So, it was a night alone while Jake was coming home late. I didn't want to do too much and I wanted to work with what was in my refrigerator. This is what I came up with and apparently it was a hit. Here is what I came up with...
Ingredients
2 boneless skinless chicken breast
1 TB salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp mexican oregano
2 TB of vegetable oil
1 cup of your favorite chunky salsa
1 pkg softened cream cheese
3/4 cup shredded Monterey jack
Mix together all of the spices in a bowl and season both pieces of chicken with it, both sides. Heat a large skillet with vegetable oil. Place chicken breasts in skillet and cook for 2 minutes on each side, until lightly golden. Place browned chicken breasts in a baking dish and preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, thoroughly mix together the salsa and softened cream cheese. I have found using a hand mixer gets the lumps out of the cream cheese quicker. Pour the cream cheese salsa mixture over the chicken and cover with foil. Bake covered for 20 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake for 20 additional minutes. At the end of baking, sprinkle the Monterey jack on each of the pieces of chicken and bake until the cheese has melted. Once you remove the chicken from the oven, allow to stand at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before serving to allow the dish to cool. Serve over your favorite rice.
(Picture on site)
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Chicken and sausage pepper pasta
This is a newer recipe for me to try. This is not what I usually would put on my blog so fast but it was loved by all so I thought, "what the heck." This is how it goes...
Ingredients
2 TB margarine + 1 TB margarine to be used later
1 TB olive
3 Sweet Italian Sausage links (sliced 1 inch thick at a diagonal)
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (Diced in cubes)
Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
2 TB flour
1 small onion diced
3-4 Italian green frying peppers, cut into 1 inch pieces
4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
3/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup of fresh chopped parsley (reserve 2 TB for garnish)
2 pickled cherry peppers (jarred) chopped, plus 3 TB of liquid from the jar (based on personal preference you can get sweet or hot pickled cherry peppers)
1/2 lb. uncooked farfalle pasta (aka...bow tie) Cook as directed, making sure to salt the water once boiling
Heat 2 TB of margarine and 1 TB of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the sausage until both sides are golden, about 2 minutes. Meanwhile, season your cubed chicken with salt and pepper and then toss the chicken into the 2 TB of flour. Once the sausage has cooked for 2 minutes and it is golden, add the chicken. You are only going to brown the chicken at this point so it will only take 3-4 minutes.
Next, add the onion, garlic, green frying peppers, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp of fresh ground black pepper. Cook for another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the wine and stir making sure to scrape the bottom of the skillet to get all of the browned bits at the bottom...this is the flavor! Bring to a boil and cook until the liquid is slightly reduced, about 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a gentle simmer before covering, allowing it to cook for an additional 5 minutes to allow the sausage and chicken to cook through.
Remove the chicken, sausage, peppers and onions to a bowl with a slotted spoon and set aside. Stir in the parsley (remembering to reserve some for garnishing), cherry peppers and their liquid into the skillet along with 2 TB of starch water from your pasta. Bring to a boil and let it reduce slightly (about 3 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in 1 TB of margarine. Add the chicken, sausage, peppers and onions back into the skillet to toss with sauce.
Place the chicken, sausage, peppers and onions mixture over the farfalle pasta and garnish with fresh parsley and grated Parmesan cheese! Enjoy!
(Picture on site)
Ingredients
2 TB margarine + 1 TB margarine to be used later
1 TB olive
3 Sweet Italian Sausage links (sliced 1 inch thick at a diagonal)
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (Diced in cubes)
Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
2 TB flour
1 small onion diced
3-4 Italian green frying peppers, cut into 1 inch pieces
4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
3/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup of fresh chopped parsley (reserve 2 TB for garnish)
2 pickled cherry peppers (jarred) chopped, plus 3 TB of liquid from the jar (based on personal preference you can get sweet or hot pickled cherry peppers)
1/2 lb. uncooked farfalle pasta (aka...bow tie) Cook as directed, making sure to salt the water once boiling
Heat 2 TB of margarine and 1 TB of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the sausage until both sides are golden, about 2 minutes. Meanwhile, season your cubed chicken with salt and pepper and then toss the chicken into the 2 TB of flour. Once the sausage has cooked for 2 minutes and it is golden, add the chicken. You are only going to brown the chicken at this point so it will only take 3-4 minutes.
Next, add the onion, garlic, green frying peppers, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp of fresh ground black pepper. Cook for another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the wine and stir making sure to scrape the bottom of the skillet to get all of the browned bits at the bottom...this is the flavor! Bring to a boil and cook until the liquid is slightly reduced, about 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a gentle simmer before covering, allowing it to cook for an additional 5 minutes to allow the sausage and chicken to cook through.
Remove the chicken, sausage, peppers and onions to a bowl with a slotted spoon and set aside. Stir in the parsley (remembering to reserve some for garnishing), cherry peppers and their liquid into the skillet along with 2 TB of starch water from your pasta. Bring to a boil and let it reduce slightly (about 3 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in 1 TB of margarine. Add the chicken, sausage, peppers and onions back into the skillet to toss with sauce.
Place the chicken, sausage, peppers and onions mixture over the farfalle pasta and garnish with fresh parsley and grated Parmesan cheese! Enjoy!
(Picture on site)
Hoosier Corn
First off, I didn't name this and it has nothing to do with Indiana. I think it's a recipe that relates more to people who put mayonnaise on steak or something ridiculous like that. I felt the same way the first time I heard this...but after I tried it, I will never look at corn the same way. This is how it goes...
Ingredients
Fresh ears of corn
Margarine
Mustard
Parmesan cheese
Chili powder
After you have "shucked" your corn. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once you are at a rapid boil, salt your water and place your corn in the pot and let it boil for 8 minutes. Remove the corn from the boiling water and let cool for about 5 minutes so that all of the rest of your ingredients don't run off your corn...who wants that!
Now stay with me, I know this sounds like a strange combo on corn on the cob, but boy does it taste good!
Lather your piece of corn first with margarine. Next you will want to squirt some mustard (just plain old yellow mustard) over the corn and using a knife spread it over every inch of the corn. Next, you will sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top of the mustard...don't be shy...give it a good dusting. The final topper to this corn, a light sprinkle of chili powder. If nothing else, your curiosity has got you wanting to dive into this piece of corn! I hope all of you enjoy this as much as I do, I haven't eaten a plain old piece of corn of the cob since!
(Pictures on site)
Ingredients
Fresh ears of corn
Margarine
Mustard
Parmesan cheese
Chili powder
After you have "shucked" your corn. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once you are at a rapid boil, salt your water and place your corn in the pot and let it boil for 8 minutes. Remove the corn from the boiling water and let cool for about 5 minutes so that all of the rest of your ingredients don't run off your corn...who wants that!
Now stay with me, I know this sounds like a strange combo on corn on the cob, but boy does it taste good!
Lather your piece of corn first with margarine. Next you will want to squirt some mustard (just plain old yellow mustard) over the corn and using a knife spread it over every inch of the corn. Next, you will sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top of the mustard...don't be shy...give it a good dusting. The final topper to this corn, a light sprinkle of chili powder. If nothing else, your curiosity has got you wanting to dive into this piece of corn! I hope all of you enjoy this as much as I do, I haven't eaten a plain old piece of corn of the cob since!
(Pictures on site)
Piggy Poppers
I have to start off by saying that I stole this recipe from my brother Chris, so I have to say thank you to him. This recipe you can do with almost any pepper. My pepper of choice??? The jalapeno is my choice. However, for those of you without the stomach for a jalapeno, the pablano pepper is fine. Here is how this works...
Ingredients
4 Jalapeno peppers (if you would like a not so spicy pepper, you can substitute Poblanos)
1-1/12 cup pulled pork
1 pkg softened cream cheese
8 slices of bacon
First, you will need to cut the jalapeno peppers in half. If you can take the heat, you can leave the seeds and ribs in. If you want to keep these a little more tame, remove the seeds and ribs. Next you will need to take about a tablespoon of cream cheese and spread it into the halved jalapeno. Now, you will also be placing the pulled pork on top of this, so if a tablespoon looks to be too much because your pepper is small...make your adjustments accordingly. The same applies for if you are using the poblano pepper, they are usually larger than jalapenos so if you need to add more cream cheese go right ahead. I myself have never had a problem with too much cheese!
After filling all of your pepper canoes with cream cheese you will then want to put some pulled pork on top of the cream cheese. Once you have completed this, you are going to wrap each stuffed jalapeno with a piece of bacon. What goes good with pork...ummm, that's right more pork...and who doesn't love bacon!
Now that you have your piggy poppers all wrapped and ready to go, you will need to get your grill ready! Once your grill is hot, make sure it is at about medium temperature. You don't want the heat too high because it will burn your bacon and leave your peppers still crisp! So, place the poppers on the grill (medium heat). You will have to keep an eye on them and continue to rotate them so the bacon cooks on all sides. You are dealing with grease and fire, so please be cautious while manning your grill. These will need to cook for about 10-15 minutes or until the bacon looks golden brown and the peppers are just beginning to become soft. Just to add a little extra flavor to them I brush them with Frank's Sweet Chili Sauce. You by no means need to do this as they taste great on their own, however I am a sucker for sweet and spicy!
(pictures on site)
Ingredients
4 Jalapeno peppers (if you would like a not so spicy pepper, you can substitute Poblanos)
1-1/12 cup pulled pork
1 pkg softened cream cheese
8 slices of bacon
First, you will need to cut the jalapeno peppers in half. If you can take the heat, you can leave the seeds and ribs in. If you want to keep these a little more tame, remove the seeds and ribs. Next you will need to take about a tablespoon of cream cheese and spread it into the halved jalapeno. Now, you will also be placing the pulled pork on top of this, so if a tablespoon looks to be too much because your pepper is small...make your adjustments accordingly. The same applies for if you are using the poblano pepper, they are usually larger than jalapenos so if you need to add more cream cheese go right ahead. I myself have never had a problem with too much cheese!
After filling all of your pepper canoes with cream cheese you will then want to put some pulled pork on top of the cream cheese. Once you have completed this, you are going to wrap each stuffed jalapeno with a piece of bacon. What goes good with pork...ummm, that's right more pork...and who doesn't love bacon!
Now that you have your piggy poppers all wrapped and ready to go, you will need to get your grill ready! Once your grill is hot, make sure it is at about medium temperature. You don't want the heat too high because it will burn your bacon and leave your peppers still crisp! So, place the poppers on the grill (medium heat). You will have to keep an eye on them and continue to rotate them so the bacon cooks on all sides. You are dealing with grease and fire, so please be cautious while manning your grill. These will need to cook for about 10-15 minutes or until the bacon looks golden brown and the peppers are just beginning to become soft. Just to add a little extra flavor to them I brush them with Frank's Sweet Chili Sauce. You by no means need to do this as they taste great on their own, however I am a sucker for sweet and spicy!
(pictures on site)
Saturday, May 21, 2011
The key to anyone's heart.... Pizza
This is my first blog so please bear with me. I have been experimenting with pizza for years and have come up with some great recipes. At home in St. Louis, thin crust pizza is king. I, however, am a sucker for a deep dish any day of the week. My better half, Jake, is also a deep dish pizza nut. So, that being said, I went in search of making the ultimate deep dish pizza. I have made regular deep dish as well as Chicago style deep dish. Today I am talking about Chicago style deep dish. The main difference is the order in which the ingredients go on the pizza. A Chicago style pizza goes like this... dough, cheese, sausage, pepperoni (or any toppings you want) sauce, Parmesan and Romano cheeses. The icing on the cake, if you will, is the crust. Nothing beats a good crust. This is how I make my Chicago style deep dish pizza.
Dough Recipe
1 package rapid rise dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 TB olive oil
1/4 cup cornmeal
2 3/4 cups flour
In the bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the vegetable oil , olive oil, cornmeal and half of the flour. Mix for 10 minutes. Attach the dough hook and mix in the remaining flour. Knead for 5 more minutes with the mixer. I know this seems like a lot of mixing, but it will be well worth the wait! I let the dough rise in my mixing bowl instead of transferring to a separate bowl, just make sure you rub a little bit of olive oil over the top of the dough to prevent the dough from forming a hard outer crust while rising. Cover the top of the bowl with plastic wrap and place in a warm area to rise for 2 hours. Take the dough out and punch it down, then cover the bowl again and continue to let the dough rise for another 2 hours. While the dough is rising you can prepare the pizza sauce.
Pizza Sauce Recipe
1 Large can of San Marzano's whole tomatoes
1 tsp of crushed red pepper flakes
1 TB of Italian seasoning
2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of black pepper
2 TB of sugar
In a large bowl, crush the whole tomatoes with your hands. Beware of the tomatoes! They tend to squirt at you while doing this, so I wouldn't suggest wearing white while doing this. After you have crushed the tomatoes, you need to place them in a colander to allow the excess liquid to drain. You definitely don't want a soggy pizza after all this hard work!
Once the tomatoes have drained, add the remaining ingredients. I usually do this in advance so that all of the ingredients have time to get to know one another.
Okay, so now we are finally ready to start the assembly of the pizza...are you getting hungry yet? You will need to bake this pizza in a deep pizza pan or in a cast iron skillet. I personally prefer using a cast iron skillet, as the cast iron cooks the crust perfectly!
You will need to oil the pan before you put the dough into it to ensure you will be able to easily get the pizza out after it is finished baking.
Let the assembling begin!
Dough
Mozzarella Cheese
Sweet Italian Sausage (this is raw so you will have to spread it out over the cheese)
Pepperoni (or whatever toppings you prefer, let your imagination run wild!)
Pizza Sauce
Grated Parmesan and Romano Cheese
Bake at 475 degrees for about 35-40 minutes or until the cheese is golden and the crust is a light golden brown. Let the pizza cool for about 15 minutes, resist the temptation to dive into it immediately....your mouth will thank you later on!
Dough Recipe
1 package rapid rise dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 TB olive oil
1/4 cup cornmeal
2 3/4 cups flour
In the bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the vegetable oil , olive oil, cornmeal and half of the flour. Mix for 10 minutes. Attach the dough hook and mix in the remaining flour. Knead for 5 more minutes with the mixer. I know this seems like a lot of mixing, but it will be well worth the wait! I let the dough rise in my mixing bowl instead of transferring to a separate bowl, just make sure you rub a little bit of olive oil over the top of the dough to prevent the dough from forming a hard outer crust while rising. Cover the top of the bowl with plastic wrap and place in a warm area to rise for 2 hours. Take the dough out and punch it down, then cover the bowl again and continue to let the dough rise for another 2 hours. While the dough is rising you can prepare the pizza sauce.
Pizza Sauce Recipe
1 Large can of San Marzano's whole tomatoes
1 tsp of crushed red pepper flakes
1 TB of Italian seasoning
2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of black pepper
2 TB of sugar
In a large bowl, crush the whole tomatoes with your hands. Beware of the tomatoes! They tend to squirt at you while doing this, so I wouldn't suggest wearing white while doing this. After you have crushed the tomatoes, you need to place them in a colander to allow the excess liquid to drain. You definitely don't want a soggy pizza after all this hard work!
Once the tomatoes have drained, add the remaining ingredients. I usually do this in advance so that all of the ingredients have time to get to know one another.
Okay, so now we are finally ready to start the assembly of the pizza...are you getting hungry yet? You will need to bake this pizza in a deep pizza pan or in a cast iron skillet. I personally prefer using a cast iron skillet, as the cast iron cooks the crust perfectly!
You will need to oil the pan before you put the dough into it to ensure you will be able to easily get the pizza out after it is finished baking.
Let the assembling begin!
Dough
Mozzarella Cheese
Sweet Italian Sausage (this is raw so you will have to spread it out over the cheese)
Pepperoni (or whatever toppings you prefer, let your imagination run wild!)
Pizza Sauce
Grated Parmesan and Romano Cheese
Bake at 475 degrees for about 35-40 minutes or until the cheese is golden and the crust is a light golden brown. Let the pizza cool for about 15 minutes, resist the temptation to dive into it immediately....your mouth will thank you later on!
Friday, May 20, 2011
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