Sausage and Brussel Sprouts

Ingredients:
2 lb of brussels sprout
1 lb sausage--cut into 1/2in pieces  ( I used the spicy sausage so I don't really have to add alot of seasonings since the sausage is so flavorful)
1 small onion sliced really thin
4 cloves of garlic (minced)
dash of salt

2 tablespoon of olive oil

washing my brussels sprout 

blanching them for about 7 minutes..then take them out and shock them..I only cut the really big ones in half. add a teaspoon of salt to the water ;) 

after I shocked them ...I just set it aside

cut the sausage in 1/2 inch pieces. saute sausage with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sliced white onion and minced garlic

cook for about 10 minutes until the sausage is golden brown and onions are translucent (be careful not to burn the garlic so low the heat to medium-low)

add the cooked brussels sprout and give it a good toss...add about 1/4 teaspoon of cracked black pepper (if you like it a little saltier then add a dash of salt) ...then turn off the stove...you don't want the brussels sprout to get soggy ...I like it with a little crunch ;)

WALA!!  ENJOY ;) 

Creamy Potato Salad

Today before I dropped the kids off at school my son asked me to make GUMBO for dinner...so after I dropped them off..I headed for the grocery store. I picked up everything that I needed for the gumbo but felt like I was missing something...so I walked around then I had an "a ha" moment...I was craving potato salad. I love potato salad when I am BBQing and with my gumbo. I know its weird but I like to scoop a spoonful of potato salad then dunk it in my bowl of gumbo ;)


INGREDIENTS:
6 russel potato-large
6 hard boiled eggs
1 celery stalk--chopped into little pieces
1 small red onion --chopped
1 C mayo (you can add more if you like)
1 Tablespoon mustard
2 Tablespoon relish (optional)
2 Tablespoon sour cream (optional)
1 teaspoon Tony Chachere's
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon crack black pepper
dash sugar
crumple BACON (optional)
paprika (garnish)
sliced green onion (garnish)


INSTRUCTION:
1. Rinsed and boiled your the potato whole with SKIN.  Cook for about 20-30 minutes depending on the size of your potato. Once it is cooked...peel and cubed
2. Peel the boiled eggs (12 minutes--I usually drop it in my boiled potato pot ) then sliced into little pieces
3. Combine the red onion, celery, mayo, mustard, relish, sour cream and all the seasoning (except the paprika). Mix well...then pour over the potato and egg mixture...mix well then garnish with paprika and green onion...

*** sometimes I add bacon and diced jalapeno --for a little kick ;)

ENJOY!!!

Meal Planning

Meal Planning--September 9-September 15, 2013

I got all of my necessity for this weeks meal...I am so happy that the kids are back to school and now I can go back to meal planning for the week. During the summer we were so busy with swimming lessons ...mini vacations...having unplanned play dates that I DID not plan any of my meals for the week...I just went with the flow...also it was just too hot to stay in the kitchen for long. Plus having the kids home 24/7 they were continually hungry...



Usually I would go grocery shopping after I drop all the kids off to school on Monday...I would come home and start preparing the week meals.

Every week I usually buy ground meat (beef) the amount is usually depended on what I am making that particular week. This week I am making 4 meals that consist of ground beef so I bought 6lbs...I came home and empty all 6 lbs into my Le Creuset and seasoned with 2 tablespoon of Tony Chacher's, 2 tablespoon of garlic powder, 1 large onion (finely diced) and 6 cloves of garlic (minced) . I would brown it threw then portion them out to 4 different containers for the week meals.

This Weeks Meals:

Monday--Chili (kids are having chili dogs) with a Caesar salad

Tuesday--bake chicken (I used the Weber--Garlic and Herb marinade mix)  served with steam broccoli and jasmine rice 

Wednesday--Taco (soft and hard) with butter corn

Thursday---Lasagna roll with mix salad 

Friday--Shrimp and Chicken Gumbo with potato salad and grill cheese sandwich

Saturday--Salty minced ground  beef with Jasmines rice 

Sunday--Potato Soup 

Chili

Ingredients:
2 tablespoon olive oil
2 pounds of ground beef
1 large onion (finely chopped)
4 cloves of garlic (minced)
2 tablespoon of chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
2 can of kidney beans (14 oz)
1 can crush (28 oz)  tomato sauce
1 can diced tomato sauce ( I used the fired roasted--Rotel is great too)
1/2 can chipotle in adobe (puree)
2 teaspoon oregano
1 jalapenos (diced)
1 cup beef broth or 1 cup of beer (I didn't have beer so I used beef broth)
1 tablespoon of cayenne pepper (optional--I add this in after I took out some for the kids)

***I puree my adobe with the diced tomato instead of having to add water to the adobe***

Garnish:
Cheese ( I used the Mexican blend)
Red Onion (finely diced)
Cilantro
Jalapenos



DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add your ground meat, chopped onions and minced garlic. Cooked until slightly browned.
2. Add in your spices and tomato sauces and the adobe puree. Cook for another 5 minutes until fragrant.
3. To the pot add in your beef broth (or beer) the drained kidney beans. Stir well to combine...then place the lid on and cook for 60-90 minutes...REMEMBER to stir occasionally to prevent chili from sticking to the bottom of the pot.

4. Garnish with cheese, red onion, cilantro and sliced jalapenos.


*** You can also serve over hotdogs***



**I separated out a huge portion for the kids and then I added more cayenne pepper and jalapenos to the rest of the pot ...since hubby and I like it spicy**


ENJOY!!!

All the ingredients  I used in my chili (I used the Hunt's brand tomato sauce for chili)

Dutch oven--browning my ground meat with onion and garlic

                        Chili Dog 

Banana Bread with Pecan

My family love to eat banana but sometimes we don't get a chance to finish the banana and so it gets too ripe ...and once the banana has a few spots on them..my kids refuse to eat them...so I make banana bread ;)
I made one last week but it had walnut and shorten in it..today I went back to my old recipe with butter and sour cream.

Ingredients:
1 stick of butter (room temperature)
1 cup sugar
2 large egg
1 1/2 all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking SODA
1 teaspoon salt
2 ripe banana (smashed and set aside)
1/2 cup SOUR CREAM
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup pecan (lightly crushed)


Preheat oven to 350 F

In your mixing blender cream together the sugar and butter until its smooth....and incorporated.
Next stir in your 2 eggs and sour cream...then vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl...mix all your dry ingredients together...APF, baking SODA, cinnamon, salt...using a fork to mix it all together.


Take your 2 banana and smashed it lightly with a fork...don't over smash it...you want some clumps in them.

Next you slowly pour in your dry ingredients into your sugar/butter mixture. Then you add your smashed banana and nuts...

Pour battered into a GREASE loaf pan and bake for 1 hr ...depending on your stove you might have to bake for 1:10 minutes or so....if your toothpick comes out clean then its ready....serve with a pat of butter and a cup of coffee ;)

ENJOY!!!