Pork Tamales

I remember the first time I had a tamale was when I was in high school and my dad took me to the farmers market. There was a local Mexican restaurant selling them there and my dad bought me one. I immediately loved it and couldn't believe it had taken me so long to try tamales!

This is my second time making tamales. The first time... well.... lets just say it wasn't all that successful. Somehow the meat ended up tasting just like ketchup and I mixed the masa all wrong so it was really course and dense. Lucas still ate them with a smile on his face though- what a good man. :) 

I am happy to say that this round of tamales turned out much better! The flavor is really good and the masa has the right texture. (It's amazing what reading the directions will do for you!) The great thing about tamales too is that you can add any flavor you want. You can do beef, chicken, pork or even sweet tamales. Your imagination is the limit! Next time I am going to try a chicken tamale.

Tamales can take a lot of time to make. I made my meat in the crockpot one day, and then assembled the tamales and cooked them the next. It took me about an hour and a half to assemble all the tamales, which isn't too bad. And it would be really fun to get a bunch of people together for a tamale party to make a whole bunch! So without further ado, here is what I did for my simple tamales.

Pork Tamales

What you need:

2 lbs pork roast

1 (28 oz) can red enchilada sauce

Corn Husks

Masa flour mixed according to directions

(This is where I went wrong last time. I just looked at the ingredients and put them all together in a bowl without whipping my shortening first. Bad mistake! Make sure you follow the directions for a great Masa dough.)

Cook meat in crock pot with enchilada sauce on high for 6-8 hours until meat is really tender and shreds easily. Remove meat from crockpot and shred. Mix the remaining sauce in with shredded meat. I refrigerated mine until the next day when I assembled my tamales. 

Soak corn husks in warm water for about an hour until pliable. Spread a large spoonful of prepared masa dough on to center of corn husk. Make it about 1/4-1/2 inch thick. Put a tablespoon of shredded meat in the center, and fold corn husk over to seal the tamale. 

Steam in a large steamer for 90 minutes. Remove tamale from corn husk and enjoy either plain or with your favorite salsa or hot sauce.

Root Beer Float on a Stick

It has been so nice and warm here the past few days. We have spent lots of time playing in the sun! Since us Idahoans aren't used to this warm weather, we really needed a treat to cool us down. I saw these on Pinterest and they looked so good, so I decided to try them out. MMMMMM!! They were delicious! A sweet, creamy and cool treat.

Root Beer Float on a Stick

Photo Courtesy of Smile Monsters

What you need:

3 cans root beer

1/2 can sweetened condensed milk

Whisk root beer and sweetened condensed milk together slowly so it does not foam up too much. Pour in to popsicle molds or dixie cups. Let set in freezer for about an hour before putting popsicle sticks in. Freeze for 3-4 more hours. Enjoy!!

Greek Orzo Salad

My brother-in-law got back in January from serving a 2 year mission for our church in Rome Italy. While he was there he acquired a very European taste for food, and has missed it so much! I decided to make this salad to take over to a dinner at my in-laws house, and I thought he would love it. Turns out I was right! He congratulated me on making the best tasting thing he has had since he got back in January! It really was so good. It was so refreshing too, perfect for summer!

Greek Orzo Salad

What you need:

2 C. uncooked orzo pasta

2 cucumbers

2 medium tomatoes

1/2 green bell pepper

1/2 red bell pepper

1/2 C kalamata olives, pitted

1/4 C chopped red onion

1/2 C crumbled feta cheese

1/2 C red whine vinegar

1/2 C olive oil

1/2 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp salt

pepper

Bring a pot of water to a boil, and cook orzo pasta until done. Drain and let cool while you peel and chop cucumber, dice the bell pepper, and dice the tomatoes. All all the vegetables, onion and cheese to the pasta. In a separate bowl, whisk together red whine, olive oil, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Pour over pasta and veggies and toss to combine. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!!

*NOTE: You can also use fresh basil as a garnish or in place of the dried basil. Just use a little less fresh as it has a more powerful taste.

Cayenne Rubbed Chicken with Avocado Salsa

While Lucas while eating this he kept saying things like, "This is perfectly seasoned." "I really love this." "This is one of my new favorite meals." "Jess. This is seriously so good."  I think he liked it. :) And I have to agree! I was worried that it was going to be too spicy for me, but the salsa cooled it right down and all I could taste was great flavor. 

You may also be wondering, "Isn't avocado salsa just guacamole?" I am here to tell you that there is a big difference in taste and texture, and I am now a lover of avocado salsa.  It was so delicious!! 

Cayenne Rubbed Chicken with Avocado Salsa

from Martha Stewart

What you need:

2 chicken breasts (I cut each in half lengthwise so I had 4 pieces of chicken)

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/4 tsp pepper

1 tsp salt

Combine cayenne, salt and pepper in a bowl. Rub on both sides of chicken breasts. Put in pan and cook until cooked completely though. While chicken is cooking, make your salsa.

Avocado Salsa

2 small avocados, chopped

1/2 large mango, chopped

1 Tbsp  red onion, chopped

1 Tbsp lime juice

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Spoon over cooked chicken and serve. Enjoy!!

Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza

Lucas and I were watching Americas Test Kitchen and saw this recipe. I love pizza as much as the next guy, and this looked so good! I am so glad we tried it. The crust is different from any other pizza crust I have tried since it has the cornmeal baked right in. Our favorite part was definitely the sauce. So even if you use it in another pizza recipe, give it a try! It is so good!

Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza

adapted from Americas Test Kitchen

What you need for crust:
3 1/4 C flour
1/2 C yellow cornmeal
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
1 1/4 C warm water

Mix all crust ingredients together in mixer. (I used my Bosch mixer.) Since you are using instant yeast, you do not need to worry about activating the yeast first. Knead the dough in miser until it is fully incorporated and smooth Let dough rise in mixer until it has doubled in size, or you can transfer it to another bowl greased with some olive oil to let it rise. While it is rising, make your sauce.

For the sauce:

2 Tbsp butter

1/4 C grated yellow onion

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1 minced garlic clove

1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes

1/4 tsp sugar

salt and pepper

2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil

Heat butter in pan. Add onion and oregano. Cook onion until moisture is drawn out and onion turns a golden brown. Add garlic clove, crushed tomatoes and sugar. Bring to a simmer, and reduce down for 20-25 minutes. Remove from heat and add salt and pepper to taste and basil.

To put pizza together, divide the dough in to two, and spread out in two 9" cake pans. (I didn't have 9" so I used 8" and it worked fine.)  Make sure the dough goes up the whole side of the pan. Put about 1 1/2 C shredded mozzarella cheese on top of the crust. I know this is a little backwards, but I guess that is how they do it in Chicago! Then add half of your sauce. Put desired toppings on, we used turkey pepperoni, and sprinkle with some freshly grated parmesan cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes and 450 degrees, and let it cool for 10 minutes in the pan after you take it out of the oven. Slide the pizza out of the pan, slice and enjoy!!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever made. Perfection. Most of the chocolate chip cookies I make spread out on the pan flat as pancakes and they seem pretty greasy. These were nice and chewy and had great flavor. This is definitely a keeper and will be my new go-to cookie recipe!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

from the kitchen of April Moedl

What you need:

1/2 C. shortening

1/2 C. buter, softened

2 eggs

3/4 C brown sugar

3/4 C sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

2 1/2 to 3 C flour

1/2 pkg. chocolate chips

Cream together shortening, butter, eggs, brown sugar, sugar and vanilla. Add salt, baking soda and flour. Mix well. Add chocolate chips. Bake at 350. 10 minutes in my oven was perfect! Let them cool a little on the pan, then transfer. Yum!!

Sesame Chicken

I originally wanted to do this recipe with chicken wings, but when I went to the store and saw that they were ten dollars a pack, and these drumsticks were four dollars a pack, I decided to try these out. They turned out great!

Sesame Chicken

What you need:
4 lbs drumsticks
2 Tbsp oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. fresh ground ginger
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp sesame seed oil
2 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp sesame seeds
chives (optional)

Heat oil in pan and add garlic and ginger. Stir in to oil for a few seconds, then add chicken. Make sure you don't burn your garlic before you add the chicken or it will be bitter. Brown your chicken on all sides. Add soy sauce, sesame seed oil and brown sugar. If the sauce is already a little thick, add some water. Reduce the sauce down while continuing to flip the chicken so it cooks evenly on all sides.  When the chicken is almost done, add your sesame seeds. Continue to cook until chicken is done and sauce has glazed the chicken. Remove from heat and garnish with chives. Enjoy!

French Breakfast Puffs

Have you ever had a recipe that you wanted to try the second you saw it? And did? Well, that is what I did today with these French Breakfast Puffs. I was looking for another recipe in our neighborhood cookbook, and saw this one. I quickly glanced over the ingredients to make sure I had all of them and 30 minutes later I was eating a delicious melt-in-your-mouth breakfast puff! When I first took them out of the oven I wondered if they would just taste like muffins, but they are even better in my opinion! Try them, you won't regret it!

French Breakfast Puffs

from the kitchen of Robin Manship

What you need:

1/2 C. shortening

3/4 C. sugar

2 eggs

2 1/4 C. flour

2 1/4 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

3/4 c. milk

melted butter

1/2 C. sugar

2 Tbsp cinnamon

Cream together shortening, sugar and eggs. Add remaining ingredients and put into greased muffin tins without papers. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Remove from tins and roll each muffin in melted butter, then in cinnamon/sugar mixture. Enjoy!

Green Chile Quiche

I am always looking for quick and easy breakfasts that Lucas will love. He isn't the biggest fan of breakfast food. (At least for breakfast, it's a different story if it's for dinner.) I made this because I knew it would be right up his ally. He loves it! It's really different from all of the other breakfast foods that we normally have around here, so this is a refreshing change. Definitely a keeper!

Green Chili Quiche

You will need:

 1 can (4 oz) green chilies

3-4 C. grated cheddar cheese

2 C. milk

1 C. Bisquick

4 eggs

Spread chilies in baking dish. (I just used  a regular old cake pan sprayed with cooking spray.) Cover with cheese. Blend milk, Bisquick and eggs in blender until smooth and pour over cheese and chilies. Bake at 425 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes. 

Chocolate-Coconut Macaroon Cups

Where would we be without Martha Stewart? After dinner tonight, I was craving something sweet but didn't want to spend a lot of time baking, or make a big mess. These were the perfect solution! One bowl, a few simple ingredients I always seem to have on hand, a muffin tin and 25 minutes later I had a delicious sweet treat. 

Chocolate-Coconut Macaroon Cups

What you need: 

2 large egg whites

1/4 cup sugar

2 Tbsp. cocoa powder

1/4 tsp salt

 7 ounces coconut (half a bag)

1/2 cup sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together egg whites, sugar cocoa powder and salt with whisk until well combined. Mix in coconut until it is all combined. Spoon in to greased muffin tins and top with sliced almonds. Bake for 25-30 minutes until almonds are golden brown. Enjoy!

Stroganoff Sandwich

Another success!! I love regular old stroganoff, (my mom has the BEST recipe that I will post sometime!) and I love stroganoff topping for baked potatoes. So I thought this was going to be good. I was right! I have seen this recipe in a few different books I have, and I am so glad I tried it. Lucas loved it too. He said it was way better than the food we had at a restaurant we ate at last night. I think that's pretty good compliment!

Stroganoff Sandwich

You will need:

1 loaf french bread

1 lb. hamburger

salt and pepper

1/2 small onion, thinly sliced

1 tsp minced garlic

1 can mushrooms or 1 c. fresh mushrooms

1 cup sour cream

1 tbs. milk

1 tsp worcestershire 

cheddar cheese

Slice french bread in half lengthwise, place on cookie sheet and warm in oven at 250 degrees. Meanwhile, season hamburger with salt and pepper and brown with onion, mushrooms and garlic in pan. When browned, turn down heat and add sour cream, milk and worcestershire sauce. Mix together well, but do not bring to a boil.

Remove bread from oven. Turn oven temperature up to 350 degrees. Butter your french bread and spoon stroganoff topping over the entire loaf of bread. Put slices of cheddar cheese on top of stroganoff topping and put in oven. Bake for 5-10 minutes until cheese is melted. Remove from oven, slice, eat and enjoy!

Steak Tacos

I am not sure if these are authentic enough to be called carne asada, so we will call them steak tacos. Whatever they are called though, they are one of Lucas's favorite meals ever. He goes crazy over these! They are so good, and perfect for summer!

Steak Tacos

1 lb steak strips (I used flank steak cut up really thin)

1/4-1/2 C lime juice

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. chopped garlic

1/2 tsp garlic salt

Put all of the ingredients in a ziplock bag and coat steak evenly. Marinate for 1-3 hours. Cook steak along with all of the marinade in saute pan until all of the juices have been reduced and steak browns. We like to eat these with guacamole and cotija cheese on the cook-at-home tortillas. Enjoy!!

Texas Sheet Cake

I have read all over the blog world about how delicious Texas Sheet Cake is. I am sure that many of you have tried it by now, but this was my first time. It was so delicious!! One of my favorite parts was the frosting. I loved how it melted all over the cake and set up nice and smooth.. mmmmm... so good!

You Will Need: 1 C butter
5 Tbsp cocoa
1 C water
2 C flour
2 C sugar
2 eggs
1/2 C buttermilk
1 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
(for the icing:) 1/2 C butter
6 Tbsp milk
4 Tbsp cocoa
1 lb powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Directions: In a saucepan, bring 1 C butter, 5 Tbsp coca and 1 C water to a boil. Remove from head and add 2 C flour and 2 C sugar and mix. Add in 2 eggs, 1/2 C buttermilk, 1 tsp baking soda and 1/8 tsp salt and mix well. Pour in to a greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.


While cake is cooking, mix 1/2 C butter and 4 Tbsp cocoa in a saucepan until melted. Remove from heat and add 6 Tbsp milk, 1 lb powdered sugar and 1 tsp vanilla. Pour icing on warm cake.

Enjoy!!

Yummy Bars

I got this recipe from a cookbook that my mother-in-law gave me. I decided last minute to take some treats to a bbq, and when I was looking through my recipe books this one sounded delicious! It was a HUGE hit- everyone loved it! Lucas's uncle said that it was "The best thing I have ever eaten in my life... I'm serious."  And I caught Lucas's little 7 year old cousin eating pieces the size of his hand more than once. :) Best of all, it was easy!

YUMMY BARS

You will need: Several graham crackers

1/2 C butter

1 C brown sugar

1 egg 

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 C coconut

1/2 C butter

3 Tbsp. instant vanilla pudding mix

2 C powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 Tbsp. milk

Directions: Line and 8 inch square pan with graham crackers. In a suacepan, combine 1/2 C butter, brown sugar and egg and bring to a boil. (I was worried about the egg cooking and turning into scrambed eggs, but I just kept whisking and I had no problem.) After your mixture has come to a boil, take off heat and add the graham cracker crumbs and coconut. Pour and spread the mixture on the graham crackers. Cool in the fridge. Combine 1/2 C butter, instant pudding mix, powdered sugar, vanilla and mix. Mix until smooth and spread over cooled batter. Cut in to squares and ENJOY!

Pollo Fundido

We had my sister Kim and her husband Paul over for dinner last week. While we were eating, we were talking about one of our favorite subjects, good restaurants. Paul told us that he had eaten at a restaurant called Pachangas, and that their Pollo Fundido was amazing. Lucas and I had no idea what what Polo Fundido was, but after Paul explained it, I knew we had to try it! After a little researching on the Internet, this is the recipe I decided to go with. We loved it! The chicken was so good and flavorful, and the cream cheese... so good! That and the cheese turned in to oogey-gooey goodness in the oven. mmmm. Although next time I will probably cut down on the garlic salt, because I thought it was a little too salty.

Now all we have to do is go to Pachangas and see how it compares. I wouldn't want to feed it to Paul if it wasn't up to par. :)

Photo courtesy of The Bear Queen

POLLO FUNDIDO

Chicken Filling

1.5 lbs. chicken breasts (I just threw mine in frozen)

16 oz. jar Salsa Verde (I used La Victoria Thick N' Chunky)

2 cubes Chicken bouillon

Throw everything in the Crock Pot and cook on high for 3 - 4 hours or until chicken is cooked. Remove chicken and shred, put chicken back into Crock Pot with remaining sauce and mix thoroughly. Keep warm until ready to use.

Cream Cheese Sauce

8 oz. cream cheese (I used neufchatel- tastes just the same to me!)

1/4 c. milk

2 Tbsp. chopped jalapenos 

1 tsp. chicken base (liquid bouillon)

1 tsp. garlic salt (I will put less in next time!)

Soften cream cheese, and then mix in all the other ingredients. Add more jalapenos if you like things really spicy. Set aside. (I mixed mine in my blender.)

Other Ingredients

4 - 6 burrito size tortillas (I buy the ones you have to cook first)

4 - 6 slices cheddar or American cheese

Canola Oil (about 1/2 cup)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat about 1/2 inch of oil in a medium sauce pan until hot. Place about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of chicken filling on each tortilla. Fold one end over filling, then fold in the sides and continue to roll up burrito style until sealed well. Place burritos, one at a time, in hot oil, flipping over after about 30 seconds. Once golden brown, drain on paper towel or cooling rack. Place drained burritos on baking sheet. Spread cream cheese mixture on top, then top with a slice of cheese. Bake for

5 - 10 minutes until cheese melts.

**Note: Lucas and I decided that although this is definitely not a caloric friendly meal by any means, and you might as well go all out if you are going to eat a cheese covered burrito, we want to try it without frying the burritos first. We both agreed that it probably wouldn't change the taste too much, and it would help our cream cheese drenched hearts out a bit! 

Buffalo Chicken Rolls

I saw these on Pinterest and knew I had to try them right away! Lucas and I LOVE Franks Hot Sauce, (there is a gallon of it sitting in our fridge right now. It is necessary for us to buy it in bulk.) so this was right up our ally. 

photo courtesy of Can You Stay for Dinner

Let me tell you, I wasn't disappointed! They were seriously delicious, and pretty easy to make too. Lucas loved them, and so did my brother and sister-in-law. (I forced them to try them when they stopped by tonight, for which they were grateful.) I can't wait to make them again for a big crowd- they will be perfect for any party!

makes 12

12 egg roll wrappers (roughly 4 square inches)

1 cup cooked and shredded chicken (6 ounces)

1/2- 2/3 cup Frank’s Red Hot Sauce

1 cup crumbled blue cheese (4 ounces)

1 cup broccoli slaw or cole slaw (dry)

Small bowl of water

Nonstick cooking spray

Blue cheese dressing, for serving

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lay egg roll wrappers on a clean work surface. In a small bowl, stir chicken* (see note below) and hot sauce until well coated, using more or less sauce depending on your spice preference. The meat should be moist with sauce.

Begin by placing one tablespoon of the broccoli slaw on the diagonal of the bottom right corner of one of the wrappers. Next, place 2 tablespoons of shredded spicy chicken evenly on top of the slaw. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the blue cheese crumbles over the chicken. Do not overfill.

To fold: Fold the bottom right corner over the stuffing mixture so that it covers it completely, with the tip of the corner now pointing to the center of the egg roll wrapper. Fold in the bottom left corner, followed by the right, so that you now have formed an envelope. Roll the wrap upward one time, leaving the top left corner open. Wet your index finger in the small bowl of water and press to moisten the top left corner. Now fold that down on top of the filled roll, sealing it like you would an envelope.

Place the rolls on a wire rack set on top of a cookie sheet (or just on a greased cookie sheet) coated with nonstick cooking spray. Spritz each roll evenly with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the rolls crisp and turn a light golden brown.

*Note: To make the chicken, place 1/2 lb of uncooked chicken breast in a small pot and fill with enough water just to cover it. Bring to a boil on your stovetop, reduce the heat slightly, then simmer for about 12 minutes, or until cooked through. Drain and let cool before shredding with two forks, pulling against the grain of the meat.

Nutrition Information for 1 roll: Calories: 103, Fat: 3.2g, Cholesterol 19.5mg, Sodium 237.7mg, Carb: 9.9g, Fiber: 0.5g, Sugars: 0.3g, Protein: 8.1g