Fajitas

  Prior to this week I had never had fajitas. Never! Honestly, I didn’t get what the big deal was. Now I know, and since that time I’ve made them twice. They are so easy to put together, super delicious, hearty and filling, wonderfully tasty, not to mention versatile, so much so that they are going to become a regular part of my meal rotation.

The first time I tried them I used a commercial seasoning packet. It was way too hot for me. In looking at the list of ingredients on the package I saw that chili pepper was the first ingredient. That said everything to me. After a bit of experimentation with a variety of recipes, I came up with what I think is the absolute best.

Fajitas

Seasoning:

1 T. cornstarch
2 t. chili powder
1 t. sea salt
1 t. smoked paprika
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. granulated sugar
1/2 t. onion powder
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/8 t. Mexican oregano
1/8 t. cayenne pepper

Mix together all ingredients and store in an airtight container at room temperature.

To make fajitas:

Fajitas are easy to put together. Choose a protein (I used a pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts), one pepper (I used 1/2 red pepper and 1/2 yellow pepper) thinly sliced, and 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced. Put a tablespoon of olive oil into a 9 to 10 inch sauté pan and get it hot. Add chicken and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Allow it to sear on each side, so let it cook for a good two minutes before turning it over to sear the reverse. Use a slotted spoon to remove the chicken to a heated plate. Add thinly sliced peppers and onions add more olive oil, if necessary, to the pan. Sauté until vegetables are soft. Return chicken to the pan along with 1/2 cup of water (or Bloody Mary mix, as I did), and two heaping tablespoons seasoning. Give it a good stir. Cover and cook until heated through and sauce is reduced to your liking. Serve on warm tortillas with salsa, cheese, sliced scallions, slices of avocado, and sour cream.

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One-Bowl Blackberry Lemon Spoon Cake

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Food, be it sweet or savory, should have an appetizing name; a name that engages, draws us in, creating within an intense desire to take that first bite. This is a rather enhanced version of what some people like to refer to as, if you will pardon the expression, “dump cake.” I find that name horribly off-putting. Never, and I repeat NEVER should the words “dump” and cake” be used in the same sentence, unless you have burned one and are throwing it into the trash.

Here, I have revised the standard recipe to enhance the flavor, creating more depth and brightness, without creating much additional work.

This is best while warm and topped with vanilla ice cream, but don’t let that keep you from enjoying it at breakfast. You will find many pleased guests if you serve them a small dollop of this in a ramekin along with other brunch favorites (stay tuned for a spring crustless quiche coming later in the week), and will set yourself ahead of the average hostess.

If blackberry seeds bother you, feel free to swap out the blackberry pie filling for blueberry pie filling, it will be equally good.

One-Bowl Blackberry Lemon Spoon Cake

 
2 21-oz. cans blackberry pie filling
1 lemon cake mix
Pinch of salt
1 lemon, zested
12 T. unsalted butter, cubed

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9” x 13” pan, or 2-quart casserole dish with PAM. Pour pie filling into prepared pan, spreading evenly along the bottom. Sprinkle lemon zest on top of that, and scatter a pinch of salt overall. Pour dry cake mix evenly across the top, and then scatter butter on top of that. Slide into the oven and bake for 50 to 55 minutes until the edges are browned and bubbly.

Serve warm or at room temperature topped with vanilla ice cream...or not.

Italian Sausage and Pepper Supper & a Book Review

Clearly, the “Sheet Pan Meal” train passed me by when it first came to town, because what I thought new and innovative, apparently others have been doing and enjoying for quite some time. Huh. Well, at least I'm on board now, and I have to tell you that I am loving the ride.

My first acquaintance with this flavorful and easy way of cooking was by way of Camilla Saulsbury's book 200 Sheet Pan Meals. It features recipes that will take you from morning (Brown Sugar Vanilla Baked Oatmeal) to night (Weeknight Chicken & Stuffing), satisfy your every craving (Berries & Cream Pavlova), provide you with healthy, balanced meals, and make both preparation and cleanup a breeze. Wow! 

Honestly, culinary skeptic that I am, I thought this was too good to be true. Turns out, I was wrong. Every recipe that I have tried has been easy to prepare, made with ingredients that I have on hand, and has been amazingly good. And what a joy is it to crumple up the foil from the pan and toss it away, it's almost sinful.

Thus far I have tried the BBQ chicken with potato salad, Punjabi chicken (LOVE the Punjabi Chicken), and Italian Sausage and Pepper Supper. In each case I halved the quantity to serve just one or two. Mr. O-P, who turned his nose up at a baked Italian sausage meal, found himself staring longingly at my dinner while he poked at his microwaved chicken pot pie.

I have more time (read: spend an obscene amount of time) cooking than most people, so am generally not pressed, but for those of you with little time to prepare a good meal, this book is the answer to your prayers.

One caveat is that preparation can take longer than you may imagine because there can be a good bit of chopping involved. Fortunately, prep work can be done ahead of time, with the various components stored in plastic bags or containers to be used when you are ready. One more thing to consider is that your sheet pan meal is only going to be as good as your ingredients. I buy the best sausage that I can find from my favorite Italian market, and used organic bell peppers and Gemstone Potatoes from Melissa’s Produce.

In this day of fast food dinners, Camilla Sailsbury has turned fast food into healthy food and cleverly shown us how.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This post is linked to:
Wow Us Wednesday
Work It Wednesday

Wine’d Down Wednesday

Wake up Wednesday

Moonlight & Mason Jars

Dream, Create, Inspire

The Homemaking Party

Cookbook Wednesday

Full Plate Thursday