An awesome Weekend and First Time Experiences!!!!!

I had an amazing weekend with the family!!! We enjoyed ourselves at two of the Disney parks and stayed at Pop Century resort. When we got there the first thing we did (after checking in of course) was go in the pool because it was a hot Saturday; we played with our little niece until we could not do it anymore.

The first park we went to was Magic Kingdom and had dinner at The Crystal Palace Buffet (after all my blog is about food isn't it) yes, I had to mention dinner. Food was really good and we got to see some characters and take pictures with them. We saw Winnie The Pooh and his friends, of course our little niece had to take pictures with all of them. It was a really good day but we end it up soooo tired that by 9:00 pm we were in bed. 

Next day was really good also, specially because my hubby and I got to spend the day to ourselves (yes the rest of the family went home early) with no pressure of where to go and what time to be there. We took pictures, (oh by the way we went to Epcot!!) and walked in the hot Sunday afternoon. We went home at around 3:00 pm. 

One of the best things for me was that we had dinner at a restaurant that I had never been to. It might sound silly but I had never been to Cracker Barrel and had been dying to go there. We enjoyed a delicious meal and of course I have pictures of the food. 

My husband had pancakes for dinner, delicious blueberry pancakes with turkey sausage, fried eggs and a delicious raspberry syrup. I was so surprised that he ate all of that in one sitting, he normally brings left overs home. 

On the other hand I had something I had never had before and that was fried steak (it was really good). My fried steak was accompanied by some corn, green beans, delicious mashed potatoes, and homemade biscuits. Yesterday it was different for both of us because unlike my husband eating all his dinner on one sitting I had to ask for a box to take my leftovers home. 

After that delicious dinner we went home rested for a little bit, refreshed ourselves and went out again for dessert. We were craving ice cream and had dairy queen coupons so there we went for our dessert. We had a delicious strawberry covered sundae dipped in chocolate in a waffle bowl ( sounds delish doesn't it!!!)

This was for sure a really amazing weekend (even though I'm exhausted today) but it's worth it. 

Tomorrow my kitchen will be really busy as I will be cooking for my husband's family to celebrate his grandma's birthday. I know I will be busy but all the effort will be worth it at the end; pray for me that everything comes out delish and make sure to read my next blog. 

Bowtie Pasta Night!!!

Last night was a pasta night. Yes, I made Chicken Alfredo with bowtie pasta. I thought it was amazing and of course my hubby (who can eat everything and still stay skinny) liked it too.

We ate this with some honey butter rolls and salad. The rolls were so good that I ate 1 1/2 even though I'm trying to cut on the calories so I can loose a couple of pounds, but let see what happens with that all I know is that dinner was super good ( I love white sauce).

Tonight is left overs night, yes we even have some that were given to use by one of my husband's friends. We are just blessed!!!
And before I forget, if you want the recipe for this delicious Bowtie-Chicken Alfredo go to http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2012/12/bowtie-chicken-alfredo/.

Have a super good weekend and enjoy your family!!!

Savory dinner!!!

I made pork chops, mashed potatoes and green beans last night for dinner. Let me tell you that it was so good; the mashed potatoes were better then the ones I've had at a restaurant (with skin and all) and the pork chops had the best taste ever because of the sauce that they were marinated in. Let me share with you the recipes of both of my awesome dishes. Enjoy!!!!

Marinated Baked Pork Chops

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice ( I used apple cider vinegar)
4 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
4-6 pork chops

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a small bowl, thoroughly blend soy sauce, vegetable oil, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, brown sugar, and ketchup.

Place pork chops in a medium baking dish, and spread with 1/2 the sauce.

Bake pork chops 30 minutes in the preheated oven. Turn, and spread with remaining sauce. Continue baking 30 minutes, or until internal temperature of the chops has reached 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).

This sauce tastes like homemade barbecue sauce but better!!!! It's delicious.

The mashed potatoes were creamy and delicious, they really went well with this pork chops. Here is the recipe.

Savory Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

4-6 unpeeled potatoes, cubed
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add potatoes, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes.

Drain potatoes, and transfer to a bowl. Add butter, and mash with a potato masher or electric mixer until potatoes are starting to become smooth. Add milk and sour cream, and mix to your desired texture. Careful not to over mix the potatoes once they are creamy. Season with garlic, salt and pepper.

Here is my finished product!!!!

Dominican Dish: Dumplings with Salami

One of the things I started to miss from my country was the salami. There are many brands, but this is the one I was able to buy.

 We use it in so many ways; in sandwiches, cooked in red sauce, fried with onions and so on. Last night I made it in red sauce with onions and peppers. I felt like a pregnant woman when is craving a certain kind of food (no, I’m not pregnant).

A type of food that we really enjoy is dumplings, but not the same way they're made here even though we can do it that way.  We prepare the dough with flour, water, salt and a little bit of oil and then make little fingers with it and boil it in water. Here is a picture of how it’s done. 

I had made the dumplings for my hubby before and he liked them, but I had never made them with salami and red sauce. He enjoys red sauce in pretty much everything so you can imagine how much he enjoyed this dish. We had some dumplings and some red sauce left over and he even told me to put it in a small container so he can take it to work because he said this was power food, I just laughed and put it away like he said.

Before I keep writing, even though I'm almost done let me show you the finish product. 

I'm just glad my husband really enjoys the meals I prepare for him because I do it with love. Have a good rest of the day and happy cooking!!!!

The Pineapple Cutter and I

Where I come from you use a knife to cut a pineapple but the first time I saw my hubby cutting a pineapple he took out this utensil that was foreign to me.

Before he started to cut the pineapple with the cutter I was looking at it like “what the heck is that” but I had to ask him anyway. It sounds funny to me now and I can even write about it but at the time it was a little embarrassing to me. He had to teach me how to use it, but to be honest I still prefer to use my knife because I get more out of it then with the pineapple cutter.

Today I have to cut one and decided to give that thing a try. Wish my luck!!!

I wish I could say it was a total success but it was only half a success if you can say it that way, LOL!!! OK, I started to cut the pineapple and half way the cutter was coming out from the sides of the peels (that was not supposed to happen) so I pulled the cutter and got half of the pineapple but the rest of it I had to grab my knife and finish cutting it.

Hey, at least the job is done even though I made a huge mess with the juice on my counter but here is my pineapple cut in pieces (actually, is my husband's pineapple because I don't eat fresh pineapple unless is on a cake or dessert).

Tonight I'm making a Dominican dish for dinner so don't miss out tomorrows post. Enjoy the rest of your day!!!

Fun & Juicy Avocado Salad

I was wondering what type of salad to make for last night’s dinner and came up with the idea of an avocado salad. Normally we don’t buy avocados but we got two as a gift; the first one was ripe and we ate it just plain with our dinner the other day but the other one wasn't ready yet.  As I was looking to see what ingredients I had for a yummy salad, I found the avocado and touched it to see if it was ready, yep it was!!! Ready to be eaten by us in a fun and juicy way.  

We had left over enchiladas with rice so I had to make a fresh side to go with it. My hubby is a veggie lover and in all our meals I have to add a side of veggies, they can be from broccoli to a fresh lettuce salad.

I've been wanting to start a mini diet but it’s very difficult to do it (yes, I love to eat). I’m not overweight but since we got married I've gained a couple of pounds (people say marriage does that to you) so I try to eat my veggies every night to bring the portions of the fattening parts down.  Yes, I know!!! Avocado has a lot of calories but it’s just one and it’s small.

OK, so here is what I’m using for this special salad.

Ingredients:

½ cup Feta cheese

2 cups chopped lettuce

1 Tomato

1 small chopped avocado

½ white onion chopped in small pieces

Some green olives

1 strawberry chopped in small pieces (just to make it look pretty and add sweetness to it )

2 tablespoons of chopped up walnuts (if you want)

Your favorite dressing

Directions:

Cut all your ingredients and mix them all together in a bowl. If you want to add walnuts to it feel free. Serve with your favorite dressing.

Fun & Juicy Avocado Salad

 When my hubby saw this plate, the first thing he said was "oh how fun" yeah!!! that's what he said and as he was eating it he said it was juicy and good. I love his reactions and sometimes those are the words that make the titles of my blogs. 

Have an awesome day and happy cooking!!!! 

Apples or Strawberries!!!!!

Apples or strawberries? This was my question Saturday afternoon when trying to decide what to make for dessert on Sunday when my parents came to visit me. I started thinking about it and looking for recipes to help me out, when the thought hit me, "hey it's not a hard decision, you made a dessert with apples last Sunday and your sister's mother-in law made apple pie". So there you have it strawberries won!!!!
While looking through my recipes I found this awesome strawberry upside down cake, it looked fabulous. I gather all my ingredients and then Sunday after church came and made that delicious dessert.

Strawberry Upside Down Cake

Ingredients:

2 cups of cut strawberries
1 (6 ounce) package strawberry jell-o mix
3 cups miniatures marshmallows
1 box of yellow cake mix

Directions:

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C)

Spread the pieces of strawberries on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking pan. Evenly sprinkle strawberries with the dry gelatin powder, and top with mini marshmallows.

Prepare the cake mix as directed on the package, and pour on top of the marshmallows. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 40 to 50 minutes. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the pan to loosen the sides, and turn the cake out onto a serving tray. Store cake in the refrigerator.

As you can see it was a success!!!! and everyone liked it. My dad had seconds and my hubby too. I would recommend it, it's really good and serves about 12 people. Enjoy!!!