Boneless Ribs...a wonderful idea!

So I like the flavor of ribs, but not the mess. I have found the perfect solution...boneless country style ribs. No, they are not exactly the same but they are close enough for me! I have had them before, crockpot style, and they were good...but not like "rib" good. I have been looking for a recipe that would make these ribs taste like "RIBS" for a long time and finally found one worthy of trying. They were wonderful!!! I forgot the take pics because I was sooooo hungry after smelling them for 2 hours. I found the recipe here and added/changed a few things. My changes are in italics.



BAR-B-Q COUNTRY STYLE RIBS (adapted from Cooks.com recipe)

1 cup ketchup (I added about 1/4 cup more)
1 1/2 cups water
1 tsp. mustard
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar because I like my bbq a little sweeter, however I think I'll try regular vinegar next time to see the difference)
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
2 tbsp. brown sugar (I doubled this making it 4 tbsp)
Sprinkle garlic powder (I like garlic so I sprinkled a lot)
1 small onion, chopped fine
I added 2 drops of liquid smoke, black pepper and a little salt to taste.
2 to 3 lbs. boneless country style ribs

Place ribs in 9 x 13 cake pan. Bake at 450 degrees for 30 minutes. While ribs are browning, mix all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Pour grease from ribs. Pour sauce over ribs and bake at 300 degrees for 2 hours (mine only took 1 1/2 hours, I used a thermometer to know when they were done) basting once or twice during cooking time. Serves 4 to 6.

Great Deals and Great Food

First let me say that I love The Grocery Game. The small cost every two months is so worth it because of how much money you save. Yes it takes a little time, but not as much as if you were to do all the work yourself. Here is an example...
Today I spent: 116.46
I saved: 95.93
I got: 16.00 coupons for next time I'm shopping (they spend like money at which ever store you got them)
I'm also getting: 15.00 in rebates on a Walgreens gift card

I wish I would have taken a picture of everything I got so that you could get the full affect. It is sooooo exciting when you see the receipt that says you saved more than you spent!! Even better when you know that you are getting a rebate for more that you paid (that happened today at Walgreens!)
If you decide to give it a try you can use if for a month for $1. If you decide to sign up I would greatly appreciate the referral credit. Add a comment and I will be happy to give you my email for you do enter as the referral.

Now onto the food! I love making chili and soup when it's cold outside...and it was definately cold today :) Anyway, I noticed a recipe for White Chicken Chili on the side of a can of Bush's Best Navy Beans. I had some turkey left over that we had frozen after cooking a bird for the holidays so I decided to use that instead of chicken. It was fantastic!!!

Here is the recipe with my change in italics.

White Chicken Chili

3 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped (i used half an onion)
1 can (4 oz) chopped green chilies, drained (i didn't drain them, there wasn't very much liquid)
3 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 tsp ground cumin
2 cans (16 oz) Bush's Navy or Great Northern Beans
1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth
1 1/2 cups finely chopped cooked chicken breast (i used turkey)
Shredded Monterey Jack cheese (optional)
Sour cream (optional)
Salsa (optional)

In large skillet, cook onion in oil for 4 minutes or until transparent. Add chilies, flour and cumin; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add beans and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes or until thickened. Add chicken; cook until hot. Garnish with cheese, sour cream and salsa, if desired.


I used cheese and sour cream and it was perfect for a cold winter day! I hope you try it and enjoy!

Taco Ring

We actually had this a couple of weeks ago but I haven't had much time to post lately. My family loves this meal. I think this was a Pampered Chef recipe that my mom fixed for me. I've just re-created it and modified to our liking. It's so easy and everyone can add the fixings that they like. I hope you enjoy!



Taco Ring



1 lb groud beef

2 cans crescent rolls (8 count each)

1/2 tbsp cumin

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tsp garlic powder

salt & pepper



mexican blend shredded cheese (or cheddar if you like)

shredded lettuce

salsa

bell pepper

sour cream

chopped cilantro

any other taco toppings you like

This picture has fewer crescent rolls because that's what I had. It usually comes out more like a rectangle than a circle!

Brown the ground beef in a skillet seasoning with salt & pepper, cumin, chili and garlic powder. Drain and set to the side. On a baking sheet, I like to use the Pampered Chef stoneware baking sheet, lay out the crescent rolls in pairs. Lay one crescent roll triangle with the 90 degree corner to the left, then take another crescent roll with the 90 degree corner to the right and over lap them. Repeat making a circle. Spoon some of the ground beef into each pair (we add some cheese also) and fold the skinny ends over and across to the opposite corner. When all are filled bake following the directions on the crescent roll package. When I want to get fancy I cut the top off a bell pepper and scoop out the seeds and fill with salsa. You can do another to serve sour cream, cheese or lettuce. I also put the remaining beef in the middle of the ring before serving for those who prefer a little extra meat. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve!

Hidden surprise!

I'm a big fan of hiding healthy foods...those that most kids won't even look at...in favorite foods. Therefore, I have to plug "Deceptively Delicious" by Jessica Seinfeld. One of my family's favorites from this book are chicken nuggets. The hidden "jewel" is butternut squash. You can use other veggies like sweet potatoes, broccoli or spinich. The first attempt at these nuggets I made them with sweet potatoes and even my mom, who is the pickiest eater I know, tried and liked them. Since then I have changed some things and found that my family prefers the squash.

The key to this dish is making the butternut squash puree. As the cookbook suggested, I took a Sunday afternoon and made a bunch of purees, labeled and froze them.

Here is the directions for making the squash puree. Taken from "Deceptively Delicious."

Butternut Squash

Cut off the stem, cut squash in half lengthwise and scrape out seeds.

Roast the halves on a cookie sheet, flesh-side down, at 400 degrees for 45-50 minutes.

Scoop out the flesh and puree in a food processor or blender for about 2 minutes.

I froze it in freezer bags in 1/2 cup portions.

Chicken Nuggets

Source: Deceptively Delicious

1 cup whole-wheat, white or Panko breadcrumbs (I used Italian breadcrumbs)
1/2 cup flaxseed meal

1 tbsp grated Parmesan

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder (I used onion flakes because that's what I had)

1 cup butternut squash puree (you can substitute sweet potato, broccoli, spinach or beet puree)

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast or chicken tenders, rinsed, dried, and cut into small

chunks

1/2 tsp salt

Nonstick cooking spray

1 tbsp olive oil

In a bowl (I used a pie dish), combine the breadcrumbs, flaxseed meal, Parmesan, paprika, garlic, and onion powder and mix well with your fingers.

In a shallow bowl, mix the vegetable puree and egg with a fork and set the bowl next to the breadcrumb mixture.

Sprinkle the chicken chunks with the salt. Dip the chunks into the egg mixture and then toss them in the breadcrumbs until completely coated.

Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set over medium-high heat (I found that my skillet has to be over meduim heat or they will start to burn to quickly). When the skillet is hot, add the oil. Place the chicken nuggets in the skillet in a single layer, being careful not to crowd the pan, and cook until crisp and golden on one side, 3 to 4 minutes. Then turn and cook until the chicken is cooked through, golden brown and crisp all over, 4 to 5 minutes longer. (Cut into a piece to check that it's cooked through.) Serve warm.

They don't make the prettiest meal, but they sure are tasty!!!

Friday Night Pizza

Friday night pizza is a tradition in our house. Until now we chose whatever company could deliver it fastest. Tonight, our recent job loss forced me to figure out how to save money while keeping our pizza tradition. This sent me straight to my sister's site Burnt Toast to find the pizza dough recipe that she had been raving about. I'm so glad I did. Just like her husband, my husband likes traditional pizza...red sauce, mozzarella cheese and pepperoni. However I like to experiment with my toppings and sauces. We made individual pizzas so that we could each have what we liked. My son is visiting Nana tonight, but if he were here I'm sure he would have eaten a little of each!

Before adding to dough recipe I wanted to add a little warning...make the edges a little thicker than the rest of the pizza or your toppings will slide off!






Here is the recipe for the crust taken from EasyPizzaCrusts.com.

No Yeast Pizza Crust
Source: EasyPizzaCrusts.com

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2/3 cup water
1 tbsp cooking oil


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare pizza pan by spraying with non-stick cooking spray. Combine dry ingredients in mixing bowl. Add liquids and stir to incorporate dry ingredients. Knead dough by hand 6-8 times on a lightly floured surface. Roll dough thinly. Place rolled dough onto prepared pizza pan, add favorite sauce and toppings. Bake at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes, depending on crust thickness.

I added 1/2 tsp. garlic powder to the dough to flavor the crust a little. And we put some EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) on the crust to keep it from soaking up the sauce.

My husband's pizza was topped with pizza sauce (yes, I took some help from the store on that one), shredded mozzarella cheese and pepperoni. He said it was great.

To top my pizza I mixed 8 oz. cream cheese, softened, 1 large can shredded chicken, drained, and 2 cloves of finely grated garlic. I found out that this made way more than I needed for my small pizza. In fact, I would recommend spreading only a thin layer on the pizza...I put way too much on mine and it was overpowering. I also topped it with a mixture of shredded mozzarella, parmesan and swiss.

When it came out of the oven I added chopped cilantro that I have been growing!





My white pizza was good but not the best pizza I've had. I'll definately make it again trying new toppings!