Random Recipes

OK, I got bored with doing this blog separately from my other blogs. So I'm still posting recipes, but they're on the Random Oasis blog, not here.

Wednesday, February 1

Spark's Chili

So I just finished making this one for tonight. It's very yummy.

1 lb ground beef
1 onion chopped
1/2 green bell pepper
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped/smashed/pulverized
2 small cans or 1 large can of diced or chopped tomatoes
2 cans of chili beans
4 Tbs sugar
3 Tbs chili powder in 2 Tbs warm water
1 small can tomato paste
1 bay leaf

Put chopped veggies in a pot and start to sautee over med-high heat with just a small pinch of salt. When they just start to get going, add the beef. Don't worry about breaking it up as you can do that with a spoon or spatula. Mix and cook. Break the meat up well as it cooks so there are no large chunks. When the meat is cooked, add all the other ingedients (tomatoes, tomoto paste, chili beans, chili powder in water, sugar, bay leaf). Mix thoroughly, and let simmer for at least an hour and then serve with plenty of cheddar chese.

Freezes really well.

Source:
Spark. One of my dear friends and neighbors from Florida.

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Tuesday, January 31

S'Mores Treats

1 package of mini marhmallows (they melt better)
1/2 c. chocolate chips (I know, it's not really much, but it melts and goes gooey, and you don't need a lot)
4-5 c. graham cracker cereal (Golden Grahams or Honey Grahams [Malt-o-Meal], or whatever else)
3-4 Tbs. butter

My best piece of advice I can give you is to use a non stick pan and use Pam or spray oil on everything before you start. Otherwise doing the dishes is a huge pain, and the marshmallows will stick to everything.

The idea behind this is the same as for Rice Krispy treats. You can do the same thing with rice cereal for chocolate treats.

Start by melting the butter in a pan over med. heat. When it's almost melted (you don't want to burn it), add the marshmallows. Keep a close eye on the marshmallows, while you put the cereal and the chocolate chips in a large bowl (pre-sprayed with pam or something--trust me on this). When the marshmallows are completely melted, turn up the heat just a bit so they bubble and are really hot, then turn it off and immediately pour over the cereal and chocolate chips, and stir well. The heat of the marshmallows wil melt the chocolate and it should all get yummy and kinda gross looking. Before it cools completely, press into a 13x9 Pam-ed pan. Allow to cool completely. These are best the next day when a little stale from sitting out.

Source:
Me!! (but based on the back of the Rice Krispies box.)

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Sunday, January 29

stuff on toast

This one I just made for dinner and it was rather yummy. You can tweak the spices to suit your tastes, but this is what I used.

For the French Toast:
  • Day old bread--Something savory, like a garlic or onion bread. I used a cheese onion bread. (Use an amount based on how many people you have an how much they will eat--However use less than they would normally eat for breakfast. I used one slice of a round loaf for myself, rather than the 2 I would probably eat for breakfast, and then I used 2 more slices for my roommate-which was too much for him. The total amount I made probably could have fed 3 people comfortably.)
  • One egg (this will vary depending on the amount of bread you use)
  • 2-3 Tbs of milk (again this will vary with the amount of bread, and you don't have to use it if you don't want to. Just use more eggs.)
  • Spices
  • I used:
    1. Cardamom
    2. Garam Masala
    3. Cayenne Pepper
    4. Basil
    5. Black Pepper
    6. I only used about a pinch of everything except the basil, that I used about 3 pinches.

For the topping:
  • Chicken: I used 2 thighs. If you prefer white meat that's fine, just proportion for how many people you have: about 4-6 oz. per person.
  • One can of Diced tomatoes--more or less depending on taste
  • half a can of Navy beans
  • 2 zucchinis, sliced and halved.


Prep the toast first. If you don't have stale bread, then slice it and leave it out for a few hours until it gets to the right texture. You don't want it really stale, just a little old, but not dry at all. Mix the eggs, milk and various spices together until the eggs and milk are well combined. The spices should be well incorporated. I tend to mix the milk and eggs first then add the spices. Then dip the bread in until soaks up some of the egg mixture. Then you fry it in a pan the same way you do for regular french toast. If you don't use a non-stick skillet, then you'll have to use a bit of butter or oil-spray.

So, basically I started with the chicken and diced it to bite-sized. I melted about a quater teaspoon of butter with olive oil over med. heat and then threw the chicken in. When the chicken is almost cooked, but not quite (if it's fully cooked at this point, it'll be overdone by the time the dish is finished) add the zucchini and cook for a few moments. Then add the tomatoes and beans. The tomatoes should have a lot of liquid, so simmer it for a little while to get rid of some it. You can do it for a long time or a short time depending on how liquid-y you want it.

To plate it, just throw the toast on a plate and then spoon or ladle the chicken/tomato mixture over the french toast.

Source:
Me!

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