Seafood Saturday

 

According to my mother, when I was a toddler I loved shrimp. Loved them to the point of eating an entire popcorn bowl of them while spending the afternoon with my dad on the couch. Today, I can’t really picture myself doing that. I don’t hate shrimp, but I wouldn’t sit with a bowl of them. A few as an appetizer, sure. I go no further.  Then, there is salmon. I didn’t start eating salmon until about 2 years ago. I found a great pre-marinated kind at Publix. They’re  fresh filets, not frozen, and are pre-marinated with a bourbon sauce. They are delicious cooked in the oven and served with rice and asparagus. Yummy. But, even salmon I can only stomach once in a blue moon. It can be too fishy for me.

 

So… you’re wondering where I’m going with this. {I do have a point, I swear} My affinity for seafood is not very strong. Like I said before, I can stomach it … but I wouldn’t eat it every night. Tonight, however, I’m in a full-on seafood mood. We’re having mussels in a garlic/white wine sauce. Mmm, the joy. I’m going to serve them with a ton of french bread {I can’t get enough bread} and we’ll probably snack on some Port Salut and dry salami … oh gosh, and don’t forget the wine!

 

I’ll try to get some pictures up for you later tonight! Hope you are all having a peaceful and restful weekend & enjoying the snow {Seeing as how 48 states have snow right now, I’m betting on the chance YOU have snow!} … Chat again soon, friends!

 

Quick & Easy Chili Recipe {Picture Tutorial}

 

**Update: This blog is getting a ton of visitors from Pinterest {Thanks y’all!} … Yes, I forgot to mention that you need to throw a can of dark red kidney beans a pinto beans into the mix. They’re in the picture, but I must have been too busy eating chili to realize I left it out of the instructions. Just make sure you drain them and you’ll be good! Enjoy and thanks for all the nice comments! – Amy **

I was really craving some seafood tonight – scallops to be exact – but somehow I managed to end up with a big bowl of chili. Let me tell you though, I cook some mean chili! And, don’t forget, it’s ridiculously easy and makes your kitchen smell like you are a seasoned domestic goddess {just what I’m going for – score!} Really, all you need for this recipe is two photos: the ingredients and the finished product… it’s that easy… dump the stuff in the pot and let it cook! Now, those are my kinda recipes!!! {but, just to be nice… I’ll include the measurements}

You will need:

{Serves approx 6-8}

1 Medium Onion {minced}

3-5 Garlic Cloves {minced}

1 – 1 1/2 pound of lean ground beef

2 cans of diced tomatoes {Onion, Garlic, & Oregano flavor)

1 can of petite diced tomatoes

1 can tomato sauce

2 TBSP Chili Powder

1 TBSP Ground Cumin

2 TBSP White Sugar

1 TBSP Salt

1 TBSP Tabasco Sauce

1 TSP Pepper

And, here’s what you do:

1. Brown the beef with onion and garlic. {Drain fat when finished and return meat to pot.}

2. Add cans of tomatoes, sauce, chili powder, cumin, sugar, salt, Tabasco, and pepper.

3. Simmer for at least 30-45 minutes …  but it tastes better the longer you let it simmer.

Ta’da:

Beautiful isn’t she? I like to serve mine with cornbread muffins {the kind in the Jiffy box}, a bit of shredded cheddar cheese, and a dollop of sour cream. Some people balk at the sour cream, but I think it tastes good.

{Did anyone happen to notice the amount of chili I cooked? I told you I have a problem with portion control.}

Rave reviews around this house for the chili … why don’t you try it at your house and let me know how it goes! I’d love to hear, as always! …. On a side note, I’m discovering my passion for Marketing all over again. With this new career, almost every day brings a new opportunity to use my marketing degree and marketing knowledge … and so far, I really love it. I hope that it stays this positive for a while to come!!!

Hope you all had a great day. And, I hope you enjoy the chili recipe. {Time to go watch the Bachelor – I should be ashamed for watching such nonsense … but I’m not!!! ha} Night ya’ll!

Experiment Turned Edible Dinner: Ham and Cheese Quiche

 

Quiche Number Two: Complete. {Ham and Swiss Quiche}

 

Tonight, my second ever, mostly experimental Quiche turned into an edible dinner. {pat on the back} After my broccoli and onion debacle, it was necessary that I redeemed myself. And, of course the fact that the pie crusts were buy-one-get-one-free sure helped! Tonight it was ham and swiss {with a little bit of mozzarella}. I think I could get the hang of these Quiche! It’s pretty easy to slap one together with whatever veggies/meat you  have in the refrigerator. Who said being domestic couldn’t be easy!?

 

If you’d like to try to make this one, follow my directions from my previous post: Easy Broccoli and Cheese Quiche replacing the broccoli for ham, using 1/4 an onion instead of a whole, and substituting swiss for mozzarella.

 

However, I need to know how to make the bottom of the crust – crusty? I read on another blog that you need to put the pie crust in the oven for about 10 minutes before you put any ingredients in it. But then I read another one that said if you do this you need to line your pie crust with tin-foil. Any suggestions? The Quiche itself is not runny … but the bottom crust isn’t crusting. Any suggestions ladies and gentleman?

 

Well, thats all for tonight. If you get the chance to try this recipe, let me know how it goes! And, if you have any suggestions on the crust – I would love to know! Night, Ya’ll!

Midnight Snack: Bacon, Egg & Toast Pods {amazing}

 

I’m not too sure what has gotten into me today. I feel like some kind of domestic goddess has jumped inside me and is rattling ideas around in my brain. While reading another blog {Annie’s Eats}, I came across this super cute idea for bacon, eggs, and toast. Mind you, it’s nearly midnight… but I literally jumped up to see if we had some bacon! Much to my dismay, the only bacon we had was frozen. Nothing a little water bath in the sink can’t thaw out {hooray!} So, off to the kitchen {armed with my camera} for a midnight snack!

 

Bacon, Egg, and Toast Pods {so cute, and really easy}

{Source: Annie’s Eats}

{Yields: Four Servings}

 

You will need:
4 pieces of bread

4 eggs

4 slices of bacon

Shredded Cheese

Butter

Salt and Pepper

Large Muffin Pan

 

Here’s what you do:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease muffin pan with butter. Cut out 4 slices of bread into circles {I used a drinking glass and it was perfect}

 

2. In a fry pan, cook the bacon slices until they are almost cooked fully. You don’t want them to crisp too much in the oven.

 

3. Remove bacon from fry pan to a plate with paper towels to soak up the grease. Next, take the bacon and lay it around the perimeter of the muffin well. Put the bread in at the same time… so the bread is helping hold the bacon in place.

 

4. Add a small bit of shredded cheese to the center of each piece of bread. Then, crack an egg, removing a little bit of the white, dropping the remaining white and yolk onto the bread. Repeat for all cups.

 

5. Bake in the oven for approximately 6-10 minutes, depending on how runny you like your egg. I found the best way to remove these from the pan is to take a knife around the edge and then lift them out with a serving spoon. Salt and Pepper to taste.

 

These really turned out amazing and were amazingly simple to make. Perfect for my midnight snack .. or for when you are serving several people at once. You don’t have to slave over the stove making sunny-side-up eggs for everyone individually. Throw these babies in the oven .. and you’re set! I hope that you all try these! And, of course, if you do – I’d love to hear how it goes! Night Ya’ll!