Guacamole and Chicken Soft Tacos

Mom and I found avocados at the store for 68 cents each, so we loaded up the buggy. (Okay, so we didn't buy a entire buggy full, but we did buy more than several. I am used to paying $1.50 for an avocado, so $.68 seemed like a steal.) All those cheap avocados made some great guacamole.

Mom made the guacamole in the food processor using avocados, onion, garlic, lime juice, salt, and salsa. It was really good!

Since we couldn't just eat guacamole for dinner, I also made some chicken soft tacos as a "side." I was going to use a pack of fajita seasoning on the chicken until I looked at the ingredients. It was all stuff with really long names that I didn't recognize- not what I want to feed my family. So, I came up with my own seasoning.

Ingredients

sliced boneless, skinless chicken breasts into thin strips

chili powder

cayenne pepper

garlic powder

lime pepper seasoning

salt

pepper

1/2 white onion, finely chopped

fresh lime juice

Heat a skillet with some olive oil over medium high heat and add the chicken. Sprinkle the chicken liberally with chili powder, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, lime pepper, salt, and pepper. Stir in onion. Cook the chicken, stirring it often, until cooked through. Sprinkle with lime juice.

We served the chicken with wheat (and regular, for Art) flour tortillas, torn lettuce, shredded cheddar cheese, black olives, refried beans, sour cream, and salsa.

Jacob seemed to enjoy the chicken. He also took a few bites of my soft taco. Everyone else had more than a few bites of their own tacos. Yum!

French Toast

Art and I got together with some friends from college last night and made breakfast for dinner. We had a frittata, home fries, ham, baked fruit salad, french toast, and a mix of left over Christmas desserts. We had a great time hanging out, cooking, and eating together.

I made the french toast. At home, I usually make a light version of "french toast" with wheat bread dipped in a mixture of egg and milk. But, I wanted to make something special for our night with friends.

I found a recipe in my Treebeard's cookbook. This was very easy to make. I combined the egg and milk mixture beforehand and brought it to my friends' house in a container along with the bread. Once we were ready to cook, I soaked the bread and browned it while talking with everyone in the kitchen. Many said it was the best french toast they had ever had.

Ingredients
1" thick slices French bread (I used two loaves of wheat French bread)
9 eggs, beaten
1 cup sugar
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Whisk together all ingredients except bread until well combined. (This may be done in advance, covered and refrigerated. Stir before using.) Put bread slices into the mixture, a few pieces at a time and press down in the mixture to coat. Remove after one minute or when bread has absorbed egg mixture, but before the bread gets soggy and falls apart. Place bread pieces in a pan.
Heat a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Add bread slices in a single layer and cook the bread until golden brown on the first side, about 2-4 minutes. Turn the slices and cook on the second side until golden brown, about 2 minutes longer. Repeat until all slices are browned.
Serves 10.

Oven Barbecue Brisket

I have never eaten a barbecue brisket that I enjoyed. They have usually been tough and lacking taste. I am more of a pulled pork barbecue fan. But, a barbecue brisket recipe in Treebeard's cookbook promising flavorful meat slow roasted in the oven with home cooked sauce attracted me.

Since we are staying with my father-in-law, I took the opportunity to try out this potentially impressive hunk of meat. This is a great dish to prepare if you have a long day at home. It does not require much hands-on attention, but it does have to cook for almost four hours. The brisket is trimmed of fat, so it is very lean. The sauce comes together very quickly, but I'm sure store bought sauce would be a fine substitute.

I served the brisket with the sauce, bread, roasted green beans, and salad. I was impressed with this brisket. It was so tender and full of flavor. Everyone else seemed to enjoy it.

Ingredients
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons celery seeds
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
4 lb beef brisket, trimmed of visible fat
1 1/4 cups barbecue sauce (recipe follows)

In a small bowl, mix sugar, celery seeds, garlic powder, paprika, black pepper, salt, liquid smoke. With fingers, rub powder into both sides of trimmed brisket.

Wrap in double layer of foil and place in plastic storage box. Refrigerate 12 hours or overnight.

Unwrap brisket and place in shallow roasting pan. Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake at 300 degrees for 3 hours, or 45 minutes per pound of brisket until brisket is tender. Remove from oven and let cool. Refrigerate 1 hour to let fat solidify from pan juices.

One hour before serving, remove brisket from pan and using a slotted spoon, remove solid fat particles. Reserve pan drippings.

Cut beef into thin diagonal slices across grain and arrange slices in roasting pan. In a small bowl mix 1 cup pan juices and 1 1/2 cups barbecue sauce. Pour over sliced brisket.

Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes until brisket is fork tender.

Serves 8 to 10.

Barbecue Sauce Ingredients
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic
1 shallot, chopped
1 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons liquid smoke
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon hot sauce
1/2 cup olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
salt to taste

Place all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Transfer to a 1 quart saucepan, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Add more brown sugar or hot sauce to taste.

Cupcakes for a Christmas Party

Last night, Art, Jacob and I went to Art's extended family Christmas party in North Alabama. The party involved a catered barbecue dinner. We were instructed to bring sides and/or desserts.

Since we were traveling to the party, I wanted to bring a make ahead dish that traveled well and could be served at room temperature. I made yellow cupcakes with store bought chocolate icing. I topped them with red and green M&Ms to add a festive flair.

This cake recipe made delicious cupcakes. I made them in mini cupcake pans since I knew there would be other dessert options to sample. The cupcakes were very popular with the kids.

(I do appreciate the irony in a post about cupcakes immediately following a post stating my resolve to prepare healthier meals. I have plans for healthy food for our next meal. Stay tuned...)

Baked Salmon and a Return to Healthier Food

Notice the title of this blog: "No More Nuggets." Any reader of my last several posts will notice that I have lost my focus. The amount of nuggets and other fried and/or processed foods my family has consumed over the last several weeks has been disconcerting. I am willing to accept the blame for this because I prepare our meals. I want to get back on track to healthy eating.
Our family Christmas celebration was a test of my resolve in this matter. Yes, we had white bread covered in sugar and butter for breakfast, but by supper time I was ready to take charge. We had a baked fillet of wild king salmon and green beans.
I roasted the green beans as I always do with olive oil, salt, and pepper. I marinated the salmon in a marinade recipe I got from my mom. The recipe is for grilled salmon, but I baked it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. This meal reminded us that healthy food can be delicious!

Ingredients
1/3 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
1/3 cup frozen orange juice, thawed
1 Tablespoon sesame oil
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Combine all ingredients and pour over salmon in a gallon freezer bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Bake or grill.

Monkey Bread

We will be spending Christmas with our families in Birmingham. Since we will be away from home on Christmas, we are having our family Christmas celebration at home today.

As I was growing up, making monkey bread for breakfast on Christmas morning was a tradition my mom practiced for many years.

Monkey bread is a delicious ring of gooey, pull apart sweet bread. Many versions exist, but I love the one my mom always makes using store bought frozen yeast rolls covered with butter, sugar, and butterscotch pudding mix. The little preparation time the recipe requires is done the night before.

This dish has very little redeeming nutritional value, if any. But, having it once a year can not do too much damage, right? I cut down on the amount of sugar just to make myself feel better. I really didn't miss it in the finished product.

Ingredients
1 small box cook and serve butterscotch pudding mix
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 package frozen yeast rolls (the kind that have to rise)
1/2 cup pecan pieces
1/3 cup butter, melted

The night before (or, about 8 hours before) you plan to eat this:
Butter a bundt pan.
Mix together the dry ingredients.
Place frozen rolls in prepared pan. Pour sugar mixture over rolls. Sprinkle with pecans and drizzle with melted butter. Cover the pan tightly with foil and place in a cold oven overnight.

In the morning:
Uncover the pan and return to cold oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (leave the bread in the oven) and bake until bread is golden brown, about 30-40 minutes. Turn bread onto a plate and serve warm.

Turkey, Corn, and Black Bean Nachos

Betsy and I had a great time in Brazil hanging out with friends, attending a wedding, and eating. We ate so much good food: beans and rice, chicken and cheese pastels, garlic pizza, endless amounts of beef at a churrascaria, pao de queijo, and more. Betsy's friends must think Americans eat all the time.

I was so happy to return to my family after a great weekend. My mom cooked a lot while I was gone, so we had leftovers to eat for dinner last night. (Thanks, Mom!)

Tonight for dinner, I made nachos based on an old recipe from Bon Appetit. This is a comparatively healthy version of nachos that is easy and quick to prepare.

We served this in bowls like chili with tortilla chips on the side. Art and Jacob really enjoyed these nachos. Jacob loves tortilla chips, but wanted nothing to do with a chip covered in nacho fixings. So, I broke up a few chips and mixed them into the nacho fixings. I served it to him with a spoon like chili. He ate a ton!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 1/2 pounds ground turkey
• 1/4 cup chili powder (Don't be nervous about using 1/4 cup of chili powder- it really adds a nice flavor and is balanced out by the sweetness of the sugar and corn.)
  
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 15-ounce cans black beans, drained
• 1 16-ounce package frozen corn, thawed
• 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• Tortilla chips
• Shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• Sour cream

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic, and turkey; season with salt and pepper; sauté, breaking up turkey with a spoon, until the onion is very tender, about 8 minutes. Add chili powder, oregano, and sugar; stir 30 seconds. Add beans, corn, and tomato sauce. Cover; simmer until turkey is cooked through, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Mix in lemon juice and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with chips, cheese, and sour cream.