Cafe Rio

Want some of this?

Then you might appreciate the recipe for this:

Cafe Rio Pork Barbacoa

5-6 lbs. pork roast

1 Tbls. cumin

1 cup brown sugar

12 oz. La Victoria taco sauce

20 oz. Coke

Place roast in crock pot and add water halfway up roast.  Cook on low for 12 hours.  Drain off water and add the remaining ingredients, then cook 4 more hours.  Shred the pork and cook for 2 more hours.

and this:

Cafe Rio Rice

4 tsp. chicken bouillon

4 tsp. minced garlic

1/2 bunch cilantro

1 cup diced green chilies

3/4 tsp. salt

1 Tbls. butter

1/2 onion, chopped

3 cups rice (not instant)

Put chicken bouillon, garlic, cilantro, diced green chilies, salt, butter, and onion in a blender and puree until smooth.  Pour into saucepan and add 3 cups water and bring to a boil.  Add rice and simmer for 30 minutes.  

and you can't forget this!

 Cafe Rio House Dressing

1 pkg Hidden Valley ranch dressing mix

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup chopped cilantro

2 cloves garlic

3 tomatillos (canned - found on ethnic foods aisle)

1/3 cup buttermilk

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Keep refrigerated until ready to use.

Black bean soup with shredded pork (and bacon!)

SO...I found this recipe on an email from AllYou.com. 

It seems like a mix between happy taco soup and sweet pork salad/burritos! I it looks like a great winter soup!

 "Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 6 hours
Yield: 8 Servings
Cost per Serving: $1.38

Ingredients

• 1  pound  dried black beans, rinsed and picked over
• 2  bone-in center-cut pork chops (about 1 1/4 lb.)
• 2  slices bacon, chopped
• 1  onion, finely chopped
• 2  cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1  tablespoon  chopped canned chipotle chilies in adobo plus 1 Tbsp. adobo sauce
• 1  teaspoon  ground cumin
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  salt

Preparation

Combine 6 cups water, beans, pork chops, bacon, onion, garlic, chilies, adobo, cumin and salt in slow cooker. Cook on low until beans are tender and pork chops are falling apart, 4 to 6 hours.
Remove and discard bacon. Cut pork away from bones. Discard bones and shred meat. Add meat back to slow cooker with beans. Season with additional salt and serve."



Personally, I think I'd add a can of either stewed tomatoes or rotel tomatoes along with a can of corn. Definitely topping it with sour cream and cheese :)

breadsticks!!!!!

i saw this recipe on mommaskindacrafty.blogspot.com . haven't tried it yet, but if it's a yummy breadstick recipe it sure is easy! hope one of us can try it out soon bc we sure love our breadsticks BREADSTICKS!!!!!

 

2 cups hot water

2 Tbsp yeast

2 Tbsp sugar

pinch of salt

~5 cups flour

Mix all together except flour.  Then add flour till dough is soft but not too sticky.

Shape into bread sticks and bake at 425 for 12-15 min on greased cookie sheet.

Spread with melted butter and a little garlic salt after baking.

My recipe states that 1/2 the recipe makes 8-10 good size bread sticks.  So that's what I did.  I made 10.  No leftovers!  Next time I am making the whole batch!

salad pizza

 

Have you ever had a real salad pizza?

There's this place in Mesa, AZ called Sauce, it's one of my favorites and I always get the chicken caesar salad pizza.

So amazing.

Found this recipe for one like it at this site

For the pizza sauce: In a medium saucepan over low heat, saute 1-2 garlic cloves in a lot of olive oil. Add 1 small onion (chopped), salt, pepper, a few shakes of red pepper flakes, and turn up heat slightly. Stir until onions have softened, about 3 minutes. Add 1 15-ounce can tomato puree (or sauce or diced tomatoes), a half dozen shakes of oregano. Stir and simmer on low heat while you prepare the rest of the meal. If you have basil, definitely add a few shreds at this point.

For the salad: In a medium bowl, toss shredded lettuce (any kind you like, this was red and green oak lettuce), a healthy handful of chopped cherry or grape tomatoes, a few slivers of red onion, a lot of shredded Parm. Then add your red wine vinegar and olive oil to taste, like you’re at a pizzeria. Toss.

For the pizza: Preheat oven to 450°F. Place store-bought pizza dough (or homemade if you are lucky enough to have it available) in the center of a lightly oiled square cookie sheet. Using your fingers, stretch it out to the sides of the pan as much as possible. Store-bought doughs are usually very springy so don’t get frustrated. The goal is to get the crust as thin as possible. Using a ladle or a large spoon, distribute a few dollops of pizza sauce on dough. Add sliced fresh mozzarella to the kids half of the pizza, keeping the other half relatively cheese-free. (We cheated a little here.) Bake for 10 to 15 minutes (start checking after 10) until cheese is bubbling and crust is golden and crispy. Remove from oven, let cool slightly and top the cheese-less side with salad.

The place we go to in Mesa makes the crust super thin and crunchy which makes it way yummier :)

Chicken & Noodle Caesar Salad

This stuff was a huge hit at Jaarrr's birthday party, and is uber easy!

Ingredients:
1 box farfalle noodles
2 bags grilled chicken strips
1 bag romaine lettuce leaves
1 bottle Asiago Caesar dressing (Briannas' Home Style is our favorite)
Parmesan cheese (grated and/or shredded)
Croutons (Caesar style)
4 diced tomatoes (optional)

Note: The proportions are estimated.  You can really do whatever suits your fancy and it can't go wrong.

Boil noodles until soft.  Drain and rinse.  Bake chicken strips on a cookie sheet (covered in aluminum foil) at 350 for 15-20 minutes.  Wash, tear, and spin lettuce leaves.  Assemble noodles, chicken, lettuce, dressing, parmesan cheese, croutons, and tomatoes and mix it all together in a large bowl.

I usually leave a few chicken strips, some tomatoes, croutons, and a little of parmaesan cheese for the top so it looks pretty!:)

See!  Totally easy and a makes a great side dish at any party.  Enjoy!:)

my life is now complete

i'm drooling.
like a dog.
who just saw the juiciest steak ever.
along with their favorite chew toy.
smothered in warm bacon.

How Sweet It Is

ok, no really.
i just found a food blog that may have changed my life!

these pictures do not even begin to do justice the quantity, variety, and amazingness of all that this woman has done! Seriously, GO NOW and check it out!

Best White Chili ever

Got this recipe from my RS pres. We're not big chili fans but we absolutely love this!

2 medium White Onions
1 T Garlic Powder
1 T Oregano
2 T Cumin
1/2 tsp. Cayenne Pepper
2 small cans Green Chilies (diced)
4 cans (15 oz) White Great Northern Beans (drained)
3 cups Chicken Broth (2 cans)
1 Chicken Bullion cube
4 cups cooked Chicken breast (diced bite size pieces)
2 cans white corn (undrained)
32 oz sour cream
(butter to saute onions)

Saute onions in 1/2 cube butter in large pot. Add everything else BUT sour cream. Cook 30 mins. Add sour cream. Cook 10 mins. Top with grated Jack Cheese.

Mexican Pirates?!?

Yes, I believe Larry is a bit of a Mexican pirate.  He loves Mexican food and well, he only spent two years of his life in Mexico!!!:)  So shortly after we were married, I found this recipe (Mexican Chicken Casserole) and it has gotta be in the top-5 list of Larry's faves.  So here goes:

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
8 flour tortillas
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup milk
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (7 oz.) can green chili sauce
1/2 lb. Monterey Jack cheese, grated
1/2 lb. Cheddar cheese, grated

Salt and pepper chicken.  Wrap in foil and bake at 400 for 1 hour.  Cool, bone, and cut up.  Cut tortillas in 1 inch strips.  Mix soups, milk, onion, and chili sauce.  Butter 9x13 inch casserole dish and put in chicken juices that you got from baking chicken in foil.  Layer tortillas, soup mixture, chicken, and cheeses.  Refrigerate for 24 hours, ten bake 1 hour at 375.  (May take 1/2 hour longer because of altitude.)

We love to eat it with a side a spanish rice, beans, chips, salsa, cilantro, horchata... you get the idea!

Pirate's Rump

Ingredients:

• rump roast
• 2 cans cram of mushroom soup
• 1/2 package of onion soup mix
• 1/2 cup sour cream

Place defrosted roast in the crockpot.  Add cream of mushroom soup and onion soup mix.  Cook on high 3-4 hours or low for 6 hours.  Remove roast, cut, and serve.   Add sour cream to soup mixture, and use as gravy over mashed potatoes.