Bountiful Baskets Dinner

Last night I used a bunch of my produce from my bountiful basket. I've been doing bountiful baskets for quite awhile now and love it. Here's what I made:


I used Jacque's technique for the pork chops. First you bread the pork chops however you want. I rinsed and dried my chops. Then I dredged them in flour and dipped in egg. For my breading, I used panko bread crumbs mixed with garlic salt and crushed rosemary. I love the taste of rosemary but Brad hates the leaves so I buy crushed. Brown the pork chops in a little hot oil in a large skillet with a lid. Add liquid (I used a little apple juice and the rest water), cover, and steam until the pork chops are done. I tend to buy the thick chops so it takes about 45 minutes. I had to add quite a bit of liquid. The apple juice carmelized and added a lot of flavor. For the last ten minutes (about) I added some thick slices of apples (peeled and cored). I add the apples right on top of the chops so they add moisture but don't burn. Brad LOVES these pork chops. They are yummy.

I used our red potatoes to make a mash. I love red mashed potatoes. One of my favorite foods. When I make red mashed potatoes, I like to leave some bite sized pieces. I add the typical butter and milk (warmed-so important!). Then I like to add garlic salt and a little sour cream. Not super healthy but super tasty!

The green beans were our favorite! I simply boiled them until they were tendercrisp. I then added a touch of olive oil and a pinch of garlic salt (we like garlic, can you tell?!).

Overall it was a fresh, nice meal! I probably will save it for a Sunday next time, though. My kids get crazy at dinner-making time!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes-POST EDIT

Um, the title says it all. These are DELISH! If you like chocolate and peanut butter, that is. And according to my mom, people who don't are crazy. Disclaimer: my mom doesn't actually think you are crazy. At least not for that. Next time I will coarsely chop some peanut butter cups and use that instead of chocolate chips.

The cupcakes are whatever chocolate recipe/cake mix you like. For the frosting, I used this recipe from all recipes.

So great! And the best part is, people think you are fancy and spent a lot of time on them, but they are SO easy!

**I made these for Drew's birthday party and dinner with Laura and Kart. I made them with a sub-par cake mix. They are definitely way, way better with devil's food or a really good chocolate cake.

Chicken Soup North African Style

This is one if not THE favorite new recipe I've made since I started my cooking adventure. It comes from The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook. It did take a little while to make, but I think it is well worth the effort. Also, the cookbook marks it as a "Fit to Eat" recipe, so it should be a healthy one as well as tasty. (Sorry, no picture of finished product.)


Ingredients:

• 3 Medium Carrots


• 2 Whole Chicken Breasts, split, bone in, Skin removed


• 1 Leek, white and pale-green parts, quartered lengthwise, well-washed


• 1 Celery Stalk, strings removed, cut into 1 inch lengths


• 3 Sprigs Fresh Flat-Leaf Parsley


• 2 Sprigs Fresh Thyme


• 2 Dried Bay Leaves


• 1 1/2 tsp. Kosher Salt


• 1/4 tsp. Freshly Ground Pepper


• 3 Whole Canned Tomatoes, drained, seeded, and quartered


• 1 tsp. Ground Cumin


• 1/2 tsp. Ground Ginger


• 1 C. Diced Butternut Squash


• 1 C. Quick Cooking Couscous


• 1 Jalapeno Pepper, seeds and ribs removed, minced


• 1/3 C. Finely Chopped Cilantro Leaves, plus sprigs for garnish


• 2 small zucchini, seeded, cut into 1/4 inch dice


• 1/2 C. Cooked or Canned Chickpeas, drained


• 2 limes, cut into wedges

1. Halve 1 carrot; place in stockpot. Add chicken, 2 quarts water, leek, celery, parsley, thyme, bay leaves, and 1 tsp. salt. Cover; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer, uncovered, 1 hour; skim off any foam. Remove chicken. Strain through a fine sieve or cheesecloth-lined strainer into a bowl. Discard solids, reserving meat. Slice chicken into 1/2 inch-thick strips, and set aside.

2. Rinse pot; add stock. Set over medium-low heat; add pepper. Dice remaining carrots. Add carrots, tomatoes, cumin, ginger, and squash; simmer over medium heat until tender, about 25 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, bring 1 cup water to a boil in a saucepan. Add couscous and remaining salt. Cover; remove from heat. Let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff. Stir in jalapeno and cilantro.

4. Add zucchini and chickpeas; cook until tender, 5 minutes. Add chicken; simmer 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.Place couscous in bowls, add soup; add cilantro sprigs and lime wedges. serve hot.

This is one recipe where I would use the fresh herbs where it says fresh. We made it twice and the second time I used dried herbs. I could taste the difference. Fresh was definitely best. I hope you like it as much as we did. Man! was it good.

Oh Sweet Sadie Roundup

I was lucky enough to attend the Oh Sweet Sadie Academy a few weekends ago. I am only getting around to blogging about it! It was so much fun. I'm really glad I got to go. Here's what I learned how to make:

Tissue Paper Poms:
These look better in person. This will be super fun for parties and such.

Dinosaur Tail:
Elinor looks very cute running around with a little tail!

Ruffle Necklace:
Not in love with this.


Cake Decorating by The Sweet Tooth Fairy:
I didn't learn much but it was still fun. Plus we got to take a bunch of cupcakes home!

Handmade Doll:
I am in love with this. It is definitely NOT perfect, but it is super cute! If only I had a sewing machine I could make lots more!

Mother Bird Necklace:
This is cute. (Side note: this is not my actual necklace. Mine did not turn out quite this cute). I haven't worn it yet but I probably will.

Peanut Butter Cups:

Not a great picture but these were very tasty. These are not something I would make on a regular basis, but maybe for a special occasion.

I need to start saving my pennies for the next Academy. It was SO much fun plus I feel like I learned some great skills.

Black Bean and Mango Salsa

The picture is coming. But trust me, this salsa is beautiful. Andrew can't eat all the fresh stuff in it but he said it was pretty and it smelled good, too.

We had lots of mangoes come in this week's Bountiful Basket. Apparently, Rosemary, Corbin and Brad won't eat them. Pat and Alisha didn't want to take them because they are from Mexico and not the Philippines (Pat went on his mission there and said they are really good there and no where else holds a candle to it). So, I'm trying to be creative in my usage of mangoes.

I doubled the recipe and made some of this Black Bean and Mango Salsa today. I made some as a thank you for someone in the ward, some for a neighbor and the rest for me. I think it is really tasty!

But warning on this recipe: It is a fresh salsa. It contains mangoes. If you're not a fan of either- move along to another recipe.

Black Bean and Mango Salsa
(from the America's Test Kitchen cookbook)

1 (15.5 oz) can black beans, rinsed
1 mango, peeled, pitted and chopped fine (look up how to chop one if you've never done it)
1/2 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped fine
1/4 cup minced red onion
1/4 cup pineapple juice
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
1/2 jalapeno chile, stemmed, seeded and minced
1/2 teaspoon cumin
sugar
salt and pepper

*Note: I used 3 mangoes in my doubled salsa since I think my mangoes were a little small. I'd probably use 2 mangoes in the regular recipe next time I make it.

Mix all of the ingredients together and season with sugar, salt and pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest to blend flavors- about 10 minutes. Let drain in a fine-mesh strainer before serving. (I didn't wait that long, I started eating it out of the bowl with all the juice still at the bottom!)

Toy Chest, part 3: The Big Reveal

I'm done! Overall I love it. There are a few changes I would make if I was doing it again. Here she is!

almost done...

Sorry about the poor quality of the photo. I'm not sure where our camera is and the iphone, although amazing, does not have a flash or any other functions for that matter.

Here is the toy chest almost done.


All that I have to do now is wait for 3 days or so for the paint to really harden and then put it back together. I am SO excited! I'm not in love with how the birds turned out, but I like the color. (In this picture I hadn't put the birds on yet).