Chicken Suizas Casserole

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I wanted to get this recipe in before the busy weekend starts, so with very little ado,,,,,,,

here ya go.

It was easy, fast and tasty.

I actually used some spiced up ground chicken in mine, because that's what I had on hand.

I listed shredded chicken in the recipe, but either would work.

The sauce could be used for lots of other things. It was good.

I like to squeeze on some fresh lime juice just before eating.

Hope everyone has a great Memorial Day Weekend!!!!!!

Chicken Suizas Casserole

2 poblano chile peppers

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

6 tomatillos, chopped

1 onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 bay leaf

Salt and pepper

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 tsp honey

1 lime, juiced

1 cup chicken stock

3 cups shredded chicken

1 cup fat free sour cream

1 1/2 cups grated swiss cheese

1 cup grated pepper jack cheese

12 corn tortillas

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Char the poblanos over burners or under a hot broiler until blackened all over. Place in a bowl, cover and let sit until cool enough to handle. Peel, seed and chop.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the tomatillos, onion, garlic and bay leaf; season with salt and pepper, add the parsley and cumin. Cook until tender, about 10-15 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Add the tomatillo mixture, poblanos, honey and lime juice to a food processor or blender and puree.

In the same skillet, heat the chicken stock over medium-high heat. Stir in the chicken and tomatillo sauce.

In a medium casserole, put a thin layer of chicken mixture. Tear 4 tortillas in half and line the bottom of the dish. Add 1/2 the remaining chicken, dot with sour cream and layer on 1/3 of the cheese. Top with another 4 tortillas, remaining chicken mixture, sour cream and another 1/3 of cheese. Layer on remaining 4 tortillas and top with remaining cheese.

Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Beer Battered Fish Tacos with Chipotle Slaw and Roasted Poblano Sauce

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I could eat fish tacos for just about every meal, I love them that much.

I've made them several different ways, but this is probably one of my favorites, but since they are battered and fried, it's a good thing my oven baked ones come a really close second.

I gotta say, the batter on these is great. 

They're so light and crispy on the outside and tender and flaky inside.

It's the first time I've had them with the chipotle slaw and poblano sauce. Very tasty. 

I usually eat them with the creamy chipotle spread, which I like equally well. 

Next time I make the slaw, I'm going to add some carrot or purple cabbage, 

more for the look than anything else. Could have definitely used some color.

Beer Battered Fish Tacos with Chipotle Slaw and Roasted Poblano Sauce

Chipotle Slaw

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

2 tsp honey

Juice of 1/2 lime

1/2 tsp chipotle puree or chopped chipotle in adobo sauce

1 tsp mustard

2 tsp olive oil

1 tsp mayonnaise

1/4 tsp celery seed

Salt and Pepper, to taste

3 cups cabbage, thinly sliced (or slaw mix)

In a large bowl, whisk together red wine, honey, lime juice, chipotle puree (add more if you like it hot), mustard (I used Roasted Garlic Mustard from Stonewall Kitchen), olive oil, mayonnaise, celery seed, salt and pepper. Add thinly sliced cabbage and toss to combine. Set aside to marinate.

Roasted Poblano Sauce

3 poblano peppers

1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped

Juice of 1 lime

1 clove garlic, chopped

3/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 tbsp cream

Small handful fresh parsley or cilantro

Heat oven to 450 degrees or use your broiler.

Lay poblanos on a baking sheet and roast for 20-30 minutes, turning to get a good char on all sides. Remove to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap to cool.

Peel skin from peppers, do not rinse, and place in a blender or food processor with remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.

Beer Battered Fish

8 Talapia filets, cut into strips (or white fish of choice)

1 cup flour, plus more for dusting fish

2 tsp baking powder

1 3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1/8 tsp cayenne

1/8 tsp pepper

1 1/4 - 1 3/4 cup beer

1 tbsp olive oil

Heat 2-3 inches of vegetable oil in a heavy pot, or use a deep fryer, to 325 degrees.

In a medium size bowl, mix together flour and next 8 ingredients. Stir in beer and olive oil until blended. Batter should be a little bit thinner than pancake batter. In a separate bowl, add enough flour for dusting fish.

Dust fillets with flour and then dip in batter, letting excess drip off. Gently lay into hot oil (don't over crowd) and fry for 3-4 minutes, until golden brown. If doing more of a shallow fry, turn fillets over during cooking. Remove to a paper towel lined plate to drain.

Baked Lump Crab Cakes with Spicy Avocado Sauce

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Believe it or not, this is the first time I've made my own crab cakes. 

I've eaten them lots of times, but just have never made them for myself.

I decided baking them was the way to go, that way, I won't feel guilty making them anytime 

I get the craving, and because of the way these turned out, that will be often.

I served them with a Spicy Avocado Spread which was SO GOOD! 

They really were a treat.

When you form the cakes, make sure you use a light hand. You don't want to 

smash them or make them too tight. That being said, you need to handle 

them rather gently when you turn them during baking.

I was actually going to add a finely minced clove of garlic in the mix, but forgot, so 

once on the baking sheet, I lightly sprinkled them with garlic powder, which was 

just enough, because of the garlic in the avocado sauce. So, depending on what 

your going to serve them with, you can make the call on that one. 

I put the leftovers in a single layer on parchment paper, placed them in a plastic freezer bag 

and froze them. They should stay good for several months.

Hubby really enjoyed these too. When he was driving truck, there was a restaurant located, I know not where, that he use to get crab cakes covered with a poached egg and hollandaise sauce, which he loved. So the next morning, I took a couple cakes out of the freezer, let them sit out about 15 minutes, then just heated them up in a cast iron skillet. Fried a couple of eggs over easy to plop on top, and called it good. HE LOVED IT!

Baked Lump Crab Cakes

Makes 8 cakes

1/4 cup bread crumbs

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp mustard powder

1 1/4 tsp Old Bay Seasoning

1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

1/2 tsp sweet paprika

1/8 tsp fresh cracked black pepper

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1 egg

2 tbsp mayonnaise

2 tbsp butter, melted

1 tsp Worcestershire

2 tsp lemon juice

1 lb lump crab meat

In a large bowl, stir together bread crumbs and next 7 ingredients. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together egg and next 4 ingredients. Stir into bread crumb mixture until blended. Fold in crab meat just until combined. Gently form into 8 cakes, do not smash, and place onto a baking sheet that has been brushed with olive oil (I sprayed with oil too) and chill 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Bake crab cakes in preheated oven for 9 minutes, gently turn crab cakes over, being careful so they don’t fall apart, and bake 7-8 minutes more.

Spicy Avocado Sauce

1/2 avocado

1 tbsp mayonnaise

2-3 tbsp milk

1 tbsp spicy brown mustard

1 small garlic clove, chopped

Juice of 1/2 lemon

3-4 dashes of tabasco

Salt and Pepper

Place all ingredients into a small food processor and puree until smooth.

Bengal Tiger Pizza

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I don't know if you guys remember or not, but several weeks ago I posted about my trip to Kansas City, We're not in Kansas anymore,  where my hubby and I enjoyed Bengal Tiger Pizza at Grinders. It's actually been featured on "Diners, Drive-inns and Dives" with, you know who, Guy Fieri.

Well, as you've probably already realized, this pizza is the bomb. 

I knew somewhat the ingredients on it, but not the specifics. 

Until now.

I actually found the chefs original recipe. "Let the choirs sing"

I made it for lunch the other day, and yes, it tastes pretty much exact.

The only part they didn't have in the recipe was the Tandoori Chicken, which I made myself.

It actually tasted just like their's. I included the recipe below.

I lightened mine up a tad by not using as much cheese as was called for, and I also used some 

leftover basil pesto I had on hand, and mixed it in with the green sauce recipe. 

Also, I used my own pizza dough recipe, because I love it, 

but didn't roll it as thin (wish I would have).

I think next time I make it, and I will be making it again, I'm going to go for it 

and use the exact sauce and full amount of cheese.

Either way,,,,,,,,you really gotta try it.

Bengal Tiger Pizza

Dough:

20 rounded cups high-gluten flour

1 ounce salt

5 ounces slow rise yeast

2 cups body temperature water

1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil

Green Sauce:

1/2 pound fresh basil, leaves only

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, leaves only

4 cloves garlic

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Olive oil

Pizza:

About 2 cups mozzarella pizza cheese

About 2 cups provolone pizza cheese

2 cups tandoori chicken, cooked

1 cup real crab meat

1 (4-inch) piece hearts of palm, thinly sliced

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves

For the dough:

Mix all ingredients 3 to 4 minutes until done, being careful not to mix too long so that the dough becomes tough. Add the olive oil and roll it into the dough. Place the dough in a pot, cover loosely with plastic and refrigerate for 8 hours.

Remove dough from pot and roll into 18-ounce balls, place on a tray and let rise 6 to 8 more hours.

For the green sauce:

Blend all ingredients in a blender, slowly adding olive oil until the consistency becomes slightly thinner than peanut butter.

For the pizza:

Preheat oven to 550 degrees F.

Roll and toss 1 ball dough until it's 18 to 20-inches around. Reserve remaining dough for another use or for other pizzas.

Place on a pizza pan and cover with green sauce, any leftovers keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Top with a blend of mozzarella and provolone pizza cheese.

Add the tandoori chicken, real crab meat and hearts of palm.

Bake for approximately 15 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Remove from oven and top with the fresh cilantro.

TANDOORI CHICKEN

1/3 cup yogurt

1/2 tsp coriander

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp ginger

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

12 whole cloves

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Salt and Pepper

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breast

Place first 12 ingredients into a medium size bowl and blend. Add chicken breast and stir to coat evenly. Cover and place in fridge for 3-6 hours. Grill over med-high heat (indoor or out) for 3-5 minutes per side, or until cooked through. Cool and cut into bite size pieces.

Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

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This is what a treated myself to for Mother's Day.

I really enjoy this recipe. It's no cook and pretty standard. I think the lemon juice in this recipe
gives the berries a kick and cuts through the sweetness perfectly.

Addition: * I forgot to mention this. While I definitely like ice cream to
have some heavy cream in it, if you wanted to, you could take this and make it fat free.
I've made it with fat free half and half, instead of cream. It still tastes delish,
but it does change the texture,,,,a little more like ice milk. And if you wanted to
make it even creamier, you could change out the 2% milk with whole milk.
Not to blabber on but, you could use any combination of cream and milk you wanted,
 as long if the total liquid stayed the same.

I remember the long involved process making homemade ice cream use to be. 

Now, it's really a no brainer if you have the ice cream maker. 

When it comes out of the machine, the ice cream is like a soft serve. 

If you want it a little firmer, just put it in the freezer for a few.

My hubby and I ended up going out for an impromptu dinner at Chili's that night and brought home their molten lava chocolate cake, without the ice cream, and ate it with ours. OMG!

Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

3 cups fresh ripe strawberries, stemmed and sliced
4 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
1 1/2 cups 2 % milk
2 3/4 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

In a small bowl, combine the berries with the lemon juice and 1/2 cup of the sugar. Stir gently and allow the berries to macerate in the juices for 2 hours. Strain the berries, reserving juices. Mash or puree half the berries.

In a medium bowl, use a hand mixer or whisk to combine the milk and remaining sugar, until sugar is dissolved. Stir in the heavy cream, reserved strawberry juice, mashed strawberries and vanilla. Turn the machine on; pour the mixture into freezer bowl, and let mix until thickened, about 20-25 minutes. Five minutes before done, add the reserved sliced strawberries and continue. At the end of 25 minutes(give or take), the ice cream will have a soft and creamy texture, so if a firmer consistency is desired, transfer to an air tight container and freeze a couple hours.