Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Always in search of the perfect egg roll....

I am always trying egg rolls from new Chinese restaurants or buffets. Inevitably I am disappointed. I like them filled to the brim and well fried. I like them hot and crispy. Occasionally, I will find one I love and then I have to eat 4 or more of them at a time. One is never enough.

Do any of you have foods you just are obsessed with?

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Monday, January 25, 2010

Menu 1-28 to 2-7- 2010

Diane's Menu 1-28-2010 to 2-7-2010


Thursday 1/28 - Chicken Sorrentino
Friday 1/29 - BBQ
Saturday 1/30 - Brazilian Black Beans and Chicken
Sunday 1/31 - Slow Cooker Lamb, Olive and Onion Tagine
Monday 2/1 - Pizza
Tuesday 2/2 - Pork and Squash Stew in slow cooker
Wednesday 2/3 - Bacon Chicken Broccoli Supreme
Thursday 2/4 - Out
Friday 2/5 Chipolte Chicken and Beans
Saturday 2/6 - Roast Beef, Garlic Smashed Potatoes, Peas
Sunday 2/7 - Most Excellent Mac and Cheese (Pressure Cooker)

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BRAZILIAN BLACK BEANS AND CHICKEN

8-10 Chicken breasts, cut into chunks
1 lg. red Onion--Cut into wedges
1 lg. Red Bell Pepper--cut into lg. pieces
8 oz. pimentos
20 oz. can black beans--drained
1 c. green onions--sliced
2/3 c. chicken broth
1/2 tsp. cumin
1 T. cornstarch
1/4 tsp. cayenne
3/4 c. current jelly
6 T. Guava jelly
4 tsp. dry Mustard
3 T. Horseradish
3 T. golden Raisins

Saute chicken quickly in oil, season and set aside.
Saute gently red onion and red pepper.
Add to chicken along with pimentos, drained black beans
and sauteed green onion.

Mix together rest of ingredients except raisins.
Bring to boil and pour over chicken.
Add raisins.

Serve with hot rice.

***
Slow Cooker Lamb, Olive and Onion Tagine - 10g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 6 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : LowCal (Less than 300 cals) LowerCarbs
Meat

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 yellow onions -- sliced into rings
1 head garlic cloves -- peeled (about 8 to 10 cloves)
2 pounds lamb stew meat -- or leg of lamb, cut into chunks
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 piece fresh ginger -- (1-inch) peeled and grated
12 ounces pitted black olives -- (1 can) drained
2 tablespoons capers
3 1/8 cups red wine -- (one bottle or 750 ml)

Use a 6-quart slow cooker.

Put the onions and garlic into the stoneware. Drop in the lamb, and sprinkle the dried spices and fresh ginger. Add the olives, capers, and wine.

Cover and cook on low for 8 to 12 hours.

Serve with mashed potatoes, polenta, or quinoa.

Serves 6

ChupaNote: if you prefer a non-alcoholic tagine, use orange, apple or grape juice to replace the red wine. To make this more like a Moroccan tagine, I replaced 1 pound of the lamb with cubed sweet potatoes, red bell peppers cubes, and carrots chunks. Add a handful or two of sultanas or raisins, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes. Reduce garlic to 2 cloves.

Source:
"Make it Fast, Cook it Slow by Stephanie O'Dea, 2009"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi):
"Jan 2010"
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 378 Calories; 14g Fat (43.3% calories from fat); 32g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 98mg Cholesterol; 701mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 4 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 1 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

NOTES : Cooker: 6-quart
Time: LOW for 8 to 12 hours

Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

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Pork and Squash Stew
============ ========
1 1/2 pounds boneless pork shoulder roast
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 1/2 pounds winter squash, such as butternut, hubbard, or
acorn, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup sliced onion
1/2 cup dried apricots
2 tablespoons raisins
1/4 cup packaged instant mashed potato flakes
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (14 ounce) can chicken broth
1 tablespoon bottled steak sauce

Trim fat from pork. Cut pork into 1-inch pieces. In a large
skillet brown pork, half at a time, in hot oil about 5 minutes.
Drain off fat.

In a 3-1/2- or 4-quart slow cooker place squash, onion, apricots,
and raisins. Add pork. Sprinkle with potato flakes, brown sugar,
pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Combine chicken broth and steak sauce;
pour over meat. Cover; cook on low-heat setting for 7 to 8 hours
or on high-heat setting for 3-1/2 to 4 hours. Stir gently before
serving.
.

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Bacon Chicken Broccoli Supreme

1 (3 lb) bag frozen, skinless chicken breasts
1 lb. turkey bacon
1 bag (lb) broccoli florets
4 cans sliced potatoes, drained
2 cans cream of chicken soup

Wrap each skinless breast with 2 pieces of bacon, place in bottom of crockpot, add bag of broccoli, sliced potatoes and top with 2 cans of the chicken soup, just smeared on top. Cover and cook all day on low for an absolutely delicious, complete meal!

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Chipotle Chicken and Beans Recipe

* 6 Servings
* Prep: 15 min.
* Cook: 30 min.

Ingredients
* 3/4 cup water, divided
* 1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
* 1/2 cup uncooked long grain rice
* 6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 3 bacon strips, diced
* 1 cup chopped onion
* 3 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 cup chopped plum tomatoes
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 cup whole-berry cranberry sauce
* 4-1/2 teaspoons minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
* 1-1/2 teaspoons lime juice
* 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
* 1 can (15 ounces) white kidney or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
Directions
* In a small saucepan, bring 1/2 cup water and broth to a boil. Stir in rice. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15-18 minutes or until rice is tender.
* Meanwhile, cut each chicken breast half widthwise into six strips. Sprinkle with salt. In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook chicken for 5 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Remove and keep warm.
* In the same skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove to paper towels; drain, reserving 1/2 teaspoon drippings. In the drippings, saute onion and garlic until tender. Add the tomatoes, cumin and cinnamon; cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the cranberry sauce, chipotle peppers, lime juice and remaining water. Bring to a boil.
* Return chicken to the pan. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 6-10 minutes or until chicken juices run clear. Remove and keep warm. Add rice and beans to the skillet; heat through. Serve chicken over bean mixture; sprinkle with bacon. Yield: 6 servings.
Nutritional Analysis: 1 serving equals 366 calories, 5 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 66 mg cholesterol, 501 mg sodium, 46 g carbohydrate, 7 g fiber, 32 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 very lean meat, 2-1/2 starch, 1 vegetable, 1/2 fat.

Chipotle Chicken and Beans published in Light & Tasty February/March 2006, p19

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Most Excellent Macaroni & Cheese

Recipe By :Bob Warden - QVC
Serving Size : 6 Preparation Time :0:00

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
Macaroni:
2 1/2 cups elbow macaroni
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules -- mixed into 2 cups of
water
1 cup water
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
Cheese:
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 ounces cream cheese
1 teaspoon yellow mustard

Add all the macaroni ingredients to pressure cooker, set cooker on high and
cook for 6 minutes.

Do quick release. Remove lid and slowly stir in cheese ingredients until
melted and creamy.


- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 313 Calories; 20g Fat (58.7% calories
from fat); 14g Protein; 19g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 61mg
Cholesterol; 454mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain(Starch); 1 1/2 Lean Meat; 3
Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.


(My notes: I use fat free cream cheese and low fat shredded cheddar. I also use whole wheat pasta. I have also added 1 cup of ham or cut up kielbasa - GREAT!)

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Saturday, January 23, 2010

How can I cook on a strange schedule?

Since I tutor most evenings until 7 or 8, I have had the luxury of cooking dinner in the middle of the day while my husband has been unemployed. This has worked well for us, and it is also much healthier than eating a big meal after 8PM at night. Not to mention, I am exhausted when I get home from tutoring and don't want to start a meal at 7:30 or 8 PM.

So, what shall I do when hubby goes back to work and doesn't get home until 6 or 7? Planning is the key, or we will be resorting to fast food and eating out. Both of which are not healthy and too expensive for our budget. I am starting a collection of slow-cooker meals that cook in 5 hours or so. I don't mean the long cook ones for 8 hours. I would like to put them in the slow cooker at 2 or 3 in the afternoon and have them done when I get home. Also, I have been contemplating on cooking my way through one of Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Cookbooks. I will be blogging about it for sure.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Menu 1-21-2010 to 1-27-2010

Diane's Menu 1/21/2010 to 1/27/2010


Thursday - Pepperoni Orzo Pasta
Friday - Champagne, Prime Rib, Broccoli, Baked Potato, Caesar Salad, Creme Brulee
Saturday - BBQ Ribs, Carrots, Brown Rice
Sunday - Dinner at my sisters house - Roast Pork, Peach Melba Dessert
Monday - Out for Birthday
Tuesday - Ham and Beans in Slow Cooker
Wednesday - Ribs, Cheesy Broccoli Rice

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