For the love of smoothies

I must admit I’ve always been more of a milkshake kind of woman but this bluberry-banana smoothie won me over. I’ve never been great at measuring out ingredients but here’s a somewhat accurate rundown:

Blueberry-Banana Smoothie Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 ripe banana
• Small/Large handful frozen blueberries [to taste]
• 1/2 C plain yogurt
• Small dash of milk
• 1/2 to 1 TSP pure vanilla extract [to taste]
• 1 1/2 TBS sugar
• 1 C ice
• Whipped cream

Instructions:

• Keep in mind this is an approximation.
• I placed all of the ingredients in the blender in that order. Might not make a difference which way you do it but I like what I like.
• Blend until everything is mixed.
• Taste and add more sugar if needed.
• Add more milk to thin out/ice to thicken.
• Add whipped cream. Because what doesn’t taste better with whipped cream.
• ENJOY.

Let me know how it works out for you.

bon appetit! xoxo, muki

summer time and the chili is easy

reason #13782943712983 why i love slow cookers: you can leave the food in and walk away.

and on a day like today i most certainly needed that. we are in the process of moving- and by in the process i mean we moved out of our old place but are stuck living out of boxes while we wait till our new place is done- so on top of my already insane schedule i’m forced to cook in someone else’s kitchen using someone else’s kitchen kitchen appliances and taking pictures with my camera phone or computer because my camera charger and picture uploader are hiding somewhere in one of those boxes. [that’s my apology for the less than stellar photographs to come. just in case you didn’t quite catch that.]

add to that, there were WAY too many tomatoes in my house after someone from church handed me a bag full of freshly picked garden tomatoes. i mean, who can say no to straight out of the garden ingredients?

suffice to say, this slow cooker summer chicken chili recipe  was exactly what i needed. the ingredients were easy to get:

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces tomato sauce
• 1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 10 ounces frozen corn
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeno, seeds removed(unless you like it hot. i removed mine because some of the people eating don’t like spicy foods), finely diced
• 2 pounds tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 3 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 large, boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 pound total)
• optional, cooked rice to eat it with.

also, it didn’t require a lot of work on my end. i just put it in, set the timer, and did what i had to do until dinner time:

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients except for the chicken breasts in the basin of a large slow cooker.
2. Place chicken breasts on top and close slow cooker.
3. Cook on high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10. [i usually prefer to cook my food on low but due to time constraints i cooked mine on high for 5 1/2 hours then did step 4 and cooked it on low for another half hour.]
4. 30 minutes before serving, remove chicken and shred using two forks. Return to chili and stir well.

final verdict: the chili was a definite hit. everyone loved it. and it was incredibly easy to make. i’ll definitely be using it again. unfortunatley i was unable to get a good picture because there wasn’t much left when i got back upstairs from puting my son to sleep. sidenote, when you cook always put a little aside for yourself or you might find yourself missing out on your own cooking. i’m finding more and more that this is becoming a necessity.

bon appetit! xoxo, muki

the “greatest waffle recipe ever?”

i didn’t grow up in a house where we made a lot of waffles. we were are crepe people. but i decided today to make waffles for breakfast. so in true 21st century fashion i googled a recipe and happened to find the so-called “greatest waffle recipe ever.” the ingredient list was short, just the way i like it:

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 3/4 cups milk
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2 egg whites

step 1
in a medium mixing bowl stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. make a well in the center.

step 2
in another bowl beat egg yolks slightly. stir in milk and oil.

step 3
add egg yolk mixture all at once to the dry mixture. stir just till moistened (should be lumpy).

step 4
in a small bowl beat egg whites until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight up).

[note: if you have no arm strength, USE A MIXER.]

step 5
gently fold egg whites into flour and egg yolk mixture, leaving a few fluffs of egg white, Do not overmix.

step 6
spoon waffle batter into your waffle iron, making sure not to overfill it.

[i was feeling a bit nostalgic so i used my mickey mouse waffle iron.]

step 7
enjoy!

final verdict: the waffles were delicious. crisp on the outside, moist and tender on the inside. best waffles ever? i still don’t know about all that. but boy were they yummy! try it and let me know what you think.

bon appetit! xoxo, muki