Blackened Chicken with Cilantro Lime Quinoa

If you follow me on Pinterest, you may have seen me pin this last week.

Source: sarcasticcooking.com via Amy on Pinterest

Or maybe you follow me on Instagram - @amylynn0185 (if not, DO IT!)

and you saw me post this pic of my "version"

In which I said I was gonna blog about it, and then didn't... better late than never, right?

My plate definitely did not look as appealing, but it was yummy none the less. The recipe said you could pair it with some avocado cream sauce to compliment the spiciness of the chicken. I didn't have avocado, so I mixed some Green Goddess salad dressing with sour cream and drizzled it on top instead.

Yum-O! Love this stuff!

The boy and I thought it was pretty darn tasty, but the chicken wasn't spicy at all in our opinion. I think I would add more Cayenne next time. 

I also might have over cilantro'd and under lime'd my quinoa - whoops. 

Oh! And I pretty much have to have something green with every meal I make, so I made roasted green beans. Dude, can I just tell you how much I HATE green beans. Like, always have....they made me gag as a baby and all throughout childhood, as well as yesterday. Pretty much the only way you will ever see me eat them is smothered in butter inside a dinner roll (yes, I did that as a kid ), in a green bean casserole, smothered with bacon grease and made by my Aunt Lisa, or now - roasted. It's so good, and it's so easy! You HAVE to try it. You can pretty much add any seasonings you want (I used a lemon&herb and some salt and pepper this time, but I love Montreal Steak Seasoning on them) and then follow these directions. Easy peasy! In fact, this whole meal was pretty darn easy. The boy was very impressed about how few dishes I used. I usually have every cabinet emptied into the kitchen sink by the time I'm done with dinner.

Almond Joy Oatmeal

I have been dying to try this oatmeal recipe I had found online somewhere that used almonds, coconut, and cocoa powder....but it said to cook it in the crock pot for like 5 hours, and really, I've been too lazy to set it up at night before I go to bed. The whole idea of it kept creeping into my head every morning for the past week and I found myself wishing I had made it. So this morning, I made my own version, in the microwave. Let me tell you, I don't have anything else to compare it to but it satisfied my desires. It pretty much tasted like an Almond Joy bar exploded in my oatmeal.

3/4 cup Old Fashioned Oats
1 cup Coconut Milk (I'm sure you could use Almond Milk, or even regular milk, but I had Coconut)
2 Tbsp Shredded Coconut
2 Tbsp Dark Chocolate Chips
2 Tbsp Chopped Almonds

My measurements aren't exact by any means... but I think that's about what I used. I actually cooked 1/2 cup Oats with the milk in the microwave for 2 minutes, but it was too soupy, so I just stirred in about another 1/4 cup or so. Then I sprinkled in some coconut and dark chocolate (the fact that it was dark chocolate chips made me feel better about adding it to my "healthy" breakfast) and chopped up a few almonds and stirred them in too. I'm sure it's not the healthiest breakfast out there, but it's better than most, and it tasted pretty darn good. It made more than I could consume in one sitting too, so I'm gonna try putting it in the fridge and heating the rest up tomorrow. I'll let you know how that works out for me.

It's not gorgeous, but here is some proof that it was edible at least.

Christmas Yummies!!!

I just realized... I've never posted our family Cheesecake recipe! It's so yummy, and I made 2 of them for Christmas... I even thought ahead and took pictures while baking so I could blog and share the recipe with you! Too bad it took me over a week to post it. Whoops....

Ingredients:

• 2 large packages of Philadelphia Cream Cheese (use the Philly, it's worth it)
• 3/4 cup of sugar
• 3 eggs, beaten whole
• 1 Tbsp of lemon juice
• 1 1/2 cups Sour Cream
• 1 Large (w/2 extra servings) Graham Cracker crust

Directions:

• Bring cream cheese to room temperature
• Cream in 3/4 cup of sugar
• Add 3 eggs beaten whole

(Action shot!!! I love my mixer!!!!!)

• Stir in 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• Fold in 1 1/2 cups of Sour cream
• Add a dash of Nutmeg if desired...

• Pour into Crust and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 40 mins.... sometimes up to an hour. Make sure you check it periodically. It's done when you wiggle it and the middle is mostly firm.

• Remove from oven and let sit until room temperature

• Refrigerate until completely chilled and ENJOY!!!

Oh no! Not the green stuff!

I have been meaning to post this for a while now. I've made this meal twice, and both times it was a hit. The first time I made it I sent the leftovers to my mom's house, where my step-dad post-poned eating it for as long as possible because of the "green stuff" in it. He's not a fan of veggies, especially - SPINACH! Although.... once he tried it, he changed his mind about it (at least that's what my mom told me). So, don't be afraid... even if you don't like spinach, give it a try! You can barely taste it, I promise! Or, if you are a chicken (pun TOTALLY intended) leave it out! It's a crock-pot sensation that warms you from the inside out. I personally think it has a real "comfort food" effect. Oh, and I have to give credit where credit is due. I originally obtained this recipe HERE and then modified it a bit :)

And now... without further rambling.... Creamy Ranch Chicken and Spinach!

I used 2 chicken breasts because it's plenty for us, but you can probably add more chicken to it to stretch it and feed more people. I can feed us twice with 2, but the original recipe calls for 4-6.

Stick them babies in the crock pot on low with a packet of Ranch dressing mix, 1/2 cup of water, some salt and pepper if you want, and maybe some chopped garlic if you desire. Let them cook for about 4 hours or until they fall apart easily.

In a separate bowl combine 1 softened brick of cream cheese with a can of cream of chicken soup, a cup of milk and whatever spices you desire, if any. I throw in some more salt and pepper, and some garlic salt. Blend it until smooth. Then I add the green stuff :) I microwave a package of frozen chopped spinach, drain it, and then add about 3/4 of it to the mixture.

When your chicken has been shredded, add the cream mixture, stir it in, and turn the heat up on the crock pot until it's heated all the way through.

I serve this over brown rice, usually with the leftover spinach. ENJOY!!!

White People Cuban Food

I am blogging this as an "after-thought" so the only picture I have is of the leftovers I ate tonight. It doesn't look as yummy as it did on Friday, (before it was all slopped together into one container for storage), but it still looked okay, and it sure did taste good!!!

Being that we were going to be really busy with our "changes" this weekend, it was for sure a Crock Pot night! I put this together on a whim, and it came out awesome!

• 2 pork chops
• 1/2 bottle of Mojo marinade
• 1/2 onion
• 1 full tsp of chopped garlic
• Splash of lime juice
• pepper (to taste)
• garlic salt w/ parsley (to taste)
• and then I threw in some spices from my rack. I don't remember what they were, I didn't put in much, and you couldn't distinctly taste them so I don't think it mattered, lol.

I put all of this in the crock pot, and let it cook on low for about 4 hours or so. You can tell when it's done because it just falls apart when you stir it, and boys that walk in the front door comment that dinner smells SOOOOO good they can't wait to eat it :)

I cooked up some brown rice (just because we prefer brown for "healthier eating"), and heated up some "frijoles negros" (black beans) in a pot with a splash of mojo, 1/2 tsp chopped garlic, and a few dashes of garlic salt. Goya makes some awesome fried plantains that you can find in the ethnic section of the freezer section in the grocery store.

All you do is unwrap them and pop them in the microwave for 3 minutes, and it's good to go!

You can serve all of these things in seperate little piles like I did on Friday night, or slop the beans, rice, and pork together in one pile like I did when I put it away for leftovers. I prefer to put it all together on my fork when I eat it anyway, so why not!

It's certainly not like the authentic cuban food that you can get at restaurants down here in South Florida, but it sure was pretty close, and definitely close enough for us "white people"!! (not to mention SUPER easy!!!!!)

Weekend Wrap Up and a Recipe!

Wow... my weekend wrap up pretty much starts on Thursday! We didn't wind up going out to dinner like planned. Ed had to work late :( so we heated up the rest of the hamburger corn casserole before heading down to Riverfront to see Transformers!!!!! The movie was pretty awesome. There was so much going on that our heads were all over the place trying to take it all in! It didn't help that we had to sit a little close for an IMAX because it was so crowded. After the movie (since we still had time on our parking spot) we walked around downtown. We took a stroll down by the Intercoastal waterway, and did some people watching as all the bars down there were beginning to fill up for the night. All in all, we had a great time, and decided that we really should do it more often!!!

Unfortunately, the boyfriend did wind up working on his birthday :( So I slept in like a lazy bum, and then I got up and did some things around the house, and made Cheesecake Brownies! I cheated and used a brownie mix.... but who cares... lol

Basically, all you do (if you cheat, like me) is mix up the brownie mix... and then in a separate bowl mix up 8 oz. of softened cream cheese, with 1/3 cup of fine sugar, and 1 egg.

Yum! Brownies.....

and then... you spoon the cheesecake mixture on top of the brownie mixture in the pan.... and run a knife through it for a marble effect.

And then it looks like this!

The directions said to bake it for 40 minutes at 350 degrees. Let me tell you, it was NOT done in 40 minutes. I put it in for over an hour and kept checking it. Finally, the top seemed firm, and a tootpick came out clean. HOWEVER, if I were to make this again, I would put it in a larger pan so that the brownie mixture was thinner and it would take less time to cook. When we cut into it later, I realized that there was a pocket in the middle of brownie that didn't cook all of the way. His sister said that part was yummy and she actually thought it was a fudge swirl, hahahaha. It was much better the next day after it had sat in the fridge all night.

Anyway... so his birthday wasn't really all that exciting. We had dinner at his parents house and his older sister made a few smart comments to him as soon as she walked in the door that pretty much put him in a funk for the whole night. By 9:45 we were home and he was ready for bed. :( Oh well... at least Thursday night was fun!

On Saturday I did some miscellaneous stuff, and took Zoey to the dog park for a while to burn off some energy! Ed invited me to the station for dinner. (He was cooking Chicken Piccata - sooooo good!) I headed down there around 6, and didn't wind up leaving until after 11! Another spouse had come down as well, and after we stuffed our faces with yummy food, we walked outside and saw some fireworks and then came in and curled up in the recliners and watched a movie with our boys. I wasn't expecting to be able to spend the holiday with him, and I'm really glad I did! It was really nice! They also got lucky and were only called out to one call when we were there! Yay! I had been invited to multiple events because everyone knew Ed had to work and nobody wanted me to be alone (awww) but I gladly declined all offers to stay with him. It was much safer than being out on the roads, thats for sure! I headed home when the movie was over, and that was that!

Sunday was homework day again... and Ed did some pressure cleaning on our patio and sidewalks and stuff. BORING..... Oh, but then we went to my mommy's house so her and my step-dad could give him their gift. Yummy garlic pretzels, and shots of tequila always put a smile on Ed's face....

Hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend, and not too awful of a Monday!

Recipes and pictures....

Last night I tackled way more of my plans than I thought. I managed to whip up the key lime pie, hamburger corn casserole, AND guacamole! I think the brownies will wait until Friday. I am so excited, I have a day off of school! I'll have plenty of time to do whatever....and then that night we are going to his parents house for dinner, so I'll bring them with us for dessert.

As promised... here are the recipes and pictures of my concoctions.

Hamburger Corn Casserole

(this recipe is one handed down to me from my mom, I don't know where it came from before that, but it is one of my childhood favorites!)

Ingredients:

• 1 - 1 1/2 lbs of ground beef or turkey (I used a half lb of each)
• 1/2 of a green pepper
• 1/2 of an onion
• 8 oz. can of tomato sauce
• 8 oz. (about 1/2 bag) of frozen corn
• Chili Powder Seasoning
• Salt
• Pepper
• Tostitoes/corn chips (I use the whole grain ones because they are SUPER yummy!)
• Shredded cheddar cheese (do NOT use lowfat cheese.... it doesn't melt right and it's gross. Trust me, we've tried)

Directions:

1. Dice up 1/2 of the green pepper and onion and add to the ground beef in a large skillet, brown well.
2. Add salt, pepper, and 1-2 teaspoons of chili powder (to taste)
3. Add tomato sauce and corn, and simmer until heated through.
4. Pour into a large casserole dish. (at this point, I let the mixture cool, and put it into the fridge because we were not yet ready to eat, but I wanted it to be quick to finish when we were...)
5. Break up chips to bite size pieces and spread over the top of the beef mixture.
6. Cover with shredded cheese and bake at 350 degrees until cheese is melted. (this part can also be done in the microwave)

I only covered 1/2 of the dish because I knew we would only eat that much... and then I could put the rest in the fridge and it will be super easy to heat up without having to worry about soggy chips! I'll just add chips and cheese to that half when I'm ready! YUM! It was sooooo good. This amount feeds us twice, so it's about 4 servings.

While I was working on this.... I was also working on my Guacamole! Or as mom calls is... Avocado Dip

Guacamole

(another one from Mom....)

Ingredients:

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1-2 finely chopped jalapeno peppers (I usually use the pre-chopped ones in the jar... this time I had some ones in my freezer from his mom's garden that I used)
• 1-2 teaspoons of lemon juice
• pinch of salt
• pinch of pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon of garlic salt
• miracle whip
• 1 medium tomato

Directions:

1. Scoop out avocado with a spoon into a large mixing bowl
2. Mash it up (I use a potato masher)
3. Blend all ingredients together, except for tomato and miracle whip
4. Add enough miracle whip to make it really creamy (I used a little too much this time, but it's pretty safe to start with about 2 large tablespoons and then add more to taste)
5. Stir in chopped tomato
6. Chill, and hide from my boyfriend who proceeded to eat the entire container when he got home from work. I may be making more of this before the week is over.

Now... on to the Pie!!!!

Key Lime Pie

(this recipe comes courtesy of my godmother. I've never had a better Key Lime Pie than hers!!)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup key lime juice
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 package of Philly cream cheese (softened to room temperature)
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 regular size graham crust pie shell

Directions:

1. Combine by hand the 1/2 cup of key lime juice with 1 can of condensed milk and set aside.
2. Combine by beater (or whisk if you are lazy like me) the cream cheese and the 2 egg yolks.
3. Combine by hand the key lime mixture and the cream cheese mixture until smooth.
4. Pour into pie crust
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes
6. Cool for 30 minutes
7. Cover and refrigerate
8. Top with cool whip if desired.... (I used a large crust and would normally put some cool whip around the edge to fill in the gap between the filling and top of the crust to make it look pretty)

I let Ed take it to work with him today to share with the boys at the firehouse so I don't get to sample it, but I'll let you know if it was a success.

Whew... that was a lot. Hope you all enjoy! Let me know if you try any of these!!!

It's Grocery Time!

Ed's birthday is this Friday, and he's not really looking forward to it. He's gonna be the big 2-5! A whole QUARTER of a CENTURY old! YIKES! lol... Anyway, my job as his "un-wife" is of course to be supportive and help him through this traumatic transition into adulthood by keeping him happy. And how do you keep a man happy!?!?!?!?!? By feeding him of course! lol...

I'm off to the grocery store to acquire the many ingredients needed to make the many things that he especially enjoys. I hope spacing them out throughout the week might make him smile a little and forget about that dreaded day. hahaha.

So what am I making you ask?

Hamburger Corn Casserole, Guacamole,Cheesecake Brownies, and.....Key Lime Pie!!!

I'll be sure to post some pictures and recipes later, but right now it's time to shop!!!!!