Shrimp Tacos with Citrus Cabbage Slaw

A new favorite of mine! I've made this 3 times in the last month. The recipe comes from the kitchen of my friend Neda who came across it in Real Simple magazine. It is fresh, healthy and nothing short of delicious!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of fresh orange juice

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons of sour cream (I usually have lowfat plain yogurt so I use that for substitute)

kosher salt and black pepper

1/4 cabbage, shredded

1 cup of corn kernels, toasted (you can use from the can, fresh or Trader Joe's has frozen roasted corn in a bag that is good)

1 jalepeno, seeded and chopped (I would say this is optional)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 lb. of peeled and deveined shrimp

8 small flour tortillas



Directions:
In a large bowl, whisk together orange juice, lime juice and sour cream (or yogurt), 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Add the cabbage, corn and jalepeno and toss to combine. Let sit for about 10 minutes, tossing occasionally.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat.

Season the shrimp with salt and pepper and cook until opaque throughout (about 3 minutes).

Serve the shrimp with the tortillas and the slaw!

Let's JAM!

Over the weekend, I made my 1ST attempt at "jamming". A friend of mine had made some homemade jam over Christmas and handed out the jars as gifts. I thought that was a sweet idea so I thought, why not for Valentine's Day! I remember my Aunts making jam (or maybe it was my grandma Betty-can't be too sure) and it's something I've always wanted to try. I also want to try making our own pickles someday too but I think that is a little more complicated. I made strawberry and blueberry but I'm really wanting to try peach and also a strawberry habanero/jalepeno recipe too. This was an awesome thing to do with my daughter who enjoyed crush, stirring and eating the berries while making the jam. We gave jam to her teachers, some neighbors and the grandparents. Have fun and enjoy!

Ingredients and What You Will Need:

your favorite fruit (lots of it)

SUGAR

jars, rings and lids (found at most grocery stores-I bought a box of 12 jars that came with rings and lids)

liquid pectin (also found at most grocery stores next to the jars/lids)Butter

Lemon

Recipes I used:

Blueberry:

4 1/2 cups of blueberries

8 cups of sugar

2 pouches of liquid pectin

1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon melted butter

Strawberry:

4 cups of whole strawberries

7 cups of sugar

1 pouch of liquid pectin

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon melted butter

Directions:

In a large stockpot, boil jars, rings and lids for several minutes. This is the most important part of the process because they need to be disinfected. Otherwise, your jam will become contaminated and yucky when you open to use. Using tongs, remove the jars and rings and set face up on clean paper towels. Be careful not to touch any part of these with your fingers. Leave the lids in the pot or set aside in a bowl of hot water until you are ready to use.

Crush fruit in a large bowl using a potato masher, large fork or grated spoon. Leave fruit somewhat chunky so your jam will have a nice, fruity texture. Mix the fruit and sugar and also add lemon juice and melted butter. Mix then let set for about 10 minutes.

Place fruit and sugar mixture in a large pot over stove. Heat on high and stir continuously until it comes to a rolling boil. Once you've reached a rolling boil, add your liquid pectin. Continue to boil and stir for 1 minute.

Skim off any foam that is left on the top. Using a funnel or large spoon (I used a little measuring cup) poor your jam into jars being careful not to touch inside of jars with your fingers. Using your tongs, retrieve the lids from the hot water and place on jar then screw on the rings.

Turn jars upside down for about 20-30 minutes. This will seal the lid. You know they are ready to turn over when you press the center of the lid and it no longer puckers.

For an extra touch, add fabric, cute ribbon and/or labels. I used some leftover fabric I had and did my best to make it look Valentiney.

Pan Fried Onion Dip

Delicious delicious delicious! My brother's gf made this on Thanksgiving and I've made it 3 times since! We are hooked. The recipe came from Brown Eyed Baker who got it from The Barefoot Contessa. Tip: the longer you saute the onions and get them nice and caramelized and the juices flowing the better. Serve with carrots, pretzels, chips or crackers (I like it with salty Reduced Fat Ruffles but that's just me).

Ingredients:

2 Large Yellow Onions

4 Tblsp. Unsalted Butter

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 tsp. ground cayenne pepper

1 tsp.kosher salt

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup mayonnaise

Directions:

-Cut the onions in half then into 1/8 inch-thick half rounds (will result in about 3 cups of onions).

-Heat the butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat.

-Add the onions, cayenne, salt and pepper and saute for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook for 20-30 more minutes or until the onions are brown and carmelized. Allow the onions to cool.

-Place the cream cheese, sour cream and mayo in a bowl and beat until smooth (with a hand held or electric mixer).

-Add the onions and mix well. Serve at room temperature. Refrigerate any left overs.

Chinese Chicken Salad with Ramen Noodles!

Who doesn't like ramen noodles? This salad is always a crowd pleaser and is also a good/easy pot luck go-to. The recipe has been around for awhile so it's nothing new under the sun but I recently remembered it and have made it twice this month (once for dinner at home and once for a pot luck). Easy. Refreshing. Delicious.

Ingredients:

1 Bag of Shredded Iceberg Lettuce

1/2 head of cabbage, shredded

1 rotisserie chicken, shredded

2 bags of ramen noodles (oriental flavor-blue package), crushed

1 large bunch of green onions, chopped

1 package of sunflower seeds

1 package of slivered almonds (I used the brand Almond Accents usually found in the produce section)

1 Cup of vegetable oil

5 Tblsp. of rice vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

2 flavor packets from Ramen noodles (set aside for dressing mixture)

Directions:

Combine the shredded chicken, chopped green onions, lettuce and cabbage, sunflower seeds and slivered almonds into large salad bowl. Crush the ramen noodles then open and toss with the salad. Set aside the flavor packets for the dressing.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, sugar and flavor packets from the ramen noodle packages.

Pour over salad, toss and enjoy!

Gobble Gobble

This is Lucy. Lucy was the BEST turkey I've ever eaten! Our recipe made for the juiciest turkey meat, even the white meat was moist. I think my favorite part was the gravy that it made. This Tyler Florence turkey recipe requires a little extra *love* and work but it is well worth it and your family will LOVE it.

We brined our turkey a couple days before Thanksgiving. You can google any recipe on how to brine a turkey. I highly suggest doing this and think it had a lot to do with how moist our turkey came out.

Ingredients:

1 stick unsalted butter, softened to room temp.

1/4 bunch fresh sage, finely chopped

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 (12-14 pound) fresh turkey, giblets, neck and liver discarded

6 strips bacon

1/2 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons hot water

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and remove top rack of the oven.

Put the butter and sage in a mixing bowl and mash with a fork or spoon until sage is well incorporated. Season with salt and pepper.

Rinse the bird thoroughly inside and out with cold water, and pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle the cavity and skin liberally with salt and pepper. Using your fingers, gently lift the skin from the turkey breast and slip the remaining seasoned butter under, massaging the breast meat as you go. Truss the bird by crossing the legs over one another and tying with a piece of kitchen twine (if you don't know how to truss or what it is, you can google this and many "how to" videos should come up with a step-by-step process). Shingle the bacon strips over the breast so it's totally covered. Put the turkey on a rack in a large roasting pan, cover the turkey with aluminum foil, and place in the oven.

In a small bowl, stir the maple syrup with 2 tablespoons of hot water to thin. Roast the turkey for 2 hours, basting with the maple glaze every 30 minutes. Continue cooking until an instant-read thermometer, inserted into the meaty part of the thigh registers 170 degrees F. The thigh juices will run clear when pricked with a knife, about 3 hours total (15 minutes per pound). About 1/2 hour before you think the turkey is done, remove the foil so that it can brown. When done take the turkey out of the oven and put the roasting pan on the stove top. Transfer to a serving tray to rest at least 20 minutes before carving. Serve with turkey gravy.

Paula Deen's Chocolate Pecan Pie

This little beauty made for a very happy ending to our Thanksgiving last year. I made it last minute and every one thought it was scrumdidlyumptious. Best served with vanilla bean ice cream or cool whip but good on its own too.

1 (9- inch) unbaked pie shell

2 cups of Pecan Halves

3 large eggs, beaten

3 tblsp butter, melted

1/2 cup dark corn syrup

1 cup sugar

3 ounce semi-sweet chocolate, chopped (I used chocolate chips and it worked fine)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Cover the bottom of the pie crust with pecans.

In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs and melted butter.

Add the corn syrup, sugar and chopped chocolate.

Stir until all ingredients are combined.

Pour mixture into the pie shell, over the pecans and place on a heavy duty cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes. Lower the oven to 350 degrees F and continue to bake for an additional 25 minutes or until pie is set. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack.

Easiest Chicken Tortilla Soup

This is a great fall/winter recipe. Since we've finally been having some cold weather and rainy days, I've been feeling like eating some warm soup. I remembered my friend Carly had made some delicious tortilla soup a few years ago at her Tupperware party. I sent her a text and she sent me the recipe right over. I didn't realize it would be this easy! My family was very happy with this recipe so I'm positive I'll be making this again and again.

2 Cans of Corn

2 Cans of Rotell diced tomatos with chillis

2 Cans of Ranch Style Beans with jalepenos

2 Cans of Chicken Broth

2 Cans of Cream of Chicken soup

1 rotisserie chicken

tortilla chips

shredded cheese (I use reduced fat mexican style)

light sour cream

Add all 10 cans to a large pot or crock pot (DO NOT DRAIN ANY OF THE CANS) and stir. Pull all the meat off the rotisserie chicken and add to the pot. Stir and heat! Serve in a bowl then add chips, shredded cheese and sour cream to your liking. Enjoy!

*Don't forget the Tapatio!*