Pork “Carnitas” Tacos and Cajun Shrimp Tacos… mexican caribbean theme!!

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carnitasandshrimptacos

My husbands close friend came and visited, and went on vacation with us!! So, the night he arrived, my hubby had a request for Mexican-Caribbean themed dinner. One of our all-time favorite restaurants is “Salsas” which is Mexican-Caribbean. So… Here’s what I came up with!!!

(Oh, and I tried to make home-made tortillas… it was a fail. I will be re-attempting at a later time. They tasted like flour… crackers. Yeah… lol!)

“Jerk Shrimp”

Ingredients:

1/2 pound of shrimp (or more, but you’ll have to increase recipe) I use WILD CAUGHT red Argentinian shrimp from TJ. I am kind of particular about not purchasing farm raised shrimp.
1 TB allspice
1 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp. Himalayan pink sea salt
2 TB sunflower oil (or olive oil)
1/2 tsp. ground cumin

Put all dry ingredients in a large bowl and stir together. Add the oil and make sure all of the seasonings are wet. Then add the shrimp and toss until well coated. Then, put into the refrigerator to marinate. Mine marinated for 45 min. That would probably be the minimum, up to over night. When ready to cook the shrimp, from frozen or raw, bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 min until cooked through. (Depending on the size of the shrimp).

(adapted from here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/aaron-mccargo-jr/jerk-seasoning-recipe.html)

The rest of the recipe for the Shrimp Tacos came from here: http://www.closetcooking.com/2013/08/jerk-shrimp-tacos-with-pineapple-salsa.html

SOOOO GOOD!!! It’s jerk shrimp tacos with pineapple “crema” which helps with the heat, with a fresh grilled pinapple salsa and slaw to top it. One of my top favorites!!!!!!! Check out the link!!
You need a can (or fresh) of cored sliced pineapple, crushed pineapple, greek yogurt, and a can of coconut milk. For the pineapple salsa it’s also got red onions, cerano peppers, etc.

“Carnitas” with Pork Tenderloin

1 pork tenderloin (mine was about 2 lbs)

2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp garlic powder (I personally  used 1 tsp minced garlic)

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp ground himalayan sea salt

1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

1 bottle of light german beer (my addition)

I got this recipe for the rub here: http://www.eatliverun.com/crock-pot-beef-carnitas-tacos/

 

I just put the tenderloin in the crock pot, drizzled w/about 2 TB of olive oil, made sure the rub covered the pork tenderloin on top and on bottom. I then poured the bottle of beer over the top, and closed the lid. I cooked it on LOW for 7 hours. DELISH! It fell apart it was so tender!!!

I then put out the tortillas (store bought… phew!), chips, guacamole, slaw, pineapple crema, pineapple salsa, salsa verde, greek yogurt, and fresh onions…. and put out the 2 protein options and dug in!! This was a light and satisfying feast!!! 🙂

Ground Beef Enchiladas

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groundbeefencihladas

I had a little over a pound of ground beef in my freezer… and stuck. What do I make??? BEEF ENCHILADAS!!!! Of Course!! 🙂 And, my husband will always be excited about anything mexican themed at all.  They were scrumptious, and had a little bit of heat… and if you like spice, you can dial up the heat easily!! (I’m a bit of a wimp in that department!!)

I was out of cans of enchilada sauce, but I DID have one 6 oz. can of  organic tomato paste. So… I MADE red enchilada sauce. I made mine mild, in order to dial up the spice, you just add more of the spiciness… cayenne, chili powder etc.

Red Enchilada Sauce:

1 can tomato paste 6 oz.
6 oz (fill that can with chicken broth) of low sodium chicken broth (up to 1 cup)
2 TB canola oil
1/4 cup water
2 TB chili powder (add more for addtl. spice)
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp onion powder
sprinkle of cayenne powder (more for extra spice)

Stir together and set aside

Should look like this:

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Enchilada Indredients:

1 pack of 8-10 flour tortillas
1.5 lbs lean grass fed ground beef (my personal fav.)
1 can organic black beans (I use Trader Joes)
1/4 cup Salsa Verde (I LOVE Trader Joes version of this too!!)
1 cup Organic frozen super sweet corn
1/2 cup water
1/2 packet taco seasoning (or 2 TB homemade taco seasoning: http://www.abigmouthful.com/homemade-taco-seasoning-and-turkey-tacos/)
1/2 (or a bit more) of the enchilada sauce that you made
salt and pepper to taste

 

Fill each tortilla with about 1/8 to 1/4 cup of filling. Enough that when you roll it up, it’s not spilling out. Fill and roll and put seam side down into a 8X8 pan that’s been prepared with cooking spray.  Repeat until all filling has been used. This recipe should use approximately up to 10 tortillas. You may need a 9X13 pan if it doesn’t fit into the 8X8 pan.  I only made 4 because I ran out of tortillas. Then, top with the remaining red sauce, and a bit of the salsa verde, and top that with cheese. Cover with foil, and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Remove and ENJOY!!!!!!! I served this with chips and guacamole and some salsa verde. Filling, and delicious.

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Greek Chicken Wraps

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GreekWrap

This used my leftover chicken that I had frozen from this previous post: https://dancinandcookininthekitchen.com/2014/06/02/sunday-lunch/

Now, if you didn’t have this leftover chicken… maybe you had some chicken from a rotisserie chicken leftover… or from a previous meal. This was a quick and easy meal.

Ingredients:

2 small chicken breasts (leftover or otherwise) heated, cooked and cut into 1-2 inch pieces
1 scallion
garlic powder (to taste if you sautee the chicken to reheat)
shredded cheese (as desired)
Lettuce
cherry tomatoes
Tzatziki Sauce (I buy pre-made organic from Trader Joes… you CAN make it… but it takes time)
Tortillas

 

Quick warm up and sautee in a skillet for a couple of min with a bit of cooking spray, add some garlic and a bit of greek seasoning (Pampered Chef has a great one!!), cumin, salt and pepper, etc. Then cut into 1-2 inch chunks. Place onto tortillas. Then, sprinkle desired amount of shredded cheese on top. Top that with scallion (green onion). Then, top with lettuce and tomato. Spoon generous amount of Tzatziki sauce onto wrap, roll and ENJOY!!!!

We paired this with guacamole and Trader Joes sweet potato chips.. DELISH!!! 🙂

Chicken Parmesan Sandwiches

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chickenparmsandwich

These Chicken Parmesan Sandwiches just hit the spot! They were delicious!! My husband… he told me he’d order these at a restaurant and go back again specifically for these!! Now, I think he’s a bit biased… but they were good!!

Ingredients: for 2 sandwiches… for more, multiply accordingly

4 chicken tenderloins
1/2 cup coconut milk (or any other milk… even buttermilk)
3 TB parmesan cheese (grated or shredded)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1 egg
2 TB water
2 thick slices of fresh mozzarella
10 small leaves of fresh basil
1/2 cup jarred spaghetti sauce or marinara
1/2 tsp salt & pepper
2 Ciabatta Rolls
1 TB pesto (I keep a jar in my fridge at all times… pre-made… we go thru a lot!)

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Directions:

Slice the 2 rolls in half and lightly butter and sprinkle with garlic powder. Put in oven @ 350 for 5 min just to toast. Take out, and put pesto lightly on 1 side.

Thaw chicken if it isn’t already, and soak in the milk. While soaking, put 3 TB olive oil into a skillet and heat on med to med low heat until just rippling. Then put the flour in 1 bowl, with the salt and pepper. Put the 1 egg in another bowl w/the water and wisk. Add the panko bread crumbs and parmesan cheese in a 3rd bowl and mix together. In a “assembly line” style, take the chicken, dip in the flour mixture, then the egg mixture, then the panko bread crumb mixture and directly into the skillet. Pan fry on either side for 3-4 min per side. Then, place onto the bottom half of the roll, and top with 1 TB of the marinara, then the slices of mozzarella, and bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 8-10 min until the cheese is well melted. Take out, top with sauce and basil, and the other side of the roll. ENJOY!!!!!

 

The croissant was a store bought roll that I topped with honey butter at my husband’s request. We also had chips and guacamole with our sandwich. A bit of a hodge-podge dinner, but satisfied cravings!!!!

 

Easy and Quick Big Group Breakfast!!!

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Scrambled Egg Croissant Sandwiches

Ingredients:

1 dozen eggs
1/2 to 3/4 bag of Jimmy Dean sausage crumbles
6 slices bacon (I used pre-cooked TJ nitrite&nitrate free bacon)
2 TB milk (I used unsweetened organic coconut milk… you could use organic 1/2&1/2)
1/2 bag of shredded cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste
20 croissants

 

Scramble eggs w/the milk until 1/2 way cooked. Add sausage and cooked bacon (microwave bacon until crispy) and add salt and pepper as desired. ( I don’t add too much salt because of the cheese, bacon and sausage. Scramble until cooked through. Put into 9×13 pan to serve and top with shredded cheese to desired amount. Then, cut the bakery (or pillsbury) croissants in half and make a breakfast sandwich. Easy, and enough to feed many!!!

Date Night!!!! (At home date night… like a staycation.. but a stay…date)

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So, my husband and I are kind of “foodies” per say. I LOVE to cook (obviously) and we LOVE to eat!! For our anniversary, we always spend it in Asheville because my parents send us to a marriage retreat up there every year. So, we save $$ to specifically go to a new and FANCY restaurant. Our dates… we love new and nice restaurants. Now, don’t get me wrong, my husband has a strange obsession with Taco Bell, so it’s not like we never eat less expensive food, but we REALLY enjoy eating out where it’s farm to table, or all natural ingredients, and there’s a lot of thought and freshness put into the meal. In Charlotte we went to a restaurant called the Dandelion Market. New and fun things… new flavors. Inspiring for me too!

One of our most favorite dish, that is usually too expensive, is lamb. Last time we ordered it was probably on an anniversary a few years ago. So… I was needing a date night, and $$ was a bit tight due to saving for a couple of upcoming trips… so I made a fancy dinner here at home!!!! And, compared to an approximate $100 tab at an upscale restaurant (including tip and wine), this meal cost around $25. Pretty good huh?! So, here’s the recipe in case you want an at home date evening!!

Rack of Lamb with Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Roasted Asparagus and Quinoa Tabbouleh

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Rack of Lamb Ingredients:

1 half (or full) rack of lamb
8-10 leaves of fresh mint chopped
1 tsp of minced garlic
2 small branches fresh rosemary… remove and mince the leaves.
3-4 TB olive oil
1 tsp sea salt

The rack of lamb needs to be “frenched”. Basically exposing the bones on each rib. You can have the butcher do this. I purchased one that was already done. I then marinated the lamb. I mix the chopped mint, rosemary, garlic, salt and olive oil together with a fork, and then cover the entire half rack of lamb with it. (Most of it on the “fattier” side that is left up. I then put it in a bowl, cover with foil, and put in the fridge for 4 hours.

When done marinating, heat up the cast iron grill pan. (Or grill) Salt the grill pan with sea salt. When hot, place the entire rack fatty side down onto the grill pan to sear. After 6 minutes, flip, and put into the oven and broil for 10 minutes with fatty side up. Take out of the oven , wrap in foil and let sit for 5 minutes. After, remove from foil and cut apart each separate rib. Most people leave it here because people like it on the “rare” side of medium. Since I don’t, I like it on the well side of medium, I put the cast iron pan back onto the stove top, heated it up and seared each side of the meat of each individual lab pieces. About 1 min per side. Then… served!! DELICIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Fingerling Potatoes:

Toss the potatoes in olive oil, sea salt, and rosemary and roast in the oven at 350 for 20 minutes. DONE! 🙂

 

Asparagus

Roast in oven w/a light amount of olive oil, and salt. 12 min at 350.

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Tabbouleh: This I threw in because I discovered a fresh cucumber in my garden!! I figured, lamb, asparagus… why not stick with the Mediterranean vibe and make this!! The recipe here is from a previous post: https://dancinandcookininthekitchen.com/2014/06/02/quinoa-tabbouleh/

 

Skillet Lasagna

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This is an easy one! I love this recipe because I used a jar of organic spicy tomato basil sauce from Trader Joes (I’ve also really loved it with Spicy Tomato Pesto sauce from Classico… a bit of a kick! 🙂  ) So, pre-made sauce just makes it quick and easy!!!

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef
1 small onion (chopped)
1 cloves garlic (minced)
1 jar Spaghetti sauce
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups Fusili pasta ( Or broken up lasagna noodles… any larger pasta is really good)
1 cup fat-free cottage cheese (I prefer large curd)
1/4 cup fat-free grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

Shredded fat-free mozzarella cheese for garnish

You could also add zucchini for a little extra veggies!

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I didn’t take a picture when I made it completely by accident, but I originally took the recipe from http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=20856 which I have adapted to the above. But the picture shows the yumminess! 🙂

Directions:

While the hamburger is cooking, make sure you have the pasta cooking. It will take the approximately same amount of time.I

In a large skillet, brown beef with onions and garlic. Drain.
Add jar of spaghetti sauce, salt and a tsp of sugar to cut the acidity.
Stir in cooked pasta.
Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally.
Combine cottage and Parmesan cheeses and a dash of salt and pepper to taste.
Sprinkle in basil to taste.
Drop cheese mixture by rounded tablespoons onto pasta mixture.
Cover and cook for 5 minutes more.
Sprinkle with shredded mozzarella and serve.

Pineapple Hawaii Chicken with Rice (Carrots&Cabbage on the side)

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Looks a bit messy… but this was GOOD!!!

Ingredients:

1 8 oz can pineapple chunks w/the juice
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup Light Soy Sauce
2 lbs Chicken tenderloins; in chunks
2 TB honey (drizzled over top before cooking)

Original recipe makes 4 Serving

I place the frozen chicken tenderloins directly into the sprayed (with cooking spray) crockpot. Then, I poured the can of pineapple chunks into the crock pot. I then put the 1/2 cup water, brown sugar and soy sauce together in a 2 cup measuring cup and whisk until well blended. Then pour over the meat. Then, drizzle the honey over the top of the meat mixture, and place the lid on. Cook on low for 6-8  hours. I was going to then cut into chunks after the meat was cooked (because I used frozen tenderloins) and it just shredded apart! YUM! (High for 4 hours). When you’re about ready to eat, cook the rice. (I follow the directions in the rice cooker). I then cut up 5 carrots into large chunks, and did 1/2 cup of chopped cabbage, 1/5 of an onion chopped and some minced garlic and placed into a skillet with 1 TB of coconut oil and stir. I add salt & pepper to taste.

 

Right before I served it, I removed the JUST chicken with a slotted spoon from the crockpot and placed it into a bowl. I then poured the “sauce” or remaining liquid into a skillet (the same one I cooked the carrots in) and brought the sauce to a simmer. I then added 1 TB of flour while whisking quickly… keep whisking until smooth and thickened. Then, pour over the chicken and serve!

Then, serve over rice and ENJOY!!

Coconut Curry Corn&Chicken Chowder

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A mouthful to say, and a DELICIOUS mouthful to eat!!!

Ingredients:

2 TB coconut oil
1/2 onion chopped
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1 Yukon Gold potato Diced small (1/2 – 1 inch pieces)
1 14.5 oz. can Diced&Fire Roasted tomatoes w/green chilies (I used Trader Joes)
2 steamed ears of corn, cut the corn off the cob and toss the cobs.
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. curry
1 cup Silk Coconut Milk (you can also use 1 can coconut milk, but I always have coconut milk in the fridge)
1/2 qt. Low Sodium chicken broth (you can also use vegetable broth)
drizzle of honey to taste
salt & Pepper to taste
splash of 1/2&1/2 at the very end… makes it a bit extra creamy
4-5 chicken tenderloins – cooked and diced. (I sauteed them w/1 TB olive oil in skillet w/salt, pepper and cumin for about 10-15 min)
Garnish with cilantro, and a bit of FRESH squeezed Lime juice

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Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat and stir in the cumin and curry, cook for one minute to infuse the oil with spice.
Add the chopped garlic and onion. Stir and cook for five minutes. Add the roasted corn, potato, canned fire roasted tomatoes with green chilis; stir for a minute. Add in the broth.
Cover and bring to a high simmer. Lower the heat and simmer gently, until the potatoes are tender, about twenty minutes or so.
Add the coconut milk and sauteed chicken tenderloins (diced). Stir and season with sea salt and ground pepper; and add a drizzle of organic raw honey to taste. Heat through gently- please DON’T BOIL it.
Just before serving, add the chopped cilantro and fresh lime juice. Stir. Taste test. Adjust seasoning. The lime juice brightens the taste and accents the spice. Honey cools the spice.
Garnish with a lime wedge, and ENJOY! (It’s got a bit of heat too!!! YUM!).
Serves 4-6 depending on serving size.

Read more: http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/2006/09/roasted-corn-chowder-with-cilantro.html#ixzz35Vc45gmB

Away on “Vacation”!!!

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I was away at my sister’s visiting, and taking some pictures for her blog : frugalfitmomma.com and decided… I’m not cooking while I’m here! So… we made wine popsicles instead! Check out her blog for the recipe! http://frugalfitmomma.com/2014/06/21/wine-popsicles/
Aaannnddd… if you are looking for a good website for deals and coupons, check out the rest of her blog!!