The Best Coffee Rub

I have used this coffee rub on steak, pork tenderloin, and chicken, and it is so delicious! Mix all ingredients well (make sure to break up any lumps of brown sugar) and store in an air tight container.  Enjoy!

 Ingredients

• ⅓ cup finely ground coffee (expresso beans)
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp black pepper
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp coriander
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper (optional, for heat)

Delicious Eggplant Parm

What is so great about this recipe is that I don’t measure anything! I had one eggplant, some left over sauce, and my favorite pasta. Here’s what you do…slice your eggplant about ½” thick. Coat with flour, dip in egg wash, and cover with seasoned panko crumbs. Let the coated eggplant rest for about an hour before cooking.

Airfry the breaded eggplant at 400º for 5 minutes on each side or til golden brown.

Repeat layers of eggplant, sauce, grated mozarella, and parmigiano reggiano. I had enough eggplant for two layers, ending with sauce and cheese. 

Bake at 350º for about 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and golden brown. Add some fresh basil and parsley, and there you have it!

Delicious Buttermilk Banana Bread

This banana bread is so moist and delicious.  My one trick to preventing the bottom and sides of the bread to get too dark?  I place a cookie sheet on the rack just below.  It works every time.

1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup mashed bananas (about 3 bananas)
4 Tbs buttermilk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/3/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp baking soda

In one bowl, mix your flour, baking powder, salt and soda.

In your mixing bowl, cream softened butter and sugar enough so that it is light and fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time and once incorporated, at the bananas, buttermilk and vanilla.  Gently mix in the dry ingredients...do not mix for too long.

Prepare your loaf pan by greasing and flouring it.  Pour the batter in and liberally sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 50-55 minutes.

"Street Corn" Pasta Salad

This pasta salad was unbelievably delicious and one I will be making over and over again! It was very easy to put together, and I was able to find alternative ingredients when there were things I did not have. I added more citrus, hot sauce, and chili powder than was called for, and I used more cilantro...you can never have enough!

Here you go:

8 ozs ditalini pasta (or a pasta of your choice)

4 ears of corn (slice off the kernels - about 4 cups)

1/4 cup red onion finely chopped

1/4 cup Cotija cheese crumbled

2 tbs fresh chopped cilantro

Dressing:

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1-3 tbs Cholula hot sauce (adjust to taste)

2-3 tbs fresh lime juice (about 1 large lime)

1 tsp sugar

1/2-1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp ground chili powder

The things I had to replace/add:

lemon juice for lime juice
Feta cheese for Cotija cheese
Shallot for purple onion
Regular hot sauce for Cholula hot sauce

shredded pepper jack cheese

(1) roasted Poblano pepper

Cook and cool the pasta. Combine the dressing ingredients in a small bowl, adjusting the seasoning to taste. Mix in the corn, onion, pepper jack cheese, poblano pepper, and pasta. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro and Cotija cheese and serve.

It's that simple! 

 

Crazy Good Meatballs

I usually make meatballs when I crave them, and last night was no different. The funny thing is that I never know what I have for ingredients, other than the ground beef! And, each time I make them, I adjust the ingredients and amounts that I put in...i.e, the last time I made them, I added chopped raw onion and unfortunately that was all I could taste! I decided to use dried onion this time...good choice!

Here is my latest recipe (mind you, I don't measure anything, I add enough so you can taste and smell it):

~1 lb ground beef

Cut fresh arugula (I usually use parsley, but had none)

Dried onion (probably about 2 T)

2-3 garlic cloves crushed

Basil

~1 cup of breadcrumbs

~1/2 cup of milk

2 eggs

Shredded cheese

Salt & pepper

The key is to not over mix the meat. I basically cut in the ingredients with a fork, trying to keep it light and airy. I sprayed each meatball with canola oil, then placed them my sauce to cook. I find that this method creates moist and tender meatballs. They took about 20 minutes to cook. Yum!

Stuffed Chicken Breasts Using Left Overs!

Here is what I had to work with:  two chicken breasts that were marinated in a garlic and lemon mixture, some left over rice pilaf, feta cheese I needed to use up, and almonds I had toasted with some parmesan cheese.  Somehow I felt the need to create something.  I could have just coated the chicken in some breadcrumbs and baked it, but that just seemed so boring!  Follow me through my thought process....

In a bowl, I mixed the following:

2 cups of cooked rice pilaf

1/4 cup of the almonds

1 cup of chopped artichoke hearts

a handful of fresh basil and parsley, chopped

about a tsp of dried chopped onion and garlic

1/2 cup of feta cheese

salt and pepper

2 tbs mayonnaise

This was my stuffing mixture.  I used the mayo just to hold everything together.

Slice each chicken breast in half, lengthwise, so that they weren't too thick. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and place some of the rice stuffing and rolled them up. I like to use a large cupcake pan to cook them in because it holds them together nicely. If you don't have a cupcake pan, tie the chicken up with twine and place in a greased pan.

Spray the chicken with a little vegetable oil spray, and sprinkle with seasoned breadcrumbs.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. If they are not golden brown, stick them under the broiler for a quick browning.  Then, remove and let them sit for about 5 minutes.

There you have it...yummy chicken "bundles" AND you have just cleaned your refrigerator!  Enjoy...

Chicken Thighs with Lemon Honey Sauce

• 6 chicken thighs
• 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
• 2 times around with olive oil
• 6 tablespoons of butter, divided
• 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
• ¼ cup honey
• about a tablespoon full of fresh thyme
• ½ cup of chicken broth
• salt and pepper

Clean and dry your chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  In a small container, combine the lemon juice and honey and set aside.

Brown both sides of the chicken in 1 tablespoon of butter and the olive oil,  about 5-7 minutes, depending on how hot your pan is.  If the chicken is sticking to the pan, let it cook a bit longer.  When it is brown, it should turn easily. Remove the chicken and place on a plate.

Melt the remaining butter in the same skillet the chicken was seared in over medium heat, using a spatula to scrape any bits left over in the pan. Stir the butter occasionally until the foam settles. The butter will begin to change color to a golden brown and will have a nutty fragrance.

Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add the honey and lemon juice mixture, the chicken thighs and lower the heat. Simmer until the sauce gets nice and thick....15 minutes or so, turning the thighs from time to time so both sides can get coated with the sauce.  If need be, add just a little chicken broth if the sauce seems to get a little too thick.  After about 20 minutes, place the pan under the broiler to brown the tops just a little. Sprinkle with the thyme and serve.

Notes: Feel free to substitute with either wings or breast. You may need to double the sauce depending on the quantity of chicken.