Week 22: Shredded Beef Tacos

Tacos are part of our regular meal rotation, but I was starting to get bored with just regular beef tacos or chicken tacos or shrimp tacos.

That's what led me to this recipe.

I wanted a different type of taco.

Shredded Beef Tacos
Taken from Tasty Kitchen

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 8 - 10 hours
Servings: 12

3 lb top roast
2 whole onions
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
8 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp cumin
1-½ Tbsp oregano
1/2 of a small can of chipolte in adobo sauce
1 C chicken broth
1 Cup water
1 Tbsp bay leaves
2 Tbsp white vinegar

Put all ingredients -- except the roast -- in a blender. Blend until onion is finely chopped.

Add some of the sauce to bottom of a crock pot. Place roast in crock pot and pour the rest of the sauce over meat.

Slow cook for 8-10 hours on low.

Use fork or tongs to shred the beef once cooked. It will essentially fall apart.


We made soft-shell tacos with shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, green olives, and tomatoes.

The recipe more more than enough food for a two meals for two. The batch that we froze was really watery when defrosted, though.

This would make a great meal for a taco bar dinner party. It would sit great for a long period of time and could withstand lots and lots of snacking.

It would also make a great Superbowl meal.

Week 22: Crockpot Asian Barbeque Chicken

Truth: As a mom, I heart the crock pot. Anything that allows me to get dinner ready while the little dude is his happiest, first thing in the morning, is a huge help. Unfortunately, I find that some crock pot dinners have the "crockpot taste." So I was skeptical when I decided to try this meal that it might taste like all the other chicken dishes I have tried.

Recipe: Crockpot Asian Barbeque Chicken
Adapted from: 365 Days of Slow Cooking


2 pounds Tyson boneless, skinless chicken thighs tenders (don't use chicken breasts)
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbsp sesame oil
3 cloves garlic, minced

Place thighs into the bottom of a slow cooker. Lay as flat as possible. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a small bowl. Pour sauce over the chicken. Cover and cook on Low for 2 hours. Turn chicken over and cook 1 hour longer. Serve.

My notes: This didn't taste like it was cooked in the crock pot, perhaps because it only spends 3 hours cooking on low rather than a whole day. This worked out okay for me since I am home all day, but I can see where this would be a difficult recipe to make during the week if you don't get home from work until 5pm. The only real issue I had with the recipe is that the sauce wasn't as thick as I would like it to be. This could be in part due to the fact that I did not measure any of the ingredients and just kind of "tossed it in there." Next time I might consider adjusting the amount of liquid or cooking it down some once the meat is ready.

I will definitely make this again!

Week 22: Heart Sandwich Cookie

Thought I'd share this for three reasons.
1. I don't make dessert often enough.
2. Valentine's Day is coming.
3. It's another reason to use Nutella.

Everyday Food, January / February 2010, p. 124



1/2 C old-fashioned rolled oats
1 C all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
1/3 C whole-wheat flour
1/2 tsp coarse salt
3/4 C (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 C packed light-brown sugar
1/2 tsp pure vanilla sugar
1/2 C chocolate-hazelnut spread (aka Nutella)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread oats on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until golden, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl; stir in flour and salt.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and brown sugar on medium until fluffy. Add vanilla; beat to combine. Scrape down bowl.

Add oat mixture; beat until blended.

Form dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds.

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough 1/8" thick, dusting lightly with flour as needed. Cut out cookies with a 2-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter; place 1/2-inch apart on two parchment-lined baking sheets.

Bake until cookies are golden around edges, 12 to 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Let cool 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Repeat with remaining dough, chilling if too soft (re-roll and cut scraps).

Spread filling on flat side of half of the cookies; top with remaining cookies.

To store, cover and keep at room temperature, up to two days.

Makes 30 sandwich cookies.

My notes:
The final product was very tasty and really cute. There were some rough patches along the way, though. The recipe asks to chill the dough for two hours. This resulted in dough that was too chilled to even roll out. It was a big mess! And, I didn't end up with anywhere near 30 sandwich cookies - more like 15 cookies. It's also possible that I didn't roll the dough at 1/8" thick. The fact is, 1/8" is really thin, and the dough was already difficult to work with. The end results was thicker cookies which required more Nutella. And, more Nutella isn't really a problem for me.

Week 21: Breakfast Burritos

Breakfast is a big deal around our house - especially on the weekend. I decided to switch things up from our normal scrambled eggs or chocolate pancakes or french toast to try this new recipe a few weekends ago. I'm sharing it with you to try this weekend.

Breakfast Burritos
Taken from Pioneer Woman Cooks Blog and Cookbook

Makes 6 burritos

Prep time: 35 minutes
Cook time: 60 minutes

2 or 3 large red potatoes, peeled and halved
1/2 large onion, diced roughly
1/2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 lb breakfast sausage
1 red bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
5 whole eggs
1/2 tsp season salt
1/8 C half-and-half
1 Tbsp chopped fresh chives
1 C Monterey Jack cheese
6 flour tortillas
Salsa, for serving

Place potatoes in a large pot and cover entirely with water. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are fork tender. When they are ready, place the potatoes on a cutting board and dice them into 1-inch pieces.

In a large skillet heat oil over medium-low heat. Put the onions in the skillet and sauté until they start to turn brown.

Next, throw in the diced potatoes. Stir well and then slightly press/pack then. Now you will cook them without stirring for several minutes. You want the pan to be hot enough to crisp the potatoes but not hot enough to char them. Cook for several minutes and then flip them with a spatula. Salt and Pepper them as they cook. Cook until desired brownness.

Set potatoes aside.

Brown 1/2 pound of your favorite kind of breakfast sausage. Drain off the fat.

Once your sausage is browned and drained add in the breakfast potatoes and chopped red bell papper and stir to combine over low heat. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Crack the eggs into a bowl. Add the seasoned salt, pepper, and half-and-half and whisk to beat the eggs lightly.

Add the chives and Monterey Jack to the egg mixture and stir to combine.

With the heat still on low, pour the egg mixture over the sausage / potato mixture. Stir very gently. Continue cooking over low heat until the eggs are set.

When fully cooked throw some into a nice warm tortilla, add some salsa, wrap it up, and enjoy.


We had this for a Saturday morning breakfast. It was pretty easy to make; however, it took much more time than I anticipated it would. Also, I wasn't crazy about the texture of the finished product. It tasted really mushy - there was no crunch in the onions or the pepper or the potatoes. I'm not sure how to fix that. I also think it would be interesting to substitute bacon for the sausage.

The verdict. . . we will make this again. I'm not sure I'd use the exact recipe, but I really like the concept.

Week 21: Spaghetti and Meatballs

Taken from Barefoot Contessa Family Style by Ina Garten (p. 103 - 104)
Serves 6

For the meatballs:
1/2 lb ground veal
1/2 lb ground pork
1 lb ground beef
1 C fresh white bread crumbs (4 slices, crusts removed)
1/4 C seasoned dry bread crumbs
2 tsp chopped dried flat-leaf parsley
1/2 C freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 extra-large egg, beaten
Vegetable oil
Olive oil

For the sauce:
1 Tbsp good olive oil
1 C chopped yellow onion (1 onion)
1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 C good red wine, such as Chianti
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp chopped dried flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

For serving:
1 1/2 lb spaghetti, cooked according to package directions
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese



Place the ground meats, both bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, salt, pepper, nutmeg, egg, and 1/4 C warm water in a bowl. Combine very lightly with a fork. Using your hands, lightly form the mixture into 2-inch meatballs. You will have 14 to 16 meatballs.

Pour equal amounts of vegetable oil and olive oil into a large (12-inch) skillet to a depth of 1/4 inch. Heat the oil. Very carefully, in batches, place the meatballs in the oil and brown them well on all sides over medium-low heat, turning carefully with a spatula or fork. This should take about 10 minutes for each batch. Don't crowd the meatballs. Remove the meatballs to a plate covered with paper towels. Discard the oil but don't clean the pan.

For the sauce, heat the olive oil in the same pan. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and cook on high heat, scraping up all the brown bits in the pan, until almost all the liquid evaporates, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pepper.

Return the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and simmer on the lowest heat for 25 to 30 minutes, until the meatballs are cooked through. Serve hot on cooked spaghetti and pass the grated Parmesan cheese.

Notes:
Remember this? I was thinking about my grandpa's kitchen and his spaghetti the entire time I was making this dinner. For nostalgic reasons, I really wanted to like it.

The truth, though? I didn't really like it. I used 1 pound of pork and 1 pound of beef because I couldn't find veal. The end result was a really pork-y tasting batch of meatballs. I didn't read the directions carefully, so I fried the meatballs until they were entirely cooked (which took forever). And, the recipe made enough meatballs for three meals but barely enough sauce for one meal.

My quest for the perfect meatballs continues.

Week 20: Spicy Caramel Popcorn

I am the proud owner of a Whirly Pop; it was a birthday gift. We've used it to make regular popcorn, but as soon as I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen I knew I needed to bust out the Whirly Pop for something a little more special.

Spicy Caramel Popcorn
Taken from Smitten Kitchen

Makes 4 quarts (16 cups)


Nonstick cooking spray or vegetable oil
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 C popcorn kernels
2 C salted peanuts (optional)
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
3 C sugar
3 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 Tbsp salt

Lightly coat two large, heatproof rubber spatulas, a very large mixing bowl and two large baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray or a thin slick of oil.

In a large saucepan or pot with a lid, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the popcorn kernels, cover and keep the saucepan moving until all of the kernels have popped, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the prepared bowl, removing any unpopped kernels. Toss with salted peanuts, if using.

In a small bowl, whisk together the baking soda and cayenne pepper.

Have the two large baking sheets ready. In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, butter, salt and 1/2 cup water. Cook over high heat, without stirring, until the mixture becomes a light golden-yellow caramel, 10 to 14 minutes. Remove from the heat and carefully whisk in the baking-soda mixture (the mixture will bubble up).

Immediately pour the caramel mixture over the popcorn and don’t fuss if it doesn’t all come out of the pot — you’ll have plenty. Working quickly and carefully, use the prepared spatulas to toss the caramel and popcorn together, as if you were tossing a salad, until the popcorn is well coated.

Spread the popcorn onto the baking sheets and quickly separate them into small pieces while still warm. Cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes. Once cool, store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

As the recipe is written, 1 cup serving of popcorn is 7 Weight Watchers points.

Changing the peanuts to 1 C, the vegetable oil to 2 Tbsp, and the serving size to 3/4 cup decreases the Weight Watchers points to 4.

Week 20: One-pot Chili

One-pot Chili
Taken from
Healthy Cooking, December / January 2010 (p. 35-36)

1 lb lean ground turkey
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 C chopped green pepper
1 tsp olive oil
2 C water
1 can (15 oz) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 1/2 oz) reduced-sodium beef broth
1 can (14 1/2 oz) diced tomatoes, with mild green chilies, undrained
1 can (8 oz) no-salt-added tomato sauce
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 C uncooked multigrain penne pasta
Sour cream, for garnish
Grated Cheddar cheese, for garnish

In a large saucepan coated with cooking spray, cook the turkey, onion, and pepper in oil over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.

Stir in the water, beans, broth, tomatoes, tomato sauce, chili powder, cumin, and oregano. Bring to a boil. Add pasta; cook for 15 - 20 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.

Serve with sour cream; sprinkle with cheddar cheese.

Not at all a photogenic meal. . .



Nutrition information:
1-1/3 C with 2 tsp reduced fat sour cream
384 calories
10 g fat (2 g saturated fat)
8 g fiber

This was super easy and pretty quick (about 40 minutes) to make! We made it on a super cold and windy and snowy winter night - a great night for some warm and cozy food. Brad complained that there wasn't enough flavor and dumped on a bunch of Tabasco, but he said he'd eat it again. And, I was wishing we would have made cornbread or a salad or something to go with it. But, I'd still make it again.