Spaghetti with LIME Butter Sauce

So... I totally forgot to buy a lemon! hehe. So I improvised! And let me tell you what, IT WAS GOOOOOOD! I used lime, Key lime that is. Here is the Recipe.

Serves 3-4

1/2 package or 8oz Spaghetti cooked "al dente" (the dish tastes better with a bit more texture, so try for al dente, instead of softer noodles) Here is the National Pasta Associations directions for al dente
1 small yellow squash, or half of a larger one, 1/2 inch dice
1 small zucchini, or half of a larger one, 1/2 inch dice
1/2 medium yellow onion, 1/2 inch dice
2 Roma tomatoes diced
2 cloves diced garlic
1 tbs olive oil
4 tbs salted butter
2 slices turkey bacon, crumbled (okay, let's be honest, turkey bacon doesn't crumble the same as pork bacon, so once you have them crisped up (or before you cook them), stack 'em and give them a really good chop. Your looking for "bacon bit" size pieces)
4 tsp Key lime juice (I totally used the little lime shaped juice concentrate from the fridge)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Red Pepper Flakes to taste


Take a breath, here I go.

While the spaghetti is cooking, dice up your veggies and place them in a bowl. Dice your garlic, add half of it to the veggies. Reserve the other half for the lime buttery goodness. In a large saucepan, on medium high heat, cook your bacon, take it out of the pan, set aside (chop it once it cools). Add your veggies to the pan, along with the olive oil, a pinch of salt (to be honest, I LOVE salt, so if you are not as big of a fan, opt not to add it here. You can check the flavor at the end and see if you want to add any more once the butter sauce is on the noodles and veggies) and some pepper. Cook them until onions are transparent and squashes and tomatoes are starting to break down, but are still holding their shape. Place them back in their bowl, and set aside. Now is the time for the lime butter sauce. Add the butter, bacon, and garlic into the same pan. Turn heat down to just above medium. Once the butter has loosened the goodies on the bottom of the pan and has turned a light caramel color, add the lime juice. Let it cook for 1 minutes or so. Then turn off the heat. Once the noodles are done, you will drain them, and add the noodles to the lime butter, coat them really well, and then add in the veggies! This is where you want to taste it, for seasoning. And there you have it folks, Spaghetti with Lime Butter Sauce!

p.s. I also am a huge fan of red pepper, but those who eat my food, are not all fans, so I opted to add the red pepper flakes to my own plate and, it was good!
p.p.s. I didn't have any Parmesan, but, it would have been super tasty with that added in too!
p.p.p.s I know, I know, there are a lot of these, but I wanted to tell ya something... I did cook a whole package of spaghetti for this, but I was afraid the flavor wouldn't spread out as well, that's why I only used half the package. If you want to serve 6-8 though, you can cook the whole package of pasta and just add a couple more tablespoons of butter and a few more teaspoons of lime juice to the lime butter sauce before you add the noodles and you're good to go. There is enough bacon, garlicy goodness to spread out on the added noodles too.

White Bean Chili Crock Pot Style

Servings: 8-10

Ingredients

1lb uncooked white beans (or 2-3 cans, drained)
1 28oz can El Pato, RED Enchilada Sauce (I used mild, but kick it up to your heat preference)
1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes (drained)
1 lb ground beef (or you can  use ground turkey or ground pork, or go vegetarian and add more veggies)
1 cup diced carrots
1/2 cup diced dehydrated* onion or 1 medium diced yellow onion
1/3 cup diced dehydrated* green bell pepper or 1 medium diced bell pepper
* I have some dehydrated vegetables in my food storage that I try to rotate in and use. They work perfect in the crock pot or even in lasagnas because they absorb the "extra" liquid.
2tsp chili powder
2-4 tsp kosher salt (this is completely to taste. I would start with the 2tsp at the beginning when placing everything in the pot, and when it's done, taste it; add more salt if needed.)
2 tsp black pepper

Quick Directions:
First cook the beans. I don't do the soak over night kind of bean. I do the; rinse, put into a pot with 6-8 cups of water, bring to a boil, boil for 5 minutes, take off of the heat, let soak for 1hr, rinse again. Place swelled beans in another 6-8 cups of water with about 1tbs salt added in, and simmer for about 2hrs, or until beans are cooked. I'm sure there is a way to put the beans in the crock pot too, I just haven't played around with it that much. I do find it easy to just set them on the stove, set a timer, and get ready for the day while not worrying about them :)

Then, place your ground beef, carrots, onions, green peppers, and seasonings into the crock pot. Follow with the drained beans, El Pato, and diced tomatoes. Stir them all together, place the crock pot on LOW and within 3 hours, you're ready to eat!

Enjoy it with some cornbread, biscuits, or crackers!

Dinner Meal Plan for August 28-September 3

This week, I am going to try and do something different... I'll try and post the ingredient list for each meal, along with a "quick" how to. I'll go into further detail with the "Video of the week" dinner though. 

Sunday: White Bean Chili with Cornbread
Monday: Homemade Macaroni and Cheese with Grilled Tomato Sandwiches
Tuesday: Spaghetti with Lemon Butter Sauce
Wednesday: Fried Chicken with Coleslaw
Thursday: Tacos and Stuffed Jalapenos (Video of the week) side note: I did just make these a week and a half ago, but I like to make new recipes again, so I can get the "how to" down.
Friday: Chicken Kabobs with Rice
Saturday: This dinner, is the start of my fast (a religious observance in my faith), but I will be going to a fun new restaurant for lunch, so I'll give ya a Restaurant Review for Joe's Real BBQ in Gilbert, Arizona

This week is going to be FUN! I am really excited! Sorry for not getting this up sooner. I'm going to also try and change my posting day to Wednesdays or Thursdays for the following week. Let me know if you have any suggestions for my blog, or questions that I might be able to answer. Have a great week!

Kitchens = Peace. Comfort. Creativity. And Love!

Better perspective of me, Sarah, the food blogger.

This week, like I said, school started. My art class was my first class (which I was super excited about and still am), and it was the class that I finished the first homework assignment for.

The first assignment was to choose a location, explain what I see, and how I feel in it. The location needed to be somewhere that expresses who I am and be somewhere that for you, the reader, allows you to experience being there from my view. The first "place" that popped in my head, was... the kitchen! Of course. lol. I don't think anyone who knows me at all would be surprised about that one, so I wanted to share my first completed assignment with ya'll. Just so, that you know, I am in LOVE in the kitchen and what that all encompasses. You may think it's weird, and I'm okay with that. haha.

Here ya go...

Hi. My name is Sarah and I am a kitchen addict. Not just addicted to my own kitchen either, most kitchens will do, well almost. I do need order and cleanliness to function at my fullest. When those things are in place though, I find peace, comfort, and creativity there. I experience my thoughts deepen on many subjects while I am working in the kitchen. I also feel I can express a part of my love through my sacrifice of time; not only in the time preparing the meal, but in the time I take in learning and improving my skill. I am also able to express myself with the décor, food choices, and flavors that I choose to work with.

I truly love that, in a kitchen, there are colors everywhere! From the containers my foods are stored and cooked in, to what the foods are plated and presented on, to a beautiful rainbow of color in the food itself. It is my goal, to not only make the meal delicious, by using the right combination of flavors, but to make it just as delicious visually; Which is how I feel we truly “taste” anyway, by using all of our senses. I try to keep things interesting too, by using a combination of colors, shapes, sizes, and textures in all aspects of the kitchen.

Picture this… Bright red, imperfectly, diced tomatoes, slices of vibrant yellow and orange peppers. Dramatic green; fragrant basil, shredded Parmesan cheese, that not only adds the right flavor, but adds the right texture, for the taste buds and visually. Combine all of that color and texture together with some fresh cooked linguine, a few pinches of deep, dark, spicy crushed red pepper, a dash of pure, white, sea salt, and a drizzle of beautiful, rich green olive oil in a beautiful handmade saffron colored bowl… Oh the goodness that is in that dish!

So, yeah, I guess, that is the reason why I am a kitchen addict. I love to use all of my senses, so I am a "sensible" person you see. 

Here is hoping that my professor likes my angle :)

Apologies

Hello all! Apologies to everyone for not having more posts this week... I was a we bit busy. School started and I had a last minute trip out of state. I will be back on the ball by Saturday! Promise! Happy planning, cooking, and tasting til then!

Sarah

Dinner Meal Plan for August 21- August 27

Here we go for this week!

Sunday: Hawaiin Haystacks (Crock Pot Meal)
Monday: Stuffed Peppers
Tuesday: Bacon Wrapped Chicken with mashed potatoes
Wednesday: Chicken BLT Wraps
Thursday: Quiche (Recipe of the Week)
Friday: Lasagna with White Sauce, Chicken, and Spinach
Saturday: Homemade Biscuits and Gravy

Recipe of the Week: Peanut Butter Banana Pancakes!

This is a combo Recipe. I can't take credit for the Peanut Butter Pancakes or the idea to use Banana's in the way I did either. I know. I'm a cheater, but by golly, I know how to combine two amazing foods, to make an extra tasty one! Let me just tell you. These were FREAKING gooood! 

The Peanut Butter Pancake recipe, all props go to Sunny Anderson from Food Network. I found the recipe a few years ago, before she made a video for it. They are the fluffiest, best tasting pancakes ever! Here is the video in case you want to watch it too! Peanut Butter Pancake Video 

The idea to place sliced bananas and brown sugar on them before giving them their first flip came from the amaaaaazing Bobo's Cafe here in Tucson. They make the, Best. Breakfasts. Ever!

So tallah! The combination of these two things make these pancakes heavenly. Add a glass of cold milk and it's even better!

Here is the recipe!

 

Makes about 8 small pancakes, 4-6 medium

½ cup melted peanut butter

 1 cup flour

4tbs sugar

1/2tsp salt

1 tbs Baking powder

1 egg

1 cup milk + more if you need it for the right consistency

2tbs canola/vegetable oil

 Cooked on Topping:

2-3 bananas

2-4 tbs brown sugar

You first melt the peanut butter. In the video, Sunny used the double boiler route. I usually use the glass bowl in microwave for 30 seconds route. Both methods work. You then want to whisk the warm peanut butter, egg, milk, and 2tbs of oil. Once the wet ingredients are mixed together, slowly combine with the dry ingredients. Living in the desert, I have found I generally have to add more liquid. So, if you're an Arizonan, you might want to automatically start with 1 1/4 cup of milk. You want it to be thin enough to pour out of a ladle and spread slightly, but thick enough that it will hold it's shape well in the pan. Thick like... a milkshake that has half melted and you stir the melting part with the solid ice cream left in the cup to "thicken" it up *grin*. FYI: You'll get a fluffier pancake if you don't over mix. It's okay to see a few small clumps.

Once you have the batter ready, get the pan heated up. Cast iron works the best, but a griddle pan, or saute pan will work too. Medium high heat. While the pan is heating up, you can slice your bananas and get them ready to go. Once heated, get a little butter and grease the pan. Then ladle/spoon your first pancake in.

Once the batter is in the pan, place sliced banana and sprinkle 1-2 tsp of brown sugar on each pancake (on the wet batter) The batter will not likely "bubble" like you are used to seeing with other pancakes because of the heaviness of the peanut butter, so check it often for done-ness and nice browning.

Once the first side is done, using a metal or thin plastic spatula, flip your pancake. Let the bananas and the brown sugar caramelize! My pancakes took about 1-1 1/2minutes per side.

Then you are ready to take out of the pan and plate up the goodness! I served them with a side of sausage and a glass of cold milk. Mmmmmm!

Also, from the recipe a few years ago, Sunny said you can make the batter the night before, which I have. I just thinned it out with milk in the morning. They were just as tasty too!

I hope you guys try these! They are my favorite!

Dinner Meal Plan for August 14- August 20

Sunday: Breakfast for Dinner! Peanut Butter Banana Pancakes! (see Recipe of the Week)
Monday: Dinner Party at a friends house, Asian theme! I'm bringing Fried Rice
Tuesday: Pineapple Chicken with Rice
Wednesday: Salsbury Steak and Mashed Potatoes
Thursday: Creamy Noodles with Chicken and Veggies (I couldn't come up with a cool name for this dish, so when I do, this will be updated :)
Friday: Tacos/Burritos with Black Beans and Stuffed Jalepenos
Saturday: Pork Chops and Applesauce with Potato Pancakes

I'm excited for next week! Bring on the cooking!

Recipe of the Week: Linguine and Meatballs

Here are a few pics of tonight's meal! I paired the Linguine and Meatballs with a side of red leaf salad and a hodge podge of tasty veggies and  a few grapes, topped with oil and vinegar. I had forgotten I actually bought linguine instead of spaghetti, so that's what I made. It worked out perfect, because the homemade marinara sauce was a little creamy with the added Philadelphia Italian Cooking Cream. Creamier sauces pair well with linguine, not so well with spaghetti or angel hair. So yay! I've decided to turn this dinner into "Recipe of the Week". See recipe below or under the "Recipe of the Week" tabk.

Linguine and Meatballs
Serves 4

1/2 package of linguini, follow packaging for cooking instrucitons

Sauce:
1 16oz can of whole or diced tomatoes
1 medium onion, fine dice
2 tsp garlic, diced
2tsp EACH dried basil, thyme, oregano, and rosemary (break the rosemary up in the hand before adding)
1/2tsp crushed red pepper (if desired)
2tbs olive oil
2tsp salt (or to taste)
*you may find that the tomatoes are really acidic in the can, if this is the case, add 1/2-1tsp on sugar

In a medium saucepan, on medium high heat, saute the onion and garlic the the olive oil. Once the onion is softened, add all of the dried herbs and salt. Stir them for 1 minute to release their aroma. Then add tomatoes (if using whole, hand crush them before putting them in, or use a masher once they are in the pan) Turn the heat down to medium and let simmer un-covered for 20min. This let's the water evaporate and flavors to condense. Also, allows the sauce to thicken.

The sauce is ready to eat now, on spaghetti, but since I had linguine, this is where I added the Philadelphia Italian Cooking Cream. Mix it in and let simmer an additional 5 minutes. Now is the time to taste it. If it is still a little weak on flavor, add more basil or oregano. I would be careful with the thyme and rosemary since they have stronger flavors and can over power a sauce more easily. If you add more herbs, turn the heat down to medium low and let simmer while you make the pasta and finish the meatballs.(If you don't like a "rustic" type sauce, use tomato puree instead of whole or diced tomatoes, or when the sauce is done, place it in the blender until you get the desired consistency.)

Meatballs (I like to get these ready while the sauce is simmering):

1lb ground beef (you can use a half and half combo of ground pork and beef, or even turkey. The turkey will have a different end texture, but should still be good)
1/2 medium onion, finely diced
1-2 tsp diced garlic
1tsp dried basil
1tsp dried oregano
1/4-1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs (if using plain bread crumbs, oats, or crushed saltines, increase herbs to 2tsp each)
1 egg
1-2tsp salt or to taste
olive oil

Your hands will work the best for this, so don't be afraid to get a little messy. Mix the meat, diced onion, garlic, herbs, and salt together. Add 1/4c of the bread crumbs and mix together. Add the egg, then mix together some more. Make sure to evenly distribute all of the ingredients. If the mixture still feels moist, aka, gooey, add a few tablespoons of additional bread crumbs at a time. As weird as it sounds, the meat should feel "full", not to dry, not to wet and be able to hold the shape of a meatball.

Once this is done, I like to heat up my saute pan and cook a little piece of the meat to make sure my seasonings are right on. When you like the flavor of the cooked meat, it's time to make some meatballs. With this recipe, you can make about 14 medium, or 20 small meatballs. Medium meatballs is about 3tbs of meat, rolled together and the smaller ones are about 1 1/2tbs of meat.

Roll the meat and place the meatballs in the saute pan as you go, on medium high with a little oil in the pan. This will help to prevent sticking and to help with browning. If you prefer rolling them all first and then cooking, you can totally do that too. The medium size meatballs take about 2 minutes per side, and you want to turn them on all sides. Even browning and  cooked centers are what we are going for. Once they are done, set them aside, drain them on a paper towel if desired. You can also add the meatballs to the sauce before serving.

And there you have it folks, I hope you like it!

"Video" for Pan Seared Chicken Breast with Rosemary Potatoes and Asparagus

I was planning on roasting some chicken and making a video with this meal, but it turned out my "camera man", wasn't able to make it tonight and my day was a little longer than expected. Instead of roasted chicken, I went for pan seared and instead of a video, you'll be getting a play by play with still photos. I apologize ahead of time for the bad lighting and bad angles, this is the first attempt, so here is hoping it only gets better!

Pan Roasted Chicken Breast
Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts
2-3 medium potatoes, or 6-8 small potatoes ( pre cooked whole potatoes with skins work the best. Perk of this, it makes the pan roasting part go super quick. Also, you can use russet, red, or white potatoes) *baking trick: use the microwave, takes 3-5 minutes. **cooks recommendation: If you do decide to pre cook them, as I did in the pics below, bake the potato whole, whether you are using the oven or microwave. Something with the starches get's thrown off when you dice and then microwave. Believe me, I've tried and it just doesn't work as well.
1 bunch of asparagus, about 6-8 pieces a person
1 small white onion, or 3/4 of a medium one (red or yellow would work too, I just had a white today)
1tbs plus 1 tsp diced garlic (3-4 cloves) *I'm a garlic lover, cut back if you are not a big fan
1tsp dried sage
2tsp dried rosemary (if using fresh, you may need to use closer to 4tsp)
1-2tsp crushed red pepper flake
salt to taste
pepper to taste
4-6 tbs olive oil

First off, I rinsed my veggies and had my potatoes already pre cooked before I started. I like to get multiple uses out of my kitchen equipment, so I try to whenever possible to save the meat prep for last. It saves on washing and "cootie" cleaning. Also, when possible I use the same pan to cook everything. Saves on having to heat up multiple pans, gives the dish a lot more flavor and saves on clean up! Always a good thing! This dish works great and I only dirtied the 3 dishes, besides the cutting board and knife.

I then got my asparagus ready by, checking where the asparagus naturally breaks, holding it at both end and then bending out until it snaps. This will get rid of the really tough bottoms and leave you with the more tender tops. (Thanks Ma, for being "my hands" in this photo, it just wasn't working out for me to use both hands to check the asparagus and snap a pic. lol.)

Once you know where one breaks, you can line that one up with the rest and give them all a cut.

 Place them in a bowl, or on a plate and toss with 1tbs olive oil, salt, and pepper. Then set aside.

Now onto the potatoes. Cut them into 1/2 - 3/4 inch cubes. If you do pre cook them, it's always better to leave them a little under done than over done. When you start to cut them, you want them to hold their shape. So they are solid enough that you can stir them in the pan without a fear of turning them into mashed potatoes.

 Then place potatoes in a bowl.

Now you are going to dice the onion, and add to the bowl of potatoes.

Then add 3tbs of olive oil, 1tbs diced garlic, rosemary, crushed red pepper, salt (about 1tsp), and pepper (about 1/2tsp) to taste. Stir until potatoes are well coated in oil and seasonings. Then set aside.

Now onto the chicken. Get the two breasts and place them rounded side up.

You're going to take a sharp knife and cut down the middle center of each breast, while holding pressure on the top. Repeat to both chicken breasts. You'll end up making four separate pieces, all about the same size.

Now season both sides of each chicken breast with salt, pepper, 1tsp garlic, and sage. Make sure to rub it in well.

 Once chicken is seasoned, in a large frying pan, head up 1-2tbs olive oil on medium high heat. When the pan has heated up, place the chicken in, making sure to not over crowd the pan.

Chicken will take about 3 minutes per side. Once chicken is browned, then flip to the other side. When internal temp reaches 160-165F at the thickest spot, chicken is done. Pull out of pan, place on a plate and allow to the meat to rest.

Next, cooking potatoes. Keep heat on medium high and add potatoes into pan.

Make sure to spread out the potatoes in the pan, so they will brown evenly. This will take 3-5 minutes. Resist the urge to stir them, you want the potatoes to get a good browning on them before you turn them. Use a flat headed spoon to stir, being careful to not break them up to much, while also scraping of the good bits that were left by the chicken. Once browned, remove from pan and set aside.

It's the asparagus's turn now. Turn the heat down to just below medium high and place the asparagus into the pan. Just to warn ya, you might get a little smoke, so make sure you have your stove fan going!

If you remember the asparagus was only seasoned with a little salt and pepper, but because you are cooking it in the same pan, as the garlic and rosemary goodness, it will pick up a little of that flavor too! This was thin asparagus, it took only 3 minutes or so to cook. You don't want it to be to soft, it should still have a bit of a snap to it and be bright green.

And there you have it folks! Start to finish, with already thawed chicken, was about 35 minutes. (don't mind the shiny silverware, it just makes the picture look cooler. haha.)

And here is a close up.

I really hope you enjoy it! These potatoes are one of my go to recipes when I need something quick. They pair well with pork and beef too!

New Pages!

Hi all!

I wanted to let you know I created a few new pages on the blog! Check them out, they are right under the Blog Title. This is my official ****Disclaimer**** on them, they are a work in progress, humor me. Let me know what you think and if you would like to see some other things added too!

Thanks!
Sarah

Dinner Meal Plan for August 7-August 13

Hello! Here is the Meal Plan for this week. Sorry for not getting it up sooner! I'll get you all the grocery list sometime tomorrow too. This is going to be a fun week though! I'll be posting my coupon adventuring outcome (*update: please refer back to "Coupon Adventure!" for the outcome), My recommended kitchen essentials a.k.a. what I keep in my cupboards and fridge at all times, another recipe of the week, and a cooking video! Also, the first Restaurant Review is coming!

Sunday: Chicken Pot Pie
Monday: Tostadas with Spanish Rice
Tuesday: Grilled Turkey Sandwiches with Salad
Wednesday: Roasted Chicken with Rosemary Potatoes (See Cooking Video)
Thursday: Spaghetti and Meatballs (see Recipe of the Week)
Friday: Chili Cheese Burgers with Bakes Sweet Potato Fries
Saturday: Restaurant Review!

Coupon Adventure!

So, since I would like to do my grocery shopping tonight and Saturday, I've decided that today is a good day to start my shopping list and get an idea for my menu next week... This whole idea of writing it down before I shop is kinda weird. Not bad, just weird. lol.

I'm also going to see about this coupon craze that is happening, and see if I can get in on it! Who doesn't like to save money! I would not be offended in the least if you wanted to shoot me some hints, experiences with "coupon-ing" that you may have *wink* I am going to look the traditional routes of mailers and newspapers, but also checking out the online sites. Mainly, mommysavesbig.com and coupons.target.com. Wish me luck!

Now, toooo theeeee aaaadds! (channel a super hero commentating voice when you say it, it makes it much more appealing. lol)

***UPDATE***

What an adventure! It has now been two medium shopping trips in (a combo of food and house supplies) since my original post, total savings on just the food using coupons was around $45. A good amount of that went to ground beef, which I found for $0.99/lb! I saved $2.50/lb just on that! I also learned to combine an "In Store" coupon and a "Manufacturer's" coupon for an even better deal!

I found that, with buying the fresh produce, there are not many coupons out there, but you can find the store that has them for the best prices in the weekly ads. Sadly, the only place that price matches and takes competitors coupons in Tucson, that I have found thus far, is Walmart. A store I usually don't like to shop at, for multiple reasons, that I don't need to get into on this here food blog, but I did succumb. I went there for the first grocery trip because I wanted to see coupon-ing in it's entirety. It was cool!

side note: not all cashiers are created equal, find out if they like to get the coupons all at the end, or during the transaction, so they can make sure you get what the coupon states, and finally, make sure to bring the entire add you want them to price match, along with the entire ad with the competitors coupon, if their name isn't on the coupon itself (the store you buy it at will need to send the coupon back to the company that the coupon is from). One last thing, I had to get over the apologetic feelings I was having for all the people behind me in line because it was taking so long at checkout. I guess it's not written anywhere that says grocery trips and checkout have to be done at record speeds. lol.

Final note: I will absolutely be taking my time each week to look over the ads! The "In Store" coupons are usually good just for a week, but "Manufacturer's" coupons are usually good for a few. I now have to deal with the psychology of it's ok not to buy something, even though I have a coupon for it. haha.

p.s. I also learned that for cleaning supplies and non food items, coupon-ing makes perfect sense! I got cheaper, toilet paper, paper towels, bleach wipes, bathroom cleaner, 409, deodorant, and canning supplies too.