Melisa's Mexican Chicken Bake

Melisa's Mexican Chicken Bake

One day Melisa came home from school very excited about a Mexican chicken recipe a friend had shown her.  However, she couldn't find the actual recipe online.  All she had seen was a picture so she drew it for me and told me the ingredients.  We went to the market and bought all the ingredients and made it and it was delicious!

Ingredients:

(amount of ingredients determined by your own taste and number of people who need to eat!)

chicken breast, pounded to the same thickness (and quicker cooking!)

salsa (jarred or fresh made)

bell pepper, cut in strips

onions, sliced

zucchini, sliced into sticks (this is a Melisa preference and you can have a different vegetable or more peppers and onions!)

olive oil

taco seasoning 

black beans

Sprinkle all ingredients with olive oil and taco seasoning, then place in the pan as shown in the picture.  Whack it in the oven at 375F until the chicken is done and the veg are nicely cooked and hopefully carmelised a little.

Serve with fresh salsa and black beans.  Corn chips are also good if you have them!

Scalloped Cabbage and Refreshing Slaw

Just got back from the grocery store, where I bought a small head of cabbage for 9 cents.  Yes, that's right--9 cents!  Now you know why cabbage is such a staple food item in Russia.  So that was the inspiration for today's lunch.  I suppose the typical Russian would have made borscht soup and piroshki (a bread bun, that can be stuffed with a variety of things, including cabbage).  But I'm not Russian--I'm from the land of Mac and Cheese.  So my cabbage offering actually kind of tastes like mac and cheese, only without the carbs.  Win-win!

Scalloped cabbage, refreshing slaw and roast chicken breast.

Scalloped Cabbage

1 cabbage -   cut into wedges

    Put the cabbage into a pot of boiling water, along with some salt to taste.  Boil until just tender--about 10 minutes.

Sauce:
2 Tb        butter
2 Tb        flour
1 C          milk
1/2 cup   grated sharp cheddar cheese

Melt the butter in a saucepan.  Add the flour and cook until light golden brown.  Now add the milk, slowly stirring until you have a smooth sauce.  Add the grated sharp cheddar cheese--more to taste, if desired.  I also add a dash of salt and some freshly ground black pepper.  If you wanted to jazz it up some more, you could either add a small grating of fresh nutmeg, OR some red pepper flakes for a bit of a kick.

Drain the cabbage and put it into a casserole dish, and pour the cheese mixture over it..  Top with crumbled Ritz crackers and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.


Barb's Refreshing Slaw

Apologies as I don't really measure things, I just sling things together.  So this is an approximation.


1/2 head of cabbage    grated
2 carrots-                     peeled and grated
1 small apple -             finely chopped
1/4 cup raisins             (I soak in hot water first so they don't absorb all the dressing)
fresh mint                    1 small bunch (10 leaves or so?), finely chopped
1/4 cup pecans             finely chopped
3 green onions             finely chopped

mix everything together in large bowl

dressing

1/2 cup                        mayonnaise
1 or 2 Tb                     vinegar (to thin mayo to consistency you like)
1 Tb                             honey
1/2 Tb                         poppy seeds
dash  each                   salt & freshly ground black pepper
dash                             Italian herb mix

Mix dressing separately and then pour over slaw ingredients.  Note:  you may not taste the mint in the slaw at the beginning, but I would hold off adding more as you do taste it after it sits for a bit.  It just adds another layer of taste, sort of refreshing.  I first learned about adding mint to slaw from my lovely friend Saule from Kazakhstan.  She also adds dill to hers but I'm kind of over dill these days as Russians tend to put it in everything.

Huevos Rancheros

OK, I am ashamed to put this on here as a recipe because it is mainly just assembling things.  But hey, Sandra Lee made a whole career out of that, right?  Besides, it looks pretty and I"m using this as an idea bank for when I'm in the cooking doldrums!


Eggs -   Poach however many eggs you need to serve.  Let's say 4 so we can serve 2!  You know how you like yours best, but I like mine just a *tiny* bit runny.  Not too runny, but not too firm, either.

2 corn tortillas
1 can black beans
1 pat butter
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chil powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup  grated Cheddar or Colby Jack cheese
1/2 avacado - diced

Put black beans in a sauce pan.  If they are too liquidy, I drain some off but I like I little in there.  Add the pat of butter, cumin, chili powder and garlic.  (If you have fresh garlic, I'd soften it up a few seconds with the butter and then put the beans in).  Stir everything and mash a little bit with a fork when they get warm.

Warm the corn tortillas in a large frying pan, and remove to serving plates.  Top with about 1/4 cup of the beans (or however many you want).  Next remove the poached eggs from water with slotted serving spoon and put on top of the beans.  Add the grated cheese, diced avacado, salsa and sour cream.

Salsa-

1 can Rotel tomatoes & green chilis with lime and cilantro
2 tomatoes, chopped
2 cloves garlic
bunch of cilantro
1 tsp (or so) cumin - to taste
1/2 tsp (or so) chili powder - to taste
1/4 tsp (or so) cayenne pepper - to taste or optional
1 jalapeno pepper, seeds and stem removed (or use a chipotle pepper if you want it smoky)
salt, pepper to taste


Put everything in a blender and give that puppy a ride around until it looks blended.  Spoon some over your huevos.  Way better than anything you can buy in the store!  Put the leftovers in a jar in the fridge and it will last for at least a week.  Unless you have a bag of tortilla chips, and then it might only last the night!  And if you have any leftover beans, mix them up with some cream cheese and you've got yourself another dip for those chips!

Angel Hair pasta with Tomato Basil Shrimp sauce

This meal came about as I had about 5 shrimp hiding in the corner of the bag that didn't make it into the boil pot and I discovered them after I drained the water off.  I almost just tossed them, but figured I could think up something to do with them.  So this made a small batch but of course you could make it larger by adding more ingredients.  (Especially you, Jane, since you love shrimp sooooo much!) ; )

Pasta - however much you want!

So, go ahead and start cooking your pasta, because this is a quickie!  And the ingredients are all aproximate as I just make it up as I go along.

olive oil - for the bottom of the pan
1 onion    -  chopped
1 tomato   - chopped
1 clove garlic - minced
3-4dried tomatoes in olive oil - chopped
salt
pepper
Italian seasoning - a couple of shakes
5-6  shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup       white wine
1/2 cup       cream


Chop one small or half a large onion.  Start sautéing it in a pan with a little olive oil.  As it is nearly soft, throw in a clove of garlic, finely minced.  Now add some salt, a little fresh ground pepper, and one tomato, chopped.  Go ahead and put the shrimp in and add about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of white wine--it will cook off and the shrimp will be done in about 3 minutes.  Don't overcook or it will be tough!   I also threw in some chopped dried tomatoes in oil, because I happened to have some in the fridge. Now add about 1/2 cup of cream.  (I used milk because I didn't have cream--I like to convince myself it's lower calorie if I do that and stir around a abit.  Finally, throw a little fresh basil on the top.  I unfortunately didn't have any, but I put a little dried basil in the sauce so I got the flavor.)  Now drain your pasta and serve on a plate with the sauce on top.  Some garlic bread would have been pretty tasty, too.

Chicken with Mushroom Cream Sauce

This recipe came from a battered, splattered photocopy of a friend's chicken cookbook.  Because that's the beauty of living in a developing nation before globalization--anything you wanted a copy of, you just plopped into the photocopy box at school and soon you got back your own copy with a plastic spiral binding.  I wish I knew the name of the cookbook--now with Amazon I could have the real thing!

So here it is:   Chicken with Mushroom Cream Sauce

2-4 servings

2 whole, skinned, halved  chicken breasts (about 2 lbs)
4 Tb     butter
salt and black pepper to taste
2 Tb     finely minced shallots
1 small garlic clove, finely minced
3 C       thinly sliced mushrooms
2 Tb     fresh lemon juice
white pepper to taste
3/4 C    dry white wine
3/4 C    chicken stock
1 C       heavy cream


Melt about 2 Tb of butter in a large skillet.  Salt and pepper the chicken breasts and saute for 3-5 minutes on each side, until lightly browned.  Remove from heat into a plate.

On low heat, melt the remaining butter.  Add shallots and garlic; cook until soft but not brown.  Add the mushrooms, lemon juice, and white pepper.  Cook until the liquid is nearly evaporated.

Add the wine and chicken stock, and again on low heat continue to cook until the liquid is nearly evaporated.  Finally, add the cream and cook for about 5 min, stirring every so often.  Return chicken breasts to cream mixture for the last minute or so to reheat through.  Serve chickens onto the plates and spoon mushroom/cream sauce over.  This one's delicious!

I served with arugula salad with pears, feta, and chopped pecans with a balsamic glaze.  Some potatoes would have been great, too but I was opting for low carb as it already had the cream sauce. It was very filling

Irish Scones

A long time ago, I went to Ireland with a friend whose family lived there.  We had a great time visiting Dublin and taking trips all around the country.  The highlights were the Bogman's Ball in Connemara, and the delicious rock buns that were everywhere to have with your tea.  I found a postcard with this recipe on it for "Irish Scones" and brought it home with me.  I've been making them ever since.  No, they are not my beloved rock buns, but they probably have way less calories, and they are very easy to mix up.  You don't even need eggs!   I like to make them mini- so I can eat more.

IRISH SCONES

2 1/2 C flour

1/4 C oats

1 t baking soda

1 t cream of tartar

2 T sugar

1/2 t salt

1/4 C (57g) cold butter

1/2 C raisins or currants (chop the raisins into smaller pieces for mini scones)

1 C buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400F.  Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Cut in butter with pastry blender.  Add raisins and mix slightly.  Pour in milk and mix til dry ingredients are moistened. Turn out onto lightly floured surface and pat into a 3/4” thickness.  Cut out circles or other shapes.  Place on ungreased baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Serve hot with butter or jam.  Makes 12 rounds or triangles.  Or about 36 mini scones.

German Pancakes

On a lazy morning (say, for example, I am having a snow day!), German Pancakes are a great treat! I first had these at an IHOP when I was small.  We were never encouraged to order them as you had to wait 20 minutes for them to come, and by then, the rest of the family would have eaten their stacks of regular pancakes.  But oooooh, they were good.  Then I discovered how easy they are to make, and I've been making my own ever since.  I always thought they had to be with apple, but you can make them plain, apple, banana, pear, chocolate chip, etc!  Serve with maple syrup, preferably, but jam or powdered sugar (or lemon juice and powder sugar if you're British) also works well.

German Pancakes

2 eggs
1/3 C flour (but remove 1 Tablespoon of the flour and replace it with 1 Tablespoon of corn starch)
1/3 C milk
1/4 t salt
1.5-2 T (30-40g) butter or margarine
1 medium apple or banana (thinly sliced) or whatever else you want to try (you can also just make them plain!)
1.5 T cinnamon sugar

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Place a 9” round pan in the oven to get really hot. Beat eggs, flour, cornstarch, milk and salt together in small mixing bowl.
When oven is heated, remove pan from oven (it should be very hot). Place butter in the pan and rotate pan until the butter melts and the bottom and sides of the pan are coated.

Arrange the apple or banana slices in each pan. Pour the batter over them. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top and place pan back in oven to cook until puffed and golden brown (15-25 minutes).  It will be very puffy when it comes out, and then it will fall a little bit.  Don't be sad. It still tastes amazing!