Fish Tacos

You might be thinking that I'm on some sort of Mexican food kick.  And in some ways you would be right.  Really it's just a matter of convenience.  I hate when ingredients go bad, so these two recipes had similar ingredients, so I made them close together.  But I promise you will enjoy both! When I first heard the term "fish taco" I thought, "Ew gross! Who would want fish in their tacos!"  My husband looked dismayed at my outburst.  BUT thanks to his prodding and poking, my tastes have expanded and I now love fish tacos.  And these were particularly fabulous.  This recipe is also from www.eatingwell.com  I'm kinda stuck on them right now.

Again, this serving is for 2 people so you might want to double it up.  It took me roughly 30 mins! Yay for fast food!

First you want to make the Tomato Avocado Salsa.  Dice a large tomato, add 1/4 cup diced red onion, 1/2 jalapeno minced (or dried jalapeno), 2/3 tbsp lime juice, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, 1/2 diced avocado, 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, and cayenne to taste.

Next in a small bowl you want to combine 3 tbsp flour, 1/8 tsp ground cumin, 1/8 tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp cayenne.  Whisk in 1/3 cup of beer to make batter.

Add two tsp oil to pan on medium high heat.  NOTE: This recipe calls for a nonstick pan and they mean a nonstick pan.  My first go at this I used a regular pan.  I had fish, but all the batter was stuck to the pan...not fun.  Dip your 1 inch strips of tilapia  into the batter, let the access drip into the bowl and then put the pieces in the oil.  Fry into golden on each side (doesn't take to0 long).  Place fish into warm corn tacos (I used flour tacos because I think they're tastier) and then add salsa on top!  That's it.  I added sour cream and hot sauce for a little extra flavor.  What I love about this recipe is it's tasty AND quick, just remember the non stick pan so your not doing dishes for the rest of the night...like me.

Dish-o-the-Week: Barbecue Portobello Quesadillas

That's right friends!  It's been a long time, but there is finally another Dish-o-the-Week!  I think you will be particularly fond of this one, I know Speed Racer and I really enjoyed it.  It's an interesting combo, and of course I cannot take credit for it.  I found this recipe on www.eatingwell.com.  I changed just a few minor things here and there, but I think you'll like it.  ALSO, this is a two for one special, I'm also giving you my Green Green Guacamole recipe in honor of all the green grass outside and as a way of saying sorry it's been so long.  So now, less talk, more drooling.

Note: This recipe is for 2 servings, but I got 4 Quesadillas out of it...so you may want to make more if you're cooking for a group.  It took me roughly 45 min.

Dice 1/2 pound of portobello mushrooms as well as 1/2 of a medium onion.

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally.  The recipe says for 5 min, I did mine a little longer. Add onion and continue to stir until the onions are looking golden and translucent.

While the mushrooms and onions are sizzling away and making your mouth water, prepare your delicious sauce.  You will need.  1/4 cup barbecue sauce, we use Stubbs.  (Until I took this picture I never realized the moto was "My life is in these bottles."  It kinda creeps me out, just sayin'.)  Combine barbecue sauce with 1 1/2 teaspoons of tomato paste, 1 1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar (I actually forgot to add this, still tasted good), 1/2 chipotle chile in adobo sauce.  Our grocery store doesn't have the best variety so I couldn't find the chile in adobo sauce, so I added green chiles instead and they added a great flavor to the sauce.

Mmmmm, yummy yum yum yuuuuuuum.  It looks like it's not a lot of sauce, I have to admit I was a little worried, but it's actually just the right amount.  Never fear!

Once your onions and tomato's are done, add them to your sauce and mix until they are coated.  Then lay out your whole wheat tortillas (8-10 inch kind).  On half of the tortilla add Monterey Jack shredded cheese and your mushroom mixture.  Fold the tortilla in half.  Add another teaspoon of oil to your pan and then lightly fry your quesadillas on each side.  Mine took about 3-4 min total.  Now all you have to do is enjoy the cheesy goodness.  That's it..the end...bye bye.....

.......

Oh.  What's that?  I forgot the guacamole?  You MUST have the guacamole??  Okie dokie then.

This is my favorite guacamole recipe, it's so good! And one of the reasons I love it is that it's not a spicy guacamole, so it's nice for parties.  If you want to spice it up some though, you can.  Just add cayenne or red pepper flakes.

So! You will need 2 medium avocados, 1/4 cup of cream cheese (softened), 2 tbsp onion, 2 tbsp lime juice, 1 clove garlic, minced, 1/8 tsp salt, dash of black pepper, and 2 tbsp cilantro.

Mix all ingredients well in large bowl.  Simple.  I just mash mine until it's the consistency I want, I like it a little chunky.  Also, I would definitely add fresh cilantro.  A friend of mine recommended this recently and it has changed my life.  Cilantro is Fan-freakin'-tastic.

Now go stop drooling and enjoy!

Downtowner Fudge Pie

Friday night around midnight, I got in the mood to bake.  This happens more often than you would think.  So the only question was, what was I going to make?  The answer was simple.  My FAVORITE chocolate pie.  My mother had made it at Christmas but due to my bout of cluster headaches I was unable to partake ( chocolate + cluster headaches =  even more pain).  It was terrible, no chocolate a christmas!!  The horror.  So, I made up for it this weekend.  This recipe actually came from my Aunt which I'm sure she also got from somewhere.  It's one of those recipes that's just been passed along.  So I'm going to pass it on to you. In mixing bowl, beat 3 eggs until light, beat in 3 T. white caro syrup, 1 1/2 c. sugar, 1/4 t vanilla.  That right there is delicious.

Meanwhile, over low heat melt 1 stick of butter and 3 square of baking chocolate.  NOTE: I do this in the microwave just because it's simpler, but you can do this in a saucepan if you wish.  Also by "3 squares" it turns out that means 3 oz.  Hershey now sells bakers chocolate in 1/2 ounce squares so that can be a little confusing.  I also use unsweetened baker's chocolate.

Now at this point you may be tempted to lick this whole freakin' bowl, ahem, but remember this chocolate is unsweetened.  It will not taste as yummy as it looks.  Not yet.  Add slightly cooked chocolate mixture into mixing bowl.

Stir until combined.

Pour into 9" pie pan and bake at 375 for 45-50 minutes.  Remember this is a chess pie, so be careful not to over bake.  When it is done it should still shake like a custard.

Mine was not very pretty but very very delicious.  I think the reason it fell and cracked was because instead of stirring in the chocolate mixture I beat it in, thus adding more air, so it puffed up a lot.  WARNING:  This chocolate pie is so good you (and maybe your husband) might just eat the whole thing before the weekend is out...and gain 3 pounds...might happen.  Just sayin'.

Catching up

The holidays have been fantastic.  I really have enjoyed every minute, and I hate to say that I'm sad to see them go.  They've also been a whirlwind of presents, paper, food, traveling, family, and friends.  So as we head into the new year (can't believe it's going to be 2011) I'm going to try to do a little catching up. The week before Christmas we had all of Speed Racer's side of the family over for dinner and presents.  It was the first time since we really got a lot of work done on the house that everyone had been there at once.

So we pulled out my Grandmother's china, decorated with cheer, and cooked a ham.

The day of was a bit of fiasco until everyone got there.  I had been having terrible headaches every night the week before that were keeping me up at night (more on that later).  I was tired, moving slow, and just downright not thinking.  I was feeling so bad at work that I knocked off a little early and came home to take a nap, knowing that I had plenty of time to put the ham in before people got there.

Oh what a lie that was.  In my tiredness I had misread the cook times, and there was not enough time for ham.  So, I ran back to the store...in the rain...and bought another, precooked, smaller ham.  As I started cooking everything became a disaster, the potatoes, the ham still wasn't cooking fast enough, things still had to be done...I was on the verge of giving up and going back to bed.  But who came to my rescue?  None other than my Speed Racer.

He kissed me.  Told me everything was going to work out, that the mash potatoes were bad but fixable...put on some Christmas music and got to work.  He ironed the table cloth, started the fire, and then helped me in the kitchen.  It was teamwork and just as people were arriving, we pulled a beautiful ham out of the oven.

Everyone started tearing into their presents, and the kitties were glad to play with all the paper.

It truly was a wonderful evening.  I love having family and friends in this house, it brings me complete joy and reminded me that this is what Christmas is all about.

While Visions of Sugar Plums...

Last week my good ol' pal Stephanie and I did some Christmas baking.  It was such a great time!  We baked, we mixed...we washed lots of dishes. My messy kitchen...

Wonderful peanut butter fudge.  Mmmm.  We accidentally forgot to check how much the recipe made, so we doubled it.  And we made 6 lbs...you heard me 6lbs of peanut butter fudge.  If you need a fudge fix, stop by my house.

Stephanie working away.

These cheesecake cookies are fantastic, like unbelievable!

Cashew Brittle!

What's that Stephanie?  Your apron is amazing and it's only been 6 hrs since we started cooking?  Whew.  I need some peanut butter fudge.

Dish-o-the-Week: Awesome Chicken Tortilla Soup

I don't know where you are today, but where I am, it's snowing.  And it's COLD.  I don't like the cold, in fact I really don't like winter all that much.  I'm more of a beach and sun kinda gal.  But all complaining aside, I do love a day where I can curl up with a good bowl of soup.  And this soup my friends, is awesome. This recipe was given to me by my friend and fellow blogger, Renee.  For adventures of motherhood, money and everything else, you can check out her blog HERE.  One of the things I love most about this recipe is that it's all to taste.  If you like your soup with a kick, just add more...if you're a little more on the mild side (ahem, certain members of my family) then just leave it out or add less.

What you need:

1 lb. diced chicken breast

1 each of onion, red pepper, yellow pepper and jalapeno (I used dried jalapeno) cut into long strips.

28 oz of Fire Roasted Canned Tomatoes (Mine was just regular crushed tomatoes because my grocery store did not have the fire roasted.  BUT if you can find the fire roasted it is definitely worth it for the flavor.  Also depending on what consistency you like it's up to you if you want crushed, whole, diced...whatever floats your tomato boat).

32 oz of Chicken Broth

Coriander, Chili Powder, Garlic, and Thyme

Shredded Cheese, Sour Cream, Avacado, and Tortilla Chips for the Fixin's.  Fixin's are very important.

First, cube and saute the chicken in a large stock pot.  Then cut the onion and peppers, and add to the pot.  Saute until the veggies are tender.  Next add seasonings to taste.  For this I started with a teaspoon of each and then added as I liked it.  I think I ended up with 4 tsp of garlic, because garlic is da-bomb.  I also added some cilantro, paprika, and pepper.  Then Speed Racer came in and added several tablespoons of hot sauce...he loves his with some kick.

Stir in tomatoes and chicken broth, and let simmer until soup reaches desired temp.

While your soup is simmering, get your fixin's ready.  Do not go without the avocado, I believe very firmly that the avocado makes it.  I'll know if you eat this without avocado...I'm watching...me and Santa.  Think about it.

Finally, FINALLY!  Ladle this deliciousness into bowls.  I like to put my cheese and tortilla chips in the bottom of the bowl so it gets all gooey quick.  Then top it with the sour cream and avocado.

And there you have it, Chicken Tortilla Soup for a chilly night.  Hope this warms you up!

Halloween Revisited

Yesterday I recapped on October just a bit and promised to share all the spooky recipes from our Halloween party.  Well I plan on doing just that, although I'm kicking myself for not taking more pictures of the party itself!  I got lost in the moment, my blond wig was askew, I had mummies in the oven, and our guests showed up early...that's the best excuse I can give. The Halloween party was a lot of fun. Speed Racer and I (with the help of a couple of friends that came down) really got into decorating the house.  There were cobwebs, body parts, blood on the mirrors, spooky pictures, and much much more.  But my favorite was our front display.

Imagine this in our front yard, with spooky red lights on it and....

this guy jumping up at you from underneath the front wheel....terrifying.

Did I mention terrifying?  If your interested in scary stories involving trucks, check out Speed Racer's post HERE.

But if you made it past our terrifying display out front you were greeted with wonderful wonderful foods.  Without further ado, some spooky recipes.

Punch: 1 gallon orange juice, 1 gallon cranberry juice, sprite (amount that you desire), 1 cup raspberry sorbet, and if you choose for an alcoholic option, 1 bottle citrus vodka.

Rice Crispy Ghosts: You'll need 6 c. rice crispy cereal, 3 tbsp. butter, 1 bag regular marshmallows, coconut, and M&Ms.  Melt butter and marshmallows over low heat until completely melted.  Add 6 c. of cereal and stir until completely combined.  Let cool slightly and then form into ghost shapes, add M&Ms for eyes and mouth.  Place on coconut on bottom.

Bread stick Bones: This was a definite favorite of the night!  It smelled amazing while baking.  Take 2 cans of Pillsbury bread sticks and shape into bones.  Cover with Parmesan cheese and garlic, bake as directed on package.

Candy Apples: Clean and remove stems from about 10 apples (or however many people you are having).  Melt about 75 caramels with 2tbsp of water over medium low heat in a large sauce pan.  Once caramels are completely melted add 1 cup or chocolate morsels, and 1 tbsp of creamy peanut butter.  Dip apples in sauce, and then dip in bowl full of mini marshmallows, walnuts, and broken pretzels.  Place on wax paper and let cool.

Guacamole: Okay, so this one isn't spooky but it's delicious.  Peel and remove seed from two ripe avocados.  Mash avocados to desired consistency.  Add 1/4 c. cream cheese.  Add diced onion, tomato, and 2 tbsp garlic.  Finally add just a squirt of lime juice and mix.

Pizza Mummies: On mini bagels add pizza sauce, then two chopped black olives (these are the eyes).  Take cheese sticks and peel into long slices, placing them horizontally on the bagel below and above the "eyes" for the mummies wrappings.  Bake for about 10-12 min.

Carrot Fingers and Dip: Put ranch dip in a dip bowl.  Take several baby carrots and using a little bit of dip on the top, place sliced almonds on top of the dip (these are the finger nails).  Place fingers finger nail side up around the edge of the bowl.  Add more baby carrots on a plate for more dipping.

Mini Witch Brooms: Take pretzel sticks and fruit by the foot.  Cut fruit by the foot in about 2" sections and fray at the bottom.  Wet the top of the fruit roll up and attach to base of pretzel stick.  They are adorable.

Hallo-Bean Dip: Chop 1 onion and 2 orange peppers.  Drain can of black beans and add to onion and orange peppers.  In a bowl mix in balsamic vinaigrette to taste.

I also put out some jalapeno poppers just for another "normal" finger food.  I went a little over board with the food for the amount of people we were having but it was so much fun!  I couldn't have done it without our friends, thanks guys.

Easy Veggie Soup

This is a super simple recipe for veggie soup, that is delicious.  Obviously, because I'm sharing it with you!  We're continuing with our fall theme with this recipe (even though it's still hot here) so snuggle up and enjoy the warmth this recipe brings. I like to freeze my extra veggies (you know those ones that you really don't know what to do with and they're about to go bad?) and keep them in a container just for soup.  Sometimes I get an interesting mix of veggies but this one contained onions, lots of mushrooms, carrots, celery, and green pepper.

*Side note, I made this dish at 6:30 am....that means you can do it anytime.

So, first get your slow cooker out.  Add to it three beef bullion cubes and 3 cups of water.  Next add a big can of crushed tomatoes (mind had basil added) and a small can of tomato paste.  Throw in your mixed veggies whether they are frozen or fresh.  Then season with 1/2 t. basil, 1/2 t. oregano, 1/2 t. salt, 1/4 t. pepper, 2 teaspoons of garlic, and 1/2 t. of jalapeno flakes (if you like a little extra pep!).  Turn the slow cooker on low, and let it heat throughout the day.  If you are using fresh veggies you may need to be careful that your veggies don't get too mushy.   Around 2:00 this afternoon, I came back home and tasted the soup.  I thought it needed a little something else, so I added about 2  T. of Worcestershire sauce...this give it a little bit of a smokey flavor...yeah.  And there you go!

See how yummy that is?  Beautiful? No. Yummy? Yes.

On another note, tomorrow will be the ill fated day of my tonsillectomy, so I will be MIA for at least the rest of the week.  I know it will be hard for you to go on without me, but at least you will have soup to keep you company.  I will be eating pop sickles, and mash potatoes, and lots of pudding.

Joy and Thanks

First my apologies for being away from the blog some this week.  It was quite the week, I started a different part time job, had a lot of meetings for photography, and it was my birthday...whew.  So it was quite busy.  But I warned you it was going to be that way for awhile, so hang in there, I promise I'm here and I'm not going anywhere.Now that apologies are out front and center, I want to say thank you to everyone for making my birthday such a wonderful day.  Thank you for all the facebook well wishes, for my husband for spoiling me like always, and all my friends and family that took the time to call.  It was a wonderful day and I thoroughly enjoyed it. So, speaking of spoiling, two of my presents that I got COMPLETELY spoiled with are shown in the above picture.  My parents got a 10 piece cooking set, which I was totally surprised by.  We never got one for our wedding and had been using a set from Speed Racer's bachelor days, and although that set was very nice too, it's nice to have a complete set.

The other really cool present I got was from my friend T-shirt.  She ordered these spices from Penzeys Spices, with a cute note that said "Hope this inspires a Dish-o-the-Week!"  I can't wait to try them out, and I'll have to think of a new dish and call it the T-shirt :)

So there you go, I've officially been spoiled.  There's no going back.  I love birthdays, not just because of gifts, but when I get down to the heart of the matter it's because I love any excuse to celebrate whether it's for me or someone else.  Thanks again to everyone for such a wonderful day, and keep your eye on the blog for some new cooking recipes now that I am armed and ready to go!

Dish-o-the-Week: Homemade Granola

I love homemade granola.  It's such a great and healthier way to start the day.  Granola just makes me think of good things, and smells AMAZING when it's baking in the oven. I was raised on this recipe and can still remember my Mom baking it fresh on Saturday mornings.  It took me awhile to appreciate it, what small child wants granola when they can have Cinnamon Toast Crunch!  But now it's one of my favorite breakfasts: it's healthy, it's filling, it's delicious.

My Mom got this recipe from the "More with Less" Cookbook, sold HERE.  If you haven't ever seen this cookbook you are missing out.  It is a Mennonite community cookbook and it has great, natural recipes in bulk.  It's not the best on deserts because a lot of their recipes are low sugar, which I mean if I'm going to eat desert, I want the sugar.  But it has fabulous soups, main dishes, breads, and cereals.  Definitely check it out.

Granola is really pretty basic.  You're mixing your dry ingredients with your wet ingredients and baking it together.  You can add dried fruits, different nuts, or anything else to your hearts content.  Here I started with 10c. of rolled oats, 1c. wheat germ, 1c. cornmeal, 1c. peanuts, and 1 c. of coconut flakes.

For the wet ingredients I used, 1 1/2c. honey, 1c. peanut butter, 1 T. cinnamon, 2/3c. oil, 1/2c. water and 1T. salt.

MMmmm...so delicious.

You want to combine them on low heat until the peanut butter is completely melted.

Then combine the dry and wet ingredients until they are all mixed together.

Bake at 350 on a greased cookie sheet for 30 min.  You will want to turn them every few minutes or so to keep one side from browning too much.

And ta-da! Delicious snack and breakfast all at once.  And it's really pretty easy.  Again, check out "More with Less," for other great recipes and how to work on keeping your grocery costs down while providing healthy meals.