Potato Salad in January

I know right? who makes potato salad in Jan? ME! We had a hawaiian friend who had a birthday, and for the birthday dinner I was to bring potato salad. I'm pretty sure hawaiians eat potato salad all year round? Every hawaiian restaurant I've been to serves potato and macaroni salad all the time.

I had some people asking for my recipe to my salad....and so I thought I would post it, even though it doesn't really seem like the season to.

One thing I learned from my mom, who always a makes stellar potato salad, is the simpler the better. Potato salad can become a hodge podge of spices and add ins- but it gets to be too much. Roll your eyes if you must- but I promise every time me or my mom make this we get asked for the recipe. promise.

Here is how I did it...
3 reg russet potatoes
4 red potatoes
(or just do 6 reg russet potatoes)
6 celery stalks (thinnly sliced)
4 green onions (cut)
about 1 cup mayo
1/4 cup honey mustard
1/4 cup yellow mustard
5-6 hard boiled eggs- cut up
(you may want to save one, sliced up nice for the top)
salt and pepper

Boil halfed (or quartered) potatoes in salted water.
{do you know you should always cook potatoes in salted water...just like your noodles}
Cook till fork tender.
Cut into bite size pieces.
*you can choose to peel them or not. I usually choose to not, because I like skins and the added texture. my mom always does. after you boil them a lot of the skin will peel off anyway when you cut into bite size pieces. I discard those pieces and just throw in the meat of the potatoes.

In a separate bowl mix the mayo and mustards, gentle stir in onions, eggs, and celery pour over potatoes and stir gently. add Salt and pepper to taste.

and last, nicely sliced egg on top and paprika..if so desired.

Chicken Pot Pie

I have wanted to make one of these pies for a long time, but to be honest I'm not the biggest pot pie person. My husband, however, is. He really enjoys and good pot pie, and since I have a good pie crust recipe (and know I can pull it off) I decided to see if I could pull off the inside.

I looked up a bunch of other recipes and noticed a lot of them called for things like canned cream of chicken soup or a can of veg-all. Not what I'm going for. I want the creamy gravy inside. maybe even potatoes. SOOO I tried it, and I feel it was successful. Next time I might add a little more flava flava of some kind, like more bouillon?

I used THIS perfect pie crust recipe. 
This recipe makes two pies...because the pie crust recipe makes 2 pies. PERFECT meal for when you are giving one away.

HERE is how it all went down.

1 rotisserie chicken. meat picked off and juices from bottom of pan dumped on top of chicken for flavor (very important)
1 cup butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup cut celery
1 cup cut carrots
1 cup cut red potatoes (cut pretty thin)
1 cup cut reg potatoes (cut pretty thin)
1/2 cup flour
1 cup frozen peas
2 cans chicken broth
1 cup (just use the broth can) of heavy cream
olive oil
salt
*garlic salt, celery salt and thyme would be nice.

in large sauce pan melt butter. Add onion, celery, carrots and potatoes, sprinkle with salt and seasonings*- cook till onions are translucent.
sprinkle flour over and stir. Cook over medium heat for a few minutes.
add chicken, broth, and peas.
let simmer for 10 minutes.
right before dishing into pie crust add cream.
Ladle into pie crust. and add top pie crust.

Bake at 425 for 30-35 minutes till crust is golden brown.

let sit for 10-15 minutes before serving. If you serve immediately the sauce will be very runny. let it stand and it will turn creamy :)

homemade tortilla chips

on Sunday I found myself in a bit of a scramble....We had gotten home from our big christmasidaho trip late friday night. Saturday unpacked and cleaned and managed to go to costco for milk eggs and a few other essentials. Sydney's birthday was Sunday and she decided right then and there she wanted tacos for her dinner. We grabbed all we could for the meal and headed home. 

The next day (Sunday, Sydney's birthday) we had the whole feast laid out but I had forgotten chips. how on earth are you suppose to eat salsa without chips. So I started scrounging the internet for tortilla chip recipes. After reading a few I figured out how I would make them...and made them.

They were SO yummy and really very simple I know I will make these more often on taco night. 

They are really really addicting when they are fresh out of the oven. They would hold up perfect in soups- especially taco and tortilla. (we had picked up the costco tortilla soup with the coupon for an easy dinner and this were nice with it. kept the crunch in all the soupiness)

you need :

1 T veg oil

12 corn tortillas

sea salt or kosher salt

with a basting brush oil each side of a tortilla

Stack all 12 and cut like a pizza

you will need 2 cookie sheets.

lay out in a single layer 

and sprinkle with salt

Place both cookie sheets in oven at 350 bake for 10 minutes

then switch cookie sheets shelves. 

(top cookie sheet move to bottom rack and vis versa)

you may need longer time or less...you know how your oven cooks...

Cheesy Potato Fries

We went to visit my in-laws one year {we scored some ridiculously cheap airplane tickets.}in Orlando and they took us to really good restaurant who had awesome potato fries for their appetizers.  We came home and craved them and tried to make them like they make them. This recipe is easy to alter, and don't be afraid to. These measurements will just get you started.

4-6 Potatoes

1/4 cup olive oil

Sea Salt, Fresh ground pepper, your favorite seasoning salt

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup ranch dressing 

1/4 cup milk

1 cup (or as much as you like) Shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup real bacon bits

1/4 cup green onions

Cut potatoes into "steak french fries" size. 

{I like them thicker...but that means it will also take a little longer to cook than skinny ones.}

PLace on foiled baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and lightly toss with tongs. Sprinkle salts and pepper over the potatoes. 

 bake 400 for 40 minutes or until fork tender

in seperate bowl mix:about a cup of sour cream1/2 cup ranchsplash of milk.Wisk Together

Now that potatoes are done cooking layer:

3/4ths sour cream mixture on platter

hot fries

drizzle remaining 1/4th of cream mixtureSprinkle on Cheesetop with green onions and bacon bits

If Needed: Place under broiler for an extra minute to make the cheese nice and melted and gooey.

You can see the sour cream under the potatoes

 I didn't have green onions :(

Other Seasoning suggestions instead of seasoning salts
A. Jonny's seasoning salt, garlic, onion, sea salt etc
B. Fresh herbs (or dried) thyme, seasoning salts, garlic salt, rosmary, basil
c. Lipton Onion Soup Mix
D. cumin, chili powder, garlic, peppers, onion -For a Southwest Flare
D. Curry and cumin for Eastern Flare
ok you get the point- season the potatoes how you would like it. Potatoes are pretty bland you can go crazy!

UPDATED: Chicken Bacon Pasta

SO... I make this pasta all the time. Its REALLY good. but never take pictures. I asked a friend, who I knew was making it, to take a pic with her phone for me. I want to convince you to MAKE THIS! Its also a perfect company dish- because it makes a good amount.
but I also have frozen half in a foil dish and baked in oven till warmed through before. worked great.

I did change the recipe a little too- because- I don't make it like the recipe...I have in the past but felt it was kind of dry, and added some other items that make this dish like a favorite from a local restaurant.

Here is the link:Chicken Bacon Pasta

Beef Stroganoff

This is my Grandma Doxey's Recipe for Beef Stroganoff. She makes it so great...like grandmas do. And like grandmas do, they tend to not have precise measurements...so I did my best to make precise measurements to help ya'll out. But if you think you need to add a little more of this or that...please do!

supplies:
nice steak or stew meat...maybe a 1 lb or 2.
(leftover beef roast or any kind of beef is PERFECT for this recipe too!)
olive oil
1 can beef consume
1 can beef broth
1 small/med onion
salt
1-2 Tbs flour
2 Tbs red wine vinegar (secret ingredient)
3/4-1 cup sour cream
one 16oz bag country pasta

start water boiling for noodles!

chop onions and cut up raw steak into bite size pieces.
Dust with flour and let sit for a few minutes.

*sometimes I let my meat cook in the crock pot. My pictures are of shredded beef- because I cooked it in the crock pot that day.

Heat up a couple of TBS of EVOO. Salt and brown the onions and beef. Just till the onions are translucent. Beef doesn't need to be cooked through.

*When cooking meat in crock pot just heat up flour and onion in evoo and add meat with broths

{its probably time to add the noodles to the water}

Add Beef Consume, broth, and red wine vinegar and let simmer while noodles are cooking.
Right before serving add sour cream.

Sometimes I mix the sauce with the noodles...other days I just add to the top.



 When you shred the meat it tends to not be as "saucy" but when the meat is bit size pieces the stroganoff is more of a gravy.

banana buttermilk muffins

This morning Jesse (my sis in law) started up a batch of buttermilk banana bread...we decided to make 2 batches and try out this recipe as muffins!!!

if it worked they'd be so awesome...more cinnamon sugar crunchy goodness per fluffy moist banana bread inch right?

Well- they worked.

We used the same buttermilk banana bread recipe from this blog
sprayed the muffins liners with pam and sprinkled with cinnamon/sugar

cook at 350 for 20-25 minutes.
makes about 24 muffins

MIX TOGETHER:
3 C. flour
1 1/2 C. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

SET ASIDE

IN A SEPARATE BOWL, COMBINE:
3 eggs
3/4 C. butter
1 1/2 C. buttermilk (1 tbs lemon juice or vinegar and fill the rest of the 1 cup up with milk. sit for 5 min...I do 2 cups and only use 1 1/2 cups)
4 large mashed bananas

ADD DRY & WET INGREDIENTS. MIX WELL.

Can you see the light crunchy coating?