GHSS: Pepper Jack Quinoa

Once upon a time I decided to make black bean and quinoa burgers. While the name itself should have been my first red flag, the other should have been when the recipe told me that 1/4 cup of quinoa needed 2 cups of liquid. Yes, you read that right. I remember wondering where the hell that recipe was going and eventually decided (even though every part of my brain was fighting me) to take the plunge and do it their way. Cut to me ruining a dish towel trying to ring out the black bean and quinoa soup that I was left with.

After that I got smart and bought some cheese cloth for emergencies like that one. That was probably 2 years ago and I haven't used it since. Until today.

When I first read this recipe and found out that it called for 1 cup of quinoa and 4 cups of water, I almost closed the book and ended it all. But then I had a bottle of wine and decided to, again, trust the author of the cookbook.

For this particular recipe, you cook the quinoa in the 4 cups of water and then add broccoli toward the end of the cooking time. Ok, now that makes sense. You gotta have room for the broccoli to cook. At least there was a reason for this insanity. Here's where the cheese cloth came in. I know damn well that all of my colanders have holes that are way too big. Cooked or not, I'd lose some of that quinoa to my garbage disposal. Quick fix: loosely hang some cheesecloth over the colander and drain. It also makes it easy to squeeze the excess water out... OR just cook the quinoa with 2 cups of water and the broccoli separately.

Look at that y'all. I'm evolving. 

While the quinoa was doing it's thing, I prepped the rest of the dish. In a bowl you toss spinach, salt and pepper, garlic, and sour cream. What I didn't know is that I only had a few sad little dollops of sour cream left in the container. This was actually the best possible scenario because I discovered something amazing. In my refrigerator I had about half a jar of Prego alfredo sauce leftover from a casserole I made a few nights back. Now normally I would never entertain the idea of jarred alfredo sauce, because I make such a killer one from scratch, but sometimes you just want to live life without having to wash 2 extra dishes. Anyway the whole point is that I used the leftover sauce in place of the sour cream and it really gave this dish an extra punch. 

Look at the creaminess of that spinach mix

This dish was amazing. Technically, this is supposed to be served as a main dish (it's actually in the section titled "Meatless Mains") but I baked some chicken to go with it. 

Hello to the extra cup of cheese that I added

Recipe:

1 cup quinoa, rinsed

8 oz broccoli florets

4 cups packed baby spinach

1/2 cup light sour cream (or just dump in some jarred alfredo sauce)

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp salt (I added more)

1/2 tsp pepper (I added way more)

4 oz (1 cup) pepper jack cheese, shredded (I used 2 cups)

1) In a 5 qt saucepot, heat quinoa and 4 cups water to boiling over high heat. Cook as label directs. Add the broccoli to the pot 5 minutes before the end of cooking time. 

2) Drain quinoa mixture well; transfer to a large bowl.

3) Add spinach, sour cream, garlic, salt, and pepper. Toss to combine.

4) Preheat broiler on high. Broil for 3 minutes or until cheese is melty and toasty.

GHSS: Moroccan Olive & Orange Chicken

There are a lot of things in this world that I love. Champagne, chips and salsa, lipstick, singing, my children...just to name a few. One thing that you might not know is that I love olives. I like to nestle in with a bowl of olives and little pickles and just go to town. It's a comfort thing, I think, dating back to my childhood Thanksgivings when my sister Suzy and I would scarf down an entire tray of pickles and olives that my mother meant to be appetizers. I love traditions.

So of course, when I saw the word "olive" I stopped immediately and declared that this would be my next recipe. I also really love cooking meat with fruit, something Collin never even knew about until he met me and he asked what the hell I was doing pairing apples and pork together. And he thinks *I'm* the crazy one.

So I gathered all of the ingredients and got to chopping.

Alright now looking back I would do a few things differently. I would definitely throw the chicken in some kind of orange juice marinade the night before and I would absolutely spice the flour. Salt and pepper can only carry you so far and it fell short here. The chicken itself was, you guessed it, a little bland but the olive and onion saved it as long as you ate all 3 in the same bite. I was a little disappointed in the sauce and I was kicking myself for not placing the orange slices on top of the chicken as it simmered. CUMIN. That's what it was missing. It just came to me. And now my tongue is doing that thing that tongues do like when you're thinking about eating a lemon jolly rancher.

It just looked so pretty

This looks scrumptious as hell.

I paired this with a spinach and tomato salad. I've been really into those lately.

RECIPE:

4 chicken breast cutlets about 4 oz each (I had some that were over 4 oz and it all worked out)

1/4 tsp salt (who even measures this out)

1/4 tsp pepper (seriously, who?)

1/4 cup flour (you'll love yourself if you spice this)

3 tbs Olive Oil

1 red onion, sliced

2 navel oranges (I used the kid's oranges cause that's what I had)

1/2 cup green olives

Rice Pilaf, for serving

Parsley, for garnish (I forgot this part)

1) Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper then dredge each cutlet in flour.

2) In a 12 inch skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat until hot. Add the chicken and cool until it's done, turning once - about 6 minutes total. Transfer it to a plate.

3) Reduce the heat to medium; add onion and cook until soft, stirring occasionally. Squeeze the juice from the oranges into the skillet and add a few orange slices. Add olives to skillet and 1/4 cup water. 4) Return the chicken to the skillet and simmer until everything is nice and hot. 

5) Service with rice pilaf and garnish with parsley.

GHSS: Creole Fried Rice

Today was a lazy Sunday. And when I say lazy, I mean lazy.

To give a visual: I'm still in last night's pajamas and it's 4 pm. However, I did brush my teeth and do my skincare routine this morning because I'm not a fucking animal.

That being said it was hella tempting not to just say "fuck it" and order pizza, but then I thought of you (yes you) and how your Sunday would not be complete if you didn't get to find out what I made for dinner. I'm just such a good person.

I picked out 4 recipes from Skillet Suppers to put on my meal plan for the week and this one seemed like it was the easiest to throw together. We're talking 30 minutes from the second you start pulling ingredients to the moment your spoon enters your mouth. I really don't know how I've lived my life up to this point without this book.

This recipe calls for andouille sausage, which I've never actually been able to find in any of my neighborhood markets. It also doesn't help that my version of "not being able to find it" is walking up to the sausage section in the store, not immediately seeing it on the shelf, and then buying the cheapest jalapeno sausage instead. In this particular case, kielbasa was on sale so that's what ya girl bought.

In this recipe there is also a need for a can of kidney beans (Beans! What do you mean beans!?) which I already had in my pantry. Oh, that's another thing about this book. The majority of recipes call for things I already have. For this recipe, all I needed to buy was the sausage. Another huge win. But back to the beans. I felt like the beans kind of over powered the dish and wish I would have only added half a can vs the whole can. For bean lovers like my sisters this would not be an issue, but I like to feel like my bites contain more meat and veggies. Collin also really liked this dish and did not think the beans were an issue (he actually just got up for seconds) but I suppose that's all preference. You decide.

On to the rice - and this is important. The recipe calls for 4 cups cooked white rice. I thought about cooking some minute rice, but didn't want to dirty another pot so I grabbed two pouches of "ready rice" (Uncle Ben's is the brand name, but the off brand kinds are just as good). I had one pouch of brown rice and one pouch of the chicken kind and thought fuck it let's get wild and use them both. Note: each pouch is 2 cups of rice. I suggest going this route the first time you make this because I found one pouch (2 cups) to be the perfect amount of rice. If I had added 4 cups it would have been way too much. And in case you're wondering, I put the brown rice in first. The chicken will be for tomorrow's dinner. I know, I know...how boring.

Check out the perfect rice to meat/veggie ratio

She tells you to add hot sauce if that's your thing...and it absolutely fucking is

Creole Fried Rice 

2 tbs canola oil (olive oil, whatever)

8 oz. andouille sausage (she actually suggests Kielbasa as an alternative in the book - ha!)

1 large onion, chopped

1 large green pepper, chopped

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tbs. creole seasoning (let's be real - you'll need way more than that)

4 cups cooked white rice (strongly recommend going the pouch route first)

1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, rinsed and drained (if you're a beany person)

2 tbs. tomato paste

Sliced green onions and hot sauce, for serving

1) In a 12 inch skillet, add the oil over medium heat until hot. Add sausage, onion, pepper, garlic, and creole seasoning. Cook for about 10 minutes or until veggies are tender.

2) Add the rest of the ingredients and cook until hot. Sprinkle green onion on top.

3) Serve with the hot sauce.  

Motivation Station

Holy crap has it been two years?

Well, you know what they say: No better time than the present. Or is it: Presents are always a good time? Either way, motivation has begun tingling in the fingertips of yours truly and you all have an adorable redhead in the form of my sister's girlfriend to blame.

I know, I know. Out of nowhere I stopped blogging. Well, I stopped blogging and started taking mediocre photos of food and posting them on Instagram. I lost my food mojo, but it's back now and in the meantime I have acquired several new cookbooks. The most recent was a gift for my birthday. It's a simple little book called "Skillet Suppers" and, you guessed it, all you need is a skillet and about half an hour for all of the recipes. I'll call that a fuckin win.

The cover photo also looks fuckin legit

As I read through this book I got that itch that can only mean one thing: I need to cook and then blog about it so my sisters can read it.

Delicious things to come, ya'll.

TK: To-Go Breakfast Bars

I am one of those people who absolutely cannot skip breakfast. I have to have my 3 square meals a day or I will starve. The only problem with this is that my little family does not get out of bed until 8 am at the earliest, leaving me no time to make breakfast before we have to leave the house. (I understand the obvious answer here is to get up earlier...but abso-fucking-lutely not.) I usually make breakfast when I get to work, which is doable with my job, but I much prefer to just grab something quick. I flipped through Thug Kitchen and found this recipe for breakfast bars and thought maybe they're on to something here.

The fun part about these bars is that you can basically put whatever you want in them. Unfortunately for me, I did not have any dried cranberries (they suggested throwing some in there) and I think they would have really made a difference here. I did have dried banana chips and smashed those up in there, but they are missing something and I think that "thing" is flavor.

Mix, toast, stir and add and you press it all into a parchment lined 13x9. (The parchment lining is very necessary)

Then you toss it in the oven for about 25-30 and let it cool. Once you do that, put it in the fridge to harden even more then lift the parchment paper out of the dish and cut into squares (about 10).

The color is really lacking here and I don't like it

These are, as promised, an easy way to get in a quick breakfast that isn't drowning in sugar and fat. Again, my only issue is the lack of flavor and that's completely my fault. I encourage you to try it and add in what you like.

Recipe:

2 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup uncooked quinoa

1/4 uncooked millet

1 1/4 cups chopped mixed nuts or seeds (I used almonds and sunflower seeds)

1/2 cup dried cranberries or other dried fruit (I used banana chips)

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup maple syrup (I used a combo of syrup and honey)

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup coconut or olive oil (I used coconut)

2 tbs sugar (I used brown sugar)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. Line a 13x9 with parchment paper. 

Heat a dry skillet over medium low heat and add the oats, quinoa and millet. Stir them around until toasty.

One that is done, toss the oat mixture with your nuts and dried fruit.

In a small saucepan, combine the syrup, peanut butter, oil, sugar and vanilla until warm and melted. 

Add the syrup mix to the oat mix and combine. 

Pour the mixture into a baking dish and spread around until even. Then make sure you pack it down really well. 

Toss it in the oven for 25-30, let completely cool then throw it in the fridge until cold. Cut into bars and keep in the fridge in an airtight container. 

SS: Tex-Mex Casserole

The other night I went to a charity event with my mother and my sister as a last minute thing. I already had dinner planned out and figured I might as well still make it since, well, the kids still had to eat. I got lucky in that this was quick and simple and, in true casserole form, took most of the time in the oven. Yay!

I love casserole dishes with pasta because the kids would eat pasta every day if I decided it should be so. It makes for a sure fire, no fuss meal every single time and God how I wish I lived in Italy. I feel like I would just fit in so well there. I mean, I could eat pasta and bread every day and then walk everywhere. (By the way, if that's not what it's really like - don't tell me. I need it to be that way.)

See the corn? I'm positive that's what makes it Tex-Mex.

Anyway, here's the recipe:

8 oz. whole wheat pasta

1 lb lean ground beef

1 small onion, diced

1 tsp. minced garlic

1 (10.5 oz) can tomato soup

1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 (15.5 oz) can corn, drained

1 (10 oz) can Ro*Tel (not drained)

1 (4.5 oz) can chopped green chilies (not drained)

2 tsp. chili powder

1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 cup shredded cheese (mexican blend, I was out so I used parmesan and mozzarella. whatevs)

1 diced tomato, for topping

Preheat the oven to 350. Coat a 9 x 13 with cooking spray

Cook the pasta. Drain and set aside.

Cook the beef, onion and garlic until the beef is done. Drain any excess fat and return to the skillet.

Add everything but the cheese to the skillet and mix together.

Transfer the mixture from the skillet to the 9 x 13. Sprinkle the cheese on top. 

Bake about 20 minutes, until hot and the cheese is melted. Top with diced tomato.

This was pretty damn good. I'll file this under "Kids will eat" and call it a day.

Creamy Potato Salad with Bacon & Roasted Mushrooms with an appearance by ST: Homemade BBQ Sauce

First, I'd like to clarify that there are 2 recipes here. No, there are no roasted mushrooms in the potato salad...although...I might dig that.

These two were my sides to go along with spontaneous brisket night from my earlier post. I was pretty excited about this potato salad because it makes a lot and I've been waiting for an occasion such as this so I could try it. I'm just going to come out and say that this did not disappoint. People ate this up like it was the ticket to everlasting youth. I got so many compliments on this and I don't know what it is that makes it so much different than any other potato salad out there. Collin swears it's the green onions, others swear the bacon makes all the difference, but whatever it is just know that it works.

I got one photo. One. 

Next up were the roasted mushrooms. This recipe calls for 1 lb white mushrooms and 1 lb cremini mushrooms. Now, I don't have any idea what a cremini mushroom is and I couldn't find them at the store, so I got 2 lbs of white mushrooms and called it a day. Spoiler alert: it made absolutely no difference. You want to know what does make a difference though? The fresh Thyme. Sometimes you can get away with the dried stuff, but trust me - you need fresh here. I wanted to eat the entire pan myself. My mouth is watering just thinking about it, actually. I'll give you this recipe, because it's easy and you need to try them:

Yummerz.

Recipe: 1 stick unsalted butter, melted, 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, 2 tbs. minced garlic, 2 tbs. chopped fresh Thyme, 2 tsp. kosher salt, 1 tsp. pepper, 1 lb white mushrooms, 1 lb cremini mushrooms. Preheat the oven to 425. In a large bowl, combine the melted butter, oil, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper. Add the mushrooms and toss to coat. Spread them onto a rimmed baking sheet and roast, shaking occasionally (I forgot to do this part) for about 30-45 minutes until juicy and slightly shriveled. Bam. Done. Feast.

A close up of all their glory.

So you know how I mentioned before that planning things is my verb? Yeah? Now do you remember when I mentioned how a random crisis can really put me in a good mood? Well, in strolled the crisis right as the brisket was being cut: I forgot to buy barbecue sauce. 

Yes I, the planner of all things to be planned, forgot to buy the most crucial part of a barbecue. But did I let this small hiccup ruin things? Did I fall prey to the ridicule that floated my way? Ha! I threw my head back and laughed, because I knew I had seen a homemade barbecue sauce recipe in the newest addition to my cookbooks. Ten minutes later, we had hot barbecue sauce simmering on the stove and the evening was saved! That was also right around the time I almost gave peanut butter to my friend's son, who is highly allergic, but luckily I remembered in time and all was well. Just a reminder that no one is perfect, not even me. *sigh* 

*in a deep voice with a slight accent* BBQ SAUCE

Here is the recipe in case you're ever in a bind: 

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (I probably only had a little more than 1/4 cup left in the bottle)

1/4 cup tomato paste (I did not have this and used ketchup instead)

1/4 cup honey

3 tbs. molasses (thanks to my Grandma's crinkle cookies I always have a jar on hand <3)

2 tsp. liquid hickory smoke (I did not have this, or anything like it, so I omitted it)

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp onion powder (I was out of this, but did have dried chopped onions and I tossed some in)

1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp chili powder

Combine everything in a saucepan, bring to a boil and let it simmer until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally. It will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one month. 

Now, I tweaked this to the taste of my company so feel free to do the same. All in all, it was a hit, people loved it, and my crisis itch has been scratched for another day.