Grilled Fish Packets

Hey everyone! Happy early 4th of July! So I know that with this holiday weekend typically comes lots of food that tastes really good but is not so good for your body. Today I have a very tasty recipe that is EXTREMELY easy to make and very low in calories. I found it in my mom's new grilling cookbook called "Grilling Basics" by Linda Johnson Larsen and let me just say it is spicy and good!!! The fish becomes a bit flaky and best of all your vegetables are being grilled in the "pocket" also. Take a look below to see how easy it will be to make something health conscious this weekend and then you might want to look back on some old posts for some decedent desserts ;) From the Splendid Kitchen enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds cod filets
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper (optional)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 sliced red onion
1 sliced summer squash
2 sliced green bell peppers
1/4 cup butter
2 tablespoons lime juice
*Keep in mind any of these vegetables are interchangeable it could just possibly alter the taste of your fish. Also I omitted the green bell peppers because no one in my family really wanted them and everything was still delicious! Also there were just 3 of us eating this so I put 2 fish per packet and it was plenty of food. Otherwise, I would just suggest one per packet.*

Have your grocer cut you 6 strips of cod. Bring home and pat dry. Next mix salt, white pepper, cumin, paprika, and cayenne in a bowl.


Rub mixture onto cod on both sides. Also cut up vegetables.


Grab your heavy duty foil and tear off 6 18x12 inch sheets. If you do not have heavy duty be sure and either double or triple up your foil. Take one and place onion in center then add cod and top with remaining vegetables.


Combine melted butter and lime juice and pour over fish. Wrap up foil folding long side over once and then folding the short sides up so that nothing will leak out.



Then place on the grill, over medium heat, for about 15-20 min. moving around with a large spatula so they cook evenly. Be sure not to flip over otherwise the juices will spill out.



When done, take off grill and you will see a whole meal put together. I can not tell y'all how good these are!!!


Let me know if you give these a try and tell me what you think of them. Keep in mind they are spicy so feel free to cut back on the spices a bit if needed. God Bless America from the Splendid Kitchen!

Printable Directions:
-Combine salt, white pepper, cumin, paprika, and cayenne together.
-Pat onto both sides of fish.
-Tear off 6 18x12 inch sheets of heavy duty foil and place onion in center followed by the fish and then the remaining vegetables.
-Combine butter and lime and drizzle over fish.
-Fold up foil and place on grill, moving around and grilling for about 15-20 min.
-Unwrap and either serve as is or place on plate.

Pioneer Woman's Beef and Cheese Enchiladas

Hey everyone! I do not know about y'all but I can never seem to get enough of mexican food. It doesn't matter what it is if it involves having chips and salsa before I am there! A few weeks ago I decided to make these enchiladas not exactly knowing what to expect. I will say that the bar was very high because my mom makes killer cheese enchiladas. The great part about this is that I really cannot compare them to my moms because these were beef enchiladas and good ones might I add. Keep in mind I am a Texas girl so my standards for mexican food are up there. :) Give these a try though...you will not be disappointed. Now go turn on some salsa music and get ready for a mexican fiesta!

Ingredients:
FOR THE SAUCE:
1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
1 Tablespoon All-purpose Flour
1 can (28 Ounce) Enchilada Or Red Sauce
2 cups Chicken Broth
½ teaspoons Salt
½ teaspoons Ground Black Pepper
2 Tablespoons Chopped Cilantro

FOR THE MEAT:
1-½ pound Ground Beef
1 whole Medium Onion, Finely Diced
2 cans (4 Ounce) Diced Green Chilies
½ teaspoons Salt

FOR THE TORTILLAS:
10 whole (to 14) Corn Tortillas
½ cups Canola Oil

TO ASSEMBLE:
3 cups Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese
½ cups Chopped Black Olives (optional)
1 cup Chopped Green Onions
½ cups Chopped Cilantro

Before I begin I would like to mention a few things I would change. First off, I would not use as much red sauce as is recommended in the directions. Simply because my enchiladas came out soupy...they still tasted good but a bit soupy. Secondly, I would dip your tortillas in the sauce one at a time, filling them as you go. Thirdly, I did not include the green onions because we had normal onion. Lastly, I don't like black olives so I did not include those! Now I will get off my soap box and get on with this delicious dish!

The first thing you are going to do is make the sauce. So in a saucepan over med.-low heat add canola oil and flour. Mix and allow to come to a "bubble" for about a minute. Now I am sure you can see in my picture below that that did not happen for me. I would recommend adding a bit more canola oil or simply moving on like I did. I don't know if that was the right decision but it worked for me.

Now pour in the red sauce, chicken broth, salt, and pepper and bring up to a boil. In this case I would recommend maybe using 20 oz. of red sauce but it is up to you. After it comes to a boil dial down the heat a bit to a simmer and let sit while preparing other ingredients.


So as your sauce simmers begin to work on the meat. You will need to chop up your onion and add it to a skillet with the ground beef. You will cook this, moving it around, until brown.


Then drain the mixture and place back in skillet.


Now add the green chilies and salt. Stir until combined and then set aside.


Tortilla time! In a small skillet lightly fry tortillas in canola oil, taking them out when the soften and and allowing them to drain on a towel lined plate.


Gather you tortillas, sauce, meat, and cheese and form an assembly line. Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Now take 1/2 cup of your sauce and spread in the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan.


Next, dip each tortilla into the sauce one at a time. Here is one other thing I would do differently. She did them all at once and then stuffed them; however, my tortillas ended up sticking together so next time I will dip it in the sauce and immediately stuff. Unfortunately, my pictures are not done that way so bear with me.


After, you have dipped the tortillas, stuff them with ground beef mixture and cheese. (If you choose now would also be the time to add the black olives and green onions.) Roll them all up and put them in the pan...hmmm sounds like a nursery rhyme I used to sing :)


Add the cilantro to the sauce and pour over enchiladas. Now sprinkle as much cheese as your heart desires!




Bake for about 20 min. or until bubbly (mine had to cook for a while longer) . Take out and sprinkle a little cilantro on top if you so please. I would say to let cool a bit but we just could not wait.


Serve with some rice and maybe some chips and homemade salsa. Yum!
What is great about these is that if you have left overs they are even better the next day. I think because the sauce gets to absorb a bit more. Anyway, de la cocina espléndida disfrutar! (from the Splendid Kitchen Enjoy!)

Printable Recipe:
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/09/simple-perfect-enchiladas/

Kendall's Cookie Cake

Hey everyone! One of my very best friends birthday was recently and I decided that I would make her a cookie cake but not your typical cookie cake. This had to be home made and let me tell you it was delicious! It is extremely easy and you might find yourself eating the dough along the way. From the Splendid Kitchen enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup (2 sticks) of butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups or 1 12oz. pkg Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips


Begin by pre-heating your oven to 375 degrees

Cream butter...


Sugar...


Brown Sugar...



and vanilla...


Once it is all incorporated it should have a really pretty brown color.


Time to add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.



Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl.



Gradually, beat in. Make sure to scrape down the edges after each addition so as to mix everything and I know you are probably aware of this but unless you want a flour facial I recommend adding it in slowly. :)




Now that it looks yummy there is only one thing missing...


CHOCOLATE CHIPS!


Stir in and then you are done!



In a 15x10 inch pan spread mixture and pop in the oven for about 20-25 min. When it is done it should be golden brown on the top.


Perfect!


All that is left is to decorate it.


Happy Birthday Kendall! Celebrating good times from the Splendid Kitchen!

Printable Directions:
Beat butter, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla in a mixing bowl together.
Add in eggs one at a time, beating after each addition
Combine flour, baking soda, and salt.
Slowly add in mixture.
Stir in chocolate chips.
Spread evenly into pan and cook 20-25 min or until golden brown.
Decorate

Spicy Queso

Hey everyone! I am just going to tell you right off the bat that this queso is going to make you never want to make the plain old queso on the back of the Velveta box any more. It has a such an great combination of meat, cheese and spice that makes it to die for. I of course got it from the Pioneer Woman and first made it for our Superbowl party back in February. People loved it. I then made it for some of my friends and they declared that it was the best queso! So props to Pioneer Woman! Now all you have to do is get the ingredients and get crackin'!!! From the Splendid Kitchen enjoy!

Ingredients:
32 ounces, weight Velveeta Cheese Loaf
10 ounces, weight Rotel
1 pound Jimmy Dean Hot Breakfast Premium Pork Sausage
7 ounces, weight Chopped Green Chilies
1 whole Yellow Onion
1 whole Jalapeno, or more to taste

Before I start I want you to remember that you can moderate the "heat" of this queso.

Start off by dicing up your onion. Place diced onion in a non-stick skillet with the spicy sausage.


Stir until brown. Once done drain some of the fat and place back into skillet.(Excuse the blurriness of my picture :)


Now take your Velveta cheese loaf (I know it doesn't sound so appealing but stick with me) and dice it into cubes. The smaller the better. This will cause it to melt faster.


Now I do veer a little bit from the original recipe at this point just to save time. I put the whole can of Rotel in with the meat as well as well as the whole can of green chillies and then the jalapeño. Here is where you make an important decision: to leave the seeds and membrane(the slightly white part in the middle) in or not to leave the seeds and membrane in. Only you can decide. :) Note that when I say "whole" I mean juices and all. The original calls for you to put your cheese in and then add but I do it backwards. It is really up to you.


Now add your little cheese cubes...


Stir and watch them melt into cheesy goodness...


And then suddenly it is the queso you always dreamed of! I can taste it now. It is so hearty and yummy! The last thing to do is to put it into your crock pot to serve and you are done!


Just get some sturdy chips so that they do not break. Basically, it is extremely easy and will serve a good amount of people and is great for a party or any occasion! Wishing you cheesy times from the Splendid Kitchen!

Printable Directions: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/chile_con_queso/