From my Kitchen to yours!

Two food posts in as many days! Look at me go! The thing is, I do not create recipes. I just don't do it. I love reading them and getting them from other people. And following them to a T. I might sample one ingredient here or there or omit something because I don't have it on hand, but my mother always said, "if you can read, you can cook". And baby, I can read. So you can imagine my excitement when not only did I create something, I created something GOOD!

I should disclose that the idea of this recipe isn't even mine completely, but it is close enough. You see, I made this amazing meal last week and it was such a hit that I decided to experiment. And my creation was born!

I don't know what to call it. Maybe you could help me name it? My very first recipe! Yay!

Ingredients:

I didn't include amounts because I just sort of eyeballed it.This isn't spicy though it definitely could be!

Vegetable Broth
Black Beans
Fresh Cilantro
Chili Powder
Cheddar Cheese
Salt
Pepper
Garlic
Chicken Breasts
Yellow Rice
Sweet Peppers (I used Orange and Red)
Sour Cream
Avocado

For the Chicken:
Lay chicken breasts in a crock pot and cover with vegetable broth. Add salt, pepper, and garlic. Cover on low until done (depends on quantity - usually a couple hours)  - add peppers toward the end of cooking time.

For the Puree: 
Combine black beans, fresh Cilantro, Chili Powder and Salt in a food processor with a bit of water and pulse until smooth. Add a bit of cheese and heat either on the stove on low or in a microwave.

Rice and Veggies:

About 30 minutes before chicken is done, begin cooking the rice as the package directs (usually takes about 25 min) and throw the peppers (now sliced) in the crock pot on top of the chicken. This will steam them and add flavor to the chicken!

Pile it Up!

It's no secret in my house that we love our food in a pile, This can be served in a bowl or on a plate. I went with plates because it looked nicer for the pictures. Start with the rice and spoon on the black bean puree, top with chicken and veggies and a dollop of sour cream! Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve with avocado wedges! Seriously, so so yummy.

Let me know if you try it! I'd love to know what you think!

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Reader Response: Sortof

I have been neglecting this question for sometime because, quite frankly I don't know the answer! But with the help of a delicious recipe, I can at least come up with something now. The question posted via formspring (go ahead ask me anything!) was this:

What is your favorite meal to cook for guests?

And I still don't have an answer. We honestly haven't had a dinner guest in I don't KNOW how long. And it seems like each time we do, I make pizza. Which, while delicious in it's own right, isn't really all that spectacular. But I digress.

This week we went to Community Group and I decided to try a new recipe for carrots. I had some fresh carrots and wanted to try something other than my normal butter/salt regimen. And I now have fresh rosemary! So I had to put it to good use. And I can tell you that this side will be going in my arsenal of guest-worthy dishes.

 I went to Taste of Home for a recipe and the rest is history! The recipe serves two so I doubled it. I also used minced garlic instead of powder and omitted the parsley. The result was wonderful! Try it! I think you will love it.

Slicing carrots on the diagonal is a nice touch

Mmmm Rosemary Butter....delicious!

  

Voila! I can almost taste them now!

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Fake 'N' Bake Empanadas!

I haven't posted anything for Meal Planning Mondays in a while because honestly, we haven't done anything new. We like what we like and I guess I haven't been all that adventurous in the kitchen as of late. Until this week! I got a good deal on ground beef and wanted to do something different yet easy. I don't claim this recipe to be all that original, or authentic.But it sure was good!

Easy Empanadas:

1) Saute Ground beef with one chopped onion/drain
2) Season with taco seasoning (or make your own with cumin, coriander, cilantro leaf and salt)
3) Add one can RoTel (I drained off most of the juice)
4) Add cheddar cheese

That's your filling!  
meanwhile:. Preheat oven and roll out croissants (I used Pillsbury)

5) Spoon filling onto each triangle, roll,  and bake!
6) Top with Sour Cream and hot sauce. Yum!

I used a little less than a pound of beef and had WAY too much filling for 8 croissants, just to give you an idea. I piled the rest in a pizza crust and folded it over to take care of the leftovers. That was good too, but the croissant went better with the mixture.

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Fruits and Veggies for a Toddler?

Oscar is a large child. He always has been and I love it. But I want him to be large in the strong sense and not so much the "in charge" way...He really loves protein, dairy and breads. We can do all kinds of meats, beans, rice, breads, milk, cheese and yogurt. But his Vegetable and fruit vocabulary has gotten decidedly smaller. Bananas are in, apples are in. Citrus is out. As are blueberries and grapes. I'm not really sure what else to try! Peaches are hit and miss. I am looking forward to summer and local foods more because I think they taste better.

As for vegetables, it's more about texture than taste. He will do very overcooked broccoli (I just learned by accident) and cooked carrots as long as they have cinnamon on them. Spinach is out, tomatoes are out (unless it's sauce), no potatoes, green beans or cucumbers either. He will eat the yogurt meals that sneak in fruits and veggies, but I have to be careful or we overload the dairy.

Do you have any fruit/veggie tricks? How do get your kids to eat more?

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Meal Planning Monday: Snacktime!

Today's post isn't so much a meal as it is a snack. A sweet snack. I am the type of person who needs a sweet finisher to a meal. It doesn't have to be a pint of Ben'n'Jerry's (though that would be amazing right now....uncanny cashew yumz), but something to say, ok we are done eating. I love dark chocolate but I don't always have it.

Last week, we were left with an ungodly amount of goodies after our halloween party. We pawned a lot of them off on friends and neighbors, ate some and tossed the rest. However, I did hold on to a few things that would keep and I discovered a tasty treat! I give you:

Animal Sammys!



1 oz Animal Crackers (about 14 crackers)
1 tbsp Chocolate Fudge Icing
Squish em!





Tada! A DELICIOUS dessert! All for 200 calories. Enjoy!

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Mmmm....Triples

Harris Teeter Triples were good to me this time around! Here is what I got:

1 Jar Mt. Olive Pickles
1 Box Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks
2 Boxes Betty Crocker Brownies
1 Tub BC Frosting
1 Newman's Own Organic Salad Dressing
1 Jar Newman's Own Alfredo Sauce
1 Jar Barilla Spaghetti Sauce
12 jars Earth's Best Baby Food
1 Bunch Bananas
1 Head Romaine Lettuce
1 Bag Sargento Salad Finishers
2 packets Ortega Taco/Fajita Seasoning
2 cans Cambell's Select Soup
2 Pks White House Applesauce individual tubs (6 per pack)
1 Yokisaba Noodle meal
1 Box Uncle Ben's Long Grain Rice
2 Boxes Barilla Pasta
4 Totinos Frozen Pizza
1 Carton Welch's Juice Blend
1 Individual Chocolate Milk
1 Pillsbury Pizza Crust
2 boxes frozen Green Giant vegetables
1 Scott Wipes
1 TopCare Contact Solution
1 20oz Coke Zero

Total: $80.26
Total Spent: 35.72
Savings of 55%

Trip #2 :

2 Boxes Nature Valley Granola Bars
2 Boxes Quaker Granola Bars
1 Wanchai Ferry Dinner kit
1 BC Cookie Mix
1 BC Cake Mix
1 Mahatma white Rice
2 Mahatma Yellow Rice
8 Earths Best Baby Food
1 Scrubbing Bubbles Bathroom Cleaner
1 Viva Paper Towels
1 Value Time Sugar
1 Nissin Noodle meal
1 Bag Famous Amos Cookies
1 Suave Body wash
1 Colgate toothbrush
1 Eggo Waffles
1 pkg Wholly Guacamole
1 bottle Lemon juice
1 Bird's Eye frozen potatoes
1 Bird's Eye frozen stir-fry veggie mix

Total: $65.40
Total Spent: 29.83
Total Saved: 53%

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Why Didn't I think of That?

You can file this right into the DUH folder. I feel so silly that I haven't ever thought of this that I had to out my stupidity to the world. Perhaps a stray reader here and there will share in my shame :-) It's kind of like the time I found out there are tabs in the tin foil box to keep the roll from FLYING out every time you want a sheet. You know, RIGHT there on every single box, for my entire life!

Many of us are trying to save money here and there. One way Jerry and I do this is to buy chicken breasts in bulk. I usually get boneless/skinless but this week there was a great deal on bone-in chicken breasts (88cents/lb) so I got some! In the past I have just cooked them with the bones but I just don't like doing it that way. When I came across this post on $5 dinners today, the light bulb came on! And it wasn't even about de-boning the chicken. It was about pre-marinating! Yes!

So, I cut all the bones out of the chicken and separated the breasts into freezer bags.....wait for it.......WITH the marinade and put them in the freezer! Now all I have to do is thaw and cook! No more waiting for meat to thaw, then waiting to marinate (or skipping that entirely). Seriously, why has this never occurred to me before???

I also followed her advice to make my own chicken broth by slow-cooking the bones with some vinegar, garlic and Italian spices! I feel like a regular Betty Crocker over here ya'll!

**Update - I got 7.5 cups of broth! Woohoo!

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Meal Planning Monday? **Vegetarians beware**

Maybe I should just give up on the Monday thing. I seem to have a hard time keeping up. Something about Mondays, even as a Stay at Home Mom, just takes it out of a person. At any rate, last week I made a lot of our normal every day meals, but on Saturday I decided to try my hand at Beef Ribs! There was a sale this week on Angus Beef at HT so I grabbed them. They would have been delicious if they had more meat and less fat. Seriously it was ALL fat. The little bit of meat we got was soooo good though!

I found a couple recipes online for cooking ribs and homemade BBQ sauce. I decided to make the ribs later in the afternoon so I wanted to see if there was a way to do it without having them marinate all day. Turns out, if you boil the ribs for about an hour and a half before putting them in the oven, they are perfect! I will definitely try this again with better meat!

So you cut the ribs apart and boil them for 1.5 hours. Meanwhile, you allow the BBQ sauce to simmer. Once done, pour sauce over meat and put under the broiler for 15-20 minutes. Serve with veggies, potatoes, rice, whatever. It's good. We had mixed garden veggies and garlic bread.

Sauce Recipe:

1 cup ketchup

1/2 cup Vinegar

1/2 cup Brown Sugar

2 Tbsp Soy Sauce

2 Tbsp Worsteshire Sauce

2 Tbsp Prepared Mustard

1 Tbsp Canola or Vegetable Oil

1 tsp Ground Ginger

1 tsp Garlic (or more)

1/2 tsp Liquid Smoke

Enjoy!

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Meal Planning

Ladies and gents, it's time to get back on the wagon. As I have mentioned before, I have been trying to reduce our grocery budget. However, this has sort of become a half-hearted effort because instead of combining meal-planning with coupon clipping, I traded one for the other. I don't know that I was saving much money because I wasn't planning effectively to get the best deals.

Well, no more! This week I started meal planning again and I am really excited! Of course I had to go and get motivated and made a 3 week plan. But I will most likely do 2 weeks at a time. Starting next week, I will post on Mondays with our weekly meals and include recipes for the ones that are interesting to me :-)

Since it's Tuesday, we'll just say I got a late start and give you a recipe anyway! Tonight's dinner will be CrockPot Brunswick Stew. Here in the South that seems to take on a different meaning than the one I am used to. If you are familiar with Southern Brunswick stew, this recipe will not be familiar at all, but I guarantee it's delicious! It is a recipe from my Mother's own kitchen many times removed from an old recipe book. It is always requested at holidays and family gatherings at our house and I am salivating just thinking about our yummy dinner!

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Grocery Update

Harris Teeter Grocery Trip for 2 weeks (and beyond):

Total before VIC and coupons: $241.09
Total VIC savings: $71.04
Total Coupons: $38.69
$ off next visit: $2.00
Total Spent: $131.36
Total Saved: $109.73

This is fun!

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Happy New Year!

Jerry got a new griddle for Christmas and we couldn't think of a better way to ring in the new year than to break out the pancake breakfast! We didn't make it up til midnight last night because I was exhausted, but we did wake up in time to say happy new year and listen to all the fireworks going off outside. This morning was very relaxing and we have SO much to be thankful for from 2008. Now it's 2009 and I think it is only getting better! Our baby is due THIS month! WoW! We are really getting down to the wire and I am so excited. My only resolution is to be the best wife and mommy I can be! Happy New Year!

Just like they said!

mmmmm....bacon!

First feast of 2009!

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4- Alarm Kung Pao Chicken

Those who know me are aware of the fact that I have an unhealthy obsession with 5-Star Restaurant in Downtown Raleigh. I LOVE their food, their atmosphere, their location. It just really doesn't get any better in this area if you ask me. That being said, my favorite dish on the menu is Crispy Sesame Beef. This post is not about that. However, prior to my discovery of this (A-MAZ-ING) dish, my favorite was the Kung Pao Chicken. Sadly, 5-Star no longer offers Kung Pao Chicken on the menu and therefore I started trying new things. I am ok with that but still miss the chicken from time to time. Which brings me to the beginning of my story.

I went grocery shopping recently and came across a "meal kit" for none other than Kung Pao Chicken! At first I didn't want to try it because I generally don't like kits. But I was in the ethnic foods aisle and hoped that it would be more authentic than the typical skillet sensations or hamburger helper variety. it's called Wanchai Ferry and it's actually owned by General Mills.

There was a specific warning of how spicy it was, but I, being the sweet naive girl that I am (*ahem) scoffed at the warning. WHAT-ever, I used to eat this all the time. Some store bought kit isn't going to be too hot for me!

Ahh the ignorance of youth (again let me take some liberty here...it's my blog). I made the rice as directed, browned the chicken, added the red peppers and peanuts. I should have known when the STEAM made me start coughing that I was in for it.

The meal was beautiful. The rice was perfect and the consistency was awesome. The chicken was juicy and the sauce was a lovely red. I even used my Asian noodle bowls to serve it! We sat down to watch Jeopardy (as per usual) and dig in.

Me: "Wow...this really is kinda spicy huh?"
Jerry: "MM-HHM...Isrearrlygood...."
Me: "I mean...I just think this is hotter than anything I have ever eaten"
Jerry: "Tarkeadrink..."
Me: "Ok I can't eat this. I have to put it down"
Jerry: "More for me!"

Somewhere between the couch and the kitchen, my mouth began to swell. I could no longer feel my lips and my throat was closing up. Yes, this was indeed the hottest thing I have ever eaten. Never in my life had I experienced such a violent, immediate reaction to delicious food. Was I being punished?

After a few laps around the kitchen to cool down and a LOT of water, I decided to switch to the leftover Mexican food in the fridge. Thankfully, it was great and all was well again. Even though I didn't get my Kung Pao Chicken feast, I would actually recommend this brand. I plan to try some of the other, less threatening flavors in the future :-)

Lesson for the day, heed those warning labels!!

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Tomato Pie

OK So as promised, here is the Tomato Pie Recipe!! I am telling you it is SO good!!! I intended to take a picture but we were too busy ravaging it! We had the leftovers for dinner last night too and it was great re-heated as well!!

The only change I made to this recipe was to use fresh basil and I used quite a bit more than it called for. Enjoy!

Tomato Pie Recipe:

Bake 1 Pillsbury Pie Crust first
Slice 3-4 tomatoes/layer in crust add salt/pepper
Mix:
1/2 cup mayo
2 cup mozzarella
1/2 tsp basil
1/4 cup onions (green or reg)

Spread Mixture over tomatoes
Crumble 12 townhouse crackers/mix w 2tbsp melted butter (or spray with butter spray)

Cover Pie
Bake on 350 for 25 min

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Dinner Creations!!

My friend Nikki came over last night for dinner. She is going to be our wedding photographer so it was a fun excuse to try a new recipe! I decided to go to a little Mediterranean Grocery store on the way home from work. I wandered around for a few minutes and ended up with an array of ingredients and a little baklava from the dessert case!

Once I got home, I had to figure out how to put it all together. First I made some tabouli with tomatoes and cucumber so that could sit for a while ( at least an hour in the fridge). Then I went to work on my pita pizzas! I started with sesame pita bread and drizzled some olive oil over each piece and layered it with spinach, tomatoes, calamata olives and a wonderful new (to me) feta cheese called Danish White. Then I sprinkled some salt and pepper and baked them on 325 for about 15 min. I had boneless/skinless chicken breasts so I rubbed some cumin and coriander along with some lemon juice and salt on both sides of each piece and pan seared them til they were cooked through. Let me tell you, it was delicious!!!

I also served pita triangles with hummus (i tried a new brand - i didn't like it) and some assorted baklava for dessert! We had red and white wine and while I normally prefer red, the white was wonderful with this meal.

I got the "Jerry seal of approval" on the meal with extra props for the pizzas. We will definitely have it again!

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