CuteChick Recipe #10 - Caribbean Brown Stewed Beef

Helloooo everyone!!! I know it's been entirely too long since my last recipe post. Today I bring you my Caribbean brown stewed beef recipe. I love island cuisine & brown stewed chicken is one of my favorite meals. I then got to thinking one day....what if i use beef instead? So a few months ago i substituted beef and loved it!!! I recommend at least 2 hours cooking time to get it super tender. With that being said, this is definitely what i would call a "Sunday dinner meal" since it takes a considerable amount of time to cook. The perfect side dishes to this meal are some rice & peas, cabbage & plantains as shown below:

Ingredients

2 1/2lbs cubed stew beef (most stores already have it cut up as such)

1 onion (large dice)

1 green bell pepper (large dice)

3 medium sized potatoes (peeled & roughly chopped)

1 1/2 cups baby carrots

1/3 cup chopped green onion

3 tblspn minced garlic

2/3 cup ketchup (tomato sauce would work fine also)

1/3 cup brown sugar

juice of 2 limes

2 1/2 tblspn browning liquid

Seasonings (jerk seasoning, ginger, allspice, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, thymed)

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 cups of water

First things first, lets season your meat. I seasoned mine w/ about 2 tablespoons of the jerk seasoning, the lime juice & the browning liquid (I used this brand). 

Mix well & set aside. 

While the meat marinates for a little while, prep all of your veggies

Heat the oil over medium high heat for about 5 minutes. Brown your meat for about 10 minutes (not fully cook)  & then remove from the pan

add all the vegetables & garlic to the same pan and sautee for about 15-20 minutes and season generously w/ all the seasonings mentioned above according to taste (except the jerk seasoning)

next, add the meat back to the pan & mix in the ketchup along w/ the brown sugar and water

Reduce heat to a low boil & let cook down & reduce for at least an hour. Taste a sample to make sure it's seasoned correctly & adjust according to taste. This is what the finished product should resemble

ENJOY!!!!!

CuteChick Recipe #9 - Chicken Alfredo Lasagna

  Hello everyones!! Today I thought I'd post the recipe for the chicken alfredo lasagna I made last night. Now I will tell you now, this recipe is a bit involved in regards to the prep work & making the sauce. It's what I call a "Sunday dinner dish" since you normally wouldn't have this much time to make it during the week & it's a little pricey as the cheeses are not cheap! But it's a meal that'll last you at least 2 days & oh so good! You may certainly substitute with jarred alfredo sauce to cut some time out. I also cut time out by using the bakeable lasagna noodles as opposed to the traditional boil first kind.

Ingredients
1 16oz box of lasagna noodles
1 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 cup milk (I used whole)
2 cups shredded parmesan
3/4 stick of butter
3/4 grated parmesan (the kind in the can) set aside 1/4 cup
2 cups of any pre-shredded italian/pizza cheese blend (set aside 1/4 cup)
30oz tub of ricotta cheese
2 boneless chicken breast halves (cubed in 1 inch chunks)
1 strip of bacon  (beef or pork only, if you don't eat either used about 2 tablespoons of olive oil)
1 egg
1 medium shallot (minced)
1/3 cup italian breadcrumbs
1 red pepper (small dice)
1 15oz can of diced tomatoes (drained)
1 14oz frozen broccoli (thawed)
1 strip of bacon
2 tablespoons flour
6 tablespoons of minced garlic
4 tablespoons olive oil (vegetable oil is fine also)
Italian seasoning, salt & pepper, garlic powder, onion powder (no exact measurements, you can go off of preferred taste)

Whew! I know that was a lot of ingredients. Let first season the chicken, I did so w/ salt, pepper, garlic & onion powder and italian seasoning....set aside

Time for the sauce. In a medium saucepan over medium high heat, cook the strip of bacon until very crispy, once the bacon is done remove & set aside to drain on a papertowel. Add the butter to the pan & melt. Sautee the shallots for about 5 minutes & then add 3tablespoons of the minced garlic & sautee for another 5 minutes. 

Mix in the flour and cook for about 3 minutes. Whisk in your milk & cream until it comes to a boil. Stir constantly so you don't develop a skin on top. 

Reduce your heat to medium once it has come to a boil. Season well w/ salt & pepper. Mix in your shredded parmesan cheese, reduce heat to low & cover. Now it's time to prep your ricotta. In a medium bowl mix, the ricotta, egg & 1/2 cup of the grated parmesan thoroughly & set aside.

In a large skillet, heat about 4 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat and sautee the red pepper until soft. Add the remaining minced garlic & cook for another 3 minutes. Add your chicken & cook until done and slightly browned as shown below.

Once the chicken is done, add the drained tomatoes & broccoli and heat through. Season w/ salt & pepper. Drain the liquid from the pan & combine the alfredo & chicken mixture in the skillet like below & remove from heat.

Now it's time to make the actual lasagna! In a deep lasagna pan, ladle about a cup of the sauce mixture to cover the bottom of the pan. Then layer the noodles, ricotta mixture, shredded cheese blend & sauce. Thats the order I did mine in. In a separate bowl, combine the bread crumbs, 1/4 cup grated parmesan, 1/4 cup italian cheese blend & bacon crumbles from earlier. Evenly spread this on the top of lasagna as your topping.

 Bake at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes. Allow lasagna to sit for at least 20 minutes after baking to set well & enjoy!!

CuteChick Recipe #8- Jambalaya!!!!

Happy Thursday everyone!! I thought I'd hit you guys w/ a recipe for my jambalya :-)  It's actually not too difficult to make & sooo good! TRUST ME! You're not going to use the box kind again! I normally use shrimp & smoked sausage, but you may certainly substitute w/ chicken, crawfish, scallops or any other flavored sausage. The secret of this recipe is to use stock/broth  instead of plain water. Seafood or chicken flavor works really well. I made a quick seafood stock this time. All I did was boil the discarded shrimp shells w/ some garlic & onion powder, celery salt & bay leaf in a small saucepan for about 20 minutes & then let it simmer for about an hour. You can definitely do this way ahead of time & just freeze it until you're ready to use it. 

Here's the finished product. I served fried tilapia & broccoli alongside it for a complete meal. 

Ingredients

3/4 lb. of shrimp (cleaned, peeled & deviened)

1/2 lb. of sliced smoked sausage ( I used beef)

1 cup chopped celery (I didn't have any this go around, but try not to skip this if you don't have to)

1 diced medium yellow onion

1 diced green pepper (I used a red one as well since I didn't have celery but you don't have to)

1 15oz can diced tomato

3 tablespoons worcestershire sauce

1 1/2 cups rice (I recommend parboiled)

2 tablespoons of minced garlic

3 cups seafood stock (chicken flavored works well also or just plain water)

3-4 tablespoons of creole seasoning 

1 stick of unsalted butter

Creole Seasoning

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika

2 tablespoons salt

2 tablespoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 tablespoon black pepper

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried thyme 

What you want to do first is clean the shrimp & season w/ about 1 tablespoon of the creole seasoning & set aside.

Here's what your seasoning mixture should look like...if you want to make a spicier dish, add about 1 tablespoon of crushed red pepper flakes. 

 In a large deep skillet, melt your butter over medium high heat and sautee the onions, peppers & celery for about 15 minutes. Add the can of tomatoes along w/ the garlic and 2 tablespoons of the creole seasoning and the worcestershire sauce. Cook for an additional 5 minutes. It should look something like this.

Add your sausage sausage & cook for another 3-5 minutes. Add the rice and mix thoroughly as shown below.

Add your liquid and bring to a boil for about 5 minutes. Once it begins to boil, reduce heat to a very low simmer and cover. Let it cook for a good 15-20 minutes or until the rice has absorbed most of the liquid. Add your shrimp as shown below, mix thoroughly & place lid back on the pan.

 Let cook for another 15-20 minutes or until the rice as set & liquid is just about all absorbed. Your dish is done! You may certainly serve it as suggested above, or alone w/ cornbread is really good too! Enjoy!!!

CuteChick Recipe #7- Pineapple upside down cake!!!

Happy Friday everyone!!!! I made a pineapple upside down cake yesterday & I've definitely gotten some great feedback about it so I decided to post the recipe. It's Curtis Aiken's recipe & I actually got it off of the Food Network website ( http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/curtis-aikens/pineapple-upside-down-cake-recipe/index.html ) Pineapple upside down cake is my favorite cake & this recipe is soooo yummy!! I did make a few changes & omissions....I didn't have rum on hand so I left that out (I'll make sure I don't the next time! lol) & I did not separate the eggs....just because I was lazy & my hand mixer broke so I didn't have anything to whip the egg whites,lol...it still came out great though!!

CuteChicksCook - Restaurant Visits : Seasons 52

Happy New Year everyone!! I trust that everyone had a safe, fun & yummy holiday!! I know I did :-) During the holidays I had the opportunity to finally dine at Seasons 52 (Perimeter Mall location) . I've known about this upscale chain restaurant since I've lived in Orlando several years ago & I have just never gotten the chance to dine there. They base their menu options on what's good & typical for that particular season, so it changes 4 tiimes a year. Since it was my first time there I got an app, entree & dessert..and everything was sooo good!!! I was definitely a little piggie! lol. I didn't feel too bad though because every menu option is under 475 calories!!! How cool is that? Here are some pic below of what I had ....enjoy!!!

 the beefsteak & arugala salad w/ red onion, bleu cheese, bacon & basalmic drizzle

grilled t-bone lamb chops cooked medium w/ asparagus & mashed potatoes

mango cheesecake shooter ....*drool*

CuteChick Recipe #6- Jerk Shrimp White Cheddar Alfredo over Farfalle

Sooo... I spent all day yesterday trying to find a new alfredo recipe since I've been craving it so much lately (i'm the most craving having non pregnant girl you'll ever know!) but nothing jumped out at me at all. I decided to take matters into my own hands do some experimenting. I swear some of my best dishes come out of me just throwing stuff together! I was originally gonna make a shrimp scampi version of an alfredo sauce but I didn't have any lemons on hand. I then remembered I had just bought some jerk seasoning the other day and that's where the idea was born. This recipe is actually super easy & sooo good! Once recommendation I will make that I didn't actually do is to add about a teaspoon of flour to the butter before adding the cream. This will thicken the sauce up :-)
Here's the finished product

Ingredients
2 cups of heavy cream
1 cup of milk ( I used whole)
2 cups of grated parmesan (NOT the stuff in the can! lol)
1 cup of grated extra sharp white cheddar cheese
7 oz bag of medium shrimp ( any size will do, this would definitely taste good w/ chicken or scallops also)
1 15oz can of diced tomatoes (drained)
3 tblspns chopped green onion
about 2 tbspns of jerk seasoning (I used Ochos Rios brand, McCormicks would work great as well)
2 tblspns of minced garlic ( i use the squeezable kind)
5 tblspns unsalted butter
2 tspns of onion powder
salt & pepper to taste
1 tbspn of olive oil
1 16oz box of farfalle (bowtie pasta....penne, linguine or fettucine would work great also)

First things first, season the shrimp w/ the jerk seasoning in a bowl & set aside. Here's the one I used.

After this, go head & begin boiling your water for the pasta (cook according to package instructions)  and heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over med/high heat. Add the shrimp to the oil & cook for about 5 minutes. You do not want to thoroughly cook the shrimp at this point, this is just going to add a little color to them. Once you've cooked them for the 5 minutes put them in a bowl & set aside. Add your butter to the pan & melt. Once melted, add your garlic and saute for about 3-5 minutes. Season the garlic w/ the onion powder. Whisk in the heavy cream followed my the milk & bring to a light boil. You want to whisk the milk & cream about every minute or two. DO NOT LEAVE UNATTENDED! because it will boil over! Once it's reduced some (after about 10 minutes) stir in the cheese (reserve 1 cup of the parmesan) until melted. Here are the cheeses

 After the cheese has melted, season w/ salt & pepper and then stir in your tomatoes & shrimp. Reduce heat to medium and cover. After about 10-15 minutes your sauce is done! Thoroughly mix the sauce in w/ the pasta as well as the reserved cup of parmesan cheese. Top w/ the green onion & dinner is served! Now how easy was that? I hope you guys enjoy this one as much as I did!

CuteChick Recipe #5- Chipotle Lime marinated chicken enchiladas !!

Oh My Goodness!! I can't believe it's been almost a month since my last recipe post! I am slipping! I've actually been a little busy bee w/ catering a few events so yay me!! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving, I know I did! As much as I love Thanksgiving food, I'm definitely over it by day 3,lol. This recipe was inspired by that! Now this is a dish that's fairly easy & quick to make but try to plan ahead so that you give the chicken enough time to marinate. I only marinated mine for 4 hours but you can certainly marinate it over night for an even more intense flavor. Now most of my recipes definitely allow room for additions & omissions. Since my daughter ate this as well, I didn't add a lot of spice but I recommend adding a fresh chopped jalapeno or a tablespoon of red pepper flakes to the vegetable sautee' or you can add more chipotles or cayenne pepper to your marinade. Below is the finished product, but as usual I will provide step by step photos. Enjoy!!

Ingredients
about 3/4 - 1lb of boneless skinless chicken breast (boneless thighs will work equally as well)
1 15 oz can of black beans
1 15.25 oz can of yellow corn (can be omitted)
about 3 cups of shredded cheese (I used extra sharp because it's what I had on hand, any mexican blend would work fine)
1 medium onion
1 orange bell pepper (any color is fine)
2 tblspns of minced garlic
about a 1/4 cup of sliced green onion
jar of verde (green) enchilada sauce
can of red enchilada sauce
about 24 corn tortillas (more or less depending on how many people you're serving)
Marinade

1/3 cup of lime juice (about 2 medium sized limes)
2 chipotle peppers in adobo (they come in a can)
2 tbspn of worcestershire sauce
2 tbspn of olive oil
about 2 tspns of the following seasonings (garlic & onion powder, cumin, thyme, bay leaves, salt & pepper, paprika, chili powder)

First things first! let's marinade this chicken! mix all of the marinade in a small bowl or measuring cup.

Once your chicken is cleaned, pat dry & place in a gallon sized ziploc bag. Pour the marinade in the bag & shake it up some so all of the pieces are evenly coated. Place it in the fridge & let it hang out for a little while.

 This would also be a good time to chop your onion & peppers, i'd suggest a small/medium dice

 Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees. Once your chicken has marinated the preferred amount of time, take it out about 30 minutes before you actually cook it so it can rest it bit. Heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil (any oil would be fine) in a large skillet over medium high heat. Once your oil has gotten hot, place your chicken in the pan & sear well on both sides, once it's seared well, reduce your heat to medium & place a lid on top. Cook the chicken until it's completely cooked. I normally just cut into the largest piece to make sure the meat is all white. Remove your chicken from the pan & place into a bowl. Increase your heat back to medium high & sautee' your onions for about 5 minutes & then add your minced garlic, beans & corn & cook together for another 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

During this time, your chicken has cooled down some. Take 2 forks & shred the chicken to your desired consistency & add it back to the pan w/ the vegetables & thoroughly mix together. It should look something like this

Time to make the actual enchiladas! In a bowl mix together the green & red enchilada sauce. Here are the ones I used, just the store brand, nothing fancy.

On a separate plate, take 2 corn tortillas & overlap them,(i'd recommend zapping them in the microwave for a few seconds to make them more pliable) as you would when making a burrito. Place a 2 spoonfuls of the chicken veggie mixture in the center of the overlap, sprinkle a little cheese & green onion & roll up.

 In lasagna style baking dish, spoon about half of the enchilada sauce in the bottom & then place the enchiladas in the pan until full. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the enchiladas & top w/ the rest of the cheese & green onion.

 Bake for about 20-30 minutes or until cheese has melted & browned some. Well folks, that's it!!! It seems like a lot but it's honestly pretty easy to make. Enjoy!!