Another freezer meal...
The Recipe
2 chicken breasts
1 cup ketchup
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp cider vinegar
1/2 tsp ground red pepper flakes
1/3 tsp garlic powder
Defrost and pop in the crock-pot. Cook for 3-5 hours on HIGH or 7-9 hours on LOW.
Serve with rice.
The Verdict
I thought it looked a bit boring as I popped it in the crock-pot, so I added 1 small can of corn and a chopped bell pepper - definitely an improvement!
It was okay... nothing spectacular, but a decent meal. Probably not something I'll make again, but only because I've got a lot of similar recipes that are equally good or better.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Week 11 - Oven Baked Chimichangas
The Recipe
1lb ground chicken
1 package taco seasoning (~30gr)
2.5dl water
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp oregano
2 tomatoes, diced
2 spring oniones, chopped
½ cup sour cream
½ cup shredded Cheddar cheese
~50g butter - melted
6 large flour Tortillas
GARNISH: Tomatoes, Lettuce, Cheese, Guacamole, Salsa, Sour Cream
Preheat oven to 225C. Saute meat until cooked through and starting to brown. Add taco seasoning and stir. Add water and stir. Cook until liquid has reduced 2/3.
Add cumin, oregano, tomatoes and green onions. Simmer until the rest of the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and let cool 5 minutes. Stir in sour cream and Cheddar cheese.
Lay tortillas on a plate and brush both sides with the melted butter. Spoon 1/6 th of filling into center of tortilla and fold like and envelope.
Put tortillas, seam-side down on a non-stick sheet pan. Spaced so they DO NOT touch. Bake 15 minutes or until golden and crisp (careful - they suddenly get too much). Sprinkle with cheese and return to oven to melt.
Serve with the garnishes.
The Verdict
A lot of work, but so totally worth it! It tasted fantastic, and I was disappointed I could only eat the one. Definitely worth a repeat. Would probably taste just as good with any other form of ground meat I think.
1lb ground chicken
1 package taco seasoning (~30gr)
2.5dl water
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp oregano
2 tomatoes, diced
2 spring oniones, chopped
½ cup sour cream
½ cup shredded Cheddar cheese
~50g butter - melted
6 large flour Tortillas
GARNISH: Tomatoes, Lettuce, Cheese, Guacamole, Salsa, Sour Cream
Preheat oven to 225C. Saute meat until cooked through and starting to brown. Add taco seasoning and stir. Add water and stir. Cook until liquid has reduced 2/3.
Add cumin, oregano, tomatoes and green onions. Simmer until the rest of the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and let cool 5 minutes. Stir in sour cream and Cheddar cheese.
Lay tortillas on a plate and brush both sides with the melted butter. Spoon 1/6 th of filling into center of tortilla and fold like and envelope.
Put tortillas, seam-side down on a non-stick sheet pan. Spaced so they DO NOT touch. Bake 15 minutes or until golden and crisp (careful - they suddenly get too much). Sprinkle with cheese and return to oven to melt.
Serve with the garnishes.
The Verdict
A lot of work, but so totally worth it! It tasted fantastic, and I was disappointed I could only eat the one. Definitely worth a repeat. Would probably taste just as good with any other form of ground meat I think.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Week 10: Twice Baked Potato Casserole
The Recipe
6 large potatoes
1 tsp salt
A dash of pepper
60g butter
1 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded
1 cup hot milk
3 green onions, finely chopped
1/2 cup sour cream
Scrub potatoes, pierce skins and bake at 200C for 60 minutes. Cut potatoes and scoop out pulp; mash. Add salt, pepper, butter, and cheese; beat well. Add hot milk and beat until fluffy and cheese is melted. Stir in green onions and sour cream; blend. Reduce oven temperature to 175C. Spoon potatoes into an baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese and bake for 15 minutes.
The Verdict
I usually love mashed potatoes and especially baked mashed potatoes, so had high hopes for this one. And it was okay... just not as terrific as I had expected. Part of this was because of the green onions - 15 minutes just wasn't enough to get them properly done, so they were too crunchy and tangy compared to the rest of the dish. I should probably just have left them out. In the end, too much hassle for not a particularly satisfying result.
6 large potatoes
1 tsp salt
A dash of pepper
60g butter
1 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded
1 cup hot milk
3 green onions, finely chopped
1/2 cup sour cream
Scrub potatoes, pierce skins and bake at 200C for 60 minutes. Cut potatoes and scoop out pulp; mash. Add salt, pepper, butter, and cheese; beat well. Add hot milk and beat until fluffy and cheese is melted. Stir in green onions and sour cream; blend. Reduce oven temperature to 175C. Spoon potatoes into an baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese and bake for 15 minutes.
The Verdict
I usually love mashed potatoes and especially baked mashed potatoes, so had high hopes for this one. And it was okay... just not as terrific as I had expected. Part of this was because of the green onions - 15 minutes just wasn't enough to get them properly done, so they were too crunchy and tangy compared to the rest of the dish. I should probably just have left them out. In the end, too much hassle for not a particularly satisfying result.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Week 9: Sweet and Spicy Grilled Cheese
The Recipe
4 slices bread - the better the quality, the better the dish, but I just used toast bread and it was still fine.
2 slices sharp cheddar
2 slices spicy cheese
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1.5 tbsp butter
2 tbsp BBQ sauce
Melt 1/2 tbsp of butter in a skillet. Add the sliced onion and stir occasionally until color changes to slightly brown and taste is sweet, about 10 minutes. Remove onions from skillet and set aside.
Spread 1 tbsp of the remaining butter onto one side of each slice of bread. Divide BBQ sauce evenly among 2 of the slices, and spread evenly opposite the butter side. Lay cheddar cheese on top of sauce. Divide caramelized onion among the sandwiches, then top with pepper jack. Finish assembly by placing remaining bread slices on top. The butter sides of the bread should both be on the outside of the sandwiches.
Melt the remaining butter in the skillet on medium-low. Cook sandwiches two at a time, flipping when bread is golden brown on one side and cheese begins to melt. Serve while hot.
The Verdict
While I've had grilled cheese before, it's always been made in a toaster. This was the first time I tried it on the pan and it is SO much better!!! I tried not to think too much about the amount of butter that went into it though ;)
I couldn't find any spicy cheese nor any cheddar, so I used Havarti and added a bit of chili instead. Not enough though - I couldn't really taste the 'bite'. Also, the cheese really does need to be sharp. This was much too mild to give any proper taste. It was still delicious, but gave me an idea of what it could have been if I had stuck to the 'right' ingredients.
Very yummy and very easy. DEFINITELY something I'll be making again!
4 slices bread - the better the quality, the better the dish, but I just used toast bread and it was still fine.
2 slices sharp cheddar
2 slices spicy cheese
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1.5 tbsp butter
2 tbsp BBQ sauce
Melt 1/2 tbsp of butter in a skillet. Add the sliced onion and stir occasionally until color changes to slightly brown and taste is sweet, about 10 minutes. Remove onions from skillet and set aside.
Spread 1 tbsp of the remaining butter onto one side of each slice of bread. Divide BBQ sauce evenly among 2 of the slices, and spread evenly opposite the butter side. Lay cheddar cheese on top of sauce. Divide caramelized onion among the sandwiches, then top with pepper jack. Finish assembly by placing remaining bread slices on top. The butter sides of the bread should both be on the outside of the sandwiches.
Melt the remaining butter in the skillet on medium-low. Cook sandwiches two at a time, flipping when bread is golden brown on one side and cheese begins to melt. Serve while hot.
The Verdict
While I've had grilled cheese before, it's always been made in a toaster. This was the first time I tried it on the pan and it is SO much better!!! I tried not to think too much about the amount of butter that went into it though ;)
I couldn't find any spicy cheese nor any cheddar, so I used Havarti and added a bit of chili instead. Not enough though - I couldn't really taste the 'bite'. Also, the cheese really does need to be sharp. This was much too mild to give any proper taste. It was still delicious, but gave me an idea of what it could have been if I had stuck to the 'right' ingredients.
Very yummy and very easy. DEFINITELY something I'll be making again!
Monday, February 25, 2013
Week 8 - Greek Crock Chicken
The Recipe
4 chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 carrots cut into chunks
2 onions, cut into 6 thin wedges
1 (6-oz) can tomato paste
1/2 cup dry red wine
3 tbsp water
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp honey
Mix everything together in the crock-pot and cook for 6-7 hours on LOW. Serve with baked potatoes.
(Freezer meal)
The Verdict
Not as good as I had hoped. The carrots especially turned out really weird. I think they probably didn't handle being frozen and then cooked all that well. It was okay, but no more - and definitely not something I'd make again.
4 chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 carrots cut into chunks
2 onions, cut into 6 thin wedges
1 (6-oz) can tomato paste
1/2 cup dry red wine
3 tbsp water
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp honey
Mix everything together in the crock-pot and cook for 6-7 hours on LOW. Serve with baked potatoes.
(Freezer meal)
The Verdict
Not as good as I had hoped. The carrots especially turned out really weird. I think they probably didn't handle being frozen and then cooked all that well. It was okay, but no more - and definitely not something I'd make again.
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Week 7: Spicy Raspberry-Honey Chicken Stir-Fry
The Recipe
Spice Rub: (Don't shy about doubling this to make sure all the chicken is thickly coated)
1 tbsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp powdered ginger
pinch of salt
pinch of black pepper
1 tsp powdered garlic (I know, the fresh stuff is better, but this way you can get the same amount of garlic and ginger quite easily, which is the goal.)
Sauce:
1 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp raspberry balsamic vinegar (I couldn't find raspberry so used cherry instead. Am going to assume it didn't make a difference :) )
4 tbsp honey
The Rest Of The Dish:
2 tbsp oil
1 lb chicken, cut into stirfry-sized pieces
2 bell peppers
(4 oz bamboo shoots) (I don't like bamboo shoots, so I left them out)
4 oz sliced water chestnuts
Dredge the chicken thoroughly in the spice rub. Make more rub rather than let parts of chicken escape spicing. In a wok or large frying pan, over medium-high heat, stir fry the chicken in oil.
Once the chicken has been cooked on each side (but not all the way through), add the bell peppers, the bamboo shoots, and the water chestnuts.
Make sure all ingredients are tossed together well, then add the sauce mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
Remove from heat and serve immediately over rice or flat noodles.
The Verdict
Really yummy! I liked the spice palet and how the spicy/sweet/tart flavours meshed. Might be a tad too spicy for DH, so I'll probably mainly make this on days when I'm home alone.
Spice Rub: (Don't shy about doubling this to make sure all the chicken is thickly coated)
1 tbsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp powdered ginger
pinch of salt
pinch of black pepper
1 tsp powdered garlic (I know, the fresh stuff is better, but this way you can get the same amount of garlic and ginger quite easily, which is the goal.)
Sauce:
1 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp raspberry balsamic vinegar (I couldn't find raspberry so used cherry instead. Am going to assume it didn't make a difference :) )
4 tbsp honey
The Rest Of The Dish:
2 tbsp oil
1 lb chicken, cut into stirfry-sized pieces
2 bell peppers
(4 oz bamboo shoots) (I don't like bamboo shoots, so I left them out)
4 oz sliced water chestnuts
Dredge the chicken thoroughly in the spice rub. Make more rub rather than let parts of chicken escape spicing. In a wok or large frying pan, over medium-high heat, stir fry the chicken in oil.
Once the chicken has been cooked on each side (but not all the way through), add the bell peppers, the bamboo shoots, and the water chestnuts.
Make sure all ingredients are tossed together well, then add the sauce mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
Remove from heat and serve immediately over rice or flat noodles.
The Verdict
Really yummy! I liked the spice palet and how the spicy/sweet/tart flavours meshed. Might be a tad too spicy for DH, so I'll probably mainly make this on days when I'm home alone.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Week 6: Tomato Soup with Garnishes
~125g bacon (optional)
4 cloves of garlic
1 onion
3 cans (~15oz each) of stewed tomatoes
1 dl water
3 tbsp oregano
a dash of cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper
1 tbsp sugar
1 dl cream
Garnishes:
Feta Cheese
Olives
Peanuts
1 tbsp crunchy Peanut butter mixed with 100g greek yogurt
Cut the bacon into thin strips. Chop garlic and onion finely. Blend the tomatoes.
In a pot cook bacon over medium-high heat until desired level of crispness. Add onion and garlic and cook for a few minutes. Add tomatoes, water, oregano, cayenne, salt, pepper and sugar. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and leave to simmer for 30 minutes.
Add cream, heat the soup and serve with garnishes.
The Verdict
This recipe was perfect for DH and me for dinner with left-overs for my lunch the following day. The garnishes makes this very different from most tomato soups. I really liked it, but think it's a better lunch than dinner dish.
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