Spicy Pork Stir Fry with Kale

Aha! Another spicy dish for everyone. Just leave it out or use it sparingly
if you can't take the heat.

I was feeling like a little chinese tonight, but not carryout, so I got
a pork tenderloin and some celery, red and yellow bells, a small bunch of kale
and a small jar of apricot preserves. "Apricot preserves?", you say-
Well, I'll get to that in a minute.

I knew I had my good brown and wild rice mix, some onion, some chili paste,
some garlic, some cilantro, some teriyaki....and all the other ingredients I
needed at home, so off I went with minimal damage at the checkout.

I started my rice with some beef broth and added the washed and prepped kale.
Brought that to a boil, then turned it down.

In the meantime, I cut my pork into stir fry strips, marinated it
in teriyaki, a couple drops of sesame oil, olive oil, chili paste, cilantro,
garlic, a sprinkle of chinese 5 spice and apricot preserves.
Here I threw on a little more heat by adding some crushed pepper flakes
I made with some pequin and cayenne peppers.

I cut my bell peppers, celery and onion on the bias, so I had nice pretty pieces.

Then all I had to do was heat my pan, throw it all in and stir fry.
By this time my rice and kale was ready, so I served it all up in a
heaping mound on the plates. I didn't worry too much about portion control
because it was all so healthy.

Mark is even taking the leftovers for lunch, so it must have been good.
Hope you all make it one of your go to meals. Also, try it with some plum
preserves or orange marmelade in place of the apricot.

Not Yo Mama's Tuna Noodle

What? Tuna Noodle....I can hear the cries of disgust now. Every once in a while,
I just need to have some, though.

Mark has gotten the cold I had last week, and it is a cloudy, chilly, damp day,
so a warm casserole is in order.....and I know I am breaking the cardinal rule of
no cheese with seafood; but hey, it's still good.

Boil your egg noodles. Really any pasta will do; put the bow tie pasta in and people
won't even know this is Tuna Noodle.

Saute up a good batch of mushrooms, I use a mix of baby bellas and button 'shrooms.

If you feel like really stepping it up, get a couple tuna steaks, grill them with
some lemon pepper and flake them up to put in the casserole. If this seems like
too much work, get a good quality canned tuna. I generally use Albacore tuna-

Make a loose sauce with a roux of flour, butter, olive oil, lemon juice. Add
whole milk or cream. Season it with some salt and a little worcestershire sauce.

Put your noodles, tuna, sauted mushrooms in a casserole dish coated with butter.
Add your sauce and stir all together. Sprinkle with a little bread crumbs, parsley,
parmesan cheese and chopped scallions or chives. Zest a little lemon on top.

Bake away.....
See it's not so bad after all.

Cannelini Chicken with Spinach and Cream Cheese

There was nothing exciting around the table last night, just tacos, because they were
quick and easy. With Mark working nights now, it's a little harder to have a nice and
nutritious meal when we both are ready to eat.

Tonight Mark went to play poker, and then work an overtime shift, so I invited my
sis, Mary, for dinner. I knew this was a weekend without the kids for her, and I
just wanted to see her. So I made a quasi-italian chicken dinner.....

I took boneless, skinless chicken breasts and browned them, with salt, pepper
and basil. Then I removed the chicken and carmelized (or deep browned) thinly
sliced onions, added lots of garlic and some diced tomatoes with a touch of
white wine. Let that simmer for a few minutes before adding the chicken back in.
Cover, and simmer for 20 min.

In the meantime I trimmed up some baby asparagus, tossed it with olive oil,
basil, cherry tomaotoes, salt and pepper. I roasted these off in a 400 degree oven.

I also took out the low fat bisquick to make a simple batter with parsley,
parmesan, butter and milk. I had the consistancy of "drop" biscuits and baked
them off in a 400 degree oven as well.

By this time my chicken was ready for the finale of cannelini beans, cream cheese
and spinach which I added in that order. I drained the beans and rinsed them off,
melted the cream cheese to make a nice sauce, then wilted the spinach in at the
last minute. (I covered the pan to wilt the spinach faster)

Served each breast with a healthy dollop of (thick) sauce, a portion of
asparagus and a biscuit. I only wish I had time to make a dessert.....

Hope y'all enjoy your trip to Italy with this dish!

Venison Ragout over Rice Medly

How do you like the names of my recipes? I'm thinking this may help you all search
for things you have on hand so you can make dinner without going to the store
each time. Please let me know if this helps you out?

After talking to my sister about her pork chops, I was faced with what to make
for Mark and myself. Well, we always have venison on hand, and my bulk foods
order came in so I have 5lbs of brown/wild rice mix....I knew I had some veggies, so why not think of something....

Here's what I did. I took a hunk off the end of my frozen pepper bacon and cooked
the pieces off in a dutch oven. I took the bacon out and set it aside for later.
Then I browned up some thick carrot slices in the bacon fat. I got a good
brown on them. I then added my venison stew pieces and browned them up.
I took some wheat flour with salt, pepper, smoked paprika, cardamom, corriander,
cloves and ground mustard; sprinkled it in over my venison and carrots to make
my roux. Then I poured in a little vermouth. I added my veggies (celery,
mushrooms, peas, red bell peppers and onions) and stirred everything up.
I added tomato paste, and stirred again. By this time it was smelling delicioso....and I added some beef broth to simmer it all in.
While that was cooking down and getting wonderful, I cooked my rice mix in beef
broth, worcestershire and salt. By the time my rice (yes slow cooking rice)
was done, my venison was tender and yummy! I spooned the ragout over the rice,
topped it with crumbled bacon and ate it....

It could have used a little something, and I think it would have been nice to put
a handful of dried currants in it, but I didn't have any. It was still yummy.

Hope you all enjoy it too, and don't feel like you have to use venison.
If you do want to though, you can come visit me and I will give you some, unless
your hubby hunts them too-

Until my next forage into the dinner world- good eating!

Mary's Creamy Tarragon Pork Chops

My sister called me yesterday to ask how to make some nice pork chops
without drying them out. Well, there's the don't overcook them rule, and there's
the cook them with liquid rule. I find pork tends to dry out anyway you
make it, but cooking them in liquid "low and slow" seems to at least make
them very tender, so you don't notice so much. I wish I was an Iron Chef and knew
how to get them tender and juicy!

Anyway, Mary told me what she had in the house, and we came up with this recipe
for her chops.

Get some nice thick pork chops, either bone in or not. Mix up a dredging flour
with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, ground mustard...and whatever
else you might like. Dredge the chops and sear off at high heat.

Remove the chops when seared, and make a roux with the rest of your flour and
butter or olive oil. Deglaze with some white wine. Stir down until almost gone,
then add some heavy cream (milk, sour cream....). Turn the heat down so this simmers.
Add some dijon mustard and mix thoroughly. Put in a little worcestershire ans
stir. Put the porkchops back in, cover and simmer for an hour. Before serving,
add some fresh tarragon (or dried if it's all you have).

Serve up with sides of your choice.

Mary said the kids ate every last drop, so I'd say they were a success!

nothing new

Well, my steak and cheese sandwiches were dry....even though I made a great
mayo to top them with. I probably didn't have enough cheese either, but what
can I say? I'm not a perfect cook every time-

Last night I had a late meeting, so just picked up Pizza Hut on the way home,
and tonight I have a sore throat, so will probably eat something soft.....

If you all have any ideas, please feel free to post them too me, as thinking when
I don't feel well is too hard and cooking even harder!

Sore Throat Remedies
a really spicy bloody mary
hot water with lemon and honey
tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich
mac and cheese (really warm and gooey)
hot tea with honey
hot buttered rum
warm salt water
chicken soup

Hope y'all stay healthy!

Steak and Cheese Sandwiches

I know, I know....how do you make those stand out? Well, there's not much
you can do, but buy top quality ingredients. I saw some shaved steak in Bloom today,
so thought, why not have a sandwhich night.

I got the shaved steak, some fresh lettuce, a ripe tomato, a small onion
and some fresh rolls from the bakery section. I plan on making a garlic and
parsley mayo to put on my toasted buns. I have some jalapenos and roasted red
peppers which I will saute up with my onion in a very hot pan to get them crispy-ish.
I have an assortment of cheeses and will probably mix some cheddar, american
and parmesan.

This should be pretty tastey. I have some nice baby asparagus to go with it.

Spicy mushroomed porkchops

Do you all get the idea that we like our food spicy! Hot peppers are really good for
your health and of course give zip to your meal.

You know that on Sunday we spent a nice evening with Mom and had a wonderful
mexican meal prepared by all. Of course, everyone took home some leftovers, but
alas, Mark took the leftovers to work so I ended up having to cook last night.

We love these porkchops. You don't need to put as many or any hot peppers in
them at all, but we love our hot foods!

Get a boneless pork loin roast or whole tenderloin and cut it into 1" chops.
It is much cheaper this way, but if you are pressed for time, buy your favorite
precut chops. Dredge them in a mixture of flour, chili powder, garlic powder,
oregano, parsley, cilanro, paprika, cayenne(optional), ground mustard, cumin,
salt and pepper. Then brown them in a hot skillet. (Save the leftover flour mixture
in case you need to thicken your sauce)

When the pork chops are brown, add sliced jalepenos, mushrooms and onions.
Saute till they start to get soft. Then add 8 oz of tomato sauce and 1 15oz can of
diced tomatoes. Cover with a tight fitting lid, turn the heat down and simmer for
an hour. When done, thicken your sauce if you need to with the leftover flour
mixture.

I served this with smashed red potaotes with melted apple smoked gruyere, yum yum.
We also had roasted broccoli with a dressing of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey,
red pepper flakes and salt. ( I steamed the broccoli halfway first, then tossed it
in the dressing and roasted for 15 min)

Hope you enjoy it as much as Mark-

Saturday, March 13

Well, no good food tonight. I am sorry to report that Mark ordered some sandwiches
for a fundraising effort from someone at work- and got them today. Boy!
Were they bad. You wouldn't think that a ham and cheese sandwich could go so
wrong.

Other than that, I am cooking up some mexican food for my Mom's birthday dinner
tomorrow. We will have my pork enchiladas (that I posted recently here) and some
pollo(chicken) enchiladas verdes, a margarita cheesecake, a chocolate cake with
coffee icing and some frijoles negros with lime and cilantro vinagrette.
That's my part.

My sister is doing tacos and refried beans. My step sis is doing taco toppings
and spanish rice.

A meal fit for a king....or at least my mom.
Happy Birthday Mom!

Apologies!!

I hope you all will forgive me for misspelling Enchilada this past week....
I hope to do better next time-
Thank you!

Friday March 12

An icky, chilly, rainy day. Calling for warm soup.

Mark is playing poker tonight, and I have a lot of leftover veggies from various
meals this week, so I am throwing them into a soup. A little white wine, a little
stock, and all the veggies I can find: green beans, mushrooms, peppers, spinach,
tomatoes, celery, potatoes, lima beans....

I don't think I'll add those brussel sprouts though-

Just what I need to warm up this evening. Hope it warms you, body and soul, too.

Thursday, March 11

Ugh! this is harder than I thought, writing something every day....
and of course, yesterday while Mark was out I was inspired early on to make
a nice veggie meal; like stir fried beans, asparagus, peppers with a touch of
sesame oil and hot pepper flakes over scented rice...Mmmm.
But I ended up having McDonald's because I was trapping ferl cats and got home late.

Tonight, Mark wanted fried chicken. Not having time to make a batch of chicken
as well as not being particularly fond of fried chicken, I ended up just getting
an 8 piece box from the deli at Bloom....and for me, a frozen pizza. I did put
extra toppings on hoping that the "not delivery" brand would be superb if touched up.
Alas, it isn't so....and you can tell it's not delivery.

Here's hoping that I have a great meal in store for you all tomorrow!
(It's ok to start drooling now)

Monday, March 8th

I was looking for inspiration all day, and finally found it at one of my
Dr's offices. I asked the Dr what she was having, and she said she hoped someone
else was doing the cooking, so I asked the nurse at check out and she said she
had plans to go out with a girlfriend. Just when I thought it was a bust, she added
that if she was home she'd probably make a roasted chicken breast with mashed
potatoes and broccoli.

Well, that sounds quite boring, but I went to the store, thinking chicken, mashed potatoes and broccoli. I ended up getting turkey breast, cheese, spinach, and
salad makings......(we'll just forget about those mini cinnamon doughnuts I put
in the cart alongside my healthy meal). At home, I set everything out, ready to
make dinner, only to find Mark had used all the potatoes for his breakfast the other
day......hmmmmm....biscuits?

Stuffed Turkey Breast Cutlets with Garlic Herb Cheese Biscuits

I had a whole turkey breast, but fileted the breast halves off and saved the
bone and other stuff for Hershey's kitty meds....
I then butterflied each breast, pounded it thin, slathered it with a garlic
herb boursin cheese, sprinkled it with dried cranberries (it is turkey after all)
and layered it with baby spinach leaves. I then rolled it all up, tied it with
kitchen string, browned it on all sides, then popped it in a low oven for an
hour.

I wilted the rest of the spinach for a side veg. Mark made a tastey salad, and
then I quickly made some biscuits, using bisquick, milk, butter and the rest of
the boursin cheese. Dropped them on a baking sheet and baked them up.

It all was quite tastey. I hope you will try this one out for yourself!
Bon Apetit'

Sunday, March 7

We went out with Mark's mom tonight and ended up at Outback Steakhouse.
So of course we had steak....all was lovely! So go ahead and make your favorite
Outback meal at home. Don't forget to slather on the butter and add lots of
salt.......

Saturday, March 6th

Well, another day, another thing to figure out for dinner.....
Today we are going to have a mixture of Dirty Rice & Jambalaya.

I am going to use a mix of brown and wild rice. I am going to boil it in
some chicken stock and lots of seasonings. I like to let it go for about 45 min
to make sure the rice is tender.

Then I am going to sute some smoked beef sausage, some chunked up chicken breast,
hot and bell peppers, onions, black beans, peas, carrots, and mushrooms. I am
going to season all this with chili powder, garlic, smoked paprika, white and black
pepper, and parsley.

At the last minute I am going to add some cherry tomatoes and let them cook until
they just burst, and serve with a grating of sharp cheddar cheese on top of the rice.

Another all in one meal....grains, veggies, protiens, dairy.....the only thing
missing is some fruit (but we'll have that for dessert).

Happy Eating!

Friday, March 5

Hi people!
After eating all those wonderfully spicy enchilladas yesterday, I was reminded
of the "enchilladas" I grew up knowing. I actually think it is a West Texas/East
New Mexico concoction that I just grew up knowing as an enchillada. It consisted of
yummy corn tortillas, lightly fried in oil, stacked in layers with a rich red chili
sauce and longhorn cheese, and it may or may not have a fried egg on top. Mmmm...
Sometimes you just need that egg!

Well in honor of the egg, today's recipe is Potatoes and Eggs. It is basically
breakfast, for dinner! I just large dice some potatoes, skins on. Large dice
some onion and some bell and hot peppers. Fry those up till almost done.
Then take an egg or two (however many you need for your crew), whisk them briskly
and pour them on top. Let the egg start to cook on the bottom, then fold as
you would scrambled eggs. For toppings, I like diced tomato and crumbled bacon.
Serve it with a side of vinegary slaw type salad.

This is a fast, easy meal for those times when you need eggs.
Hope you find it egg-cellent!

Thursday, March 4

Ahh...Enchillada night!
As many of you know, I suffer from allergies of all kinds. Unfortunately, they
include corn, so usually enchilladas are a no-no. However, I make my own, and use
the things I am not allergic to and because they are so good, I have people
asking me to make them for them as well-

I actually boil a pork roast till it is falling apart, and this time I am saving
all the boiling liquid to use as a medium for cat meds. (Ha- I will kill that
second bird...) So there are no great flavorings going into the meat this way,
this time. However, if you want to impart more flavor here, use some wine (a
light red or a sauv blanc is nice) added to the water, throw in a bay leaf or two
maybe even whole garlic cloves (sans skin) to boil down; they will paste up
easily when you shred the meat.

Then for the sauce....You can always go buy enchillada sauce. They do make really
good ones, however; since I am avoiding corn starch, I make my own. I use tomato
sauce, some adobo sauce, some reconstituted dried peppers (blended up into a paste
with the reconstituting liquid) and all my spices: cumin, garlic, corriander, oregano, chili powder, paprika, cilantro, whatever else feels and smells
mexican to me that day.

I shred my meat, put in the sauce over low heat, (save a little without meat
for topping) add lots of green onions and jalepenos, then let it simmer for however
long I feel necessary.

I will warm my flour tortillas (remember, no corn) so they are pliable, and then
start filling with cheese, meat mixture, more cheese....roll them up. Of course,
I make a big batch and we eat them, but you can freeze them at this point, in
baggies or a plastic container. When ready to put them in the oven I top them
off with the reserved sauce, more green onions and cheese.....Mmm Mmm Good!

You can serve them with the traditonal rice and beans or make a great salad with
guacamole, or even have a fruit salad along side. Always nice with a cold beer,
or sparkling wine...a little on the sweet side to cut the hot peppers. And I do
make them hot(!) so prepare them to the heat level you can stand.

El Apetito Bueno!

Wednesday, March 3

I am going to a friend's home party tonight and don't know what I will have to eat,
but I'll tell you what I am craving and you all can eat it for me- HaHa....

I would like a gourmet BLT. "What", you say, "makes it gourmet?" Well, anything
out of the norm. But what I want is to make some peppered bacon, and have some nice
crumbled blue cheese. Toast one slice of bread and the other, spray with olive oil,
place oiled side down on a grill pan or griddle, sprinkle some cheese, layer bacon,
and sprinkle a little more cheese, then toast it till chesse is all melty.

Then I would stack it together with some mico greens and a really ripe tomato.
Spread some mayo (with just a hint of lemon squeezed in it) on the toasted slice
and top off....

I hope it's a big sandwich, 'cause now I am really hungry!
I hope you all enjoy it too-

Tuesday, March 2

So Ok, I haven't been on everyday like I planed, and I don't have great dinner
advice for you for yesterday or today. Mark is going in to work a second shift
tonight so I will probably have a tuna salad sandwich. Then again, maybe not-
Hopefully I will have something great tomorrow night and be able to tell you
all about it.
Bye for now!