Good ol'Beans

I think I am addicted to recipes from Pioneer Woman. This is the second weekend in a row I have made one of her recipes for a BBQ. Homemade beans have always intimidated me. This recipe was super simple and turned out great. I added browned ground beef for some extra texture but I think they would be great without the beef also.

Source: Pioneer Woman

4 cups pinto beans
4 slices thick bacon (or you can use salt pork or ham hock or dices ham)
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
6 to 8 sliced jarred jalapenos chopped (optional)

Rinse beans in col water. Pick out any beans that look questionable. Pour beans into large pot, cover with water by 2 to 3 inches. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cover. Simmer 2 hours or until beans are tender. Add water to pot as needed. Beans should have a thick broth. Towards the end of the cooking time add salt and pepper and season to taste. Don't over salt. I added chopper jarred jalapenos at this point along with the browned ground beef.

Classic Potato Salad

Mike and I were having friends over for BBQ and game night and I wanted homemade potato salad and remembered seeing this recipe on the Pioneer Woman's website. It is a very classic recipe and very good. Sometimes the simplest ingredients came make the best tasting things!

Source: Pioneer Woman

5 pounds russet potatoes

1 1/2 cup real mayo

4 tablespoons prepared mustard (regular Dijon or both)

5 green onions, sliced up to the darkest green part

8 small sweet pickles (or dill pickles) chopped

1 teaspoon kosher salt (more to taste)

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

4 hard boiled eggs, coarsely chopped

Cut potatoes in halves or thirds, then boil until fork tender. (make sure the water is salted, salty like the sea) Drain. mash potatoes or run them through a ricer or food mill to make them extra fluffy. (I mashed mine to get some chunks). Fold potatoes together with mayo, mustard, green onion, salt, pepper and other seasonings you like. Fold pickles and eggs, then taste for seasonings, adding more salt. mustard or mayo as needed. You may also splash in juice from the pickle jar if salad needs a little moisture.

Hoisin Chicken

I was searching for one recipe and I stumbled across this one on foodtv.com. It is good. Spicy and sweet and so simple to make. Mike and I both loved it.
I served it with cucumber salad

Source: Food Network

3/4 cup hoisin sauce
3 scallions, coarsely chopped
5 cloves garlic
1 2 inch piece fresh ginger, sliced
1 jalapeno pepper, stemmed and halved (remove seeds for less heat) (I did not steam the jalapeno)
Zest and juice of 2 limes, plus lime wedges for garnish
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 pounds skin on chicken thighs and drumsticks (separate pieces)

Preheat a grill to medium heat on one side. In a mini food processor combine all ingredients excluding chicken. Process until smooth. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Reserve some marinade for basting. Toss the chicken with the hoisin mixture in a large bowl. Grill the chicken over direct heat until the skin is crisp, 5 minutes per side, basting with extra marinade. Transfer chicken to the cooler side of the grill, cover and grill until cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes.

Breakfast for dinner: Pancakes

Sorry for the blurry picture, I was in a hurry to eat! I love to have breakfast for dinner and so does Mike, yet another reason we are meant to be =] I have never made pancakes from scratch but this recipe from The Pioneer Woman is awesome! I had all the ingredients on hand and they came together to make some great cakes!


Mike always makes the pancakes in our house. I can cook a lot of things but for some reason I can't make good pancakes. Here is Mike cooking up the cakes:PW’s Perfect Pancakes

3 cups plus 2 tablespoons cake flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups milk
2 large eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla
4 tablespoons butter
Extra butter
Maple or Pancake syrup

Mix together dry ingredients in large bowl. Mix together milk, eggs, and vanilla in a separate bowl. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, stirring very gently until just combined.
Melt butter and add it to the batter, stirring gently to combine.
Cook on a greased skillet over medium-low heat until golden brown. Serve with an obscene amount of butter and warm syrup.

**note: we made maple butter by melting butter into maple syrup in a sauce pan. Don't know how I ever ate pancakes without it!**

Product review: Popchips

Popchips are good, real good. Mike couldn't stop eating them. I heard about them recently and finally found them at Target. I was at Target today and decided to buy some. I got BBQ because you can never go wrong with BBQ. They are so good, not greasy at all. The only have 120 calories and 4 grams of fat for one third of the bag! The chips are all natural which makes me feel better about eating chips. It is also nice to read the ingredients of a package and know what everything listed is. They have 7 flavors including BBQ, sour cream and onion and salt and pepper. I will definetly be trying a few other flavors.

www.popchips.com

Homemade Korean food

Mike and I took a trip to see his sisters in Atlanta during the 4th of July weekend. His mom and step dad also came down from New York along with his cousin from Alabama.

This is everyone:

Mike's mom and cousin taught me how to make Korean food. I could not tell you a recipe since it is a little of this a handful of that. Once we came home to California I decided to invite my parents over and make them Korean food. If you have never had homemade Korean food...you are missing out! It is better than any Korean restaurant I have ever eaten at.

This is Mike and his mom Katy:

This is fried tofu and it is awesome! My mom and dad both liked it which shocked me.

This is chop che, my favorite:

Tupperware

This is my loot from my recent Tupperware party. My sister recently started selling Tupperware and I needed some in my kitchen very badly! This stuff lasts forever. My mom still has the cake carrier she bought before I can remember and she made a lot of birthday cakes on that thing! I really needed big bowls and as you can see I really scored some! I am not afraid to admit that I love my Tupperware!

Chicken Tamale Casserole

This was super easy and very good. Tamales are a lot of work but this is not. I changed the recipe a little from the original recipe from Food alla Puttanesca. This would make a great week night meal since I use a store bought rotisserie chicken.

Adapted from: Food ala Puttanesca

1 cup (4 ounces) pepper jack cheese (separated 1/4 cup and 3/4 cup)
1/3 cup milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
1 (8.5-ounce) box corn muffin mix (I used Jiffy)
1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
Cooking spray
1 (10-ounce) can red enchilada sauce
2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
1/2 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 400°. Combine 1/4 cup cheese and next 7 ingredients (through chiles) in a large bowl, stirring just until moist. Pour mixture into a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until set. Pierce entire surface liberally with a fork; pour enchilada sauce over top. Top with chicken and sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. Cut into 8 pieces; top each serving with sour cream.

Ryan’s Bolognese

I have collected a couple bolognese recipes over the past couple years but never made one. This recipe from the Pioneer Woman's blog looked simple and it really was. It also tasted great. Next time I make it I will add red pepper flakes. I like my Italian food a little spicy. I halved the recipe and I was able to freeze what we didn't eat for another night. So the recipe below would probably feed at least 8 people. This is a Pastor Ryan recipe and I think he knows my husband because all of his recipes Mike loves.

Source: Pioneer Woman

1 1/2 cups grated carrots
1 large red onion, diced
1/2 cup olive oil
2 pounds ground beef
2 tablespoons oregano flakes
2 tablespoons dried basil flakes
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 to 2 cups red wine
2 tablespoons Worcestershire
salt
pepper
2 28-ounce cans whole tomatoes
1 cup milk
Fresh Parmesan cheese

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or skillet over medium heat. Add grated carrots and onions and cook for a few minutes.
Make a well in the center of the mixture, then add in the ground beef. Cook for a few minutes until brown, gradually stirring it into the carrot mixture.
Throw in oregano and basil. Use fresh if you have it; if you don’t, it’s fine.
When the meat is browned and combined with other ingredients, make another well. Add tomato paste and let it heat.
Add garlic and stir to combine.
Make a well in the center of the mixture and add red wine. Stir together.
Add Worcestershire and stir.
Add canned tomatoes.
Finally, pour in milk, stir, and let simmer for 30 minutes to 2 hours—however long you need.

Serve with pasta and a generous sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.

Olive Oil Muffins

I saw Giada make these once and thought they sounded different. I tried them this weekend and they are good but I don't think they are something I would make again. Mike did not like. They are definitely different. Savory and sweet at the same time.


Source: Giada De Laurentiss

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons orange zest
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons whole milk
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
Powdered sugar, for sifting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place paper liners in a 12-cup muffin tin. Blend together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl to blend. Using an electric mixer beat the sugar, eggs, and zests in a large bowl until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the vinegar and milk. Gradually beat in the oil. Add the flour mixture and stir just until blended. Crush the almonds with your hands as you add them to the batter and stir until mixed. Fill the muffin tin almost to the top of the paper liners. Bake until golden on top and a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out with moist crumbs attached, about 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes. Remove the muffins onto a platter and let cool for 5 more minutes. Sift powdered sugar over the muffins and serve.

Summer Shrimp Rolls

It has been hot here lately. Typically when it gets hot here it does cool back down till October. I have been looking for simple meals that don't require an oven so to not heat up the house anymore than it already is. I found this recipe in the June/July issue of Everyday with Rachel Ray. It is the first recipe I have made from the magazine even though I have had a subscription for over a year. It was very light and refreshing.


Source: Everyday with Rachel Ray

1 1/2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 pound large shrimp-peeled, deveined and chopped
3/4 cups fresh corn kernels (I used canned because it is what I had)
1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup pesto
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch cubes
3 scallions, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
4 hot dog buns (I used french rolls)

In medium skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring until opaque about 3 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in the corn and let cool.
In a medium bowl, stir together the mayo, pesto and lemon juice. Add the shrimp-corn mixture, bell pepper and scallions; toss. Season will salt and pepper. Serve in the hot dog buns.

Shrimp Ceviche

I really like shrimp ceviche. I have never made it at home. I was so happy this recipe turned out so well. The recipe makes a lot. The next time I make it I will probably half the recipe and it would still feed 4 to 6 people in my opinion. This recipe does boil the shrimp instead of "cooking" the shrimp in lime juice but it is still very good! We ate it like salsa on chips. It would also be good on a tostada.


Source: Food Network

Kosher salt
2 pounds medium-small shrimp, peeled and deveined
8 limes, juiced
8 lemons, juiced
2 oranges, juiced, preferably sour oranges
2 large tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 red onion, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 bunch cilantro, stemmed and roughly chopped
1 serrano chile, roughly chopped
2 large avocados, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 large cucumber, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
Tortilla chips, for garnish

In a large pot of boiling salted water, add the shrimp and simmer until just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a bowl of ice water to chill. Drain the shrimp, cut into 1-inch pieces, and transfer to a bowl. Add the lime, lemon, and orange juice, stir to combine, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours and up to 6. Stir the tomato, onion, cilantro, and chile into the shrimp mixture and let sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes.(Before I added the shrimp to the tomato mixture I drained most of the citrus juice and added some back in the end so that it wouldn't be too wet.)
When ready to serve, gently stir in the avocado and cucumber. Divide the ceviche among 8 chilled martini glasses and tuck 2 to 3 tortilla chips around the sides of each.