Friday, June 13, 2008

Spicy Chicken Soft Tacos

This takes about 20 minutes from start to finish.

  • 2 Chicken breasts cut into strips
  • 1 pkg taco seasoning
  • 1/2 an onion cut into strips
  • 1 Tbsp butter
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
To prepare meat filling, put butter into saute pan to melt, add oil once melted. Add onion strips and cook until almost done. Make sure they are still a little crispy, if cooked too long they almost disappear. Once onion are about done, add the chicken strips. Cook until almost done. Add taco seasoning and follow directions on the package.

While the chicken is cooking, prepare your toppings. I like to do fresh, diced jalapeno, spinach, salsa, cheese, tomatoes, and avocado.

Serve and enjoy!

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Shrimp Marinade

This is so easy and sooo good!

Like I've said before, I don't really measure so....

I used 5lbs of shrimp but we were having a party so.

  • Shrimp, peeled. (I leave the tails on for presentation)
  • 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
  • Fresh squeezed lime juice (I used 8 but I also had tons of shrimp)
  • Cilantro, chopped
Put shrimp and other ingredients into a tupperware container. Let it sit in the fridge for a couple hours. Take them out, put them on skewers and grill.

I made some avocado ranch to dip them in. It really depends on how much you want to make.

  • 1 avocado smooshed with a fork. Leave a little chunky
  • Ranch dressing (whichever you prefer)
Combine avocado and ranch dressing. I wanted mine a little more soupy for dipping so I added more ranch. So good. This dip is also great with tortillas.

Monday, March 24, 2008

Eggplant Patties

I've found that eggplant can be a great substitute for meat and I found this recipe somewhere online and tweaked it a bit. It's so good!

  • 1 peeled and cubed eggplant
  • 1 1/4 cup bread crumbs
  • 1 cup shredded cheddar
  • 2 eggs slightly beaten
  • 1 Tbsp parsley
  • 1 clove of garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp pepper
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
Boil the cubed eggplant about 5 minutes, drain and mash.
Stir in the bread crumbs, cheese, eggs, parsley, garlic and s & p.
Heat oil over medium heat and shape mixture into patties.
Cook patties in oil until golden brown.

You can also use this same recipe to make *meat*balls for pasta. Instead of frying them in a pan put them in the oven at about 300 degrees coated lightly in olive oil.

My kids LOVE this recipe as patties and with pasta. A good way to get a weird veggie down their gullets!

Friday, October 12, 2007

Broccoli Cheese Soup

This recipe is so easy and so good on cold days. My family really enjoys this.

  • 2 chicken bouillon cubes
  • 1 1/2 cups hot water
  • 3 cups fresh chopped broccoli (I used some florets and some of the stalk)
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1 cup shredded cheese (i did a mix of cheddar, swiss and boursin)
  • pinch of nutmeg
  • pinch of pepper
  • 1/4 cup of flour
  • 1/2 cup cold water
Dissolve bouillon cubes in the hot water in a pot. Add broccoli and cook until tender. Add milk, cheese, nutmeg and pepper. Stir until the cheese is melted. Mix flour with the cold water and add to mixture. Stir constantly until soup thickens.

I usually tweak every recipe I find. Taking out stuff I don't care for and adding things I know taste good. Some people prefer different types of cheese and this is a recipe that can be changed to suit your tastes.

Enjoy!

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Stuffed Portabello Mushrooms

I had this dish at one of my favorite restaurants and wanted to try to make it. It's super easy and so freaking good. Melt in your mouth good but you really have to love mushrooms to truly enjoy this.
What I really like about making this is if you keep most of these ingredients in your fridge anyways you can do single or multiple servings easily.

Large portabello mushroom/s
fresh spinach
sundried tomatoes
fresh chopped basil
olive oil
1 clove garlic minced per mushroom cap
grated mozzarella cheese
Spring mix
Feta cheese
greek peppers or banana peppers
black olives
fresh tomato

I know it sounds like a lot of ingredients but the actual composition of this recipe is easy peasy.
Rub olive oil on the inside of the mushroom, layer basil, garlic, fresh spinach, sundried tomatoes and top with mozzarella cheese. Bake in the oven at 350 until cheese is melted and the mushroom is cooked through. I'd say about 10-15 minutes. If you like your cheese just melted and not brown, wait a little while and then add cheese.
While the shroom is cooking up combine the spring mix, feta, peppers, olives and tomatoes for a salad to surround the shroom on the plate. I sometimes like to add red onion to the mix for some extra punch.
My favorite salad dressing these days is Annie's Naturals Balsamic Vinaigrette. It is absolutely amazing and goes great with these salad ingredients plus you can dip the stuffed mushroom in it as well for some extra love!




Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Carrot Zucchini Bread

Becca sent me this recipe for carrot zucchini bread. I'm personally not much of a baker but this looks super yummy and I can't wait to check it out! She used 1/4 teaspoon ground clove
1/4 teaspoon cardamom, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg instead of full teaspoons. She also left out the nuts.
Thanks Becca for submitting the first recipe!!
Follow the above link to see her amazing blog!

Monday, September 10, 2007

It would make sense

For me to leave an email address for you guys to send your recipes to so I can post them.
summerpickard@gmail.com
Send your recipes there with a link to your blog so I can post them and give you credit!