I love Mexican food. Really, tex-mex, because I can't imagine what I'm getting, or making, in Nebraska, is terribly authentic. I can eat tacos for days in a row, (and have, for lunch, when we had a taco bar party and I vastly overestimated how much meat we'd need,) and I've found various tex-mex recipes to try out at home when I'm oddly not quite as ready to try them in a restaurant. This particular recipe came about due to my great love of tex-mex, and my need to use up a large pack of chicken thighs I'd found on sale. It might even be a bit more authentic than our usual fare.
Read moreNepalese Guesthouse Chicken.
Most of the time, when I’m cooking chicken, I’ll be cooking boneless, skinless breasts. It’s not that we don’t like whole chicken, we do, but so many recipes simply default to that standard. In trying to save money, I learned that buying bone-in chicken meat, especially whole birds, is actually more economical than even buying the bag of frozen breasts, if you don’t want the 13% injected ones, anyway. I’ve since learned how to roast a whole bird well, but after that I was sort of stuck. Enter the book Poulet. I’ve found recipes in this book that are a complete departure from what we’re used to, and they’re good.
Read moreMediterranean Chicken Breasts.
I'm not sure how authentically "Mediterranean" this recipe is, but I love it, so we'll go with it. This is an easy meal to pull together, quick, delicious, and guaranteed to pass my picky eater's test. Serve with couscous (the fastest cooking side ever, it seems,) and one or two vegetables, and you've got a quick and complete(ly delicious) meal.
Read moreKitchen Basics: How to make stock.
Making stock always seemed to me to be one of those things that people did when they had an abundance of time, a greater abundance of skill, and a certain touch of fussiness to their cooking preferences. The first time I made it myself, I was shocked how easy making stock really was. It came out watery and a bit weaker than I expected, but I had made it all by myself, using things I would normally have thrown away. I've learned, since that time, how to make the stock rich and full of flavor.
Read moreKitchen Basics: How to Roast and Carve a Chicken.
I used to look at the packaged whole chickens and wonder, 'what in the world do I even do with that?' Never mind that I had no idea how to cook it, they were usually way too much meat for my family, even taking into account that the weight of the bones were factored into total poundage. Anyway, I figured, why pay for bones when I can just buy boneless skinless chicken breasts?
I have since learned that bones lend flavor, and they make wonderful stock. (More on that in another post.) What's more, one chicken doesn't just feed my family for one night, it often lasts through three nights of meals, if I don't make chicken noodle soup, and if I do, it's even more! It's worth the investment, and, frankly, it's just plain tasty.
Read morePeanutty Chicken and Pasta.
Lately on my son's and my regular date to the library, I pick up a couple cookbooks to browse though. Usually I find one, maybe two recipes I'm truly interested in making, and I usually don't get around to making those. This cookbook, though, the Southern Living Kids Cookbook, has so many post-its sticking out of it now I hardly know where to begin. Jonathan even helped me choose which recipes to make, though I suspect he was just having fun sticking on the post-its to as many pages as possible. I know for a fact he wouldn't eat the chicken salad he picked out.
Read moreCrock Pot Pulled Chicken & Honey Whole Wheat Buns.
I LOVE this chicken recipe. It is so delicious, so simple, so quick (for a crock pot recipe), and did I mention, SO DELICIOUS!! I didn't modify the recipe at all, (well, other than halve it, as I don't need to feed 8-10 people...) so I'm going to send you to the original site for the recipe. Stay tuned for the buns recipe though!!
Read moreChicken Noodle Soup.
I love making this soup. It's delicious, simple, and extremely comforting on a cold day, or when you're feeling a bit under the weather. My method takes a bit of time, but it's not extremely labor intensive, and you can take shortcuts at any point to make it even easier. Due to the nature of this recipe, there are no exact proportions. You can make a large batch, as I usually do, or simply use less and make enough for a single meal. The amounts I do list will be for a rather large batch intended to have extra for freezing. Adjust as needed, and enjoy!
Read moreTexas Meat Marinade from Former First Lady Laura Bush.
When Chris and I were wed, my mother gave us a lovely gift. She wrote to friends and family, as well as our current politicians in office, and asked for well-loved recipes. Pres. George W. Bush was in office at the time, so she wrote to First Lady Laura Bush as well. Some of the recipes received are of the sort that my family simply will not touch; this is not one of those.
Read morePacific Rim Stir-Fry.
The first time we had this recipe, it was a disaster. Don't get me wrong, it tasted great. No, the disaster was that I managed to dump my entire plate on our new cream colored carpet. I was trying to multi-task, dealing with Jonathan in his swing while moving my plate. It didn't work. A bit slid off, and as I tried to catch it, the rest slid off the other side of the plate! Now, because this dish contains turmeric, it stained the carpet in that spot a deep golden yellow. A lovely color, if it's not in only one spot on the floor. Needless to say, I avoided this recipe for awhile, due to the 'trauma' I'd suffered before because of it.
Read more