Pepperjack Chili Chicken Tostadas

These are so yummy and easy! 

Link to my YouTube short "making of the recipe" : https://youtube.com/shorts/WnbihMx6gJQ 

Link to original recipe: https://www.sargento.com/recipes/meals/lunch/tacos/chili-chicken-tostadas/

Ingredients:

1 T. chili powder

1 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. paprika

1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

1 T. fresh lime juice

1 tsp. canola oil

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in small chunks/bites

1 T. butter

corn tostadas

Fiesta pepperjack cheese, shredded (alternatively, you can use regular pepperjack--sliced or shredded)

1 small red onion, sliced in thin half-rounds

cilantro, chopped

Directions

1. In a small bowl, combine chili powder, cumin, paprika, Kosher salt, lime juice, and canola oil.

2. Add chicken and stir until well coated in spice mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hr (can go up to 8 hrs).

3. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add butter to pan and swirl to melt. Once melted, add the chicken. Cook for 10-12 min, or until chicken is cooked through.

4. Heat oven to 250°F. Place tostadas on a baking sheet. Spoon some chicken onto each tostada. Top each with some of the cheese.

5. Bake for 10 min or until cheese has melted. After removing from oven, immediately top with red onion and cilantro. Enjoy!

Muddy Buddies 1

 a.k.a. Puppy chow, a.k.a. crack. Seriously, this stuff is ridiculously addictive! I have to control myself not to just mow through a ton of it once I start on it lol. I made two versions; this is the first, which is closest to what most people would call the original kind. 10/10.

Link to original recipe: https://www.chelseasmessyapron.com/3-recipes-muddy-buddies/

Amounts below what I made, which is half of the original recipe version.

Ingredients:

4 1/2 c. rice Chex cereal

1/4 c. creamy peanut butter

1/2 c. semisweet chocolate chips

2 T. unsalted butter

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. fine sea salt

3/4 c. powdered sugar

6 oz. regular M&M's (at the time I made these, had some holiday ones on hand)

Directions:

1. Place the cereal in a large bowl and set aside.

2. To a medium microwave-safe bowl, add the peanut butter, chocolate chips, and butter. Microwave in 15 second increments, stirring in-between each, until mixture is melted and smooth.

3. Stir in the vanilla and salt. Pour mixture over the cereal and stir until evenly coated.

4. Pour/scoop mixture into a gallon-sized ziplock bag. Add the powdered sugar and M&M's (save a few aside if you want to make it look "pretty" at the end). Close bag (make sure it's completely closed!!) and shake gently until powdered sugar has coated evenly.

5. Pour into a bowl, add the reserved M&M's (if trying to make "pretty") and enjoy!

DON'T MAKE - Braised Duck Legs with Sauce

Hubby and I both agreed that, while this recipe is good, it's nothing special, and I definitely have better duck leg recipes, so we won't be doing this again. Still, I wanted to record it here so that I would know that I tried it, and in case anyone else wants to...and maybe improve upon it (as I often do with recipes that I find!) Part of why we might not have liked it as much as the author intended is that I did alter it at the end, in the attempt to make the sauce thicker (as he described it becoming gravy-like; this never happened). 7/10. (Only posting the pic for the record, it did look nice!)

Link to original recipe: https://andrewzimmern.com/recipes/braised-duck-with-marsala/

(not re-typing since it's unlikely I'll make again)

• 2 duck legs
• Salt
• Pepper
• 2 onions, chopped
• 6 carrots, chopped
• 4 celery ribs, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, smashed
• 3 teaspoons of Herbs de Provence
• 1 cup marsala
• 3 cups chicken broth
• Splash of aged sherry vinegar

Season two duck legs with salt and pepper. Place in a pan over medium-high heat and brown on both sides.

Add onions, carrots, celery, smashed garlic cloves, and a few teaspoons of herbes de Provence or chopped tarragon. Cook for 5 minutes.

Add the marsala, bring to a simmer and cook until it’s reduce by half.

Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Cover, lower the heat to maintain a simmer and cook for 90 minutes.

Remove the lid, season with a splash of really good aged sherry vinegar. Simmer uncovered to reduce, about 5 minutes. The sauce should have a gravy consistency.

Remove legs and adjust seasoning as needed. Serve!

Simple Roasted Yukon Gold Potatoes

This is something I threw together, just wanting a simple side to go with the duck dish I was making. The duck dish turned out good enough; these turned out great! I don't have any production pix, as I wasn't sure how they'd turn out. No measures on the spices, as I don't know how much I used.

Ingredients:

~1.25 lb Yukon Gold potatoes, cut in large chunks (around 1/2" thick)

olive oil

kosher salt

coarse ground black pepper

garlic salt

paprika

dried parsley

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400°F (note to self: I used upper/convection oven bake setting for this).

2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.

3. In a large bowl, drizzle olive oil over potatoes and toss to coat. Add remaining spices and toss again to coat.

4. Pour potatoes onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for ~17 min, then stir/turn the potatoes and return to oven to bake for ~17 min more (I went just slightly longer than 15 each time). Serve up and enjoy!

Pressure Cooker Creamy Kielbasa & Potatoes

This is very delicious, hubby declared it's his new favorite Kielbasa dish (among the ones I've ever made him)! And I have to agree, could have eaten wayyy more than just a serving. It's great leftover, too. I made the YouTube short below during the first trial run of this recipe. And while it turned out super yummy, the cheese sort of falls apart in the sauce. Next time (and there will one soon!), I will try adding just 1/2 c. of the cheese for the pressure time, then transferring it to a dish to top with the remaining 2 c. cheese to pop under the broiler. Will post when I try that to share the results!

Link to my YouTube short "making of the recipe": https://youtube.com/shorts/VVIQAOA1_QU

Recipe inspired by this one: https://www.eatwell101.com/instant-pot-sausage-potato-recipe

Recipe below contains my modifications.

Ingredients:

14 oz. (1 pkg) Kielbasa sausage, sliced in rounds

1 small red onion, halved then sliced (makes half circle slices)

1 tsp. oil (I used olive oil, think canola might actually be better)

2-3 garlic cloves, minced (I used 2 large ones)

1 1/2 c. chicken broth

1/2 c. whole milk

1/4 c. heavy cream

1 T. Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp. Cajun seasoning

salt and pepper, to taste

1/2 T. butter

1 1/2 lbs. Yukon gold potatoes, cut in small cubes/chunks (mine were probably around 1/2"-3/4")

2 1/2 c. mild cheddar cheese, shredded (I shredded an 8 oz. block, which was about a half cup more than needed)

Directions:

1. In a 6 qt. pressure cooker, use the sauté setting to cook the Kielbasa rounds until they just start to brown. Transfer to a plate.

2. Add the onion and oil to the pot. Cook until onion has softened. Transfer to a plate. Turn off the cooker.

3. In a separate bowl. stir together the garlic, chicken broth, whole milk, heavy cream, Italian seasoning, Cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper.

4. Place the butter and potatoes in the cooker, then return the Kielbasa and onion to the cooker (atop the potatoes). Pour in the cream mixture. Top with the cheese (**see my note at beginning; you may wish to try my idea).

5. Close the cooker, making sure valve is set correctly for pressurizing. Select the "stew" setting (mine says 'meat/stew') and set for 9 min of pressure.

10. Immediately after the pressure cooking time has run out, press cancel and/or unplug. Do a quick release of pressure.

11. Once the pressure has been fully released, carefully open the lid. Dip up a bowl and enjoy!

Goat Cheese, Leek, and Mushroom Tart

This is like something one could find in France. 10+/10. Was phenomenal.

Link to original recipe: https://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/goat-cheese-leek-and-mushroom-tart.html

Recipe below contains my modifications.

Ingredients:

3 T. unsalted butter, divided

3 lb. leeks, white parts and 1 in of pale green parts, thinly sliced

2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

1 bay leaf

1/2 c. chicken stock

1 tsp. salt, divided

3/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper, divided

1/3 c. crème fraîche

4 oz. crumbled goat cheese with basil & tomato (found at Aldi; if not available, regular is fine)

1/2 lb. mixed mushrooms (oyster, chanterelle, cremini, etc), brushed clean and coarsely chopped

all-purpose flour, for dusting

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed

Directions:

1. In a skillet over medium-high heat, melt 2 T. of the butter until if foams. Add the leeks and sauté until translucent (~4-5 min).

2. Add the thyme, bay leaf, chicken stock, and 1/2 tsp. each of the salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low, cover, and let simmer until leeks are nearly tender (~15 min).

3. Uncover and cook, stirring occasionally (do NOT let leeks brown!), until almost all the liquid has evaporated (~15 min). 

4. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Transfer the leeks to a heat-safe bowl. Stir in the crème fraîche and goat cheese until well mixed.

5. In another skillet over medium-high heat, melt the remaining 1 T. of butter until it foams. Add the mushrooms, remaining 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper, and sauté until the mushrooms are soft and released their juices (~3-4 min).

6. Heat oven to 400°F. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

7. On a floured work surface, roll out the puff pastry sheet to a 10" x 12" rectangle. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet.

8. Spread the leek mixture to within 1" of the edges of the dough. Fold the edges of the dough over the filling to make a free-form tart.

9. Transfer to oven and bake until the crust puffs and both crust and leeks are golden, 15 min. 

10. Scatter the mushrooms over the leeks and bake for 5 additional min.

11. Let tart stand for 5-10 min. Cut, server, and enjoy!

Chicken Thighs with Artichoke & Pancetta Sauce

Made at mom's a couple years ago, 10/10, excellent! Will have to make again soon :)

Original recipe credit: https://www.jocooks.com/ingredient/poultry/chicken-with-artichoke-and-pancetta-pan-sauce/

Recipe below contains my modifications.

Ingredients:

6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

salt and pepper, to taste

zest of 1 lemon

2 T. olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 T. chopped fresh rosemary

2 oz. pancetta

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 c. dry sherry

1 T. all-purpose flour

1 1/2 c. low-sodium chicken broth

1 c. artichoke hearts (marinated in oil, or frozen--I think we used marinated in oil ones)

parsley, for garnish

Directions:

1. Season chicken thighs all over with salt and pepper, then rub with the lemon zest all over.

2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Add the chicken and cook 5-7 min per side. Transfer chicken to a plate and set aside.

3. Reduce heat to medium. Add the chopped onion, rosemary, and pancetta to skillet. Cook for 3-4 min, until onion begins to soften.

4. Add the garlic and cook for 1 min, then pour in sherry. Cook for 4 min, or until most of sherry has evaporated.

5. Whisk the flour into the chicken broth, then add to the skillet. Increase heat slightly and bring to a boil. Add the artichokes and cook for 2-3 min.

6. Return chicken to pan and turn to coat in sauce. Season with salt and pepper, if needed/desired. Garnish with parsley, serve, and enjoy!