Pork Barbacoa

for today here is a recipe for Cafe Rio's Pork Barbacoa. I shared it with a friend and so I am going to just copy and paste what I wrote in the email to her. Here is the link for the recipe
And here is what I did:
I did a few things different like cooking the pork for 10 hours initially in water not 12. My roast was also only like 4 pounds too. Then as I was draining off the water the meat shredded it's self and I just went ahead and took off all the fat at that point, before I let it cook for 6 hours with the sauce. (You'll see what I mean after the recipe) I used Dr. Pepper for the sauce and all I had was a 2 liter, which when I measured it out was 2 1/2 cups (just in case you have a 2 litter too). And instead of 3/4 C white sugar I did a heaping 1/3 C. And instead of hot taco sauce I did mild for the kids and not knowing how spicy it would be.
And for the dressing I just did the ranch packet, 1 c mayo, 1 cup milk with 1 T lime juice (since I didn't feel like getting buttermilk), and then a cup of medium salsa verde (the green stuff) since it is made of cilantro and tamatillos.
I kinda went crazy and cooked up a whole bunch of food for the meal. I also did the 5 minute rice but cooked it in chicken stock, 1 clove minced garlic, 1 teaspoon cumin and a few shakes of chili powder. And then I made mashed black beans. Which is 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 c chicken stock, 1 can drained black beans, 1 teapsoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon oregano, 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, 1 clove minced garlic. Just put all that in a pot and bring to a boil then take a spoon and smash up some of the beans so that it will thicken the sauce. After setting for a few minutes it should be similar to refried beans. I hope that made sense.
We then just filled our plates with some Romaine and spinach and topped it with the pork, rice, beans, dressing, and some cheese (monterrey jack or pepper jack is the best). It is now Travis's favorite meal. It kinda sounds overwhelming when you look at the recipes, but most of the cooking is in the crockpot and it isn't bad at all.

Zesty Italian Crescent Casserole

I found this recipe online and was excited to try it. It's from Pillsbury and I of course had to change it a little bit. We loved it and will be making one of our favorite dinner recipes.
Here is the original recipe:

1	lb. lean ground beef
1/4	cup chopped onion
1	cup tomato pasta sauce
6	oz. (1 1/2 cups) shredded mozzarella or Monterey Jack cheese
1/2	cup sour cream
1	(8-oz.) can Pillsbury® Recipe Creations (Or Crescent Dinner Rolls)
1/3	cup grated Parmesan cheese
2	tablespoons butter, melted

Heat oven to 375°F. In large skillet, cook ground beef and onion over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes or until beef is thoroughly cooked, stirring frequently. Drain. Stir in pasta sauce; cook until thoroughly heated.

Meanwhile, in medium bowl, combine mozzarella cheese and sour cream; mix well.

Pour hot beef mixture into ungreased 9 1/2 or 10-inch glass deep-dish pie pan or 11x7-inch (2-quart) glass baking dish. Spoon cheese mixture over beef mixture.

Unroll dough over cheese mixture. In small bowl, mix Parmesan cheese and butter. Spread evenly over dough.

Bake at 375°F. for 18 to 25 minutes or until deep golden brown.

First the change I made was I used chicken instead of beef. Beef just kind of creeps me out in general, and I really don't care for it while I'm pregnant. I absolutely loved it with the chicken. I also omitted the fresh onion for the chopped dehydrated onion. It is harder for the kids, and Travis, to detect and pick out. :) I also probably added an extra 1/4 - 1/3 C sauce. In the summer or for those who are wanting a meat free meal I think sauteed eggplant, squash, zucchini, and portabella mushrooms would be FANTASTIC.
With the parmesan cheese mixture, make sure it is even otherwise it cooks unevenly. I also had to let mine cook for almost 30 minutes and cover the edges to keep from browning too much.
And the picture shows that they used the crescent rolls and placed them in slices. I just unrolled mine and then made it like a pie crust for the top. Which ever way floats your boat you could use.

Corn Sausage Chowder

I got this recipe from American Baby in February 2006. We absolutely love it. The girls however, not so much. But they have turned into quiet the picky eaters, not eating any potato unless its a french fry.
Corn Sausage Chowder
1 lb pork sausage
1 C chopped onion
3 C 1/2 inch pieces of red potatoes (unpeeled)
2 C water
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dried oregano or majoram chrushed
1/8 tsp black pepper
One 15 1/4 oz can of corn drained
one 14 3/4 oz cream corn undrained
12 oz can of evaporated milk

1. Cook sausage and onion until sausage is browned and cooked. Drain well
2. Add sausage, potatoes, water, all spices and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer about 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
3. Stir in corns, and milk. Cook and stir until heated through.

I usually double the water and potato in this. You can use a little less water but I really like potatoes in the soup. You could double the corn as well but I find it's fine with just doubling the spice, water and potatoes. (And of course you don't have to use red potatoes, just use what you have)
Last night I used a mild italian sausage and both Travis and I really liked it. So there is another variation.
And the recipe also says that this is a great dutch oven recipe. I'm not a big dutch oven person , so I've never tried it.

Easy Pasta

3/4 cup olive oil (You can use a lot less. Just make sure the pasta is coated in it)

1 pound rigatoni, rotini, or penne pasta

Two 14.5-ounce cans diced italian style tomatoes

Two 14.5-ounce cans stewed italian style tomatoes

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Place oil in a large bowl. Add dry pasta and stir until well coated; let stand for 20 minutes.

2. Add tomatoes to pasta mixture; season with salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Transfer to a 2 1/2-quart baking dish or 9X13 pan. Cover aluminum foil. Bake, stirring every 10-15 minutes with a spoon, for 45 minutes to 60 minutes until pasta is tender.
3. Remove from oven, sprinkle with cheese, and stir to incorporate. Serve immediately.

Chili's Southwest Egg rolls

We don't eat out often. Maybe once a month, MAYBE. One place we like is Chili's. After last weekend Travis has just wanted the southwest egg rolls. I must admit they are very good. So the search was on to find a recipe. And I found one! I just tried it out and I LOVE them!! It was on allrecipe.com and it is just like Chili's. A few things I did different is:
1) I baked them instead of deep frying them. I'm sure the frying would make them taste identical but I chose to bake them at 450 for 10-15 minutes and spraying PAM on them. I also only put them in the freezer for maybe two hours because we were hungry :)
2) since I have picky eaters I didn't use onions or the peppers. I used onion powder, and then 4 shakes of red pepper flakes. I think it could use a little more but i would recommend using that much until you've made them once.
3) And since I didn't want to go to the store I used dried parsley instead of fresh. I also just used canned corn instead of frozen.
4) I couldn't find the Montery Jack Cheese so I just got the mexican blend which had that in it
Now I would eyeball the recipe since the measurements are kinda weird. And it is a pretty forgiving recipe if you don't have exactly 1/3 cup of something, you know. Enjoy!

Risotto

IF you've never had risotto I highly recommend it. It is a creamy rice but it is pretty simple to make. Travis says it reminds him of rice and cream of chicken but it isn't as fattening. I usually use this recipe from food network. I do things a little different so I'll use an asterisk to say what I do differently.
Risotto is a traditional Italian comfort food made most often with a variety of short-grain rice called Arborio, which absorbs a lot of liquid and becomes quite plump and creamy. We usually prepare rice by adding the liquid to the rice all at once and leaving it to cook, covered and unattended. With risotto, you add the hot liquid to the rice gradually, stirring constantly. All this stirring may seem like a lot of work, but the warm, creamy risotto that results is well worth the effort.
1 medium-size yellow onion
4 tablespoons butter (1/2 stick)
5 cups or more chicken broth, canned or homemade
2 cups Arborio rice (available in many supermarkets or specialty food stores)
Salt and pepper to taste
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Preparing the Rice

Peel and finely chop the onion.

Melt the butter in a 4-to-5-quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring regularly.

Add the onion and cook, continuing to stir, until it turns soft and translucent. Turn the heat down if the onion starts to brown. **Since I have picky eaters I usually don't do the onion. I just use a bit of onion powder. I let that cook with the butter for a few minutes before I had the rice.**

Meanwhile, pour the chicken broth into a separate saucepan, set over medium heat, and bring to a gentle simmer. Adjust the heat as needed to maintain this simmer the whole time you are preparing the risotto. **I almost always use 6 C maybe more. I would use 2 cans and then just add 1 1/2 of water at first. If it looks like I am running out I add another cup of water.****

Once the onion is soft, add the rice and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes. Adjust the heat as necessary -- if the rice is cooked at too high a heat, it will turn brown and take on an undesirable flavor. **This is key!! The rice will turn a bit translucent. That is when I add the liquid**

Adding the Liquid to the Rice

Using a ladle, scoop up about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of broth. Pour it in the pan with the rice, stirring constantly with a spoon. After the first addition of broth, the rice mixture will look a bit soupy.

As the rice begins to cook, stir it constantly, making sure that you scrape along the bottom of the pan so that it does not stick. You should see little bubbles popping up on the liquid from time to time. If it bubbles more vigorously than this, turn the heat down to medium-low.

When most of the liquid is absorbed into the rice and the rice begins to look a bit dry, add another ladle of broth to the pan and stir constantly, as before.

Determining When the Risotto Is Cooked

Continue to add the broth in 1/2-to-3/4-cup batches and stir the rice until you have used most of the broth (this will probably take about 20 minutes). It is now time to test whether the risotto is cooked. Spoon up a grain of rice and bite into it -- it should be tender without being too mushy. If it is still crunchy and tastes a bit starchy, you will need to continue adding liquid and cooking further. **here it usually takes 25-35 minutes depending on the day**

If it looks as if you will run out of chicken broth and your rice is still not cooked, don't be alarmed. Because of variations in individual stoves and cooking temperatures, you may need more liquid than called for in the recipe. Simply heat up another cup or 2 of chicken broth (or water).

When the rice is tender and the risotto has a creamy consistency, almost like thick oatmeal, it is done.

*Once it is done I add usually 2 more TBS butter and the cheese. I like to use sautéed mushrooms (portabella or the white buttons). I slice up a package and then sautee them in the pan with a little oil. I take them out and then follow the rest of the recipe since it cuts down on the dishes. If you use mushrooms I would recommend VEGETABLE BROTH and not chicken broth. Hope you enjoy! Remember you have to keep an eye on this and stir it a bit.

Pasta Dinner

Last night I made some pasta and decided to change things up a bit. This recipe like most others is just done on looks.
Cooked half pound of pasta (penne type)
any veggies cooked
olive oil
bread crumb
garlic
pepper

So I used diced and fried zucchini. But I would try some cooked spinach, broccoli, peppers (probably the red kind, or orange or yellow), mushrooms, panchetta (or bacon. it's basically the same). Well you get the idea.
So fry up your veggies with garlic (or the powder) in some olive oil and then add the bread crumbs, about 1/2 C or two handfuls. Toast those up and then add some more EVOO (some Rachel Ray for you) about 1/4 of a cup and add your pasta. Stir until everything is mixed. You might need to add more oil but just do it until it has the desired about on it. Then mix in some parmassean cheese and VIOLA! Chloe liked it and so did travis.

No Cook Noodle Lasagna

I have finally perfected my lasagna. I love this recipe because you don't have to cook the noodles ahead of time. Here is goes:
2 cans (regular sized) of diced tomatoes (the oregano and basil and garlic kind)
2 cans of tomato paste (the little kind) + 1 can of water
12 Lasagna noodles uncooked
2 eggs
1 big container of cottage cheese (or ricotta)
1/3 c Parmesan cheese
cooked hamburger meat (you can use however much or little you would like) or chopped cooked chicken or veggies (mostly cooked)
a handful of mozzarella cheese grated

heat oven to 350 degrees. In a blender or food processor combine the diced tomatoes and paste and water. Blend it to how chunky or smooth you like it. Combine the eggs, Parmesan, and cottage cheese.
In a 9X13 pan put enough sauce to coat the bottom of the pan. place 4 noodles down. then spread 1/2 of the cheese mixture and about 1/2 the sauce and meat. lay down 4 more noodles then repeat using the rest of the cheese mixture and most of the sauce. Lay down 4 noodles and top with sauce (you need enough to coat each noodle)
Cover with foil tightly and place in the oven. Bake for 1 hr then check to see if the top noodles are done. you might need to cook for another 10 minutes depending on the oven. Then top with the mozzarella cheese and cook uncovered for 10-15 minutes.
Remove from oven and let set for at least 10 minutes. ENJOY!

Taco Lasagna

This is my favorite go to dinner! You can totally customize this to your family. Now back when we were poor college students I had this at a friend's and totally changed it. Hers was just meat and salsa mine is a bit different. I added more things so I could use less meat since meat was expensive. So here is my Taco Lasagna-It is all the ingredients of tacos but layered like lasagna.

Flour tortillas (A friend of mine uses corn because they like corn more than flour...its up to you)
Taco Seasoned cooked 1/2- 1 lb. ground beef ( or chicken or turkey. or no meat if you are in the mood I would just add like some red or black beans with taco seasoning for protein)
2 cans (or 1) of refined beans
1 C cooked 5 minute rice
jar of salsa
1 can corn
1 can black olives
shredded lettuce
diced tomatoes
shredded cheese (cheddar or mexican blend)
sour cream and/or ranch

Preheat oven to 350
So you lay down 2 flour tortillas in a 9X13 (or 1 in a 9X9) and put a layer of beans and meat and salsa. I use like 1/2 to 1/3 of a can of beans each layer and salsa -just do it to taste and your heat liking.
Do another layer of tortillas and then some more beans and layer the rice and salsa. Another layer of tortillas and beans then some more meat and corn.
As you can see its REALLY easy and you can do it to your taste. You can put some cheese on each layer if you choose. Cover with foil and bake for 20 min. Take off the foil and cheese on top and make until cheese is melted and slightly brown.
Serve with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, olives and sour cream and ranch.
If you want to be extra ambitious make your own seasoning. (I do because there is something in the packaged ones that give Keely bad gas) Just use Chili powder, onion and garlic powder, and some cumin if you have it
If you have any questions email or call me and I'll try and clarify (I was doing this one handed while nursing)