Preheat oven to 400 (bake on bottom rack)
Kale (washed and dried)
EVOO (1 tablespoon)
Salt
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Monday, March 4, 2013
Kale Chips
This recipe is so easy and so good! Its very heart healthy and I doubt I will eat potato chips again. The possibilities are pretty endless as you can spice them up with other spices. I did the simple basic recipe to try but I will now experiment using other spices. I want to try a spicy one next!
Preheat oven to 400 (bake on bottom rack)
Kale (washed and dried)
EVOO (1 tablespoon)
Salt
Simply rip the Kale (leaves only) into bite sized pieces. Add the EVOO and toss coating all of it. Spread out on Aluminum Foil or Cookie Sheet. Make sure none are overlapping. Salt to taste. Then just bake on the bottom rack about 10mins is good but I found that the browner pieces were tastier. So next time I will rotate them around the cookie sheet and bake a little longer!
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Preheat oven to 400 (bake on bottom rack)
Kale (washed and dried)
EVOO (1 tablespoon)
Salt
|
Friday, February 15, 2013
Blue Jean Foodie Queen: Homemade Flour Tortillas
Blue Jean Foodie Queen: Homemade Flour Tortillas: This is a recipe and photo submitted by one of our fans. Personally I cant wait to make some for my own family. She was gracious enough to...
Homemade Flour Tortillas
2 cups of flour
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 cup of warm water
Blend all this in a food processor and let it rest in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic bag place in a warm space for 30 minutes. Separate into balls and roll out as thin as possible then simply fry them up in a nonstick pan with a dash of oil and enjoy. My kids eat tortillas pretty much on a daily basis. They wrap anything in them or just grab and eat as a snack. I think they will love when I try these!!
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Blue Jean Foodie Queen: Imposter Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
Blue Jean Foodie Queen: Imposter Reese's Peanut Butter Cups: I gotta admit I had my doubts trying this recipe but was very pleasantly surprised that they actually taste exactly the same. It is so simpl...
Imposter Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
I gotta admit I had my doubts trying this recipe but was very pleasantly surprised that they actually taste exactly the same. It is so simple and can be molded into any shape you choose I was even thinking that this could be molded into a cake shape then covered with the chocolate for any Reese's lover!
1 jar 16oz of Creamy Peanut Butter (I bought store brand which was cheap 2 for 3$)
1 stick of Butter (sliced into tablespoons and divided into a pile of 5 and another of 3)
1/2 box of Bakers Chocolate (unsweetened you will only need 4 squares 1/2 box)
4 Tablespoons of Milk
4 1/2 cups of Confectioners Sugar
I used my Kitchen Aid Mixer (with dough hook attached) to mix but I am sure you could use a bowl and spoon or a food processor. Add jar of Peanut Butter to bowl with the Confectioners Sugar and 5 tablespoons of melted Butter. Mix and add Tablespoons of Milk one at a time til it looks something like play dough (3minutes in Mixer)
You can now mold by hand into any shape you choose. I attempted an egg shape but next time may use a cookie cutter to shape or try to mold into an actual cake.
After shaping place on to cookie sheet and freeze for approximately an hour. Now we will melt our chocolate squares with the 3 tablespoons of butter on a low heat stirring constantly. If chocolate is thick add an additional 2 tablespoons of butter. I then simply used tongs to dip each shape and flip to cover in chocolate. Then place back on the cookie sheet. Novice cookers may prefer to set wax paper under them. After all are covered in chocolate place in refrigerator for about an hour to harden chocolate. I did not use wax paper I simply used a sturdy spatula to remove once hardened. Then placed them on a serving tray or plate, store in refrigerator til serving. Enjoy and get creative! My first batch I wasn't worried about the presentation. Now that I know how great they are I will work on that. You could even melt some white chocolate, add food coloring and decorate!!!
1 jar 16oz of Creamy Peanut Butter (I bought store brand which was cheap 2 for 3$)
1 stick of Butter (sliced into tablespoons and divided into a pile of 5 and another of 3)
1/2 box of Bakers Chocolate (unsweetened you will only need 4 squares 1/2 box)
4 Tablespoons of Milk
4 1/2 cups of Confectioners Sugar
I used my Kitchen Aid Mixer (with dough hook attached) to mix but I am sure you could use a bowl and spoon or a food processor. Add jar of Peanut Butter to bowl with the Confectioners Sugar and 5 tablespoons of melted Butter. Mix and add Tablespoons of Milk one at a time til it looks something like play dough (3minutes in Mixer)You can now mold by hand into any shape you choose. I attempted an egg shape but next time may use a cookie cutter to shape or try to mold into an actual cake.
After shaping place on to cookie sheet and freeze for approximately an hour. Now we will melt our chocolate squares with the 3 tablespoons of butter on a low heat stirring constantly. If chocolate is thick add an additional 2 tablespoons of butter. I then simply used tongs to dip each shape and flip to cover in chocolate. Then place back on the cookie sheet. Novice cookers may prefer to set wax paper under them. After all are covered in chocolate place in refrigerator for about an hour to harden chocolate. I did not use wax paper I simply used a sturdy spatula to remove once hardened. Then placed them on a serving tray or plate, store in refrigerator til serving. Enjoy and get creative! My first batch I wasn't worried about the presentation. Now that I know how great they are I will work on that. You could even melt some white chocolate, add food coloring and decorate!!!
Monday, February 4, 2013
Tamales ~Homemade Authentic Part 3 of 3
Now to get these tamales together! Our meat and sauce are done and have marinated overnight. Our husks have soaked overnight making them very flexible. Now its time to make our Maza! Don't be scared its so easy! When I wanted to make this recipe for the first time I found out the dirty little secret that all my tamale making friends cheat and use pre made store bought Maza. I was so disappointed and determined to figure out how to make my own. After all this is all about making it homemade right? There are 2 key ingredients that are extremely important for this and they are a good dried Masa I prefer MASECA brand and some good Lard (Manteca)
This recipe I make in batches as I need it. I find that the warm Maza spreads so easily. So I make it in batches that yields about 50 tamales per batch.
2 cups of Maseca
2 cups of hot water
1/4 cup of powder chicken bouillon
1 Teaspoon of Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon of Salt (I use Kosher)
1/2 the slab of Manteca Lard (melted on stove top)
Mix the Masa, salt, chicken bouillon, and baking powder in a large bowl (I once again use my Kitchen Aid Mixer but did use a large bowl and clean hands before purchasing the mixer) Next add in the hot water and melted lard. Mix thoroughly til smooth and batter starts to be sticky. Now we will need a very clean disinfected table or counter top to start to spread the masa onto our corn husks. I am gonna say there is no wrong or right way to do this you can make a thick or thin coat depending on your own liking. I use either a butter knife, a spoon, or a flexible baking spatula all work fine. I find it easiest to spread the entire 50 out leave them flat and then start to add the meat. Again adding to your liking a larger or smaller portion of meat. We like to go for a nice thick meaty tamale in my house! To fold after filling its simple left side over proceeded by right side over and bottom flap up. Now to steam them. Use a large pot with a strainer placed into it and fill bottom with a few cups of water to create the steam. We don't want the water touching the strainer. Again I do this in a few different pans and usually have 50 Tamales in each pot. I steam them probably about 45mins to an hour then let cool before batching up my freezer bags. If you are serving them after steaming a good 5 minutes to sit and settle is usually good. Then just simply serve, peel, and eat! I highly recommend doing the few different batches as they are going to turn out so delicious you will want to share with friends, family, and neighbors!
If you do happen to freeze some of them I have found the easiest way to reheat them or just keep them warm for a party is to fill the crock pot with them start off on high to heat and then turn to warm to keep heated! The crock pot keeps the moisture in them.
After all this I do believe I am going to go run and pull a batch out of my freezer for tomorrow. Hope you enjoy and let me tell you this seems like a lot of work try it in the steps and I promise you every time you make them after becomes easier and easier. This is such a recipe to share! You are going to love all the compliments you get!!
This recipe I make in batches as I need it. I find that the warm Maza spreads so easily. So I make it in batches that yields about 50 tamales per batch.
2 cups of Maseca
2 cups of hot water
1/4 cup of powder chicken bouillon
1 Teaspoon of Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon of Salt (I use Kosher)
1/2 the slab of Manteca Lard (melted on stove top)
Mix the Masa, salt, chicken bouillon, and baking powder in a large bowl (I once again use my Kitchen Aid Mixer but did use a large bowl and clean hands before purchasing the mixer) Next add in the hot water and melted lard. Mix thoroughly til smooth and batter starts to be sticky. Now we will need a very clean disinfected table or counter top to start to spread the masa onto our corn husks. I am gonna say there is no wrong or right way to do this you can make a thick or thin coat depending on your own liking. I use either a butter knife, a spoon, or a flexible baking spatula all work fine. I find it easiest to spread the entire 50 out leave them flat and then start to add the meat. Again adding to your liking a larger or smaller portion of meat. We like to go for a nice thick meaty tamale in my house! To fold after filling its simple left side over proceeded by right side over and bottom flap up. Now to steam them. Use a large pot with a strainer placed into it and fill bottom with a few cups of water to create the steam. We don't want the water touching the strainer. Again I do this in a few different pans and usually have 50 Tamales in each pot. I steam them probably about 45mins to an hour then let cool before batching up my freezer bags. If you are serving them after steaming a good 5 minutes to sit and settle is usually good. Then just simply serve, peel, and eat! I highly recommend doing the few different batches as they are going to turn out so delicious you will want to share with friends, family, and neighbors!
If you do happen to freeze some of them I have found the easiest way to reheat them or just keep them warm for a party is to fill the crock pot with them start off on high to heat and then turn to warm to keep heated! The crock pot keeps the moisture in them.
After all this I do believe I am going to go run and pull a batch out of my freezer for tomorrow. Hope you enjoy and let me tell you this seems like a lot of work try it in the steps and I promise you every time you make them after becomes easier and easier. This is such a recipe to share! You are going to love all the compliments you get!!
Tamales ~Homemade Authentic part 2 of 3
Simply divide and cover with some hot water. I give them a flip every now and then to make sure they all soak well.
Now we can work on our fillings I personally enjoy the Beef best! Feel free to use Beef, Pork, or Chicken (boneless Skinless Breasts work best) Remember my recipe is bulk!
Large Beef Roast
Large Pork Roast
8-10 Boneless Chicken Breasts (boiled up in some Chicken Stock then shredded)
2 Garlic Cloves (peeled and separated)
You can bake the roasts I like to cut slits in them and stuff with garlic. Bake until very tender or cook them up in a crock pot whichever is easiest for yourself. Then cool and shred. I find that my Kitchen Aid Mixer shreds meat so easily I cant believe I actually used to do it by hand! Separate into bowls and add lots of the Red Chile Sauce (see part1) Since this is my day 2 I like to leave a bunch of sauce at the top of each container before refrigerating til the next day as the meat really absorbs the sauce overnight.
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