Lime Chicken Burritos of Deliciousness and Love

(named by Joel)

These tacos are so yummy!  Joel asks for it days in a row, even.  I made it up as I went, so the measurements aren't exact.  I did make it with you all in mind, though, so I tried hard to pay attention to how much of everything I added :)

(inspiration from tasteofhome.com)
Makes about 5 servings

4 chicken tenders
1 packet TrueLime (equal to the juice of about one lime wedge)
1/2 T chili powder
3-4 soup spoons full of canned corn
3 soup spoons full of black beans
3/4 cup chunky salsa
tortillas, warmed on the stove fire
Sour cream, cheddar cheese, tomatoes, and shredded lettuce, optional
Extra lime wedges, optional

Boil chicken tenders in water until cooked.  Drain all but 1-2 T of the boiling water.  Shred chicken.  Add chili powder, TrueLime or lime juice, beans, corn, and salsa.  Boil until some of the moisture evaporates so it's not too liquidy in the tortilla.  Warm tortillas on the stove fire.  Put cheese on a tortilla and top with chicken mixture and sour cream/lettuce/tomatoes/your favorite toppings.  Yum!

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Tortillas warmed on the stove fire

When Joel and I eat burritos, we like to warm our tortillas in the microwave.  However, when I was in Mexico and would eat tortillas with every single meal, I learned a new trick from my mamita.  For those of you with gas stoves, lay your tortilla on the stove and then turn it on.  Flip every 10 seconds or so and continue until each side is as warm and toasty as you like it.

I love this way of warming tortillas because they don't get all limp and soggy like occasionally happens in the microwave.  Also, if you like a little blackness like I do, it adds a very tasty smokey flavor to the tortilla.  Enjoy!

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Cinnamon-Apple Pork Chops

I have no idea where I found this recipe, but I first tried it because it was advertised as a 30-minute meal.  It really does only take about 30 minutes! so it stuck in the rotation and has become a favorite at our house.  It's definitely one of Joel's favorite things to have for dinner.  Best served with rice.  This is the original recipe - look at the end to see my personal notes.

Prep/Total time: 25-30 minutes

4 boneless pork chops (**can use ribs)
2 T butter, divided
3 T brown sugar
1 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t ground nutmeg  (**can be replaced by a dash or two of allspice)
1/4 t salt
4 medium Granny Smith apples, thinly sliced
optional: 2 T chopped pecans

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook pork chops in 1 T butter for 4-5 minutes on each side or until juices run clear.  You may be tempted to check the pork more often than this - don't do it! If you leave them for this amount of time on each side, they will develop a tasty golden brown crunchiness.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

Remove pork chops and keep warm.  Add the apples, pecans, brown sugar mixture and remaining butter to the pan; cook and stir until apples are tender.  Serve with chops.

Notes:
- I usually take the pork chops out of the pan and put them on a plate (not paper or it will absorb the juices!) until the apple mixture is almost ready.  I then add them and their juices back to the pan to reheat and absorb some of the apple flavor until the apples are done.
- We love the sauce so we often double it for the four apples.  The sauce gets sticky so I often use a tablespoon or two of water to get it the texture we like it.
- If you're using ribs and think it'd be a good idea to cook them in the crockpot to get them nice and tender, don't do it!  The tastes of the pork and the sauce do not meld well together at all if you do.  If you decide to remedy that by adding applesauce to the crockpot with the ribs, especially don't do it!  Trust me.

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Pumpkin Waffles

I have had people ask for several recipes lately, so I thought it'd be easier to post them now and add pictures when I make them.  Enjoy!




2 c flour

3 T brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp allspice

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 c milk

1 c canned pumpkin puree

1 egg

2 T oil

2 T vinegar

Add all ingredients together.  Cook in a waffle iron.  I usually cook waffles until around the time steam stops coming out the sides of my waffle iron.  However, since these waffles have pumpkin and are so moist, I've found they cook a little longer and let out more steam than regular waffles.  

Notes: 

1. This recipe can also be cooked as pancakes and is delicious.  It actually was originally a pancake recipe.

2. Depending on how sweet you like your waffles/pancakes, these would also be tasty with chocolate chips!

3. My all-time favorite way to eat these waffles is topped with the Absolute Tastiest Syrup Of All Time.  It gives a deliciousness you would not believe! and isn't unbearably sweet, either.  

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Beef Stroganoff

(inspiration taken from Paula Deen's recipe and my mom's)

*Note on the ingredient amounts: The amounts on everything but the broth, flour, onion, and cream of chicken soup were eyeballed. I have included my best guesses.

Ingredients:

1-2 T olive oil, separated

1 medium onion, sliced

1 New York steak (about a pound)

2 T flour

½ T salt

½ T garlic powder

½ tsp black pepper

1 can beef broth

1 can cream of chicken soup

½-1 cup sour cream (to taste)

Directions:

1. Sauté the onion in a pot with 1/2-1 T olive oil.

2. Cut up steak into small bite-sized pieces and add to the onion.

3. Add flour, salt, garlic powder, and pepper.  Stir until combined.

4. Add another 1/2 T or so of olive oil to moisten things up a little.  

5. Put lid on the pot and cook until meat is cooked through.  You will need to stir it occasionally because the meat will start to develop delicious crunchies on the bottom of the pot that will burn if left alone the whole time.  

6. When meat is cooked through, add broth and cream of chicken soup.  Stir until combined.

7. Put lid back on the pot and simmer for about 30 minutes.

*If you like your stroganoff thicker, simmer covered for about 20 minutes and then remove the lid until it's as thick as you like it.

8. Before serving, add sour cream and stir until fully incorporated.

9. Serve over noodles.

10. Try not to freak out - it's delicious.

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Cranberry Chicken: Adapted

As I was considering what to make for dinner this morning, I decided I was in the mood for cranberry sauce and chicken, but not my normal cranberry chicken recipe.  I looked around for a recipe online but didn't see anything I liked, until I ran across one that suggested including apples.  I didn't use that recipe, but I used the apple idea to make this one up.  It turned out pretty tasty! 

Cranberry Chicken: Adapted

chicken (I used two boneless skinless chicken breasts)

1 can whole berry cranberry sauce

1 tiny onion, quartered

2 gala apples, cut into slices

a couple dashes cinnamon

a couple tiny dashes all-spice

a couple splashes lemon juice

Serve on rice and with some lime juice if you want.

Make a "plate" for the chicken by laying one apple's worth of slices on the bottom of the crockpot.  Put chicken on top, followed by a "lid" of the second apple.  Dump in the can of cranberry sauce, followed by  a quarter of the onion in each corner of the crockpot.  Dash on the cinnamon, all-spice, and lemon juice.  I didn't even stir it!  Cook on High for 4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours.  Wait in anticipation to see if it turned out well...

Crockpot bags. They're best thing ever. And here's how it looked before cooking... sorry I don't measure spices :)

Yumalicious!

RESULT:

I thought it was really great, and Joel loved it!  Definitely going to make this again.  It would be better, in my opinion, with firmer apples, because the texture got a little too mushy for my preferences, but it still tasted delicious with galas.  The leftover juiciness also makes a very tasty sauce for rice.  

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Absolute tastiest syrup of all time

(from allrecipes.com)

This is the most delicious syrup of my life.  No probably about it.  It literally tastes like eating a cinnamon roll.  However, you need to cook it in a pot larger than about 1.5 quarts because when you add the baking soda, it will probably overflow.   It gets HUGE.   And that stuff is not fun to clean up.

as posted by KarenP on allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

½ cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup buttermilk

1 T vanilla

1 T corn syrup

¼ tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp baking soda

Directions:

1. Bring butter, sugar, buttermilk, vanilla, corn syrup, and cinnamon to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. 

2. Once simmering, whisk in baking soda and cook for 10 seconds before removing from heat. 

3. Serve warm.  

4. Probably die because it's so good. 

5. Try not to feel guilty for maybe drinking some of this without any pancakes because it's just that good.  Or at least wanting to drink it.

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