Mexicali Chicken and Rice

Ingredients:
-Chicken breasts
-Salsa
-Chili powder
-Onion salt
-Chopped Jalepenos
-Shredded Sharp Cheddar
-package of Lipton's Mexican rice (sorry for cheating here, but I may try a better mexican rice later on.)

Instructions:
Place chicken in a baking pan, sprinkle chili powder, onion salt, jalepenos, and black pepper to your liking.
Pour salsa on top.
Cook for 25 min at 375 degress.
Cover with cheese and cook for 5-10 more minutes.
Cook the Mexican rice as instructed on package.

Serve and enjoy.

Stuffed Peppers

Ok, back to food. Besides, everyone likes food, right?

Not sure where this meal originated from, but my mother (german-english) and also my mother-in-law (irish-polish) have been making it for years. And of course, since women don't cook anymore, I will gladly continue this culinary tradition.

INGREDIENTS:

* 6 green\red\yellow bell peppers
* 1 tablespoons butter
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 1/2 cup chopped onion
* 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes
* 2 cans (16 ounces) of tomato sauce
* 1 clove garlic, crushed
* 1 teaspoon dried leaf oregano
* 2 teaspoons salt, divided
* 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper, divided
* 1 egg, lightly beaten
* 1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
* 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef or chuck
* 1 1/2 cups cooked long-grain rice

PREPARATION:
Cut tops off peppers; remove seeds. Chop edible part of tops and set aside.
Boil peppers in a large pot for 5 minutes. Drain peppers and set aside.

Heat olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat until hot. Sauté chopped green pepper (from tops), chopped onion, and for about 7 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, crushed garlic, oregano, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Simmer for about 10 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, combine egg with remaining 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and Worcestershire sauce. Gently stir to blend; add ground beef, cooked rice, and 1 cup of the tomato mixture. Mix well. Stuff peppers with meat mixture and place in a 3-quart baking dish. Pour remaining tomato mixture over the stuffed peppers. Bake at 350° for 60 minutes.

Also, make another 2-3 cups of rice to serve with meal.

Wine Pairing: Merlot

Enjoy!

Winter Party Hors'dourves

This recipe is designed for a holiday cocktail party.

Crock Pot Spinach dip
Ingredients:
-8 ounces cream cheese
-1/4 cup whipping cream
-1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
-2 tablespoons chopped pimento
-1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
-1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
-2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
-2 teaspoons grated onion or chives Directions: Combine cream cheese and cream in slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW until cheese is melted, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Add remaining ingredients; cover and cook on LOW for about 45 minutes longer. Serve with raw vegetables, crackers, or crusty bread cubes.

Baked Brie

Ingredients:
1 tube of refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
1 wedge of Brie cheese
Raspberry Jam, or other sweet jam
Brown sugar
1/4 cup of maple syrup

Directions: spread out dinner roll dough, put brie wedge in center and add jam, suger and syrup. Then place in over at 350 for 10-15 mins.

Spicy Hummus
Ingredients:
-1 cup cooked chickpeas, drained
-1 large garlic cloves
-2 tablespoons tahini
-Juice of 1 lemon
-1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
-Coarse salt
-1/2 teaspoon crushed pepper flakes
-1 teaspoon (1/3 palm full) ground cumin
-1 teaspoon (1/3 palm full) ground coriander

Directions:
In a food processor, puree all the ingredients except oil. Gradually add the olive oil until incorporated. Spread the hummus onto a plate and top with Salt\pepper, sliced cucumbers and olives, with pita bread on the side.

Stuffed Pepperdews

Ingredients:
-2 dozen pepperdews (or Sweet Piquant Peppers)

-2lb Cream cheese

Directions: Stuff each pepperdew with cream cheese and serve cold


Wines
-Joel Gott Zinfandel 2006
-Gran Familia Rioja 2004
-D'arenberg Noble Riesling 2002
-Smith Madrone Riesling 2006

Stuffed Mushrooms & Gnocchi

Stuffed Mushrooms

10 medium mushroom, firm, closed caps
Stuffing:
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons minced onion or green onion
1/4 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup soft bread crumbs (see below)
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons water
salt & pepper to taste

Pull stems from mushrooms and chop stems finely. Melt butter in a skillet over medium-low heat; add chopped mushroom stems and onion. Sauté until tender. Stir in Worcestershire sauce, soft bread crumbs, cheese, salt and pepper. Stuff mushrooms with stuffing and bake for 20 mins at 350 degrees.

Gnocchi Al Gorgonzola

[image coming soon]
1 lb. Gnocchi

Sauce:
2 tbsp Chopped fresh chives
2 tbsp Freshly ground pepper
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
2 cups whipping cream
1/2 lb. Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

Directions:

Cook sauce ingredients in saucepan, but add walnuts in last. Then add cooked gnocchi to saucepan and serve.

Wine: Nero d'avola

Tomato pesto pasta & Crab dip

I thought maybe I'd post Dinner recipe's I put together, so lets see how it goes. I'm only going to list my ingredients, a rating, and quick prep instructions. I only do dishes that are quick & easy. Enjoy.

Warm Crab dip (rating: 8 out 10 points)
Biscotti bread
Crab dip:
-1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
-3 tablespoons mayonnaise
-3 tablespoons cocktail sauce
-1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
-2 teaspoons lemon juice
-1/2 garlic clove, chopped
-1/2 lb. lump or backfin crabmeat

Prep: mix and throw in the oven at 350 for 15/20 min and then serve with Biscotti for a nice appetizer or hors d'oeuvre .

Tomato Pesto pasta (7 pts)
1lb of Cannolicchi pasta
2 cans of Diced tomatoes
Pesto sauce:
-2 cloves garlic, peeled
-2 tablespoons pine nuts
-1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
-3 cups (3 ounces) fresh basil leaves
-1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
-1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Prep: Put pesto ingredients in a food processor or finely chop, and then mix pesto, tomatoes, and cooked pasta in a large saucepan.

Wine
2006 Earthworks Shiraz (90pts on wineadvocate.com)
Prep: pour in large glass and drink