Roasted Pepper Chicken with Mexican Rice

Working full-time lately has left me with little energy for cooking elaborate meals when I return home in the evening. Plus, I'm not big on creativity when it is just me eating. It is difficult to elicit the creative spark when you don't have another to enjoy it with, ya know? (Oh dear, this is making me sound like a loner with no friends... ;-) As a matter of fact, we enjoy meals together all the time, I've just been remiss in recording lately...and the fact I keep forgetting to visually document. :-p) Nonetheless, I don't like to skimp on zesty flavor combinations so I've been mixing and matching flavors recently that come together in a jiffy. My penchant for Mexican fare churned up this tasty meal the other evening....

ROASTED PEPPER CHICKEN WITH MEXICAN RICE

2 chicken breasts

salt and pepper, to season

3-4 pieces of roasted bell peppers (Trader Joe's come in a jar with garlic)

a handful of spinach

1/2 c. cooked rice

1/2 c. black beans

1/4 c. picante salsa

Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until cooked through. Toss in bell peppers and spinach, cooking until spinach is wilted.

Heat rice, beans and salsa mixed together in a pot.

Serves 1.

C'est tres mignon....

J'adore!!!

Je voudrais un petit morceau de chocolat francais, s'il vous plait...et peut etre un garcon doux francais. ;-)

It Isn't Easy Being Green

My friends' nearly 2-year-old son does not like green foods. (Except for guacamole, which I cannot account for as this food disgusted me when I was young.) This is not unusual for individuals in his age group....or any age group for that matter. :-p Something about sticking something green in one's mouth tends to be unappealing.

His mom has been devising ways of getting him to eat his greens. She said she was going to try adding shredded zucchini to his bran muffins. It is nearly invisible and the flavor entirely disappears. This method has been successful for me in the past with my siblings. As long as I keep it a secret as well. Because as soon as they know it is in there, they can't handle chomping down on something they know contains a substance they don't like. Even if they can't taste it. Weird.

I was eating pasta the other night at my friends' house which included in the mix some small pieces of zucchini. Their son was systematically fishing them out and setting them to the side of his plate. At least he was polite about it. ;-) She had also surrepticiously used tricolored fettucine noodles. He failed to notice the first few bites, but then became aware of the malicious color infesting his plate of food and began selecting bites around them.

Next day, when he asked for a 'nack' (snack), she served him up a plate of leftover pasta, this time run through the food processor. No luck removing the greens. Mom had outsmarted him this time around!! ;-) He was a bit frustrated at first but his hunger got the best of him....

Tainted Oatmeal Cookies

It's Sarah's fault. She made me do it.

Gathered around the piano bench (who needs a table?), engaged in a uproarious game of Apples to Apples -- Rolling Stones, Colin?....your mom! -- I was itching to whip up a batch of cookies to accompany our rollicksome party. Between placing 'Women' as a fitting word to match 'Manly' (c'mon, you must see the logic in that?) and choosing 'Julia Roberts' as an apt description of 'Annoying' (she gets on my nerves a bit, okay?), I managed to mix, stir, scoop and bake a batch of oatmeal cookies.

Well, originally, just oatmeal. The first tray made it out of the oven unscathed. I attempted to explain the goodness of a pure oatmeal cookie that Ryan had taught me -- the men were easily convinced -- but Sarah's feminine, chocolate senses were tingling.

Must. Have. Chocolate. Now.

I caved. Mine were on high alert too. ;-)

I was forced to taint the rest of the batch with chocolate and coconut. And I'm not sorry I did. They disappeared before the game was even over....

Naniamos, eh?

When I was in D.C. last week, on the side of one of their pristine buildings I spotted a countdown clock for the Winter Olympics. Just in case you were wondering, at this moment in time, we are at 14 days, 8 hours, 4 minutes and counting....

I had actually forgotten they were happening this year. Truth be told, I'm not a huge fan of the Winter Olympics. I tend to enjoy the Games held during the warmer time of year. It may have something to do with the climate I grew up in. Sunny California doesn't afford us the opportunity to enjoy wintery activities very often.

Canadian friends of mine love to discuss professional hockey. My knowledge of the game consists of players moving over ice on skates with a hockey stick, while attempting to shoot a disc the size of saucer into a goal. Oh, and I know one of the teams is the Mighty Ducks, thanks to the 90's Disney film. ;-)

I do love figure skating. I'll watch that on occasion. There was a period of time when I was girl that I dreamt of becoming a professional figure skater. I think it was in between dreams of a professional gymnast and ballet dancer. People moving with grace has always been attractive to me. The underlying strength behind it all is the real charm.

What's cookin', eh?

Kind of like these Naniamo Bars -- exquisitely presentable, yet deeply sweet.

The second part of our Daring Bakers' challenge this month, in honor of the Vancouver Olympics, I present these deliciously rich Canadian specialities.

Naniamo Bars

Bottom Layer

1/2 c. unsalted butter

1/4 c. granulated sugar

5 T. unsweetened cocoa

1 large egg, beaten

1 1/4 c. crushed graham crackers

1/2 c. almonds, finely chopped

1 c. shredded coconut

Melt butter, sugar, and cocoa in a double boiler. Add egg, mixing until cooked and thickened. Remove from heat. Mix in graham crackers, almonds and coconut. Press into the bottom of an 8X8 in. pan lined with parchment paper (or foil).

Middle Layer

1/2 c. unsalted butter

2 T. + 2 t. heavy cream

2 T. vanilla custard powder (I used instant vanilla pudding mix)

2 c. powdered sugar

Cream butter. Mix in remaining ingredients, whisking together until smooth and light in color. Spread onto first layer.

Top Layer

4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate

2 T. unsalted butter

Melt chocolate and butter over low heat in a saucepan. Cool. Spread over middle layer and place in refridgerator to cool and harden. I allowed mine to chill in the freezer for a couple hours and then cut them into squares. These treats are quite rich so small pieces go a long way. :)

The January 2010 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Lauren of Celiac Teen. Lauren chose Gluten-Free Graham Wafers and Naniamo Bars as the challenge for the month. The sources she based her recipe on are 101 Cookbooks and http://www.naniamo.ca/.