Tasteful Tuesday

Today's recipes are in honor of my mother, just to prove that I actually do cook healthy food. At least every once in a while! This was a quick, yummy recipe that really hit the spot. I have been mixing my rice, brown and white, for a while and I have decided to take the plunge to all brown rice. I found this method of cooking it and it turned out great. (sometimes with my rice cooker it turns out a bit dry, since I don't have more than one setting on my cooker) This recipe for brown rice takes a bit longer but it is worth it in the end for more healthful meal.
Now that we have the healthy meal out of the way, check here for updates on my recipe blog that include my newest favorite dessert, chocolate angel food cake with chocolate sauce and raspberries. I also finally got the recipe on there for the chili-lime chicken skewers.

Orange Chicken Stir Fry

1 Tablespoon canola oil

1 Tablespoon freshly minced or grated ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb chicken breasts, diced

3 cups broccoli florets, cut into bite sized pieces

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth

1/4 cup orange juice

3 Tablespoons soy sauce

1-2 teaspoons orange zest

2 teaspoons cornstarch dissolved in 1 tablespoon water

Heat oil in large frying pan. Add ginger and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 min. Add chicken and cook until no pink remains. Remove chicken from pan. In the same pan, add the broccoli and water. Cover and cook until broccoli is crisp-tender, about 2 min. Put chicken back into pan and add broth, juice, soy sauce, zest and cornstarch mixture. Heat until sauce thickens. Serve over rice.

Baked Brown Rice

1 1/2 cups brown rice

2 1/2 cups water (or for a great option you can use chicken broth, just omit the salt)

1 teaspoon salt

Preheat your oven to 350. Stir rice, water and salt together in a 3 quart casserole dish and cover tightly with foil. Bake for 1 hour and 10 min. Let sit with foil on for another 5 min, then fluff with fork.

Recipe Sources: Kitchen Cafe

Tasteful Tuesday

We recently had another one of our "restaurant" nights for the kids good grades. This time we went with a tropical theme. I tried a few new recipes from Our Best Bites. They were super yummy. I will share the rice I made here and post the others my recipe blog. This rice was surprisingly good. I especially loved the pineapple in it. I think you could serve it with any asian type recipes you have. I served it with some mango-chicken kebabs, fruit salsa with cinnamon chips, and key lime pie.

Lime-Cilantro Rice

1 cup dry rice (cooked in 2 cups water with a little salt, according to directions)

2 Tablespoons butter

Juice from 1 lime

1 small can crushed pineapple, drained

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Cook rice according to directions. Stir in butter. If serving immediately, stir in the lime, pineapple, and cilantro. If it will be a while before you serve, stir in the butter and cover to keep warm. Stir in remaining ingredients right before serving.

My notes:

Just make this to taste. I put in a little more lime and a little less cilantro. The flavors will mellow the longer it sits so it is best to serve it up right away.

Tasteful Tuesday

Today's recipe can be used as a side dish or, if you are looking for more meatless meals, a main dish. It is easy to through together quickly if you have left over corn bread or if you make it early in the day. Hope you all enjoyed your holiday weekend. If you have any yummy recipes you made, I'd love to hear about them!

Corn Bread Layered Salad

1 pkg (8 1/2 oz) corn bread mix (or just make your own and use about 1/3 of 9X13 pan)

6 green onions

1 medium green pepper, chopped

1 can whole kernel corn, drained

1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed (or 2 cups of home made)

3/4 cup mayonaise

3/4 cup sour cream

2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Prepare and bake corn bread according to package directions. Cool.

Crumble corn bread into 2 qt glass serving bowl. Layer with onions, peppers, corn and beans.

Mix sour cream and mayonaise; spread over the other ingredients. Top with cheese and tomatoes. Chill until ready to serve.

Recipe source: really old Taste of Home magazine

My notes: This makes a big bowl. I used it as one of our meatless meals and thought it was very filling.

Tasteful Tuesday

I know I have gone on in at least one other post about how we have been eating more beans and how I think they are the best things ever, and then I have left you high and dry without any bean recipes to try out. Well, today's recipe is from my sister, Kelly and it is all about beans. I personally LOVE refried beans and could eat a whole can myself. Now that I have a homemade version, it is even better. These beans are great for dipping, burritos, etc. and they don't take forever to make. Try them out, you might never go back to canned.

Refried Beans

Start by washing 1 cup of beans thoroughly (spread out and pick our rocks and yucky beans, then I like to use my salad spinner, fill it up with water and swish the beans around several times before pulling basket out to drain). Place in a DEEP pot with 3 cups water. Bring to a boil and slowly add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda. Remove from heat, skim off any foam, cover and let stand in liquid 1 hour.

Add 2 cups more water to beans and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 1 hour, stirring once, until beans are tender.

Now to refry them:

Heat 2 Tablespoons oil in skillet over meduim heat. Add cooked beans and 1 1/2 cups retained bean liquid.

Add:

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

Mash until smooth and cook until liquid is mostly absorbed. Serve warm, top with 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese.

Recipe Source: Kelly Swanson, Nutritionist/Trainer, sister

My Notes:

I usually cook my whole bag of beans and divide it into 2 cups bags and put them in the freezer. Then when I want to make these, I just pull them out, thaw and cook as directed, adding a little water if needed. When I made them the last time, I remembered to soak the beans overnight so I could put them in the crock pot for a couple hours which left me free to do other things, but I like this recipe because you can still get it done a couple hours before dinner. I also usually do not add the cheese because of the calories, but it is even better with it.

Tasteful Tuesday

Today's recipe was unexpectedly good. I was looking for a side dish that would use up some ingredients that hadn't found a recipe yet. It turned out to be delicious. You know it is good when your 2 year old for-gos everything else on his plate and has 4 servings.

Barley Pilaf

3 Tablespoons butter

1 onion, minced

1 cup regular pearl barley

1 cup sliced mushrooms

3 cups chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 cup raw carrots, cut into thin, short sticks

In skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, barley, and mushrooms; saute until lightly browned. Add chicken broth, salt, pepper, and carrots. Cover skillet. Bring to boil, reduce heat to simmer; cook until barley and carrots are tender and broth has been absorbed, about 45 minutes.