There's a Party in My Mouth

Hummus

2011-03-04T19:29:00.000-08:00

Hummus has become something we make on a fairly regular basis lately. Plus, one time I was making it and I allowed Robby to push a chair up to the counter and help me measure and dump things in. So, now any time I am in the kitchen, he grabs a measuring spoon or cup and goes and slowly drags a large chair from the table while saying "HUMMUS! HUMMUS!" The word "hummus" to him now means "I am coming to help you cook Mom!"..... which can also be intrepreted as "I am coming to make a mess and make it 10 times harder for you to make whatever it is you are trying to make, Mom!" Hahaha. Man, I love that kid.

Anyway, on to the recipe:

1 can chickpeas, drained, rinsed, and heated in the microwave for 90 seconds (I do this just to soften them up a bit.... it probably works fine without doing it... but, I always do, and it always turns out great... so I never change what I do!)

2 LARGE cloves of garlic (don't skimp... unless you are a garlic wimp)

¼- ½ tsp cumin

Dash of cayenne to taste

Juice of half a lemon

Salt to taste

3 tsp Tahini
*Tahini is sesame seed paste. I think you should be able to get it at most grocery stores these days. Sometimes it is by the peanut butter... sometime it is in the ethnic isle..... you'll have to look around or ask someone who works there. It can be a bit pricey. But, we make good use of it. You can probably make the hummus without... but, I am sure the results won't be exactly the same

Olive oil

Add all ingredients (except oil) to a food processor (a blender would probably work as well). Blend for 30 seconds just to get things going. Then, start to drizzle in olive oil a little at a time. You will see it start to smooth out and come together better. You will probably need to stop and scrape down the sides to make sure everything gets well blended. Add olive oil a little at a time until it reaches your desired consistency. It is up to you how thick or thin you like your hummus. Allow it to blend for a while until it becomes very smooth.

Note: If you want to cut back on the fat content, you can just add a little olive oil and then use water for the rest until it reaches the right consistency. (Or I have read recipes that say to add the liquid from the can of chickpeas. I have never done that so I cannot say whether or not the results are good...).

HUMMUS is super tasty on pita bread. It is also good on crackers or used as a spread on sandwiches.
I have started making my own pita bread lately, which we enjoy. Recipe to come.

Cheesey Tortilla Soup

2011-03-04T18:48:00.000-08:00

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

3 cups chicken broth

1 cup milk (I use whole milk.... because we have plenty of it in our house)

8 oz. Velveeta process cheese food - cubed

*the recipe called for a can of diced tomatoes with chilies. we wanted it to taste more fresh, so we didn't use that and instead we used:

                    a 4 oz. can of chopped green chilies (I can't remember if I used the whole thing or just half of it.... probably fine either way)

                   chopped fresh tomatoes,
                   bell peppers,
                  and green onions.

(Or you could just have those things on the side for toppings if some people you are cooking for don't like a bunch of fresh veg in their soup.)

2 cups cooked, shredded chicken

1 1/2 tsp. cumin

1 ½ tsp. chili powder

salt and pepper – to taste

Optional: 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
flour tortillas – as needed, about 4 - 6

For toppings:
shredded Colby Jack cheese OR Mexican blend cheese
optional: cilantro and extra green onion, peppers, and tomatoes

In a pot, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour and cook, stirring often, for 3 minutes.

-Slowly whisk in small amounts of chicken broth at a time, then whisk in milk.

-Reduce heat to low and stir in Velveeta cubes and spices; stir until melted.

-Stir in canned chilies, chicken, and veggies (and black beans, if using).

-Once soup is heated through and veggies are cooked to your liking, it is ready to serve.

However, if you wish to make tortilla strips, it can sit over low heat while they are made (and the flavors will probably meld together more). Stir the soup occasionally.

(I just cut the uncooked flour tortillas in strips and bake them in a 400 degree oven until crispy. You could fry them if you want.)

Put soup in bowl and top with shredded cheese, tortilla strips, and extra green onion and other veggies if desired.

Pumpkin Cookies

2010-12-22T08:49:00.000-08:00

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup canned pumpkin (or fresh, cooked, pureed pumpkin)

2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup chocolate chips
optional: raisins, nuts, other dried fruits
PREHEAT OVEN TO 375

Cream together the sugar and shortening. Add the pumpkin. Mix dry ingredients well in seperate bowl and then add to the rest of the mixture. (I admit, I don't alway mix them in a seperate bowl, but the main thing is that you want to make sure the baking soda and powder and stuff are well distributed and don't just end up all clumped up in one cookie or something.... yuck...).

Now, here's where you can get creative. Add in your mix-ins to your liking. My last few batches have consisted of chocolate chips, dried blueberries, AND cashews or walnuts/pecans (whichever nut I had available). You can mix and match however you want! i am pretty sure my last ones were at least 1/2 mix-ins!

Once everything is well mixed, spoon into mounds on a greased cookie sheet. I usually use two spoons to help me do the job.

Bake for 10 -15 minutes, until cooked through. The time is going to vary depending on your oven, the size you made your cookies, the pan you use, etc. So, check them at 10 minutes. They should start to brown a little on the bottom and should not look doughy in the middle. I like my pumpkin cookies soft though, so DON'T OVERCOOK THEM (at least not if you are making them for me... haha. just kidding....).

TIP: If you want to have dough ready to bake at any time, make a large batch of the dough, and freeze some of it! Form the dough into a logs on pieces of plastic wrap. Wrap tightly then put in a large zip top bag and put in the freezer! When you are ready for cookies another day, pull out a log of dough, unwrap, cut into thick slices and bake! You may have to adjust the baking time since they will be frozen. Might even want to turn down the over just a little so the bottoms don't get too brown before the middle is done.

Chile Verde anyone?

2010-11-01T10:38:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

Olive oil

5 cups diced onion

1/2 cup chopped garlic

5 pounds pork shoulder, cubed

1 quart chicken broth

15 to 20 Anaheim peppers

12 to 15 tomatillos

(FOR A NICE SHORTCUT, YOU CAN JUST USE CANNED GREEN CHILES AND CANNED WHOLE TOMATILLOS. IF DOING THIS, USE FOUR 7OZ CANS OF DICED GREEN CHILIES AND THEN HOWEVER MANY CANS OF WHOLE TOMATILLOS IT TAKES TO GET 12 TO 15 TOMATILLOS. IT IS GOING TO DEPEND WHAT SIZE OF CANS ARE AVAILABLE AT YOUR GROCERY STORE. I HAVE USED THE CONTENTS OF A 28OZ CAN AND THAT WAS PERFECT.)

3 tablespoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon dried oregano leaves (Mexican oregano if you have it)

1 teaspoon ground coriander

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 cup corn flour (NOT THE SAME as corn meal! Corn flour is also called Masa. It is most likely going to be down the ethnic food isle with the rest of the hispanic food.)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (if using fresh chiles and/or tomatillos).

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add 1/4 cup of olive oil. Stir in the onion and garlic and cook until soft. Remove from heat and set aside.

Place the pork shoulder in a large heavy bottomed pot, coated with oil, over medium heat and sear until well browned on all sides. Deglaze with the chicken broth, and then add sauteed onions and garlic. Turn heat to low, cover and let it simmer for 10 minutes.

(ok, now if you are using the canned chilies and tomatillos, skip the green instructions below.)

Meanwhile, place the Anaheim peppers on a sheet pan.

Peel the outer paper skins off the tomatillos, then coat with olive oil and place on another sheet pan. Place both pans in the preheated oven and roast until the peppers are nicely charred and the tomatillos are soft, about 20 minutes.

Remove pans from the oven and place the peppers in a plastic bag to let them steam for 5 minutes.

Peel and seed peppers.

Puree the peppers and tomatillos (drain the tomatillos! don't use the liquid) in a food processor. Add the puree to the pork mixture, stir, and then let simmer on low heat.

Combine the garlic powder, black pepper, ground cumin, oregano, ground coriander and salt in a small bowl, then add to pork mixture and stir well.

In a small saute pan, mix 1/2 cup olive oil (I have used less oil before... maybe 1/4 cup? Try it and see.) with the corn flour, stirring over low heat for 2 minutes to make a masa roux.

Let the chili mixture simmer for approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hours on medium-low heat, or until pork is nice and tender. Then stir in masa roux and simmer for 10 more minutes. The roux should work as a thickening agent.

SERVE THIS UP WITH SOME BEANS, RICE, SHREDDED LETTUCE AND TOMATOES, AND TORTILLAS. MAKE INTO A BURRITO OR JUST EAT IT WITH A FORK AND HAVE TORTILLAS ON THE SIDE.

DELICIOSO!

Slush

2010-11-01T10:19:00.000-07:00

With the holidays approaching, it is time to start thinking about some of those recipes that, in my family, no holiday season would be complete without!

How about a holiday slush?

6 cups water

4 cups sugar

Boil and cool

Add:

1 12 oz can frozen orange juice (not diluted)

1 large can pineapple juice

juice of 2 lemons

5 mashed bananas (optional)

Pour into containers with lids. Freeze solid and thaw slightly to serve. When serving, I usually scrape some out with a fork (to help get it to a slushy stage) then put it in a cup. Pour a little carbonated beverage into it-- lemon lime soda, or Fresca, or... whatever citrus-y soda. We like Fresca at our house. Slush together with a fork so it is one homogenous, slushy mixture! You can add as little or as much soda as you like, according to your preference.

(Obviously, you could also slush a bunch of it in a punch bowl if you are doing it for a party or something. We usually just let people dish up their own individual servings when it is just our family.)

Oven Beef Stew

2010-10-11T07:14:00.000-07:00

This is a classic comfort food for me. We had it often in my home growing up. I don't make it all that often-- somehow I always forget about it-- but when I do make it, it feels like "home."

2 lbs beef stew meat chunks
4 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
4 large carrots, sliced
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 8oz. can tomato sauce
1 package dry onion soup mix (ie. Liptons)

Place all ingredients in large oven safe pot in order listed.
Add 1 soup can full of water.
Cover and cook in oven 6-8 hours @ 250 degrees

Raspberry Buttercream Frosting

2010-10-09T19:43:00.000-07:00

MMmmmmmm..... My friend Stephanie brought some delicious cupcakes with raspberry frosting to a little get together we had while I was out in Utah this summer. This inspired me to look for a recipe. I ended up using this frosting on top of little "cupbrownies" at Robby's birthday party we had in Utah. (I prefer brownies over cake, and thought it would be fun to make little cupcakes out of brownies.... just poured chewy/fudge brownie batter into muffin tins with the cupcake papers and baked them up.) They were cute and soooo tasty!

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup fresh raspberries

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 (16-oz.) package powdered sugar

Preparation

1. Beat first 4 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.

2. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until blended and smooth after each addition.

I usually end up adding MORE raspberries than it calls for. I just blend in a little more at a time at the end until it tastes how I want it.

Note: Be sure to wash and thoroughly dry raspberries before adding to frosting.

Banana, Walnut, Coconut, Granola Muffins!

2010-10-09T19:31:00.000-07:00

This recipe is one of Ina Garten's (from Food Network). She actually calls them "Banana Crunch Muffins," but I prefer the more lengthy descriptive name I gave them. haha. These are sooooo good.

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 pound unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2 large eggs

3/4 cup whole milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 bananas)

1 cup medium-diced ripe bananas (1 banana)

1 cup small-diced walnuts

1 cup granola

1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Extra granola or shredded coconut, optional

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Line muffin tin with paper liners. Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the melted butter and blend. Combine the eggs, milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas in a seperate bowl, and then add them to the flour-and-butter mixture. Scrape the bowl and blend until mixture just comes together, but DON'T OVERMIX!

Fold the diced bananas, walnuts, granola, and coconut into the batter. Spoon the batter into the paper liners, filling each one to the top. Top each muffin with granola or coconut, if desired. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly, remove from the pan, and serve.

Orange Soy Chicken

2010-08-24T07:54:00.000-07:00

recipe by emeril lagasse (foodnetwork)

This marinade is yummy. I like to set some extra aside and use it for dipping the chicken in or for drizzling on the chicken after it is cooked. Obviously, don't reuse any of the stuff you marinate the chicken in though.

Ingredients

1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (or non-freshly-squeezed works)

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons orange zest (if you don't use a fresh orange, then you can omit this OR what I did one time was put in lime zest, because I happened to have limes sitting around. The zest of citrus fruits has TONS of flavor, so I recommend adding it (whether orange or lime) if you can)

4 (6-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

4 teaspoons olive oil

Directions

Set a 1-quart saucepan over medium-high heat and add the orange juice, soy sauce, sugar and orange zest. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, and cook until liquid is reduced to about 3/4 cup, about 20 minutes (Keep an eye on it! If it boils over it makes a HUGE mess...not that I ever did that....ok... so I did...). Remove the glaze from the heat, reserve 1/4 cup separately, and then pour the remaining glaze over the chicken breasts in a re-sealable plastic food storage bag. Refrigerate the chicken breasts for 2 hours; remove from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature for 30 minutes before grilling.

Remove the chicken from the plastic bag and discard the marinade. Season the chicken on both sides with the salt and pepper and drizzle with the olive oil.

(The following is Emeril's instructions of how to grill it. I don't get that technical-- with the rotating 45 degrees, etc.-- but, cook it however you want. Grill, oven, etc.)

Place the chicken, smooth side down, on the grill and cook for 4 minutes, rotate 45 degrees and cook an additional 4 minutes. Turn the chicken over, brush each breast with 1 tablespoon of the reserved glaze, and cook for another 4 minutes on the second side, or until just cooked through. Remove from the heat and serve.

Carino's Italian Nachos

2010-03-31T09:25:00.000-07:00

I know.... sounds strange... Italian nachos? But if you've ever been to Carino's (formerly Johnny Carino's) and ordered their Italian Nachos appetizer, you know they are SOOOO tasty! Seriously....

So, why not make them at home?

All I did in my attempts to recreate this masterpiece was first, look at the description of Carino's Italian Nachos on their online menu:

"Crispy pasta chips, Italian sausage, and/or chicken, olives, pepperoncinis, tomatoes, jalapeños, alfredo, mozzarella and parmesan cheese"

Cristpy pasta chips.... hmmm.... after searching the store for fresh pasta sheets (with no success) I thought of something else I had that I could substitute. Uncooked flour tortillas-- no not just your ordinary package of tortillas, but uncooked, flattened, rounds of dough ready to be cooked into tortillas. In Utah you can buy these at most grocery stores, and definitely at Costco. When I moved out to Ohio I was devastated to find that they did not carry them in the Costco here. Over the past year and a half I have been bringing them with me from Utah when I go to visit! BUT, don't worry... any of you Ohioans.... you aren't out of luck. When I went to Costco here last month, I saw that they had FINALLY decided to order them!!!! Hooray!

So, here is what I do:

If you like deep frying stuff, you can go ahead and deep fry some chips. However, for the sake of 1) less mess and 2) a healthier alternative, I just bake them instead.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Stack up a few tortillas . Poke several holes in the tortillas with a fork (so that the chips don’t puff up and become all hollow when you bake them).

Use a pizza cutter (or a knife) to cut 8 wedges out of each tortilla. (like you’re cutting a pizza)

Separate all the triangles. Toss all the “chips” in olive oil until they are all lightly coated

OR after putting them in a single layer on a pan, spray them with olive oil spray.
OR..... now that I think of it.... it would probably be easy to just brush the tortillas with the oil BEFORE you cut them..... hmmm..... why have I never thought of that before?

Put chips in single layer on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle lightly with salt if desired.

Put in oven for 4 to 6 minutes, until lightly golden brown. Keep an eye on them! They are done when they are crisp like a chip :) Use your judgement.

You may have to do a few batches, depending how many chips you want.

Italian Sausage
This is NOT the same as breakfast sausage. Make sure it says ITALIAN sausage. You can usually find it by the other ground meats. We use hot, but you can use mild if you don't like things too hot. If you can't find just a package of ground italian sausage, you can buy the uncooked Italian sausage links, and just remove the casings off the sausage links.
Brown and break up the sausage in a skillet.

Alfredo Sauce-- store bought or homemade

Tomatoes chopped

Green onion chopped

Sliced olives

Canned sliced jalapenos and/or pepperoncinis (we usually just use jalapenos)

Shredded Mozzarella cheese

Shredded parmesan cheese

Fresh basil chopped

Layer on baking sheet-- chips, sausage, alfredo sauce, veggies, then top with shredded cheeses.

Place in the oven just until cheeses melt.

Top with fresh basil and devour!!!!!

Usually I end up serving a little extra alfredo sauce on the side, in case there wasn't quite enough on the nachos to begin with.

"Moose Munch" (Caramel/Toffee Popcorn)

2010-03-28T13:07:00.000-07:00

Thats right folks. Moose Munch. Moose Munch is the name of a gourmet toffee popcorn sold by Harry and David (known for their delicious fruits, confections, and other gourmet food gifts). It is quite delicious. But, believe me.... making it at home will save you TONS of money! Plus, all your friends will love you IF you decide to share it.

First, you'll need about 5-6 quarts of popcorn. You could either air pop some if you have a popper. Or, if not, use the 94% Fat Free microwave popcorn. About 2 bags should do the trick (depending on how coated you want your popcorn, you could always do another half a bag or more. Personally, I am a fan of lots of caramel/toffee).

You'll want to make sure your popcorn is popped and ready. I recommend you pop it and then shake the bowl a bit to get all the unpopped kernels to go to the bottom, then carefully scoop all the popcorn into a very large bowl, leaving the unpopped kernels behind. Believe me, you don't want to bite into a caramel covered kernel unexpectedly..... Oh, and let me emphasize the words VERY LARGE BOWL. The larger the bowl, the easier it will be to stir the popcorn to coat it in caramel when the time comes. Otherwise, the popcorn doesn't seem to stay in the bowl very well.

To make the caramel/toffee you will need:

2 sticks of butter

2 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup dark corn syrup

1 tsp salt

Stir together in a pot on the stove, melt, and bring to a boil. Allow to boil for 5 minutes. You don't need to stir it or anything while it boils.

While it is boiling, make sure you have your popcorn is waiting for you and have your vanilla and baking soda prepared as well (measurements below).

Also, turn your oven on to 200 degrees.

After 5 minutes of boiling, remove from the heat and stir in:

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda (make sure there aren't any clumps)

Make sure it is well mixed in.Then, pour the caramel mixture over your popcorn. Use a large wooden spoon to carefully stir the popcorn, coating it in the caramel. Stir, stir, stir, scraping the caramel off the bowl to make sure you get all of its goodness onto your popcorn.

Spread the popcorn onto two cookie sheets. Place in the oven. Bake for 1 hour total. Halfway through, turn the popcorn with a spatula and stir it around a bit. (You might also want to rotate your cookie sheets if you have them on two separate racks.)

Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Once the popcorn is cooled, you just break it apart and store it in an air tight container!

VARIATIONS:

There are plenty of fun and tasty ways you can add to this basic recipe.

Want your popcorn CHOCOLATE coated as well? Melt some chocolate chips and then drizzle (or pour it... depending on how coated you want it!) the chocolate over the popcorn when it is partially cooled, then allow to cool and harden. You could use dark chocolate, semisweet, milk, white..... whatever you like! Have fun with it!

Are you a NUT lover? Try adding any combination of nuts to the popcorn BEFORE you pour the caramel over it. Then, mix the popcorn, nuts, and caramel and bake in the oven just as directed above. Almonds, peanuts, pecans, cashews........... nuts anyone?

Chicken Pot Pie

2009-10-19T10:44:00.000-07:00

As the fall season rushes by too quickly and winter looms in the close future... I begin to turn more to the comfort that food brings. Theres nothing like a good, hot bowl of soup.

Or how about a good ol' chicken pot pie?

Filling
2 cups water
14 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breasts,
cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 carrots, peeled and cubed (about 1 cup)
2 ribs celery, sliced (about 1 cup)
1 medium onion, chopped (about 3/4 cup)
2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup butter
4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup frozen peas

For the crust you've got a few options.... you could buy some frozen puff pastry or pie crust or you could make your own basic pie crust. Or, you could try this simple pie crust recipe! I thought it was the perfect texture and taste to top off this tasty pot pie!!!

For the crust:

1 stick butter, cut into pea-size pieces
1 (8-ounce) container cream cheese, cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for kneading
Pinch kosher salt
1 egg yolk
1 to 2 tablespoons cold water

Egg Wash: 1 egg beaten with 2 tablespoons of water

To make the crust:

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the butter, cream cheese, flour and salt. Pulse to combine. Pulse, pulse, pulse until the ingredients start to come together and resembles Parmesan. Add the egg yolk and 1 tablespoon of water. Pulse a couple of more times until the ingredients start to form a ball. If the mixture is exceedingly wet, add some more flour. Or conversely, if the mix is dry, dry, dry, add in a few more drops of water.

When the mixture has come together into a ball, turn it out onto a floured work surface and knead it a couple of times to help it come together. Dust it with flour, form it into a disk and wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until ready to use. This can be done a day ahead.

Cook's Note: When ready to use the dough, remove it from the refrigerator about 20 minutes before rolling, to allow it to warm up and soften.

To make the filling:

In 4-quart saucepan combine water, chicken, carrots, celery and onion. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chicken bouillon, pepper and butter. Dissolve cornstarch and flour into whipping cream and stir into chicken mixture. Simmer 3 minutes stirring frequently until thickened. Add peas and set aside.

Making the Pie:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Using this crust recipe, I made my pie with only a top crust. If you use a different, basic crust recipe, you could do a top and bottom crust if you want. (It might even work to do a bottom crust with this recipe as well, I just didn't want a bottom crust.)

You can use little ramekins or casserole dishes if you want to make individual pot pies. I used a 8x8 glass baking dish and that was about the perfect size for the amount of filling.

Dust a clean work surface with flour and roll the dough into the shape of the casserole dish or large enough to cut circles to cover the individual casserole dishes. (For my 8x8 dish, I think I used just over half of the dough.) Whichever dishes are being used the dough needs to have generous overhang of dough on the edges of the dish. Pour the filling into the dish/dishes. Brush the outside edges of the dish with a little of the egg wash to help "glue" the dough to sides of the dish. Fold the edges of the dough under and press it onto the edges of the dish. Brush the top of the dough with the remaining egg wash. Cut a couple of vents in the top of the dough to allow the steam to escape.

Bake in the preheated oven until the dough is golden brown and the inside is hot and bubbly, about 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven. Allow to cool for 10 minutes or so then serve!

Chicken Mole Poblano

2009-10-07T10:00:00.000-07:00

I know that this seems like a strange combination of ingredients....but, don't be scared!

3 tbs. olive oil

1 1/2 pounds chicken, cut into large chunks

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 hot dried red chili, such as chipotle, OR 2 milder dried chilies, such as ancho, reconstituted (soaked in hot water) and then finely chopped

1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

1 tbsp chopped almonds

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp ground cloves

3 tomatoes, chopped (I've also used canned tomatoes before)

2 tbsp raisins

1 1/2 cups chicken stock or broth

1 tbsp. peanut butter

1 oz bittersweet chocolate with a high cocoa content
1/2 tsp chili powder

1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (You probably want to wait on this until you see how much heat the dried peppers give off.... you can add this near the end if it needs more heat).

1) Heat oil in a large skillet. Add chicken and cook until browned on all sides. Remove the chicken pieces and set aside.

2) Add the onion, garlic, and chilies and cook for 5 minutes, or until softened. Add the sesame seeds, almonds, and spices and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. A

dd the tomatoes, raisins, stock, peanut butter, and chocolate and stir well. Season to taste with salt and pepper and let simmer for 5 minutes.

3)Transfer the mixture to a food processor or blender and process until smooth (you may need to do this in batches).

4)Return the mixture to the skillet, add the chicken, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for one hour, or until chicken is very tender, adding more liquid if necessary.

5) Garnish with sesame seeds and a little grated chocolate. Serve with Spicy Rice, beans and tortillas.

Apple Butter

2009-10-07T06:30:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Betty Crocker, we were able to use up some of our apples with this simple recipe!

No idea what this stuff is???? Well, here's what Betty Crocker has to say:

"Even though this thick mixture has no butter, its name comes from the fact that it spreads like butter. Spread your favorite bagel with cream cheese and spicy apple butter. Use it instead of butter on hot toast, English muffins, or freshly baked biscuits or scones. Or spoon it on top of a stack of hot pancakes or waffles, and sprinkle with toasted pecans."

This recipe will make 4 cups of apple butter. I halved it when I made it because it's just me and Steve and it only lasts 3 weeks in the fridge, but make the whole thing if you think you'll go through it... or give some to a friend! Or... I wonder if it would freeze well.....

12 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled, ,cored, and cut into fourths

1 1/2 cups packed dark or light brown sugar

1/2 cup apple juice

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1) Mix all ingredients in crock pot/slow cooker.

2)Cover and cook on low heat 8 to 10 hours or until apples are very tender

3)Mash apples with potato masher or large fork.

4)Cook uncovered on low heat for 1 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until mixture is very thick. Cool about 2 hours.

5)Spoon apple butter into container. Cover and store in refrigerator up to 3 weeks.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

2009-10-03T07:05:00.000-07:00

PREP TIME

Sauce

1/3 cup ketchup

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup white vinegar (I actually use seasoned rice vinegar)

1/4 cup chicken broth

2 teaspoons mustard (It calls for just regular yellow mustard, but this last time I used Chinese hot mustard because thats all I had, and it turned out great)

1-2 tablespoons fresh grated ginger

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

MIX ALL THE SAUCE INGREDIENTS AN HOUR OR SO BEFORE COOKING AND SET ASIDE TO ALLOW THE FLAVORS TO MARRY.

Chicken

2 large whole boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 cups cornstarch

2 eggs

1 tablespoon water

1 tablespoon oil

SEVERAL HOURS BEFORE COOKING TIME (I've actually done this step only within an hour of cooking, and it turned out fine...but probably better to let it sit longer I guess.) CUT AND SALT THE CHICKEN (a little less than a tsp of salt). PUT THE CHICKEN IN A BOWL, ADD 2 TABLESPOONS CORNSTARCH AND MASSAGE INTO MEAT. COVER AND SET IN REFRIGERATOR.

Rice

........cook some rice.....

Optional:

I like to saute up some onions and peppers to eat with this. Or you can just add green onions. Or no veggies at all if you don't like that sort of thing.

COOKING

When you're ready to cook, mix the eggs, water, and oil. Put the chicken chunks in the mixture then transfer the nuggets to the 2 cups of cornstarch. Let them sit in the cornstarch while you heat oil for frying. Oil should be 375-380 degrees-- should see a little smoke before putting the nuggets in to fry. DISCLAIMER: Be careful! A friend of mine ended up with fire in their pan when making this... don't let the oil get TOO hot! You don't want it majorly smoking! (I don't usually deep deep fry... just because I don't want to use up all my oil... so I usually just put in maybe an inch of oil, so they still get fried, I just have to flip them over to get the other side. It works just fine for me. But, if you have a deep fryer, go for it!) Add nuggets to the oil. Might have to do them in batches so you don't overcrowd the oil and make the temperature drop. Fry until the outside is crispy and the inside is cooked. Remove and let drain on a plate lined with paper towels.

When you're ready to heat the sauce, first mix one tablespoon of cornstarch with a tablespoon of water in a small dish and set aside. Put the sauce into a pan on the stove to heat. Add the cornstarch mixture within the first minute and stir it well to incorporate. As the sauce heats it will thicken! Once it is to your desired thickness, it is ready to serve.

You can dump all the chicken nuggets in and coat them with the sauce if you are going to be eating it all right away. I usually make extra for left overs, so we just mix up our own portions as we take them, that way the chicken won't get all soggy before I eat it the next day.

Mmmm. mmmmmm...... ENJOY!

Cream Cheese Apple Crisp

2009-09-21T10:38:00.000-07:00

This, my friends.... is delicious......

It's almost like an apple cheese cake with streusel topping..... mmmmmmmmmm......

Topping

1 1/2 Cups quick cooking oatmeal

1 1/3 Cups flour

1 Cup packed brown sugar

2 tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 Cup butter, chilled & cut up

Apples

6 Cups peeled, chopped Granny Smith Apples

1/3 Cup sugar

2 tbsp flour

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

Filling

1 8 oz pkg cream cheese softened

1/2 Cup sugar

2 eggs

2 Tbsp flour

2 Tbsp milk

Heat oven to 350. In large bowl stir together oatmeal, flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Press half the mixture in the bottom of 13x9 inch glass baking dish; reserve remaining mixture for topping.

In large bowl toss together all apple ingredients until apples are coated. Spread over crust.

In large bowl beat cream cheese and sugar at medium speed until smooth. Add eggs, flour & milk; beat until combined. Spread over apple mixture; sprinkle with reserved oatmeal mixture.

Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown & apples are tender. Cool on wire rack.

Spicy Ranch Dressing

2009-05-20T17:38:00.000-07:00

Blend the following ingredients in a blender

or food processor:

1 1/3 cups sour cream

3/4 cup mayonaise

1/2 bunch of cilantro

1 package ranch dressing mix

Salsa verde (you can buy little 7 oz cans of this. the recipe

only called for 4  Tablespoons, but we added more. I think

we ended up using about 3/4 of the can.  Pretty much

just add it to taste.... I think I added the whole

can once......)

2 cloves garlic

Juice of 1/2 to 1 lime

1/8 tsp Tabasco sauce OR add slices of fresh jalapeno

until you reach the desired heat

Barbeque Chicken Salad

2009-05-20T16:59:00.000-07:00

Last time I was out in Utah I went to California Pizza Kitchen for the first time. My sister in law suggested I try the barbeque chicken salad and she raved about how good it is. And boy was it good! Since then I found a recipe online and have made it nearly every week for the past month. Steve and I love it!

This is the recipe I went off of, but I honestly don't measure anything. I just add as much of each thing as I like!

-1/2 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
-1/2 head romaine lettuce leaves -- chopped
-12 large fresh basil leaves cut into thin strips
-1 pound jicama -- cut into thin strips or small cubes
-2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
-1 cup canned black beans -- rinsed and drained
-1 cup sweet white corn kernels (I like fresh corn off the cob... just stick the corn cob in the microwave for a minute so it is slightly cooked, then cut the kernels off the cob. Or I guess you could use canned corn or frozen corn.....)
-3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
-2 pounds ripe fresh tomatoes -- diced
-1/2 cup good quality bottled sweet and spicy barbecue sauce (or whatever kind of barbeque sauce you like)
-1/4 cup thinly sliced scallion greens (green onions)

-Avocados, chopped (these aren't actually in the recipe, but at the restaurant we had the option of adding avocado and we did. I love avocado.)

For the chicken, I go the super easy/quick route and just chop up some chicken breasts, then cook them in a skillet. Then I toss it all in barbeque sauce. Or, you can add oil and garlic to the pan that you cook the chicken in. However you cook it, in the end you just need chicken coated in barbeque sauce!

The dressing is some garden herb ranch dressing. I didn't actually make that, I ended up just mixing fat free sour cream with a packet of Hidden Valley ranch mix. That way the dressing is fat free and I feel like I can eat TONS of the salad! You could also just use regular bottled ranch if that's what you have on hand. Or one time I ended up using this spicy ranch that I had made for a previous meal, because I already had that in the fridge (I will post that recipe as well... stay tuned).

The recipe also calls for fried tortilla strips. I never felt like going through the effort of making those, so I never did. But, a friend of mine said she made a more healthy alternative by salting and baking wonton wrappers.

Okay, now here's how you put the salad together:

In a large mixing bowl, toss together the lettuces, basil, jicama, Monterey Jack cheese, beans, corn, cilantro, and ranch dressing. Transfer the salads to chilled serving plates. Surround each salad with diced tomatoes (and tortilla strips if you are using them). Top each salad with chunks of Grilled Garlic BBQ Chicken and drizzle the chicken with the barbecue sauce. Garnish with the scallion.

Or, if you don't want to be fancy, just mix everything together except the chicken, then top with the chicken and barbeque sauce.

Sooooo good... you know you want some......

Focaccia Breadsticks

2009-04-27T10:34:00.000-07:00

I made these breadsticks for the first time last week. We were having Cajun Chicken Alfredo and I wanted to try something besides just regular breadsticks. These turned out well and I thought they were very tasty! I actually got the recipe out of my Betty Crocker cookbook. They suggest serving them with a bit of olive oil and shredded Parmesan for dipping. I did try that and it was good. But, of course if you've got your homemade alfredo sauce.... might as well let them take a dip in that!

_ 2 1/2 to 3 cups all-purpose or bread flour
_2 tablespoons chopped fresh or 1 tbsp dried rosemary leaves, crumbled
_ 1 tablespoon sugar
_ 1 teaspoon salt
_ 1 package regular or quick active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
_ 3 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
_ 1 cup warm water
_ grated Parmesan cheese

1. Mix 1 cup of the flour, the rosemary, sugar, salt and yeast in large bowl. Add 3 tablespoons oil and the warm water. Beat with electric mixer (or stand mixer... I use my kitchen aid) on medium speed 3 minutes, scraping bowl frequently. Stir in enough remaining flour until dough is soft and leaves sides of bowl.

2. Place dough on lightly floured surface. Knead 5 to 8 minutes or until dough is smooth and springy(I just let my kitchen aid do the kneading for me with the kneading hook....). Place dough in large bowl greased with shortening, turning dough to grease all sides. Cover bowl loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in warm place about 30 minutes or until almost double. Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.

3. Grease 2 cookie sheets with shortening or oil.

4. Divide dough into 12 equal pieces (who cares if they aren't perfectly equal...). Roll and shape each piece into 9 to 12-inch rope, sprinkling with flour if dough is too sticky. Place 1/2 inch apart on cookie sheets.

5. Lightly brush the top of each bread stick with olive oil.Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.

6. Heat oven to 425 degrees.

7. Cover breadsticks loosely with plastic wrap or a towel and let rise in warm place about 20 minutes or until almost double.

8. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Homemade Coconut Ice Cream

2009-04-25T15:44:00.000-07:00

A simple, easy, but tasty alternative to your normal vanilla.

2 cups heavy or whipping cream
3/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup half-and-half

1 can (15 ounces) coconut cream or coconut milk (sometimes I can't find coconut cream at the grocery store... but coconut milk is usually there in the asian section of your grocery store)

Pour the cream into a mixing bowl. Whisk in the sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute more. Pour in the half-and-half and coconut milk and whisk to blend.
Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze following the manufacturer's instructions.

Top ice cream with toasted coconut and fresh diced mango.

YUUUUMMMMYYYY!

Lettuce Wraps (like at PF Changs....mmmmmm)

2009-04-25T15:31:00.000-07:00

(Disclaimer: I didn't take this picture, nor do I know if it is an actual picture of PF Changs Lettuce Wraps.... but, I took no pictures, therefore this will have to do)

COOKING SAUCE:
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce (you should be able to get this in the Asian section at your grocery store)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine for cooking (if you don't have it, substitue with chicken broth or some other cooking wine. Or, if you really want, just leave it out)
2 tablespoons oyster sauce (Sometimes it will say "oyster flavored sauce." Same thing. Also should be found in the Asian section of your grocery store)
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon sesame oil (Asian section of your grocery store)
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch

MARINADE:
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons cooking rice wine (if you don't have access to this, you can use any type of cooking wine.... or you can just leave it out)

2 teaspoons water
2 teaspoons soy sauce

FILLING INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced very small
5 tablespoons vegetable oil or peanut oil
1 teaspoon minced or grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
1/2 cup green onions, minced
1 cup shiitake mushrooms, minced (you can really use any type of mushrooms if you don't have access to shiitakes.)
1 (8 ounce) can bamboo shoots, minced
1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts, minced
1 (6 ounce) package chinese cellophane noodles, cooked to pkg. directions (I have yet to actually do the cellophane noodles yet... I always forget....I think they are perfectly good without)
Iceburg lettuce leaves, washed and taken off the head but left whole

FOR DIPPING SAUCES(optional):

soy sauce

rice vinegar

hoisin sauce

chinese hot mustard (Asian section of grocery store)

chili paste or chili garlic paste (ditto)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1) Mix all ingredients for "cooking sauce" and set aside.

2) In medium bowl, combine marinade ingredients and mix well. Add chicken and stir to coat thoroughly. Stir in 1 t. oil and let sit for 15 minutes.

3) Heat wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 3 T. oil, then add chicken and stir-fry for about 3-4 minutes. Set aside.

4) Add 2 T. oil to the pan. Add ginger, garlic, and onion and stir-fry for a minute or so. Add mushrooms, bamboo shoots and water chestnuts and stir-fry an additional 2 minutes. Return chicken to the pan. Add mixed cooking sauce to the pan. Cook until thickened and hot.

5) Break cooked cellophane noodles into small pieces and cover bottom of serving dish with them. Then pour chicken mixture on top of noodles. Serve along side lettuce leaves for everyone to take what they want, and then spoon into lettuce leaf and roll (like a burrito) individually themselves.

6) If you want to do dipping sauce, place all the dipping sauce ingredients out on the table. Give each person a small dish or plate and allow everyone to mix their own sauce to their own liking! The sauce can either be drizzled onto the contents of your lettuce wrap, or you can dip your lettuce wrap into it.

ENJOY!!!!

Still Alive!

2009-02-13T20:09:00.000-08:00

I know... it has been since NOVEMBER since I last posted a recipe!!!

Did I die?

No.

Did I temporarily lose my passion for food???

...Unfortunately... Yes.

Due to the sickness brought on by the early months of pregnancy, I had no desire to cook or even EAT for that matter.... Depressing, I know. Especially coming from someone who LOVES food as much as I do!

But, good news.... my appetite is returning and my taste buds are ready for more!

So, watch for new recipes to come soon....

Just to give you an idea of what to look forward to.....:

~Lettuce Wraps (like from PF Chang's)

~Chicken Mole Poblano

~Homemade Marshmallows

~...and more!

Stay tuned!

Caramel Apples

2008-11-21T18:01:00.001-08:00

First, you want to get your apples ready for dipping. Rinse a bunch of granny smith apples. These work best because they are tart and crisp. Make sure the apples are fully dry after rinsing. Remove the stems from the apples (just twist them off). Then, insert the stick where the stem was! You can use little craft sticks, popsicle sticks, or I've even used chopsticks before!

Get a tray or cookie sheet of some sort out and butter it or non-stick spray it well! You don't want the apples to stick.

Now, to make the caramel.

Caramel:

*1 lb. brown sugar--

light or dark brown (I've used both, but now I usually use dark just because the caramel turns out... darker and looks pretty)

*1 cup light corn syrup

*1 cup butter

*14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk

Cook the brown sugar, corn syrup, and butter in a large pot until it boils. Add the can of sweetened condensed milk. Stir constantly and cook until reaches between soft and firm ball stage (between 235 and 250 degrees F on candy thermometer). The longer you cook it, the harder/chewier it will be, so it depends what you want. *DISCLAIMER! NOT ALL CANDY THERMOMETERS ARE ACCURATE....... unfortunately the past two times I've relied soley on a candy thermometer...I have realized that the thermometer isn't working and the caramel is so hard you can't even eat it!

So, my suggestion is.......

Do the cold water test!

Drop a small spoonful of the hot liquid into a cup of cold water. Reach into the cold water and grab out the caramel mixture. If you can't pick it up because it is too runny, you know you aren't there yet. Let it cook longer and try again in a bit. Here is what you are looking for.... Something between Soft and Firm-Ball Stage.

(Here is what the stages should feel like, just so you know when you're getting close)

Soft-Ball Stage 235° F–240° F
"At this temperature, sugar syrup dropped into cold water will form a soft, flexible ball. If you remove the ball from water, it will flatten like a pancake after a few moments in your hand.Fudge, pralines, and fondant are made by cooking ingredients to the soft-ball stage."

Firm-Ball Stage245° F–250°

"Drop a little of this syrup in cold water and it will form a firm ball, one that won’t flatten when you take it out of the water, but remains malleable and will flatten when squeezed. Caramels are cooked to the firm-ball stage."

Alright, once your caramel is the desired consistency, quickly pour it into a deep glass bowl. Now, you are ready to dip!

The sooner you dip the apples, the thinner your layer of caramel is going to be, because it will be more hot and will run off. If you let it set for like... a minute then start dipping, you'll get more caramel on there. It's really up to you. Of course, once it cools off too much, it gets so thick in the bowl that it is hard to dip the apples very well. If this happens, you can stick the bowl into the microwave for a few seconds to thin it out a little bit, then continue dipping.

For the best dipping coverage and smoothness, grab the stick, put the apple into the caramel at an angle, and turn it to cover it with caramel! Once it is fully covered to your liking, hold the stick strait up over the bowl so any excess caramel can drip into the bowl. Then, place the apple on the prepared tray to set.

Once all your apples are covered in caramel, you can coat them in whatever you want! If you want something like nuts directly on the caramel, put the nuts on before the caramel sets. Otherwise, you'll want the caramel to cool before dipping in chocolate.

Here are other options:

Chocolate! I just melt semi-sweet chocolate chips in the microwave, then either drizzle it on the apple, or dip it. Make sure when you are melting your chocolate that you don't do it too fast.... heat it at about 30 second intervals, stirring between each heating. If you just leave it in there long enough to melt it, it will burn.

White Chocolate! I use vanilla flavored Almond Bark. This is located in the baking section of the grocery store, by the other chocolate and stuff. I use this instead of actual white chocolate because it melts well and has a great consistency for dipping.

Nuts - almonds, pecans, peanuts....

Chopped up candy bars such as Snickers,

Cinnamon and sugar (put that on top of the white chocolate while it is still wet..... very good....).

Your options are endless really. Just have fun with it! Like I said, you can either completely dip the caramel apple in chocolate, or just drizzle it on with a spoon.

Cut slices off to serve and

ENJOY!

Ginger "Snaps"

2008-09-22T19:03:00.000-07:00

These have the flavor of a ginger snap... minus the snap.... they aren't hard and crunchy like the kind you get at the store. They are chewy... and delicious! We shall call them... Ginger Chewies. These are one of my all time favorite cookies. Thanks to Whitney Muir for giving me the recipe last year! A definite keeper.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup molasses

1 egg

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon ground ginger

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

*sugar, for rolling cookies in

*I use "sugar in the raw"/turbinado sugar for rolling the cookies in. What the heck is that, you ask???? Well,

"Turbinado sugar, also known as turbinated sugar, is made from sugar cane extract. It is produced by crushing freshly cut sugar cane; the juice obtained is evaporated and then spun in a centrifuge, or turbine (thus the name), which results in the characteristic large, light brown crystals.... A popular brand name for turbinado sugar is Sugar in the Raw."

Thanks Wiki.

Anyway, I like the big sugar crystals. They add a nice texture and taste to the outside of the cookie. I just bought it at a normal grocery store.... like Walmart or something. Give it a try!

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350'

2) Cream shortening and sugar in large bowl.

3) Add molasses and egg; beat well.

4) In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Gradually add this to the shortening mixture; mix well.

5) Shape dough into 1 inch balls and roll in sugar. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

6) Bake 10-12 minutes.

7) Carefully remove from pan and allow to cool on a wire rack.

The cookies will be quite soft when you remove them from the pan, but they "harden" as they cool. If you don't take them off when they are still soft like that, they will be crunchy.... so I guess, if you want them crunchy, you can leave them on. I like them chewy.

Grandma Kirkham's Delicious Cinnamon Rolls

2008-09-20T19:31:00.000-07:00

1/2 cup Shortening
2 Eggs
1/2 cup Sugar
1 cup warmed Milk
1/2 tablespoon Salt
1 cup warm water
1 tablespoon Dry Yeast
1/2 teaspoon ground Nutmeg
1 teaspoon Vanilla
5 1/2 cups Flour
Other ingredients: Butter, cinnamon, brown sugar, raisins (optional)

Cream shortening, sugar, and salt. Add water and milk. Add yeast and let bubble. In separate bowl, beat together eggs, vanilla, and nutmeg. Add to mixture. Add flour and mix well. Cover and let rise until doubled. Put dough onto well floured surface. (The dough is going to be pretty sticky, so make sure you have plenty of flour down so it doesn't stick). Dust the dough with more flour, then roll out to a rectangle. Spread with melted butter. Put a fairly thick layer of brown sugar and dust the whole thing with cinnamon. Add raisins (optional). Roll up the dough, then slice off the rolls using a piece of string or floss.

This is how you slice with the floss (or string).

Coat the floss in flour if needed. Then slide it under the end of the roll.

(in this demo, I am using a rolled up towel and pink shoe laces.... so you can see better....)

Cross the ends over the top....

Then pull them to the sides until the floss cuts through, making a perfect roll!

Place the rolls on a greased pan.

Let rise.

Bake 10 to 15 minutes at 425 degrees.

Frost the rolls once they are cooled a bit (Frosting recipe below). These cinnamon rolls freeze really well. Just individually wrap them each up tight in plastic wrap and pop them in the freezer. When you're ready to eat one, unwrap it and put it into the microwave until warm and delicious!

Frosting
3 cups Powdered Sugar
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
1 to 2 tablespoons Milk
Mix powdered sugar and butter with electric mixer. Add vanilla and 1 tablespoon of milk. Gradually beat in just enough milk to make frosting smooth and spreadable.

Biryani

2008-09-20T17:44:00.001-07:00

Are you ready for an adventure??? Biryani is an Indian/Pakistani dish. If you've ever been to an Indian restaurant and like that type of food, you'll like this! It's not your every day chicken dish, but, come on people! Give those taste buds a little something new and exotic!

HERE'S WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

Chicken legs and thighs, on the bone but with the skin off
One large onion, sliced
3 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger
One anaheim chili pepper, sliced
1-2 tomatoes,chopped
1/2 to 1 potato chopped into 1/4 inch cubes (depends how big your potatoes are)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon chili powder
about 1/2 teaspoon salt (you can always add more later...)
6 whole cloves
1 inch of a cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
5 whole pepper corns
1 cup chicken broth
fresh mint leaves
rice

Get your rice cooking first so it will be ready. Here's what you need.

2 cups jasmine or basmati rice

4 cups chicken broth

1 inch cinnamon stick

3 whole cloves

Put those four ingredients in a rice cooker or in a pot and cook until rice is done.

Now, while the rice is cooking......

Put oil in a large saute pan or electric skillet and saute onions and potatoes until onions start to brown a little.
Add the ginger and garlic and saute.
Add the cloves, cumin seeds, cinnamon stick, turmeric powder, chili powder, salt, and whole pepper corns. Mix together.
Add chicken pieces and start to brown those up.

(I didn't let the chicken brown up enough before I added the tomatoes in the above picture....make sure you cook it a bit more first....I learned...)

Then, add tomatoes and 1/2 to 1 cup chicken broth. Start out with less. Add more as needed. If it all dries out too much before the chicken is done cooking, you'll want to add more broth. Let cook at at simmer until chicken is completely cooked and sauce is reduced. Usually, I'll cover it for a little while, then leave the lid off so the sauce can reduce. You don't want it too liquidy. Once the chicken is done, the sauce is reduced, and your rice is cooked, start adding rice in to the rest of your goods. Don't just add it all in.... add it in gradually, mixing as you go, until you appear to have a good sauce to rice ratio. If you add to much rice, you won't get much flavor. And I'm all about flavor! The rice will kind of soak up any remaining liquid and soak up all the flavors. Yummm..... Usually I add it until it looks about right, then put the rest of the rice out on the table as well, so people can add more rice to their own if they want it that way.

Before you serve it, add fresh, chopped mint leaves over the top.

Sometime we've noticed... if it tastes a little bland.... we just have to add more salt!!! It is amazing how a little more salt can just enhance all the flavors that are already there! so, make sure you've got salt out on the table.

And, there you have it. Your first, home cooked Pakistani/Indian dish!

Zuppa Toscana (as had at Olive Garden)

2008-09-19T06:33:00.000-07:00

(yeah, I stole the picture from the Olive Garden website.... whats your point?)

Ingredients

1 lb ground Italian sausage -- This is NOT the same as breakfast sausage. Make sure it says ITALIAN sausage. You can usually find it by the other ground meats. We use hot, but you can use mild if you don't like things too hot. If you can't find just a package of ground italian sausage, you can buy the uncooked Italian sausage links, and just remove the casings off the sausage links.

1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes (DON'T add this if you used the HOT sausage... it will be plenty hot already! If you used mild sausage, perhaps start out with a little less pepper flakes at first, if you're not sure how spicey you want it)

1 large diced white onion

3 pieces of bacon

2 Tablespoons finely chopped garlic

3 cans chicken broth

4 cups water

2-3 chicken bouillon cubes (You might want to add the 3rd one if the flavor isn't quite strong enough. It's up to your taste preference)

1 cup heavy cream

1 lb sliced russet OR yukon gold potatoes (I always use more potatoes than this, because the potatoes seem to melt into the soup a bit by the end, and if you don't add extra, you aren't left with many actual potato chunks at the end. Don't slice them TOO thin... this will help also.)

fresh kale, cut in small pieces
(what is kale??? take a look.... its a green leafy vegetable. you can find it at most grocery stores. You don't HAVE to add this if you are anti-green vegetables. But, it is very tasty)

Directions

1 Saute the sausage and crushed red pepper flakes (if using) in pot until mostly done. Drain excess fat, and refrigerate while you prepare the other ingredients.

2 In the same pan, cook up the bacon until crispy. Remove bacon pieces and set aside.

3 Saute onions and garlic in the bacon grease for approximately 15 minutes or until the onions are soft.

3 Add the broth, water and boullion cubes to the onions and garlic. Cook until boiling.

4 Add potatoes and cook until soft, about half an hour.

5 Add heavy cream and cook until thouroughly heated.

6 Stir in the sausage, crumbled bacon, and kale (if using).

Enjoy this delicious soup with some crusty bread. It is sooooo good. One of our favorites!

Ginger Peanut Rice Bowl (kinda like at...Rumbi Island Grill)

2008-08-20T07:05:00.000-07:00

(Okay, so I stole that picture off of the Rumbi Island Grill website.......)

So, as Steve and I were eating a salad with that ginger salad dressing on it, Steve commented that it reminded him of the flavors in one of those rice bowls at Rumbi Island Grill. So, of course, then I HAD to figure out a way to make that! So... I pretty much just altered some other recipes I had, did a little experimenting, and ended up with what we thought was very good! Give it a try.

For the rice:
1 1/2 cups jasmine rice
1 1/2 cups coconut milk
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1 can red beans, drained and rinsed

Put the rice, coconut milk, broth, and water in a pot with a lid. As it starts to get to a boil, you're gonna need to stir it because it's going to be a little thick with that coconut milk in it. You don't want it to all goo to the bottom and burn! So, once it is boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer, put the lid on and let the rice cook, stirring occassionally to ensure all is well. Once all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, add in the beans (make sure they are drained and rinsed first). Mix those in and let them heat through. And there you have it, island coconut red beans and rice.

Other Ingredients:

broccoli or asparagus, cut into bite size pieces

celery, choped

carrots, sliced thin

red bell pepper, choped

zucchini, sliced

Chicken breasts

For the chicken:

You could do this a few different ways.....

1) Marinate some chicken breasts in some left over ginger salad dressing then grill it up or cook on the stove top in a skillet. Then cut it into bite size pieces.

2)Cut up some chicken breasts into pieces. Pour some left over ginger salad dressing into a large skillet. Add the chicken pieces, and brown them up and cook them through. Add more of the dressing during the cooking process if needed, enough that all the chicken is coated in a little of it.
or
3)If you don't happen to just have any leftover dressing, you don't need to marinate the chicken or anything. You will put sauce on it in the end anyway. It's up to you. Or you could just marinate it in a little soy sauce and oil or something.

Set the chicken aside, then add all the veggies to the large skillet along with more of the ginger dressing and saute until desired doneness. (You don't really HAVE to add any dressing in the cooking process. As stated before, you will put sauce on it in the end). I suggest putting the carrots and celery in first, cooking those for a little bit, then add the others because they don't seem to take as long. Put the lid on for a little bit if you want them to get steamed a bit.

When you're ready to eat, plate up some of the red beans and rice, put some chicken and veggies on that, and top it all off with some ginger peanut sauce (NOT exactly the same as the ginger dressing......recipe below) and chopped peanuts!

Ginger Peanut Sauce:

This is a slight variation on the ginger dressing recipe. It omits a lot of the oil and uses more peanut butter, resulting in a thicker, more sauce-like consistency.

1 tsp oil (vegetable or canola)

1 to 2 teaspoons chili oil-- (once again... add it to your desired heat)

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar or seasoned rice vinegar (I use the seasoned rice vinegar, because that's what I have)

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

2 Tablespoons sugar

2 Tablespoons freshly grated ginger (FRESH ginger is so good! don't use the dried stuff!)

3 to 4 Tablespoons of peanut butter

Beat with a wire wisk until smooth (add peanut butter a tablespoon at a time, beating and adding more until reaches desired consistency and taste). Heat in the microwave or in a pot on the stove until heated through. Stir. Put on top of the rice bowls!

Ginger Salad Dressing

2008-08-15T20:02:00.000-07:00

OOOOOOHHHHH..... this is so good.......

1/4 cup oil (vegetable or canola)

1 to 2 teaspoons chili oil-- you buy this in the oriental section of the grocery store, usually (probably start out using less if you're not sure how spicy you want it... you can always add more if you taste it and decide you want more. Or if you know you don't like heat, you could just make it without)

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar or seasoned rice vinegar (I use the seasoned rice vinegar, because that's what I have)

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

2 Tablespoons sugar

2 Tablespoons freshly grated ginger (FRESH ginger is so good! don't use the dried stuff!)

optional: 1/2 to 1 Tablespoon (???maybe more....?..or less....?) of peanut butter (the dressing is good without the peanut butter, too, but I like it with a little peanut butter in it because it adds a bit more body and helps the dressing emulsify better... oh, and it tastes good. I pretty much just add it until it tastes how I want it...)

Mix all those ingredients together well and use for various different things!

Once I used it on top of some salmon.... that was quite tasty. You can put in on top of just a normal salad. Delicious.

If you want to try a SUPER GOOD salad.... try the following:

Ingredients:

Romaine Lettuce

Spinach

Strawberries, sliced (or cut in chunks or whatever)

Green Onions, chopped

Candied Pecans (recipe below)

Pork Loin

When we make this salad, we usually just put out all the different components and let people put together their own salad according to their liking. Then, top it with the ginger dressing. Soooo good. Last time my mom tried hers with some mandarin oranges on it as well. I didn't try it, but I bet that would be good too.

For the pork, just cut the loin into about 1/4 inch medalions, season with a little salt and pepper, then cook those up in a frying pan. Then, you can slice those medalions into smaller strips to put on the salad. Don't overcrowd the medalions in the pan, or they won't get that good color on them. You might need to do a couple batches.

For the pecans you're gonna need:

1 cup Pecan Halves
and

1/2 cup Maple Syrup (whatever you have around that you put on your pancakes and waffles!)

All you do is put a skillet on the stove over medium-low to medium heat and put the pecans in. Pour in the syrup and stir to coat all the nuts. Heat the mixture for several minutes, stirring often. The syrup will bubble and get thicker and thicker. Make sure you don't let it get so hot that it scorches. Keep stirring. You'll notice the syrup getting more and more sticky. Stir! As soon as the mixture is to the point that it's like.... "hard"sticky..... take the nuts out of the pan and put them on a large plate. You'll want to separate them while they are still hot/warm otherwise they will harden and you'll just have one big chunk of candied nuts! Allow them to cool before using them. It might take a couple times to get to where your pecans are the perfect doneness.... my first time I didn't quite cook them long enough, and they were still kind of chewy and not quite.... "crunchy" candied. But, they were still good.

California Chicken Spaghetti

2008-07-25T09:52:00.000-07:00

This dish is super tasty and super simple!

INGREDIENTS
16 ounces uncooked angel hair pasta (I NEVER use that much pasta in it.... you probably don't need to cook that much. I'll tell you more about that later)
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into strips
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
2 tablespoons dried basil (this last time we used fresh basil because there is an abundance of it growing in the back yard... and I ended up adding more than 2 Tablespoons with it fresh)
2 tablespoons Cajun-style blackened seasoning (depending on what brand of seasoning you buy...it can end up a little spicy! If you don't want to buy cajun seasoning (or if you don't want it so spicy), go to the bottom of this post for a suggested way to make your own seasoning.
salt and pepper to taste
10 roma (plum) tomatoes, diced

1 zucchini sliced
2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

DIRECTIONS
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 5 to 8 minutes or until al dente. Drain.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add chicken pieces, and cook, stirring until browned on the outside. Stir in the garlic, basil, Cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper, then mix in the tomatoes and zucchini. Cook until tomatoes are semi soft, and chicken is cooked through.

Toss with pasta, and serve with crumbled feta cheese on top. Also top with fresh basil if desired.

Okay, so my suggestion with mixing it with the pasta.... Don't just throw all the noodles in at once because odds are you won't end up with the right sauce to pasta ratio.... What I do, is dump all the sauce into an big pot or big serving bowl, then slowly add in the noodles in batches, mixing after each batch, until it looks like a good sauce to noodle ratio. I don't like there to be so many noodles that you don't get much flavor. The recipe says 16 ounces... I don't think I even use half of that. But, hey, it's up to you

If you want to make your own seasoning, this one works well. It is actually a "creole" seasoning recipe, but it is quite close to cajun and has pretty much the same ingredients in it! So, if you already have these ingredients on hand, you can mix up your own seasoning rather than buying a "Cajun Seasoning" at the store. Just mix it up and keep it in an airtight container. You can use it for all sorts of stuff. This makes quite a bit, so if you don't think you want so much, just half it.

Cajun/Creole Seasoning:

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme

NOTE: If you want similar flavor without as much heat, make this recipe, but don't use so much cayenne pepper. That's where most of your heat is going to come from.

Culinary Experimentation

2008-07-24T21:26:00.001-07:00

Sometimes Steve and I like to experiment. A couple weeks ago we decided to make foil dinners-- you know, wrap up some meat and potatoes and whatever else you want in some foil and cook it. A simple concept. But, why not kick it up a bit... make a bit of a more... gourmet foild dinner, if you will. Here is what we came up with. And we must say... it is quite good! We've made it again since then.
Unfortunately I don't really have exact measurements. This is one of those things you have to just kind of... put in however much you want of each thing! I'm going to share with you the ingredients, and you can decide what proportions and quantities you want to do.

Here is what was in it:

Ground Italian Sausage (Mild or hot depending on your heat preference) formed into a patty.
A slice of Bacon (put this on the very top)
Cloves of Garlic sliced
Onions sliced
Yukon Gold Potatoes sliced
Carrots sliced

Fresh Basil
Salt

and the secret ingredient.......

That's right folks. Blue Cheese.

Now, don't go judging just because it says blue cheese. I'll be honest, I am not a huge blue cheese fan normally.... but this.... is really good!!! The cheese just melts into it and mixes with the juices from the meat and bacon drippings and the moisture from the vegetables and creates a delicious sauce! Very good. Try it for yourself.... come on... don't be scared....

Walkabout Onion Soup

2008-07-22T18:23:00.000-07:00

So, Steve and I used to get this soup at Outback Steakhouse. It was a creamy, onion soup. Very tasty. Unfortunately, they don't serve it there anymore.... but luckily, we had already found a good recipe for it. I know it isn't exactly soup weather right now... but I always love soup! And we hadn't had this for a while, so we made it this week. If you like onions... you'll like this! If you don't like onions.... well..... try it anyway! Maybe it will convert you.

Ingredients:

2 cups thinly sliced yellow sweet onions (ie. vidalia)

2 tbsp butter

14.5 ounce can chicken broth

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground pepper

2 chicken boullion cubes

1/4 cup diced velveeta cubes compressed in a measuring cup (okay, so sometimes I use this processed, velveeta cheese, but sometimes I just use regular shredded cheddar cheese. I usually use more than 1/4 cup if I use the cheddar though.... almost 1/2 cup)

1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups white sauce (below) Okay, so it only says to use that amount... but I always end up using all of it. Mostly just because I always forget that it says to only use a certain amount!!! Anyway... if you want to use all the white sauce, go for it! it always turns out fine when I do.

Thick White Sauce:

3TBS butter

3TBS flour

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups whole milk (I have used milks ranging from skim to cream here, so.... if you don't feel like buying whole milk... use whatever you've got. it'll be alright.)

Instructions:

To make the White Sauce....

In a 1 quart sauce pan, melt butter and add flour, cook on medium heat until the flour turns thick and comes away from the side of the pan.

Pour milk in flour a little at a time and stir constantly until it becomes smooth. Add salt. Mixture should thicken and becom like thick pudding.

Remember to stir constantly taking care not to let mixture lump. Set aside off from heat until ready to use for the soup.

In 2 quart sauce pan place 2 TBS butter and sliced onions.

Cook at low to medium heat, stirring frequently until soft, and clear but not brown.
Add chicken broth from can, chicken bouillon cubes, salt, pepper, and stir until completely heated through.

Add white sauce and Velveeta cheese (or cheddar). White sauce will be thick because it has been removed from the heat. Simmer on medium low heat until the cheese is melted and all ingredients are blended, stirring constantly. (If you're using cheddar, be sure not to let the soup come to a boil after you've added the cheese, as this could cause it to curdle).
Turn temperature to warm and let cook for additional 30 to 45 minutes. (It says to do this.... but, I usually don't leave it that long... just because I'm too hungry..... but, again, I've done it both ways. Both turn out just fine).

Serve with some crusty bread. You could also top the soup with some shredded cheddar cheese if you wanted.

"Spicy" Rice

2008-07-22T18:01:00.000-07:00

This is a great rice to go with that Fiesta Lime Chicken. It says spicy, but don't be mislead. It is not spicy in the sense of "wow, that's got some heat!" It is spicy as in.... it's got spices in it.

Ingredients:

1 fresh corn cob

3 tbsp. olive oil

6 scallions (green onions) chopped

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1-2 green bell peppers, chopped

2 fresh mild green chilies (anaheims are good), seeded and chopped

generous 1 1/4 cups long-grain rice

2 tsp ground cumin

2 1/2 cups chicken stock

2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

salt and pepper

Directions:

Cut the corn from the cob. heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the scallions, celery, and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, or until softened (be sure not to burn your garlic! burnt garlic tastes bitter...yuck...). Add the bell peppers, chilies, and corn and cook for 3-5 minutes.

Add the rice and cumin and cook, stirring to coat the grains in the oil for 2 minutes.

Stir in the stock and half the chopped cilantro and bring to boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and let simmer for 15 minutes, or until nearly all the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is just tender.

Remove from the heat and fluff up with a fork. Stir in the remaining chopped cilantro and season to taste with salt and pepper. Let stand, covered, for 5 minutes before serving.

"Fiesta" Lime Chicken

2008-07-13T15:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, so just before we moved we went to Applebee's with Steve's parents. Steve's mom got the Fiesta Lime Chicken and said she wished she knew how they made it. I made it my duty to try to find a recipe that copied it.... unfortunately it has been a while since I actually had that dish at Applebee's, so I'm not sure whether this actually tastes anything like it or not! But, it is good none-the-less. Worth trying.

I did think it had a strange combination of ingredients before I made it... I mean, it says "fiesta" in the name, then it's got teriyaki sauce in it! I dunno, maybe mexicans use more teriyaki than I am aware of : ) Or maybe it's an asian/mexican fiesta! Fun for all! Either way.... the dish was pretty tasty. Don't be scared by the long list of ingredients. It is very simple to make. And I actually already had all of these ingredients on hand except the teriyaki sauce and the liquid smoke.

What is liquid smoke? Well, I'm glad you asked. It does sound a bit strange to anyone who's never heard of it. In fact one time my dad (I think it was my dad) was at Walmart and he asked one of the employees (a teenager no doubt) whether they had any liquid smoke. And the kid is like, "...ummm.... Liquid smoke? You mean like beer?" hahaha..... Oh boy.... Anyway, no... liquid smoke is not beer just incase you were wondering. It is, in fact, just what the name says..... smoke in liquid form! What they do is create smoke with some water and wood chips or something then they gather the condensation that is infused with the smoke. (Okay, so that is the very simplified version, but who cares). And there you have it! Liquid smoke. So, you get the smoke flavor without the unhealthy carcinogens! (and without having to do the work of smoking). I found my liquid smoke near the barbeque sauces and marinades and what-not.... It probably depends what store you're at. You can probably ask an employee at the store. Then again.... they might take you to the beer isle....

Okay, enough about the smoke... lets get to the chicken.

Ingredients

Marinade:

about 1 cup water

1/3 cup teriyaki sauce

3 tablespoons lime juice

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast

Dressing:

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon milk

2 teaspoons minced tomatoes

1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons minced jalapeno peppers

1 teaspoon minced onion

1/4 teaspoon dried parsley

1/4 teaspoon hot sauce

1/8 teaspoon paprika

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/8 teaspoon cumin

1/8 teaspoon chili powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 dash black pepper

1 dash garlic powder

Additional Ingredients

1 cup shredded monterey jack and cheddar cheese blend

More limes to squeeze over the top.

Directions

1 Combine marinade ingredients then chicken in a medium bowl and allow to marinate for 2-3 hours.

2 Combinine dressing ingredients in a medium bowl, cover, and chill until needed.

3 Grill the marinated chicken breasts for 3-5 minutes per side, or until cooked through.

4 Arrange the cooked chicken in a baking pan, spoon some of the prepared dressing over the top , and sprinkle with cheese.

5 Broil the chicken for 2-3 minutes, or just until the cheese has melted.

6 Squeeze fresh lime juice over the top and serve!

You could serve this with spanish rice and some pico de gallo or salsa.... some tortilla chips..... home made guacamole.... mmm... My plan was to top it with pico de gallo (fresh chopped tomatoes, onions, cilantro, lime), but unfortunately only one of my tomatoes was alive today.... the rest were covered in mold!!!

Note to self: it is much more humid in Ohio.... especially with no AC yet....... so, must find a better way to store my tomatoes......

Chicago Dogs

2008-07-09T11:42:00.001-07:00

While visiting Chicago on our way to our new home, Steve and I had our first Chicago dogs ever. Now, you might be thinking.... okay, I've HEARD of a Chicago dog.... but what exactly makes it different than a normal hot dog? Don't worry, those were my exact thoughts before the dog was handed to me.

Well, here's the breakdown (thank you wikipedia)---
"A Chicago-style hot dog is a steamed or boiled all-beef hot dog on a poppy seed bun, which originated in the U.S. city of Chicago, Illinois. The hot dog is topped with mustard, onion, sweet pickle relish (usually neon green), a dill pickle spear, tomato slices or wedges, sport peppers (a little pickled pepper with medium heat), and a dash of celery salt; but never ketchup. The complete assembly is sometimes called "dragged through the garden" because of the unique combination of condiments. It is considered taboo to put ketchup on a Chicago hot dog; some hot dog stands don't even stock the condiment."

So, there you've got it folks! Go grab yourselves a Chicago dog today! Or whip one up for yourself, now that you know what it contains. Personally, I liked this Chicago style better than your every day hot dog.... the more veggies you pile on the better! And I didn't even miss the ketchup.

Thai Curry (Evil Jungle Princess)

2008-07-06T20:30:00.000-07:00

We once went to a restaurant in Salt Lake City called Thaifoon and ordered something called Evil Jungle Princess. It was a coconut based Thai curry. We loved it, and I decided to try to find a recipe for it. It has become probably Steve's favorite dish. It's got some crazy ingredients that might only be found at Oriental Markets, but it is well worth it in the end... *1 Tbsp Red Curry Paste
*2 1/4 inch Lemon Grass stalk- trimmed and bias sliced (can't get fresh lemon grass? Some places have it dehydrated and others have a lemongrass paste!)
*2-3 lime leaves (can't find these? just use a little more lemon grass and/or lime juice)
*2 Tbsp Palm Sugar
*1 Tbsp Fish Sauce
*1 Tbsp Peanut Butter
*2 Tbsp Sweet Chili Sauce
*13 oz Coconut Milk (not the sweetened kind, just regular)
*Chicken Breasts- cut to bite size pieces or strips
*1/2 cup fresh chinese long beans-blanched (these are like really long green beans, but slightly different. If you can't find these at your oriental market, you can just use fresh green beans. They aren't in the picture because they didn't have any the day I went to the market.)
*Red bell pepper- cut into 1/4 inch strips
*1/2 cup blanched Asparagus spears
*Canned Bamboo Shoots
*1 tsp Lime Juice
*1/4 cup Fresh Thai Basil- chopped (if you can't find Thai Basil.... you guessed it... just use regular fresh Basil!)
*1/4 cup Frest Mint leaves- chopped
*Roasted Peanuts- chopped
*Jasmine Rice (or whatever kind of rice you want...)

(The measurements of vegetables and chicken are not to be followed too strictly. Just, add however much you want! You like lots of vegetables? Just put in however much looks good. I always put in a lot more than this recipe says. Don't like vegetables so much? Add more chicken and cut back on the veggies.)

Game Plan:

Don't forget to cook your rice!

While that's cooking.........

Combine the coconut milk, red curry paste, lemon grass, lime leaves, fish sauce, palm sugar, peanut butter, and sweet chili sauce in a saute pan. Bring to a simmer. Add the chicken, long beans, asparagus, and bell peppers. (I don't like my vegetables to lose all their texture, so I usually put the chicken in first and let it cook a little before I add the veggies). Cook until chicken is just done and the curry sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add the lime juice and the fresh herbs. Mix. Serve over steamed jasmine rice (or regular rice) and top with chopped peanuts.

(Just so you know.... the lime leaves and fresh lemon grass aren't really intended to be eaten. They just add flavor to the dish. When you are eating it, just push them to the side of your plate. Or suck on them first then push them to the side. They taste good! They are just tough so you probably don't really want to chew and swallow.)