Trista Thinnes

Light and spicy broccoli cheese casserole

OMG! Tis the season for comfort food. I made this up last night. It might be the best broccoli cheese casserole I have ever made. Again…. there is no cream sauce in a can or milk. Just a little butter and cheese.

1.5 cups cooked white rice

1 pound fresh broccoli – steam and chop

4 tablespoons butter

1/2 of a roasted poblano

2 cloves of garlic

5 tablespoons of flour

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

2 cups chicken broth

1 teaspoon white pepper

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup grated parmesan… not powdered

1 cup of French’s new jalapeno crisps

After I steamed the broccoli and made the rice, I let them cool and worked on the sauce. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and chopped roasted poblano pepper. Cook about 3-5 minutes. Add in the flour. Slowly…. very slowly…. add the chicken broth stirring constantly so it does not clump. It needs to be added a few tablespoons at a time. Continue stirring constantly until thickened. Add in the onion powder and cheddar cheese. Stir until melted and thickened. Remove from heat. Salt to taste. I added 1 teaspoon. Add in the rice and chopped broccoli. Pour into prepared 8×12 casserole pan. Top with parmesan and then crispy jalapeños. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

This was so yummy. I enjoy casserole type foods but I really do not like feeling like I ate a stick of butter or drank a cup of heavy cream. This really satisfied my every need. We served it with simple grilled chicken.

Easy black beans

Garden creations, jalapeno, Side dishes

This side dish is so simple. It really can go with any meal, but my favorite is to have it with tacos, over nachos, or with smoked pork and rice. It has no added oil or fat. The flavor all comes from vegetables.

1 can black beans – drain and rinse

1/4 cup diced red bell pepper

1/4 cup diced yellow onion

1 small jalapeno – sliced

1/4 tomato diced – any kinds work

1 tsp cumen

1.5 cans of water – use the rinsed bean can

1 tsp chicken bouillon

1 handful fresh cilantro leaves

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and cook on medium heat for about 15-20 minutes or until the liquid turns a bit cloudy.

This never quite tastes the same. Sometimes I add a bit of leftover bacon. Sometimes I add fresh garlic. It is always fantastic. I have to say the combination above is my favorite. Tonight i made the same thing bit with pinto beans instead of black beans. Still wonderful!

Here are the peppers I picked yesterday. It is November and the garden is still going strong!

Poblano chicken casserole

Dinner

Okay. My chicken from last night… Here is how I meal plan. Tonight it is a casserole and tomorrow chicken paninis. Each very different and not tasting like leftovers. I basically cook 2 big meat dishes per week then fill in the gaps. Sometimes we have cold leftover chicken on giant cobb type salads with fresh warm rosemary bread.

This is also another great garden dish because we grow onion, garlic, poblanos, and tomatoes. I have even grown tomatillos and made my own salsa verde. That is a whole other story.

The casserole….. I dont use “cream of xxxxx” soup if possible. I think the only fattening thing in this whole casserole is 2 tablespoons of butter and a cup of cheese. I would consider this lower fat. I am not a fan of loading up every dish with cream and cheese and butter.

Roast 2 poblanos in the oven at 400 for 10-15 minutes. Cool fully. Peel and remove seeds. Then rough chop.

My sauce….

Saute 2 tablespoons of butter with 1/2 onion and a clove of minced garlic for 2-3 minutes. Add all poblanos. Add 2 tablespoons of flour. Stir. Gradually add in 2 cups of chicken broth. Add 1 tablespoon cumen, 1 teaspoon mexican oregano, and a handful of fresh cilantro. Cook 5-10 minutes stirring often. Remove from heat and add 1 cup of salsa verde…. any brand.

Now the layers in the cassrole pan.

1: one cup of sauce

2: corn tortillas – about 4 – just break them up and cover it in one layer

3: chopped cooked chicken – 1 cup

4: 1/2 can of rinsed and drained black beans

5: half of remaing sauce

6: 4-5 corn tortillas

7: 1 cup chicken

8: rest of black beans

9: more tortillas

10: dump rest of sauce over

Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 400 for 30-40 minutes. Remove foil. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. Turn oven off. Remove when ready to eat.

Ha! I forgot to buy chips so I baked leftover flour tortillas for 10 minutes. I was going to break them up as chips. They puffed up. Still tasted great!

Roasted chicken

Dinner

This is so simple…

A whole chicken rinsed. The cavity is stuffed with 2 heads of garlic and a sliced lemon. 1 tablespoon each of onion powder, salt and pepper is mixed and then put on the breast under the skin. A little canola oil over the skin. I pour a whole light beer on the pan under the chicken. Cook on the propane grill at 300 degrees for 1.5 hours approximately. The meat thermometer on the breast against the bone tells me the temp. This is my favorite meat thermometer. You set the meat type and it rings when it is the right temperature. The best part of this is that we can eat about 3-4 meals from one chicken. I keep the seasoning basic then add it to tacos, soup, casseroles, etc later in the week.

Pumpkin seeds – chili lime

Garden creations

These are a Halloween must although I am not sure most people LOVE them. I find it is essential to wash them and allow them to dry overnight for best crispy results when baking. I wash them and air dry them (stirring a few times) on paper towels. Season as desired. This year I did lime juice, 3 sprays of olive oil, and 1/4 teaspoon each of these chili powders.

Then I baked them on a sheet pan at 300 degrees for 20 minutes. I stirred the mix after 10 minutes of baking. My family really tries to limit salt when possible. I did not salt them and I really do not feel as though I miss it.

Pumpkin whoopie pies with toasted pecan buttercream frosting

Dessert

Alright alright. It is finally a bit colder in Texas so it is time for some pumpkin. These do take a little bit of work but they are so worth it. I invented the frosting idea on my own. At least I couldn’t find anything similar out there.

First toast a small bag of pecans in 1 tablespoon of butter in a skillet on medium high heat for 2-3 minutes.

Next, put the nuts into a food processor and let them turn into nut butter. Scrape down the sides as you go. It took about 2-3 minutes.

Let this cool fully. It is quite bitter. Do not worry.

Place 1 stick room temperature butter into a mixer along with 4 ounces of cream cheese and the pecan butter. Whip on high for a few minutes until fluffly.

Add in 2 1/3 cups powdered sugar. Refrigerate when done. See photo above.

Now for the cakes…..

Mix one box of butter recipe yellow cake with 15 ounce pumpkin puree and 1/2 cup vegetable oil. Add in 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Drop tablespoon sized circles of batter onto a greased cookie sheet or parchment. Don’t worry they do not increase in size much.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until prety firm to the touch. Let cool completely. Add frosting between two cookies. Mmmmmmm……..

Okay so the cake part of the recipe I stole slightly from yourcupofcake.com.

Because of the buttercream, store these in the refrigerator.

Frozen cake

Dessert, Uncategorized

Looking back at all my “creations”, this is one of my most favorite. I can’t find my recipe right now. I made this specific one about 3 years ago. I will post the recipe later. It was white cake with fresh strawberries and cheesecake buttercream. It is my favorite cake to make. It kind of tastes like a new version on strawberry shortcake. And of course I made the blue rock candy too. I found this idea from another poster of Pinterest. BubblyNatureCreations.com and sprinklesomefun.com

Breakfast bake

Breakfast

This is perfect for any leftover bread from the week. French bread, rolls, hamburger buns, sandwhich bread….. my favorite is leftover good quality buns. You can make if the night before if needed. The leftovers save well and reheat well for many breakfasts. Another fun part is that I use a different vegetable in it each week. Usually it depends on what is leftover also. Alternate choices are green onion, yellow onion, green bell pepper, orange bell pepper, roasted poblanos, etc. I keep it simple and try to not buy a million items to make it.

Leftover bread – 2-3 rolls or about 4-6 sliced of bread

1 cup of diced veggies. Today was green onion

1 breakfast sausage roll. I like natural uncured pork sausage or spicy pork sausage

8 eggs

2/3 cup milk

salt and pepper

1/2 cup cheddar cheese (optional)

Cook the sausage in a pan over medium heat. Press on paper towels to remove all grease once well done.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and prepare an 8×8 or 9×9 casserole pan. Cube the bread and add it to the baking dish.

Dice the veggies and add them on top.

Add cooked sausage over the bread mixture. Gently mix all to separate layers.

Now place the eggs into a separate bowl. Whisk in the milk as well as about 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.

Bake uncovered for about 45 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Add cheese (is desired) and bake 1-2 minutes more until melted.

If I make this a day ahead, then I assemble (without cheese), cover, and refrigerate the casserole pan just before the bakng stage. It will need about 15 minutes longer in the oven if baking it cold.

Homemade tabasco sauce

Garden creations

This is the first year (of the 8 of my urban garden) that I successfully grew a Tabasco plant….. from a seed. I am pretty proud. Holy cow! It makes a LOT of peppers. So I made hot sauce. I recommend opening windows prior to trying this. The air gets a bit spicy.

1 cup tabasco peppers – remove stems

2 teaspoons Himalayan salt

2 cups apple cider vinegar

Basically you bring all 3 ingredients to a boil in a saucepan. Allow the mix to boil for 5-7 minutes. Gently crush the peppers with a potato masher. Remove the pan from heat and fully cool. Place the mixture in blender/food processor and blend. Transfer the mix to a sealed container and chill in refrigerator for 3 weeks. Strain the seeds and pepper pieces through a metal strainer. Bottle the remaining juice and enjoy.

After initial mashing:

After blending. The seeds float.

Cabbage rolls

Dinner

These cabbage rolls have a slighy different flavor than most. They do not have the sweetness typically expected. Instead, there is a more smokey flavor. Not only is this a healthy make ahead casserole type meal, but it also pairs very well with the pickled carrots and jalapeños that I have posted as well.

The recipe:

First prepare the meat filling by mixing together the following:

1 pound 85% lean ground beef

1 cup of cooked white rice (not instant)

1 egg

1 yellow onion – diced

1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper

2 cloves minced garlic

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

After mixing this fully, keep refrigerated.

Next prepare a head of cabbage by coring it and removing the outer leaves.

Bring a very large pot of water to a boil. Once you have achieved a rolling boil, add the cabbage and cook 3-5 minutes. Remove the cabbage and allow it to cool. Once cool enough to touch, gently remove the leaves one by one trying not to break them….. but if they do it will still work.

Place the cabbage leaves with the concave surface up. Add about 1/2-1 cup of the meat mixture. Fold this into a ball and place seamed side down in an ungreased casserole pan. Continue until all meat has been used.

For the topping, mix together a 14 ounce can of petit diced tomatoes with italian seasoning as well as 1 tablespoon of smoked paprika. Pour this over the rolls.

Cover the dish using aluminum foil. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 45-60 minutes or until thermometer inserted to the center of a roll reaches 170 degrees.

Again, we serve these with crusty french bread and some pickled carrots and jalapeños.

I have made these in the morning and stored them in the refrigerator to bake in the evening. I feel that making it ahead enhances the flavors of the dish.

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