Fleur de Aleta

Lauren ’s Chicken Pasta salad (Kuddos to my friend, Lauren, for sharing her family recipe)   Ingredients:   Cooked chicken (we used a rotisserie chicken, but you can pan sear, grill or bake 2-3 chicken tenderloins)  Bow tie pasta (16 ounce bag) Red onion (yes, they actually look purple) Celery (3-4 stalks) Black olives (not for me!) Cherry tomatoes Cucumber Italian shredded cheese pack that includes (Romano/Asiago/Parm cheese) Basil (dried or fresh leaf) Lettuce Croutons Lite Mayo Caeser Dressing. (This can be substituted with Ranch dressing instead of Caeser) Olive Garden Italian Dressing Garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper   Get the water boiling for the bow tie pasta - cook it all the way - took about 12 minutes after we added it to boiling water. Chop up the red onion - not finely chop (I only used half of a onion) Chop the celery - not fine (Lauren showed me how to devein the celery, but that’s an art I haven’t perfected at all) Chop the cucumbers - bite s...

Lauren ’s Potato Salad - to serve 10-15 people   (Giving kuddos to my friend, Lauren, who shared this recipe - it’s a family recipe handed down generation to generation)   Ingredients   5 pounds of russet potatoes (I went over 5 pounds, which ended up being a good thing) 9 hard boiled eggs  1/2 green bell pepper (put this as a side to add, because a lot of people won’t eat it with the bell pepper- finely chopped) 1 small white onion - finely chopped 2 tbsp parsley flakes 1/8 tsp minced garlic or a few cloves finely chopped 6/8 ounces of dill relish 6 ounces of olive salad (okay, I didn’t add any olives and was good without this) 6-7 stalks of celery - not finely chopped Lite sour cream Lite mayo 1 tbsp of mustard Garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper and paprika   Directions:   Get two pots of water going to boil  (And a third smaller pot of water boiling for eggs)   Peel the potatoes (this will take a while with 5 pounds, but it’s good to go ...

I didn't have a real recipe to follow for the chocolate buttercream icing, so I went based off of what I know about buttercream and winged it.  I'm writing for future reference in the hope that I can "wing" it again. Ingredients: 2 1/2 cups butter at room temperature 1/3 of a Hershey cocoa 16 oz container 2 bags of 2 lbs powdered sugar 2 1/2 cups of hi ratio shortening splash of vanilla (1 tablespoon) splash of chocolate extract (1 tablespoon) splash of wedding flavor (2 tablespoons) hot creamer mixed (1 cup boiling water, 1 cup coffee creamer) - use 9 tablespoons of this Directions: Cream butter and hi ratio shortening in mixer Add vanilla, chocolate extract, wedding flavors and hot creamer in mixer After those are all mixed together, add Hershey cocoa - mix at low speed - should mix into a dark chocolate - you want this to be dark because when you add the sugar, it will lighten in color and chocolate flavor. Continue mixing at low speed and add in the powdered sugar...

For Gregory's cake, I did a "doctored cake mix."  It was a HUGE hit!  Since then, I'm just doing the doctored cake mix, but if I ever need to extend or make a carved cake, I know what to do! Basic Doctored Cake Mix  (this is what I used) Result: the addition of the extra egg and pudding will give you a just slightly more dense cake than the normal fluffiness of a plain box mix. Great for cupcakes, buttercream cakes; but not recommended for carving, structured cakes, or under buttercream/fondant cakes. Ingredients •                1 box desired flavor cake mix •                ingredients listed on box •                1 large egg •                1 small box instant pudding in a coordinating flav...

We added a few ingredients to the recipe at the very last minute.  My husband said, "I would definitely order this at a restaurant" and gave it a thumb's up.  YES!  Very easy to make - just takes some time to cook, but hey, any recipe where you can use a crock pot is great, right? Ingredients: 3-4 chicken breasts (we used thigh meat, came out tender too) 8 ounce Philadelphia cream cheese 1/3 cup sliced jalapeños (no juice) 1 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cumin taco-sized tortillas 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (we used cheddar with pepper jack shredded cheese) chopped tomatoes (we added this to the recipe) chopped green onions (we added to recipe) Taco seasoning (we added to the recipe) Instructions: Add chicken, 1/2 cup water, cream cheese, jalapeños, garlic powder, salt and cumin to the crockpot.  Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high 3-4 highs (we did high for 3 1/2 hours). Once the chicken has cooked, preheat oven to 425 and grease a baking...

I found a recipe that I thought Greg would enjoy.  We bought the ingredients and our little helper enjoyed assisting us in the kitchen: Ingredients: Angel hair pasta 1 pound boneless skirt steak 1/4 cup beef broth 3 tablespoons Asian dumpling sauce (if you don't have this, use soy sauce) 1/2 tablespoon honey 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 3 teaspoons cornstarch 1 teaspoon brown sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil 6 tablespoons olive oil 1 large bundle of asparagus - chop into bite sized pieces 1 tablespoon ginger 4 cloves garlic, minced 4 green onions, thinly sliced Instructions: Cook Angel hair pasta, drain well and set aside. Cut beef into thin slices, cutting across the grain. In a bowl, stir together:  Beef Broth, 2 tablespoons of the dumpling sauce, honey, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, cornstarch, sugar and sesame oil.  Whisk together. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a skillet over high heat.  Once hot, add half of the b...

My husband LOVES apple pie.  It's his favorite, so on July 4th, I thought it would be nice to try out a recipe for apple pie.  I looked for something simple, because I've never made a pie before.  I wasn't going to get so brave to make my own pie crust - we bought one in the frozen section (with two pie crusts in the package).  Below are the ingredients and directions for the pie filling and the pie topping. With the amount of apples used, we were able to fill 2 pies. 7 medium apples, cored, peeled and thinly sliced.  VERY thinly sliced, small pieces - should be smaller than what you see in the pictures. 1/2 cup sugar (and then a little more) 1/4 cup brown sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 3/4 teaspoons cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 2 Tablespoons flour 2 Tablespoons butter Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, except for the butter.   (Keep the butter on the side for the last thing added on top) Microwave the filling mixture for 3 minutes.  Stir, Microwave for ano...

It's easy to make, but make sure do not misread the ingredients.... like I did... I was making a fast grocery list and thought it read "red wine vinegar"... instead... of rice vinegar.  BIG difference and the mistake forced a second grocery store run.  Ugh. The other thing about this recipe... if you are allergic to carrots, don't get the bag of coleslaw mix... Found this out after serving the salad to my husband and his lips started to burn and the back of his throat hurt.  Fortunately the carrots were only a few bits and he washed down the meal with a lot of water.  Lesson learned! Below is the recipe for ingredients in the salad and then ingredients for the dressing: Salad makings: 1 (16 ounce) bag coleslaw mix 2 packages of ramen noodles, crumbled (do NOT use the seasoning) 1 cup shelled edamame 1 avocado, diced 1 mango, diced 1/2 cup thin sliced almonds 1/2 cup sliced green onions Dressing ingredients: 2/3 cup vegetable oil 1/3 cup honey 1/3 cup rice vinegar 2 t...

The word "honey" might make you think this is ultra sweet, but with the soy and hoisin sauce, it adds some extra flavor.  I'm not used to working with hoisin sauce.  Greg said to decrease the hoisin in the future and use a mixture of breast and thigh meat, because even in a crock pot, it can make the meat more tough while cooking.  The sauce is thick, but it's supposed to be that way in the end. Special note - I combined this dish with a low flavor rice/quinoa package (purchased at Sam's).  We have used this package before and found that it doesn't have much taste - but it was a good combo with the recipe I used, because the sauce was so strong. Ingredients: 4 boneless skinless chicken breast (and thighs) 1 Cup honey 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce 1/4 Cup hoisin sauce (maybe cut this in half?) 1 Teaspoon toasted sesame oil 2 Cloves garlic, minced 6 Tablespoons cold water 2 Tablespoons corn starch Garnish Green onions, sliced Sesame seeds Instructions: Cut chicke...

When I told my husband that I was making egg drop soup, he asked, "The real thing, not like that Egg Foul Young."  Even though he liked that Egg Foul Young, Greg wanted the real recipe for egg drop soup, which I did have. It's easy to make, doesn't take much time.  But the texture was slightly off.  Greg said it had excellent flavor.  I used the chicken broth that we made from a rotisserie chicken.  The broth was thick, so I'm thinking that might be the issue.  Greg thought the recipe called for too much cornstarch, but I think it was the real broth instead of the store bought stuff that created the thickness.  I liked it though. Ingredients: 4 cups chicken stock 2 Tbsp cornstarch 1 tsp ground ginger 1/4 tsp garlic powder 2 large eggs and 2 egg whites (I used what we call in our house "fake eggs" or egg substitutes.  However, next time, I might go with 4 eggs and see how it comes out) 1/2 tsp sesame oil 3 green onions, sliced thin salt and pepper ...

I don't want to be a "one trick pony" when it comes to cooking.  Sure, I don't cook that often, but when I do, I'd like to have a nice repertoire of dishes.  I have never cooked an Asian dish or used Asian spices.  Given this is new for me, I hunted for a recipe with simple ingredients and simple instructions. If you have ever had Southern "dirty rice" you know what I'm talking about, only this has an Asian twist to it with the flavor.  My husband enjoyed it, but he said to try cutting back on the sugar next time. Ingredients: 1 lb ground beef 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/4 cup soy sauce 1 Tablespoon sesame oil 4 cloves garlic, minced 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 - 1 teaspoon crushed red peppers (we didn't have this, so I used just the smallest amount of Cayenne to give it some zing.) salt and pepper 1 bunch green onions, diced Rice, cooked Instructions: In a large skillet over medium heat, add sesame oil, garlic and beef.  Brown the meat. Drain the f...

For my sister-in-law's baby shower, I made the blue punch.  It should have been a little bit more blue, but a lot of people enjoyed it and there was no punch left by the end of the party, so I imagine those kind words were true.  I liked it too :)  Here's the recipe: Ingredients: 1 packet Ice Blue Raspberry Lemonade unsweetened Kool-Aid (I would recommend getting 2 packets - use one and then add a little more after you make this to bring the blue color back to a brighter hue). 1 (2 liter) bottle Ginger Ale 1 (64 oz) White Grape Juice 1 cup sugar 8 scoops pineapple sherbet Instructions: Chill ginger ale and grape juice over night. Remove sherbet from freezer about 1/2 hour before serving punch to soften In a large bowl, combine Kool-Aid packet, sugar and chilled juice.  Stir. Slowly add chilled ginger ale. Float 8 scoops of softened sherbet on top. NOTE * You will need a LARGE punch bowl for this mixture!

My husband enjoys Mexican food.  I like the veggies and smoky flavor of fajitas from Mexican restaurants.  But it's not easy to duplicate at home, without using a cast iron griddle.  The oven is simple.  The recipe is simple.  Lots of ingredients to get a great flavor.  When your husband goes for seconds, gives up a thumbs up and rates it 9 out of 10 - totally worth it! I bought two small yellow onions, two red bell peppers (2 for 1 dollar - yeah!), 2 small green bell pepper and portabello mushrooms.  You'll notice in the pictures how the mushrooms are not in the large oven pan, because my husband doesn't eat shrooms.  More for me!  Chicken slices were added in, though you can just as easily make this totally vegetarian. So, the quick break down - mix the dry ingredients for the seasoning in a bowl. Cut the onions and bell peppers and chicken and mushrooms into strips.   It's always a little shocking when you slice a red bell pepper and ...