I have been cooking. I have not been updating.

New Years Resolution? At least 2 updates a month.
...Not much, but it's a start!

Super Easy Enchilada Type Thing

The name of this dish says it all. It's super easy, and it's an enchilada type thing. This is another Sam recipe, I saw it in his show and didn't write the recipe down, so I may have forgotten or added something, but I doubt it. It's a pretty easy recipe to make and remember. It's also surprisingly full of flavor for how simple it is to make. It's made with things that are almost always kept in my pantry at home, and if a specific ingredient is not readily available, it would be fairly easy to substitute it for something else. Like tomatoes, bell peppers, and a jalapeno.

It's a great, fast recipe. You can cook it on the fly or prep it and refrigerate for tomorrow.

Enough talking, here's the dish:

Needed to make this dish:
tortillas
enchilada sauce
cheese
sour cream
cilantro
canned diced green chiles
salsa
onions (if you like)
store bought rotisserie chicken.

step 1: throw the onions (if you like) in a pan with a little bit of olive oil until soft. during this process, take the skin off your chicken, and shred the good stuff with your hands.
step 2: place shredded chicken, green chiles, and about a cup of salsa in the pan with your soft onions.
step 3: mix all together and let it sit in the pan for a while to heat and allow flavors to mingle.
step 3 1/2:heat tortillas in microwave for about 30 seconds, this makes it easier them work with.
step 4: slop some of your chicken mixture on to the center, fold in the corners and place on an oiled baking sheet.
step 5: bake at about 325*F until crispy: 15-20 minutes. (while your enchilada type things are baking, you can heat up the enchilada sauce in the microwave or on stove top, your call).

Now you can throw the toppings together however you like, drizzle the enchilada sauce over top, set it underneath your enchilada type thing, use sour cream, don't use sour cream (i recommend you use the sour cream, it's delicious with it), cheese, no cheese... you get the point. Go enjoy your meal.

Spicy Peanut Butter Pasta (with Chicken)

I've been watching a lot of fitTV recently, trying to motivate myself to join in on some of the workout shows they air (Which lately, I've been doing. Hooray for being active!) I cam across a commercial for a show called Just Cook this! with Sam the Cooking Guy which airs both on fitTV and the Discovery Health Channel. He's a fun, likeable cook (he emphasizes the fact that he is a cook, and not a chef) with tons of creative ways to cook incredibly easy dishes.

I was snooping around his website http://www.thecookingguy.com/ and found a very interesting sounding recipe, Spicy Peanut Butter Pasta, and immediately checked the pantry to make sure I had all the ingredients necessary.




It's a fun dish. The sauce definitely has a thai food sort of taste to it. The recipe says to use any sort of pasta you'd like, but I would suggest using a wheat pasta. I think it's grainy texture would compliment the texture of the sauce nicely.

I would post the recipe on this blog, but I am going to post the link to Sam the Cooking Guy's website instead in hopes that you will check out his other recipes.

Spicy Peanut Butter Pasta

Enjoy!

Absolutely my favorite cook book...

...and from it, one of my my favorite recipes:

Sweet Tart Dough

Ingredients:
1cup + 2Tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature
1cup sugar
1/4tsp salt
2 Large eggs at room temperature
3 1/2cups all purpose flour

Tips:
Eggs can be brought to room temperature by placing in a bowl and letting luke warm water run over them for about 5 minutes.

Directions:
Combine butter, sugar and salt. Mix on medium until smooth. Mix 1 egg until blended, and then the other. Scrape sides of bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the flour all at once, and mix until just incorporated. The recipe calls for refrigerating the dough for 2 hours (or over night)but personally, I don't think it makes too much of a difference. Just be sure your work environment isn't to warm, it makes the dough soft and difficult to work with.


You can use this dough to make cookies, fruit tarts, or even as a pie crust! It's fantastic. I usually melt chocolate chips and drizzle it overthe top, or cut up some fruit such as strawberries, kiwi, or apricots and place on top.





(For a more clay like chocolate, like in the picture above, I add a tiny splash of milk to the already melted chocolate chips. A tiny splash! It doesn't take much)

MMMMhm Brownies

I Have for you, the easiest most delicious chocolate chocolate chip cookie recipe in the world.


Needed:

One box of Betty Crocker Chocolate cake mix.
Chocolate chips (usually use the zebra striped ones or the white chocolate ones, but you can use whatever suits your fancy)
2 eggs
1/3 cup oil


Mix the eggs and oil together, then mix in the cake mix, then mix in the chocolate chips.

Make individual cookies, for spread the mixture evenly of the cookie sheet for a more brownie like cookie.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes, checking every five minutes.

Orange Chicken and Brown Rice

Needed:
7-10 oz chicken breast
Orange Marmalade
One canned mandarin orange slices
allspice
red wine vinaigrette
cooked brown rice
Scallions
Slivered Almonds



Cook your chicken to your liking, in a skillet, on a grill, with your favorite seasoning, whatever your fancy.

Mix 1 Tbsp red wine vinaigrette with 2 heaping Tbsp. Orange marmalade, then add 2-3 pinches allspice and Mix. Finally add the canned mandarin oranges and mix.

When chicken is cooked, lay on of top 1/2 cup brown rice. Drizzle 2-3 Tbsp the Orange Marmalade over chicken and rice. Add scallions and slivered almonds to your liking.

Serves 2-4

Enjoy!

Sicilian Lemonade

I also like to call this "Heaven in a cup"

(sorry I haven't updated in almost a year!)

Need:
15 lemons
fresh basil, about 10 leaves
2 c. sugar
1 c. water
Sparkling water

How to:
Boil the 2 c. sugar with the 1 c. water, after the sugar has dissolved toss in the fresh basil. Let boil for another 30-45 seconds then turn off the burner, but keep the saucepan on. Allow basil to soak until sugar water has cooled. Squeeze your lemons, combine with the basil sugar water, and add sparkling water. Depending on how much bubbly you like will determine how much sparkling water you use.

Great for summertime BBQ's!