Santa Fe Chicken

I substitute tilapia for the chicken in this dish. It is really good either way.

1/2 cup lime juice
1/4 cup soy sauce (gluten free)
1 TBL olive oil
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 1/2 ground coriander
3 tsp chopped garlic
1 TBL honey
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into strips (or whole tilapia fillets)
2 TBL chopped fresh cilantro (you can leave this off if you dislike cilantro)
1/4 cup white wine

• Mix all ingredients together
• pour into a 1 gallon freezer bag
• marinate at least 30 minutes
• bake 350 degrees at 40 minutes.
  

make ahead option: take 1 gallon freezer bag, freeze and label.

to serve:

• thaw and put into a 9x9 baking dish
  
• bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes
  

Sweet Mustard Glazed Salmon Fillets

Ingredients:

• 4 salmon fillets
• 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
• 2 Tablespoons Dijon Mustard
• 2 Tablespoons Brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Place salmon in glass baking pan
2. Combine all other ingredients
   
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
4. Season both sides of salmon with salt and pepper.
5. Pour glaze over salmon and turn to coat.
6. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until flakes with a fork
   

Lime fish

Ingredients:

• 1 Pound white flesh fish (I like tilapia for this recipe)
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon pickled ginger
• 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

1. In small bowl whisk together all ingredients except fish
2. Place fish in glass baking dish and pour marinade over top. Put in fridge to marinate for only 15 minutes.
   
3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
4. bake for 25 minutes.
   

Maple Salmon

If you aren't naturally a fish lover, this recipe is really "meaty" tasting thanks to the addition of soy sauce.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 Tablespoons (gluten free) soy sauce
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 pound salmon

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix the maple syrup, soy sauce, garlic, garlic salt and pepper.
2. Place the salmon in a shallow glass baking dish and coat with maple syrup mixture. Cover the dish and marinate the salmon for 30 minutes turning once.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
4. Place the baking dish in the preheated oven, and bake salmon uncovered for 20 minutes or until easily flaked with a fork.
   

Gluten free and dairy free Chicken Korma

The only really important detail in this recipe is to puree the onion, almond and garlic together in a food processor or blender.

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts uncooked and cubed
• 1 TBL freshly grated ginger
  
• 4 minced cloves of garlic
• 1 can of coconut milk (full fat)
• 2 chopped onions
• 1 TBL ghee or vegetable oil
• 1 TBL ground coriander
• 1 tsp cardamon
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 2 tsp Garam Marsala
• 2 tsp cream of coconut
• 2 heaped TBL almonds
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 cup chicken bullion

Directions:

1. put onion, garlic and almonds into food processor to make paste
2. heat ghee/oil in pan
3. cook chicken in pan by itself until no longer really pink and then add the rest of the ingredients and let simmer for half hour.
4. serve over basmati or jasmine rice.
   

French pan fried fish

Emma has recently become obsessed with all things French, so we have been trying a few easy recipes. This one is simple, quick and tasty. All of the kids gave this their seal of approval.

Ingredients:

• 5 filet of tilapia (or other white fish)
  
• Kosher Salt
• Cracked Pepper
• gluten free flour for dredging
• 4 TBL canola oil
• 6 TBL Butter
• 1 sliced lemon

Directions:

1. Heat sautee pan over medium high heat
2. Season fish with salt and pepper
3. dredge fish in gluten free flour and shake off excess
4. when pan is hot, add oil and butter
5. once foam has subsided, add fish
6. cook until fish form crispy golden crust, then turn and repeat.
7. serve with lemon wedge.
   

Gordon Ramsey's Sticky Lemon Chicken

This was so good. I made it yesterday when we had my friend Terra over for dinner. It was awesome, it had that great tangy sweet balance down perfect. And don't worry, you don't have to yell like Ramsey and get all red faced when you make it. One word of advice, while you are reducing your sauce you will swear it isn't reducing right, that it's too runny. Then, all of a sudden, it will reduce and would burn if you weren't watching it. It happens super quick. So keep your eyes on it.

1 large chicken jointed into 8-10 pieces (I used boneless skinless breasts)

Sea salt and black pepper

3-4 tbsp olive oil

1 head of garlic, halved horizontally

Few thyme sprigs

Splash of sherry vinegar

2 tbsp dark soy sauce

3 tbsp honey

1 lemon, finely sliced (ideally with a mandolin)

Bunch of flat leaf parsley, chopped

1 Season the chicken with salt and pepper and heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan. Brown the chicken pieces (in batches if necessary) over a high heat with the garlic and thyme for 2–3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Return all the chicken to the pan, add the sherry vinegar and bubble until reduced by half. Drizzle over the soy sauce and honey and shake the pan to mix.

2 Pour in a good splash of hot water and add the lemon slices. Let the liquid bubble and reduce down until syrupy, which will take about 10 minutes or so. By now the chicken should be cooked through.

3 Transfer the chicken to a platter and sprinkle over the chopped parsley. Serve with the champ and green beans or steamed sugar snap peas.

Pork Chops in the Crockpot

I found this recipe over at Full Bellies, Happy Kids. It intrigued me because I love using my crockpot and right now our oven is broken. But I was also a bit worried. Sometimes when I cook meats in the crockpot they become so fall apart tender its hard to find whole chunks of meat. Or, the recipes start to taste the same. This recipe is amazing, the gravy it creates is fantastic and the texture is still absolutely true to what you would expect. The meat barely needed a knife, but it was still in whole pieces.



Ingredients

• 6 pork chops (I prefer boneless)
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 tsp. ground mustard
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• oil for frying chops
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 1/3 cup water

Directions
Mix the flour, salt and garlic powder together. I use a ziploc bag so it's minimal cleaning afterwards. Drop the chops into the flour mixture and shake really well until completely covered. Brown them in a little oil, you don't need to cook them all the way through, just a minute or two on each side until they're nice and brown. Transfer to the crockpot.

Mix the soup and water together. Pour into the skillet, stir well scraping the bottom for all the yummy pieces left by the chops. Pour over the chops and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

Serve with mashed potatoes or rice.....but be sure to drizzle some of that yummy gravy on top. Mmmmmm!

A1 Beef Stew

I found this recipe on $5 dollar dinners. I was browsing through my reader, stumbled on this and immediately knew this would be a hit with my family. I was right, it was such a hit. Even the pickier kiddos loved it! It had a really nice flavor. Down here its still about 98 degrees in the afternoon, but we are due for a cold front tomorrow that will bring us some more all like weather. This dish is perfect! Like fall in a bowl.




Ingredients
2 Tbsp olive oil ($.20)
1.7 lb. stew beef ($4.77) 2 packages both purchased on Manager’s Special
10 cups water
4 large carrots, peeled and diced ($.40)
4 stalks celery, diced ($.20)
1 onion, chopped ($.30)
2 cups frozen Italian style green beans ($.50) On sale for $1/4 cups last week!1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes ($.59)
2 tsp rice or white vinegar ($.05)
1 5 oz. bottle A1 steak sauce ($.29) Used $2 coupon to buy the bottle!
2 cups brown rice ($.80)

1. Sear the meat in a frying pan on all sides until brown
2. add all ingredients to the crockpot, wait 4-6 hours, then eat!
   

Fried Chicken strips w/ dipping sauces

I am slightly intimidated by trying to fry food at home. Its one of those things that has kept me from preparing fried chicken at home before. I had tried a few years ago to make fried chicken with a whole, cut up, bone-in chicken. Unfortunately, the outer crust singed and the meat closer to the bone was still pretty raw. I like my chicken well done, so that was NOT going to work. It kinda turned me off to the whole idea.

Recently I was chatting with my friend Brandy at a playdate. She mentioned they had fried chicken the night before and gave me this super easy (and delicious) recipe that uses boneless, skinless chicken breast tenders. I have made it three times since then and every single time it turns out super awesome. The kids LOVE it!

Chicken Tenders
Ingredients

• Chicken tenders (or boneless skinless breasts sliced into tender like shapes)
• Beaten eggs
• self rising flour (this makes a much better crust than just all purpose. Brandy's husband Tray discovered this by accident. yay Tray!)
• spices. Use what you like, I used salt, pepper, paprika, and a pinch of cayenne to taste.
• oil, I like canola

1. So you heat the oil over like medium on my stove.
2. Take the tenders and put them in the egg solution
3. then dredge them in the flour mixture. you can repeat this step if you like them more "battery"
4. drop them into the hot oil and fry until sorta goldeny brown.
5. If you are paranoid like me, cut into them and make sure they are totally cooked.
   

Sauces:

Curry Ketchup: (tastes way better than you think!) Brian says its a German thing.

• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 5 ounces ketchup
• 5 ounces mayonnaise
• 1/4 finely chopped onion

Honey Mustard:

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon prepared mustard
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

Peanut Ginger Sauce:

• ½ cup Orange Juice
• 3 Tbsp Honey
• 2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
• 1/2-1 Tbsp Lime Juice
• 1 Tbsp EVOO
• 1 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
• ¼ tsp Cayenne Pepper
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 1/2 tsp sugar
• 5 Tbsp. Peanut Butter
• 1 heaping Tbsp. grated Ginger

I also offer spaghetti sauce and ranch dressing.

Narnia Dinner: The Beaver Family dinner Luby's Whitefish and potatoes

We have been studying Narnia, so we decided to change our plans for dinner and have a Beaver Dinner instead. We decided to have scalloped potatoes and Luby's Baked Whitefish. Don't let the baked part fool you, this in decidedly NOT healthy, underneath a huge slather of mayo hides a bit of fish. Yumtastic, but it doesn't qualify as "healthy", or even "healthy-ish".

Luby's Baked Fish

Ingredients

• 8 Skinless fish fillets
• 1/2 c flour
• 1/2 cup Parmesean
  
• 3 1/2 c mayo (up to 4)
• lemon pepper seasoning
• Dried parsley flakes
• Water

Instructions

Coat fish with flour and shake off excess. Lay in dish without overlapping fish. combine the rest of the ingredients. Spread mayo mix on top of fish. add 1/8" water to dish to keep fish moist. Bake on 350 for approx 20 min or until you can flake fish with fork.

Scalloped Potatoes

Ingredients:

• 4 cups thinly sliced potatoes, about 6 to 8 medium potatoes
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2 cups scalded milk
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Preparation:

In a buttered 2-quart baking dish, place a layer of about 1/3 of the potatoes. In a cup or small bowl, combine flour with salt and pepper. Sprinkle about half of the flour mixture over the potatoes; repeat with another layer of potatoes and the flour mixture and top with remaining potato slices. Dot with butter then pour hot milk over potatoes. Cover and bake at 375° for 45 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle cheese over the top. Return to the oven and bake, uncovered, for an additional 15 minutes, or until scalloped potatoes are tender and cheese has melted. Scalloped potatoes serves 6 to 8.

Chicken and Rice Bake

My mom made this when I was a kiddo. When I was twenty, I suddenly found myself with a six year old little girl to raise and no real cooking skills. I was able to heat things up, or put together a mix, but I had no real kitchen skills. So realizing this child had to eat a real dinner, I would go to the grocery store and pick up 7 boxes of Hamburger Helper in various flavors and 7 pounds of hamburger meat. This dish was my very first attempt at actual cooking. So then it was only 6 boxes of hamburger helper and the ingredients for this dish! I slowly branched out into more adventurous cooking, but I still consider this a nostalgic favorite. Since then I have made a few changes to try and make it a little healthier.

• 2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup (I use the 98% fat free)
• 1 can water
• 2 cups of cooked brown rice (otherwise, it will taste like you put toenail clippings in there. You have no idea how long it took me to realize this very important step. We ate much toenail.)
• one onion cut up
• salt/pepper/paprika and garlic dusted on top
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Throw this all together in a Pyrex dish and bake it at 375 for 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through (if you are using the frozen variety)

Thai Peanut Noodles

• 8 ounces Spaghetti Noodles
• ½ cups Chicken Or Vegetable Stock
• 3 tablespoons Soy Sauce
• 2 tablespoons Natural Peanut Butter (2-3 Tbsp)
• 2 tablespoons Honey
• 2 tsp Fish Sauce
  
• 1-½ tablespoon Fresh Ginger, Peeled And Minced (or 1/2-3/4 Dried)
• 1 teaspoon Ground Coriander
• 2 teaspoons Ground Cumin
• 1 tsp chili sauce for kiddos/2 tsp (or more) if you like the heat a bit more.
  
• 4 cloves Garlic, Minced ( Less If You Don't Love It Like Me!)
• 1 whole Carrot, Julienned (thin Strips)
• 1 cup Broccoli Florets
• ½ cups Sliced Mushrooms
• 1 lb shrimp or cooked chicken
  

Cook 8oz pasta (spaghetti or linguine) until done and set aside.

Saute your veggies of choice(I prefer the ones above)in a pan with a little oil, until cooked. Set aside.

Stir together vegetable stock, soy sauce, peanut butter, honey, ginger, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes and garlic in a small sauce pan.

Cook over medium heat until peanut butter and honey melt and sauce is heated through.

Add noodles, stir fried veggies, any meat you may include (a few chicken breasts cut in strips is good) and toss to coat.

This post is linked with Foodie Friday, Ann Kroeker's Food on friday, Friday Feasts, and Family Recipe Fridays be sure to click the links and check out all the yummy dishes created, some fabulous recipes to be had!

Smothered Chicken

When Brian is gone, I try to go for some easy meals that don't come out of a bag. This one is PERFECT! I found some really cute kids to showcase the food. See the smiles? that's how I know this is a winner, the kids ate it!































Smothered Chicken

Quickfrozen, or fresh chicken breasts
one onion
2 strips of bacon
cheddar cheese
frozen green beans
garlic (fresh or dried)
paprika
sea salt
pepper

• Take chicken breasts and place in a pan with Olive Oil. Season them with salt, pepper, paprika, and garlic (to taste, we like alot of garlic). Cook until they are no longer pink in the middle.
  
• Take the chicken out of the pan and put in two slices of bacon. cook.
• take bacon out of pan and cut into small pieces.
  
• place the sliced onion in the pan with butter. Reseason with garlic, paprika, sea salt and pepper. cook until translucent.
• add frozen green beans, and bacon back to pan. cook till tender
• add sliced chicken back to pan and cover with cheese.

I served it with spinach, mashed potates with skins on and sliced apples.

Lasagna Roll ups

This weekend I got a little brighter. I assembled all the meals for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday into pyrex pans with lids. So now sitting in my fridge is all the meals ready to go, all i have to do is turn on the oven each night. I <3 this idea.....

Tonight we had Lasagna Roll ups. EVERYONE loved them... they were alot cheesier than normal lasagna and that went over well. Plus they very neatly came out of the pan to serve.

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef or italian sausage
one chopped onion
package of lasagna noodles
8 oz ricotta cheese
shredded provolone cheese 8oz
1 jar spaghetti sauce
mozzerella cheese 8 oz

1. boil the noodles and brown the meat and onion
2. drain the meat, then in a bowl combine half the sauce, ricotta cheese, provolone, meat and onion mix
3. place some sauce in the bottom of the casserole dish
4. take noodles, place some of the meat mix in it roll it up, about halfway place more meat mix and continue rolling. Repeat until casserole dish is full.
5. pour the rest of the pasta sauce onto the noodles, top with mozzarella cheese.
6. bake in 350F oven for about 45 minutes, until heated through

Alton Brown's Baked Macaroni and Cheese

pics to come.....

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound elbow macaroni
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon powdered mustard
• 3 cups milk
• 1/2 cup yellow onion, finely diced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 large egg
• 12 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• Fresh black pepper

Topping:

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, in a separate pot, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour and mustard and keep it moving for about five minutes. Make sure it's free of lumps. Stir in the milk, onion, bay leaf, and paprika. Simmer for ten minutes and remove the bay leaf.

Temper in the egg. Stir in 3/4 of the cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Fold the macaroni into the mix and pour into a 2-quart casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese.

Melt the butter in a saute pan and toss the bread crumbs to coat. Top the macaroni with the bread crumbs. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and rest for five minutes before serving.

Freaking fantastic Chinese Orange Chicken

This is awesome, restaurant worthy, we may never have to eat out again.... awesome. Aren't you lucky? you get to see my ghettotastic nails.

Ingredients

3 lbs. Chicken, cut into bite size pieces
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1/2 cup of flour
1/2 cup of cornstarch
4 beaten eggs with a little milk
oil


for sauce:
3/4 cups of sugar
1/2 cup of ketchup
1 cup of water
4 tablespoons of soy sauce
2tsp sambal olek or chili paste
1tsp hoisin sauce
1tsp garlic powder
juice of two oranges
peel from one orange


Beat 4 eggs together and add a little milk. Mix cornstarch, flour and garlic powder together. Dip chicken pieces in the flour then egg. Fry in hot oil until golden brown. Place chicken in casserole dish.

Preheat Oven to 400 degrees
Sauce:
Combine all ingredients and bring to a boil over medium-low heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved and ingredients are blended.

Pour sauce over chicken


Bake for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked thoroughly. Watch carefully that it doesn't overcook or burn.

Serve over rice.

Indonesian Peanut Chicken

You really must make this, it is fabulous. The kids even liked it. It was a little too spicy for them to eat too much of it, but they did eat it. Next time, I think I will tame their portions a bit more.

2 lbs chicken tenders
2TBS Vegetable Oil
1 Chopped Onion
2 smashed cloves garlic
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup salam olek (thai chili paste) I would actually cut this a bit next time just for the kids, it was perfect for me.
1 cup chicken broth
chopped cilantro for garnish

Salt and pepper the chicken and cook it in a frying pan

Then take it out, cut it if desired and set aside on a plate

put oil in the pan and fry the onion and garlic

add the peanut butter, salam olek, and chicken broth, simmer until combined.

add cut chicken back to the sauce.

Serve over rice (I used basmati) with cilantro garnish.

Maple Orange Chicken with sweet potatoe and butternut squash

Chicken breast tenders
1 acorn squash cut and seeded
2 sweet potatoes peeled and cut
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 TBL Hoisin sauce
3TBL butter
Juice of 2 oranges
Thyme (a quarter sized amount in my palm?)
Nutmeg
salt and pepper


Throw it all in a crockpot. Set it on High for four hours, come back later and YUM!

The kids ate this, they really liked it. Which probably really isn't a big surprise considering how much maple syrup is in it.

Ghengis got a bad rap.... Mongolian Beef

Okay, I originally posted this over at our family blog, but I wanted to move it over here too, since this where I am doing recipes now.

Isn't my sous chef the CUTEST??? This is the activity that John and I like to do together, John is fascinated by cooking!

Tonight I made Mongolian Beef. Its kinda part of our "hey can we make this at home?" restaurant tour. And really, I think this time it was better. The kids have NEVER have eaten a beef dish I made. Tonight they asked for seconds, seconds, it was like the heavens opened and the angels sung, all the planets aligned and my children ATE! So, I figured I would share. This recipe is a compilation of several different recipes. The recipes I researched called for flank steak, but flank steak has ever been my friend. Its so tough, I have never gotten it to turn out right in any recipe I have used it. So I used round steak and it turned out perfect.

MONGOLIAN BEEF

Prep/cook time: about 30 minutes

1 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp ginger minced (or you can use the dried)
2 TBL garlic chopped (again you can use the dried, just use a little less)
1 C Soy
1 C water
1 1/2 C Brown Sugar
1.75-2lb Round Steak
1/2 c cornstarch
1 sliced onion


Slice your round steak into bite sized pieces. It helps if you tilt the blad of your knife to a 45 degree angle. Put slices on a plate, and cover them in cornstarch. Let the beef sit for ten minutes soaking up the cornstarch.

Heat up the oil in your wok or skillet. Let it get hot, but not to smoking. Put in your cornstarchy beef in batches. Let it cook in the oil until it gets lightly brown around the edges. Don't worry at this point about the beef being cooked through... it will go back in to cook more. Put the beef on towels to drain.

Once you have all the beef cooked, throw in your onion and start it cooking. Once the onion is translucent add in your ginger, garlic, soy, water and brownsugar, stir. Add beef back into sauce and onion mixture. Let it simmer away until the beef cooks through. As it cools the sauce will thicken slightly. Serve over rice.