Pho

I received this yummy recipe from my best friend Mandi. First she took me out to eat some pho (for those who aren't in the know...Pho is Vietnamese soup) and once I fell in love with it, she gave me her recipe. You can use any kind of broth base or add any kind of meat/seafood or add any type of veggie. Here's what I use in my pho-I made my pho for 1 serving. I call the sauces in the above picture the 3 amigos. :)

Here's the ingredients:

These are the types of noodles I use with my pho...I found them at the local Asian store I frequent.
I use these beef balls, also found at the same local Asian store I frequent.

Rest of ingredients:

Sriracha sauce
Fish sauce
Hoisin or Oyster sauce
Bunch of cilantro, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
Handful of bean sprouts
Slices of lime or lime juice


I use beef broth so I boiled 3 cups of water with 3 tbsp beef bouillon. (In the past, I've also boiled 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts in water until no longer pink in the middle, reserving the water to use as the broth. I then shredded the chicken.) When the water started to boil, add beef balls and cook 5 minutes or until cooked through. In another pan, cook pasta in boiling water about 5 minutes or until soft. Drain pasta. Add pasta to the bottom of your bowl and top with chopped cilantro, chopped green onions and bean sprouts.

Top noodles and veggies with enough broth to cover noodles. Add beef balls.
Once broth is added, add how ever much sauce to the bowl. Sriracha sauce makes the soup spicy, fish sauce makes it salty, Hoisin or Oyster sauce makes it sweet. Add to taste. Finally, add the limes or a squeeze or two of lime juice.

Enjoy!

Caesar Salad

I learned this super easy recipe back in Home-Ec class back in high school...or was it middle school?? Either way, it's really good and super easy to do. I made this recipe for 1 serving.

Ingredients:

Bag of lettuce or mixed greens
Croutons
Grated Parmesan cheese
1 skinless boneless chicken breast
Caesar salad dressing


The night before or the morning before, cut the chicken into bite-size pieces. Put the pieces into a resealable plastic sandwich bag and pour about a 1 cup of dressing into the bag. Seal and turn to coat. Refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.

When ready to eat, put chicken in small frying pan (no oil or cooking spray needed). Discard rest of marinade. Cook about 5 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in the middle.


While chicken is cooking, put together salad greens, croutons and cheese in bowl or on plate.

After chicken is cooked, drain chicken over sink to get rid of excess oil (from dressing). You don't have to do this step if you don't want to.

Add chicken to salad and pour over some additional Caesar salad dressing. I made garlic toast with mine to go with the salad.

Enjoy!

Stir-Fried Honey-Ginger Chicken with Peppers

I found this recipe from the Everyday Food magazine and had to try it. I served this stir-fry over rice, but I'm sure you can serve it over noodles as well. Above is a picture of my rice cooker, which I love.

Here's the list of ingredients:

1/4 cup honey

2 tbsp. rice vinegar

2 tbsp. soy sauce

2 tbsp. veggie oil

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks

1/4 cup minced, peeled fresh ginger (I would highly recommend fresh ginger over dried ginger)

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 each red, yellow & orange bell peppers, thinly sliced

Fresh cilantro leaves, crumbled over the top

Below is a picture of the minced garlic & ginger.

In a small bowl, stir together honey, vinegar & soy sauce.

The chopped bell peppers

Chicken Breast cut into chunks.

In a large skillet or wok, heat 1 tbsp. oil until hot. Add chicken and stir until opaque but not cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate or bowl.

Add 1 tbsp. oil, ginger and garlic to skillet and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Add the bell peppers and cook for about 2 minutes.

Add soy mixture and bring to a boil.

Return the chicken to the skillet and toss until sauce thickens and chicken is cooked through, about 3 minutes.

Crumble cilantro onto the stir-fry and remove from heat.

Serve over rice. Enjoy!

Coming Soon...

Plan on making these dishes in the next couple weeks....

Stir-Fried Honey-Ginger Chicken with Peppers

Mini Paella

Pasta with Roasted Tomato Sauce

Buffalo-Chicken Mac & Cheese

Grilled Shrimp and Noodle Salad

Mustard-Herb Chicken Breasts

Spicy Hot Pot with Noodles

Spring Shells and Cheese

Triple Cheese Spirals

Ramen Noodle Salad

My cousin made this fabulous salad for Easter this year and I had to have the recipe. I made it tonight as a side dish with my pork tenderloin.

Ingredients:

10 oz. pkg. angel hair coleslaw

1pkg. Beef Ramen noodles (raw ramen noodles)

1/2 c. toasted sliced almonds

1/2 c. sunflower seeds

2 sliced green onions or chives (I didn't use any this time for my salad tonight)

1/3 c. apple cider vinegar

1/2 c. canola oil

1/2 c. Splenda or sugar

Beef flavoring packet from noodles

Combine the coleslaw with the raw ramen noodles.

Add the sunflower seeds. I think I added a little more than what it called for, since I didn't have any almonds.

Mix the sauce ingredients together with a whisk to evenly combine everything.

Pour sauce over salad and combine. Enjoy!

Tuna Salad

My mom makes this really good chicken salad in the summer, along with deviled eggs. I changed it up a bit and added tuna instead of chicken and took out the chunks of cheese and added tomatoes.

Ingredients:

1 pkg. ring noodles (a small box)

About 1 stalk of celery, chopped

1 cup sliced tomatoes (or more if you would like)

2 (6oz.) cans of tuna chunks

1 cup Real mayo

2 tsp. yellow mustard

2 tsp. Splenda or sugar

Sprinkle paprika

Chop up and slice the celery & tomatoes.

Boil the ring noodles for 7 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water to stop them from further cooking.
Combine the noodles with the celery and tomatoes.

Combine the 2 cans of tuna with the mixture and mix with hands until combined.

Mix together the mayo, mustard and sugar to taste. You shouldn't be able to taste too much of the mustard. (Sorry, I don't use measurements, so these are estimated)

Pour dressing into salad and mix until combined. Add a sprinkle of the paprika on top of the salad. Refrigerate. If the salad looks dry, you can add more mayo to make it moist. Enjoy!

Sausage Kebobs

Wanted to try something new and lately I've been obsessed with kebobs. I also read somewhere on the Food Network website that apples have been popular lately mixed in with meats. Sounded interesting. And with the maple syrup, it created a nice crunchy glaze that went well with the sausage.

Ingredients:

1 Granny Smith apple, cut into chunks
1 red bell pepper, cut into chunks
1 orange bell pepper, cut into chunks
1 pkg. Kielbasa sausage (I used Jenny-O Turkey Sausage)
3/4 cup real Maple syrup
4 wooden skewers

Soak the wooden skewers in cold water for about 20 minutes. Thread the 1st four ingredients onto each skewer. Brush with maple syrup.

Fry or grill (I used a grilling pan) kebobs until heated through and sauce becomes glazed, about 10-15 minutes. Continue to brush with maple syrup during cooking.
Enjoy!