Salt and Pepper Chicken

We love Chinese food and when we moved up here to the ole GP we found that it just wasn't as good as Calgary. We tried all the different restaurants that were recommended to us and we both agreed that I needed to take things into my own hands. This is one of our favorite dishes at Edgemont Palace (RIP) and homemade is almost as good as at the restaurant. I did find one FABULOUS shortcut.....at the Safeway deli they see a dish called Honey Garlic Chicken. It is battered and fried and comes in frozen. I buy a frozen bag there (a 1 kg bag costs about $17-18 which is a steal as it saves me about an hour of prep) and keep it in the freezer so anytime a chinese food craving hits, I can have it on the table in about 20 minutes (that is also cheating and using Minute Rice). Using the premade chicken I put it on a cookie sheet and bake it at 400 until crispy (about 20 minutes). While it's in the oven slice the peppers and onions and saute. Combine the chili peppers, salt and sugar in a small bowl. When the chicken is done add the peppers and onions to the cookie sheet and sprinkle with the chili pepper mixture. My kids gobble this up (I give them the pieces with not as much chili flakes or I just take some chicken out before I add the hot stuff and give them the sauce that came with the chicken). Serve with some rice, steamed broccoli and garlic beans and you are good to go.

I will include the whole recipe for the purists out there, but trust me buying it at the deli is twice as good if you ask me!!

Salt and Pepper Chicken

1.5 lb boneless chicken breasts, sliced into long strips

1 egg

3 t. vinegar

5 t. oil

2 c. cornstarch

1 c. flour

2 c. water

5-8 c. oil (for deep-frying)

1 t. minced garlic

1/2 green pepper, julienned

1/2 red pepper, julienned

1/2 med onion, slivered

2 t. crushed red pepper flakes

1 1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. sugar

Place chicken in large bowl. Add egg, vinegar, oil, cornstarch, flour and water and mix with your hand to combine well. Let sit for 20 minutes to tenderize.

In large wok or deep fryer, heat oil until 350 degree. Place chicken in the hot oil and dcook a handful at a time, until golden and crispy. This will take about 5 minutes. Remove chicken, drain and keep warm.

In another wok, heat 1 T. of oil and saute garlic, gr pepper, red pepper and onion for aobut 5 minutes. Stir in chili pepper and return chicken to pan. Toss with salt, sugar to combine and heat through. Serve immediately.

My kitchen did not burn down

Craig was away all last week so mama took a break from making dinner!! "Kids you want Mini-Wheats for dinner? or How about a pizza?" were common phrases in my household last week. I can proudly say that I made dinner tonight but I'm going to be posting it tomorrow....it was yummy and was done in about 20 minutes. Yay!!! It was a special treat meal though so you'll have to eat salad and yogurt all day to be able to enjoy it (high in calorie=good & tasty!!) So, look for it tomorrow!

Pancakes and sausage for dinner?????

Yes, I love having breakfast for dinner. Who doesn't???? This is the BEST pancake recipe...I got it from the mag Everyday Food (love it). Patrick apparently also thinks that it is the best. The first time he ever slept over at our friend's house he very politely told Karen that she should get my pancake recipe. I'm sure her pancakes were just as good though - maybe she forgot to add the most important ingredient. Love. teehee. I'm so funny. I make a huge batch of all the dry ingredients and store it in a container in the pantry. Homemade pancake batter - just add the wet ingredients when you want to make some pancakes. It is much cheaper than buying it and so yummy. I also have made tons of them, layered them in a container in between wax paper and then frozen them. Also, I use an ice cream scoop to make the pancakes - they are perfectly measured and it comes out perfectly. We also had my most favorite sausages, they are Lilydale Daystarters, they are made out of chicken and are way lower in calories and fat. Yum.

Basic Pancakes

1 c. flour (can use 1/2 W.W. and 1/2 white)
2 T. sugar
2 T. baking powder
1/2 t. salt

1 c. milk (I always use a splash more though)
2 T. melted butter or vegetable oil
1 egg

Preheat oven to 200, have a baking sheet ready to keep cooked pancakes warn in the oven. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In a larger bowl, whisk together milk, butter and egg. Add dry ingredient to milk mixture; whisk until just moistened (do not overmix; a few small clumps are fine) Heat a large skillet or griddle over medium. Fold a sheet of paper towel in half, and moisten with oil;carefully rub skillet with oiled paper towel. For each pancake, spoon 2 to 3 T. of batter onto skillet. Cook until surface of pancakes have some bubbles and a few have burst, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip carefully with a thin spatula, and cook until browned on the underside, 1 to 2 minutes more. Transfer to a baking sheet, cover loosely with aluminum foil and keep warm in oven. Continue with more oil and remaining batter.

Buttermilk: add 1/2 t. baking soda to dry ingredients. Replace milk with low-fat buttermilk

Chicken Curry Soup

Okay so I took a f-a-b-u-l-o-u-s picture of the soup to temp you to make it and now for some unknown reason my computer is not recognizing (i think i spelt that wrong!) my stinkin' camera. Love computers!! I can't say that your kids are gonna love it but you can dazzle your friends with this soup!

PS-I gotta give a shout out to my dad. He has a curry soup that could kill. Mine never is quite as good, but it inspired this one since I never have any shrimp and some of his other ingredients!!

Chicken Curry Soup

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces
1 white onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
2 T. fresh ginger (I cheat and used the jarred one from the produce dept)
1 1/2 T. fresh garlic
1/4 t. red curry paste (you can use more but I made it pretty mild today - I've gone up to 1 T)
4 c. chicken broth
1/4 c. soy sauce
1 can coconut milk
1 t. lemon grass (I found this in the produce refrigerated section in a toothpaste type tube..I can't tell you how exciting it was because you can NEVER find lemon grass!!!!)

In a big pot add alittle olive oil and heat add the chicken. Start cutting your onion and add to it, then do the same with your red pepper. Let them saute for a bit and then add the ginger and garlic, cook for about 1 minute. Add the broth, curry paste and soy sauce. Cook for about 30 minutes and then turn off heat. Add the coconut milk and the lemon grass. You can garnish with green onion, cilantro or limes but the soup is good without them too.

Monkey Shake

I make these for a quick snack and Patrick has them for breakfast all the time. He really hates eating in the morning before school so I feel like I get something in him to tide him over until recess. I hope your kids love it as much as mine do.

Monkey Shake

1 c. milk
1 banana
1 T. smooth peanut butter (as you can imagine I don't measure it - just knife it out of the jar!)

Add everything to a blender and blend until smooth.

Roasted Veggies and Sausages

This was dinner on Saturday night and Patrick requested it AGAIN on Tuesday! It was obviously a hit. I will warn you that with this recipe I freeze some into lunches for Craig to take to work so you really probably should half the recipe depending on your family size and appetites!

2 - 1 lb. pkgs. Italian sausage (I used Johnsonville fresh basil and also mild)
1 - 2 lb. bag of mini baby potatoes (can also used sliced up potatoes but I was lazy today!!!)
4-5 celery stalks, sliced
7-8 carrots, sliced
1 onion, sliced
2 red peppers, sliced
1/2 brown bag of mushrooms, halved

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray your largest cookie sheet with Pam and dump the potatoes into it. Add the remaining veggies and season with salt and pepper. Slice the sausages in half and scatter on top of the veggies. Roast for about 1 1/2 hours turning the sausages 1/2 way through.


If you use the smaller breakfast size sausages don't put them in the oven until 45 minutes into the cooking since they will cook way faster. The ones I used tonight were still alittle bit frozen but if they were done before the vegetables just take them out and keep them warm in some foil.

You really can use any veggies that your family likes. I was going to use squash tonight too but I was really running out of room - it gets pretty piled up on the cookie sheet. I enjoy the ease of one pan, one knife and a cutting board to clean up!

Herbed Pork Medallions

These were dinner tonight and I actually had to stop the kids from eating or else Craig was going to have to eat cereal when he got home from work!
I mix up the seasoning and keep it in the pantry. It is also very good made with chicken.


Herbed Pork Medallions

1 1/2 lbs. boneless pork chops

2 T. melted butter combine with
1/4 t. garlic powder

1/2 t. each of salt, thyme, paprika combine with
1/8 t. of black pepper and also cayenne pepper

1/4 c. liquid honey

Pound pork chops out until thin. Brush top side with melted butter and garlic. Sprinkle with seasonings. Broil for 5 minutes on top rack. Turn and brush with garlic butter and sprinkle with seasonings. Broil for another 5 minutes. Brush with honey and broil 1-2 minutes until browned.

look at these little cuties!

We picked these up at Safeway this afternoon and the case is almost gone! They are perfectly portioned and they are oh so tasty. Pick them up if you see them .....
PS - the sticker is about the size of my pinky fingernail!

Rice Bowls

This is one of my FAVORITE meals. It is my fave for two or maybe three reasons...

1.It is so good

2. It is so easy

3. the kids eat their veggies and don't complain about what is for dinner

I think one of the reasons why it is so good for the kids is that it gives them the feeling that they are controlling what they are eating for dinner.

Rice Bowls with Garlic Sauce

rice (I cook 1 1/2 c. and it feeds my family of 5 with a lunch for dad the next day)

veggies - steamed broccoli, cooked carrots, peas, red pepper, beans, peas, mushrooms, green onions......pretty much what ever you have on hand (I usually cook about 2 c. of each veggie)

chicken, steak or pork - what ever you like

Garlic Sauce

1/4 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. each chicken broth and soy sauce

1 t. red chili flakes

1 T. dehydrated garlic (this is made by Litehouse and is in the produce dept)

Bring to a simmer and then add

4 t. cornstarch that has been dissolved in

1/4 c. water

To do the veggies I just slice each kind up and then cook in the microwave in a covered dish with some water covering the bottom of the container for anywhere between 2 - 4 minutes depending on the veggie. Carrots talk the longest - normally about 4 1/2 minutes and while I'm cooking one veggie I'm slicing the next one to cook. (you can do this earlier in the day while the kids are at school and then just reheat them for dinner) I'm sure you don't need me to tell you how to cook veggies.

To cook the chicken or whatever meat I just slice it up and brown it in a non-stick frying pan(no oil or anything). When both sides are brown I add some chicken broth (maybe 1/3 c.) and then cook it down. When the broth has evaporated let the chicken brown up again (it adds tons of flavor)

To serve dish up some rice, meat and let the kids pick what veggies they want. Pile them on top and add the sauce. We love this sauce and have it with plain pork chops and chicken too.

Mars Bar Squares

These are a special request posting. I know that you will enjoy them (maybe alittle too much!!). For those without access to Mars Bars, Milky Way's are the ticket...my bro and sis can vouch (spelling???? oh well) for that.

Mars Bar Squares
4 mars bars
1/2 c. butter
3 c. rice crispies

1 c. milk chocolate chips
1/4 c. butter

In a saucepan melt the mars bars and 1/2 c. butter. Take the pan off the heat when they are all melted and stir to combine. Add the rice crispies and turn and press into an 8x8 cake pan. Melt the chocolate chips with the 1/4 c. butter and pour over top. Ymmmmm!

Banana Sushi

This is probably to most asked for treat at our house. I thought this recipe up a few months ago and I should have bought stock in bananas right after! The kids love it and it is so easy to make. Oh, and make sure you have at least one banana per kid unless you want to be a referee.

Banana Sushi

4 bananas

about 1/2 c. smooth peanut butter (you can use chunky if your in a crunch! teehee I'm so funny!)

about 1 c. rice crispies

While you are slicing up the bananas put the PB in the microwave for about 40 seconds to heat up. Put the rice crispies in a ziploc and give a kid the opportunity to take out some aggression with a measuring cup or big spoon (crush them up a bit). Using a fork dip the bananas into the PB and then into the rice crispies. Serve and watch all your hard work be inhaled.

A little sinful sweet

We call these Nutella Treats. Take Pillsbury cresent roll dough and smear it with Nutella. Bake according to directions and eat warm....you'll die. Hopefully not literally as I think these are a heart attack waiting to happen! Enjoy!

Chili Soup

Okay, so I'm finally getting another post on....had a few computer issues but my fabulous husband fixed it. Hooray!! So I made this soup last night and it does double duty. It fed us last night and then switched it up and we ate it again tonight. I made up the recipe last night and I wrote it all down just for my blog. I don't normally do that but I'm thinking how great it's going to be as I never can make it exactly the same twice and I drive my friend Karen nuts by telling her to just add a few spoons of this and that until it tastes right. So, this is for you K!

Carey's Chili Soup

2 lb. boneless lean pork roast

water

2-3 T. dried onion

3 T. dehydrated garlic

2 T. chicken boullion

1 onion (cut in half)

S & P

8 c. chicken broth (I cheated and used water and 4 T. boullion!)

1 diced onion

2 T. cumin

2 t. oregano

1/4 t. cayenne pepper

1 can green chilis

1 - 20 oz can hominy (if you can't find hominy use canned white beans)

frozen corn

garnishes - lime, cilantro, avacodo, tortillas if you like.....it was Sunday and didn't have any of these

Put roast in the crockpot with water coming half way up and add the ingredients that are in the first group. I set it on high for 2 hours and then low for 4 (you pretty much just need some cooked meat - leftovers would do too). I took the cooked pork out and shredded it. Put aside at least half for dinner tomorrow (BBQ pork sandwiches). Save the liquid and strain it so you can add it to the soup.

Add a little olive oil (oops forgot that in the ingredient list) to a stock pot and heat. Add the spices and onion and cook until you smell the cumin. Dump in the water, boullion, liquid from the crockpot and hominy. Bring to a boil, reduce and simmer uncovered until the onions are soft (about 15 minutes). Turn off the heat and add the shredded pork and canned chilis. Stir and serve. I added the frozen corn to their dished up bowls so it would cool it down for the kids.

Yummy!

For dinner tonight I bought some yummy buns from Safeway and dumped our favorite BBQ sauce in a dutch oven with the pork and there you go. Add some veggies and dip and your done!

Ainsley's Modifications

this little pile was next to her plate as she ate!

Chicken Nuggets for Dinner!!

Okay Maurita....here goes! Last night a wonderful friend and I (yes it was Maurita ) had a great night out scrapping. Afterward we headed to BP's (that's Boston Pizza for my sister who I know will ask me what that stood for) and we had a wonderful little dish called Thai Chicken Bites....they were oh so yummy that we almost licked the plate. Today I was out shopping and had a craving hit. I'm going to make me some of those little thai bites. I picked up some "pub style chicken strips" and headed home to try it out for dinner. I made up dinner for me and the kids (then snapped a picture of course), called them to eat telling them that if they wanted something different they could have some apple sauce or something premade and easy. Surprise, surprise they all grabbed the plate that was calling their name and off they went. Patrick asked me how I thought up this recipe.....do I tell my kid I stole it??? I took the medium road and just avoided the question by asking him if he liked it. They all did love it. Ainsley made some modifications as you can see but she told me we needed to tell everyone about it as their kids will love it.....did I mention they all ate the carrots in it???? The only change I need to make - BIGGER plates. I spent alot of time refilling their plates but I'm hoping that it will count as a work out!


Thai Bites
1 box chicken strips
Thai sweet chili sauce
steam fried noodles
grated carrot
sliced green onion

Bake the strips and cut up. Put on top of uncooked noodles and garnish accordingly. Did I mention how fast and easy this thing is??????