Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Cinnamon is one of my favorite ingredients and flavors!! I LOVE cinnamon fruit pies, cinnamon on toast, cinnamon and chocolate, and just about anything else that goes with cinnamon!  SO, why wouldn't I just love these Apple Cinnamon Muffins!?

The recipe here actually is based off of one that my grandma gave to me; I did tweak it a little, just because I like to mess with things... And her recipe originally called for nuts, which I do not like in my baked goods.  SO, here is the recipe if you would like to try these delicious muffins!  Notice that you will need LARGE muffin tins for this recipe.  I am sure that you could adjust the bake time and temperature if you want to make it in small tins, but I haven't done that yet, so I am not going to take a gamble at either of those variables for your recipe!

Batter: 

Finished muffin batter

1 1/2 cups of sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 cup of apple juice
4 cups of flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
4 cups of chopped apple (use the apple type which best fits your taste!)

Topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup melted butter

1. For the batter, mix wet ingredients together until well-blended.
2. Add all dry ingredients, except apples, to the wet ingredients and mix until smooth.  The batter will be a bit thick.
3. Mix in chopped apples with large spoon/spatula so they do not get crushed in mixer (if using one).
4. Spoon out mixture into paper-lined muffin tins filling about 2/3 of the way full.
5. Sprinkle the top with a generous amount of topping: the topping can be assembled by mixing all those ingredients together in bowl.  It may form lumps because of the butter and flour, but you can crush those up to make a nice crumble topping.
6. Bake at 345 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
7. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before taking out of muffin pans.
8. Enjoy!

Delicious!

No-Bake Chocolate Cookies

I just realized, I haven't shared a cookie recipe yet!! What's a real food blog without cookies!?! These are one of my absolute favorite recipes to make.  Not only are they easy to make, but they don't require any baking! (Hence the title.)  Whenever I walk into my grandparent's house without these, I  nearly get attacked and questioned on why I didn't bring them... They're the best!
Here's the recipe if you want to try them out!

2 cups of sugar
1/2 cup of butter (do NOT subsitute margarine)
1/2 cup milk
4 Tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cup of quick-oats

1.  Bring sugar, butter, milk and cocoa to a boil.  Boil for 1 minute, constantly stirring so the mixture does not stick.  (It will be a heavy boil!)
2. Remove from heat and add peanut butter; allowing to melt.  Stir in vanilla and oats.  Mix very well.
3. Quickly drop spoonfuls onto wax paper, you can make these as big or as little as you want!  The faster that you get your mixture onto the wax paper, the better they will look; because as soon as this begins to cool, it begins to harden.
4.  Allow to cool; and remove from wax paper.  Enjoy!

I will tell you that once in a while the cookies do not dry properly or become to hard depending on how long you boiled them.  Any time over or under the amount of boil time could result in runny or hard cookies.  Once you make them a few times you will understand what works the best for you.  I prefer to get all my ingredients measured out and set on the counter  before I even start cooking, that way when I turn the heat off I can immediately put the peanut butter, vanilla and oats into the chocolate mixture.  Speed is everything with this
recipe!  Good luck!

Finished Product! (I'm kind of messy sometimes) Haha

Before placing them on wax paper

Restaurant: Rigazzi's Pizza

It's one of those rainy days... I guess we have to get through the April showers for the May flowers!  Since it's raining, I know you won't be going outside; But I thought you may be in the mood for some good food indoors; I know I am always in the mood for some good pizza, no matter what the day is like!

The other day a friend and I were driving around town trying to decide where to eat... It was one of those days where you're not really in the mood for one specific thing, and anything you have had before you're not in the mood for either; so it was the PERFECT day to try a new restaurant!  I had been driving by Rigazzi's Pizza for a few months now and had just never stopped in, so that's where we decided to get lunch!

When we pulled up we were super excited to try out this new pizza place... I don't know about you, but eating Pizza Hut, Papa Johns and Little Caesar's gets a little dull after a while.  We walked in and where instantly overwhelmed by a GIANT menu board of all different kinds of pizza!  It was neat how they had their menu up on the wall but could get a little hectic if it was really crowded.  We decided on the Margherita pizza and decided to add sausage as an extra topping.  After we ordered we grabbed our table number and went to find a spot.

While we were chillin' and waiting for our pizza, we noticed that there were quite a few people getting their cupcakes!  I was pretty surprised at this because I would not expect a pizza place to carry cupcakes, let alone GOOD cupcakes!  But we decided that after our pizza we would have to indulge and try some out!  

Our pizza arrived very quickly (10 minutesish) and it looked delicious!  We dove in, not knowing what to expect, but we were VERY pleased!!!  We both instantly fell in LOVE with the pizza and decided after the first bite that we were going to be coming back for sure!  It was soooooooooooooooo... etc. good!  I was actually disappointed in myself that I had not stopped and tried it sooner! 

After devouring most of the pizza we did decide to get two cupcakes... They also did not disappoint!  I decided to get a red velvet cupcake, and my guest diner ordered a chocolate cupcake with seasalt caramel frosting!  Delicious!  I may even be so bold to say that they were better than Jones Bros. Cupcakes! WHOA! I know... But I just don't really care for Jones Bros... Sorry! Too much frosting for me!  BUT, these were pretty nicely balanced and more simple, the flavors weren't all that weird or different and it was something to satisfy the sweet tooth. 

Red Velvet Cupcake! (notice the heart on top!)

Chocolate Caramel Sea Salt Cupcake!

Here's the rating I would give Rigazzi's Pizza: 

Cost: We ordered a 12 inch specialty pizza and added a topping, plus two drinks and the total came to about $18.00, not bad for a dine-in specialty with extra toppings; and we couldn't finish the whole pizza by ourselves, there were about 3 pieces left over (which my guest diner took home and got to enjoy the next day).

Cleanliness: Great! Nothing out of the ordinary to report here!

Care: Wonderful! The manager of the place came around and asked us how we were enjoying the pizza and a waitress came and asked us how we were enjoying the experience; since it was our first time!

Atmosphere: The restaurant was surprisingly quiet for how many people were in the building; both of us noticed this as we were enjoying the pizza... The restaurant as a whole probably seats 150 - 200 people, they have two party rooms that would be great for get-togethers with large groups! The feel of the restaurant is very family friendly!

Here's a link to the menu if you want to check it out!

http://www.ragazzi-pizza.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/ragazzis-pizza.pdf

I would rate this restaurant a 9.5 out of 10 stars!  The only thing I found a little strange was the placement of their menu.  On a busy day this would get really crowded and uncomfortable trying to figure out what to order; other than that there was nothing to complain about!  

I would definitely recommend trying out Rigazzi's!!  It's a great family-oriented place and is super laid back.  They offer a kid's menu, but I do not think you would want to go there and order chicken fingers... The pizza is too good!! 

Here is the address, website link, and phone number of Rigazzi's Pizza, I hope you give it a try!! They also offer take-out if you are in a pinch for time and just want to stop in and grab your food to go!  Bon Appetit!

5170 S. 72nd St

Ralston, Nebraska

402-502-4200

http://www.ragazzi-pizza.com/

Homemade Tamales

Well... I FINALLY made homemade tamales!!! I have been wanting to make homemade tamales for a long time now and finally picked up some corn husks the other day at the store!  Let me tell you... This is not a quick dinner.  The total time that it took to make these was probably 5 hours.  This includes boiling the meat and steaming the tamales.... So... Make sure you have TIME!

I made a video to show you the process instead of a picture by picture; I thought it would be more enjoyable!

Here's the full recipe in case you want to try!

Ingredients:

4 pounds boneless chuck roast

4 cloves garlic

1/2 onion

1 (16oz) packages of dry corn husks

1 teaspoon Ancho chili powder

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup beef broth

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 cloves garlic; minced

2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon white vinegar

salt to taste

3 cups shortening

1 Tablespoon salt

9 cups masa harina

Directions:

1. Place beef, garlic and onion in large pot.  Cover completely with water.  Bring contents to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 3.5 hours; or until beef is tender.  When beef is cooked, save 5 cups of cooking liquid (discarding garlic and onions).  

2. Shred beef with forks and set aside.

3. While beef is cooking, soak corn husks in large container with water.  You will need to weigh down the corn husks with something heavy so they are completely submersed.  Soak for 3 hours.

4.  Heat oil in large skillet.  Mix in flour until slightly browned.  Mix in beef broth, Ancho chili powder, cumin seeds, ground cumin, minced garlic, chopped oregano, red pepper flakes and vinegar.  Stir in shredded beef and heat for about 20 minutes.

5. Place shortening and salt in LARGE mixing bowl.  Whip with an electric mixer until fluffy.  Add masa harina and beat until well mixed. Pour in reserved liquid a little at a time, until consistency is similar to cookie dough.

6. Drain water from corn husks.  One at a time flatten out each husk; spread approximately 2 tablespoons masa mixture onto the top of center of husk.  Spread dough out making sure to leave 1/2 in. edge so it can be easily rolled.  Roll up the tamale being careful not to have any of the contents leak.  If husk rips, roll up in another husk. Tie ends with ripped strips of husks into knots.

7. Lay each tamale flat in a steamer and steam 1 hour.  When you take out of the steamer they should feel more firm than when you placed them in the steamer.

8. Take out and enjoy!

Well... There's the process!  If you watch the video the steps become a little more clear.  It was fun trying out this new recipe and I hope you get the chance to try it out!  Let me know if you have made tamales before and how they turned out, I would love to hear your stories! 

Be prepared to roll tamales for about 1 hour!!

Tomorrow, It's on like Donkey Kong!

Alrighty folks.... I have deemed tomorrow as Tamale day (dia de los tamales)!  I am going to attempt to make homemade Tamales; If anyone wants to join, let me know.  I will be more than happy to accept advice and tips on how to go about cooking them!  I found a recipe that looks good and I am ready for the battle! SO, let the games begin (tomorrow)! =)
Scared. Nervous. Hungry for Tamales!
Vamanos!

South of the Border Chicken Chili

I am so excited to tell you about this next dish because it is in my top 5 favorite recipes to make and eat!
Now, people will debate me on whether this is considered a chili or a soup... I say, look at the title!  It is a little more runny than a typical red chili, but a little more thick than a typical soup.  But since I am the chef, I deem it to be a chili!  So, as I was saying, this chili is one of my favorites because it has so much flavor!! You also have the power when making this chili to make it more or less spicy, whichever you prefer, by adding more or less peppers!

I love all of the fresh peppers that are used in this recipe, sometimes I add different kinds than the recipe calls for just because I like to experiment.
Here's the recipe in case you'd like to try it:

1 cup of white onion, chopped
1/2 cup of green onions, sliced and chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 yellow pepper, chopped
1 orange pepper, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced or 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
21 ounces of cream of chicken soup
2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 cup of tomato sauce
2 cups of milk
4 ounces of chopped green chilies (drained)
2 Tablespoons of chili powder
1 teaspoon of cumin
1 teaspoon of salt (optional)
1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper

1.  Saute chopped white onion, green onion, peppers and minced garlic in a large skillet with the oil.  Saute until vegetables become slightly soft (about 5 to 10 minutes).
2.  Add chicken to mixture and cook until browned (5 to 10 minutes).  *I like to sometimes cook the chicken a little before mixing into the vegetable mixture, especially when I make a double batch; just to make sure the chicken is cooked all the way through.
3.  Place vegetable and chicken mixture into a large pot and add the rest of the ingredients.  Heat to a boil.
4. Reduce heat and simmer until chicken is tender.
5. Serve with topping choices of guacamole, cheese and sour cream.  Enjoy!

Finished chili

Serves about 4
Total time to make: 50 minutes

It's a really simple recipe, the only time consuming thing is chopping up all of the vegetables.  I usually make a double batch of the chili because my family loves this recipe and it is one of the few things I will eat as leftovers (that's a different story)!
The last time I made this recipe I actually used almond milk instead of real milk just to make it a little more on the healthy side.  I did not tell the diners that I had substituted the almond milk for the real thing... They never noticed (and still don't know)! Ha.  I also added an Anaheim pepper into the mixture just for some extra peppery goodness!
If you want to make this recipe a little more healthy you could maybe try substituting turkey for chicken, almond milk for regular milk; and leave off the cheese!  That would cut your calories by at least 50 to 100, depending on the size bowl you have!  I am assuming that after you try one bowl you're going to want another!
I hope you get to try this chili out!  It is a really good recipe for those brisk nights when you want something fresh and filling!
Let me know if you have any questions or comments!  I would love to hear about your experience if you do decide to try it out!

Dinner is served!

Cooking up the chicken with vegetables!

Restaurant: Katie's Restaurant & Taverna

OPA! Whenever I think of Greek food I immediately think of the Mediterranean setting: those white houses with the blue roofs bordering the sea, set atop cliffs with big drop-offs... Of course the sun is shining and people are sailing in their boats; catching fish while eating grapes.  Stereotypical? Maybe.  The only Greece I know about is what I've seen on TV and in pictures, so of course my view of costal Greece is magnificent and beautiful... When I travel there someday, I'll let you know how it is in real life!

Anyways, let's cut to the chase; I was really excited  when I was on my way a couple weeks ago to try new restaurant, specifically a Greek restaurant since I had never really been to one (the closest I've come to Greek food is King Kong's gyros, Ha!).  I found this restaurant online and it had really good reviews, so my hopes were high!
When I arrived at the restaurant I was excited to see the blue lining of the building (just as the blue roof-tops in Greece).  The inside of the restaurant was even better; the decor, the pictures and the setting really brought the place together nicely.  I loved the atmosphere, although I found it odd that there were only about 5 tables seated on a Friday night and there were about 60 more to be filled.  I always like to see how many other people are dining at the restaurant just because it gives me a little idea about how much people really like the food.  So after seeing the low attendance, I was a little leery.
The menu looked very enticing, the names of the dishes themselves were un-pronouncable (new word) since they were all in Greek.  I ordered a main dish that would've seemed to me to be much more complex than what actually arrived at my table. Here's what I ordered:

Pastitsio - Mostacciolini, Ground Beef, Romano Cheese, Creamy Bechamel sauce topped with Marinara sauce.  Served with rice or vegetable and your choice of potato or house salad with pita bread.

Sounds good right?? I guess I was imagining some kind of dish that had noodles on the bottom, layered with a mixture of beef, cheese, spices and the Bechamel sauce, marinara on the top and then some garnish.  Served with rice? Okay, interesting.... But I'll take it, and then the potato as well.
When I got the dish I was very surprised just by the looks of it; It was literally lasagna with buttery rice on the side and potato wedges.  Now, I try to eat balanced meals most of the time, and for me, serving 3 carbohydrate items on one plate is not something I would typically eat: Rice, lasagna and potato.  But if that's what they eat in Greece than I was happy to oblige.
I began eating the dish and was not impressed, to say the least.  Maybe it's because I'm used to all the flavors in Mexican food, the peppers, cumin, other spices, I'm not sure, but this was very bland.  The Pastitsio (lasagna) seemed dry with little spice, almost like it had been pre-cooked and then re-heated. I was not very happy and did not even finish my whole plate.  My other guest diners were not super impressed with their dishes either; I think one of them left more than she ate.  Here's the rating I would give Katie's Restaurant and Taverna:

Cleanliness: Great! I did not see any signs of messes or uncleanliness in this restaurant.  The bathrooms were clean and it looked very orderly in the restaurant. If I was able to just rate the restaurant based on atmosphere and cleanliness, it would get 11 out of 10 stars!
Care: The waitresses were very friendly and nice!  They were very talkative and the person in charge (I think the owner) was also very friendly!
Cost: A little pricey.  About $10 a plate.  If you add drinks and an appetizer to that, it ends up being about $15 to $20 per person.
Convenience: Very easy to get to, it's right on the turn of 40th and Dodge, once you turn onto 40th st, you can't miss it.

Based on these categories I would give the restaurant 10/10 stars.... The food is what really hurts the restaurant unfortunately; because of this factor (which I assume to be the biggest) I would have to lower the rating down to a 5/10.  I will say that the appetizer was the best part (pictured to the right), it was Spanakopita, which is a pastry dough filled with spinach and feta cheese; I may try to make this at home sometime!
I was disappointed with the food, it was way too pricey for what we received and it wasn't even good.  I'm not sure if this is what they actually eat in Greece, but it seems to me that it was just overly simplified at the restaurant.  The lack of spice and garnishes seemed cheap and I will not be returning.
The one good thing about the restaurant being not-so-great? We left the restaurant still hungry, so we were able to squeeze in some Fro-Yo, which is always good, even if it was 30 degrees out!

If you are interested in trying out the restaurant here is the website and the address, maybe you'll have a better experience than I did! And who knows, maybe we didn't try the right things??? I would be very interested in hearing feedback on what you think of this restaurant!
Eat up!

http://www.katiesgreek.com/

119 S. 40th St. Omaha, NE 

402.558.5623

Guest diner's meal - Buttery noodles with chicken

Thinkin' Cap Time

So... I've been down for a few days which has led me to watch a bunch of TV.... I mean a BUNCH of TV. Which is not a good thing.  Although, there are some pretty interesting things on Netflix, and I do enjoy a good documentary here and there.  But there is one thing that I have been noticing more and more as I watch TV... FOOD IS EVERYWHERE!
I don't know if it's just the society we live in, or the programs I watch, (Dancing with the Stars, Idol, 48hrs...etc.) but there are so many commercials and even documentaries about food!!  But do you know what the funniest thing is???

The commercials on TV are all about junk food: Toaster Struddles (especially in the morning), McDonalds, Burger King, Taco Bell (Open late! For your 4th meal!!), King Kong, Pringles, Coke... You name it; but they never show commercials about fruits or veggies... Maybe sometimes on the kid's programs they'll play something like "Get up and move kids! Spend 30 minutes outside! And remember, eat your fruits and veggies if you want to get strong!!!"
On the contrary, most of the documentaries on available on Netflix are about healthy eating!  Not only healthy eating, but transforming people's lives so they eat and live a more healthy lifestyle (Biggest Loser, Vegucated, Fresh... etc.).
Another funny observation, right after a Long John Silver's commercial you may have a GNC or gym membership commercial.  So what do I, as a consumer, get from these messages??? I'm SO CONFUSED!
Am I supposed to eat saturated fat and drink sugar all day while taking my fish oil and green tea pills; and then head to Taco Bell for my 4th meal after I hit the gym?? WHAT!?  That makes NO sense!

Society is so contradictory.  They want YOU as the consumer, to spend money. Whether it's on junk food, gym memberships, or clothing (that's a whole different story), all they want is you to see how happy people are doing/eating these things... Yes, the paid model looks very happy eating a 1/2 pound burger with extra cheese and a large fry, Ha!  BUT, have you ever seen anything good or anyone happy eating like this all day every day? NO. It is proven that these foods make people lethargic and physically SICK.  They make TV shows about people who became sick while eating those foods (The Biggest Loser, Dr. Phil, The Doctors... Etc.) AND guess what? They show the same fast food commercials during those shows, maybe adding a Yoplait commercial  in just for kicks... Just something to think about.

I am not telling you by any means that enjoying a Chalupa or a Whopper is bad, once in a while... I say go for it!  But I am trying to make the point and show how much of our lives are consumed by these bad habits and media; and how contradictory the media is...  I mean, really, who needs 4 meals a day??? Not to mention, how much money eating out costs!
What if we cut out all the fast food commercials and replaced them with fruit and veggie commercials? Do you think that would change how society eats and what they buy?  OR what if there was a "down hour" every day where the TV shut off and made people get up!? Hmmm....

Carnivorous Stromboli

Whelp, It's been a while, I know... I've been a little under the weather lately and haven't been able to get around to the blog!  BUT I finally mustered up enough energy today to show you what's up with STROMBOLI!  I made Stromboli for the first time about 2 weeks ago and it was delicious!! Was it healthy? NO. This is probably the most protein-packed, dairy-filled recipe I have made in while, and one of the most difficult to make!

Meat and spice mixture

The filling in the recipe is absolutely delicious!  I will say, the filling on Stromboli is totally UP TO YOU!  You may not like Yellow, Red or Jalapeno peppers like I do, so I encourage you to put your own veggies and peppers you like into this mix.  As I mentioned, my mix included Pork, Red and Yellow Peppers, cilantro, garlic, onions and Jalapenos.  You layer this mix with the other meats that are included in the recipe (or that you prefer).

One thing that was especially hard about making the Stromboli was making and rolling out the dough.  Making the dough wasn't hard, it's a basic dough recipe; It became hard when it said to roll it out super thin and then roll up all the ingredients into a GIANT cylinder without ripping the dough! Whew.  So after rolling the dough out I had to layer all my meats, mixture and cheese in the center.  I realized that bigger isn't always better, especially in this case.  After I was done with my layering I sat and pondered how I was going to attempt to roll this 5 pounder up!?  But, I pressed on.  I took a DEEP breath and dove right in, rolling as quickly as I could, hoping it wouldn't explode!  And guess what!? It worked!  I got it all rolled up without any holes or explosions! Holler!

Pre-Roll Up

After the first rolled up Stromboli was complete, I realized I had to go through the process all over again because the recipe makes TWO.  After rolling up the second mound without any volcanic activity I placed it on the baking sheet.  Lifting the two Stromboli into the oven turned out to be a workout in itself!  I think the both of them weighed about 10lbs all together! 

Pre-Baked Stromboli

I was nervous about the inside dough getting baked all the way through but it worked!  It did take a while to bake but it was so worth it! I pulled them out of the oven and I realized that they were leaking some cheese and grease... Which is something I do not like seeing.  (I am one of those people that sucks the grease up off the top of my pizza with a paper towel.)  So after taking them out of the oven I put them on a wire cooling rack so the bottom didn't get grease-soaked.

 Cutting into these beauties was absolutely fun and exciting!  It was so cool seeing all the layers, and I was excited about trying it too!
I wasn't disappointed either! It was absolutely delicious!  I have to say, my dad ate almost a whole one by himself!  It was super filling and definitely one of my favorite recipes that I have discovered... Which is why I may or may not add the actual recipe to the blog... Some recipes are meant to be kept a secret... (actually my recipe is upstairs at the moment, and I cannot really go up the stairs) Haha.

Finished Stromboli

Let me know if you try out any of these recipes and tell me what you think!  I want to hear your stories about your successes and messes! I hope you enjoyed reading about this Stromboli, and when I get around to putting up the recipe, I hope you try it out! 

Enjoy!