Fajita Chicken Salad

This is inspired by the Quesadilla Explosion Salad from Chili's restaurant. My mom and I both love this salad and upon ordering it one day decided to write down what was inside of it to try and recreate it at home. It's not exact but it still tastes yummy.

Fajita Chicken Salad
1 bag salad greens (your choice) I use Romaine
1 can corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup shredded cheese
1/2 can olives, sliced
1 tomato, diced
tortilla strips or crushed up tortilla chips

Mix everything together.

1 pound chicken, cut into chunks and seasoned using a Fajita seasoning mix (follow directions on package of seasoning)

Plate up your salad and put the chicken chunks on top while they are still warm. Use any type of dressing you like. I used Avocado Ranch dressing...recipe follows

Avocado Ranch Dressing
2 med ripe avocadoes
1 c ranch dressing
1/2 c milk
1/2 c sour cream
1/4 c lime juice
1 tsp hot sauce
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Blend together in food processor or blender. Chill and serve with salad.

Fresh Homemade Salsa

Alright..just so you know this is not the 'secret' recipe that has been spoken about. However, I like this recipe and I took some elements from the 'secret' recipe to enhance flavor with some of the spices. I've added my own touch to this salsa, just as you will need to do with your own. What I have found with salsa is that you can get a recipe but it may not be to your own taste so you have to experiement a little with the combination and the amounts. So try this recipe and then play with it until you have your perfect combination!

Fresh Salsa (Homemade)
4-6 tomatoes (whatever kind you like...just not cherry or grape..they are too small)
1-2 serrano peppers
1/4-1/2 onion - you can use white, yellow, or red - your choice
1 bell pepper - again it's your choice...green or red
Cut all of these ingredients to the chunkiness that you prefer. I like to do the peppers and onion really small and the tomatoes a little more chunky...I love tomatoes.
Now for the spices... I like to add my spices 1/2 tsp at a time so that I don't overdo it and it's easier to add more than to subtract more from the salsa.
Garlic Salt
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Chile Powder (I don't add so much of this...it makes it hot)
Cumin
Oregano
(I use all of these as bottled spices)
Stir around and add the juice of one lime or 2-4 TBSP of bottled lime juice.
Taste and adjust the spices to your liking...this is my secret...I usually add 2 TBSP of sugar at this point to sweeten it a little and take the bite out of my salsa...again this is up to you.
If you want to really make your salsa hot...add fresh cilantro to the mix.
Now the most important thing to know about homemade salsa is that the longer you let it marinade together the better it gets. I usually make my salsa the day before I want to eat it. ENJOY!

Peaches for Me and You

My peach tree has really started to produce a lot of fruit. I am thrilled about it and also burdened by all the peaches. This year I gave a lot away to family and then I canned a lot of them as well. I did reserve a few to make this delicious peach cobbler for my family. (Sorry I didn't make cheesecake Nattie!) I didn't get to snap a picture before it was gone and it tasted much better than it looked anyhow.

Peach Cobbler
4 cups peeled, sliced peaches
1/2 cup water
1 cup sugar

Put in saucepan, bring to boil, simmer 10 minutes.

8 TBSP butter

Melt in bottom of your 9 x 13 baking pan

1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
3 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1 cup milk

Stir just until combined. Pour batter over butter - DO NOT STIR. Pour peaches and syrup over batter - DO NOT STIR. Sprinkle with cinnamon or nutmeg or both!

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown on top and peaches are bubbly. Serve with or without ice cream!

Wedding Cake - YUMMY

Making dinner and then posting about it was getting a little too much for me. I am now going to try and be better about posting my fun in the kitchen events. I have a few to put on that are desserts. First thing I did was that I made a wedding cake for my sister-in-law. She wanted just a basic white cake with white frosting and strawberry filling. I used a recipe I got from the food network to make the cake. It is super easy and super delicious. Many people at the wedding were not only complimenting the look of the cake but the taste as well. Here is the recipe.

Twist on a White Cake
1 box white cake mix
1 1/3 cup water
3 egg whites
2 Tbsp butter, melted
2 tsp almond extract
2 tsp vanilla extract

Mix together all ingredients for 30 seconds on low speed and then for 2 minutes on medium speed. Pour into well greased cake pan and bake. I like to bake mine nice and slow so that it cooks evenly and is still moist when you are through. I do 300 degrees for starting at around 25 minutes for an 8 inch round and then I add more time as necessary. My husband's favorite part about making cakes for other people is that they need to be level which means I have to cut off the top parts of the cake and he gets to eat them.

If you want to put a filling in your cake you must first torte the cake (cut it evenly in half so that you have a top and bottom portion). I bought my strawberry filling at Baker's Cash and Carry in SLC (367 W Paxton Ave). They have delicious fillings that are premade and can be stored on your pantry shelf for quite some time without going bad. They have a variety of flavors such as cream cheese, raspberry, lemon, bavarian cream, and of course strawberry. The prices are different depending on which flavor you would like. The strawberry was about 4.50 for one bag. It took two bags to fill this cake. The other filling in the middle is just regular icing colored orange. No flavor.

For the icing I used icing from a can. One secret though is that if you want a buttercream like finish you will need to use whipped frostings!

What's for dinner??

If you are a wife or a woman you have probably heard this question numerous times...too many to count or even try to remember. It used to really get on my nerves when I was working and my husband would call and want to know what was for dinner. I would think WHAT??? YOU HAVE TWO HANDS! Now that I have more time to explore foods and different options I don't mind him asking. I usually, if not always, have an answer to that question now. I don't always make the most nutritious meals (I wish I could), but I do always make a meal that fill his belly. So if any of you out there are thinking, 'I don't know what to make'...all you have to do is quit your job and start to cookin'. If you still work..well order in or go out!:)

Porcupine Meatballs

These meatballs are super easy and one of Jeff's favorite dinners. He doesn't usually ask for a certain meal but for these he will ask almost as much as he does for pizza.

Porcupine Meatballs
1 pound lean ground beef
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup water
1/3 cup uncooked rice (if you don't use instant it's better)
1 (10.75 ounce) can tomato soup
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup water

Combine ground beef, onion, 1/4 cup water and uncooked rice. Shape into 1-inch balls. Arrange in greased baking dish. Combine soup, chili powder, salt and 1/2 cup water. Pour over meatballs. Cover and bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and enjoy. I usually serve these on some rice. 6 servings

Try these for an easy and delicious dinner!