Jessica Cooks! Chicken Tex Mex Salad

I love salads.  I love the crunch of crisp vegetables, the vibrant colors (No iceberg lettuce here!)  and tangy new ways to spice them up.  
 This is one of my favorites and was inspired by a salad I had at Chili's restaurant. 

You can use any amount of the ingredients that you prefer.  It's the mix that makes it so wonderful! 







You'll need Romaine lettuce, coarsely chopped

 

Fresh Spinach, coarsely chopped

Chinese Cabbage, you guessed it...

coarsely chopped

 Roma or other nice, firm tomatoes, chopped

Green onion, chopped

 

And some Cilantro, chopped fine.

I was about out of this- so I used what I had. 

 

Mix those ingredients together and you have the main part of the salad:

Next, we'll do the chicken:

4-5  chicken breasts

 

                                                    
                                              cube them:

             And your spices for it: chili powder, crushed red peppers,
             garlic powder, salt and pepper.



Pour a bit of olive oil into your skillet. 
(My son poured a little more than I wanted, but it worked)

When your oil is hot, add  the chicken

 

Sprinkle liberally with the seasonings- 

extra on the chili powder

and Saute until done.

 

While the chicken is cooking, 

make your corn relish:

Add one can of corn to a sauce pan

  

Dice up some red bell pepper and cilantro and add it to the corn

Add a dollop of olive oil and sprinkle generously 

with pepper and coarse Kosher salt

 

 

Cook until heated through and flavors incorporated. Turn off heat.

Now we make our pico de gallo :

Chop up the same amounts of onion, tomatoes and cilantro.

Season generously with coarse kosher salt

 Mix well

 

 Unfortunately, I was running low on cilantro this time. 

More is definitely better!

 Okay, now that our salad , corn relish and pico de gallo are ready,

finish cooking the chicken and remove from heat.

Heat a small amount of olive oil in a skillet.

Cook 3-4 corn tortillas separately, until crisp but not browned.

Cool slightly on paper towel to absorb any extra oil.

Then, chop the tortillas and sprinkle liberally with coarse Kosher salt.

 

 

If you prefer, you can leave them in strips.

Now, get out some ranch dressing and barbeque sauce.

I prefer homemade or made-at-home Hidden Valley Ranch dressing

For barbeque sauce, it's gotta be Sweet Baby Ray's!

Okay, we are now ready to assemble our salad. 

On  your plate, place a heap of salad. 

On top of this add a few spoonfuls of chicken. 

Add the corn relish, pico de gallo and tortilla chips.

Top with some grated cheese, if you  like.

Then, top with a bit of ranch dressing 

and a few dobs of barbeque sauce here and there. 

Mix it in a little to incorporate the flavors.

 

 Serve with warm garlic bread and enjoy!

Another alteration would be to add diced jalapenos to the pico de gallo.

I'm not much of a jalapeno fan- but I wish I was. :0)

 

 

Homemade Grape Juice

Concord grapes; one of Earth's wonderful treasures.
Up close, dangling from the vine, they look like jewels!




My good friend, Monica, showed me how to easily make grape juice.
You need grapes, quart jars, canning lids and rings, sugar, a pot of boiling water and a water bath canner.

First, place your jars in a large pot of water, bringing to a boil to sterilize. You'll get them out one at a time as you use them.
Also at this time; place your canning lids and rings in smaller pots of water and simmer until you need them.


Carefully wash your grapes, discarding any over-ripe or rotten ones. You can leave them on the stem.

Once they're clean, put clusters of grapes in a hot jar, packing them in firmly but not too tight.

Pour in 1/2 a cup of sugar on top of the grapes. Using a funnel keeps the rim of the jar clean.

Then, ladle in boiling water to fill the jar, leaving 1/4 inch head space.
Use a butter knife to slide down into the sides of the jar, releasing any air bubbles.



Clean the rim of the jar to be sure the surface is free of sugar or liquids. Then, place a hot jar lid on top, followed by a ring. Close firmly.
The sugar settles to the bottom.



I like to tip the jar back and forth a few times in order to help the sugar dissolve.


Place jars into boiling water canner with hot water. (water must be at least two inches over the top of the jars) Let them sit until you have enough to can.
Then bring to a full rolling boil and cover. Let the grapes boil for 10-15 minutes processing time.
Important- look up times for canning grape juice for your area. High altitudes are different.
After they've cooked for the allotted time, turn off the burner and let jars sit another 5 minutes before removing from canner.



Carefully remove jars one by one and set on a towel on the counter. Let sit undisturbed for 8-12 hours. They will seal. To test the seals once they've cooled, push on the top of jar lids. If it's sealed, it will be flat with no give. Unsealed jars will be flexible.



It's best to let juice sit for several weeks/months in order to concentrate the flavor.
When you're ready to drink some; simply strain the juice (squeeze grapes gently to extract more juice) into a pitcher. You can drink it straight or add water to dilute.

Beautiful nectar!

Jessica Cooks! Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo

Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo......a favorite around here.

With caloric numbers to knock your socks off, we only have it once or twice a year.
(Because other times of the year we're eating things like Chicken Parmesan or Chocolate Marshmallow Bars)
But it's soooo good!
In my humble opinion, there is nothing worse than bland, tasteless, indistinctive Alfredo sauce.
If you like that type of sauce, you might want to find another recipe. 'Cause we like lots of garlic and flavor!
We also love to make chicken or clam variations.
But today, it's shrimp.
I should note that sometimes I purchase blocks of parmesan, dry white cooking wine and fresh parsley for this dish.
But today I'm using my 'cheat' method. And it tastes just as good!
So good, in fact, that I pretty much make it this way all the time now.
And The Man of the House, who thought for years that it could only be made one way to be perfect, loves it.

You're gonna need some fettuccine. 32 oz worth.



Also, one whole onion, chopped.




Dried parsley flakes- to taste (because I forgot to measure)
Half & half- half a gallon
Minced garlic- 3 Tablespoons
Parmesan cheese- 1 cup, plus extra for topping
Salt- 3 teaspoons
Freshly ground pepper- 1/4 teaspoon



Cornstarch- 2-3 heaping tablespoons

EVOO - 2-3 Tablespoons.
(I always get the first cold press olive oil- better for you!)
Also, 1 Tablespoon of butter, not shown.


2 lbs. large,cooked, tail-off shrimp.



First, get your pasta water on the stove to boil, adding a dollop of olive oil.
Then, rinse your shrimp in a colander and let sit to defrost.


When your water is boiling, add your fettuccine.
You want your fettuccine al dente, so don't over-cook.


In a large saucepan, pour 2-3 T olive oil and add butter.
Heat til hot.

Add your chopped onion and garlic.


Saute until the onions are translucent.

Add parsley- enough to make nice green flecks throughout sauce.
Is that a good measurement for ya?



Pour in the half & half.
(I have even used 2% milk before and it tastes great, too)


Add freshly ground pepper and salt.




Next, add your cup of Parmesan cheese.
I had to use two 1/2 cup measurements. Because my children are forever running off with my measuring tools.

Stir well and let simmer.


Mix your cornstarch in about 1/3 cup of cold water.
You can always make more if the sauce isn't as thick as you like.


Over medium-high heat, add cornstarch mixture to the sauce, stirring briskly.
Bring just to a boil, to thicken.
Turn to low immediately to avoid curdling.
At this point, you can add a little more garlic, salt, pepper or Parmesan to taste, if you like.

Your shrimp should be defrosted enough by now.

Add shrimp to the sauce, stirring it in.
Keep heat on medium-low.... you don't want to over cook the shrimp.


The sauce should be thick enough to cling to the shrimp nicely. (And to your fettuccine!)

Drain your pasta


Add the Alfredo/shrimp sauce and top with extra Parmesan cheese.
I usually add beautiful steamed broccoli to this dish.

Bon Appetit!

Simple, wasn't it?