Southwestern Eggrolls!! So Good!!!!

Since it is a complete pain in the butt to take my kids to a resturant, I've brought the resturant to us. I found out how to make Chili's Southwestern Eggrolls. They are awesome! This recipe serves 5, but I kinda tripled it, still really easy to do.


Eggroll

1 chicken breast fillet
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons minced red bell peppers
2 tablespoons minced green onions
1/3 cup frozen corn
1/4 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons frozen spinach, thawed and drained
2 tablespoons diced canned jalapeno peppers
1/2 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 dash cayenne pepper
3/4 cup shredded monterey jack cheese
flour tortillas

Dipping Sauce
1/4 cup smashed fresh avocados (about half of an avocado)
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon buttermilk ( I didn't have that so I just used Buttermilk Ranch Dressing)
1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon dried parsley
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
1 dash dried dill weed
1 dash garlic powder
1 dash pepper

Garnish
2 tablespoons chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped onions

Preheat barbecue grill.
Rub the chicken breast with some vegetable oil then grill it on the barbecue for 4 to 5 minutes per side or until done.
Lightly salt and pepper each side of the chicken while it cooks.
Set chicken aside until it cools down enough to handle.
Preheat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the red pepper and onion to the pan and sauté for a couple minutes until tender.
Dice the cooked chicken into small cubes and add it to the pan.
Add the corn, black beans, spinach, jalapeno peppers, parsley, cumin, chili powder, salt, and cayenne pepper to the pan.
Cook for another 4 minutes.
Stir well so that the spinach separates and is incorporated into the mixture.
Remove the pan from the heat and add the cheese.
Stir until the cheese is melted.
Wrap the tortillas in a moist cloth and microwave on high temperature for 1 1/2 minutes or until hot.
Spoon approximately one-fifth (about two spoonfuls) of the mixture into the center of a tortilla.
Fold in the ends and then roll the tortilla over the mixture.
Roll the tortilla very tight, then pierce with a toothpick to hold together.
Repeat with the remaining ingredients until you have five eggrolls.
Arrange the eggrolls on a plate, cover the plate with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 4 hours.
Overnight is best.
While the eggrolls freeze prepare the avocado-ranch dipping sauce by combining all of the ingredients in a small bowl.
Preheat 4-6 cups of oil to 375 degrees.
Deep fry the eggrolls in the hot oil for 12-15 minutes and remove to paper towels or a rack to drain for about 2 minutes. ( I didn't leave them in for that long, just keep an eye on them so they don't burn)
Slice each eggroll diagonally lengthwise and arrange on a plate around a small bowl of the dipping sauce.
Garnish the dipping sauce with the chopped tomato and onion.

Father's Day Card

I'm so proud of it!

I'm retarded, I know...

Your Celebrity Boob Twin:

Pamela Anderson

Who's" Your Celebrity Boob Twin?

Saturday...

Cheese!

I love the summer...

Mmm... Snack Packs!

She enjoyed it!

How we spent our Holiday Weekend...

Over the weekend, we made a HUGE dent on the house. We took down the wall and door that was seperating the front entry with the upstairs. The wall was there because the house was once used as duplex. Now it is opened up and feels like a whole new house. I am so thankful and extremly lucky that Brian has the knowledge to do this type of work!

Hmm... How'd this happen?

I was making dinner and the Stupid Cat wouldn't get down and he was pissing me off. So I locked him in the window.... He liked it.

It's Bread Day!!!

I love making home-made bread (I know, I am such a dork), so today is Bread Day! Today's Bread:

The Baguette

One key for success of not destroying this bread, is not adding too much flour to the Dough. Also, right before you put it in the oven, throw 1/4 cup water onto the oven floor (make sure you avoid the heating element!). This creates steam and gives the bread a crispy crust! With this recipe, you really need to follow all of the directions and ingredients.

• 1 package dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 1 cup warm water (100* to 110*)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 1 Tbsp kosher or sea salt
• 2 tsp yellow cornmeal
• 1/4 cup water

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water in a large bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cup; level. Stir 2 1/2 cups flour and salt into mixture. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes); add enough of remaining flour, 1 Tbsp at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel sticky).
2. Place dough in a large bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85*), free from drafts, 45 minutes of until doubled in size. (Press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, the dough has risen enough.) Punch dough down; cover and let rest 5 minutes. Roll dough into a 16in long rope on a floured surface. Place rope on a large baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover and let rise 30 minutes or until doubled in size. Uncover dough. Cut 3 slits on top of loaf to allow steam.
3. Preheat oven to 450*
4. Throw 1/4 cup water on over floor, (not on heating element) Place in oven and quickly close oven door. Bake at 450* for 20 minutes or until loaf is a golden brown. Remove and cool on rack.
5. Eat and enjoy!

Mango Chicken Curry

I love curry dishes! I made this last night, it was wonderful! It reminded me of my mom, she always cooked like this... Now this recipe is a little spicy and if you don't like curry, it's not for you! Brian hates it.

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp (or more) of vegetable oil
• 1 large onion
• 1/2 red bell pepper (I used a whole one)
• 2 garlic cloves (I used 4)
• 2 Tbsp FRESH minced ginger
• 2 Tbsp of yellow curry powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 mango's, peeled and diced
• 2 Tbsp cider vinegar or white vinegar
• 1 1/4 cup water
• 1 1/4 lbs skinless boneless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/3 cup golden raisins
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• salt and pepper
• sugar
• Cilantro for garnish

Directions

1. Heat 2 Tbsp of oil in a large saute' pan over med-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 min. Add the red bell pepper and another Tbsp of oil, cook a couple of minutes more. Add the curry powder and cumin, cook for a few more minutes. The spices will absorb some of the oil, so if anything begins to stick too much to the bottom of the pan, add a little more oil to the pan. Add the ginger and garlic, cook for one more minute more.
2. Add the vinegar, water, and 1/2 of the chopped mango to the pan. Increase the heat and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to maintain a low simmer for about 15 , minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove pan from heat. Scoop the sauce into a blender. Puree the sauce, pulsing until smooth. Return the sauce to the pan
3. Add chicken pieces and raisins to the pan. Return to a low simmer. Cover the pan and let cook for 8-10 minutes. Chicken should be just cooked through. (Use a knife to cut open the largest piece to check)
4. Add remaining mango pieces to the pan. Stir in the cream. Let it cook at a very low temperature for another minute or two, uncovered. Do not let boil! The cream will curdle and you don't want that! Add salt and pepper. Taste, if too bitter add sugar, if too sweet add vinegar. I had to at least add 2-3 Tbsp of sugar when I made it.

Serve over rice or couscous.

I didn't cook the chicken in the sauce. I actually made a tempura style batter and cooked the chicken separately chopped it in to 1-inch pieces, dipped the chicken and fried it in oil. Still good.

Kinda freaky...

Over the past couple of weeks there has been an increasing amount of break-in's that are happening during the day. The people have been targeting the houses in the historical district, thats us. They come in through the back alley's, walk around and check all of the doors, find one that is unlocked and just walk in. And the really creepy thing is that they don't care if your home. A couple of people have been home when the people walked in. Now, the neighborhood that I live in is a really good safe place. The homes are gorgous and I love living downtown. But because of that it brings in some really special people.

Yesterday, as I was picking Reese and Ash up from the neighbors house across the street, I noticed a red Dodge Shadow parking a couple of houses down, didn't really think much of it and went home. A little while later while I was in the kitchen, Ted started going nuts, and not his usual nuts either. He was out to kill!! Then I hear someone scream something and these guys start booking it down our driveway and the Red Dodge Shadow pulls up and they jump in. Isn't that weird? And I also heard that early Saturday morning some one was walking up and down the streets with a camera, taking pictures of the houses. It wasn't someone from the Historical Society either because the send letters around when they are doing it.

I just hope that we don't have to go through what some of my neighbors have. What really scares me is that I'm home all day by myself with my kids. What am I going to do if they break in? With my luck they'll break in while I'm having a bad day and I'll end up beating them with a rolling pin...

One thing that is one myside, is that my house looks like crap on the outside. And if someone does break in what are they going to take? We don't have nice thing! If they want to take the TV, go right ahead...that thing weighs at least 350 lbs.