recipes

August 23, 2011

try this: black bean soup

We all love Panera’s Black Bean soup in our house… and after a few tries, we found a recipe that is really, really close! It was so easy and so so yummy!! It was a hit – this will be on our table frequently this winter.

Black Bean Soup
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
1 rib of celery, finely chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups water
2 15-ounce cans black beans with liquid
2 chicken bouillon cubes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons lemon juice
4 teaspoons cornstarch

1. Saute onion, celery, pepper and garlic in the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat for 5 minutes. Don’t let the veggies brown, just soften them up a bit.

2. Add water, 1 can of beans, bouillon cubes, salt and cumin. Bring soup to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Puree the soup using an immersion blender or by pouring into a blender in batches. Be very careful when putting hot liquids in the blender – do very small batches and use a hand towel to hold the lid down on the top of the blender just in case.

4. Add the remaining can of beans to the soup along with the lemon juice. Combine the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water in a small bowl, then add to the soup and bring it back up to a simmer and cook until thick, about 10 minutes more.

August 9, 2011

carne asade tacos

Melissa 1 Comment

Last week while the kids were gone, we went out for Mexcian. I LOVE Mexican food. My favorite thing to order is carne asada tacos. LOVE them. So I’ve been trying to make them at home. I found this version on Food Network. I’m not sure how authentic they are, but they were quite yummy, a hit with the family and super easy!

Carne Asada Tacos

1 pound thinly sliced sirloin steak
1-2 tablespoons garlic salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup white vinegar
shredded lettuce
shredded cheese
corn tortillas

Lay out the beef rounds in a single layer. Season the meat on both sides with the garlic salt and black pepper. Put the meat in a medium mixing bowl and add the vinegar. Let the meat marinate for at least 2 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

Warm tortillas in oven. Serve with lettuce, cheese, and any other toppings you love on your tacos!

August 2, 2011

try this: cooking with lawry’s giveaway

Melissa 75 Comments

I had so much fun being a part of Philly’s Lawry’s Cooking Team. We were challenged to come up with a meal around a “holiday” dinner, so we decided to throw a Labor Day couples party.

We are total overachievers, so we went beyond the requested appetizer, main dish and side.. and came up with a bunch of recipes that were SUPER yummy!!

Here’s what we made:

Cheesy Baked Artichoke Dip
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon Lawry’s Seasoned Salt
pinch of salt
2 12-ounce can artichoke hearts packed in water, well drained,
chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 pitch Italian cheese blend, to sprinkle on top of finished dip
French-bread baguette slices, toasted or Gluten Free chips or crackers or celery for dipping

Whisk 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, and Lawry’s seasoning in medium bowl to blend. Stir in chopped artichoke hearts. Transfer mixture to 3-cup ramekin.
Sprinkle dip with 2 tablespoons grated Mexican cheese and paprika.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Bake dip until heated through, about 25 minutes (about 35 minutes if chilled).
Preheat broiler. Broil until cheese melts, about 2-3 minutes.

Pineapple Salsa

1 pineapple, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1-2 tsp jalapeno pepper, chopped
1 tbsp grated ginger
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp Lawry’s seasoned pepper
2 tbsp fresh cilantro

Cook onion over low heat until translucent. Add pineapple, pepper, ginger, sugar and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes. Sprinkle on cilantro. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Lawry’s Rubbed Cedar Plank Salmon
¼ c brown sugar
2 tbsp Lawry’s seasoned pepper
1 Cedar Plank
3 pound salmon

Prepare Cedar Plank according to instructions. Mix brown sugar and seasoned pepper and rub over Salmon. Let sit for 20 minutes. Grill according to Cedar Plank instructions.

Corn on the Cob
Remove outer layers of corn husks
Soak corn in cold water for 20 minutes
peel back husks
dribble olive oil and shake on Lawry’s seasoned salt
push corn husks back around cob and grill for 20-40 minutes, turning every now and again
remove corn and serve

Grilled Balsamic Marinated Vegetables
Fresh local vegetables, cut into bite-size pieces
Lawry’s Balsamic Herb Marinade
Foil

line a dish with foil
mix vegetables in dish
cover with about half a bottle of marinade, cover with another layer of foil
refrigerate for a half hour to an hour
carefully flip over dish and close foil so that it incases the vegetables
Add another layer of foil
Place over a hot grill for 20-40 minutes, turning once. (The longer you cook the vegetables, the softer they will be.)

Dessert
Sweet and Spicy Strawberries and Peaches
1 lb strawberries
3 fresh local peaches
1 tbsp sugar
½ cup water
1 tbsp Lawry’s Balsamic Vinegar Marinade

cut tops of strawberries
slice peaches into slices
marinade in water, marinade, and sugar
place in foil
grill for 5-6 minutes
serve with vanilla ice cream or greek yogurt

Lawry’s Sweet & Seasoned Surprise
2 oz tequila
2 ½ teaspoon sugar
½ cup frozen strawberries
1/2 cup frozen pineapple
1/2 cup frozen peaches
Juice of ½ Lemon
Lawry’s seasoned pepper

Mix above in a blender.
Pour some Seasoned Pepper on a plate
Wet Margarita glass with a lemon and dip in Lawry’s seasoning
Enjoy this salty and sweet drink!

WIN IT!!

Lawry’s is offering one reader a giveaway package with: 16 oz Seasoned Salt, Balsamic Herb Marinade and a Seasoned Salt Marinade. YUMMY!!!

To enter: Leave me a comment! Tell me which recipe we made that you would try.

For an extra entry: Retweet this post on twitter using the #lawrys hashtag.

Rules: Entry is open to US residents, one entry per person mandatory, entry via tweeting once per day. Giveaway closes August 17th, 2011. Random winner will be selected via random.org Winner has 24 hours to respond to email or a new winner will be chosen.

Disclaimer: this campaign was sponsored by lawry’s and the motherhood. i was compensated for this post.
Check out our team’s posts:

July 10, 2011

frozen mango daiquiri

Melissa 4 Comments

This is amazing. Sweet and fruity and so refreshing!!

You’re welcome.

Frozen Mango Daiquiri

4 oz light rum
1 lime, peeled and halved
2 tbsp sugar
1 cup frozen mango chunks
1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
2 cups ice cubes

Blend. Enjoy. Repeat.

Linked up with

June 7, 2011

try this: camping potatoes

Melissa

We call these camping potatoes. Because we make them camping. But they’re really just breakfast potatoes. But everything tastes better when you’re camping, right?

Camping Potatoes

diced potatoes (as many as you need – i think we used 8)
one onion diced
diced pepper (we used about half yellow, orange and green each)
seasoned salt
olive oil

Toss potatoes and onion with olive oil in a preheated skillet. TOss frequently. After a bit add peppers. When potatoes are getting soft, add seasoned salt to taste. (We like quite a bit.) Eat with fried eggs and bacon in front of the fire while sipping coffee.

Camping breakfasts are the best!

May 24, 2011

how to caramelize onions

Melissa 1 Comment

I was putting away groceries and realized I bought a bunch of onions when I already had a bunch of onions. Whoops. So I needed to get rid of come onions. So I decided to caramelize an onion to throw on top of our carnitas tacos. (Which was amazing, by the way.) We love caramelized onions – we throw them on top of burgers and steaks, top pizza with them, make dip… even make French Onion Soup!

They’re super easy!

How to Caramelize Onions

1 large onion, sliced per your preference
2 tablespoons olive oil or butter or some of each
Heavy pinch of salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Heavy pinch of sugar

Heat a sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the oil/butter.

Sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper. Sauté on medium heat, stirring occasionally. VERY occasionally. The best thing is to just walk away for a bit at a time. I’m usually cooking the rest of dinner, so they don’t get too much attention. You need to let them sit in order for them to brown.

getting closer

When they’re starting to brown, add a pinch of sugar.
Keep tossing occasionally until they are a deep, golden brown.

almost there

perfection

May 17, 2011

try this: slow cooker pork carnitas

Melissa 2 Comments

I love carnitas. LOVE. I have an amazing recipe, but its a little complicated. These days I need easy, easy easy. So when I saw this recipe for carnitas in the slow cooker on A Year of Slow Cooking, I was immediately ready to try.

So not only was this yummy and super easy, but pork shoulder (also called pork butt for some strange reason) is really cheap and they’re generally gigantic. I picked up the smallest one and it was over 7 pounds. So this is a great recipe to make for a huge crowd or when you want to put half in your freezer for a quick meal later!

**Warning: Your husband may start singing Baby Got Back when you tell him that giant piece of meat is pork butt. Mine immediately broke out with “I like big butts and I can not lie….” and its been stuck in my head all day.**

Slow Cooker Carnitas

5 pounds pork shoulder
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (about 2 large oranges)
½ cup freshly squeezed lime juice (about 2 large limes)
14 cloves garlic (whole, peeled. But minced is okay if you got it)
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons cumin
1 cup beef broth
corn tortillas
sour cream, salsa, sliced avocado, shredded cheese, shredded lettuce (whatever you like!)

Use a 6 quart slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the salt and cumin. Rub mixture all over the pork, then plop into the slow cooker. Add whole garlic cloves. Squeeze on the citrus, and pour the beef broth evenly over the top.

Cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until the pork shreds quite easily with a fork. If your meat is still fully intact after 8 hours, remove and cut into chunks, then return to the crock and flip to high for about an hour or two. It should pretty much fall apart when you poke it with a fork.

Shred meat fully and serve on warmed corn tortillas with desired toppings.

I linked this recipe up at Jo-Lynne’s Gluten Free Recipe Roundup!

May 3, 2011

try this: caramelized pear parfaits

Melissa 4 Comments

A friend of mine from Bible Study made these a few weeks ago and they were heavenly. We all begged her for the recipe and I couldn’t wait to serve it up at my Stella & Dot party last Friday morning!

Caramelized Pear Parfaits

4 firm-ripe pears, cored, and quartered (Bartlett)
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground allspice
4 tablespoons light or dark brown sugar (not packed)
1 cup granola
1 1/3 cups vanilla-flavored yogurt

Combine pears and lemon juice in a bowl, and brush pears well with lemon juice. Set aside.

Heat a large skillet over high heat. When hot, add the butter. Add the pears and cook, stirring
occasionally, until golden brown around the edges, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the cinnamon and
allspice and toss gently to combine. Add the brown sugar and cook, stirring occasionally,
until pears are soft and the juices have blended with the sugar to form a sugary syrup, 2 to 3
minutes. Remove from the heat.

Parfaits may be assembled while pears are still warm or after they have cooled.

(As per my friend’s notes, I went light on the brown sugar and left most of the syrup in the pan.)

April 5, 2011

try this: GRILLING

Melissa

Yesterday it was warm. And sunny. And we hauled out the grill for the first time all year and grilled up a TON! So we have meat grilled for just about the whole week now – and I even was able to planned out enough to do a Meal Plan Monday Tuesday!

Monday: Everything Burgers, sweet potato fries

Tuesday: Penne alla Norma with grilled chicken

Wednesday: leftovers (soccer practice begins! Yay!!)

Thursday: Tequila Lime Chicken, black beans with guacamole and chips. Perhaps a margarita.

Friday: Not sure – I'm heading to the Farmer's Market Friday, so we'll see what looks good!

March 29, 2011

try this: banana bread

Melissa 1 Comment

We came home from the wedding to find a ton of very brown bananas in the fruit bowl. But we were not sad. Becuase brown bananas mean….

Banana Bread!

5 1/3 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 1/3 c all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 c mashed very ripe banana (about 2)
1/2 c coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350. Grease an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan.

Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
Mix butter and sugar together in high speed until light and fluffy, two or three minutes. Beat in the flour mixture in low speed until blended and the consistency of brown sugar. Gradually beat in eggs. Fold in bananas and walnuts with spatula until just combined.
Scrape batter into pan and spread evenly. Bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 50-60 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes before taking out of pan to cool completely.

from Joy of Cooking