Shan's Recipes - Curry Chicken and Taco Meat

Hung out today with my niece.  We made a couple recipes and enjoyed cooking.

NOTE - Both these recipes are made without salt - so you may want to add some salt to match your preferences/tastes.

Curry Chicken:

Mix spices:
1 tablespoon onion powder
2 tablespoons curry powder (mild)
2 teaspoons garlic powder.

Combine with 1 cup sour cream, yogurt, or coconut milk (Canned).
Mix well.

Add 2 teaspoons lemon juice.
Mix well.

Cut up 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces.

Add chicken to sour cream and spice mixture.  Stir until all chicken is well coated.  Let sit for at least 30 minutes.  This can marinate overnight in the refrigerator.

Heat some oil in a skillet.

Dump chicken and sour cream mixture into hot skillet.  Stir and cook until thickened.  Add some water if you want broth for rice.  Leave alone if you want it to be almost dry.

Cover and let simmer for 15-20 minutes until chicken is cooked through and there is no more pink.

Serve over rice, mashed potatoes, or bread.



TACO MEAT:

Make Spice Mixture.
1 teaspoon each
Garlic powder
chili powder

2 teaspoons each
onion powder
cumin powder
tumeric powder
paprika

Cut 1 yellow onion into small pieces

In a large skillet, heat oil.

Saute (cook with a little oil) onions until they turn translucent (clear-ish).

Add to onions in skillet, 2 pounds very lean ground beef.
Add all of spice mixture.

Cook until there is no more pink beef left.

Cover and let cook over low heat for 20-30 more minutes for flavors to blend.

Serve over lettuce bed, with cheese and salsa
Serve in taco shells with toppings of choice.
Serve over rice or potato medallions.
Serve on crusty bread, topped with cheddar cheese and broiled until toasty

Potato Fritatta - Recipe

Cooking fun for the day - Made a fritatta, but used potatoes instead of my typical squash.  Turned out pretty good.

2 large potatoes sliced thinly and evenly (If you slice them different thicknesses some will cook and others will still be crunchy)
4 eggs
2 cups milk
4 ounces colby jack cheese
2 ounces feta cheese

Slice potatoes very thin and set aside.  Mix eggs and milk and whisk well.  Set aside.  Crumble feta cheese into small crumbs.  Set aside.  Shred cheese.  Split into two bowls, 1 with about 1/2 cup of shredded cheese, the other with the rest.  Reserve the 1/2 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of everything.

Once all ingredients are ready, oil a glass 9x12 baking dish (think cake pan size).  Layer potatoes, sprinkle of colby jack, potatoes, sprinkle of feta and repeat until out of ingredients.  When everything layered, slowly pour egg/milk mixture over the fritatta.  Sprinkle reserved cheese over the top.  Place uncovered in oven.  Turn on oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.  Turn oven down to 300 and bake another 30 minutes.

NOTE - I do not preheat the oven when using glass baking dishes, so this recipe is assuming you put the fritatta into a cold oven.

Easy Substitutions from an allergic life

Conditioner
Marshmallow root
Hibiscus flower
Chamomile flowers

Steep in boiled water for 10 minutes.  Use immediately.


Air Freshener
1 bottle Isopropyl Alcohol
3 vanilla beans snipped into 1 inch pieces.

Drop beans into bottle.  Cap.  Put in cabinet.  Retrieve 4 weeks later.  Sieve out solids.  Put liquid into spray bottle.  Use as wanted.

Can also use citrus zest, pieces of fresh mint plants, lavender flowers, chamomile flowers, etc.


Flavored salt/sugar
Layer citrus zest, vanilla beans, fresh mint, etc. into crushed salt or sugar.  Store in GLASS, Opaque bottle or in GLASS clear bottle in a DARK PLACE.  Shake every couple days.  Ready in about 4 weeks.

Syrup Substitute:
In a slow cooker, place 2 cups fruit chunks.  Add spices and sweetener to taste.  Turn onto low.  Cook 12 hours.  Use hand blender to puree.  Sub for any type of THICK fruit syrup.  If you want it thinner, add water when putting all things into slow cooker.

Cream of Broccoli Soup - The easy way

Cream of Broccoli Soup - The easy way

2 bunches of broccoli - cut off the woody thick stalks.  Discard stalks.
2 cups water.
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 onion
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder

Drop it all into a large cooking pot (three minutes or so to do this).  Turn stove onto high.  Bring to boil.  Boil 15 minutes while drinking a cup of coffee or a cup of tea.

Sieve out solids and put into blender (takes about 2 minutes).  Leave liquids in pot.  Pulse blender a couple times until only small chunks are left (30 seconds).

Put pot back onto stove.  Turn on MEDIUM so as not to boil but still keep warm enough to simmer.  Mix 1/4 cup starch and 1 cup cold water.  Pour into liquids in pot while stirring constantly (1 minute).

Sprinkle in 1 cup or so of shredded cheddar cheese (or other cheese/cheeses per your personal preferences) - a handful at a time.  STIR CONSTANTLY (3 minutes).

When broth is thickened and cheese is melted completely (about 3-5 minutes from pouring in starch mixture), dump in blended veggies.  Stir a couple times to mix (30 seconds)

Pour in 1 cup Regular milk (or canned milk)... Nonfat milk does not taste very good so use something other than non-fat milk.  I use 1/2 and 1/2.  Stir to mix and then simmer 1 more minute and serve.

DO NOT HEAT THIS UP IN THE MICROWAVE - IT CURDLES.  Heat on a stove top over low heat.

Overall, the soup takes about 30 minutes from start to eating.  However, it only takes about 5-7 minutes of active work.