Mike's Favorites Part 2- Fajitas

This is what we had for dinner tonight & decided I needed to share :)  I actually got this recipe from Serena but it has become a regular in this house (often requested despite my menu plan).  It's simple & delicious!!

Fajitas3 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp lime juice
2 tsp liquid smoke
1/4 cup water
2 cloves garlic (minced)
dash onion powder (we like onions in our fajitas so I just leave this out because the onions add enough for me)
1 lb chicken or beef (we've decided that steak is definitely the way to go, especially with the liquid smoke flavor)
Mushrooms (yup-you guessed it...another of mushroom recipe for Mike's Favorites haha and we like baby bella mushrooms)
Onion-sliced or roughly chopped

*Cube or chunk the meet.  Slice onion and mushrooms.  Mix all other ingredients together for the marinade.  Add meat and veggies into sauce and let marinade for 1-2 hours.  Then cook in all of the sauce until meat is cooked.  Serve with warm tortillas, cheese, and sour cream.

-just a couple of personal tips: I always double the sauce recipe because Mike LOVES it and will literally drink the rest of the sauce after everything else is gone...ssshhh don't tell him I told you haha.  And if I slice the meat pretty skinny insteady of thick chunks I only will marinade it for about 20-30 minutes and it tastes great!  I also use almost a whole carton of sliced mushrooms and a whole medium sized onion.  Let me know if you have questions!

Enjoy!!! yum yum

Regis Fruit Cobbler

We had this for dessert yesterday so I thought I’d share the recipe, and it was the first time I had ever made it. My mom has made this a few times for us and I always like it when she does because it smells so good. I’m not a fan of cobblers, but I love this one cuz it taste more like cake. It’s also super easy.
Regis Fruit Cobbler
1 - 20 oz. can crushed pineapple (do not drain liquid)
2 - 12 oz. bags frozen fruit (I like to get 2 different kinds of fruit.)  (We’ve always had one bag of peaches and one bag of the mix of raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries but you can have whatever you want!)
1 box yellow cake mix
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup sugar
1 cube butter, melted
(Icecream to serve on top)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In an ungreased 9x13 cake pan spread the can of pineapple with the juice.  Spread 1 of the bags of frozen fruit over the pineapple.  Sprinkle the dry yellow cake mix over the fruit.  Spread the other bag of frozen fruit over the cake mix.  Sprinkle the nuts over the fruit.  Melt the butter and add the sugar and stir until combined.  Pour butter/sugar mixture over the nuts and fruit.
Bake for about 1 hour until golden brown.  (May take a little longer to bake.)  Serve warm with ice cream on top.

The $250 Chocolate Chip Cookes

I don't know about you, but I have had a hard time finding a good, reliable chocolate chip cookie recipe.  They end up being too thin & hard, or too cakey, etc, etc.  Until I found these!!!!  These are seriously the best chocolate chips cookies I have ever made!  And the best part is that they have been the the best every time I make them :) 

There is an internet myth out there that was attached to the recipe when I got it from Mike's mom last year.  I don't have it written out anymore but it goes something like this:  A lady & her daughter were eating at a Neiman Marcus restaurant in NYC and they ordered cookies for dessert.  The lady asked the waiter if the chef would sell the recipe to her.  He went & checked with the chef.  When he returned he said "Yes, he will sell it to you for two fifty."  She agreed to that thinking it was $2.50. When she got the bill, she was charged $250!  She was so angry that she posted the recipe on the internet. 

Whether it's true or not-these are G-O-O-D!!!!! I just made them for a Relief Society activity and they were a HUGE hit!  2 Warnings for you: 1-they are addicting!!   2-ALWAYS half the recipe...it makes a lot!!

Enjoy!

Neiman Marcus/Mrs. Fields Chocolate Chip Cookiesaka $250 Recipe

2 cups butter
4 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 cups brown sugar
5 cups blended oatmeal (this is the secret ingredient!  measure 5 cups then toss in a blender to make a fine powder.  It's 5 cups pre-blended)
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp bakind powder
1 tsp salt
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
24 oz chocolate chips
1 8oz chocolate bar, grated (or pulse lightly in a blender-this is important too because it kind of melts into the batter & makes them YUMMY!!)
3 cups chopped nuts (optional-I've never made them with nuts)

*Cream butter and both sugars.  Add eggs & vanilla.  In a separate bowl, mix together flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.  Then add that into the creamed mixture a couple cups at a time.  Add chocolate chips, chocolate bar & nuts.  Roll into balls & place 2" apart on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 375.

They are divine warm & gooey but they stay soft for days!! We've even frozen some and they were even soft after they thawed out :) 

Just for an example of how many cookies this recipe makes....for the R.S. activity I made a full batch and I baked 7 or 8 dozen cookies and still had 1/3 of the cookie dough left!!  YIKES!  That's dangerous at this house!!

Hope you like them!! :)

Love ya!
Ang

Thai Peanut Noodles

I saw this is the Our Best Bites cookbook and it said it was one of the favorites on the blog so I thought I’d give it a try. It’s also on their site http://www.ourbestbites.com/2008/09/thai-peanut-noodles/. I kept putting off trying this, but we were given a ton of peanuts for Christmas so I thought it was a good time to test it. It’s super easy and Everybody loved it, Allie especially. She still talks about it. I liked it except I think I didn’t cook enough noodles and the sauce was too powerful, but that’s just because I don’t know how to judge how many noodles to make, is there a secret way to measure them? How do you judge how many noodles to make?! Here’s the Recipe:

Thai Peanut Noodles
1/2 c. chicken broth
3 Tbsp. creamy peanut butter
1-2 tsp. Sriracha chili sauce (1 is mild with a bite, 1.5 is medium, 2 is hot)
1 1/2 Tbsp. honey
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 1/2 Tbsp. fresh minced ginger
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
8 oz. Udon or linguine noodles
Chopped green onions
Chopped cilantro
2 limes, cut into quarters
Chopped peanuts

Cook noodles in salted water. In the meantime, combine chicken broth, peanut butter, chili sauce, honey, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk until smooth and remove from heat. Toss cooked noodles with sauce and divide among 4 bowls. Sprinkle with green onions, cilantro, chopped peanuts, and garnish each serving with 2 lime quarters. Before eating, squeeze lime juice over noodles and stir to combine.

I didn’t do the Sriracha chili sauce because I couldn’t find it, and I was afraid of having it hot. We will be having this again.

Avocado Chicken Salad

(photo from thekitchencookie.blogspot.com)

I've had this pinned on Pinterest for a while and when I got 10 avocados in our Guacamole Pack from Bountiful Baskets I decided to try it.  I made it just as the recipe calls but I didn't cook enough chicken so I probably only had about 2 cups but it would definitely be better with more chicken.  For the cabbage, I used Napa Cabbage because it also came in my Bountiful Basket and I probably had slightly more than it called for (plus I like it better than regular cabbage).  I made it when Mom was in town & Serena had it with us and we all loved it!! (at least they said they did haha)    I would recommend slicing the avocado and arranging it on the plate then putting the salad on top instead of filling the avocado like in the picture~it was kind of hard to eat out of the avocado. 

We just loved the chicken salad! It would be delish in a pita pocket or just as a sandwich.  The almonds, celery & cabbage gave it a good crunch!  YUM!!

Here's the recipe:

3 cups chicken, cooked and shredded

1 cup cabbage, shredded

½ - ¾ cup celery, diced

¼ cup green onions, chopped

½ cup sliced almonds

Dressing:

1 cup mayonnaise

2½ teaspoons mustard

1½ teaspoons sugar

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

Milk, to desired consistency  (I didn't use milk)

Combine all dressing ingredients & whisk together.  Set aside.  Combine chicken, veggies, and almonds then stir in the dressing.  Then top avocado with chicken salad.

Enjoy!
~Ang~

Ham & Cheese Sliders

I love Superbowl Sunday, not because I love the Superbowl, but because I love Superbowl food! When I saw this recipe http://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2010/04/ham-and-cheese-sliders.html, I knew I had to try it for the Superbowl and it did not disappoint!

I followed the recipe exact. I made Rhoades white dinner rolls for the rolls and I bought honey ham from the deli. I also only made half the sauce as recommended and it was just right.

I thought these were super good and they seemed to get good reviews from everyone! I am excited to make them again!

What's for Dinner This Week?

So, I thought it might be fun to start giving a little run down of our weekly dinner menus. I guess it's probably because I have been back in the meal planning mode full swing lately. So, feel free to start posting what you're having for dinner this week (and next week, and the next, etc. ha ha!). As for us, if any of you are interested, here is what is on the menu (as I typed this up, I realized that pretty much everything this week is from Mel's Kitchen Cafe--no real reason, it just happened that way I guess!):

Monday: Chicken Pot Pie Crumble
(from Mel's Kitchen Cafe, recipe found HERE) It is super delicious and my family loves it! Every time I make it, it seems like it kind of is a lot of work, but in the end it is totally worth it. And I'm probably just not that fast at making it. :) Oh, and another note...along with the vegetables she calls for, I also peel and dice two small potatoes and add to them. I like a few potatoes in a chicken pot pie, so I wanted some in this too.
Tuesday: San Francisco Pork Chops with rice & fresh steamed broccoli
(another from Mel's Kitchen Cafe, recipe found HERE) I needed a good crockpot meal tomorrow, and I like this because it's a little different than the usual crockpot dish and that's good. :)
Wednesday: Taco Pasta
(from The Girl Who Ate Everything, recipe found HERE) It sounded a little different the first time I made this, but we loved it!
Thursday: Leftovers
The taco pasta & chicken pot pie crumble usually have quite a bit left, so I am planning to have them on hand for a leftovers night!
Friday: Pork Tacos
When I make the pork chops, I usually cut them from a pork loin roast which usually uses about half of the roast. So I have another half a pork roast in the fridge that needs used, and I'll use it for some quick and easy pork tacos.
Saturday: Coconut Shrimp Curry
(from Mel's Kitchen Cafe, recipe found HERE) I have just ventured into the world of curry and I am in love! I made this a couple of weeks ago and we LOVE it. And it really isn't that hard to make either, which is a huge bonus of course! I am going to make some with chicken and some with shrimp this week since we are having some friends over and she hates shrimp. :) But I am positive it will be good with chicken too. If you haven't tried making curry, you should. It is SO good!

So, that's a wrap of my week...what are y'all having? :)