Asian Wings

I made some delicious wings tonight!  Personally, I hate to deep fry anything, because it makes the entire house smell like grease.  But, Chuck doesn't like them as well when I bake and broil them.  So, I deep fried the chicken wings in peanut oil, until they were nice and crispy.

It was the sauce that really made the recipe, though.  Here's what I did.  In a small saucepan, I melted half of a stick of butter.  Then, I added 1/2 to 3/4 cup of artificial honey (use regular honey, if you can have sugar.  Chuck can't), about 1/2 a bottle of Sriracha hotsauce, 1 tbsp of sesame oil, 1/4 cup of soy sauce, 1/4 cup of lime juice, 1 tsp of extract of orange, and 1/2 cup of creamy peanut butter (I use the all natural kind).  Then to your taste, use:  garlic, crushed red pepper, ginger, and Chinese Five Spice. 

Then, simply cover the wings in the sauce.  So good!!!  I made 20 wings, and still had plenty of sauce left over.  I'm thinking it would be delicious over some ramen noodles (just the noodles, no liquid).  Or, for a vegan-friendly meal, leave the butter out of the recipe, and substitute with peanut oil.  Then, make sure the noodles are vegan.

Pinterest -- My New Cookbook

     Are you obsessed with Pinterest?  Because I am totally obsessed with Pinterest.  I've been cooking like a wild woman lately, all from the inspiration I get on Pinterest.  They have every recipe you can think of, and I am so excited to try new things all the time!

     I never follow the recipes exactly, because I like to make every recipe my own.  But, I've had a lot of hits with the family lately:  taco pasta, pepperoni pizza dip, citrus garlic pork loin, sugar-free peanut butter blondies...the list goes on and on.  I'm not comfortable with sharing the recipes, since the inspiration from each of them was taken from some other cook.

     So, if you're looking at that chicken sitting on your counter defrosting, and you have absolutely no idea what to do with it, go to Pinterest and type Chicken Recipes into the search bar.  It's so much fun!

Cooking Under Pressure

     Once upon a time...like a billion years ago (or maybe in like 2000 or 2001), I decided to save money at Christmas by making homemade gifts.  Now, I'm not the most creative person in the world, but I grew up with a mom who was the craftiest lady in town.  Seriously, my mom was constantly creating something awesome out of just stuff.  This same mom gifted me with a craft of the month subscription the year before.  Most of the crafts just sat in the box until I gave them away.  But, candle making was extremely popular about that time, and one month the craft was beeswax candles.  They were so gorgeous, and so easy.  You just rolled the sheets of beeswax up with a wick in the middle and tied them off with colored paper, corrugated paper, and raffia bows.  Since it had been so easy, and since I was in awe of the brand new Michael's that had just opened, I decided to make "real" candles for everyone.  Since I was heating paraffin for the candles, I figured I'd also venture into the other popular craft at that time--soapmaking.
     Can we just fast-forward through this story and say, "It didn't work out too well?"  Good, because that's what I'm going to do.  Basically, I managed (I still have no idea how) to spill hot paraffin between the two glass walls of my brand new oven.  I had to take the doors apart to clean it out, and they never fit back together quite right again.  Chuck was less than thrilled, as all the money I'd sunk into supplies for gifts was a bust, and we still had to buy everyone gifts.
     The next year, I told him I was thinking about a good craft for Christmas.  "No," he said.  But, I told him to hear me out.  I was thinking I could go to the farmer's market and buy up lots of fruit and make jams for everyone.  He thought that was a great idea.  He said that cooking was really my creative outlet, so I should go for it.  Then, I said that I would just need a pressure cooker for the canning.  He didn't go for it, as he'd heard many stories of pressure cookers exploding and I couldn't even make candles without destroying a $600 oven.  So, no pressure cooker.
     Anyway, I said all that to say this:  I bought a pressure cooker this past weekend.  I guess Chuck has either forgotten about how dead set against it he was, or he decided that I'm a decade older and a bit more responsible.  Can I just say that I love this thing?  I've used it 3 out of the 4 nights that I've had it.  Sunday night, I cooked pinto beans.  I have never had beans cook so fast!  After a one hour quick soak and about 15-20 minutes to get to pressure, they were done in 25 minutes.  And I mean perfectly done--no crunchy beans.  The next night, I threw chicken breasts in for tacos.  Never has chicken shredded so easily when it was done (in 30 minutes).  Tonight, I'm making a pork roast.  A whole pork roast in 45 minutes!
     Anyway, here's how I made it.  I heated olive oil in the cooker and browned the roast (sprinkled with garlic powder, salt and pepper) for a few minutes on each side.  Then I threw in a bag of sliced carrots, 3 stalks of celery, chopped, a box of sliced mushrooms, a half pound of greenbeans, 2 cups of chicken broth (I use bouillon and hot water to be honest), some minced garlic, and a splash of apple cider vinegar.  I can't wait for it to be done so I can report back with the results!

     So, you know I haven't blogged in a long time when I forget how to post.  I figured it out.  I think it's time for me to pick this blog up again, because I've been cooking like a woman possessed here lately.  It's my goal to not eat out during the week.  We can have one dinner out on the weekends, but otherwise we need to eat at home.  For the past few weeks, our family has not only saved money by eating at home, but we've discovered some new favorite meals.
     Do you use Pinterest?  I'm obsessed with it.  I spend entirely too much time looking for recipes and pinning them to my board.  But, it's worked out really well.  Chuck's new favorite entree is Caprese Chicken in Balsamic reduction, and it is fabulous.  There were no directions to marinate the chicken breasts, but I did it anyway.  First thing in the morning, I cut 4 chicken breasts in half and flattened them, then marinated them all day in olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and Italian seasoning.  Then Chuck grilled them for me, and I topped each piece with a slice of fresh mozarella and a slice of tomato.  For the sauce, I used one stick of butter, a bottle of balsamic vinegar and sauteed it until it reduced by half.  Then I stirred in 2 tsps. of Splenda and drizzled it over each chicken breast.  It was fabulous!  I wish it would quit raining so we could make it again.
     Jacob is usually a very picky eater, and never likes to try new things.  But, we were at Chili's awhile back, and Chuck had the Chicken Enchilada soup.  Jacob tried it and liked it, and then asked me to find the recipe.  Pinterest to the rescue again!  I won't detail it here, but it's on my recipe board--go get it and make it.  Jacob said I need to make it once a week for the rest of his life (or until he moves out at 18, because he can't wait to get out of here).
     What are you eating this summer?  We're eating a lot of Greek Salads--pretty much every Saturday night--because they're cool and refreshing.  I've gotten corn on the cob for as low as ten cents per ear this summer, and we're buying fresh berries and drinking smoothies like there's no tomorrow!  Share your favorite summer recipes in the comments (or just link to your own pinterest board).

Hamburger Hash

This is a quick, flavorful meal that is very filling and inexpensive to make.

Ingredients:

1lb ground chuck

1 medium diced onion

1 can diced potatoes, drained

Seasonings: salt, pepper, garlic powder or any that you like to taste


Instructions:

1. Brown ground beef (not to just grey but really brown it by removing excess liquid from the pan as you cook it)

2. While you are cooking the beef, about half way through, add the diced onions so they become translucent.

3. Add the can of diced potatoes and cook until heated through.


This dish is a great time saver if you are in a rush. My daughter and husband, both of which are very picky eaters, love this and they clean their plate!

Yummy Easy Chicken & Rice Casserole

Hi everyone! This is my first recipe here and I hope you all like it. This is one of my husband's favorite meal and it is pretty easy to do. All my seasoning is done by taste so it is add a little at a time till you get a flavor you love. (No need to worry about salmonella as by this point the meat is cooked!)

Ingredients

boneless/skinless chicken breast halves, one per person if you decide to leave them whole or 1 per two people if you wish to cube it

three to four cups of cooked rice

1 large can (family size) cream of chicken soup

1 packet of oven fry or shake n bake

Spray oil such as Pam or even Wal-Marts spray canola oil

some Lemon pepper, salt, pepper, you can add garlic powder and onion powder if you like.


Instructions

1. Start cooking your rice if you haven't prepared rice already. (You can get some really great frozen rice if you are in a real hurry - either in the frozen vegetable isle or with the frozen Asian foods) Make sure it is cooked through and heated.

2. place chicken breast into a microwave safe dish and cover with plastic wrap. Cook until juices run clear or it is no longer pink inside.

3. if you are cubing or shredding the meat - let it cool to the touch and cube or shred it.

4. Heat oven to 350f

5. spray a large baking dish or pan with the spray oil so the clean up is easier. (I have a very large corning ware baking dish I use)

6 add warm rice, if you use cubed shredded chicken add that now, the full can of cream of chicken soup and mix all together with your preferred seasonings.

if you are using full chicken breasts put rice, most of the can of soup mix with your preferred seasonings then lay the chicken breast on top and cover with the rest of the soup

7. sprinkle the top with your package of oven fry or shake n bake.

8. cook for about 15 minutes in the oven until the top browns and the middle is hot.



you can even try adding other ingredients like broccoli or cheese.

I hope you like it!

I've Got A Lovely Bunch of Poblano Peppers

     But, alas, none are as big as your head.  I love to make chili rellenos.  However, it takes fairly large sized poblanos, since I like meat and cheese stuffed in mine (and I hate them dipped in egg batter-gross).  The grocery store only had smallish peppers, but I decided to adapt.
     So, put about 2 pounds of poblanos on a baking sheet and bake in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes (10 minutes per side).  They should be blistered and soft, like so:

     Yummy.  Now, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove stem, seeds, and membrane.  Be very careful, y'all.  The seeds are very spicy hot.  Make sure you wash your hands thoroughly when you are finished.  Otherwise, if you touch your eye, it's going to hurt.  I know whereof I speak! 
     While roasting your peppers, you can brown your ground beef.  I used 3 pounds, but that was because I needed to have some meat for the kids' tacos--they wouldn't touch this casserole with a ten foot fork.  Drain the fat and add your favorite taco seasonings.  I personally prefer Walmart's Great Value brand, because it is the only taco seasoning mix I've found that doesn't contain MSG.  Of course, you could just do it the non-lazy way and add your own seasonings (I prefer chili powder, garlic, diced sauteed onions and onion powder, and crushed red pepper). 
  Now, in a rectangular casserole dish, layer lasagna style: just enough meat to cover the bottom, 1/2 the pepper slices, more meat, one can of pinto beans (puree them like me, or leave them whole--either way is fine) or refried beans (beware of the added fat), cheese, the rest of the pepper slices, meat, more cheese and bake at 350 for 20 minutes. 

     I topped it with some guacamole and fresh salsa.  If you love salsa but--like me--don't make your own, please do yourself a favor.  Don't buy salsa off the shelf.  Get fresh salsa in the produce section.  It tastes a bajillion times better!  Yummy!