Fantastic Food

I say "Chili" because it's not really that chili-ish except for a couple of ingredients.  It's more of a soup that has some chili powder in it.  I kind of mixed two "chili" recipes together to get this, and as it was cooking I thought, no one is going to like this.  It looked weird, but I think that's because I was thinking of it as a chili, and whoever heard of a chili with carrots and celery in them? Or even chicken?  Not me--that's not how I do chili; beef, sausage, beans and lots of chili powder and spice is how I do chili.  Despite the misgivings, this soup turned out to be a real winner.  I was very pleasantly surprised by it's awesomeness, so much so that I made it for a family in need two days later and made sure to make enough for us to eat too.  The kids absolutely loved it.  Naomi took it to school for lunch one day and when I asked her if it was okay for lunch or if it was too cold (they don't get microwaves in their classrooms--a...

Dawn Wells - on peeling a potato This is something I am going to try. It looks good.

a.k.a. "Mary's Syrup" because my dear friend Mary put us onto this recipe.  I have since adapted and changed a few things from what she originally sent me, mainly to stretch my beloved butter sticks a little farther, haha...  It's excellent with anything on which you would pour normal maple syrup.   1 stick of butter 1 1/4 c. sugar (granulated or brown sugar) 3/4 c. buttermilk 1 tsp. vanilla 1 tsp. baking soda Directions: Put butter, sugar, and buttermilk in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and add vanilla and baking soda.  Mix well and serve over waffles, pancakes, german pancakes, french toast, etc. As Naomi put it, "I think I'm going to throw up because this syrup is just so yummy and I'm eating so much of it!"  It's GOOD. Alternate method to get a caramel syrup: put butter and sugar together in saucepan and stir over medium high heat until mixture starts to turn brown (or if you're using brown sugar, the mixture g...

I'm always on the lookout for a great, new, pork loin recipe, especially one that has ingredients I already own.  I get tired of chicken & turkey now and then, and pork loin, these days, can be just as healthy for you because of how lean it is.  Only problem is, I only know a few pork recipes, and only one of them is P90X approved.  So I found this one on cooking light, and it is AMAZING!!  check it out... INGREDIENTS: 1  (3 1/2-ounce) bag boil-in-bag long-grain rice 3 tablespoons   canola oil, divided 1 tablespoon   chopped peeled fresh ginger 3  garlic cloves, minced 6 ounces   pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into thin strips   1/2 cup   shelled edamame (green soybeans) 1/2 cup   preshredded carrot 3/4 cup   diagonally cut green onions  (can substitute regular onion) 1/2 cup   (1/4-inch-thick) slices red bell pepper, each cut in half   2 tablespoons   low-sodium soy sauce 1/2 cup ...

3 Tbs. canola oil 3 to 4 Tbs. sugar 1/3 to 1/2 cup popcorn Salt Heat oil in large pot with handles until oil is really hot, almost smoking.  While oil heats up, combine popcorn and sugar in a bowl.  When oil is hot enough, add sugar & popcorn, and stir around in pot to make sure sugar doesn't clump.  If your heat is on high, you might want to turn it down just a little to prevent burning.  Place lid on pot and slide pot back and forth over burner quickly to help unpopped popcorn kernels reach the bottom and also to prevent sugar from burning to the bottom.  As soon as popping slows down, remove pot from heat and take off the lid.  Add salt as you stir popcorn, and dump the popcorn into serving bowl ASAP to get it out of the hot pot.  Every stove is different, so don't get discouraged if you burn the first couple of batches!  Just play with the temperatures a bit, and you'll figure it out.  I've had several people tell me this is the ...

This is our favorite sunday afternoon snack.  2 cans black beans 1 can black eyed peas 1/2 onion chopped 1 red bell pepper seeded & chopped 2 large tomatoes chopped (or two handfuls grape tomatoes chopped) 1 mango peeled, pitted, & chopped 1/2 cup chopped cilantro 1 avocado peeled, pitted, & chopped 2 Tbs. lime juice 3-4 Tbs. red wine vinegar 3/4-1 cup light zesty italian dressing (I use the cheapest brand at Walmart) 1-2 Tbs. sugar Salt & pepper to taste Mix all ingredients together and dig in with your favorite dipping chips (tostito's hint of lime tortilla chips or Juanita's tortilla chips are our favorites). You can adjust the amounts of each ingredient to your particular liking (e.g. more onion, more bell pepper, etc.) Be careful, it's addictive!!

Pizza Grilled Cheese 4 slices of bread butter or margarine 4 slices of mozzarella cheese pepperoni (I used reg and cut in half but mini size would be good too) Italian seasoning or basil Parmesan cheese (opt) pizza sauce for dipping *Warm a medium/large skillet over medium heat. Butter each piece of bread on one side. When skillet is hot place a piece of bread butter side down on the skillet then add one slice of cheese and small shake of Italian seasoning or basil (add a small shake of parmesan cheese here too if desired). Top with a desired amount of pepperonis (I used about 8 -10 whole regular pepperonis per sandwich) If any other toppings are desired, add now. Add another slice of mozzarella and top with slice bread butter side up. Repeat with second sandwich. When bottom slice is golden brown then flip over carefully. Once both sides are brown remove from pan cut and serve with pizza sauce if desired. Make 2 sandwiches This is a recipe that I got off pinterest. It was originally p...