Posts Tagged ‘cilantro’

I have to give the idea for this one to my sister. Last Christmas she, single handily, began an addiction for me.

During one of her crazy parties she broke out this stuff called hummus. I had never tried it…never really wanted to.

Somehow she con-ed me into trying some, and the rest is history.

Now when you have a bad addiction like mine, it can get pricey.

So I wanted to try to save a few bucks and rummage thru my pantry to see what and if I can make some.

First step….Dump everything into a food processor

Process the crud out of it. You want a smooth paste.

While the processor is on, drizzle in olive oil until your desired consistency is reached.

Dump that glorious goop into a dish and devour.

Now the because the cilantro becomes purred the general appearance my not be appetizing….but if that turns you off just close your eyes or eat in a dark closet.

Buffalo Cilantro White Bean Hummus

Makes about 1.5 cups

Ingredients

• 1 can (15 oz) white beans ( I used great Northern)
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 Tbsp buffalo sauce
• ½ cup sharp white cheddar cheese
• 2 Tbsp Tahini
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp lemon zest
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor.
2. While processor is on drizzle in olive oil.
3. Once a creamy paste is reached scoop out and serve.
4. Store in fridge.

When I am not in the mood to cook or get dressed to go get something , I make this.

Spicy Chicken

It is fast to whip up and I pretty much always have what is needed on hand.

Process guacamole

I don’t typically feel bad after eating this either.

Add cheese, because everything taste better with cheese

It is what I eat after I eat this that is bad

Spicy Chicken with Guacamole Dip/Spread

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breast, cubed
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 4 tsp cayenne powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tomato, quartered
• 3 avocados (guts only, no skins or seeds )
• 1 Serrano pepper
• 2 colves garlic
• 1 bunch cilantro
• 1 cup Greek Yogurt
• ¼ onion
• ¼ cup cheese, cheddar
• 6 tortillas

Directions

1. In a gallon size Ziploc bag, place chicken, olive oil, salt, pepper, chili powder, garlic powder and cayenne. Seal and shake. Pop in fridge for at least 20 min.
2. In the bowl of a food processor add remaining ingredients (tomato, avocado, Serrano, garlic, yogurt, cilantro and onion) blend until smooth. Add cheese and pulse three to four times.
3. Remove chicken from fridge and sauté in a large pan until done.
4. Take a tortilla and place 1- 1 ½ Tbsp of guacamole dip/spread. Top with chicken and roll. Eat and enjoy.

This is defiantly one of my top 10 recipes. It has my love of carbs and cheese combine with some chicken so I don’t feel sooo bad. And it is super easy.

Here we go.

Place your shredded chicken in a bowl and add your sour cream (or I like to use Greek Yogurt), 1/2 a cup of your cheese and cilantro. Give it a good mix to combine. This is where it gets fun. Add 1/4 cup of buffalo sauce. Yummmm, huh

Now I didn’t have any fresh Cilantro left so I used this amazing little thing. Just use the same amount as you would fresh cilantro.

Now….Boil your Manicotti noodles in some salted water; remove and let cool.

Time to Stuff.

Just take a Manicotti shell in one hand and a spoon full of the chicken mix and gently stuff it in. Do this until it is full. Tuck away into a casserole dish.

Lets move on to the cheese sauce shall we….

In a medium sauce pan/pot melt your butter. Once melted add your flour and mix it all up. Add cream and whisk until there are no lumps. Add remainder of buffalo sauce (3/4 cup) and stir some more. Add your cheese and salt and pepper to taste. And Pour over the stuffed noodles.

Pop in oven for 30 min or until bubbly.

Remove and let cool for about 5 min. Serve.

Manchilada

Ingredients

• ½ pkg (4 oz) Manicotti shells
• 1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
• 3 Tbsp Cilantro, chopped
• ½ cup sour cream (or Greek yogurt)
• 3 Tbsp butter
• 3 Tbsp flour
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 2 ½ cups cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 cup buffalo sauce (or Franks hot sauce)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Cook manicotti shells in salted boiling water until al dente. Remove and set aside to cool
3. In a large bowl combine chicken, cilantro, sour cream and ½ cup cheese. Add Salt and Pepper to taste.
4. Mix in ¼ cup buffalo sauce.
5. Grab your cooled Manicotti shells and gently stuff chicken mix inside.
6. Place in a 9×9 casserole dish.
7. In a medium sauce pan/pot melt butter over medium heat. Once melted add flour and mix.
8. Add cream and whisk until there are no lumps. Add remainder of buffalo sauce (3/4 cup) and stir some more.
9. Add your cheese and salt and pepper to taste.
10. Pop in oven for 30 min or until bubbly.
11. Remove and let cool for about 5 min. Serve.

I have been blessed with some of the most amazing and defiantly most beautiful sister-in-laws out there. I look up to these ladies and aspire to be as wonderful as they are. I am sure it is all how they were raised. There mother (my mother-in-law) is super woman.

Now that I have gushed about my family….here is a recipe I got from one of these gorgeous ladies. I have never been a huge fan of Oriental salads but when she brought this to a family dinner I hounded her for the recipe (I’m sure by the end of the night she wanted to punch me

Here is your line up…….

(the dinosaur nudges really help round it all out

First break up the Ramen noodles and spread them out on a cookie sheet,

Toss them in the oven with your chicken nuggets (heat your oven according to what is says on the nuggets box, mine was to 425). Watch them so they don’t burn. You just want to toast them. It takes about 10 min.

Now chop up your cilantro and green onions and add them to the large bowl with you romaine lettuce.

Now for the dressing….in a medium bowl add all your dressing ingredients (oil, sugar, vinegar, dry mustard, soy sauce, celery salt). And give it a good whisk, until fully combine.

Once your nuggets are done add to the bowl with the lettuce mix. Top with toasted Ramen noodles and drizzle on the dressing.

See the dinosaur nuggets really help

Oriental Salad

Ingredients

• 1 bag Romaine lettuce ( 10oz)
• 1 bunch cilantro
• 1 bunch green onions
• 1 pkg Ramen noodles (3oz)
• 1 cup olive oil
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¾ cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsp dry mustard powder
• 1 ½ Tbsp Soy sauce
• 2 tsp Celery salt
• 10 chicken nuggets

Directions

1. Preheat your oven according to the directions on your chicken nuggets box. Mine was to 425.
2. Break up your ramen noodles and spread out on a cookie sheet. Pop in the oven along with your chicken nuggets.
3. Cook nuggets according to directions on package. Watch noodles they only take about 10 min. You just want them golden brown. Remove and set aside.
4. In a large bowl add your romaine lettuce.
5. Chop up your green onion and cilantro and add to the bowl.
6. In another bowl add the oil, vinegar, mustard powder, soy sauce and celery salt. Whisk until it comes together.
7. Once nuggets are done remove and add to the bowl with the lettuce mix. Top with Ramen noodles and drizzle on dressing.

So the other day my hubby came home with this…..

Oh the things I can do with it…… So to go along with my buffalo and cilantro kick I have been on lately, this beast was created.

So lets get started. Here is your line up…

Chop up your cilantro, as fine as you can get it.In a large bowl add your butter, salt, pepper, oil, and garlic and add your cilantro

Mix until fully combine and glove up

This is where the violations come in…..Put your bird in a large roasting pan. Take your gloved hand and separate the skin from the meat.

Now take a large, heaping helping of that cilantro butter mix and stuff it in that separation you made

Continue to stuff until you cant fit any more or it is gone. Rub any remaining on the exterior of the bird.

Now on to the buffalo sauce….. Take your butter, oil, salt and pepper and buffalo/hot sauce and toss it all into a bowl

Stir until completely mix and smooth…yumm, I could drink this stuff up by the gallon

Now take your meat injector and suck up this delisousness and stab the bird and inject. I like mine spicy so we do this many times.

Cover with aluminum foil and say good night. Stick in the oven Almost done……

Remove tent and continue to cook until you get this beauty (internal temp should be no less than 170 at the thickest part)

Carve her up and enjoy. Amazing dipped in the Cilantro Ranch from the buffalo slider recipe. Perfect with a side of the Potato Tots.

Buffalo Cilantro Turkey

Ingredients:

• 1 Turkey (mine was huge…..about 20 lbs)
• 1 ½ cups butter, super softened
• 2 bunches cilantro
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1 Tbsp pepper
• 1 Tbsp garlic powder
• ¼ cup olive oil

For the buffalo sauce

• ½ cup butter, melted
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 2 cups buffalo sauce (I used Franks)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 250
2. Chop of the ends of the cilantro bunches and toss, so you just have the tops.
3. Finely chop up the tops/ leafs
4. In a large bowl combine the butter, chopped cilantro, salt, pepper, garlic powder and olive oil.
5. Mix until fully combine.
6. Place turkey in large roasting pan, breast side up
7. Separate the skin from the meat; all the way around (top)
8. Take a large handful of butter and cilantro mixture and stuff under the skin. Rub in
9. Once all butter mix has been stuffed in, rub any remaining on hand or in bowl all around exterior.
10. For the sauce, take the melted butter in a large bowl and mix with olive oil, salt and pepper and buffalo
11. Take a meat injector and fill up with buffalo mix. Inject all over turkey.
12. Tent turkey with foil and place in oven for 1 hour.
13. After 1 hour increase oven temp to 275 and cook for 30 min.
14. Pull out and check, if juices have started to gather at the bottom or in the body cavity, baste with said juices. Put back in oven for 30 more min
15. After 30 min crank oven up to 300 and cook for 45 min. Check and stick back in for another 45 min.
16. After this crank oven up to 325 and put turkey back in until it reaches 160 (at the thickest point). Check every 30-40 min. Baste as juices become available.
17. Once Turkey reaches 160 remove tent and continue to cook at 325 until internal temp reaches 170. Remove and let cool about 10 min. (internal temp will continue to rise about 5 degrees).
18. Carve and serve. Goes amazing with cilantro ranch from the Buffalo Slider recipe.

As promised here is a recipe that doesn’t involve sugar, cookies or cake….but still deals with my mini obsession.

I love buffalo wings….and with it being football season it give me an excuse to make them everyday…..and I dont even watch football.

These little guys are so stinking good I polished away most of them myself. Even my little guy loved them. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do/did. This is actually going to be my second recipe submitted in the Pillsbury bake off.

The sliders have a wonderful buffalo heat to them, then you take a bit and find the secret stash of Gorgonzola in the middle…….man I am making my self hungry. Guess what we are having for dinner again….ok got to go back to the store.

Here is your lineup, (now if you can find ground chicken it will make it more authentic, my store didn’t have any, but the turkey tastes just as yummy)

Lets get started on the Cilantro Ranch. First cut the tops off the cilantro bunches and put into your food processor,

Process it until it breaks down. Take out 1 Tbsp of this broken down deliciousness for the meat and just set aside.

Then add your ranch, garlic and salt and pepper to taste. This is what you will get….pure yumm

Pour into a sealed Tupperware and stick in the fridge for a bit (just to thicken)…we will break this out in a bit. Now on to the sliders. In a large bowl put your meat (I used ground turkey), reserved chopped cilantro, hot sauce, your favorite wing sauce, garlic powder and bread crumbs

Mix it all up

Scoop about a Tablespoon or two balls onto a parchment lined cookie sheet Then make a well in your ball o’ meat

Fill this well with about 1/2-1 tsp of Gorgonzola cheese crumbles (you could use blue cheese if you wish)

Once they are all filled and formed into paties pop them into your oven for about 20 min (or until done)

Bake your biscuits according to package directions

Now remember that Cilantro deliciousness????? Break that out of the fridge and spread on 1/2 a biscuit, put some lettuce on the other half

Add you patty and 1/4 of a slice of Havarti cheese

Put your cilantro ranched up other half on top and there you have it……my mouth is watering just thinking about it and looking at the pic.

Buffalo Chicken/Turkey Sliders with Cilantro Ranch

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground turkey or chicken
• 3 Tblsp breadcrumbs
• 1 tsp Garlic Powder
• 1 Tbsp cilantro, puréed (reserved from cilantro ranch recipe below)
• ½ cup Franks hot sauce
• 1 Tbsp your favorite wing sauce (or 2 more Tbsp Franks)
• 1 pkg Gorgonzola crumbs (5 oz pkg)
• 1 tube Grands Jr. Butter flavor Biscuits
• 5 slices Havarti cheese
• ½  pkg (about 2 cups) Romaine lettuce chopped

Cilantro Ranch

• 2 bunches Cilantro
• ¾ cup Ranch
• 3 cloves garlic
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400F
2. Start with Cilantro Ranch…..Cut tops off cilantro, so you just have the tops/leafs. Put in food processor and blend until broken up. Remove 1 Tbsp and set aside
3. Add ranch, garlic and salt, pepper to taste.  Blend until creamy.
4. Transfer to sealed container and set aside in fridge to thicken.
5. In a large bowl combine turkey/chicken, breadcrumbs, garlic powder, reserved pureed cilantro, Franks, wing sauce. Mix until well combine.
6. Scoop out by the tablespoonful and place onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
7. Take each ball and flatten and make a well.
8. Fill well with ½ -1 tsp of Gorgonzola cheese.
9. Cover cheese with meet to form a patty.
10. Bake for 20 min or until done
11. Remove and let cool.
12. Bake biscuits according to package directions (typically 10 min at 400F)
13. Once biscuits have cooled to touch remove cilantro ranch from fridge and spread on ½ of the biscuit.
14. On the bottom ½ add lettuce
15. Add meat and ¼ of a slice of Havarti cheese
16. Top with top part of biscuit that is covered with cilantro ranch.
17. Enjoy!!!!

Makes about 24 sliders