Brown Sugar Pork Chops with Onions

You need:

2 tsp of olive oil

4 boneless or boned pork lion or rib chops

3/4 tsp of black pepper

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1/4 cup orange juice

2 Tbsp of packed brown sugar

Heat olive oil in a large skillet.  Sprinkle the chops with black pepper.  Cook chops in hot oil for 6 to 8 minutes on each side or until browned and cooked through.  Remove the chops from the skillet, cover and keep warm.

For the sauce, add the onions to the same skillet over medium heat for 3-5 minutes or until tender.  Push the onions aside and add the orange juice and brown sugar.  Cook and stir for 1 minute or until sugar is dissolved.  Stir the onions into the sauce.  

Spoon the sauce over the chops and serve.

Stuffed Bell Peppers

You will need
4 Bell Peppers
1 Onion, chopped
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/4 cup ketchup
1/8 cup mustard
2/3 cup cooked brown rice
1 egg, beaten

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Start the brown rice.  Cut the top of each bell pepper.  Dice the top of the peppers and add to a skillet with beef, garlic, and onions.  Cook until the meat is fully cooked and browned.  Drain the cooked meat and place in a mixing bowl.  Add the rice, ketchup, mustard, and beaten egg.  Spoon the mixture into the bell peppers and pack in tightly.  Add ketchup to the top of each stuffed pepper and place in the oven for 30 to 45 minutes.

I'm linking up with Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Mahi with Lemon and Tomato Sauce

You need:
4 Mahi fillets
1/2 stick of butter
2 gloves of garlic
Juice of 2 lemons
2 Tablespoons of finely chopped green onions
2 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
Olive oil
Cornstarch

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Wash and pat dry the fish.  Rub each side with olive oil.  Place the fish in a baking dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place in oven.
In a sauce pan, melt butter, add garlic, onions, lemon, and tomato.  Stir until the tomatoes are tender and falling apart.  Add half to one teaspoon of cornstarch and stir until thickened.  It should be the consistency of gravy.
The fish needs to cook for about 20 minutes of until it flakes easy with a fork.  After plating the fish, spoon the lemon and tomato mixture over each fillet and enjoy.

Today I am linking up with Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed With Grace.

Puerto Rican Style Pork Shoulder

I decided to cook for Taft's Birthday Party this year.  I knew that we would do hot dogs for the kids, but I wanted something good for the adults.  Something that could be cooked in the house so that there was no grill by the pool.  It is enough to try to watch children in the pool and way too much to have to also remember to keep them away from a hot grill.
My friend, Yvette, makes the best pork that I have ever tasted.  So - I got the recipe from here.  There are no amounts or measurements since they just make it from memory and it is prepared to taste.  But here is basically what you need to do.

You need:
Pork Shoulder (ours were about 10 pounds each and we cooked 3)
White Vinegar
Lemon Juice
Olive Oil
Garlic
Adobo (you can find it in the Hispanic food section at the grocery store and we got the one with the blue top)
Sazon (also in the Hispanic food section and it is the one that has coriander and annatto)
Gloves (the Sazon will turn you hands orange)
Tin Foil

The first thing that we did on Friday was to put the pork shoulder in a large disposable tin pan.  We then added vinegar and lemon juice to the container to put the pork in a brine.  We also poked lots of little holes the meat.  We then covered it with foil and put it in the fridge.  It needs to be in the brine for at least 4 hours.
On Saturday morning, I took it out and drained off the brine.  Then I put the following into a boil to make a paste:  garlic, Sazon, Adobo, and olive oil.  I cut large hole in the meat and stuffed them with the paste and then rubbed it into the meat all over.  I left the fat side up and covered again and put back in the fridge to marinate.
On Saturday night, I set the oven for 250 degrees and put the covered meat in to cook.  When I woke up on Sunday, it was done.
We then uncovered the meat and put it back into the oven on broil to crisp up the skin.  That makes some great homemade pork skins. We then pulled all the meat off the bones (and saved those for Shelby Dog).  You also take the juice that the meat cooked in and add more adobo, then pour some over the shredded meat. 
It is so good.  You can make it to eat as a sandwich or alone.  We had both options and most people thought that it was good enough that it needed no BBQ sauce.

Today I am linking up with Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Spaghetti

I love spaghetti.  My dad has made it for years and everyone that eats it, loves it.  I even remember picking it for my birthday dinner once when I was in high school.  My girl friends came over and had spaghetti and cake.  Mine isn't exactly like his, but it is pretty good.

You need:
2 pounds of ground beef, browned and drained
8 ounces of fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 large onion, chopped
2 chopped bell peppers
2 28 ounce cans of diced tomatoes
6 ounce can of tomato paste
1 cup of water
salt
pepper
Olive oil
2 packages of McCormick brand Thick and Zesty Spaghetti Sauce Mix


In a large sauce pain, add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the chopped onion, peppers, and the sliced mushrooms.  Saute over medium heat.  While the onions and mushrooms are cooking, I start the meat.  Just brown and scramble, salt and pepper to taste, and drain the oil.
Once the onions are clear, add one cup of water, the caned tomatoes (with juice), tomato paste, and sauce mix.  Add the drained meat.  Stir well, cover and let simmer.  It really is better the longer it simmers.  We let our cook at least one and half hours.
Serve over pasta.

Today I am linking up with Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays at Blessed With Grace.

Chicken Broccoli Cheese Casserole

You Need:
1 whole chicken, boiled and deboned
1 box of chicken flavored stuffing mix
2 cups of shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup mayo
1 family size can of cream of mushroom soup
1 lb bag of frozen broccoli

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a small bowl, mix the soup, mayo, and 1 cup of cheese together.  Set aside.
Cook the broccoli until tender.  Layer the chicken, stuffing mix, soup mixture, and sprinkle with remaining cheese.
Bake 20 minutes or until bubbly.

I am linking up to Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays at Blessed with Grace.net. 

Crock Pot Corned Beef

For St. Patrick's Day, we made corned beef and cabbage.  I decided to give it a try in the crock and it worked great.

You need:
4lb corned beef with seasoning pack
1 large cabbage, roughly
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1 Tablespoon white vinegar
1 Tablespoon sugar
2 cups water
10 red potatoes
5 large carrots, chopped

I put the onion, water, corned beef, seasoning pack, sugar, and vingar in the crock pot and set it on low for 8 hours.  After 5 hours, I added the potatoes and carrots.  Then I added the chopped cabbage one hour before the finished cooking time.
It was wonderful!  The meat was tender and falling apart and the vegetables where perfect.  It went great with out Irish soda bread we picked up at Publix.
You can find more of our recipes here.

I'm linking up with Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Best Rotel Dip Ever

Almost everyone loves Rotel Dip.  It is one of the easiest party foods that you can make.  Especially if you make it in the crock pot.  We have a secret ingredient in ours - cream cheese!  It really does make a difference.

Here is what you need:

1 large block of Velvetta Cheese

1 8 oz package of Cream Cheese

2 cans of Rotel

1 pound of sausage

Start by cutting the Velvetta cheese into blocks and adding to the crock pot.  Do the same for the cream cheese.  Add the two cans of Rotel (you use hot and spicy ones if you like).  While that is starting to warm up, brown your sausage in a skillet and drain off the oil.  Add sausage to the cheese mixture.

Then just let it get hot and melted, stir occasionally,  and serve with chips.  Easy Peasy!

Today I am linking up with Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays at Blessed With Grace.