Grilled Scallops with Chili-Lime Cream Sauce

Until about a year ago, I would have told you that scallops were on my 'dislike' list. That was until Costco published their Black Friday cookbook In The Kitchen: The Costco Way in 2008. I found a scallops recipe  in that book (on page 144) and decided to give it a try as part of my weekly challenge. Here's the recipe that changed my impression of sea scallops.

approx. 1 1/2 pounds sea scallops
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
salt and pepper
2 garlic cloves

Chili-Lime Cream Sauce
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup white wine
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 large shallot, chopped
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons Asian sweet chili sauce
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
salt and pepper

Combine scallops, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, red pepper flakes and garlic. Marinate for 30 minutes.

To prepare the sauce, combine lime juice, wine, ginger, and shallot in a small saucepan. Cook over high heat until reduced by half (3 minutes). Add cream, lower heat and cook until reduced by half. Remove from heat. Stir in chili sauce. Whisk in butter 1 tablespoon at a time. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Preheat barbecue (I use my indoor grill) and grill on medium-high heat. Grill scallops until cooked to taste. (Don't overcook!)

Serve scallops with sauce and rice.

Thanks Costco for your yearly cookbooks. You can find this year and past cooks books here. Enjoy.

Cinnamon Muffins

Yummy! I found this recipe on a blog site that I read and I loved it. It's simple and tasty. Perfect with a hot cup of coffee while reading food blogs. 

Cinnamon Muffins

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon cinnamon

2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 cup milk

1/2 cup oil

2 eggs

cinnamon sugar - for sprinkling on top

Preheat oven to 375F. Prepare muffin tins.

Combine dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients. Mix only until moistened. Fill muffin cups and top with cinnamon sugar.

Bake for 13-15 minutes, or until a toothpick entered in the center comes out clean.

Cinnamon Muffins adapted from Ravishing Relative Recipes. Recipe found at Taste and Tell.

Tin Can Chili

A know a few friends who have decided to start Weight Watchers this year and since I'm familiar with Weight Watchers I decided to post one of my own dishes that was discussed at a Weight Watchers meeting that I attended years back. I'm not currently doing Weight Watcher though I love to cook their recipes.

Tin Can Chili
1 pound ground turkey
2 cans (15 ounces, each) diced or stewed tomatoes, with liquid
1 can (15 ounces) corn, drained
1 can (15 ounces) black beans with liquid
1 can (15 ounces) kidney or chili beans, drained
1 1/2 tablespoons taco seasoning
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Brown turkey meat and drain.

Combine tomatoes, corn, beans and seasonings together in a large pot over medium heat. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes. Serve hot with cornbread.

Alternatives:
a) Consider adding onion to the recipe. If so, cook the onion while browning the turkey meat.
b) Serve with sour cream and/or cheese. This is not WW approved. :)
c) Brown meat then add everything to the crock pot and cook for 6 to 8 hours on low.

Wildly Organic

A friend of mine introduced me to a fruit and vegetable delivery service called Wildly Organic. She told me that they were a local company that delivered organic fruit and/or vegetables every other week to her doorstep. She pays $35 for each delivery and has a lot of control over the items that are delivered. I was very intrigued and, at the time, disgusted with the produce I had been buying from Albertsons so I did a little research. My friend sent me the list of everything that had arrived in her pak that week so I set off to find out if this was going to be a good option for us. I went to Safeway (a place that I consider to have good produce) and weighed all the fruits and veggies to the same amount that my friend received. I priced everything out by the appropriate cost per pound and came to a total of $36.64. Safeway was $1.64 more than the cost that she had paid! Plus she got everything ORGANIC, many of the items were LOCAL and everything was DELIVERED to her doorstep! How could I not choose to buy my produce from Wildly Organic, the answer seemed obvious?! I came home explained my research to my hubby and we signed up that afternoon. I'm so happy we did. Everything we've received has been great. And if there's something we're not interested in that week, we get online and make adjustments to our delivery.

One way I maximize my delivery is by making my dinner menu/grocery list for the week before my delivery is expected. Then prior to receiving my delivery, I go online and update what I'm expected to receive to match the items that are on my grocery list. It saves me money and it ensures that I'm going to use everything that I receive.

I highly suggest signing up for this produce delivery service. In my opinion, the benefits can't be beat. And if you'd like to do your own research before signing up, I'd be happy to send you my pak list. But take it from me, it's worth it!

Pizza Dough

I have a couple different pizza dough recipes but this is my favorite. It's easiest to make in a standing mixer with the dough attachment but if you don't have one, no worries. You can also make this with a bowl and your hands!

Pizza Dough

3 3/4 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 1/3 cups warm water

1 tablespoon sugar

1 package yeast

3 tablespoons olive oil

Whisk flour and salt together. Make a well and add the water, sugar and yeast. Let it sit for about 5-10 minutes. When foamy, mix the olive oil in; knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. Brush the dough with olive oil and put in a bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour 30 minutes. Divide into two 1-pound balls. Use 1 pound per pizza. Bake dough at 500 degrees.

I've found that you can also freeze this dough. Wrap it in saran wrap then place in a freezer bag. The day prior to using it, move it to the refrigerator to thaw. Then it will be good to rise the next day. 

Recipe courtesy of Taste and Tell blog.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

On of my favorite crock-pot recipes is Chicken Tortilla Soup. Remember that Juicy Roast Chicken recipe I shared with you the other day? Well, here's something you can make with all that left over chicken.

Note: this recipe can be spicy so if you want to dial it down a bit, reduce the chili powder and use mild enchilada sauce. Also, adding a dollop of sour cream at the end helps tame the spice too.

1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken, cooked, shredded
1 can (15 ounces) whole tomatoes
1 can (10 ounces) enchilada sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 cups water
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) chicken broth
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn
1 teaspoon dried chopped cilantro
6 corn tortillas
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Grated cheddar cheese and sour cream for garnish.

In Crock-pot, combine shredded chicken, whole tomatoes, enchilada sauce, onion, green chilies and garlic.  Add water, chicken broth, cumin, chili powder, salt, black pepper and bay leaf. Stir in corn and dried cilantro. Cover and simmer on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours. Remove and discard bay leaf before serving.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly brush both sides of tortilla with vegetable oil. Cut tortillas into strips. Spread tortilla strips onto a baking sheet and bake turning occasionally until crisp, 5 to 10 minutes.

Sprinkle tortilla strips and grated cheese over soup. Add a dollop of sour cream if desired.

Enjoy!

Recipe found in Best-Loved Slow Cooker Recipes book.

Juicy Roasted Chicken

This was the first recipe that I used to make roast chicken. It received 4.5 stars out of 870 reviews on Allrecipe.com. That alone tells me it's a winner. What I love about it is how simple the ingredients are. It takes my oven nearly two hours to bake (rather than the 1 hour and 15 minutes it suggests) but when I'm busy doing other things I don't even notice the time pass.

This is a great recipe to make on a Sunday afternoon. Then you have dinner ready for that night and lunch meat for sandwiches the next morning. Last time I made this I saved all the meat for Chicken enchiladas the next day.

Ingredients:

1 (3 pound) whole chicken, giblets removed

salt and black pepper to taste

1 tablespoon onion powder, or to taste

1/2 cup margarine, divided (I use butter since I don't have margarine)

1 stalk celery, leaves removed

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

2. Place chicken in a roasting pan, and season generously inside and out with salt and pepper. Sprinkle inside and out with onion powder. Place 3 tablespoons margarine in the chicken cavity. Arrange dollops of the remaining margarine around the chicken's exterior.
3. Cut the celery into 3 or 4 pieces, and place in the chicken cavity.

4. Bake uncovered 1 hour and 15 minutes in the preheated oven, to a minimum internal temperature of 180 degrees F (82 degrees C). Remove from heat, and baste with melted margarine and drippings. Cover with aluminum foil, and allow to rest about 30 minutes before serving.

Thank you Allrecipes for this awesome dish.