Mango Steak Sauce

It’s mango season in our house. That means we eat a fresh, cooled mango every single night, and usually fight over every last bite. With those mangos we don’t quite get to, our #1 go-to meal has been Mango Pulled Pork Sandwiches/Enchiladas. They are to-die-for. Ask anyone! Okay, well, anyone who has made them that is! I wanted to mix it up a little bit, so google came to my rescue with this Mango Steak Sauce. Hubbs prepared the steak to perfection, and I followed up his expertise with this delish topping. We gave the leftovers to our buds and can’t wait to hear the rave reviews! I think you could use this sauce to top any type of meat...pork, steak, or chicken.

Mango Steak Sauce
Printable Version

2 tablespoons canola oil
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 small red onion, chopped
1/2 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons chile powder
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 very ripe mangoes, peeled, pitted and chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a medium high-sided skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and onions and cook until soft. Add the orange juice, honey, chile powder, maple syrup, mustard, Worcestershire and mangos and simmer until the mangoes are very soft and the mixture has thickened, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer the mixture to a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Scrape into a bowl and let cool to room temperature.

Makes 2 cups.
Recipe adapted from Bobby Flay

Rhubarb Crisp

Yum-o. I have only had rhubarb a few times, and two of those times have been in the past 2 weeks! This recipe is so super good! Rhubarb can be a little tart on it’s own, so I threw in some strawberry jello to sweeten it up a bit...(and some sugar-sugar-SUGAR!). I topped it with my delicious double-layer crisp...it is 2 times the crisp layer. So, if you aren’t a big fan of the crisp top, you might want to half the recipe below in order to cut down on the topping! Enjoy!

Rhubarb Crisp
Printable Recipe

Filling
3 cups chopped fresh or frozen (thawed) rhubarb
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup strawberry jello gelatin dessert powder
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla

Place rhubarb in an 8×8 pan in an even layer.
Mix together sugar, jello powder and cornstarch in a small saucepan, stir in water. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Pour over rhubarb.

Crisp
1 cup quick oats
1 cup flour
1 cup brown sugar
¼  tsp. baking powder
¼  tsp. baking soda
½  cup butter, melted

Mix all dry ingredients together. Pour melted butter over dry ingredients and mix until well combined and crumbly.
Put crisp mixture on top of rhubarb and bake at 350ºF for 35 minutes or until rhubarb is cooked through and filling is bubbly.
Allow to cool slightly prior to serving. Serve with homemade cool whip or vanilla ice cream.

Serves 6.

Browned Butter Crinkles

I am truly, deeply in love. Yes, with my hubby, and he with me. We are both, however, truly and deeply in love with these cookies! i didn’t even have to ask my hubs if he liked them, I could tell by the devoured plate I left on the counter that they were approved. I didn’t even know that browned butter existed until I got married and my husband showed me a staple of his, Burnt Butter Noodles. Ever since then I have been just as addicted as he is. When I saw these cookies, I had to make them! I even debated staying up past 10 pm (very rare for me) and throwing them in the oven! Instead, I woke up early the next morning as to get them ready before I left for work. They were worth every missed moment of sleep!

Browned Butter Crinkles

Printable Version

Cookies

2 sticks butter, softened

1 cup sugar

Pinch of salt

3 egg yolks

1 ½ teaspoon baking soda

1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/3 cups flour

bowl of sugar (for rolling dough balls in)

Beat the butter and sugar together. Add the egg yolks and salt and mix well. Then add the soda and the extract and fold in the flour. Stir until combined. Form balls the size of walnuts and chill dough balls for 1 hour in the refrigerator. Roll each of the balls in sugar  and press flat with the bottom of a glass and place on an un-greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes until lightly golden. Remove from oven and let the cookies stand for 1 minute on the cookie sheet. Remove to a wire rack and cool completely, then rost with browned butter frosting.

Browned Butter Frosting

1 stick butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 cups powdered sugar

½ cup heavy cream or more desired consistency

In a small skillet, brown butter over medium heat until golden brown flecks appear. Butter will become a little foamy. Stir now and then to make the butter cooks evenly. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Add butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and cream to a large bowl. Beat on medium high until a creamy texture to your liking forms. Spread onto cooled butter crinkles.

Recipe from justcookalready.com

Makes 50 cookies

Gnocchi Mac n'cheese

How on earth did I not think of this before?! Seriously, if there is a Mac and Cheese guru, it is me. I have a major obsession (confession: even with boxed mac and cheese!) with this comfort food. I have tons of recipes if you click here, you can try them all! I think in the future I will do a tutorial on mac and cheese. They beauty is you can completely change the flavor just by switching up your cheese choice. Yum Yum. This particular meal was so amazing. You can purchase gnocchi at any major grocery store in the pasta isle. Try it if you never have before, you are really missing out.

Gnocchi Mac n' Cheese
Printable Version

1 pound purchased or homemade gnocchi
2 Tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons garlic, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
½ cup milk
¼ cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1/2 cup shredded smoked cheddar cheese
1/2 cup shredded montarrey jack cheese
Salt and white pepper to taste
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Prepare gnocchi according to package directions. Drain.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Whisk in flour until it thickens and bubbles, then whisk in milk and mustard. Continue to whisk mixture and cook until slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes.

Combine cheeses, then add by the handful to milk mixture, stirring until melted before adding the next handful. Once all cheese is melted, season sauce with salt and pepper.

Pour sauce over gnocchi and sprinkle with additional parmesan over top.

Recipe adapted from thecuttingedgeofordinary.blogspot.com
Serves 2.

Chile Colorado

Food Porn. I know, what a horrible name. Please don’t think less of me for enjoying my new obsession. I have made two recipies off of this website in 3 days, and it only fed my addiction further. These babies are true mexican enchiladas. We love enchiladas...try Breen’s Creamy Chicken Enchiladas or for a sweet kick try Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas. These are all so different, but these really felt like the real deal to us. They look harder to make than they actually are, fyi!

Chile Colorado
Printable Version

4 ounces dried New Mexico chile peppers

4 chipotle chile peppers in adobo sauce

1 tbs olive oil

1/2 cup chopped onion

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbs. sherry vinegar

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. fresh oregano, or 1/2 teas dried oregano, crushed

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. salt

1 14-ounce can chicken broth

5-6 cups chicken, cooked and shredded

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 cup montarrey jack cheese, shredded

Sauce
Heat an ungreased griddle or skillet over medium high heat. Toast all peppers on hot griddle for about 1 minute or until fragrant, turning frequently.
Cup open dried peppers; discard stems and seeds. In a bowl, combine peppers in enough boiling water to cover. Cover and let stand for 30 minutes. Drain and reserve peppers.
In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook for about 3 minutes or until tender.
In a blender or food processor, combine peppers, onion mixture, vinegar, sugar, oregano, cumin, and salt. Add the can of broth. Cover; blend until nearly smooth. If desired, add additional chicken broth to thin to desired consistency.

Enchiladas
In a large bowl, combine chicken, 8 ounces cream cheese, and ½ cup chile sauce (add more if a spicier flavor is desired). In a 9 x 13 inch pan, spread 1 cup chile sauce in the bottom. Fill 8 tortillas with shredded chicken mixture and roll tightly. Cover in remaining sauce, (or about 3 tsp. per enchilada if you don’t want it too spicy) and top with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbling.

Recipe highly adapted form BHG
Makes 8 enchiladas

Ali's Creamy Pineapple delight

This is a go-to treat for my best friend, Ali, and now it is a go to treat for me, too! Not only is this an easy dessert to make for large groups of people, but everyone at the party will think that you slaved over homemade ice cream for hours. It is sure to fool all of your guests. Each time I have been at an event where this treat is, people are raving. It is perfectly creamy and has a bit of tartness from the sherbet. Throw it together for your next party, you won’t be disappointed!

Ali’s Creamy Pineapple Delight
Printable Version

1 gallon vanilla ice cream
1 gallon pineappple sherbet
2 small bags frozen raspberries
4 bananas, chopped

Allow ice cream, sherbet, and raspberries to partially thaw. In a large bowl, mix all four ingredients together. Re-freeze mixture until hardened. Prior to serving, thaw slightly.

Makes 2 gallons

Firecracker Chicken

The best meal we have eaten in months. That is a bold statement, I KNOW. Really, though, this was amazing. I took 1 bite and told my hubby, “I want another plate full of this stuff!” We chowed down every last bite on our plates, and then went for seconds. The chicken was perfectly crispy and had a little zip from the marinade. The sauce was the most amazing and perfect mixture of sweet and spicy, I can’t even tell you how great it was! Make this tonight, please, please. It is on our menu this upcoming week! Yahoo!

Firecracker Chicken  

Printable Version

Marinade
½ tsp. salt
1 small egg white, beaten
1 Tbs. cornstarch
2 tsp. peanut oil
1 Tbs. Sherry wine
2 chicken breasts, diced

Coating
1 ½  cup cornstarch
¼  cup peanut oil

Sauce
4 Tablespoons ketchup
½  cup chicken broth
2 Tablespoon sugar
½  cup sweet chili sauce
6 cloves garlic, grated
4 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

In a large bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients for the marinade. Set aside.
Add chicken to marinade and cover the bowl. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. While chicken is marinating, prepare the sauce by whisking together all of the sauce ingredients in a large bowl. Set the prepared sauce aside.
Place the 1 cup of cornstarch in a large bowl. Add the marinated chicken to the cornstarch, tossing to evenly coat. Transfer the coated chicken to a colander and shake off any excess cornstarch.

Place a large, deep sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add peanut oil.
Add prepared chicken to the pan, spread out so they aren't touching each other. Allow them to cook, tossing when necessary, until they are fully cooked throughout. Remove chicken from pan and place on a paper towel to remove excess oil.
Drain the excess oil from the pan and return the pan to the stove, placing it over medium heat. Add the prepared sauce and bring it to a boil.
Add the cooked chicken to the sauce and toss to evenly coat.
Spoon Firecracker Chicken on top of rice or quinoa and serve.

Serves 2
Recipe adapted from Just a taste.com

Chili Rubbed Pork with Orange Glaze salad

I love leftovers, my hubby hates them. This makes us go perfectly together! I have learned to make only enough for us two to eat, but every once in a while I make a little too much. In this case, it was a happy accident. I chopped up my leftover meat from my Chili Rubbed Pork With Orange Glaze, added a few fresh fruits, and dumped the extra glaze from my pork over top. I was in heaven. Seriously. Try this.

Orange Glazed Pork Summer Salad
Printable Version

Salad
Romaine lettuce, chopped
Strawberries, chopped
Mangos, chopped
sliced almonds or pinenuts
A protien (Try using this recipe, Chili Rubbed Pork With Orange Glaze, for your protein.)

Dressing
1 1/2 cups orange marmalade
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 to 1 teaspoon hot sauce(we did 1, but it is quite hot)
2 tablespoon chopped cilantro
2 small limes, juiced

Layer salad with your choice of protien, strawberries, mangos, and nuts. Mix all of the dressing ingredients together and heat in a saucepan or microwave until warm. Pour dressing over layered salad, and enjoy every last bite.

Dressing makes 2 cups.