Pesto Bruschetta

My favorite appetizer at Oregano's is Pesto Bruschetta - if you ever go there, it's not on the menu, but you can still order it (don't ask me why.) The other day, Jen and I tried to recreate it and I think we came pretty close. It is Italian bread topped with pesto, diced red onion, sliced tomatoes, and a blend of Italian cheeses (or whatever you like), and then broiled in the oven.

Jen made the Italian Bread - click here for the recipe. I have made this Italian Bread recipe since then and it is pretty easy and DELICIOUS! The pesto is a recipe Jen found and has been using from The Sisters' Cafe, and they got it from the Barefoot Contessa.

Give this a try - Jen and I loved it so much that we could eat it for dinner, not as an appetizer.

Here are the simple steps:

Slice your bread horizontally, and spread pesto on it. Sprinkle chopped red onions on top.

Put sliced tomatoes on top of the red onions.

Sprinkle the Italian blend of cheeses (or whatever cheese you want) on top,
and broil it until it looks good to you.

A Couple of Links

I haven't been making too many new things lately, but here are a couple of recipes I have tried lately that were a hit. The guacamole bruschetta was SO delicious as an appetizer, and Jen tried the cream biscuits and liked them, so I had to try them too (we had biscuits and gravy with them.)

Guacamole Bruschetta, from Blog Chef

Cream Biscuits, by Smitten Kitchen

Potato Wedges

These potato wedges were delicious. I have made them twice now. The recipe comes from Pioneer Woman.

She gave different ideas for what to put on them. I used: Kosher salt, olive oil, minced garlic, balsamic vinegar, and seasoned salt.

Potato Wedges

4 potatoes (I tripled it the first time I made this, and doubled it tonight. When I doubled it, it filled one cookie sheet.)
1/4 C. olive oil
salt
fresh herbs
Optional ingredients:
2 Tbsp melted butter, cayenne pepper, paprika, minced garlic, 2-3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 450°
Wash potatoes. Cut each potato into 8 wedges. Toss with oil and all the other ingredients you want to use. Roast for 15 minutes. Shake around and stir. Put them back in the oven and check after another 20 minutes to see if they are done. (Mine took longer)

Bruschetta

Cam put this recipe in our family cookbook (Yummy Little Bread Things, p.6) and I had never bothered trying it until this week. Now I'm hooked! I made it the other day using a loaf of French Bread, then I made it and put it on a Chicken Alfredo pizza tonight. Give it a try!

Bruschetta

Loaf of French Bread, or baguette
3 roma tomatoes, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 C. diced red onion
2/3 C. grated white cheese (mozarella & parmesan)
2 Tbsp. olive oil
garlic salt and garlic pepper

Slice bread into 1/2 inch slices and place on a cookie sheet. Mix everything else together and spoon onto bread slices. Toast until cheese bubbles and bread browns lightly.

Black Angus Garlic Cheese Bread

Jen made this homemade Italian bread and turned it into this - Black Angus Garlic Cheese Bread that she had seen on Your Home Based Mom.

She said it was delicious -- (actually she said it was an evil combination ☺).

Award Winning Salsa!

(picture from Jen)

Jen and her girls made some salsa for a ward party and they got first place! Way to go! (Jen's husband and boys made some salsa as well, so the girls beat them!) Jen got this recipe from her sister-in-law, Randi. It's a simple recipe -- just what I like. When I made it the other day I didn't have petite diced tomatoes, just regular ones. So I put my salsa in the blender after I made it to puree the tomatoes. We loved it.

Here's the recipe:

2 large cans petite diced tomatoes, drained (28 oz)

1 bunch cilantro, chopped
1 can El Pato sauce

3 or 4 limes, squeezed
1 bunch green onions, white and green part

a lot of garlic salt

Random Things

Here are some random things I have tried and loved this past week:

Sisters' Cafe Sweet Pork salad-so good! Shara was right, the sweet pork was delicious-I happen to like my sweet pork not as sweet as most, I cut the sugar in half-it was still PLENTY sweet! I made the whole meal and it was fabulous! Steve especially liked the rice. He said he doesn't usually like Spanish Rice, but this one was really good! I will definently make it again and again anytime I make Mexican food.

Here's the rice recipe:

Cilantro Lime Rice
3 c water
3 c Minute rice
4 cubes chicken bouillon
4 tsp garlic, minced
1 Tb canola oil
2 Tb fresh lime juice
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1/2 onion
1 can green chilies

Blend cilantro, onion, and chilies in food processor. Bring water to boil and add all ingredients, simmer covered for 30 minutes or until rice is cooked. *I hate Minute Rice and never buy it - you can substitute regular rice, just adjust the water to rice ratio accordingly.

I also tried Honey-Lime Chicken Enchiladas from Sister's Cafe. They were yummy, too. The chicken was sweet, and the sauce just right to with it. They were easy to make, too.

(Sorry, no picture)

Next, I tried Lace Cookies with Milk Chocolate Drizzle from Stephanie's Kitchen. These were so good. Hard to stop snitching in to. They were a hit around my house! (We ate them before I got a picture, Sorry!)

Chinese Feast-Orange Chicken, Fried Rice, Sweet and Sour Sauce, Egg Rolls

While Marsha was here visiting for her kid's Spring Break, we visited many countries: Mexico (tostadas), Brazil (Feijoada-which was delicious, Thanks, Marsh!!!), Italy (Calzones), and China. We didn't plan this, but it happened anyway.

This Chinese feast turned out so good. We used the eggroll recipe that Marsha already posted. But here are the other recipes we used, and they came from Blog Chef.

Sweet and Sour Sauce-

½ cup vinegar

1/3 cup sugar

½ teaspoon salt

¼ cup orange juice

¼ cup pineapple juice

¼ cup ketchup

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Make sweet and sour sauce by mixing vinegar, sugar, salt, orange juice, pineapple juice, and ketchup. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Mix 2 Tablespoons of cornstarch in 1/8 cup of juice and stir in until thickened.

Orange Chicken

Ingredients:

Chicken-2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1-1/2” cubes)

1 ½ cups all purpose flour

1 eggs (beaten)

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

Oil (for frying)

Orange Sauce-

1 ½ cups water

2 tablespoons orange juice

¼ cup lemon juice

1/3 cup rice vinegar

2 ½ tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon orange zest (grated)

1 cup packed brown sugar

½ teaspoon ginger root (minced)

½ teaspoon garlic (minced)

2 tablespoons green onion (chopped)

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (we left this out)

3 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons water

Step 1: Combine flour, salt, and pepper. Dip chicken in egg mixture and shake in flour mixture to coat. Deep fry chicken in batches at 375 degrees in a deep fryer (or use a wok) until completely cooked.

Step 2: Meanwhile, in a large saucepan combine 1 ½ cups water, lemon juice, orange juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce. Blend well over medium heat for a few minutes. Stir in brown sugar, orange zest, ginger garlic, and onion. Bring to a boil.

Step 3: Combine 3 tablespoons of cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water and mix thoroughly. Slowly stir cornstarch mixture into sauce until it thickens. Pour sauce over breaded chicken, and if desired add red pepper flakes and garnish with green onions.

Fried Rice

Ingredients:

5 cups cooked leftover white rice (that’s at least 1 day old)

1 medium onion (diced)

6 cloves garlic (minced)

2 eggs (beaten)

1 cup frozen peas and carrots (thawed)

½ tablespoon tumeric

Soy sauce (to serve)

2 tablespoons oil (for frying)

Step 1: Add a little bit of oil or cooking spray to a heated fry pan. Add beaten eggs and scramble until fully cooked. Remove from heat and set aside.

Step 2: Heat a wok and add oil. Add garlic, onion, and peas and carrots. Stir fry until vegetables have reached your desired tenderness. Add rice and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add turmeric and eggs. Mix well.

Step 3: Serve with soy sauce. (We found we loved it with soy sauce. It was so good after we sprinkled it on.)

CORN SALSA

I saw this on GTU (Good Things Utah) the other day - it sounded yummy so I tried it - and it was! Mark about ate the whole bowl before I got a picture. Super easy too. (SimplifySupper.com)

1 can corn
1 can black beans
1 can diced tomatoes (I used the kind with green chiles to give it a little kick)
1/4 cup fresh cilantro - diced
1 cup Italian salad dressing (I didn't use quite that much)
Green onions
Avacados
(Whatever else you like in it-(fresh garden tomatoes will be good in it)

Drain corn, beans and tomatoes in colander. Pour most of salad dressing over and mix well as it runs through the strainer. Transfer to serving bowl and add cilantro, onions, avacado, etc. and rest of dressing. Mix well. Serve chilled or at room temp. with your favorite chips.

Frito Dip

This is another recipe I got from Jen. I actually made it wrong. It was still good, but I'm sure it's better the right way. I didn't look at the recipe close enough before I went shopping and I didn't buy enough of the dried beef. So I only put half of what it called for. And I accidentally put in twice as many onions as it calls for. What's up with my lack of following instructions?!?

2 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese

garlic powder (not salt)
8 oz. Sour cream

pepper
1-2 Tbsp. dried minced onion

5 oz. dried beef, diced (this is Hormel brand, on the canned meat isle at the grocery store, in a little jar.)

Soften cream cheese in microwave and combine all ingredients. Heat in a dip crock pot or bake until hot and serve with fritos.

Bacon-Brown Sugar Little Smokies

I made these for book club last night that was at my house. They are so yum. This recipe is from Jen--her family always has this on New Year's Eve.

2 pkgs. Hillshire Little Smokies

Brown Sugar
1-2 pkg. Bacon

Cut bacon into thirds and wrap around each smokie. Stick a toothpick in each one and place close together in a pan and sprinkle generously with brown sugar. Bake at 350° to 375° for 45-55 minutes or until edges are crispy.

Wontons

My friend Kahanu brought me some won tons about a week ago that were SO good. I have actually never made them myself, so here's her picture and her recipe! She made two different kinds, one of them being a sweet one. And after those recipes is Amy's way of making them.

CREAM CHEESE WONTONS

6 oz. cream cheese

2 green onions, chopped

1/2 tsp. soy sauce, lite

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/3 c. seafood shreds (imitation crab meat) optional - they used chicken and it was great!

Pkg. won ton wrappers, sm. squares

Blend together ingredients. Drop approximately 1 teaspoonful on each of the small size wrappers. Fold in corners and seal with egg white. Fry in hot oil until crispy and brown. Serve with Sweet & Sour Sauce.

THE SWEET ONES:

cream cheese, pineapple bits, and a little bit of sugar

And here's how Amy makes the filling: Buy whipped cream cheese, any flavor but her favorite is the kind with chives.

Pecan Honey Butter

This recipe is in the Payne cookbook (on pg. 1, and its Amy's, not mine), but in case you haven't tried it, I thought I would tell you how good it is! I hadn't made it in a while until tonight. Its so yummy on warm bread fresh from the oven (I made the Blitz Bread again - without the herbs again.)

Pecan Honey Butter

1/2 C. well-chilled unsalted butter, cut in 4 pieces
1/4 C. honey
1/3 C. pecans, toasted

Toast pecans in oven on a cookie sheet at 350 degrees (get them nice and toasted, but not burned.) Blend everything in the blender until smooth. Serve at room temperature on rolls, toast, or any bread.

BBQ Chicken Chop Salad

First I make the chicken by marinating 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts in BBQ sauce. Then bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Chop into bite size pieces and refrigerate. (I forgot to take a picture of this part, sorry!)

Next I make the tortilla strips by placing the whole stack of flour tortillas on my (yes, it's very old) cookie sheet. I cut them into strips with my pizza roller cutter thing. Then I toss them with a little oil and salt. Bake for about 30 minutes at 400 degrees. You'll have to watch them because I don't know the exact time. Just get them light brown and crunchy. You can also buy tortilla strips made for salad toppings, but I love these.



Next, make the salad. I do this while the tortillas are baking.

1/2 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
1/2 head Romaine lettuce, chopped
3-4 roma tomatoes, chopped
1 jicama, peeled and diced
1/2 C. cilantro, chopped
1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 C. frozen corn, thawed
1/2 lb. Monterey Jack cheese, grated to sprinkle on the top (optional)




Assemble everything and serve with Ranch dressing (My favorite is Hidden Valley Ranch packet made up with Mayo and milk) and extra BBQ sauce if desired.



P.S. This is yummy with ham instead of chicken, too. Just another option. I made a ham in my crockpot with a mesquite marinade on it and then I shredded it and put it on instead of the chicken. We loved it. We love the chicken, too though.

Onion Rings

I'm not starting off with a healthy recipe -- sorry! In June I went to visit Amy and we had fun trying new recipes. This is one we found from The Pioneer Woman. These Onion Rings were delicious (of course they were - they were fried in oil.) Her picture actually looks better than ours, and I guess they are actually called Onion Straws. Here's the recipe. --Marsha

Pioneer Woman’s Onion Straws

1 large onion

2 cups buttermilk

2 cups flour

1 scant tablespoon salt

Lots of black pepper

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Canola Oil

Slice onion very thin. Place in a baking dish and cover with buttermilk for at least one hour. Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Heat oil to 375 degrees. Grab a handful of onions, throw into the flour mixture, shake off excess flour, and drop into hot oil. Fry for a few minutes and remove as soon as golden brown. Repeat until onions are gone.