass baking dish. Lay out 4 lasagna noodles on a work surface, then spread about 3 tablespoons of ricotta mixture evenly over each noodle. Starting at 1 end, roll each noodle like a jelly roll. Lay the lasagna rolls seam side down, without touching, atop the sauce in the dish. Repeat with the remaining noodles and ricotta mixture. Spoon about 1 cup of tomato sauce over the lasagna rolls. Sprinkle the mozzarella and Parmesan over the lasagna rolls.
5. Cover tightly with foil. Bake until heated through and the sauce bubbles, about 25 minutes. Uncover and bake until the cheese on top becomes golden, about 10 minutes longer. Let stand for 10 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, heat the remaining marinara sauce in a heavy small saucepan over medium heat until hot, and serve alongside.

Maple Baked Apple Chicken

2008-10-04T23:42:00.004-04:00

The combination of ingredients in this recipe sounds a little strange--at least it did to Brian--but stay with me. It's actually very good and not overly sweet. The recipe calls for a "red cooking apple." I used a Red Delicious. Is that a "cooking apple?" I dunno, but I'm guessing no. The apple got a little too sweet when it was baked with the chicken. I think next time I'll go with a tart apple like a Granny Smith. My version of the recipe is below. In the interest of simplicity, I altered the cooking method.

Maple-Baked Apple Chicken
2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1/2 onion, sliced
1 red cooking apple, sliced
1/4 cup real maple syrup
slightly less than 1/4 cup Italian dressing

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray 8x8 baking pan with cooking spray.
2. Place chicken in pan. Place onions on top of chicken; surround with apple slices. Mix syrup and dressing; pour over chicken.
3. Bake 25-30 min. or until chicken is cooked through. Spoon syrup mixture in skillet over chicken just before serving.

Sweet Spicy Wings...and a Wine Bar

2008-10-03T23:41:00.005-04:00

**hanging head in shame**

Yes, it's another wing recipe. We still haven't made a dent in that damn bag of frozen wings from Costco, plus we also have a gallon sized jug of hot sauce that we inexplicably received as a gift. Still trying to figure that one out. Anyway, this made for a quick meal. Brian grilled the wings while I whipped up the sauce. (I cut down on the sauce ingredients and still had a ton left over.) Dinner was on the table in a flash, and then it was on to more important things, like meeting up with friends at the wine bar. ;)

Sweet Spicy Wings
10-12 chicken wings
3/4 cup Louisiana-style hot sauce
1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup honey
1/2 pinch garlic salt
1/2 pinch ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

1. Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat.
Lightly oil the grill grate. Grill the chicken 8 to 12 minutes on each side, or until juices run clear. Remove chicken to a large roasting pan.
2. In a saucepan over medium heat, mix the hot sauce, butter, honey, garlic salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Simmer about 10 minutes, until blended and heated through. Pour the sauce over the grilled chicken wings and stir to coat.

Now about that wine bar that I mentioned. We went to the Vine Bar in Coral Springs. They have an extensive list of wines by the glass, 32 according to their website. Plus they also serve food and they have a wine shop too. It made for a fun evening out.

The Vine Bar
925 N. University Drive
Coral Springs, FL 33071

Chicken Curry

2008-10-02T23:53:00.002-04:00

Tonight's dinner recipe came from the September issue of Fitness magazine. I can't find it online. It was originally for shrimp curry, but I used chicken. You could probably use tofu too if you wanted to make it vegetarian. I loved how flavorful it was. I served it over brown rice, and I also mixed in some steamed broccoli.

Chicken Curry
2 TBLSP vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, crushed
5-6 chicken tenderloins, diced
1/2 TBLSP ground ginger
1-2 tsp ground red pepper
1 tsp ground mustard
2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 14oz can diced tomatoes
Juice of 2 limes
black pepper to taste
chopped fresh cilantro

1. Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger and red pepper. Cook 5 minutes.
2. Add chicken and spices, cook 3 minutes.
3. Pour in tomatoes and lime juice. Season with pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.
4. Add cilantro and serve.

Breaking out of the Lunch Rut

2008-10-01T11:53:00.003-04:00

I bring my lunch to work everyday, but I tend to bring the same things over and over. Usually a ham, turkey and cheese sandwich or occasionally a tuna sandwich. Boring, right? I came across the lunch ideas below, tried them and loved them. They're things I probably could have come up with on my own, but my creative juices aren't usually flowing when it comes to lunch. Enjoy!

Tuna Salad with Avocado
Source: Sun Sentinel Food Section
1 medium ripe Haas avocado
1 tomato
1 pouch of tuna (I used lemon pepper tuna)
1 tablespoon canola oil mayo
pinch of dried oregano
splash of wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

1. Drain tuna, mix with mayo. Add herbs and spices, blend lightly.
2. Cut avocado and tomato into chunks. Blend with tuna mixture. Serve.

I'm not sure why this recipe is called a Cape Cod Wrap, when the description says it's popular in the Mid Atlantic. Last time I checked, Cape Cod was in the Northeast. In any event, I'll call it a Thanksgiving Wrap since that's what the flavors remind me of. To save time, I did not grill the onions. I also didn't measure anything. It still came out good. My version is below.

Thanksgiving Wrap
1 medium red onion, sliced
Ground pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon cream cheese
1 (12-inch) flour tortilla (whole wheat or your favorite flavor)
fresh baby spinach leaves
thinly sliced smoked turkey
whole berry cranberry relish

1. Spread cream cheese on the tortilla. Top cream cheese with spinach leaves. Scatter onion over spinach. Arrange smoked turkey over the onion, covering the entire surface of the tortilla. Spread berry relish over turkey in a 1-inch-thick line along the bottom edge of the tortilla.
2. Roll up tightly, and slice diagonally in half.

Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza

2008-09-26T23:14:00.004-04:00

So much for swearing off the chain restaurants. Friday night is usually pizza night in the Too Shai Shai household and we ended up at Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza. I'm going to justify it by saying that since they only have locations in South Florida, it doesn't count as a chain.

We started with a small order of coal oven roasted chicken wings. Hmmm...these were gooood. I could have made that my meal, but we were really there to try the pizza. We went with plain cheese because Brian likes his pizza boring. ;-) Anthony's motto is "our pizza is 'well done'." And it was well done. I thought it was a little too well done and bordered on being burnt. I didn't really care for the pizza and I doubt we'll go back. I can get a better pizza from our local pizza place for almost half the price. However, the place was packed so it's just a matter of personal preference.

Anthony's Coal-Fired Pizza
9521 Westview Drive
Coral Springs Florida 33076
954 340-2625

Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas

2008-09-23T22:09:00.002-04:00

I make enchiladas pretty often. It's one of Brian's favorite meals. I came across this recipe, which is similar to mine, but uses green chiles in the chicken mixture and tops the enchiladas with green sauce instead. I couldn't find green enchilada sauce in Publix, but I did find salsa verde and decided to use that. I've never tried a tomatillo-based salsa before, so I was excited to try it. As I continued my shopping, I found more jars of salsa verde in the snack aisle that were less expensive than the one in my cart. I grabbed the cheaper jar without looking at the ingredients list. When I got home and started cooking, I tried the salsa and set my mouth on fire. See the jar I grabbed only had jalapenos in it. No green tomatoes or tomatillos at all! I wound up mixing the jalapeno salsa with a traditional red salsa to try to tame the heat. It helped a bit, but these were still plenty spicy!

Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
1 Tbsp olive oil
6-7 chicken tenderloins, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chiles, drained
4 oz reduced fat cream cheese, cut up and softened
8 flour tortillas
salsa verde
shredded Mexican cheese blend
sour cream, if desired

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. add chicken and onion and sauté until chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir in green chiles and cream cheese. Stir constantly until cream cheese melts. Remove from heat.
3. Spread some of the salsa verde in the bottom of of a 9x13 baking dish. Spoon approx 3-4 Tbsp chicken mixture down center of tortillas. Roll up tortillas and place seam side down in baking dish. Repeat.
4. Pour salsa verde over enchiladas & top with as much cheese as desired. Bake in 350 oven for 30 minutes, until bubbly & cheese is lightly browned.
5. Serve topped with sour cream if desired.

Chicken and Chickpea Tagine

2008-09-17T23:38:00.001-04:00

This recipe caught my eye because I had everything on hand. I used all chicken breasts and I subbed a can of diced tomatoes for the fresh. One of the reviews suggested adding cauliflower to the tagine. I decided to make Roasted Cauliflower on the side, and I served the tagine over orzo. The night we ate this, it was just okay. But I took the leftovers for lunch the next day, and it was much better! I halved the recipe(s). My version(s) are below.

Tagine of Chicken and Chickpeas
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground mustard
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 large, boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (15 1/2-ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a small bowl; rub spice mixture evenly over chicken. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Transfer chicken to a cutting board; cool slightly. Slice and return to pan.
2. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes. Add tomato and salt; cover and cook 15 minutes. Add chickpeas; cover and cook 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cilantro.

Roasted Cauliflower
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 medium onion, quartered
2 garlic cloves, halved
2 cups cauliflower florets
Cooking spray
1/2 tablespoon water
1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1. Preheat oven to 450°.
2. Toss olive oil, onions, garlic and cauliflower together. Place in a roasting pan coated with cooking spray. Combine water and mustard; pour over vegetable mixture. Toss to coat; sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with parsley.

Beantown

2008-09-13T23:29:00.005-04:00

Saturday morning we woke up to gorgeous weather. I was psyched because we were going to the Sox game that night, and I didn't want to freeze. We said goodbye to Uncle G. and headed to the airport to drop off the car. We then took the T into the city to check into our hotel, the Westin at Copley Place. The hotel was in a great location, only a couple of T stops from Fenway Park, but close enough that we could walk. The Westin is also attached to a shopping mall [Copley Square] and the Prudential Building via covered walkways, so you don't even have to walk outside.

The Prudential Building has a restaurant on the 52nd floor, The Top of the Hub, which has panoramic views of the city. We enjoyed a nice, relaxing lunch there while taking in the views. We had done so much running around since Thursday, that it was nice to take a few moments for just the two of us. The meal cost us more than we usually spend on lunch, but at least it was good food. We started with a glass each of the Top of the Hub house wine and a seared tuna appetizer. That was delicious, but small. It was gone in a couple of bites. Brian had the panini of the day: a roast beef and blue cheese panini. I had the Prosciutto flatbread which also had gorgonzola and caramelized onions on it. This was huge and I couldn't finish it, but it was very tasty.

By the time we finished our lunch and went back to our hotel room, it was time to leave for the game. We wanted to get there early to take in the atmosphere on Yawkey Way and hopefully see the NESN guys doing their pregame show. Since the weather was so nice, we walked to Fenway. It was about a 15 minute walk from our hotel along a nice, residential tree-lined street. Once you reach Kenmore Square, the brownstones give way to bars and restaurants filled with Sox fans.

We had awesome seats, almost directly behind home plate. And the Sox certainly delivered quite a game. They took the early lead, then Toronto tied and went ahead. Then the Sox came back and went ahead in the 8th. Papelbon came on in the 9th to close it out. Yay for a Sox victory! Fenway is a great place to see a game. The atmosphere there is electric. I love how the entire stadium sings Take Me out to the Ballgame during the 7th inning stretch and then Sweet Caroline during the middle of the 8th. And when the wave gets going, it keeps going.

After the game, we took the T back to the hotel. I am not a city girl, I grew up in suburbia, so I described this T experience as a bit too urban for me. We were crammed on the train like sardines. I had my face squooshed into someone's back the entire ride home. Luckily, we didn't have far to go, but next time, I will walk. As I said, I'm not a city girl, so I was concerned about walking around at night. It probably would have been fine, since there were so many other people out and about.

We enjoyed a couple of drinks in the hotel bar and headed to bed, where we were woken up by the fire alarm! I was disoriented and had no idea what the noise was. Then a voice came on and said, it was a "pre-alert system. There was an emergency in the hotel. If we had to evacuate, further orders would be given." I immediately started packing, because if I had to evacuate, I was taking my stuff with me. Especially our travel documents. Brian poked his head into the hallway, but didn't smell smoke or see anything out of the ordinary. Finally, the alarm stopped and the voice said the emergency had been cleared. We never found out what happened, but that was not how we wanted to end our vacation. The rest of the morning was uneventful (thankfully) and we made it to the airport and back home safely.