Chicken Enchildas in Red Chile Sauce

For many years I used the vile McCormick chili powder for a lot of my cooking. It wasn’t until I made mole for the first time that I learned how to use whole dried chile pods. Whole dried chiles have so much more flavor than chili powder.My friend Eliah taught me how to make enchiladas. Her recipe...

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Favorite Apple

Guess what's in season? My favorite apple: the honeycrisp. This is a relatively new apple on the market. A few years ago (I think it was 2004) I discovered this new love. I love this apple so much. I remember checking out at the grocery store and three apples cost over $5.00. It is difficult to...

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Capellini with Shrimp and Spinach

This is a very simple dish to make for a busy weeknight dinner. We eat a lot of chicken at home. Mainly because I still have an aversion to red meat that taste too “meaty.” I’ve been trying to cook other types of protein so I bought a few bags of frozen shrimp. I don’t care too much for shrimp....

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Freezer Pesto (Harvesting and Preserving Summer Basil)

It has been really cold the last few days. We were at the baseball game on Tuesday and Thursday and it was about 42 degrees out. I figured it was time to harvest the leaves and cut the plants back. I will try to grow the pruned basil plants indoors but I'm not holding my breath.I really love the...

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Fish en Papillote

No recipe for this dish. You basically put dig through your fridge and see what you have. I always try to season with salt and pepper then add something acidic and something aromatic. Sometimes I use more herbs and spices but most of the time it is just salt and pepper. For the acidic ingredient,...

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Lion Brand Coffee - Toasted Coconut

I'm not a flavored coffee person but on a whim I grabbed a bag of Lion Brand coffee in the Toasted Coconut flavor at Target in Hawaii. I grabbed a few different bags of coffee thinking I would give them as gifts. On my return, I don't know why I decided to try the Toasted Coconut. I had unflavored...

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Pioneer Woman's Baked Beans

I read the Pioneer Woman's blog often. I love her sense of humor and the fact that she can make something fancy one day and something simple the next. I also love her photography. I can't take a good photo to save my life. I've been wanting a really nice camera but a photographer friend told me...

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Chicken Egg Rolls

I wrapped 75 egg rolls last Friday, froze them in layers and then fried them on Saturday morning. I like to make a large batch of egg rolls and freeze them. Sometimes I freeze them prior to frying and other times after frying. They are better frozen in their un-fried state but so much more convenient...

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Vietnamese Lemongrass Chicken with Rice (Com Ga Nuong Sa)

I usually order either the noodle (bun) or the rice (com) at Vietnamese restaurants. I prefer chicken over other types of meats but sometimes I will be a little adventurous and order the combination version.This week I had a craving for the rice version. I went to a local Vietnamese restaurant and...

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Chinese Birthday Cake Take Four (or Five)

I've been a little lazy with posting again. I'm still cooking. (I just downloaded tons of pictures off the camera.) I've just been a little busy with family (preparing for their arrival, entertaining them and then recovering from entertaining). I've been so out of it that I baked a cake (and made...

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