Quick Homemade Enchilada Sauce

enchsauceDespite living just 4 miles from the Taco Bell Test Kitchen, we were not among the lucky few who were able to get one of the 32 reservations to the, usually closed to the public, secret spot to eat for free. #Damn! #ThisGirlLovesToEat

Since we missed that #GoldenOpportunity, I decided to make a favorite Taco Bell guiltytaco-bell-logo pleasure of my Mom’s for #CincoDeMayo, the Enchirito the only problem?  I forgot to buy enchilada sauce. UGH!

I’m brave and my husband was hungry, so into the pantry I waded for some staples and the result was a thick and flavorful sauce.  Overall, it wasn’t bad at all!

Last Minute – Forgot to Buy it Enchilada Sauce

  • 1 – 15 oz Can Tomato Sauce
  • 2 Cups Water
  • 1/3 Cup Canola Oil
  • 2 TBLS All-Purpose Flour
  • 1/2 tsp Cumin
  • 3 TBLS Chili Powder
  • 3/4 tsp Onion Powder
  • 3/4 tsp Garlic Powder
  • Salt to taste
  1. In medium saucepan, heat tomato sauce and oil over medium-high heat
  2. Whisk in flour, stirring until well blended
  3. Stir in water and return just to a boil
  4. Add the spices and reduce heat to low
  5. Simmer for 10-15 minutes
  6. Add salt as needed

Tip:  If sauce is going to be used for enchiladas in a casserole, you may want to add 1/4 to 1/2 cup more water to thin it down a touch.

Sauce will keep up to a week in a tightly closed container in the refrigerator.

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Eat All You Want & Don’t Gain! Really!

fruitsEveryone who follows this blog regularly knows that #ThisGirlLovesToEat.  Anything that lets me eat unregulated amounts of food that I like, except kale #IHateKale, without bursting out of my jeans is something that is going to catch my attention. Sounds unlikely?  I know, I doubt it too, but I’m willing to be a guinea pig!

According to scientists, you can eat as much of these 14 foods and not gain any weight due to their high water and low-starch fiber content while containing very few calories.

These foods are not high in muscle building (and fat burning) protein, but they are filled with vitamins, nutrients and antioxidants.

Celery:celery

  • 95% Water
  • Contains potassium, folate, fiber, and 30% of your daily requirement of vitamin K
  • Has about 6 calories per serving
  • Eat when fresh – celery loses most of it’s nutritional benefits after 5-7 days

Kale:

  • One of the few foods that contains an Omega 3 Fatty Acid
  • 1 Cup has about 33 calories
  • High in vitamins and folate

Blueberries:three-blueberries

  • Champion in the Antioxidant world – has more than any other fruit
  • 1 cup has about 85 calories
  • 1 cup has 14% of the recommended daily requirement of fiber

Cucumbers:

  • 96% Water
  • 16 calories per serving
  • Seeds and skin contain most of the Fiber and Vitamin A (Beta-Carotene) which is good for your eyes

Tomatoes:tomatoes

  • Contain lycopene, a carotenoid, which helps fight against chronic diseases
  • High in vitamins A, C, and B2, as well as folate, chromium, potassium, and fiber
  • 1 medium-sized tomato has about 25 calories

Grapefruit:

  • High in fiber, which stabilizes blood sugar helps you feel fuller for longer
  • 1/2 a grapefruit has about 50 calories
  • High in Vitamin C and folate
  • Grapefruit has been found to help in weight loss, lowering cholesterol, and improving digestion

Broccoli:Broccoli

  • Contains an anticarcinogen known as sulforaphane
  • Most nutritious when eaten raw or steamed
  • Contains vitamins A, C, E, and K
  • 1 serving contains 20% of your daily fiber requirement
  • 1 serving has about 31 calories

Cantaloupe:cantaloupeandhoneydow

  • Contains beta carotene, a form of vitamin A that promotes healthy eyes
  • Contains potassium
  • Contains more than 100% of your daily recommended value of vitamins A and C
  • 90% Water
  • 1 serving has about 55 calories

Cauliflower:

  • Contains antioxidants and phytochemicals to help fight off chronic disease
  • An excellent source of folate, fiber, and vitamins C and K
  • Has about 25 calories per serving

Blackberries:The blackberry

  • Blackberries can help your brain to stay alert
  • Rich in vitamin C as well as antioxidants known as bioflavonoids
  • Can aid with digestion
  • Tightens tissue, leading to younger-looking skin
  • 1 serving has about 62 calories

Lettuce:

  • Whether Romaine, Green Leaf, Red Leaf, Romain, etc.: 96% Water
  • Folate, iron, and vitamins A and C
  • 1 serving has 10 to 20 calories

Oranges:

  • High in Vitamin C which is crucial in collagen production: oranges help keep skin free of damage and looking good
  • Medium orange has about 80 calories
  • You need to eat the white stuff under an orange’s skin (pith) it contains a lot of fiber, which helps lower cholesterol and blood sugar levels

Strawberries:strawberries-on-white-plate

  • Fat-free, sodium-free, and cholesterol-free (healthy for the heart)
  • More vitamin C in one serving of strawberries than there is in one orange
  • Tons of polyphenols, a type of antioxidant
  • A good source of potassium and fiber
  • 1 Cup of strawberries has about 50 calories

Honeydew Melons:

  • Only slightly more calories per serving than cantaloupe (64)
  • Contains over half of the recommended daily value of vitamin C
  • Contains over half of the recommended daily value of copper, which is crucial for healthy skin

If you are interested in more scientific details, you can read the original article on INSIDER.

If you’re interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to like:  health articles, my favorite recipes, fun drinks, food facts, nutritional information, restaurant reviews, gadget reviews, photos and other things that make my mouth water, I have a community page on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/ThisGirlLovesHerFood

Artichokes With Roasted Garlic Wine Dip

home-artichokeI love living in Southern California where there is the availability of local fruits and vegetables in the stores, as well as what is trucked and flown in from around the country and from other parts of the world, pretty much year-round.  It really makes cooking and eating fun! #ThisGirlLovesToEat 

One of the few things that I do have to be patient for are artichokes.  Nowhere grows them as big and meaty as we do in California.  In fact, 99.99% of all commercially grown artichokes are grown in California. 

CAF_fest_logo-2017Since I happen to love them, it’s a pretty good thing that Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom named artichokes the Official State Vegetable of California on April 10, 2013.  Artichokes from California are so fabulous that they’ve had their own festival for the past 56 years: Castroville Artichoke Food & Wine Festival.

Some people dip their leaves in mayonnaise (which makes me want to gag), others in various aiolis, dips or other concoctions, but I’ve been a ridiculous creature of habit for as long as I can remember, eating my artichokes one way and one way only: dipping each succulent leaf into a bowl of melted butter.  Occasionally I may deviate in the preparation of the steam that surrounds my artichoke, adding some white wine, maybe some garlic or some lemon to the water, but I never deviate on my buttery leaf bath.  Until now.

This long forgotten recipe I’d clipped from the May 2007 edition of Cooking Light Magazine convinced me to change my ways (at least temporarily).

artichokes-dip-ck-1622453-x

Artichokes With Roasted Garlic Wine Dip

  • 2 whole garlic heads
  • 4 medium artichokes (about 3 1/2 pounds)
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • 1 cup organic vegetable broth (such as Swanson Certified Organic)
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • Chopped fresh parsley
  1. Preheat Oven to 400° F.
  2. Remove white papery skin from garlic heads (do not peel or separate the cloves). Wrap each head separately in foil. Bake at 400° F for 45 minutes; cool 10 minutes. Separate cloves; squeeze to extract garlic pulp. Discard skins.
  3. Cut off stems of artichokes, and remove bottom leaves. Trim about 1/2 inch from tops of artichokes. Place artichokes, stem ends down, in a large Dutch oven filled two-thirds with water; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 45 minutes or until a leaf near the center of each artichoke pulls out easily. Remove artichokes from pan.
  4. Combine half of garlic pulp and wine in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook 2 minutes. Add broth; cook until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 8 minutes). Remove from heat; stir in butter and salt. Pour mixture into a blender; add remaining half of garlic pulp. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Sprinkle dip with parsley, if desired. Serve dip with warm artichokes.

If you’re interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to like:  health articles, my favorite recipes, fun drinks, food facts, nutritional information, restaurant reviews, gadget reviews, photos and other things that make my mouth water, I have a community page on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/ThisGirlLovesHerFood

Houston’s Hawaiian Rib-Eye

Someone at Bon Appétit was able to sweet talk the people in charge of the vault of recipes for some of the most ordered favorites at Hillstone’s (Houston’s Steakhouse) and I couldn’t be more excited!

One of my favorite items on the Houston’s menu is the Hawaiian Rib-Eye Steak.  It’s obviously one of their most popular items as well, since it it the featured photo on their website!  It’s juicy, full of flavor and hits the table with a hint of sizzle from the grill. What more could anyone ask for? #ThisGirlLovesToEat

hawaiian-rib-eye-steak

Houston’s Hawaiian Rib-Eye Steak (Serves 4)

Steak

  • 2 cups pineapple juice
  • ½ cup soy sauce
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 5 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
  • ⅓ cup chopped white onion
  • 1 – 1-inch piece ginger, peeled, finely chopped
  • 2 – 1-inch-thick bone-in rib-eye steaks (about 3 pounds total)
  1. Whisk pineapple juice, soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, and oil in a small bowl until sugar is dissolved.  Add onion and ginger.
  2. Set aside 2 Tbsp. marinade for butter.
  3. Transfer remaining marinade to a large resealable plastic bag. Add steaks and seal bag, pressing out excess air. Chill at least 1 day.
  4. Remove steaks from marinade, pat dry, and let sit until room temperature, about 1 hour.

Do Ahead: Steaks can be marinated 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.

Butter

  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
  • Kosher salt
  1. Whisk butter and oil in a medium bowl to combine. Vigorously whisk in reserved marinade; season with salt.
  2. Transfer to the center of a sheet of parchment paper and roll up into a log. Chill until firm, at least 1 hour.

Do Ahead: Butter can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.

Preparation

  1. Build a two-zone fire in a charcoal grill for direct (medium-high coals) and indirect (medium-low coals) heat.  Alternatively, heat a gas grill to high just before cooking, leaving one burner on low.
  2. Season steaks very lightly with salt (omit this step if marinating more than 24 hours).
  3. Grill over high heat, turning, until steaks are well browned and beginning to char around edges, about 4 minutes.
  4. Transfer to cooler part of grill and continue to cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of steaks registers 120° for medium-rare. (Alternatively, cook in a grill pan over medium-high heat, turning steaks every couple of minutes.)
  5. Transfer steaks to a wire rack.
  6. Slice butter into ¼”-thick rounds and divide between steaks.
  7. Let rest at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Serve alongside a baked sweet potato with a pat of butter & a dusting of cinnamon and sugar (or a splash of maple syrup) and a simple mixed green salad.

If you’re interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to like:  health articles, my favorite recipes, fun drinks, food facts, nutritional information, restaurant reviews, gadget reviews, photos and other things that make my mouth water, I have a community page on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/ThisGirlLovesHerFood

Makers 46 & Snickerdoodles

TYSnickerdoodlesWhen I was young it seemed that there wasn’t a cookie that I didn’t love.  #ThisGirlLovesToEat 😉   Snickerdoodles were a particular favorite of mine!  I don’t know what I’ve been doing wrong, but somehow I’ve never managed to bake one that I absolutely loved.

Some were too crisp, some too soft, some too sweet and some have been strangely tasteless.  I was ready to throw in the towel and commit to buying my Snickerdoodles only from the bakery, when finally I found a recipe that satisfies my picky Snickerdoodle palate.

On Season 2, Episode 9 of Trisha’s Southern Kitchen on The Food Network, Trisha was doing holiday cookie baking.  One of the things I like about Trisha’s Southern Kitchen is that she cooks the same foods that everyday moms and wives have been cooking forever.  It’s salt of the earth fare that doesn’t involve a lot of fancy cookware or ingredients that are expensive and hard to find.  She makes the same mistakes in the kitchen that everyday cooks make and she laughs and has workarounds like we all do.

Trisha’s Snickerdoodle recipe was straightforward and was different than the others I had tried, so I decided to give it one more try.  The recipe was a hit with the family and not a single cookie lasted the weekend!  The ultimate sign of success in my kitchen!  To get Trisha’s insights and see her method, click on the episode link above to watch the video (about 2 minutes).

Trisha Yearwood’s Snickerdoodles

  • 1/2 Cup Salted Butter, softened
  • 1/2 Cup Vegetable Shortening
  • 1+1/2 Cups +2 TBLS Sugar
  • 2 Eggs (Trisha uses medium)
  • 2+3/4 Cups All-Purpose Flour
  • 2 tsp Cream of Tartar
  • 1 tsp Baking Soda
  • 1/4 tsp Salt
  • 2 tsp Ground Cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 400° F.

In a large bowl, combine the butter, shortening, 1 1/2 cups sugar and the eggs and mix thoroughly with an electric mixer on medium speed until creamy and well combined, 1 to 2 minutes.

Sift together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt, and stir into the shortening mixture.

In a small bowl, stir together the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar with the cinnamon.

Shape the dough into 1 1/2-inch balls (1 tablespoon per ball), and roll each ball in the cinnamon-sugar.

Arrange the dough balls 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake two sheets at a time until the edges of the cookies are set but the centers are still soft, 8 to 10 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through.

Transfer the cookies to wire racks for cooling.

Store in an airtight container.   Recipe adapted from Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen by Trisha Yearwood (c) Clarkson Potter 2008

I just broke the red wax seal on a new bottle of Makers 46.  The warm vanilla undertones of the smooth bourbon should go perfectly with the cinnamon sweetness of the snickerdoodles!  Looks like my evening is set!

If you are interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to like:  health articles, my favorite recipes, fun drinks, food facts, nutritional information, restaurant reviews, gadget reviews, photos and other things that make my mouth water, I have a community page on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/ThisGirlLovesHerFood

Salmon in Parchment

If you are always on the lookout for quick and easy weeknight recipes, and don’t stop here first, do what I often do when I am looking for inspiration and follow Food Porn on Twitter.

Today there was a quick and easy to follow video for Salmon Baked in Parchment that will help you get dinner on the table in under 30 minutes!

4salmonrecipes

  • Pesto Salmon
  • Teriyaki Salmon
  • Lemon Dill Salmon
  • Garlic Butter Salmon

 

I’ve done the lemon dill salmon and it came out perfect.  Next on my list to try is the pesto salmon.  This girl loves pesto and this girl loves salmon!  Let’s face it, #ThisGirlLovesToEat 

If you use Facebook and are interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to: things like health articles, my favorite recipes, fun drinks, food facts, nutritional information, restaurant reviews, photos and other things that make my mouth water, I have a very active community page on Facebook you can visit too: https://www.facebook.com/ThisGirlLovesHerFood

Breakfast: Eat This Not That


If you use Facebook and are interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to: things like health articles, my favorite recipes, fun drinks, food facts, nutritional information, restaurant reviews, photos and other things that make my mouth water, I have a very active community page on Facebook you can visit too: https://www.facebook.com/ThisGirlLovesHerFood #ThisGirlLovesToEat