Cheater Cilantro Lime Shrimp

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Sometimes, I just don’t feel like an elaborate meal. Thankfully, I have a secret weapon. Costco. A few days ago I picked up a container of cilantro lime shrimp from there, not really sure what I was going to do with it, but certain it would become the base of a simple yet delicious meal. I love shrimp, but do NOT love deveining it, taking off the hard tail part etc. Pre-done? Fabulous! Tonight, I threw it in a pan, added some pineapple and a chopped red bell pepper. Spooned it over rice and voila! Easy, fridge to table in 20 minutes – and only that long because I cook rice like they did in the stone ages…in a pot.

Three Ingredients!

Cilantro Lime Shrimp w/Pineapple and Peppers

1 container cilantro lime shrimp (Costco)
1 red bell pepper, chopped into 1 inch cubes
1 can pineapple chunks, drained – juice reserved
Rice, cooked

Dump shrimp, bell pepper and pineapple chunks into a hot non-stick skillet. Stir fry, adding a little reserved pineapple juice to create an island cilantro lime sauce. Heat thru and serve over rice.

Cilantro Lime Shrimp

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Christmas in a Cupcake

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Yesterday, I spent the day at the hospital. It was a very long day. In the morning, my pastor and his wife came down to pray with my Poppa before surgery and to be of tremendous comfort to me. Pastor Phil offered to buy me a coffee, but since I don’t drink it, I declined. Then he offered a chai latte – something I’ve never had, but know is what Phil drinks. My sister happened to have just purchased one and was standing next to me with her aromatic steaming cup in hand. As I took a sip, I realized Leslie’s (Phil’s wife) description was perfect – “like Christmas in a cup” she’d called it. It was really amazingly good. Filled with holiday spices. Mmmmm. Since I have been diagnosed with addictive food disorder (I totally just made that up), I still didn’t take Phil up on his offer. The last thing I need it to become hopelessly in love with a calorie laden beverage. However, it reminded me of a cupcake I’d seen in one of my cookbooks. Chai Latte Cupcakes. I’ve adapted the recipe, made some tweaks and have come up with what I’m going to call (love you Leslie for giving me this name) “Christmas in a Cupcake”. Today was the perfect day to try them out – because it’s Pastor Phil’s birthday! :)

Christmas in a Cupcake

Christmas in a Cupcake

1 1/2 C cake flour*
1/2 C unsalted butter, softened
1 C sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 eggs, room temperature
1/2 C whole milk
1 vanilla bean
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 T instant chai tea latte mix

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line cupcake pan with baking cups
-In large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and chai latte spices.  Set aside.
-In bowl of stand mixer, beat butter on high until soft, about 30 seconds.
-Add sugar and beat on high until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
-Add eggs one at a time, fully incorporating after each addition.
-Add innards of vanilla bean and extract.
-Turn mixer to low and alternatively add milk and flour mixture until fully incorporated.
-Using spoon or scoop, divide batter evenly among baking cups (should fill about 3/4 full).
-Place in oven and bake for about 20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of cupcakes comes out clean.
-Remove from oven and let cool completely before icing.

*If you don’t have cake flour, make your own using the following quick substitution! The easiest way to do this substitution is to put 2 tbsp of cornstarch in the bottom of a 1-cup measuring cup, then fill the cup as usual with all-purpose flour and level top. Repeat process to get two cups of cake flour. If you only need 1/2 cup of cake flour, put 1 tbsp cornstarch in bottom of 1/2 cup measuring cup, then fill and level as above.

Frosting & Garnish

4 oz white chocolate chips
1/3 C butter, softened
4 C powdered sugar
1/4 C milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
Ground cinnamon, if desired

Using a double boiler, melt chocolate chips until smooth. Whip butter and sugar together, add milk, chocolate and vanilla and whip until fluffy. Spread frosting on cupcakes and sprinkle with cinnamon.

I think next time I make these I’ll tweak a little more and add some additional spices – some cinnamon, or maybe even pumpkin pie spice. I wasn’t sure how spicy the chai mix was going to be and didn’t want to over do it the first go round. Tasty, moist and spiced – but not quite as pungently spiced as that sip of latte I had yesterday.

Devotional – Running

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Psalm 139:7-10 (NCV)
Where can I go to get away from your Spirit?
Where can I run from you?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there.
If I lie down in the grave, you are there.
If I rise with the sun in the east
and settle in the west beyond the sea,
even there you would guide me.
With your right hand you would hold me.

I spent the day at Seattle’s premiere trauma hospital while my beloved Poppa (grandfather) had surgery to repair his broken neck. He’s been on feeding/breathing tubes and fighting severe infections all week. Drugged to manage his pain – fighting to regain strength enough to even be able to attempt the delicate procedure he had today. It’s been a rough week as just about every day brought some new problem, a fresh difficulty he’d have to overcome. And yet, the past few days I have been utterly overwhelmed by God’s great faithfulness. I barely made it thru worship at church yesterday because I was enveloped by the knowledge that no matter what my circumstances say, God is with me.

My Poppa believes in Jesus as his Savior. That alone is a miracle beyond words for me. This morning, my pastor came to the hospital and prayed with Poppa. And when I looked at him prior to his surgery, I saw pain in his eyes, but also peace. I suppose this scripture could refer to anyplace – “If I go to the ICU at Harborview, you are there” “If I am utterly emotionally spent, even there you would guide me”.  Poppa came thru his surgery and is stable this evening. He is such a fighter and I’m so very proud of him. While my day at the hospital was totally draining, it was nothing compared to what Poppa struggled with today.

I went for a run when I came home, trying to clear my mind – dump some of the emotional baggage I’ve been building up in hospital waiting rooms all day. Even as I allowed my tears to flow, cascading as my feet pounded against the pavement – God was with me. As I poured my energy out, His right hand held me up. In my exhaustion from the day, I rested in His comforting Spirit. Running is therapeutic for me, but it’s sure nice to know there’s nowhere I can run that would take me away from God.

Throw Together Peach Crisp

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I love fruit crisps. They are so easy and fast…and delicious. I had a few peaches that were rapidly going to turn into fruit fly magnets if I didn’t use them tonight, so I threw together this little crisp.

Peach Crisp

Peach Crisp

Filling:
4 peaches, sliced medium – no need to get fancy and peel them, just leave the skin on
2 T brown sugar
2 T butter
1/2 t cinnamon

Topping:
1 C all purpose flour
1/2 C packed brown sugar
1/4 C white sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 C butter, chilled and cut into cubes
1 t cinnamon

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
  2. Spray pie pan with non-stick cooking spray and throw peaches in. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Toss to coat. Dollop butter around on top of peaches. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon. Mix butter into the dry ingredients until it looks like pea size crumbs. Another way to do this is combine all the topping ingredients in a ziploc bag and moosh together until it forms crumbs. This is especially good if you’re having kiddos help you bake. Sprinkle crumbs over peaches.
  3. Bake for 40-50 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly golden. You may want to put the pie plate on a cookie sheet to catch any drip-over that may occur from all the yummy juicy goodness seeping out. Unless you’re a big fan of cleaning sticky peach goo off your oven.

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream. No fuss, super easy!

Chicken Cacciatore

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I’ve been using up some beef most of the week – and tonight was in the mood for some light chicken. Also, it’s Friday…the start of the weekend! Perfect time to pop open a bottle of the good Sonoma Valley wine my husband bought on our recent family vacation to Windsor, CA. Since I don’t drink wine, I try to cook with it whenever my hubby wants to indulge in a good glass. So, what can I make with chicken and a good petite sirah? Why, chicken cacciatore of course!

Chicken Cacciatore over farfalle

Chicken Cacciatore

1 cup all-purpose flour for coating
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 yellow bell peppers, chopped
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes + 2 fresh tomatoes, chopped
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 C fresh chopped parsley
3/4 C red wine
2 cups fresh mushrooms, quartered
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. Pat chicken dry and season lightly with salt and pepper. Combine the flour, more salt and pepper in a plastic bag. Shake the chicken pieces in flour until coated. Using tongs, shake excess flour from chicken. Heat the oil in a large skillet (one that has a cover/lid) over medium high until pan is hot. Fry the chicken pieces until they are browned on both sides. Remove from skillet and set aside on plate.
  2. Add the onion, garlic and bell pepper to the skillet and saute until the onion is slightly browned, scraping up any brown bits stuck to the pan with a wooden spoon. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the skillet and add the tomatoes, parsley, Italian seasoning and wine. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes over medium low heat.
  3. Add the mushrooms and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer uncovered for 10 more minutes. If you desire a thicker sauce dissolve 1 T cornstarch into 1 T water and add to sauce, stirring quickly to incorporate.

We served this up over farfalle pasta (what my daughter calls little butterflies) with some fresh steamed broccoli and homemade quick rolls. It was earthy, full of flavor and delicious. The chicken was fork tender and practically melted in my mouth. The great thing about this dish is that it’s really light, despite the full-bodied flavor. There’s almost no fat in it at all, but you’d never guess it by the taste! This is also easily adaptable to whatever you like – if you’re a fan of chicken on the bone, this would be amazing, I’m sure the chicken would be falling right off the bones. You could omit any of the veggies you don’t like or add some additional ones (carrots anyone?). I’m sure you could use white wine or chicken broth/stock instead of the red. Really it would be pretty hard to mess this up. As with almost all Italian dishes, once the leftovers have smooshed (very technical word) their flavors together overnight, it’s even better! Actually, I just took the pieces of chicken that were left, cut them up into chunks and mixed them in with the remaining sauce for easy serving leftovers. Is it tomorrow yet?

“Perfect” Blueberry Muffins

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Autumn is coming! I felt it today as the little droplets of rain hit my cheeks. Smelled it in the air. That crisp, cool fall-y feeling. My favorite season. Baking season. Something about the change in weather at the end of August makes me want to curl up in an oversized sweater with a new book and some baked goods.  So, I decided to use up some blueberries and make some muffins. I’ve done lots of different blueberry muffins in the past. Some jumbo sized with strudel topping. Mini muffins in cute little wrappers. Bran blueberry. Today I just wanted to keep it simple. Nothing flashy – just an easy, preferably one-bowl blueberry muffin. I found it.

Perfectly Golden Muffins

Perfect Blueberry Muffins
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

Makes 9 to 10 standard muffins

5 tablespoons unsalted butter , softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
3/4 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon  salt
3/4 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen (if frozen, don’t bother defrosting)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a muffin tin with 10 paper liners or spray each cup with a nonstick spray. Beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat well, then yogurt and zest. Put flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a sifter and sift half of dry ingredients over batter. Mix until combined. Sift remaining dry ingredients into batter and mix just until the flour disappears. Gently fold in your blueberries. The dough will be quite thick closer to a cookie dough, which is why an ice cream scoop is a great tool to fill your muffin cups. You’re looking for them to be about 3/4 full, nothing more, so you might only need 9 instead of 10 cups. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until tops are golden and a tester inserted into the center of muffins comes out clean (you know, except for blueberry goo). Let cool on rack or serve warm with a generous pat of butter.

Now, if you’re looking for a decadent sweet muffin (cake) this isn’t it. Nothing about this is really going to bowl you over with amazing-ness. However, the texture is light and fluffy, the lemon gives it a nice fresh flavor and lack of overpowering sweetness in the cake means the blueberries really shine in these muffins. Another plus for me is that this recipe makes just enough for my family to enjoy for a couple breakfasts/snacks — not so many that we’re sick of them and choking them down a week later. But the best part is you can make it in one bowl – they’ll be in the oven in about 7 minutes and they come out looking perfectly brown and craggy. Slap some butter on it when warm and oooooh yum!

Broccoli Slaw

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I’ve never really been a fan of coleslaw. I dunno, it just doesn’t do it for me. However, the other day I was grocery shopping and saw a bag of broccoli slaw that looked pretty yummy. I was about to put it in my cart when I noticed that it was just broccoli and carrots sliced thinly – and that it was $4.99. Um. Seriously? I decided that surely I could chop veggies that way myself. I mean really, five bucks for a bag of veggies that will cost me about two dollars ?

So, I bought some broccoli (I was getting it anyway for dinner veggies) and a couple of carrots. This week as I’ve made broccoli as a side, I’ve just used the florets (bushy part on top) and saved the stems for slicing. Tonight was leftover night and I whipped up a delicious slaw to go with the variety of foods.

Broccoli Slaw

Tonya’s Broccoli Slaw

2 C Broccoli stems sliced thinly
2 Carrots grated thickly
1/2 C light mayonnaise
2 T plus 2 tsp granulated sugar
2 T cider vinegar
Dash of salt and pepper

Place broccoli and carrots in large bowl. In small bowl, mix mayo, sugar and cider vinegar and whisk with a fork until smooth. Spoon desired amount of dressing over slaw until coated. Enjoy!

Taco Pie

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I’ve heard people talk about taco pie for a long time. Lots of people in my MOPS group make them – but I’ve never tried one myself. Tonight was the night. It felt like fall outside, which is the perfect excuse for me to whip up some comfort food. Doesn’t get much better for me than a pie with meat and cheese. I read up on my favorite recipe site until I had a basic idea of what the standard recipe was, then I went to work creating a custom version for myself. Many of the recipes called for a base of crescent dough, but I didn’t really want to stop at the store for that, so I made my own quick dough. I’m sure a pie with pre-made dough would be just fine though.

Tonya's Taco Pie

Tonya’s Taco Pie

*One batch of your favorite pizza dough (or package of pre-made crescent/pizza dough)
1 lb ground beef (or ground turkey)
1/4 C taco seasoning (1 package)
16 oz can refried beans
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes w/green peppers & onions
1/4 C salsa
1/4 C sour cream
2 C shredded cheese (I used regular cheddar cause it’s what I had on hand…mexican blend would be delicious too)
Chopped lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, sour cream, salsa (all the normal taco toppings)

Preheat the oven to 375°. Spray a 9×13 casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray and press the dough onto bottom and up the sides of the pan. Pre-bake dough for 10-15 minutes until mostly cooked. While dough is cooking, heat skillet and brown meat, add taco seasoning and water, boil off liquid and set aside. In small bowl, mix 1/4 C  sour cream into the refried beans. Drain off liquid from can of diced tomatoes and mix with salsa in another bowl.

Remove crust from oven and layer in the following order the remaining ingredients: 1/2 the beans, spread thin; taco meat; tomatoes and salsa; remaining beans then cheese. Bake in oven until cheese is bubbly and mixture is heated thru (about 15-20 minutes). Slice and serve topped with sour cream, lettuce, tomato, avocado &/or salsa. We also used tortilla chips to scoop up all that gorgeous filling.

I pre-baked my dough just a bit too much and it came out good, but a little crispier than I would have liked. Aside from that, this was fabulous. Made with turkey meat, it’s not exactly low-cal, but much better for you than mine tonight, which I made primarily to use up the beef I had already defrosted in the fridge. Either way, it tastes like a scrumptious taco – but without all the fuss of having to put your meat, beans and cheese in the shell individually.

*My Quick Dough Recipe:

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon white sugar
  • 1 cup warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

Directions

  1. Combine flour, salt, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Mix in oil and warm milk until completely incorporated into a dough. Can be used immediately or allowed to rise in warm place for 30 minutes.

Devotional – I Promise You Trouble

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John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

It’s really kind of a bummer, but there it is. Not a promise of an easy life. Free from cares and worries. No guarantee of smooth sailing, of everything going my way. But a promise of trouble. Take it to the bank, in this life, we have problems. Thankfully, Jesus promises that in Him, we will also have peace. Not because there’s no rough patches in life, but rather, because in those hard places, we have someone who’s bigger. Bigger than a lost job. Stronger than any illness. Smarter than the toughest problem. Peace that comes from knowing Jesus is not dependent on a calm easy life. His peace rises above despair, loss and worry. His peace shelters us from life’s storms.

Sometimes, it’s hard to remember that through it all, Jesus promises peace. I find it much easier to focus on the trouble. How it isn’t fair. Why it’s happening to me. I need to keep my focus off the worries of life, and squarely on the giver of life, who soothes my soul with His peace.

Thank you Jesus for your amazing, unending peace. When troubles come in life, help me to keep my focus on you, and not be distracted by the problems. Hard things in my life come and go, but You remain constant. Thank you for overcoming the world, so no worry can defeat me.

Cheesy Meatloaf

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I saw this recipe for cheesy meatloaf on my cousin Shannon’s blog. She’s an awesome bakerlady too – and I’ve never made something from her that wasn’t amazing. I was sure this would be no exception. Below is the original recipe – the starred items are my alterations. The biggest change I made was cooking it free form instead of in a loaf pan. I’ve found I like meatloaf better that way, and I can add a delicious glaze that gets a little gooey/crunchy coating around the meatloaf. I also sautéed my onions and garlic prior to adding them to the meat mix.

Delicious Cheesy Goodness

INGREDIENTS:
1 package of ground beef (about a pound)
2 eggs
1 small onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced (2 tsp garlic powder also works in a pinch)
1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1 squirt of ketchup
*1 squirt of dijon mustard
*Dash of tobasco
*1/4 C fresh chopped parsley
1/4 cup of breadcrumbs
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 cups grated cheese (I use cheddar, you could really use any kind you like)

*My Glaze:

1/2 C ketchup
1/4 C brown sugar
4 tsp cider vinegar

Mix together in small bowl. Spread 1/2 over formed meatloaf before placing in oven. Spread other half over meatloaf 15 minutes before it’s done!

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 350°

In a mixing bowl add ground beef, eggs, onion, garlic, Worcestershire, ketchup, breadcrumbs, salt, and pepper. Mix well with your best tool– clean hands. Don’t mess with a spoon with this, unless you want to clean up a big mess. :)

In a loaf pan, layer half of the mixture. Make sort of a moat in the middle. Add the cheddar cheese. Top with the remaining mixture, and press down around the edges to form seams. Top with glaze. Bake for one hour.

The whole family totally loved this meatloaf. My kids and husband gobbled it up. We had some butter herb potatoes and fresh steamed broccoli with some crusty french bread for an awesome dinner. Thanks Shan! And — for dessert…cake bites!