Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas

It is safe to say that my oldest son LOVES enchiladas. Whenever I ask for dinner input, his answer is always enchiladas. This recipe is a staple in our home and it may become one in yours after you try it.

Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas

2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (however you would like to cook it-baked, roasted, rotisserie, boiled)
14 corn tortillas, softened
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 small cans diced green chiles
1/2 small yellow onion
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp dried Mexican oregano
1 tsp ground cayenne
2 tsp Kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 cup water

In a blender, mix together the green chiles, onion, garlic, seasonings and water, until smooth. In a nonstick skillet, soften the corn tortillas over medium low heat with a little of vegetable oil. Once all the tortillas are softened, set them aside and in the same skillet, add the chicken and half of the enchilada sauce. Cook the sauce with the chicken for minutes. Then set yourself up for assembly.
Spray a 9X13 pan with nonstick cooking spray. Take each tortilla and add 2 TBSP of chicken down the center of each tortilla and sprinkle with cheese. Roll and place the tortilla, seam side down, in the pan. Once you have rolled all the tortillas, Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over the top of the tortillas. Sprinkle with cheese and bake at 350 degrees F for 30-40 minutes, until heated through and cheese melted. Serve with rice and beans.

BBQ Jalepeno and Onion Ring Bacon Cheese Burger

Next time you make a burger, make this one. Trust me on this. You will not regret it.

BBQ Jalepeno and Onion Ring Bacon Cheese Burger

2 lbs ground beef, 80/20
8 burger buns
8 slices thick, center cut bacon
8 slices Cheddar cheese
1 cup BBQ sauce (Famous Dave's is my fav)
24 slices pickled jalepeno
2 large yellow onions, peeled and sliced thin into rings
2 cups buttermilk
1 TBSP Kosher salt
2 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp chile powder
1 tsp ground paprika

2 cups flour
1 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cayenne
2 cups vegetable oil

Season beef with 1 TSBP salt and 1 tsp ground black pepper. Form the beef into 8 equal patties, about 1/4 lb each. Let set in fridge for at least 30 minutes before grilling them. Grill the burgers for 4-5 minutes per side. The last 2 minutes of grilling time, add the cheese and close the lid to the grill to help the cheese melt.

Bake the bacon at 450 degrees on a cookie sheet for 20-25 minutes, or until desired crispiness.

Peel and slice the onions into thin rings. Soak the rings in buttermilk that is seasoned with salt, pepper, chile powder and ground paprika. Let soak in the fridge for 30 minutes to 2 hours. Once they have soaked, drain off the buttermilk. In a separate bowl, make your seasoned flour with flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Dredge the onion rings into the seasoned flour and let them set for 10 minutes. While they are setting up, heat the oil in a 2 qt sauce pan over medium high heat to 350 degrees F. Fry the onion rings for 5 minutes, or until golden and crunchy. Drain on paper towels.

Assemble the burgers with burger on bottom bun, top with bacon, jalepeno slices (3 per burger), onion rings and then some BBQ sauce. Serve immediately.

Glazed Yeast Doughnuts

Every time we go grocery shopping, my boys beg for doughnuts. Every single time. I rarely buy them even though I crave them probably more than they do. This Sunday, we were having some extra company for dinner and I decided it was time to bust out a new dessert. Homemade doughnuts. They were fluffy, light, and delicious. Maybe I shouldn't have done that. They were easy to make and I may give in to my cravings more often now.

Glazed Yeast Doughnuts

1 TBSP quick acting yeast
1 cup lukewarm milk (about 100 degrees)
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp salt
4 TBSP butter, melted
3 1/2 cups AP flour

3 cups vegetable oil to fry doughnuts in

In a stand mixer with a bread hook attachment, add yeast, milk and sugar. Mix for 30 seconds and then let yeast foam and activate for 10 minutes. Add salt, egg, and melted butter. Mix together for 1 minute. While mixer is running on low, add flour one cup at a time. Once all flour is added, let mixer run and knead the dough for an additional 3-5 minutes. Once dough has been kneaded, remove the bowl from the stand mixer and cover it with a clean cloth. Set dough in a warm area and let the dough proof and rise for 2-3 hours, or until doubled in size. Once dough has risen, pour it onto a floured surface and roll dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Using a round doughnut cutter, or a cookie cutter, cut out doughnut shapes and place on a Sil-Pat or a non-stick surface. Let dough rise again in a warm area for 30 minutes. Heat oil in a large sauce pan to 350 degrees F. Add doughnuts, about 2-3 at a time, and fry for 2 minutes per side. Drain doughnuts on paper towels and then dip in the glaze. Serve warm.

Glaze:

2 cups powdered sugar
1 TBSP vanilla
1 tsp salt
UP TO 1/4 cup milk

Whisk together sugar, vanilla and salt. Slowly add milk, whisking as you add. Add just enough milk to make the glaze slightly runny. Set aside to dip doughnuts once they are fried.

Corn and Mushroom Stuffed Chile

While on a recent vacation, I ate at a local Mexican restaurant and ordered a vegetable "lasagna". It was a roasted poblano pepper stuffed with cheese, mushrooms and corn. It was amazingly delicious. The only thing that I felt it was missing was a little heat. In my version, I used a slightly spicy pepper and a homemade sauce with a smoky tomato base. This is a great way to use the green chiles coming out of the garden now. If you don't like heat, feel free to use a bell pepper as a substitute.

Corn and Mushroom Stuffed Chile

8 Anaheim chiles
1 TBSP vegetable oil
4 TBSP  butter
1/3 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz sliced white button mushrooms
3 ears corn, husked and cut off the cob
2 TBSP minced cilantro
salt and pepper


Sauce:

8 ounce can tomato sauce
1/2 c water
2 tsp ground New Mexican chile powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 clove garlic, minced
1 TSBP minced yellow onion

2 Cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Rub chiles with vegetable oil and a little salt. Place on a cookie sheet and roast the peppers for 20-25 minutes, turning them over half way through the cooking time. Peppers are done with they are slightly soft and skin has blistered. Remove them from oven and place them in a Ziploc bag, closing it tightly. Once peppers are cooled slightly, remove them from the bag and peel off the outer skin. It should peel off very easily. Discard the skin, spilt the chile down the center and scoop out the seeds. Set them aside back onto the cookie sheet.

Melt butter over medium heat in a non-stick skillet. Add onions and garlic and sprinkle with salt. Saute them for 5 minutes, until soft and translucent. Add the mushrooms and saute for 5 minutes until cooked through and juices boiled off. Add the corn kernels and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle in the cilantro at the very end. Fill the cooled and cleaned chiles with the mushroom and corn mixture. Sprinkle with cheese and place back in the oven for 7-10 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Sauce:
 In a sauce pan, add all ingredients and let simmer for 10 minutes. Once chiles are done cooking and cheese is melted, spoon sauce over peppers and serve immediately.

Snickerdoodles

I'm not sure who came up with the name of Snickerdoodles, but whatever they are called, they are delicious. Cinnamon and sugar and a soft, chewy cookie. Match made in cookie heaven.

Snickerdoodles

2 sticks butter, softened
1 3/4 c white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
3 c flour

Coating:

3 TBSP white sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. With a hand mixer or stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar for about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time while mixer is running. Add vanilla and mix. Add salt, baking soda and cream of tartar mixing well. Add flour one cup at a time while mixing. After all flour is mixed in, let dough chill in fridge for 30-60 minutes. Once dough has chilled, roll dough into one inch balls, and roll them in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Place 12 dough balls on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees F for 9-11 minutes. They may look slightly uncooked. Remove from oven and let them sit on the cookie sheet for a few minutes until they set. Yields about 36 cookies.

Chicken Lasagna

I get sick of the same old lasagna all the time. In this version, I went with chicken and made it all white instead of the usual red sauce and ground meat.

Chicken Lasagna

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
16 oz box of lasagna noodles
16 oz Part Skim Ricotta
1 cup  grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg
2 tsp dried tarragon
2 tsp dried chervil
1 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Sprinkle salt and pepper on chicken and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until cooked through. Cover with foil after cooking and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Using fingers or forks, shred chicken and set aside.

Boil lasagna noodles according to package directions and set them separately on oiled parchment paper so they don't touch and stick together. In a mixing bowl, stir together ricotta, Parmesan, egg, and seasonings until well incorporated. Oil bottom of a 9X13 pan so noodles will release easily. Place enough noodles to cover the bottom of the pan (approx. 3 noodles) and spread on Ricotta mixture over the noodles, about 1/3-1/2 cup total per layer. Sprinkle with shredded chicken and Mozzarella cheese. Continue to layer lasagna in same way until all noodles are used. On the last layer, ,sprinkle with more Parmesan cheese.  Cover pan with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove foil and bake an additional 15 minutes til top is browned. Let rest 15 minutes before trying to cut it. This will allow layers to stay together.

TIP: Can also add cooked, drained spinach to this recipe and layer it on when assembling, or sauted mushrooms.