Saturday, January 26, 2013

Teriyaki Chicken, Strawberry Cobbler & Tofu Nuggets

I'm not being very creative with my subject lines, am I? The simple fact is, I need a place to keep track of my recipes: Ones I've tried and loved, ones I've tweaked, ones that I've made up - and this just happens to be a very good place to do it. I think in a whimsical way too that one day I can package all this up and save it for my Lily Belle. She already loves watching cooking TV with me and helping out in the kitchen we she can. And gracious, that girl can eat! I'm very proud to say that she eats a very wide variety of foods and cuisines! 

Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken : I'd been looking for a slow cooker chicken recipe for weeks. I had all this frozen chicken and no recipe that called to me. I had all the ingredients on hand for this one so I gave it a go. Again, I used frozen chicken and it was fine. I also added sesame oil and red pepper flakes. I added toasted sesame seeds at the end and green onions. It was a total hit with the whole family!
This is a made up recipe...I had strawberries on hand that were going bad fast and needed to make something with them. I'd made a strawberry-peach cobbler before but never just plain strawberry. I wasn't sure how it would come out but it was totally divine. I made it just the way I do all my other cobblers: Some kind of fruit, about 2T white sugar, a little lemon juice and 1T cornstarch. Then I add the crumble (my favorite part!) which always consists of  cubed cold butter, oats, brown sugar, a little flower, and cinnamon. I mash all that up and spread it over top. Bake until brown and bubbly!

Best served with a scoop of ice cream. I was craving chocolate and my ice cream reserve has dwindled lately so I went with some old chocolate ice cream. It was really, really good! Best baked up for 2-3 people because it would be some work for a full crowd of people. 

Tofu "Nuggets"

Another made up recipe. I had pinned a recipe for panko crusted tofu but realized too late that I ran out of panko the other day. So I forged ahead with regular italian bread crumbs. I added garlic powder and sesame seeds. I did the flour-egg wash-bread crumb coating and then lightly fried it on all sides in veg oil. I served ours with soy-chili garlic paste mixture. It was okay. I was out of sesame oil and it would've made the dipping sauce better. LB really enjoyed it so I would make it again just for her. 

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Pinterest Finds

Some new recipes that I've found on pinterest, tried out, and loved!

Chocolate Chess Pie: This is my kind of dessert. Chocolate heaven. Totally decadent. Perfect with a side of vanilla ice cream!

Blueberry Crumb Bars: I made these for a playgroup. They were a hit and even better the next day with coffee! Definitely a go-to dish for get together.

Grands Unsloppy Joes: I actually saw this on a commercial and made them the next day. Den is always asking for sloppy joes but I never have buns on hand. He loves crescent rolls too so this was destined to be a hit. LB loved being able to pick it up and eat them with her hands too.

Baked Southwestern Egg Rolls: Super easy and really, really good! I'll serve it with some lime-cilantro sour cream next time. LB loved these too!

American Goulash: Now in our dinner line-up. Everyone loved this on a cold , windy day! LB had three helpings!