Three Ingredient Tacos

Hi friends -

If you are on pinterest, you've probably seen this recipe pinned a zillion times.

Like others, I pin fancy recipes and pretty images knowing I will never taste or touch any of the pins.

This says it best:

But I am here to tell you this recipe is different.

It's Easy. Delicious. Simple. Cheap. Dinner party worth serving.

We made this last night and I think we will make it again - maybe tomorrow.

3 Ingredients:

-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
-1 jar of salsa
-1 packet of low-sodium taco seasoning

Put the chicken in the crock pot, pour the salsa & seasoning on top, mix well and

Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

After cook time, take a fork to the mixture and the chicken shreds instantly.

Result: Flavorful shredded chicken that makes killer tacos.

That's it.

Thank you Chocalate Therapy. Recipe here

Recipe: Zoe's Feta Cole Slaw

Good Morning.

What do you think of Zoe's Slaw? I think most people either love it or don't like it one bit. I am on Team A. Love - as in crave it, could eat it everyday.

The menu was planned last night with steak and sweet potato -which by the way I bought regular potatoes - I swear the sign said 'sweet potato'...Guilty Amateur Cook. Apparently, most cooks can tell a reg from a sweet even if the reg potato is in the sweet potatoes place.

Anyways, I wanted to add a green to the mix so decided to search for something similar to Zoes claim-to-fame slaw.
Thru searching, I found this recipe and gave it a shot. Super Easy & Quite Tasty..

Ingredients:
-1 small head of cabbage, thinly sliced  {if you're an amateur cook like me, cabbage is located beside the head of lettuce, make sure you get the cabbage! ask if you have to, i did.}
-1 6oz. package crumbled feta
-6 to 7 green onions, chopped
-1/4 cup red wine vinegar
-1/2 cup E.V.O.O
-1-2 teaspoon Sugar
-S&P to taste

Directions:
-Combine shredded Cabbage, Feta, & Chopped Green Onion in a large bowl
-In separate bowl, whisk together Vinegar, EVOO, sugar, and S&P
-Pour over the slaw & toss
-Refrigerate until ready to serve. It's best if you let it refrigerate for a few hours {we didn't do this and it was still delic}.

Enjoy!

*Sorry no pic.

Football Food - Nat'l Championship

The big game is tonight.

This time last year we hosted a party for the AU game & woke up went to bed to snow. Crazy how opposite the weather is a year later. I know, who cares right?!

Anyways, no party this year but might still serve up this delicious Football app. It's a fave among many & always a hit.

Buffalo Chicken Dip



Ingredients:

- Shredded Rotisserie Chicken or (you can use 2 cans of chicken if on a time crunch but not nearly as good)
- 8oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup Ranch or Blue Cheese Dressing (I prefer Ranch)
- 1/2 cup Hot Sauce (I prefer Franks or Texas Pete)
- 1 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese (or as much chz as you like!)

Heat Oven to 350 degrees.

*Spread cream cheese on bottom of your pyrex dish
*In a bowl- combine chicken, hot sauce, & ranch dressing. Spoon on top of cream cheese.
*Sprinkle the cheddar cheese on top

Bake 15-20 minutes.

Top with green onions for a little flavor & serve with Tostitos or Celery Sticks.

Feeling skinny in the New Year?

I've yet to try this recipe from the talented Skinny Gina but all of her other stuff is delicious.



Enjoy!

Who you cheering for??   

A {semi} Botched Recipe & the Weekend

***Update for 'leg up': Local Atlantans. Bloomingdales is having a denim sale through Sunday. 15% off one pair, 25% off two***

It's the weekend! We are going home for my 10-yr-reunion. I'm sure for many not much has changed in 10 years, but it will be fun to see some old faces. They are honoring us state champ cheerleaders tonight at the football game...I may just have to break out a toe touch and my state ring. Ra Ra Ri! Kidding.


So we had our n'hood supper club last night and I attempted to be fancy per my pinterest addiction and make Cheesecake Bread. I have been known to show up with Chex Mix, so I thought this would be a shocker nice surprise. Who doesn't like croissants, cream cheese, and sugar?! This picture had me hooked.

images via pinterest

Well, i followed the recipe and somehow it turned out like this....

Sugar Sloppiness. The problem: I didn't let them cool long enough after baking. Apparently that is important. Despite my pride, I took them anyways and they were actually a hit. {Go chef catie...eeek lina & bws}

***********************************************************

In other news, this weather is amazing. Hope you enjoy the chilliness this weekend.

Elle Decor

Recipe: Island Style

Since returning from vaca, one thing we already miss is the fresh cuisine.

A popular dish in the Turks and other Caribbean islands is the Conch Salad

We went 'conching' two days on a boat and it was tons of fun. {There just so happened to be the exact number of conchs for the exact number of people on the boat} Coincidence?! I really thought I found one & got a tad bit overly excited.

So with island inspiration in mind, JH whipped up a delicious dinner the other night..

Seared Tuna with Conch Salad sans Conch

Tuna Ingredients & Preparation:

-Fresh Tuna filet's seared lightly in olive oil on stove top
-Kobe Coast Ginger Wasabi Teriyaki to coat after cooking {pic below}

Salad Ingredients & Prep:

-1 green & 1 red pepper
-1 med size red onion
-cilantro
-2tsp. Garlic
-small Cherry tomatoes
-Chop and mix together. Add Lemon Juice to your taste.

Here you have it:

The key to the tuna is the Kona Sauce

{found at Fresh Market}

Healthy & Delic. Enjoy!!

In other healthy food news (I am becoming a foodie, jk) I found this article on cookinglight.com today and found it quite interesting... Most Common Nutrition Mistakes: 

 http://www.cookinglight.com/eating-smart/nutrition-101/nutrition-questions-tips-00412000071626/

I am guilty of most.

Happy Hump Day !

Oh, & How awesome are these?

{Pinterest}...of course

Recipe, Rihanna, & Rest of Week

Just call me Chef Cole. kidding. But I must admit cooking is kind of fun & actually relaxing. I just make such a mess. To make myself feel better, last night I swept & vacuumed the kitchen floor post dinner. I looked at JH so naturally & said "I'm just doing what I do best... cooking & cleaning". Let's just say he could barely breathe he was laughing so hard.

Recipe of choice was Betsy's Penne "a lot" like Vodka & Shrimp.  Found here.

{Couple of modifications- used Angel Hair pasta instead of Penne because that's what we had at home & added 2 fresh tomatoes from our garden just to try them out}

It was delicious! I love Betsy's recipes because they are very straightforward and not too challenging for an amateur chef. If I can cook it, you can too!

Forgot to snag a pic & of course Betsy's is a lot prettier, so here it is for your viewing :)

In other news, Rhianna is tonight @ Chastain!!! I am SO excited.

And lastly, I am out the rest of the week. Off to the Twin Cities for work. How fun if this really was your office?

MaBelle

Have a great rest of the week!

Recipe 2: Chicken-and-Green Chile Enchiladas

So, I guess I haven't stayed true to my once a week home cooked meal.

I haven't totally failed, JH has just been doing a lot of grilling on the BGE which is fine by me. Love a man that cooks!

Last night though I attempted this recipe from Southern Living. It was mexican; therefore, I knew if it were terrible I would still eat it.

*My finished product wasn't this pretty but here it is courtesy of SL

Ingredients
3 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken  (I used a rotisserie, doesn't get much easier than that)
2/3 cup Onion-and-Garlic Mixture
2 4oz cans chopped green chiles
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
3 10oz cans enchilada sauce, divided
2 cups Mexican four-cheese blend, divided
8 burrito-size flour tortillas

*someone in the review section recommended using the most authentic enchilada sauce offered in store. (to me that means the most mexican looking can). But, whatever authentic really means, I agree. Get the good stuff.

*Also, I added 3 jalapenos chopped & diced fresh from our garden. Gave it a nice kick.

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix together first 4 ingredients, 1 1/2 cup enchilada sauce, & 1 cup cheese (I used a little more chz, because we love chz)

2. Spoon about 1/2 cup mixture down center of each tortilla; roll tortillas up and place seam sides down in a lightly greased baking dish. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over tortillas. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

3. Bake covered for 20 minutes; uncover and bake 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and golden brown

Garnish with more cilantro &/or jalapenos to your taste & you've got yourself a home cooked meal.

Very delic & filling...and the house is still in tact. Go me!

{Recipe 1}

So, I am a terrible cook. I admit it.

Growing up with a southern belle grandmother, Mama Queenie, who cooked the most delicious pound cake and a mom, Kath, from Memphis that makes the best Southern Cheese Grits, one would think I would've acquired some kitchen skills.

Unfortunately...I did not.

However, JH grew up with a mom that cooked the most fabulous-from scratch meals every night...i.e. pot roast, a zillion-layer lasagna, fresh grown vegetables, even homemade bread.

{Not to worry, that was not to be expected post nuptials}

All of that aside, one of my 2011 New Years Resolutions was to try a fancy
(in my book!) recipe once a week.

Insert Betsy, a friend who started this fabulous blog... Shugart & Spice

http://www.shugartandspice.com/

While I don't have her cooking talent, she has shared so many delicious recipes that seem do-able (thank ya girlfriend). You must check her out!

So, sticking to my goal, I recently found this recipe via Cooking Light and gave it a shot...

*Per the taste tester, he was quite impressed. And best part, I didn't burn the house down*

{Spring Risotto}

Ingredients

• 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
• 1 3/4 cups fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup uncooked Arborio rice
• 1 cup frozen shelled edamame
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 cup 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 ounce shaved Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme (i left this out bc/ i couldn't find it in store! who knows what thyme taste like anyways)

Preparation

• 1. Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a saucepan. Add asparagus, and cook for 2 minutes. Drain. Bring 2 cups water and chicken broth to a simmer in a saucepan.
• 2. Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add olive oil, and swirl to coat. Add onion; cook 4 minutes. Add garlic, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in rice, edamame, and salt; cook for 1 minute. Stir in 1 cup broth mixture; cook for 4 minutes or until liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly. Add remaining broth mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until liquid is absorbed before adding more (about 20 minutes total).
• 3. Stir in asparagus, cream cheese, and pepper; cook 1 minute. Spoon 1 cup risotto into each of 4 bowls. Top each serving with 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese; sprinkle evenly with thyme

Give it a try & Enjoy. The edamame is the best part!