Fish Taco

Last night I made dinner for my family and when I asked everybody what they wanted, they responded with tacos. So I chose to make fish tacos for everyone but with a variety of fish. My mother had salmon, I had Mahi-Mahi, and my dad had tilapia. I heated up flour and corn tortillas, set out a bowl of cheese, lettuce, chopped tomatoes, avocado, salsa and hot sauce. My parents loved the dinner and we ended up not leaving a crumb.

Breakfast for the Family

I treated my family to breakfast this past week and they enjoyed it. I made large omelettes with what they wanted and fruit smoothies. My father chose to have bacon, sausage, jalapeno peppers, and green chilis. My mother had swiss cheese, bacon, spinach and green peppers. My father and mother had smoothies with bananas, strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries.

Mexican Lasagna

My family made a Mexican Lasagna this past week and everybody devoured it in minutes. My aunt surprised the family with this dish because we were all just hanging out at my grandmother's house and she arrived with this. It was gone in less then half an hour. Even the picky eaters of my family ate this. 
Ingredients:
2 pounds of shredded chicken
1 can of refried beans (16 ounces)
1 can of chopped green chiles (4 ounces)
1 envelope taco seasoning
2 tablespoons of hot salsa
12 ounces of uncooked lasagna noodles 
4 cups of Colby-Monterey Jack cheese (16 ounces)
1 jar of mild salsa
2 cups of water
2 cups of sour cream (16 ounces)
3 green onions chopped 
1 chopped tomato, optional

Steps:
1) Preheat oven to 350°. In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in beans, chilies, taco seasoning and hot salsa.
2) In a greased 13x9-in. baking dish, layer a third of the noodles and meat mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese. Repeat layers twice.
3) Combine mild salsa and water; pour over top. Cover and bake 1 hour or until heated through.
4) Top with sour cream, olives, onions, tomatoes if desired and remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, 5 minutes. Let stand 10-15 minutes before cutting.

St. Patty's Day Dinner

Every St. Patrick's Day, my family goes to my grandmother's house for dinner. She makes corned beef and cabbage, bread, Irish soda bread, potatoes, and carrots. We always have to make a lot of corned beef because there are at least 15 family members there. We usually finish half of what we make so that we can have leftovers for the next day.

Ingredients:
1 onion, cut into wedges
4 potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 pound carrots, cut into large chunks
3 cups water
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 (3 pound) corned beef brisket with spice packet, cut in half
1 small head cabbage, cut into wedges

Steps:
1) Place onion, potatoes, and carrots in a 5-quart slow cooker. Combine water, garlic, bay leaf, sugar, vinegar, and contents of spice packet in a small bowl; pour over vegetables. Top with brisket and cabbage.
2) Cover and cook on Low until meat and vegetables are tender, 8 to 9 hours. Remove bay leaf before serving.

The next day, our leftovers usually look like this.

Cinnamon Goodness

I made a batch of snickerdoodles this weekend and they tasted amazing. I brought it to a family party Saturday and when i put them out, they immediately disappeared.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
2 3/4cups Gold Medal™ all-purpose or unbleached flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Steps:
1)  Heat oven to 400ºF.
2)  Mix 1 1/2 cups sugar, the butter, shortening and eggs in large bowl. Stir in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt.
3)  Shape dough into 1 1/4-inch balls. Mix 1/4 cup sugar and the cinnamon. Roll balls in cinnamon-sugar mixture. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
4)  Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

Spanish Fiesta

My family had a spanish themed dinner this past week. My sister was up from college and wanted us to do this. My dad was in charge of making empanadas, my mother made a salad, and my sister and I made churros.

Ingredients:
1 cup water
2 1/2 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 quarts oil for frying
1/2 cup white sugar, or to taste
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Steps:
In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine water, 2 1/2 tablespoons sugar, salt and 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Stir in flour until mixture forms a ball.
Heat oil for frying in deep-fryer or deep skillet to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Pipe strips of dough into hot oil using a pastry bag. Fry until golden; drain on paper towels.
Combine 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon. Roll drained churros in cinnamon and sugar mixture.

Italian Night

My family will have one night a week that we call "Italian Night." This week we made lasagna.

Ingredients:
12 whole wheat lasagna noodles
1 pound lean ground beef
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano, or to taste
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 (16 ounce) package cottage cheese
2 eggs
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 (25 ounce) jars tomato-basil pasta sauce
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese


Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, add the lasagna noodles a few at a time, and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, about 10 minutes. Remove the noodles to a plate.
3. Place the ground beef into a skillet over medium heat, add the garlic, garlic powder, oregano, salt, and black pepper to the skillet. Cook the meat, chopping it into small chunks as it cooks, until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Drain excess grease.
4. In a bowl, mix the cottage cheese, eggs, and Parmesan cheese until thoroughly combined.
5. Place 4 noodles side by side into the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking pan; top with a layer of the tomato-basil sauce, a layer of ground beef mixture, and a layer of the cottage cheese mixture. Repeat layers twice more, ending with a layer of sauce; sprinkle top with the mozzarella cheese. Cover the dish with aluminum foil.
6. Bake in the preheated oven until the casserole is bubbling and the cheese has melted, about 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake until cheese has begun to brown, about 10 more minutes. Allow to stand at least 10 minutes before serving.