Chicken Fajita Bites

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Unless you are stranded on a desert island, you know that it is Super Bowl week, and that the big game is this Sunday. I'm really not sure who is playing, but I will be sure to find out by kickoff! To me, this day is always about the food.  One of the fun appetizers I will be serving are these Fajita Bites. They are tasty and easy to make, with a lot of the prep work done the day before. Win!

Chicken Fajita Bites

Super Bowl Party~Southwestern Egg Rolls!

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This recipe for Southwestern Egg Rolls (just like Chili's) is the perfect appetizer for your Super Bowl Party! I rolled some of the spicy goodness in flour tortillas and some in egg rolls wrappers. Then I baked them instead of putting them in the fryer. They are better for you, taste great, and they don't require you to stand by the fryer while everyone else is watching the game! Just pop them in the oven as you need them, and 7 minutes later, they are done!! Simple and scrumptious!

Southwestern Egg Rolls

(adapted from Most Wanted Recipes)

1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil

1 boneless, skinless Chicken Breast

2 tablespoons Green Onion, minced

2 tablespoons Red Bell Pepper, minced

1/3 cup frozen Corn Kernels

1/4 cup Black Beans, cooked

2 tablespoons Lettuce, chopped

Pinch of Cayenne Pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons Fresh Parsley, minced

1/2 teaspoon Ground Cumin

1/2 teaspoon Chili Powder

Pinch of Salt

3/4 cup Monterey Jack Cheese, shredded

5-8" Low Carb Flour Tortillas

Egg Roll Wrappers

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook your chicken in a pan sprayed with cooking oil.

Remove from heat and let it cool.

Once cool, dice the chicken, and set aside.

Heat your pan with the veggie oil over medium heat.

Stir in your green onion and peppers.

I just love those colors!!!

Cook for 5 minutes or until tender.

I had to switch pans here. :) Sorry, but my small

pan just wouldn't hold all of these ingredients.

I placed the cooked peppers and onion in to this pan,

then added the diced chicken.

Then add in the corn, black beans, lettuce,parsley,

cumin, chili powder, and cayenne pepper.

Cook, stirring for 5 minutes or until tender.

Remove from the hear, and stir in the Monterey Jack cheese

so that it melts.

When wrapping your mix in the tortillas, place the mix in the middle

of the tortilla.....

fold in the sides.....

and roll the tortilla tightly.

When wrapping your mix in egg roll wrappers, place the mix

diagonal between 2 opposite sides of the wrap.

Brush the edges with water.

Fold the 2 opposite sides in and roll the egg roll tight.

Using a pastry brush, spread a small amount of melted butter

over the egg rolls rolled in the egg roll wrappers.

It will help them brown a bit. It is not necessary for the

tortillas. Place the egg rolls on a baking sheet

and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes.

Enjoy!

I took these egg rolls to a party, and they were a hit!

They were served with duck sauce and avocado ranch dip.

Thanks for joining me today!

Southwest Crab Rangoon Appetizer

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It's almost New Year's Eve! Can you believe it will be 2013?!! One of my favorite foods to serve at New Years Eve parties are appetizers! They are such fun to eat, and I love to get a little creative and design new and unique ones. I always try to serve at least one new one mixed in with some old favorites. One of the new ones I will be serving this year is a Southwest Crab Rangoon. They are baked, not fried, and they have a little bit of a kick. Of course, if you are big on "kick", you can always add more!

Southwest Crab Rangoon

4 imitation ounces Crab

2 ounces Cream Cheese

1/4 cup Red Pepper

1 Green Onion

1 teaspoon Hot Sauce

4-5 leaves Cilantro

Flour Tortillas
1 egg
Water

Homemade Ranch Dressing

Cut some squares out of the tortilla with a cookie cutter.

I used a 2 1/2" scalloped edge cookie cutter.

I got 3 squares per tortilla, but if you use a larger one, 

of course you will get more. I used medium Mission

Carb Balance Flour Tortillas, approx.7" in diameter.

Rinse and drain the crab.

Mix the crab and the cream cheese. 

A fork works great for getting the 2 mixed together well.

Add the green onion and ......

the red pepper.

Chop your cilantro and toss it in. Add the hot sauce.
Mix together.

Lay out all your pieces of tortilla.
Place a teaspoon on rangoon mix in the center of
each square.

Create an egg wash by mixing 1 egg and 1 teaspoon water.
The egg wash will help the tortilla stay together.
Brush the edges with the egg wash.

Bring 2 opposite points of the square together.

Bring the 2 open ends to the middle.
Press to keep closed.

Place the appetizer on a baking sheet.
Bake for 10-15 minutes.

Serve with homemade ranch, soy sauce, or tempura.

Enjoy and Happy New Year!

Here's the parties we are attending this week:
Thursday's Treasures
Freedom Friday's

Southwestern Stuffed Peppers~SRC Day!

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Today is reveal day for The Secret Recipe Club and this month I was so lucky to be assigned the blog, Inquiring Chef. The blog is written by Jess, an American living in Bangkok with her husband Frank. Please stop by and see all her mouthwatering recipes and interesting posts about her amazing life! I was thrilled to see a recipe for southwestern food, as I dearly love the flavors and scents. Just yesterday I was at the grocery, and I realized that there was an incredible aroma in the air, and I was still in the parking lot!! As I walked closer to the store, I realized that the employees were roasting New Mexico Hatch Chili Peppers out in front of the store. Oh my goodness, there is nothing better. My nose was in heaven, and I didn't want to go in to the store. The peppers had just arrived, and the store will roast them for free, if you purchase a case. Unfortunately, I can not use an entire case, but I am glad a lot of people can, because I got the benefit of that satisfying, comforting scent that stayed with me all day, and just made me sigh with pleasure. Oh, so good! 

Anyway, back to this incredibly, wonderful Southwestern Style Stuffed Peppers recipe!
You must make this! You will love it! I am giving you the recipe amounts as Jess wrote it. I cut it in half when I made it, as there were only two of us eating, and we ate every bit of it. I did add corn to the recipe and I left out the cilantro. I served them with a steak for my husband and a chicken breast for me. Yum!

Southwestern Stuffed Peppers

4 medium Bell Peppers (any color)

1 1/4 cup Grated Cheddar Cheese

2 cups Cooked Rice (brown or white)

3/4 cup Black Beans

1/2 teaspoon Chili Powder

1/2 teaspoon Cumin

1/2 teaspoon Salt

3/4 cup Salsa

1/2 small Onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup Cooked Corn

3 tablespoon Cilantro, chopped (more for garnish)

Sour Cream (optional for serving)

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Thie first thing I did was make my beans from dried ones. 

I don't eat much salt, and canned beans have salt.

You have to start your beans the day before for best results!

 Fill a bowl with water, and pour your beans in.

Rinse the beans thoroughly to remove dirt..

Sort them to get rid of any bad beans or possibly stones.

I sort them as I place them in the pot I will be cooking them in.

Add 3-4 cups of cold water for every 1/2 lb of beans.
Let the beans soak overnight, or at least for 6-8 hours.

Then drain the water, rinse again, and add 6 cups of hot water
to the beans. Simmer the beans until desired tenderness is
achieved, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. You should lid your pot,
but leave a little escape for the steam. You can't see
mine, but it is on the side.

Slice your peppers in half, lengthwise.
Scrape out the core and remove the seeds.

Set 1/4 cup of the cheese aside.
In a large bowl, combine the 1 cup of cheese and the cooked rice.

Add the black beans.

Also add in the chili powder, cumin, salt, salsa,
corn and onion. Add the cilantro also.

Mix all the ingredients together.
Doesn't it look so gorgeous?
Gotta love the colors!!

Spray your baking dish with pan spray, and then
arrange the peppers in the dish.
Place the rice mixture into the peppers. Pack it
gently to compress  it to get in all the
nook and crannys of the peppers.

Bake the peppers until the rice starts to turn
golden and crisp on the top, and the peppers soften,
15-20 minutes.

Remember that 1/4 cup of cheese we
set aside in the beginning of the recipe? 
Sprinkle that cheese over the peppers and continue
baking the peppers until it melts, about 3-4 minutes.

Remove the peppers and place them on the plate.

Serve immediately, topping with sour cream if desired.

Enjoy!
Thanks for joining me!

Thanks Jess, for a wonderful recipe that I will make again and again!

Southwestern Patty Melt

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I love Patty Melts! There is just something so wonderful about the taste of the grilled onions peeking out from under a slice of swiss creaminess, the burger grilled to perfection, sandwiched between two slices of grilled rye, with only mustard between them. Oh, my! How I love a patty melt!! But hey, I love southwestern food also. So I decided there was no reason not to combine the two, and this is what I came up with: Southwestern Patty Melt!

Simple Pico de Gallo

1 Roma Tomato

1 clove Garlic

1/4 of a small Onion

Cilantro

(ignore pic of garlic powder) :)

Chop your Roma Tomato into small bite size pieces.

Mince your garlic, add tomatoes to the bowl.

Chop your onion and cilantro. Add to the bowl.

Mix well.

Make Seasoning

1 teaspoon McCormick Perfect Pinch Savory Salt Free Seasoning

(the one with peppers, cinnamon, lemon peel, and rosemary on the label)

1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder

1/2teaspoon Spanish Smoked Sweet Paprika

1/4 teaspoon Ground White Pepper

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.

Putting it all together

Hamburger

Baby Swiss Cheese Slices

Marbled Rye Bread

Avocado

Mustard

Patty your burgers, and get your swiss cheese ready.

Cut onion, red pepper and orange pepper into thin slices.

You can use green pepper also, if you want.

Start pan frying your burger. Sprinkle some seasoning on

top of the burger, and let the onions and peppers start to grill.

For this patty melt, I used marbled rye, buttered one side,

and grilled it.

When your burger is grilled to your liking, 

place the grilled peppers and onions on top of the burger,

 and place cheese on top. Let cheese melt. 

Place on bread.

 Put patty melt together. Grilled bread topped with

a few squirts of mustard, burger with veggies and cheese,

teaspoon or two of salsa,

several slices of avocado,

Southwest Patty Melt!

Delicious!