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In , on January 15, 2017 with No Comments

Pressure Cooker Mexican Rice

For our Mexican-themed dinner the other night, I made Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas, and my oldest son asked to have a rice dish to go along side. Wanting something quick and easy, I used my Instant Pot and came up with my version of a Mexican-style rice dish.

Cooking rice in a pressure cooker is super easy, and it’s definitely how I cook rice now. No more guessing how long to cook the rice or having to keep a close eye on it. Just add the rice and liquids, add the lid, and cook. It’s that simple.




I didn’t remember to take a separate picture of just the rice, but I did get one with the entire meal plated.

Feel free to experiment with variations of spice in this dish. My husband doesn’t like super spicy things while my kids do, so this is kind of middle-of-the-road as far as the spiciness goes.

Pressure Cooker Mexican Rice

2 cups white rice (I used jasmine)

3 cups beef or chicken stock, whichever you have on hand

1 package taco seasoning

1/2 teaspoon salt, optional depending how salty your taco seasoning is

1 can diced tomatoes, including juice

1 can Rotel tomatoes, including juice

Whisk together the stock (or water if not using stock) and the taco seasoning until the seasoning is completely dissolved. Add all ingredients to the pressure cooker, and stir everything to combine.

Add the pressure cooker lid, remembering to seal the vent. Select the manual setting, and cook on high pressure for 4 minutes. When the beeper sounds, turn off the pressure cooker, and let it set for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, do a quick release to release any remaining pressure. Serve warm.

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In , on September 8, 2016 with No Comments

Turmeric-Roasted Cauliflower

I love cauliflower, but usually when I buy a head, the guys get into it and eat it raw before I can do anything with it. This time, however, I wised up and bought 2 heads – one for them and one for this recipe.




I’d seen lots of roasted cauliflower recipes on Pinterest, and I modified one to our family’s tastes. I turned out pretty good, and there weren’t any leftovers, so I’d say it was a hit! I paired this with Lemon, Garlic, and Herb Salmon, and they really worked well together. I paired the two with a nice green salad – perfect Paleo meal 🙂

 

salmon-and-cauliflower-plated

 

 

turmeric-roasted-cauliflower

Turmeric-Roasted Cauliflower

6 cups of cauliflower florets (1 large head)

2 to 3 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed

1/4 cup good olive oil

1/2 to 1 teaspoon turmeric (to your family’s taste)

Sea salt (to taste)

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

 

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a large baking sheet with nonstick olive oil spray.

Place the cauliflower florets and the smashed garlic in a large bowl. Drizzle with the olive oil, and stir to completely coat the veggies.

In a small bowl, combine the turmeric, sea salt, and crushed red pepper flakes. Sprinkle the mixture over the cauliflower, turning to evenly coat.

Place the cauliflower on the prepared baking sheet, spreading them out evenly. Bake at 450 degrees Fahrenheit for about 25 minutes, or until the edges are nicely browned, and the cauliflower is tender. Serve warm.

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In , on April 13, 2015 with No Comments

Days of Casseroles: Day 9 – Pineapple Casserole

We’ve gotten a bit more garden put in the past few days. Kevin already had lettuce, radishes and peas in, and I planted 2 short rows of spinach yesterday. I’m starving for fresh greens for salads, so hopefully we can get a little rain this week to help these seeds pop out of the ground. In about a week or so we can hopefully put out our plants. We’ve started cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, kohlrabi, ground cherries, peppers and tomato plants. I still need to find some Brussels sprouts, but then it will be the end of May for the rest of the garden. I discovered that my 3 granddaughters loved the mock zucchini pineapple I made last year, so I need to save room in the lower garden for another zucchini patch….so good to see them enjoying a healthy snack 🙂

Today’s casserole is a side dish, as the guys wanted brats, and I needed something that would complement them. I found this pineapple casserole on Tasty Kitchen. I’d tasted something similar at a family potluck, so I thought I’d give this recipe a whirl.

 

 

Pineapple Casserole

1/2 cup sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
20 ounces crushed pineapple, drained
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
12 tablespoons Ritz crackers
8 tablespoons butter

Mix sugar and flour in a mixing bowl. Add the pineapple and cheddar cheese. Mix thoroughly. Pour into a greased 2-quart baking dish. Crush the Ritz crackers, and add the melted butter to them. Sprinkle this mixture over the pineapple and cheese mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes, or until golden brown.

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In , on April 8, 2015 with No Comments

Days of Casseroles: Day 5 – Cheesy Broccoli Casserole

Since the family wanted a main dish other than “casserole” today, I decided to make a broccoli casserole to go along side the shrimp scampi they were screaming for. We all love broccoli, even the kids, so this is a favorite side dish for us any time of the year.

 

Cheesy Broccoli Casserole

2 10-ounce packages frozen broccoli (I used 2 frozen quart bags I had from our garden last summer)
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups crackers, crushed (can substitute Panko bread crumbs)
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine the broccoli, mayonnaise, cream of mushroom soup, cheddar cheese and beaten eggs until well combined. Pour mixture into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle crushed crackers or Panko bread crumbs over the top of the casserole, and evenly drizzle the melted butter over the topping.

Bake for 35 minutes or until set and bubbly.

Since I mentioned it, here’s my recipe for shrimp scampi. I’ve made it for years, and while we don’t have it often, it’s a treat when we do and really very easy to make. The ingredients are in approximate measurements, as I really just eyeball it when making this.

Shrimp Scampi

2 pounds fresh or frozen shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 teaspoons Wildtree shrimp scampi seasoning, optional
1 stick butter
1 small onion, finely diced
2 to 3 cloves freshly minced garlic
1/3 cup dry white wine
Fresh parsley, chopped
Hot cooked rice or noodles

If using scampi seasoning, combine prepared shrimp and seasoning in a large bowl to completely coat the shrimp. Set aside.

Melt butter in a large skillet. Add onion and garlic to the pan, and saute until translucent but not browned. Add shrimp to the pan, and cook just until the shrimp turn pink. Don’t cook longer as this toughens the shrimp.

To serve, place cooked shrimp and some of the butter sauce over hot cooked rice or noodles. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley, if desired.

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In , , on June 22, 2014 with No Comments

Roasted Beet and Kale Salad…and Late Night Single-Serve Chocolate Cake

We picked the first few beets today, and aside from the usual canned beets and pickled beets that I plan to make, I wanted to try roasting a few of the beets. I’ve never tried them roasted and had been looking forward to it if we had extra…and we do. 🙂

Adding to the fun of cooking, this past week we had a wind/electrical storm that took out the electronic motherboard on my kitchen stove…..so as we await the arrival of a replacement board, we are minus a stove. The burners still work (gas stove), but no oven. So…roasting these beets would mean using my microwave.

Four years ago when we remodeled our kitchen, I bought a Sharp Carousel Convention microwave. The intent of this purchase was that I would use the microwave to bake, roast, etc., during the summer so as not to heat up the kitchen when it was so hot. Of course, convention would take hold, and I’d use the oven and heat up the house. But with no oven available, it was time to test out this convection microwave.

I trimmed the beets and scrubbed them as usual. Then I found a glass pie pan and placed the beets in it along with about 2 Tablespoons of water. I microwaved the beets at 350 degrees F for approximately 10 minutes until they tested soft when pierced with a knife. I let them them cool until I was able to peel them and proceeded with the roasted beet and kale salad recipe.

 

 

Roasted Beet and Kale Salad

6 medium-sized beets, trimmed and roasted
2 cups kale, washed and trimmed
1 tablespoon honey mustard
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Combine roasted beets and kale in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Combine apple cider vinegar, honey mustard, honey, and olive oil in a small bowl. Whisk until combined. Add salt and pepper to taste. Adjust flavors if needed.

Pour dressing over beets and kale and stir to coat vegetables completely. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to let flavors meld together.

After dinner, the boys decided to go fishing, and Kevin and I sat down to watch a movie. As is usually the case, my sweet tooth went into overdrive. I searched through my Pinterest recipes and came across a single-serve microwavable chocolate cake recipe. I’ve never baked a cake in a microwave before, but as the oven was out of commission, I decided to give it a whirl. Wouldn’t you know….as soon as I’d pulled out my cake from the microwave, the boys returned home from fishing! And I had 2 more cakes to make  lol…..but they were definitely worth it. I found the recipe on www.chocolatecoveredkatie.com

 

One-Minute Chocolate Cake

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons cocoa powder
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 stevia packet (or 1 tablespoon more sugar)
2 to 3 teaspoons coconut oil or vegetable oil
3 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla

Combine dry ingredients and mix very, very well. Add liquid; stir. Transfer to a little disk, ramekin, or coffee mug. Microwave 35-40 seconds (center will be soft like a lava cake center). If you don’t want to eat your cake straight from the cup, be sure to spray your dish first (and then cool before trying to remove it).  Edit:  If you want a more cake-like texture, microwave each cake for 1 minute.

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