Kitchen Success...and Fail!

In my continued efforts to improve my housewifery skills, I am constantly searching for new, interesting, creative and healthy recipes. This week I tried two...one for Crockpot Orange Chicken, which I've tried before and wanted to perfect, and another for Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies.

First, the orange chicken. This was my second attempt and it was DELICIOUS!! I've found that my crockpot cooks waaaay faster than one would expect so I have to significantly reduce cook time, even when it's on low. That has been my issue with most of my first attempts. I used a little extra flour than the recipe calls for just to make sure I got that breaded effect. Then I made a little bit more sauce than the recipes calls for to get a good coat on each piece of chicken. I paired the chicken with brown rice and steamed veggies and it was perfecto!



Now for the Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies...

NO I am not turning Vegan!! I actually have a decent amount of Almond Meal in my cupboard which I wanted to experiment with. Almond Meal is a gluten free option that can be substituted for flour. It has some great health benefits so I figured why not give it a try with a few different things.

I have to admit that I was excited about this recipe and had no reservations about it. The main difference is that it substitutes flour for almond meal and sugar for honey. The dough was very, very sticky and had a grainy texture to it. I still wasn't worried. Luckily I halved the size of this recipe so it was only a single batch. I love peanut butter but these cookies just taste TOO healthy! They have a very strong taste of shortening, which ruins it. And I ran out of honey so maybe I didn't put in as much as I could have. Long story short, these cookies are not my favorite but they are in my fridge in hopes that I can still stomach them as a snack full of protein.



Never fear, I will spend more time and effort on almond meal recipes to see if I find something I like! The challenge is that most of the recipes that include almond meal also include a lot of healthy, vegan ingredients that I've never had in my cupboard before so it's going to require a trip to Trader Joe's. Wish me luck!!

Miss Brittany Homemaker

I've always wanted to be handy in the kitchen. And becoming a wife has kind of forced me to start figuring it out. I've been pulling a lot of different recipes from Pinterest and have been quite successful! Even though I work from home, I often have trouble finding the time to plan a meal, go to the grocery store, prepare it and have it ready at a decent time. Which is why I LOVE the crockpot!!

On Friday we had 'date night' at Costco (yes, cheap pizza dinner included!) and bought a load of meats and poultry. Then I spent a few hours chopping, mixing and preparing freezer bag meals. They are so easy! There are a lot of how-to's and freezer bag tips on the Internet. I just mix everything together and throw it in the bag with a date and a few notes on how to cook. Then I have several great options for dinner each day!!

I wanted to share a few of the recipes and, of course some pictures.

I made these spinach lasagna rolls last week and have yet to use them. They just require adding marinara sauce and baking in the oven. Link: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/04/how-to-make-your-favorite-meals-freezer.html

This link has 12 meals to prepare and freeze. She makes it very easy to shop and prep. I've made the Teriyaki   Chicken, which turnedvout great, and have another bag in the freezer...

From this site, I also made: 

Savory Chicken

Lazy Day Stew

Minus some of the veggies, which I didn't have on hand. I plan to simply add freshly chopped veggies on the day I decide to make the stew.

One of my favorite type of meats is tri-tip! Pair it with potatoes, onions, mushrooms and some red wine and I'm in heaven. The first time I ever cooked tri-tip on my own was when I was visiting Kylie in Louisiana. I called Mom to ask how to do it then headed to the grocery store. Nobody in Louisiana sold tri-tip...in fact, they would throw that part away! So I found a butcher who cut and saved the tri-tip piece especially for me. That time I cooked it in the oven and it turned out great!

In California, tri-tip is readily available. You can find it pre-marinated or in huge chunks like we did at Costco.

I decided to prepare one piece for oven cooking and another for the BBQ. The only difference was that I sliced it into strips for the BBQ bag. I used this marinade recipe: http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2008/07/carols-completely-fabulous-steak.html.

And even made my own version of 'Montreal seasoning' rub! Recipe: http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2008/06/eating-steak-on-south-beach-diet-and.html. Amazingly, I had all of the spices on that list!!

I didn't prepare all of the meat in freezer bags. I still have several chicken breasts and a few pounds of ground turkey which I use to make turkey meatloaf on Thursdays (John's soccer game day meal). This is the end result in our freezer!!

Yesterday we did lots of work in the backyard. We are trying to clear out what used to be a garden area so we can plant rose bushes. Then we decided to BBQ the tri-tip and have a feast outside!

And of course this pre-St. Patty's Day meal would not be complete without green beer!

We are headed to the LA Galaxy game this afternoon. Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!! And I hope you enjoyed my first post from our new iPad!!