August 24, 2012

What?  Are you sure?  Really...school begins on Monday????  Oh my!  Today Owen met his 3rd grade teacher and dropped off his supplies all while Hannah was busy with 6th grade orientation at the middle school.  I've know that she was going to head off the middle school this year, but it is really here now.  Hannah is definitely ready and excited.  And Owen is the over half way through elementary school - I think I need to sit down!  Not to be outdone by his siblings, Liam is enrolled in tot co-op two mornings a week!  Three different schools for my three favorite kids.  I better get ready.

Ryan has been working so hard this entire summer, he took this "last week of summer" off.  We had a fabulous stay-cation.  Monday: visit to the zoo. Tuesday: trip to the movies. Wednesday: fun at the bowling alley.  Thursday: tour of the Jelly Belly warehouse (and a stop in the retail store).  Friday: time at the pool.  All in all, I'd say it was a great week, capping off a fantastic summer.

Because we were busy enjoying time as a family, we didn't try out too many new dishes.  I did create a new chicken dish with what was on hand one night, and everyone voted in a keeper.

Tonight we tried something I had seen on Pinterest, but it hardly qualifies as a recipe.  One box of Betty Crocker Angel Food Cake mix and one 20 ounce undrained can of crushed pineapple.  Mix the two together (it will foam), put in an ungreased tube pan, and cook 35 minutes in a 350 degree oven.  Let it rest upside down, on the neck of wine bottle if you have one on hand.  Once cool, cut with a serrated knife and enjoy.  Owen and I loved it, but no one else wanted to try it.  If you like pineapple and angel food cake, maybe give it a try!

School is back in session - sharpen those pencils!

New Recipes
Skillet Lime Chicken

Skillet Lime Chicken

Ingredients
* 3-4 chicken breasts
* 1 tsp salt free seasoning (I used SW flavored Mrs. Dash)
* 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
* 1 tsp black pepper
* 1/2 tsp dried cilantro
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
* 1/4 cup olive oil
* 4 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 tbs butter & 1 tbs oil

Directions
1. Mix salt free seasoning, cayenne pepper, black pepper, cilantro, and salt. Set aside.
2. Whisk together lime juice, olive oil and garlic.
3. Sprinkle the dry rub on both sides of the chicken breasts.  Place the chicken in a zip-top bag or glass container.  Pour the liquid marinade over the chicken, and place in the fridge to marinate for 1-2 hours.
4. Melt butter and oil in large saute pan on medium to medium high.  Once melted, add the chicken to the pan and brown the chicken for 3 minutes per side.
5. After the chicken is browned, add the marinade to the pan.  Bring to a boil (this will be quick), then lower the heat to medium or medium low.  Cover the pan, and let the chicken simmer 7 to 8 minutes.  Flip the chicken, and then let it simmer another 6-7 minutes. The chicken is ready when it is cut into and the juices run clear.
6. Serve and enjoy!

Notes
I had some fresh lime juice that I wanted to use, so I came up with this recipe.  It is funny to use Mrs. Dash and then add salt, I know! But I was trying some flavors, and this is what was created.  Feel free to leave the salt out if you'd like.  

Everyone loved the prominent lime flavor of the chicken, and it reheated well the next day to be devoured again at lunch!

August 17, 2012

I actually don't have much time to post...the kids are just about to come home after having been gone for over a week - I am so glad to have them back!

This week we did make a few new dishes, and here are the keepers!  Have a great week!

New Recipes

Soy and Lime Glazed Salmon
Chicken Enchilada Pasta
Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Dark Chocolate Frosting

Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Dark Chocolate Frosting

Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Ingredients
* 1 package (18-1/4 ounces) yellow cake mix 
* 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter 
* 3 eggs 
* 1-1/4 cups water 
* 1/4 cup canola oil

Directions
1. In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, peanut butter, eggs, water and oil; beat on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium for 2 minutes.
2. Fill 24 paper-lined  or sprayed muffin cups. Bake at 350° for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely. 



Chocolate Buttercream Frosting (from Hershey's) 

Ingredients
* 6 tablespoons butter, softened
* 2-2/3 cups powdered sugar
* 1/2 cup Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa
* 1/3 cup skim milk
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
 
Directions
1. Beat butter in medium bowl. 
2. Add powdered sugar and cocoa alternately with milk, beating to spreading consistency (additional milk may be needed). 
3. Stir in vanilla.



Notes
The cupcake recipe is one I have had for a long time, clipped out from a Taste of Home magazine.  The buttercream feosting I used was a Hershey's recipe.   They went fabulously well together!  For me, 20 minutes was the perfect amount of time for these cupcakes in my oven.

Chicken Enchilada Pasta

Ingredients

* 1-2 cups chicken, cooked & shredded or chopped

* 2 tbsp. olive oil

* 2 garlic cloves, minced

* 1 medium onion, diced

* 1 red pepper, diced

* 1 4 oz can diced green chiles

* 2 tsp. chili powder

* 1 tsp. cumin

* 2 cups green chili enchilada sauce

* 3/4 cup red enchilada sauce

* 2 cups shredded cheese, your choice

* 1 lb box penne pasta (or the pasta of your choice)

Directions

 

1. Cook the pasta according to the box directions.
2. Heat the olive oil in a deep skillet and cook onions for about 3-5 minutes.  Add garlic & red pepper and cook for another 3-5 minutes. 

3. Add cooked chicken, green chiles, cumin, chili powder, salt, & enchilada sauces.  Let sauce simmer for about 8-10 minutes.

4. Add cheese and stir until the cheese is melted and heated through. 

5. Drain pasta & return to pot.  Pour sauce over pasta and mix well.  Serve and garnish if desired with avocado, tomato, green onion, and/or sour cream.

Notes

This is another option to use your leftover chicken and create a whole new meal.  I had about one and a half cups of leftover grilled chicken, so I tried out this recipe that I have had for a few weeks.  I made this while it was just three of us home for dinner, so I cooked an appropriate amount of pasta, and served the pasta with the sauce on the side.  I then froze the remaining sauce for a future dinner when Ryan is out of town!   The original recipe called for sour cream in the sauce, but we don't like sour cream here, so I gave the the recipe as I adapted it for us.  We thought it was really great! 

Update - September 7, 2012.  I served the kids this pasta while Ryan was out of town.  The sauce reheated beautifully, and the kids couldn't get enough of it!  This is definitely a keeper recipe!

Soy and Lime Glazed Salmon

Ingredients

*Salmon fillets

* 4 tbsp butter

* 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

* 1/2 tsp minced garlic

* 1/4 cup brown sugar

* 1/4 cup fresh lime juice

* 1/4 cup soy sauce

* 1 tsp cornstarch dissolved in 1 tbsp of water

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add crushed red pepper and garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add sugar; whisk until mixture is melted and smooth and begins to bubble, about 4 minutes. 

2. Whisk in lime juice and soy sauce. Increase heat and boil until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 2 minutes. Add cornstarch mixture and boil until thick, about 3 minutes. Set sauce aside. 

3. Place salmon on a parchment lined backing sheet.  Spoon sauce over each fillet. Roast until fish is opaque in center, about 15 minutes. 

Notes

Yum!  We loved this! Served it with wilted spinach and roasted tomatoes, we felt like we had gone out to dinner!

Friday August 10, 2012

This was a bit of an off week to try new recipes - the kids went away mid-week for their final trip of the summer.  So we didn't try that many new dishes, but managed to fit three, and all were voted keepers.  Hard to believe that it is August, with talk of back-to-school and the end of the summer approaching.  Even the weather has turned cooler the last few days, which has been a welcome relief.  I seem to recall the weatherman mentioning that we have had over 40 days in the 90's.  Needing a sweater tonight on the way home from a friend's house was refreshing!

We did find time to try a few new things: strawberry muffins, bacon-pepper mac and cheese with chicken, and lime cilantro chicken tacos.

I have been collecting Taste of Home recipes for years.  My grandmother-in-law gets the cooking magazine, and when I first met her she showed me it. There are a few different monthly titles by the same company (simple and delicious is another one), and for years I had a subscription and clipped the recipes that looked good.  One of the main reasons I started this blog was so that I would finally begin to test out the recipes I had been clipping for years and years.  Well, the strawberry muffin recipe is one of those recipes from Taste of Home.  We really enjoyed them, as did my friends, so perhaps they might earn a spot at your breakfast or brunch table.  as with all muffins, they are best served warm. 

When I go to the library I love to check out the cooking magazines and cook books.  I checked out a Betty Crocker cookbook in the spring when I had a long car ride (where I was the passenger, don't worry).  I marked down the recipes that looked good, and when I got home, I found them on the Betty Crocker website and saved them to one of my Pinterest boards.  This saved me from making a photocopy of the recipe, and of having to check the cookbook out again in the future.  This week, Hannah had a friend sleep over, and we decided to make a pasta recipe for dinner.  When she saw the ingredients for this mac and cheese, she decided we should make it. It was a hit at the dinner table.  Of course, there were more children than adults at the table, and how can you go wrong with bacon in your meal?

And where did I find the Lime Cilantro tacos?  I saw those on Pinterest, and they sounded fantastic.  They ended up being delicious, and the kids just loved these chicken tacos.  I would highly recommend the lime cilantro pesto recipe - different and very summery!  

Happy cooking!

New Recipes
Strawberry Muffins
Lime Cilantro Chicken Tacos
Bacon-Pepper Mac & Cheese with Chicken