Do you ever go to The Cheesecake Factory for something other than cheesecake? One of my most favorite things to eat there is The Navajo sandwich. So good! Chicken, onion, avocado, lettuce, tomato...all stuffed into warm fry bread! I LOVE IT!! So making fry bread in my kitchen has been on my list of things to do for quite a while. I had some pork loin I used to fill my fry bread with, but you could use just about anything. These turned out really good and it was a nice change from corn tortillas.

Pork Tacos with Indian Fry Bread



Taco Filling:

2 pound pork ~ diced
1 medium onion ~ diced
1 4-ounce can diced green chilis
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 cup chicken stock
3 tablespoons flour

In a large skillet, cook onion and green chili in a little oil until tender.

Add the diced pork, salt, pepper and cumin and cook until done.

Sprinkle meat mixture with the flour then add the chicken stock.

Stir well and cook until mixture is thick. Keep warm.

The ingredients for the filling.

 

Saute the onion and green chili.

 

Then add the meat and seasonings.

 

Sprinkle a little flour over the cooked meat.

 

Add a little chicken stock to the 

skillet to thicken the mixture.

 

Fry Bread:

3 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup warm water
Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Add warm water and stir and add in more flour if needed for a soft dough.

Cover bowl and let rest about 15 minutes.

Pull off large egg-sized balls of dough and roll out thin rounds. Not too thin or the end result will be hard. You're looking for soft here.

Fry rounds in hot oil until bubbles appear on the dough, turn over and fry on the other side until golden.

Serve hot.

Fill bread with taco mixture, lettuce, cheese, salsa, etc.

The stuff for the fry bread.

 

Combine the dry ingredients.

 

Then add the milk. You might have 

to play with the dry/wet ingredients 

to get it just right. You don't want 

it to be too sticky.

 

Then tear off large egg sized pieces

 and flatten with your hands on 

a lightly floured surface.

 

Fry them until lightly golden on both sides.

 

Then fill 'em with the meat filling 

and load 'em up with all the other 

things you like on a taco. Yummers!

 

 

Yay for Mexican food! IT Guy loved this! If you're not a fan of chipotle and the heat they can bring, of course you can leave them out. But if you like a little zing on your tongue, then this is the dish for you!

Chicken Chipotle Enchiladas

 

3 cups cooked, chopped chicken
2 green onions
1 10-ounce can enchilada sauce
2 chipotle peppers ~ processed in a food processor
2 cups grated cheese (I used a combination of cheddar and Monterrey jack and queso fresco.)
1 teaspoon cumin
salt and pepper to taste
corn tortillas

Preheat oven to 35 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine chicken, onions, enchilada sauce, cumin, chipotle peppers and salt and pepper.

Heat a corn tortilla in the microwave for 15 seconds then place a spoonful of the chicken mixture and some cheese on the tortilla. Repeat with the rest of the ingredients. Sprinkle any remaining cheese over rolled enchiladas.

Alternately, you can layer the ingredients into a casserole...if you've got a lazy streak in you like I do.

Bake for 30 - 40 minutes until hot and bubbly.

The stuff.

Grind up the chipotles.

Put the chicken, enchilada sauce, 

chipotles, onions and salt and pepper in a large bowl.

Stir to combine.

The roll the enchiladas or if you're lazy like me, 

layer the ingredients.

Like this.

Then bake it up and eat!

Copyright © 2012 Simple Fare, Fairly Simple. All rights reserved.

I'm forever trying to find ways to incorporate a Mexican food flair to my cooking since we love it so much. Spying the fresh, frozen green chilies in my freezer next to some ground beef...it was a no-brainer what would happen next. I know not everyone keeps fresh green chilies in their freezer, so you can substitute a 7-ounce can of diced green chilies instead. Still good!

Firecracker Burgers

 

1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 teaspoon cumin
1 7-ounce can diced green chilies
salt and pepper to taste

Heat a large skillet or prepare your grill.

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients.

Form mixture into patties and fry in a little olive oil and a couple of tablespoons of butter until browned on both sides and done in the middle.

Serve with bacon, cheese and hamburger fixin's.

The burger stuff.

Mix the ground beef, green chilies, 

salt, pepper, garlic salt and 

cumin together in a bowl.

Form into patties then fry 'em up 

in a little olive oil and butter.

Drain for a bit on paper towel.

Brown the buns in a little butter. 

I used some homemade buns I had in the freezer.

Have you tried this little trick? 

Weave some halved bacon like you see here then...

..bake it at 375 for 20 - 30 minutes until done. 

Then slap that baby on a burger!

Ta die for!

 

 

 

I have a bottled marinade that I use all the time and we really like. But every now and then I like to throw IT Guy for a loop and use something else. It's a good thing he's so easy going. He really liked this...and I did, too. It was nice to make a fresh marinade, knowing it didn't have a lot of unknown stuff in it. I used this on some steak I had...but it would be great on chicken or pork as well!

Super Marinade

 

2 tablespoons oil
1 medium onion ~ chopped
2 cloves of garlic ~ minced
2 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon allspice
1 cup beef stock
1/3 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoon Balsamic vinegar

In a medium saucepan, heat the oil then add the chopped onion. Saute onion until soft.

Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes.

Allow to cool.

Add meat to marinade and allow to marinate for 24 hours.

Cook or grill meat.

Let's go!

In a little oil, cook the onions until tender.

Then add the rest of the ingredients.

Simmer for 10 minutes.

Allow to cool to room temperature.

Then add your meat. Sorry guys..

I know raw meat isn't very attractive. 

Allow the meat to marinate for 24 - 48 hours.

Then throw it on the grill as usual.

Tender and yummy!

This is a dish my friend Sharron is famous for. She makes this for holiday dinners and special occasions. I asked her if I could feature it here on SFFS and she graciously said yes. This is one of those side dishes that is creamy and comforting and oh so good! If you're not a thyme lover, then you can of course, leave it out and this little item is just as good!

Squash Posh

 

2 lbs yellow squash cut in bite size pieces
1 medium chopped yellow onion
salt & pepper to taste
2 eggs
1 tsp thyme leaves
1 c mayonnaise
1 1/2 cups grated Monterrey Jack cheese
1/2 stick butter - softened
Cook squash and onion together in boiling water until tender - do not overcook.
 
Drain and set aside.
 
Beat together the eggs, mayo and thyme (if using).
 
Combine all ingredients and spoon into a greased casserole dish. Sprinkle with  cheese and dot with butter.

Bake at 375 degrees for 30 - 45 minutes until hot and bubbly.

Here's what you need for this yummy dish.

Boil the squash and onion until 

tender but not overcooked.

Combine the eggs, mayo and thyme, if using.

Pour the mayo mixture over the cooked veggies.

Pour into a greased casserole dish. 

Top with the cheese and butter.

And bake!!!

 

 

Kielbasa and Potato Chowder

Cold weather is finally here! And you know what that means? More soup!! We eat soup year 'round but more so in the winter months. This made a nice big, comforting pot of creamy goodness and we were very disappointed when it was all gone. This is really, REALLY good!
Kielbasa and Potato Chowder
 
14 ounce package kielbasa or Polish sausage, cut into 1/2-inch "coins" then cut "coins" in half
5 bacon strips, diced
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 32-ounce containers chicken broth
2 1/2 cups water ~ divided use
1/4 cup flour
3 medium potatoes, cubed
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon
1/2 teaspoon pepper
salt to taste
2/3 cup chopped fresh spinach
1 cup heavy whipping cream
In a skillet, brown kielbasa and bacon. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is tender.
In a large pot, bring broth and 2 cups of water to a boil. Add the potatoes, bouillon, salt and pepper. Cook for 10 - 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
Combine remaining 1/2 cup water and 1/4 cup flour until smooth. Add to the pot to thicken the chowder.
Add the meat mixture and spinach. Cook over medium heat for 2 minutes or until spinach is wilted. Reduce heat.
Add the cream and cook until heated through.
 
Here's the stuff. You see 3 potatoes 
in this picture but because they were 
so big, I only used two of them.
 
Cut the kielbasa then brown with the bacon.
 
Then add the onion and garlic 
and cook until tender.
 
Bring the broth and water to boil. 
Add the potatoes, bullion, salt and 
 pepper. Cook until potatoes are tender. 
Then combine the remaining water 
 and cornstarch and pour into the pot
 to thicken the liquid.
 
Add the meat mixture and spinach 
and cook a few minutes. Then add 
the cream and heat through.
 
Serve with warm, crusty bread. Mmmmm.....
Copyright © 2012 Simple Fare, Fairly Simple. All rights reserved.