Dinner: Easy Spanish Rice

Easy Spanish Rice


Here is an easy recipe for Spanish Rice that I used last week.
Go HERE for the recipe online.

1 1/2 cups rice
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup plain tomato sauce*
3 cloves finely chopped garlic *
1/4 of a medium onion*
2 tablespoons oil
4 heaping tablespoons of finely chopped parsley (optional)

Preparation:

In a medium sauce pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add in the fresh garlic and onion. Saute for 1-2 minutes until softened. Add in dry rice. Stir for about 5 minutes until rice becomes a golden brown color.

Add in broth and tomato sauce (Slowly into rice, not directly onto hot pan!) Add in the parsley if you're using it. Stir it up and bring to a boil. Once it starts boiling, turn the heat to low and cover. Let it simmer for 20 minutes and fluff with a fork.

*If you don't have fresh garlic or onions on hand you can use the equivalent in powder form. Do not saute the powder, just skip that step and add the garlic powder and/or onion powder when you add the liquids. If you don't have tomato sauce you can use unseasoned stewed tomatoes, or canned diced tomatoes with their liquid.

Easy Homemade Salsa

Lately I've been craving Mexican Food! And yes, I'm on a kick to figure out how to make it on my own. Because, why should I have to pay $10 for dinner when I can make it myself for less?
Am I right, or am I right.

SO, last week I ordered a Bountiful Basket. Along with it I ordered the Mexican Food pack. It included a bunch of things that I've never EVER cooked with before including some seriously strange peppers.

I really wanted to try some homemade salsa. I was a little intimidated by the idea, but willing to give it a try. I was pleasantly surprised to find out how EASY it is to make salsa!

This recipe is from my Sister-in-law, Michelle.
(Thanks Michelle!)

Photo: Yummy salsa with mini cheese quesadilla


Recipe:

1 clove garlic

1 jalapeno

2 green onions

1 handful cilantro



Step 1 - chop the above ingredients in food processor.

Step 2 - then add 6-7 Roma tomatoes, 1 tsp of Salt and Juice from 1/4 lemon

Step 3 - blend in food processor until you get your own desired consistency.


THE FEEDBACK: A 10 out of 10 from everyone! Even "Kid-MO" liked it!

Enjoy!! It is SUPER yummy and easy too!

Dinner: Cafe Rio / Costa Vida Pulled Pork

Today on Mo-Momma we're making Pulled Pork in TWO styles.

Mo-Momma style: Classic dry rub pulled pork
Mo-Daddy style: Pork Barbecue / Cafe Rio / Costa Vida style

(Recipe's at the bottom if you want to skip straight there)

First things first, go buy yourself a nice boneless pork loin. This was a killer deal at Frys. Only $6.97 for the whole Pork Loin! That's less than you'd pay for one meal at Cafe Rio or Costa Vida!


If you're making two different pulled pork recipes like me, slice the pork loin in half. If not, just keep it whole.


For the Mo-Momma Dry rub, get your seasoning ready. I found my yummy recipe online HERE .

1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
2 teaspoons black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Once you combine the seasoning together, rub evenly over the pork.
Combine with 1 cup water and cook for 6-8 hours on high.

TIP: If you get grossed out by touching raw meat like I do, just put a Ziplock bag over your hand, pour some of the rub onto the meat and rub the seasoning in! When you're all done you can throw away the bag and you won't end up with RED hands from the seasoning either! :)



Alright, set that aside and begin working on your Cafe Rio Pork! I found my recipe online HERE .

First, you need to marinade your meat. In a LARGE plastic bag pour 1 1/2 cups Coke (I used Pepsi) and 1/4 cup brown sugar along with your Pork Loin Roast.

The recipe says to marinade for a couple hours or over night. I only did this step for about 2 hours. We think it could have gone longer, so I'd suggest trying this over night.



Once done marinading, drain from the marinade in the bag. Place in slow cooker with a dash of garlic salt, 1/4 cup water and 1/2 can Coke (we used Pepsi). Cook on high for 3-4 hours until it shreds easily.

Remove pork from crock pot and shred in a bowl. Remove excess liquid from the crock pot and throw out.

In a blender or mixer, combine 1/2 can Coke (we used Pepsi), 1 can sliced Green Chili's, 1 can mild Enchilada Sauce (we used El Paso brand) and 1 cup brown sugar. Blend well. If it is too thick, just add more Coke/Pepsi until a thin consistency.

Place pulled pork back into crock pot. Add Enchilada sauce mixture and stir together. Cook on high for 2 more hours.

Here is the pulled pork with the enchilada sauce being mixed in.



On the RIGHT: Cafe Rio / Costa Vida pulled pork
On the LEFT: Dry rub traditional pulled pork



Pulled Pork Sandwich..... YUM.

Now, to finish off the traditional Cafe Rio meal we also made Cilantro Lime Rice. This recipe is also found online HERE . She also has recipes for the Beans and Ranch Dressing (if making the salad version)

CILANTRO-LIME RICE:

1 c. uncooked rice

1 tsp. butter or margarine

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice1 can (15 oz) chicken broth1 cup water

1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice

2 tsp. sugar

3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

In a saucepan combine rice, butter, garlic, 1 tsp. lime, chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook on low 15-20 minutes, until rice is tender. Remove from heat. In a small bowl combine lime juice, sugar and cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice and mix in as you fluff the rice.

THE FEEDBACK:

9 out of 10 for Mo-Momma Traditional Dry Rub Pulled Pork

8 out of 10 for Mo-Daddy Cafe Rio Style Pulled Pork

(Would have been higher if marinade over night)

KID FEEDBACK: He ate TWO sandwiches. That's all I'm going to say. Success!

(Mo-Momma style, traditional dry rub. He spit out the Cafe Rio style)

ESTIMATED COST: $10 - We fed 5 adults and 1 kid, with tons of leftovers!

Let me know if you try out this recipe - and what you think!

COMMENTS PLEASE!

Recipe: Fiesta Chicken *

I have to admit, I do LOVE to cook.
I love to BAKE even more. But, more about that later.

One of my 2011 resolutions is to PLAN better. For me that means planning ahead for meals and making less trips to the Drive-thru.

I'm still in my planning phase but my ultimate goal is to have 1-2 weeks of meals planned ahead with all of the ingredients on hand.

What is at stake? TIME, MONEY, FAMILY & HEALTHY LIFESTYLE

This will take me a while to build my "supply" of meat and ingredients that I have on hand but in the long run the TIME I will save from running to the grocery store will really pay off. I will also save my family a lot of MONEY by cooking at home more during the week. We will also eat a lot more HEALTHIER and enjoy FAMILY time together at the table.

Along the way I'll share my recipes and my family's feedback.

Up this week: Fiesta Chicken

I found the recipe online HERE


(photo by Amy)

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
8 chicken drumsticks or thighs (8 drumsticks = about 2-1/2 lb) (I used 6)
1 cup long-grain white rice, uncooked
2 cans (10 oz each) Ro*Tel® Original Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies, undrained
1 can (8 oz each) Hunt's® Tomato Sauce
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions, divided
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook until golden brown on all sides, turning occasionally. Remove chicken from skillet; keep warm.

2. Add rice to drippings in skillet; stir to coat. Cook over medium heat 3 to 5 minutes or until rice browns a bit, stirring occasionally. Stir in undrained tomatoes, tomato sauce, water and about half of the onions; blend well. Bring to a boil. Top with chicken; cover. Reduce heat to low; simmer 20 minutes or until drumsticks are no longer pink in center and juices run clear (180°F).
3. Sprinkle chicken with cheese and the remaining onions; cover. Cook an additional 5 minutes or until cheese melts, liquid is absorbed and rice is tender.

THE FEEDBACK: Too Spicy! Rating 2 out of 10

NOTES: I think that the Ro-Tel "original" with green chilies was what made this too spicy for us. If we make this again, I will tone down the recipe by using just one can of Rotel Mild mix.

TIPS: When making this meal, I found that my Chicken Drumsticks were bleeding during the browning stage! YUCK! I did a quick GOOGLE search and found that if you soak the chicken drumsticks in Salted Water prior to cooking you can avoid this! WOOHOO

HERE is a link to more ideas to stop the chicken from bleeding via Yahoo Answers.