Peach Mint Iced Tea

This is so refreshing and easy!

2 black tea bags (I used Lipton black)
6 - 7 peach slices (frozen work great!)
6 fresh mint leaves
1/2 tsp honey
water

Serves: 3

Fill a medium sauce pan with water and bring to a boil. Add your tea bags to let steep. Once that lovely dark brown, remove the tea bags, lower the heat to low, and add the rest of the ingredients.
Let simmer for about 10 minutes and remove your mint leaves (unless you like a lot of mint, then leave them in). Let simmer for another 10 minutes. Chill.

Serve over ice.

Feel free to strain if you like.

Delicious :)

BBQ Chicken Pockets

I love this recipe because it's so easy - little prep, not much to watch, and few dishes!

2 chicken fillets
1 large potato
1 small onion
2 carrots (or 8-10 baby carrots)
About 1 1/2 cups of your choice of barbecue sauce (I use Sweet Baby Rays, but you can even use a mixture of sauces you have on hand if you'd like)
Pinch of salt
Pinch of pepper
Pinch of garlic powder
2 large sheets of aluminum foil

Serves: 2

Peel, wash, a chunk your potatoes. Peel, wash, and slice your carrots into circles about 1/4 in. thick. Remove onion skin and cut into wedges (cut into eighths).

On aluminum foil, squirt some barbecue sauce (about 2 tbs., but don't get too hung up on measurements on this one - just have fun with it!) and then place half of your potato chunks and one chicken fillet.



Sprinkle on spices and add more sauce. Then add half of your onions and then half of the carrots - you want the items that will take the longest (i.e. carrots and potatoes) on the outside, towards the heat. Sprinkle some more spices and top with more sauce.


Then wrap up your pocket. Take the long edges and pull them up toward the ceiling, touch them together and then roll them down. Roll the other two ends in towards the ingredients and Viola! Pockets!

Follow the same instructions for the second one.

Place on a high heated grill. After about 10 minutes, flip pockets and lower heat to medium. In total these will take about an hour to cook - about 30 minutes after the first flip, flip again and leave heat at same temperature.

By squeezing the pockets with gloves you should be able to get a feel for if they're done by how squishy it is, if it's super squishy it's done. This can be hard to tell though, so unroll and poke the potatoes and chicken to see if they're done. Potatoes will be soft all the way through and chicken will be while all the way through.

Serve.

Yum!! Food Play On!

Other Options/In Case of Emergency:
If you don't have potatoes, you can use sweet potatoes, instead.
Don't have carrots? Swap out for another veggie (or just have fun with it and mix it up!) Use zucchini, squash, corn, or whatever you like! You can try peppers, but they tend to be a strong flavor once cooked, so beware the flavor may spread to the other food.
Use any kind of barbecue sauce - and if you really like sauce, add some more! If you don't like it that much, just be sure there is enough to cook fully. If you take out too much things will begin to stick to the foil, but no huge issues.

Southwestern Chicken Pasta

This is a fun one! It gives you Mexican flavors and pasta all at once! Try adding more veggies for a healthier meal.

1 large chicken breast

1 - 15.25 oz can pablano and red pepper corn - any type of 'southwestern' corn will do fine. I think it's usually called southwestern, this is just what we found today

1/2 box of penne pasta 

1/2 bell pepper

1 cup of tortilla chips

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1 tbs. olive oil

Your favorite spicy seasoning mix - i personally love the Fiesta Party Dip Mix from Tastefully Simple - works for so much! But whatever you have works :)

Sauce:

1 - 10 oz can hot green chile enchilada sauce - we got the hot and I promise it wasnt hot....good flavor though so that's what I recommend

1 - 8 oz can tomato sauce - I got 'no salt' and this worked really well, but any will do

1/2 packet of taco seasoning

Pinch of salt 

Pinch of pepper

4 slice of picked jalapeños chopped finely

1 tbs. salsa

Serves: 3 (2 with leftovers)

In a bowl, combine your 2 sauces, whisk in your spices and add your salsa and jalapeños. Mix together and then warm on medium low in a medium sauce pan -continue to stir occasionally. The sauce will thicken, which I think is great because it sticks to the food better. But keep it medium low and it won't thicken too much. When tasting this sauce you don't get too much heat, but once all the ingredients are together at the end it really comes through

Warm your olive oil in a large pan and add your garlic. Slice your chicken breast to about 1/2 in thick pieces, sprinkle on your favorite spicy seasoning (if you don't have one, a mix of cayenne and crushed red pepper will do the trick). Get your water for the pasta boiling and add pasta whenever it's boiling (I always add about 1 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of oil to the water).

Cook your chicken in the pan until fully cooked and gets a nice golden sear on the outside - the best way to do this is to cook it thoroughly and once you run out of oil just keep an eye on it and don't add anymore, it will golden up in no time.

Add your peppers to the chicken pan when the chicken has about 5 minutes left (including the goldening time - goldening not sure that's a word, but it can be now!) cook the peppers until they are al dente. 

Remove your chicken and peppers and add your corn to the same pan to warm. Cut your chicken and peppers to the desired size (slices, diced, whatever works for you).

Once the pasta is done and the corn is warm it's time to serve!

Put your pasta In a bowl, topped with sauce, peppers, chicken, and corn (drained). Have the tortillas crushed for each individual to top their own bowl with so they don't get too soggy.

Feel free to have cheese available, too! Some taco cheese would be great on this!

Other Options/In Case of Emergency:

Any corn will work because once it's added you won't taste much of a difference

Play with this one! Add peas, beans, zucchini, whatever you think will work!

If you like spicy things - I actually added the whole packet of taco seasoning, but we love spicy so I didn't want to scare anyone. 

Use a different protein too! This would definitely be good with pork or ground beef. Switch it up - use what you like! Or even cut the meat out all together and just have veggies :)

Fresh jalapeño would be fine too if you don't have the pickled.

Bow ties, rigatoni, anything will do in this category (not sure how spaghetti would be, but hey, why not!?)

The secret to onions

Onions are staples. You NEED them in your pantry, so don't try to get away without them. I'm not saying buy a 10lb. bag from Costco, but make sure you have a few on hand at all times.

I know, I know they make you cry - me too! Those insensitive bastards. But they help in all sorts of recipes! The trick to getting them to not make you cry is putting them in the refrigerator. You don't have to put them all in, but if keep one I there at all times and then when you go to use it, it'll be ready. Keep the rest in a dark, dry place.

For cutting them: cut the ends off and then make a slice down the side and take off the first layer of onion, this will take off all of the skin and those gross thin layers that are half skin and half onion - yuck! 

To chop: cut it in half so that you get a flat side and a round side (like a half circle), lay it on the flat side so that it's not rolling around on you and chop away :)

Beef and Bean Enchiladas

Spicy! My favorite!

These can always be tailored to the heat lovers or the not-so-much lovers!

1 lb. ground beef

1 can refried beans

Taco seasoning

1/4 med. onion chopped

6 soft taco shells

3/4 cup taco cheese

Sauce:

2 - 10 oz. cans enchilada sauce

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp. chili powder

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper - or any spicy seasoning blend you have

1/2 tsp. onion flakes

Serves: 3

Heat your oven to 350.

Pour your cans of sauce into a small sauce pan, add spice and allow to simmer on medium low. 

Brown the meat in a LARGE pan (trust me on the size). Once almost fully cooked add your chopped onion, allow to cook a little (about 1 minute). Drain 1 tsp of the beef 'juice' into the sauce and stir.

Add your taco seasoning and beans to the beef mixture. Stir until we'll mixed. Allow these to warm together. And add about 1 tbs. of the sauce to the mixture - it helps bring all The flavors together!

Taste your sauce as you go. The one I had was pretty bland so I needed all these spices, make sure you have enough flavoring. Also remember that as things cook the heat of the spices comes out, so if you think it's a little blah allow it to simmer and it may perk up after it goes in the oven.

Pour 1/2 cup of sauce on your aluminum foil covered pan. 

Add your mixture to the center of the shells. (If your shells are older, dampen a paper towel and heat the shells in the microwave with the towel covering them for 10 sec.)

Roll the shells and place them on the sauce with the crease side down. Pour the rest of the sauce over your shells, cover with your cheese and place in the oven.

Because everything is already cooked, you just need to let everything meld together and melt the cheese. Cook for 15 minutes and then broil on high for 2 minutes to give the cheese that lovely golden color - yum!

The center ones are for me! - no cheese :)

Other Options/In Case of Emergency:

For those of you without milk issues, add some of extra cheese to the beef mixture before putting it in the shells! About 1/4 cup will work.

For those with milk issues, don't worry about the cheese on top - they're delicious with out - I promise!

Don't have taco cheese? Use American, Cheddar, Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack - no worries!

No onion flakes? Chop some fresh! No fresh? Use the flakes!

Shrimp - and its benefits

Some people may be scared by the thought of shrimp, but once you learn to cook with it it will be your new best friend.

I've always loved shrimp, so sometimes my mom would send it with me when I'd go back to school. This is where I learned how great it is.

If you're in a hurry - shrimp is your go-to. It defrosts in tops 45 minutes. Say you get home from work and don't know what to make, pull out shrimp. By the time you change, shower, and start some potatoes, they'll be good to go!
And of course if you defrost them in a microwave it'll take even less time!

Shrimp also takes a few minutes on both sides (at most) to cook - so food will be ready in a jiffy!

It's also crazy versatile - grill, bake, saute, stir fry, fry - whatever you're in the mood for you can do it with shrimp.

Shrimp Stir Fry

Stir fry is a great recipe to keep on hand because it's quick, doesn't require out of the ordinary things, and can use up leftovers!

When it comes to stir fry remember to start with the things that take the longest (carrots, peppers, squash, etc.) and then add each ingredient that take the next longest.

1 bell pepper 

1/2 med. onion

1 small squash

1 - 9 oz. box of frozen snap peas

1/2 cup. Sliced cabbage

10 easy-peel shrimp

Sauce:

1 tsp. honey

1 1/2 tsp. ketchup

1 tsp. soy sauce

1 1/2 tsp. hot sauce

2 tsp. worschestire sauce

1 clove of garlic minced

Dash of pepper

Serves: 3 (2 with leftovers)

Don't be scared of the shrimp idea - they'll become your best friend when you get used to them!

Warm a large pan with 1 tbs. of olive oil. Dice pepper and onion. Cut squash into discs then in half to create half circles (about 1/8 in. Thick). Once your pan is warm add your peppers and onions. Once these begin to soften, add your squash.





Continue to stir on occasion so nothing burns, there isn't a lot of oil in the pan so watch closely (or add more oil if you're worried). Once the squash begins to carmalize, add your box of frozen peas. Keep these frozen because the water that comes out of them will aid the cooking of everything else. Once those defrost, add your sauce. Let that cook for a minute or two then add your shrimp and cabbage - this will cook quickly so be ready for dinner to come soon! To coo this even, try to put the shrimp and cabbage under the other ingredients, this will cook it quicker and you won't have one shrimp cooked before the others which will lead to tough shrimp.

The best way to do this is to make a 'hole' in the center and put that in the cover with the veggies from the outside.

The shrimp will be done when they are pink. 

Serve over rice.

Other Options/In Case of Emergency:

Use any vegetables you have, just remember things that take longer must go in first. But if you have leftover things you need to get rid of or don't know what else to do with this is perfect!

You can use ANY protein you want. For chicken, pork, or beef add cabbage after. You can even use leftovers, as long as the seasonings mix well. You wouldn't want something with cilantro, or a lot of citrus. Dice it and keep it until the cabbage. You just need to warm it. 

This sauce is spicy so cut down on the hot sauce if you don't like too spicy

Also, consider adding a splash of orange juice to give it some freshness and dimension 

Pasta Sauce from a jar

I know everyone judges for using 'canned' sauces and everyone has their preference "don't use Ragu" "Make homemade" "Only the kind with garlic" ...blah blah blah... but you can buy WHATEVER you want - even whatever is cheapest! Because all you need is to doctor it up and you won't even tell

To doctor up sauce, saute some chopped onions (if you like chunky sauce use 1-2 tbs per jar, cut down if not) and chopped garlic (minced from a jar will do just fine, and if you're out you can use the powder). Once the onions are slightly transparent, add the jar and some fresh basil (3 leaves or more if you like basil). Let this simmer until the rest of dinner is ready and you'll be set! No one else will know, but you and I!

If your jar is too acidic, add a sprinkle of sugar, it will kill the acid. But be sure to taste this as you go.

It's so easy and can really add to a sauce!

FOOD PLAY ON :)

1st Post - Meatballs

So I messed up and didn't take pictures until after dinner was put away, so it's not the best, please don't judge me on the picture - they really came out well!

I like to keep things simple! For these I usually cook them in a crock pot which is CRAZY easy (for those of you scared of the crockpot you won't be if you stick around), but today I didn't have the time so I cooked them in the oven.

When I cook meatballs I guess everything, so no worries, relax, and have fun with them! If you're low on something or forgot it, don't worry about it!

1 lb. of ground beef
3 tbs. of bread crumbs (whatever kind you have will work)
1 tbs. of oats
2 tbs. of chopped onions
some fresh basil...I love growing plants and basil is one of the EASIEST to grow. Buy it as a small plant and get ready for it to take off. If you can, keep it inside where it can get lots of light. That's what I've found to be the best
a pinch of pepper
2 cloves of garlic (or however much you like, I LOVE garlic)
a splash of milk..this you will have to judge by the wetness of it. Next time I'll take picture to try to give you a better idea, but it must be very moist, but no excess milk. Also for those of you with milk issues Almond worked just fine tonight, and it seems you need less because it's actually just water.
1 egg (hint: if you are out of eggs or making a smaller batch, you do NOT need the egg - I found this out tonight, it just helps bind)

Now the FUN part - mushing them all up!
Definitely get your hands in there and make sure all the ingredients are well mixed - it seems gross at first, but I promise after a few times, it's fun!

Put them in a pan/baker/crockpot/whatever you have. Try to keep them from touching and if they have to touch just put some sauce on the first layer and then the rest of the meatballs to keep them from sticking and cooking together.
Cover in sauce - I don't care if it's jarred or homemade - I don't judge. Also keep an eye out for my sauce trick

Cook at 350 for an hour. Test them by taking one out and cutting it in half because one hour will vary depending on size of balls, oven, and how often you sneak a peek like me. If they're done they'll be brown the whole way through. The great thing about meatballs is that with all the sauce you can 'overcook' and they won't dry out. So if you forget what time you put them in, no worries, leave them in a little longer.

ENJOY :)

Other Options/In Case of Emergency:

-if you don't have enough oats you can use oatmeal oats just pick around the raisins or whatever and pick the oats by itself, don't just dump the bag in. I wouldn't use as many, just some to get you through

-if you run out garlic, although that's sacrilege in my house, garlic powder will work 

- and there is frozen crushed garlic in grocery stores for those who don't use a lot and don't want it to go bad - look out for that or make your own by crushing it and storing it flat in freezer bags.

-crockpot: cook on low for about 2.5 hours

Introduction

Hi There!

My name is Makayla, I'm in my 20s and LOVE to cook. It's not something I ever thought of making a career, it's mostly a hobby. Which is nice because I get to take my time, try new things, and really enjoying the experience.

If you're not going for the CHOPPED Championships, but could use a few tips here and there, want a few new recipes, or want to follow someone through their crazy concoctions you've come to the right place.

I will not focus on one type of cooking, I will try to keep it healthy where possible - but let's face it, who doesn't love some homemade ice cream now and then.
Speaking of ice cream, I'm trying to stay away from dairy right now (and for an ice cream fanatic - that's tough) so you will see that many recipes do not contain dairy...unfortunately.

I also like to keep things cheap and work with what I've got - so along the way we will find ways to use stuff we already have and cheaper ingredients for those we need to buy. I recently moved, so don't worry I definitely have less stuff in my pantry than yours!

So here we go - our journey through the kitchen is about to begin.