Sweet & Sour Chicken Stir Fry

vegetable oil
2 chicken breasts--cubed
salt & pepper
green bell pepper--large dice
sweet onion--large dice
caned pinapple chunks--drained
1/2 cup reserved pineapple juice
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
3 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. ketchup
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1/8 tsp. fresh ginger, grated
4 tsp. cornstarch

Heat oil in a wok over medium heat. Stir fry chicken seasoned with salt and pepper until brown, and remove from pan. Add a touch more oil and cook peppers and onions until soft. Add pineapple chunks and cook for a minute or so. Meanwhile, combine remaining ingredients for sauce. Add cooked chicken and sauce to wok, and cook until bubbly and thickened. Top with green onions and serve over steamed rice

Cinco de Mayo came a little early this year

Fish Tacos...Ole
2 tilapia fillets
fish marinade (recipe follows)
6 corn tortillas
vegetable oil
mango-avocado salsa (recipe follows)
zesty sour cream (recipe follows)
shredded lettuce

Marinate fish in marinade for 15-30 minutes. Heat 1-2 cups of vegetable oil in a pan or skillet with high-ish sides. Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in another frying pan. Fry tortillas in the first pan, one at a time, until crispy. Bend in half right when they exit oil, and leave to drain on paper towels. In the meantime, cook tilapia in second pan until brown (3-4 minutes on each side). Remove tilapia from pan and flake. Prepare tacos in crispy shells with tilapia, salsa, sour cream, and lettuce. Serve with rice and beans.

Fish Marinade:
1 lime-juiced
dash Salt
2 cracks of pepper
sprinkle of cayenne pepper
1 tsp. cumin

Mango-Avocado Salsa:
1/4 cup red onion-diced
1 ripe mango-diced
2 Tbsp. cilantro, chopped
1 ripe avocado-diced
1/2 lime-juiced
1 clove garlic-minced
1/2 tsp honey
salt, pepper, cumin to taste
splashes of red wine vinegar and olive oil

Zesty Sour Cream:
2 Tbsp sour cream
2 Tbsp mayonnaise
1/4 lime-juiced
1 tsp. cayenne pepper.

Orange Chicken

I've made this twice. The first time I followed a recipe from Food Network's Sunny Anderson. I didn't like the sauce, So I revamped it. I personally think my sauce tastes better, and it's better for you (or less bad for you, hers has butter in it). Also, I did my chicken differently (healthier) the second time. Sunny's chicken tasted like real Chinese take out, but my healthier version wasn't bad.

Orange Chicken Sauce:
1/2 cupish Soy Sauce
1/2 cupish Brown Sugar
Juice and zest of 1 orange
two glugs Worcestershire sauce
two dashes red pepper flake
1 tsp fresh ginger-grated
1 clove garlic-minced

Mix all ingredients in a shallow sauce pan. Simmer for 10 minute to reduce.

Chicken two ways: (you decide which is healthier)

Fried
2 chicken breasts-cut into bite-sized chunks
Vegetable oil for frying
1 egg
1 cup flour
1/4 cup corstarch
salt
pepper
cayenne pepper

Heat oil in deep pan at med-high heat. In a medium-sized bowl, beat egg with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Add chicken to coat. Mix flour and cornstarch in plastic zip bag. add chicken to flour mixture. Toss to coat. Fry chicken in hot oil in batches until golden brown. Toss in sauce.

Baked
2 chicken breasts-cut into bite-sized chunks
2 Tbsp flour
1 tsp corn starch
salt
pepper
Cayenne pepper
one egg
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 400. Get out three bowls. Mix flour, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper in one bowl, beat eggs in another, add panko to another. Toss chicken chunks in flour to coat, then eggs, then panko. Place on baking sheet. Cook for 20 minutes. Meanwhile make sauce. Drizzle sauce over cooked nuggets.

Finally, a chewy PB cookie I can get behind!

Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies:

1 cup shortening
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup peanut butter
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 Tbsp hot water water
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups flour

preheat oven to 350.

cream shortening and sugars and peanut butter.

dissolve baking soda in water and add to mixture.

beat in eggs and vanilla.

stir in flour and salt.

bake for 10 minutes.

Cranberry Stuffed Pork Chops with a Maple-Orange Glaze

I had some frozen pork that was coming close to extinction, and I wanted to make something fancy (that didn't include chicken or ground beef) for Sunday dinner. I pulled everything out of the fridge and pantry that I thought paired well with pork, and used just about all of it. I felt like I was on Iron Chef or Chopped. Sometimes (okay, usually) when I do this it is a miss. This time it was a hit.

2 boneless pork chops-about an inch thick
olive oil
salt & pepper

For the stuffing, mix together:
a handful of dried cranberries-chopped into smaller bits
a handful of sliced almonds-chopped (any nut would probably work)
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. dijon mustard
a dash of allspice
a dash of cinnamon

For the glaze, mix together:
1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (one medium-sized orange)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup maple syrup
pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Stuff the chops by butterflying them, but leaving one side attached. Fill each chop with half of the stuffing and close. Season both sides of the chops with salt and pepper

Heat the oil in an oven-safe pan on med-high heat. Sear each side of the chops in the hot oil for about 2 minutes or until golden.

Remove from heat and add glaze to pan. Finish cooking in oven for 10-15 minutes.

Place chops aside so they can rest. Use a strainer to remove bits from the glaze. Return the smooth glaze to the same pan, and cook on med-high until reduced. Serve chops with a spoonful of sauce on top.

BBQ Beef

This is a combo I learned from my mom. It's a nice to way to spice up an old standby. I think she uses store bought bbq sauce. I tried making my own, and it was pretty darn tasty. And produced three meals for Mark and me.

1 beef pot roast
1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup dijon mustard
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup cider vinegar
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 onion-diced
4 tsp. garlic-minced
chili powder
cayenne pepper
salt & pepper

Heat some cooking oil in a shallow pan and brown the outside of the pot roast. Place meat in a slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients. Cook on high for 3 hours. Switch to low for 3 hours. Shred and serve on rolls.

Ground Beef Curry (trust me)

I know it sounds weird, considering that Indians don't eat cows and all, but this was delightful and quite easy. I made this based on several recipes I found online at recipezaar.com. I didn't have everything any one of the recipes called for, so I made up my own. As always, measurements are not exact.

1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 onion-chopped
2 cloves garlic-minced
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp flour
1 cup beef stock
1/2 cup carrot-chopped
1/2 can (the little ones) tomato paste
1/4 cup water
1 tsp tumeric
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash of cayenne pepper (depends on how spicy you like it)
1 Tbsp brown sugar
splash vinegar
3 handfulls frozen peas
1/2 cup plain yogurt

Brown beef with onions. Add garlic & butter. Add flour and stir. Add stock and wait for for the sauce to thicken. Add the rest of the ingredients except the peas and yogurt. Simmer for 30 minutes or until carrots are cooked through. Add more water if it starts to look too thick. Add yogurt and peas and simmer until heated through.

Garnish with a dollop of yogurt and serve with basmatti rice.