White Bean Stew

From: Good Enough Cookbook

Ingredients:

Directions:

Hot Mama Grade: A-

Hot Mama Notes: This is a simple recipe, which is the whole point of the good enough cookbook. I didn't have chorizo (and I don't love it anyway as it is oftentimes too spicy for me), so I used cubed chicken. I used 1 can of garbanzo beans and 1 can of great northern beans. I used 2 big handfuls of spinach, and I had a mix of red, yellow, orange, and green bell peppers. I used 1t of dried shallots in lieu if fhe fresh. This recipe was a bit on the bland side. Next time, I might add some smoked paprika to liven it up. Probably this is due to me using chicken in lieu of chorizo which has way more flavor. Still, this is a good quick and easy recipe. I also used some chicken broth (half cup) along with 1 cup of water. I find it odd that the water isn't listed in the ingredient list, only in the body of the recipe. J think the sweet Italian sausage recipe sounds tasty, as well.

Quick Chicken Enchiladas

From:

https://thewholecook.com/easy-salsa-verde-chicken-enchiladas/#wprm-recipe-container-35891

Ingredients:

2 cups fully cooked shredded chicken

▢28 ounces salsa verde, divided

▢6 tablespoons cream cheese, regular or low fat both work great

▢½ teaspoon garlic powder

▢½ teaspoon onion powder

▢½ teaspoon salt

▢¼ teaspoon paprika

▢8 flour or corn tortillas, see recipe notes if using corn tortillas

▢2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese, shredded Mexican blend cheese, or shredded cheddar 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Spread ½ cup salsa verde on bottom of 9 x 13 baking dish.

In a large bowl, stir together shredded chicken, ½ cup of the salsa verde, cream cheese, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika. Add a generous ¼ cup of the chicken mixture down the center of one tortilla. Carefully roll it up and place seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat with all remaining tortillas until you have 8 filled tortillas in your dish and used all the chicken filling. 

Pour remaining salsa verde over your enchiladas.

Spread the shredded cheese over the sauced enchiladas.

Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove foil from top and bake uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes. Enchiladas should be heated through and cheese should be melted when done.

Enjoy as is or top finished enchiladas with sour cream, pico de gallo, fresh chopped cilantro, sliced jalapenos, and/or avocado before serving!

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: I was looking for a quick and easy enchilada recipe, and this fits the bill. I used cheddar cheese and flour tortillas. And my chicken was diced instead of shredded. I added in a can of black eyed peas as I like beans, and I wanted more filling volume in the enchiladas. I used 1/3c filling per enchilada roll. I also added about 3 teaspoons of diced hatch chiles into the filling. 

These enchiladas are very tasty. The kids really liked the cream cheese based filling. It is super creamy. My usual enchilada recipe is sour cream and enchilada sauce based. My oldest really liked the straight up green salsa over the top. It is a different flavor than the green enchilada sauce that I usually use for the topping. 

The one error I made on this recipe is that I cooked up the chicken on the stove top and I added seasoned salt and pepper. Then then I added the seasonings per this recipe. I should have held off on adding the recipe seasonings until I tasted the filling mixture, as my filling turned out saltier than I like as I salted per the recipe and also during the cooking of the chicken. Oops. Luckily the cream cheese and the extra can of beans cut down some on the saltiness, but it was still pretty salty. 

Basic Meatballs, any meat

From: NYT

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: These meatballs are simple, easy, and delicious! I used ground beef, panko, pepper, and a little bit of cumin. I think I also used onion and garlic powder, as well. They turned out surprisingly tasty! I had to cook them about 30 minutes on 375F. I used my oven thermometer to 160F for testing doneness. 

Cider Donuts

Hot Mama Grade: A-

Hot Mama Notes: Thesw donuts were super delicious but they fell apart. I will try to below recommendation to try to make them less soft next time. It was no issue, though. We just ate them with a fork. I wasn't able to pick them up to put in butter and sugar, so instead, Ai brushed the donuts with melted butter and sprinkled the cinnamon sugar over the top. 6T of butter is too much. 3T would be enough. And half the cinnamon sugar is enough. I don't think the butter is needed at all because the donuts are so moist.

In reading comments about this recipe, a lot of people used reduced apple cider for stronger cider flavor. I actually like them as is with a subtle cider flavor. There was also mention of cutting the sugar in the donuts down. I think that would be okay as they are very sweet. 

This is a tasty recipe but more work using the donut pan. I overfilled my donut pans because I wanted them all done in one oven run. As a result, the donuts have a bottom lip. Next time I will be more patient! 

I baked these for 20 minutes, not 13 to 15.

use 2 eggs still to bind the batter.

Oven Flank Steak

Ingredients:

Instructions:

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: This recipe was pretty fantastic! I liked it. The kids loved it. Win win! Will definitely make it again! I used my cast iron skillet in the oven. I preheated it for 30 minutes as specified. Next time I will roast veggies in it while it preheats! I didn't think about it this time. I roasted potatoes afterwards. I like the meat more well done so I did 5 minutes on one side and 5 minutes on the other. I took it out and let it rest for 10 minutes. The meat was 2.3ish lbs. I cut it against the grain. There were a few pieces pretty rare on the thick end, so I put them back in the skillet in the cooling oven for 5 minutes to cook them more.

I really liked the garlic and rosemary flavor! I let it sit for 30 minutes at room temp with the rub. Next time I will do full hour, but the timing didn't work out today.

Pistachio Chocolate Chip Cookies

From: https://buuckfarmsbakery.com/pistachio-toffee-chocolate-chip-cookies-gideons-copycat/

Ingredients 

1 C (226 g) Salted Kerry Gold Butter

3/4 C (165 g) Dark Brown Sugar

1/4 C (55 g) Granulated Sugar

1 Lg Egg + 1 Egg Yolk, at room temperature

2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

1 C (125 g) All Purpose Flour

1 1/4 C (165 g) Bread Flour

2 tsp Cornstarch

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Baking Powder

1/4 tsp Salt

1 C (180 g) Chopped Pistachios

1 C (180 g) Mini Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips

1 C (180 g) Chopped Toffee

Flaky Salt

Instructions 

Brown the butter and then let it cool for about 10 minutes.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the sugars and cooled brown butter for 3-4 minutes.

Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract. Mix for another 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.

In a separate bowl, whisk the flours, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

Add the dry ingredients 1/2 at a time and mix until just combined.

Add 90 g each (1/2 C) of the chocolate chips, pistachios, and toffee and fold into the dough with a rubber spatula.

Portion the dough into 6 giant 6.5 oz cookie dough balls. Place in the fridge for 10 minutes or until just firm enough to handle.

Mix the remaining chocolate chips, pistachios, and toffee in a bowl.

Remove the dough from the fridge and roll into balls in your hands then into the bowl of chocolate toffee and pistachios. Press the mixture into the dough so that it sticks and covers the entire ball except for the bottoms.

Chill at least 12 hours overnight, or up to 24 hours.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Place 3 cookies on each sheet leaving room for them to spread.

Bake for 15-16 minutes, then bang the cookie sheet on the counter 5-6 times to help the cookies spread.

Use a spoon or mini rubber spatula to scoot in any runaway edges while the cookies are still hot.

Fill in any empty spaces with extra chocolate toffee or pistachios and top with flaky salt.

Let cool on the hot cookie sheets for 4-5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: My coworker made these, and they were fabulous! I can't wait to bake some! 

Cranberry Dream Fluff Salad

Ingredients:

1 bag of fresh cranberries

2/3 can (ish) frozen orange juice concentrate 

1c sugar or more, to taste

1/2 to 2/3 tub cool whip, thawed

1/4 c pulverized grated walnuts

1/2 c or so chopped walnuts

1/3 large can crushed pineapple

Directions:

Combine all I grsdients to taste and desired sweetness. Store in frig when not serving/eating. 

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: Originally, this started out as a fresh cranberry salad (almost like a relish) with only chopped fresh cranberries, the orange juice concentrate, and sugar. But the result (to me) was overpowering and very tart but at the same time ridiculously sweet. I added in the pineapple to increase sweetness. I tried marshmallows, but it didn't give me the taste or desired consistency. The cool whip really transformed the salad into something better. Creami[55er and tastier. The Walnuts added a lot of good substance, texture, and flavor. I really liked this salad and will make it again. 

Cariann's Nana's Potato Casserole

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: I had this at a work potluck. It was so delicious that I asked for the recipe! 

Corn Bake Side Dish

Ingredients:

Hot Mama Grade: B+

Hot Mama Notes: This was good, but after reading rave reviews, I thought it was going to be the best thing since sliced bread! 🤣🤣 It's important to note that this is a side dish. As it is written, it is a sweet mushy corn casserole. When you look at it, it almost looks like corn bread, but it is not. I baked it way longer than 15 minutes. More like 45 minutes or so. After 15 minutes, it was liquid. I saw in the comments that someone used a 13x9 pan. In 20/20 hindsight, I would definitely have done that to decrease cooking time drastically. I see people did a number of changes that sound good, but I wanted to make the recipe as is. Now that I have, I would omit the eggs as someone suggested. It is a bit eggy. Or maybe go down to one egg at most. I also think green Chiles/jalapeños, onions, and some spices would liven it up. That being said, while I like this dish, I actually think cornbread might be preferable for me! 🤣🤣 I did used frozen corn instead of canned corn for the regular corn. This is definitely the way to go. I used jiffy corn muffin mix and sour cream, as listed. 

Chicken Enchiladas

Hot Mama Grade: B+

Hot Mama Notes: These enchiladas were good, but not amazing. They aren't as good as some of the other enchilada recipes I use, and they were a bit more work with cutting up fresh veggies. I used a green bell pepper as Frys had no poblano. I used 3 medium tomatoes off the vine. I didn't have a ton of chicken, so I added a can of black beans. I used las palmas green enchiladabsauce. I cooked the chicken in the enchiladabsauce in the Crockpot. I used flour tortillas and used them as is, no precooking. 

Crockpot Garlic Butter Chicken

From nyt

Hot Mama Grade: B

Hot Mama Notes: I used one can canelloni beans and one can black eyes peas as that is what I had. I added some cooking sherry for liquid as well as a few tablespoons of butter. I used dried shallots and parsley as I didn't have any fresh on hand. I probably used close to 4 lbs of chicken breasts. My first bite was pretty salty, I thought. Maybe that is why my youngest liked it so well! He thought it tasted like potatoes. I added quite a bit of spinach at the end along with the sour cream. I also ended cooking this dish way more than 4 hours because I was at work for a full day. So this was good not not great. Not sure I will make it again, but it was very edible. Just not spectacular. 

avocado chickpea salad

From: https://www.eatingwell.com/avocado-chickpea-salad-11705973

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground pepper

2 (15-ounce) cans no-salt-added chickpeas, rinsed

3 cups grape tomatoes, halved

½ medium red onion, thinly sliced

2 large avocados, diced

Directions:

Whisk 4 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 tablespoons oil, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper in a large bowl. Add rinsed chickpeas, halved tomatoes, sliced onion and diced avocado; toss gently to coat

caprese chickpea cucumber salad

From: https://www.eatingwell.com/caprese-chickpea-salad-11753314

Ingredients

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 small clove garlic, grated (about ½ teaspoon)

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground pepper

2 (15-ounce) cans no-salt-added chickpeas, rinsed

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

2 medium Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced (1¼ cups)

1 cup small fresh mozzarella balls

¼ cup thinly sliced fresh basil

Directions: Whisk 3 tablespoons vinegar, 2 tablespoons oil, 2 teaspoons mustard, the grated garlic, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper together in a large bowl. Add rinsed chickpeas, halved tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, 1 cup mozzarella and ¼ cup basil; toss to coat. Refrigerate until ready to serve 

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: very good, simple to make, tasty. Will definitely make again! 

Quick Easy White Chicken Chili

Based on: https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/5-ingredient-easy-white-chicken-chili-recipe/

Ingredients 

6 cups chicken stock

3 to 4 cups cooked shredded chicken

2 (15-ounce) cans beans of your choice, rinsed and drained

2 cups (16 ounces) salsa verde 

2 teaspoons ground cumin

optional toppings: diced avocado, chopped fresh cilantro, shredded cheese, chopped red or green onions, sour cream, crumbled tortilla chips, fresh jalapeño slices 

Directions 

Combine ingredients. Stir together chicken stock, shredded chicken, beans, salsa and cumin in large stockpot.

Bring to a simmer. Cook on high heat until the soup reaches a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue simmering for 5 minutes.

Serve. Serve immediately, garnished with lots of your favorite toppings.

Hot Mama Grade:A

Hot Mama Notes: I used frozen chicken and put everything in the Crockpot on low. I used 3c chicken broth, 1 can of black eyed peas, 1can of cannelloni beans, and a can of hominy. I also threw in a can diced green Chiles because why not. I also put in some pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Maybe some seasoned salt. 

This recipe is simple but super tasty! I will definitely make it again! The kids lived it, too! 

Dubai Chocolate Bar

From https://feelgoodfoodie.net/recipe/dubai-chocolate-bar/#wprm-recipe-container-121928

Ingredients

2 ounces white chocolate chips

▢12 ounces milk chocolate chips divided

▢¼ cup unsalted butter

▢8 ounces kataifi shredded dough finely chopped

▢2 (7-ounce) jars pistachio butter

▢¼ cup tahini

Directions 

Place 10 ounces of the chocolate chips in another microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at 30 second intervals. Stir the chocolate in between each 30 seconds until the chocolate is mostly melted. Fold in the remaining 2 ounces of chocolate chips and stir to combine. Pour about half the chocolate over the white chocolate drizzle and use a pastry brush to make sure it evenly covers the bottom and sides. Allow it to set at room temperature for 5 minutes, then place in the freezer for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the kataifi and cook, stirring constantly until browned and crispy, about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the pistachio butter and tahini, allow to cool for 10 minutes in the pan while waiting on the chocolate molds to freeze.

Divide the pistachio filling mixture equally into the chocolate molds. Spread them out evenly to the top of the mold.

Pour the remaining half the melted chocolate over the pistachio filling and use a an off set spatula to evenly cover the pistachio mixture so it’s flat with the chocolate mold. Place in the freezer again for 20 minutes.

Remove from molds, cut into pieces and enjoy immediately. Keep stored in the fridge for best texture.

Hot Mama Grade: B

Hot Mama Notes:

Quick Crockpot Chili

From: https://natashaskitchen.com/slow-cooker-chili-recipe/

Ingredients:

2 lb lean Ground Beef, (90/10 or 93/7)

1 large onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp cumin powder

2 Tbsp chili powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dried oregano

1 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste

1/2 tsp black pepper

15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

30 oz kidney beans, two 15oz cans, drained and rinsed

30 oz diced tomatoes, with their juice

10 oz diced tomatoes and green chilis, with their juice

30 oz tomato sauce 

Directions:

Place a large skillet over medium-high heat and sauté beef until it releases fat (4-5 minutes), breaking it up with a spatula.

Add onion to the skillet and sauté until tender (4-5 minutes). Add minced garlic and seasonings: cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, dried oregano, salt and pepper. Cook another 30 seconds stirring constantly. Transfer to a 6 Qt slow cooker.

Add remaining ingredients into the slow cooker: rinsed and drained beans, diced tomatoes with their juice, diced tomatoes and green chilis with juice and tomato sauce. Stir to combine and cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. Season to taste if desired and serve warm.

Hot Mama Grade: A-

Hot Mama Notes: This chili recipe is super easy to make. Very quick. It was a big hit with my kids! It's not my favorite chili recipe, but it is okay! 

Dehydrated Breakfast Bacon

From the recipe book my dehydrator came with.

Hot Mama Grade: TBD 

Hot Mama Notes:

Dehydrated Candied Sweet & Spicy Bacon

From the recipe book my dehydrator came with.

Hot Mama Grade: TBD 

Hot Mama Notes: 

Dehydrated Green Onion Crackers

From the recipe book my dehydrator came with.

Hot Mama Grade: C

Hot Mama Notes: I was underwhelmed by these. The taste isn't great and neither is the texture. I will not be making these again. 

Dehydrated Seed Crackers

From the recipe book my dehydrator came with.

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: I used ground flaxseed as that is what I had on hand. These are unusual crackers, but actually refreshingly different and quite tasty. I am pretty happy with how they turned out. Not sure I would make them again as the ingredients are a bit pricey, but they are novel, fun, and tasty. Also a rather long time in the dehydrator. 

Honey Bourbon Dehydrated Peaches

From: Dehydrator Recipe Book that came with my dehydrator

Hot Mama Grade: B

Hot Mama Notes: My peach wasn't very big, so I decided to throw some apples into the marinade, as well. This recipe is strong. Very honey bourbon. Not sure I would make it again as I prefer regular dehydrated apples which are also less hassle. As far as the peaches go, I believe I over dried them, and also my peach before I dried it was on its last leg. And because my bacon jerky was taking so long to dry, I decided to dry the peaches at the same time so they didn't sit any longer in the fridge. As a result, they dried at a hotter temperature than they needed to. I might give this recipe one more try to see if I can get it to turnout better. 

Grandpa's Granola

From: https://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/279216/grandpas-homemade-granola/

Ingredients:

5 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1 cup crispy rice cereal

⅓ cup coarsely chopped pecans

⅓ cup slivered almonds

⅓ cup unsalted sunflower seeds

⅓ cup unsalted pepitas (hulled pumpkin seeds)

¾ cup unsweetened shredded coconut

¼ cup light brown sugar

⅓ cup honey or pure maple syrup

⅓ cup neutral oil, such as canola or avocado

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ tablespoon vanilla extract

¾ cup dried fruit, such as cranberries, apples, raisins, apricots and/or mangoes, chopped if needed

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. 

2. Stir oats, cereal, pecans, almonds, sunflower seeds, pepitas and coconut together in a large bowl.

3. Combine brown sugar, honey (or maple syrup), oil, cinnamon, ginger, salt and vanilla in a small saucepan; bring to a simmer over medium heat.

4. Stir the wet mixture into the dry ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Transfer to a large roasting pan. Bake, stirring once or twice, until golden brown, about 1 1/2 hours. Cool completely before stirring in dried fruit. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

Tips

To make ahead: Store in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

Originally appeared: EatingWell.com, February 2020

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: I used quick 1 minute oats instead of rolled oats because that is what I had on hand. Similarly, I used roasted salted sunflower seeds instead of raw sunflower seeds. I had no pecans, so I left those out. I used olive oil and vegetable oil, as I have no canola or avocado oil. I chose to use maple syrup instead of honey as I prefer that flavor. 

This granola is super tasty with just the right amount of sweetness (a hint). I will definitely make it again! The flavor is good. Not overpowering. I like the maple flavor. 

Quinoa Spinach Stew

From: A Fork in the Trail cookbook

Recipe:

Hot Mama Grade: A-

Hot Mama Notes: 

I didn't realize I was almost out of quinoa when I chose to make this recipe. Oops! So I only have about a half cup of quinoa instead of 3/4c, since that is what I had. Also, I lost a bit more through a too-large sieve (oops! :/). 

This soup was spicier than I expected, and also rather limey. I should have probably deseeded the jalapeño, but the recipe didn't mention it and I didn't think about it. But it wasn't too bad, but next time I will deseed. I did not put in feta. I used fresh cilantro.