Recipe: Shoyu Chicken

I combined a couple recipes I was given by my neighbor for shoyu chicken! This what was the result...

Ingredients:

5 lbs skinless chicken thighs (on bone)

2 TBS Oil

1 cup shoyu

1 cup brown sugar

2 anise (whole)

6 cloves of garlic (sliced in half)

6 slices of fresh ginger

Directions:

1. In a pot, heat oil on high heat and brown chicken thighs.

2. Add shoyu and brown sugar.

3. Add the rest of the ingredients.

4. Boil for 40 minutes on medium heat uncovered (1 hour if not placing in crockpot).

Crock pot option: since I was making this for a party, I placed it in the crock pot at that point for 1 hour on low, and then turned it to keep warm.

It was so tender and the flavor was amazing!! The meat fell right off the bones! SUPER EASY to make!!!

For those of you who don't know what anise is... it is a spice that has a very similar flavor as licorice. It adds a beautiful blend of flavors to the shoyu chicken!

This can be found in your oriental stores (not sure if regular grocery stores carry it too).

This recipe was a hit at the potluck!

Recipe: Ranch Pretzels

I find regular pretzels so boring that I wanted to kick it up! I found a Ranch Pretzel recipe on TasteofHome.com and compared it to the one my co-worker gave me... they were very similar but the proportions were a bit different.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Ranch-Pretzels

I modified it because I didn't have 20 oz of pretzels...

Ingredients

• 1 pound of pretzels
• 1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 teaspoons dill weed
• 1 teaspoons garlic powder

Directions

• Break pretzels into bite-size pieces and place in a large bowl. Combine remaining ingredients; pour over pretzels. Stir to coat.
• Pour into an ungreased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan. Bake at 200° for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Yield: 12 cups.

This was soooo easy and these pretzels came out delicious! This would be a great party appetizer.

Recipe: Chocolate Mint Squares

I found this recipe for Chocolate Mint Squares on the Joy of Baking Website: http://www.joyofbaking.com/ChocolateMintSquares.html

Of course, I never bake according to directions... so...

I made a homemade batch of brownies from scratch using my favorite brownie recipe... though, I am sure you can use just a box of brownie mix and no one will be able to tell the difference. I made only half a batch of brownies to fit into a 8x8 pan because these little suckers are so rich that really... you don't need a WHOLE batch of them... especially when it's just for you and your husband. If you have family coming in though... this would call for a whole batch.

I did follow the Joy of Baking recipes for the mint frosting and the chocolate topping.

Mint Layer:

2 tablespoons(28 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup (115 grams) confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar, sifted

1 - 1 1/2 tablespoons heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon pure peppermint extract or 1-2 tablespoons creme de menthe

green food coloring (optional)

Chocolate Glaze:

3 ounces (90 grams) semisweet chocolate, chopped

1 tablespoon (14 grams) unsalted butter

Directions I used:

Bake brownies and cool.

Combine all Frosting ingredients, and blend till smooth. Spread on top of brownies.

Melt Chocolate chips and butter in microwave (30 seconds at a time) until smooth.

Spread on top of frosting.

Refrigerate for one hour and then serve.

One modification I did make... I used 2 Tablespoons of whipping cream instead of just 1.5 Tablespoons for the frosting... and for the chocolate topping... I had to add some whipping cream to that too because it did not melt properly... sigh... it's not as smooth as I would have liked... maybe next time.

Heavenly goodness.... my husband had 3 pieces in ONE sitting!!! 

Recipe: Shepard's Pie

I found this recipe for Shepard's Pie on: http://www.food.com/recipe/worlds-best-shepherds-pie-151604

Ingredients:

Filling

• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels 1 can of peas, drained 
• 2 tablespoons butter  cooking spray
• 1 large onion, chopped 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 1/4 lbs ground beef
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup beef broth 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup diced canned tomatoes or 1 cup crushed tomatoes in puree
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

*Note: You can see where I crossed out and made personal modifications to the recipe.

Directions I used: 

1. Boil potatoes in pot.

2. In a skillet, saute onions and celery

3. Add very lean beef

4. Add broth, flour, then diced tomatoes, then seasonings. Add drained canned peas.

5. Spray casserole pan and layer meat filling.

6. Make mashed potatoes and place on top of the filling.

7. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and paprika.

8. Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. 

Instead of sauting the veggies in butter, I just used cooking spray. Instead of using corn, I just drained a can of peas and added it at the end. 

For my mashed potatoes, I did a basic garlic dirty mashed potatoes. I was too lazy to peel potatoes, so I just cut 4 medium potatoes into 3rds, and boiled it for about 25 minutes. Next time I will boil it a bit longer to make sure they are easier to mash... I added about 1 cup of skim milk, 1/4 cup of heavy whipping cream, salt and pepper to taste, and 2 cloves of minced garlic... delicious! The best way to fluff it up is using a hand mixer!

The Results:

Yummmy...

Recipe: Moroccan Chicken Stew

From: Campbell's Kitchen

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 (4 ounce) skinless, bone-in chicken thighs
• 2 medium red onions, sliced
• 1 large green pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can Campbell's® Condensed Tomato Soup
• 1/3 cup golden raisins
• 1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained
• 1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a 5-quart saucepot over medium high heat. Add the chicken in batches and cook until well browned on both sides. Remove the chicken from the saucepot.
2. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onions, pepper and garlic and cook for 5 minutes or until they're tender-crisp. Add the cinnamon and curry and cook and stir for 1 minute. Stir in the soup and heat to a boil. Return the chicken to the saucepot. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 15 minutes.
3. Stir the raisins and chickpeas in the saucepot. Cook for 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Stir in the almonds.

My modifications: 

- used 1 white onion instead of 2 red onions

- used 1 chicken breast sliced in half instead of thighs. The perfect amount for me and my husband.

- used 2 jalapeno peppers instead of green peppers

- used regular raisins instead of the golden kind

- skipped the slivered almonds because I didn't have any...

- I did add 1.5 cup of cauliflower for the last 10 minutes, and it came out delicious! I didn't have to dirty an extra pot to make the veggie and it gave the cauliflower great flavor! 

If you use 2 chicken breasts, this will serve 4! I served the stew on top of plain couscous. It was absolutely delicious!

Definitely would make this one again!!!  

Recipe: Pumpkin Squares with Oat Crust

I found this Pumpkin Squares recipe on: http://southernfood.about.com/od/browniesbars/r/bln67.htm

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats
• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon soda
• 3/4 cup butter, room temperature

• Filling:

• 2 cups pumpkin puree (16 ounce can)
• 2/3 cup milk
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice *

Preparation:

Combine oats, flour, 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup chopped pecans, 1/2 teaspoon salt, the baking soda, and the butter; beat until mixture is crumbly. Reserve about 1 1/2 cups of the crumb mixture and press remaining mixture into a lightly buttered 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Bake at 375° for 10 minutes.

Prepare filling. Beat filling ingredients until well blended and smooth. Spread filling over the crust; sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture. Return to oven and bake 25 minutes longer. Cool and cut into bars.

*The following can be combined to make pumpkin pie spice

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger 

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 

My Notes: I pretty much followed this recipe to the T, including the pumpkin spice substitute! One thing I did do.... I beat the egg really good before I put it into the puree... to ensure that I didn't have pieces of egg in my bars! I chose to use pecans because that what I had in the house! These came out absolutely delicious! My husband actually said he liked this better than pumpkin pie!!! The bars are a bit soft like pumpkin pie so I would keep the bars in a pan until it is time to serve, instead of transferring them onto a serving plate. The topping/crust was a hit! Very very good!!! I would suggest making a little extra topping! I ran out and couldn't cover as much of the squares as I would have liked... but still delicious!