Granny's Peach Jello Salad

 

1 large can crushed pineapple

2/3 cup sugar

1 8oz cream cheese at room temp

1/3 cup milk

Cool whip room temp

1 3oz pkg peach jello

 

Bring pineapple with juice to a boil in a saucepan (I use my big glass measuring bowl and do it in the microwave).  Remove from heat: add sugar and jello, dissolve well.  Refrigerate until cool.  Add milk to cream cheese and blend with the mixer until smooth.  Whip gelatin mixture until frothy.  Combine cream cheese and jello and whip again.  Add whipped topping and pecans if wanted.  chill in fridge.

 

Ken's Easy Shrimp Scampi

Ingredients:
1 lb Cooked/Peeled Shrimp (any size, bigger is better)
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
3 Tbsp Butter
3 Tsp of Minced Garlic (heaping, or 4 minced whole cloves)
1/4 Tsp Crushed Red Pepper (more for more spicy, less for less spicy)
2 Tbsp Parsley (crushed up to small bits if dried, finely chopped if fresh)
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1/2 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Pepper

Heat up large sauce pan on medium high heat, once warm add olive oil and butter.
Mix until butter is completely dissolved and begins to foam up a bit. If using unsalted butter, add salt here.
Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute for about a minute until it begins to brown at the edges.
Add the shrimp and mix around to completely cover the shrimp with the mixture and then spread out shrimp. Remember the shrimp is already cooked so we don't want to cook very long at this stage.
Add the parsley, lemon, and black pepper then mix everything up. Let this cook for maybe another minute then remove from heat.
Pour shrimp and sauce into a bowl so the shrimp doesn't continue to cook in the pan.

This is best served with or over some kind of pasta. We use Pasta Roni Angel Hair Pasta With Herbs which is perfect.

Chipotle Guacamole

Directly from Chipotle... thanks guys.

2 ripe Hass avocados
2 tsp lime juice
2 tbsp cilantro (chopped)
1/4 cup red onion (finely chopped)
1/2 jalapeño, including seeds (finely chopped)
1/4 tsp kosher salt

Cafe Rio Chicken Burros

We got this from the Hill Family and we love it.

Three parts to prepare:

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Cafe Rio Chicken
Ingredients:
5 lbs chicken breasts
1 (16 ounce) bottle Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing
1.5 Tbsp chili powder
4 tsp cumin
6 cloves garlic—minced

Directions:
Cook all together in a crock pot for 4 hours on high.
Shred the chicken and cook for an additional hour.

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Café Rio Rice
Ingredients:
3 cups Uncle Ben's Converted Rice
5 cups water
½ bunch cilantro
1 can green chiles
½ onion
4 tsp chicken bouillon
4 tsp minced garlic
¾ tsp salt
1 Tbsp butter

Directions:
Blend cilantro, green chiles and onion together in food processor.
Bring water to a boil and add all ingredients.
Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

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Cafe Rio Dressing
Ingredients:
1 buttermilk ranch dressing packet - (note you need buttermilk and mayo to make the dressing)
2 tomatillos
½ bunch of cilantro
1 clove garlic
Juice of 1 lime
A few drops of green tobasco sauce

Directions:
Make the buttermilk ranch dressing as per recipe on the packet.
Use a food processor to blend the tomatillos, cilantro, garlic, lime and tobasco sauce.
Add to the dressing and refrigerate.

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Serving:
On tortilla, add a layer of rice, add chicken on the rice, drizzle with the dressing

Chipotle Chicken Tacos

From Shar's Bosch Kitchen Center

In 1/2 cup boiling water, mix 1-2 Tbsp. dried chipotle chili peppers (I use 1 1/2 Tbsp). Allow to sit 1/2 hour until re-hydrated.

In blender:
Chipotle chili mixture (blend until chilies are well ground)

Add:
1/2 cup garlic oil (I just use olive oil)
1/2 cup Braggs liquid aminos
Juice and zest of one lemon
2 Tsp. granulated garlic

Mix until emulsified. Place 4 chicken breasts or 8-12 chicken tenders in marinade. Allow to marinade 1-4 hours or overnight.
(best marinaded overnight).


Grill chicken (we grill it, but you can also pressure cook at this point. Instructions for pressure cooker below...)


Pressure cooker: Heat fry bottom pressure cooker until water beads up. Fry chicken breasts until brown. Place lid on pressure cooker and
bring to second red ring. Pressure for 3 minutes.


To assemble tacos - just add to warmed soft taco tortillas and add shredded cheddar cheese and diced tomatoes.

Crockpot Carnitas

5 lb boneless pork shoulder, trimmed of visible fat and cut into 2 inch chunks (or larger)
          * if want chunks of pork in tacos, cut in 2 inch or bigger chunks
1 Tbsp salt
½ cup salsa verde
2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
1 onion, cut in half then cut into quarters (or slices, doesn't matter)
½ tsp freshly black pepper
½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
corn tortillas

Preparation

1 Place pork chunks, salt, salsa verde, garlic, onion, black pepper and crushed red pepper flakes into the bowl of a slow-cooker and toss to coat the pork in all the seasonings. Cook for 7 hours on low or 3 hours on high. (I haven't tried cooking for 3 hours.  Just cook for 7 hours on low)


2 When the pork is done cooking, remove pieces with a slotted spoon to an oven-safe baking dish and shred with two forks into smaller pieces.

If would like a little crispy - Move an oven rack on the top slot closest to the broiler, and turn on the broiler. Bake/broil the meat for 5-7 minutes, until the top starts to crisp up. While meat is broiling, heat up your corn tortillas in the toaster oven over low heat. When done, remove from oven and let cool slightly, about 2-3 minutes.

I've also pan fried carnitas for like 4 minutes on one side and toss and brown a bit more on other side

Got this recipe from:
http://www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddrink/recipes/slow-cooker-carnitas/fd-92a90d86-3e77-55dd-9fe0-92c0aed8b492?form=PRFDSB

Cajun-Baked Catfish

--**Not Tried Yet**--

2 cups cornmeal
2 tsp salt - recommend only using 1 tsp
1 Tbsp pepper
8 (3-4 oz) catfish fillets
2 Tbsp Cajun seasoning
1 to 2 tsp seasoned salt
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

Garnish: lemon wedges

Combine first 3 ingredients. Dredge catfish fillets in cornmeal mixture; place fillets, skin sides down, on a greased baking sheet.
Combine Cajun seasoning and seasoned salt; sprinkle over fillets. Drizzle with butter.
Bake at 400° for 30 minutes or until golden and fish flakes with a fork. Garnish, if desired.


Note: For a twist, substitute 1 tablespoon lemon pepper for 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning.

Got this recipe from:
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/cajun-baked-catfish-10000000351541/