Chicken Adobo

My friend Dani gave me this wonderful recipe for chicken adobo and i make it all the time now. i of course never follow a recipe to a T so i had to change a few things.

ingredients: chicken thighs, a large onion, garlic, seasonings, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, and crushed red pepper.

serves 6-8

take your chicken thighs and remove the skin (comes off very easily) i rinse them off then set on cookie sheet sprinkle with garlic powder, pepper, and salt (just a little salt)

get your favorite pan hot and add a bit of olive oil then add chicken

 

*important do not move the chicken until it starts to brown. you want the chicken to get  a nice color then flip it over and cook until that side is nicely colored. remove it and set on clean cookie sheet or pan and cook the other half of chicken. (the chicken will NOT be done, nor will it look done)

slice your onion and garlic up while the chicken is cooking

so you have all the chicken browned your pan has all these yummy bits on the bottom!

remove all but a tablespoon or 2 of the oil and then add the onion, garlic and some crushed red pepper

and cook until onions are nice and translucent and they have pretty much picked up all those bits on the bottom

next add balsamic vinegar (the original recipe called for apple cider but i didn't have any) to soy sauce. for today i used 1 cup balsamic and 2/3 soy (for less chicken use 2/3 and 1/3) let simmer

add all chicken back to pan

cover and let cook for about 20-30 minutes or until all the chiken is cooks and the color looks so yummy

 

i serve with rice and veggies.

3 ww points per piece of chicken.

oh and i don't normally make my rice in a nice meat pile like this i just had to measure it for the points =)

ENJOY!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Last night i made chicken tortilla soup it is yummy to have on a cold night. and it is super easy all cooked in the crock pot

ingredients: 4 chicken breasts, 1 can black beans, 1 can corn(drained),2 cans tomato sauce, 2 cans Mexican style stewed tomatoes, 1 small bottle of pace salsa (or any other salsa you like)

serves 8

so just layer the chicken in the crock pot and season with your favorite seasoning i use garlic powder, tony's, and cumin

then just put everything else in.

and cook on high for about 5 hours. take a chicken breast out and check to make sure if it is done (it will be most likely) as long as it is take all the breasts out and cut them in strips it will probably just shred off. mix it all back in and keep the crock pot on.

ok so now for the part that makes it great. you can top this with your favorite tortilla chip but i like to make my own. just take a tortilla and cut it in strips and add it to a pan with just a little oil in the bottom. cook until crisp and golden, as soon as they come out add a little kosher salt.

i used 6 tortillas and 1 tablespoon of oil for each 3 tortillas so for 1 tortilla per person it totaled 2 ww points much better than chips and it tastes delish.

ok so take your bowl of soup

top with cheese (i used 1/2 an ounce 1.5 points), 1 tablespoon of sour cream(1 pt.), and the chips(2 points) . with the soup at 3 points per serving. 7.5 points total and VERY filling!

ENJOY!

My favorite lunch at the moment

so i have been wanting to eat bread and tomatoes lately and i made up this yummy sandwich a week or so ago that is seriously SO yummy! John and I like this tomato, mozzarella, basil salad at macaroni grill and i decided to make it at home and add bread what could be better?

the main stuff other than the bread and dressing because i forgot to take it out before i took the picture.

so i cut the cheese and tomatoes in slices and layer on a plate add some basil (they didn't have any fresh at my store so i used this freeze dried, it was good once i added the dressing) drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Add some salt and pepper.  while the salad is marinating, add two slices of sourdough bread to your oven with a little olive oil brushed on either side.

when the bread is a little crisp take it out and rub with a clove of garlic (do not skip this it is the best part of the meal!!) add the cheese to the bread and stick back in the oven until cheese is melted

top with tomatoes and enjoy serious yummy!

each piece of bread with topping is 4.5 weight watcher points but soooooooooooooo worth it!

Let's cook the easiest thing possible first

today we will cook a pot of beans. the funny thing is beans intimidated me so much when i was first married and i think now i have pretty much got it together when it comes making beans lol.

ok first off i just get some beans from the store (i do not buy them bagged i buy them in the produce section in those big bins, do you all have them?) so i go through and make sure there are no funky beans, shriveled up, or rocks in there and discard all of those.

next i rinse all the beans in a colander for like 5 minutes until they are nice and clean. no need to soak them ahead of time they will cook perfect!

i put them in a pan and fill it with water and add 5-6 garlic cloves and a good amount of salt. turn the fire on high until the water begins to boil, then i put the cover on and cook on medium for about 3-4 hours. keep checking on them and if the water is getting low just add some more, it is not rocket science don't be afraid of it. after 3-4 hours add a big palm full of cumin, some seasoning salt and lower it to low. cook until you can pick up a bean and smash a bean between 2 fingers with out a ton of pressure.

 

this is what they look like when they are done, you can eat them like this. we usually eat them this way the first night as a side, or in veggie soup (i will posting my recipe for this soup in a couple of days it is DELICIOUS!) but if you want to make refried beans this is how you do it:

get a pan very hot and add a little oil (a few tablespoons) and then add some of the beans to the pan. i leave the garlic cloves in but you can take them out if you want.

make sure you add the juice to the beans too or they will be much to dry. use your masher and mash while they are cooking, do not over mash them you do not want them to be too smooth you want texture people. once they are to your liking and bubbling you can add the cheese you love, i usually use jack cheese. they will still look runny but dont worry they will thicken up as they cool.

at this point i turn off the flame and put a lid on it until ready to eat. wanna see my favorite way to have refried beans?

take a small pan and add abut a table spoon of oil and fry a tortilla until crispy, top with beans and cheese, and all your favorites that you would put on a taco.  Seriously so good and a meatless dinner. Beans are a great source of protein!!!!

so my very first post...........

on my cooking blog! let me just start by saying i LOVE to cook! i really do, i have recently started trying to cook some new stuff because my family tends to be creatures of habit and can eat the same 10 things over and over. I am Mexican so alot of what i cook is Mexican food but i have been experimenting with new things and taking lots of pictures now i will warn you i am no pioneer woman but my family are my biggest fans... usually!

so  first let me tell you a little about myself in case you don't read my main family blog. i am a sahm mom of 4 kids Liz-10, David-6, Johnathan-5, and Jake 19 months old, and we just found out we are expecting another baby in September! We also have a son Matthew who passed away at 3 months old he was Johnathan's twin brother. My hubby John works really hard so that i can stay home with the kiddos and he is AWESOME! i am a mops coordinator and i am planning on home schooling next year wow what a adventure we are on around our house! so enough about me lets talk about food!

so what will make this blog different from any other cooking blog? i cook very simple meals, i don't want to make a 7 course dinner i just want to show you some yummy food your family may love. i don't follow recipes to well i will try to tell you to the best of my knowledge but i cant make any promises =).

my biggest tip when it comes to cooking is to season your food! i mean so many people can make food look so pretty then when you taste it there is no flavor! so for my very first post i will show you some of my favorite kitchen seasonings!

 

these are my 2 favorite seasonings/spices. cumin is so yummy and adds a smokey depth of flavor to your food that is so delicious. i put it in my beans, rice, taco meat, soup, chili, and on and on.

the Tony's i have seen in Albertsons and Wal-mart but i always order a case online and put the extras in the freezer and use them as i need them. you add this just like salt and it has a little kick to it. i literally put it on EVERYTHING that i would salt.

i do use lots of pepper, salt, garlic powder and many other seasoning but these 5 i have mentioned are my favorites.

 

i use cooking spray, and extra light tasting olive oil all the time as well as vegetable oil but i have to have he light tasting kind. the others are too strong to me. i will never forget one time we were visiting someone and they made pancakes using the regular olive oil and even with syrup we could only taste olives blahhhh......

 

lastly here some onions and garlic, if you are not using fresh onions and garlic you are missing out! i used to think i hated onions, and now i love them cooked. Raw they are still gross to me but a cooked onion just rounds out a great meal to me!

So what spices do you love? what are your staples in your pantry? i cant wait to hear from you!