Stuffed Peppers

During our quarantine, I purchased a large bag of peppers and wanted to ensure they did not go to waste.  Stir fry is only doable so many nights in a row, so I made four stuffed peppers - two for dinner, two for lunch leftovers.  Use any color pepper you like.  I chopped the tops of the peppers and used them in a stir fry the next day.

4 Large Bell Peppers
1 Lb Ground Beef
1/2 Tbl Onion Powder
1 Cup Cooked Rice
1 Cup Shredded Cheese (your choice)
1 Tsp Salt
2 Cloves Garlic, Minced
28 Oz Can Tomato Sauce

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Cut the tops off the peppers.  Stand them up in a Dutch oven, cover with water.  Put on the stove on high heat and bring to a boil.  Cook for 2 minutes once the water boils. 

Meanwhile, cook the beef over medium heat, stirring regularly to break up and brown.  Drain.  Stir in Onion Powder, Rice, Cheese, Salt and 1 Cup Tomato sauce.

Remove peppers from water, drain, stuff.  Place into an ungreased dish large enough to hold all four peppers.  Pour remaining sauce over the peppers.  Cover with foil, bake for 30 minutes.

Rice with Lime and Cilantro

Yes, I know this may sound weird, but the name of this blog is Try and Like for a reason.    I made this to go with my chicken marinade shared yesterday and the garlic green beans shared a few days ago.  Try it - You'll Like It!

2 Cups Water
1 Tbl Butter
1 Cup White Rice
Zest of 1 Lime
Juice of 1 Lime
1/2 Cup Chopped Cilantro

Bring the butter and water to a boil.  Stir in rice.  Cover, reduce heat to low.  Simmer until rice is tender (follow cooking time on rice package). 

Stir in lime zest, lime juice and cilantro.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Enjoy!

Red Rice

Great side dish with Taco Meat Loaf or as a main dish - just add a can of rinsed/drained black beans.

3 Roma Tomatoes

2 Tbl Vegetable Oil

2 Tbl Minced Onion

4 Cloves Garlic, Minced

1 Cup Uncooked Long Grain Rice

1 3/4 Cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth

1/4 Cup Canned Tomato Sauce

1 Jalapeno Pepper, Chopped

1 Tsp Cumin

2 Sprigs Fresh Cilantro, Chopped

Salt to Taste

Run the tomatoes to a food mill, discard the skins.  If you do not have a food mill, you can grate them and discard the skins.  Heat the vegetable oil in a heavy skillet over medium high heat, add onion and garlic and cook for 1 minute.  Stir in the rice and stir until lightly toasted.  Add the tomatoes, chicken broth and tomato sauce.  Bring to a boil.  Add the jalapeño, cumin, cilantro and salt.  If you want to add black beans, do so now.  Reduce heat to low, cover, simmer until rice has absorbed the liquid without lifting the cover.  It will take about 15 minutes.

Turn off the heat and let it stand for 10 minutes.  Fluff and serve.

Hawaiian Chicken

Fresh Peppers and Pineapple in a sauce with chicken and rice.  Yum.

1 Lb Boneless Chicken Breast
2 Cups Chopped Bell Pepper
2 Cups Cubed Pineapple
18 Ounces Pineapple Juice
1/3 Tsp Ginger
1 Tbl Frank's Red Hot
1 Tbl Garlic Powder
1/3 Cup Brown Sugar
1/3 Cup Soy Sauce
1/3 Cup Ketchup
1/3 Cup Garlic Rice Vinegar
1/2 Cup Cold Water
2 Tbl Corn Starch
4 Cups Cooked Rice

In a small sauce pan, combine Juice, Ginger, Red Hot, Garlic, Brown Sugar, Soy Sauce, Ketchup and Vinegar.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Whisk together water and corn starch, add to sauce and stir until thickened.  Remove from heat.

Heat a large pan over medium heat.  Salt and pepper chicken.  Spray pan with oil, add chicken and cook until browned and cooked through.  Add red peppers and cook another two minutes.  Add pineapple and sauce to pan, stir to coat well.

Serve over pineapple.

Chorizo and Wild Rice

This was so good Hubby and I ALMOST had a disagreement over leftovers.  I guess I'll just have to make it again soon.

2 Tbl Butter
1/4 Cup Minced Onion
4 Ounces Mushroom pieces, Drained and Chopped
13.5 Ounces Johnsonville Smoked Chorizo Sausage, thinly sliced.
1 Box Uncle Bens Long Grain and Wild Rice

Melt butter in a large skillet.  Add onions and mushrooms, sautéing until translucent.  Add sausage and cook 10 to 15 minutes.  Cook rice to package directions and stir into sausage mixture.

Coconut Rice and Beans

Don't knock this until you try it.  Unless you add coconut, you won't really taste the coconut.  It adds a nice undertone and compliments the beans and rice nicely.

13.5 Ounces Unsweetened Coconut Milk
1 Tsp Salt
1 Cup Long Grain Brown Rice
15.5 Ounces Black Beans, Drained and Rinsed
1 Chopped Red Bell Pepper
2 Tbl Minced Onion
2 Tbl Dried Cilantro

Bring Coconut Milk and Salt to a boil over medium heat.  Stir in rice, cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 20 minutes.

When done, fluff, stir in remaining ingredients.

Pork Chop Bake

Mildly flavored, mushroomy pork chops.  Can be made with 2 to 4 pork chops.  I used black rice but you can also use long grain rice.

2 to 4 Bone-In Pork Chops
10 Ounce Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 1/4 Cup Water
3/4 Cup Uncooked Rice
1 Cup Cheddar Cheese
3/4 Cup Bell Pepper
4 Ounces Sliced Mushrooms Drained
1 Tsp Herbs De Provence OR your favorite Spice Blend

Heat Oven to 350 Degrees.  Grease a casserole dish, set aside.

Brown Pork Chops lightly.

Put into bottom of prepared pan. Add water and rice to pan over medium heat.

Chop pepper, add to rice along with soup and mushrooms.

Stir to combine thoroughly, pour over pork chops.

Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour or until pork chops are tender.

Coconut Pecan Rice Pudding

Growing up, rice pudding was one of my favorite desserts.  Now, my dessert has grown up.  Don't like bourbon?  No need to use it.

1 c  Long Grain Rice
2 Cups Water
1 t  Vanilla
14 oz Sweetened Condensed Milk
12 oz Evaporated Milk
1/4 c  Bourbon
2 T  Light Brown Sugar
1 1/2 t  Cinnamon
1 c  Pecans,Chopped
1/2 c  Coconut

Combine rice and water in a large pan.  Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and cook 15 minutes   Combine rice, vanilla, milks, bourbon, sugar and cinnamon in a small slow cooker. 

Stir.

Cook on low for 3 hours.  Toast coconut and pecans, stir into pudding and enjoy!

Easy Sweet and Sour

This sweet and sour isn't quite authentic, but it is quick and easy with items that are in most pantry's. 

10 ounce chicken breast
20 ounce cans pineapple chunks
8 ounce tomato paste
1 cup bell pepper, diced.

Heat about a tablespoon of oil (your choice) in a large skillet or wok. 

Cube chicken, add to pan and cook until almost cooked through.

Add the peppers.

Add the pineapple and juice.

Add the tomato paste and stir.

Simmer until heated through and serve with rice.

Duck Risotto

Hubby takes his time to hunt waterfowl, so the least I can do is cook them.  This time, it was a duck risotto.  I roasted the duck then used it with the risotto.  I added the juices from the roasted duck to my duck stock.  For the wine, I used German Helmet Riesling from Long Trout Winery. 

If you don't have Duck Stock on hand, no problem.  Just find the Classic Roasted Duck and Chicken Stock from More Than Gourmet (http://www.morethangourmet.com/pantry-stock-sauces-gourmet-soups/poultry-based-sauces-a-stocks/roasted-duck-a-chicken-stock).  This product is a concentrated stock that makes 4 cups when reconstituted.  Not a fan of duck?  They have many other options, including venison, beef and others.  They can be purchased mail order or are also carried in various stores.  If you live in central Pennsylvania, they can be purchased at the Kitchen Shoppe in Carlisle - live or via their website.

3 Garlic Cloves - minced
3 Tbl Salted Butter
1.5 Cups Arborio Rice
3/4 Cup White Wine
5 cups Duck Stock
2 cups Peas

Heat duck stock to a simmer in a small pot.

Melt butter in a large pan and saute garlic until fragrant.  Add rice. 

Saute until opaque.

Add wine and cook until absorbed.

Add the stock, about 1 cup at a time (I use a 1 ladle at a time).  Stirring until absorbed. 

Continue to add liquid and stir until rice is cooked to your liking.  Cook the peas while you are adding liquid.  Remove from heat add peas and salt/pepper to taste.

Roasted Cod for Two

I had an abundance of plum and very colorful grape tomatoes from my CSA, so I made this fish dish.  Hubby was astounded and even commented that I was eating tomatoes.  They were cooked....not pureed, but at least cooked.  If you like onion, you can stir it into the tomatoes and eat it with the fish.  That is not for me - I hate how I feel with hives or on antihistamines.  This went quite well with a black and mahogany rice mix (pictured below).

  2 Cups Plum Tomato, Quartered                                              1/4 Tsp Thyme

  1 Small Onion, Quartered                                                        1/2 Tsp kosher salt, divided

  1 Tbl Orange Zest                                                                    Freshly ground pepper, to taste

  1 Medium Orange                                                                    12 Ounce Cod, Boneless, Skinless

  1 Tbl Extra Virgin Olive Oil                                                    

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine tomatoes, orange zest, oil and thyme in a 3-quart baking dish.  Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper; stir to combine.  Lay quartered onion on top.  Roast until the tomatoes begin to soften and the onion begins to brown.  Remove from the oven and Increase oven temperature to 450F.

While vegetables cook, brush one side of the fish with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Remove the onion from the pan.  Place fish oiled side down on top of the vegetables and then oil, salt and pepper the other side.  Squeeze orange over everything.  Return pan to the oven and bake until the fish is opaque in the center, about 10 to 12 minutes.   To serve, divide the fish and vegetables among 2 plates.

Per Serving: 298 Cal (25% from Fat, 44% from Protein, 31% from Carb); 33 g Protein; 8 g Tot Fat; 1 g Sat Fat; 5 g Mono Fat; 24 g Carb; 5 g Fiber; 15 g Sugar; 100 mg Calcium; 1 mg Iron; 691 mg Sodium