Strata

Most people who cook have a dish that they took time to learn and make their own. We put ourselves into it and really make it a masterpiece. It becomes that dish that we love to serve people. Strata is that dish for me. It has taken me a few years to get it perfect, but now I can pretty much make it without thinking about it and serve it with such a variety of ingredients that it doesn't take much for me to whip up.

I make it for brunch or dinner just switching up ingredients. I will have variations on the end of this recipe. 

Strata - roasted chicken, red & green bell peppers, mushrooms

1 loaf of French or Italian Bread cubed, crusts on - 6 to 8 cups
9 eggs
2 cups milk or half and half
2 cups cooked meat
2 to 3 cups of vegetables
2 cups cheese
seasonings

In an extra large bowl, place bread, cheese, meat, and vegetables. Using an electric mixer, blend eggs and milk. Pour over bread mixture. Fold until pieces of bread are coated with egg mixture. Coat a 9 x 13 baking dish with butter or cooking spray. Pour mixture into baking pan and either cover and refrigerate until up to 8 hours before cooking or cook right away.

Ingredient Variations
I like to season the vegetables and then mix into bread cubes. 
 

HAM, SWISS, AND ASPARAGUS
Mix 2 cups grated Swiss cheese into the cubed bread. Mix in 1 cup blanched asparagus pieces, 2 cup cubed cooked ham, and 1/2 cup sauteed onions fold into the egg and bread mixture.


CHICKEN or BREAKFAST SAUSAGE, CHEDDAR, BELL PEPPERS, MUSHROOM, AND TOMATO
Sprinkle 2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese over the bread cubes. Distribute 1 cup cooked chicken or ground browned breakfast sausage,1 cup sauteed bell peppers, 1 cup sautéed sliced mushrooms, and 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes fold into the egg and bread mixture.


CHICKEN, TOMATOES, SPINACH, CORN, CHILES, AND JACK
Sprinkle 2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese over the bread cubes. Distribute 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels, 1 cup tomatoes, 1 cup spinach, one 4.5-ounce cans (drained) chopped green chiles, and 1 cup shredded cooked chicken fold into the egg and bread mixture.

breakfast sausage, red peppers, mushrooms

ham and cheese

Red Robin's Black Beans Recipe

When I got out of surgery, of course, I was hungry. Michael had been joking around with me about him going to get a burger and I was of course dreaming of them before the end of the day. A couple days after surgery, Michael stopped to get Red Robin as take out. We invited Wendy come over so she went to order and pick it up with him. She opted to get Black Beans instead of fries with her burger. I had a taste and OH MY...they were so very good. I instantly thought I need to replicate these. So here is my version of Red Robin's Black Beans. I served with Chicken Fajitas, but look forward to serving them with other Mexican dishes.

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/2 large onion, chopped

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers with liquid

1 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoon chili powder

2 teaspoon cumin

a dash ground cinnamon

1/2 cup water

2 (15 ounce) cans black beans - rinsed

Warm oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion, and cook about 2 minutes; then stir in garlic, and cook until onion is soft and translucent.  Add all ingredients to slow cooker and cook on high for 1 hour or low for 2 to 3. Serve with sour cream.

Potstickers

This recipe makes about 48 potstickers. I make them for parties or I  freeze them in smaller meal size batches. Very rarely I will split the recipe in half. I have included freezing instructions on the bottom of this recipe.

1 lb ground pork (also good with ground chicken)
6  water chestnuts, diced
2 or 3 green onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoon finely chopped, peeled fresh ginger (ground ginger does work in it's place)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons soy sauce (plus some for dunking)
2 packages of wonton wrappers
2 to 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil


In a medium to large bowl, mix  the ground pork, water chestnuts, green onions, ginger, garlic and soy sauce.

Take one wrapper at a time and spoon a rounded teaspoon of filling in the center. Keep the rest of the wonton wrappers covered with a damp towel.

Wet the four edges of the wrapper with dampened fingers. Fold wrapper in half over filling to form a triangle, making sure the ends meet and filling is centered; press edges down firmly to seal.

Spray a platter or plate with cooking spray, place sealed potstickers, cover with a damp towel to keep moist. Fill plate and place in the refrigerator to keep cool while you continue to fill wrappers. Repeat filling each wrapper until all the filling is gone.

Heat 1/2 cup water to in a 12-inch nonstick skillet with a tight-fitting lid. Add about 9 to12 potstickers to the pan, cover and steam until translucent and just cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes or until most of the water is evaporated. Don't pack them too close or they stick together. Heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high in skillet. Cook until lightly browned - turning once, about 1 minute per side. Repeat with remaining tablespoon oil and wontons. Serve with soy sauce.

FREEZER Instructions:
Prepare the potstickers up to the cooking stage.

Take a baking sheet and line it parchment paper or aluminum foil.  Place the potstickers on the baking sheet so that they are not overlapping or touching. Place in the freezer.

After the potstickers are frozen, place them in a freezer bag. They can be frozen for up to 3 months.

When ready to use, cook the potstickers as usual, without thawing. The cooking time will be a bit longer than usual.

52 Week Photo Project: Week 1

Breakfast on New Years Day

This is an easy, versatile breakfast that has many names. I grew up with my Grandma and Dad calling them Toad in the Hole. But I have heard them called, Eggs in a Nest. It is simply an egg in a hole in bread.

The normal way is to do this in a frying pan, but then that means cooking them almost one at a time. If you are doing several, I find baking them much easier. Plus it allows me to walk away and do other things while they are cooking.

We like even having these for a quick dinner when things have been so busy during the day.

Ingredients
serves 4

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for sheet
4 slices sandwich bread
4 large eggs
Salt and pepper to taste

Optional toppings: grated cheese, finely chopped green onion, crumbled bacon, ham, chopped parsley, sliced avocado, hot sauce, and chopped tomatoes

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Generously butter (or use coat with cooking spray) a rimmed baking sheet.

Butter bread on both sides. With a cookie cutter or drinking glass, cut a 2 1/2-inch round from center of each bread slice. Place slices and rounds on sheet and bake until golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from oven and flip bread.

Carefully crack 1 egg into center of each slice. Season with salt and pepper. Bake until egg whites are set, but yolks are still slightly runny or cooked hard, 8 to 10 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through (sprinkle with cheese, bacon, ham, onion, if using, during last minute of baking). Serve with desired toppings.

NOTES:
During the holidays - I used heart, star, snowflake shaped cookie cutters. With Valentine's approaching, I will be doing these for breakfast with crumbled bacon and cheese on top and using a heart cookie cutter on the bread.

Easy Gravy for Biscuits & Gravy

Ingredients:
biscuits - out of a can, Bisquick, or your favorite recipe
1 pound ground breakfast sausage
1/4 cup flour
2 1/2 cups milk
salt and pepper to taste 

Directions: 
Bake biscuits 

Brown sausage in large skillet over medium heat 5-6 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring frequently.

Sprinkle flour over the top of the sausage.  Gradually add milk; cook until mixture comes to a boil and thickens, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

NOTES:
* Make it easy - do Grand's biscuits out of the can. Quick and easy.
* Do not drain the grease from the sausage that is where ALL the flavor and of course fat is at so don't get rid of it.
* I added just milk - not whole or 2%, because I have used both whole and 2% and of course whole tastes better, but 2% still works and tastes good too. I have never used skim or 1%. 

* If it is too thick, then add more milk.  If it is too thin, add more flour.

Frittata

Frittata is so good and also so easy. You can add almost anything to it. The base component of a frittata is eggs - then you add veggies, cheese, meat and seasoning to it. I love using left overs. Last night I made one with mushrooms, broccoli, a little pepper jack cheese, potatoes and then some chopped turkey I threw in too at the last moment. I used smoked paprika and black pepper as my only seasonings and it was fantastic.

The one in the photo above, I used for brunch when I had left over roasted peppers and mushrooms. I threw in potatoes and breakfast sausage. A frittata is great meatless too - I have done cheese, potatoes and spinach. I like potatoes in mine because I like the structure of the egg around the potato, but they are good without potatoes too.

As I said I made it for dinner last night, but I have made it for brunch and just whipped up spur of the moment late lunch.  It is easy to make too which makes it perfect.

Frittata
4 small to medium sized russet potatoes - sliced and cooked - I just boil in the microwave
1/4 cup of bell peppers
1/2 cup of mushrooms
1/4 cup of onions
1 to 2 cups ground breakfast sausage
1 cup shredded cheese
10 eggs
3 tablespoons milk (cream or half-n-half will work too)
Seasonings - your preference - this one I did rosemary, pepper and thyme

Heat oven to 400

In a medium bowl mix eggs, milk and seasonings. Set aside.

In a 10-in. or 12 in. ovenproof skillet, cook sausage over medium heat until browned and almost cooked through. Drain grease and add in bell peppers, mushroom and onions.(You could add in potatoes and cook them now too, but I like mine done ahead.) Cook until veggies are tender. Remove from heat and add in cheese. Pour egg mixture over veggies and sausage. Stir once before putting it in the oven.

Cook for 15 to 20 mins until eggs are set.Cool for 10 mins and cut into wedges to serve.

NOTE
* You can up the veggies to 1/2 cup or 1 cup - I just added what I had left and again that is what is great about a Frittata you really can't go wrong with just adding whatever is in the fridge left over from the previous meals.

Stuffed Peppers

Michael and I have had these a couple times now. They are a low carb option when craving Philly cheese steak sandwiches. It also was a nice change from how I usually do stuffed peppers.  I have used a combo of red, yellow and orange peppers as Michael isn't fond of green peppers.  

Philly Cheese Steak Stuffed Peppers

2 large bell peppers

8 oz thinly sliced roast beef

8 slices provolone cheese

1 medium sweet onion - sliced

1 cup mushrooms - sliced

Preheat oven to 400◦. Slice peppers in half lengthwise removing ribs and seeds. Sauté until onions and mushrooms are nice and caramelized. Slice roast beef into thin strips and add onion/mushroom mixture. Cook 5-7 mins. Line the inside of each pepper with provolone cheese and fill each with meat mixture until they are overflowing. Top each pepper with another slice of provolone cheese and bake for 15-20 mins until cheese is golden brown. 

Baked Southwest Egg Rolls

I made these for dinner last night. I was going to serve with a salad, but as soon as they came out of the oven we dove into eating them and forgot about the salad. They were really good. I have been meaning to try to make them for a long time, but for some reason I have always been a little intimated by egg roll wrappers. I make things with wonton wrappers - crab rangoon and potstickers, but not egg rolls. Recently I made regular Chinese egg rolls with broccoli slaw instead of cabbage as Michael doesn't like cabbage and realized that the wrappers were easy to roll.  So it was time to try the Southwest Egg Rolls. So glad I made them...they were a hit here and plan to make them again. I might even try to freeze them then pull from the freezer and heat for a quick dinner with a salad. Or to have as appetizer to bring to a party. 

2 cups cubed boneless skinless chicken  (I used one LARGE chicken breast and it was a little under 2 cups and still worked well)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup of finely chopped red bell pepper (optional - I just wanted a little more color)
1 can (7 oz) green chilies
1/4 cup of finely chopped green onions
1 cup frozen corn
1 can (14.5-15 oz) black beans - drained and rinsed
2 cups fresh baby spinach
1 1/2 cups cheese ( I used half pepper jack and half cheddar - I think next time I will use 1 cup pepper jack and 1/2 cup cheddar)
1 package egg roll wrappers - 20 wrappers


Toss the chicken with seasonings. Make sure they are coated with the mixture. If  it isn't - add a little more cumin and chili powder.  In a large skillet, heat vegetable oil or olive oil on medium. Add in the chicken and saute for 5 minutes. Stir in the red pepper and cook until the chicken is cooked through.  Stir in green chilies, green onion, corn and black beans.  Add the spinach.  Cook until spinach is wilted. Remove from heat and add cheese..

Preheat over to 400 degrees. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.

Using a spoon or scoop place a heaping tablespoon of filling onto the wrapper. Follow the directions on the back of the egg roll package for folding. Position an egg roll wrapper out like a diamond with one tip pointing towards you. Scoop the filling near the center of the egg roll wrapper. Pick up a corner on your left pull it over the filling. Pick up the corner opposite and bring it over the filling.  Take a corner pointing down towards you and start rolling it up around the egg filling.  Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling. Place on baking sheet seam side down, not allowing egg rolls to touch.  If you are having problems with them staying shut - slightly wet the edges with your fingers as you roll them.

Brush the egg rolls with olive oil or coat with cooking spray so that they crisp up in the oven. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until crispy.

Serve with or without a dipping sauce.  I used 2 different dipping sauces - Guacamole mixed with some sour cream and salsa mixed with sour cream. About a 1 to 1 ratio.

 

Christmas Treats

These are some new recipes I want to try this Christmas....

Source: bakersroyale.com via Darby on Pinterest

Instead of making them into pops, I think I will just do little brownie bits.

Source: flowerpatchfarmgirl.blogspot.com via Darby on Pinterest

This I think I want to make and give as gifts in a mason jar.

Source: food.com via Darby on Pinterest

These are microwave caramels....which seems almost impossible to me, but I would consider it a huge blessing if it was true. So I think I will try them.

Turkey Tetrazzini

Thanksgiving is almost here and one of my favorite ways to use up leftovers is making Turkey Tetrazzini.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup chopped onions
• 1/2 cup chopped bell peppers (I did mixture of yellow, green and red)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil, vegetable oil or butter
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 1/2 cups white button mushrooms, ends trimmed, sliced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
• 1 teaspoon thyme 
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 2 cups  low-sodium chicken stock or canned chicken broth
• 1 3/4 cups half and half
• 12 ounces spaghetti noodles
• 1 pound cubed or bite-size roast turkey
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 2 cups potato chips, crushed 

Directions

Saute the onions and bell peppers in olive oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over high heat until soft, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring. Add the mushrooms, spices, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are soft and have released their liquid, about 6 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons butter.  Sprinkle with the flour and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the wine and chicken stock and cook, stirring, until smooth and thick, about 2 minutes. Add the half and half and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thick and very flavorful, 15 to 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the spaghetti noodles until al dente, about 8-10 minutes. Drain in a colander and set aside.

Spray a 9 by 13-inch casserole or baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

When the sauce has thickened, add the noodles, turkey, and Parmesan to the skillet and stir until thoroughly combined. Transfer to the prepared casserole and top with the potato chips. Bake uncovered until bubbly and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.  Serves 8.

Pumpkin Pillows

I made these last year around the holidays, but want to make them again around Halloween or Thanksgiving. These would be great to bring to a party or get together.

 They were good and not to hard to make either.  The dipping sauce I had trouble with though.  And I did modify the original recipe from Kraft a bit as I have worked with wontons before and didn't feel there was a need for the egg white that Kraft had in their recipe. I also used more wonton wrappers, but kept their number in the recipe too.

12 caramels

1 tsp.  water

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tsp.  ground cinnamon, divided

4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup  canned pumpkin

1 Tbsp. brown sugar

1 tsp.  flour

1/4 tsp. orange zest

20-24   won ton wrappers  and water to seal edges

2 cups  oil

2 Tbsp. powdered sugar

MICROWAVE caramels and water in medium microwaveable bowl on HIGH 30 sec.; stir. Heat for another 30 sec. Stir until caramels are completely melted.Cool 2 min. Stir in sour cream and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Refrigerate until ready to use.

WHISK cream cheese, pumpkin, brown sugar, flour, zest and remaining cinnamon until well blended. Spoon about 2 tsp. onto center of each won ton wrapper. Moisten edges with water; fold diagonally in half. Moisten edges again with water pressing edges together tightly to seal.

HEAT oil in large saucepan on medium-high heat to 350ºF. Add won tons, in batches; cook 2 to 3 min. or until evenly browned. Drain. Cool slightly or to room temperature. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with caramel sauce

MAKE AHEAD

Cook won tons as directed except don't sprinkle with powdered sugar. Freeze up to 2 months. When ready to reheat, place frozen won tons on baking sheet. (No need to thaw first.) Bake at 350°F for 15 min. or until heated through. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

COOKING NOTES

* Won ton wrappers quickly dry out, keep them covered with a damp clean kitchen towel until you are ready to use them.

* I found the dip didn't go quite smoothly but it might have been because I didn't use Kraft caramels. When I mixed it into the sour cream, it hardened right away because the sour cream was cool so cooled the caramel. There were clumps of caramel in the dip. So it didn't exactly go as directed.  I think next time I would use like caramel you use for ice cream topping. I think it would mix more smoothly after being heated for a few moments. 

BLT Pasta

I made BLT Pasta for dinner last night.  It was really good...great flavors going on in this dish. I found this recipe via Pinterest of course, but I modified it slightly. So here is my version...

BLT Pasta

6 strips bacon, diced
2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 cup leeks, thinly sliced
1/2 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
9 oz dry spaghetti noodles
2 cups fresh baby spinach leaves

Garlic Croutons  - made mine but store bought would work

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

Saute the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat.  Cook until crisp, then set aside on paper towel.   Reserve 2 tablespoons bacon drippings, and drain off remaining oil.

Caramelize the tomatoes and sugar in the bacon drippings in large and deep skillet or sauce pan, over medium heat.  Cook until tomatoes begin to soften and brown, approximately 3 minutes.  Add the leeks and cook for an additional 3 minutes, or until leeks soften.

Deglaze with wine and allow sauce to simmer until the wine is nearly evaporated and sauce is thick.  Add the broth, vinegar, and pepper flakes.  Simmer until reduced by 1/3, approximately 5 minutes.

Add the spinach, and bacon to the sauce, then add the cooked pasta.  Toss lightly until pasta is well coated with sauce and tomato mixture is incorporated.  Season with salt as needed.  Top each serving with garlic croutons.

Makes 4 servings.

NOTES:

* Although I think deglazing always makes flavor more deep - I think in this recipe the caramelizing the tomatoes really adds flavor. So if you don't want to deglaze - you could up the chicken broth just a bit and skip the deglazing step. 

* I think next time I will be adding more spinach. Maybe 3 cups as I don't feel there was enough for spinach for us.  

Carlson's Cherry Lemonade

While Tammy was here in April we went to our favorite local winery - Carlson's Vineyards.  We sampled several wines and they shared this recipe that we all decided sounded amazing.  We didnt' get to enjoy it the last time Tammy was here, but Michael and I did make some recently and will make some more when Tammy visits in a week.  


Carlson's Cherry Lemonade
2 bottles Carlson Cherry Wine
12 oz. can of frozen lemonade


Combine lemonade and Cherry wine.  Add ice and orange slices or other fruit like a handful of blueberries or raspberries.  


NOTES:  You are not adding water to the lemonade. The cherry wine acts like water for this recipe. But it can be very tart so I do add ice to water it down some. 


I am sure you could use another Cherry Wine but we love Carlson's.  


When Michael and I tried it the first time we halved it.  I did one bottle of wine and a 6 oz. of frozen lemonade and it worked well. But if you are having more than 2 people you will want to do the full recipe as this goes down quickly and tastes so good it was easy for just the 2 of us to go through.  

Tomato Salad

We had a BBQ to go to a couple weeks ago.  It was a lot of fun socializing with this group of people.  We are so thankful that we were invited and made it back from Denver in time to go.

Of course about a week before the party, I started thinking about what to bring but was really not coming up with anything that was sounding very good to me. I wanted something easy to do as we would be just back from Denver so didn't want to spend hours in the kitchen.  I was flipping through an old Food & Wine magazine and came across a recipe that I adapted because it wasn't exactly what sounded good to me - as I don't like blue cheese and I didn't like the sound of dijon vinaigrette at that moment - but I am sure it would be good with it too.

Tomato Salad
3 lbs tomatoes at least 3 different kinds chopped- I did 4 kinds
1/2 lb cooked bacon - crumbled
1 small container feta cheese
balsamic vinaigrette - to taste - start with 1/2 cup and keep moving up

Toss all ingredients to mix.

Refrigerate any leftovers - if there are any.  We came home with less than 1/2 cup.

Doughnut Muffins

I made these for breakfast.  It is the first time I think I have had this rounded muffins in high altitude. I will need to try to breakdown to figure out what the science behind it - to get it do this in my other muffin recipes.

Recipe is from King Arthur Flour.

Only changes I made were adding some cardamom and cinnamon to the nutmeg in the recipe.   I didn't really taste the cardamom though. But these reminded me of cake doughnuts my Grandma used to make.  They had the same texture and similar taste.

They are something I will be making again. Really nice Saturday morning treat.

Crockpot Creamy Italian Chicken

Source: forkinit.blogspot.com via Darby on Pinterest

I made this recipe this weekend. It was so good and so easy! Great comfort food for a dreary weekend.

Only thing I did different then the recipe is I shredded the chicken towards the end when it was falling apart. I also served it on top of mashed potatoes and with a side of green beans.

Crockpot Chinese Chicken

I found this recipe via Pinterest too but it was on several places and slightly different ingredient and amounts. So I just kind of improvised on the amounts. This was a recipe when I looked at the ingredients I went really - ketchup?  But it worked. It doesn't taste like ketchup and honey in the end. It just has a slight sweet oriental flavor but it is hard to tell where that flavor comes from exactly. Michael LOVED this - he was saying  "more please" - instantly after eating a serving of it. He said he wants me to make it again soon.  We did also notice that the flavors got even better the next night.  It was really good the first night but it was even better with the second night. 

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (or thighs work too - it ended up being 2 LARGE chicken breast to make a pound and it made several meals for us)

3/4 cup honey
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon olive oil (could also use vegetable oil or canola oil)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon Sriracha hot sauce or red pepper flakes (doesn't really add heat, just adds more flavor)

Directions:
Put chicken into crock pot. In a small bowl, combine honey, soy sauce, onion, ketchup, oil, garlic and hot sauce/pepper flakes. Pour over chicken. Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours or on high 2 to 3 hours, or just until chicken is cooked through. Shred chicken. Stir to combine with sauce. Replace lid and cook for 20 to 30 mins or until chicken is coated. Serve over rice or noodles.

NOTES:
I served with rice that I tossed with some steamed peas.  This doesn't make much sauce so if you are wanting more - I would I think add some chicken broth towards the end with some cornstarch to thicken it and mix with the other sauce already in there to get flavor.

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Taco Cups

I found this recipe on Pinterest. The orginal recipe, which I really didn't change except in my notes, is on Plain Chicken. These were really easy to make and they were a nice change from tacos or my usual Mexican dishes. I can see these might make good appetizers or party food. I served with a big green salad and it was just a good dinner. 

Taco Cups


1 lb ground beef
1 packet taco seasoning
2/3 cup water
1 can black beans, drained
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
36 wonton wrappers
your favorite taco toppings - salsa, cheese, sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, etc
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375.

Brown the meat in a skillet and drain off fat. Return the meat to the skillet; add the taco seasoning, water and black beans.  Mix and simmer for 7-10 minutes, until water is absorbed.

Spray 18 regular muffin pan cups with cooking spray.  Place one wonton wrapper in each muffin cup.  Divide half of the taco meat between muffin cups.  Sprinkle half of the cheese over the cupcakes.  Repeat layers - wonton, taco meat and cheese.  Bake at 375 for 20 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and wontons are golden brown.  Top with your favorite taco toppings.




NOTES:
* I actually made 20 so I don't think I filled them all quite as full as maybe I should have but they all were still very full.


* I find that wontons wrappers can dry out quickly so I did 6 at a time. I put 6 muffin tins with the bottom layer of wontons, filled them meat mixture and then added the next wonton layer topping with the meat layer and cheese. Then moved on to the next 6 so that the wontons wouldn't dry out.  



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Chocolate Mint Cake

Michael really enjoys a minty flavor in bars, cookies or cake.  But I don't often find recipes I really like that call for mint.  This recipe happened to be on one of those recipe cards you receive in the mail - where they are trying to hook you into buying them forever.  I usually go through those sample packs and keep ones that sound good and throw out the rest.  Well this Chocolate Mint Cake is one I kept, because it had peppermint in it and also because it looked so easy.

It was really easy and very good...so moist and minty.  It is just a small cake - an 8x8 (or 9x9 will work too) but perfect size for just a few people and not having to eat cake forever.

Hard to take a photo as the chocolate is so glossy

1 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
1 - package small chocolate covered mint patties*

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a mixing bowl.  Stir to mix.  Add brown sugar and cocoa powder and mix well.  Add water, vinegar, oil and extracts. Mix well.

Pour batter into an 8" x 8" pan.* Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Arrange mint patties on top of cake. Return to oven until candies begin to melt  - about 1 minute. Remove from oven.

Spread melted mint patties evenly over cake with a knife. Cool completely. Cut cake and serve.

* NOTES:
* The original recipe says 13 ounce package of small chocolate covered mint patties - well I wasn't paying attention to that and bought a 5 ounce package and it worked really well. I think it would have been overkill on mint using a 13 ounce package.

* The original recipe calls for an ungreased cake pan but I can't imagine not greasing a cake pan so I coated it with cooking spray and it turned out find.

Sausage Stuffed Baked Potato

This recipe is from Smitten Kitchen.  She has amazing recipes.  Almost everything she posts - I think looks good and I want to make.  I actually made this late winter/early spring and never got around to posting it.  It is a really good cold weather - comfort food type recipe.  

I did make a few changes so posting my version. But Smitten Kitchen's version is here that she adapted from Gourmet Magazine.  Smitten Kitchen served with a salad and so did I - it was a really nice accompaniment to this recipe. 

Sausage Stuffed Baked Potatoes

2 large russet (baking) potatoes (if you don't have or can't find really large baking potatoes - just use a few more of the size you have)

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon water, divided

3/4 teaspoon tomato paste

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, divided

1/2 medium onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil plus additional for coating potatoes

1/2 slice firm white sandwich bread

1 tablespoon milk

1/2 pound bulk breakfast sausage or 1/2 pound of breakfast sausage, casings removed

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Prick potatoes with a fork. Wrap each potato with a paper towel and microwave on high power until tender, 10 to 12 minutes.

Cutting lengthwise, remove top fourth of each potato and scoop out centers (reserve for another use), leaving 1/2-inch-thick walls.

Whisk together mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon water, tomato paste, and 1 1/2 tablespoons mustard.

Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.

Add some olive oil/vegetable oil to skillet and cook onion over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 10 minutes.

Tear bread into small pieces.  Soak in the bread in milk - in a medium sized bowl.  Soak until very soft. Mix in sausage, parsley, onion, and 2 tablespoons mayonnaise sauce with your hands.

Divide filling between potatoes, then coat skins lightly with oil. Bake in a 4-sided sheet pan until sausage is cooked through, about 30-40 minutes.

While potatoes bake, whisk 1 tablespoon mayonnaise sauce with lemon juice, remaining 1 1/2 teaspoon mustard and 1/2 teaspoon water, and salt and pepper to taste.

Remove potatoes from oven and turn on broiler. Spoon remaining mayonnaise sauce over filling and broil 3 to 4 inches from heat until charred in spots, 3 to 5 minutes. Cool slightly. Serve.

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