Crispy Potato Rounds

I saw these little gems on Pinterest a while back and have been playing with different combos. They are so easy and really tasty! I don't normally give much attention to recipes that are lengthy, but the only length to this recipe is the cook time. The prep is very minimal. But one caveat: you don't want to rush the cook time really. I did that with the taco rounds. The flavor was good, but texture was lacking because they weren't crispy enough. Here are the combos I have tried so far:

1) Cheddar & Bacon

2) Ham & Swiss













3) Taco   (No pic yet, sorry! Like I said, we rushed them!)

It's actually ridiculously easy to make these. You'll see, I promise!

* Wash potatoes. (I use red skinned, but I'm sure other kinds would work too.)

* Slice potatoes into circles about 1/4 of an inch thick. I use 3 or 4 potatoes depending on size to fill a cookie sheet. Place on cookie sheet.

Slice into small rounds then place on cookie sheet

* Drizzle potatoes with olive oil. (alternatively you could put the potatoes in a bowl and toss with olive oil before putting on cookie sheet, but I have no dishwasher, so the less dishes the better!)

* Bake @ 400 for 20 minutes. Flip potatoes over, drizzle with a li'l more oil (but not if you already tossed them in oil), and bake 20 min more.

See, they're already starting to get crispy!

* Remove from oven and top with your choice of toppings. Put back in oven for just a few more minutes to melt the cheese.

Voila! A super easy, super versatile, super tasty side dish.

Ham & Swiss with Bacon

Bacon, Cheddar, and Scallions

Strawberry Upside Down Cake

I have made this dessert 3 times now and it really seems like it gets better every time. It's fairly easy, pretty, and quite delicious.

The original recipe is here at allrecipes.com.


Here is my version. It's not too different actually, only a few minor changes.


StRaWbErRy UpSiDe DoWn CaKe
*1 white cake mix (confetti cake would be pretty too) prepared as directed, but not baked
*1 lb. (at least!) of strawberries, the more the merrier in my book!
*1 large box strawberry jello
*3 cups mini marshmallows
*1 container whipped cream


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.


Take leaves off strawberries. Mash berries or pulse in a blender. Don't blend too much though: you do want some bigger pieces of berry left. Pour into a 13x9 pan. Spread evenly over bottom of pan.


Sprinkle dry jello mix over top of the crushed strawberries. Then top with marshmallows. (You don't really end up tasting the marshmallows, they kind of disintegrate, but they do add something nice to the texture). Pour cake batter on top of all this and bake for 40 or 50 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with no cake batter on it.

When you pull the cake out of the oven, you'll want to flip it fairly soon or it will start to stick. First run a spatula around the outside edges. It's generally better to do it in one quick motion. Line the pan edges up nearest to you, and FLIP! If it doesn't look perfect, just give the pan a little jiggle and it should even things out.


Once the cake cools, spread with cool whip and refrigerate or freeze. This also covers any mistakes. :) Yummers! I also think this would be delicious with other fruits... blueberry, raspberry, even peach... If anyone tries it, you'll have to let me know!

It was almost gone before I could get a picture!

Strawberry Blitz

Strawberry season 2012, how I will miss you... *sigh*

Several years ago I learned about making strawberry freezer jam. I was really drawn to this because I love the flavor of fresh fruit but don't have the patience for cooked jams and jellies. Every Spring and Summer since then I've made at least a little freezer jam. Sometimes it turns out just right, sometimes it's too runny, but it always tastes sooo good! So, I wanted to share with you some of the things I've learned along the way.


My favorite brand pectin to use is Sure Jell Certo fruit pectin. It is incredibly easy to use. The pectin is already a gel so it combines easily with the fruit. Here is their recipe. 


* 2 cups smashed strawberries (this is jam, so you do want some bigger pieces left)
* 4 cups sugar, measured in a separate bowl
* 3/4 cup water
* 2 Tbsp lemon juice
* 1 packet of Certo Fruit Pectin

**Rinse 5 (1-cup) plastic containers and lids with boiling water. Dry thoroughly. Stem and crush strawberries thoroughly, 1 cup at a time. (It usually takes me about 4 cups or 1 quart of berries to equal 2 crushed.) Measure exactly 2 cups prepared fruit into large bowl. Stir in sugar. Let stand 10 min., stirring occasionally.

**Mix 1 pouch CERTO Fruit Pectin and 2 Tbsp. lemon juice in bowl. Stir into fruit mixture in large bowl. Continue as directed. Makes about 4 (1-cup) containers. 


A few times I have tried using 2 different jam recipes and combining them. That was when I tried the strawberry kiwi jam.That didn't turn out so well. The flavor was amazing, but it was definitely sauce and not jam. It was very runny. Another time I made strawberry blueberry with blueberries that were just a little past their prime: not good either. They weren't juicy enough, and the jam was way too thick. There doesn't seem to be much wiggle room when working with pectin. 

You can always make ice cream topping out of runny jam like I did with my strawberry kiwi jam. Strawberries and chocolate sauce - YUM!

This is definitely the easiest jam recipe I have made thus far, and the one that always seems to come out just right. I hope you try and enjoy it!

I also made a really awesome Strawberry Upside Down Cake.... but you'll just hafta wait for that one til next time!

Herb-alicious

I really love fresh herbs and my favorite has got to be cilantro. But to my surprise it seems to be pretty divisive. It seems like people either love it or hate it, there isn't much in between. However I cannot seem to grow it for some reason. I have tried on multiple occasions, and it just does not love me as much as I love it!

I did see a really cool idea on pinterest this year, to use a shoe organizer to grow your herbs. I just had to try it, and it was beautiful at first. (my computer is broken, or I'd have more pix). Everything was growing nicely, even what I planted from seeds! And then... We went away for a long weekend... However it was over 85 degrees all 3 days we were gone. My poor little plants didn't stand a chance. I watered everything really well before we left, but they weren't able to hold much water and I just couldn't revive them. :( I was able to save (no, not my cilantro! Poo!) my basil. I have a beautiful display of regular and Thai basil on the back porch now. I also have some oregano left and I'm taking another stab at cilantro.

SO, learn from my TRIAL and error! I do love the idea of using the shoe bag for growing herbs, especially if you have limited space. The downside is that it's not able to retain much water (great for herbs in general as they hate wet feet), just be sure if you're going to be gone for more than a day or two that you have a friend give your babies a drink of water! Have a great day!

Avocado....oooh

Now, for all you avocado haters out there, I can empathize. I have tasted a bland avocado and eaten gross guacamole a time or two, so I can feel ya. But I implore you... Give it another chance! Here's my avocado love story:

Nate lived in California until he was about 8 years old, so he always loved avocado. I don't really remember much avocado in my life until we got married (me and Nate, not me and avocado:-P). I fell in love with its green, creamy goodness.

I LOVE avocado whether it is in guacamole form or just sliced fresh; whether it's mixed into a salad or topping a burger. It is just that good.

People love to dirty up their guac with tomatoes and onions and other embellishments, but I prefer mine au natural (although I won't object to cilantro in it - a la Chipotle restaurants) But here is my go-to guacamole recipe.

*1 Avocado
*Squirt of lime juice, maybe a Tbsp or so (lemon juice would work too)
*1 garlic clove (or garlic powder if you don't have fresh)
*Salt & Pepper

Here's a video of me slicing up an avocado one of the best ways I've found.

*Mash avocado with a fork. Add lime juice. Add garlic, salt & pepper. It may not taste seasoned enough if you just taste it on the fork, so I suggest using a tortilla chip. The flavor will be more accurate this way.

Recently I've stumbled on a whole new world of avocado recipes.

Avocado Pasta Salad
Avocado Chicken Salad
BLT with avocado
Avocado with black beans and corn

I made the Avocado Pasta Salad for our family reunion, here's a pic of that:

And a few I'm yet to try:

Pasta with Avocado Cream Sauce
Avocado Spring Rolls
Avocado Egg Salad

Using it in place of mayo in the pasta and chicken salad is really awesome and inventive and so worth trying. I hope you experiment and try some of these out!

Down on the Bayou

I've said before that I love trying new things. In fact, sometimes it drives Nathan crazy. Instead of whatever new flavor Cheez-It is out there, he just wants the original... LAME!

So the other day I walked in the grocery store with my sis-in-law and I specifically didn't bring my wallet so I wouldn't get anything I didn't need. Well then I saw the magnificent display of Cajun spices and foods. Cajun Alligator Boudin. Say whaaaaat?! Now I have had alligator in the past but never alligator sausage. I actually came back to the store that evening just to get the alligator because I just couldn't stop thinking about it.

The only other place I have had alligator is at my mom's family reunion. They don't have it every year, but occasionally they do. Thinking about this made me crave my uncle's jambalaya. It is SO good! I would definitely say it is one of his specialties. He usually makes 2 batches; one mild and one spicy. I didn't make it to the reunion last year, and we don't live very close, so it's been a while since I've had it.

When I got home I started searching for jambalaya recipes. I went with one on Allrecipes.com. It is called Easy Cajun Jambalaya. Now I thought I remembered my uncle's jambalaya having tomato in it, so I decided to substitute some of the water with diced tomatoes when cooking the rice. Later I found out this was a mistake. I used the alligator sausage in place of kielbasa. I also added shrimp at the end, and I really liked that combo. Having chicken, (alligator) sausage, and shrimp really gave a good depth of flavor. However, my rice would not soften! Near the end of the cooking time I tasted and added more liquid and let it simmer some more. Nothing seemed to fix it. So I searched for what the problem was. I searched 'Rice still crunchy'. Here is the answer I got from Yahoo answers:

"Are there any tomato products or citrus in this recipe? The acid in tomatoes or citrus fruits can seize the rice, making it impossible to cook. If so, add your acidic foods in the last stage of cooking, after the rice is soft. OR, you may have a bad bag or rice. Try another brand."

But, now I know. I'm just grateful that it had really good flavor in spite of the rice being a little crunchy. So through trial and error I learned something very valuable, and I hope it was helpful to you. I also hope you give in to your craving for Cajun food and cook up a nice family size pot of jambalaya!

Tortilla Soup 2 ways

A friend of mine was having a really rough week last week and needed some girl time. I told her i was coming to spend the day and make dinner. I asked if she wanted Mexican (an easy fallback for me) or homemade noodles and she specifically requested my chicken tortilla soup. I made it once before at her house when we had a small personal shower :)


My other friend who was visiting, however, is vegetarian. So I decided to make it both ways: one Chicken Tortilla Soup and one Vegetarian Tortilla Soup. These are kind of non-recipes since I don't really measure but that's kind of the beauty of them!

Here they are:
Chicken Tortilla Soup

*Chicken Breast
*Black Beans, rinsed
*Corn (canned, frozen, or fresh)
*Taco Seasoning (or garlic, chili powder, cumin, coriander, salt & pepper)
*Chicken Broth
*Salsa

*Coat chicken with taco seasoning.
*Sauté chicken in a little olive oil on med-low heat in a Dutch oven. It doesn't need to fully cook at this point, it will cook more in broth.
*Add chicken broth- I used one 32oz box, black beans-one can, corn-one can, and salsa 1/2 small jar. Season with some extra taco seasoning.
*Bring to a boil on med-high heat. Reduce heat to med-low and cook until chicken starts to shred when you take a fork to it. (bad explanation lol). Then turn heat off and shred chicken.

Vegetable Tortilla Soup
2 servings
1 can vegetable broth
1/2 can corn
1/2 can rinsed black beans
2 Tbsp Salsa
Taco Seasoning
* Put beans and corn in sauce pan. Add seasoning. Add broth and salsa. Bring to a boil and reduce heat.

TOPPINGS:
Tortilla chips (duh! hehe)
Shredded Cheese
Avocado
Sour Cream
Salsa
Cilantro