Appetizers, Recipes

Layered Taco Dip

Sarah

It’s no secret that I love Mexican-inspired dishes. Consequently, last weekend, when faced with the choice of what snack to bring to a girls’ night with some friends from church, I instantly thought of Layered Taco Dip. Let me just say that this version is amazing. I’ve never made a taco dip without refried beans and oodles of cheese, and while I won’t go so far to say this is a healthy version of taco dip, it’s certainly not as bad for you as it could be. Anyways…

There are six reasons I love this dip.

layered taco dip
all ready for dipping!
  1. Black beans. So tasty, so flavorful and a little bit of texture.
  2. Guacamole. Enough said.
  3. Cheese! [I never said it wasn’t there…]
  4. Sour cream. Infused with spices and onions. Ummm wow.
  5. Lettuce. Gotta make it healthy somehow 😉
  6. Tomatoes. Topped with spices and onions. Ahhmmazing!

All layered up, served with crunchy chips, naturally. Need I say more? Oh yeah… I think it’s pretty 🙂

Layered Taco Dip [adapted from The Food Network]

Ingredients:

  • olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, diced
  • 1 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • hot sauce
  • ~2 tablespoons water
  • 1 cup cheddar cheese [shred your own! it’s better!]
  • 1 large avocado
  • garlic powder
  • cayenne pepper
  • kosher salt
  • ~1 teaspoon lime juice
  • 4 green onions, diced
  • slightly under 1 cup sour cream
  • dried cilantro [or fresh]
  • 2 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
  • 1 large tomato, diced

Directions:

Heat a little olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, black beans, and hot sauce to the pan and heat for about 3 minutes, or until fragrant. Remove from heat, add about 2 tablespoons of water and mash with a fork or potato masher. Don’t worry about getting them completely smooth, just mostly. Spread in the bottom of a 1 quart bowl and top with cheese.

Then, halve and pit the avocado and use a spoon to scoop out the meat. Place in a bowl, and add the lime juice and a sprinkle of garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and kosher salt to taste. Use a fork to mash and combine ingredients, then spread over the cheese.

In a small bowl, combine the sour cream, 3/4 of the green onion, a few dashes of dried cilantro, and a dash of hot sauce. Whip together with a spatula, then spoon out over the avocado. Place lettuce and tomatoes on top, and sprinkle with remaining onion and a pinch of cilantro, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper.

Serve with tortilla chips. Since this dish includes avocados [which turn brown when exposed to oxygen], it’s best eaten the day it’s made, at least for presentation’s sake.

Click here for the printable version: Layered Taco Dip

Question of the Day: What’s your favorite party snack?

Chicken, One Tablespoon Testosterone, Recipes

OTT: Lime-Soy Chicken

Sarah

A delightfully easy, flavorful chicken dish… it’s always a hit!

Lime Soy Chicken | thepajamachef.comThis has become one of my favorite dishes.  My wife first made it early in our marriage and it’s one of those recipes that’s stuck like oatmeal scone batter to a mixing bowl.  It’s got three of my favorite flavors in it.  I love citrus, so you’ve got lime.  I love Asian flavors and soy sauce is excellent.  And it’s got red pepper flakes for some kick, and I do love spicy food.  But this isn’t too spicy, so don’t let that scare you off.  Plus, you can always tweak it to your tastes.  But anyhow, this is a rich in strong flavor dish that delights your sense of taste.  Unfortunately, my latest attempt at it hardly delighted the sense of sight so there’s room for improvement.  Presentation is perhaps my greatest culinary flaw.  I suspect my wife would agree.

Lime-Soy Chicken

  • Servings: 4
  • Print

adapted from an unknown magazine

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 c lime juice
  • 1/4 c soy sauce
  • 1/4 c olive oil
  • 1 t crushed red pepper
  • 1/2 t cumin
  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (unless for some reason you enjoy boning and skinning the chicken breasts yourself…which would make you weird)

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl (except the chicken of course).  Then marinate the chicken in it for at least 30 minutes to an hour, although I’m a big fan of overnight marinating.  The more the time those flavors have to absorb into the meat, the better.  Now it’s time to fire up your grill (or you could just broil it in the oven).  When it’s ready, place your flavor-infused chicken breasts on the grill and cook.  Unless you’re using a George Foreman (which at this time of year you should be…unless you live in the south or west in which case you can use the time waiting for your outside grill to fire up to contemplate what it would be like to experience the weather phenomenon most of us call “seasons”), turn the chicken after several minutes.  When the sweet sweet juices run clear, your chicken is done.  Remove from grill and enjoy.  It can be served with any tasty vegetable such as fresh green beans or roasted potatoes.  I served it most recently with a cilantro lime barley.  This was basically just barley cooked in chicken broth, with lime juice and cilantro added.  Also try adding bacon.  I haven’t tried this, but bacon makes everything better so I don’t see how it could hinder this either.

Question of the Day: With Thanksgiving just around the corner, what’s your favorite Thanksgiving dish? Mine is turkey, covered in gravy. Mmmm… or really, anything covered in gravy, except cranberry sauce; that would just be gross. Side note: my wife hates gravy. I don’t know what’s wrong with her.

Appetizers, Recipes

Snacky-Snack! | Balsamic Roasted Chickpeas

Sarah

So, I love snacking. I think I prefer eating a little bit of this and a little bit of that to eating full meals. While I don’t snack as much as I did while in college [tacos at midnight, anyone?], I still do my fair share of snacking, especially when I’m relaxing at home on the weekends. Some of my favorite simple snacks include peanut butter toast, hummus and veggies, crackers and cheese, and fruit. Sometimes though, I’m in the mood for something a little more complex, with a little extra something to it. Something a little more adult, ya know?

Balsamic Roasted Chickpeas | thepajamachef.com Featuring the classic combos of herbs and spices and oil and vinegar, these Balsamic Roast Chickpeas are just the ticket to a satisfying grown up snack.

I cannot take credit for the recipe [we can all thank Diana at The Chic Life for that], but I just had to share it with you all. These chickpeas are really simple to make–the prep time is less than 5 minutes, and they bake in 30 minutes. Perfect to whip up before a movie or your favorite TV show, light enough to not spoil your dinner, and tasty enough to enjoy! My mom even made them for a party. They were a huge hit–just be sure to make a double or triple batch, because once you start digging in, you can’t stop! Trust me! 🙂

Balsamic Roasted Chickpeas

  • Servings: 4
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from The Chic Life

Ingredients:

  • 1 can chickpeas [garbanzo] beans, drained
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon rosemary
  • 1/4 teaspoon oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon thyme
  • dash garlic powder
  • dash cayenne pepper
  • sprinkle salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place chickpeas in a medium size bowl. In a measuring cup, combine olive oil and herbs/spices and whisk together. Pour over chickpeas, stirring gently to coat. Spread chickpeas on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, flipping after 15 minutes or so.

Question of the Day: What’s the best snack you’ve been enjoying lately?

Menu Plans

Menu Plan

Sarah

Week of November 15

Monday: Grilled Chicken with citrus-scented quinoa [that I didn’t make last week]

Tuesday: pasta with tomato cream sauce [again, that I didn’t make last week… we ate, I promise!]

Wednesday: egg sandwiches with Cheddar Black Pepper Biscuits

Thursday: leftovers

Friday-Saturday: out of town

Sunday: Bierocks

Recipes, Sauces

Apple City Barbecue Sauce

Sarah

If I had to pick a favorite condiment, barbecue sauce would be the one! It is so versatile. I love putting barbecue sauce on anything and everything, from pasta salad to burgers to french fries to salads. So when I was visiting my parents for a weekend recently and we had a little baking/cooking day, I jumped at the chance to make homemade barbecue sauce for our oven ribs. And boy was I glad I did.

Mike Mills' Apple City Barbecue Sauce | thepajamachef.com
din-din

This barbecue sauce is so much better than the bottled stuff, and even easier than I imagined–just throw it in a pot and cook away! I bet it would be really easy to make in a small crock pot too. I loved the distinct flavor of apples coupled with a bit of spicy kick. This is a barbecue sauce I can definitely see making again, especially during apple season. Be sure and try it soon–you won’t be disappointed!

Mike Mills' Apple City Barbecue Sauce | thepajamachef.com
Look at that sauce!

Mike Mills' Apple City Barbecue Sauce

  • Servings: approximately 2 1/2 cups
  • Print

from Mike Mills’ Peace, Love, and Barbecue

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup ketchup
  • 2/3 cup seasoned rice vinegar
  • 1/2 cup apple cider
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 1/4 cup cider vinegar
  • 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 teaspoons yellow mustard
  • 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 2 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled [if you don’t eat bacon for whatever reason, feel free to omit this–I think it would be fine without it]
  • 1 apple, peeled and finely chopped
  • 1 cup onion, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons green pepper, finely chopped

Directions:

Place all ingredients except apple, onion, and green pepper in a medium saucepan. Stir to combine, then boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Fold in apple, onion, and green pepper, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook over a simmer for about 30-60 minutes, or until apple, onion, and green pepper are softened and sauce is thickened to desired consistency.

Let cool and puree in a blender or food processor for maximum smoothness, if desired. We left it chunky but texture-phobic people may not like that. 🙂

Use to marinate meat or serve with pulled pork, shredded chicken, ribs, tofu, etc.

Question of the Day: What’s your favorite condiment?