Tag Archives: garlic powder

Enchiladas

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Listen, bikini season is over and there is a chill in the air…I say we have an ooey gooey decadent dinner! Some good old stick to your ribs (And maybe love handles) comfort food. These chicken and cheese enchiladas have even won over a non-Mexican food lover like myself! Hope you enjoy & remember to post pictures with the #damndelish tag!

  • 3 tbsp. butter (I know that’s a shit ton, I didn’t say this was diet friendly)
  • 8 oz. of sour cream (keeps getting better 😛)
  • 3 tbsp. flour
  • 2 cups of chicken broth
  • Hot sauce (I did a couple of splashes of the Chalula’s chili garlic)
  • Onion powder (optional, I’m just a seasoning whore)
  • Garlic powder (optional again, just going for robust flavor)
  • 1 bag of shredded Mexican cheese (think Colby jack, Monterey jack, etc.)
  • 1 shredded rotisserie chicken
  • 1/2 – 1 cup of salsa – eyeball the salsa, its not apart of the original recipe and I just added it to the chicken & cheese mixture. (Note on what kind to use: preferably one that is low in water content and packed with onions & green chilies. I don’t want to brand plug anyone, but I think Rotell’s tomatoes & chilies, again not name dropping #jussayin’.)
  • Chopped black olives (I left these out, but some people commented on the original recipe that they added them. I might try it next time.)

Mix the shredded chicken, half the cheese, and the salsa and set aside. In the mean time start the roux of the butter and flour. Stir in the chicken broth to loosen the sauce up. IMPORTANT, let this cool before folding in the sour cream. IF you don’t, it will curdle the sour cream, essentially: sauce is ruined. Anyway while the sauce is cooling pre sour cream, you can assemble the enchiladas in you oven safe pan. Fill the tortillas with the mixture evenly, roll, and lay seam side down in a line.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes and then broil for 3 minutes, be careful not to burn. Note: Let it cool before serving.

Happy Eating, XO.

Tater Tots

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I’m OBSESSED with Dunkin Donuts hash browns. Mainly because they are so flavorful but it’s also their texture. They are soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. They almost look like circular tater tots and that’s why I got the idea to try and recreate them at home. Granted for 99 cents you cant go wrong, however with the weather getting better and hot dog season approaching, I figured a good tater recipe would come in handy for most folks. Also, I’m not a huge dill fan so I substituted with chives, but do whatever herbs you like. Just get some flavors going in the tots, try paprika, etc. just experiment!

  • 2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried dill
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

Place potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with cold water by 1 inch. Bring to a boil and cook until parboiled, about 6-7 minutes; drain well and let cool. (don’t forget that it says to par boil, if u cook too long the shredding will be difficult) Using a box grater, finely shred potatoes. Using a clean dish towel or cheese cloth, drain potatoes completely, removing as much water as possible. Transfer potatoes to a large bowl. Stir in flour, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano and dill; season with salt and pepper, to taste. The mixture should be workable but dry. (Make sure you salt and season the mixture very well. You could also try french onion soup mix with the other seasonings)  Form potatoes into tots (make sure you oil your hands to form tots because mixture is gummy). Heat vegetable oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add tots to the skillet, 5 or 6 at a time, and cook until evenly golden and crispy, about 3-4 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

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*TO FREEZE: Transfer cooled tater tots to an airtight container. Freeze up to 1 month. To bake, preheat oven to 400 degrees F and bake until heated through, about 15-17 minutes

Happy Eating, XO.

Chicken and Dumplins’ Y’all

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Dust off the crockpot guys, this is a Northerner’s solution to the Southern classic.
  • 4 frozen chicken breasts (I love this, I always forget to defrost my meats and then am stressed out that I don’t have food to make, this can go straight from freezer to crockpot, no defrosting needed)
  • 1-2 cups of the mirepoix mix (See its used for things other than the meatloaf recipe. p/s I added some frozen corn too because I love it and can’t put it enough recipes, Id say 1/2-1 cup)
  • 1 can cream of chicken soup
  • 1 can cream of mushroom soup (if you’re like my sister and hate mushrooms, just use another can of chicken soup)
  • 1 can biscuits (I usually just dice up 4-5 biscuits into small pieces since they expand when cooking, but shit use the whole can if you want, I don’t judge)
  • 1 can of low sodium chicken broth (you can use water instead, but I like the flavor of broth)
  • Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and black pepper (all to taste, no measurements, just eyeball it. I also add a dash of hot sauce to this as well)
Layer the chicken and seasoning at the bottom of the pot. Then toss in the veggie mix and soups. Stir and let cook on HIGH for 6 hrs, yes for that long, remember how the chicken is frozen, remember how undercooked chicken is deathly. However, at about 5 to 5.5 hours in, add the chopped up biscuits (take the biscuit and cut into quarters) throw on top & re-cover with lid for the remaining 30-45 minutes. Yup, total time on high for 6 hrs. take a nap, clean, watch a movie, do whatever you want for those 6 hrs 🙂
Happy Eating, XO.

Pseudo Salad

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Can I just tell you, I freaking LOVE LOVE LOVE the Morrocan chicken salad at CPK (You know California Pizza Kitchen, yes food blog people DO go to chains) Anyway, I am obsessed with it, BUT its SOOO expensive! Literally, I spend $16-$18 on the salad (the range is because the tax/tip usually makes it $17) which is totally cray to spend on a salad and yet I do. A) because of the convenience of grabbing it after work en route to my night MBA class B) because it is beyond delish! It has all the taste bud pleasing elements you can think of: sweet, savory, crunchy, creamy, etc! Anyway work was slow this week and I have an online class this semester so I am not running around as much and I figured its time to replicate this salad. Especially because I need to save my money for pedicures. Oyi my feet are looking rough! woof! Ok back to the tasty salad prep. As always this is going to reuse ingredients from other recipes. At CPK they use a champagne vinaigrette, so I grabbed a bottle of the Trader Joe’s pear champagne vinaigrette used in one of our salad recipes and a chicken dish to toss my greens with. Then the beets were in the last salad recipe as well-ha can you tell I really like them?! Might be the new truffle, lol just kidding that would never happen.

  • 1/3 cup Dates (Sliced in halves or quarters depending on how big yours are, I did mejdool dates)
  • 1/3-1/2 cup Toasted almonds (I tossed them in a pan to toast when I was boiling the eggs)
  • 6 oz. Beets (Drain all the water if using the canned stuff and chop vs. slice)
  • 10 oz. Roasted butternut squash (I just did it with salt, pepper, and paprika)
  • 1/2 cup Cranberries (I bought dried packaged ones from the store)
  • 3 Grilled chicken breasts (I just did it with cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, cumin, & paprika)
  • 1 Avocado (dice into cubes)
  • 1 medium Red bell pepper (try for the same sizes as the beets and avocado).
  • 1 package or 8-10 oz. Mixed greens (tossed w 1/3 cup of the bottled dressing)
  • Chopped up boiled eggs (I did 2, but 3 without the yellow of the 3rd would be good too)

Heat up a nonstick pan (I used my grill pan since it was washed & ready from the last time I made burgers) with some olive oil and sear the chicken breasts (I had them coated & rubbed in with the spices on both sides of the breasts) until cooked through about 5-7 minutes on each side. Let the meat rest before slicing and adding to salad. While you are cooking the chicken you can toss the squash with some oil & spices as well and roast in the oven at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. While the chicken and squash cools, chop the other veggies and eggs and mix well. This is how pretty the colors look:

I called this recipe the pseudo salad because its a knock off of the one from the restaurant and its much more filling than a regular old salad. This is meant to be an entrée and that’s why there is a bit more cooking involved than most salad recipes. Anyway its yummy, don’t worry about what the title means, just devour.

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Happy Eating, XO.

 

 

My Taste Buds’ Soul Mate: Spinach Artichoke Pizza

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I wish I could describe to you the love I have for this pizza. I love it almost as much as truffle oil. Almost. And for any other pizza lover out there (or foodies, or even those who don’t really love food but you of course need to eat – aka EVERYONE) this pizza is for you.

  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • ½ cup butter
  • 2 tbsp cream cheese
  • ¾ cup shredded parmesan cheese
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1½ cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
  • 1 pack of frozen spinach
  • 1 can of drained artichoke hearts, chopped
  • 1 tubes of pizza crust (I tend to use Pillsbury, but anything works)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and cook the crust according to the directions on the tube. Then in a medium saucepan on low heat add all of the creams – heavy cream, butter, and cream cheese.  Add in the parmesan and garlic powder and let simmer for 15 minutes, occasionally stirring. 

In the meantime, cook the frozen spinach. Once cooked and drained, add it to the simmering sauce. When it’s fully combined, spread on to the pizza crust, and top it with the artichokes and mozzarella. Bake for 15 minutes/ until the cheese is golden brown. Last step – fall in love with the deliciousness.

Artichoke spinach pizza

Happy Eating, XO