Jalapeno Poppers

These poppers are not the deep fried type. They are completely low carb, and they're fresh and great for barbeques. I do them in the oven in the winter time.

8 oz. softened cream cheese
1 package real bacon bits (the soft kind)
a squeeze of lime juice (optional)
8 or 10 fresh jalapeno peppers--larger ones are milder than small ones

Put on rubber gloves if you need to. Slice the jalapeno peppers in half lengthwise. Carefully scrape out all the membranes and seeds. I try to do this with a small knife so my hands don't burn. Be very careful not to touch your face or eyes for several hours after doing this, if you don't use gloves. Once the jalapenos are prepared, mix together the other ingrediants until creamy. Stuff the peppers with the cheese mixture, slightly mounding.

If you are grilling, place on the hot grid. As they warm, they will start to 'pop' and dance around on the grill. They are done when the pepper is a little blackened and the cheese is starting to come out of the peppers. Take them off the heat and eat while warm.

If you do them in the oven, heat to 450 degrees. Place poppers on a sheet pan. After 10 minutes check them. They may take about 15 minutes, but keep watching and remove when the cheese starts coming out. They should be a little black on the bottom of the peppers. Enjoy!

Stir Fry Shrimp and Asparagus

This is a quick meal for those nights when you haven't planned ahead. I used frozen jumbo shrimp, but fresh would be even better. It is asparagus season in the Northwest, so I used baby fresh asparagus that were wonderful. I made some brown rice to have with this dish. I will give the ingredients and method; the amounts are up to you.

1 bunch of fresh young asparagus

Thawed, frozen jumbo shrimp

Prepared chili-garlic sauce

Scallions, chopped in large pieces

Red bell peppers, sliced into strips

Soy sauce

Salt & pepper

Sesame seeds

Sliced almonds

Canola oil

Molasses

Heat a wok on Med-Hi heat, with a little canola oil in the bottom. Add some chili-garlic sauce to the oil and stir around. Drop in the thawed shrimp and stir fry just a couple of minutes. Remove. In the same oil add the asparagus, which has been cleaned and chopped in half. At this time also add scallions, red pepper strips, and seasonings. At this time you can add more chili-garlic sauce if you like. Stir fry until the asparagus begins to wilt, then add seeds and almonds and continue stirring. Add the shrimp back into the mixture and then drizzle molasses over the top of all. Stir well and serve with rice.

Raven's Curry with Rice

I've been waiting with baited (curry) breath for Linda over at Raven's RV to put up the Curry recipe she talked about making early in the winter. She's finally let the cat out and posted a fine recipe with pictures on how to make Easy-peasy Curry. I am making it soon, as it looks and sounds delicious.

Here are the ingredients you'll need:

(The parenthesis are the original recipe)

1 chicken breast or 1/2 lb ground meat

2.5 cups water

2 medium carrots

3 stalks celery

1 onion (1/2 onion plus 1 green pepper)

Sprinkle of salt (1 teaspoon salt)

Sprinkle of pepper (1/8 teaspoon pepper)

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 cup tomato sauce

1/2 cup milk

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Go on over to Raven's RV to see the steps to make this delicious Easy-peasy Curry.

Stove-top Machaca Beef

Back in November I posted a recipe for slow cooked Machaca Beef. Every day since then I have had hits on that recipe and people searching for it. Last week I had a chuck roast that I didn’t get around to putting in the crock-pot in the morning before I left for work. When I got home, I decided to try the same recipe on the stove-top, in a deep pot. The beef came out tender and delicious, just like the slow cooked version. I decided to shred the beef by hand, after it cooled a little. We made wonderful shredded beef tacos out of the meat. I used the leftover meat and juice to make a very tasty beef and lentil soup the next day.

Here is what I did:

1-1/2 lbs. beef roast (chuck or round)
1 large onion, sliced
8 oz. can diced green chilis
2 beef bouillon cubes
1-1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon seasoning salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup salsa

I used a 2 lb. boneless chuck roast. Brown it over med-hi heat on both sides. As you turn to brown the second side add the sliced onions and other ingredients to the pan. Add just enough water to barely cover the meat.

Cover the pot and simmer on low heat about 2 hours, or until beef is tender. It will depend on the size of the roast. Drain and reserve liquid. Shred the beef using 2 forks to pull it apart. It should come apart easily. Combine beef, salsa, and enough of the reserved liquid to make of desired consistency.

Use the meat to make tacos, burritos, or other dishes where you want a flavorful, but not too spicy beef. I add the leftover juice to my next pot of soup or chili for a tasty broth.

Green Chili, Chicken, and Corn Soup

The other day I got an idea to make this soup. I had made something similar before, but this time I didn’t look up a recipe and just winged it. This is what I did and it came out really tasty. This amount made 6-8 large bowls of soup.

1 roast chicken – pull white meat off both sides of the entire chicken breast and shred with your fingers. Use the rest of the bird for a chicken salad.
2 stalks celery, diced
5 scallions, diced
½ red bell pepper, chopped
15 oz can corn (with juice), or frozen, or fresh corn
15 oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes (with juice), or other diced tomato product
7 oz can of mild diced green chilies
2 dashes of Worcestershire
2 Tablespoons ketchup
¼ cup of green or red salsa, or both
2 chicken bullion cubes- or boxed broth
Water to cover over about an inch
Any leftover beans you might have. I threw in half a can of ranch style beans. Black beans would be good, but not too many.

Sauté the celery, onions, and pepper in a little olive oil. Start adding chicken and all other ingredients but the water or broth. Now I add: a palmful (About a large Tablespoon) of cumin, chili powder, dried parsley and oregano. A teaspoon of garlic powder, dash of cayenne, a teaspoon of seasoning salt, black pepper, shot of any Mexican hot sauce, a palmful of dried cilantro, or you could chop fresh, and a few shakes of Mrs. Dash Spicy. You can use any or all of these spices according to your tastes. After all that is simmering well, add your liquid and bring back to a nice simmer. Taste for seasoning. Adjust if needed at this time. Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Ladle into bowls for a perfect meal.

We served ours with an onion - faccacia bread. I know; that’s Italian. But it was very good to go along with the slightly spicy soup. Cornbread would also go very well on the side.

Machaca Beef

I've been making this recipe for years and it always comes out tasting good. It is made in the slow cooker and takes 10-12 hours on low. The meat is good to fill burritos, tacos, chalupas, quesadillas, for chili, on a baked potato, or anything else you can think of. Makes 10-12 servings

1-1/2 lbs. beef roast (chuck or round)
1 large onion, sliced
4 oz. can diced green chilis
2 beef bouillon cubes
1-1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon seasoning salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup salsa

Combine all ingredients except salsa in a slow cooker. Add just enough water to cover. Cover the cooker and cook on low 10-12 hours, or until beef is tender. Drain and reserve liquid.
Shred the beef using 2 forks to pull it apart. It should come apart easily. Combine beef, salsa, and enough of the reserved liquid to make of desired consistency.

I sometimes use the excess liquid in my next pot of soup or chili. It adds a lot of flavor.