lime

Slow Cooker Jalapeno Lime Chicken

~ lk529 ~ 2 Comments

My New Year’s Resolution for 2015 is to create at least one original recipe a month. I created three new recipes in December 2014! All three were spurred from a case of the empty fridge. But it gave me the idea to adopt a New Year’s Resolution. If I hope to expand my presence in the food community (ahem, Food Network, are you listening?) then I need to have recipes of my own. I also can’t create a cookbook of “copied” recipes! Everything stems from my ability to be creative in the kitchen. And the only way to test that ability is to give myself a challenge/goal. And with this homework assignment every month I can create my grocery list based off of my idea – not create my idea based on my pantry supply.

Today’s post is one of December’s recipes. In fact, it’s one that I made before leaving town for Thanksgiving and then tweaking into the recipe I post today. The first version of this dish, while tasty didn’t feel Mexican. I added garlic, salsa, and cumin. I reduced the amount of liquid and omitted the corn. As much as I love corn it didn’t quite fit with the shredded chicken and got lost. In the photo below you can see how different the two versions are; version 1 is on the left and the final version is on the right.

Jalapeno Lime Chicken

What I love most about this recipe is its versatility. My favorite way to eat it was as nachos. I put tortilla chips on a plate, topped them with the shredded chicken and shredded cheese. I microwaved the nachos for 30 seconds until the cheese was melted and dipped in salsa. The shredded chicken can also be rolled into a burrito with beans, rice, and cheese. Or use it to top some flavored rice. Create a sandwich with the chicken, salsa, cheese, and lettuce. Even stuff it in a lettuce wrap for a carb-free version.

An Original Recipe

Slow Cooker Jalapeno Lime Chicken

Ingredients:

  • 2 large chicken breasts
  • 1 onion, sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 jalapeno, diced (for mild heat remove seeds)
  • 1/4 C chicken stock
  • 1/4 C salsa
  • zest and juice of 1 lime
  • 1 tbsp taco seasoning
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/4 C fresh cilantro

Steps:

  1. Season chicken with S+P. Place in the bottom of a slow cooker. Top with onion, garlic, and jalapeno.
  2. In a bowl, whisk together stock, salsa, lime, taco seasoning, and cumin. Pour over chicken.
  3. Add cilantro to the slow cooker.
  4. Cook on LOW 5 – 7 hours or HIGH  3 – 5 hours.
  5. Shred chicken and return to sauce until ready to serve.

Jalapeno Lime Chicken Nachos

#10DaysofTailgate: Mason Jar Fruit Salad

~ lk529 ~ 10 Comments

Tailgate LogoWelcome to day two of #10DaysofTailgate hosted by Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla. Today I have a perfect recipe for those early morning tailgating sessions.

While night games have a great atmosphere, my favorite games to tailgate for are the early afternoon ones.

I love having breakfast themed tailgates, going off to the stadium, and then returning to the tailgate site to have dinner. Win or lose, it’s fun to end the evening on campus – enjoying some drinks, more food, and tossing a football.

The breakfast tailgating spread includes coffee, bagels, muffins, and fruit. The only problem with having fresh fruit is that it attracts flies. By putting fruit salad in individual mason jars, the fruit can stay cold in the cooler and the flies will stay away. They can also be prepared in advance.

You can use whatever fruits you like, whatever is in season, or whatever fits with your team’s colors! With a lime dressing, I picked fruits that would be brightened up by the citrus flavor.

Mason Jar Fruit Salad

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 C vanilla yogurt
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • zest and juice of 1 lime
  • 1 C cubed pineapple
  • 1 honey crisp apple, cubed
  • 2 oranges, cubed
  • 1 C seedless red grapes

Steps:

  1. In a small bowl, whisk together yogurt, honey, and lime. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, gently toss together fruit. Add dressing and toss until all of the fruit is coated with the dressing.
  3. Spoon into individual mason jars. Keep cold until ready to serve.

*This recipe is adapted from http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Fruit-Salad-with-Honey-Lime-Dressing-106941 *

Mason Jar Fruit Salads

Don’t forget to enter our giveaway and be sure to check out the other bloggers who posted more tailgating recipes today:

Dips
Avocado and Corn Salsa by A Day in the Life on the Farm

Deviled Egg Dip by From Gate to Plate

Sips
 Charred Bloody Mary and Smoky Sliders by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Mains
Sticky Fingers by Debbi Does Dinner Healthy

Not Ketchup Cherry Chipotle Sloppy Joes and Cheese Fries by Making Miracles


Cilantro Lime Chicken

~ lk529 ~ Leave a comment

Today’s edition of Mexican Monday requires prep on Sunday, even though it’s a slow cooker dish! But that’s also what makes it perfect for your Monday, whether you follow my Mexican Monday Menu plan or not. The chicken needs to marinate over night, but in the morning all you have to do is drop it into the slow cooker – no chopping, no measuring!

I found this recipe on a Pinterest post of Paleo Slow Cooker Recipes. Although we don’t follow the Paleo diet trend in this house, I may have some readers who do. Or maybe I’ll get new readers from it! 😉 If you’re looking for new Paleo inspired recipes, check out Jason’s blog, Paleo Pot. 

But because we don’t follow Paleo, I served this chicken with Rice and Beans! 

Cilantro Lime Chicken

Ingredients:

  • 1 5-6 lb whole chicken
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 3/4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne
  • 1 tbsp chili powder
  • 1 whole lime
  • juice of 2 limes
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 bunch fresh cilantro
  • 1 tbsp olive oil

Steps:

  1. Mix together pepper, salt, cumin, cayenne, and chili powder. 
  2. Dry chicken and rub spice mixture over entire chicken.
  3. Poke holes in the whole lime and rub with spice mixture. Place in chicken cavity.
  4. In a food processor (I actually used the single serve unit for my Ninja blender, a Magic Bullet would work great too!) combine lime juice, garlic, cilantro, and olive oil.
  5. Place chicken in a large resealable plastic bag with the marinade. Marinate over night.
  6. Put chicken, breast side up, in slow cooker with the marinade. Cook on LOW 5-6 hours.

*This recipe is modified from Jason at http://paleopot.com/2013/01/chili-cilantro-lime-chicken/*

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Mexican Risetti

~ lk529 ~ 2 Comments

For Mexican Monday I am happy and proud to share with you one of my original recipes.

Food Network challenge... acceptedIn January of 2011 Food Network magazine had an Iron Chef type challenge using the secret ingredient Spaghetti. I had an idea, I made it, and I submitted my recipe to Food Network. I didn’t win, or at least I don’t think I won, it’s been over two years and I still haven’t seen the winner announced!

I decided to break up the spaghetti and make a mock risotto. To add even more of a twist I opted to use Mexican flavors instead of Italian. I used a Mexican beer in place of white wine, chorizo as my meat, and Mexican blend cheese instead of Parmesan.

Mexican Risetti Steps

An Original Recipe

Mexican Risetti

Makes 2-3 Servings

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb spaghetti, broken
  • 2 links Mexican chorizo, casings removed
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 Spanish onion, diced
  • 1 jalapeno, deseeded
  • 3/4 bottle light Mexican beer
  • 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 C chicken broth
  • 1 tomato, diced
  • handful fresh cilantro, chopped (plus more for garnish)
  • 3/4 – 1 C shredded Mexican-blend cheese
  • zest of 1/2 lime

Steps:

  1. In a non-stick skillet over medium heat, brown chorizo in olive oil. When cooked, remove from the pan and set aside on a paper towel lined plate. Leave the drippings in the skillet.
  2. Reduce heat to medium-low and add in the butter. Add garlic once butter is melted. After 30 seconds add in the broken spaghetti. Toast for 2 minutes. Add onion and jalapeno. Saute until onions are translucent.
  3. Deglaze the pan with the beer. Add in oregano. When beer is absorbed, add chicken broth in about four stages, allowing the broth to be absorbed before each addition of liquid.
  4. After pasta is al dente add in diced tomato, cilantro, and the cooked chorizo. Let warm through and melt in the cheese. Garnish with lime zest and cilantro.

Mexican Risetti

Cuban Inspired Pork Tenderloin

~ lk529 ~ Leave a comment

Even though I’m not Cuban, this meal was very comforting to me. The flavors of Cuba are very similar to those of the Dominican Republic and I jumped on the opportunity to serve a very Latin meal.

With the pork in the slow cooker, I was able to better multi-task. I made black beans to go atop rice and fried up sliced plantains to serve on the side.

I fed a crowd with this recipe, if you’re making this for a gathering of four halve the recipe.

Cuban Inspired Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:

  • 4 lb pork tenderloin
  • 1 1/4 C orange juice
  • juice of 6 limes
  • 1 C chicken broth
  • 4 tbsp soy sauce
  • 10 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • S+P
  • 4 tbsp butter
  • 6 tbsp flour

Steps:

  1. Place tenderloin in slow cooker.
  2. In bowl combine OJ, lime juice, broth, soy sauce, garlic, oregano, and S+P. Pour over tenderloin.
  3. Cook on LOW for 5-6 hours.
  4. Remove pork. Strain 4 C of the sauce into a sauce pan. Whisk in flour and butter. Cook until reduced to desired consistency, at least 5 minutes.
  5. Slice pork and serve.

* This recipe is adapted from Jo at http://www.jocooks.com/healthy-eating/crockpot-cuban-style-pork-tenderloin/*

Pork Tenderloin 1 Pork Tenderloin 2

This blog post also comes with a bonus recipe for fried plantains!

Fried Plantains

Ingredients:

  • plantains (2 for 3 people), peeled
  • olive oil, for shallow frying
  • salt

Steps:

  1. Slice plantains.
  2. Fry for 5 minutes, flipping halfway through.
  3. Set on paper towel lined plate to absorb the extra grease and sprinkle with salt.

Healthy Chicken Tacos

~ lk529 ~ 3 Comments

Mexican Monday has been in need of a healthy make over. This recipe from Cooking Light is very simple, very quick and full of flavor. The chicken gets its smokey warmth from ancho chili powder and is accompanied by a bright, crunchy slaw.

On a side note, I picked up a package of organic free range chicken breasts for this dinner. They were considerably smaller than the chicken breasts I normally pick up – about half the size! These two breasts yielded 5 tacos. If I used the average antibiotic treated chicken I could have gotten 8 tacos. I am tempted to now pay a little more for organic chicken because the difference in taste was like night and day. I was surprised.

Healthy Chicken Tacos

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb chicken breasts, cut into strips
  • 3/4 tsp ancho chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp cumin
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • zest of 1 lime
  • juice of 2 limes, divided use
  • 1/4 C sour cream
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 2 C packaged cole slaw
  • 1/2 C sliced scallions
  • 1/4 C chopped cilantro
  • 1 tbsp canola oil
  • taco sized flour tortillas

Steps:

  1. Season chicken with chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, S+P. In a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat cook chicken in olive oil until cooked through.
  2. In a blender, puree sour cream, milk, avocado, zest and juice of 1 lime. Mix until smooth.
  3. In a large bowl toss together slaw, scallion, cilantro, juice of 1 lime, and canola oil. Season with salt to taste.
  4. Assemble tacos and enjoy!

*This recipe is adapted from Maureen at http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/ancho-chicken-tacos-50400000111963/*

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Corn Pepper Salsa Chicken Quesadilla

~ lk529 ~ 1 Comment

It amuses me to say that the best quesadilla I ever had was in Hawaii, and it’s even stranger to tell you that that quesadilla was had in the Honolulu airport (at Stinger Ray’s)!

For Mexican Monday I decided to attempt a recreation of this quesadilla. What I loved most about it was a back note of lime and the inclusion of corn in the filling. I didn’t succeed in a perfect copy cat recipe with my first attempt, but it was fun to do more with a quesadilla than stuff it with leftovers!

I marinated the chicken with chipotle and lime, sliced it and cooked it fajita style for extra flavor. I then sauteed the corn, onion, and pepper salsa with chili powder in the same skillet. For a kiss of heat I sliced open a serrano pepper (which Stuart purposefully ate!).

I actually prepared extra chicken and made rice to take to lunch the next day.

Saute Chicken 1Saute Chicken 2Saute Chicken 3Saute Salsa 1Saute Salsa 2Saute Salsa 3Assemble Quesadilla 1Assemble Quesadilla 2Assemble Quesadilla 3

An Original Recipe

Corn Pepper Salsa Chicken Quesadilla

Ingredients:

  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • zest of 1 lime
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1/4 tsp corriander
  • 1/4 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 1/2 tbsp minced chipotle pepper in adobo
  • 1/3 C olive oil
  • 1 C frozen corn, thawed
  • 1 small red bell pepper, diced
  • 1/2 C diced onion
  • 1/2 tsp chili powder
  • 1/2 serrano pepper, halved
  • 4 flour tortillas
  • 2 C shredded Mexican cheese

Steps:

  1. Combine lime, corriander, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, chipotle, S+P, and olive oil. Marinate chicken at least 4 hours.
  2. Slice chicken. Saute chicken over medium-high heat in a large skillet in olive oil until cooked through.
  3. In the same skillet, cook the remaining ingredients. Deglaze the pan with a splash of chicken stock if desired.
  4. In a separate non-stick skillet, place tortilla and cover entire surface with cheese. On one half top with chicken and salsa. Fold the cheese-only half over the chicken. Flip until both sides are lightly golden and crispy. Serve with your favorite salsa and sour cream.

Corn Pepper Salsa Chicken Quesadilla

Key Lime Pie

~ lk529 ~ 6 Comments

As I’ve gotten “older” my sweet tooth has gotten smaller. When a craving hits, it’s usually for something salty – like popcorn. But there is one dessert that I can never say no to. And because today is my 25th birthday, I am going to indulge.

Key Lime Pie is my absolute favorite dessert, and Publix (sorry to anyone not in the South!) makes the best one! …. Or so I thought. I am very proud to declare that I now make the best Key Lime Pie. I’m particularly excited for this because I now know that I can have perfect key lime pie even when we leave the land of Publix.

A couple years ago I made a key lime pie for my brother’s fiancé’s birthday as it’s also one of her favorites. (Her favorite is actually pumpkin pie but my brother hates it, and her birthday is in July anyway.) I had actually squeezed the juice out of actual key limes! That pie was unbelievably tart. I don’t even recall which recipe I used.

This time I found Nellie & Joe Key West Lime Juice and happily used that (no funky ingredients involved). I would love to say that this was only my second attempt at key lime pie. But that’d be a lie. I made two pies for my birthday. The first was a complete disaster. My can of sweetened condensed milk had expired. And I didn’t notice it until I was emptying the contents into the egg yolk mixture. I immediately went to the internet and established that I should still be okay to use it. 

IMG_3072

So I carried on. Key lime pie is not naturally green (but if you want it to be by all means add a drop or two of food

coloring), but it’s definitely not supposed to be marigold. 

It’s not supposed to smell overpoweringly like sweetened condensed milk either. I did still taste it – the texture was a little off and it was still just a little too sour. So I went back to the store and back to square one. 

That failed attempt was actually a blessing in disguise because I found the perfect, better-than-Publix recipe! Third time’s the charm. 😉

Key Lime Pie

Ingredients:

  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1 egg white, beaten until frothy
  • 1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
  • zest 1 lime
  • 1/2 C key lime juice
  • 9 in graham cracker pie crust
  • 1/2 C heavy whipping cream
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp powdered sugar

Steps

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Using a hand mixer, beat egg yolks with lime zest and sweetened condensed milk. Add in lime juice. Add the egg white.
  3. Pour pie filling into pie crust. Bake 15 minutes. Allow pie to cool to room temperature for at least an hour before covering and putting in the fridge.
  4. Using a hand mixer, make the whipped cream. Beat the heavy cream until it starts to get thick, then add in the vanilla and sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Top pie with whipped cream right before serving. Note: I don’t like my whipped cream to be too sweet, so feel free to add more sugar/vanilla to taste.

*This recipe is adapted from The Big Cheese at http://www.food.com/recipe/traditional-key-lime-pie-109918*
Key Lime Pie 1

Key Lime Pie 2

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

~ lk529 ~ 6 Comments

You’ve probably heard of Taco Tuesdays. In my household, we do Mexican Mondays. It allows for more versatility. It’s a culinary “tradition” that we’ve been doing for over a year and I’m impressed that I’ve been able to keep it fun and interesting. There are a few recipes that have become tried and true favorites and I will and do repeat them, but more often than not I’m finding something new to try.

These Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas are a best seller – we’ll even have them any day of the week! If I’m entertaining family or friends, this is a simple go-to. And I haven’t gotten a single complaint yet! My mom’s cousin claims to hate honey, yet she cleared her plate.

The very first time I made this dish was after a vacation and my fridge and pantry were pretty empty. I did not have green enchilada sauce and knew that without tomatillos I wasn’t going to be able to make my own either. But, I found Emeril’s recipe for red enchilada sauce and had everything on hand to make that. Enchilada sauce is now a pantry staple, so I don’t bother making my own anymore. (But in a pinch I’ll always come back to Emeril’s recipe.)

The second time I made this dish, we had a crowd so I doubled the recipe. Because we loved it with red enchilada sauce, we decided to keep one casserole dish with red and with the other tried the green. I haven’t made it with green since! I’ve noticed that the red (medium heat) enchilada sauce creates a unique flavor profile with the chicken that keeps you coming back for more. But I urge you to try it both ways and see what works best for your family.

The recipe calls for cooked chicken and I have tried just about every preparation of cooked chicken with this dish. Honestly, my favorite is using grilled chicken, the extra flavor you get from the grill rounds out the dish perfectly. My quick go-to method is putting a whole chicken in the slow cooker, but you can easily pick up a rotisserie chicken from the store on your way home!

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients

  • 1 lb cooked shredded chicken
  • 6 tbsp honey
  • Zest 2-3 limes
  • juice 2-3 limes
  • 1 tbsp chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • Salt, to taste
  • 1 can (10 oz) enchilada sauce (red or green)
  • 1/4-1/2 C heavy cream
  • 8 oz Mexican-blend shredded cheese
  • 8-10 soft taco sized flour tortillas

Steps

  1. Marinate cooked chicken in honey, lime juice, chili and garlic powders, and salt for 30 minutes.
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  3. In a measuring cup, whisk together enchilada sauce and cream. Pour a thin layer of sauce on the bottom a 9×13″ baking dish.
  4. Assemble enchiladas with chicken and cheese (reserving some cheese for the top). Place seam-side down in the baking dish and top with remaining sauce and cheese.
  5. Bake covered for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake another 5 minutes until cheese is golden and sauce is bubbly.

*This recipe is adapted from Danelle at http://www.letsdishrecipes.com/2012/04/honey-lime-chicken-enchiladas.html*

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Be prepared for many more Mexican-style recipes in the future!