Green Chili, Chicken and Rice Casserole

This is my take on a popular New Mexico dish. I add brown rice instead of tortillas and made a creamy green chili sauce to go over all. I've found yet another way to turn the humble boneless, skinless chicken breast into a mouth-watering dish.

Serves 6-8

2 cups cooked rice
4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
1 onion,diced
3 cloves garlic,minced
1 15 oz can of fire-roasted green chilies,drained & roughly diced
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup light sour cream
1 cup green chili enchilada sauce
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon cumin
salt and pepper
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 cups shredded jack cheese

In a medium sauce pot, melt the butter. Add the flour and whisk until combined into a paste. Let it cook for 1 minute. Add the chicken stock and the enchilada sauce. Cook until thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste. Whisk in the sour cream and set aside, off of the heat. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium/high heat. Add the onion, garlic,green chilies and chicken. Cook until the chicken all are cooked through and most of the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt, pepper and cumin. Combine the chicken mixture with the rice and half of the sauce. Pour into a baking dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Pour the remaining sauce over the top and top with the cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

Every once in a while I get a craving for a really good cupcake. Sprinkles cupcakes opened a shop in La Jolla recently. I asked my husband for cupcakes for Mother's Day but with all the craziness of my surgery, he forgot. So I've decided to make them for myself and the family. I have to say these are Yummy! Who needs to pay $4.00 for a cupcake when you can make these for way less.

Yield: 12 cupcakes

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips
½ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
¾ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon table salt
½ cup sour cream
1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 350 degrees F. (If you are using a non-stick muffin pan, heat the oven to 325 degrees F.) Line standard-size muffin pan with baking cup liners.
2. Combine butter, chocolate, and cocoa in medium heatproof bowl. Set bowl over saucepan containing barely simmering water; heat mixture until butter and chocolate are melted and whisk until smooth and combined. (Alternately, you can microwave the mixture at 50% power, stirring every 30 seconds until completely melted.) Set aside to cool until just warm to the touch.
3. Whisk flour, baking soda, and baking powder in small bowl to combine.
4. Whisk eggs in second medium bowl to combine; add sugar, vanilla, and salt until fully incorporated. Add cooled chocolate mixture and whisk until combined. Sift about one-third of flour mixture over chocolate mixture and whisk until combined; whisk in sour cream until combined, then sift remaining flour mixture over and whisk until batter is homogeneous and thick.
5. Divide the batter evenly among muffin pan cups. Bake until skewer inserted into center of cupcakes comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes.
6. Cool cupcakes in muffin pan on wire rack until cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes. Carefully lift each cupcake from muffin pan and set on wire rack. Cool to room temperature before icing, about 30 minutes.

Peanut Butter Frosting

Yield: Enough to frost 12 cupcakes

1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup heavy cream
Place the confectioners’ sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as you work. Add the cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.

Pasta Florentine Bake

This cheesy casserole can make it onto the table in under an hour if you are starting from scratch. Pre-prepped, you can be sitting down to eat in 30 minutes. I added the chicken sausage and frozen spinach to make it a one dish meal.

Serves 8

1 pound pasta, cooked to al dente
16oz of your favorite alfredo sauce
1 cup light sour cream
2 beaten eggs
1 15oz container of part-skim ricotta cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 1/2 cups shredded mozarella cheese
1 16oz bag of frozen spinach, thawed
5 links of pre-cooked italian chicken sausages,sliced into rounds
1 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium/high heat. Add the onion and garlic, season with salt and pepper and cook until translucent. Add the sausage and cook until broned. Add the contents of the skillet, the alfredo sauce and the sour cream to the hot cooked pasta. Pour the pasta into the baking dish. Place the thawed spinach in the center of a clean kitchen towel and squeeze to get as much water out as possible. Layer the spinach over the pasta. Mix together the ricotta cheese,eggs,parmesan and nutmeg with a pinch of salt. Layer the ricotta mixture over the spinach. Sprinkle the top with the shredded cheese. Bake for 30 minutes. Let sit for 5 and serve.

Mushroom Ragu over Polenta

I had to laugh at myself when I opened the frig to discover I had 5 boxes of mushrooms on the top shelf. I like to buy them when on sale and I went a little overboard. Seeing as today was Monday I decided to go meatless and do something with all of those shrooms. Try serving this for brunch with a poached egg on top. It makes for an unusual breakfast offering.

Serves 4 for an entree and 6 for an appetizer

5 5oz boxes of mushrooms, sliced(I used a combination of button and baby bella)
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
4 sprigs of thyme
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup marsala wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup italian parsely, minced
2 cups milk
1 1/4 cups polenta or corn meal
5 oz of goat cheese
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium/high heat. Pour the milk and 2 cups of chicken stock into a medium sauce pot and turn the heat on low. Meanwhile add the onion, thyme sprigs and the garlic to the skillet and turn the heat down to medium. Cook until the onions are translucent. Add the mushrooms, turn up the heat and let them cook without stirring for 3 minutes. Stir to rotate the mushrooms on top to the bottom of the skillet and leave them alone for 5 minutes. Stir again and let them continue to cook for 2 more minutes. The mushrooms will have wilted considerably. Add the remaining 2 cups of stock and the marsala wine. Season with salt and pepper. Bring the heat up to high and let the liquid reduce by 2/3rds. Season the heating milk and stock with salt and pepper. Add the goat cheese and whisk until it is incorporated. While whisking, add the cornmeal or polenta a little at a time until all is incorporated and the mixture is smooth. It should resemble porridge. Turn the heat off and cover. Add the cream to the mushrooms and bring to a boil. Turn off heat and fish out the thyme sprigs. The leaves should have fallen off into the mushrooms. Spoon polenta into dishes and top with the mushrooms. Sprinkle parsley over each dish and serve.

Mixed Berry Cobbler

This cobbler is fast and simple. But don't let its simplicity fool you. This cobbler is satisfying and delicious. You can use fresh or frozen berries. I like to mix it up and use 2-3 different types of berries.

Serves 4

1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup self-rising flour
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 cup milk
2 cups fresh or frozen berries
Whipped cream or ice-cream for serving

Preheat the oven to 350. Spray a 3 quart baking dish with baking spray. In a medium bowl whisk together 1 cup sugar and flour. Add the milk and whisk. Add the butter and whisk again. The batter will resemble a thin pancake batter. Pour the batter into the baking dish. Sprinkle the berries over the top. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup sugar over the berries. Bake for 1 hour or until the top is golden brown and bubbly. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice-cream.

Fajitas

Here's another dinner hot off the grill. When I can or remember, I like to marinate these little beauties for 8-12 hours but if time is of the essence you can get a fair amount of flavor with an hour of marination. Serve this with mexican rice, stuffed poblanos, or smoky ranchero beans for a south of the border feast.

Serves 6-8

Marinade
juice of 3 oranges
1/2 cup tequilla
juice and zest of 2 limes
2 cloves of garlic minced
1/4 cup minced cilantro
1 jalapeno diced, remove seeds and ribs for less heat
3 tablespoons chili powder
3 tablespoons smoked paprika
2 teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder or opt for 1 tablespoon of chilies in adobo for more heat
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 1/2 pounds skirt steak
2 red bell peppers, seeded and cut into strips
1 large onion thinly sliced
2 limes cut into wedges
light sour cream and fresh cilantro for serving
8 corn tortillas

Place the steak in a large gallon sized zip-lock bag with the marinade. Seal and leave in the frig from 1-12 hours. Heat the grill and oil the grates. Remove the meat from the marinade and lay it on the grates. Cook the steak 4 minutes per side for medium rare, 5-6 minutes for medium well. Place a dry skillet onto the grill and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Allow to heat. Add the pepper and the onions. Season with salt and pepper. Cook stirring occasionally until tender crisp, about 8 minutes. Remove the meat from the grill and wrap in foil. Let rest for 5 minutes. Stack the tortillas and wrap in a damp paper towel. Microwave on high for 1 minute and 30 seconds. Thinly slice the steak and place on a platter. Add the onions and peppers along side with the lime wedges. Pass the tortillas , sour cream, and cilantro. Let everyone build their own.

Blackberry Sauce

I prefer fruit sauces on my French Toast and Pancakes. I think it takes me back to my IHOP days as a kid. So many flavored syrups, so few pancakes.

1 bag frozen blackberries
1/3 cup blackberry jam
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons corn starch
1/4 cup cold water
juice of 1/2 a lemon

In a small sauce pan over medium/high heat, bring the blackberries, jam, lemon juice and butter to a boil. Mix the corn starch into the water and pour it in whisking as you go. Return to a boil and let the sauce thicken. This will take about 2 minutes. Serve over your pancakes or French Toast.