Chicken Enchalada

 Will write the recipe for this tomorrow.  I wonder where the time goes.  May is halfway done and I haven't even touch any of the postings I need to do,ugh.  I even posted this photos without the recipe wahh.  Anyway, updating this post before  we go to the library, the kids are performing there today togather with other SJS kids.   Anyway, back to the recipe.

I never made  chicken enchalada before but I was inspired by the Pioneer Woman TV show host, Ree Drummond.  I like her cooking because  you can pretty much  alter it as she hersef doesn't really do specific   ingredients on recipes lol.  Ree is a blogger turned  celebrity chef.  This recipe is slightly different from hers since I used different ingredients.  Here it is.

Ingredients:

• 8 whole Corn Tortillas
• 2 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
• A dash of Cumin,
• A dash of Chili Powder
• 1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
• 1 whole Large Onion, Diced
• I whole red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 quart  tomato sauce (home made)
• Parmesan cheese

How to Prepare

• Preheat the oven to 350 F.
• One at a time, hold tortillas over the stovetop burner (heated to medium heat) to brown slightly, about 30 seconds per side. Set warmed tortillas aside.
• Rub both sides of the chicken breasts with the cumin and chili powder. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook the chicken on both sides until done in the middle, about 4-5 minutes per side or until juices run clear. Set it aside on a plate to cool, then shred it finely with a fork.

• Caramelize the onions into the same skillet and stir them around to cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until deep golden brown. Remove them from the pan and set them aside on a plate. 
• Pour in the homemade or canned tomato sauce and reduce the heat to low, allowing it to warm through and add the sliced bell peppers.  When the peppers are cooked,  pour them in the blender and  blend it.
• Pour 2 cups of sauce into a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish. 
• Dip a tortilla into the sauce then lay on a sheet pan or plate. Put  a tabslespoonful of chiken, then the caramelaized onion, and sprinkle the  cheese on top. Roll it up tightly, then place it, seam side down, in the pan. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas.

• Pour the rest of the sauce over the enchiladas, then sprinkle on the rest of the cheese. Give it a final sprinkling of chili powder, then bake it for 30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

• Remove it from the oven and let it sit for 15-20 minutes before serving. I served 2 enchiladas for my husband and 1  each for me and the kids,

We ate this baby with steamed rice.  Rylie is not fond of  soft tortilla  so she doesn't like  the wrapper, she only ate the filling.

I made another batch of these enchaladas yesterday and I tweaked   the procedure that I did  with this one.  That would be another  post if I have time.

Star Studded American Idol Finale

One of the many highlights of the recently concluded, star-studded finale of the American I dol show last night are the  performances of Ricky Martin and  Jamie Foxx.  I also love the performance of Keith Urban, he was using some kind of  kurt cobain fender but I  wasn't sure of it's kind.  

Photo isn't mine

I wanted Clark Beckham to win  but the song that was assigned to him wasn't really as memorable as Nick Fradiani's song.  The reason I like Clark more than Nick is the fact that he wasn't shy professing his faith to God and that to me is huge!

Celiac Awareness Month with Glutino

Last March, I was introduced to  a new line of gluten-free products that I happen to love from Boulder Brands, a company who is dedicated in  providing  gluten-free prducts like Glutino.  To celebrate the Celiac Awareness Month this May, I am again  enjoying some of these gluten-free products  sent to me by Boulder Brand.  Here are some of the goodies.

Just like the other type of pretzel from Glutino, this pretzel sticks are also pretty good.  I brought this pack when we went to Pittsburgh last weekend and guess what, it served  as  a fulfilling snacks for us as we  sat in the heavy traffic.  The traffic wasn't nice but  glad we had something to munch on.  

I also receieved a box of all-purpose flour, cookie mix, the buffalo pretzel that I love,  salted caramel pretzel, and the double chocolate chip.

Here are some recipes that you can check out where I used Glutino products.  Just click the links to get the recipe.  Enjoy!

sandwich bread

I would definitely buy  another mix of this Glutino sandwich bread since my daughter and husband loved it.

Chocolate Cake Roll 

I told my daughter that she can make another chocolate cake roll since I have a new box of  all-purpose flour.

Buffalo Style Crusted Fish Patties

The Buffalo pretzel really add another  notch of flavor to this fish patties that I've made.  Even my husband who is not fond of fish liked it.

Embutido

The embutido is the last one that I  made using  pretzel from Glutino.  It was really delicious

If you  know someone who suffered or suffering fro Celiac disease,  this month is  a  great month to bring awareness to their story.  They can check out Boulder brands because they offer so many selection of gluten-free products.  

Embutido Recipe

There's a dish in the PHilippines called Embutido.  What it is  a meatloaf but Filipino style.  It has  different ingredients but the main ingredient which is  ground pork or ground beef is there. I have never made this dish before but always loved to eat some when gfriends makes them.  Well, to have something different for Cinco de Mayo (we are not Mexican but we would love to celebrate with them anyways), I decided to  give embutido a try.  I was trying to follow  a recipe but I did not have all the ingredients it requires so I just rerouted it  quite a bit.  So here is what I came up with.

Ingredients

•  1.5 kb  ground pork 
• 2 boiled  eggs 
• 2 medium shallots
• 1 cup  grated carrots 
• 1 cup  chopped red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup sweet pickle relish 
• 2 cups gluten free salted caramel Glutino pretzel (as a substitute for bread)
• 1/2 cup  chopped  mushroom (I did not have raisin so I used mushroom)
• 1 cup  grated cheese (I used 4-cheese)
• 1 1/2 cups  2% milk
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp dried parsley

Procedure

• Soaked the pretzel or bread in the milk for ten minutes.  You can blened the pretzel afterwards or you can just  mash it with potato masher afterwards. I used  this gluten free  pretzel  instead of bread as a way of raising awareness for Celiac Awarenes  Month.

• Combine all of the ingredients except the eggs and mix it thoroughly including the bread/pretzel soaked in milk. 

• To make sure that your  mixture has the right  taste, fry a little bit and try it, this way, you can add whatever is lacking in it (salt for example).

•  Place  2 cups of mixture in an aluminum  foil and spread it a little bit.  Lined up some sliced eggs on top of it. 

• Add more  mixture on top of the eggs and carefully roll  it towards the other side.  

• Make sure that you have enough space at both ends so you can tie it up or you can just  securely fold it.

• Steam for I hour and let it cool and chill overnight.   I made this yesterday sop we will have something special to eat for Cinco de Mayo celebration.

• Sliced diagonally just before serving. 

 You can add ketchup ( I used sriracha with mine)  on top of it absd eat it steamed rice.  I also had some kimcho, yummy!

I think that my first attempt in maiiung this dish  was a success.  The kids and husband said it was really good so I a happy that they liked it!

Gluten-Free Sandwich Bread

When we were still in Korea, my husband  got me this bread maker as a other's day gift.  It has been  5 years since I got it but I never used it till this year.  Don't get me wrong, I love  being in the kitchen and I love cooking but baking is something that I am not fond of.  I don't like the measuring, the  longer period of time of  making dough rise, and all that messy stuff lol.  So what made me use it this year?  Wel, I got  this box of  gluten-free pantry sandwich bread mix from Glutino so I thought of   using  the bread maker.  

 The mix  included a  packet of yeast.  I only added:

•  1 3/4 cups of milk
• 4 tbsp of melted butter
• 2 large eggs.  

I just  put everything in the bread maker and  the machine it did it's magic.  I had to open the lid during the first kneading cycle to help  mixing the dough using a rubber spatula though but  other than that, the machine did all the work.

The bread was very densed but tasted very good.  It smells  heavenly too when  it was  baking.

 This bread was so good especialy after it was  freshly baked.  My daughter sampled it right away when she arrived from school

It was a perfect match  for the 15 bean soup that I prepared that day! Check out the recipe through the link.

It is so nice that there are healthy options like this.  My daughter and I  aren't fond of bread  that  we buy at the store, it is usually for the  husband and son's consumption but when we have baked bread, that's a different story.