Hungarian Chicken Paprikash

Paprikás Csirke.

"Waiter, there is too much pepper on my Paprikash" ... Straight from the movie, When Harry Met Sally... "But I would be proud to partake of your Pecan Pie"....

We had no Pecan Pie to partake in, just the traditional Hungarian Chicken Paprikash. Another comforting case of food coma. Seriously, the Hungarian's really know how to eat. So Good. Another meal that Elie ate-up. Atta Girl Els. I think the experiment is settling in with her. She would have NEVER tried this last year, based on the look of it. So proud of her. Katy tried one bite and then settled into a bowl of cottage cheese. I was so tempted to sprinkle paprika on it, like our mom's used to do when they served that delicious pear halve placed on a lettuce leaf and topped with cottage cheese. But I ran out, using it in the Paprikash. Back to Penzie Spice I go tomorrow...for more Paprika!

This one-pot classic dish combines five key Hungarian ingredients -- onions, green peppers, tomatoes, paprika and sour cream. The soul of the Paprikash is the paprika, the Hungarian spice that accompanies most dishes in Hungary. We served this with whole wheat egg noodles. 

Hungarian Chicken Paprikash 

Makes 6 servings  Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 35 minutes Total Time: 50 minutes

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter 

1 medium onion, finely chopped 

1 (3 1/2-pound) chicken, cut up (I used a pack of boneless chicken breasts)

1 green pepper, seeded and chopped 

1 large tomato, peeled, seeded and chopped or 1 (14.5-ounce) can chopped tomatoes undrained

1 clove garlic, finely chopped 

1 tablespoon sweet or hot Hungarian paprika 

Salt and black pepper 

3/4 cup water 

1 cup sour cream 

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Preparation:

1. Heat butter in a Dutch oven or large skillet with a lid. Add onion and saute over low heat until translucent.

2. Add chicken pieces and brown lightly on both sides. Add green peppers, tomatoes, garlic and paprika. Season to taste with salt and pepper and stir in water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook 35 minutes or until chicken is tender (about 20 minutes if using only chicken breasts).

3. Remove chicken to a heated platter and keep warm. In a small bowl, mix sour cream with flour. Temper mixture with some of the pan juices. Return tempered sour cream mixture to pan and simmer until juices are thickened. Return chicken to pan to rewarm.

4. Portion into heated bowls or plates, and serve with boiled rice, nokedli, which are similar to German spaetzle. Or arrange on a platter of noodles for a family-style presentation. (I used whole wheat egg noodles)

A Twist on Grilled Cheese.

Day 2 in Hungary was filled with a trip back to the store for more potatoes and onion.

The Hungarian Meal plan:

Hungarian Paprika Potato Soup

Hungarian Grilled Cheese Sandwich

The best intended plan seemed odd today with the 60 degree weather in Iowa...in January. Really? Crock pot Hungarian Paprika Soup sounded great on paper. Oh well, it did create quite a pleasant comforting aroma in the house.

The soup wasn't ready to eat when the kids ate their first meal of the evening before swimming and dance so they ate the Hungarian Grilled Cheese Panini's. Not quite "Hungarian" for them, just salami.

We on the other hand experienced a great twist in a sandwich. Sliced dill pickle and paprika packed in the flavors that gave these sandwiches a thumbs up! The soup was just ok. It seemed over seasoned with fresh dill and it may have been better if I had used Smokey Paprika vs. the Sweet I had on hand. My guess is if the temperature was 50 degrees colder, the soup would have taken on a different flavor too.

The sandwich will definately be added to our eat again menu, the soup.. not so much.

Hungarian Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Ingredients
1 baguette (we used individual Ciabatta Bread rolls-take and bake)
4 ounces swiss cheese, sliced 
8 sour dill pickles, thinly sliced 
8 slices Hungarian Salami, mild or spicy 
1/2 teaspoon Hungarian paprika

Directions

1. Cut baguette in half, lengthwise and partway through.

2. Fill baguette with cheese, pickles and salami. Sprinkle with paprika and close.

3. Cut baguette sandwich into 4.

4. Heat skillet over medium-low heat and cook all 4 parts, approximately 8 minutes on each side, while applying pressure on them, until cheese is melted and baguette is crispy and browned. (We used our Panini Maker)

Hungarian Paprika Potato Soup

Ingredients

2 lbs russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3 inch cubes 

4 cups low sodium chicken broth or 4 cups vegetable broth 

1 tablespoon smoky paprika 

1 teaspoon hot paprika 

1 teaspoon celery seeds 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1 tablespoon olive oil 

1 white onion, finely chopped 

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill 

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg 

1 cup nonfat milk

Directions

1. Place potatoes, broth, paprikas, celery seeds, and salt in 4-quart or larger slow cooker. Stir to combine.

2. Heat oil in medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Transfer to cooker.

3. Cover. Cook on low 4 to 6 hours, or until potatoes are tender. Stir to break up potatoes into broth for a slightly chunky consistency.

4. Add dill, nutmeg, and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Stir in milk. Cover. Cook 20 to 30 more minutes, or until heated through.

Authentic Hungarian Goulash

Hungry for Hungary.
Sunday nights... don't you just love them?  It depends on what we have going on throughout the weekend. They can either be stressful if we had no weekend due to activities or they can be very relaxing which is what occurred today.

We arrived in Hungary this afternoon. And the aroma that began to fill the house was amazing, comfort. The day was busy, filled with ice skating with members from Team Shrinkatini (Live Healthy Iowa) and cleaning my office (Hannah's job). Groceries were already purchased, laundry was being done. Kids all semi-tired. Everyone relaxed. Even caught snippits of the US Marshall and Under Siege with Tommy Lee Jones. A rarity in our household. Oh, and Andy cleaned my car too... god bless him:)

Tonight's meal was Authentic Hungarian Goulash. I purchased a bottle of Hungarian Paprika from Penzie Spice yesterday, ooh la la. I was nervous that the girls would frown upon the meal once served but to my surprise, Elie ate the whole bowl of Goulash! Hannah loved the dumplings that accompanied the Goulash and Katy ate a lot of fruit and cottage cheese and the meat.

I would rate this meal a 4+ out of 5. Katy's vote really doesn't count... she's simply a grazer.  We were all a bit nervous when Andy threw down Hungary as our country but I have a feeling we will enjoy every meal. Potatoes and paprika look like the main ingredients throughout the week.

Happy Is.

Authentic Hungarian Goulash
2 lb. beef chuck 
1 tsp. salt 
2 onions, white or yellow 
2 Tbsp. lard or shortening 
2 Tbsp. imported sweet paprika (most important to use real hungarian paprika for ultimate flavor) 
2 bay leaves 
1 Qt. water 
4 peeled and diced potatoes 
1/4 tsp. black pepper

Cut beef into 1 inch squares, add 1/2 tsp. salt. Chop onions and brown in shortening, add beef and paprika. Let beef simmer in its own juice along with salt and paprika for 1 hr. on low heat. Add water, diced potatoes and remaining salt. Cover and simmer until potatoes are done and meat is tender. 

Prepare egg dumpling batter:

1 egg 6 Tbsp. flour 1/8 tsp. salt

Add flour to unbeaten egg and salt. Mix well. Let stand for 1/2 hour for flour to mellow. Drop by teaspoonful into Goulash. Cover and simmer 5 minutes after dumplings rise to surface.

Serves 6

Chinese Spareribs

再见中国.
I believe it means good-bye, China. We celebrated a low-key evening in China, saying good-bye to the country and enjoying one last new years tradition of great food and family.

Well, sort of family. It seems that my sister Barb decided to bail on our potstickers and Katy decided hanging out at Cal's house was better than china. And aunt Debbie's family are dining out, though stopping by for a toast later. And Hannah's friends had already ate so it was Andy, Elie and I. A perfect trio in my mind.

We feasted on Chinese Spareribs after finally locating them at Costco this morning. We added Lemon Grass Spring Rolls, Crab Rangoon, Potstickers and Edamame  to the mix and we were sitting good.

Very tasty I must say. The ribs were incredible, fall off the bone immediately kind of ribs.

It's been great learning about the traditions of China. It's really inspiring when their wishes are for good fortune, happiness, wealth and longevity. We could learn a little from these traditions and especially how their cuisine represents so much more than an American Hamburger.

Although I'm not used to cooking and preparing like they do, I now see why they labor so. Because it has meaning far beyond filling your belly with food and I have a new respect for this culture.  This may be why they don't have obesity issues like good ole America where our traditions seem to be surrounded by stuffing it, the more the better. No meaning.

We are anxious for tomorrow, a long flight away to Hungary!

Chinese Spareribs
2 racks of pork spareribs
6 garlic cloves , minced
6 tablespoons ketchup
6 tablespoons chili sauce
6 tablespoons soy sauce
6 tablespoons hoisin sauce
6 tablespoons dry sherry
4 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons grated fresh ginger

Directions:

1. 1
   First before you do anything get you a really big pot and fill it up with water. I use my big soup stockpot but whatever big pot you have that'll fit the ribs is fine. Heat on burner on medium heat. Next put a bunch of spices and herbs in there, I use garlic salt, ground pepper, thyme, rosemary, and oregano, but whatever u like is fine, this is your beef stock.
2. 2
   Put ribs in spiced up water. Now let simmer for about 2-3 hours, till meat is gray and starting to pull away from the edges of the bones. Take ribs out of pot and place ribs in 9x13 baking dish or pan, don't forget to grease it!
3. 3
   Mix all ingredients listed above in a bowl. Taste, if not to your liking add a little bit of whatever you think will help it out. I usually end up putting in more honey and hoisin. Now brush some of sauce on both sides of ribs and let sit on and absorb for about 20-30 minute.
4. 4
   Heat oven to 350 degrees. Brush more sauce on both sides of ribs. Bake for 15 minute Brush more sauce on. Bake 15 more minute. Sauce on ribs should be brown and crispy looking. Serve with sauce if desired and if enough leftover.
5. 5
   Enjoy

My Baby Chinese Dragon.

It's Friday in China!!! Crazy thing happened on the way to pick up Elie tonight at swimming, we found a Pizza take-out joint right in the middle of Beijing on University Ave.  We had to pull in. It was so brightly lit and you could smell the aromas from the street. Ahhh...Little Caesars....

Tonight was a planning night for our upcoming country. Plus a night to discuss plans for our Chinese New Year celebration tomorrow night. The kids chilled and started going through their school bins that were pulled out as we organize the basement now that we have new carpeting down there. Katy found her Chinese dragon mask she made in pre-school! What great timing for our relaxing evening as we unwind our travels in China.

We're starting to get the hang of all this travel and organizing a bit more so our plans are more efficient with our crazy schedules (at least that's my dream). We begin week 5 on Sunday and it's still very exciting. I won't act like this is easy. At times a little anxiety kicks in, mostly because I'm not on it and organized enough to have everything planned out.  I told Andy we need to start looking through cookbooks when we're not doing anything and begin marking meals from different countries and begin building our database so meal-planning will be easier. After his smart remark of "what, you want me to get index cards and write down Cooking Light, 2003, Page 87..."and I replied, "well, actually we need to get a Journal"... he gave me the look... Ok, a slight obsession may be happening with my journey. I'll pause...

But really, meal planning has really stepped up a challenging notch this year ... competing only with myself. Happy Is.

China Moon Salmon

We have settled in. China is our place. Andy and I escaped and dined out in our dining room. It sounds romantic but really it was because our entire kitchen table had been taken over with school books and homework, though not a kid in site.

Tonight we enjoyed China Moon Salmon. Really simple, flavorful. Felt like home. We had Katy's school open house this evening so she ate pancakes at school. Elie was coming home from soccer and Hannah was homework bound. I fixed a quick parmesan tilapia for my non-salmon eaters and they were on their way. They actually commented that the meal didn't seem asian...I replied, "because it's NOT", letting them know I didn't want to hear them rant about the meal.

A quiet dining experience at last.



China Moon Salmon

1 tsp olive oil
1 dash sesame oil
2 clove garlic, minced (minced jar)
1 Tbl. fresh ginger (minced bottle)
1 Tbl. Chinese black bean and garlic sauce
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 pound salmon fillet
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil and sesame oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute garlic and ginger for 1 minute. Stir in black bean sauce and red pepper flakes. Cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in chicken broth; set aside.

Rinse salmon and pat dry. Season each side with salt and pepper. Pace in broiler pan. Spoon black bean mixture over salmon. Broil until cooked. Approx. 10 minutes.

We served with rice, chinese pea pods and salad with asian dressing.

In China, people celebrate the Harvest Moon in the fall. I believe this recipe stems from that holiday, like a Western Thanksgiving. Chinese people believe on that day, the moon is the roundest and brightest signaling a time of completeness and abundance.

"when the moon is full, mankind is one!"

Goodnight, Moon.

Lions Head Meatballs

Shanghai, Baby.
Tonight we went to Shanghai and noshed on a New Years tradition, Lion's head meatballs. It's essentially oversized pork meatballs with bok choy or cabbage to resemble the lion's mane. This is a dish that is deeply symbolic, because in China, lions stand for power and strength, while the oversized meatballs symbolize the coming together of the whole family.

The labor involved in preparing was about an hour and a half from start to finish. I now know why the women in Asia have no weight concerns...they are standing in the kitchen for way too long! China is a little labor intensive...I wonder if I can count the hour into my activity minutes for Live Healthy Iowa...:)

It's funny, the coming together as a whole family thing. Sounds great on paper! Maybe that's why it's popular during the New Year celebration, kind of like our holidays in America when family finally pauses and are together, really together. Our together this evening was this..I drove Elie and Katy to church. I drove Hannah to swim practice. I drove to pick up Elie and Katy from church to take them home. I drove Elie to swim practice and went to the store. I drove home. Taxi Driver with no tips...I should go on strike!

After hanging up my taxi hat, I put on the chefs hat and began to prepare the Lion's Head Meatballs. What a pleasantly surprising finish.  I served Elie two meatballs and plain white rice. She tried 3/4 of one meatball and decided she couldn't deal with the texture any longer. She DID like the flavor so I'm counting that as a win! Hannah, Andy and I enjoyed ours soup-style. I added rice at the bottom of bowl and added the meatballs and bok choy. Then poured the broth from what the meal simmered in.

It was like eating a pot sticker without the "sticker".

Lion's Head Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 pound bok choy, Peking cabbage (Napa cabbage), or spinach leaves 

1 – 2 green onions (spring onions, scallions), minced 

1 tsp. minced ginger 

1 large egg

1 pound ground pork 

1/4 tsp. salt 

1 tsp. granulated sugar 

2 1/2 tsp. pale dry sherry 

3 Tbl. light soy sauce, divided 

1/2 tsp. Asian sesame oil 

Black or white pepper, to taste, optional 

2 - 3 Tbl. cornstarch or flour 2 Tbl. vegetable oil 1 1/2 cups chicken broth

Preparation:

1. Wash and drain the bok choy or other greens. Cut crosswise into 3 inch strips. Mince the ginger and green onion. 

2. In a small bowl, beat the egg with a fork. In a medium bowl, combine the ground pork with the green onion, ginger, salt, sugar, dry sherry, 1 Tbl. soy sauce, Asian sesame oil, pepper if using, and the egg, using your fingers to mix together the ingredients thoroughly. Add as much cornstarch as needed to make so that the mixture is not too wet. (I start with 2 tablespoons and then add 1 teaspoon at a time). 

3. Form the ground pork into 4 large meatballs.If you like, instead of 4 large meatballs you can form the pork into 6 - 8 smaller meatballs.  Flatten them a bit so that they are not completely round. 

4. Heat 2 Tbl. oil in a skillet or wok on medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the meatballs. Cook for 5 minutes until browned on the bottom. Turn and cook the other side (adjust the heat if the meatballs are cooking too quickly). 

5. In a dutch oven or large pot, heat the chicken broth and 2 Tbl. soy sauce to boiling. 

6. Add the meatballs, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Add the bok choy. (You can arrange the bok choy on top of the meatballs so that it steams, or lay some right in the broth if there is room). Simmer for another 15 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through and there is no pinkness in the middle.

To serve Lion's Head Meatballs, serve each meatball on a small plate surrounding by the greens, or in soup bowls with some of the bok choy and broth. You can also thicken some of the broth with a cornstarch and water thickener and pour over the meatballs.

Wok Man.

Day 3 in China was a simple flavor ... Stir Fry Beef with Broccoli. I pulled out our Wok from 1990 and began the process of assembling the meal. Stir fry really is a very easy meal to prepare, just a lot of steps in prepping and with my broken noodle luck, I picked a recipe that was step crazy!

1st, slicing and dicing and marinating and cooking and removing and cleaning and then more cooking and removing and cleaning and then a combined cooking... finally... 5 prep bowls, a sticky pot of rice, 2 dirty knives, 2 cutting boards and a dirty wok later, dinner was done. And so was I... just kidding. I actually have way too much energy for getting 5 hours of sleep and having my Boot Camp class kick me in the (remove the cl from class)... this morning at 5:45 am.

Silent response from the kids which is a good thing. Hannah... "I really like this".... Elie... wasn't feeling great so I'm not sure if that's the reason she agreed with liking the meal or if she was seriously really liking it. Though, she only ate the rice and meat. Katy...ate pasta dinner at Cal's... ate again with us and LOVED the baby corns I added in her honor. Hope they were still good...leftover from Japan. They passed the smell test! Not much leftover which is a sign of Happy Is.

 Stir Fry Beef with Broccoli

 Marinate 3/4 - 1 lb. (thinly sliced against the grain) flank steak for 30 minutes in:
1 Tbl. rice vinegar
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp soy sauce
1 Tbl. water
1 Tbl. cornstarch

Mix up sauce in bowl and set aside:
2 Tbl. oyster sauce
1 Tbl. light soy sauce
1 Tbl. dark soy sauce
1 Tbl. water
Minced garlic to your tasting (I added this)
 In a separate bowl, mix 1/2 tsp corn starch and 1 Tbl water

Wash and chop broccoli. I added carrots and baby corns.

Plug the Wok in. Heat medium-high with 1 cup of oil? which I thought was too extreme so I added 1 Tbl.. later to find out that the oil was the "secret" to seal the meat juices ... oh well. The meat made my way was very juicy and tender....so ha!

Remove the meat and drain the rest of marinade and use a paper towel to clean it up. Heat another Tbl. of oil and 2 cloves of minced garlic. Add broccoli and any other veggies and saute for a few minutes. Add a 1/2 cup water, close the lid and let steam for 4-5 minutes. Remove the veggies into antoher bowl. Wipe the wok clean. Add another Tbl. oil. Add the sauce and cornstarch mixture. Toss back in the beef and veggies. Stir it up and serve over a bed of rice.

Here's to a lucky tomorrow.

Asian Teriyaki Chicken Pasta

2012: The Year of the Dragon.

The Year of the Dragon is one of the most revered years of the Chinese New Year calendar, and those born under the sign are regarded as innovative, passionate people who are colorful, confident and fearless. Andy is lucky enough to hold this honor, born in 1964.

Tonight we enjoyed an old stand-by meal, Asian Teriyaki Chicken Pasta. This was our 1st Christmas Card recipe sent many years ago. I should use the word "we" lightly. Here's how the meal really went down... Elie ate leftover sesame chicken before swim practice...Hannah ate up the leftover white rice...Katy had a Hot Dog before dance... I ran the kids to activities and went to the gym to get my first 30 minutes of activity done in the 100 day challenge. Andy ate the meal...

Fast forward 2 hours .... Katy came home hungry ... wanted the white rice that Hannah had gobbled earlier... mad ... ate cold spaghetti noodles and ended the night with coffee ice cream ... Elie came home starved for dinner, not the asian pasta due to the cracked red pepper mingling about..ate a frozen Amy's Burrito ... Hannah warmed up the chinese pasta ... I also did too. 3 happy, 2 not so much. Better keep it friendlier tomorrow ...

NOTE: It is very important not to cut or break the noodles while cooking or serving them. To do so would be very bad luck indeed...a superstition among this holiday come to find out ... great ... Happy Monday.

Asian Teriyaki Chicken Pasta

8 oz. oriental noodles or linguini (I used whole wheat linguini)

1 Tbl. oriental sesame oil

2 Tbl. vegetable oil

2 skinless boneless chicken breast halves, cut crosswise into 1/3 inch strips 

6 green onions, sliced on diagonal into 1- inch pieces

2-3 carrots, peeled very thinly sliced on diagonal

1/4 tsp dried crushed red pepper

6 Tbl. teriyaki sauce

Cook noodles in large pot of boiling water until just tender. Drain well; return to pot. Add sesame oil and toss to coat.

Heat vegetable oil in heavy large skillet over high heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken to skillet and saute until no longer pink, about 2 minutes.

Add sliced green onions, carrot and crushed red pepper. Stir-fry until vegetables are crisp-tender but still bright in color and chicken is cooked through, about 2 minutes longer. Add noodles and teriyaki sauce and toss to blend well.

2-3 servings. Can be doubled. 

Shortcut: I used a pack of chicken tenders instead of cutting chicken breast

Hello China.

Crazy weekend, sitting in a swimming pool bleacher for 16 – 18 hours total! Needless to say, dinner-making wasn't going to happen for us this evening.

We usually love cooking on Sunday nights because we are all together with no activities. A calm family moment. Except for tonight. So, we called upon our native country restaurant for help... The Mandarin.

Ordered up Sesame Chicken, Kung POW Beef, Egg Rolls, Pot-stickers and Fried Rice Soup!  Yummo!

This week we're celebrating the Chinese New Year. It will be interesting. I bulked up the pantry with food for Elie just to play it safe, though she gobbled up tonights meal. Funny girl.

A funny story over the weekend. It seems that Elie has been sharing in her dislike of this meal game with some of her swimmer friends. So, as she and her friend Lindsey were pumping each other up to swim fast, she announced that if they didn't get a Q time (State qualifying time), then they would both have to eat food from Turkey this week... this experiment is at least creating conversation:)

So, it's time to gear up for dining in China this week. Love the food, though it will be tricky to time the meals with all activities this week. I may need to boil a big vat of rice to have on hand to save boiling time.

Always up for a challenge. Happy Is.

Mi Mexico.

We feel that it really is OUR Mexico. It's a colorful place located up the street from us. I would consider it to be one of the BEST Mexican restaurants in Des Moines, Iowa. It's a family owned and run restaurant, that started in Seattle. The owner happens to be our neighbor too so we feel like we're part of the family:) The food is what you want it to be. The "american" mexican combo meal to the authentic meats and dishes that are so delicious. We have never had a bad meal.

Our Living Healthy Iowa team decided to get together for a "Faturday" dinner to kick-off our TEAM SHRINKATINI 100 day challenge that begins on Monday.  We spent the night talking strategy and really trying to figure out how this challenge is going to work. We will be back in May to celebrate Cinco De Mayo and the end of our 100 days. Shrinkatini tiny!

So, our trip to Mexico is ending, bittersweet. Happy to be leaving the cheese and heaviness that Mexican food provides but in the same token going to miss the weather, especially now that Iowa has decided to act like ... Iowa in January.

Our feast this past week is hard to rate. I failed to take an official vote before bedtime so I would say meals were great for all who loved them!

We spent the day at a swim meet where Elie and Hannah rocked... at least in a few events. Elie and Hannah qualified for state in the 200 Backstroke. Happy Is.

The upcoming week is my choice in birth order of the family... so we're off to China to celebrate the NEW YEAR...Andy's year...the year of the dragon!

Blackened Tilapia Tacos

100% De Agave.
The end is nearing in Mexico so we decided to get crazy! Well sort of for a Friday night where I ran to Target to get snacks for the swim meet and picked up Hannah at the Valley game to take her to the mall for a double date at the movies... then finally home sweet home.... oh and meanwhile I left Andy to make spaghetti for Katy and neighbor boy (Cal) only to get the call that we had no spaghetti noodles...then another call to say we had no sauce while meatballs were proudly baking. Good thing we were at super Target to get necessary meal ingredients (like the entire meal)... comedy. I guess it sounded so easy to make such a simple meal. Downfall of eating in different countries....you no longer have the basic staples awaiting...

Moving on to the good stuff. Tequila. We purchased this bottle of 100% Agave Blanco Tequila in Puerto Vallarta last summer while celebrating our 20th +1 anniversary of marriage. Cracked it open tonight and immediately had a memory flash of sitting at an open bar with a roof in the rain, sipping on margaritas. (Happy Was.)

Moving onto the meal, we were all about making Fish Tacos. We found a recipe in Cooking Light last year that shared a take-out taco made healthier at home. This nearly was our Christmas Card recipe this past year, they are so yummy.

Blackened Tilapia Tacos

Combine the following first 4 ingredients in a food processor, process until smooth. Combine jalapeno sauce and onion in a small bowl.

1/4 cup sour cream (it calls for reduced fat, really?)
2 Tbl. chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbl. fresh lime juice
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup thinly sliced white onion

Combine the next 7 ingredients; sprinkle evenly over fish.
1 1/2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp oregano
3/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground red pepper (cayenne)

Heat oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add fish to pan; cook for 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.

4 tilapia filets
1 Tbl. canola oil

Warm tortilla according to package directions. Add fish, onion mixture and avocado mixture in a tortilla. Serve with lime wedges. Yields approx. 8 tacos.

Corn tortillas
1/2 ripe peeled avocado, thinly sliced
4 lime wedges


This defines what Happy Is. It's funny what defines your happy. My neighbor posted Happy is ramen noodles today as her adorable baby boy, Gavin gobbled up his meal. I received the most adorable picture of my great-nephew today, Grayson. He is what Happy Is. My sister, Barb has been struggling to build her first ever pinewood derby car solo after losing the love of her life, Jack. The car wouldn't have passed Jack's code of conduct for the car....but somewhere in her new normal is a pause...it's ok...the car will move across the finish line. No pressure. Happy Is. My mom has been awaking far too early for the past days. She had the details of the day taken care of before 9am this morning...Happy Is.

Bottom line, life is going to throw us zingers, like my friend Al who is stuck in Denver trying to get home...it's what we do with the realities of what life throws us that defines our happiness. I'm one to believe when life throws you the odd curve ball, you swerve and begin a new path of finding Happy.

The Whole Enchilada.

Thursday night meal was a test drive. I didn't follow a complete recipe but rather multiple tips from numerous recipes. It was time to divide the flavors, one kid flavor, one adult spicy. Funny, after laboring in the kitchen for that last two nights (I browned the meat and onion the night before and still smell like onions), Hannah was the only "kid" who ate our meal. I'm beginning to get a sense that Elie really likes variety in her week. Mexican is kind of tough to keep her interested. Katy claimed she only likes Mi Mexico so there was no winning (I nearly agree with her). Mexican cooking can be quite time consuming!

So, for the first batch... Beef and Cheese Enchiladas....this was Hannah's only specific request this week. She was wonderful at showing her appreciation for her meal by the sounds of "oh, this is great" coming out of her mouth.

Beef and Cheese Enchiladas
Brown:
1 lb. of ground beef (I used sirloin to offset all the cheese)
1 onion diced. (I only added 1/2 cup for my picky eaters)
1 Tbl. minced garlic
1 - 2 Tbl. chili powder

Heat oven to 325 degrees
Pour a smatter of canned enchilada sauce on the bottom of pan
Add more sauce to the meat mixture along with shredded cheese
Add meat mixture to tortillas, roll tightly and place seams down in the pan
Pour remaining sauce over top and add additional cheese
Bake for 20 minutes


Chorizo Enchiladas with authentic Mexican sauce
Brown:
1/2 lb. chorizo sausage
1/2 cup onion

Mix cooked meat with a 1/2-3/4 cup of the ground beef mixture used in the beef enchiladas
Add shredded chihuahua cheese to the meat mixture

Sauce:
3 Tbl. chili powder
3 Tbl. flour
1 tsp. cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. oregano
3 cups water
1 8oz. can tomato sauce
(I added 2 Tbl. chipotle paste to the sauce)

Combine all dry ingredients in small bowl, add water until you make a thin paste, stirring constantly
Pour into sauce pan and add remaining water
Stir constantly over medium heat until sauce thickens
Stir in tomato sauce

Assemble:
Add a smatter of sauce to bottom of pan
Fry corn tortillas over medium high heat in un-greased pan for 12 seconds on each side
Add meat mixture to tortillas, roll tightly and place seams down in the pan
Pour sauce over top and add additional cheese
Bake for 20 minutes

The result was very happy. So tasty, spicy but not overkill. I was a bit nervous since I was flying solo without a clear recipe. I guess you really could call it authentic "Gillaspey cooking".

Muy Fantastico!