Veggie Jack Burritos

Hmmmm...this is what we ate Thursday. I think I might be catching up. Oh, by the way, this is a favorite meatless dish.

Veggie Jack Burritos

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups broccoli flowerettes
2 cups mushrooms, sliced
1 red onion, sliced
1 medium carrot, shredded
1 medium zucchini, shredded
1/4 cup sliced green onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup prepared green salsa
3 cups (12 ounces) shredded Wisconsin Monterey Jack cheese or Mexican Shredded Cheese blend
8 flour tortillas
Green or red salsa

In a 10 inch skillet, heat oil until sizzling; add vegetables and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat 5 to 7 minutes, until vegetables are slightly tender. Stir in 1 cup salsa. Distribute vegetable mixture and 2 cups cheese evenly on tortillas. Fold burrito- or taco-style; place in 12x8 inch baking dish. Cover with foil. Bake at 400° F for 15 to 20 minutes or until heated through. Top with salsa and remaining cheese. Continue baking 5 to 7 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Panda Express Mandarin Chicken and Fried Green Beans

I love this meal.  Here's the thing....... I am in love with rice.  It is so weird, because rice is really boring but I love it.  I would have it with every meal if I could get away with it.  If you want the yummy, sticky rice you need to buy Calrose rice.  Just put it in your rice cooker and 20 minutes later - sticky delishishness.  I usually make twice as much rice as we need and double the sauce so I can eat just the rice and sauce for leftovers, a couple of my kids like to do that too.  Then there's the green beans.  I haven't been the same since I had tempura fried vegetables.  I don't have a recipe for the green beans, I just let some frozen green beans thaw, dipped them in some tempura batter (which you can buy in the Asian section of any grocery store) and fried them up.  Fried carrots are my favorite, but I decided I was only going to do green beans tonight.  I served them with sweet and sour sauce and Sriracha sauce for dipping.  This is what Sriracha sauce looks like:

It tastes like liquid fire to me, but tasty liquid fire.  You can also find this in the Asian food section of any store.


Panda Express Mandarin Chicken
Don't know where I got the recipe but it's all over the internets

Ingredients:

2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon cornstarch
6 skinless chicken thigh fillets (I use 4 boneless, skinless breasts)
Directions:

Combine sugar, soy sauce, lemon juice, oil, garlic and ginger in a small saucepan. Combine water with cornstarch in a small bowl and stir until cornstarch is dissolved. Add to saucepan and turn heat to high. Stir often while bringing mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 4 to 6 minutes or until sauce is thick. Preheat your grill on high for the chicken. When the grill is hot, rub each chicken piece with oil and cook the chicken for 4 to 6 minutes per side or until done. Chicken should have browned in spots. When chicken is done, chop it into bite-size pieces. Pour the chicken pieces into a large frying pan over medium heat. Heat until chicken sizzles then reduce heat and cover chicken until ready to serve. Spoon chicken into a medium bowl, then pour all the sauce over the chicken and stir until well-coated. Serve with steamed white rice. Do a happy dance from the yummy deliciousness.

Panini with Warm Vegetable Salad and Mud Pie

Monday night is all about the dessert at our house. On Family Home Evening I usually will make a little somethin' and the kids always look forward to it. When Charlie asked what I was making for dessert this Monday I told him I was making Mud Pie. "Really?" He asked, a little confused. A few minutes later he said, "Hey mom, I know how to make mud pies. You want me to go outside and make you one?" Love it!

Monday night I also made paninis. I don't have a fancy panini press, but I have a cast iron press and it works just as well. I usually use the Trader Joe's Cracked Wheat Sourdough for our bread. It's perfect panini bread. For our filling, I grilled some chicken and red onions, fried some bacon, piled it all on and topped with sharp cheddar cheese. Yum.

For our side I made Giada De Laurentiis' Warm Vegetable Salad. Does your husband have a huge crush on Giada, too? Yuck. Put a sweater on, Giada. Okay, okay, my husband doesn't complain about my Jimmy Fallon crush. Don't we all have at least one celebrity crush? Be honest.

Warm Vegetable Salad
from Giada De Laurentiis' Everyday Italian

2 whole red peppers
1 1/2 pound assorted red and white new potatoes (I use purple potatoes, too)
3/4 pounds green beans, trimmed and halved
1 bunch scallions, sliced
1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chopped oregano leaves
1 lemon, zested and juiced
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the broiler. Place the red peppers on a foil lined baking sheet.

Place the red peppers under the boiler. Turning every 2 to 3 minutes cook the peppers until the skin is blistered, about 8 to 9 minutes total. Place the blistered peppers in a plastic bag. Seal the bag and allow the peppers to sit for 10 minutes to allow the skin to separate and to let cool.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes and cook until tender, about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the potatoes to a cutting board. Add the green beans to the pot. Cook the green beans until tender, about 3 minutes. Remove the green beans to a large bowl. Slice the potatoes in half while still warm and combine them with the green beans in the large bowl. Remove the peppers from the plastic bag. Peel off the skin from the peppers. Slice the pepper flesh into wide strips and remove the seeds and veins. Place them in the bowl with the potatoes. Add the scallions, parsley, and garlic
and toss to combine.

In a small bowl combine the oregano, lemon juice and zest, and white wine vinegar. Whisk in the olive oil. Stir in the salt and pepper. Toss the warm vegetables with the herb vinaigrette. Serve immediately.

Mud Pie

3 squares (1 ounce each) semisweet chocolate (or 1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips)
1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 chocolate crumb crust (8 inches) (or graham cracker crust)
1/2 cup chopped pecans (or not!)
2 cups cold milk
2 packages (3.9 ounces each) instant chocolate pudding mix
1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed, divided

In a microwave or heavy saucepan, melt chocolate; stir in condensed milk until smooth. Pour into crust; sprinkle with pecans. In a small bowl, whisk milk and pudding mixes for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set. Carefully spread 1-1/2 cups of pudding mixture over pecans. Fold 1/2 cup whipped topping into the remaining pudding mixture; spoon over pudding layer. Top with remaining whipped topping. Chill until set. Refrigerate leftovers.

Southern Pulled-Pork Sandwiches topped with Cole Slaw and Summer Beans on the side

Yikes. I'm so behind. Last night I made another of my husband's favorites. This recipe is good even though it's made out of pork (not my favorite). I think I mostly like it because we put cole slaw on our sandwiches (yum). My hubby would like it if I made this weekly, I'm sure. Enjoy.

Southern Pulled-Pork Sandwiches
recipe courtesy of Everyday Food

1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Coarse salt and ground pepper
3 pounds boneless pork shoulder (Boston butt), cut into 4 equal pieces
1 1/2 cups cider vinegar
4 garlic cloves, minced
8 soft sandwich rolls, split
Store-bought barbecue sauce, for serving (optional)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in lower and upper positions. In a small bowl, combine sugar, cayenne, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper.
Place pork in a 5-quart Dutch oven or large heavy-bottomed pot; rub with spice mixture.
In a medium bowl, combine vinegar, garlic, and 1/2 cup water; pour over pork. Cover pot, and place in oven on lower rack. Bake until pork is very tender and separates easily when pulled with a fork, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
Transfer pork to a work surface, reserving pan juices. With two forks, shred meat. Transfer to a large bowl, and toss with pan juices to moisten (you may not need all the juices). Pile pork on rolls, and top with barbecue sauce, if desired. Serves 8.

Cole Slaw
recipe courtesy Tyler Florence

1 head green cabbage
shredded 2 carrots,
grated 1 red onion,
thinly sliced 2 green onions (white and green parts),
chopped 1 fresh red chile, sliced
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 lemon, juiced
Pinch sugar
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
Several dashes hot sauce
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine the cabbage, carrots, red onion, green onions, and chile in a large bowl. In another bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, and sugar. Pour the dressing over the cabbage mixture and toss gently to mix. Season the cole slaw with the celery seed, hot sauce, salt, and black pepper. Chill for 2 hours in the refrigerator before serving.

Summer Beans
recipe courtesy of Cafe Johnsonia

tomatoes--can use fresh (5-6 large tomatoes) or canned (2 small cans or 1 large)
4-5 Yukon Gold potatoes (or other waxy potato), sliced into 1/4" rounds
1 bag frozen green beans (I like the Haricot Verts from Trader Joe's)
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced or sliced (whatever you like)
Salt and pepper
Drizzle of good extra-virgin olive oil

Cook sliced potatoes, tomatoes, and garlic in a large pot until you can pierce the potatoes easily with the tip of a knife--so there is still some resistance, but the potatoes aren't mushy.Remove the potatoes and tomatoes to a large bowl.Steam the green beans in the same pan you used to cook the potatoes and tomatoes. Add the cooked green beans to the bowl with the potatoes and tomatoes. Drizzle with olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper.To serve: * a splash of balsamic vinegar or Worcestershire sauce. OR* a sprinkling of freshly grated Parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes.

Macaroni and Cheese with Zucchini and Tomato Gratin

I have no pictures or clever things to say today. I was up until 5:30am with the baby Sunday night/Monday morning (my sweet husband let me sleep until 10am, thanks honey) and I've been up with him since 2am this morning. Here's what we ate Monday night...ta da! I will say that I have two mac and cheese recipes and this is my crazy fattening one (that means it's good) and I just love that zucchini and tomato gratin. I make it often. Okay, writing that took away all my energy, I'm done.

Macaroni and Cheese

· 1 tbsp vegetable oil
· 1 lb. elbow macaroni
· 1 stick + 1 tbsp butter
· ½ cup shredded Muenster
· ½ cup shredded mild cheddar
· ½ cup shredded sharp cheddar
· ½ cup shredded Monterey jack
· 2 cups half and half
· 1 cup (8 oz) Velveeta, cubed
· 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
· ¼ tsp seasoned salt
· 1/8 tsp pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a deep 2-½ quart casserole dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the oil, then the elbow macaroni and cook until the macaroni is just tender, about 7 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain well. Return to pot. In a small saucepan, melt 8 tbsp butter. Stir into the macaroni. In a large bowl, mix the cheeses. To the macaroni, add half and half, 1-½ cups of cheese, Velveeta and eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to casserole. Sprinkle rest of cheese and dot with remaining butter. Bake until it’s bubbling around the edges, about 35 minutes.


Zucchini and Tomato Gratin
recipe courtesy of Pinch My Salt

2 large zucchini, cut into 1/2″ slices
1 medium yellow squash, cut into 1/2″ slices
3 small tomatoes, cut into wedges*
1 garlic clove, crushed
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons Tabasco green pepper sauce**
1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil***
1 t. salt
1/4 - 1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. In a large bowl, toss together all ingredients except the parmesan cheese.
3. Pour zucchini mixture into a medium sized casserole dish, top with grated parmesan cheese
4. Bake, uncovered, in the preheated 425 degree oven for 30 minutes, or until zucchini is tender.
5. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cold.

Recipe Notes: *Use whatever type of tomatoes you would like. Even large cherry tomatoes, halved, would be great in this dish (You would probably use 8-10). **It is important that you use the green Tabasco sauce rather than the other kinds, it adds a wonderful flavor! ***You may substitute 1 teaspoon dried basil for the fresh if necessary.