I Steal Great Recipes: spicy

Showing posts with label spicy. Show all posts

Sunday, June 28, 2015

Barbacoa Tacos

We were on vacation last week, a short week at the North Shore. This meant a lot of meals out. I knew that I needed to make a meal plan of good, homemade food for the week.

I chose this first meal because it needed a few hours to braise and Sundays are good for that- it's usually a stay-at-home and relax day around here.

The beef roast was braised in a fragrant mixture of chipotle peppers, oregano, cumin, garlic, lime juice, broth, onions and a few other things. It came together easily and then I let it simmer for 3 hours. The house smelled great!

The meat is done and ready to be shredded.

And back in the sauce for a quick warmup.

I thought of my Grandma Loreto as I warmed up tortillas for dinner. I told James that one of my favorite memories is eating her fresh (flour) tortillas with mantequilla (butter). Mmmmm. He didn't believe me that it is heavenly- he needs some convincing. Challenge accepted!

Anyway, there was quite a bit of heat in this meal. I would cut the chipotle peppers from 4 to 3, maybe 2. We also talked about using "taco stand" size tortillas and doubling them up. The liquid from the beef and added lime juice squeezes made for tacos that fell apart. With the smaller tortillas there would be less guilt about eating four tortillas for two tacos? Well, it's a thought.

We are definitely making this again! It would be a great meal for guests since you're really just assembling at the last minute. We served this with fresh corn on the cob.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Barbacoa Tacos.

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Monday, June 10, 2013

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad

I must have a million pins on Pinterest, most of them cupcakes and delicious desserts though. I was really stumped the other day when I was planning my week's menu and what I can make that actually excited me.

I never really venture on to my "Salads" Pinterest board but summer is all about healthy vegetables and eating right, right? So I saw this salad recipe and it didn't look too bad!

My husband's verdict? "I'd make this again. I mean, I'd have YOU make this again."

I love all of these ingredients. I used canned corn (called for by the recipe) but only because sweet corn isn't too in season yet AND because I have a brand of corn that I really truly like. Delmonte's Summer Crisp. It is not like the others!

I didn't even mind this green leafy stuff. It gets covered in the creamy chipotle dressing and you can barely taste the healthy parts. :)

The best way I've found to make the precooked chicken is to wrap the breasts in a foil packet, baking at 375 degrees for about 35 minutes. I lightly salt and pepper it and it always comes out smelling divine. I made the chicken this morning and it made for easy assembly later.

I didn't even use all of the dressing and it was plenty. It was smoky and spicy, just a nice kick. The recipe is originally from Cooking Light and it says that it tastes just as great the next day. I have some fresh, dry lettuce leftover in case it's a wilted mess but I don't think we'll mind!

I didn't have taco bowls so I just spread a few tortilla chips on the bottom of each plate.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad.

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Monday, October 29, 2012

Thai Ground Turkey with Basil and Chiles

I really appreciated this recipe! I've been craving rice lately and I love these flavors- it reminds me of Big Bowl's Spicy Basil Chicken. Jim and I both agreed that the spice was just right, or maybe I could bring it down a notch so we could notice the other flavors because there is a lot going on here!

Ginger, garlic, soy sauce, fish sauce, chiles, peanuts, basil, lime, Sriracha, peanuts, green onions, mmmmmmmm.

I'm sure ground turkey is not Thai. It makes for a lighter, healthier meal so I didn't mind it at all. Jim suggested shrimp for next time. We also agreed on more sauce.

I spilled all over the recipe so I'm going to need to print out a new copy. I really, really need to. This recipe is a keeper. (I discovered that if I don't have recipes printed out and organized in my binder, I don't repeat them.)

Click here for the stolen recipe for Thai Ground Turkey with Basil and Chiles.

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Monday, May 21, 2012

Buffalo Turkey Burgers with Blue Cheese Broccoli Slaw

These were great! I was hoping the Buffalo flavor would appeal to my husband. It did. The burgers were actually quite spicy but in a good way. Carrots are grated and added to the burger mix, which would be good if you were trying to sneak veggies into your family's diet!

I did find reduced fat cheddar slices and whole wheat buns to make this a bit better for my diet. Diet, diet, diet. Yeah, I guess I should start calling it something else since this is just the way it should be.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Diet or not, my husband liked it! He said it's the best diet he's been on :)

Click here for the stolen recipe for Buffalo Turkey Burgers with Blue Cheese Broccoli Slaw.

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Southwestern Pizza

I didn't make the crust. I could have. I just didn't. I was at Trader Joe's and having heard about their pizza crusts I decided to buy a few. This one is the Garlic Herb crust. Supposed to be low fat. I guess it is, but it's still more calories/fat than I would eat for one meal. I am dieting in case you don't know!

I had an itch to try something completely new. Southwestern Pizza stuck out in my mind. I found a recipe that looked easy enough and I had most of the ingredients already.

Jim said it was good! And that we should make it again. I added some shredded chicken for protein.

The funny looking green stuff is avocado cream. Mmmmmmm.

So this pizza has... smashed black beans, tomatoes, red onions, chicken, corn, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, Mexican blend cheese, and spices.

I'm glad the avocado cream was there. Without a traditional tomato sauce it would have been pretty dry otherwise!

Click here for the stolen recipe for Southwestern Pizza.

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Salted Mexican Chocolate Chile Caramels

Cinco de Mayo is coming up! I saw this recipe posted on one of my favorite blogs and decided to try it (immediately). Jim is out of town, I haven't baked/created for a while, and I needed a little chocolate something- all good reasons to try something new!

The recipe made way more than these- I took a picture about a third of the way in to wrapping these babies.

Mexican chocolate is a good memory. The sight of an Ibarra chocolate box reminds me of my Grandma Loreto.

The chile in these caramels is very, very subtle. I know it's there but you can't taste it much. I think next time I would throw in an extra chile for a kick!

Mmmmmmm Look at that salt. Salty and sweet. I'm quite certain that's my favorite kind of dessert now.

The caramels were quite soft. I'm glad. The other caramels I've made were quite firm and and after a few days they were too firm. I think these will stay melt-in-your-mouth soft for the month or so the recipe claims.

The real reason I made these? To test my willpower. I've only eaten one. I figured out the calories for the recipe, divided by 64 portions and figured out they are about 72 calories. One every other day is enough for me :)

Click here for the stolen recipe for Salted Mexican Chocolate Chile Caramels.

Sunday, February 5, 2012

Super Bowl Munchies

My husband didn't have his usual crew over for the Super Bowl but I still thought he'd like some manly Munchies.

Buffalo Chicken Dip (a repeat recipe but it doesn't seem that I've ever blogged about it) & Jalapeño Popper Dip

I even had football plates leftover from a few years ago. Does anyone else have a collection of odds and ends paper plates?

The Buffalo dip ended up pretty spicy but oh so flavorful. Its very hearty since there is plenty of shredded chicken in it. We use this dip as an excuse to buy Fritos Scoops. We don't usually have chips lying around so what a treat!

The Jalapeño dip was a cream cheesy soft dip with chunks of jalapeños and green chiles. Panko crumbs and Parmesan cheese toasted nicely on top and reminded me of the traditional breading, but without the frying. I'd make it again, but probably not alongside the Buffalo dip because the strong spice kind of muted the Jalapeño dip.

I hope my husband enjoyed these. He's down in his Man Cave!

Click here for the stolen recipe for Jalapeño Popper Dip.

Cick here for the stolen recipe for Buffalo Chicken Dip.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Classic Fajitas & Corn with Spicy Chili Butter

I picked out this next recipe. It really just appealed and it seemed like a good recipe to have under our belts if we ever have a dinner party. The meat and vegetables needed almost no prep which is awesome.

I wish I would have made my own guacamole (the avocados at the store were not ripe) or salsa but maybe next time. I even joked that I should've made my own tortillas!

Jim is becoming a master chef. And isn't he cute in this shirt? (Note: he bought the shirt to amuse James. He said he wouldn't really wear this shirt out in public, too cutesy. I hope he doesn't mind my 5 blog readers seeing it :)

I should have taken some pictures of the grilling in action. The flank steak grilled quickly and easily, the vegetables blackened just a bit, and now the steak is being sliced. Yum.

No editing. Just fabulous natural colors!

I didn't do much for this meal. We ended up boiling the corn and not grilling it because Jim was already doing a bit on the grill, I didn't want him overwhelmed. I made the spicy chili butter on the stovetop. I LOVED it. The spice and lime juice were wonderful!

Delicious! And plenty for leftovers :)

Both of these recipes were from Jim's new cookbook- The Cook's Illustrated Guide to Grilling and Barbecue. I'm always glad to find the recipes online for you.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Classic Fajitas.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Corn with Spicy Chili Butter.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Creamy Baked Chicken Taquitos

Probably not the most authentic Mexican recipe but pretty darn good. I like the idea of baking these taquitos instead of deep frying so they are healthier. We are already imagining the other fillings we can make for other taquitos.

The filling is made from salsa verde, cream cheese, spices, shredded chicken, two kinds of cheese, etc. See the recipe below :) Maybe I could use Mexican crema instead of cream cheese next time?

I baked these for the smaller amount of time, I think if I had left them in for a few more minutes they would have been crispier. We dipped them in salsa and sour cream. This is definitely a recipe we'll make again.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Creamy Baked Chicken Taquitos.

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

This is getting its own post even though it was made for another part of a recipe. I'm making taquitos tonight and this salsa will be mixed with chicken and cream cheese for a taco filling.

The recipe is from a food blogger but the real credit goes to Rick Bayless, a famous Mexican food cook. I have one of his cookbooks (from my favorite big sis Ana) that I should use more often.

I love me some tomatillo salsa so I was happy to try a homemade salsa, something I haven't done ever with tomatillos. I think I went a little heavy with the lime juice but it's gooooood. The salsa was still warm from the roasted jalapenos and tomatillos and I made myself a little chips and salsa snack :) :) :) :)

Click here for the stolen recipe for Roasted Tomatillo Salsa.

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Orange Chipotle Chicken

I thought this was a great recipe. It required a few ingredients that I didn't have on hand (pure maple syrup, orange juice and zest) but a few that I had handy. Chipotle chiles in adobo sauce are handy. Usually you just use one chile from a whole can, so I usually freeze them in individual baggies, and then collected in a freezer ziploc bag. I pull them out as I need them. I'm so economical :)

It came together really quickly and it was full of flavor. I've made recipes before that have been tasteless. This one was definitely flavorful. The sauce looks a little dark but it's smoky and deep. Love it.

AND this is a "clean" recipe. Clean eating is a concept that I've heard of lots of times but I have a friend at work that is a clean eater and so I thought of her when I was making this one.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Orange Chipotle Chicken.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Black Bean Soup

It's winter. It's soup time! This was the first of two soups for the weekend. We really enjoyed this soup. I've never used dried beans before, and it was well worth the extra effort.

I also love a soup with lots of garnishes- especially cilantro and avocado. YUM. And some corn tortillas. BONUS.

I had some HoneyBaked Ham in the freezer, so I chopped that up. I do admit that we used more than the 4 ounces the recipe calls for :) We love our ham.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Black Bean Soup. I found the recipe online but I really used my Best 30-Minute Recipe cookbook.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

White Chicken Chili

Reposted because I included the recipe below!

OH WOW. I just love this soup. I think it could be one of my favorite meals ever. OR I'm just really hungry lately :)

This soup is low-fat, flavorful, and just awesome. It does take a bit of time to make- it involves many steps, taking about 2 hours total. Well worth it.

I did substitute white hominy for the cannellini beans. It reminds me of posole. And this isn't really a white chili but a green one. Those chiles just make this soup.

Make this on a relaxing Sunday and enjoy!

I just can't find this recipe online to save my life. That is just WRONG. No one has blogged about this great soup? Inconceivable!

There are 8 servings in this soup. Each serving is only 3 weight watcher points! I had two servings :)

The recipe since I was asked very nicely to share it :)

White Chicken Chili

3 lbs. bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
Salt and ground pepper
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
3 medium poblano chiles, stemmed, seeded, and chopped medium
3 medium Anaheim chiles, stemmed, seeded, and chopped medium
1 medium jalapeno chile, plus 1 small jalapeno chile, seeds and ribs removed and set aside, flesh minced
2 medium onions, minced
6 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 Tablespoons)
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons dried oregano
8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2- 15 oz. cans cannellini beans (or hominy), drained and rinsed
¼ cup juice from 2 to 3 limes
¼ cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
4 scallions, sliced thin

1. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Sear the chicken, skin side down, until browned, about 4 minutes. Flip the chicken and sear on the second side until browned, about 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and remove and discard the skin.

2. Add all of the chiles except the small jalapeno, onions, garlic, cumin, oregano, and 1 teaspoon salt in a large Dutch oven. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until the vegetables are softened, 12-15 minutes. Transfer half of the mixture to a clean plate; set aside.

3. Stir in the broth, chicken, and beans. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is fully cooked, about 20 minutes. Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a large plate. Continue to simmer the chili, uncovered, until it has thickened, 35-40 minutes.

4. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces, discarding the bones. Stir the shredded chicken, reserved chile mixture, lime juice, cilantro, scallions, and small jalapeno into the chili. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If the chile is too thick, stir in additional water to thin it out.

The chili can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Per 1 ½ cup serving: Calories 320, Fat 4.5g, Carb 28g, Protein 39g, Fiber 9g

This recipe was adapted from The Best Light Recipe, from the Editors of Cook's Illustrated.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Tortilla Soup

The food blogger described this soup as easy and one pot (low mess in my mind) so I was on it. I'm glad that I tried a new recipe today. A soup was a great idea for a very cold, wintry day. And I love an enchilada/tortilla taste. Yum. I do need to say that this isn't very authentic Mexican. It felt like cheating but that's okay.

I think maybe I didn't use enough chicken. I'd probably add more vegetables of some sort too. I guess I'm used to a chunkier soup but the flavor was there. I used a mild canned enchilada sauce. I wonder if hot would have been too hot?

I garnished with avocado, baked tortilla strips (strips with oil and salt, baked at 400 for 10 minutes), cilantro, lime, sour cream, pepper jack cheese. Yum-o!

I've noticed that I don't print out a recipe until I've committed to making it again. I did send this recipe link to my husband so he can print it out tomorrow. I need to add it to my binder for future meal rotations.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Easy One Pot Tortilla Soup.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Repeat

I've made this before but we just love it. The flavors are just incredible and it feels like a treat to eat it but it's not bad for you, I don't think. Chipotle Lime Chicken tacos. Yum.

It seemed like a bad idea to have the oven on for several hours on a hot day but really it was only at 250 degrees and it didn't make a difference.

This was the sauce after the blender. I could have used it just like that but I knew it would just get better after a few hours getting happy with the chicken in the oven.

Taco fixings: sour cream, lime wedges, extra sauce, cilantro, tomatoes (I had lots to use up) with lime juice and cilantro.

Mmmmm, leftovers!

Friday, June 18, 2010

Chipotle Lime Chicken Tacos

We've made this a few times and I do have to say that some times it is FABULOUS and then other times we wonder, what did we do different? It was good but not the FABULOUS that we remembered. Well, the time I made it and took this picture, it was FABULOUS. So worth the extra work. And it is some extra work. I remembered that I used almost my entire son's naptime to do the preparation. I think once I get used to a recipe I become more efficient and figure out short-cuts.

We made tacos with just some cheese, cilantro, the chicken, and some sour cream. The chicken is VERY flavorful so not much else is needed!

We served the chicken with the Grilled Corn Salad that we love so much.

Click here for the stolen recipe for Chipotle Lime Chicken Tacos.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Albondigas (Mexican Meatball and Salsa Soup)

I've made this many, many times. Here are two pictures from two different days.

This second one is topped with baked, crunchy tortilla strips. Yum.

Soup is one of my most favorite meals. When I met my husband he was in disbelief that a soup could ever fill him up. He thought it was more of a side than the main meal. I made this soup for him and he changed his mind forever.

I didn't "steal" this from a blog this time but from a Cooking Light cookbook quite a few years ago now. I was a new cook and it was one of my first cookbooks. I was living with my sister and her husband at the time and it was great fun taking my turn to cook for the house. I found this recipe and thought it sounded similar to a soup that my Mom would make for us when we were young.

I've modified this a bit to suit my tastes, namely that I have increased the amount of corn, the amount of rice in the soup, and added more broth and salsa to make it less chunky. I guess the additions of the corn and the rice bulks it up a bit and it needs the extra liquid.

I probably add 1 1/2 cups of corn, 1/2 cup of rice to the soup, and 3 cans of broth. Salsa varies, depending on who is eating the soup. My mother-in-law doesn't like spice so I use less when we have her over for dinner. If it's just for my husband and myself I like to go all out with the salsa!

Click here for the stolen recipe. I've found it online!

Creamy Taco Mac

I'm pretty sure that one of the first things I ever cooked was Hamburger Helper. I had a working Mom and ocasionally she would ask for our help with cooking dinner. She would make things easy for us and leave us the defrosted meat/chicken and the meal box on the counter. I think my favorite Hamburger Helper was the lasagna flavored one. When I saw this recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Annie's Eats, and then I kept seeing it repeated on other cooking blogs I knew that I would need to give it a try.

My husband actually tackled the recipe first, but his version was flawed. I say that because I forgot to buy a few ingredients and so it didn't turn out the way it should have, we think. So I gave this recipe another try tonight and I made sure we had all of the right ingredients this time.

It was good! It was a little strong on the "taco" flavor, but my husband liked it topped with a little more sour cream to make it creamier. Actually, I think he just likes sour cream :)

This was an easy recipe that I think would be kid friendly, that is if my kid ate new foods!

Click here for stolen recipe for Creamy Taco Mac.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Thai Peanut Turkey Burgers

I guess it's safe to say that if I blog about it on here, it's going to be a food that we love to eat. We really enjoy these burgers because we're fans of ginger, peanuts, carrots, turkey, and cilantro. Yum. This is an easy recipe that my husband can throw together early in the day, and then I throw on our grill pan for a quick 10 minutes when I get home from work. The recipe includes a mayo sauce that really goes well with it. Oh and we really like the new "Sandwich Thins" bread instead of a burger bun.

Add a quick coleslaw (prepackaged broccoli or traditional cabbage/carrot mix with bottled dressing) to the meal and we're happy!

Click here for the stolen recipe.

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Jalapeno Thingies

Football night needed some manly munchies! Jalapeno thingies. Oh, these are great. Addictive. Tasty. You NEED to make these.

Basic ingredients- BACON, cream cheese, jalapenos. You just can't go wrong.

Click here for the stolen recipe from one of blogger greats, the Pioneer Woman.

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