Cherry Muffins

We made a very yummy breakfast this morning.
My mother-in-law sent us two jars of her home-canned cherries
on our anniversary,
and these are some of our favorite things.
We eat them straight out of the jar, with a spoon!
I also have enjoyed experimenting with baking
and using some of her cherries.
The flavor is fantastic!

So...
I created
Cherry Muffins
In blender
(we use our magic bullet):

1 egg
1 Tbsp oil
1/4 c white sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/3 c. milk
Cream these together.
1 c. Bisquik mix
I add it little by little,
mixing as I go.

3 tsp cherry syrup
about 10 cherries pitted, roughly chopped
(I think if you wanted to use fresh cherries
you could do it,
and just add some white grape juice instead of syrup
and an extra Tbsp of sugar)
Add these straight to the batter
and turn on the blender.
It will turn purple.
So pretty!

Pour batter into greased muffin cups.
Top each muffin cup with three pieces of cherry.

Bake at 400 degrees
13 minutes or until knife comes out clean.

Enjoy!
Mmmmm!

Chimichurri Steak & Alfredo

Last night we made Chimichurri
(from my mom's amazing recipe
which she got from The Columbus Steakhouse in Ecuador)
on steak skewers with grilled bell pepper and purple onion

We ate, it was yum.
But I was wondering what to do with the left overs.
The meat that we bought was on MAJOR sale
at the grocery store yesterday.
It's a Top Round London Broil
or something like that,
and then I cubed it, marinated it in the chimi
and then we grilled it a few hours later.
While it was tastey, it was a little chewy,
and didn't have a great "meat" flavor,
so hoped for inspiration
with the leftovers for lunch.

Inspiration came!

I created
Chimi AlfredoI do wish I had a few other ingredients on hand.
If doing it over again, I would hope to have fresh Parmesan cheese to add,
and cream instead of milk.
Also, just beware, that my portion
was just barely enough for two people,
as I was making it with leftovers.

Chimi-Alfredo
In pot:Boil Water for
enough bow tie pasta
for two portions
After boiling, add generous salt.
Add pasta.
Drain when done.

In deep frying pan:
1 Tbsp butter
1/4 purple onion, chopped
Saute for a few minutes.(I used the leftover grilled ones)

1/2 c. white wine
2 Tbsp Chimichurri sauce
Let simmer and reduce to about half.
3 Tbsp ricotta cheese
salt and pepper
3 Tbsp milk (I would like to use cream)
large handful cubed leftover steak
1/4 red pepper, sliced
Whisk together. Bring to a simmer.
Let simmer for a few minutes,
frequently whisking together.

1/4 c. sour cream
(add fresh parmesean now if you have it)
Whisk together again. Heat until bubbling.
Let thicken for two minutes.
Add cooked pasta. Simmer two more minutes.
Serve with lots of bread to soak up the sauce.
I am sure you can imagine
that the Parm and cream would
add a bit of decadence,
but it was quite a tasty leftover meal!
I've seen some Alfredo sauces
use mozzarella in their mix as well,
and that would probably add richness too.

**side note**
This is obviously not a
"watch your waistline" meal
but what alfredo sauce is?**end side note**

Just in cases you want,
here's the recipe our family uses for

ChimiChurri(a la Columbus Steakhouse, Quito, Ecuador)

1/2 c "large leaf" dried oregano leaves
(we get these
in South America-
haven't seen them
yet Stateside)
1/4 c dried, crushed oregano
(like what you
buy off the
spice rack)
1 clove finely chopped garlic
(or 1 tsp jarred
garlic paste)
1/4 very finely chopped red onion
2 tsp salt (you want it salty)
1 c. cooking oil (corn oil, vegetable oil, etc)

It makes a little over 2 cups of Chimi.
I keep mine for several days
(if it lasts us that long... we really like it!)
and we eat it on bread a LOT.
I like it when it's sat together
for about 3 hours or more,
but it's very tasty if you have to
make and eat right away.

Creamy Mushroom Enchiladas

Creamy Mushroom Enchiladas

I had mushrooms in the fridge that needed to be eaten,
and I quickly formed a plan on how to use them.
Synthesizing several recipes given to me over the years,
I put together a recipe I'd like to share. Mmm.

I started by lightly sauteeing Mushrooms in margarine
(I use "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter")
With Green Onions and Black Pepper
(no salt needed)

In a bowl I mixed 1/4 c. sourcream
with 1/2 can Italian Stewed Tomatoes, chopped,
and one can drained green chiles.

Then I warmed white corn tortillas in the micro.

I set the other 1/2 can Italian Stewed Tomatoes aside,
and poured shredded MexiCheese into a bowl.

Now to assemble:
In a Pam-sprayed casserole dish
I put three spoonfuls of mushroom,
one spoonful of chopped stewed tomatoes,
one large spoonful green chile mixture,
about 1 Tbsp of shredded cheese
and rolled them together.

Once all tortillas had been filled
I poured the remaining green chile mixture over top,
smothered in cheese,
and topped with bits of the chopped tomatoes.

Seriously fantastic,
served with sour cream!!

So if you decide to have a veggie meal some night
they were FANTASTIC.

(and no--
my husband does not eat mushrooms.
I made his enchiladas with chicken.
He said they were good too,
but I did not photograph those...)

Egg Nog Pancakes

A Snowy White Christmas

• 
  

  Well, we're in Montana

  And much like the rest of the Northern states

  We are COVERED in snow!

  It's gorgeous

  and now I can much appreciate it, 

  as we are finally here!

  
  

  We drove this year

  from Los Angeles

  and only 2 hours north of L.A.

  we began to hit snow!!

  Here are cactus in their winterwonderland:

   

  
  

  And since we're here in our warm home

  watching it snow ALL DAY

  (literally! It's not supposed to stop ALL DAY!)

  I thought I'd try Inga and Kelley's Choco-Mint Cookies.

   

  
  

  They are a hit!

  Everyone is thoroughly enjoying!

  Thanks for the recipe, Kelley!

  
  

  When we stopped in Utah to have breakfast with friends

  on our way home, I received a precious lil' gift

  from William Sonoma! Looky Looky!

   

  
  

  It was a Rudolph, Santa and Frosty pancake mold pack!

  They're so cute!

  And we made EGG NOG pancakes...

  Quite yum!

  
  

  We got the recipe from a coffee table book:

  Southern Living: Christmas Cookbook

  
  

  Eggnog Pancakes

  Prep: 15 min     Cook: 10 min.

  
  

  1 1/3 c. all-purpose flour

  1/4 c. sugar

  1 tsp. baking soda

  1/2 tsp. salt

  1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

  1/8 tsp. ground cloves

  1 1/2 c. refridgerated eggnog

  1 large egg, beaten

  1 Tbsp. veg. oil

  
  

  Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl.

  Combine eggnog, eggs, and oil in another bowl;

  add to flour mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened.

  
  

  Pour about 1/3 c. batter for each pancake.

  Cook pancakes like you do any other pancakes!

  
  

  Anyway...

  They really were good! We each only ate one- as I used about 2/3 c.

  to make them big enough to fill the Christmas molds.

  With a touch of maple syrup they were fantastic!

  
  

  Alrighty...

  Well I'm off to eat a cookie

  and see if I can help with prep for the coming festivities.

Slow Cooker Roast Marinade/Sauce

Tri-tip roasts were onsale from 6.99 per lb to
ONLY 2.99 PER POUND!
So I got a big ole' tri-tip roast
trimmed the fat
and then decided I would mix and match
between a few meat marinade recipes I have.

I browned the meat in a frying pan.
While it browned I preheated the crock pot.
When it was browned on both sides I peppered both sides
and put it in the hot crock pot.

In the pan with the browned scrapings
I added a little light-tasting olive oil
and put in a whole pack of frozen pearl onions.
Once those had begun to sizzle
I added a pack of baby carrots.
I let those cook down
and got the onions thawed.
I added one clove of minced garlic, and
I dumped all that onto the meat in the pot.

Then in the same pan I added a lil' more olive oil,
and cooked up some baby golden potatoes.
I added quite a bit of salt, and let them
begin to cook up, on low heat.

While those cooked up
I made the marinade/sauce:
3/4 c Red Wine
4 Tbsp Molasses
2 Tbsp fresh grated ginger
1 tsp curry powder
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 pack of Onion Soup Mix
I whisked it all together
poured it over the veggies and meat
in the crock pot.
I stirred up the potatoes,
and then put them in the crock pot too.

I left the crock pot on high for 3 hours.

Then just before it was time to eat
I spooned out all the potatoes
poured the second 1/2 of the Onion Soup Mix
on them, tossed them in the powder
and broiled them for 3 minutes.

YES FRIENDS IT WAS QUITE SIMPLE
and it was SO YUMMY!

Leftovers for Dinner

All there was in the fridge was some frozen veggies, eggs & bacon...

Here's what I came up with for dinner:

I sauteed onions and spinach in olive oil.
I sprinkled plenty salt.
I ground a lot of black pepper.
I poured in big spoonful of thyme.
I added hashbrowns.
I browned the veggies.
I cut and added the bacon.
I preheated the oven to 400 degrees
In a separate bowl I whisked the eggs.
I combined that with worchestershire sauce.
I placed the cooked veggies in a pie pan.
I douced that with the whisked egg mixture.
I stirred quickly before egg began to heat.
I waited while it cooked for 20 minutes.
I covered it in cheese.
I cooked it another 10 minutes.
I served it hot.

So it turned out okay.
Just a little dry.
I think it'd be better if I had 6 eggs...
Anyway- had really good flavor.

Anyone notice that I used all different verbs for the recipe?
It was fun to think of all of them!
Ha ha!

Chinese Cabbage Salad

This is my mother-in-law's recipe and we love it!

Chinese Cabbage Salad
1 head green cabbage
1/4 cup sesame seeds- toast them in your toaster oven for 1 minute
1/4 cup sliced almonds- toast them with the seeds in your toaster
4 green onions- sliced thin- including white and green parts
Toss and set aside
**2 ramen chicken soup packages of noodles- dry, crushed
(but don't put them in until ready to serve)**

In bowl:
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp black pepper
6 tbsp white vinegar
2 packets of chicken flavoring from a ramen soup package

Toss dressing with cabbage salad, and add dry noodles (right before serving).
Serve chilled.

Korean Style Beef

A friend recommended this recipe from foodnetwork, and it's FANTASTIC!
I changed a few things- like I cooked it on the grill instead of a skillet, and I marinaded it for a lot longer. So good!

Korean-style Beef
Makes 4 servings
Hands-on time: 25 minutes
Total preparation time: 25 minutes

Skirt steak (in California it's non-marinated carnitas) is one of those ingredients you would have to be very talented to mess up. It is a well-marbled, tough cut of meat that should be cooked rare to medium rare and sliced thin across the grain. Skirt steak is the full-flavored cut of beef usually used for fajitas and it takes very nicely to this Asian preparation. If you have time, make double the sauce and marinate the meat in half of it for 1 hour.

** I just made 3x the marinade, and used 3 pounds of beef!! We marinded it for 5 hours and then grilled it instead of using the skillet. It lasted us for four meals =). We did it straight with rice, we cut it up for alfred pasta bowls, OH MY GOSH FANTASTIC!, and we put it in grilled cheese sandwiches.**

3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 scallions -white and green parts-, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger -use a Microplane-
1 1/2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil (**I used olive oil and it was great**)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 pound skirt steak
Kosher salt and freshly milled black pepper

Whisk together the soy sauce, scallions, vinegar, brown sugar, ginger, sesame oil, and garlic and set aside. Season the steak with salt and black pepper on both sides. Cut into pieces (**I didn't- I just did it with the whole flap of meat**), if necessary, in order to fit all of it into the marinade bowl.

Later, after meat has marinaded:

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over high heat until hot (**I just used cooking oil spray for the grill**); add the meat. Sear the steak on both sides, 4 to 6 minutes total for medium-rare. (**On the grill it was 2 1/2 minutes on each side**)

Transfer the meat to a platter, cover loosely with foil. Tent this way for at least five minutes.

To serve, slice the steak thin, against the grain, at an angle.
(**I also microwaved the leftover marinade so that I could still use it since it had had the raw meat in it. That way I put it over my white rice. FANTASTIC!**)

A Toast

Food Network just showed a recipe for a Jamaica Coctail!!!

Make the Jamaica concentrate as normal- but also slice fresh ginger in the concentrate to add a zestful flavor. He didn't put sugar in the Jamaica concentrate, but made a simple syrup to add to the coctails by boiling sugar and water.

Coctail:
2 parts Jamaica concentrate
1 part Lime Juice
1 part Rum
1 part simple syrup
Ice to shaker

I think you could make it blended too, but he just shook it.

Sound yummy! Can't wait to try it!!