Confident Kitchen

Adapted from this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 1/3 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup worcestershire sauce
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 2 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. paprika
• 2 tsp. dry mustard
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2-3 lbs chicken breasts

Combine everything except chicken in a bowl and mix well.  Place chicken breasts in crock pot and cover with sauce mixture.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  When the chicken is tender, take a couple of forks and shred the meat, making sure it all gets covered with sauce. Serve on french rolls.

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Adapted from this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 small Walla Walla onion, minced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 1/2 ounces romaine lettuce
• 3 figs, quartered
• 1 1/2 ounces grated manchego cheese
• fresh ground pepper

Combine vinegar, mustard, onion, garlic and salt in a small mixing bowl. Add oil with a whisk, then let rest for 20 minutes in the fridge.  Toss with lettuce to combine.  Place lettuce on plate, then layer figs, cheese, and pepper.

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Megadarra (me-ga-DAR-ra) is immensely popular in Egypt, as it is in the rest of the Arab World. (Elsewhere, the dish is pronounced mu-jah-DRA.) It’s served either warm or at room temperature as a mezze, or appetizer, often accompanied by yogurt. Large quanities of dark caramelized onions are the best part.  (link)

The Seattle Times posted the recipes for Megadarra and Harissa.  It takes time to make, but well worth the effort.  The flavors are surprisingly complex.

(Read the article)

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It’s been a while hasn’t it?  Summer vacation has been filled with camping, repeats of many recipes, and, well, being especially lazy about updating.

BLAST, originally uploaded by ~wesa~.

Bacon Lettuce Avocado Sprouts Tomato, with a smidge of mayo on a chewy artisan bread.  Paired with a homemade potato salad, and you have the perfect summertime meal. I’m trying to introduce avocado into our diet.  Neither my husband or I like the texture, but in this sandwich, one didn’t notice.

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I was intrigued by these baby turnips at the Farmer’s Market recently.  They recommended a quick saute with butter.  Since I’ve on a huge asparagus kick right now, I tossed in half a pound of that as well.  This dish was to die for.  The asparagus had that squeaky “just right” texture while the turnips turned slightly sweet and very delicious.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

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Toss fresh spinach with a dressing made from 1/2 cup orange juice, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, and 1 tablespoon sesame seeds. (Use as much as you want to taste, I used about a tablespoon per plate). Add a handful of blanched asparagus and sugar snap peas. There is also a small amount of fresh Montasio (similar to cheddar cheese) from Samish Bay.

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We have an odd assortment of leftovers in the fridge this week. I had a container of bell peppers that had been grilled on the BBQ, some raw ground beef leftover from hamburgers, a handful of Farmer’s Market asparagus that needed to be used very soon, and half a yellow onion. I tossed together this quick spaghetti sauce using a jar of basic marinara and half a bag of pasta from the pantry.

Skill: Easy
Prep: 5 minutes
Total: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1lb ground beef
• 1/2 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 cup cooked bell peppers, chopped
• 1 jar marinara sauce
• 1 cup asparagus
• 1/2 bag rigatoni noodles

Directions:
Set a large pot of water on the stove and bring to a boil. In the meantime, brown onion in a dash of olive oil. Add bell peppers and saute for 5 minutes. Add pasta and cook for 11-13 minutes in the pot of water. Add ground beef, cooking until completely brown, about 10 minutes. Add asparagus and pasta sauce, bringing to a simmer for 3-4 minutes. Drain pasta. Serve pasta and sauce together in a bowl, adding Parmesan if desired.

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We are going to eat this all summer, I just know it.

There’s not really a “recipe” for this.  Take one fresh peach.  Cut into slices and place in a bowl.  Add one scoop vanilla ice cream on top.  Enjoy.

I want an ice cream maker so bad.

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I’m heading into the home stretch of my final quarter at BCC, so I’ve been making simple meals lately that involve some shortcuts and leave leftovers for a few nights. We actually had these tacos twice this week. They were great both times.

Skill: Easy
Prep: 10 minutes
Total: 25 minutes

Ingredients:
Taco Seasoning:

• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

Everything else:

• 1lb ground beef
• 1/2 yellow onion, chopped
• lettuce, cut into strips
• 1/3 cup grated cheddar cheese
• taco shells, warmed
• 1/2 cup pico de gallo (Carl picked up some pre-made at the grocery store)

Directions:
Mix seasoning together in a small container.  Brown yellow onion in a tablespoon of olive oil. Add ground beef and cook until brown. Add as much taco seasoning as you prefer and 1/4 cup water, simmer until the water has absorbed into the meat. Warm taco shells. Layer meat, cheese, lettuce, and pico de gallo. Enjoy.

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