Ancho Chicken Taco's with Cilantro Slaw & Avacado Cream

Okay - that is a massive title, but the title needs to explain all that yumminess that are going into these tacos! This recipe is one from my Cooking Light magazine, but I made a few modifications...

Makes about 8 Taco's

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into thin 1/4" strips

3/4 t. ancho Chile powder

1/2 t. garlic salt

1/4 t. ground cumin

Cooking Spray

1/8 t. grated lime rind

2 T. fresh lime juice, divided

1/4 C. Light sour cream

2 T. Low-Fat milk

1 ripe peeled avocado, diced

2 C. packaged angle hair slaw

1/2 C. thinly sliced green onions

1/4 C. chopped fresh cilantro

1 T. Canola oil

1/4 t. salt

1 C. Shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese

16 Corn tortillas

Heat a large non-stick skillet over high heat. Combine the Chile powder, garlic salt & cumin in a small bowl. Sprinkle it evenly & liberally over the sliced chicken. Coat the pan with some cooking spray. Add the chicken to the pan (this may need to be done in batches), turning after about 4 minutes. Cook thoroughly and place in a bowl covered with aluminum foil until all the other pieces have been cooked.

In a blender or food processor combine the lime rind, 1 tablespoon lime juice, sour cream, milk & avocado. Process until very smooth. Season with salt.

In a separate bowl combine the remaining lime juice with the slaw, onions, cilantro, oil and salt. Tossing to coat.

Heat a non-stick griddle ( I use a George Foreman, but a smooth-top griddle would work 100 times better!). Lightly dampen the corn tortillas with a squirt bottle full of water or quickly dunk in a shallow bowl of water. Place one tortilla  on the hot griddle, then sprinkle with enough cheese to cover the tortilla evenly, place another moist corn tortilla on top. Press down with the back of the spatula or the lid of your George Foreman. Allow to cook until the tortilla is soft and the cheese is melty.

Remove from the griddle and assemble the tacos. Top each tortilla with about 1 T. avocado cream and 1/4 C. of the slaw.... and some tomatoes.

 

Red Hot Fried Chicken

My little brother, Chad, is obsessed with this meal! It is amazing, I won't lie about that... but he really really loves it! He is in town right now, and today is my youngest daughters 3rd birthday, so for her birthday dinner I made Chad's favorite (because when I asked her she said "I just don't know") and it was a hit!

4 Chicken breasts

1 lg. bottle Frank Red Hot Sauce

1 C. Egg Beaters (you can use regular egg too, but it doesn't work as well)

3 C. flour

1. C. Milk

Vegetable Oil

Place each individual chicken breast in a gallon zip loc baggie and pound chicken until it is the same thickness throughout being careful not to tear the chicken. Place in a separate ziploc baggie, continue with the rest of the chicken. Add enough franks red hot to the baggie of chicken to coat all the pieces heavily. Let it marinade overnight or at least 6 hours.
Divide the flour in 3 separate shallow dishes (pie plate work well), put the egg beaters and milk in shallow dishes too and put them in the following order on the counter: flour, milk,flour, egg beaters, flour. Salt and pepper the flour between the milk and egg.

In a large pan with high sides heat several cups, about 2 inches, of vegetable oil over med-hi heat (I actually prefer to use the burner on our BBQ grill because the flame gets big and hot and then my house doesn't smell like fried food)

Using one hand (keep one hand clean so you can turn on the sink to rinse your other hand) take the chicken from the bag and immediately dredge in the first flour pan, coating everything, then into the milk, then flour, then egg, then flour. Place on a baking sheet that has been covered with wax paper and a sprinkling of flour. Continue with all chicken.

Fry the chicken until golden brown and cooked throughout, using a meat thermometer if needed. When it is completely cooked place on a baking rack in a 200 degree oven to keep warm while the other chicken is being cooked.

Serve with mashed potatoes and a simple white gravy (we like to add about 1/3 c. Franks to our gravy.)

Lightning Spicy Chili

I am sad to say that I don't remember where or who I got this recipe from (so if it is you, let me know!) but it is of course quite yummy.
 Ingredients:
1 lb. mixed beans   (I use white, garbanzo, and kidney)
2 cloves garlic
1 med. Onion
olive oil
4 c. chicken broth
1 tsp. chili powder (or more)
¼ tsp. red pepper flakes
dash or two of cayenne pepper
1 T. parsley
2 T. lemon or lime juice
fresh cilantro (maybe 1/3 a bunch chopped?)
¼ c. sour cream (optional)
Directions:
Cook beans*.   After beans are cooked, drain and rinse them gently.

Use a pot big enough for all the beans here.   Sauté garlic and onion in a small amount of olive oil.   Mash 1-½ cups of the beans.   Add to pot with the rest of the beans and the rest of the ingredients.   (Except sour cream.)   Cook until warmed through.   Stir in sour cream and serve.

Spicy and yummy!   ***Play around with the spices.   I never measure

*my favorite way is to sort and rinse them and put them in a crock-pot with at least 6 cups of water.   Cook on high till done.   Which is about 4-6 hours, depending on your crock-pot.   If you are only doing 1 pound of beans, perhaps use only 1 tablespoon of salt.  

Corn Chowder

 Ingredients:
6 ears fresh sweet corn
6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 cloves garlic, peeled and bruised
1 russet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2 in dice
2 cups milk
salt/pepper to taste
1 medium onion, cut into 1/4 in dice
1/4 pound slab bacon (rind removed) cut into 1/4
 inch dice
4 medium sized ripe tomatoes, seeded and cut
 into 1/4 inch dice
1/4 cup slivered fresh basil
Directions:
1.   Strip corn form cobs, set aside (I did this by opening a kitchen towel and cut the pile right on it.   Easy to handle this way).   Bring the broth to a boil, turn down to simmer the cobs and garlic, partially covered for 10 min.   Discard the cobs and garlic.   Stir in the potatoes and half of the reserved corn (divide pile with long knife and spoon in one half).   Simmer partially covered, until potatoes are tender, 10-12 min. Puree: transfer to a bowl (if you don't have a way to do this you can use a potato masher in the pot).   Add the milk, salt and pepper, stir and set aside.   2.   Cook the bacon in a pot over low heat to render the fat, about 6 min.   Add the onion and cook for 10 min.   Add the reserved soup and remaining corn; simmer for 8 min.   Stir in the tomatoes and basil.   Serve immediately
Number Of Servings: Eight
Preparation Time: 40 min beginning to end

Oahu Salad

Add sliced Grilled Chicken breast for a more hearty meal.

 Ingredients:
Dressing (combine and chill while making salad):
1/2 tsp. salt and a dash of pepper
1/4 C, vegetable oil
1 Tbs. chopped parsley
2 Tbs. sugar
2 Tbs. red wine vinegar
Dash of Tabasco sauce

Salad:
1/2 C. sliced almonds
3 Tbs. sugar
-In a small pan over medium heat, cook almonds and sugar, stirring constantly until almonds are coated and sugar is dissolved.   Cool until needed.

1/2 head romaine lettuce
1/2 head iceberg lettuce
2 cups spinach leaves, washed and dried
1 c. chopped celery
1 green onion, chopped
1 (11 oz.) mandarin oranges, well drained (and/or sliced strawberries)
-Combine in a large bowl.   Do not add dressing until serving.

Ham and Potato Casserole

 I am not generally great friends with the casserole. I have long felt that it was purely a Hodge-podge of ingredients that were never meant to go together with a 'cream of' soup mixed in. Generally they are just gross. This one is an exception! My oldest daughter LOVES this recipe and in fact, for years she requested this dish for her birthday dinner - but this year, she just informed me,  is going to be something different so I can post this now!

Ingredients:

10 medium potatoes, peeled, cubed and cooked

1 10-¾ oz can Cream of Chicken soup

¼ cup butter, softened

1-½ cups shredded cheddar cheese

1-pint sour cream

          Chopped ham

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.  Pour into a 9 x 13.  Bake for 45 at 350*.  Put extra shredded cheese on top before baking.

Pizza

 Okay, this recipe is actually for the dough, but I think you are smart enough to figure out how to get it to pizza form. This recipe is our family favorite, and we consider ourselves pizza connoisseurs. The hotter you can get your oven the better it will turn out. When my family had the pizzaria we could cook a pizza in less than 6 minutes because the oven got so hot, don't be afraid of that! Crank that baby up! Also, if you can get a stone for your BBQ, that works AWESOME!

Ingredients:
1 envelope dried yeast (2 1/2 tsp)
1/4 tsp sugar
3/4 c lukewarm water
1 3/4 c bread flour (high gluten)
1/2 tsp salt
olive oil
Directions:
Stir yeast and sugar into warm water and allow to sit for 10 minutes or until "bloomed". In food processor or mixer with a dough hook add flour and salt. Slowly pour in water mixture and mix until dough forms a ball. Dough will be sticky. Remove from bowl and knead on a floured surface until smooth and no longer sticky. Divide into 2 balls and place on oiled cookie sheet turning to oil the balls. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit at least one hour. Form pizza's using a small amount of flour and place onto a board covered with corn meal. Top with sauce and   ingredients and gently slide onto a pre-heated baking stone in a very hot oven (450-500) baking until crust is brown and crispy, approx 10-15 minutes.