Birthday Pug

My little pug baby is 10 years old today! (I just crossed a line somewhere, I am now one of those people who blog about their four-legged family. No turning back now!) She is celebrating by sleeping most of the day. Her Auntie did make her bacon this morning. Thank you Auntie! Tomorrow her MeMe plans a nice Sunday chicken dinner for her. What a lucky pug!

She is definitely Everything Nice!

Happy Birthday!

Sweet Thing

Yellow Bell Pepper Soup

I just know any day now soup weather will be here to stay. Every morning I open the door and it feels like it is here for only about a hour. Then the temperature spikes and it is still sweltering hot.

Well I just could not wait any longer, I had to make a pot of soup when I saw bell peppers on sale. I bought some beautiful yellow bell peppers to make Yellow Bell Pepper Soup. This recipe was inspired by a cup of soup I had at a local Italian restaurant called Chianti. One of my clients is an Engineer who specializes in aviation and sport fields. I do spec writing and presentations for him. One Christmas he took all of us to lunch at Chianti to celebrate. The Yellow Bell Pepper Soup was his first recommendation. It is a chef special from their menu and not always available. It was so delicious. I had never had anything like it before. So of course I set out to make it a home. I started with a red pepper soup recipe and tried to make it with as little fat and cream as I could. It turned out wonderful. It is such a beautiful color and very creamy. I have made it several times now. Once I roasted and peeled the peppers and then made the soup. It gives it a smoky flavor in the background. I do think it is sweeter made with fresh peppers though. Believe it or not it is also great as a chilled soup. Enjoy this soup as a starter or lunch with half a sandwich. I think I need to make a double batch next time. It is that good!

Yellow Bell Pepper Soup

Servings 4

Ingredients

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

4 large yellow bell peppers, deseeded, chunked

2 shallots, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp dried basil

2 cups vegetable stock

1/4 cup fat free half and half

Salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes to taste

Instructions

In a 4 qt soup pot saute the shallots, garlic, and yellow bell pepper in the olive oil for 3 minutes. Add the herbs, salt, pepper and stock. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes covered. Take off the stove and blend with an immersion blender until smooth. Or pour the mixture into a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Return to soup pot and add half and half, do not let it simmer or boil after adding half and half. Taste for seasoning; adjust to taste, then serve.

Linking to:
Ms. enPlace: See Ya in the Gumbo
The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen: Show Me Your Plaid Monday's
This Gal Cooks: Marvelous Mondays Link Party
Love Bakes Good Cakes: All My Bloggy Friends
Memories By the Mile: Tuesday Trivia - Arizona and Link Party
Anyonita's Nibbles: Tasty Tuesdays
Buns In My Oven: What's Cookin Wednesday
My Turn For Us: Freedom Fridays
Love Bakes Good Cakes: The Ultimate Soup Recipe List Linky

Quickie Pad Thai

I discovered this recipe in Redbook magazine while at the hair salon back in August. The article was about 3 no cook pasta sauces. I wrote down the title of the article, the issue month and the ingredients for one of the recipes. I just new I would be able to find the recipes on-line. I have been so disappointed, I keep looking but have yet to see the article on-line. So I had to go it alone and try the recipe from the list of ingredients. It is a great easy weeknight recipe. It makes a lot of great noodles and veggies. The leftovers were perfect for lunch later in the week. The flavor of the sauce was well balanced and big on peanut flavor. I found for my taste, I would like a little more spice so I added a drizzle of Sriracha. It was perfect then. Dear sister wanted more salt so she added ponzu to her portion. So I suggest letting everyone customize their bowls with the garnishes of their choice. Definitely a recipe I will make again. Delicious!

Quickie Pad Thai

Adapted from: Redbook August 2013

Make 6 servings                                     

Ingredients

1 lb. linguine, dry uncooked

2 carrots, peeled and julienned

1/4 to 1/2 cup red onion, sliced

1to 1-1/2 cup sugar snap peas, sliced on the diagonal

For the sauce:

1/2 cup peanut butter

2 Tbsp soy sauce

2 Tbsp lime juice

1 Tbsp ginger, minced

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 cup water

For the garnishes:

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup peanuts, chopped

1 lime, sliced into wedges

Sriracha hot chili sauce (optional)

Additional soy sauce (optional)

Directions

Place a large pot of water to boil. In the mean time, prepare vegetables and garnishes. Combine peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, ginger, garlic, sugar, and water in a small bowl whisk until smooth. Season the water with salt and drop pasta into boiling water. Cook pasta according to box instructions.

Drain pasta and mix with sauce, carrots, onions, and snap peas. Divide into bowls. Garnish with cilantro and peanuts. Serve with lime wedges, Sriracha and additional soy sauce.

Linking to:
Ms. enPlace: See Ya in the Gumbo
The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen: Show Me Your Plaid Monday's
This Gal Cooks: Marvelous Mondays Link Party
Love Bakes Good Cakes: All My Bloggy Friends
Memories By the Mile: Tuesday Trivia - Arizona and Link Party
Anyonita's Nibbles: Tasty Tuesdays
Buns In My Oven: What's Cookin Wednesday
My Turn For Us: Freedom Fridays
Carole's Chatter: Food on Fridays - Nuts

Hunan Chili Mushrooms

Sometimes I just crave nothing but vegetables. It is usually after a week where I did not cook much. Or I dined on quick convenient foods like sandwiches, burgers, pizza, etc. Usually the first thing that pops in my head is veggie stir-fries. Or big portobello mushrooms. I love mushrooms! 

This recipe is for one of those veggie cravings. I took a beef recipe from a check out stand recipe mag and substituted portobello mushrooms. It was so good! Not too spicy just right. I loved the combination of mushrooms, peppers and corn. The portobellos really do deliver a beefy texture and flavor in this dish. The only problem is they made everything a little brown. Does not make for a pretty photo. I think next time I will try baby bellas cut in half or quartered. If that does not help I will try white button mushrooms. I am pretty sure it is the gills of the portobellos that are to blame for the browning of this dish. Maybe the baby bellas will have the beefy flavor and less color. Definitely worth making again and refining it a little. Maybe next week in fact. I will be sure to share the results.

Hunan Chili Mushrooms
Serves 2 or 4 as part of a multi-course meal

Ingredients

1 lb mushrooms (portobello, baby bellas or white), sliced

3 Tbsp vegetable oil

3 Tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce

1 Tbsp dry sherry

1 Tbsp cornstarch

2 tsp brown sugar

1 can baby corn, drained

3 green onions cut into 1 inch pieces

1” piece of ginger, peeled and minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 red bell pepper, cut into strips

1 jalapeno, seeded and cut into thin strips

1 tsp hot chili oil

Hot cooked rice

Directions

Prepare mushrooms and other ingredients. Combine 1 Tbsp vegetable oil, soy sauce, sherry, cornstarch and brown sugar in medium bowl, set aside.

Heat work over high heat for 1 minute or until hot. Drizzle 1 Tbsp vegetable oil into wok and heat 30 seconds. Add mushrooms; stir-fry until mushrooms begin to brown. Push mushrooms to the sides of wok drizzle in remaining 1 Tbsp vegetable oil add corn, onions, ginger, garlic, red pepper and jalapeno to wok stir-fry 1 minute. Add sauce mixture and chili oil. Cook and stir until heated through and sauce begins to thicken. Serve over hot rice.

To see how this recipe has be updated (Click here).

Linking to:
Ms. enPlace: See Ya in the Gumbo
The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen: Show Me Your Plaid Monday's
This Gal Cooks: Marvelous Mondays Link Party
Love Bakes Good Cakes: All My Bloggy Friends
Memories By the Mile: Tuesday Trivia - Arizona and Link Party
Anyonita's Nibbles: Tasty Tuesdays
Buns In My Oven: What's Cookin Wednesday
Carole's Chatter: Food on Fridays Stir-Fry
My Turn For Us: Freedom Fridays

Butterfinger Pie

This recipe is an oldie but a goodie. I remember making them for Mom as a young girl to take to family pot lucks with the cousins. Probably on the list of the first recipes I made. I can't remember the last time we had one. I am just glad we made it for Labor Day. It was so re-freshing on such a hot day. Who can resist ice cream and butterfingers? Definitely a recipe we should not neglect again.

Butterfinger Pie

Serves 8

Ingredients

1 ready made graham cracker  or chocolate cookie crust

1 quart Vanilla ice cream

6 regular size Butterfinger Candy Bars

8 oz. Cool whip, thawed or Homemade whipped cream

Directions

Set ice cream on counter to soften. Place cool whip in refrigerator to thaw. Crush 4 butterfingers in a plastic storage bag or crumble with the tine of a fork. Mix crushed candy bars and ice cream together. Add mixture to pie crust. Freeze until firm. When ready to serve, crush remaining butterfingers. Top with whipped topping of choice and garnish with crushed butterfingers.

Linking to:
Ms. enPlace: See Ya in the Gumbo
This Gal Cooks: Marvelous Mondays
Jam Hands: Recipe Sharing Monday
The Tumbleweed Contessa: What'd you do this weekend?
Love Bakes Good Cakes: All My Bloggy Friends
Memories by the Mile: Tuesday Trivia - South Carolina and Link Party
Buns In My Oven: What's Cookin' Wednesday
Miz Helen's Country Cottage: Full Plate Thursday
My Turn for Us: Freedom Fridays
Carole's Chatter: Food on Fridays-Desserts

Avocado Potato Salad

We had a great Labor Day! I am just getting around to posting about it. We celebrated at Mom and Dad's, loading up the smoker with ribs, chicken and a brisket. We also made a few salads and a Butterfinger Ice Cream Pie. Mom's request was Avocado Potato Salad, so we made it together. This is a salad I created after having it for the first time at Deli-tini. My friend and co-worker took me there years ago. They have closed since then but I remember the place fondly. Everyone was so nice there. They had delicious, very creative sandwiches and wraps with even better names. Avocado Potato Salad was one of their creative sides that left you wanting more. They would put this little cup of delicious potato salad next to your fun special sandwich. It taste like someone mixed potatoes into the guacamole. So good I had to try making it at home in a larger batch.

This salad is a creamy, smoky, crunchy, and spicy version of potato salad. It taste like guacamole dressed potatoes. It gets all it's smoky flavor from the bacon of course. The crunch is courtesy of the celery and green onions. All the creamy texture comes from the avocado dressing. It can be made ahead of time too. The lime juice, mayo and sour cream stops the avocado from turning brown.  The jalapeno gives it all the spice you need. But adjust the jalapeno to your taste, depending on the brand you buy it can be on the spicy side. This salad is so good! I am already sad that it is gone.

Avocado Potato Salad

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

2 pounds small red potatoes, quartered

6 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

6 green onions, thinly sliced

2 celery ribs, diced fine

4 medium ripe avocados, pitted, peeled and diced, divided

1/2 cup light sour cream

4 Tbsp light mayonnaise

2 tsp Dijon mustard

3 Tbsp lime juice

1 tsp salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 Tbsp pickled jalapeno peppers, chopped

1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

Directions

Place potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain and cool.

In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, bacon, celery, jalapeno and onions. For dressing combine two avocados, sour cream, mayonnaise, mustard, lime juice, salt and pepper. Stir and mash until well blended. Stir in cilantro.

Pour over potato mixture and toss to coat. Cube remaining avocado; gently stir into potato salad.

Linking 
to:
Ms. enPlace: See Ya in the Gumbo
This Gal Cooks: Marvelous Mondays
Jam Hands: Recipe Sharing Monday
The Tumbleweed Contessa: What'd you do this weekend?
Love Bakes Good Cakes: All My Bloggy Friends
Memories by the Mile: Tuesday Trivia - South Carolina and Link Party
Buns In My Oven: What's Cookin' Wednesday
Miz Helen's Country Cottage: Full Plate Thursday
My Turn for Us: Freedom Fridays
My Pinterventures: Summer Salads Party

Baja Beach Tacos Two Ways

You are about to see the laziest photos of some really good tacos. I guess I was too hungry for food styling. Does that ever happen to you? You want to share a recipe in the best possible way but you just want to get the delicious food in your mouth now! Anyway...

Saturday Mom came over to look at recipes for Labor Day. I decided to treat her to Baja Style Fish Tacos. The girls in the family love fish tacos. Dad not so much. So she doesn't make them at home and she rarely gets to our favorite place in Bossier City, LA. Don Juanz is a great surfer style taco bar. They serve very fresh and light Mexican fare. We love their Baja Beach Fish Tacos! This taco has sushi grade yellow fin tuna grilled rare and dressed with creamy lime cilantro dressing, cabbage, cilantro, and jack cheese in a fresh corn tortilla. So so good! This is my attempt at recreating their tacos at home.

I started by making the dressing first. That was the one ingredient I had not made before. I saw a lot of recipes out there, but I decided to pick my favorite ingredients from each. It turned out a little strong on it's own. I used a huge garlic clove and it gave the dressing a lot of heat. But it was perfect on the taco. I think next time I will use a smaller garlic clove and see what happens. Right now I would say reserve this dressing for tacos. I wouldn't go covering a bunch of lettuce with it. I am going to try a shrimp taco with it real soon.

For the tuna I chose to use frozen fillets that I thawed. That is what my store had that day. It worked out really well. I seasoned them really simply with my spiced salt blend and grilled them. This is where the fun begins. The toppings! Don Juanz has two different tacos the Baja Beach I described earlier and the Pacific Rim which is topped with lettuce, mandarin oranges, jack cheese and cilantro. I could not pick one, so I made both. I still can't pick which one I like best. They are both great. The Baja Beach style is crunchy from the cabbage and the lime cilantro dressing is more notable. The Pacific Rim style is sweet and juicy from the mandarin oranges. The best thing to do is have one of each.

All in all I think this copycat recipe was a success. Mom loved them and dear sister popped in a little later to try one. She asked how did I find Don Juanz's recipes. So I think this recipe is close enough for my family. I hope you will enjoy them as well.

Baja Beach Tacos Two Ways

Serves 4

Ingredients

8 corn tortillas

2 tuna steaks (less than 8 oz each)

Olive oil

Spiced Salt, to taste (click here for recipe)

Creamy Lime Cilantro Dressing (recipe follows)

Toppings for Baja Beach Fish Taco:

Green cabbage, shredded or coleslaw mix

Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

Cilantro, roughly chopped

Toppings for Pacific Rim Fish Taco:

Iceberg lettuce, shredded

1 (11 oz) can Mandarin oranges, drained

Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

Cilantro, roughly chopped

Directions

Preheat grill to high heat for 10 minutes. Pat tuna steaks dry with a paper towel. Rub tuna with olive oil. Season tuna with spiced salt (or salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes). Grill for 2 to 2-1/2 minutes a side on an open grill for rare. Place corn tortillas on the grill to warm about 1 minute. Remove tuna and tortillas from grill. Slice tuna against the grain into thin slices. Spread a heaping teaspoon of dressing in the center of tortilla. Top with several slices of tuna and add your choice of toppings from above.

Creamy Lime Cilantro Dressing

Makes about 1 cup

Ingredients

1/4 cup light mayonnaise

1/4 cup light sour cream

1 lime, zest and juice

1 garlic clove, minced or grated

1 green onion, minced

1/4 cup cilantro, minced

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp white vinegar

1/2 tsp Kosher salt, or to taste

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Mix well and refrigerate until ready to use.

Baja Beach Fish Tacos

Pacific Rim Fish Tacos

Linking to:
Ms. enPlace: See Ya in the Gumbo
The Tumbleweed Contessa: What'd you do this weekend?
This Gal Cooks: Marvelous Mondays
Jam Hands: Recipe Sharing Monday
With a Blast: All My Bloggy Friends
Memories by the Mile: Tuesday Trivia-Vermont and Link Party
Anyonita's Nibbles: Tasty Tuesdays
My Turn for Us: Freedom Fridays
Law Student's Cookbook: Pantry Party September 2013
Carole's Chatter: Food on Fridays - Tuna
Food of the World: Mexico
The Lazy Gastronome: Taco Tuesday Link Party