P52 - Week 52 - melt in your mouth

As you can see, my snowman obsession knows no bounds!


But seriously, aren't these guys fun?!?!?

They don't look quite as cute as the ones I saw pinned on Pinterest, but I did my level best and the niece and nephews for whom they were made will simply love them! And on top of that, I had fun making them! I'll use slightly smaller marshmallows next time, but otherwise, I probably won't change much.

And with that, we close out this project for the year! I've tried to do these projects before, but always found some reason to call it quits long before even the half way point. So I'm feeling pretty good about myself to have made it to the finish line.

So ... Happy New Year everyone (even though that's still more than a week away)! I pray the best of your past will be the worst of your future!

P52 - Week 50 - Recipe for Academic Success

"So you think you want to be a (Renaissance) Baker?!"

Wonder Boy cooked up (yes, sad little pun intended!) this "game show" idea as part of a project for his World History class. I thought it was a pretty clever way to tackle the project. Many of the kids in class paired up to work on this project, but the Boy found himself the odd man out this time, so he had to get creative in a way to involve others without actually making them part of the work-side of the project.


As part of the project, he had to bake some fresh bread using a recipe for "Rustic Rye Bread" we found on-line. It turned out GREAT and I'm glad that we got to enjoy that part of the project at home (he only needed photos of him baking for the project).

I say it a lot, but I'm going to repeat myself here: I am SO PROUD of the effort that the Boy puts into his school work! As has become "the norm" for the end of a semester, he is bogged down with multiple projects and exams - all with due dates before the holiday break! But he just puts his head down and gets his work done. And as proud as I feel about the grades he brings home, it is his effort and attention to detail that truly warm my heart!

P52 - Week 40 - Super Sweet 16

Sixteen is a serious milestone! Wonder Boy is not one for big celebrations but we can't let a bid day like this go by without some kind of shin dig to mark the occasion.


The Boy requested his all time favorite dinner - carnitas served in bacon taco shells - and a nice big pizookie for dessert.

We've had a tough week, so ordering up a favorite dinner and dessert was the very least we could do! And in the end, I think he had a good day.

As for me, I really can't gush enough with how proud we are of this young man. He is the light in our lives! I love his wacky sense of humor and his insatiable curiosity. I admire his self confidence and his gentle heart.

I am so proud of this amazing SIXTEEN year old! He is my favorite 16 year old in the history of 16 year olds.

P52 - Week 28 - Special Request

It's Wonder Dad's birthday today, so he got to pick the menu for dinner tonight. I wasn't at all surprised that he wanted this dish - this one is at or near the top of both of our "favorite comfort food" lists! And sharing this here allows me to save the recipe for easy access as well!


I give you the ULTIMATE comfort food - Chicken Mole Verde! Sometimes we call it "green gravy chicken." This is one of those recipes that takes a bit to pull everything together, but it really is worth the effort. And I'll share a few shortcuts as well. But first ... the full deal ...

Part 1: Preparing the Chicken
Ingredients:
1 - whole roasting chicken (about 3-4 lbs), skinned and then cut up as desired into 6-8 pieces as will fit in boiling pan
1 - bunch chopped cilantro
1 - Tbs kosher salt
1 - tsp whole black peppercorns
2 - cloves garlic
1 - large yellow onion, chopped
1 - bay leaf
Directions:
1. Place the chicken, cilantro, salt, peppercorns, garlic, onion and bay leaf into a pan with 12 cups of water and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered until chicken is tender - about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.
3. Remove chicken from the pan and strain liquid through a fine strainer. Reserve 4 cups of the broth for the mole. I freeze the rest for later use.
4. Set chicken aside and begin preparing the mole.


Part 2: Preparing the Mole Verde
Ingredients:
8 - 10 oz. tomatillos, peeled and chopped
4 - jalapeños, chopped (leave seeds)
1 - bunch cilantro
1 - tsp kosher salt
2 - cloves garlic, chopped
2 - 8-inch flour tortillas, toasted
3 - Tbs olive oil or grapeseed oil
Directions:
1. Heat tomatillos and jalapeños in a 4-qt. saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until darkened and thick, about 10 minutes.
2. Transfer to a blender with cilantro, salt, garlic, tortillas, and 1 cup of the chicken broth; puree.
3. Heat the oil in a 6-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat; add tomatillo puree to the oil - be very careful as it will sputter quite a bit. Cook, stirring constantly for about 5 minutes, until the puree thickens into a paste.
4. Whisk in remaining chicken broth, bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often for about 30 minutes until it reaches a gravy-like consistency. 5. Shred the chicken and add to the mole. Cook about 5 - 10 minutes until the chicken is completely heated.

I know that's a lot of work, but TRUST ME, it is SO worth it!

Now ... I mentioned some short cuts. Often, if I have some of the left-over chicken broth in the freezer, I will skip the first part where you prepare the chicken and will use whatever chicken I have on hand. I make this chicken a lot, so it is not uncommon for me to have chicken in the fridge or freezer that can be used. You could pick up a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store if you are really short on time. I prefer that to canned or just straight-up, plain boiled chicken. But by not having to worry about the chicken, you cut quite a bit of prep time off of this recipe.

We like to serve this as shown in the photo above, with plain old white rice. It is a stick-to-your ribs kind of meal and there is never a bad time to serve it. It also pairs very well with Spanish rice and tortillas. And if you are looking for a slightly-more-elegant looking meal, don't shred your chicken. Leave the pieces whole and ladle the sauce on top of them. I like shredding because it really helps to get the chicken to soak up the flavor, but it is not a requirement.

Anyway ... I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we do!

P52 - Week 24 - Firehouse Salsa Verde

I've been hoping the opportunity to share this one would come up so that I could save the recipe somewhere easy to find. So this week, I present to you:

Mama G's Firehouse Salsa Verde


Ingredients
~ 1 1/2 pounds tomatillos, husks removed, split in half
~ 1 medium yellow or white onion, peeled and quartered
~ 4 or 5 chile peppers (I like a mix of Serrano and jalapeño chilies but I use whatever is in season or that I can get fresh), split in half - leave the seeds
~ 2 bunches of cilantro, tough lower stems discarded
~ 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I use EVOO or grape seed oil)
~ Kosher salt
~ garlic powder
~ cumin
~ black pepper
~ cayenne pepper

Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to 4 inches below broiler and preheat broiler to high. Place tomatillos, onion, and chilies on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Broil until darkly charred and blackened on top and tomatillos are completely tender, 6 to 12 minutes
2. Transfer vegetables and their juice to a blender, food processor, or the cup of an immersion blender. Add 1 bunch of cilantro. Blend in pulses until a rough puree is formed.
3. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over high heat until shimmering. Pour salsa into the hot oil all at once (it will steam and sputter - be careful!). Immediately start stirring and continue to cook, stirring, until salsa is darkened and thick enough to coat the back of the spoon, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. Finely chop remaining cilantro and stir into salsa. Add spices to taste - this part takes some trial and error. Go easy on the salt at first and add more as needed. I use the following rough quantities: pinch Kosher salt, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1/4 tsp cayenne. But play around with it to get the flavor that YOU like the best.
5. Let cool, then serve!

I kid you not when I say to be careful on step 3 when you pour the salsa into the hot oil! That is how this salsa got its name - it's not incredibly hot on the Scoville scale, but the first 2 times I made this salsa I spattered a bit too much and we got a flame-up that set off the smoke alarms in my kitchen! My guys love to give me a hard time about that, but the salsa is still a house favorite!

Please note that the heat varies pretty widely based on the peppers. Even if I use 4 large jalapeño peppers, it can be very different from one batch to the next. If you are really worried about burning your taste buds, you can trim out the seeds, but I ALWAYS leave them in and never have I had a batch I would call more than "medium."

Anyway ... hope you enjoy this as much as we do!

P52 - Week 4 - Soul Food

To say it has been a mild winter is a pretty big understatement this year. We had 1 weekend where things got cold, but for the most part, we've been pretty consistently above average. However, we have had a couple of cool days off and on. And when the temperatures start to drop, I can't help but crave a warm bowl of soup. This one shown here is one of my favorites:


This is my favorite, super-easy, always-pleasing Chicken Tortilla Soup (pictured here minus the tortillas - I don't add those until the last minute).

And this is the recipe, for those who also crave a bowl of comfort food for the soul:

Ingredients:
1 - tsp olive oil
1 - cup diced yellow onion
2 - cloves garlic, minced
1 - 15 oz can whole kernel sweet corn, drained
.5 cup - julienned zucchini
3 - cups chicken broth
2 - cups diced/shredded chicken (cooked) - I use boiled, roasted, or even canned chicken
1 - 10 oz. can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers
.5 - tsp black pepper
.5 - tsp chipotle chile powder
.25 - tsp cumin
.25 - tsp sea salt (optional)
1 - cup cilantro, diced

Directions:
1. put olive oil in soup pan and saute onions and garlic until onions are translucent.
2. add next 8 ingredients to the pan and bring to a boil.
3. reduce heat and simmer for 20 - 30 minutes, add cilantro, and serve.
4. garnish with crispy tortilla strips, if desired.

I will say that, often, we eat this without the tortilla strip garnish. Sometimes we'll add about a quarter cup of white rice to a bowl instead and serve it that way. But regardless of how you serve it, this is a bowl of the good stuff that will warm you from the inside out!

Hope you will enjoy it as much as I do!

P52 - Week 3 - Bake Sale

After the excesses of the holidays, my better half and I have been trying very hard to get back to a more balanced diet. But all of that got thrown a bit off track when the Boy came home with an urgent request for bake sale items to help offset travel expenses for the UIL Academic Team.


I do have a couple of confessions to make though. First off - to minimize the temptation on the whole family, I made these before school on the day they were due. That way we didn't spend hours in the house with that amazing cookie smell taunting us. And second, these are "place and bake" cookies. The only way I was going to be able to get them made in the short time between our morning wake-up and depart for school and work time, was to cut some corners. I don't think anyone really minds though. They tasted great (that, uh hmm, is confession number three) and I even made double the amount promised. SCORE for the Boy and his teammates!

Here is hoping that their next meet will be even more successful than the bake sale!

28/31

Day 028: A Special Treat


Wonder Boy had an early release day from school today. On days like today, he will typically invite a buddy over for an afternoon of rough housing, Nerf guns, video games, and snacks as far as the eye can see. But unfortunately, Wonder Boy's best bud is down with a stomach bug, so we were on our own this afternoon. I asked the Boy if he wanted to change pace and run around town until we found something to occupy our time, he declined and said that he would prefer to just spend the down time playing video games on his own. But .... he did make sure that the special snacks we typically serve were still on the menu! I held up my end and made him something totally sinful (bacon cinnamon rolls), but as I was smelling all of that cinnamon scented evilness emanating from the oven, I just knew that Wonder Dad and I deserved a special treat as well. Enter these bright red jewels of awesomeness - chocolate stuffed raspberries! This is my new favorite treat! It tastes so delightful that it feels like I am cheating on my diet, but the chocolate is dark (which is allowed!) and low in sugar, so it's all good!

23/31

Day 023: Bacon-Wrapped Love


I had some late work to do this evening. So I was unable to accompany Wonder Boy and his dad to piano lessons like usual. I am thankful for being able to complete my work from home, but I'll admit that I missed being with my guys. In order to drive home the point that they were on my mind, I decided to whip up something special for our Friday night meal. I came up with these bacon wrapped chicken legs and they were a BIG BIG BIG hit! You can count on them making repeat appearances on special occasions - like the next Friday night at home alone.

22/31

Day 022: Liquid Sunshine!


Even when it's cold and grey outside (like it has been here lately), I like to start my day with a bit of liquid sunshine in the form of these fresh fruit smoothies. This particular treat is a blend of orange, pear, mango, strawberries, carrots, cucumber, and papaya. YUM!

21/31

Day 021: Oodles of Zoodles!


My better half got me the COOLEST gift for Christmas - a vegetable spiralizer! One of our favorite veggies to spiralize is zucchini. This stuff makes the BEST vegetable "noodle" out there! Just heat, cover with sauce and meatballs, and you've got one HECK of an Italian dinner!

10/31

Day 010: Warm and Toasty


Nothing says "comfort food" to me like a warm, toasty tortilla. Too bad this one wasn't for me!

7/31

Day 007: Lip Smackin' Good!


For Christmas this year, my better half surprised me with a super-duper blender and I have put that baby to WORK making all manner of delicious smoothies! I find I'm even able to hide veggies in there so that I can get a nice strong dose of goodness each day in the form of a seriously sweet treat.

That's a WIN in my book, any day!