Lighter General Tso's Chicken

As you may have figured out, we love Chinese food.  And when I saw a recipe for not only General Tso's Chicken (a favorite of Zak's), but a healthier recipe from Martha Stewart, I knew I had to try it.  It was awesome!  The chicken was perfect, and although it was pretty spicy (but not as much the next day), it had such great flavor.  I loved how the chicken came out with the egg white and cornstarch batter, it was just great. Definitely a favorite and an addition to our meal menu.

1/4 c. cornstarch, divided (1 Tbl., 3 Tbl.)
1 lb. snow peas, trimmed (I used 1 lb. frozen sugar snap peas and trimmed them)
4 - 5 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. fresh ginger, minced
3 Tbl. brown sugar
2 Tbl. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (1/4 if you aren't a fan of spicy)
2 large egg whites
1 lb. chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 - 2 Tbl. oil

1.  In large bowl, stir together 1 Tbl. cornstarch and 1/2 c. cold water until smooth.  Add snow (or sugar snap) peas, garlic, ginger, sugar, soy sauce and red pepper flakes.  Toss to combine and set aside.
2.  In a medium bowl, whisk together egg whites with remaining 3 Tbl. cornstarch, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper.  Add chicken and toss to coat.
3.  Heat oil over medium-high heat.  Shake off excess mixture from chicken and cook until golden, 6 - 8 minutes.  Transfer to a plate.
4.  Add snow pea mixture to skillet, cover and cook until tender and sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes.
5.  Return chicken to skillet and toss to coat.

I got about 5 servings from this

the chicken turned out so perfectly

so yummy!

P.F. Chang's Mongolian Beef copycat recipe

Holy goodness, this recipe was great!  I couldn't get over how good the sauce was!  Not too salty or sweet, the ingredients blended together really nicely.  I used about 3/4 lb. of beef that was already packaged for stir-fry--just thin slices of beef.  I fear I overcooked them a little bit, but in the future it'll be fine.  I thought I had fresh garlic, but when I went looking for it, it had disappeared, so I used the same amount of dried garlic, and it was just fine.  I increased the amount of fresh ginger by 1/4 tsp. and didn't change much else to the recipe.  I think next time I might add some cornstarch dissolved in water to help thicken the sauce, because it didn't seem to thicken up ... at all.  That was our one disappointment.  But I poured the extra sauce over the rice and broccoli we had and no one complained.  All in all, a really good, tasty and fairly manageable recipe; I will be making this often in the future.

2 tsp. vegetable oil
1/2 fresh ginger, minced (I used 3/4 tsp.)
1 Tbl. garlic, chopped (dried worked just fine)
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. water
3/4 c. brown sugar
oil for frying
1 lb. flank steak, cut against the grain into 1/4" slices
1/4 c. cornstarch
2 large green onions (I used about 1/4 c.), chopped

1.  Heat 2 tsp. of oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Don't let the oil get too hot.  Add ginger and garlic to the pain and saute for about 30 seconds.
2.  Quickly add the soy sauce and water, then dissolve brown sugar in sauce.  Increase heat a little and boil the sauce for 2 - 3 minutes until it has thickened.  (If needed, dissolve some cornstarch in cold water and add to sauce, to speed up process.)  Remove from heat.
3.  Dip cut steak pieces into cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to each piece of beef.  Let it sit for about 10 minutes before frying.
4.  Heat up oil in wok or large skillet over medium heat.  Add beef and fry until brown.  Transfer meat to a plate with paper towel and dab excess oil off.
5.  Drain excess oil from pan and add in the sauce with the meat and add green onions.  Let sauce simmer until warm.

Letting the meat and sauce simmer

Mmhmm!

Nutritional Facts
servings per recipe: 4
amount per serving (3 oz.)

Calories: 329
Total Fat: 11.6 g
Saturated Fat: 4.1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.7 g
Monounsaturated Fat: 1.3 g
Cholesterol: 50.7 mg
Sodium: 1996.6 mg
Potassium: 173.1 mg
Total Carbohydrate: 47.5 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.4 g
Sugar: 36.8 g
Protein: 18.5 g
Vitamin A: --
Vitamin C: 1.1 %
Calcium: 3.8 %
Iron: 6.6 % 

Slow-Cooker Old-World Corned Beef & Vegetables

I used to not be a big corned beef fan.  But then I grew up and now look forward to having it every St. Patrick's Day!  I've only made it once before, our first married St. Patrick's Day, and don't remember what I did.  So I went on a little hunt for some good instructions and a recipe, especially because I invited our friends over, I wanted it to work out well.  I found this recipe and was a bit hesitant--it had me discard the seasoning packet!  But I thought it'd work out well for us, and looked easy enough.  Zak helped me with the veggies and everything, and after 8 long hours in the crockpot, we finally got to eat.  It was very, very good--we have just enough leftovers for one of us to eat.  I used 'Idaho gold' potatoes instead of red potatoes, some pearl onions and baby carrots.  It was so simple, and we have a bonus brisket, so I plan on making this again in a little bit!

2 lbs. golden/new/red? potatoes (8-10), quartered
2 c. baby carrots, halved
1 c. frozen small whole onions, thawed--I used about half a bag of white pearl onions and cut them in half
1 corned beef brisket, 3 - 3 1/2 lbs.
pepper
1/2 c. water
1 Tbl. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbl. cornstarch
2 Tbl. cold water

1.  Mix potatoes, carrot and onions in a 4 - 6 quart slow cooker.
2.  Thoroughly rinse corned beef; discard seasoning packet.  Place beef on vegetables, sprinkle with pepper.
3.  Mix 1/2 c. water with Worcestershire sauce and pour over beef.
4.  Cover and cook on low for 8 - 9 hours, or until beef and vegetables are tender.
5.  Remove beef and vegetables from slow cooker; cover to keep warm.
6.  Pour juices into saucepan and heat to boiling.  Mix cornstarch and cold water until smooth; stir in.
7.  Cook, stirring constantly, until sauce has thickened.

right before making the gravy and eating

the potatoes were so tender and delicious

wonderful carrots and onions

the meat was amazing!

Orange Chicken

We haven't had orange chicken in a long time, and I wasn't completely crazy about the recipe I used last time.  So I decided to give my mom's recipe a try and it was a hit--so delicious!  The perfect amount of spicy and sweet orange, and the crispy chicken, oh it was just what we wanted.  Perfect over white rice and with broccoli on the side.

Chicken
2 lbs. chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp. salt
pinch of pepper
1/2 c. cornstarch
1/4 c. flour
1 Tbl. oil
1 tsp. garlic, minced (I used dried and it worked fine, next time I'll try it with fresh garlic)
1 Tbl. fresh ginger, minced
1/4 c. green onions, chopped
1/4 - 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 Tbl. rice vinegar
1/4 c. water
1 Tbl. cornstarch
zest of an orange

"Orange" Sauce
3 Tbl. soy sauce
3 Tbl. water
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. white vinegar
1/2 Tbl. sesame oil

1.  In a medium bowl, mix together the egg, salt, pepper and oil.  Mix well.  Stir in the chicken pieces.
2.  In a large bowl, stir together flour and 1/2 c. cornstarch.  Add the chicken pieces, stirring to coat.  Heat 1 Tbl. oil for deep frying in a wok or deep fryer to 375 degrees/medium-high.
3.  Add the chicken in small batches, fry for 4 - 5 minutes, until golden crisp.  When done with each batch, drain chicken on paper towels.
4.  Add ginger and garlic to wok and stir fry until fragrant, about 10 seconds.  Add red pepper flakes and green onions, then rice vinegar and stir.
5.  Add the "orange" sauce and bring to a boil.
6.  Stir the 1 Tbl. cornstarch into the 1/4 c. water and add to sauce and heat until sauce has thickened.  Add the cooked chicken, stirring until well incorporated.
7.  Turn off the heat and stir in the orange zest.

after cooking

so delicious!

Kung-Pao Chicken

I found this recipe on a cute blog, called Six Sisters' Stuff, and decided it would be worth a try.  It's entitled '500 Calorie Kung Pao Chickn' and thought it'd be fitting because we are trying to watch our caloric intake AND we love Chinese food.  But Chinese food isn't known to be super healthy!  So anyways, I made this is and it's delicious.  The chicken's so tender and I love the bites with cashews in it.  I decided to sub in cashews for the peanuts the original recipe called for, mostly because we love cashews more and also because we didn't have peanuts.  I used a package of frozen vegetables called "Asian Medley", that had carrots, broccoli, snap peas and baby corn in place of the snow peas.  I think I'll use a little bit more next time, because they were so good in it!  Also, the sauce was pretty hot with just 1/2 tsp. of the red pepper flakes, so I am sure I'll go a little easier on those next time.  But this recipe is awesome and I am so so so happy with it!

2 Tbl. dark sesame oil (I used toasted sesame oil and it was just fine; the original recipe subbed olive oil)
1 c. chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3/4 c. water
3 Tbl. low sodium soy sauce
2 tsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. brown sugar
1/4 - 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 c. vegetable medley/snow peas/sugar snap peas
2 Tbl. chopped unsalted, dry-roasted cashews/peanuts

1.  Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add onion to pan, saute for 3 minutes or until tender.
2.  Add garlic and saute 30 seconds, stirring constantly.  Add chicken, saute 3 minutes or until no longer pink in the middle.
3.  Combine water, soy sauce, cornstarch, brown sugar & red pepper flakes and stir until sugar dissolves.  Add to pan and bring to a boil.
4.  Add vegetables and cook for 2 minutes or until veggies are crisp-tender and sauce has thickened.  Sprinkle with nuts.

Perfect with 1/2 - 3/4 c. rice in a bowl.  It makes 4 servings, at 250 calories per serving (excluding rice).

it smells so good!

nom nom nom

Nutritional Facts
servings per recipe: 4
amount per serving

Calories: 249.7
Total Fat: 10.8 g
Saturated Fat: 1.7 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 3.5 g
Monounsaturated Fat: 4.2 g
Cholesterol: 65.7 mg
Sodium: 830.2 mg
Potassium: 413.8 mg
Total Carbohydrate: 9 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.5 g
Sugar: 2.2 g
Protein: 28.7 g
Vitamin A: 4.2 %
Vitamin C: 14 %
Calcium: 4 %
Iron: 8.5 %

100th post: Slow-Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken

Whoo hoo, 100 posts!

This recipe is a simple and tasty recipe I tried Friday night.  I changed the amount of honey to about 3/4 of a cup but added some brown sugar instead.  Overall, it was a pretty good meal, the sauce was good.  Our only major note was that the chicken ended up a little dry inside and that it was more shredded than we'd like.  So maybe next time I'll cut up the chicken breasts a bit before adding them into the crock pot.  But, it's a keeper and was so easy and went well with rice and broccoli!

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
salt & pepper
1 c. honey (I used 3/4 c. + about 4 Tbl. brown sugar instead)
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. diced onion (I used 2 Tbl. minced, dried onion instead)
1/4 c. ketchup
2 Tbl. vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced (I used 1 tsp. dried, minced onion)
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
4 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 6 Tbl. water
sesame seeds

1.  Season both sides of chicken lightly with salt & pepper (I just did one side), put into crock pot.
2.  In small bowl, combine honey (& brown sugar), soy sauce, onion, ketchup, oil, garlic & pepper flakes.  Pour over chicken.
3.  Cook on low for 3 - 4 hours or on high 1 1/2 - 2 1/2 hours, or just until chicken is cooked through.  I had Zak turned the chicken over about halfway through.
4.  Remove chicken from crock pot, leave sauce.  Dissolve cornstarch in water and pour in; stir to combine with sauce.
5.  Replace lid and cook sauce on high for ten more minutes, or until slightly thickened.  Meanwhile, cut chicken into bite sized pieces.
6.  Return chicken to pot once sauce has thickened, and toss before serving.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

delicious!

Nutritional Facts
servings per recipe: 6
amount per serving

Calories: 375.3
Total Fat: 6.3 g
Saturated Fat: 0.8 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.8 g
Monounsaturated Fat: 3.1 g
Cholesterol: 76.7 mg
Sodium: 1,443.9 mg
Potassium: 407.1 mg
Total Carbohydrate: 48.8 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.4 g
Sugar: 45.5 g
Protein: 33.6 g
Vitamin A: 0.6 %
Vitamin C: 5.2 %
Calcium: 2.9 %
Iron: 7.2 %

Slow Cooker San Francisco Pork Chops

I found this recipe on Pinterest, and got a craving for pork chops.  I'm still not 100% confident with using pork in recipes, or my slow cooker, but this recipe looked right up my alley.  I've used my slow cooker a bit more in the last few months, and am starting to love it.  I didn't know they were so many types of recipes you could make with one!  Anyways, this looked delicious, so I thought I'd give it a shot.  It turned out fairly salty, so I'd recommend lightly seasoning the pork chops and using low-sodium broth and soy sauce.

4 pork chops, about 1-inch thick [it apparently doesn't matter if you use boneless or bone-in chops]
2 Tbl. olive oil
salt & pepper for seasoning
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. chicken broth
2 Tbl. packed light brown sugar
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 Tbl. cornstarch
1 Tbl. cold water

1.  In a large 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat until simmering and hot.  Lightly season the pork chops on both sides with salt & pepper.  Brown the chops for 1 - 2 minutes on each side until golden.  Transfer to slow cooker.
2.  Turn heat down to medium and add the garlic to the drippings in the skillet and stir constantly until garlic is aromatic and golden (but not burned!).  Stir in the soy sauce, broth, brown sugar & red pepper flakes.  Cook and stir until sugar is dissolved.  Pour over chops.
3.  Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 7 - 8 hours until meat is tender.  If using bone-in pork chops, fish out the bones.  Remove the chops from the slow cooker to a shallow pan or plate - they will most likely be falling apart in tenderness at this point.
4.  In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch and cold water until smooth.  Whisk the mixture into the sauce in the slow cooker.  Return the chops and cook on high for 30 - 60 minutes longer, until sauce is slightly thickened [if you want a very thick sauce, once you've removed the chops from the cooker, pour the sauce into a pan and place it over medium heat on the stove.  Add in cornstarch mixture and bring sauce to boil; boil for 1 - 2 minutes, until thick.  Add pork and heat through.].
5.  Serve chops over rice or mashed potatoes.

with flash

so tender!

Nutritional Facts
servings per recipe: 4
amount per serving

Calories: 357
Total Fat: 16.9 g
Saturated Fat: 5.8 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.8 g
Monounsaturated Fat: 7.5 g
Cholesterol: 90.1 mg
Sodium: 1505.1 mg
Potassium: 657.5 mg
Total Carbohydrate: 17.4 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.1 g
Sugar: 14 g
Protein: 35 g
Vitamin A: 0.2 %
Vitamin C: 1.9 %
Calcium: 4.6 %
Iron: 7.5 %

Katsu Chicken

This recipe was wonderful! I got it from food.com, who in turn, I guess got it from the L&L Hawaiian Barbeque Grill chain. Ever since we've been to our local Hawaiian place, I've been curious about making some of the dishes. We know that my macaroni salad recipe beats theirs, and my mom's teriyaki marinade / sauce is awesome, but I was curious about making chicken katsu (sort of life a fried chicken cutlet with a sweet barbeque sauce).

So I searched and searched for a recipe that looked like what I knew chicken katsu to be. The only problem was the recipe was for 5 - 7 servings, using 4 lbs. of chicken. So I had to be creative with my measuring. What I'm listing below isn't 100% what I used to make it, but what will probably be a pretty accurate measurement for 1 lb. of chicken. Now, for the sauce, I only halved the recipe I had, and it made 4 cups' worth. And we maybe used...half a cup, total. What I'm posting below will be half of what I used, so hopefully it will make about 2 cups.

All in all, this was a wonderful, delicious meal; and much easier than I thought! Since we have so much leftover sauce, I will be making again really soon (darn!). Enjoy this with mac salad, rice and corn for a traditional Hawaiian plate lunch!

Chicken:

1 lb. chicken (the recipe called for thighs, but we only had breasts, and they worked fine)

1 1/2 - 2 c. Japanese panko bread crumbs

1 egg

1/3 c. water

1/4 c. cornstarch

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. white pepper

1. Pound chicken with a rolling pin.

2. Combine egg, water, cornstarch and spices to make a batter.

3. Coat chicken in egg mixture, then roll in panko crumbs, being sure to cover entire piece.

4. Fry in oil until golden brown and crispy (I used our biggest pan, with several tablespoons of oil, it worked just fine).

Katsu Sauce:

1/4 c. Worcestershire sauce

1/4 c. ketchup

1/4 c. sugar

1 c. water

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. chicken bouillon

1/4 tsp. white pepper

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1 dash Tabasco sauce (didn't use this, since we didn't have it, but it was fine without it)

cornstarch mixed with water (thickener)

1. Combine all ingredients (except cornstarch mixed with water) and bring to a boil.

2. Add the cornstarch that has been mixed in with the water and stir until thick.

3. Serve on top of chicken and rice!

all breaded and ready for frying

delicious, delicious sauce

fry them for about 2 -3 minutes on one side

until they are perfectly golden brown

and enjoy with all the essentials: rice, corn, mac salad!

Macaroni & Cheese (Kraft Knockoff)

I will admit that I kind of love Kraft mac & cheese (the best is the 3 cheese shells, ohh). Sometimes you just need some comfort food and it hits the spot. The other day while Zak was at work, I had a craving for it, but seeing as how I was stranded at home and it was cold and rainy outside, I opted not to walk to the store to get a box of it. So I looked online and found a good 'taste-a-like' of it. It was super easy, and pretty tasty!

2 quarts water

1 Tbl. salt

2 c. uncooked elbow (or shell, whatever) macaroni

2 Tbl. butter

1/2 lb. cheese, grated (about 2 cups)

1 tsp. cornstarch

2 tsp. flour

1 c. milk

1/2 tsp. lemon juice

1/4 c. ham, chopped into 1/4 inc. cubes (I didn't have ham when I made this, so I opted it out, but I'm sure it's good in it)

black pepper

onion salt

1. In a medium bowl, mix corn starch in with cheese, so that it's coated (this helps cheese from getting too stringy).

2. Bring water and salt to a boil, add pasta and cook 7 or so minutes, drain when finished.

3. While pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce by melting butter in a large saucepan on medium heat.

4. Whisk in the flour; slowly dribble in the milk and continue to whisk until the sauce is smooth.

5. Slowly add in the cheese and whisk until smooth. Stir in the lemon juice.

6. Add in the cooked, drained macaroni and ham. Sprinkle in pepper and onion salt.

Banana Custard Pudding

So we had some bananas that were getting on the old side. I didn't feel up to making banana bread, especially since we had about a dozen blueberry muffins lying around the house. Then I somehow got the idea for banana pudding, because who doesn't like pudding? And I've made pudding before, so I figured it wouldn't be too difficult. This recipe was only challenging because I wasn't paying enough faithful attention to it, while on the stove. So the texture wasn't what I wanted, but overall, it was pretty tasty. I would definitely cut the sugar amount by at least a quarter or more, because it was super sweet. The original recipe called for basically making a vanilla custard, then adding in sliced banana pieces before serving. We decided to mush and whisk up the bananas with some milk and add it in with the vanilla. Next time, we will blend them up. But, still, yummy!

1/2 c. sugar (like I said, I bet it'd be fine with anywhere from 1/3 c. - 1/4 c.)

1 Tbl. cornstarch

dash of salt

1 1/2 c. milk

3 egg yolks, beaten

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

2 bananas, mushed/blended with a little bit of milk

1. Combine sugar, cornstarch and salt in saucepan.

2. Over medium heat, slowly add milk, stirring until mixture comes to a boil, keeping a close eye on it!

3. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

4. Temper egg yolks by adding a small amount of hot liquid to them, then return all to the saucepan.

5. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly, then remove from heat.

6. Stir in vanilla and bananas, then chill for 1 hour..

Sorry there are no pictures, it wasn't as pretty as I wanted! Maybe next time I make it!

Homemade Cheeseburger Macaroni Hamburger Helper

I don't recall having Hamburger Helper for dinner growing up, so I will cite my first memory of having it within the last year, when Zak had me buy a few boxes of it. I didn't mind it, and it's certainly easy to make after a long day at work or school, so we would have it now and then. Yesterday I got a craving for it, but decided to see if I could find a comparable recipe and make it without the box and its packages flavors. So I went to food.com (previously recipezaar, I'm not fond of their new site) and found a few recipes I'd like to try. The one below is what I made last night and was pretty tasty. I may add a bit of sour cream to get it creamier and/or some more spices.

1/2 - 1 lb. lean ground beef
1 c. hot water (boiled first then measured)
2 c. milk
1 1/2 c. elbow macaroni
1 c. cheese

'Sauce Packet'
1 Tbl. cornstarch
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. onion powder (1 tsp. minced onion & 1/2 tsp. garlic powder is a good substitute)
1 tsp. garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar

1. Brown ground beef in large skillet, drain.
2. Add hot water, milk, pasta & 'sauce packet' ingredients.
3. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat & simmer 12 minutes or until pasta is tender.
4. In the last few minutes, add cheese, stir & recover.
5. When pasta is tender and cheese melted, remove from heat.
6. Let stand about 5 minutes, sauce will thicken.
7. Top with additional cheese if desired.

with the flash on, doesn't look as appetizing as it really is

without flash

Cherry Pie

This week I made cherry pie, for the first time ever.  I actually don't even remember having cherry pie that often, but I know Zak loves it, and we had a huge bag of pie cherries from his grandparents, so I decided to give it a shot.  I've only made  pie crust a handful of times (Zak has always been around to help out with that; we made apple pie a few Thanksgivings ago together), so I was a bit nervous.  I used a recipe from my Better Homes & Gardens cookbook, since it seemed pretty simple.  The result was very delicious, however, next time I will perhaps make it thicker, because we had a fair amount of cherry syrup hanging around in the bottom of the pan.  Oh well, not bad for my first time!

Pastry for Double-Crust Pie:

2 1/4 c. flour
3/4 tsp. salt
2/3 c. shortening
8 - 10 Tbl. cold water

1. In a medium bowl, stir together flour and salt.  Using a pastry blender, cut in shortening until pieces are pea size.
2. Sprinkle 1 Tbl. of water over part of the flour mixture; toss with  fork.  Push moistened pastry to side of bowl; repeat until all of the flour mixture is moistened.  Divide pastry in half; form halves into balls.
3. On lightly floured surface, slightly flatten one pastry ball.  Roll it from the center to the edges into a circle 12 inches in diameter.
4. Wrap pastry circle around the rolling pin; unroll into a 9-inch pie plate.
5. Roll remaining ball into circle; cut slits in it.  Place onto filling; trim the two crust edges and then fold top under the bottom and crimp edges as desired.

Pie Filling:


1 1/4 c. sugar
3 Tbl. cornstarch
5 1/2 fresh (or frozen) unsweetened pitted tart red cherries
1 recipe Pastry for Double-Crust Pie

1. In large bowl, stir together sugar and cornstarch.  Add cherries; toss gently until coated.  Let mixture stand about 15 minutes or until a syrup forms, stirring occasionally (if using frozen cherries, let it stand about 45 minutes or until fruit is partially thawed but still icy).
2. Preheat oven to 375-degrees.  Prepare and roll out the pastry dough.
3. Stir cherry mixture, transfer to pastry-lined pie plate.  Trim bottom pastry to edge of pie plate.  Cut slits in remaining pastry; place on filling and seal; crimp edges as desired.
4. If desired, brush top pastry with milk and sprinkle with additional sugar.  Place pie on a baking sheet.  To prevent overbrowning, cover edge of pie with foil.
5. Bake for 30 minutes (or 50 for partially thawed frozen fruit).  Remove foil.  Baking an additional 25-30 minutes or until filling is bubbly and pastry is golden.  Cool on a wire rack.

ready for the top crust

ready to go in the oven!

mmmmmmm!

not as pretty, but still delicious!

Delicious Fruit Cobbler

I modified this recipe I found in a cookbook. Well, we had peaches, strawberries, bananas and some frozen blueberries, and no cherries. Besides, doesn't the combination of that fruit sound better than just cherries? Yes. Yes it does. This cobbler was so good (both cold and warm) that Zak ended up licking the bowl. He loved it and I will be surely making this again this summer. It's a homerun.

1 c. flour
2 Tbl. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cinnamon (optional)
1/4 c. butter
5 c. fresh (or frozen, but it's summer, go for fresh!) fruit [I used three peaches, several larger strawberries, one banana, and it was about 1/2 c. frozen blueberries. I just tried to get at least 5 cups of fruit]
2/3 c. sugar
1/4 c. water
1 Tbl. cornstarch
1 egg
1/4 c. milk
whipped cream (we make our own with whipping cream and a few Tbl. of sugar and a dash of vanilla, way better than store-bought stuff) OR vanilla ice cream

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. For topping, stir together (in medium bowl) flour, 2 Tbl. sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon (if desired). Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; set aside.
3. For filling, in large saucepan, combine the fruit, 2/3 c. sugar, water, cornstarch. Cook over medium heat until it starts to bubble and thicken.
4. In a small bowl, stir together egg and milk. Add to flour mixture, stirring just until moistened.
5. Pour fruit mixture in 2-quart square pan (I used my 8x8"). Using a spoon, drop topping into six mounds on top of the filling.
6. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, or until topping is golden brown (18 was the magic number for me). Let cool in pan on a wire rack about 1 hour. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

before adding the topping

cooling

super delicious!

NEW & improved sesame chicken!

Ok, for the last few months I have been tweaking the recipe for sesame chicken, and I think I finally got it down! I made this last week and it was super yummy. The big change to this recipe and the one before is not mixing the chicken, sauce & rice together in the wok [we found it would get too clumpy and sticky]. So here we go:

4 - 6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
vegetable oil, for frying
1 - 2 Tbl. sesame seeds

Sauce
about 2 Tbl. soy sauce
1/4 c. water
1/2 c. chicken broth
3 Tbl. brown sugar
1/2 c. honey (it helps to microwave before and/or after)
1 Tbl. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. ground ginger

Batter
1/2 Tbl. onion salt [if you don't have this, use 1 Tbl. of the garlic salt]
1/2 Tbl. garlic salt
1/2 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1. Whisk together sauce ingredients in a bowl, set aside.
2. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces.
3. Combine batter ingredients in a small bowl; coat chicken with batter.
4. Heat oil in large skillet or wok.
5. Add coated chicken and fry until golden brown and cooked all the way through. You may need to add oil once or twice.
6. Meanwhile, thicken sauce over a small saucepan on medium high until it thickens & bubbles.
7. Pour sauce over chicken and rice in serving plate or bowl
8. Sprinkle sesame seeds over and enjoy.

Mmmmmm!

Basil Chicken in Coconut-Curry Sauce

I first made this in December, after looking through my Bridal edition of the Better Homes & Gardens cookbook. It looked delicious, and since I was craving some kind of coconut curry dish, decided to make it.  Zak and I have made it a few more times; we even made it for his family over the winter holidays. It's a little time-consuming but oh, so worth it. Below is our slightly altered version.

2 tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. cracked black pepper
1/4 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. salt
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (I also kind of approximate the amount)
1 Tbl. olive oil
1/2 of a large red (or white) onion, diced
1 serrano pepper, seeded and finely chopped (the recipe originally calls for 2 jalapeño peppers, but we didn't want to use those)
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 13.5- or 14-oz. can unsweetened coconut milk
1 Tbl. cornstarch
5-6 Tbl. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
3 Tbl. snipped fresh basil (about 4 leaves)
1 tsp. grated fresh ginger
rice to serve over (maybe 3 cups?)

1. In a medium bowl combine curry powder, black pepper, 1/4 tsp. salt, and chili powder. Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Add to spices, toss to coat. Cover and chill for 1 - 2 hours to allow spices to sink in.

2. Pour oil into large skillet or wok (we use our wok, which we love!); heat over medium-high heat. Add onion, pepper and garlic; cook and stir for about 8 minutes (until crisp-tender), then remove from wok. Add half of the chicken and cook for about 4 - 6 minutes (until no longer pink); remove from wok, repeat with remaining chicken.

3. Stir together coconut milk, sugar, cornstarch and 1/4 tsp. salt until smooth. Add to wok, carefully. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly. Return chicken and onion mixture to wok. Stir in basil and ginger. Cook and stir about 2 minutes, serve over hot rice. *We usually add rice to the wok to mix it all together, it is a good way to soak up the sauce.

Cooked chicken

Chicken and onion mixture

All done!

Ready to be enjoyed :)

'Golden' Potato Soup

This soup is very hearty and great paired with a thick bread.  It's also pretty simple and a favorite of ours.

2 Tbl. butter
1/2 c. onion
1/4 c. celery
1 medium carrot, shredded
3 large potatoes, peeled & diced (add salt to these)
1 1/2 c. water
2 c. milk
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbl. flour
2 Tbl. cornstarch
6 Tbl. water
1 - 1 1/2 c. shredded cheese (we usually have a bag with a pizza blend of three cheeses in the fridge)
paprika (for garnish)

1. Sauté butter, onion and celery.
2. Add carrot, 1 1/2 c. water, and potatoes; bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover until tender (about 20 - 25 minutes).
3. Stir in milk, pepper and salt, bring to a gentle boil, stir often.
4. Mix flour, cornstarch and water in a small bowl, then add to soup; stir until thick.
5. Add cheese, stir until completely melted.
6. Serve, with sprinkling of paprika for garnish.

*When I have green onions, I will add about 1/4 c. and sauté with the first three ingredients. I also use some as a garnish.

Sesame Chicken

Zak and I love Chinese take-out and sesame chicken is one of our favorite dishes. When I found this recipe, we didn't have enough money to go out for Chinese, so I was trying to find a recipe that would be similar to what we've had before. This recipe is delicious, but we keep making small adjustments to it. The next time we make it, I'm sure we'll find something to change. In that case, I'll edit this post with *asterisks* with what we've changed to it. Enjoy this recipe, it is sooo yummy!

4 - 6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (again, I guesstimate each time)
vegetable oil, for frying
1 - 2 Tbl. sesame seeds

Sauce
a little less than 1/4 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. water or chicken broth (we mostly use water)
2 Tbl. brown sugar
1/4 c. honey (it helps to microwave before and/or after, for about 30 seconds)
1 Tbl. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (depending on how much chicken and rice you use, it can be pretty hot)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp. ground ginger

Batter
1/2 Tbl. onion salt (Zak's favorite new spice)
1/2 Tbl. garlic salt
1/2 c. flour (if you use more chicken, up to 1 c. flour)
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1. Whisk together sauce ingredients in a bowl, set aside (I usually put it in the fridge).
2. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces.
3. Combine batter ingredients in a small bowl; coat chicken with batter.
4. Heat oil in large skillet or wok.
5. Add coated chicken and fry until golden brown and cooked all the way through. You may need to add oil once or twice.
6. Pour sauce over chicken and simmer until thickens and bubbles a bit.
7. Sprinkle sesame seeds over--we usually just eyeball it, until it looks perfect.
8. Serve over rice, or add a few scoops of rice into wok and toss altogether.

Blueberry and Sour Cream Crumb Coffee Cake

Last week I made delicious blueberry muffins, but still had a ton of blueberries left over. So I went on a search to find a recipe to use them with. I know Zak likes sour cream-blueberry pie, but that option was eliminated once I discovered we didn't have enough graham crackers to make a pie crust, and I didn't have the car to go grab a pie crust. Instead, I found this wonderful recipe on recipezaar, one of my favorite cooking websites. This recipe was absolutely delectable and will be a keeper!

Filling
1/2 lb. blueberries (I probably used a bit more than 1/2 lb.)
2 Tbl. sugar
2 Tbl. cornstarch

Crumbs
1/3 c. brown sugar
1/3 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
1/2 c. butter, melted
1 3/4 c. flour

Cake
1/3 c. sour cream
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. flour
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
6 Tbl. butter, softened, cut into 6 - 8 pieces

1. Preheat oven to 325-degrees.
2. Toss together the filling ingredients.
3. Whisk together all of the crumb ingredients, except the flour (brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon, salt, melted butter) until smooth.
4. Add the flour in--the dough will look solid.
5. In a small bowl, mix together sour cream, egg, egg yolk and vanilla.
6. In mixer, add flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
7. Add butter and one spoonful of sour cream mixture until moist-mix for about 30 seconds.
8. Add remaining sour cream mixture, in two batches, mixing for 20 seconds each time.
9. Reserve 1/2 c. of entire cake batter mixture.
10. Pour the rest of batter into an 8x8-inch pan.
11. Add blueberries, then 1/2 c. of reserved mixture.
12. Sprinkle crumbs over top-should be about 1/2" - 3/4" in size.
13. Bake for 45 - 55 minutes. Cool completely.