Taco Dip

Whenever there is a race, my job is to make taco dip. And I have to say that we have not become tired of this recipe. I made it for the Daytona 500. The race was postponed, but the taco dip was finished.

Taco Dip

Layer #1

8 oz cream cheese
3/4 cup each sour cream and mayonnaise
Adobo powder with pepper to taste

Beat cream cheese, sour cream and maoynnaise until smooth. Spread onto a serving platter. Sprinkle with adobo powder. Refrigerate.

Layer #2

1 pound ground beef
1 envelope taco seasoning mix
1- 8 oz. can tomato sauce

Brown the ground beef; drain excess fat. Add taco seasoning mix and tomato sauce to the pan and cook until heated through. Cool.

Toppings

Spread the ground beef mixture on top of the cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle with shredded Cheddar cheese. Top with: shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, chopped onions, sliced jalapeno peppers, green and/or red peppers, olives, or anything else you like.

Serve with tortilla chips.

I often make this dip for tailgating. I use 2 small aluminum pans spread with the cream cheese, ground beef, and cheese. I pack the toppings in separate plastic bags and add the toppings when ready to serve. The smaller pans fit into coolers easily and it allows to have two servings served at safe temperatures in warm weather.

Pesto Chicken

Last fall I "harvested" my basil and made pesto. I froze portions for use someday, like today. Easy, easy, easy... I spread the pesto onto chicken breasts and put them in the oven at 350 until the chicken was cooked. Done, and leftovers too. The leftovers can become pesto chicken wraps and I think some will become white chicken chili.

Chickpea Stew

After a busy week my relaxation was to do some cooking. I had a Chickpea Stew recipe pulled out and I had most of the ingredients. Instead of going to the grocery store in my jammies, I made some substitutions. The original recipe is linked in the title. My changes were:

I had cooked chicken breast in the freezer, so I used that instead of the chicken thighs.

I used a can of fire roasted tomatoes instead of the roasted red peppers and I omitted the tomato paste. I also reduced the water because of the liquid with the tomatoes.

I did serve it over crusty bread. Fantastic!

Pineapple Pork Roast

Valentine's dinner was pineapple pork roast, roasted carrots, and buttered orzo. The pineapple pork recipe was done in the crock pot and I got it ready before work. Here is what I did:

5 lb pork roast
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
3/4 cup pineapple jam
1/4 soy sauce

Season all sides with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Use as much as you would like at this point. Place in crock pot. Mix pineapple jam and soy sauce. Pour over pork. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

A minor mix up

I knew I was working late on Monday, so I took the extra beef stew out of the freezer so my husband could heat and serve it for dinner. And I did tell him it was in the downstairs refrigerator.

When I got home, there was chicken cacciatore on the stove. Hmmm. Did I mess up and take the wrong item out? I know I saw potatoes in the container.

Well, the beef stew is still in the downstairs refrigerator. He went to the freezer. The moral of the story: there was homemade food to eat for my family.

Valentine's Day Dinner

Last Saturday, the husbands made dinner, mostly. I did not realize that was the plan and so I felt I needed to contribute.



See the mini valentine take out container? Inside was a personal serving of cheese and crackers.



And, look how nice the table looks. And the guys set it!

Wednesday sandwiches

Wednesday I was not sure what to serve for dinner. My husband was working late, I was going to be busy driving kids to practices. I needed fast, but wanted creative and fun. I used some of my leftovers and the grilled sandwich disks for the waffle iron and made a variety of grilled sandwiches.

I do realize that "grilled sandwiches" sound old school and a newer, more popular term is panini. So, yes, you can do the same with an panini maker.

I made: buffalo chicken with blue cheese, ham with mustard and American, pork (from the ribs) with American and a few pinto beans, and American with bacon. Carrot and celery sticks and pasta salad and dinner was done.

Grilled Romaine

I am organized this week! Well, at least so far. Tonight I made Grilled Romaine with Blue Cheese and Bacon Vinegarette. It is one of my favorite recipes. I like to add some chicken strips to the top and so the salad becomes a meal.

Then, I got ready for tomorrow's dinner. I have the crock pot ready to go with Sweet Jalapeno Ribs. I don't have any guarentees for Wednesday.

Paella

My contribution to the Super Bowl Party last night was paella. I used the Chicken and Seafood Paella recipe with some changes. Instead of chicken thighs, I used chicken tenders. I used white rice instead of the arborio rice because I wanted to add the stock all at once and just simmer. I also had the 3 cups on hand. I was careful about how much stock to use, so be sure to keep an eye on the simmering. Taking the time to make the stock with this recipe is worth the time and effort.

Super Bowl

I am not hosting a Super Bowl party this year...But, if I were, here is what I would do. (Good thing I have a friend who likes my suggestions.)

My theme would be the teams.

I would make both Manhattan Clam Chowder and New England Clam Chowder. I would have a New England seafood boil, and because I like Little Italy in NYC, something Italian. Desserts: New York Cheesecake and Boston Cream Pie. My friends usually want to bring food, so they would fill in with what they like.

For fun, I would require the fans of either team eat only the foods from the team's home. For good luck, of course!

Stir-fry

Those of you who work outside of the house know that some days are just bad...usually because of someone else's actions. (Probably happens to mom's who work at home, too.) Yesterday was one of those days for me. I was so upset when I got home. I was determined not to let the day ruin my evening. And I really didn't want to cook. But I did.

I cooked because I had the ingredients ready and did not want to waste food. Also, because I knew it would relax me. I had a few chicken thighs cooked from the night before and I had a lot of vegetables in the refrigerator. I made some rice in one pot and veggie and chicken stir fry in another. It was delicious, I relaxed, and I did not overeat because I went to a restaurant.

Chicken Cacciatore

Yesterday, I made my favorite: chicken cacciatore over polenta. I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs this time. They worked very well. I browned the chicken first, then browned peppers, mushrooms, onions and garlic. I deglazed the pan with some red wine and added san marzano tomatoes. Salt, pepper, oregano, basil, and parsley were the seasonings. I'm so glad I made enough for leftovers because once the recipe sits, the flavors marry together.