The Plan

OK, I definitely need some extra motivation to cook.  Lately it seems we've been doing way too much take out and mac and cheese.  I always plan out meals for the week.  I'm great at the planning...it's the execution I have trouble with.  It seems like by the end of the week I have only done maybe half of the meals I bought groceries for.  There are always excuses of being too tired from work or soothing my emotions with a pile of pasta or stack of pancakes.  Either way it ends up with wasted groceries, expanding waistlines, and feeling like a bit of a failure.  So, I'm going to use this blog, once again, as motivation to make cooking family dinners fun again.  If I put it out there for others to see, maybe I will also stick to what I say I'm going to do.

What's for dinner this week?
*Fajita Quesadillas
*Chicken and Rice bowls
*Ravioli w/ zucchini
*Fish (OJ) Chicken (me and Penny) w/ Salad and Roasted Asparagus
*Roast w/ mashed potatoes & green beans

Tonight we had Fajita Quesadillas.  I used strips of onion, green and red bell pepper, and baby portabella mushrooms.  I sauteed them over medium high heat with a little bit of canola oil, then seasoned with some taco seasoning.  Then I used my Griddler (love that thing!) to do the quesadillas.  We used some whole grain tortillas so they were a little nutty tasting.  It was a hit!  It was easy, delicious, and a good way for everyone to get their veggies without realizing it.

1 down, 4 more to go . . .

Chipotle Shrimp Tacos

OJ loves shrimp or fish taco and burritos.  I'm not really big on seafood, but I do like shrimp.  Over the years I've done several different versions of shrimp tacos depending on what flavor profile we're into at the time.  They are fast, easy and OJ always feels like I've made him something special when I 

make them.

I buy the frozen shrimp.  Whatever size you like, we usually use Large (41-50 per lb).  Defrost according to pkg directions (usually by putting them in cold water for about 20 min or so.  Pat dry.  You want them as dry as possible.  Then I give them a generous coating of Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle seasoning.  I used my Griddler to grill them up.  You could use an indoor grill pan or any non-stick pan.  Cook for a few minutes on each side.  Warm up small corn or flour tortillas and top with salsa, cheese and anything else you like.  We got this yummy peach and mango salsa from Target.  Fresh squeezed lime is really good on it too.  So that's it.  Easy and tasty!

Chicken Quesedillas

With OJ & Penny's cheese obsession, quesedillas are definitely a staple in our house!  We like to find ways to change them up every now and then.  This one was sooo good!   We added some shredded rotissoire chicken, with a poblano pepper and some baby bella mushrooms.  I gave the veggies a quick saute in a pan.  I kept the temp a little high so the peppers would blister a little and everything would stay a little crisp.  Like when you do fajitas.  Then we layered them up in our new Cuisinart Griddler (love it!) and cooked both sides at once.  No flipping! I kept the peppers out of Penny's.  They were a hit!  I love coming up with twists on our favorite foods.  It keeps things interesting :)  

Green Chili Burros

 

Nursing school has once again taken over my free time/life so I haven't been on to post! I will try to be better about it :) I made this a few weeks ago and again tonight! This is an all time favorite at our house! I make a double batch sometimes just so we can have leftovers for lunch the next day! It is actually really simple and doesn't require a lot of attention so its nice to throw in the pot and do things around the house while it cooks!

 

Green Chili Pork

1 package boneless pork chops (about 6 to 8 pork chops) cubed into small bite size pieces

2 small tomatoes

1 medium yellow onion

Frozen green chili to taste (I use about 3/4 of a tub of Bacas green chili but you don't need to use that much if you don't want it very hot!)

Lawry's Seasoning salt to taste

Lawry's Garlic Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

2TBS Pancake mix (any kind, Bisquick works best)

Cube the pork chops into small bite size pieces, about 1/2" cubes. Chop tomato up into small pieces (doesn't really matter how small or if they are all perfect shapes because by the end they dissolve into the chili) and dice the onion. Put this all in the pan together and do NOT add any oil to brown it. Season with the seasoning salt, garlic salt, and pepper. Let this simmer on med to med/high for about 30 to 45 minutes stirring occasionally. Cook longer at medium to make the meat more tender if you want. When all the meat is browned and cooked through there should be some water/juice from the veggies if not add about 1 to 1 and a half cups water. Then whisk in the pancake mix, whisk quickly so there will not be any lumps. (my brother in law gave me the idea of the pancake mix and I thought he was nuts but it actually is really good and makes it a nice consistency without having to use oil) Let this come to a boil for about 5 minutes and then add the green chili to taste. Let this simmer for about 15 minutes and serve in a burro with or without cheese! This meat also makes DELICIOUS green chili cheese folds!

Shawna's Chimi's - Utah test drive

•  I set out to make Shawna's Chicken Chimi recipe tonight and realized that I bought regular taco seasoning instead of chicken taco seasoning.  I was just going to use it anyway until I remembered that I had my own blend in the cupboard!  
• I got this recipe from Bobby Flay and I love it!  We usually use it during the spring / summer when we make tacos on the grill.  It's very flavorful but mild enough even for Penny to enjoy.  The original recipe is below.  When I made my batch I didn't have ancho chili powder so I just used regular.  Whatever you have.

• Spice-Rubbed Chicken Breast
• from Bobby Flay

• 2 tablespoons ancho chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (8 ounces each)

The chimi's were a success!  Thanks for the recipe Shawna! Connie has agreed to post her enchilada sauce recipe so I can't wait to try that with it next time :)

Chicken Chimi's

 

 

We made these the other night becasue I was craving El Charro and trying to be frugal ;) They came out way better than I expected and were soo easy!

 

 

Chicken Chimi's

 
-3lbs cooked chicken ( I usually put chicken in the crockpot in the morning on low and add garlic    salt, pepper and about 1 cup of water and let it cook for about 6 hours or until it shreds easily with a fork. Rotisserie chicken would work too)
- 1 package McCormick's Chicken Taco Seasoning
- 2/3 cup water
- Flour tortillas
- Vegtable oil if you want to fry the chimi's. Baking them will work too if you are going for a healthier version.
- Shredded cheese
- your favorite Enchilada Sauce (ours is Macayo's)

Shred the chicken and put into a pan with 2/3 cup water and the chicken taco seasoning. Let this simmer until the chicken is coated in the seasoning, you can add another pack of seasoning if you would like. (if you do add another 2/3 cup water)
Fill tortilla with enough chicken to roll into a burro (be careful to not overfill it)
Roll into an open-ended burro. You can secure the middle of the burro where the tortilla ends with a toothpick and bake at 350 until the tortilla has a nice golden brown color.
 *If you want to fry them fry on each side for about 2-3 minutes until golden brown and crispy and drain on a paper towel lined plate.*

Top burros with warmed enchilada sauce or use Mom's homemade enchilada sauce! (I will let her post the instructions for that)  andadd cheese!

These are really good served with refried beans and spanish rice!

Louie's Cilantro Lime Tacos

 

These are a favorite at our house! We make them at least twice a month!

You will need:
Garlic Salt (We prefer Lawry's)
Morton's Season-All Reduced Sodium Seasoning Salt
1- 2 lbs beef for fajitas or stir fry meat
1- 2 lbs chicken breast for fajitas or stir fry
4 Limes cut into wedges
1 bunch Cilantro
4 jalepenos
1 medium white or yellow onion
2 dozen taco size flour tortillas
Cheese to top tacos

Cut the meat into bite size pieces, if I cant find the stir-fry I use fajita strips and they work great.
Brown the meat in two seperate pans and add garlic salt and seasoning salt to taste.
While the meat is cooking dice the onion, jalepeno and cilantro (I use my ninja chopper because it is fast and easy!) and put on a plate to use as toppings.
Cook meat on low until it is tender and the chicken is golden brown.
warm tortillas and get ready to eat!
Serve with spanish rice or fideos ;)
We usually each make our own plate and add the toppings we like and then squeeze the lime over our tacos. My favorite is a little of each topping (including the cheese that no one else likes!) with a lot of lime juice!

I hope this makes sense, let me know if I forgot to explain something!