5 Grain Stuffed Peppers

I fell in love with all things culinary when I was little.  My Grandma would serve multiple courses at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter, when I graduated from fruit cocktail to shrimp cocktail I felt pretty refined.  After working in restaurants, planning weddings, taking food and wine classes, and watching copious amounts of Food Network you could say I’m definitely a culinary enthusiast.  Each Thursday I will feature something related to my culinary passion. I hope you enjoy todays 5 Grain Stuffed Peppers recipe!

Since my husband wanted to add more veggies into his diet, I’ve been trying new recipes with things I know he would like that are loaded with veggies.  I looked through a ton of recipes for stuffed peppers (I love bell peppers!) and I just couldn’t find one that I really liked so I created my own recipe using the others as a guide.  If your kids aren’t into stuffed peppers just spoon out the filling for them (it will still have the delicious pepper flavor) and keep the cooked pepper to add to some sausages and onions for another meal.  Please know that all but one of my peppers was meatless.  I added some browned sausage to my husband’s pepper to beef up the protein.  Raley’s 5 Grains adds great nutritional value and an invited change to the typical rice.  The colorful peppers add flair to your typical weeknight meal.  You have to try my 5 Grain Stuffed Peppers.

My Go-To Make Ahead Recipe

Last week we had our first ever MNO Pot Luck.  It was a super fun time hosted by the fabulous and gorgeous Aimee.  You can read her Five for Friday post here.  First of all, Aimee’s house is absolutely gorgeous!  She has a chic, colorful, and slightly modern sense of style.  By the end of the night everyone was asking her to come to their house and re-decorate for them!  Second, I totally didn’t take nearly enough pictures of all the different dishes the mamas brought.  But I’ll still roll out all their recipes for you because there was not a bad dish in the bunch!

Go-to Crockpot recipe

Happy Tuesday mamas!

Maybe it’s the little storm we had last night…maybe it’s the busy weeknights our family has had since swim team started…  Lately, I find myself wanting to come home to a dinner that’s already cooked.  Here is my go-to crockpot recipe for nights when you just need dinner to basically prepare itself.

Crockpot Southwest Chicken

• Salsa
• 1 onion
• frozen corn (I prefer the Trader Joe’s frozen smoked corn)
• canned green chilies (or use a bell pepper)
• chicken thighs (Use whatever cut you prefer and use whatever meat you prefer.)
• taco seasoning (I like to make my own, but you can use a packet too.  Recipe below.)

Taco Seasoning Recipe

 

First, you need to make the taco seasoning.  Unless you are using a packet, which is great too.

• 1 tablespoon hot Mexican chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

Next, lets chop our onion.

Have you ever struggled with exactly how to tackle the onion?  Well today’s your lucky day!  First, cut it in half, woody stem to butt (or tail).  When you are done each half should have a woody stem on one end and a tail on the other.  Cut off the tail and peel back to outer layer.

Now, cut from woody stem to where the tail was.

Narrow cuts all the way through the layers, but not through the stem.  Just really close.

Now cut a few cuts parallel to your cutting board.  About three total.  I start at the bottom and work my way up.  I think the onion is easier to handle this way.

Now chop from the top of the onion down to the cutting board, perpendicular to the aforementioned parallel cuts.  Uhhh, obvi somebody needs a manicure….

See, lookie there.  Lovely, somewhat the same size (except that jerk in the bottom middle of the pic), diced onion.

Add that to the crockpot.

Followed by your taco seasoning…

The canned chillies, the frozen smoked corn, and the salsa.

Before you throw your chicken in the pot, pat it dry.

Mix all the goodies together.  And place your chicken in the pot.

I like to try to put some of the sauce mix on top.

I’m cooking mine on high for four hours.  But you can do low for six or eight hours if you like.  Set your timer and put the lid on.

A mere four hours later the house smelled amazing and dinner was ready!

So this is all fine and good, right?  Well, at this point this recipe can go so many different ways, like a choose your own adventure book!  You could add a few cups of chicken broth and let it warm for another twenty minutes for some southwest chicken soup.  You could shred the chicken (shown below), add a ton of cheese, black beans,  and a side of chips and have a warm and gooey chicken nacho dip.  Or you can choose the straight forward way and serve this over rice.

However, if you choose to go the straightforward option…you should know there are some people who feel that crockpot meals lack a little…texture and freshness.  Well, for those people I have a solution.  A little toppings bar!  First, I cut up some cilantro.

Another tip for you: yep, those are kitchen scissors.  I gave it a hair cut.  I prefer this to chopping with a knife because you don’t dirty up a cutting board and you don’t have to chase the leaves around the cutting board.  You can eat the stems too, so chop chop mamas!  Cilantro is totally optional…some people think it tastes soapy I think it tastes delicious.

My toppings bar includes avocado, cheese, cilantro, chips, and sour cream.

The chicken was so tender it was falling apart when I got it out of the crockpot.  Perfection.

Shred your chicken.  When I worked in a restaurant, many years ago, I would see the prep chefs shredding chicken.  They would put a ton of chicken in big bowls and use two forks; pierce the chicken with the forks and pull them away from each other repeatedly.  Do this to all pieces.  It works perfect every time with any meat.  Great way to have cold chicken on hand to add to salads for a quick lunch.

I put chips (crunched up a bit) first, then avocado.  Followed by cheese, sour cream, and cilantro.  Yum!

Pretty as a picture!  My husband always says this is his favorite meal.  You can’t see that it’s sitting on top of a cozy bed of rice.  By the way, this meal freezes perfectly.  I like to double the recipe and freeze half.  Enjoy.

XOXO

A

Good Day Goodies: Meatloaf Cupcakes

Here is the Meatloaf Cupcake recipe I walked through on Good Day Sacramento today.  Here’s a link to the video.

Good Day Goodies!

Hey mamas!

Here are the videos from today.  Part 1 and part 2.

Here are the links to the individual posts about meatloaf cupcakes, heart hand craft, argyle heart wreath, and cupid chow teacher gift idea.

Enjoy!

XOXO

A

Try it Tuesday – A baking lesson with Mom

 

I had a great day yesterday!  My daughter is out of school this week, so I’m just loving having her home.  On top of that, we got to hang out at my mom’s house and do a little cooking.  I love days like that.

My mom has an extensive recipe collection that includes many many old recipe cards.  They are so fun to look at.  Some are from my Grandma or my great aunts.  Some are from old friends of my mom or of my Grandma.  And some are recipes my mom cut out of newspapers over the years.  Looking through this is not unlike looking through a photo album for me.  I’ve always enjoyed spending time in the kitchen.  Seeing the recipe names evokes such an emotional response from me.  They are written in handwriting I recognize from people who aren’t with us anymore.

That’s Pinteresting and a reader Crockpot recipe submission…

Cara, a reader from Southern California submitted a recipe for Crockpot Spaghetti.

Thanksgiving Tip and Tricks Tuesday with Kindra!

Hello hello….

Is anyone else sad that we had to lay to rest our headstones that say…lay to rest…ironc right?  Well, I am a wee bit sad that I can’t say things like “spooktakular” or ‘Halloweenie”  anymore.  Also, my son (2) loves to point out things that are spooky, but he says pookie.  This is particularly funny to me because a close friend of mine refers to her lady parts as her “pookie”.  Seriously, it never gets old.  “Mom, look!  Pooooooookie!”  Hilarious.  Next year he will have proper pronunciation and I will have only dear memories of this hilarity.

Anyway, brush your blues away, Memory Makers, because we have a whole new holiday to prep for.  And this one isn’t about being “pookie” (you laughed right?) or asking strangers for candy while wearing a mask.  This one is about moral high ground.  It’s about tryptophan and over eating.  It’s about football people!  That’s right Thanksgiving, where you teach your family about having an attitude of gratitude and a love of America’s sport.

Thankfully I have someone to help us all transition our decor smoothly.  Remember Kindra?  From this post.  Well this beautiful and talented mama is back!  She’s here with a guest post to give us tips and tricks to make your home get all dolled up for a Thanksgiving feast!  And, she’s such a giver, she’s giving us a recipe too!

Also, she is the owner of Pinwheels and Polka Dots.  They offer themed party rentals for any occasion.  I love what they have because it’s very unique because most of it is hand made or vintage.  You should totally like them on Facebook.  Here she is:

Fall is such a wonderful time of year. I really love everything about it! The change in weather, fall colors, leggings and boots, winter soups, red wine, and of course decorating for Halloween and Thanksgiving are some of the highlights of the season. I get so sad every year because retail stores always skip Thanksgiving! Hello folks, is no one else thankful to sit down to a giant plate of food and several bottles of wine and dine with your loved ones until you are stuffed like a turkey? That’s good stuff right there!

This year I am hosting Thanksgiving and I am so excited. I not only love to cook but will jump at the chance to decorate for any occasion and I believe this holiday is just as important as any other to get festive for. At our house the transition from Halloween to Thanksgiving is a simple one. All the spooky decorations get boxed up and the rest stays. This includes pumpkins, burlap runners, apothecary domes, crates and buckets.

I typically begin by bringing in most of my pumpkins as well as picking up some gourds, squash and indian corn at the market. I always love to bring natural elements into my decor. This is the perfect season to do so. Sticks, leaves, raffia, hay and acorns are great basics you can keep from year to year and will cost very little. Michaels and Jo-ann Fabric carry many of those things but it is also fun to do a nature hike with the kiddos and let them pick up some items to add as well. They will love being able to participate!

I love to decorate with unused items we have around the house. Things that are tucked away in a closet or drawer or the garage. Giving them new purpose in an unexpected way is thrilling to me. This year I dug out the old pitchfork and hoe, tied on a burlap bow and left them at the front door with a vintage crate and some pumpkins. My husband thought I lost my mind…I probably have…but I love it!

For the front entry I kept most of the normal decor (crate, bucket, bottles, picture) but added the touches of pumpkins, raffia, corn, hay and acorns. I picked up two of those vintage inspired paper buckets at Cost Plus this year. Love!

The living room has some other small harvest touches as well. Woven stick pumpkins from Home Goods and some bundles of wheat from Michaels complete the fireplace. My new table at the side holds the other paper bucket of corn and a vintage feed scooper I stuffed with mini pumpkins. The scooper and table were purchased at Gracefully Vintage– my most coveted store around town. On the coffee table I left my usual crate and bottle decor but added a little wheat and some jute ribbon.  Next to the couch, a bowl of cinnamon pumpkin potpourri courtesy of Pottery World.

Our kitchen table is always covered with a burlap runner and this great tray I nabbed at Home Goods.  All I do is change out the items on the tray for the season. My beat up teapot and silverware were perfect for this food-tastic holiday. A couple pumpkins and an acorn and done.

Next, the kitchen island. I literally bought the corn for this and nothing else. Repurposed my old champagne bucket and added the amazing metal pumpkin I received for my birthday (also from Gracefully Vintage). Added straw and mini pumpkins under the domes and some more burlap fabric to complete the look. The burlap fabric comes in several sizes and is available at Michaels, Joann, and Hobby Lobby. I use it year round.

Last, and most importantly, the dinner table. This year I invested in some new napkins and placemats. Found these placemats at Pier 1. Love them! They say Blessings, Grace, Share, Gathering and Thanks. I have not completely set the utensils and glasses yet because I don’t have enough for the week otherwise but you get the idea. I own china but I like a more casual plate for this holiday. For me it keeps it comfy and relaxed. Don’t be afraid to mix your fancy and casual too. That can be fun! For the centerpiece I used the existing bowls but added grapevine balls, deer antlers (from GV) and more pumpkins. I also picked up the acorn at Joann’s last year. Again, I bought nothing except for the table settings.

The moral of my story is this…don’t forget Thanksgiving! Keep it simple. Repurpose and use what you have. Pick up some basic items you can use year after year. And, incorporate the elements Mother Nature leaves at your doorstep. It will be fun and festive and you will be thankful you did it!

I mentioned that I also love to cook. Below I have shared my favorite Thanksgiving recipe. I have found this to be the BEST cranberry sauce ever. Make copies of the recipe because everyone will want it. Cheers!

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated white sugar

2/3 cup orange juice

1/4 cup water

2 TBLSP Gran Marnier + a splash on top when completed

1 (12oz) package fresh cranberries

In a saucepan over medium heat, dissolve the sugar in the orange juice, water and Gran Marnier. Stir in the cranberries and cook until they start to pop (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and transfer to a bowl. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Once cool add a floater of Gran Marnier on top. Yummy!

Wow!  I hope you all are as inspired as I am!  She really knows how to create a lovely aesthetic.  Special thanks to Kindra for taking us on a tour of her home.  It’s beautiful!  Your Thanksgiving guests will never want to leave!

Have a thankful Tuesday everyone!

XOXO
A