Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Crockpot Chicken Enchiladas
I made these for dinner tonight and everyone loved them! Thanks to my friend Sherri for the recipe. Since this is a rare feat at my house, I will be making these again for sure! It was such an easy recipe, and the chicken smells so good while cooking all day. Since it only made 6 enchiladas, I will double the recipe next time.
2 chicken breasts
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 small can green chilies (optional)
1/3 c. salsa
1 chicken bullion cube
Put all ingredients into crockpot and cook for about 5 hours on low or 3 hours on high. Every crockpot is different. Mine was actually cooked on high in about 2 1/2 hours.
Make 1/2 c. Minute Rice (with a chicken bullion cube in the water)
When chicken in the crockpot is done, shred up. Mix 1/4 c. sauce with the rice. Leave remaining sauce to top enchiladas with. Get out 5-6 flour tortillas. Inside each tortilla, layer:
rice
chicken
cut olives
grated cheese
chopped green onions
Roll up each tortilla and put into baking dish. Top with remaining sauce and grated cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted. Serve with sour cream if desired. Makes 5-6 enchiladas.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Pernil Puertoricano
Ingredients Needed:
1 Bone-In Pork Shoulder (5-10 Pounds depending on how many you want to feed,
5 Pounds will feed 3-4 hungry people)
5-8 Cloves garlic, some chopped, some sliced
Adobo (or a mixture of garlic power, onion powder, cumin, black pepper, salt and oregano)
1 Bottle of Sour Orange Marinade (or 2 Oranges and 1 Lime OR 1 Cup OJ and 2 Limes)
1 Large Onion, chopped up
olive oil
SO the night before you cook the meat (or, if you prefer to not let it sit, then the half hour before you cook the meat):
Take your big, delish pork shoulder/butt, place it in a baking dish skin-side up and sprinkle it all over w/ adobo (Goya makes a few versions of this that you can keep in your spice cabinet or you can make your own by sprinkling garlic power, onion powder, cumin, black pepper, salt and oregano all over the pork).
WHEN I SAY SPREAD IT ALL OVER I MEAN SPREAD IT ALL OVER. Don’t be afraid of putting on too much.
Cut slices of garlic up from about 3 cloves of garlic - make slices thick-ish. (NOTE: If you have the extra time, make a paste out of your garlic by smashing it in a mortar and pestle w/ a bit of salt to aid in the smashing until it has the consistancy of a spreadable paste.) ****NOTE: This recipe uses alot of garlic b/c we love alot of garlic. If you don’t like the taste of garlic, maybe this recipe isn’t the best for you.
Take a sharp knife (a steak knife should be fine) and make 1-inch wide (1 inch deep or so) slits all over the pork, skin and all. Every time you make a slit, slide in a slice of garlic into the slit. It’s best if the garlic goes into the hole all the way. If it doesn’t, again, don’t worry… just make a bit of a deeper slit next time. (NOTE: If you made the garlic paste, then just slide a bit of the paste in each slit instead of the sliced garlic.)
MAKE MARINADE IN SEPARATE BOWL: Add one cup of sour orange juice (again, Goya makes a bottled version, I’m sure it’s not as tasty as the real ones, but sour oranges aren’t around all the time to buy) to 3 cloves of chopped garlic and 1 chopped large onion. Add a sprinkling of salt and pepper and well as some extra oregano. Mix. (NOTE: You can also substitute sour orange w/ a cup of regular Orange Juice mixed w/ the juice of two limes, or juice of 2 oranges, juice of 1 lime.)
Pour your marinade over your pork. Let sit for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight).
NOW IT’S TIME TO COOK!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Rub some olive oil over the pork and pork skin.
Put pork in oven, skin-side up, cover w/ aluminum foil and bake for about 4-5 hours, depending on size of pork. (I’d say allow about a half hour per pound in baking time if using bone-in pork - but remember, the best thing about a pork shoulder is that it gets better the longer you cook it. Just don’t burn that skin.)
After about an hour and a half, check how much liquid remains in the pan - add a cup of water to the pan if you are low. Check every 30-45 minutes to make sure the liquid level remains about at least 1/2 ” deep. The pan drippings will mix with this and make a nice gravy.
About 20 minutes before the end of the cooking time, remove the aluminum foil to crunch up that delicious pork skin. I would advise to keep looking at the roast after you remove the aluminum foil and when it looks brown and crispy, it’s done. Could be anywhere from 20 -35 minutes.
After you remove the pork from the oven, let it rest for about 15-20 minutes.
Slice it up or shred it with your fork! ENJOY.
Some of the delightful and CHEAP meals you can make with one 10 pound pork shoulder (you can stretch this especially if there’s only 2 or 3 of you eating) are:
shredded pork tacos (add them to some warmed corn or flour tortillas and top w/ your fave toppings)
sliced pernil with a side of black beans and rice
cuban sandwiches (slice up some pernil, add it to some thick, Cuban bread with some swiss cheese, mustard and thinly sliced pickles)
tomato, corn and shredded pernil rice baked with cheese .
1 Bone-In Pork Shoulder (5-10 Pounds depending on how many you want to feed,
5 Pounds will feed 3-4 hungry people)
5-8 Cloves garlic, some chopped, some sliced
Adobo (or a mixture of garlic power, onion powder, cumin, black pepper, salt and oregano)
1 Bottle of Sour Orange Marinade (or 2 Oranges and 1 Lime OR 1 Cup OJ and 2 Limes)
1 Large Onion, chopped up
olive oil
SO the night before you cook the meat (or, if you prefer to not let it sit, then the half hour before you cook the meat):
Take your big, delish pork shoulder/butt, place it in a baking dish skin-side up and sprinkle it all over w/ adobo (Goya makes a few versions of this that you can keep in your spice cabinet or you can make your own by sprinkling garlic power, onion powder, cumin, black pepper, salt and oregano all over the pork).
WHEN I SAY SPREAD IT ALL OVER I MEAN SPREAD IT ALL OVER. Don’t be afraid of putting on too much.
Cut slices of garlic up from about 3 cloves of garlic - make slices thick-ish. (NOTE: If you have the extra time, make a paste out of your garlic by smashing it in a mortar and pestle w/ a bit of salt to aid in the smashing until it has the consistancy of a spreadable paste.) ****NOTE: This recipe uses alot of garlic b/c we love alot of garlic. If you don’t like the taste of garlic, maybe this recipe isn’t the best for you.
Take a sharp knife (a steak knife should be fine) and make 1-inch wide (1 inch deep or so) slits all over the pork, skin and all. Every time you make a slit, slide in a slice of garlic into the slit. It’s best if the garlic goes into the hole all the way. If it doesn’t, again, don’t worry… just make a bit of a deeper slit next time. (NOTE: If you made the garlic paste, then just slide a bit of the paste in each slit instead of the sliced garlic.)
MAKE MARINADE IN SEPARATE BOWL: Add one cup of sour orange juice (again, Goya makes a bottled version, I’m sure it’s not as tasty as the real ones, but sour oranges aren’t around all the time to buy) to 3 cloves of chopped garlic and 1 chopped large onion. Add a sprinkling of salt and pepper and well as some extra oregano. Mix. (NOTE: You can also substitute sour orange w/ a cup of regular Orange Juice mixed w/ the juice of two limes, or juice of 2 oranges, juice of 1 lime.)
Pour your marinade over your pork. Let sit for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight).
NOW IT’S TIME TO COOK!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Rub some olive oil over the pork and pork skin.
Put pork in oven, skin-side up, cover w/ aluminum foil and bake for about 4-5 hours, depending on size of pork. (I’d say allow about a half hour per pound in baking time if using bone-in pork - but remember, the best thing about a pork shoulder is that it gets better the longer you cook it. Just don’t burn that skin.)
After about an hour and a half, check how much liquid remains in the pan - add a cup of water to the pan if you are low. Check every 30-45 minutes to make sure the liquid level remains about at least 1/2 ” deep. The pan drippings will mix with this and make a nice gravy.
About 20 minutes before the end of the cooking time, remove the aluminum foil to crunch up that delicious pork skin. I would advise to keep looking at the roast after you remove the aluminum foil and when it looks brown and crispy, it’s done. Could be anywhere from 20 -35 minutes.
After you remove the pork from the oven, let it rest for about 15-20 minutes.
Slice it up or shred it with your fork! ENJOY.
Some of the delightful and CHEAP meals you can make with one 10 pound pork shoulder (you can stretch this especially if there’s only 2 or 3 of you eating) are:
shredded pork tacos (add them to some warmed corn or flour tortillas and top w/ your fave toppings)
sliced pernil with a side of black beans and rice
cuban sandwiches (slice up some pernil, add it to some thick, Cuban bread with some swiss cheese, mustard and thinly sliced pickles)
tomato, corn and shredded pernil rice baked with cheese .
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Double Crunchers
I made these for a cookie exchange I am going to tonight, and they turned out FABULOUS! I got the recipe from Hallmark Magazine. I found they made less than the 3 dozen however, I got a little over 2 dozen out of one batch.
COOKIES
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup cornflakes, crushed
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup shredded coconut
FROSTING
1 package (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon water
3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt.
3. In a medium bowl, with an electric mixer, cream together the shortening, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat well. Add the flour mixture.
4. Blend in the cornflakes, oats and coconut.
5. Divide the dough into two pieces, one twice as large as the other. Shape the larger piece into balls about 3/4 inch in diameter. Shape the smaller chunk of dough into the same number of balls (they will be smaller). Line a baking sheet with parchment or a nonstick liner. Place the balls on the sheet and flatten them to 1/4-inch thickness.
6. Bake for 9 to 12 minutes, until light golden. Let sit on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool.
7. Meanwhile, make the frosting: In a double boiler, combine the chocolate chips, confectioners' sugar and water. Stir until melted. Off the heat, beat in the cream cheese.
8. Frost the larger cookies and top with the smaller ones. Makes 3 dozen sandwich cookies
Each sandwich cookie has: 116 calories, 5.5 g fat (2.7 g saturated), 1 g protein, 16 g carbohydrates (0.7 g fiber), 9 mg cholesterol, 53 mg sodium.
COOKIES
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup cornflakes, crushed
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup shredded coconut
FROSTING
1 package (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon water
3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt.
3. In a medium bowl, with an electric mixer, cream together the shortening, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat well. Add the flour mixture.
4. Blend in the cornflakes, oats and coconut.
5. Divide the dough into two pieces, one twice as large as the other. Shape the larger piece into balls about 3/4 inch in diameter. Shape the smaller chunk of dough into the same number of balls (they will be smaller). Line a baking sheet with parchment or a nonstick liner. Place the balls on the sheet and flatten them to 1/4-inch thickness.
6. Bake for 9 to 12 minutes, until light golden. Let sit on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool.
7. Meanwhile, make the frosting: In a double boiler, combine the chocolate chips, confectioners' sugar and water. Stir until melted. Off the heat, beat in the cream cheese.
8. Frost the larger cookies and top with the smaller ones. Makes 3 dozen sandwich cookies
Each sandwich cookie has: 116 calories, 5.5 g fat (2.7 g saturated), 1 g protein, 16 g carbohydrates (0.7 g fiber), 9 mg cholesterol, 53 mg sodium.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Cheesy Potatoes
1 1/2 bags frozen southern style hash browns
1 can cream of mushroom soup (or cream of chicken)
16 oz container sour cream
3 cups cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cube butter
crushed potato chips (plain)
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Dump hash browns into a glass 9x13 pan. Over low heat, melt butter then add the soup and sour cream and salt and pepper. Mix well, add 2 cups of the cheese. Stir until mixed thoroughly. Dump onto the frozen potatoes and mix. Top with the remaining cheese and cover with tin foil. Bake for 30-40 minutes, then add the potato chips and bake for 10-15 minutes more until bubbly.
1 can cream of mushroom soup (or cream of chicken)
16 oz container sour cream
3 cups cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cube butter
crushed potato chips (plain)
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Dump hash browns into a glass 9x13 pan. Over low heat, melt butter then add the soup and sour cream and salt and pepper. Mix well, add 2 cups of the cheese. Stir until mixed thoroughly. Dump onto the frozen potatoes and mix. Top with the remaining cheese and cover with tin foil. Bake for 30-40 minutes, then add the potato chips and bake for 10-15 minutes more until bubbly.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Sweet Potato Pudding
My visiting teacher, a sweet little old grandma, emphatically insisted that I serve this for Thanksgiving. I'm not big on sweet potatoes, but this is really, really good. It's like having pumpkin pie as part of dinner!
3 cups sweet potatoes (canned is easiest)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup margarine or butter
2 eggs, beaten
1 Tbsp vanilla flavoring
Cook and mash sweet potatoes, or if using canned sweet potatoes, simply add the rest of the ingredients. Spread in large pyrex dish, 9 X 13 works best. Top with Crunch Topping (see below). Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
CRUNCH TOPPING
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup margarine (melted)
1 cup pecans (chopped)
Mix and sprinkle over sweet potatoes.
3 cups sweet potatoes (canned is easiest)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup margarine or butter
2 eggs, beaten
1 Tbsp vanilla flavoring
Cook and mash sweet potatoes, or if using canned sweet potatoes, simply add the rest of the ingredients. Spread in large pyrex dish, 9 X 13 works best. Top with Crunch Topping (see below). Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
CRUNCH TOPPING
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup margarine (melted)
1 cup pecans (chopped)
Mix and sprinkle over sweet potatoes.
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