Red Enchilada Sauce

Whenever I make my chicken enchiladas I don't usually put much of a sauce over them apart from possibly salsa and grated cheese, but the other day while watching an episode of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives (a huge source of cooking inspiration for me, and who doesn't love Guy Fieri :o), there was a chef making what looked like a fabulous enchilada sauce to ladle over his burritos.  There were a few ingredients (spices mostly) that I didn't want to put into my sauce - mainly because I didn't have them and apart from this one sauce would probably never use them again, so didn't want the expense of buying them.  I also didn't want my sauce to be too overly spicy especially when I knew that I was going to be making some beef and bean burritos tonight using some of my recent taco seasoning which has a decided 'kick' to it - didn't want to be blowing off the top of our heads with a double dose!!!

Red Enchilada Sauce
approx 3 cups

3 Tbs vegetable oil
1 Tbs flour
2 Tbs chili powder
1 cup vegetable stock
1 can (15oz) tomato sauce
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt

• heat the vegetable oil in a saucepan over medium to high heat.
• stir in the flour and heat for 1 minute.
• add the chili powder and mix to incorporate.
• pour in the vegetable stock and tomato sauce and mix until everything is blended.
• add the oregano, cumin and salt:  reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes until sauce has thickened up.
• If you want thinner sauce add a little more vegetable stock until you have the consistency that you desire.

 Red Enchilada Sauce ingredients

heat the vegetable oil in a saucepan and whisk in the flour.

add the chili powder.

pour in the vegetable stock and can of tomato sauce.

add the oregano, cumin and salt and whisk in well.

reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes until....

...the sauce has thickened to your personal preference - we like it a little thicker, but if you prefer a thinner consistency just add a little more vegetable stock.

Raspberry Sauce

We have very dear friends of ours coming around on Tuesday for a little Christmas get together so tomorrow I'm going to make my lemon cheesecake, but I've decided this time to 'jazz' it up a little by adding a swirl of homemade raspberry sauce through it.  I'm hoping it works - fingers crossed.
If it doesn't work I know I'll have enough sauce left over to drizzle over the french vanilla ice cream I have in the freezer so I have a backup plan - it's always a good idea. :o)

Raspberry Sauce
about 1 1/2 to 2 cups

2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbs orange juice
2 Tbs cornstarch
1 cup cold water

• combine the raspberries, sugar and orange juice in a saucepan.
• whisk the cornstarch into the cold water until dissolved and smooth; add to the raspberries and bring to a boil.
• reduce heat slightly and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring constantly until thickened (the sauce will thicken further while cooling).
• into a bowl, strain the sauce through a fine mesh sieve to remove the seeds.
• the sauce can be served warm or cold; it will keep in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks.

 Raspberry Sauce ingredients.

whisk the cornstarch into the water until dissolved, and put the raspberries, sugar and orange juice into a saucepan.

pour the water and cornstarch over the raspberries.

bring to the boil and reduce heat.

simmer for 5 minutes, stirring constantly - just look at that beautiful ruby red colour.

strain through a fine mesh sieve to remove the seeds.

it's still warm but you can already see how it coats the back of the spoon - it will get even thicker as it cools down.

it was so delicious that we decided to have a little of the still warm sauce over that vanilla ice cream I mentioned.  Yummy!!!!

Simple Marinara Sauce

There are so many wonderful pasta sauces out there on the market, that sometimes it's so much easier to just grab a jar off the grocery store shelf and go with that along with your favourite pasta.  I do it that way most of the time to be honest, but today I decided to make my own marinara sauce - it's a lot cheaper to begin with, especially because if you make quite a large quantity, as this recipe is, it freezes beautifully so there's another couple of meals right there.  Also, you can get the taste exactly to your own personal preference. This is what went into mine today, only because I had everything on hand - another time, it might change slightly with subtractions and additions, but that's what I like about it.  It's a very versatile, simple sauce.

Simple Marinara Sauce

1 Tbs olive oil
1 onion, diced
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp italian seasoning
3 (14oz) cans diced tomatoes in juices
2 (14oz) cans crushed tomatoes
1 Tbs dried parsley
1 Tbs dried basil
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

• saute, over medium heat, the onions in the olive oil until soft, about 5-7 minutes.
• add the garlic and italian seasoning and saute for another 1 minute.
• add all the cans of tomatoes and mix well.
• add parsley, basil, garlic powder and onion powder; mix well and heat until bubbling.
• include the parmesan cheese and stir until melted.
• turn heat down and simmer for 1 - 1 1/2 hours.
• taste and adjust seasoning if required.
• when it's finished simmering, if desired, puree the sauce with an immersion blender until smooth.

 Marinara Sauce ingredients (most of them anyway - the rest is just off camera - I'm a bit of a 'space cadet' today!!! :)

mince the garlic and chop the onions fairly small.

saute the onions until soft.

add the garlic and italian seasoning for just a minute until fragrant.

add in the other herbs and powders.

after an hour or more of simmering the sauce thickens into rich awesomeness.

tonight we had the sauce with some pre-bought ravioli.

delicious - and lots more in the freezer for future meals.

Steak in Mushroom Sauce

There are two easy ways to heat our little cottage on these cold, wintry days.  Our wonderful wood burning stove with our pile of fir and cedar logs, or as I used today, having the oven on for about 6 hours straight - I had both going at one point and if it wasn't for the occasional pile of lingering snow outside (which I can see from my kitchen window), I would of thought I was on some desert island on the equator!!

I started off making the berry-licious sour cream berry muffins, and then had this steak dish in the oven for five hours on a low heat so that the meat came out melt-in-the-mouth fork tender with a rich brown gravy.  It only has simple ingredients but it definitely tastes like a lot more effort went into it.  I served it with some roasted asparagus and 'Crash Hot Potatoes' from The Pioneer Woman's website (if you haven't checked out her website go now, she's awesome - well, after you've checked out all of mine of course :o)

Steak in Mushroom Sauce
serves 4

2 lbs round or sirloin steaks (cut into serving sizes)
1 package dry onion soup mix
1 can condensed mushroom soup
1/2 can water
1 tsp dried garlic (or 1 clove, chopped)
salt and pepper

• preheat the oven to 300 F.
• place the steak in a casserole dish.
• sprinkle the dry onion soup mix over the meat.
• in a small bowl mix the can of mushroom soup with the water and pour evenly over the meat.
• cover and bake for 5 hours.

 Steak with Mushroom Sauce ingredients.

sprinkle the dry onion soup mix over the meat in a casserole dish.

mix the mushroom soup, water, garlic and seasoning in a small bowl.

pour the wet ingredients over the meat and cover.

after five hours it's browned and thickened and delicious :)

I served it with some simple roasted asparagus - tossed in olive oil, salt and pepper, and baked alongside 'Crash Hot Potatoes'.

 it didn't take a fraction of the time to eat it as it did to cook it :o)

Crispy Chicken with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce

The French's fried onions in this recipe are the perfect flavour for the accompanying honey mustard dipping sauce.  Simple yet delicious.

Crispy Chicken
2 servings

2 large or 4 small skinless chicken breasts
2 tins French's Original Fried Onions
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs

• preheat the oven to 375 F, and place a cooling rack into a large baking tray lined with foil.  Set aside.
• cut the chicken breasts into 'fingers' (4 if breasts are large, or in half if they're small)
• in a Ziploc bag combine the French's fried onions and flour, and crush using a rolling pin, to small crumbs; transfer to a bowl or shallow dish.
• in a separate bowl or dish, beat the eggs.
• dip the chicken pieces into the beaten egg and then into the onion crumb mixture, pressing the crumbs into the chicken to adhere.  Place onto the prepared baking tray.
• bake for 25-30 minutes, turning half way through cooking time.
• serve with the Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce.

Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
1/4 cup mayonnaise or Miracle Whip
1 Tbs honey
1 Tbs yellow mustard - prepared
1 tsp lemon juice

• whisk all ingredients together and serve in individual little pots.

 4 simple ingredients, but great flavour.

get everything prepared in advance.

make sure the chicken pieces are coated completely.

bake until golden brown and cooked through.

 honey mustard dipping sauce.

I served our chicken and dipping sauce with a cherry tomato crisp.