Chicken Stir-Fry with a Little Kick

Mondays call for "quick and easy " recipes.

I don't know why ~ but ~ Mondays are exhausting!
Do you agree or are you a Monday person?

Chicken Stir-Fry with a Little Kick
2 teaspoon peanut oil
2 tablespoons of peanut butter ( crunchy)
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
1-2 garlic cloves, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced
2 green onions, sliced
3-4 ounces of snow peas, washed and ends trimmed
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts
pinch of salt and pepper

In a skillet, heat oil. Add chicken and cook on medium high until browned
( 2-3 minutes). Then take out of pan and set aside. Add garlic, pepper and snow peas. Cook the vegetables for about 2 -3 minutes then add the chicken back into the pan. Stir in the lime juice, red pepper flakes and peanut butter. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook on high heat for another 2 or 3 minutes depending on the thickness of your chicken. Stir in the green onion.

Now that is quick, easy and good!
Serve over rice and top with peanuts.

Strawberry Custard Ice Cream

There has been no lack of desserts here at our house this past week.
It all started with the Rocky Road Fudge.

A few days after making the fudge, I baked cookies because
we were having friends over for dinner.
They were Peanut Butter, Chocolate Chip, Toasted Coconut Cookies
and they looked like this:




After the cookies came something even better -
Strawberry Custard Ice Cream made by my husband.

Strawberry Custard Ice Cream
by Dorothy Hagerman

6 tablespoons flour
3 cups sugar divided
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups milk
6 eggs
1 1/ pints fresh strawberries
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 cups heavy cream or half & half cream
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
Dash red food coloring (optional)


In a heavy 3-quart saucepan, combine flour, 2 cups sugar, and salt until well blended (a wire whisk works great). Blend in milk and eggs until well blended. Over medium-low heat, cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture (custard) thickens and will coat the back of a metal spoon with a thin film, approximately 7 to 10 minutes. On your instant-read cooking thermometer, the temperature should reach between 165 and 180 degrees F. NOTE: Do not let the mixture boil or it will curdle. If, of course by accident, your custard base does curdle, immediately remove from heat and place in a blender; process until smooth.

Remove from heat and let custard cool. Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 2 hours but ideally for 24 hours. NOTE: Cool quickly by setting pan in ice or cold water and stirring for a few minutes. This aging process will give the mixture better whipping qualities and produce ice cream with more body and a smoother texture.

In a large bowl using a potato masher, crush strawberries with lemon juice and the remaining 1 cup sugar. Let stand for 1 hour.

After custard mixture has aged and is well chilled, remove from refrigerator and add and stir together half & half cream, vanilla extract, food coloring (optional), and strawberry mixture. The ice cream mixture is now ready for the freezing process.

Transfer the mixture into your ice cream maker can and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions.












This is the BEST homemade ice cream!!

Turkey Cutlets with Wine Sauce

I don't know about you but I find that I only
make turkey about once or twice a year.
I came across this recipe for
turkey cutlets in my Everyday Food Magazine
and thought it was a nice
change and added to my menu for this week.


Turkey Cutlets with Wine Sauce
From Everyday Food

1 small boneless, skinless turkey breast ( about 2 pounds)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 cups dry white wine
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

Lightly pound out the cutlets to be about 1/4 inch thick.
Season with salt and pepper.
In a large skillet, heat oil.
Brown the cutlets, cooking for about 2 to 3 minutes each side.
Tansfer to a plate and cover loosely with foil.
Add wine to skillet and bring to boil. Cook, scraping up the browned bits.
Continue cooking until wine is reduced to 1/2 cup, 6 to 8 minutes.
Whisk in the Dijon mustard and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and simmer. Season with salt and pepper. Top the turkey cutlets with sauce and serve.


Check out this dinner:

Rocky Road Fudge

This is a quick, yummy recipe for fudge.
I made it after coming home from a long day at work
and it was really worth it!!


Rocky Road Fudge
by William Sonoma


Ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
3 1/2 cups mini marshmellows
2 cups chopped nuts ( your choice)
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or chocolate extract
1/2 cup of chopped maraschino cherries (not in original recipe just sounded good to me)


Set aside a 1/2 cup of the marshmallows and 1/2 cup of the nuts for the topping.

Line a baking pan with aluminum foil making sure to press the foil into the corners. Using a napkin or papertowel to rub vegetable oil over the foil.

Begin by melting the chocolate chips and condensed milk in a microwaveable bowl.
Melt 30 seconds at a time (two or three times) stirring each time.
You don't want to over heat the chocolate.




Next, using a spatula, stir in the vanilla extract, marshmallows, nuts and cherries.
Make sure all the ingredients get mixed into the chocolate.

Scrape the chocolate mixture into the baking pan, spread it out evenly and smooth the top.


Sprinkle the remaining marshmallows and nuts on top and gently press them into the surface of the fudge. Cover the pan and chill in the refigerator for about 30 minutes.



Lift the fudge out of the pan peeling back the foil. Then cut the fudge into small pieces and serve.



Check out all the oowey, goowey, goodness!

Spicy Tomato Sauce with Italian Sausage

Get Spicy!

Here is a nice recipe for:
Spicy Tomato Sauce with Italian Sausage

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, roasted and then chopped
1/2 teaspoon oregano, finely chopped
1 tablespoon basil finely chopped
2 bay leaves ( take out before serving)
3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
2 28-ounce cans Italian-style tomatoes
1 can crushed tomatoes with added purée
1/2 cup dry red wine
Italian sausage cooked and sliced





Top with a little fresh parmesan cheese and MAN THAT IS GOOD!

Orange, Apple and Toasted Almond Salad

AHHHH, just got back from a week of vacation in St. Lucia.
What a great trip! Beautiful beaches, fantastic food and relaxation.
St. Lucia is a popular wedding destination. That being said, this is one
of my favorite pictures from the trip.



After a week away it is time to get back to eating healthy.

This is a simple but delicious salad.

You can use any type of lettuce. Then add some tangerine slices,
apple slices, cucumber and toasted almonds.

The dressing is an Orange, Poppyseed Dressing.



So many possibilities when making salad.