A Post! Father's Day Feast --- plus sides perfect for summer!

 I know what you're thinking... SHE'S ALIVE!! Or maybe it's more like "Who are you?!" I honestly can't give you a definite reason why I've been MIA this time. I've been cooking, coming up with new recipes... just haven't really felt in the mood to post anything, and most times by the time the food is done, I just want to EAT it, not take pics of it! But Father's Day is here and my husband picked the meal: Filet Mignon, Corn on the Cob and Dutch Oven Potatoes (Mac salad is left overs from last's nights Ribs and Fries -- we don't always eat like this, I promise!! ) I'm on a carb-overload this weekend, for sure!!

Here's my little secret about the steaks: pay attention to your meat dept.'s sales on WHOLE beef tenderloins. When it's on sale, grab one (or two if budget allows). Ask the butcher to filet it into 1.5" steaks. If he's super nice, he'll not only filet it, he'll trim the steaks of fat, and grind the small bits into ground beef for you (it's only happened to me once... but it was AWESOME!). Bring the steaks home, individually wrap each one and place all of them into a freezer storage bag in the freezer. Easy to pull one or two out for thawing the day you need. A whole tenderloin can be pricey, but you end up with about 10 steaks, plus either the pound of ground beef or a pound of stew meat, so at about $4-5/per steak that's a great deal -- especially knowing what GREAT quality they are. I mean come on... these are so juicy and tender and mmmmmm.... Plus, they're perfectly portioned, each one being about 4oz! No need to marinade these beauties!

The other two recipes I'll include in this post are wonderful additions to any summer BBQ. I love Mac Salad with fries and a steak. And Dutch Oven Potatoes go with anything! Just FYI: if you're making this meal, start the potatoes first, preheat the oven, then once you add the potatoes to the pot, you can start the steaks. Macaroni Salad is best made the day before.

Filet Mignon

Ingredients:
4- tenderloin steaks, about 1.5" thick
coarse sea salt
fresh ground pepper
1TBS olive oil

Sauce:
1C drinking wine
2TBS Worcestershire Sauce

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425.

Heat oil in oven-safe skillet. Sprinkle steaks with salt and pepper on all sides, and to scorching hot pan. Allow to sear for 5 minutes -- DO NOT TOUCH! Allow to sit the entire 5 minutes, set your timer.
When the timer buzzes, transfer the entire pan into the oven.
For Rare: roast 5 minutes
For Medium (seen here): roast 6 minutes
For Well: roast 8 minutes

Take pan out of oven and allow to "rest" for 5 minutes. You may cover with foil for this, or just leave it as is.

After 5 minutes, remove steaks from pan to serving dish. Turn stove on to medium and add wine and Worcestershire sauce.  Be careful as the pan may still be hot -- I know from experience! Allow to simmer for about 5 minutes scrapping up any browned bits with wooden spoon or whisk. Serve over steaks. (Great as a gravy for mashed potatoes too!)

Literally, that simple. Just remember this: 425 for 5/6/5. Easy peasy!

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Macaroni Salad -- my mom's version, with a twist of me. 

Ingredients: 

1 pkg cherry/grape tomatoes, halved
1 cucumber, peeled (unless using English), and diced
a bunch of Radish, sliced
a bunch of green onions, mainly greens sliced
about 2 C macaroni, cooked and cooled
1C mayo
1C milk
2TBS Worcestershire sauce
1TBS mustard
salt and pepper

Instructions:

Prepare macaroni and allow to cool in colander.

Prep all veggies into a large bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add macaroni.

In a small jar (great if your Mayo is almost gone, just use it's jar!), add mayo, pour in milk, Worcestershire, and Mustard, close tightly, and shake for a good minute or two. Pour into large bowl. Combine well. Cover and store in the fridge until ready to enjoy.

Great to add baby shrimp!

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Dutch Oven Potatoes

Ingredients:

2 Russet potatoes, peeled and sliced about 1/4"
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1/2lb bacon
2 garlic cloves, minced
dash of celery salt, red pepper flakes, thyme
salt and pepper
season salt

Instructions:

Cook bacon until crispy in large skillet. Drain all but about 2TBS of bacon grease. Add onion and cook about 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add minced garlic, cook another minute.

Add potatoes and all seasonings, gently stir. Add about 1C of water and once it boils, turn the head down to low, cover and allow to simmer about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Careful as to not break apart the potatoes -- trust me, you don't want mush!

Uncover and allow to cook another 2 minutes. Enjoy with ketchup! 

Jambalaya - redone; plus Cornbread Muffins!

 So my last post, (sorry it's been so long!), has really been bothering me. I thought I had made Jambalaya... but once I went on an online search about it, I realized Jambalaya is more of a rice pilaf than a soup. So I've been itching to try it again. Today provided perfect conditions for doing so: rain, rain and more rain (with a few thunderstorms and tornado watches thrown in the mix, ugh). 

But first, I must rave about our side dish, Sweet Cornbread Muffins.  

Recipe inspiration comes from The Galley Gourmet! Love her recipes and her site! 

My hubby usually doesn't eat a bread side dish, but tonight, I had to tell him to slow down and to save some for tomorrow! Even our 3 year old-picky son loved them! 

I thought I had "corn meal" but when I pulled it out I realized it was "corn masa." I'm not sure if they're different... but just in case, I decided to add 2TBS ground flax to the mix of dry to give it the texture I thought it was missing. Maybe I was mistaken, but it was good regardless! Everything else I followed, and mine aren't as pretty (really, I'm not a baker. I'm just happy they turned out at all!), but they were perfect for us! 

Go check her out!! 

So what did I do differently from last time? 

Well, I kept to one can of chicken broth, and halved the onion, oregano and parsley. I cooked it on the stove this time for fear of losing power. I basically brought it to a boil, then let it simmer for about 2 hours, then added the rice directly to the pot (already cooked rice that was a leftover, that is) to allow the juices to be soaked up by the rice.  I accidentally allowed it to boil too long (losing a lot of juice), so I added about a cup of water. 

And... I didn't have a green bell pepper. I know I committed a Southern sin, but in my defense, I thought I had one in the fridge. I was mistaken. Oh well. It was good regardless. It's a bit spicy, but sided with the cornbread (and cottage cheese), it helped. 

The recipes: 

Jambalaya

Ingredients:

1 chicken breast, cut in pieces

1 pkg Andouille sausage, sliced

1 can diced tomatoes, with juice

1/2 onion, diced

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1C celery, chopped

1 can chicken broth

1tsp Oregano

1tsp Parsley

2tsp Cajun

1tsp. Cayenne

1/2tsp. Thyme 

2 handfuls frozen peeled/deveined shrimp *optional

2C Rice, prepared. 

Instructions:

Add everything to a large stock pot or crock pot. If using stock pot, bring to a boil, then lower heat to low and allow to simmer about 30min - 1 hour. If using crock pot, add everything cook on LOW 7-8hours, or HIGH 3-4 hours. If adding shrimp, do so with about 10 minutes remaining. Add rice, mix well and turn of heat. Allow to cool a few minutes. 

Sweet Cornbread Muffins

Ingredients:

1C flour

1C cornmeal (or 1C corn masa + 2TBS ground flax)

1/4C sugar

2tsp baking powder

1/2tsp baking soda

3/4tsp kosher salt

1C milk

1TBS white vinegar

1 lg egg, room temp. 

1/4C butter, melted

Instructions:

1. Combine milk and vinegar and allow to sit for 30 minutes. 

2. Preheat oven to 425. Place liners in muffin tin and spray with a bit of Pam. (Follow The Galley's recipe for a cake pan). 

3. In a large bowl, combing flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, combine milk mixture, egg, and butter. 

4. Pour wet ingredients over dry and mix just until combined. 

5. Allow to rest for 5 minutes. 

6. Bake 10-12 minutes, or until golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool for 5 minutes. 

Crock Pot Jambalaya

 Now that I live in the South, I thought I should probably start learning how to cook some good Southern food. I saw this recipe on Pinterest and it looked simple and yummy! Doing a little more research, I've discovered this looks more like Gumbo than actual Jambalaya... but it has the rice like Jambalaya. I did add more water than the recipe called for (I thought it was supposed to be "soup-y"!). So all y'all Southerners out there don't be hatin ok! I tried.

The recipe calls for "andouille sausage" well, according to ETNT, Aidells is the best sausage you could eat! Pretty tasty too!! (Found at local Publix)

Oh! And if you're like me and your Cajun Seasoning just happened to "disappear" magically when you needed it and you decide to opt for Creole Seasoning, don't throw in the full 2tsp it calls for, unless you like it HOT. Lesson learned. 

Learn from me (what I'd do differently next time is in parentheses)

Ingredients:

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1 inch cubes (I used one breast)
• 1 pound andouille sausage, sliced (1 - 12oz package worked perfect)
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
• 1 large onion, chopped  (I'd do half)
• 1 large green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano (1tsp next time)
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley (1tsp next time)
• 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning (if using Creole Seasoning, I'd use 1/2tsp - 1tsp)
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 pound frozen cooked shrimp without tails (I used about 2 good handfuls of frozen, cooked shrimp, thrown in during the last 30 minutes)

Instructions:

1. In a slow cooker, mix the chicken, sausage, tomatoes with juice, onion, green bell pepper, celery, and broth. Season with oregano, parsley, Cajun seasoning, cayenne pepper, and thyme.
2. Cover, and cook 7 to 8 hours on Low, or 3 to 4 hours on High. Stir in the shrimp during the last 30 minutes of cook time.

Artichoke Dip -- a healthy version!

Picture from Google. 

As I was thinking of a menu for the Super Bowl this Sunday, what sounds better than lots of fun finger foods?! So we'll be having potato skins, taquitos, chips and salsa, Bagel Bites, sausage and cheese tray, (all for my husband), shrimp cocktail, olives, meatballs, pomegranate sausage bits, and this Artichoke Dip with Stacy's Pita Chips. Artichoke Dip is the WORST option you could have as an appetizer because most recipes begin with Mayo and cream cheese and end with the veg. It should be backwards. Which, once again, is why I love the Eat This, Not That books! In the 2010 version they have included the following recipe, which I will be making this Sunday! 

Ingredients:

1 12oz jar artichoke hearts in water, drained and chopped (they recommend Cento brand)

1 16oz box chopped frozen spinach, thawed (Cascadian Farm Organic)

2TBS olive oil based mayo 

1/2TBS butter

1 onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 small can roasted green chiles, drained and chopped

2TBS whipped light cream cheese

juice of 1 lemon

salt and pepper, to taste

Whole wheat pitas -- optional

Instructions:

Optional -- Cut pitas into 6-8 wedges and separate the layers. Spread on 2 baking sheets and bake at 400 for 5 minutes. 

Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Add artichokes, spinach, chiles, mayo, cream cheese and lemon juice. Cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. 

Serves 4.

Chipotle Chicken

This chicken has a serious KICK to it... and it's so good as a taco, burrito, or enchilada filling. Move over Cafe Rio... 

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts

3 Chipotle Peppers + a little juice

2C tomato juice (or 1 can sauce + 2C water)

1 onion, chopped

1 can diced green chiles

1/2 bunch cilantro (optional)

3 juiced lemons +1/2 rind

salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients in a large stock pot (or crock pot). Add a bit of water to completely cover the chicken, if necessary). Bring to a boil, lower heat to simmer and cook for an hour and a half to two hours (if using crock pot, cook on high 4 hours), stirring occasionally. Remove chicken from broth, shred into large bowl or pan. Add a little of the broth, discarding the whole peppers and lemon rind. Place on tortillas, top with guacamole and sour cream or yogurt.

And a new feature here at Dancing in the Kitchen... I will provide a printable recipe card! Show some love would ya?!

Easter menu

I feel like such a slacker. I have been meaning to post this for a week now... so please forgive me for not getting it up in time. I realize Easter was LAST weekend and it may be pointless to even post this now... but it was so delicious, it deserves to be up.
I had never cooked a ham before, but it didn't seem that hard (and it's not). You don't even need a recipe, the little card attached to it will tell you exactly how to cook it. But I wanted mine to be EXTRA special. Start off by finding a decent 10lb-ish spiral sliced ham. Mine was from the Springfield brand. Highly recommended, and not overly-priced like some of those "Honey" brands. I will also list the recipe for "funeral potatoes take 2" and a super yummy dessert salad.

For the ham:

1 (10lb) fully-cooked spiral cut ham
2/3C brown sugar
1/3C apricot jam
1 tsp dry mustard powder

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300.
2. Place ham cut side down on sheet of foil that has been placed on a rimmed baking sheet. Mix together the sugar, jam and mustard in a small bowl (here I added half the bag of glaze from the ham). Brush onto ham using a pastry brush. Reserve any leftover glaze. Enclose the foil around the ham.
3. Roast for 2 hours, or 14 minutes per pound if your ham is a different size. Apply the remaining glaze 20 minutes before the ham is done.

Note: if making funeral pots, start them when you add the final glaze and they will be ready for the oven when you pull the ham out.

Funeral Potatoes - take 2

Ingredients:

1 large bag frozen hash browns
1/2C butter, plus extra for buttering dish
1 can cream soup
1 pint sour cream
1/2C chopped onion
2 C shredded cheese (I like to add about an extra cup)
1C smashed corn flakes
salt and pepper

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350.
In a large skillet, melt the butter. Add the soup, sour cream, and cheese. Stir until cheese is melted. Add onions.
Butter a 13x9 baking dish and add the potatoes. Pour cheese mixture over and combine well. Cover with corn flakes. Bake for 45 minutes.


Apple Dessert Salad

Ingredients:

1C shredded coconut
1C mini marshmallows
1C pineapple tidbits
1C mandarin oranges
1C cored, diced apples
1C sour cream

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients well and allow to chill at least an hour.

Taco Soup

I KNEW Winter wasn't over... last week was just a teaser! Everyone was saying, "Yay, Winter's over... welcome Spring!" Not me. I knew it wasn't over...
BUT... making up my 2 week menu plan a week ago, I was a little nervous putting "Taco Soup" down for tonight's dinner. What if it were a beautiful 70 degree sunny day and we craved outside BBQ? Oh well... I put it on the calendar... and lo and behold... it was cold and windy today, making for the PERFECT stay-inside-and-cook-soup day! And what an easy, delicious soup it is! I got the recipe from my Relief Society's blog, and tweaked it a bit to make it my own. I didn't really measure the spices, but I did start out with 1 pkg Taco seasoning. By the time I added the other ingredients, it just wasn't "taco-ey" enough for me. By the time I deemed it "perfect" I probably had used a whole 2nd package. Start with one package and taste as you go.... until you find your "perfect" pot of soup!
I gotta say one thing... this is the one meal my husband actually gobbled down without talking or gawking at the TV. He finished before I did! It was amazing!!


Taco Soup

Ingredients:

1lb ground hamburger
1 onion, diced
1tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1pkg. Taco seasoning
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1 can corn, drained
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
1 can great northern beans, drained
3 C water
salt and pepper

Instructions:

Brown hamburger with onions. Drain oil. Add a little salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce. Add taco seasoning. Transfer to a large stock pot. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Allow to simmer for 20-40 minutes. Enjoy with sour cream, shredded cheese and Fritos chips.

*Could also throw everything into a crock pot and cook on Low for 6-8hrs.

Cola Pork + sides

A friend posted this recipe on her blog the other day and it sounded so good, I had to try it. The picture she had attached looked like she used ribs instead of chops (which she didn't) and that got me thinkin... I don't like pork. Plain and simple... it's not my favorite. But I can say I do like ribs. I prefer the meatier Country Style type without bones... but this past summer we ate PLENTY of baby backs smoked on our charcoal BBQ (recipe to come soon). With this sparked interest, I thought I would try out this "Coke Chop" recipe only substituting the chops for country style boneless ribs. It was yummy... and the best part, it IMMEDIATELY started to smell once the crock-pot was turned on. My mind kept switching between the tragedy in Japan and the BBQ aroma filling my house all during church. I was torn....
And the recipe is so easy. I do have to say one thing.... don't get a strong flavored BBQ sauce. I would use an Original flavored, or something a little more mild. I only had Hickory Bourbon flavored sauce on hand, and it was a little too much. But once again... I recommend Stubbs brand sauce. Yum!

No more waiting... here's the recipe.

Ingredients:

6oz (or 1C) Coke
1C Ketchup
1C BBQ Sauce
Country Style ribs, or 4 Chops

Instructions:

Add all ingredients to crock pot. Cook either 4-5hrs on HIGH, or 7-8hrs on LOW. Enjoy.


That simple. Now for the sides.
I have grown up on both of these sides... and they will always be a favorite of mine. My husband has come to love the Dutch Oven Potatoes. He hasn't tasted the Mac Salad, otherwise I'm sure he'd like it too. But for now, that's all mine!!

Macaroni Salad

Ingredients:

Elbow macaroni (cooked and drained)
cherry tomatoes (halved)
cucumber (peeled and diced)
bunch of radish (sliced thinly)
green onions (sliced)
about 1C Mayo
about 1C milk
2TBS Worcestershire sauce

Instructions:

Prepare all veggies into a medium to large bowl. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Add cooked/drained macaroni.
In a small jar with a lid (or practically empty Mayo bottle), add the milk, mayo and Worcestershire sauce. Tighten lid and shake well. Pour over macaroni mixture and stir until well combined. Refrigerate for at least an hour, up to overnight.


Dutch Oven Potatoes

Ingredients:

4-6 potatoes (washed, peeled and sliced)
1lb bacon
half an onion (diced)
season salt
pepper
garlic salt
pinch of onion salt and celery salt

Instructions:

Cook the bacon in either a large skillet or dutch oven. Do not discard oil. Once browned, add onions and cook about 2-3min. Add potatoes and all seasonings. Add a cup to two cups of water just to almost cover potatoes. Bring to a boil. Turn heat down to med-low and allow to cook until potatoes are tender. Turn heat back up to barely brown potatoes and have water completely evaporated.

BBQ Beef

As I was planning out our Dinner Calendar for the next two weeks, I was trying to figure out quick and easy Sunday dinners that would also be delicious. I'm not a huge fan of the classic Roast with potatoes and carrots. And we had chicken last week. So then it hit me... why not cook up a roast and turn it into BBQ Beef sandwiches?
Mmmm.... I have been so excited. Plus, I already had the BBQ sauce and onion. All I needed was the meat and rolls. Piece of cake!
I also slipped in a "secret ingredient" to help boost the health factor, 1/4C Red Pepper puree (see "Veggie/Fruit Puree" tab above). When I told my husband (who has serious texture issues with veggies) that I slipped a secret ingredient into it, he made me promise not to tell him what it was until he finished eating it. Which, by the way, every bite he kept raving about how delicious it was! Once he was finished I told him what it was that was "hidden" in there. He didn't even care. YES! AND, if you skip the usual KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce and go with Stubbs Mild, you'll save yourself 30 calories and 10 grams of sugar per serving!! It's definitely worth a try... it was so good. And you don't even need rolls. I served it up on rolls and we ended up scooping it up with some chips and not even eating the bread. Yum!!

Is your mouth watering? Mine is and I've already eaten!

Ingredients:

1 Roast (try to find a lean one with not a lot of "marbling", trimmed of all visible fat
1 onion, diced
1 1/2 bottle of Stubbs Mild B-B-Q Sauce
1/4-1/2C Red Pepper Puree (could try carrots or squash too)
1tsp sea salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1TBS minced garlic (2 large cloves, 4 sm cloves)
1/4C red wine vinegar, plus a little to deglaze
Water to cover

1TBS-1/4C flour, to thicken as needed

Instructions:

Heat a large skillet on med-hi heat.
Combine salt, pepper and garlic and mix well. Spread all over Roast. Add roast to hot skillet and brown all sides. Remove roast to crock pot.
Lower heat on skillet and allow to cool just a bit, about 1 minute. Carefully pour in a little red wine vinegar and using a wooden spoon, scrape up the browned bits from the pan. Add contents to the crock pot, as well as the rest of the vinegar.
Add the onions and 1/2 bottle of sauce. Add water to just cover meat. Give pot a little stir to combine all the ingredients.
Cook on LOW for 7-8 hours.
About 5 hours into cooking, add the Red Pepper puree and mix well into liquid in the pan. Continue to cook until the meat is tender and starts to shred easily. Remove the meat to a plate and using 2 forks, shred.
Add a bit of flour to the pot and whisk well. Add the rest of the BBQ sauce and replace the shredded beef. Mix well and allow to cool a bit before serving.

Funeral Potatoes w/ Ham

Is it raining where you are? What's better than a nice plate of comfort food on a day like today? Today's recipe is the epitome of comfort food. It's got potatoes, cream, cheese, cereal, and ham. Yum. My mom gave me the recipe over the phone, so really... nothing's measured. But in her genius words, "Throw it in, and hope for the best!" Love her.

Funeral Potatoes with Ham

Ingredients:

8-12 md. peeled and sliced potatoes
2 sm. onions (or 1 lg) diced
Diced Ham (whatever you may have left over from a previous meal)
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
about 1 C Sour Cream
about 1 C milk
about 2TBS dill *optional
about 2TBS dried chives *optional
about 2 C grated cheese
about 2 C corn flakes

Instructions:

Basically, throw in first 7 (9 if you're using the herbs) ingredients in a casserole dish, top with cheese and corn flakes and bake for about 45-65min at 350, until potatoes are soft.


Super easy, and a great pot luck item! If you're LDS, like me, you've had these very potatoes at many funerals/missionary homecomings/farewells! Perfect.