Oven Roasted Chicken Veggie Fajitas

Yesterday I wanted to make a kind of Mexican dinner so I started searching for something easy and light. I love tacos, burritos, quesadillas and so on.... I checked to see if I had tortillas and all the ingredients that this recipe needed and the only thing I was missing was the red pepper which wasn't really important.

I can't go on without telling you guys that I will be making sourdough bread pretty soon, yes!!!! I'm so excited about my bread machine and trying new things in it. Yesterday I made the starter which is the sourdough (yes it already smells sour in my kitchen but my husband loves it and is looking forward to trying the bread)

Yes, I know it looks gross but I will show you when I make my bread and then you will tell me if it looks gross or what.

Now back to our main purpose, our chicken fajitas recipe and yummy pictures. I followed this recipe step by step and the only thing I added was corn in place of the red peppers. It needed to look pretty and colorful.

SEASONING

1 Tbsp chili powder

½ Tbsp paprika

½ tsp onion powder

¼ tsp garlic powder

¼ tsp cumin

⅛ tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp sugar

½ tsp salt

½ Tbsp corn starch

FAJITAS

2 small (or 1 lg.) onion

2 medium green bell peppers

1 medium red bell pepper

1 lb. chicken breast*

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

1 medium lime

8 (6-inch) tortillas

½ cup sour cream (optional)

¼ bunch cilantro (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Mix all of the ingredients for the fajita seasoning in a small bowl and set aside (chili powder, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, cayenne pepper, sugar, salt, and corn starch).

Cut the onion and bell peppers into ¼ to ½ inch wide strips. Place them in a large 9×13 inch casserole dish. Slice the chicken breast into very thin strips and add it to the casserole dish with the vegetables.

Sprinkle the seasoning over the meat and vegetables. Drizzle the vegetable oil over everything and then use your hands to toss the ingredients until everything is well coated in oil and seasoning.

Bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, stirring once half way through. Squeeze the juice from half of the lime over top of the meat and vegetables after it comes out of the oven.

Scoop a small amount of meat and vegetables into the center of each tortilla. Top with a few sprigs of cilantro, a dollop of sour cream, and an extra squeeze of lime if desired.

Looked so good and tasted delicious!!!! I didn't have sour cream for the dollop, but to be honest it really didn't need it. Definitely will be making this again. 

Hope you get to make this and enjoy it as much as we did. 

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bars

Autumn is here and so are the pumpkins!!!! So let's make some yummy desserts out of those big orange fruits.
Husband is not a fan of pumpkin but he gave me the green light to make these dessert  and maybe, just maybe he'll like the way I made it. So my fingers are crossed and praying he not just like them but love them.

Here is the recipe followed by some yummy pictures.

Ingredients

FILLING

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

BATTER FOR BARS

1 cup canned solid pack pumpkin

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice 

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup chopped pecan pieces

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375° and spray a 9x13" baking pan with PAM or Baker's Joy. Set aside.

For filling, whisk together softened cream cheese, sugar and egg. Mix with a hand mixer until well-blended and smooth. Set aside.

 For batter, combine pumpkin, sugar, egg and oil in medium mixing bowl. Mix well.

Stir in flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, & salt. Mix well to combine.

Pour batter into prepared baking dish, and spread to cover bottom of pan.

Drizzle the cream cheese mixture over the batter. Cut through the batter with a knife or spatula, to make a marbled effect w/ the cream cheese mixture. Do this a second time, going in the opposite direction [i.e., if you go side to side the first time, go up and down the second time]. When doing the marbling, be cautious and don't let your knife drag or touch the bottom of the baking dish.

Sprinkle with the chopped pecans.

Bake 25 - 28 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Cool the entire pan of bars then cut into squares.

And now a close up of these delicious treats!!!

Can you tell they are moist? Yes!!!! they are very moist and delicious. Let see what the hubby thinks about them. 

They are sooooo easy to make, you should definitely try making them. 

Homemade Smothered Burritos

We love Taco Bell, and a couple weeks ago my husband had a smothered burrito from there. I saw how he enjoyed it that it made me want to make it for him.
Yes, it took several weeks but I made it and he enjoyed it a lot.

Here it is!!! My work of art and here is the recipe.

1 pound lean ground beef (I used shredded pork loin)

 1 cup chopped onion

 2 large garlic cloves, minced

 2 teaspoons chili powder

 1 teaspoon ground cumin

 1/2 cup taco sauce

 1 (16 ounce) can fat-free refried black beans

 6 (10 inch) flour tortillas

 3/4 cup Daisy Brand Sour Cream (optional)

 1 1/2 cups finely shredded Mexican cheese blend

1 can enchilada sauce

½ cup cheese

Directions:

Cook the ground beef in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat 5 to 7 minutes or until thoroughly cooked, stirring frequently; drain. Add the onion, garlic, chili powder, cumin and taco sauce to the meat and stir. Cook for 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated and the vegetables are tender, stirring frequently.

Spread 1/3 cup of refried beans on the bottom 1/3 of each tortilla, leaving 1-inch around bottom and edges. Spoon 1/3 cup of the meat mixture over beans. Top the meat with 1 tablespoon of sour cream and 1/4 cup of cheese. Start rolling up from bottom, enfolding the filling. Fold in the sides and continue rolling up.

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray all sides of the burritos with cooking spray. Place burritos on a cookie sheet, seam sides down. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until thoroughly heated and browned, turning over once.

After they are done pour enchilada sauce on them and cheese (as much as you want) and put it again in the oven for about 5-7 minutes. Top with dollops of the remaining sour cream.

Note: I didn't use the chili powder and cumin because the taco seasoning was enough for me. 

Enjoy it!!!! Believe me, it was awesome I even have one left over for lunch today.

Crispy Potato Cakes or Patties

Do you have left over mashed potatoes and would like to eat them in a different way other then just "mashed" ? Well, here is your solution!!!

The other night I made this awesome patties and my husband could not stop eating them, they were so good and a different way to eat mashed potatoes. Know that you can put anything you want in them but since it was my first time making them I decided to make them plain, but next time I will try them with cheddar cheese and bacon in them, Yummy!!!!

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

2 cups mashed potatoes

1 egg, beaten

1 onion, minced

1/4 cup flour

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. white pepper

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. butter

Preparation:

Mix together mashed potatoes, beaten egg and onion in a medium bowl. Add flour, cheese, salt and pepper and stir.

Over medium heat, heat olive oil and butter in a medium size nonstick frying pan. Drop about 1/4 cup of the potato mixture into the frying pan, patting it into 3 inch circles that are 1/2" thick. Cook until bottom is browned and crisp, about 3-4 minutes. Carefully turn the patty over and cook the second side until brown and crisp, 3-4 minutes. Serve with ketchup or salsa.

Of course I didn't serve it with ketchup, I made a delicious baked tilapia fish and some buttered sweet peas. My husband enjoyed dinner so much and I did too.

Hope you enjoy making them and eating them just like I did. Have an awesome weekend!!!!

Homemade Pulled Pork Pizza

I had been wanting to learn how to make pizza dough at home but had been scared of the process it has to go through. Yes!!! the yeast, the rising and so on.

Last Saturday I pulled myself together and said today is the day!!!! The day I'm going to be brave and make it, no matter what.
So I gathered all my ingredients and went at it. OK, I made it and the first mistake I made was putting it in the refrigerator right away; of course it didn't rise :(. I was so disappointed. but talking to a friend she told me that in order for it to rise it needed to be in a warm place so Monday morning I took it out of the fridge and put it inside my oven (not on) and like two or three hour after my dough had doubled in side, I was soooo excited and proud of myself.

OK, so now I couldn't wait to make pizza!!! but guess what we had for dinner yesterday? YES!!! pizza. I had taken out some pork so I put it in my pressure cooker for one hour and the shredded it, cut some onions and peppers, some olives and some pepperoni I had in the refrigerator.
Spread out my dough in the baking plate, pour some red sauce, mozzarella cheese, the veggies, the shredded meat, cheddar cheese and put it in the oven at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.

Here is my pizza just before going in the oven, I thought it looked pretty good even before it was ready to eat.
And now look at it just out of the oven and ready to be eaten!!!

Look at that crust!!!! It was crispy on the outside and very soft on the inside. I thought it was delish. My husband enjoyed it too and took 4 pieces to work and I'm eating some as I'm writing right now.

Here is the dough recipe (MAKES TWO CRUSTS):

1 teaspoon Active Dry Or Instant Yeast

4 cups All-purpose Flour

1 teaspoon Kosher Salt 

1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

TO MAKE THE CRUST:

Sprinkle yeast over 1 1/2 cups warm (not lukewarm) water.

In a mixer, combine flour and salt. With the mixer running on low speed (with paddle attachment), drizzle in olive oil until combined with flour. Next, pour in yeast/water mixture and mix until just combined.

Coat a separate mixing bowl with a light drizzle of olive oil, and form the dough into a ball. Toss to coat dough in olive oil, then cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and store in a warm place for 1 to 2 hours or until dough has doubled in size. Store in the fridge until you need it. ***It's best to make the dough at least 24 hours in advance, and 3 or 4 days is even better.

NOTE: You can add garlic, basil, pepper or any other seasoning to your dough for more flavor if desired. 

Enjoy and have an awesome day!!!!

Chicken Salad Croissant

I know it's been a while since I posted some of my delicious meals but here I am again bringing you ideas on what to make for dinner.

Yesterday I made a really good chicken salad, yes!!!! it was the bomb :) and I wanted to share the recipe with you.

You'll need:

2 chicken breasts

½ teaspoon black pepper

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon onion powder

1 stalk of celery, diced

½ small white onion, diced

3 hard boiled eggs, diced

1¾ cups Mayonnaise 

¼ cup sweet relish

Butter Bakery Croissants

Lettuce

Tomato

Instructions:

Season chicken breast with black pepper, salt, onion powder and garlic powder. You can also add more spices if you like. Place chicken in a large skillet.

Add water or chicken broth and simmer covered on medium heat for 7 minutes per side or until done.When chicken is done, let it cool and shred. Set aside.

In a bowl add chicken, onions, celery and eggs. Toss to combine. Stir in mayonnaise, sweet relish and more seasonings if you want to enhance the flavor.

Remember to taste it as you mix in the seasonings to check for the perfect balance. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour. Overnight is best to maximize all the flavors. Sandwich between a buttery bakery croissant with lettuce and tomatoes.

Enjoy it with some chips, fries, grapes or just by itself, it's super good. Always remember to add your own touch to it and make it your own. 

Have an awesome day!!!!

Stuffed Chicken Wrapped in Bacon

Hello again!!!!

Yesterday I was in the mood for some chicken and some bacon. I as was looking through recipes to find the perfect combination of both I came across this wonderful recipe that I tweaked and made my own. Here it is, enjoy!!!

 Ingredients:

2 Chicken Breasts

2 slices extra sharp cheddar cheese or shredded cheese

½ bell pepper cut in small pieces

½ onion cut in small pieces

½ tomato cut in small pieces

4 pieces bacon

Salt and pepper for seasoning

Instructions

Carefully cut open chicken breasts with a long thin knife. You'll want to butterfly them, but be careful to not cut yourself or pull the knife up or down to get an uneven cut.

Season inside with salt and pepper.

Cut cheddar slices in half so you can lay them inside chicken and not overhang.

Mix bell pepper, onions and tomatoes.

Lay into chicken, fold chicken back up.

I added the cheese after I took the picture and forgot to take another one, upss!!!

Carefully wrap chicken with bacon.

If you are having a hard time, you can use a toothpick to keep the chicken closed and the bacon from sliding off- but that is totally optional.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, check chicken's internal temp.

When chicken is cooked thoroughly, set to broil and crisp bacon under broiler for about 2 minutes.

Serve with veggies and a salad, rice or other side dish and enjoy!

Note: I had two big chicken breasts and cut in half, so I made four stuffed chicken breast instead of two. I also used shredded cheese instead of slices (that’s what I had at home) and added a little bit of garlic powder on top of my ready to bake chicken. 

If you are looking for an easy recipe, this is it!!! It was so good and moist, my hubby loved it and took the other two pieces to work. 

Have a wonderful day!!!!