Simple Fruit Cobbler

This is one of my favorite desserts to make! It's really simple and easy to make. You can make this year round with canned fruit or fresh fruit that is in season.

Simple Fruit Cobbler

Things you'll need:

2 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2 cups of fruit sliced

• Preheat your oven to 325
• Melt the butter and put in a 9 x 13 pan (I prefer a glass or porcelain dish)
• Combine flour, baking powder, sugar and milk until smooth
• Put the fruit in the dish with the butter and lightly spread around. If using fresh fruit slice and add about 1/4 cup of sugar and refrigerate until you get some juice and add all of it. If using canned fruit add about half of the juice
• Pour batter on top of fruit and lightly spread around
• Bake for about 1 hour

I made this one with apricots from a can, and it cook for a little too long, shame on me. I've also done peach raspberry, peach, pear and strawberry banana (one of my favorites). The combinations are endless!

Samoa Bunt Cake

Who loves Samoa Girl Scout Cookies?........ THIS GIRL! I found this recipe and knew I had to make it no matter what. I do have to say you NEED to read the whole recipe before you start to make it.

Samoa Bunt Cake

Things you'll need:

Batter #1

1 stick of butter, softened
1 cup of dark brown sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup ap flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup whole milk

Batter #2

1 cup sugar
3/4 cup + 2 T ap flour
1/2 cup + 2 T cocoa powder
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 egg
1/4 cup oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup boiling water
1/2 cup milk

Frosting

1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
2 T vanilla extract
2 sticks butter, softened
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup toasted coconut
topping 1 1/2 cups toasted coconut
1/2 cup chocolate chips, melted

• Step 1; before you do anything, stick the whole, unopened can of condensed milk in your crock pot and submerge it by at least 3 inches and cook it on medium for 10 hours or on high for 7. Alternatively, you can boil it on the stove FULLY SUBMERGED AT ALL TIMES for 4 hours. Let it cool. This is how you make caramel:

• Pre Heat oven to 350
• Grease and flour the bundt pan WELL

Prepare each batter separately. This is a marble cake. 

• For each cake type, beat butter (or oil) and sugar(s) on medium high until fluffy. 
• Add in eggs one at a time mixing well. 
• Add in milk and vanilla (if applicable) and mix until well combined. 
• In separate bowls sift together dry ingredients for each batter. 
• Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients slowly and mix until well combined.
• Add boiling water to batter #2 (cocoa cake)
• Layer the cake, pouring some of the brown sugar batter, then cocoa batter, then brown sugar, until both batter bowls are empty. 
• Tap bundt pan on the counter a couple times to remove bubbles. 
• Bake approximately 1 hour or until skewer inserted in center comes out clean.
• Allow to cool entirely

For the frosting

• Toast sweetened flaked coconut either on a cookie sheet in the oven on 350F tossing occasionally or in a dry skillet constantly stirring until desired color is reached. 
• Beat cooled cooked condensed milk, butter, confectioners sugar, vanilla and salt for 3 minutes.
•  Add in 1 cup toasted coconut. 
• Chill for 1 hour

Assemble!

Frost cake and top with toasted coconut

Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave and place in a ziplock bag with a corner cut out

Drizzle on top of cake for "Samoa look"

Baked Chimichangas

Hello, boys and girls, and welcome to the latest installment of "What's Easy to Make on a Monday When I Don't Want to do Anything?!" So today, since we're all losing that good weekend feeling, we've decided to do something that requires very little attention and effort; Baked Chimichangas! Let's dive right in then, shall we?!

Baked Chimichangas
Things You'll Need:

2 lbs of your favorite meat (we used pork, but you could use chicken or beef)
1 packet of taco seasoning (or something similar)
24 ounces of green enchilada sauce
1 7oz can diced green chiles
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
2 green onions, chopped
4 tbsp melted butter
6 large flour tortillas
shredded cheddar cheese
sour cream
salsa
guacamole

• In a crock pot, combine your meat of choice, taco seasoning, and enchilada sauce. Set to high if meat is frozen, and low if it is thawed, and let it cook for 3 hours.
• Add in the green chiles, diced tomatoes and green onions, and let cook for another 20 minutes or so.
• At this point, your meat should begin shredding apart very easily. Set your crock pot to warm, and begin to shred the meat, leaving it in it's juices and the enchilada sauce.
• Preheat your oven to 450, and melt your butter.
• Brush each side of your tortillas with melted butter, then place about a 1/2 cup of your filling in the center of the tortilla, and fold it up. Be sure not to fill them too full, or they'll tear.
• Place your rolled chimichangas seam-side down on a nonstick or oiled baking pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown and crispy
• Sprinkle cheese on top of your chimi's if you so desire, and place back in the oven for 2 more minutes to melt. Garnish with your choice of sour cream, salsa guacamole.

When we did this we didn't use butter. I have this wonderful thing called a Misto, it turns your oil(s) into a spray! If you don't have one, get one! So I sprayed the cookie sheet and the tops with olive oil. These are delicious and healthy (I love hearing that word)!!!

Sunday Football Dip: Creamy Avocado Yogurt

Today we are doing a take on the classic guacamole. This creamy avocado dip tastes very similar to guacamole just without all of the chunks, and it is still just as delicious and amazing.

Creamy Avocado Yogurt Dip

Things you'll need:

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 ripe avocados, peeled and seeded
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 tbsp finely chopped seeded jalapeño pepper
2 tbsp fresh lime juice about 1/2 of a lime
1/4 tsp ground cumin
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste

• Mash everything together and chill for about an hour
• DONE!

Serve with tortilla chips, pita chips and/or fresh veggies and enjoy!

And, can I say, I am so excited football season is so close, HOORAY!!!

Zucchini-Parmesan Pancakes

Happy Friday, everyone! Hopefully your week wasn't too unbearable, but even if it was, it's time to kick back, relax and enjoy the weekend. To kind of treat everybody for the end of the week, we decided to grill up some bacon wrapped steaks we picked up from Costco. We made a garlic cream sauce to go with the steaks, and for a side we made these amazing Zucchini-Parmesan Pancakes. They're super tasty, and super easy!

Zucchini-Parmesan Pancakes

Things you'll need:

2 lbs of zucchini (about 3)
1 lb russet potatoes (about 2), peeled
1 medium onion
3/4 cup parsley, chopped
1/4 cup Parmesan, grated
6 Tbsp Matzo meal
2 Tbsp dill, chopped
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp lemon juice
1garlic clove, minced
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp each, salt and pepper
3/4 cup vegetable oil
sour cream for garnish

• First, grate all zucchini, potatoes and onion, and set on a clean dish towel. Squeeze out all excess liquid.
• Place your shredded ingredients into a large bowl and add in parsley, Parmesan, matzo meal, dill sugar, lemon juice, garlic, eggs and salt and pepper.
• Heat vegetable oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat and, in batches, drop in mounds of zucchini mixture.
• Flatten pancakes with a spatula and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes on each side.
• Drain the pancakes on a cooling rack above a paper towel to remove all excess oil. Sprinkle with a bit more salt, and serve warm with some sour cream.

These were delicious, and paired so well with the steaks we had. We used sweet onions in ours, which seemed to give it just the right balance of sweet to the tang supplied by the sour cream. Enjoy!

Caramelized Pears

I saw this fabulous picture in Everyday Food Magazine and knew right away I had to make this. So I did and it was so tasty! Also pears are one of my favorite fruits!

Caramelized Pears

Things you'll need:

3 pears (Bartlett or Anjou), quartered and cored

3 tbsp butter

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

salt

Vanilla ice cream for serving

• In a large skillet melt the butter over a medium-high heat
• Add pears, one cut side down and cooked until browned, then reduce heat to medium and cook for 3 minutes
• Turn pears to other cut side and cook for 4 minutes
• Add sugar and 1 tbsp of water, swirling pan to combine
• Turn pears skin side down and cook until sauce thickens slightly about 2 minutes
• Stir in vanilla and a pinch of salt
• Serve warm with vanilla ice cream

This was a hit! One of my new favorite desserts! 

Stuffed Pork Chops

So today we've decided to make stuffed pork chops because, well, we're always up for a good challenge. Not to mention, pork was really on sale at the grocery store, so that's always a bonus, too. We went ahead and just bought an entire pork loin in the bag and cut it into chops ourselves. We were able to get 2 extra pounds of pork for about $3 less than if we had bought the largest pack of pork chops they had available. GO US!!

Stuffed Pork Chops

Things you'll need:

Pork chops (as many as you need)
1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1 small head of broccoli, chopped (just the heads)
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried tarragon
1 tsp dried thyme
4 tbsp melted butter
1/3 cup shredded cheese (whatever you prefer)

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and start a heavy bottomed pan on the stovetop on medium-high heat
• If you bought your pork chops as a whole loin, first slice them into about 1 1/2 chops
• Once your chops are all cut, butterfly them by placing a VERY sharp knife on the long side of the chop, then firmly pushing in and pulling towards you at the same time. You don't want to cut all the way through, but just enough to give yourself a good size pocket to stuff them.
• Now, in a medium sized bowl, combine your bread crumbs, broccoli, herbs, melted butter and shredded cheese, and mix well.
• Stuff each of the butterflied chops so that the middle is fat, but the ends still touch, so that they almost close
• Drizzle some olive oil into your preheated pan, and sear your stuffed chops, about 2 minutes on each side.
• Once all of your chops are seared, place them in an oiled 9x13 baking dish, cover the dish with foil, and place in the oven, cooking at 350 for 25 minutes.

We served these with rice and steamed broccoli and cauliflower. They turned out delicious! Enjoy!

Southwest Chopped Chicken Salad

So on tonight's menu is a fabulous southwest chicken salad, and I decided to be ambitious and try to make a taco shell to put it in. Well, let's just say that didn't really go as planned... What did I learn from this; if you are going to make these, get the large sized tortillas or else they turn out like tostadas instead. Either way, if you want to make these it's easy.

Taco Shell Bowl

Things you'll need:

LARGE tortillas
olive oil
salt
8" pie pan

• Heat the oven to 375
• Place your tortilla inside of the pie pan
• Brush the tortilla with some olive oil
• Sprinkle with salt
• Bake for 10 minutes

Southwest Chopped Chicken Salad

Things you'll need:

2 chicken breasts

2 avocados, diced

1 bell pepper, diced

3 green onions, sliced

1 head of iceberg lettuce, chopped

2 roma tomatoes, diced

1/4 of a bunch of cilantro

1 can of black beans, rinsed
shredded cheese

• Put your chicken into a pot with some water olive oil, salt and pepper and boil over a medium heat until chicken is cooked about 30 minutes
• Turn off the burner and allow chicken to partially cool in the water before chopping
• Put the chicken into a bowl with the avocados, bell pepper, green onions, tomatoes, cilantro and black beans
• Add 1/2 cup of the dressing to the chicken and lightly toss
• Serve over lettuce and in the shell if you made them
• Garnish with cheese

Chicken Salad Dressing

Things you'll need:

2/3 cup Greek yogurt

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 tbsp taco seasoning

1 tbsp ranch seasoning

2 tsp milk

• Put all of your ingredients into a jar and shake like crazy

This dinner was fabulous! The best part for me is that is was good and good for me! Everyone's plates were clean!

Sunday Football Dip: Pizza

Today's indulgence for dip is pizza, one of the greatest foods that screams football. This way you can have it without ordering it or making it. How easy is that?

Pizza Dip

Things you'll need:

8 oz cream cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 mayonnaise

2 cups mozzarella

1 cup parmesan

2 cups pizza sauce

4 oz pepperoni, sliced
5-10 whole pepperonis for aesthetics

1/4 cup green pepper sliced

1/4 cup black olives sliced

• Preheat the oven to 350
• Mix the cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, half of the mozzarella and half of the parmesan and spread it across the bottom of a 9 x 9 pan
• Spread the pizza sauce on top of the cheese mixture in the pan and add the sliced pepperoni
• Sprinkle the remaining cheese, whole pepperonis, green peppers and olives on top of the sauce
• Bake for about 25 - 30 minutes just until the cheese on the sides starts to bubble and turns golden brown

This tastes just like pizza! I recommend using a sourdough bread for the dip. We did and it was fantastic!

The Rare Breakfast: Mini German Pancakes with a Triple Berry Sauce

I found this recipe on Pinterest and knew I had to try it! These cute little pancake cups are filled with an amazing berry sauce and topped with whipped cream; who wouldn't love them?! They are fairly easy to make while half asleep, too.

Mini German Pancakes:

Things you'll need:

1 cup of milk
6 eggs
1 cup of flour
1/2 tsp of salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp orange zest
1/4 cup of butter melted

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Blend everything together except the butter, making sure to get all of the clumps of flour out
• Blend in butter a little at a time in order to temper the eggs
• Grease muffin tins well and using a 1/4 cup measuring cup fill the muffin tins only with the 1/4 cup, they should be just over half way full
• Bake for 15 minutes, or until puffy and golden on top

When they bake the center will collapse so it turns into a perfect little cup for whatever filling you'd like. When they come out of the oven they are huge, but soon after they will shrink, and it's really fun to watch! Here is the recipe for the sauce I made.

Fruit Sauce:

Things you'll need:

4 cups frozen fruit
1 cup water
1/2 cup honey
2 Tbsp. cornstarch

• Put fruit, half the water and honey in sauce pan and bring to boil
• Reduce heat to simmer
• Mix cornstarch with remaining water and stir until lumps are gone
• Pour cornstarch mixture into berry mixture while stirring slowly
• Stir until it thickens (about 1 to 2 minutes) and begins to bubble

I would do this again but with a berry sauce instead

Spinach Macaroni and Cheese Muffins

One of my favorite things in the world is mac and cheese! So why not make it a little healthy and throw in some portion control just for fun. Honestly, is there any greater invention than mac and cheese in the form of a cupcake?

Spinach Macaroni and Cheese Muffins

Things you'll need:

4 cups cooked macaroni (I would use elbows, bowties or shells)
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp flour
1 cup milk
1 garlic clove, minced
3 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
3 oz Gruyere cheese, shredded
1 egg
1 egg white
1 (10 oz) package of frozen chopped spinach, defrosted, drained and patted dry (or you could use 1 cup cooked fresh spinach)
Salt & pepper to taste

•  Pre-heat the oven to 400. Lightly mist a muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside.
•  In a small sauce pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour, mixing it into the butter until thick. 
• Stir in the milk and garlic and raise the temp to bring the mixture to just under a boil. Add the cheese and whisk mixture together until thoroughly combined into a cheese sauce. 
•  Remove the cheese sauce from heat and  mix in the egg and egg white (binding agents) until combined.
•  In a large bowl, combine the pasta, spinach, cheese sauce, salt and pepper and mix together.
• Spoon the mixture evenly into the cups of your prepared muffin tin.
•  Bake for 10-15 minutes until the tops slightly brown. Let cool 5 minutes before removing from muffin tin.

NY Style Cheesecake

Tomorrow is Cindy's last day at pre-school, and since it is her last day they will be throwing her a party, which means I'm making treats for the kids and the teachers. The kids will be snacking on the Cherry Coke Float Cupcakes I made earlier and the teachers get their favorite cheesecake. I've made this cheesecake for them before and they always love it, and so does Carol!

NY Style Cheesecake

Things you'll need:

Crust:
1 1/2 cups cinnamon graham crackers crushed
1/3 cup sugar
6 tbsp butter melted

Filling:
2 cups (16oz) nuefchatel cream cheese softened
2 cups (16oz) sour cream
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

• Preheat the oven to 275
• Combine all of the ingredients for the crust in a bowl and mix until butter is coated throughout
• Put the mixture into a spring form pan and evenly spread and press into the crust
• Get a small bowl and take 3 tbsp of the sour cream out and leave out 
• Put the cream cheese into a bowl and with a mixer beat until smooth with no lumps
• Add the sour cream, sugar and vanilla
• Put the cream cheese mixture into the spring form pan
• Spread the mixture evenly in the pan
• Grab the pan and pick it up about an inch off your surface and drop it do this repeatedly until the air bubbles stop coming out
• Bake for 1 hour
• After you pull it out take the 3 tbsp of sour cream from earlier and spread on top of the cheese cake
• Allow to cool for about 30 minutes and then refrigerate over night

I know it's hard to let something that looks so good just sit over night, but i promise it's worth it! 

Crock Pot BBQ Chicken

MMMmmmmm BBQ! We are that kind of house. Although everyone just loves our cooking, just sayin'. Tonight I decided to remake the broiled potatoes from earlier so I can take a picture of them since I forgot and they were so good. It's like they're meant for each other.

BBQ Chicken

Things you'll need:

4 - 6 chicken breasts

1 bottle of BBQ sauce (Sweet Baby Ray's Honey Chipotle is our favorite)

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp garlic powder

1 - 1 1/2 tbsp honey

• Mix BBQ sauce with with all of the other ingredients
• Put chicken in Crock Pot
• Pour sauce over chicken
• cook on LOW for 4 - 6 hours
• If it makes you feel better you can stir them occasionally

Easy RIGHT?!

HINT: If you are like me and have to get everything out of the bottle; once you empty the bottle of BBQ into a bowl for mixing add the vinegar to the bottle, shake, a lot, and empty into the bowl. Done.

Enchilada Bake

Feeling a little mexican tonight. We are re-purposing some left overs from over the weekend. This is really easy and great for a larger family.

Enchilada Bake:

Things you'll need:

1 (12oz) box of medium shells

3 large bell peppers any color you choose

1 medium red onion diced

1 jalepeno diced

2 tbsp olive oil

2 cups cooked beef or chicken

1 (16oz) can refried beans

1 packet of taco seasoning

2 (10oz) cans of enchilada sauce red or green

1 (8oz) package of shredded mexican cheese

1 cup sliced green onion

2 cups of crushed tortilla chips

avocado dip or sour cream

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cook pasta; drain, rinse and set aside
• In a skillet over medium heat oil and cook sweet peppers, onion, jalapeno, and season with salt and pepper until tender about 5 minutes
• Stir in chicken or beef, beans, taco seasoning, and 1/2 cup enchilada sauce. Cook and stir 5 minutes
• Add 1/2 cup each of the cheese and green onions
• Mix the shells with the filling
• Spread 1 cup of the remaining enchilada sauce in a 9 x 13 baking dish. Arrange shells on top sauce 
• Drizzle with remaining enchilada sauce
• Bake, covered, for 30 minutes 
• Uncover; sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake for 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted 
• Sprinkle with chips and remaining green onions. Serve with avocado dip and/or sour cream. Makes 8 to 10 servings

This was so good! Everyone loved it and it was super filling!

The T.H.O./O.M.G.

This is a request from Carol. She found this posted on Facebook and read it to me, followed with "I think my nipples just got hard. You have to make these". That is why I called it the T.H.O. (Titty Hard On). It's a chocolate chip cookie on bottom, a Reese's peanut butter cup in the middle, and brownie on top. Doesn't it just make you wanna shiver?

The T.H.O./O.M.G.:

Things you'll need:

Refrigerated cookie dough
Mini Reese's peanut butter cups
1 box of brownie mix
1 egg
water

• Preheat the oven to 350 and grease your pan
• In a cupcake pan smash cookie dough into the bottom of the pan about 1/4 of the way full
• Place an unwrapped Reese's upside down  into the middle of the cookie dough
• Top with brownie batter filling about 3/4 of the way full
• Bake for 18 - 25 minutes and...

These are fantastic, I suggest eating them hot and with ice cream!

Side note: one box of brownie mix and one tube of cookie dough makes about 12 (a.k.a. not enough).

Avocado Chicken Salad

Keeping it casual as a continuation of yesterday, we went with a new take on a classic. Greg is calling it a a southwest chicken salad, what do you think? Anyway since the dip was such a hit yesterday it is being continued into today.

Avocado Chicken Salad:

Things you'll need:

2 1/2 - 3 lbs of chicken

1 avocado, mashed

1 cup mayonnaise 

1/2 cup greek yogurt

handful of cilantro (about 1-2 ounces)

2 stalks of celery

1 bunch of green onions thinly sliced
3 tsp. dill weed
2 tsp. Penzey's Northwood's Seasoning
1 tsp. Penzey's Green Goddess Dressing Base

salt and pepper to taste

• Put your chicken in a large pot and cover with water add a little bit of salt
• Bring the water to a boil, then reduce to half heat and let chicken poach for about 40-45 minutes. Chicken should fall apart when you try to pick it up with a fork.
• Once cooked turn off the burner and let the chicken "rest" in the water for a minimum for 10 minutes. Taking it out of the water too soon after cooking will cause the chicken to lose it's "moistness."
• Now shred the chicken and put it in a large bowl
• Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Be sure to taste it before you serve, just in case you think it needs more of anything. Just be sure to enjoy it!

Sunday Football Dip: Caramelized Onion

Happy football season everyone! As you will soon find out, we are a football family. All with different teams, of course. Every Sunday for the next 27 weeks we will gather around the TVs and yell at them. Some call it crazy, we call it family time. I will make a dip every week of the season for our and your enjoyment.

Caramelized Onion Dip

Things you'll need:

3 tbsp butter
2 large onions diced
salt and pepper
1 cup sour cream
1 cup Greek yogurt
1 tbsp onion powder

• Using a medium skillet melt your butter on medium heat and add your onions and season with salt and pepper
• Stir the onions occasionally until translucent; then stir them more frequently until they become golden brown
• Turn off burner and allow to cool in skillet
• Meanwhile in a medium bowl mix together the sour cream, Greek yogurt and onion powder
• Once onions are cool add to yogurt blend and incorporate
• Cover and refrigerate for a couple hours

Feel free to use any of the flavors of onions, we used sweet onions and it turned out amazing! You may also use any fat percentage on the yogurt and sour cream. Enjoy!

Boston Cream Pie Cake

I don't know about you, but my heart is won with a Boston cream pie doughnut. I found this recipe on Pinterest and knew immediately that I had to make it! I know there are a lot of directions, but this is really easy to make!

Boston Cream Pie Cake:

Things you'll need:


1 yellow cake mix
ingredients needed for the cake (eggs, oil and water)
2 (3.4oz) boxes of instant vanilla pudding
4 cups of milk
1 tub of chocolate frosting

• Make cake as directed and bake in a 9 x 13 pan
• When cake is finished and still warm, poke holes all over the cake using a wooden spoon handle or similar object. You want the holes to be fairly big so the pudding has room to get in there and you need to poke all the way to the bottom
• Now make the pudding in a medium bowl and whisk until you don't have any lumps
• Pour the pudding onto the cake making sure you pour directly into each hole
• With a spoon spread the pudding all over the cake, you may want to put a little bit of pressure of the holes to ensure that pudding is really in there
• Put the cake in the fridge and allow to cool completely (about 2 hours)
• Open the frosting and take off the foil top
• Microwave for about 10 - 15 seconds
• Stir with a spoon, it should still be thick but not bubbling
• Pour on top of pudding, spread gently from middle to edges
• Allow to cool on the counter for a few minutes and then put it in the fridge and allow to cool and set up completely, overnight if you can wait

Enjoy!!!!!!

Burritos

Well we found a great deal on beef today so I got inspired to make burritos. It's something my mom used to make for me after my dad would come back from hunting and has been a hit in my family ever since.

Burritos:


Things you'll need:

2 lb roast (we are using beef)
2 serrano peppers, minced
1/2 pasilla pepper, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced or smashed
1 12oz can tomato puree
salt and pepper
water
1 packages of burrito seasoning

• Preheat the oven to 300
• In an oven safe dish with a lid (we used a dutch oven) put in the beef, serranos, pasilla, onion, garlic, tomato puree, salt and pepper. Add just enough water to cover the bottom of the dish, so the bottom of the beef doesn't burn and it keeps everything moist.
• Bake for about 2 1/2 hours until it starts to fall apart
• Shred the beef, add the seasoning and serve

The tip I give to you is heat your tortilla over a flame for a couple seconds on each side for easier rolling. With the left overs, make a taco salad or some nachos. Enjoy!

Sticky Orange Glazed Chicken Thighs

Today we experiment with what we can do with orange juice concentrate! (and chicken was on super sale so that's always a bonus) This is really easy to make and can easily be doubled or tripled for parties!

Sticky Orange Glazed Chicken Thighs:


Things you'll need:

8 chicken thighs
salt and pepper
1 cup orange juice concentrate
1 cup ketchup
2 tbsp brown sugar
4 tsp apple vinegar
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp hot sauce

• Preheat oven to 475 adjust rack to top third
• Place chicken skin side down on cookie sheet, season with salt and pepper and bake for 45 - 50 minutes flipping halfway through
• Meanwhile, add remaining ingredients to medium saucepan on medium heat; simmer for 20 minutes until thickened
• Once chicken is cooked, remove from pan and put in a large bowl drain the grease from the pan
• Add the sauce to the chicken and coat well
• Turn on your broiler onto high
• Place chicken back on cookie sheet skin side up and under the broiler for about 1 - 2 minutes until skin starts to get dark brown spots

This chicken was gone from our plates in a matter of minutes! I can tell you right now I will be making this again in the near future. Also the left overs will be great in a salad or a wrap!