Beef & Salsa Quesadilla
In continuing with my experiment to use salsa as an added ingredient in dishes instead of just serving it as a tortilla chips dip, I came up with this beef and salsa quesadilla.
INGREDIENTS:
1 thin steak, cut in strips
1 cup of salsa
1 packet of Cajun Aromatica Organics
1 large flour tortilla
sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese
oil for sautéing
Heat up oil in a pan. Sauté beef until tender. Stir in one packet of Cajun Aromatica Orgnaics sesoning. Just let that incorporate for a minute or two. The stir in the salsa. Let it cook for a minute or so.
Using a griddle or a nonstick pan, make sure the surface is hot, lay the flour tortilla flat. Add the beef and salsa mixture on one half of the flour tortilla. Sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese. Fold in the other half on top. Cook for a minute then carefully turn the quesadilla over to cook the top part.
Slice in quarters, then serve. Double the ingredients for more people.
—-originally posted at old Blisstree under b5media—–
Penne Alfredo & Capers
This Penne Alfredo is a very simple and easy to make pasta dish with a bit of kick thanks to the capers.
INGREDIENTS :
a box of penne pasta, cooked al dente
1 jar of Alfredo sauce
half a jar of water
half-a pound of ground beef
half a handful of capers, chopped finely
Italian seasoning
salt and pepper
a few more capers for garnish
Cook the pasta, al dente.
Brown the ground beef. Discard the fat form the meat. Add the Alfredo sauce. Pour water on the Alfredo sauce jar. Cover and shake to incorporate all the remaining sauce from the jar with the water. Pour it onto the beef and sauce mixture.
Season with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Stir in the chopped capers. Cover the pan and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Once plated, just add a few more capers on top as garnish and more flavoring.
—-originally posted at old Blisstree underb5media—–
Corned Beef Hash W/ Egg For Brunch
Since I’m really not a breakfast eater during the week (weekends only with the family), my lunch is pretty much a brunch. When there are no leftovers I of course try to make something quick. One of the easy and fast brunch meal I love to make involves a can of corned beef hash and eggs. I try to make it more gourmet (hehe) by sautéing with tomatoes and scallions. It’s really good with toasted bread. Try it sometime.
Ina Garten’s Coconut Macaroons
As mentioned in the chocolate cupcakes with buttercream coconut cupcakes recipe, I’ve finally made the coconut macaroons. I learned how to make it from watching an episode of Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa on Food Network. My first attempt on making macaroons years ago certainly baffles me how I completely messed that one up after seeing how easy it actually is.
Night At Dinner
Guest posted by William Wright
Last night myself and my family decided to go have dinner out. We set out ADT alarm systems and get in our car without any idea where to go. We ended up about a mile away from our house at a restaurant called El Tapatio. There we were met by a pleasant greeter who sat us immediately. The service from the waiter was also wonderful. He came to our table within a few minutes of us getting to our table and was polite the entire time we talked with him. He was friendly and helpful and continued to come to our table throughout the night to ask about our dinner.
The food we had was also cooked well and came faster than we expected. The enchiladas were perfectly cooked and had a bit of spice to them that made them taste a bit different from others. The sides were not as good as the enchiladas though. The beans tasted a bit like canned re-friend beans and the rice was a little bland. Overall I would recommend the restaurant. The service was very good and the food was better than many Mexican restaurants there are. I would have to rate the restaurant a 4 out of 5.
Spicy Crab Flakes Stir-Fry
If I can have food as bestfriends, hot sauce would probably be one of them. First would be chocolate. But of course. You know that joke about people putting a small bottle of hot sauce in their handbags? Well, I could be one of those people, hehehe. This spicy crab flakes stir-fry was not only cooked in chili garlic sauce, it also has sprinkled of red pepper flakes. When I want to cook something spicy, I go all out. Well not to a point that the dish is inedible. Cooking with hot pepper sauce is something I have to learn to balance so I could still enjoy the meal.
Avocado, Black Beans, Tomatoes & Cucumber Salad
This side salad was inspired by a guacamole salad made by Ina Garten in an episode of Barefoot Contessa show. It has been a while since I saw that particular episode but I remember telling myself that I’d make it sometime. My version had some changes because I couldn’t remember what dressing she used, and Ina used cherry tomatoes and also added red onions and bell peppers. My twist is using chopped tomatoes, and adding cucumber and the change in dressing.
Lasang Pinoy Sundays: Kitchen Tools/Gadgets You Want
Not that I need any more kitchen gadgets or tools anytime soon but I’ve been wanting Rachel Ray’s Stoneware set for a while now. I watch her using them in the Food Network show 30-Minute Meals and I think the stoneware are not only very cleverly designed, they pretty too.
Pork Cutlets & Spaghetti
My original recipe of this cutlets and pasta dish actually use chicken and penne. With the same concept of dreading the cutlets in flour then pan frying it with butter and incorporating it with pasta in a tomato based sauce. What’s good about this is that you can change it up. You can have it Alfredo sauce and use any kind of pasta noodles.
Mussels Cooked In Sauvignon Blanc
I had a little bit left of Sauvignon Blanc the other day so I decided to use it for the frozen mussels. This is a simple dish to use whatever leftover white wine you have hanging around. Well, you can drink it of course but for a suggestion, you can also use it for cooking. 
