African Peanut Stew

I wasn't sure how this would taste at all, but it turned out to be sooooo much better than I ever could have dreamed of. It was absolutely wonderful! A friend had tried the recipe and told me about it, so I looked it up and merged a couple different recipes as well as utilized some comments that were left on recipe sites to make sure it was as authentic as possible. This is what I came up with. I used chunky peanut butter, and sprinkled dry roasted peanuts on top, it gave the dish a great crunch. Browning the chicken with the garlic before mincing it seems like unnecessary extra work, but it did help give the chicken more flavor. I put the garlic (after the browning), half of a medium onion, and the ginger, into my little food processor and minced it all together. This worked really well. The salsa I used was a Medium hotness, and it was a fresh garlic one that was in the produce section. And the diced tomatoes were the ones with jalapenos in them.

African Peanut Stew

1 tablespoon olive oil
1lb chicken breast
1 large sweet potato
2 medium onions
4 large garlic cloves
1 inch x 1 inch piece of fresh ginger (approx)
3 celery stalks
2 carrots
14oz diced tomatoes
15oz medium salsa
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2/3 cup of chunky peanut butter
3 cups cooked rice
4 cups chicken stock
6oz fresh baby spinach
Roasted peanuts


1. Cut chicken into cubes, brown in a pot with olive oil and garlic cloves
2. When chicken begins to brown take garlic out and mince along with the ginger
3. Finely dice onion, chop carrots and celery.
4. Add garlic, ginger, onion, carrots and celery to the pot.
5. Simmer till celery and onions turn translucent.
6. Cut sweet potato into cubes.
7. Add sweet potato, diced tomatoes (liquid and all), salsa, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, cumin, bay leaves, chili powder, and chicken stock to the pot.
8. Simmer till the potatoes are soft.
9. Meanwhile start rice cooking in a separate pot
10. Add peanut butter and baby spinach
11. Mix peanut butter in well and cook till spinach is done.
12. Stir in cooked rice
13. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and serve.

Jerk Style Chicken

This is Jerk inspired but not a traditional Jamaican Jerk Chicken, more like Thai flavored. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this. It's sooooo good. I will make this over and over again. I altered the recipe a little from allrecipies.com It was juicy and perfectly seasoned. It was perfectly spicy with the addition of cayenne pepper and red pepper flakes. The original recipe called to use Habeneros....which were not available at the grocery store for some reason. I used it only on 2 breasts which is fine. The original recipe called to reserve part of the marinade, and cook it in a saucepan to thicken it while the chicken is broiling. I'm sure this would be great grilled too. I served it with Fried Rice and homemade Mojitos :)

Jerk Style Chicken

1/2 small onion
4 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons soy sauce
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons fresh thyme
1 teaspoon sesame oil
6 garlic chopped
1/2 teaspoon Jamaican allspice
1/2 teaspoon red pepper
1/2 cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon honey
4 chicken breasts

Combine everything but the chicken in a blender and blend till smooth. Pour over chicken in bag and marinade for an hour (be careful not to marinade TOO long because then all you will taste is the soy sauce).

Preheat oven to broil. Make sure its fully preheated. Broil for 6-7 minutes a side.

Fried Rice

1 Tablespoon Sesame Oil
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
2 Green Onions
1 Tablespoon of chopped fresh ginger
3 Cups cooked white rice
3 Eggs
Fresh ground pepper to taste

1. Add sesame oil, green onions, ginger to pan cook till onions are translucent
2. Add rice and soy sauce
3. Mix together and fry for a minute or two
4. Push rice aside, scramble three eggs
5. Mix all together
6. Serve with pepper/soy sauce to taste

Note: Best to use day old rice. I usually cook rice at least an hour ahead of time, and let it full cool and dry out a little before putting it in the pan. The key is to not have wet rice. You can add veggies and meats if you so desire.

Mojitos

1 1/2 oz silver spiced rum
1/2 oz lime juice
1 tablespoon sugar
12 mint leaves
2 oz club soda/soda water

1. Put mint into bottom of glass
2. Add ice, lime juice, sugar, and rum
3. Mix around and crush mint
4. Add club soda

Enjoy :)

California Roll

For lunch today I made California Rolls. They were super yummy! Its not really a recipe really...just a list of stuff to assemble :)

California Rolls

white rice
toasted seaweed sheets
avocado
carrots
cucumbers
ginger
soy sauce and wasabi for dipping

Corned Beef and Cabbage

I find that boiled dinner and bland and tasteless when you only use the seasoning packet that it comes with. So I add a bottle of beer (I used the Shipyard Export this time as it was in the fridge), garlic, and bay leaves to give some added flavor. For the most part I follow the directions on the package of meat. I get the grey corned beef, so it doesn't have that red coloring being added needlessly. I did forget to put the carrots in this time *whoops*......Martha has a recipe to corn your own brisket....I may try that sometime in the future!

Corned Beef and Cabbage
aka: boiled dinner

1 bottle of beer
Potatoes
Head of Cabbage
Onions
Corned Beef and seasoning packet
8 garlic cloves
3 bay leaves


I use a crock pot, I put the meat in with the seasoning packet, bay leaves, garlic, and bottle of beer. Then I fill the crock pot with enough water to cover the beef completely. Typically 3 parts water to one part beer seems to work for me. I get around a 3lb brisket. I cook it in the crockpot on high for about 5 hours or so....then I add the Cabbage, potatoes, carrots, and a couple medium onions. I cut them all up into large wedges or chunks. Cook until they are all tender. Another hour or so.

Shrimp and Barley

This was adapted from a recipe I found in Real Simple Magazine. I used a parmasan, romano, and asiago blend of cheeses in place of the straight parmasan. It was originally a vegetarian dish and I added some shrimp and white kidney beans. Mainly because I love putting beans in things....and because my husband has a hard time eating things that do not have some sort of *meat* in it.....even if its a very small amount he will be happy. He definitely got this from his mother, who was a very bland cook, who put copious amounts of meat in EVERYTHING. So it has taken him a long time to get used me cooking with less meat (whether that is meat, poultry, fish, etc.). It helps that he absolutely loves my cooking :). Probably because it has flavor!

Shrimp and Barley

2 Tablespoons of olive oil
1 large onion
salt & pepper
2 cups quick cooking barley
28 oz diced tomatoes
1 cup white wine
1 teaspoon italian seasoning
8 cups fresh spinach
2 oz brie
1/2 cup parmesan
1lb raw shrimp

1. Dice onion and add to pot with olive oil. cook till translucent
2. Add barley, tomatoes, wine, 2 1/2 cups of water, salt, pepper, and italian seasoning.
3. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 12-15 minutes
4. Add spinach, cheeses, and shrimp. Cook until shrimp is opaque. ~5 minutes
5. Serve and sprinkle with parmesan

Double Chocolate Cake

After I made my friend a cake...my husband wanted one too....he got a full gluten version ha! Very good....obnoxiously chocolately....cream cheese frosting :) Got this off of the Epicurious website.

Double Chocolate Cake

• 3 ounces fine-quality semisweet chocolate
• 1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee
• 3 cups sugar
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat 300

Finely chop chocolate and in a bowl combine with hot coffee. Let mixture stand, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.

Into a large bowl sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another large bowl with an electric mixer beat eggs until thickened slightly and lemon colored (about 3 minutes with a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a hand-held mixer). Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, beating until combined well. Add sugar mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined well. Divide batter between pans and bake in middle of oven until a tester inserted in center comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Gluten Free Cake Flour

I made a graduation cake for a friend of mine. She can't have gluten, so I made a gluten free Red Velvet Cake for her this weekend. Turned out pretty good I think! And I received some good comments :)

Gluten Free Cake Flour:

3 cups fine ground white rice (you can find it cheaper in the Mexican food area)
1 cup corn starch
1/2 cup tapioca flour
1 1/4 teaspoons of xanthum gum

Mix together really well....and sift it when putting into a cake :)