Fiesta Pork

This is kind of a variation of a recipe that I made a couple of months ago that was called Salsa Chicken. The biggest difference was that I made it over the stove and that it has a few different ingredients. I really liked it a lot. I think it would also be great with chicken. It took a very short time to make and tasted great.

4-6 boneless pork chops

1 tsp minced garlic

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 can corn, drained

2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed

1 1/2 cups salsa

1/2 bell pepper, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

Preheat a large skillet on medium high heat with the olive oil. Add minced garlic and pork chops; cook until pork chops are brown. Then add onion and bell pepper. Cook for another 2-4 minutes before adding the remaining ingredients. Simmer on medium low heat for 15-20 minutes to help flavors combine and to ensure that all ingredients are cooked thoroughly. Serve over rice.

Whole Wheat Waffles

These are the waffles that my grandma makes every time we go to visit her. I love it when she makes them. They taste so good, you can hardly tell that they are healthy. (Well, maybe they aren't healthy with all the syrup and jam we put on them.)

In blender put:

1 Cup Wheat

1 Cup Milk  (I seem to need more liquid than this so it ends out to be more like 1 & 1/3 Cup milk and blend for about 5 minutes)

Add:

1/3 Cup Oil

1 Egg

1 Tbls Sugan

1 Tsp Salt

 3 Tsp Baking Powder

Mix well and cook

Idaho Tacos

The other day my brother invited us to have dinner with him. When he told us what he was making, I wasn't sure I was going to like it, but it actually was awesome. I would have these over a regular taco any day.

Baked potatoes

Lettuce
Chopped tomatoes
Taco meat (we like to mix re-fried beans with the ground beef and seasonings)
Sour cream
Shredded cheddar cheese
Salsa
Any other taco toppings that you like

Simply pile the toppings onto your baked potato and enjoy!

J Dawgs

J Dawgs is one of the most popular local restaurants in Provo. It was started a number of years ago by a BYU student and was run out of a small wooden shack just south of BYU campus. A little over a year ago it moved into a nearby building. J Dawgs are hands down the best hot dogs I have ever had. The real secret to J Dawgs is the sauce, although the other toppings are good too. I found a recipe online that claimed to be a good copycat recipe so I decided to try it out. It was actually very close to the real thing - good enough for me! Especially because I will be moving away in the next few weeks.

Polish dogs
Buns
Sauerkraut
Dill pickles
Chopped onions
Special Sauce

Special Sauce:
3/4 c. ketchup
3/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c. honey
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. onion powder

Asparagus

I think this is probably the best asparagus that I have ever had. My brother makes asparagus quite often so I asked him what he usually does. His method is very simple and I love it! It is way better than the steamed asparagus I have had a few times.

Asparagus
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Place asparagus on a baking pan and drizzle olive oil over it. Sprinkle salt and pepper over top. Bake at 350° for 10-20 minutes.

Manicotti with Mixed Vegetables

A few months ago, my husband and I ate at Macaroni Grill. We ordered a dish that was amazing (despite being a little small). I don't remember the whole name but it was the first time I had ever had cannelloni, a tube-like pasta that can be stuffed with cheese, meat, vegetables, or any combination of the three. I went to the store because I wanted to make a similar dish; unfortunately I couldn't find cannelloni anywhere. I bought manicotti; really the only difference is that the edges are ribbed. Although this took about 45 minutes to prepare and about another 45 to bake, it was totally worth the wait. Really, it was incredible.

24 dried manicotti tubes
8 oz spinach
1-2 large cans spaghetti sauce

Filling:
2 Tbsp oil
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground sausage
4 tsp minced garlic
1/4 C flour
14.5 oz (1 can) beef broth
2 small zucchinis, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped
Salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning

Sauce:
1/4 C butter
1/4 C flour
2 C milk
1 C freshly grated Parmesan cheese
garlic, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning

Preheat the oven to 350° F. For the filling, heat the oil in a large pan. Add ground beef and garlic. Cook until meat loses its pink color. Add the flour and cook for one minute more. Stir in beef broth and bring to a boil. Add onion and zucchini and season. Cook for 10 minutes.

Spoon the beef mixture into the manicotti tubes and place in a casserole dish that has spaghetti sauce covering the bottom. Blanch the spinach in boiling water for 3 minutes. Drain and place on top of the manicotti tubes. For the white sauce, melt butter in a pan. Add flour and cook for 1 minute. Add milk, cheese, and seasonings. Bring to a boil, stirring continuously. Pour spaghetti sauce and then white sauce over manicotti and bake for 30-45 minutes.

Sirloin Steak Marinade

I had some sirloin steaks in the freezer and have been wanting to pull them out and cook them. I don't have a lot of experience with marinating things so I am working to build up my arsenal of marinades. This is certainly one that I will use again. I searched "marinate stake with Italian dressing" and found this recipe on allrecipes.com, cut it in half and made a few personal substitutions, which I was very pleased with. Really, how could you go wrong with Italian salad dressing and barbecue sauce?

1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup Italian-style salad dressing
1 teaspoons minced garlic
a few dashes of freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup barbeque sauce
1 pound sirloin steak

Make a few small slices in the steaks to allow the marinade to soak in. Refrigerate steaks in marinade in a Ziploc bag for at least 5 hours (they can be in the fridge for up to about two days - the longer the better). Remove steaks from the refrigerator and allow them to reach room temperature before cooking them on a preheated barbecue grill for 3-4 minutes on each side.

Golden Mushroom Pork

One of my friends made a dish for us a few years ago that used a Campbell's soup called "Golden Mushroom." That is the only time I had tasted that soup, to my knowledge, but when I noticed it at the grocery store the other day I decided to buy some. This is my very first time cooking with golden mushroom, but it turned out really well and I think I'll look for other ways to incorporate it into my cooking.

4-6 pork chops
2 cans golden mushroom
Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to taste
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1/4 lb. sliced mushrooms

Place pork chops (I prefer boneless because they are easier to eat) in the Crock Pot. Season with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper, and pour one can of golden mushroom over top and then the sliced onions. Top with the other can of golden mushroom and the fresh mushrooms. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. I think you could also do this in the oven by cooking it at 350° for about an hour.

Lemon Pepper Salmon

One of the most common methods to cook salmon is with lemon pepper as the main spice. It is a light and tasty flavor for fish and is very simple.

Salmon fillets or steaks
Lemon pepper
Olive oil

Preheat pan coated with olive oil to medium-high. Once the olive oil begins to shine, add salmon (these still had the skin on the bottom). Heavily sprinkle lemon pepper and rosemary over the salmon. Place lid over skillet and cook until the fish is flaky.

Italian Meatballs

Making these meatballs was a great Sunday afternoon activity for my husband and I. I had actually never had homemade meatballs; and, in fact, thought that I didn't like meatballs before when we decided to make these. Well, it turns out that I do like meatballs. These were great.

1 1/2 lb. ground beef
1/2 lb. ground pork sausage
2 c. Italian bread crumbs (or homemade bread crumbs with Italian seasoning)
1 c. grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
1 large egg, slightly beaten
2 tsp minced garlic
1 1/2 Tbsp Parsley
Salt and Pepper to taste

We made the bread crumbs with 100% whole wheat bread that we had in the house by putting it in the oven at about 300° for 10 minutes (give or take a few). Then we put the bread in the blender to grind it up. After this was done, we combined the meats, bread crumbs, 1-2 tsp Italian seasoning, and all of the other ingredients. Then we formed meatballs and baked them in the oven on 350° for 22 minutes.

The below pictures are before and after baking pictures:

Montreal Roast Sandwich

These sandwiches are a slight twist on the traditional Crock Pot roast sandwich that we often ate for Sunday dinner growing up.

Beef roast
1 c water or beef broth
2 Tbsp Montreal Steak Seasoning
Hoagie Buns
Sauteed mushrooms and onions

Place beef roast in a Crock Pot with 1 cup of water or beef broth and the Montreal Steak Seasoning. Cook for 6-8 hours on low or 4-5 hours on high. When the meat is ready, sautee mushrooms and onions. Serve meat and vegetables over bun. This is also good with Swiss or other cheese, if desired.

Chicken Farfalle with Feta Cheese

 

A few weeks ago I got another cookbook at the thrift store. It is called PASTA. This recipe is based on a recipe from that book, with a few alterations. This is definitely one I will make again often.

1 lb chicken pieces, cooked with garlic, salt and pepper

6 oz farfalle pasta

1 tsp minced garlic

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

10 Grape tomatoes, halved
4 oz feta cheese
1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
Salt and Pepper  to taste
Black olives

Cook pasta according to directions on the package. In the same pan, heat the garlic in olive oil for about 1 minute, then add tomatoes. Toss olive oil in spaghetti and season with salt, pepper, and basil. Top with feta cheese and black olives.

Barbecue Ribs

These were THE BEST RIBS ever made. They aren't very complicated, but they are delicious. My husband is actually the author of this recipe.

Baby back ribs
Jack Daniels Barbecue Sauce
Franks Red Hot Sauce
Brown Sugar
Garlic

Marinate the ribs overnight in Jack Daniels Barbecue Sauce. The next day, put the ribs in the oven on 200° for about six hours. Right before pulling them out of the oven, preheat the barbecue and prepare a glaze using Jack Daniels Barbecue Sauce, Franks Red Hot Sauce, Brown Sugar, and Garlic. Brush this glaze over the ribs while they are grilling.

Stuffed Chicken Bacon Pizza

In all honesty, this has been an amazing month for cooking. Somehow nearly everything I make for dinner has been "the best                we've ever had;" so this was the best pizza we have ever made. I used the same pizza crust that I usually do except I let it rise for about 45 minutes, then rolled it out and let it rise for about another 15 minutes before baking it. I don't usually let it rise at all so I think that is why it turned out so fluffy and delicious. This was also a pizza that we kind of copied; Papa Murphy's has great stuffed pizzas. Although we didn't use the same ingredients, they were our inspiration.

First layer toppings:
Homemade Alfredo Sauce
Chicken cooked with garlic, salt, pepper, and basil

Red and Yellow Peppers
Bacon
Artichoke Hearts
Tomatoes
Red Onions
Green Onions
Mushrooms
Mozzarella Cheese

Second layer toppings
Black Olives
Red Peppers
Mozzarella cheese

I rolled out the dough a little more thin than usual. I folded over the bottom dough and pinched it together with the top dough before baking it at 425 for about 20 minutes.

Chewy Snacks

These were my very favorite dessert growing up. I made them last month and they are still amazing. One interesting thing to note is that they are actually much better if you make them an entire day before eating them. That way the graham cracker crust has time to soften.

Whole graham crackers
1 c. butter or margarine
1 c. sugar
1/2 c. milk
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 c. sweetened coconut
1 c. chopped walnuts (or other nuts if desired)
1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs

Layer whole graham crackers on bottom of 9x13" pan. Melt butter or margarine and add sugar, milk, and slightly beaten egg. Cook until mixture comes to a full boil. Remove from heat and add remaining ingredients. Spread on graham crackers and put a layer of whole graham crackers on top.

World's Best Burgers

These are probably the best hamburgers I have ever had. We have actually made them a second time since inventing them early last month; the first time they didn't have cheese, but the second time we melted Colby Jack cheese over top when they were still on the grill. Both times they were just incredible.

2 lb. ground beef
1/2 can crushed pineapple
2 Tbsp cilantro, chopped
1/2 red pepper, finely chopped
1/4 c. Yoshida's Teriyaki sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped in very small pieces
2 Tbsp cornstarch
Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and form patties. Grill meat until preferred doneness. This is great with sauteed mushrooms and onions over top.