Sloppy Chimichangas

This recipe was influenced by two of my favorite blogs. I took Ree from The Pioneer Woman's Sloppy Joe recipe http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/04/sloppy-joes/ and combined it with Sue from We Are Not Martha's Baked Chicken Chimichanga recipe http://www.wearenotmartha.com/2012/03/baked-chicken-chimichangas/ to make this hybrid masterpiece.

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons.Butter
2 1/2 lbs. Ground Beef
1/2 Whole Large Onion, Diced
1 Whole Large Green Bell Pepper, Diced
5 Cloves Garlic, Minced
1 1/2 Cups Ketchup
1 Cup Water
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
2 Teaspoons Chili Pepper [more to taste]
1 Teaspoon Dry Mustard
1/2 Teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes [more to taste]
Worcestershire Sauce , To Taste
2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
Tabasco Sauce, To Taste
Salt, To Taste
Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste
Flour Tortillas
1/2 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Directions:

1. Add Butter to a large skillet or dutch oven over medium high heat . Add Ground Beef and cook until brown. Remove most of the fat and discard.

2. Add Onions, Green Pepper, and Garlic. Cook for a few minutes or until Vegetables begin to get soft.

3. Add Ketchup, Brown sugar, Chili Pepper, Dry Mustard, and Water. Stir to combine and simmer for 15 minutes, adding Salt and Pepper to taste. Add Tomato paste, Worcestershire, and Tabasco. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.

4. Warm your Tortillas a bit to make them more malleable. Put a little Cheese on the middle of the Tortilla top with 3/4 cup of Sloppy Joe mixture, and top with a little more Cheese. Fold Tortillas envelope style and place on a foil covered baking sheet.

5. Brush Chimichangas lightly with Olive Oil and bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 18-23 minutes until just browning. Keep your eye on them.

6. Serve with whatever side you desire. I served mine with sauteed Onions, Zucchini and Summer Squash and topped the Chimichangas with a sauce made from some of the leftover sauce from the meat, a 1/2 Cup of Vodka Sauce, and a Tablespoon of Chipotle Sauce from a can of Chipotles.

Cheesy Ham Potato Corn Chowdah!

Image found on Google Images

I have been eyeballing spiral hams ever since Thanksgiving and I finally found one that we could afford and we finally have a freezer to accommodate the leftovers.

This was our first recipe using some of the leftovers, it is most certainly a comfort food and is perfect for those cold winter days!

Ingredients:

• 4 Medium yukon gold potatoes
• 2 Cups of ham, cut into bit sized pieces
• 2 Cups of frozen yellow corn
• 4 Celery stalks, chopped
• 2 Carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 Medium yellow onions, chopped
• 1 Tsp. Extra virgin olive oil
• 3 Cups of chicken broth
• 3 Cups of 2 % Lactaid 
• 2 Cups of grated sharp cheddar cheese
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• 1 Tsp corn starch [for thickening]

Directions:

1. Saute onion, celery, and carrots in olive oil over medium heat until onion is transparent.
2. Add potatoes to pot along with some salt & pepper, cook until potatoes are partially cooked.
3. Stir in ham and frozen corn and cook for 2-3 more minutes.
4. Add chicken broth and lactaid and bring to a boil.
5. Add just enough cold water to the corn starch to dilute it and add it to the boiling soup.
6. Turn the heat to low/simmer and add cheddar cheese to the pot.
7. Keep stirring every few minutes until potatoes are at desired texture.
8. It's now ready to serve!

Yummy Artichoke Dip

Courtesy of Marthastewart.com

Another gem of the night was made by Jill. It was salty, creamy, and down right perfect sitting beside the other dips of the night. We were fed quite well all weekend.

Ingredients:

• 2 cans (14-ounces each) artichoke hearts in water, rinsed, drained, and coarsely chopped.
• 1/2 cup light mayonnaise.
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese.
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
• 1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped.
• 1 scallion, minsed, plus more for garnish.
• Crudites and/or whole wheat pita chips.

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a food processor, place half the artichokes, the mayonnaise, cup Parmesan, lemon juice, and garlic. Process until smooth.
• Add scallions and remaining artichokes; pulse once to combine. Transfer mixture to a 1-quart baking dish. Top with remaining tablespoon Parmesan.
• Bake until golden and bubbling, 30-35 minutes. Garnish with scallions, and serve with crudites and/or whole wheat pita chips.

8 Layers of Mediterranean Heaven

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/2439

Our friend Ash whipped up this Wholefoods.com find for New Years Eve and it was not only delicious, but, it appeared to be quite easy to make.

She was kind enough to omit the olives from her version [or perhaps she just couldn't find the can opener :)], and it was still fantastic without them.

So, without further ado, here is the recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 (8-ounce) container of hummus.
• 1 cup firmly packed baby spinach, roughly chopped.
• 1 cup thinly sliced roasted red peppers, drained.
• 1 (6-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained, and roughly chopped.
• 1 cup plain lowfat or nonfat Greek-style yogurt.
• 1/2 cup sliced pitted black olives, such as kalamata.
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions.
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese.
• Pita chips.

Directions:

• Spread hummus evenly in the bottom of an 8-inch square dish.
• Scatter spinach over the top and press down lightly.
• Arrange peppers, then artichokes over the top.
• Drop yogurt in dollops over artichokes, then spread out to make an even layer.
• Sprinkle with onions, olives, and feta.
• Serve with pita chips.

Buffalo Crack Dip

[Pic courtesy of singforyoursupperblog.com]

Our 3rd annual Ring In The New Year weekend was a BLAST! Each couple pitched in and made an appetizer for our New Year's Eve celebration. We decided to go with a Buffalo Chicken Dip using Morningstar Farm chicken patties in lieu of actual chicken breasts to accommodate the vegetarian among us. With all the complex flavors involved, there was no way it wasn't going to be delicious with the substitution.

I tweeked the recipe I found here-http://www.singforyoursupperblog.com/dips-and-salsas/the-famous-quot-crack-dip-quo after having added the chicken patties. The texture was not as creamy as I would have liked it with the breaded chicken added, so, I increased the ingredients a bit to reach my desired consistency.



Ingredients:

• 8 ounce package of cream cheese, softened.
• 1/2 cup of ranch dressing.
• 1/2 cup of bleu cheese dressing.
• 1/3 cup of buffalo wing sauce [I used the Archer Farms brand from Target and it was delicious.]
• 2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese [1 cup to be mixed in with ingredients and the other to top of the dip with before popping in the oven.]. Bleu cheese can be used instead, however, the dip is plenty salty enough with the mozzarella, that's why I opted to use it instead. If you do decide to go with the Bleu cheese I would suggest using 1 cup mixed in and omit topping the dip with cheese.
• 1 box of 4 Morningstar Farm Breaded Chicken Patties.

Directions:

• Cook the patties in the oven according to package directions. Once soft enough cut each patty into six wedges and cook for a bit longer in the oven [until crispy]. Remove from oven and set aside to cool down a bit. Leave oven on, you'll be placing the dip back in after combining the ingredients.
• Mix the softened cream cheese, ranch, bleu cheese dressing, buffalo wing sauce, and 1 cup of mozzarella in a medium sized mixing bowl.
• Once patties are cooled enough to handle, cut into small bite size pieces and add to mixture. 
• Pour dip into a baking dish of your choice [I baked mine in a 3 qt. baking dish.].
• Top dish with remaining cheese and place on the middle rack of the oven.
• Place in the oven for 10-15 minutes [or until dip is bubbling and cheese is melted.].
• Serve with celery, crostini, carrots, etc.

Cook It Slow..COQ AU VIN

Ingredients:

• 6 slices cooked and crumbled bacon
• 6-8 chicken thighs [skin removed]
• 8 ounces sliced baby portobello mushrooms
• 1 cup baby carrots
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped or minced
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups red wine
• 2 large fresh thyme sprigs

Directions:

1. Use a 4 quart slow cooker.
2. Cook the bacon on the stovetop and add to the stoneware.
3. Put the chicken on top of the bacon and start to layer in the carrots, mushrooms, onion, and garlic.
4. Top with salt, pepper, chicken broth, and wine. 
5. Float the thyme sprigs on top.
6. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. You can cook it for 4 hours on high, however, it will not taste as good. 

Spicy Coconut Chicken Curry

It's Wednesday night and I've decided to treat my hubby to a meal cooked on the stove in lieu of the slow cooker process of our average Wednesday night. I had been craving curry for the past few days and today was the day to appease it :)!

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 carrots
• 4 tablespoons yellow curry powder
• 16 oz. mixed frozen bell peppers
• 8 oz. frozen peas
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1 medium sized apple peeled and chopped into small cubes
• 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil [To cook chicken in wok.]
• 6 servings of white rice cooked in rice cooker. 
•  crumbled feta cheese, to top each bowl with.

Directions:

1. Cook brown rice in rice cooker.
2. Cut chicken breasts into bite sized pieces.
3. Cook chicken in a wok along with vegetable oil, carrots, and onion.
4. Add curry powder, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and frozen veggies to chicken mixture. 
5. Once vegetables are cooked pour in coconut milk, apple and raisins and allow to simmer for 5-10 minutes [until sauce has had a chance to cook down a bit].
6. Add cooked rice to the pan, mix well, taste to see if seasoning is up to par. Season more if necessary. 
7. Top each bowl with feta cheese and you're ready to eat!