Chocolate Decadent Pie

 This one was absolutely delicious and lived up to the name. My initial try at whipped topping was way too liquidy, so I've edited to just use Reddi-Whip or something similar. Despite my less than stellar first try, it disappeared rather quickly and everyone requested I make this one again. Adult supervision is required, especially when using the oven.

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 c Thin Mints, crushed
• 1 1/4c Trefoils, crushed (about 1 1/2 sleeves)
• 1/4 c sugar
• 1/3 c butter, melted
• 1 1/2 c milk chocolate chips
• 1 1/2 c white chocolate chips
• 1 c sweetened condensed milk (divided)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (divided)
• 1 1/2 whipped cream (spray bottle the easiest)

Directions (Total prep time: 90 min)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 
2. Spray the inside of a 9" pie pan with non-stick cooking spray.
3. In a bowl, combine Trefoil cookie crumbs, sugar and melted butter.
4. Press mixture firmly into sprayed pie pan, covering bottom and sides. 
5. Bake 5-7min. 
6. Set aside to cool.
7. While crust is baking, you can use a microwave safe bowl to combine milk chocolate chips, 1/2c condensed milk and 1/2 tsp of vanilla. Alternative: combine all ingredients and melt in a small double-boiler. 
8. Stir until all chips are melted and pour into bottom of cooled crust. 
9. Set in freezer while preparing the second layer.
10. For the second layer, use a microwave safe bowl to combine white chocolate chips, 1/2 c condensed milk and 1/2 tsp vanilla. Alternative: combine all ingredients and melt in a small double-boiler. 
11. When the first layer has cooled sufficiently, pour the second layer over top. 
12. Refrigerate pie for at least 30min to allow both layers to solidify sufficiently. 
13. Top pie with whipped cream. 
14. Sprinkle/decorate the pie with crushed Thin Mint cookies. 

Samoas Coco-Pine Chicken

Ok, I was suspicious of a savory dish made with Girl Scout cookies. This one was surprisingly good, though. Some sweetness, with that kick of garlic flavor. So give it a try and see what you think. 

Marinade

• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 1/2 cup canned coconut milk
• 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

Other ingredients

• 4 boneless chicken breasts
• 1/2 box Samoa Girl Scout cookies
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 garlic clove
• 3 cup peanut oil
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 Tbsp ginger powder
• 6oz can crushed pineapple
• 1 cup flour
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste

Procedures

1. Prepare marinade by whisking ingredients listed above together. Make sure your chicken breasts are 1/3 of an inch thick by pounding them with a meat mallet.
2. Cover and refrigerate the chicken in the marinade for at least one hour. 
3. Preheat oven to 350 F. 
4. Take 1/2 of the box of cookies and crush in a food processor.
5. Remove chicken from marinade and season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Set up three bowls so chicken can be dipped in sequence - beaten eggs, then flour, then crushed Samoas.
7. Pan fry chicken until brown in the peanut oil.
8. Finely dice the garlic and mix it with the softened butter and ginger powder. 
9. Once browned, put the chicken into the baking dish. Place the dish in the oven and bake for 30min. 
10. Spoon the ginger garlic paste over the chicken in the dish. You can also pour some of the leftover marinade over the chicken. Top the chicken with pineapple.
11. Place the baking dish into the oven for 30min. 

Cheesy Peppers and Broccoli

What on earth was I to do with all this broccoli and bell peppers? I was pleasantly surprised at how the following turned out - peppers sweet, not overwhelmingly cheesy, that little bit of ham to give the dish some hunger-stopping power. 

Ingredients

• 1 lb broccoli, cut bite-size
• 1 lb sweet bell peppers, cut bite-size
• 1/2 sweet onion
• 1/2 lb egg noodles
• 1 pack instant cheese from mac n cheese box
• 1/2 lb ham, cubed
• 2 tbsp Olive oil 
• 2/3 c milk
• 1 tbsp butter or margarine
• 2 ripe tomatoes, cubed
• salt & pepper to taste

Procedure

1. Boil water for making egg noodles. I chose these noodles because they don't get soggy upon reheating, which is how I serve most of my food. Regular pasta would likely be fine if you're serving everything immediately. Make egg noodles according to directions.
2. Warm the Olive oil in a deep skillet. Once wavy, add in the onion and peppers. When they start to soften, add in the broccoli and ham. Cook until the onions and ham start to have a little brown on them. Add tomato cubes and cook until warmed through. 
3. When pasta finishes cooking, drain it and return it to the pot. Melt the butter or margarine in it, then add the milk. I added a little more milk than the mac n cheese box instructions to help the cheese cover the additional veggies and meat. Finally, add in the dried packet of instant cheese from the mac n cheese box. Stir until well mixed. 
4. Pour pasta into skillet to mix with the veggie mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Serves 4

Icing for decorating cookies

Some quickie icing recipes that have worked nicely with the kids. A resealable freezer bag with a tiny hole cut in the corner is the easiest pastry bag you can come by. Recipes I've seen warn not to let icing come in contact with oil or plastic, but if you're using it all the same day that's no problem. Cover with wax paper or plastic wrap flush with the icing so it doesn't crust up when it is not in use.

Plain icing:
2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp water

Place sugar in bowl and add water by teaspoons until you reach desired thickness. If you are spreading with knives, aim for a thick paste. If you want to pipe out lines, go for a thinner consistency. Lay out without overlap for a few hours as the icing dries. Can stack with wax paper between once dried. Can store for four days at room temperature or a month in the refrigerator.

Royal icing (best for gluing together a gingerbread house because it gets rock hard):
1 1/3 cups powdered sugar
1 large egg white

From Joy of Cooking:
1. In a microwave safe bowl, combine 2/3 cup powdered sugar and one egg white.
2. Microwave on high until mixture reaches 160-175 degrees F (about 30-60 seconds). If you need to take more than on temperature reading, was the thermometer thoroughly or dip in boiling water before taking next reading.
3. Add 2/3 cup powdered sugar and beat on high speed until icing cools and holds stiff peaks.
4. Add more powdered sugar as needed to reach desired consistency. Color with liquid or powdered food coloring. Can be stored in covered container for up to 3 days.

Moroccan-Style Stuffed Acorn Squash

This is one of my favorites for this time of year (or anytime in Grenada since squash always seemed to be in season). The stuffing is way more than will ever fit even in two large acorn squashes...but serving the squash as a mashed side dish to this is quite tasty. I substituted orzo for the couscous so Penny could pick all ingredients up with equal ease - she loves it!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 2 large acorn squash, halved and seeded
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 1 cup garbanzo beans, drained
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1 1/2 tablespoons ground cumin
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 (14 ounce) can chicken broth
• 1 cup uncooked couscous

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Arrange squash halves cut side down on a baking sheet. Bake 30 minutes, or until tender. Dissolve the sugar in the melted butter. Brush squash with the butter mixture, and keep squash warm while preparing the stuffing.
3. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, celery, and carrots, and cook 5 minutes. Mix in the garbanzo beans and raisins. Season with cumin, salt, and pepper, and continue to cook and stir until vegetables are tender.
4. Pour the chicken broth into the skillet, and mix in the couscous. Cover skillet, and turn off heat. Allow couscous to absorb liquid for 5 minutes. Stuff squash halves with the skillet mixture to serve.

Nutritional Information

(you know, because this info is required in NYC)

Amount Per Serving Calories: 502 | Total Fat: 11.7g | Cholesterol: 10mg

Coconut Rice

Just a nice way to make your rice a little sweeter. Penny likes rice, but she LOVES it mixed with coconut milk.

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups coconut milk
• 1/2 teaspoon white sugar
• 1 cup jasmine rice

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the coconut milk and sugar over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer.
2. Stir in the jasmine rice, reduce heat to low, and cook tightly covered for about 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.
3. Remove from the heat and fluff rice with a fork; cover, and keep warm.

Okra & Sweet Potato Curry

I like my Indian food sweet, so this is great to accompany Mango Chicken. I liked this one especially in Grenada because most of the ingredients are pretty low cost there when fresh.

Ingredients

• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 green chilis deseeded and finely chopped
• curry leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon each of cumin, ground coriander, garam masala
• 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric, chili powder
• 1 sweet potato
• handful of okra, topped and tailed
• handful of sliced tomatoes
• handful of frozen peas
• 1 tin coconut milk (you can substitute plain yogurt)

Directions

1. Fry the mustard seeds in the oil until they start to pop and crackle.
2. Add the onion, chilis, curry leaves and spices and fry until the onion is soft.
3. Add the sweet potatoes and brown for a couple of minutes.
4. Add the coconut milk and a little water if necessary and simmer until the sweet potato is cooked. About ten minutes after adding the sweet potato, add the tomato, peas and okra.
5. Continue to simmer and season before serving.

Borrowed from Portobello Kitchen.

Mango Chicken

Julie's blog about mangoes reminded me of a recipe I did recently. Really tasty and ingredients are cheap if mangoes are in season. I like making this with some coconut rice and okra & sweet potato curry.

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp (or more) of vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, chopped (1 1/2 to 2 cups)
• 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tbsp fresh minced ginger
• 2 Tbsp yellow curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 mangos, peeled and diced
  
• 2 Tbsp cider vinegar or white vinegar
• 1 1/4 cup water
• 1 1/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/3 cup golden raisins (aka sultanas)
  
• 1/2 cup heavy cream (can substitute all or partially with coconut milk or plain yogurt)
• Salt and pepper
• Cilantro for garnish

Directions

1 Heat 2 Tbsp oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the red bell pepper and another tablespoon of oil, cook for a couple more minutes. Add the curry powder and cumin, cook for a few more minutes. The spices will absorb some of the oil, so if anything begins to stick too much to the bottom of the pan, add a little more oil to the pan. Add the ginger and garlic, cook for one minute more.

2 Add the vinegar, water, and a 1/2 of the chopped mango to the pan. Increase the heat and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to maintain a low simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove pan from heat. Scoop the sauce into a blender. Purée the sauce, pulsing until smooth. Return the sauce to the pan.

3 Add chicken pieces and raisins to the pan. Return to a low simmer. Cover the pan and let cook for 8-10 minutes. Chicken should be just cooked through. Use a knife to cut open the largest piece to check.

4 Add remaining mango pieces to the pan. Stir in the cream (or coconut milk or yogurt). Let cook at a very low temperature for another minute or two, uncovered. Do not let this boil or the cream may curdle. Adjust seasonings. If a little too sweet, add a little more vinegar. If not sweet enough, you can add a dash of sugar. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve over rice. Garnish with cilantro. Serves 4.

This is borrowed from Simply Recipes.

Indian Inspired Chili

It seems wrong to put two chilis so close, but this one should taste pretty different. At a family gathering a while ago, I tried out this Indian-inspired chili on my Ohio relatives. My family thought it was way too hot, so I tamed it down, blended it with more familiar Cincinnati-style chili ingredients and it was a lot more popular. So this is sweet, but spicy. You can always kick it up a bit by adding more emphasis on the spicy elements.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cloves minced garlic
  
• 2 medium onions, diced small
  
• 2 inches minced ginger root (or 1 tsp ginger powder)
• 4 cardamom pods (Indian food aisle or spice aisle)
• 2 in cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp chili powder (cayenne if you're braver, paprika if not)
  
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp tumeric
• 1 tsp garam masala (Indian food aisle or spice aisle)
• 1 tsp coriander (Indian food aisle or spice aisle)
• 1 tsp pepper
• salt to taste
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 lb ground meat
• 32 oz diced tomato
• 32 oz kidney beans, rinsed and drained
  
• 32 oz tomato puree
• 1/2 c brown sugar

Optional:

• pasta or rice as a base
• shredded cheddar (to top)
• diced sweet onion (to top)

Directions

1. Warm the oil in a large pot. Then sautee the first five non-powder spices. Stir them occasionally until the onions look clear.
2. Stir in all the powdered spices so the onions are nicely coated and cook for another minute or two.
3. Stir in the ground meat and brown it with the spices.
   
4. Once the meat is thoroughly browned, add in the tomatoes, beans and brown sugar. I ditch the bean fluids and keep the tomato fluids.
   
5. Simmer your chili until it is as thick as you like.
6. Especially when you're serving to folks unfamiliar with Indian spices, remove the cinnamon stick and cardamom pods before serving. They won't kill you, but aren't a fun texture when you bite them unawares.
   

Pilgrim's Pie

I made a few modifications to an online recipe to find yet ANOTHER use for our vat of instant potatoes. Pilgrims ate turkey, right? Apologies for the half-eaten photo, I just wasn't fast enough! BTW, my 9-month-old loved picking this up and eating it.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons cooking oil
  
• 1 pound ground turkey
  
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  
• 1 medium onion, diced
  
• 3 medium carrots, diced
  
• 1 small butternut squash, diced
  
• 1.5 tablespoons tomato paste (AKA ketchup)
  
• 1.5 cup chicken stock, divided
  
• 1.5 teaspoon dried thyme
  
• 1.5 teaspoon dried rosemary
  
• 1.5 teaspoon dried parsley
  
• 1 cup shredded cheddar
• 4 servings of your favorite instant potatoes (may involve butter and milk)
  

Instructions

Chop all those pesky veggies and set them aside for later. Shred your cheese. Don't worry, this is the most time-consuming part.
Place a large skillet over high heat and with 3 turns of the pan, cooking oil, about 3 tablespoons. Once the oil starts to ripple, add the ground turkey and break it up into small pieces as it cooks, using the back of a wooden spoon or a potato masher. Cook until the turkey is nice and brown, about 8-10 minutes.
While the meat is cooking, prepare your mashed potatoes. Make them just a little more watery than the instructions say.
Add the veggies to the meat and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste, chicken stock, spices (be sure to rub them to release flavor before you add them), salt and pepper. Continue to cook for 10 more minutes, stirring every now and then.
Pre-heat oven to 400°F.
While the veggies are cooking, stir about half of the cheese into the mashed potatoes until it's all melted.
Once the veggies and meat are finished, use them to cover the bottom of a large, oven-safe baking dish. Spread the cheesy potatoes to cover the turkey mixture evenly.
Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the potatoes.
Place in the oven and bake until the top is golden brown, about 10 minutes.

Spinach Meatloaf

Get your picky eater to eat his vegetables by hiding them in meat! Another exciting use for instant potatoes.

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground meat (I prefer turkey)
• 1/4 cup instant potatoes
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons ketchup
• 1/4 cup parmesean cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1/2 onion chopped fine
• salt and pepper to taste
• flavoring (choose an option, both are tasty!)
• option A: 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce & 1 teaspoon cumin
• option B: 1 teaspoon each of sage, rosemary, thyme
• 5oz frozen spinach, thawed and chopped

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F or 175C. Thaw out your spinach by putting it in a colander and running water over it.
2. Mix first nine (9) ingredients and choose the kind of flavoring you'd prefer. Worcestershire goes better with beef, while herbs go better with ground chicken or turkey. Both flavors are tasty and merit trying.
3. Lay out a piece of aluminum foil, wax paper or other disposable flexible surface. Spread the meat mix over the foil to make a 1/2 inch-thick rectangle that should fit into your baking pan.
4. On top of the meat, make a uniform layer of spinach. Ideally, leave a 1/2 inch border of meat not covered by spinach.
5. Use your flexible surface to lift one side of the meat and gently form a roll. You'll likely have to work slowly and peel the meat off the foil a bit as you go. When you get to the end, press the end meat into the roll so in blends into a solid roll. You can also smoosh together the ends a bit to obscure the spinach there. The spinach should now be nicely hidden, visible only in cross-section.
6. If you're really careful with aluminum foil, you can now enclose your lovely meat roll in the same piece of foil, then place in your baking pan. This helps minimize cleanup. Definitely still use a pan, though, to keep the meat juices from oozing out into your oven.
7. Bake the meatloaf in the middle rack for 45 minutes or so (took me about twice that here, but I have no idea how hot my oven is with the goofy tank). This should serve 4-5 people and freezes easily either before or after baking.

Instant Potato Crusted Fish/Chicken

I know you've been on pins and needles waiting for another way to utilize those instant potatoes. Who needs breadcrumbs!!

• 1 lb white fish filet or chicken
• 1/2 cup instant potatoes
• 1/4 cup grated parmesean/romano cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon of minced garlic
• salt & black pepper to taste
• optional: 1 egg or a few tbsp mayonnaise
  
• plastic baggie or shallow bowl
  

1. Preheat oven to 400F (205C).
2. Grease a glass baking dish or use a non-stick baking dish.
3. Mix all the ingredients together in the baggie or shallow bowl.
4. Wet your fish or chicken. You can use a gluing agent such as a beaten egg or mayonnaise to help the batter stick to the meat. Then put one piece at a time into the crust mix and coat thoroughly.
5. Put the meat into your baking dish.
6. Bake the fish or chicken until it is cooked thoroughly (20 min for boneless chicken, 40min for bone-in chicken, 30-40 min for thick fish filet)

If you're more of a skillet person than baker, just put a little cooking oil in the skillet and go to town. Heats up the house a little less and your food is finished faster. There's also the grilling option.

Turkey Burgers -- with Instant Potatoes

Yet another use for instant potatoes: a way to stretch hamburger meat a bit further. My picky eater prefers anything with onions and garlic, so you can adjust those ingredients down to your preference. He often doesn't notice that it's turkey burgers, though, because the flavor is sufficiently good. I usually eyeball quantities, but paid close attention today to give a good estimate of quantities. Fresh herbs are always preferable (this group comes in a pack together called "poultry herbs" back home), but dried works nicely too (just rub the dried leaves a bit before tossing them in to release their flavors).

1 lb ground turkey
1 egg
1/2 onion diced fine
3 cloves garlic minced/diced fine
1/2 cup instant potatoes
1/4 cup milk
2 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp dried rosemary (3 sprigs fresh chopped fine)
1 tbsp dried sage (2 sprigs fresh chopped fine)
1 tbsp dried thyme (1 handful fresh leaves pulled off stalks)
black pepper/salt to taste

1. In a medium mixing bowl, mix all the ingredients really well.
2. Separate the meat into burgers. You should be able to get five (5) respectable sized burgers out of this mixture.
3. I usually store individual burgers in resealable bags in the freezer to offer meal flexibility, however in Grenada the freezer is so humid that the bags quickly freeze to the walls and are difficult to remove. So here I put them in leftover containers, with burgers separated by foil or plastic wrap.

Instant Potatoes Transformed

As we get close to break, we're trying to empty our cupboards so the ants don't have a field day in our absence. Number one thing to eliminate: the GIANT tub of instant potatoes. After the second week of having mashed potatoes with every meal, Dan requested that I get a bit more creative. So this is perhaps the first in a series of "what to do with instant potatoes when you can't stand potatoes anymore."

Salmon Croquettes

• 15 oz can salmon
• 1 cup instant potatoes (or breadcrumbs)
• 1 beaten egg
• 1 tablespoons dried parsley (I use cilantro/coriander)
  
• 1 medium size onion finely chopped
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried cumin
  
• 1/4 cup of milk
• 2 tablespoons oil for frying
  

Instructions

1. Open your can of salmon, probably out of sight of any picky eaters in your household. You'll need to pick bones out. Most would prefer to drain and rinse the fish. I saw my omega 3 fatty acids floating on top and decided to keep it. Place salmon in a medium bowl.
   
2. Mix all ingredients together. I added milk because the original recipe was pretty dry and the patties fell apart upon cooking. Add just enough milk to make the patties not crumbly. You can make 4-5 cakes from a can of salmon.
   
3. Fry the patties in small amt. of 100% pure virgin olive oil, or a good corn oil, till golden on one side, then flip over & brown on second side. Drain on paper towels.

Papaya Pot Roast

Papaya Pot Roast was something I improvised because I had read that papaya has natural meat tenderizers and some website generally recommended trying this technique. It was really tasty, though it could use a bit of improvement. I'll write what I did and recommendations for future improvements and you can see what works best for you.

1 Giant papaya
1 lb meat for roasting (cheapest slightly streaky beef roast for me)
2 carrots peeled and sliced
2 ribs celery sliced
3 or 4 potatoes diced (next time, I think I'd parboil because they took forever to just bake)
1 onion diced (size determined by your preference)
2 cloves garlic minced
3 cardamom pods
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground coriander seeds
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg (I didn't use because friend is allergic)

1. Dice up all your veggies and put them in a bowl with a lid.
2. Preheat oven to 350F or 175C and set the rack low enough so the uncut papaya has at least two inches from the ceiling.
3. Dice up your meat into 1" cubes and add that to the bowl.
4. Add the spices to the bowl and put on the lid. Toss the bowl contents until everything is evenly coated with the spices. Keep bowl covered and set aside. I went with sweet kinds of spices because I figured it was a fruit, but I think savory spices could be good instead (maybe cumin, chili pepper, black pepper, etc.).
5. Grease a deep baking dish (glass is easiest to clean in my book) to make your cleanup easier. Ensure the papaya will fit lengthwise uncut.
6. Prep your papaya: Wash the outside and lay it horizontally in the baking dish. Cut an oval out of the long side so that you have a bowl with a wide-mouthed lid. Scrape out the seeds from both parts of your papaya. The seeds are edible and have a peppery taste, so you can crush them and use them for seasoning, but the ones you are cleaning out now are in squishy sacs, so you'd probably have to use seeds from a prior papaya. Set the lid somewhere clean briefly.
7. Put your bowl papaya back in the baking dish and fill it with the meat and veggies. You can fill it to the rim or a bit above because the lid papaya is somewhat hollow.
8. Put the lid papaya on top, ensuring it is secure enough so it won't fall off in the oven.
9. Bake at 350F/175C for several hours. As mentioned, my potatoes refused to cook even after four hours. The meat was definitely cooked before that. I usually just check periodically by cutting sample pieces. The skin of your papaya may look shrivelly and burnt, but the stuffing is still tender and juicy, so don't worry too much about appearances.
10. When finished, you can either serve as-is with the lid off or scoop everything out into a bowl. The papaya has a pumpkin-like flavor and really matches well with the beef, so do scoop out plenty of papaya if you transfer to a serving bowl.