Skewers, Rice & Brocooli

I'm not typing these recipes out, although they are both in my OBB cookbook. They have more info and professional pictures PLUS they get paid and I don't. I will probably make this meal again sometime when I have bacon I need to use up. I also want to try the rice the real way sometime. I didn't have crushed pineapple so I tried to get the taste by taking the pineapple juice from my 20oz can (also bigger than skewer recipe calls for but it helped stretch it further and gave me the bacon free option) and using that as part of the water I cooked the rice in. Wasn't very good rice. I would have preferred plain. But I still feel like I need to try it again just to know. If and when I do I will remove this/put an update if the feelings change. I also made the marinade with out the ground ginger and it was still good.

Last night we had Bacon-Wrapped Teriyaki Chicken Skewers with steamed broccoli and Lime-Cilantro Rice with Pineapple

 Mommy and Baby G had the bacon free version. 

I put a radish on Baby G's skewer to protect him. He kept poking it into his adorable fat thighs. But then he became curious about that and kept taking it off and trying to eat it. He didn't think it was spicy hot so we're just glad he tried radishes for about the 3rd time. We hope he likes lots of different foods/flavors. 

The many bacon wrapped kind. My hubby loved the 2nd batch we had was actually down in the marinade for hours. The ones we cooked first were just on top and only had the marinade drizzled over them  so the flavor wasn't soaked up and as delightfully strong. This batch got an "oh yeah!" out of my man. 

The first six we cooked got a little burnt so we had to cook more. 

German Apple Pancake

This recipe comes from pg 31of the "keeping up cookbook" that we got for our wedding. Yes that is the title - the entire book is all lower case. It drives my husband NUTS. I'm not a fan of it but it has produced "hits" often so I figure we can handle a little all lower case style.

German Apple Pancake
3/4 cup flour
1 1/2 Tb sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 cup whole milk or half & half
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
4 small or 3 large apples, peeled and cored
3 Tbs butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 teaspoons lemon juice
powdered sugar for dusting

Whish together flour, sugar and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, milk and vanilla. Combine drya dn wet ingredients, whisking until well combined. SEt aside.

Cut apples into quarters, then slice into 1/2 inch slices. Heat butter in a 12-inch overproof skillet (preferably non stick) over medium-high heat. Asd apples, brown sugar and cinnamon. cook until apples turn golden brown, stiring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Rwmove from heat and stir in lemon juice.

Quickly pour batter over apples and put hot skillet into a 425 degree oven. Bake until sides have risen above edges of skillet adn are golden brown. 12 to 19 minutes. Remove from oven and loosen edges with a spatular. Invert onto a serving try, slice into wedges and serve dusted with podered sugar. Deliciosu with maple syrup, caramel sauce or buttermilk syrup.

 

After I put it in the oven Baby G tried to look inside. He has never done that before and was delighted that a light turned on so he actually could see something.

 

 Trying to get a closer look.

 Hot...he says softly as he steps back. Too cute!

 

Luckily it really doesn't get HOT. But he says that about anything even "warm" these days and refuses to eat his food until it has cooled off entirely. This morning his dad said he must be like Grandpa G, he doens't mind his food cold either and sometimes prefers it that way. Not a "my son" moment for my husband who heats up everything. I mean the man refuses to eat cold pizza, which I love. Anyway!

I did used to worry that the lower oven would be too hot and Baby G would get hurt. We tested it out a few times to make sure. We're safe! I'm glad too because the top oven cooks even more unevenly that the bottom and I'm tired of it ruining our food. Now my only fear is Mr. Curisoisty/Baby G trying to touch anything when I open it. I told him not to touch and that it was hot as I opened it. Hopefully that little reminder keeps working. He is a crazy kid but a cautious one too.

Personal notes: I didn't peel the apples and it was still delicious (with added...or is it origianl... benefits :D) & it wasn't until typing this up I realized I forgot to do the lemon juice step. Oops! Oh well. Also, we don't have the kind of skillet called for so I used a glass baking dish (11x8?? Not sure. It came with our "furnished" house here in NY). I hope that if I can ever bake it their way it will turn out as pretty as it sounds. For now we will take the simple, make do, still taste yummy way.

I May Never Buy Canned Re-fried Beans Again

Slow Cooker Refried Beans
Ingredients:
1 onion, peeled and halved (I used my onion chopper and diced them up and it worked great)
3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed 
1/4-1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped (I used about 1/4 because)
2 tablespoons minced garlic 
3 teaspoons salt 
1 3/4 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper (I used the pre-ground jar from costco) 
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin (optional, but I put it in) 
5 cups water 
4 cups chicken broth

Directions: 

-Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and chicken broth and stir to combine. Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. Note: if more than 1 cup of water has evaporated during cooking, then the temperature is too high.

-Once the beans have cooked, strain them, and reserve the liquid. Mash the beans with a potato masher, adding the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency. 

Sixsisters also said the following (but we didn't try it):

 -If you want to turn this into a big batch of bean dip, add the following: 

 2 cups salsa

2 cups shredded Colby Jack cheese

2 cups shredded pepperjack cheese

8 oz. cream cheese

16 oz. sour cream 

2 Tbls chili powder

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

Mix in with the beans and let cook a couple hours longer so flavors can blend. Makes a huge batch so just freeze leftovers! http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/07/slow-cooker-refried-beans-without-refry.html = where I got the recipe

FYI - our family didn't think it was that HUGE of a batch but we are trying freezing half the left overs. I'm the youngest of 10 so I'm used to big "batches" of everything. 
My husband enjoyed these beans and actually went far enough to tell me he liked the flavor. 
They are for sure better for us than what's in a can. 

Slow Cooker Chile Colorado Beef Burritos

Recipe adapted from The Food Pusher @the www.sixsistersstuff.com

Ingredients:
2 pounds cubed stew meat
1 large can enchilada sauce (at least a 19 oz can)
2 beef bouillon cubes
Re-fried beans (optional- see their favorite homemade recipe)
6-8 burrito-size flour tortillas
2 cups shredded cheese (we used Colby Jack, but any kind will work)

Directions:
Spray your slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Put beef, bouillon cubes, and enchilada sauce into slow cooker and cook on low for 7-8 hours, or until meat is very tender (you could also cook on high for maybe 3-4 hours). 
When beef is done (it will be very tender and flake off when stirred), turn oven on broil. On an oven-proof plate or baking pan, lay out a tortilla. Place on tortilla about 1/2 cup of the meat, drained by using a slotted spoon, and a spoonful or two of beans. Roll into a burrito. Pour some of the remaining enchilada sauce from the slow cooker over the burrito to cover it and top with cheese. Broil until cheese is bubbly, about 2-4 minutes.
Makes 6-8 burritos, depending on how full you make them.

Ckn 'N Dumplings - Crock-pot Style

The 3 big carrots I added after I cubed up the chicken. When I put it back in I thought man this dish needs some veggies & COLOR so I quickly chopped and steamed a few. I’m sure putting them on the bottom (under the chicken) would work great.

Next time I make this I’m going to try adding celery as well. I also think broccoli would be yummy with it.

Crock Pot Chick and Dumplings

Ingredients: 

4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I only used for and it was a good amount of ckn. But it all depends on the size :D)
2 tablespoons butter 
2 cans cream of chicken soup (KPG – wants to find a substitute)
16oz chicken brother (I used my base from Costco and mixed it with boiling water. Love it!)
1 onion diced (KPG – I did the smallest dice on my little onion chopper)
1 tablespoon dried parsley (KPG – added during the last hour of cooking)

3 big carrots diced (approx 2-2.5 cups)
4 grands flaky refrigerator biscuits (I used five and it fit beautifully but I’m trying four next time)

Instructions:

Put the chicken, butter, cream of chicken, chicken broth, and onions in the crock pot and cook on low for 5-7 hours (depending on your size of chicken breast) FYI - I saw that high for four to five hours worked for others. You know your Crockpot and if you don’t you’re learning and soon will.

I cooked this on low, with my frozen chicken breast halves from Costco (only rinsed not un-thawed at all) and the chicken was still done in 5 hours. Once I realized it was done and cubed it all up I turned the Crockpot to warm.

 Then an hour before I wanted to serve it I put my parsley in followed by dumplings (cut the biscuits into 4-6 pieces and stir into mixture) and turn it high for an hour. They floated to the top and it looked nice.

If it is too runny for your liking, leave the lid off for a little while - Once you know your chicken is done but before you try to cook the dumplings. You need the lids help to get those dumplings “done”. 

 I think that adding broccoli and such would also help it seem more “full” and again COLOR. I am going to make this again just to try my veggie experiments.

I got the idea from “bubble crumb” but didn’t follow her instructions. (She said: “The recipe says to cook for 30 minutes and my biscuits were not done at that point. One hour did the trick”.)