Peanut Butter Popcorn

1/2 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 cube) butter
20 large marshmellows (roughly)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Over medium heat, melt butter.  Add sugar and stir until dissolved.  Add peanut butter, marshmellows, and vanilla.  Stir until melted together (if you cook it too long it will get hard instead of chewy so take it off heat as soon as it is combined).  Pour over popcorn.

*We used mini-marshmellows, probably equalling more than the 20 large mallows it calls for.  This is delightfully chewy and good the next day.  Mmmmm.  Scrumptious.

Grilled Halibut and Black Bean Salsa

We made this for lunch today.  We've had it several times before.  The salsa is awesome on the fish and rice, but really not that great with chips.  Enjoy!

Black Bean Salsa

1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can white corn, drained
1 tomato, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
1 small jalapeño, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
Juice of 2 limes
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup sesame oil
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons onion powder
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir well. Chill while steaming rice and grilling halibut.

 

Grilled Halibut

4 (6 ounce) halibut fillets
2 limes
Olive oil
Sea salt and pepper, to taste

Lightly oil a grill pan with olive oil, heat over medium heat. Wash halibut fillets and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper. Gently place fillets in the hot pan and let cool over medium heat for 5 minutes. Squeeze limes over fillets, flip over and let cook for another 5 minutes until cooked through.

To serve: Place a mound of steamed rice on serving plate. Drizzle salsa over rice, making sure to get some "juice". Place halibut fillet on top, sprinkle some chopped cilantro over the fish and serve. 

Recipe from Dish on Delish

Smoky Corn Chowder

Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe

YIELD: SERVES 4-6

You can sub regular paprika for the smoked but you'll lose, well, the smoky flavor (and it's delicious, I'm telling you).

INGREDIENTS

• 4-5 slices bacon, chopped
• 1/2 cup diced onion or leeks
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika (regular also good)
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 (10-ounce) packages frozen corn
• Potatoes (optional, but good)
• 3 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 4 green onions, white parts cut off and discarded and green parts thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS

1. In a 4 or 5-quart saucepan, cook the chopped bacon over medium heat until golden and crisp. Scoop onto a paper-lined plate and discard all of the bacon grease except a very thin coating (about 1-2 teaspoons).
2. Add the onion and cook for 5-7 minutes until translucent. Stir in the garlic, paprika and red pepper and cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes.
3. Stir in the corn, broth and milk. Bring the soup to a boil and then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Transfer half of the soup to a blender (very carefully - don't overfill the blender since hot liquids will expand while blending!) and puree until mostly smooth.
5. Return the blended soup to the pot and add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Taste and add more if needed.
6. Serve warm topped with green onions and bacon.

**This has been "on deck" for me to try.  When Mom came to take care of us when Jules was born, she made it.  We loved it!  It has great flavor with a little kick.  Mom added cubed potatoes and used regular paprika since that's what we had on hand.

Chicken Enchilada Soup

Slightly modified from: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/12/crock-pot-chicken-enchilada-soup.html

Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup
 Skinnytaste.com 
Nutrition facts (before modifications):
Servings: 6 • Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups + cheese • Old Points: 5 pts • Points+: 7 pts
Calories: 260.9 • Fat: 6.6 g • Protein: 25.4 g • Carb: 29.9 g • Fiber: 6.7 g • Sugar: 4.1 g
Sodium: 572 mg (without salt) 

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1/2 c. onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2-1 c. diced sweet peppers (optional, not part of the original recipe)
• 3 c. low sodium fat-free chicken broth
• 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 1-2 tsp. chipotle chili in adobo sauce (or more to taste)
• 1/4 c. chopped cilantro (plus more for garnish)
•  15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 14.5 oz can petite diced tomatoes (I doubled the recipe and used one can with chipotle and one with green chiles)
• 2 c. frozen corn or drained canned corn
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 2 8 oz skinless chicken breasts (16 oz total) 

Toppings:

• 1/4 c. chopped scallions, for topping 
• 1/4 c. chopped cilantro
• 2 diced avocados
• 3/4 c. shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese
• sour cream or plain Greek yogurt (optional)
• 6 corn tortillas, cut into strips (Optional, not part of the original recipe. I used this rather than the recommended tortilla chips to make it healthier and we all enjoyed it.)

Directions:

Heat oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add onion, garlic, and peppers and sauté until soft, 3-4 minutes. Slowly add the chicken broth, tomato sauce and chipotle adobo sauce and bring to a boil. Add cilantro and remove from heat. Pour into crock pot.

To the crockpot, add drained beans, diced tomatoes, corn, cumin, oregano and stir. Add the chicken breasts; cover and cook on low heat for 4-6 hours.

Remove chicken and shred with two forks. Add chicken back into the soup, adjust salt and cumin to taste. (I added the tortilla strips at this point. You could also add them to each bowl while it is still hot.) Serve in bowls and top with fat free sour cream, cheese, scallions and cilantro. You can also top with avocado or crushed tortilla chips. Enjoy! 

I doubled the recipe when I made it and we all enjoyed the flavor. I used the full amount of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce and seasoned diced tomatoes. I also added an extra can of black beans (3 for a doubled recipe). It made enough for 2 dinners.

Mom's Vanilla Pudding

Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe (www.melskitchencafe.com)

Yield: Makes about 3 cups of pudding

INGREDIENTS

• 2 2/3 cups whole milk, divided
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 large egg

DIRECTIONS

1. Over medium heat, bring 2 cups of the milk to a boil in a medium saucepan. While it is heating, combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium, heatproof bowl. Gradually whisk in the remaining 2/3 cup milk, a little at a time so lumps do not form, then whisk in the egg. Once the milk is boiling, very gradually add it to the cornstarch mixture in the bowl, whisking quickly the whole time.
2. Return the mixture back to the saucepan, stirring constantly with a silicon spatula, whisk or wooden spoon. Once it comes to a simmer, cook it for one minute longer (which will cook the cornstarch and egg fully). Large bubbles will pop at the surface and the pudding will become very thick. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Strain the pudding through a fine mesh strainer to remove any lumps or pieces of cooked egg into a medium bowl (you can omit this step if you don't have a fine mesh strainer - just try your best to whisk quickly during all the combining/cooking steps to avoid little bits of cooked egg). Cover the pudding with plastic wrap, pressing it directly on the surface of the pudding, and refrigerate until chilled completely through.

Note: I have been craving Mom's pudding.  I had a sneaky suspicion that she didn't ever use a recipe because she just knew how to make it, but this tastes just like hers always did.

*Mom always served this over bottled peaches and coconut, while pudding was still warm. 

**Variations: Served with any berry or bananas;  chocolate chips, coconut, pecans (while warm so it melts);  For a holiday twist, peppermint chips would be good :)

Firecracker Grilled Alaska Salmon

Rated: Source: We had this at a friend's house, but they got the recipe from allrecipes.com Prep Time: 20 Minutes Cook Time: 20 Minutes Ready In: 6 Hours 40 Minutes Servings: 8

"A hot and sassy marinade makes this grilled salmon even more delicious."

INGREDIENTS:

8 (4 ounce) fillets salmon 1/2 cup peanut oil 4 tablespoons soy sauce 4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 4 tablespoons green onions, chopped 3 teaspoons brown sugar

2 cloves garlic, minced 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes 1 teaspoon sesame oil 1/2 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Place salmon filets in a medium, nonporous glass dish. In a separate medium bowl, combine the peanut oil, soy sauce, vinegar, green onions, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, sesame oil and salt. Whisk together well, and pour over the fish. Cover and marinate the fish in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours.
2.	Prepare an outdoor grill with coals about 5 inches from the grate, and lightly oil the grate.  (*We often cook it in a pan on the stovetop, and it works well and tastes yummy.)
3.	Grill the fillets 5 inches from coals for 10 minutes per inch of thickness, measured at the thickest part, or until fish just flakes with a fork. Turn over halfway through cooking.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2013 Allrecipes.com

Printed from Allrecipes.com 11/5/2013

  **We love this!  We didn't have peanut oil, so we have used vegetable oil and coconut oil, which both work well.

*** You can get inexpensive (but good), frozen salmon at Walmart.