Finders Keepers

Taco Salad Bowls

2008-04-23T11:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, this photo actually wasn't taken by me, but I totally forgot to take photos (forgive me I was hungry). But, mine looked a lot like this one. These are SO SO yummy and a great alternative to boring old tacos.

Prep: 20 min. Total: 20 min.

4 Flour Tortillas (8-10 inches)
1 Tbsp. chili powder, divided
1 lb. ground turkey (can use ground beef too, but ground turkey is really yummy in this and healthier!)
1 Cup diced carrots
1/2 Cup Salsa
Salad Greens, Torn
1 Large Tomato, chopped
1 Pkg. Taco Seasoning
Any other taco toppings you like!

PREHEAT oven to 425 degrees. Crumple 4 large sheets of foil to make 3-inch balls; place on greased baking sheet. Place 1 tortilla on top of each ball; spray tortilla with cooking spray. Sprinkle evenly with 1/2 tsp. of the chili powder. Bake 6-8 min. or until tortillas are golden brown (tortillas will drape over balls as they bake).

MEANWHILE brown meat with carrots in a large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Add salsa and taco seasoning; cook 2 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally.

NEXT put salad greens in tortillas bowls; top with meat mixture, add toppings. And Enjoy!

2008-03-29T14:13:00.001-07:00

Scrumptous Apple Pie

1 pie crust

6 to 7 cups peeled and sliced Granny Smith apples
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 sticks butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup quick oats
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup pecans
1/2 jar (or more) caramel topping

Mix peeled apples, lemon juice, sugar, flour, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Set aside.
Cut the butter into the flour, then add in brown sugar, oats, and 1/4 teaspoon salt.
Add apples to prepared pie shell and top with crumb topping. Cover crust edges with aluminum foil and bake in a 375-degree oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil from crust and place back into the oven for another 30 minutes. Chop pecans, and when five minutes remain, sprinkle them over the pie. Finish baking. Quiver with anticipation.

Remove pie from oven and pour 1/2 jar (or more, if you’re feeling dangerous and naughty) of caramel topping over the top. Allow to cool slightly before serving, or don’t if you can’t wait. Eat. Enjoy.

Taken from The Pioneer Woman Cooks

Calzones

2008-03-29T14:12:00.001-07:00

Here's the recipe for the dough (I did it in a food processor which made it SO fast and easy, but you could use a stand mixer or do it by hand): (That wasn't an emoticon, just some good old-fashioned punctuation)

Put 1 package of dry, active yeast (those are just the normal packets you always see and each one has 2 1/4 tsp of yeast, if you're using yeast out of a jar) in one cup of warm (105-110 degrees) with 1/4 tsp. of sugar.
Let it proof (that just means sit there for a while so the yeast can wake up and start eating) for 15 minutes.
Then add 2 tbsp. of olive oil.

In a food processor, mix together 3 cups of flour (all-purpose or bread) with 2 tsp. of salt and 1 tbsp. of sugar.
With the motor on, pour in the yeast mixture and let the motor run until the dough comes together (less than 30 seconds).
Take the dough out, form it into a ball and put it in a large, oiled bowl, cover it and let it rise for one hour in a warm spot. Punch the dough down and divide it into four (or more) balls. Put the balls on a greased cookie sheet and let them rise for 40 minutes. Then, on a lightly floured surface, roll the balls out into circles with a rolling pin. Put two circles on an oiled cookie sheet and fill it with whatever you want. Leave a little dough bare around the edges like you would for a pizza.
Some of the things I set out were:Ricotta cheese, mozarella cheese, feta cheese, salami, pepperoni, ham, red peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, frozen spinach (thaw it, then squeeze all the water out first) and tomato sauce.
I recommend putting all your fillings on one side of the dough circle, then folding the other side on top. After folding it over, seal the edges with a fork.
Put them in a pre-heated, 375 oven for 15-25 minutes (I think our oven lies about its temperature, so ours was 25, but it should be shorter). When they start to get a little golden brown, then they should be done.

Taken from http://feedyourfamily.blogspot.com/2008/01/calzones.html

Funky Chicken and Sesame Noodles

2008-03-29T14:10:00.000-07:00

Funky Chicken
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, chopped (or 1/4 teaspoon dried)
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts sesame oil, for sauteeing

Directions

First make the sesame noodes:
Cook the spaghetti according to package directions. Drain.
In a jar, add the soy sauce, sesame oil and the sugar.
Shake until well blended and the sugar has dissolved.
Pour this over the pasta.
Toss with scallions and sprinkle with the sesame seeds.
Set aside while you marinate and then cook the chicken.

Funkying the chicken:
In a bowl mix the soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, garlic, brown sugar and the ginger.
Make sure the sugar has pretty much dissolved.
Add the chicken, making sure it's all coated with the sauce.
Cover and stick in the fridge for 2-3 hours.
Remove the chicken from the marinade, and toss out the marinade left at the bottom of the bowl.
Heat the sesame oil in a large non-stick pan.
Add the chicken in batches and saute for about 10 minutes, or until done, adding more sesame oil as needed.
Remove the chicken from the pan and let cool slightly.
Slice the chicken diagonally into thin strips.
Serve the chicken over the sesame noodles.

Just Like Cafe Rio Chicken

2008-03-13T09:41:00.000-07:00

This recipe makes a lot so just scale it down to what you need!

1 small bottle Kraft Zesty Italian dressing
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 Tablespoon cumin
3 cloves minced garlic
5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast

Put all ingredients in crock-pot on low for 4 hours, shred meat and cook for one hour more.

Tonight I made it just for just our family, this is how I scaled it down for just the 3 1/2 of us.

1/2 small bottle dressing
1.5 teaspoon chili powder
1.5 teaspoon cumin
1.5 clove minced garlic
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

I put it in the crock pot for 2 hours, shredded it and cooked it for 1 hour more.

My tacos include tortillas, black beans, the cafe rio chicken, tomatoes, and onions.

Non-conformist Pork Loin

2008-03-13T09:39:00.001-07:00

Thanks to Mr. AB (who cannot be named for fear of lawsuits, but if you watch any cooking shows on a certain cooking channel and don't know who AB is, you should probably pay closer attention next time) I decided to use a dry rub I learned from him.

8 parts Brown Sugar

1 Part Salt (Kosher of Course)

1 Part Chili Powder (I used a nice deep red roasted one)

1 Part Misc Spices (I used garlic Granules, Mustard Powder, Basil, Cumin, Black Pepper)

We did this mixture using a cup of Brown Sugar so it was a Cup of that and an 8th of a cup of everything else. You can make as much as you like but that was a perfect amount for this piece of meat. So this all happened the night before.

We rubbed the back and front massaging the rub into the savory flesh of the loin. And then we wrapped it up in two layers of Wide (this helps immensely) tinfoil.

It looked like a happy tinfoil sausage at this point.

Our seasoned happy roll was then placed in the fridge to chill out over night. We put in on a standard sheet pan diagonally and it mostly fit. The next day we made the glaze sauce base.

1 cup Chicken broth

1/2 Cup Red Wine Vinegar

2 TBLS Worcester Sauce

3-4 Smashed up garlic cloves

1-2 TBLS of Honey

Mix this all together and bring to a boil then let steep for a while. Then open up one end of your pork roll and pour it in. Cook (this is called braising) for 3-4 hours on 225 F. It wont burn unless all the liquid dries up. Which at 225 would take days. I used a probe thermometer to check doneness and pulled it at 190 which is actually hotter than it should be but it didn't hurt it. Anything after 180 should be more than hot enough to kill the bugs. After it has cooked open one end of the foil and dump out all the liquid into a big sauce pan. At this junction I actually moved the loin onto a new sheet pan lined with foil since it was being served later and to the public. At home I would have left it in the old, now discolored, tinfoil. Put the loin into the now extinguished oven to rest. Now boil the liquid for a long time. This stuff needs to go from water consistency to BBQ sauce consistency. Do be afraid to let it boil and boil good. It took about 30 minutes for ours because we had so much sauce. Once the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, spoon it over the loin. Don't be shy, this is the divine ambrosia that makes this dish. Then hit the loin with the broiler until the sauce starts to caramelize (it will turn brown and bubble, it might even get black in one or two spots). Cut and serve.

Taken from http://mormoncook.blogspot.com/2007/12/non-conformist-pork-loin.html

Shepherd's Pie

2008-03-11T14:48:00.000-07:00

Prep Time:
30 min

Total Time:
50 min

Makes:
6 servings, about 1-1/2 cups each

1-1/4 lb. red potatoes, cut into chunks

3 large cloves garlic, peeled
1 Stick butter

1 lb. extra lean ground beef

2 Tbsp. flour

4 cups frozen mixed vegetables, thawed

3/4 cup reduced-sodium beef broth

2 Tbsp. ketchup

PLACE potatoes and garlic in large saucepan; add enough water to cover. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer 20 min. or until potatoes are tender. Drain; return to saucepan. Add butter; mash potatoes until smooth.

PREHEAT oven to 375°F. Brown meat in large nonstick skillet. Stir in flour; cook 1 min. Add vegetables, broth and ketchup; cook 5 min. Spoon into 8-inch square baking dish; cover with potatoes.

BAKE 18 min.

Taken from Kraft Recipes

Lemon Oregano Chicken

2008-03-11T14:39:00.000-07:00

Prep Time:
10 min

Total Time:
30 min

Makes:
4 servings, one chicken breast each

1 tsp. dried oregano leaves

1 pkt. SHAKE 'N BAKE Original Chicken Seasoned Coating Mix

4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)

Juice of 1 lemon

PREHEAT oven to 400ºF. Add oregano to coating mix in the shaker bag; shake gently to combine. Moisten chicken with lemon juice; shake off excess. Shake in coating mix as directed on package.

PLACE on foil-covered baking sheet.

BAKE 20 min. or until chicken is cooked through (165ºF).

Taken from Kraft Recipes

Chicken, Bacon, and Mushroom Roll Ups

2008-03-09T12:25:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:
2 Cans of Big and Flaky Crescent Rolls
1 lb. shredded chicken (cooked)
8 oz. mushrooms (diced)
6 slices of bacon (cooked and halved)
Butter

Directions:
Unroll the crescent rolls. Put a pea sized amount of butter on each crescent roll. Put on mushrooms, half slice of bacon, and chicken. Roll up and cook according to the Crescent roll package directions.

Amish White Bread

2008-03-05T18:31:00.001-08:00

INGREDIENTS
2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
2/3 cup white sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 cups bread flour

DIRECTIONS
I us my bread machine for this. I just add the wet ingredients, then the dry, then the yeast and set my machine to the dough cycle. When it is finished I take it out, shape it and put it in a greased bread pan, let it rise for 30 minutes and then bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Regular directions- In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water, and then stir in yeast. Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.
Mix salt and oil into the yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Punch dough down. Knead for a few minutes, and divide in half. Shape into loaves, and place into two well oiled 9x5 inch loaf pans. Allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch above pans.
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes

Steak Enchiladas

2008-03-05T18:27:00.001-08:00

Ingredients:
1 lb. steak
10 tortillas
1 can Tomato Sauce
1 can Rotel
1 can Black Beans
1 onion

Directions:
Brown steak in a skillet. While the steak is cooking, dice up the onion, put 3/4 of it in a large mixing bowl and keep the rest out. Add the tomato sauce, rotel, and black beans (drained) to the mixing bowl and mix well. Grease a 9x13 pan. Take a tortilla and fill it with mixture and some beef, roll it up, and put it in the pan. Continue until all 10 tortillas are done. Spread remaining mixture on top and then put onions on. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Maple Chicken

2008-03-05T12:36:00.000-08:00

Take the thighs (or any other kind of chicken, I used leg quarters since we had some around). Cut up one onion, three potatoes (can use sweet potatoes too) in one inch chunks. Put the cubed veggies in a foil covered shallow pan along with baby carrots (or sliced ones). Salt and pepper them and stir them around. Salt and pepper both side of the chicken and put it down into the veggies. Then drizzle 1/4 C. maple syrup over everything. Bake at 450 degrees. When the first side gets browned turn the chicken over and stir the veggies around a bit and bake until the juices are clear.

Apple Dumplings

2008-03-04T15:03:00.000-08:00

Apple Dumplings

2 Granny Smith apples
2 cans crescent rolls
2 sticks butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoons vanilla
cinnamon
1 small can Mountain Dew (12 oz.)

Peel and core apples. Cut apples into 8 slices each. Roll each apple slice in a crescent roll. Place in a 9 x 13 buttered pan. Melt butter, then add sugar and barely stir. Add vanilla, stir, and pour over apples. Pour Mountain Dew around the edges of the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Serve with ice cream, and spoon some of the sweet sauces from the pan over the top.

Taken from www.thepioneerwomancooks.com

Marlboro Man Sandwich

2008-03-04T15:01:00.001-08:00

Marlboro Man’s Favorite Sandwich
2 to 3 pounds cube steak (tenderized round steak that’s been extra-tenderized
1 large onion OR 2 small/medium onions
4 French/Deli rolls
Butter, man
Lawry’s Seasoned Salt
Worcestershire Sauce
Tabasco

-Slice onions and cook in 1/4 stick butter until soft and light brown. Remove and set aside.
-Slice cube steak against the grain. Season with Lawry’s.
-Heat 2 TBSP butter over high heat (in same skillet) until melted and beginning to brown.
-Add meat in single layer. Cook one side until brown, then flip and cook until brown, about a minute on both sides.
-Add 1/2 (at least) Worcestershire sauce, 5 to 6 shakes Tabasco, and 2 TBSP butter. Add cooked onions. Stir to combine.
-Butter halved French rolls and brown on skillet.
-To assemble, lay bottom half of French roll on plate. Place meat mixture, followed by a spoonfull of juice from the pan. Top with other half of roll, cut in half, and devour!

Taken from www.thepioneerwomancooks.com

Semi-Homemade Donuts

2008-03-02T18:26:00.001-08:00

Servings: Makes 10 Donuts and 10 Donut Holes.

Take on can of Pillsbury Classic Biscuits. Cut holes out of the middle of each one with a pop bottle cap. Heat in one inch deep vegetable oil in a skillet on high (can also be done in a Fry Daddy). Put in 5 donuts at a time, flip when lightly browned and take out when both sides are lightly browned. Put on a plate lined with double paper towels. Allow to cool. Once cooled to warm dip in a mixture of 3 parts powdered sugar to 1 part water. Put on a plate and allow to dry.

Indian Tacos

2008-02-29T20:11:00.000-08:00

Indian Fry Bread

3 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup warm water

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Add warm water in small amounts and knead dough until soft but not sticky. Adjust flour or water as needed. Cover bowl and let stand about 15 minutes.

Pull off large egg-sized balls of dough and roll out into fairly thin rounds. Fry rounds in hot oil until bubbles appear on the dough, turn over and fry on the other side until golden.

Serve hot. Top with beef (seasoned with taco seasoning) and all of your favorite taco toppings!

Slow Cooked Sweet and Sour Pork

2008-02-27T15:34:00.000-08:00

Submitted by: Martha Nickerson
Rated: 4 out of 5 by 17 members

Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 6 Hours 30 Minutes

Ready In: 6 Hours 50 Minutes
Yields: 6 servings

"Even though a co-worker gave me this recipe more than 20 years ago, my family still enjoys it today. -Martha Nickerson of Hancock, Maine"

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika

2 1/2 pounds boneless pork

loin roast, cut into 1-inch strips

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 (20 ounce) can unsweetened

pineapple chunks

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium green pepper,

chopped

1/4 cup cider vinegar

3 tablespoons brown sugar

3 tablespoons reduced-sodium

soy sauce

1 tablespoon Worcestershire

sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 cup cold water

Hot cooked rice

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Place paprika in a large resealable plastic bag. Add pork, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat. In a nonstick skillet, brown pork in oil in batches over medium-high heat. Transfer to a 3-qt. slow cooker.
2.	Drain pineapple, reserving juice; refrigerate the pineapple. Add the pineapple juice, onion, green pepper, vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and salt to slow cooker; mix well. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until meat is tender.
3.	Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; stir into pork mixture. Add pineapple. Cover and cook 30 minutes longer or until sauce is thickened. Serve over rice if desired. Note I used cous cous instead of rice in this recipe because my husband is not a fan of rice, but the texture really wasn't right, it wasn't bad, but I think it would be much better with some asian style noodles. I will use those next time.

BBQ Beef Fajitas

2008-02-25T16:53:00.001-08:00

Prep Time:
10 min

Total Time:
3 hr 24 min

Makes:
4 servings, 1 fajita each

1-1/4 cups Barbecue Sauce, divided

1/4 cup lime juice

1/4 cup water

1 lb. beef flank steak

1 medium each: green and red pepper, cut lengthwise into quarters

1 medium onion, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices

Flour Tortillas

MIX 1 cup of the barbecue sauce, the lime juice and water until well blended; set aside. Score both sides of steak by making shallow cuts in surface. Place steak in glass dish. Pour barbecue sauce mixture over steak; cover. Refrigerate several hours or overnight to marinate. Drain; discard marinade.

PREHEAT greased grill (or pan) to medium heat. Grill (or cook) steak, peppers and onions 12 to 14 min. or until steak is cooked to medium doneness (160°F) and vegetables are crisp-tender, turning and brushing occasionally with the remaining 1/4 cup barbecue sauce.

CUT steak across the grain into thin slices. Coarsely chop vegetables. Spoon steak and vegetables evenly onto tortillas; roll up.

Taken from http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/Recipes/RecipeDetail?recipe_id=53202&pf=true

Paula's Rolls

2008-02-24T17:12:00.001-08:00

Mix together 2 cups of the flour, 2 packages yeast, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1/2 cup softened butter. Mix in 1.5 cups water between 100-110 degrees. Mix for 2 minutes. Add in 2 eggs at room temperature (or egg substitute), 1.5 tsp. salt, and 1 cup flour. Mix on high for 1 minute. Add flour a little at a time stop between 5 and 5.5 cups. Let rise 30 minutes in a warm place. Make in rolls. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.

This dough can be made in the bread machine as well. It is best to cut the recipe in half if you do it this way. Just add all of the wet ingredients, then dry, then yeast and set to the "dough" setting on your machine. Take out when done and bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.

Best Chicken Ever

2008-02-24T17:09:00.001-08:00

20+ Chicken Thighs
2 C. soy sauce (Kikkomans)
3 1/2 C. water
1 small can crushed pineapple (juice and all)
3 C. brown sugar (dark)
3-4 green onions
4 cloves crushed garlic
1 TBS. sesame seed oil
1 inch or so from ginger root and grate
1/2 C. Top or Sprite

Combine all in large bowl. Transfer to ziplock bag and add chicken thighs. Refrigerate over night or more. Grill to cook.

Courtesy of Anna

Crispy Chicken and Italian Vegetables

2008-02-22T21:20:00.001-08:00

Prep Time:
15 min

Total Time:
55 min

Makes:
4 servings

1 lb. baby new red potatoes, halved

4 chicken leg quarters (1-1/2 lb.), skin removed

1 pkt. Crispy Seasoned Coating Mix

1 red peppers, julienned

1 cup Zesty Italian Dressing

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Pour 1/4 C. of the zesty italian dressing in a bowl. Coat chicken with dressing and then in coating mix to cover. Place chicken in greased baking pan. Put potatoes, red pepper, and the remaining dressing in a ziplock bag and shake to coat. Place in pan around chicken.
BAKE 40 min. or until chicken is cooked through (165°F) and potatoes are tender.

Adapted from http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/recipes/recipedetail.htm?recipe_id=95059&ctx=

Veg-Head Three-Bean Chili

2008-02-21T19:46:00.000-08:00

2 tablespoons (2 turns around the pan) olive oil
1 medium yellow skinned onion, chopped
1 large red pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large green pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
1 cup vegetable broth
1 (32- ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (14-ounce) can black beans
1 (14-ounce) can dark red kidney beans
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon cayenne hot pepper sauce, several drops
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 cup spicy vegetarian refried beans

Toppings:
Blue corn tortilla chips

Over moderate heat, add oil to a deep pot and combine onion, peppers, and garlic. Saute for 3 to 5 minutes to soften vegetables. Deglaze pan with broth, add tomatoes, black beans, red kidney beans, and stirring to combine. Season chili with cumin, chili powder, hot sauce, and salt. Thicken chili by stirring in refried beans. Simmer over low heat about 5 to 10 minutes longer, then serve up bowls of chili on top of blue corn tortilla chips.

Taken from http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_18690,00.html