Sopapillas

My mother in law makes some of the best mexican dishes. For an appetizer recently she made these little guys with just some mexican table cream, queso fresca, and some tomatillo salsa. They were to die for!

What you need:

5 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. shortening

8 cups cooking oil

Serving suggestions; honey (like a scone), beans, meat, and cheese

Mix flour, baking powder and salt well. Then add in the shortening and mix until well combined. Add 1 1/2 to 2 cups water and knead until you have a nice dough.

With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to a 1/4 inch to 1/3 inch thickness and cut 4 to 5 inch squares or triangles in the dough.

Heat the oil in a large pan to 375 degrees.

Put the dough squares into the oil caefully splash tops, which will make the squares puff up. Flip and do the same on the other side, until golden brown, about 1 minute per side.

Eat warm with honey or make stuffed sopapillas with beans or meat and enjoy!

Dill Carrots

I found this sweet recipe on all recipes. This is a great side dish to any meal and it's super easy and fast!

What you need:

3 cups peeled and sliced carrots

2 tbs. butter

2 tbs. brown sugar

1 1/2 tbs. chopped fresh dill (or dried worked fine as well)

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

Place carrots in a skillet or small soup pan and pour in just enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium heat and let cook for about 10-15 minutes or until carrots are slightly tender but still a little crisp. Drain water. Stir in butter, brown sugar, dill, salt and pepper. Adjust to your liking such as if you want sweeter carrots add about a tablespoon more of brown sugar.

Stay Soft Sugar Cookies

This is a really good sugar cookie recipe that I got from a friend! It is super easy and delicious!

What you need:

3 1/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 egg

1/2 cup butter

1 tsp. baking soda

1 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup sour cream

Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, combine remaining ingredients and beat for 2 minutes. Add flour mixture, mix well. Roll out 1/2 inch thick on floured surface or board. Cut into shapes. Place on lightly greased baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Do Not Brown!

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 3oz. package cream cheese

2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup butter

1 tsp. vanilla

any color food coloring (optional)

Mix all ingredients well. Frost to your hearts content!

Pumpkin Crumble Cake

I'm not a huge pumpkin pie fan, but this is not pumpkin pie! It's way more delicious! I found this recipe on all recipes when I was in a baking mood. This recipe did not disapoint! My husband loved it so much that he had two pieces every night until it was gone!

What you need:

1, 18.25 oz. package yellow cake mix

1 egg, beaten

1/2 cup butter melted

1, 15 oz. can pumpkin puree

3 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup white sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (or ground cinnamon)

1/2 cup white sugar

4 tbs. butter, softened

1/2 cup chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans) optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray or grease a 9x13 inch pan.

Reserve 1 cup cake mix. In a large bowl, combine the remaining dry cake mix with 1 egg and 1/2 cup melted butter. Mix well and then pat into prepared pan.

In a large bowl, mix together the pumpkin, 3 eggs, 1/2 cup sugar, brown sugar, and pumpkin spice. Pour over crust.

In a small bowl, combine reserved cup of cake mix, 1/2 cup sugar, and 4 tbs. softened butter. Crumble over pumpkin filling. Sprinkle nuts evenly over the top, if desired.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Also If you want a thicker crust use a spring form pan and bake for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Serve warm or cold with vanilla ice cream or whip cream!

Parmesan Sage Pork Chops

I got this recipe from allrecipes.com and it turned out wonderfully! I didn't have all the ingredients so I improvised a bit. Instead of lemon peel I only had lemon juice, so I poured about a tablespoon in with the beaten egg. This recipe is so easy and it does not take very long if you need a quick dinner idea!

What you need:

2 tbs. all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp. salt

Dash ground black pepper

3/4 cup soft bread crumbs

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 1/2 tsp. rubbed sage

1/2 tsp. grated lemon peel

1 egg, lightly beaten

2-bone-in pork loin chops

1 tbs. olive oil or vegetable oil

1 tbs. butter

In a shallow dish, combine the flour, salt and pepper. In another shallow dish, combine the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, sage and lemon peel. Place egg in shallow bowl. Coat pork chops with flour mixture, dip in egg, and then coat with bread crumb mixture. Let stand for about 5 minutes.

In a skillet, brown pork chops in oil and butter for 2 minutes on each side. Transfer to a greased 11 in. x 7 in. x 2 in. baking dish. Bake uncovered at 425 degrees F for 10 - 15 minutes or until juices run clear and meat is fully cooked.

Green Chicken Enchiladas

This is a favorite at my house! These enchiladas are so simple to make and are so delicious! My mother-in-law was so kind to show me how to make these! She really makes some of the best Mexican dishes I have ever had and I'm so happy she is so willing to teach me how to make them!

What you need:

Whole chicken, shredded ( I just buy a rotisserrie chicken from Costco)

White Corn Tortillas

Tomatillo Salsa

Crema Mexicana (Mexican table cream, its runnier than sour cream)

Queso Fresco (a crumbly white cheese)

Make the tomatillo salsa, which can be found under salsa in my blog. Take the shredded chicken and place in a pan with some of the salsa and some olive oil. On medium heat warm the chicken up and set aside. Warm tortillas up in a microwavable bag in the microwave, about 1 minute. Take the tortillas and fry them in vegetable oil in a skillet for about 10 seconds on each side.

To make the enchiladas place the semi-fried tortillas on a plate and place shredded chicken in the middle, fold tortilla. After there are like 2-4 folded tortillas on the plate cover with salsa, cream, and cheese. Serve with spanish rice and beans.

Fruit Tart

Market Street Grill has this really yummy fruit tart as one of their desserts and I found the recipe online! So I thought I would share it with all of you. They also have other recipes on their website that are probably equally delicious if you want to try them as well.

Tart Dough Ingredients:

1/4 cup almond paste (will be found next to the pie making ingredients in the store)

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup butter

pinch of salt

3 egg yolks

1 ounce whipping cream (which is about half of a 1/4 cup)

2 cups cake flour

Using an electric mixer on medium speed, blend all of the above ingredients until combined, but don't over-mix! Chill dough for 10 minutes.

Roll out dough on floured board to 1/4" thickness and place in a 10" fluted pie tin with a removable bottom (also a spring form pan will work). Bake for 25 minutes at 325 degrees, remove from oven and store in a cool, dry place.

Mock Pastry Cream Filling Ingredients:

(1) 5.1 ounce box of vanilla jell-o pudding (disregard package directions)

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/2 tsp. pure almond extract

1/2 tsp. pure vanilla

If using a spring form pan, I would double the pastry filling.

Combine by hand all of the above ingredients until mixed. Chill for half an hour.

Remove tart shell from pie tin. Fill tart shell with pastry cream and level the amount. Arrange with your choice of fruit (strawberries, raspberries, kiwi, pears, apples, ect.)

Apricot Glaze Ingredients:

1/4 cup apricot jelly

1/4 cup hot water

Combine apricot jelly and hot water to make a glaze. Using a pastry brush, apply the glaze over the finished tart.