Jalapeños Herb Sauce

 I have been introduced to Lillie Eat and Tells blog recently and I came across this Jalapeños herb sauce that goes so well with the Cilantro Lime Air Fryer Chicken Tenderloins. The flavor is so delicious and vibrant! It was a HUGE hit with everyone in the family.

INGREDIENTS

1 C cilantro

1C lightly packed parsley

1/4 C fresh oregano or 4 tsp. Dried

5 Tbsp red wine vinegar (or balsamic vinegar, which is what I had)

1 jalapeño, seeded

2 cloves garlic minced

1 Tbsp. olive oil

3 Tbsp. Greek yogurt

1/8-1/4 tsp. Kosher salt

Pinch of red pepper flakes

INSTRUCTIONS

Blend it all until smooth. Enjoy!

Thanks to the original recipe found HERE.

Salsa Verde

My friend that lives in North Carolina whose parents are from Mexico makes her own tortillas and made this BOMB salsa. I had to find a recipe to recreate it. It does have a slight heat to it, but it is so delicious! You could just do one jalapeños if you are worried. But the flavor is so delicious!

INGREDIENTS

8-10 Tomatillos

2 jalapeños 

1 white onion

6-7 garlic cloves

2 tsp chicken bouillon 

1 Tbsp dried oregano

Handful of cilantro (I was generous, I love cilantro)

1/2 Tbsp salt

INSTRUCTIONS

Peel and wash tomatillos, cut stems off jalapeños and cut onion in half. Heat avocado oil in a large pan and add tomatillos, onions, jalapeno, and garlic. Cook until both sides are a little charred and blistering. Add oregano, chicken bouillon, and 1 1/2 C water. Simmer until tomatillos turn light green then add everything but the water into a blender. Add salt and cilantro and blend. Cool for an hour or enjoy right away. Delicious with chips or quesadillas, or anything Mexican food really!

Thanks to the original recipe found HERE. 

Lemon Dill Sauce

 1 cup greek yogurt

2 Tbsp mayo

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 tsp lemon zest

1/4 cup fresh dill

sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

In a small bowl, whisk together yogurt, mayo, lemon juice, zest and fresh dill.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Refrigerate in a sealable jar for up to a week in the fridge.

*Best if made a couple hours ahead

**We like to to use this sauce on our Mediterranean quinoa bowls. 

Feta and Roasted Red Pepper Dip and Sauce

 4 oz feta, room temperature

1/4 cup greek yogurt

1/2 cup roasted red peppers

1 clove galic, minced/grated

2 tsp fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp paprika (can used smoked paprika and half of each)

1/2 tsp pepper

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

Put everything in a blender and puree until smooth.

*We like to use this as a sauce on our Mediterranean quinoa bowls.

Red Sauce (Enchilada Sauce for burritos)

I made smothered burritos the other day with leftover pork. I do not like red enchilada sauce from the can. I found this recipe to make my own and it was delicious! Like Mexican restaurant delicious! (Probably best to half it)

1/2  C Vegetable Shortening
3/4 C Flour
4 C Beef Broth
2 Tbsp Chili Powder
1 1/2 tsp Cumin
1/2 tsp Oregano
1 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Pepper
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1/4-1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes (I just left this out for my kids)
1/2 C Milk
16 oz Tomato Sauce
6 oz Tomato Paste (I did not have paste so I substituted tomato chunks and really liked it)
2 C Water

Melt the shortening in large pan on medium heat. Sprinkle in the flour and whisk while the flour and shortening mix together. Add the beef broth and whisk until smooth. Add the rest of the spices and mix again. Whisk in the milk. Pour in the tomato sauce, tomato paste (or diced tomatoes, drained) and water. Whisk the sauce until completely smooth. Cover the pot and let simmer for about an hour (don't know if I did it that long) Make sure to stir the sauce every 10-15 minutes so it doesn't burn the bottom.

Buttermilk Syrup

My friend's mom brought this recipe to her baby shower and it is DELICIOUS! It's also the syrup I brought to the family reunion this year in Aspen, ID that Elliott thought was an interesting thick drink as he poured it into his cup to find out it was syrup. :)

BRING TO A BOIL:

2 Cubes butter (1 C total)
3 C Sugar
1 1/2 C Buttermilk
1/4 C Karo Syrup

TAKE OFF HEAT AND ADD:

1 tsp baking soda   (Add this slowly as it will cause it to grow and bubble and it could overflow)
1/2 tsp. coconut extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract

Cafe Rio Tomatillo Dressing

I know there is one on here already, but I made this and really like it so I want to have it easily accessible. There is only a few small changes I have made.

1 Packet Ranch Mix
1 C Mayo
1 C Buttermilk (or Milk)
2 Tomatillos
1/2 Bunch Cilantro
1-2 Garlic Cloves, minced
1 Lime Juice (about 2T)
1 Jalapeno, seeds removed

Add all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.

Buttermilk Syrup

1 C buttermilk
1 C sugar
1/2 C butter


1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla

Bring the buttermilk, sugar, and butter to a rolling boil. Allow it to boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add the soda and vanilla. (The syrup will rise when you add this so make sure you have room in your bowl) Eat. So delicious on pancakes or anything really!

Sweet and Sour Sauce

This recipe has you add food coloring to make it look authentic, but we didn't do that.

1/2 C Water
1/4 C White Vinegar
1/2 C Sugar
1/8 C Corn Starch + 1/8 C Water
Red food coloring (optional)

In a saucepan add water, white vinegar, and sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil. In a separate bowl mix together the corn starch and water and whisk until combined. Add the cornstarch mixture to the saucepan. Whisk all ingredients together. (Add food coloring if preferred) Reduce to a simmer and cook until it has thickened, about 5 minutes.

Clotted Cream

When I first heard of clotted cream I had two thoughts. What in the world is clotted cream? And I am pretty sure you aren't supposed to eat cream if it is clotting. My friend introduced me to clotted cream when she held a little tea party at a local tea shop. I was very skeptical, but tried it anyway. It was delicious! It is like cream, but in the form of butter, with a slightly nutty flavor. You can eat it on scones, muffins, English muffins, breads, fresh fruit, etc. It is actually really easy to make. It just takes a lot of time waiting. Just make sure to get a heavy cream that is NOT ultra-pasteurized. Otherwise it will not work. You can eat clotted cream on scones, muffins, English muffins, breads, fresh fruit, etc.

Clotted Cream

1 quart heavy cream (not ultra-pasteurized!)

Pour cream into a medium oven safe dish. The cream should come 1-3 inches up the side of the pan. I used a CorningWear dish. You can also use a shallow Pyrex dish.

Place cream in the oven at your lowest heat setting, but no higher than 180 degrees, for 10-12 hours., until a thick, yellowish layer forms on top.

Gently remove from the oven and allow to cool at room temperature for 8 hours.

Cover and cool in fridge for an additional 8 hours. Then gently scrape off the top layer of thick cream into a small mixing bowl. Stir until smooth. Store in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to 1 week.

Creamy Lime-Cilantro Dressing

This is a great Mexican food dipping sauce or salad dressing. The original recipe blog says it's her knock off Costa Vida/Cafe Rio dressing. We used it to dip our Baked Chicken Taquitos, which was amazing!

INGREDIENTS

1 pack (1oz) Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix
ignore directions on the packet
1 C mayo
1/2 C buttermilk (or milk works, too I just added about 1-2 tsp of lemon juice as well if I did milk)
1 lime, juiced (about 2 Tbsp. lime juice)
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped (or 1 tsp. minced garlic)
1/2 C roughly chopped cilantro
1/4 C green salsa
hot sauce (I totally forget it called for this and never added it, but it was still amazing.)

DIRECTIONS

Mix milk, mayo, ranch in a blender. Add lime juice. Toss in garlic, cilantro and green salsa. Blend. Sample and add hot sauce to taste. Make several hours ahead of time to allow it to thicken.

Original recipe called for a chunky salsa, I only had the Taco Bell Salsa Verde that I used for this and the taquitos and it was great!

Enjoy!

Find the original recipe HERE.

Spaghetti Meat Sauce

I made this and poured it on the Spaghetti Squash that I substituted for pasta. We loved this pasta sauce! I usually do Prego, so this was a nice change!

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 lbs ground beef (I just had 1 lb)
2 Tblsp Olive Oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced (to taste)
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. dried basil (I had fresh and used that and it worked great!)
1 tsp. italian seasoning
1 tsp. salt (or to taste)
ground pepper
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
2 (16 oz) cans tomato sauce
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced and sautéed in butter (optional) (I did without this cuz I didn't have mushrooms on hand)
parmesan cheese, freshly grated (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Brown the ground beef, onion and garlic in olive oil with bay leaves, oregano, basil, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.
2. Add tomato paste, tomato sauce and diced tomatoes.
3. Stir well and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
4. Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. (I'm impatient and think I only did 45 mins. for this, turned out great still!)
5. Use sauce to top your cooked spaghetti. (spaghetti squash)
6. Top with sautéed mushrooms and parmesan.

Thanks to Bev for the recipe! Original recipe HERE.