Meatballs and gravy

 

Meatball Ingredients

• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 ½ lbs. Ground Beef, 85% lean
• ½ Yellow Onion, finely diced
• ¼ cup Breadcrumbs, Plain or Italian
• 2 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 large Egg
• 1 Tablespoon Ketchup
• 1 teaspoon Yellow Mustard
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
• ½ teaspoon Salt
• ¼ teaspoon Pepper
• 2 teaspoons Fresh Parsley, roughly chopped

Gravy

• 1 medium Yellow Onion, sliced into ½ inch strings
• 1 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter
• 1 cup Chicken Broth
• 1 cup Beef Broth
• 1 Beef Bouillon Cube
• 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
• ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1 ½ teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce
• 2-3 drops  browning and seasoning sauce, 
• 1/4 cup cold water + 3 tablespoons Corn Starch

Instructions

• MyTip: Refrigerate the meatballs for 15 minutes after rolling them to help them stay together during cooking.

Brown the Meatballs

• Set olive oil aside and gently mix remaining meatball ingredients in a large bowl until just combined, don’t overmix or the meat will become tough. Roll into 11/2 inch meatballs.
• Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Brown 5-6 meatballs at a time for about 2 minutes on each side. (Leave extra room around each so that you can easily roll them over to cook on the reverse side.) Remove and set aside on a plate. Repeat for all meatballs.
• Reduce heat to medium. Add any oil/drippings from the meatball plate back to the pan and melt a Tablespoon of butter. Add the sliced onions and let them soften and even caramelize a bit, about 15 minutes. Stir often.

Prepare the Gravy

• Add the chicken broth, beef broth, beef bouillon, onion powder, garlic powder, and Worcestershire sauce to the skillet. Stir to combine. 
• Use a silicone spatula to work any brown bits on the bottom of the pan into the sauce. If a darker color is desired, add 2-3 drops of the browning and seasoning sauce.
• Combine the cold water and corn starch in a small bowl with a lid. Shake to combine.
• Bring gravy to a boil. Slowly whisk in cornstarch mixture until desired thickness is obtained. Decrease to medium low. Continue to whisk to ensure that it blends in smoothly. If it gets too thick add a little bit of water.

For the Meatballs

• Add the meatballs back to the skillet and heat for about 10 minutes to allow the meatballs to finish cooking through. Garnish with parsley and serve over mashed potatoes. Which is my favorite 😍 

Notes

My Tips:

• Don't overwork the meat when you mix it, it will make the meatballs tough instead of nice and tender. I roll them loosely.
• Refrigerate the meatballs for 15 minutes after rolling them to help them stay together during cooking. This works for me.
• Searing the meatballs creates a nice color and texture around the outside of the meatball, but do what works best for you.
• Don't overcrowd the pan when  you brown the meatballs, browning in batches makes it easy to rotate them so that they can brown on all sides.
• I made 12 meatballs 
• A nonstick skillet will help keep the meatballs from sticking to the pan and makes it easier to keep them intact when you flip them.

Air fryer chicken kebabs

 INGREDIENTS

  

 

(1lb) Chicken breast or Boneless chicken thighs

1 tablespoon Paprika

1 teaspoon Oregano

1 teaspoon Parsley flakes 

1 teaspoon Garlic powder

1 teaspoon Onion powder 

1 teaspoon Black pepper 

1 teaspoon Seasoning Salt 

2 tablespoon Lemon juice

2 tablespoon Olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS

 

• Soak the bamboo skewers in water for 10 minutes to an hour. If using metal skewers, no need to soak them.
  
• In a small bowl, add the paprika, oregano, parsley, garlic powder, onion granules, black pepper, salt, olive oil, and lemon juice. Mix till well combined.
  
• Pat the chicken dry and cut into 1 inch bite size cubes.
  
• Add the diced chicken, into a bowl with the seasonings and Mix till they are all well combined.
  
  Cover the bowl with clingfilm, put it in the fridge, and let it marinate for 30 minutes up to 4 hours. If you got all day !!
  
• Thread the chicken on the skewer 
  
• Arrange the chicken skewers in air fryer basket in a single layer.
  
  Air fry chicken kabobs at 400F/200C for 12-15 minutes turning them halfway into the cooking.
• Cook another 6- 8 minutes 
  
• Bring out the chicken kebabs, and serve.
• I used mine to make tacos
• This is why I did not add any veggies.
• You can add veggies like green peppers and zucchini 

Pie crust so flaky

 

Pie crust so flaky

INGREDIENTS

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup butter chilled and grated
¼ cup ice water

INSTRUCTIONS

• Chill the butter until it’s very cold, then grate it with a cheese grater. Put it back in the fridge while you move to the next step.
  
• In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt.
  1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt
• Using a pastry blender or your hands, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. If you have a food processor just add everything together and press the pulse button until the ingredients are combined. Doughy but not sticky.
  ½ cup butter you just grated
• Add the cold water a tablespoon at a time, just enough to form the dough into a ball.
• ¼ cup ice water , this is where you add the water a little bit at a time.
• Flatten the dough a bit, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight (or for at least an hour or two!)
• Use the dough like you would any pie crust, roll it out on a pastry mat. I have a pastry mat , I just use my granite countertop it’s so much better.
• Transfer it into the pie plate, if you’re making a single crust pie, trim and flute the edges and make them look pretty and poke the middle with a fork. Wrap in plastic wrap and return to fridge for 20 minutes or so.
• Bake the shell with a piece of foil or parchment paper weighted with pie weights, or  fill with filling of your choice, top with another pie crust and bake. If you are making a peach cobbler just double the recipe use 2 sticks of butter and 3 cups of flour and all other ingredients will stay the same. If you want a really flaky crust use cold milk instead of water 

Cream cheese pound cake

 

This is how we do it !

3 cups all purpose flour
1ts baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 sticks of unsalted butter, room temperature
1-8 ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated white sugar
1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
5 large eggs,
1/2 cup of warm milk

Cream Cheese Pound Cake: Preheat oven to 325 degrees and place oven rack in center of oven. Butter spray and flour (or spray with a non stick spray and add  flour) to the  bundt pan. Or use an angel food cake pan which is used in this picture.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder then add the salt.

If you do not have a sifter you can use a whisk.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (with the paddle attachment), or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add the sugar, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Continue beating on medium-high speed until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Add the vanilla and and beat until incorporated. Add the eggs, one at a time, alternating one cup of flour until it is all mixed together.

At the end add milk and blend well.Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for about 90 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove the cake from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 20 - 30 minutes so it has time to set.

Or place it right on to your cake plate or platter like I do.🥰

This is the one time I am making this cake in a long time not making a glaze or caramel sauce, I’m going to enjoy it just the way it is . It’s so delicious and moist.

Pesto chicken tortellini

 

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 lb chicken thighs boneless and skinless, sliced into strips or chicken tenderloins 
• Seasoning salt to taste 
• ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes are optional drained of oil, chopped
• 1 lb asparagus ends trimmed, cut in half
• ¼ cup basil pesto or use more
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes yellow and red, halved
• 1 cup tortellini uncooked
• One diced onion 
• One teaspoon of garlic powder 

Instructions

• In a large skillet heat 2 tablespoons olive oil on medium heat.  
  
• Add diced chicken thighs or tenderloins(seasoned with seasoning salt and garlic powder ), ¼ cup of chopped onions and sun dried tomatoes and cook everything on medium heat for 5-10 minutes, turning chicken slices over a couple of times, until the chicken is completely cooked through.
  
• Remove the chicken and the sun-dried and onions from the skillet, leaving the oil in.
  
• Add asparagus (ends trimmed), seasoned generously with salt, and ¼ cup of sun-dried tomatoes to the same skillet.  I trimmed well above the ends.
  
• Cook on medium heat for 5-10 minutes until the asparagus is cooked through. Remove the asparagus to a serving plate.
  
• Cook tortellini according to the package instructions, drain.
• Add cooked chicken back to the skillet.   Add basil pesto.  Stir to coat and cook on low-medium heat until the chicken is reheated, 1 or 2 minutes. Remove from heat when there is no pink.
  
• Add cooked tortellini and halved cherry tomatoes to the skillet with the chicken.  Stir to combine.  Add more pesto if desired.
  
• Season with more salt if needed.  
  
• Add chicken, cherry tomatoes and tortellini to the serving plate with asparagus.
  

Copycat Chicken bowl

 

Ingredients

For The Mashed Potatoes

• 8-10 baking potatoes peeled & cubed
• 1/4 cup half & half
• 1 8 oz block cream cheese softened
• salt & pepper, to taste

For The Chicken Bowls

• 12-14 crispy chicken strips cooked
• 1 can golden corn kernels warmed
• 1 cup brown gravy
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

To Make The Mashed Potatoes

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Once the water's boiling, reduce the heat to medium high. Add the potatoes. Cook the potatoes for 30 minutes, or until they're & tender. 
• Strain the potatoes, and then return them to a hot pot. Using a potato masher, mash them as smoothly as possible. Salt & pepper the potatoes, to taste.
• Add the half & half and the cream cheese, mash the mixture again until smooth & everything's evenly incorporated. 

To Assemble The Chicken Bowls

• Add one or two scoops of the mashed potatoes to a soup bowl. Add a spoonful or two of corn kernels to the bowl.
• Top with a couple chicken strips. Drizzle gravy out over top, and finish it off with a sprinkle of the shredded cheddar cheese.
• Repeat until all the ingredients have been used. Serve immediately, and enjoy!