My Salsa… Part Dos.

Just before Thanksgiving took over, I posted about a green salsa I made and LOVED.

Well, it was not made alone.

Here is my second salsa, a red salsa. Salsa Roja, if you will… Whatever you call it, it’s delicious.

I don’t like my red salsa to be chunky or crunchy or as “fresco” as the green one. I like my red salsa to have a bit of a heartier flavor, a lot more heat and a smoky-ness to it that really only comes from roasting the shit out of those tomatoes!

So, let’s get to it!

 

INGREDIENTS:

Again, this amount of ingredients is going to yield about a gallon of salsa. Plan accordingly… (It freezes well!)

4lbs tomatoes, halved, I used Roma and regular old hothouse
3 red bell peppers, halved
4 jalapenos, halved, the amount depends on the heat you want. I keep jalapeno juice in my fridge to spice it up a lot more, since we like one bite of salsa to send us into fits of sweats…
3 white onions, quartered
1 head of garlic, peeled
1 bunch of cilantro, more if you like the taste, I was surprised how much I needed…
Cumin, salt, pepper, chili powder, cayenne, thyme

DIRECTIONS:

Follow the directions in the link to the green salsa above, roasting the veggies a bit longer, allowing them to get REALLY charred under the broiler.

Blend well, season to taste… I have more spices than I can name on my fingers and toes, it’s what you do to your food that makes it YOURS. Remember that things like cumin and chili powder may seem frivolous, but if your salsa tastes off, they can bring it back to a normal taste in a jif. As a “White Girl” venturing into a world of cooking beyond Easy Mac and Uncle Ben’s, I didn’t know WHAT flavors I was tasting when I ate certain foods, and although I feel I’ve mastered a lot of dishes, even this threw me off a bit. It just tasted like veggies until I started seasoning away. Cumin made a world of difference and so did the chili powder, which I wouldn’t have thought of the latter, off the top of my head…

Anyway, that’s all there is to it. It’s best to let the flavors hang out over night and get friendly with one another. The longer it sits, the better it tastes… Well, until it goes bad, then it obviously takes like crap, amiright?

Enjoy!

30 Days of Thanks!

This list went quicker than I thought, after I stopped taking it so seriously. I spent a few hours typing it a while back, had a few pages, and was only to #5! Not to mention I was in tears already…

Needless to say, I’m a pretty thankful little lady. We put up a “Tree of Thanks” in the corner of the dining room, and attached leaves to it with things we’re thankful for written on each one. It was a great project to do and I still stand there and read the ones Mo wrote. They’re adorable.

So, here’s my summarized list of what I am thankful for, this month.

Enjoy!

1. My son. Every day he teaches me to handle life with more kindness, patience, understanding, curiosity, love, positivity, and laughter. He provides the most challenging yet rewarding job I’ve ever had and fills my heart with more pride, joy and love than I’ve ever known.

2. His father. He works hard for our family, loves me unconditionally, keeps it spicy and is the best father I’ve seen. He’s my best friend and growing old with him is pretty much my idea of a life well spent…

3. My brother. He’s saved my life, taught my priceless life lessons and loved me like the mother and father I never had. I’m thankful for our ability to resolve our past issues so that we can move forward and enjoy a life together, now that we live close to each other again!

4. His wife. My sister in law is the kindest, most giving, selfless person I’ve met. She’s beyond generous and takes care of my brother and his children incredibly. She’s a saint. Truly.

5. Their kids. I love my three nephews like they’re my own. I’m amazed, constantly, at how much they love me, my son and “Uncle Mo”. Mo and I are both estranged from some of our family so I’m thankful that Moses can still experience cousins and that closeness, while we work out other issues.

6. My Nana. She’s one tough old broad. She’s taught me how to grab life by the balls and lead it where I want it to go. That being a lady, doesn’t mean taking peoples shit and that a woman can run a house, just as well as a man, single or not!

7. My Father In Law’s upcoming move to the Valley. My father in law, through all the ups and downs, has always been there for me. Always texts me to see how I am, says goodnight and good morning, and calls often, just to say hi. He’s moving out here soon to be closer to us and I’m SO thankful that Moses will have him here to grow up with.

8. My Mother In Law is one of the most giving people I know. She’d give you the shirt off her back, if you needed it, and often does. Cute ones too. She’s shared her home, closet and son with me and I’m eternally grateful.

9. Life’s imperfections. I’ve had one Hell of a life. It’s made me one strong beezy. I’m uber grateful for the rollercoaster responsible for maintaining my thick skin.

10. As I go to type this. Moses says, “Doggy!” I’m thankful for my dog. That she fights negative Pitbull stereotypes every single day. She was in my pocket when I got hit by a car and will forever be my road dog. She farts, snores, snorts and smells bad, on the reg, but she’s mine, and I love her.

11. Our AZ friends. We thought you forgot about us, when we moved back to CA. Then, you showed Mo that you missed him and he brought us back. We wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you! Thank you all for being amazing friends, putting up with our sporadic social tendencies and just bein’ cool! lol

12. You Pierson sisters, Christin and Char. You beezy’s are my closest friends. Every football Sunday is a blast, I love our kitchen time together, I love that our boys get along, I love that our kids love to play together and look forward to growing old with you broads and staying fuckin’ fabulous while we do it! xo

13. My job. I don’t do much. It’s nice. But I enjoy the social aspects of being a bartender/model/promotional lady, and getting to dress up, like I’m going out, but getting paid to chat and mix drinks. It’s great! I make my part of the bills and get to be home when my kid is awake. Best job, ever.

14. My love works with special need students. He loves his job, loves making a difference and cares about the kids. He works at a huge school out in Mesa and with in a year will be in charge of his own class room. I’m so proud of him…

15. My car. My last car, I ruined. I like to trash nice things. Well, the shitty 15 year old “bro-ho” still living in me, likes to trash nice things. I got a Range Rover and promptly took it out into the snow, rain and mud, then out here in the 120 degree heat, just in time for monsoon season. A few puddles deep enough to cover my hood in water coupled with some dried up seals and my apocalypse survival vehicle, died. I now have a grocery getter, that is MUCH newer, and will cost less than half as much to repair while getting twice as good gas mileage. Win.

16. My man got a Harley from his Dad as a gift for graduating college. I love it. I love riding on it, I love how much there is to do within the biker culture out here, without being a complete rat, and I love the potential for photo-shoots, long rides, and sexy times. HEY oh! lol

17. My closet. My stuff n tings. I love stuffs. Mo buys me clothes like I’m Paris Hilton. He asked, “What do you want for Christmas?” I said, “A sewing machine.” He said, “I’ll get you more clothes. Because I like you to look good, you like to look good, and you look good. Clothes it is.” Uuuummm, okay. But who’s complaining? Girls got steeze. Thanks, babe.

18. My makeup. My hot girl disguise tools. Another thing Boo loves to buy me. I’ve never had such a selection in my life and I’m SO grateful. I can remember when I didn’t know how to use it, wear it, or buy it and had like, my makeup bag full and that was it. I’ve got drawers on bags on cases. I’m lucky. Once again, thanks babe.

19. Scottsdale. I live in “The most livable city.” The weather is beautiful. Too hot, for some, that you know, enjoy breathing air that doesn’t singe the lungs 3 months out of the year. But, no, not me. I enjoy the blow torch summers, loosing the skin on my butt to my leather seats, burning my hands just to maintain control of my motor vehicle, and the best part? Flip flops too weak to take the heat of the asphalt turning to little rubber griddles, frying your piggies with each step. But then there’s times like this, where we can go to the Zoo, late November and wear shorts, tshirts and sandals. I can sit on my front porch, every morning of the year, and enjoy my coffee in nice weather. Win.

20. Um, Dutch Brothers Coffee. You’re better than Starbucks. You’re cheaper, more caffeinated and your staff is friendlier. Thank you.

21. My blog. I love my little creation. I’m thankful for the outlet that allows me to share my creativity and cooking and life with the world.

22. “Two Buck Chuck”. Yep, I said it. I’m thankful for cheap wine. Any Mama can tell you, she’s got something for the tough days. A bath, a run, a cigarette, kick boxing, meditation, curling, wine, whatever it may be. Mine, mine’s the cheap wine from Trader Joes. It use to be $1.99 a bottle, thus earning it’s name, but it’s gone up a dollar and I’m okay with that. Delicious, potent, cheap. Thank you, Trader Joes.

23. Ebay. I get a lot of makeup off Ebay. I get a lot of clothes, shoes, accessories off Ebay. I just had to take a moment to thank Ebay’s ability to find anything I want or need, for cheaper than I found it somewhere else. I mean, hey, where else can I score 30 pairs of false eye lashes for a dollar?

24. Our pool at our apartment complex. It’s beautiful. It’s child friendly, well laid out, and perfect for getting my tan on, well into the winter. Thank you, pool and sunshine!

25. This shouldn’t be so low on the list, but life, itself. Like I mentioned before, my dog and I got hit by a car back in 2009 and the scariest moment for me, was waking up on the street, alive. I realized right then that life could have been snatched, just that fast. I was in a bad mood, I was cold and I was walking to the store to buy cigarettes. I would have died unhappy. Although I now forget time to time, it taught me to be more in the moment and grateful for everything, everywhere. I could use a big reminder of this sometimes, unfortunately. Maybe this is what I need to kick start the positive thinking, full force.

26. My artistic abilities. I’m so thankful that I can see something I like, and recreate it. I have made gifts for people that have made them cry, good tears, lol. That’s such a fulfilling feeling. I can’t wait to teach my son that making something for somebody always trumps a last minute gift.

27. Food. I’m thankful, not just for food in general, but for healthy, nutritious food. When I met this boy of mine, he ate like a typical college student. A well cooked meal was a chicken breast you managed not to burn and a box of Rice-a-Roni. He had no concept of healthy eating and thought that a good workout would kill the bad stuff. I’m thankful for his willingness to embark on a journey of finding a better way of eating and has such an interest in being a healthy eater. It’s so much easier to make life changes when the other half in your life is completely on the same page!

28. Some of my most treasured possessions are the gifts I’ve received from my Boo. For mothers day, he had all my favorite pictures of the family printed out and put into an album I had previously bought but didn’t know what to do with. He always leaves me notes when I get home from work and he’s been here but left. He buys me movies, when he’s out running errands, because he knows I don’t have a particular one. He always brings home something special from the store or spends a little extra on a bottle of wine with a cool name or bottle. He picks me flowers when he’s out and about. Anything he’s given me, I’m thankful for.

29. My basic needs being fulfilled, every day. I know it seems a little vague, but ever since we started watching the Walking Dead, we’re starting to talk more about doomsday prepping (NOT for zombies, but an economic crisis) and how one day, novelties like hot water and microwaves, will be no more. I’m thankful for my creature comforts, while I’ve still got em.

30. The internet. Sounds stupid, but hear me out. We live in a time where any information we want, is at our finger tips. Want to learn how to feed 100 people for $50? Build a bomb? Find out where Lake Titicaca really is? Just hop on the Google-nets. I love it. I’m an ever changing, information absorbing little sponge. I love to learn. Take a week, pick a subject you don’t know much about. Learn about it. Never stop learning. I love it.

 

So that’s my list. It started out with the intent of being in some sort of order, but let’s be real here, I’m thankful for all of these things, and much more, all at once, some equally and some more than others. If you read this far, congratulations, you win!

Happy Holidays, and I hope this makes you take a little time out of your day to count your blessings!

Zoo Lights

Every year in Phoenix, the zoo puts on Zoo Lights.

We took the little this year and it was pretty darn cool!

Happy Thanksgiving!

With Black Friday over, my family home safe, I’m taking a little time to enjoy a much needed glass of wine and some peace and quiet. However, I’ve had a few of my friends ask what I made for my very first Thanksgiving in our own home… So, I figured, this would be a better way to give everybody the run down!

As we sat there, quietly enjoying the dinner I literally slaved over, (with LOVE, of course) we started talking about what we remember of Thanksgiving as children. Family, food, lots more family, more food… But also, we remembered being hurried around to this house, then this one, then over there to say hi, even into adulthood, having to deal with split families and long distance travels.

It was nice to just sit down whenever dinner was ready, and eat our food, our way. I was excited to cook my food, in my kitchen, with nobody in my way, listening to my music, drinking my bottle of wine, cleaning up behind myself as I went and running the damn thing like clock work. It was a beautiful thing, it was a beautiful Thanksgiving and I couldn’t be happier that I spent it with the two most wonderful boys on the planet!

Enjoy the run through of our dinner and I hope it looks as delicious as it was… Food photographs worse than Andy Dick sometimes…

This turkey was incredible! I’d never cooked a turkey before and I laughed when it came out so good, because the week before I was actually asking my bff how to cook a turkey! She goes, “Um, put it in the oven, turn it on and baste it, Sarah!” I went, “Where do I buy a turkey baster?” I’m a gem. 

I took some butter and smashed it with some black pepper, a little salt, a few cloves of roasted garlic (threw some in while the oven was pre-heating, it doesn’t have to be a FEAT for some roast garlic!) and rubbed it between the skin and the meat of the beasts and legs. (That last part sounded FILTHY!)

I used the rest to rub on the outside of the bird and finished with more black pepper and some thyme and stuffed some extra garlic cloves under the skin as well!

Juicy, tender, dare I say? Perfect?

 

Mashed potatoes are easy. I love the skins on, so there they are, all mixed in there with some cream cheese, a couple cloves of roasted garlic leftover from the turkey, butter and LOAD of black pepper, maybe a pinch of salt to taste.

They’re not good FOR you, but oh my fuck, they were amazing.

Creamy, chunky, filling.

Perfection, again.

I used a bean masher instead of a beater, because, I kid you not, my electric beater is from the 60’s and I was afraid it couldn’t handle the job. I need a serious electronics update in my kitchen. Stat.

I JUST threw away my 60’s blender too. It was HUGE.

My Nana hoards, I enable.

It’s a sickness.

Every woman needs to know how to make her man some gravy, so I won’t take long in this department.

Turkey drippings, made into gravy. Flour, not corn starch.

Easy, peasy.

Again, a TON of black pepper, because the only thing KFC CAN do right, is make gravy extra peppery and delicious.

Mine followed suite nicely!

 

 

 

 

This was my biggest challenge. I refuse to pay out the ass for fried onion strings after last years green bean casserole cost us $11 to make and tasted like everybody elses. “No more!” I say.

This bitch, is completely homemade.

Fresh green beans, halved. My delicious recipe for Cream of Onion & Celery soup, found here, omitting the celery and obviously the black rice. You could make cream of mushroom, but I hate them. So I went with onion. Should have done turkey or something else. It was delicious, but a bit on the onion-y side.

And finally, some homemade French’s onions. Simply, onions dredged in flour and fried to a crisp in oil.

NOT anywhere near healthy, but so delicious I fried up an extra onion for us to snack on and Mo ate them all!

 

This is always good.

Tried and true Mac n’ Cheese.

The recipe can be found here.

It’s a great freezer meal, great for a pot luck, any holiday get together where food is required!

It’s a homemade sauce starting as a roux with some Velveeta and parmesan added. Topped with panko, Ritz and herbs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Where’s the stuffing?” You ask… I ruined it. There. Are you happy?

Last, but not least…. And actually made, first… Mama made pie!

I’ve never tried making one, because honestly, I’m not that big of a fan. Give me a cookie, or fro-yo. I’m straight. A pie is like cake to me. It’s like, what’s the point? If I’m going to eat something like that, it better be bomb, elaborate and have layers and secret caverns.

I almost bought a pie. Then I went, “If I’m frying fucking thread sized onions to TOP a dish, I’m NOT pussing out a buying a pie.” So… I didn’t.

I bought cheesecake, pudding, heavy cream, a pie shell and a Hershey bar, and made a pie!

Heavy cream obvi get’s beaten into whip cream with a beater, it takes about 10 minutes, so calm your titties and wait it out. It’s worth it. Oh, and don’t forget the powdered sugar or you just have stiff milk. Ew. My pie? Not ew. Savvy?

So, there’s my turkey day!

I hope everybody’s day was as wonderful as mine was, I hope you all actually took time to thank those you are thankful for and stop to appreciate that in your life which deserves appreciation. I’ve been working on my “30 Days of Thanks” post and can’t wait to get it up… Although I feel like it will be a rambling rant of more or less 30 things I’m thankful for, ranging anywhere from my own flesh and blood to my new leather leggings. lol

Good night!

My salsa…

Makes all the pretty girls dance and want to take off their underpants….. My salsa.

Yep, I went there.

Ladies and gentlemen, I made, SALSA.

No, but seriously, last Sunday Funday we had a little too many margaritas at our “Avacado” party and got to eating a TON of my salsa I brought over. I decided to TRY to make both red and green kinds, they turned out well and I thought they’d be a nice addition to the part-ay.

Little did I know I did SUCH a good job on them, that Char used the green one in her Chicken Bites and her guy Jason actually kept half the jar! I keep forgetting to ask her if she liked the rest of it and what she did with it, but will be asking today, for sure!

Needless to say, it was a hit. We love having fresh salsa in the house and use it on everything. But this post is not about my love of the salsa. It’s about how this white girl makes some mean salsa.

Today, we’ll be making the green kind. Salsa Verde, to me is different than Chile Verde. Some disagree, some agree, whatever floats my boat in my kitchen, amiright? Yep. SO, the uncooked, chip friendly version we’re making in this post, would be, to me, salsa verde. The cooked, amended version would be chile verde, suitable for burritos and worthy of an addiction. I have mastered this too, and will show you later, grasshopper.

So, this is pretty easy, it’s just time consuming. It’s best to do this when you know your grocery store or local market is having a sale, sometimes, if you don’t know where to look, tomatillos can be a rip off. As can chiles of all sorts. We shop at Food City. They’re close, cheap, and grow locally. Sold.


Now, you might be asking yourself… “What the crap is a tomatillo?”
You may not have as potty-mouthed of an inner voice as I do, but, let’s pretend.

A tomatillo is NOT a green tomato. It’s not a un-ripe tomato, it’s not part of the tomato family. It is it’s own entity.

A delicious entity.

So head out to your local Mexican market and get your hands on some of these sticky bastards. You’ll be hooked… I am.
Especially when they’re 3lbs for $1… Right?!

INGREDIENTS:
This recipe makes over a gallon of salsa. It freezes well, thaws beautifully and lasts surprisingly long in the fridge, when kept in a mason jar.
3lbs tomatillos, cleaned and halved with stem scars removed
2 large white onions
1lb hatch chiles, halved
1 green bell pepper, halved
2 pasilla chiles, halved
3 jalapenos, halved
2 heads of garlic, peeled
1 bunch of green onion, diced
1 Bunch of cilantro, you can leave it whole, or chop it slightly, this all goes in a blender anyway
Juice from 3-4 limes, really depends on your love of tang. Get it?
1tbsp cumin, thyme, black pepper, salt, red pepper flakes (make a the largest tbsp of cumin down to the smallest tbsp of red pepper. I don’t even own measuring spoons, so I’m always guessing on the seasonings, and I use my hands to measure. Always season to taste!)
You will also need a blender or a food processor and a couple baking dishes. Tongs are helpful because the dishes are HOT when they come out of the oven. Obvi.

DIRECTIONS:
Roast all the veggies, except the green onion and cilantro, in the oven under the broiler, in glass baking dishes. These tomatillos have been roasted too long for salsa. You don’t want that much charred skin, you just want to soften everything and bring out the heat in the peppers. These were for chile verde, because I wasn’t sure the salsa was going to work when I made it, I didn’t take a lot of pictures. We’re still living off our freezer supply, so I’m making do with my own stock photography.

Repeat until all the veggies are roasted. I use a glass dish to keep the roasted mess in until it gets blended. Make sure you throw all the juices and seeds into the bowl too!

Now either in a food processor or a blender, blend everything REALLY well, adding some green onion and cilantro to every batch, to make sure it’s evenly chopped and distributed. I do it in small portions, to ensure it’s all mixed well. And then scoop it out and do it again. Before you blend everything for the second time, taste it, season it and remember the flavor will be stronger, spicier and better tomorrow and every day from then on. So don’t over season!

The salsa should sit in the fridge over night, if not 2 nights, to let the flavors become friends, don’t forget this part. Taste it again, after and make sure it tastes right to you, if not, re-season!

From there, I usually line some Tupperware bowls with plastic wrap and portion out 2 cups in each, freeze and when they’re solid, I take them out, wrap the plastic wrap the rest of the way around, wrap again in tin foil and label. They stack nicely in the freezer because I freeze everything in the same size Tupperware, every time. 2 cups is about half a mason jar, which lasts us 2 weeks or so.

I hope you try this, next freezer meal day, or any day! It’s WELL worth the effort. Mo eats salsa on his eggs, in his breakfast burritos and on anything else he can think of, some days!

Enjoy!

Sweet Baby Ray’s Pulled Pork Sammies

Looks yummy, right?

There are few meals, more comforting, than barbeque anything, to me, a self professed “fat kid”… I love it. And I love Sweet Baby Ray's sauce. I also make Sweet Baby Ray's Chicken with it as well as add it to some of my chili, like my Simple Three Bean Chicken Chili.

This meal is super quick, or can be cooked in your crock pot all day. I used meat I had leftover in my freezer, from when I made Pork Loin. I shredded half of the loin and froze that half in two portions. One for chili and one for this! So yes, that $9 piece of meat made 3 meals, some with leftovers. So these sammies, cost Mama $.80 each, including the bread and the sauce. I made fries with it, and the potatoes were 3lbs for a dollar, I used half of those, so the fries were $.50. I fed my family of 3, dinner on this night for $3.70. And we were STUFFED.

I rule.

INGREDIENTS:

Approx. 1lb Pork loin, cooked and shredded
Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce
Buns of your choice. I like to use bread, but we had buns that were taking up precious space in my freezer. They had to GO!
Sides of your choice. I’m venturing into the world of home made potato salad soon… Stay tuned… smh.

DIRECTIONS:

Assuming your pork is cooked and shredded, you can make this meal quickly by just heating the pork and the sauce in a sauce pan until ready to serve. I like to sauté a little onion in the pan before I add the pork, so there’s a little grilled onion effect in there too. It’s amazing.

If your pork isn’t cooked and you’ve got, say half a loin, frozen… Just throw it in the crock pot with a little water, cover in some Baby Ray’s, start on high and finish on low. Take it out, shred it and put it back in for about 30 minutes. Done!

Mmmm…. Great food for all this chilly weather we’ve been having! Scottsdale got cold, overnight, I swear. BUT, I’m a pretty big fan of space heaters (Yes, I exercise extreme caution when using them, with a toddler in the house.) and we haven’t had to turn on our heater, YET. It’s stayed about 76 in the house just by heating the rooms we’re in. We’ll see how this power bill comes out, but I have hiiiiiiiigh hopes for a loooooow bill! Yea, buddy!

Enjoy!!

Baked Broccoli Chicken Supreme

It’s finally getting chilly here in Scottsdale, which means some winter dishes have been in the works! I made this little feast up after finding some black rice that I mentioned in this post where I added it to some yummy home made cream of onion and celery soup, which was another DE-licious winter meal!

This one is pretty simple. It’s dinner in a dish. Easy, peasy. I like to keep chicken in the freezer, shredded in large chunks, for anything. It’s handy, it’s cheap and it takes a lot of steps out of preparing dinner. I also like to keep cooked rice and cream of something or other soup in the freezer, to add to dishes too. So with a little prep work ahead of time, this dish takes five minutes for prep and about 30 to bake.

INGREDIENTS:

The amounts are going to vary based on your dish size. I made a tiny one, because I wasn’t sure how it was going to work out. Unfortunately, I don’t remember the amounts. Like I said, I’m WAY behind on recipes. Sorry!

Black Rice, cooked
Broccoli, steamed, al dente
Chicken, cooked and shredded, seasoned with salt, pepper, rosemary and thyme
Cream of onion/celery soup, IF you have to use the canned, dump it into a bowl, add a little milk and whisk until creamy
1 Box of stuffing, prepared
Mozzarella and parmesan cheese to layer with, if you want it a little cheesy.

 

DIRECTIONS:

Bake this bad boy at about 350, till it’s bubbly, golden and ready!

Yep.

It’s that simple!

Enjoy!

 

Old Fashioned Oatmeal Cookies

I’m trying to watch the first season of Walking Dead, and write recipes for cookies. Zombies and treats, yay, Friday! Haha….

I’ve searched and I’ve searched for an oatmeal cookie recipe that I actually liked, one that used real oats, not powdery quick oats, and one that my son would like, without being too sweet.

Couldn’t find it, so I made it up.

It uses very little flour, little sugar and is essentially a baked, flavored, cereal. Which is perfect because everybody eats them for breakfast sometimes, especially the baby… He says, “Cookie?” Yes, you can have a cookie. You can have anything you want with that face… Smh.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are obviously, only a slight difference in my three types of cookies. One are plain, one have chocolate chips and the others have chocolate and peanut butter chips. They all bake the same.

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 Cup all purpose flour
1/2 Tsp baking soda
1 Tsp Cinnamon
3/4 Cup brown sugar, packed
3 Cups of whole oats
1 Tsp Salt
1/2 Cup mix in’s of your choice
3/4 Cup butter, softened or melted
1 Tsp vanilla
1 Egg
A splash of milk, trust me.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Mix dry ingredients… Mix wet ingredients… Combine.

Bake at 350 until brown at the edges but SOFT in the center. It’s better to be on the soft side, when they’re hard, they’re like granola. Which might not be bad, if that’s what you’re going for! I like them soft in the center though, especially the chocolate chip ones!

Enjoy!

Cream of Onion & Celery Soup with Black Rice

Oooooh happy Friday in about 15 minutes. This week has been LONG! I re-discovered a old favorite grocery store and have been occupied with their sales, buying over 10lbs of produce and making it into salsas, tomato sauce and chile verde. I sat down at 11pm tonight for the first time since I walked into the kitchen to bake cookies at 9am. I’m effin’ exhausted.

Anyway, I wanted to try this out ahead of time, to see if I could make my own “cream of something” soup. Because they over charge you in the store for the teeny cans, it doesn’t look like food, and it’s full of sodium, chemicals and crap. So I wanted my own, customizable cream-of-whatever-the-fuck-I-wanted, soup. Twas a smashing success, if I do say so myself…

A quick low-down on black rice, if you’ve never heard of it… And since I’m tired I’m going to quote straight from Wikipedia: “Black rice is high in nutritional value and contains 18 amino acids, iron, zinc, copper, carotene and several important vitamins.” Pretty bomb little grains. And they’re tasty! I bought this brand below, just because it was the first one I saw, ever. Hopefully it becomes more popular and cheaper. I hate myself for saying that. Ugh, consumerism.

Back to the soup.

INGREDIENTS:

3Tbs butter, I use unsalted
3Tbs all purpose flour, I use unbleached
1Qt milk, I use 1%, I’d normally have used some buttermilk too, but I didn’t have any. I’d say about 1/2 a cup.
1Cup white onion, diced
1Cup celery, chopped
1Clove garlic, minced
Salt, pepper, tips of celery to garnish

DIRECTIONS:

Follow the directions on your package of black rice, cooking it fully before adding it to your soup.

In a medium sauce pan, on medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and whisk until fully incorporated, and cook until it starts to brown nicely. Slowly add the milk, whisking to incorporate the flour fully after about a cup of milk, then adding the rest slowly. Reduce the heat, after it reaches a boil, and simmer, whisking almost constantly (sorry!) until it reaches your desired soupy-ness.

Add the rice, garnish with the tips of the celery stalks you used!

This soup was delicious, not expensive and I will be making it again VERY soon. I’m working hard to build my soup recipe stash before winter hits… Ooooh, hard winter we get here in the desert. lol