We hosted a Memorial Day BBQ and it was great. Friends were awesome and the weather was perfect. My friend Lindsey brought this salsa and after one bite I was asking, "Who made this?". It wasn't until she went to take her bowl home that I was glad to find out who made it so I could get the recipe. It's super delicious.
tomatillo avocado salsa (my friend Lindsey S.)
4-5 tomatillos
1 jalapeno, seeds emoved
1/2 bunch cilantro
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic
1 avocado, seed and skin removed
1 lime, juiced
1 teaspoon salt
Put everything in a high powered blender and blend for a few minutes until pureed or desired consistency. If you don't have a high powered blender, make sure to at least quarter the tomatillos, onion, avocado and jalapeno before adding it to your blender. Keep in the fridge for 2 weeks.
Note: 1 smart point for 1/2 cup, whatever that means. :)
I wasn't sure I wanted to go to Activity Day Recognition Night because I was tired (it has been a LONG school year) and my daughter didn't want to stand in front of everyone and explain in what way she had bloomed this year. I'm glad we went because her leaders put so much time, effort and love into the activity. I walked in and felt so happy. The girls made the flowers the previous time they met and the cups of dirt were so cute it was almost enough to get me to want to eat one.
I won't post a recipe because my family's favorite dirt recipe is already on this blog. I wanted to post how cute this activity was in case I am ever serve in Activity Days again. :)
The doorbell rang and everyone jumped. To our surprise it was our home teacher and his family delivering a plate full of baby chick cupcakes to us. Isn't this little guy adorable? We're looking forward to dessert!
Just this morning we were delivered a huge pan of delicious cinnamon rolls.
baby chick cupcakes (Sis. Barrow and family)
She mentioned using a box cake mix.
You can figure out the rest- yellow sugar crystals, chocolate chips and a little yellow and orange icing for the wings and beak.
I made some delicious Cuban pork last night for a Mexican buffet and decided to put together a casserole for tonight. I decided to try to make an enchilada sauce and I love how it turned out. So easy to make! Below is a double batch which makes 4 cups. I figure I will always need at least 4 cups.
homemade enchilada sauce (Cookie and Kate)
6 tablespoons olive oil
6 tablespoons flour (I used whole wheat)
2 tablespoons ground chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt, to taste
1/4 cup tomato paste
4 cups vegetable broth (I used chicken broth)
2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
This sauce comes together quickly once you get started so measure the dry ingredients into a small bowl and place it near the stove. Place the tomato paste and broth near the stove as well.
In a medium-sized pot over medium heat, warm the oil until it's hot. Pour in the flour and spice mixture. While whisking constantly, cook until fragrant and slightly deepened in color, about 1 minute. Whisk the tomato paste into the mixture, then slowly pour in the broth while whisking constantly to remove any lumps.
Raise heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a simmer, then reduce heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook, whisking often, for about 5-7 minutes, until the sauce has thickened a bit.
Remove from heat then whisk in the vinegar and season to taste with a generous amount of ground black pepper. Add more salt if necessary.
I LOVE this recipe. The pork turned out so flavorful and delicious. My favorite toppings only made it that much more fresh, flavorful and delicious. HUGE hit with my entire family. I even added a little hummus to my sandwich.
Note to self: I thought the pitas were too fluffy. That may sound strange but it's true.
slow cooker tender greek pork (Mel's Kitchen Cafe)
3-4 pounds pork roast, cut into 2-3" chunks
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Put pork in slow cooker. Whisk together the other ingredients and pour over the top. Cook on low 8-9 hours or on high 4-5 hours.
Serve with pitas and all the toppings.
I thought doughnut making would be a fun after school activity and it was! The kids and I made some very traditional looking and tasting donuts. My husband grabbed all sorts of interesting things from the pantry to make voo-doo type doughnuts. These baked doughnuts aren't the same as fried but they're totally fun to make and a lot healthier.
Note: I made a double batch so that's the recipe you'll find below. It made 3 dozen doughnuts in Wilton donut pans.
Update 1/24/18: My daughter and I made these for the treat bucket for Activity Days. We omitted the nutmeg and used 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract instead. We added 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips to the batter. For the vanilla glaze we added some lemon extract and everyone agrees they were much better!
homemade baked doughnuts (King Arthur Flour.com)
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
4 eggs
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg (I may put use lemon extract instead next time)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
5 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly grease doughnut pans. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, vegetable oil, and sugars until smooth. Add the eggs, beating to combine. Stir in the baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, salt, and vanilla. Stir the flour into the batter mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour and making sure everything is thoroughly combined.
Spoon the batter into the lightly greased doughnut pans, filling the wells to about 1/4" shy of the rim.
Bake for 9 minutes. Remove them from the oven, and wait 5-7 minutes before turning them out of the pans and onto a rack. Dip into a glaze and decorate with toppings of your choice.
easy vanilla glaze
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 tablespoons melted butter
4 tablespoons milk or water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix until nice and smooth.
chocolate glaze
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Melt in a small sauce pan on low heat until nice and smooth.
This bruschetta chicken was just as delicious as I thought it would be when I found it in my sister in law's recipe book when we visited over Christmas.
bruschetta chicken (La Canada ward's "favorites" cookbook)
1/2 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
12 chicken tenderloin pieces
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup bread crumbs (Winco carries whole wheat breadcrumbs which I used!)
1 tablespoon butter
2 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped
3 tablespoons fresh basil (I had to use 1 teaspoon dried basil and threw in some chopped spinach for color)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Place flour and eggs in separate shallow bowls. Dip chicken in flour then in eggs. Place in greased 9x13 pan. Combine Parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs and butter. Sprinkle over chicken. Loosely cover with foil. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a bowl combine the rest of the ingredients. Spoon over chicken. Bake 3-5 minutes to warm topping.
