Mixing Bowl

I bought a new magazine the other day on our way home from Maine called Mixing Bowl from Better Homes and Gardens. It's the magazine for the web site mixingbowl.com. Who knew about this site already? I didn't but it's a pretty cool premise. You can use the site and join groups based on your food preferences so you can share and swap recipes that fit your needs. Pretty cool, huh!? I think I might just browse through the Guiltless Desserts, Live Healthy America, Nutrition Unplugged, Calling All Canners!, and Fast & Fab Chicken Recipes groups.

We tried one recipe from the magazine/site last night for dinner and it turned out great. Here it is for you:

Caribbean Fajitas

Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients:

8 6-inch flour tortillas
4 1-inch slices peeled fresh pineapple (about half of a medium pineapple)
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 small red or orange sweet peppers, seeded and cut in strips
2 teaspoons Jamaican jerk seasoning*
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
fresh cilantro and lime wedges

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Wrap tortillas in foil and heat in oven. Meanwhile, coat a 12-inch nonstick skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium-high. Add pineapple slices; cook 4 to 6 minutes or until browned, turning once. Remove from skillet.

Cut chicken in strips; toss with sweet peppers, jerk seasoning, and pepper. Heat oil in skillet; add chicken and peppers. Cook and stir over medium-high heat 4 to 6 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink. Core and chop pineapple. Serve with chicken, tortillas, cilantro and lime.

*We used McCormick Caribbean seasoning from the regular spice aisle. It wasn't nearly as spicy as real jerk seasoning (like the real stuff that Jan brought back from her cruise that could have burned the taste buds right off of your tongue, yeah this isn't as spicy) but it does have some kick so use according to your children's tolerance. You could sprinkle extra on your individual fajitas if you want more than they can handle.

Wonder Flour

I have a confession to make: we don't have much of a food storage to speak of. "Where would I keep it? And how would I use it?" are the two main questions that keep me from doing much toward food storage. We took a big step in the last few weeks and bought a grain mill. I figured I can at least start using grains and learning how to use them better, so when we can afford to get more serious about food storage, I won't be so overwhelmed because I will actually know how to use it all. It makes sense to me at least! Our experiment this week has been with Chef Brad's Wonder Flour.

In a bowl we put:

2 cups long grain brown rice

2 cups pearled barley

2 cups spelt

(I did 2 cups of each because that seemed like a reasonable amount for us to use initially, but as long as each grain is added in equal parts, you can do more or less.)

We mixed the grains together and then we ground them up on the finest setting.

Apparently you can use this flour in any recipe that calls for all-purpose flour, except in recipes that use yeast. Usually you have to add about a 1/2 cup more of the Wonder Flour (if your recipe calls for 3 cups of all-purpose flour, add 3 1/2 cups of Wonder Flour).

Experiment #1: Chocolate Chip Cookies

I used the Wonder Flour instead of the usual white flour in my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. The first time I tried this, the cookies came out wafer thin. I later learned that the nature of these grains required less moisture. The second time I only used one egg and reduced the amount of butter. They turned out much better! However, I may experiment with a different recipe until I'm completely happy. In both cases though, the cookies were delicious.

Experiment #2: Waffles

I used a simple waffle recipe and used the Wonder Flour instead of the all-purpose flour. Unlike the cookies, I didn't need to make any other adjustments to the recipe. I take that back, I did add a bit more sugar and vanilla, but that had nothing to do with the type of flour I used, just my preference. They turned out great!

2 1/2 c. Wonder Flour

1 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

2 Tbsp white sugar (I did 4 Tbsp)

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups warm milk (I was being lazy and just added it cold, I don't know what difference it made)

1/3 cup butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla (I added about 3 tsp)

In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt, baking powder and sugar; set aside. Preheat waffle iron. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs. Stir in the milk, butter, and vanilla. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture; beat until blended. Ladle the batter into a preheated waffle iron.

Benefit: The comfort foods we enjoy are now healthier!

Food Dehydrator?

I'm looking to buy a food dehydrator. I'm overwhelmed by how many different ones are out there. Does anyone own one or know of a great one? Please Help!

Carne Wilson Fundido

This is one that I make for my team. They pitch in and put it together. It is yummy! They gave it the name of Carne Wilson Fundido.

2lbs of ground beef
2lbs of Chorizo ( I use beef chorizo for this normally)
2 small cans of Rosarita zesty jalapeño refried beans
2 bricks of cream cheese
I block of Fry's (Kroger) Queso Blanco the one that looks like pepper jack... It's similar to Velveeta and you can find it in the Mexican food section.
2 poblano peppers (diced)
2 Serrano peppers (diced)
1 white onion (diced)
2 cups of shredded Mexican blend cheese
1/2 jar of salsa


In a big pot, brown the chorizo and ground beef together over med high heat. Once the meat is just about cooked through, add medley of peppers and onions and sauté with the beef mixture until soft. Depending on your chorizo and beef, you may need to drain some of the grease from the pot. A little is fine and needed, but some chorizo yields a lot more grease than others. Once peppers are softened tranfer to a slower cooker add the Queso Block and stir into meat and peppers until melted through. Add the beans and stir to incorporate. Then add the cream cheese and stir until melted through. Then add the salsa and stir to incorporate. Now add the shredded cheese and stir until melted through.

Serve with chips and enjoy!

Buffalo Wing Dip

I've had a few requests for this. It's been a hit wherever I've taken it.

2 8 oz packages of cream cheese, softened
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup ranch dressing
1 5oz bottle hot sauce (I prefer Franks)
1 tsp minced garlic
2 cooked chicken breasts, shredded

Combine and bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes. Serve with crackers. Ritz work well.

Refried Beans from my food storage

I've been taking inventory of my food storage, and I have gobs of #10 cans containing pinto beans. I've found a great recipe for refried beans that is pretty hands off. I'm all about easy around here.




Rinse 3 cups of pinto beans really well in water. Put them in a large crock pot with 3 quarts of water and one tablespoon of chopped garlic and cook on high for about 9 hrs. After they've cooked pretty much all day, use a slotted spoon and ladle them into a frying pan on medium with 1/2 stick of butter, one cup of salsa, and about 1 cup of cheddar cheese. I added about 1 tablespoon of salt, but since you're normal, I would add about 1/2 tablespoon and work your way up from there. Use a potato masher and mash until it's the consistency you want. If they seem dry, add some of the bean water from your crockpot to the pan.

If any of you have any other recipes for mashed or refried beans, I'd love to try it out.

Grilled Cedar Plank Salmon

1 Cedar Plank, 7 by 14 by 1/3 inches - It's very important to soak it in water for at least an hour. Our plank still caught on fire a couple times while it was on the grill, so next time I'll soak it longer. I've seen them at Target, but it's cheaper to buy a large board at Home Depot and cut it down yourself.

1 2lb Salmon Fillet - the recipe calls for the skin on, but I didn't read the recipe thoroughly enough before hand and I purchased skinless fillets. It still worked out fine

1/2 Cup Light Brown Sugar

2 Tablespoons Canola Oil

1 Tablespoon Dried Thyme Leaves

1 Teaspoon Cayenne Papper


Preheat your gas grill to medium. Place the salmon skin side down on the cedar plank. Combine the brown sugar, oil, thyme, and cayenne in a bowl. Spread over the salmon. Place the planked salmon on the grilling grate and cook, with the grill covered, until the salmon flakes easily and is opaque throughout, about 20-30 minutes.

It has a slight kick to it due to the cayenne, but the brown sugar sweetens it up a bit.