Julie's Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

I don't have any pictures of this recipe, but it's so good I wanted to share. I've heard all sorts of rave reviews about Julie's Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken but have never tried it. The other day I finally decided to give it a try. The chicken was moist and very flavorful. It was excellent paired with some of her fabulous No-Fail Mexican Rice and corn and black beans seasoned with cumin, paprika, and cilantro. It was also delicious in a salad for lunch the next day. I have a feeling this will become a staple in our house!


Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

INGREDIENTS
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons garlic powder
3 tablespoons lime juice

DIRECTIONS

In a small bowl, mix together salt, black pepper, cayenne, paprika, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, onion powder, thyme and parsley. Sprinkle spice mixture generously on both sides of chicken breasts. Note from Julie: she usually use a little less salt, and doubles the rest of the spices so there is plenty to coat the chicken

Heat butter and olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute chicken until golden brown, about 6 minutes on each side. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons garlic powder and lime juice. Cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently to coat evenly with sauce.

PS: Julie and I teamed up tonight and decorated some very unique cookies . Stay tuned for a post about that on Sunday.

Homemade Salsa

I haven't been doing much cooking or baking lately. School is back in full swing and super busy. I have a 5 week class going on right now that is particularly time consuming. I love the fact it's only 5 weeks, but writing research reports every week and then a 20-30pg paper due the last night isn't much fun. The meals I have been making are very simple; things like chilli and tacos.

I was looking through my google reader (which BTW, I am so behind on... I have almost 600 unread posts... yikes!) and saw this recipe for Salsa on Annie's Eats. I've been looking for a good homemade salsa recipe and this my friends, is it. Matt and I love to snack on chips and salsa. In the summer we have nights that we just sit on the deck, drink some Corona and snack on chips and salsa. The Salsa is very flavorful and spicy and super simple to make. (A great excuse to use my food processor and my new juicer!) This will probably be at any get together I have at my house.

Salsa
Source: Annie's Eats



Ingredients:
2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and very coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic, halved
2 large vine-ripened tomatoes
1 (28 0z.) can diced tomatoes (drained or not, depending on how much liquid you want in your salsa, I went with not drained)
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. cumin
1/2 sweet yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
juice of one lime

Directions:
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the jalapenos and garlic. Process until finely chopped. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add all other ingredients to the food processor. Pulse in very brief pulses until the vegetables have reached the size you desire (it does not take many pulses so don’t overdo it). Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving to allow the flavors to blend.

Success!

I owe my friend Julie big for our fabulous meal last night. It featured her delish Chicken Enchiladas and her no fail fabulous Mexi-Rice. I'm a huge fan of minute rice. I just suck at regular rice, but this my friends, was a success. It's not only very good, but it's so easy. I made a few modifications and think this would just be great with some chopped red peppers in it too. I can't wait to have leftovers tonight for dinner!

Julie's No Fail Mexi-Rice
Source: Julie



1 Cup uncooked long grain white rice
2 Cup chicken broth
1/2 Cup tomato sauce
1/4 Cup chopped onion
1 can diced green chiles (I used two fresh green chiles - diced)
1 clove garlic, minced
3 Tbs vegetable oil
Cumin, chili powder, salt to taste
Fresh cilantro to taste

1. Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Add rice, onion, chiles, and garlic. Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring often.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients, bring to boil.

3. Reduce heat to low, cover, and let simmer 25-30 minutes. DO NOT open lid while simmering, or the rice wont come out right. Fluff with a fork. Stir in fresh cilantro.

Cinco de Mayo

Hope you had a fun Cinco de Mayo! I ran into my friend Kari in the afternoon so we decided to go grab a beer and I got a cool beer poncho....... (!!!)



For dinner, I made Julie's fabulous chicken enchiladas, black beans and rice seasoned with baby bam and a little bit of lime juice, and I made Mexican Chocolate Fondue. The fondue was so good, the only problem is we have wayyyy to much leftover. (although, too much chocolate is never really a problem) :)

Mexican Chocolate Fondue
from Rachel Ray




1 Cup Heavy Cream
1 1/3 cups (8 ounces) chocolate chips *I used Ghirardelli Bittersweet Chocolate
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon chile powder + more to taste
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon + more to taste
Pinch salt


1. Melt chocolate. Add all ingredients. Stir until well blended

2. Devour

Rachel Ray suggests using cinnamon donut holes for dippers. We used pineapple, apples, bananas, and homemade cinnamon and sugar chips.

3rd Time's A Charm

I've tried to make this guacamole twice before and each time I manage to screw it up. We had tacos last week so I decided I had to try this one last time or I would never try it again. Well... success! I'm so excited, it was delicious.

Holy Guacamole
From my friend Stephanie, courtesy of Emeril Lagasse



Yield: 1/2 to 1 cup
1 avocado, peeled, halved, and seeded
1 tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 tbsp. minced yellow onion
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1/4 tsp. Baby Bam (recipe at bottom)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. green pepper sauce

Chop avocado halves and place in mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mash together until mostly smooth. Stir to evenly distribute ingredients. Serve immediately or store, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.

Baby Bam

Yield: about 3/4 cup
3 tbsp. paprika
2 tbsp. salt
2 tbsp. dried parsley
2 tsp. onion powder
2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. celery salt

Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Stir well to combine, using a wooden spoon. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

Just like a resturant!

Last night we had our friends Erin and Scooter over for dinner. I really, really wanted to do a 3 course fondue but, Erin is pregnant and meat isn't really agreeing with her anymore. I decided a Mexican theme meal would be good instead. I made Julia's Black Bean Enchiladas, Julie's Chicken Enchiladas, salsa and some Jose Peppers Espinaca. I planned on making my friend Stephanie's Gauc, but apparently I suck at gauc making so it didn't turn out. We also had fabulous Chocolate Fondue for dessert (I know it doesn't really go with Mexican, but damn, it was so good)

I forgot to take pictures last night but here is the recipe for Chicken Enchiladas. When I pulled them out of the oven everyone commented on how they look (and taste!) like they're from a resturant.

Chicken Enchiladas
my changes in italics

3 or 4 boneless/skinless chicken breast halves
1 can refried beans (I use fat free)
1 can hot enchilada sauce
1Tbs butter
1Tbs flour
1 8oz container sour cream (again, I use fat free)
¼ red or white onion chopped
1 jalapeno chopped
3 C. shredded cheddar (or cheddar/MJ blend) cheese
10 burrito size flour tortillas-
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup chopped red pepper


Season chicken with salt & pepper, then cook in some vegetable oil in a pan until done (or youcan bake it if you prefer). Let cool slightly and shred with forks or your hands.

Combine enchilada sauce, butter and flour in small sauce pan and cook over medium heat untilbutter is melted, stirring often.

Combine sour cream and 1 C. of the cheese in another small sauce pan and heat over med-lowheat until cheese is melted, stirring often.

Combine refried beans, onion and jalapeno in a bowl and stir well (or you can just sprinkle thejalapenos and onions on the enchiladas individually)

Spread some of the bean mixture on each tortilla, top with shredded chicken, and roll up. Thenplace in a 13x9 glass baking dish.

Pour enchilada sauce over the top of the rolled up tortillas. Then pour the sour cream/cheese mixture over the top. Top with remaining shredded cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Chicken Enchilada Dip

Last night M and I went to a birthday party for a friend. It seems like I always make the same old appetizers for parties so I decided to switch it up and bring Julie's Chicken Enchilada Dip. This stuff is delicious and super addicting!

Chicken Enchilada Dip

2 boneless/skinless chicken breast halves, cooked and shredded
2 8oz packages of light cream cheese, softened
4 green onions, chopped
1 can Rotel tomatoes with green chiles
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp chopped cilantro (dried is OK)
1 Tbs chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp paprika

In a non-reactive bowl, combine all ingredients. (I used a food processor so the chicken pieces are really small, making it easier to dip. Or you can just shred with forks if you like the chicken pieces bigger.) Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Serve with tortilla chips - Julie suggests the lime flavored ones. I just served them with regular Tostitos.

New Meal for the New Year

The other day I decided that today I would make soft tacos. They're easy and we had all the ingredients. Yesterday was a super slow day at work so I spent a good chunk of time looking at food blogs. I found this recipe on Julia's blog. I knew I had pretty much everything in my kitchen so I thought it would be a delicious meal to start the New Year.


Black Bean Enchiladas
(is there such a thing as a good picture of enchiladas!?)



This filling for these Enchiladas is actually a Tex Mex Black Bean Dip from allrecipes. Click here for a picture.

For the bean filling: (my modifications in italics):
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp. oil
1 cup chopped onion (I also added 1/2 cup of chopped red peppers and 1/2 cup chopped green peppers)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup corn kernels
1 ½ cups chopped tomatoes (I used a can of Rotel - drained)
1 cup salsa
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. chili powder
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
¼ cup fresh cilantro
2 tbsp. lime juice (I didn't have any lime juice so I used 1.5 tbsp of lemon juice)

For the enchiladas:
3 cups black bean filling (above)
8-10 medium flour tortillas
Shredded Mexican cheese (about 2 cups) ( I used the Monterey Jack Cheese)
1 can enchilada sauce (I used green)

Directions:
To make the black bean filling, place the black beans in a medium sized mixing bowl. Partially mash the beans. In a medium sized skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Stir in onion and garlic and sauté for 4 minutes. Mix beans, corn, tomato, salsa, cumin, and chili powder into the skillet. Cook for 5 minutes or until thickened. Remove the pan from the heat, mix in cheese, cilantro and lime juice. Stir until cheese is melted.

Grease a 9x13” baking dish. Preheat oven to 350°. To make the enchiladas, spoon some of the black bean mixture down the center of a tortilla. Top with some cheese and roll up. Place seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas. Pour sauce over the tops of the enchiladas. Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil, sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese and bake 2-3 minutes more or until cheese is melted.


These were so good. The dip makes a fabulous filling. I'll definitely be making them again.