Congo Bars

(these were made with half milk chocolate chips and half white chocolate chips to keep my daughter happy)

This recipe came from my mom.  I have always loved my mom's congo bars.  I always thought "congo bars" was kind of a weird name--I have no idea where that name even came from!  I can't bring myself to call them "blondies" though, because congo bars is just what they are!  They are gooey, chewy, and super yummy with a scoop of ice cream!

Congo Bars
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2/3 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
1 pkg. chocolate chips
1 cup nuts (optional)

Cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.  Put in greased 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.

Sesame Chicken Spinach Salad

I made this salad today for a baby shower, and it was yummy!  I was a little nervous because I have never made it before, so I wasn't quite sure how it would turn out.  But several people asked me for the recipe, and that always indicates a winner!  This recipe came from a childhood friend of mine's blog (was that proper English?) here.  Enjoy!


Sesame Chicken Spinach Salad
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Salad ingredients:


• 5 cups cubed grilled chicken breasts (about 4 large chicken breasts)*
• 2 cups seedless red grapes (halved)
• 3 cups packed torn baby spinach
• 8 oz. fusilli pasta (cooked)
• 1 jar (15 oz.) marinated artichoke hearts (drained and roughly chopped)
• 1 bunch chopped green onions
• 1 (11 oz.) can mandarin oranges
• 1 pear (diced and tossed with lime juice)
• 2 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds


Dressing:


• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 3 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. dried minced onion
• 1 tsp. fresh lemon or lime juice
• 2 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley


Toss all the ingredients together. Whisk together the ingredients for the dressing. Dress the salad, right before serving.


*Marinade for chicken


• 1/4 cup Teriyaki sauce (soy sauce, ginger, sugar or any commercial brand)
• 1/4 cup Lawry’s Mesquite-lime Marinade
• 1/4 cup Italian salad dressing (Newman’s Own Balsamic Vinaigrette or Italian dressing (any brand but not fat-free)


Marinate chicken for 1-4 hours (not overnight)


Sprinkle generously with lemon-pepper before grilling. Grill chicken until cooked through.


This recipe serves between 8-10 people.

(note:  I added some rice vinegar to the dressing to thin it out a little bit--I thought it was a bit too thick, but I may have done something wrong.  Also, next time I make this, I think I will omit the artichoke hearts and add water chestnuts.)

Sweet Pork Tacos with Black Beans

The pork taco recipe came from a cookbook that I haved called Bliss.  It is a nice variation from regular tacos!  The beans recipe I found online somewhere--sorry I can't remember where.  It's a simple way to give a can of black beans a little extra flavor!

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Sweet Pork Tacos

4-5 pound pork roast
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp. salt
1 can green chili enchilada sauce (I used the big can)
1 cup brown sugar

Place pork roast in a crock pot and sprinkle with crushed garlic and salt.  Cook on high (I did mine on low) for 6-8 hours, or until the roast easily pulls apart.  Remove roast from crockpot, drain juices, and shred.  Place back into the crock pot.

In a bowl, combine the green chili enchilada sauce and the brown sugar.  Pour over the shredded meat and stir to combine.  Cook on high for one hour or low for 3 hours.

Serve with corn or flour tortillas, shredded lettuce, black beans, shredded cheese, tomatoes, sour cream and guacamole. 

Black Beans

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/3 cup tomato juice
1/2 tsp. salt (to taste)
2 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro

In a nonstick skillet, cook garlic and cumin in olive oil over medium heat until you can smell it.  Add beans, tomato juice, and salt.  Continually stir until heated through.  Just before serving stir in the cilantro.  Serve with slotted spoon! 

(note:  I didn't have any tomato juice so I put in tomato sauce with quite a bit of hot water to water it down.)

Cedar-Plank Grilled Salmon

(this picture does not do justice to how good this salmon is!!)

This salmon is to die for, the best salmon I have ever eaten in my life, hands-down!  It is so easy too!  I love those kinds of recipes.  Cooking the salmon on the cedar plank gives it a sweet-smoky flavor and the fish stays so moist it literally melts in your mouth!  I bought my cedar planks at Costco--they have sold them for the last couple of summers, but I haven't seen them yet this season.  Maybe I haven't looked hard enough though.  They usually show up when all of their barbeque things come out. 


The original recipe came from a Sur La Table catalog from a couple of years ago. 


Cedar-Plank Grilled Salmon
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• 1 untreated cedar plank, measuring about 15 by 7 by 3/8 inches
• 1 whole side of salmon (about 3 pounds), skin on and scaled  (I like to use the salmon filets from Costco that don't have skin--not the fozen individual ones but the "fresh" ones in their meat section) 
• olive oil for brushing
• kosher or sea salt
• freshly gound pepper
• leaves from 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• leaves from 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
• juice of 1/2 lemon

Rinse cedar plank and soak it in water for a minimum of 20 minutes and up to 2 hours.  I use my kitchen sink and put a glass or something on it so it stays under water. 


Preheat gas grill to medium heat. 


Place salmon on a cookie sheet (or plate or whatever).  Rub the salmon with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.  Scatter the fresh herb leaves over the fish, pressing them lightly to help them adhere.  Set aside.  (if I don't have fresh herbs, I just sprinkle a little bit of dried rosemary on the fish with the salt and pepper.  I've also had it with just salt and pepper and it is just as good!  Use whatever seasoning you like.) 


When ready to grill, place the soaked plank on the grill grate and close the lid.  After a few minutes, the plank will begin to smoke and crackle.  Turn the plank over and "toast" the other side for about 2 minutes.  Uncover the grill and transfer the salmon directly onto the plank, then cover the grill.  Cook salmon until it is almost opaque throughout, or when the internal temperature reads about 130-135 degrees.  It should take about 15-25 minutes, depending on the thickness of the filet. 


Keep a spray bottle with water nearby just in case the plank gets too hot and begins to flame.  Extinguish the flame and continue grilling the salmon, adjusting the heat level of the grill if necessary. 


When done, use tongs or heatproof gloves to remove the plank from the grill.  I like to serve the salmon directly from the cedar plank.  Sqeeze lemon over the salmon if desired (as much as I love lemon, I never use it with salmon.  I like the taste of it without the lemon).  ENJOY!

Grandma Hansen's Chocolate Cake

My mom makes the best chocolate cake ever. When I asked Jake what kind of cake he wanted for his birthday, he immediately said, "Grandma Hansen's chocolate cake!" I was happy to oblige because it is my favorite cake! It is the only kind of birthday cake I can ever remember having growing up, and she still makes me one for my birthday every year. Thanks Mom!

Chocolate Cake
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1 Tbsp. vinegar
1 cup milk
1 square margarine or butter, softened
2 cups sugar
½ cup cocoa
2 eggs
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 ½ cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup hot water

Add vinegar to milk, set aside. Cream together butter, sugar and cocoa. Add eggs, salt and vanilla. Add milk mixture and flour alternately. Put soda in water and add to mixture. Pour in 9x13 greased and floured pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Frost when cool with favorite frosting or dust with powdered sugar.

Corn Bread with Honey Butter

I got this recipe from my sister. Corn bread is soooooo much better made from scratch than from a mix, and this is really easy!!! A perfect compliment to chili (or any main dish, really)!

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Corn Bread

1/2 c. butter
2/3 c. sugar
2 eggs
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 c. buttermilk (if you don't have buttermilk, you can "make" it using 1c. milk plus 1 Tbsp. vinegar)
1 c. cornmeal
1 c. flour
 1/2 tsp. salt

Melt butter in medium sized pan.  Let cool to lukewarm, then add sugar and eggs and beat together.  In separate bowl, mix together baking soda and buttermilk, then add it to egg mixture and blend just a little.  Add cornmeal, flour and salt and stir with spoon or whisk.  Bake in greased 8x8 pan at 350 (glass pan) or 375 (metal pan) for 30 minutes.

Honey Butter

1 c. butter
7 oz. jar marshmallow cream
4 c. honey
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl or pan and melt together either on the stove or in a microwave.  Refrigerate.

Jenny's Turkey Chili

I have been trying really hard to eat healthier.  Some days I do better than others.  This is one of my new favorite meals and it is super healthy!  It kind of has a lot of spices, but it is so worth it to make!  I like to freeze it in individual serving sizes and have it for lunch (if I remember to take it out of the freezer the night before).  It is one of those meals that is even better the next day after the flavors have all melded together!

Jenny’s Turkey Chili


2 (generous) Tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 green pepper, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
20 oz. pkg ground turkey breast
2 Tbsp. chili powder
2 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. coriander
½ tsp. red pepper flakes (or more if you like it hotter)
1 cup chicken broth
1 can (14.5 oz) fire roasted diced tomatoes
3 cans (15 oz) kidney, pinto and/or black beans, undrained


Place large pot over moderate heat and add olive oil. Add onions, garlic and peppers and cook until tender. Add mushrooms and cook a couple minutes longer. Add ground turkey breast and break it apart with a spoon while it cooks. Add spices, chicken broth, tomatoes and beans ( I happen to really like beans so I add 4 cans, draining my last can).  Stir together and simmer for at least 30-60 minutes.  You can use any garnish you like--I like to substitute plain greek yogurt for sour cream.  I can't even tell the difference!