Showing posts with label NFF. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NFF. Show all posts
Friday, March 4, 2011
New Food Friday - Huevos Rancheros
Friday, February 25, 2011
New Food Friday - Slow Cooked Sweet & Sour Pork
This weeks new recipe was a real winner, made in the crockpot, yummy and super easy. We'll be adding this to our rotation for sure.
Slow Cooked Sweet & Sour Pork
1 1/2 lb boneless pork loin, cut into cubes
1 (18 oz) can pineapple tidbits, in unsweetened juice, undrained
1 medium red or green bell pepper, cut into squares
3 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 cup vinegar
3 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp water
2 tbsp cornstarch
In 3 1/2 to 4 quart slow cooker, combine pork, pineapple, bell pepper, brown sugar, ginger, vinegar and soy sauce; mix well.
Cover; cook on low setting for 6 to 8 hours.
About 5 minutes before serving, in small bowl, combine 3 tbsp water and cornstarch; blend well. Stir into pork mixture in slow cooker. Cover; cook on high setting for an additional 5 minutes or until thickened, serve pork mixture over rice.
I really love slow cooked pork and this was no exception, super tender and delicious. There's really only one change I would make to this recipe, my peppers were a little cooked to death. Very, very tender and over cooked, next time I would add them later and wouldn't cook them for the full 7 hours. Not sure how much later though, I'll have to experiment. Also we served this over coconut rice because we had leftovers to use up and the flavour of the rice was a little overpowering, I would just use plain next time.
Slow Cooked Sweet & Sour Pork
1 1/2 lb boneless pork loin, cut into cubes
1 (18 oz) can pineapple tidbits, in unsweetened juice, undrained
1 medium red or green bell pepper, cut into squares
3 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 cup vinegar
3 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp water
2 tbsp cornstarch
In 3 1/2 to 4 quart slow cooker, combine pork, pineapple, bell pepper, brown sugar, ginger, vinegar and soy sauce; mix well.
Cover; cook on low setting for 6 to 8 hours.
About 5 minutes before serving, in small bowl, combine 3 tbsp water and cornstarch; blend well. Stir into pork mixture in slow cooker. Cover; cook on high setting for an additional 5 minutes or until thickened, serve pork mixture over rice.
I really love slow cooked pork and this was no exception, super tender and delicious. There's really only one change I would make to this recipe, my peppers were a little cooked to death. Very, very tender and over cooked, next time I would add them later and wouldn't cook them for the full 7 hours. Not sure how much later though, I'll have to experiment. Also we served this over coconut rice because we had leftovers to use up and the flavour of the rice was a little overpowering, I would just use plain next time.
Friday, February 18, 2011
New Food Friday - White Corn Chili
Thursday, February 10, 2011
New Food Friday - Chicken Tortilla Soup & Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie
This week I used another recipe from Our Best Bites and made Chicken Tortilla Soup.
While I enjoyed the soup I'm pretty sure I won't make it again. There was nothing particularly wrong with it I just didn't enjoy it the way I wanted to. I wouldn't make any changes, just wouldn't make it again.
The real find of the night though was the Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie. This pie was so easy and delicious I want to make another. It's every bit as delicious as the picture makes it look and you should make one immediately. I'm not going to give you the recipe because you should all go Our Best Bites and enjoy the lovely site..
Chicken Tortilla Soup
1 recipe Taco Chicken
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
4 cans chicken broth
1 15-oz. can chopped or diced tomatoes
2 jalapeno peppers (if you're scared, try serrano peppers; they're milder)
1/4 c. fresh lime juice (3-4 limes). Don't even think of buying the stuff in a bottle.
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
TOPPINGS:
Store-bought tortilla chips, or 2-3 corn tortillas, plus oil for frying
Sliced avocado or guacamole
Grated or crumbled cotija cheese
1/4 c. cilantro
Early in the day, begin marinating the chicken. Right before you start preparing the soup, start grilling it.
In a large stockpot, heat some olive oil (I can tell you right now that you'll never hear the words EVOO from my mouth. Or my fingers.) over medium heat. Add chopped onion and saute 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and minced jalapeno and cook a few minutes more until pepper is softened and garlic is fragrant. Add chicken broth and tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer 15-20 minutes.
While soup is simmering, juice the limes and set aside. Start preparing the toppings: grate the cheese, chop the cilantro, cut up the avocado or prepare the guacamole, and fry the tortillas. Right before serving, add lime juice and chicken to the soup. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle soup into the bowls and add desired toppings.
While I enjoyed the soup I'm pretty sure I won't make it again. There was nothing particularly wrong with it I just didn't enjoy it the way I wanted to. I wouldn't make any changes, just wouldn't make it again.
The real find of the night though was the Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie. This pie was so easy and delicious I want to make another. It's every bit as delicious as the picture makes it look and you should make one immediately. I'm not going to give you the recipe because you should all go Our Best Bites and enjoy the lovely site..
Chicken Tortilla Soup
1 recipe Taco Chicken
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
4 cans chicken broth
1 15-oz. can chopped or diced tomatoes
2 jalapeno peppers (if you're scared, try serrano peppers; they're milder)
1/4 c. fresh lime juice (3-4 limes). Don't even think of buying the stuff in a bottle.
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
TOPPINGS:
Store-bought tortilla chips, or 2-3 corn tortillas, plus oil for frying
Sliced avocado or guacamole
Grated or crumbled cotija cheese
1/4 c. cilantro
Early in the day, begin marinating the chicken. Right before you start preparing the soup, start grilling it.
In a large stockpot, heat some olive oil (I can tell you right now that you'll never hear the words EVOO from my mouth. Or my fingers.) over medium heat. Add chopped onion and saute 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and minced jalapeno and cook a few minutes more until pepper is softened and garlic is fragrant. Add chicken broth and tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer 15-20 minutes.
While soup is simmering, juice the limes and set aside. Start preparing the toppings: grate the cheese, chop the cilantro, cut up the avocado or prepare the guacamole, and fry the tortillas. Right before serving, add lime juice and chicken to the soup. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle soup into the bowls and add desired toppings.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
New Food Friday - Taquitos
In case you're new around here, New Food Friday is where I try a new meal and then report back on the success or failure. I'd love if you'd join me but since there were no entries and linky tools isn't free anymore I'm dropping the linky. Feel free to leave me a comment and tell me about your new recipe, I'd love to come back to your blog and check it out.
Since I've started making a new recipe a week we've eaten a lot of meals that were very blah, hardly worth mentioning but since I started recording them I've had some great successes. I generally have low expectations of the new meals but for some reason I expected greatness of this meal and I definitely got it. So yummy that we're going to eat them again tomorrow.
Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos
1/3 C (3 oz) cream cheese
1/4 C green salsa
1T fresh lime juice
1/2 t cumin
1 t chili powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/4 t granulated garlic, or garlic powder
3 T chopped cilantro
2 T sliced green onions
2 C shredded cooked chicken (for extra yumminess, use grilled taco chicken!)
1 C grated pepperjack cheese
small corn tortillas (I used flour)
kosher salt
cooking spray
Heat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.
Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and granulated garlic. Stir to combine and then add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese and combine well.
You can prepare up to this step ahead of time. Just keep the mixture in the fridge.
Work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them between damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 seconds will do it. If you find yours are cracking when you roll them or are coming unrolled right away, just try heating them longer and try the paper towel thing.
Place 2-3 T of chicken mixture on the lower third of a tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges.
Then roll it up as tight as you can.
Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or an oil mister and sprinkle some kosher salt on top.
Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown.
I wouldn't change anything about this meal except perhaps to follow her directions. We used large tortillas, not small ones and you can see the edges were pretty brown but the middle wasn't. The filling was very hot all the way through but the browning was uneven, I really should have used the small tortillas like she says too. I also thought when I wrapped them up that the ends looked really empty so I stuffed some extra filling in only to have it bubble out while cooking so don't worry if you have empty ends, they'll fill up.
I got this recipe from a site called Our Best Bites and you can find the original with photos and a tutorial here. This site is my new favorite and you'll probably see a couple recipes from here in the next little bit, everything looks delicious. They recommend serving the taquitos with a Creamy-Lime Cilantro Dressing that sounds yummy and I would have made but I didn't have all the ingredients on hand.
Since I've started making a new recipe a week we've eaten a lot of meals that were very blah, hardly worth mentioning but since I started recording them I've had some great successes. I generally have low expectations of the new meals but for some reason I expected greatness of this meal and I definitely got it. So yummy that we're going to eat them again tomorrow.
Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos
1/3 C (3 oz) cream cheese
1/4 C green salsa
1T fresh lime juice
1/2 t cumin
1 t chili powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/4 t granulated garlic, or garlic powder
3 T chopped cilantro
2 T sliced green onions
2 C shredded cooked chicken (for extra yumminess, use grilled taco chicken!)
1 C grated pepperjack cheese
small corn tortillas (I used flour)
kosher salt
cooking spray
Heat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.
Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and granulated garlic. Stir to combine and then add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese and combine well.
You can prepare up to this step ahead of time. Just keep the mixture in the fridge.
Work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them between damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 seconds will do it. If you find yours are cracking when you roll them or are coming unrolled right away, just try heating them longer and try the paper towel thing.
Place 2-3 T of chicken mixture on the lower third of a tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges.
Then roll it up as tight as you can.
Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or an oil mister and sprinkle some kosher salt on top.
Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown.
I wouldn't change anything about this meal except perhaps to follow her directions. We used large tortillas, not small ones and you can see the edges were pretty brown but the middle wasn't. The filling was very hot all the way through but the browning was uneven, I really should have used the small tortillas like she says too. I also thought when I wrapped them up that the ends looked really empty so I stuffed some extra filling in only to have it bubble out while cooking so don't worry if you have empty ends, they'll fill up.
I got this recipe from a site called Our Best Bites and you can find the original with photos and a tutorial here. This site is my new favorite and you'll probably see a couple recipes from here in the next little bit, everything looks delicious. They recommend serving the taquitos with a Creamy-Lime Cilantro Dressing that sounds yummy and I would have made but I didn't have all the ingredients on hand.
Friday, January 28, 2011
New Food Friday - Tomato-Feta Chicken with Orzo
Two whole link-ups! I thought I'd go a little longer on my own, I appreciate the two that linked up last week.
In case you're new around here, New Food Friday is where we try a new meal and then report back on the success or failure. Tell us what you'd change and show a picture, it's a great way to add variety to your weekly menu.
Before I started documenting my new recipe's I made this orzo dish that was so bad it was inedible. It was a bad recipe that we only ate one bite of before throwing it out. Since then I've had half a bag of orzo I needed to use, this recipe sounded like a good way to do it.
3 - 3 1/2 pound cut-up broiler-fryer chicken
1 Tbsp olive oil or vegetable oil
1 3/4 cups frozen small whole onions (I used fresh pearl onions)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup white wine or apple juice (I used apple juice)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro or parsley (I used cilantro)
1 Tbsp chopped fresh or 1 tsp dried oregano leaves (fresh are expensive, I used dried)
1/8 tsp pepper
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) stewed tomatoes, drained (Can someone please tell me why you ever use whole tomatoes? They always say to chop with a spoon or cut them with scissors, why not just use diced ones? That's what I used. I also just noticed as I was typing this that it says to drain the tomatoes, I didn't do that and was a little surprised how liquid this dish was... draining would definitely fix that... oops.)
3 cups hot cooked rosamarina (orzo) pasta or rice (I used orzo)
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
This dish was really delicious, I especially loved the feta on it. I'll probably make it again but with some modifications just for convenience. I would just use chicken breasts next time because it's what I had on hand. The thigh and drumstick was a nice addition but Brad hates cutting around the bone. I would also just use a regular onion next time because I have them all the time, the pearl onions were nice but I don't think they made a huge difference. I'd also probably serve this on rice or egg noodles next time, again just because I don't stock orzo regularly and it's sort of hard to find.
Again, it was delicious and Brad really enjoyed about it, I think it even got a cheer (we took a page from Doug's book and we cheer over our good meals).
What did you make this week? Link up below.
In case you're new around here, New Food Friday is where we try a new meal and then report back on the success or failure. Tell us what you'd change and show a picture, it's a great way to add variety to your weekly menu.
Before I started documenting my new recipe's I made this orzo dish that was so bad it was inedible. It was a bad recipe that we only ate one bite of before throwing it out. Since then I've had half a bag of orzo I needed to use, this recipe sounded like a good way to do it.
Tomato-Feta Chicken with Orzo
2 Tbsp olive oil or vegetable oil (I used olive)3 - 3 1/2 pound cut-up broiler-fryer chicken
1 Tbsp olive oil or vegetable oil
1 3/4 cups frozen small whole onions (I used fresh pearl onions)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup white wine or apple juice (I used apple juice)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro or parsley (I used cilantro)
1 Tbsp chopped fresh or 1 tsp dried oregano leaves (fresh are expensive, I used dried)
1/8 tsp pepper
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) stewed tomatoes, drained (Can someone please tell me why you ever use whole tomatoes? They always say to chop with a spoon or cut them with scissors, why not just use diced ones? That's what I used. I also just noticed as I was typing this that it says to drain the tomatoes, I didn't do that and was a little surprised how liquid this dish was... draining would definitely fix that... oops.)
3 cups hot cooked rosamarina (orzo) pasta or rice (I used orzo)
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
- Heat 2 Tbsp oil in 12 inch skillet or 4 quart Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook chicken in oil about 15 minutes, turning occasionally, until brown on all sides. Remove chicken from skillet with tongs.
- Add 1 Tbsp oil to drippings in skillet. Heat over medium-low heat. Cook onions in oil mixture about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. Stir in garlic. Cook and stir about 30 seconds or until garlic is light golden brown.
- Stir in remaining ingredients except pasta and cheese, breaking up tomatoes with a fork or snipping with kitchen scissors. Add chicken. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes or until juice of chicken is no longer pink when centers of thickest pieces are cut.
- Serve tomato mixture over chicken and pasta. Sprinkle with cheese and, if desired, additional chopped fresh cilantro.
Again, it was delicious and Brad really enjoyed about it, I think it even got a cheer (we took a page from Doug's book and we cheer over our good meals).
What did you make this week? Link up below.
Friday, January 21, 2011
New Food Friday - Roadhouse Pizza
Two weeks ago I issued a challenge to spice up your menu, cook a new recipe and share it here... sadly it seems I'm the only one interested. Whether you join me or not I'm going to continue with the new recipes so I may as well blog about them. I'll continue with my sad little linky parties just in case someone decides to join but if no one does it's okay, I'll carry on anyway.
We love pizza in our house, whether it's homemade or take out we love it all so I make it fairly often. This week I decided to re-create a pizza we like to order out, it's called the Roadhouse and it's from Two Guys and a Pizza Place. I also tried a new crust recipe, the one I used in the past is not great but it's probably the 1st and only dough recipe I used. I figured it was time for a new one.
Roadhouse Pizza
Pizza Crust
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 tsp brown sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp olive oil
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and brown sugar in the water, and let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Stir the salt and oil into the yeast solution. Mix in 2 1/2 cups of the flour.
3. Turn dough out onto a clean, well floured surface, and knead in more flour until the dough is no longer sticky. Place the dough into a well oiled bowl, and cover with a cloth. Let the dough rise until double; this should take about 1 hour. Punch down the dough, and form a tight ball. Allow the dough to relax for a minute before rolling out. Use for your favorite pizza recipe.
4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). If you are baking the dough on a pizza stone, you may place your toppings on the dough, and bake immediately. If you are baking your pizza in a pan, lightly oil the pan, and let the dough rise for 15 or 20 minutes before topping and baking it.
5. Bake pizza in preheated oven, until the cheese and crust are golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes.
For our toppings I started with a sauce of Ranch dressing. Then I added cooked, sliced chicken breast, red pepper, bacon and cheese.
This pizza was delicious and very close to the take out we order. I wish the crust had been a little crispier but I probably could have cooked it slightly longer. I also needed to use more dressing and more cheese. I think in our house we tend to over due it with the cheese so I was trying to cut back and I got a little carried away, a tiny bit more would have been nice.
I'm calling this recipe a success and we'll probably make it again.
We love pizza in our house, whether it's homemade or take out we love it all so I make it fairly often. This week I decided to re-create a pizza we like to order out, it's called the Roadhouse and it's from Two Guys and a Pizza Place. I also tried a new crust recipe, the one I used in the past is not great but it's probably the 1st and only dough recipe I used. I figured it was time for a new one.
Roadhouse Pizza
Pizza Crust
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 tsp brown sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp olive oil
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and brown sugar in the water, and let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Stir the salt and oil into the yeast solution. Mix in 2 1/2 cups of the flour.
3. Turn dough out onto a clean, well floured surface, and knead in more flour until the dough is no longer sticky. Place the dough into a well oiled bowl, and cover with a cloth. Let the dough rise until double; this should take about 1 hour. Punch down the dough, and form a tight ball. Allow the dough to relax for a minute before rolling out. Use for your favorite pizza recipe.
4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). If you are baking the dough on a pizza stone, you may place your toppings on the dough, and bake immediately. If you are baking your pizza in a pan, lightly oil the pan, and let the dough rise for 15 or 20 minutes before topping and baking it.
5. Bake pizza in preheated oven, until the cheese and crust are golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes.
For our toppings I started with a sauce of Ranch dressing. Then I added cooked, sliced chicken breast, red pepper, bacon and cheese.
This pizza was delicious and very close to the take out we order. I wish the crust had been a little crispier but I probably could have cooked it slightly longer. I also needed to use more dressing and more cheese. I think in our house we tend to over due it with the cheese so I was trying to cut back and I got a little carried away, a tiny bit more would have been nice.
I'm calling this recipe a success and we'll probably make it again.
Friday, January 14, 2011
New Food Friday - Chicken Pot Pie
Okay, you've had your week to choose and make a new recipe, here's hoping I'm not the only one interested in the challenge.
This week I made a chicken pot pie. I'm a little surprised that I haven't ever made one before and now I think it's a shame that it took me so long. This recipe was delicious, one of those classics that I won't ever need a recipe for again. The only change I made was leaving out the mushrooms since I hate them. This was a real keeper that I'll make again and again, we felt so satisfied after the meal and the leftovers were just as delicious. I think it would be super yummy with mashed potatoes on top instead of pastry some time.
I hate mushy peas and I was really worried these ones would be overcooked but they were yummy. The recipe says you may have to cover your pastry with foil to prevent over browning, I pulled my pie out 15 minutes early, covered it and put it back in because it was starting to brown too quickly. I really appreciated that tip.
My version certainly didn't look as pretty as the one in the picture and for some reason my pastry did not turn out well but it was still tasty, just ignore the goo seeping on top (it was such delicious goo).
Chicken Pot Pie
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
salt & pepper to taste
2 tbsp finely chopped onion
3 cups chicken brother (I made my own from a store bought cooked chicken)
2 carrots, chopped in small pieces
2 celery stalks, chopped in small pieces
2 potatoes, cubed in small pieces
3 cups sliced mushrooms
2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup peas
3 cups cooked & diced chicken (I used the meat from the store bought chicken)
Pastry to cover 3-qt (3L) casserole or frozen puff pastry dough (I made my own even though it was not great)
Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat. blend in flour, salt, pepper and onion. Gradually stir in chicken brother. Cook, stirring constantly, until smooth and thickened. Add carrots, celery and potatoes. Cook until fork tender. In a small frying pan, cook the mushrooms in butter. Add mushrooms, peas and chicken to vegetable mixture. Mix well and pour into large casserole. Cover with rolled pastry and slash to allow steam to escape. Bake in preheated 400F oven for about 45 minutes, or until pastry is golden. If pastry becomes too brown, cover loosely with foil.
Now it's your turn, what new recipe did you cook? Would you make it again? What changes would you make and I'd love to see a picture.
This week I made a chicken pot pie. I'm a little surprised that I haven't ever made one before and now I think it's a shame that it took me so long. This recipe was delicious, one of those classics that I won't ever need a recipe for again. The only change I made was leaving out the mushrooms since I hate them. This was a real keeper that I'll make again and again, we felt so satisfied after the meal and the leftovers were just as delicious. I think it would be super yummy with mashed potatoes on top instead of pastry some time.
My version certainly didn't look as pretty as the one in the picture and for some reason my pastry did not turn out well but it was still tasty, just ignore the goo seeping on top (it was such delicious goo).
Chicken Pot Pie
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
salt & pepper to taste
2 tbsp finely chopped onion
3 cups chicken brother (I made my own from a store bought cooked chicken)
2 carrots, chopped in small pieces
2 celery stalks, chopped in small pieces
2 potatoes, cubed in small pieces
3 cups sliced mushrooms
2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup peas
3 cups cooked & diced chicken (I used the meat from the store bought chicken)
Pastry to cover 3-qt (3L) casserole or frozen puff pastry dough (I made my own even though it was not great)
Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat. blend in flour, salt, pepper and onion. Gradually stir in chicken brother. Cook, stirring constantly, until smooth and thickened. Add carrots, celery and potatoes. Cook until fork tender. In a small frying pan, cook the mushrooms in butter. Add mushrooms, peas and chicken to vegetable mixture. Mix well and pour into large casserole. Cover with rolled pastry and slash to allow steam to escape. Bake in preheated 400F oven for about 45 minutes, or until pastry is golden. If pastry becomes too brown, cover loosely with foil.
Now it's your turn, what new recipe did you cook? Would you make it again? What changes would you make and I'd love to see a picture.
Friday, January 7, 2011
New Food Friday - Lettuce Wraps
I like food. Really good food. I like to cook and eat yummy food but sometimes (and I hope I'm not alone here) I get stuck in food ruts. I cook the same things each week or month and the really yummy food starts to seem ordinary and mundane. In an effort to get out of this food rut I thought I'd try out a linky party. Since this is the first week I don't expect a whole lot of participation but here's your warning for next week.
Here's how it works, this linky is all about new recipes. I'm challenging you to try a brand new recipe every week. Blog about it and then on Friday's you can come here and link up. Tell us if you liked the recipe, what you liked about it, what you would change about it and if you would make it again. Give us the recipe and a picture would be nice but not mandatory.
I've personally been doing this for a couple weeks, I've made some really good meals, some really blah meals and one really un-edible meal but I've loved the challenge. It's made me go back through my recipe books and choose something I've been passing over for years.
Lettuce Wraps
This week's recipe was technically made for the first time last week but I made it again this week because we enjoyed it so much. The only change I would make had nothing to do with the recipe, this is technically an appetizer. We ate it for dinner and while it was lots of food we ended up not feeling satisfied. The first time we ate this it was New Year's Eve and we had tons of appetizers so it was perfect, make it for an appetizer, not for dinner.
1 tsp cooking oil
1 Boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced into 1/2 " pieces (I used some shredded chicken I had in the freezer)
1/4 cup grated carrot
1/4 cup slivered onion
1 Tbsp slivered green pepper
1 Tbsp slivered orange pepper
1 Tbsp slivered red pepper
1/4 cup water
1 pkg Ichiban noodles (chicken) broken into 6 pieces
1/4 cup unsalted peanuts
1/2 Ichiban seasoning packet
1 Tbsp Hoisen Sauce
1 tsp liquid honey
1/8 tsp pepper
1/16 tsp chili powder
1/16 tsp garlic powder (I used a clove of garlic)
1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce
1 head Butter Lettuce
Heat oil on medium. Add chicken, scramble fry until no longer pink. Add carrots, onion and peppers. Stir fry until veggies are tender-crisp. Add water and noodles, stir. Cover. Simmer for 2 minutes until noodles are softened.
Add next 8 ingredients, stir until heated through. Transfer to a small bowl, set bowl on platter and surround with lettuce leaves. Have person spoon about 1/8 of chicken mixture into lettuce leaf. Roll.
Makes about 8 wraps.
This recipe starts off so lovely and bright.
Here are my peppers all cut up. Confession... I didn't notice how little of each colour pepper this recipe called for before I bought all three. Had I noticed I probably would have stuck with one but I'm glad I didn't notice. The three colours were so pretty and tasty.
My carrot and garlic grated together.
So for my chicken, like I said I used some shredded, cooked stuff I had in the freezer so I skipped the fry step. Instead I started by frying my veggies.
Once they were tender-crisp I added my Ichiban. Now the recipe says to break into 6 pieces but I really wanted it broken up a bit more, I'd do that next time (sorry the photo is sideways, I couldn't bear to fix it).
Once that was done I threw in my chicken and everything else and it looked yummy like this.
This looked much prettier on New Year's Eve when I put it on my Mother-in-law's platter but I had to make do with a cereal bowl and dinner plate this time.
To eat you take a lettuce leaf and fill it with the yummy stuff.
Wrap it up and eat.
This recipe was a huge hit and everybody was wowed by it. I'm sure it would be the hit of whatever event you took it too.
Here's how it works, this linky is all about new recipes. I'm challenging you to try a brand new recipe every week. Blog about it and then on Friday's you can come here and link up. Tell us if you liked the recipe, what you liked about it, what you would change about it and if you would make it again. Give us the recipe and a picture would be nice but not mandatory.
I've personally been doing this for a couple weeks, I've made some really good meals, some really blah meals and one really un-edible meal but I've loved the challenge. It's made me go back through my recipe books and choose something I've been passing over for years.
Lettuce Wraps
This week's recipe was technically made for the first time last week but I made it again this week because we enjoyed it so much. The only change I would make had nothing to do with the recipe, this is technically an appetizer. We ate it for dinner and while it was lots of food we ended up not feeling satisfied. The first time we ate this it was New Year's Eve and we had tons of appetizers so it was perfect, make it for an appetizer, not for dinner.
1 tsp cooking oil
1 Boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced into 1/2 " pieces (I used some shredded chicken I had in the freezer)
1/4 cup grated carrot
1/4 cup slivered onion
1 Tbsp slivered green pepper
1 Tbsp slivered orange pepper
1 Tbsp slivered red pepper
1/4 cup water
1 pkg Ichiban noodles (chicken) broken into 6 pieces
1/4 cup unsalted peanuts
1/2 Ichiban seasoning packet
1 Tbsp Hoisen Sauce
1 tsp liquid honey
1/8 tsp pepper
1/16 tsp chili powder
1/16 tsp garlic powder (I used a clove of garlic)
1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce
1 head Butter Lettuce
Heat oil on medium. Add chicken, scramble fry until no longer pink. Add carrots, onion and peppers. Stir fry until veggies are tender-crisp. Add water and noodles, stir. Cover. Simmer for 2 minutes until noodles are softened.
Add next 8 ingredients, stir until heated through. Transfer to a small bowl, set bowl on platter and surround with lettuce leaves. Have person spoon about 1/8 of chicken mixture into lettuce leaf. Roll.
Makes about 8 wraps.
This recipe starts off so lovely and bright.
This recipe was a huge hit and everybody was wowed by it. I'm sure it would be the hit of whatever event you took it too.
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