Roasted Winter Vegetables

One of our favorite ways to eat vegetables (ie: carrots, zucchini, red potatoes, brussel sprouts, green beans, etc) when we notice that they're starting to go bad is roast them in the oven. I found this marvelous recipe on Pinterest a few months ago and made it for us several times already. It's our go-to roasted vegetable recipe. We tried using all kinds of vegetables and it always turns out amazing. The only thing you have to keep in mind is that vegetables like potatoes take a little longer to cook.
Definitely a keeper and a regular for us.

Roasted Vegetables

(Source: I heart Naptime)

5 to 6 cups of vegetables (carrots, red potatoes, broccoli, red, bell peppers, onion wedges, mushrooms, zucchini, green beans etc.)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar 
1 to 2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garlic salt
Salt and pepper to taste

Cut vegetables into similar size pieces. Keep root vegetables separate from softer vegetables. Mix together olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, paprika and garlic salt. Pour over vegetables. Place root vegetables on cookie sheet and bake at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes or until they begin to soften. Add in softer vegetables and turn vegetables on sheet making sure they are all coated in liquid mixture. Bake another 15 minutes or until the veggies are fork tender. Salt and pepper to taste.

Carnitas Taco

So Dr. Sweetpea absolutely loves Carnitas whenever we go to a Texmex restaurant in Houston. I already posted a Carnita recipe over the summer and that was fantastic. However, when I saw the Carnitas recipe in the Tacolicious cookbook, I HAD to try making it at home and I'm so glad I did! These carnitas were delicious, better than the restaurants in Houston delicious, and Dr. Sweetpea kept raving about it as he was eating his dinner. In fact, he even told me to never lose this recipe! 

Carnitas Taco

(Source: Tacolicious Cookbook)

2 1/2 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 2 - 3 inch cubes

1 cup sliced yellow onion

3 cloves garlic, crushed

3 tablespoons dark brown sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt

1 1/2 teaspoons dried mexican oregano

1 bay leaf

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/2 cup lard (I used vegetable oil)

3 tablespoons oil

Put the pork in a nonreactive dutch oven or other large, heavy pot with a lid. Add the onion, garlic, sugar, salt, oregano, bay leaf, orange juice, and lemon juice and toss to coat the meat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 12 hours or up to 24 hours. 

Bring the pork to room temperature. Heat the lard in a small pan over medium heat until it melts, then pour it over the pork. Cover the pot, place over medium-low heat, and cook the pork for almost 3 hours, until the pork begins to pull apart easily when tested with a fork. 

Remove from the heat. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pork to a bowl. Discard the cooking liquid and clean the pot. Using a couple of forks, shred the pork a bit but not completely, removing any large chunks of fat. 

Return the pot tot he stove top over high heat and add the oil. At the minute the oil begins to smoke, using tongs or a spoon and working in batches to avoid crowding, carefully add some of the meat to the hot oil and cook, turning as needed for about 4 minutes until crisp on all sides. 

Serve with tortillas and your favorite toppings. 

Shot and a Beer Braised Chicken Taco

I love making tacos from scratch at home. Particularly if it's super easy to make. I recently ordered the cookbook from Tacolicious, a restaurant in San Francisco, that is known for amazing tacos. So since I read the Shot and a Beer Braised Chicken Taco is amazing, I decided to make that one first and it was AMAZING!!! Dr. Sweetpea couldn't stop eating the tacos because they were so good. We will be making this recipe at home more regularly.

Shot and a Beer Braised Tacos

(Source: Tacolicious Cookbook)

3 ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded

2 dried chipotle chiles, stemmed and seeded

1/4 cup vegetable oil

3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 habanero chile, stemmed

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 (12 ounce) can favorite beer (we used Tacate)

1 shot (1 1 /2 ounces) favorite tequila

1 cup low sodium chicken broth

1 cup diced canned tomatoes

2 tablespoons kosher salt

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon dried mexican oregano

Toast the ancho and chipotle chiles in a dry, heavy skillet over medium heat, turning once, for about 30 seconds on each side, until fragrant but not blackened. Take care that they do not burn. Set aside. 

Heat the oil in a dutch oven or other large, heavy pot with a lid over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, working in batches, add the chicken thighs and cook, turning once, for about 3 minutes on each side, until browned. Add an extra drizzle of oil if needed to prevent sticking. As the thighs are ready, transfer them to a plate and set aside. 

Add the onion and habanero to the oil remaining in the pot and saute over medium high heat for about 5 minutes, until the onion is caramelized. Add the garlic and saute for about 2 minutes. Add the toasted chiles, beef, tequila, broth, tomatoes, salt, cumin, and oregano, turn down the heat to medium-low, and simmer, uncovered, for about 15 minutes, until the chiles have completely softened. Remove from the heat and let cook completely. 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. 

While the oven is heating, pour the  chile mixture into a blender and process until almost completely smooth (a little texture is fine). Return the chikden to the pot and pour the pureed sauce evenly over the top. 

Cover the pot, place in the oven, and cook for 2 hours. Remove the lid and continue to cook, stirring if necessary to prevent sticking, for 25 - 30 minutes, until the chicken is fork tender. If the sauce starts to reduce too much and the chicken begins to stick, add a little water or broth. Remove from the oven and use tongs or a fork to loosely shred the chicken, leaving it in the sauce. 

Serve with the tortillas and your favorite toppings. 

Broiled Salmon with Herbed Mustard Glaze and Cornbread

When I'm in a rush to have dinner ready before Dr. Sweetpea gets home, I usually turn to fish or seafood. I love salmon in particular because it's affordable, tasty, and is a great main dish for a weeknight meal. I saw this recipe from Giada a few weeks ago and decided to give it a whirl and wasn't disappointed. Dr. Sweetpea even said this is one of the best salmon recipes that I've tried.

As for the side dish, I tried a new cornbread recipe which is from the Hillstone Restaurant group. I know this group owns Bandera in Chicago and was excited that this is the recipe for their cornbread. This cornbread was amazing and will be our go to recipe for special occasions.

Broiled Salmon with Herbed Mustard Glaze

(Source: Giada) 

2 garlic cloves

3/4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves

3/4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves

1 tablespoon dry white wine

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard

Nonstick olive oil cooking spray

6 (6 to 8-ounce) salmon fillets

Salt and freshly ground black pepper 

6 lemon wedges

In food processor, combine garlic, rosemary, thyme, wine, oil, dijon and 1 tablespoon of the whole grain mustard. Grind the musturd sauce until combined. Transfer to small bowl and add remaining 1 tablespoon of the whole grain mustard, stir to combine. Preheat broiler. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with non-stick spray. Arrange salmon on sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil 2 minutes. Spoon mustard sauce over fillets. Continue broiling until fillets are just cooked through and golden brown, about 5 minutes longer.

Iron-Skillet Cornbread

(Source: Hillstone Restaurant Group) 

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup fine-grind cornmeal

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups canned creamed corn (from one 15-ounce can)

1 (4.5-ounce) can mild green chiles, drained, chopped

1 1/2 ounces mild white cheddar, grated (about 1/2 cup)

1 1/2 ounces Monterey Jack, grated (about 1/2 cup)

3/4 cup unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

Place rack in middle of oven. Set skillet on a rimmed baking sheet, place on rack, and preheat oven to 400°. Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl to combine. Lightly beat eggs in a medium bowl to blend; whisk in creamed corn, chiles, cheddar, and Monterey Jack. Mix butter and sugar in a large bowl with a wooden spoon just until butter absorbs sugar but butter is still in small pieces. Add egg mixture and mix until just combined. Mix in dry ingredients until barely incorporated. Remove skillet from oven and lightly coat with nonstick spray. Scrape in batter (it should sizzle on contact and stay slightly mounded in the center). Bake cornbread until top is golden brown and springs back when gently pressed, 35–45 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

Anytime Blueberry Muffins

Whenever Spring rolls around, we have a huge craving for tons of fresh blueberries. I bought a huge container of blueberries from Costco and I decided to make a big batch of blueberry muffins today since it was cold/dreary out this morning in Houston. I don't have any pictures for the muffins but I'll share the recipe below since they were so good! I'll be making another big batch next weekend and will freeze them for Dr. Sweetpea to take a few with him to work in the mornings. 

Anytime Blueberry Muffins

(Source: America's Test Kitchen)

3 cups (15 ounces) unbleached all purpose flour, plus 1 tablespoon (separated)

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup (7 ounces) sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups plain whole milk yogurt

2 cups fresh blueberries

1 tablespoon all purpose flour

Coat a 12­cup muffin tin with vegetable oil spray; set aside. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together at medium­high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Reduce the mixer speed to medium­low and beat in half of the flour mixture, followed by one­third of the yogurt. Beat in half of the remaining flour mixture, followed by half of the remaining yogurt; repeat with the remaining flour mixture and yogurt. In a separate bowl, toss blueberries with 1 tablespoon flour. Gently fold the floured blueberries into the finished batter. Portion the batter evenly into the prepared muffin tin. Adjust an oven rack to the lower­middle position and heat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the muffins for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Let the muffins cool in the pan 5 minutes before serving.