Gal #1 Checks In

The star of the show....

Not Mr. #1's favorite meat.

Onions.  Again.  Last month I shared my angst with onions...and this month I had another breakthrough.  I read that if you soak your onions (cut) in cold water for 10 minutes, it really cuts down on the pain and tears.  I tried it.

It works.  Really does.  Using the food processor seems like an obvious way to avoid tears too - but forever after it seems like my food processor smells like onions...no matter how I clean it or whatever else I put in it.   The water bath keeps my knife skills sharp and my food processor smelling clean. :)

Chicken is prepped and ready for the oven.  Time to prepare the couscous.

Chicken is done...

Dinner is served (and blurry).  :)

The pineapple looked good on the outside...was past its prime on the inside.  Maybe another day.

The best thing about this meal was that Mr. #1 (who normally is not thrilled with chicken) really liked this entire menu.  I was all about how easy it was...but I didn't think it was a 10.  Maybe I just needed to go to California too?

I'm ready for April, girls!  Bring it on!

Coast Meets Coast

What a treat being together in California to make this wonderful menu (Gals 2&3)! It is so rare we are together to create our monthly menu, so this was a treasure. With a few alterations to the ingredients, this meal turned out to be fantastic and simple to put together- the most important factors when judging a menu.

The chicken was superb, although extremely citrus. We cut down the garlic for fear of the repercussions of 3 tablespoons! Next time the #3 household might keep the garlic the same and cut down on lemon zest. Mr. #2 would like the same, but for Gal #2 and guests, the lemon was divinely refreshing.

(Sorry, we ate it all up to fast after it came out of the oven so there were no final pictures!!)

The couscous was a debate of onion. A recipe calling for 2 cups of onion is something to be taken very seriously. We opted for the more palate-friendly shallot and only added 1 to the mix. There were not as many pine nuts as were required in the recipe (fault of Gal 2!), but we added what we had. What came out was a savory and crunchy couscous that will now be a staple of Gal's 2&3's side dish recipes.

The pineapple is a scary thought for Gal 2, but for the #3's we love our pineapple any which way you can serve it up! We saved this delectable treat for when we wanted to use the charcoal grill for burgers later in the week. Turned out great!! They were very easy to make, nothing stuck to the grill. However the 1/4 cup honey called for is too much! We maybe used an 8th of a cup and still thought it was on the very sweet side. Perfect with ice cream :)

Barefoot in March!

With my thoughts turning to spring, I choose recipes from my favorite celeb chef - the Barefoot Contessa.  Here is the menu:

Lemon Chicken Breasts

Pine Nut Couscous

Grilled Pineapple

Doesn't that look delicious?  In NEOhio...it is cold, gray and dismal.  Something about the word "lemon" and "pineapple" conjure up thoughts of light, fresh and simple.  I will let you add your own colorful vegetable dish (I'm thinking spinach salad) or maybe none at all...How Easy Is That?  (That's the cookbook these recipes come from)

Just a reminder - these are barefoot recipes - so go easy on the salt.  The biggest shopping challenge I think you will have is finding boneless chicken breasts with the skin ON.  I say - forget it.  Just buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts - keep it simple.

Come on spring!

Gal 2 has success!

I made the cupcakes before Valentine's Day. They were the snack for my book club, dessert for Mr #2 and I on Valentines, and treats for several neighbors as well. Everyone really liked them!

 This is the making of the butter cream icing. It was easy and I really liked it!

 My finished product wasn't very pretty! I tried to short cut the chocolate topping recipe ... and it didn't work out. I also skipped an additional candy on top, well, mostly because I ran out, and also because I thought it would be too much.

This is a good dessert, but rich! It's a little weird because you see a cupcake, but when you bite into it it's a very dense brownie you get, not a lighter than air cup cake. It tasted good though, and was easy!

On to the taco chicken chili stuff. I only have pictures of the final product because I rushed around like a mad woman and threw this in the crockpot in about 10 minutes as we were running out the door to church. It was another super easy one!

I left out all chilis and only added half the amounts of spices. That worked for us. I also steamed corn on its own and didn't add to the chili after reading the other reviews. Mr. #2 LOVED it with the addition of corn. I thought it was OK but liked it without too.

 Definitely didn't take as long as it says to cook and I used frozen chicken. We both really liked it and Mr. #2 pronounced it a keeper! It's not really the consistency of chili though... it needs more liuqid or less chicken...

but we ate up leftoers the next day for lunch with whole wheat Tostios and wow, yum! I think that's the way to eat this stuff (although it was very good with the rice too). Great pick!!

No Explanations Necessary

 Open, dump, mix, done.

 Top with chicken.

 Walk away...

 Chicken out to shred...

 Easiest way ever to shred hot chicken.

Add back then eat- it was gone before pictures could be taken of finished product!

 Dessert: mix batter and insert Reese's.

 While they bake/cool, mix the icing.

 Ziplock + scissors = icing with ease

 All frosted and ready!

 Ganache- sooo easy! Chop and heat!

 The finished product.

Gone in 2 days.

Overall, the family #3 and many friends gave this meal major thumbs up! Easy and delicious and with enough leftovers to keep enjoying the next day! Will be making these again and again!

February 2012:Gal 1; Part 1

Can we talk "onion?"  The very first ingredient listed in this recipe is "one onion, chopped."  With the exception of the instruction "pound meat to 1/4" thickness," I can't think of any kitchen task that discourages me more.  It doesn't seem to matter what kind of onion I buy - they make me hurt.  They make my eyes hurt...and yesterday was no exception.  However, I shared my onion angst with co-worker and fellow foodie Jess earlier in the week and she said "why don't you just buy the onions at Giant Eagle that are already chopped?"  DID YOU KNOW THIS?  This was news to me.  So the next day at lunch I made a trip to Giant Eagle and sure enough, sitting smugly on a shelf in the produce section (next to chopped celery and peppers, which it has to be said, looked a little dry) was a tub full of perfectly chopped onion.  A sort of battle quickly ensued within my very practical soul because in my larder at the very moment sat four very healthy onions.  Reluctantly I left those gorgeous onions on the shelf, but as soon as those onions have moved on to onion heaven, those pre-chopped on the shelf beauties are mine!  

New crock pot!  I have a gorgeous crock pot that Mr. #1 bought for me - but it is nearly 9 quarts and often too big for our downsized meals.  This new one was fairly inexepensive and I'm hoping will motivate me to use the crock pot more often!

Once the onions are chopped, the mechanics of this are ridiculously easy.  Open cans, put it in. Took 10 minutes, tops....

Add the chicken, put the lid on...cook!
At this point, I need to share something about the cook time.  The recipe says "10 hours on low."  When the chili had just under 4 hours to go - it was boiling.  I let it cook for another 30 minutes and then turned it to warm. Perhaps this is unique to my crockpot, but if you're planning to make this and be out of the house, give the timing here some thought.  My chili was plenty done in 6.5 hours - too much more and it would have been mush.

PINTEREST BABY!  Earlier this week I read a tip on pinterest about shredding chicken.  Simply place the (still warm) chicken meat in your mixer and voila!  You will have shredded chicken.  It works....like a dream!

Here are the fixings:

Whoops...how did cookie making get in here? :)

Gorgeous cookies!  (That's why the title says Part 1 - the cupcakes will be a separate segment)

And here's the wrap:  This recipe gets two thumbs up from me (and from Girlfriend #1).  As a matter of fact, G. #1 said she liked it better than regular chili and wow, do I agree with that.  It's flavorful (a little spicy and I didn't use any chilies except for the ones in the tomatoes)(and no cilantro for this cook) and it's just perfect on a very cold day such as we had in NEO yesterday.  Mr. #1 was a little less enthusiastic - he ate a substantial helping, but commented that he didn't like the corn.  Son #1 ate it, said "it's pretty good" and took some of the leftovers home.
I am thrilled to have enough for several lunches this week! Thank you Gal 3....YUM!

In LOVE with Easy!

Ladies, you know I love to make things easy and try and keep things healthy. Last year, I was given hints that my choices of food were somewhat--well--not always well received. I chose lots of foods the family#3 would try but Mr.'s 1 & 2 would prefer never made it to the plate! So I am trying to compromise and come up with a plan that will both satisfy and mysteriously trim the calories off of our Mr.'s plates! 

So for my first month- the month of love I have decided to choose 2 recipes that include some of my favorite LOVES of the kitchen. The crock pot and dessert. My crock pot (must I admit I have 2?!) is my secret chef. I can throw ingredients in that little circular delight and come home to eat- which is the most important thing. So I give you our first recipe..

Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili

Ok now here is some advice- don't be scared Mrs. #2! Everyone loves tacos and if there is something in here that might make Mr. #2 make a PB&J sandwich- think outside the box and make it work. I found nothing scary and am quite excited I can have a taco from my crock pot. I am going to make jasmine or brown rice to accompany this dish for some added fiber and taste. Hope you enjoy!

And now for dessert...

Peanut Butter Brownie Buckeye Cupcakes

Hello YUMTASTIC! I will be changing one small thing- which is an optional healthier bonus for you. Instead of preparing the brownie mix as directed, I put a can of pumpkin in the batter instead and by-pass the oil and fat. There is NO taste difference and you can throw away the can to hide evidence. The rest of the recipe is very unhealthy- but I'm trying to satisfy both palates! 

Fall in love with your crock pot and cuddle up with dessert!

Good luck!