Child soft tacos

We're reinstating the child-makes-one-meal-per-week policy and she opted for soft tacos.

In the skillet, she combined:
- water
- about 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 finely diced garlic clove
- 1 pinch Indian chili powder
- 1 pinch Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

- 1 lb ground beef
- about 16 ounces corn
- about 16 ounces beans
- 1 bell pepper from the garden, diced
Cover with water and boil at medium to medium high for one hour, adding more water and stirring every 15 minutes

Chicken curry tonight

I initially planned a very bland meal of rice with canned chicken and some sort of sauce made from a can of Campbells chicken noodle soup. But brilliance struck, and I opted for some sort of Indian-style curry. I wanted to make a vegetarian dish, but we're low on basic vegetables (like California blend-- cauliflower, broccoli and carrots).

I started the white rice in the steamer. I added the water, some garlic salt (just a pinch), about a teaspoon of parsley and a tablespoon of butter.

Then in my Le Creuset skillet, I mixed a pinch (about 1/3 teaspoon) garlic, two tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, about 1/2 teaspoon red Indian chili powder, 3/4 teaspoon four color peppercorn, about 3/4 teaspoon cumin, and maybe 2 teaspoons curry powder. Oh, and a half teaspoon ginger.

I heated this thoroughly and then added about one cup hot water and boiled it. Next I added the canned chicken and chopped it into fairly small pieces. I mixed and boiled it down.

I swirled in about 1 teaspoon half and half and about three tablespoons soy milk. To finish it off I added a can of petit pois.

I served this over the rice.

Very nice.

Pork soup (part one)

My mother-in-law brought us some smoked pork chops, which my husband cooked and cubed while I was at work last night. Instead of serving them as a heat and eat kind of meal, I opted to make a crock pot soup. 

I started with some jarred minced garlic (which I normally avoid because it just tastes funky to me). It came out too fast and I ended up with too much. Then I added a swirl of extra virgin olive oil and maybe 2 cups of diced smoked pork chops. 

While they simmered, I added some sliced potatoes from a can of whole potatoes that I took the time to cut myself. Then I added "fresh dill" from my freezer-- about 2 teaspoons. Next came some organic vegetable broth (which by the end of my base will be 32 ounces worth). I put about a half teaspoon cumin and a half teaspoon fresh ground four color pepper.

To empty the fridge, I dumped about 2 cups leftover cooked vegetables into the pot with the rest of the broth. This was primary some sort of soybean (mukiname?) and green beans with a few slivered carrots.

So, the ingredients in the pot now: 
- diced smoked pork chops
- extra virgin olive oil
- minced garlic
- cumin
- dill
- four color pepper
- potatoes
- green beans
- mukiname? (not endamame, other soybeans)

Hoping to get some white beans and creamed corn and maybe other broth... We'll see...

Tacos

I don't know what got into me, but I decided to make tacos.
I made the homemade tortillas this afternoon and found this site:
http://www.mex-recipes.com/tacorecipes.html

QUOTED FROM THE SITE:
Ground beef
(I prefer ground chuck)
Salt
Chili powder
Paprika
Cumin
Garlic powder or 2 cloves
Bell pepper
Onion

Instructions for taco recipe:

Let's take 2 pounds of ground beef in 2 quart sauce pan add 1 teaspoon of salt, 2 tablespoons of chili power, 1 teaspoon of garlic powder or 2 chopped garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon of cumin, 2 tablespoons of paprika. Enough water to cover meat.

Bring to a boil. Simmer over medium low heat about an hour. I will check in about 15 minutes take a potato masher break up the meat a little don't want it to cook up in lumps.

Repeat this process 2 or 3 more times. Also make sure we don't run dry of water. Add water if needed. Hour over already!

OK, add 1/2 medium chopped onion, 1/2 medium chopped bell pepper, continue cooking 20 or 30 more minutes.

MY VARIATIONS:
I used 1/2 ground beef from a local farm and 1/2 black beans (the ones I made in the crock pot over the weekend.)
I omitted onion, and used one green pepper from my garden.
I turned up the heat a little on the stove, not the taco meat, because I didn't start early enough.

And I'm using my Le Creuset skillet instead of a saucepan.

Roasted Red Pepper Avocado Dip

This vegan recipe was posted the Facebook page of a friend of mine. It sounds like an incredible variation on guacamole. I have not tried it as I just got the recipe today.

Roasted Red Pepper Avocado Dip

1 avocado
2 roasted red peppers
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
1 clove of garlic
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground salt
1 teaspoon fresh oregano leaves (optional)

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor and puree. Serve with sliced cucumber.

Curried Vegetables with whole wheat pasta

I lost two days?!?!? How did I lose two days?
Okay, let's not talk about that. But I will admit that I was chagrined to note that I spent $200 on dining out in the month of April. Not good. My grocery budget was $220, which normally would be good had I not splurged so much with the take-out/dining. My job is seasonal and I don't work in June and July. Basically, I could have saved that money and used it to buy groceries in June. I'm mad at myself.
Anyway...

We all came home starving today and my in-laws had served my daughter crappy grocery-store bakery-made pizza for lunch for the second time this week. She had an apple for breakfast, some grapes mid-morning and no other real food that I know of so I needed something fast and full of vegetables.
Curry popped into mind.
I've never made curry.
But that's never stopped me before.
I whip out my vegetarian cookbooks, but quickly feel like I'm looking for a proverbial needle in a haystack. With a hungry family, that's not a good feeling. I grab the laptop and google "curry pasta sauce." Get several hits. Like this one:

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/pasta-with-low-fat-curry-sauce.html#

INGREDIENTS

(as originally listed)

8 ounces dry pasta
3 tablespoons slivered almonds
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1/2 cup diced tomato
1 1/2 teaspoons mild curry powder
Pinch cayenne, or to taste
1 cup frozen peas, rinsed briefly in hot water to thaw
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Okay, I look around my kitchen. I have:
13.25 ounces of whole wheat penne pasta
1/4 cup slivered almonds
olive oil
cumin powder
one can diced tomato with garlic
curry powder
[I forgot to look for cayenne]
frozen peas
frozen cauliflower, carrots and broccoli
1 cup soy milk and 1 cup dehydrated milk which I add a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to so it "cooks" more like buttermilk.

1. Prepare pasta.
2. While pasta cooks, toast almonds in skillet and set aside.
3. Thaw vegetables.
4. Put spices and tomatoes into skillet. Add a drizzle of olive oil as needed to keep from burning.
5. Add vegetables. Drizzle with olive oil and heat until hot.
6. Reduce heat and stir in milk, simmer until a consistent temperature.
7. Drain pasta. Combine pasta and sauce.
8. Sprinkle almonds on top.

Homemade Hummus

My daughter had another huge bowl of cream of wheat for breakfast, followed with some of my homemade granola at 9 a.m. We stopped by her daddy's office and got invited to share the leftover covered dish items from the luncheon yesterday, which included my spinach dip. Primarily, my family enjoyed ham and spinach dip (though I didn't touch the ham). My daughter ate at least a cup, if not two, of spinach without dipping it in anything.

My original plan for lunch had been peanut butter and jelly on the potato wheat bread my father-in-law gave us last week and carrot sticks with blue cheese dressing and fruit juice to drink. But the surprise lunch out got me thinking... I want hummus for dinner.

My husband bought sesame bagels over the weekend at the grocery store so hummus would be perfect. The carrot sticks will also go well. And the green pepper I bought a while ago will be a nice addition.

I discovered my hummus recipe online about ten or so years ago. A guy had made a chart of hummus and its variations. The basic recipe is as follows:

In the food processor, blend:

Three cloves garlic, minced;
16 ounces chick peas;
1/2 cup lemon juice or juice of 1/2 a lemon (I used all);
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds (fry briefly in skillet until aromatic) and/or tahini (I forgot the exact volume of tahini but I would say at least a tablespoon or two);
1 teaspoon salt;
1 teaspoon olive oil;
1/4 teaspoon cayenne;
cumin if desired;
parsley if desired.

Chill thoroughly before serving to allow flavors to blend.

Chicken and Cheese Enchiladas

 After a long weekend working on my take-home final (I spent 15 hours at the computer), I recycled that store-bought chicken my mother-in-law presented as dinner Friday. Yesterday, my daughter spent the day with a friend (meals included) and more or less lived on Christmas cookies and then we had Taco Bell for dinner when she arrived home early and unexpected. 

For breakfast, we had gingerbread man (nothing healthy there) and gave the daughter some apple juice and cheddar cheese. By lunch, I had the final complete and emailed off to my French professor so I thought I'd treat the family to a real meal.

My husband bought cream cheese while Christmas shopping yesterday so that's the only item for this recipe that came from outside the house. They turned out a tad saucy but that's because I put in too much liquid. (I'll explain as I progress here.) It was so yummy my daughter asked for seconds and we didn't have any more burrito shells thawed so we poured the sauce over tortilla chips for her. That suited her just fine. The leftovers I will use as sauce for spaghetti, since it's so juicy and protein rich.

This recipe is adapted from a free Kraft cookbook I picked up at the grocery store during the 1992 Olympics. Their recipe is from the Champion Chicken chapter. Creamy Chicken and Cheese Enchiladas. Now, as usual, I veered greatly. I don't think I can post the original recipe without confusing what I made. So, I'm posting mine.

Use Up that Gross Chicken and Cheese Enchiladas

1 clove garlic, sliced; 

1 tablespoon butter; 

1 teaspoon olive oil; 

leftover chicken; 

1/4 cup half-and-half; 

1 can petite diced tomatoes (and the liquid);

1 teaspoon spicy Indian chili powder; 

1 teaspoon ground cumin; 

1 teaspoon basil; 

8 oz cream cheese; 

3 oz mild cheddar; 

3 oz extra sharp cheddar; 

about 1 cup fresh broccoli; 

tortillas

In a fairly large saucepan, heat oil, butter and sliced garlic over medium-low. After a minute or two, when the aroma begins, add the half and half and spices. Cook for a couple minutes. Add tomatoes (if you don't want it as juicy as mine, pour off the liquid first). Add broccoli, chopped as small as possible. Add cream cheese and cook over medium for about five minutes. After the cream cheese melted, I added my chicken into the pot, but you can leave the chicken plain and pour the sauce over it. I like giving the chicken a chance to absorb the flavors. After a few minutes, add the cheese. When cheese melts, dish onto tortillas and serve.