Crazy Girl's Kitchen

Get ready:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 boneless chicken breasts, cubed
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 2 cups long grain rice
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 2lb broccoli florets, blanched
• 2 Tsp butter
• 2 Tsp flour
• 3 cup whole milk
• 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• 1 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
• 2 Tsp butter, cubed
• salt and black pepper

Now let’s play:

Bring 4 cups of chicken stock to broil. Pour in the rice, stir, and simmer for 20 minutes. Then use a fork to fluff the rice up. Set aside. Heat up olive oil in a saute pan. Add cubed chicken breasts with garlic. Season with salt, pepper, and rosemary. Cook through, and then set aside. In a sauce pan, melt 2 Tsp of butter, and then whisk in flour till there is no lump. Pour in milk. Add Cheddar and Parmesan when milk is warm (should never not be broiled).  Whisk till the sauce runs smooth. Season up with salt and pepper to taste. Combine cooked rice, chicken, broccoli, and sauce in a large bowl. Pour into a 9*13 baking dish. Sprinkle bread crumbs and cubed butter on the top. Bake at 400F for 30 minutes or till the top is golden brown. Let the casserole for 15 minutes on the countertop before serving (about 8 servings).

After-play thoughts:

I prefer using white pepper here, as it’s more aesthetically appealing and has a more blend-in peppery flavor.

Get ready:

• 1/2 thick sliced bacon, chopped
• 6 links sweet Italian sausage
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 Chinese eggplant, diced
• 6 cloves garlic , minced
• 2 14oz cans diced tomato
• 1 6oz tomato paste
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 Tsp dried oregano
• 1 pound rigatoni
• 3 cups shred mozzarella
• 1 cup grated Parmesan
• salt and pepper

Get ready:

• 3 Tsp canola oil
• Meat of a 3-lb rotisserie chicken, chopped
• 1 onion, diced
• 6 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
• 1 Tsp ground cumin
• 1 Tsp chili powder
• 2 14-oz cans of diced tomato
• 16 corn tortillas
• 3 Tsp canola oil
• 1 Tsp flour
• 3 Tsp chili powder
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 14-oz can of tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar
• 1 cup shredded Pepper Jack
• salt & pepper

Now let’s play:

Heat up oil in a large saute pan. Add onion, garlic, jalapeno, cumin and chili powder. Saute till onion is translucent. Add chicken and diced tomato. Cook through. Then set aside. In a sauce pan, heat up the other 3 Tsp of oil and whisk in flour till well combined. Add the next five ingredients and cook through. Microwave tortillas for 30 seconds while setting oven temperature to 350F.  Ladle some sauce into a large roasting pan to cover the bottom. Roll up a tortilla with about 4-6 Tsp of chicken mix and place it in the roasting pan. Repeat with the rest. Pour the rest of sauce over rolled-up tortillas and sprinkle cheese on the top. Transfer into the oven and cook till cheese is melted and sauce is bubbling. Cool for 15 minutes then serve (about 8 servings).

After-play thoughts:

I don’t recommend making too many ahead of time as tortillas can get mushy after sitting in the sauce too long even when refrigerated.

Get ready:

• 1.5lb ground beef
• 2 Tsp canola oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 Tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground cayenne
• 1 Tsp dried cilantro
• 1 14oz can tomato sauce
• 1 16oz can black beans, drained
• 40 tortilla chips
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 jalapeno pepper, thinly sliced
• salt and pepper

Now let’s play:

Heat up canola oil in a large saute pan. Season ground beef with salt and pepper. Brown and break apart the beef with a spatula till no longer red. Add onion and saute for another 3 minutes. Add chili powder, ground cumin, and ground cayenne. Saute for another 2 minutes. Add beans and tomato sauce. Cook for 3 minutes. Fold in dried cilantro leaves. Spread tortilla chips at the bottom of a large roasting pan. Spoon on half of cooked mixture on top of the chips evenly. Top off with cheese and scatter jalapeno slices over the cheese. Place the whole thing under a broiler (set on high) for about 3-5 minutes or until cheese melted. To serve, using a lasagna server to scoop out a small portion onto a plate. Then scoop out another small portion and lay it on top of the previous scooped out portion, so each serving has two layers. You can make another batch of nachos with the other half of cooked mix, or store it for later use (about 2-4 dinner servings).

After-play thoughts:

It’s a quite lean dish if you opt for 90% or above lean ground beef.

Get ready:

• 3 lb ground beef
• 1 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan
• 3 whole large eggs, whisked
• 1 Tsp dried basil
• 1 Tsp dried parsley
• 1 Tsp garlic powder
• 2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 3/4 cup plain bread crumbs

Now let’s play:

Mix all the ingredients together by hand, and then use palms to form into 1.5-inch balls (make about 48 balls). Bake in a 400F oven for 20-25 minutes.

After-play thoughts:

Thanks to Alton Brown’s perennial effort of turning gadgets into multitaskers, mini-muffin pans are hands down the best tool for the job. The pans promote even proportion (meatballs should just fit comfortably into each cup) and even browning while holding the shape. If you use those pans that make 24 mini-muffins per pan, this recipe conveniently makes 2 pans of meatballs.

Get Ready:

• 1 lb Rotini Pasta, cooked
• 1.5 lb broccoli florets, cooked
• 2 Tsp granulated garlic
• 1 Tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp dried basil leaves
• 3/4 cup sliced black olives
• 5 Tsp olive oil
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper

Now let’s play:

Toss everything together.

After-play thougths:

I think Rotini is the best shape of pasta for this recipe, but you can substitute it with any other shape desired. Also, there are couple of ways to cook broccoli – saute, bake, blanch, steam, etc. The best and simplest way I find is to use a very large pot for cooking pasta, pour broccoli into the pot 3 minutes before the pasta is done, and then drain the whole thing.

Get ready:

• 1lb (16 counts) lasagna noodles, cooked to barely al dente, drained, and sprinkled with olive oil
• extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 pounds ground beef
• 2 onions, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 14 1/2-ounce cans tomato sauce
• 4 cups ricotta cheese
• 4 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 tsp dried basil leaves
• 1 Tsp dried parsley leaves
• 1 tsp dried oregano leaves
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• salt and pepper
• extra Parmesan and shredded mozzarella, for topping

Now let’s play:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat up 2 Tsp olive oil in a large saute pan, add beef (seasoned with salt and pepper) and brown until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Add onion and garlic to the pan, and saute for another 5 minutes. Stir in 2 cans tomato sauce.

In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta, mozzarella, eggs,, basil, parsley, oregano, and parmesan. Season with salt and pepper.

To assemble the lasagna: Measure 4 cooked noodle to the width of the pan and cut off  the portions where the noodles are longer then the pan width. Coat the bottom of a 14 inch lasagna pan with olive oil and 1/4 can of tomato sauce. Arrange 4 noodles lengthwise in a slightly overlapping layer on the sauce. Then, line one end of the pan with a lasagna noodle that was measure to the width of the pan. Spread 1/2 of the cheese mixture over the pasta (make sure to cover the edges). Spread 1/2 of the meat mixture over the ricotta, and top with 1/4 can of tomato sauce. Repeat with the next layer of noodles (the only difference is to line each end of the pan with a cut-off portion of the lasagna noodles from step one), cheese mixture, meat mixture, and tomato sauce. Top last layer with noodles as the bottom layer, tomato sauce, extra shredded mozzarella and Parmesan. Tap the pan to force out air bubbles. Bake for 1 hour, and let lasagna rest for 30 minutes on the counter top before cutting and serving.

After-play thoughts:

For the best result, a large deep lasagna pan or a small roasting pan should be used. From my own experience, the Pyrex 13*9 baking dish is too shallow for the job.

Get ready:

• 2 Tsp olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 2 cooked chicken breasted, diced
• 2 medium zucchini, diced
• 2 cups black olives
• 2 14oz cans tomato sauce
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 lb spaghetti, cooked and drained (reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water)
• salt and pepper to taste
• grated Parmesan cheese if desired

Now let’s play:

Heat up olive oil in a large saute pan at medium high heat, and saute minced garlic with red pepper flakes for two minutes. Add zucchini, saute for 2 minutes. Add chicken stock, cover, and cook for 5 minutes. Add chicken, olive, tomato sauce, white wine, dried thyme, and dried basil. Stir together well, and cook for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Toss with drained pasta (if sauce seems dry, add reserved pasta water). Serve immediately (4-6 servings).

After-play thoughts:

If you use chicken breasts baked at home, chicken stock can be substitute with the juice from baking. Also, you can shred the chicken cubes to make it almost like some sort of chicken ragu sauce.

Get ready:

• 6 pound coarsely ground beef chuck, seasoned with salt and pepper
• 5 Tsp olive oil
• 3 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 10 clove garlic, minced
• 2 large jalapeno pepper, halved, seeded chopped
• 4 Tsp chili powder
• 2 Tsp ground coriander
• 1 Tsp ground cumin
• 1 Tsp sweet paprika
• 1 Tsp dried oregano
• 1 Tsp dried thyme leaves
• 1 Tsp dried sage leaves
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 12 oz bottle dark beer
• 4 cups homemade chicken stock
• 3 (16 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 2 (15.5 ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 (15.5 ounce) cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15.5 ounce) cans light red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15.5 ounce) cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• salt and pepper to taste
• shredded cheddar for garnish

Now let’s play:

Heat up 2 Tsp olive oil in a 7-qt or larger dutch oven and brown half of the grounded beef for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside. Repeat with the rest of the meat. Add the remaining 1 Tsp olive oil and a pinch of salt. Saute onion for 5 minutes. Add garlic and jalapeno pepper. Saute for another 3 minutes. Stir in chili powder, ground coriander, ground cumin, sweet paprika, dried oregano, dried thyme leaves,  dried sage leaves, ground cinnamon, and sugar. Cook for 5 minutes. Add beer and chicken stock. Add back browned grounded beef. Stir to combine. Bring to boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Add tomatoes and beans. Simmer for another 15 minutes. Garnish with cheddar cheese and serve (about 8-10 servings).

After-play thoughts:

This receipt is perfect for friends gathering, cold day dinner, and brown-bagged lunch since it re-heats excellently.

Get ready:

• 2 pork tenderloin
• 1 1/2 cups old fashion ricotta cheese
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 pepper
• 1 Tsp dried parsley
• 3/4 cup dried cranberry
• 1 lb ham, thinly sliced
• 1/2 tsp dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp dried theme
• 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 Tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• olive oil

Now let’s play:

Butterfly pork tenderloin lengthwise. Mix ricotta cheese, salt, pepper, dried parsley, and dried cranberry together. Apply half of the mix onto the butterflied surface of each tenderloin. Set aside. Lay out the ham slices (overlap the slices a little bit), so they  form two wraps large enough to go around each tenderloin twice. Mix together the rest of the ingredients, other than olive oil, and spread half of the mix onto each “ham wrap”. Transfer two tenderloin onto each “ham wrap”, and wrap them up as wrapping burritos. Place wrapped tenderloin in a large buttered baking dish with seam side down. Drizzle some olive oil on the top, and bake in a 350F oven for 40 minutes. Cover with foil and let it cool for 30 minutes. Slice (1/2 inch wide) and serve immediately (about 6-8 servings).

After-play thoughts:

The amount of ham used may vary depends on how much you overlap the slices, as well as the shape and the thickness of the ham slices.