Oriental Chicken Salad

Oriental Chicken Salad
6 cups thinly sliced green cabbage
1 cup chopped green onion
3-4 cups diced, grilled chicken breasts
1/3 cup EVOO
1/4 cup vinegar
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 pkg. Ramen noodles, chicken flavor
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
3 Tbsp. sesame seeds
             In a large bowl combine the cabbage, green onions, and chicken.  Cover and chill. In a small bowl stir together the sugar, oil, flavor packet from the Ramen noodles, vinegar and pepper.  Keep stirring until the sugar is dissolved.  Pour over the cabbage and chill.  Toast the almonds in a frying pan, remove and add the seeds to the pan to brown over low heat.  Add both to the salad.  Just before serving crumble the Ramen noodles and sprinkle over the top of the salad.

Herb Garden Box

I use the square foot garden box method for my home garden.  I have 14 boxes filled with the soil, vermiculite, fertilizer, compost recipe.  My husband engineered an awesome watering system hooked up to a timer with a central hose and soaker hoses that branch off into each box, making water automatic and timed.  Could not be any easier!  I find each year though that the herb box becomes a wild, overgrown mess with certain herbs overtaking others.  This last spring I decided to try something new to contain the individual varieties.  This is what I did:

I began with several clay pots that I had hanging around the garage.  They are different sizes, which makes it visually interesting.  I used a 50 foot long, tiny soaker hose with a special attachment to the regular hose end.

The bottom of each clay pot has a 1-2 inch hole.  I threaded the tiny soaker hose up through each hole, rounded the top for easy water flow and then threaded it back out the bottom hole.  I repeated this through all the rest of the pots, linking them together with the same tiny soaker hose.  Next I added a few inches of small rock in the bottom of each pot.

After filling each pot with the garden soil mix, I planted the herbs ans stuck the name tag for each in their pots.  Turn on the hose with the timer set to automatically water each morning and it's all done!  Hopefully this will keep the herbs in their own little pots this year.

Fruity Pebbles Cupcakes with Cereal Milk Frosting

The frosting is the best part of this (and almost any) cupcake!  Ask any kid what is the best part of a bowl of cereal and they will almost always say, "the milk left at the bottom of the bowl."  I decided to use that flavor to enhance a simple vanilla butter cream frosting.

Fruity Pebbles Cupcakes
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 whole eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups flour
1 cup Fruity Pebbles cereal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup milk
              In your mixing bowl combine the butter and sugar. Mix on medium until fluffy, about 4 minutes.  Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.  In a medium bowl mix together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Add half of the dry mix to the butter and sugar and mix on low just until combined.  Add the milk and mix again just until combined.  Add the rest of the dry mix and turn off mixer as soon as it is barely combined.  Use a spatula to finish folding in any flour stuck to the edges of the bowl.  Carefully stir in the cereal.  Spoon into paper baking cups in your muffin pan until 2/3 full.  Bake at 375 for 18 minutes, or until tops bounce back lightly when touched.  Remove from the oven and cool completely before icing.

Cereal Milk Frosting
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened to room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
3-5 Tbsp. heavy whipping cream
1 cup Fruity Pebbles cereal
         In a small bowl combine the cereal and heavy whipping cream.  Stir it together and let it sit for at least an hour.  In a mixing bowl add the butter and mix on low to medium speed for at least 3 minutes until the butter is well creamed.  Add the sugar 1 cup at a time and mix on low until incorporated.  Next add the vanilla and let it mix in.  Strain the heavy whipping cream from the cereal and add to the frosting 1 Tbsp. at a time until it reaches the desired consistency.  I like my frosting fairly thick and stabilized.  After frosting your cupcakes sprinkle a little cereal on top for decoration.

Beef and Caramelized Onion Empanadas

What do you do with leftover roast?  That is, if you are lucky enough to have leftovers...

Empanada Dough
3 cups flour
1 1/2 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tbsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 egg
1 egg divided, yolk in dough recipe and white saved for sealing edges of empanadas
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter, cooled
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. water
         Combine the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in your mixing bowl.  In a small bowl whisk the egg, egg yolk and vinegar.  Add the egg mixture and the cooled butter to the flour and turn the mixer on low for one minute and blend together.  Turn the speed up to medium and add the water.  Mix for two minutes.  Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it just a couple of times.  Shape it into a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 2-3 hours.

Saute some sliced onions in butter and EVOO until they are tender.

Roll out the empanada dough about 1/4 inch thick and cut 3 inch circles.
Spread a little grainy brown mustard on one side. Add the grilled onions and then some of the shredded beef.  Fold over and brush a little egg white around the edges, then seal them with a fork.  Bake on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes.  They are delicious alone or even better served with queso blanco for dipping.

Shredded Beef Chimichangas

I love chimichangas!  The spices in this recipe make the shredded beef so yummy!  It tastes as good as any Mexican restaurant made shredded beef chimichanga I have ever eaten.  It is so easy to throw into the crockpot and walk away until dinner time.  When the beef is cooked, using 2 forks tear into it and shred it.  Add a nice portion to a flour tortilla, pile on some grated monterey jack and cheddar cheese, roll it into a burrito and fry in a little vegetable oil until lightly golden on all sides.  Serve with pico de gallo and/or guacamole.

Shredded Beef
3-4 chuck roast
4 Tbsp. EVOO
2 Tbsp. chili powder
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pepper
1 small jar of pepperoncinis, with juice
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 1/2 tsp. cumin
2 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
2 cans beef broth
          In a large pot, add the EVOO and when hot, brown the roast on all sides.  Place in the crockpot.  Add the rest of the ingredients and cook on high until meat is fall apart tender, approximately 7-8 hours, depending on your model of crockpot.

S'mores Popcorn (and Caramel Corn recipe)

I wanted to take a treat to our Girl's Camp clinic so I made my childhood favorite caramel popcorn recipe and added teeny tiny marshmallows, Golden Graham cereal and drizzled melted chocolate drops over the top to create this S'mores Popcorn.  I love this caramel popcorn recipe because each kernel of popcorn gets coated with the caramel and it is not sticky at all!  It's easy to eat, not messy and so crispy and flavorful.

Caramel Corn
16 cups air popped popcorn (HAS to be airpopped!)
1 large brown paper bag, grocery size
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. baking soda
    Pour the air popped popcorn into the brown paper bag.  In a medium sized, microwave safe bowl add the brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup.  Microwave for 4 minutes, stopping to stir after each minute.  After the 4 minutes, remove the bowl from the microwave and stir in the vanilla.  Next, add the baking soda and quickly stir it in.  The mixture will lighten in color and begin to foam up.  Pour the mixture over the popcorn in the bag.  Fold the top of the bag down several times and shake the bag.  Place it in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes, stopping and shaking the bag after each minute.  After the 3 minutes remove the bag from the microwave.  Place 2 long sheets of wax paper on the counter.  Pour the popcorn from the bag onto the wax paper to separate and cool.  Let cool for about 5-10 minutes. 
      For the Smore's Popcorn:
Make one recipe of the Caramel Popcorn
Add 1 1/2 cup teeny tiny dehydrated marshmallows, sprinkle over the top 
Add 2 cups Golden Graham cereal squares, sprinkle over the top
In a double boiler melt 2 cups of milk chocolate drops.  Pour into a quart sized storage bag.  Cut off one corner of the bag and drizzle the chocolate over the top of the popcorn, marshmallow and cereal mix.  Let cool.

Grilled Chicken with White BBQ Sauce

Tangy, spicy, creamy and unexpected are the adjectives I think describe this flavorful sauce.  It's different and that's what I love about it!

White BBQ Sauce
12 drumsticks or 10 thigh chicken pieces (I used both and doubled this recipe)
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3 Tbsp. lime juice, freshly squeezed, (or you could use lemon juice)
1 Tbsp. dijon mustard
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
  Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and mix together.  Divide the sauce to use 2/3 for basting while cooking the chicken and reserve the other 1/3 to use as a dipping sauce after cooking.

Strawberry White Chocolate Pie

Lighter than cheesecake, but still a rich dessert, this pie is delicious!  I found the original recipe here: http://stlcooks.com/2014/01/strawberry-white-chocolate-pie/  and then I changed the recipe to add more crust and lighten up the richness just a little.

Strawberry White Chocolate Pie
For the Crust: 
2 cups crushed graham crackers (about a sleeve and a half)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
   Place the graham crackers in a gallon sized ziploc bag and use rolling pin to crush the crackers to a fine powder consistency.  Measure out 2 cups and pour back into the bag.  Add the melted butter to the bag and close it tightly.  Shake the bag and knead it to mix the butter in with the graham cracker powder.  Pour the mix into a pie pan, glass or metal, either will work.  Use a small measuring cup to form up the sides of the pie pan and press the crackers into a crust.

For the Filling:
1/2 cup white chocolate chips or melting drops (I use the drops)
1- 8oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened to room temp.
2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp. orange juice, freshly squeezed
4 cups cool whip (non-dairy whipped topping)
  In a small microwave safe bowl, place the white chocolate and microwave for 30 seconds.  Stir and repeat 2 times, or until completely melted.  Set aside to cool slightly.
  In a mixing bowl add the cream cheese and mix on low-medium until it is smooth.  Add the powdered sugar and mix until well combined.  Next add the orange juice and the melted chocolate and mix for just a minute, until they are incorporated.  Remove the bowl from the mixer and gently fold in the whipped topping.  Pour the mixture into the pie pan with the crust.

For the Topping:
1 lb. fresh strawberries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips or melting drops
   In a microwave safe bowl, melt the white chocolate, just as you did for the filling.  After a few minutes of cooling, pour it into a small ziploc bag.
  Wash the strawberries and remove the hull, then slice them.  Layer the strawberries on top of the filling.

  Cut the corner off of the ziploc bag and drizzle the chocolate across the top of the strawberries.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour before serving.