I am ashamed...

I've been a bad blogger. Really when have I been a good blogger? ;-) I've been cooking a lot of fun meals lately, but I've been apathetic about photographing my meals. I do have a few recipes for you all, though.

Not a whole lot has been happening around the house lately. DH hasn't had as many weddings to photograph this fall, which has been nice because it means we can spend more lazy weekends around the apartment. One miracle is that I've been a little better about staying on top of the chores around the house, which is nice. Now our dishwasher's being annoying, so we'll have to get one of the maintenance people out here to fix it. I cook too much not to have a working dishwasher.

We recently had the fall kickoff for our Youth Ministry at church, which was awesome. I am so looking forward to the things that God will do this year in our Lower (and Upper) School Ministry! A few favourite photos...

One of my favourite friends ever!

Two beautiful girls in my lifegroup!

Gonna miss these girls! (They are going up to Upper School) :-(

Two more girls in my lifegroup doing motions for Mercy is Falling

Worship led by Aaron and Jordan (and others)

I haven't been able to get in much substitute teaching so far this year, so I spend most of my days watching country music videos, Desperate Housewives, and Grey's Anatomy, planning meals, and playing games on the internet. Oh what an exciting life I lead. I made a commitment to start running for real when September hit and I've been good so far about getting to the gym or on the road (it all depends on the weather). I've run just over 13 miles so far this month, which is not amazing by any stretch of the imagination, but it's pretty darn good for me just starting out again. I plan on doing at least 3 miles tonight on the treadmill (it's a hot one today).

Anyway... Some eats...

Basil Chicken in a Coconut-Curry Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 16 oz chicken breast
• Olive oil cooking spray
• 1/2 of a large red onion, cut into thin wedges (1 cup)
• 2 fresh jalapeno chile peppers, seeded and finely chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 13.5- or 14-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk, low fat fine
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons snipped fresh basil
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 4 servings hot cooked rice

Directions

1. In a medium bowl combine curry powder, black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon of the salt, and the chili powder. Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Add to spice mixture in bowl; toss to coat. Cover and chill for 1 to 2 hours to allow spices to penetrate meat. 
2. Spray oil into a wok or large nonstick skillet; heat over medium-high heat. Add onion, jalapeno peppers, and garlic to wok; cook and stir about 8 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove onion mixture from wok. Add half of the chicken to wok. Cook and stir for 4 to 6 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Remove from wok. Repeat with remaining chicken. (I have a huge wok, so I cooked it all at once)
3. Stir together coconut milk, cornstarch, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt until smooth. Carefully add to wok. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly. Return chicken and the onion mixture to wok. Stir in basil and ginger. Cook and stir about 2 minutes or until heated through. Serve over hot rice. Makes 4 servings.

Review: More like Curry Chicken in Coconut-Basil Sauce, but you can't taste the sweetness of the coconut... or the basil. Maybe my curry is too spicy. I still LOVED the recipe though. It was DELICIOUS. I can't wait to eat the leftovers in a couple of minutes.

Beef and Chipotle Burritos

no photo available

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 pounds boneless beef round steak, cut 3/4 inch thick
• 1 14-1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/3 cup chopped onion (1 small)
• 1 to 2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 6 9- to 10-inch tomato-flavored or plain flour tortillas, warmed
• 3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese (3 ounces)
• 1 recipe Pico de Gallo Salsa
• Shredded jicama or radishes (optional)
• Dairy sour cream (optional)

Directions

1. Trim fat from meat. Cut meat into 6 pieces. In a 3-1/2- or 4-quart slow cooker place meat, undrained tomatoes, onion, chipotle peppers, oregano, cumin, and garlic.
2. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 8 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 4 to 5 hours. Remove meat from cooker. Using 2 forks, pull meat apart into shreds. Place meat in a large bowl. Stir in enough cooking liquid to reach desired consistency. Divide meat among warm tortillas, spooning it just below the centers. Top with cheese, Pico de Gallo Salsa, and, if desired, jicama and sour cream. Roll up tortillas. Makes 6 servings.

Pico de Gallo Salsa: In a medium bowl combine 2 finely chopped medium tomatoes; 2 tablespoons finely chopped onion; 2 tablespoons snipped fresh cilantro; 1 fresh serrano chile pepper, seeded and finely chopped (see tip); and dash sugar. Cover; chill several hours.

Review: This was my second attempt at a slow-cooker meal after a miserable fail about a year ago. I LOVE this recipe. This will have to be a regular recipe. It was SO good. Very spicy, but not too spicy. We didn't use the jicama or the sour cream. It was sooooooooo good though. Yum.

Cajun Skirt Steak with Creamed Corn

accompanied by a delicious salad and homemade balsamic vinaigrette!

FYI: The steak and corn recipes are from Real Simple Magazine. I love that magazine!

Um... Yum? Yes. Yum.

Ingredients


2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 small onion, chopped

4 cups fresh corn kernels (from 8 ears)

1 cup half-and-half

kosher salt and black pepper

1 1/2 pounds skirt steak, cut into 2 pieces

2 teaspoons blackening or Cajun seasoning
 
Directions
 
1.Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to soften, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the corn, half-and-half, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and simmer until the corn is tender and the half-and-half is slightly thickened, 5 to 8 minutes.


2.Meanwhile, heat broiler. Season the steak with the blackening seasoning and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Place on a broilerproof rimmed baking sheet and broil for 3 to 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Let rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing.
 
In my salad, I used Romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, chopped pecans, goat cheese, and a homemade balsamic vinaigrette (1/2 tbsp EVOO, 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, small garlic clove pressed through a garlic press, pinch of salt, pinch of pepper, and a pinch of sucanat).
 
 
 
I really didn't feel like cooking tonight, since DH has to work late this week. I put together the salad, thinking that that was all I was going to have, but then I realised that there wasn't much to the salad because I didn't chop enough romaine, so I decided to stick to the meal plan, despite DH's absence. That way he can have super leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
 
I've put my new cricut to work today, experimenting with my cartridges. I also consumed 3/4 of a bag of chocolate Quakes. Oops. My other eats for the day: Whole wheat bagel with LF honey-almond cream cheese and a bean burrito (whole wheat tortilla, black beans, salsa, 1/2 serving Mexican cheese). :-)
 
I am currently watching The Sandlot. I LOVED this movie when I was younger. Well, I'm off to scrapbook some more... or just play with my cricut, since I'm mostly just cutting stuff out for fun! :-) Have a good night!

Beef and Broccoli Orange Stir-Fry...

...Over Soba Noodles

Serves: 6 Hands-on time: 45 minutes Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:
-12 oz soba noodles I used almost 9 oz
-Olive Oil Cooking Spray
-1 lb lean round steak, pounded to 1/4 inch thickness and sliced into strips I used .8 lbs
- 1/2 cup white onion, diced
- 2 cups fresh broccoli florets, separeted into bite-sized pieces I used more... I didn't want to waste the rest of the head
-1/2 red bell pepper, julienne cut
- 3 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
-Juice of 1 medium orange
-1 tbsp orange zest
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-2 tsp raw organic honey
-2 tsp whole wheat flour

Instructions:
1. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside. I cooked mine while I prepared the veggies et al.
2. Heat large nonstick or cast iron skillet (I used my wok) over high heat for 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium-high, mist with cooking spray and saute steak for about 5 minutes or until cooked through. Remove steak, leaving juices in the pan.
3. Mist same pan with cooking spray again. Add onion, broccoli, and red pper and saute over medium-high heat for 5 minutes or until cooked through. (I added salt and pepper to my veggies)
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together soy sauce, orange juice and zest, garlic and honey.
5. Add steak back to vegetables in pan and pour in soy sauce mixture. Saute steak and vegetables over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes, then whisk in flour to thicken, about 2-3 minutes. Add noodles to pan and cook until warmed, about 3 more minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

Nutrition per 1 cup serving (if made according to recipe):

Calories: 270
Total Fat: 2 g
Sat Fat: 0 g
Carbs: 51 g
Fiber: 4 g
Sugars: 6 g
Protein: 14 g
Sodium: 520 mg
Cholesterol: 10 mg

I had to cook my steak yesterday because of an expiration date, and I marinated my steak in the sauce for about 2.5 hours just for fun.

THIS WAS SO GOOD. I really felt like it could have been served in a Chinese restaurant. I will DEFINITELY make this again and I suggest that you make it too. I LOVED it. I can't wait for leftovers tomorrow!!

DH and I did go for a 3 miler, which was really nice. After dinner, we went down to DQ (we can walk there in about 5 minutes) and got Blizzards (buy one, get one for $.25!). I am not a huge DQ fan, but DH couldn't stop talking about it. I got a Butterfinger Blizzard, because according to the site, it has the fewest calories... 470! Yikes. I ate half of it while we walked home; that's about all I wanted anyway. The rest is sitting in the freezer, probably for DH to eat later. Haha.

We're watching Bones now... the Office is in a bit... I'll work out during the break between The Office and Pwoject Wunway. Gotta burn off that Blizzard! :-) I actually feel pretty good about my eats today. Only 2 cookies today- not four like yesterday! Haha.

Make sure you check out my other blog from today! Have a great night!!!