And the Winner Is...

Congratulations to Susan D from This Day!  Susan won the Girard's Salad Dressing Giveaway!

Please send me your mailing address so we can get your prize to you right away!

Have a great weekend!

Orange Fired Trout Almondine

This sounds like some fancy-smanchy dish and a taskmaster of a recipe, but actually it is very simple.  It's more of a method than a recipe.  Here, I'll show you what I'm talking about.

Lay a piece of aluminum foil approximately 12 to 15 inches long on your counter top.  Spray one side with a non-stick cooking spray...I don't take any chances when it comes to the possibility of food sticking.  Place 3 thin orange slices in the middle of the foil.

Generously coat your fish fillet (rainbow trout shown here) with extra virgin olive oil.  Season to taste with Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper.  Place your fish on top of the orange slices.

Sprinkle sliced almonds on top of the trout.

Seal up your fish in the foil.

Place your foil packets on a pre-heated grill on high heat.  Grill about five minutes per side.

This was a real winner.  The delicate flavors, the moistness of the fish.  Give this a try with your favorite fish!

Girard Salad Dressing Giveaway!!!!

Do you know what I like better the getting to tryout new foodie products?  Sharing them with you!!!!

The kind people at Girard's are not stopping at sharing coupons, they are sponsoring a giveaway that one of you lucky readers will win!   One lucky winner will win a beautifully boxed package of four of Girard's gourmet salad dressings.

Just think how much fun you will have experimenting and creating your own signature dishes.

Leave a comment on this post by midnight EST Thursday night.  The winner will be announced Friday morning.  If you do not have a google ID, please be sure to give me your email address so you can be contacted if you win.

Good luck!

Cajun Potato Frenzy!

Ever have one of those evenings when you get home from work and no one tells you hello or asks how your day was?  You're greeted with, "Mom, I'm starvin', there's nothin' to eat 'round here.  When's dinnah gonna be ready?"  This is my house almost every evening the last few weeks.  Since soccer practice is in full swing and the first scrimmages only weeks away, my girls are craving lots of carbs.

 I make a mad dash into the kitchen and panic about what sides to serve that they will eat.  They are both real picky; my my oldest as you know, is a real piece of work as far as sixteen year olds go.

In  a frenzy I came up with these potatoes.  Oh, I'm sure there are many versions of these around, they are smiliar to a loaded baked potato, only Cajun style.

Make these and your family or friends are sure to throw a parade in your honor.

Fill a stockpot a little more than halfway with water and add in three healthy tablespoons of powdered crab boil. Peel about 2 to 3 lbs. of  potatoes and cut in half lengthwise, then cut the halves into thirds, lengthwise and then cut into large cubes, (about 3 to 4 cuts across, depending on the size of your potato).  Add the potatoes to the pot.

Bring water to a boil and cook the potatoes until fork-tender, about 15 minutes.

While the potatoes are boiling: in a medium sauce pan on medium heat, 5 slices of bacon until crispy; remove and drain on a paper towel. When cooled, crumble and reserve. 

Reserve about 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat and add 1 cup of chopped red onion to the fat; cook until caramelized.

Just as the onions are done, add in 1 heaping tablespoon of minced garlic  and 1 tablespoon of chopped chives and cook one more minute.

In a bowl, place 1/2 cup room temperature butter, 1 cup of sharp cheddar cheese, half of the crumbled bacon and 1 scallion thinly sliced (chives will work great too) and the carmleized onins and garlic.  Stir to combine and melt the cheese and butter.  Season to taste with cayenne, salt, pepper.  Add in 1 cup of sour cream and mix together thoroughly.

Add in cooked and drained potatoes and let it set for about 2 minutes, then gently toss to combine, you don't want to mash the potatoes, you want them kind of chunky.  Top with remaining bacon and some chopped scallions.

I love a prade!

Crispy Orange Chicken

I borrowed this recipe from one of my blogging friends, Mary Beth at Dunkin Cooking The Semi-Homemade Way and it was a huge hit!  The homegirlz fussed at me when they went looking for leftovers for lunch the next day and there were none.

Next time I make this, I will have to double up on the chicken because they just could get enough.  I also cranked up the garlic a little bit.  This is definitely earned a spot in our rotation.

Cube three boneless, skinless chicken breasts and season with salt and pepper, reserve.  Using a shallow dish, slightly beat one egg and combine with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.  Add cubed chicken to egg and oil mixture.  Toss to evenly coat chicken.  In another shallow dish, combine 1 cup of flour, 1 teaspoon of cornstarch, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. 

Dredge the chicken cubes through the flour cornstarch mixture and cook in a fryer or deep skillet at 375 degrees.

Cook until golden brown and drain on a paper towel lined plate.

While the chicken is cooking, let's make the sauce.  In a sauce pan over medium-high heat, saute 1 tablespoon minced garlic in 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil for about one minute. Then add in 1 cup of orange juice, 1 cup of hoisin sauce, 1/4 cup of sugar, 1 teaspoon sesame seeds and a pinch of cayenne.  Bring sauce to a boil and cook for 3 minutes.  Turn heat down to simmer and reduce until thick.  Stir to make sure sauce is not burning.   I added about 1/2 teaspoon of orange zest to the sauce for a little added flavor.

I decided to keep the sauce a little thinner.  We served it over jasmine rice as Mary Beth suggested and garnished with sliced scallions.

 

Antipasti My Way!

The kind people at Girard's sent me a sample of four of their gourmet salad dressings!  So difficult to choose which one to try first.  I do have a little swag for you too!  Click here for a $2.00 coupon for one of Girard's salad dressings.

A.J. and I tossed around a few ideas and decided on my antipasti salad: 

One bowl of washed Romaine lettuce.

The lettuce is liberally garnished with marinated artichoke hearts, organic salami, kalamata olives, fresh basil from our garden, and Parmigiana Reggiano cheese.

I'm drooling just reliving this salad through the pictures.

How to choose?  Each pick a salad dressing and share! 

A.J.'s comment:  "Honey that was delicious!  Bet that salad would be even better with a steak."

Silly me, thinking the salami would tide over his meat craving.

Hurry over and get your coupon!  Didn't know we were going to have a field trip did you?

Five Layer Bars

I'm trying to get caught up on my dessert groove and what a better way to start of a Monday than this.  I know you're looking at it and saying, "What the hell?".  I was only able to get off this one shot.

It's a long story but the long and the short of it is Kaitlin made these while I was at work and would not allow me to take pictures while she was cutting them up because she didn't think she was looking good.  She made these to take to a friend's and they were a BIG, I mean BIG hit.  Ok, I snagged one...ok two, but that stays on this blog.

She saw Paula Deen make these, she looked up the recipe, printed it and took care of business.

So get your kids, teenagers, grand kids or the neighbors kids in the kitchen and make some great memories!

1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 cup butterscotch morsels
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Pour graham cracker crumbs into a large mixing bowl and add melted butter. Stir to thoroughly combine.  Press into bottom of a 9 by 13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle the butterscotch morsels, then the chocolate morsels over the graham cracker crumbs.  Drizzle the condensed milk over the morsels then sprinkle the coconut flakes on top.  Bake for 30 minutes. Allow to cool and cut into bars.

Even if they forget to fold the clothes, feed the dog and completely pollute my laundry room with with sweaty, stinky soccer stuff and least they can feed themselves.

Bet you wish you had teenagers!