Gotta Make Dinner

I visited my local farmers market this Saturday, at Towne Center Park in Suwanee, Georgia. There is a woman there who sells all kinds of beautiful, aromatic, organic herbs. This is where I was introduced to Stevia. It is a natural herb that is actually a zero calorie natural sweetener. I like to grow herbs in my own garden, although I’m no expert. Anyway, I bought some from her and planted it in the front bed at my house, but before doing so, I snipped a piece about four inches long and steeped with some regular orange pekoe tea. Wow. I couldn’t believe it. Now, if you really like the Southern sugar sweet tea, you will be disappointed, unless, maybe you submerge the entire plant. But I like a nice hint of sweet and this plant really did the trick.

My husband did a search on Stevia and sent me some links. I will post those within the next 24 hours or so. I am on vacation, after all, and am trying not to do so much work. But, whatever you can find on this plant, I encourage you to try it.

I had to feed the husband Sunday afternoon after his job running sound at a local church. He often calls on his way home wanting to know what’s for lunch. Most of the time he spends Saturday evenings working a gig until the wee hours, sleeps a mere six hours, maybe less, and then gets up and works at the church. After that he is famished. I usually cook big on Saturday evening and sleep in on Sunday, (my only day off), so cooking is the last thing on my mind. We had soft tacos Saturday night, a staple meal at my house. Hubby doesn’t much care for leftovers so I took what was left and made a fabulous casserole that he has just gobbled up.

Layer in a casserole coated with cooking spray, Spanish rice, black beans, your taco meat, grated cheese, (jalapeño jack makes it awesome) some salsa and enchilada sauce and crushed tortilla chips. Repeat layer one more time and top with grated cheese and fresh chopped cilantro and bake. I would personally add some Mexican corn and black olives to the mix but that is purely optional. Bake at 350 degrees til bubbly and serve. I top it with some sour cream and guacamole.

Just an idea on using leftovers. Hope it works for you. (tip: you can season your soft taco meat with a packet of taco seasoning, let sit for a while and then grill.) Really, it is so easy. Check back with me later on easy Spanish rice if you don’t want to use the box mix.

I do plan to go into more detail at a later time about kitchen must-haves. Even if you don’t fancy yourself a cook, there are just some things you simply cannot do without. I just had an idea for a blog while watching one of my favorite Food Network stars. He was using a splatter screen and happened to mention the price. A while back, this was something I decided would have to go at the bottom of my ‘Must Have’ list… FAR below “back-to-school” clothes or new brakes for the Town and Country van. It’s really not affordable, not if your budget is like mine.

May I suggest spending a little time browsing such stores as TJ Maxx, Tuesday Morning, Big Lots, and Ross. You can get really crazy low close out prices on some of the best brand name cookware out there. I only paid $7 for my brand name splatter screen, which runs on average $19-$25, maybe even more. Trust me, for a fraction of the cost, you can outfit your kitchen with all the latest stuff. Just invest a little time in the discount stores. You will be glad you did, and people will think you spent a fortune. Shoot, I just gave away one of my secrets.

The first time I had Jamaican Jerk I was in Pensacola, Florida, and it was the best thing I had ever tasted. I searched for the secret and I have finally found it. It helps to have friends from Jamaica. Thanks Cheryl Goodman. Anyway, summer time is when I stay at the grill and am looking for many different ways to prepare food. This is one of them. It is accompanied with grilled vegetables and sometimes a family favorite, Black Bean Salad, (or Crack Bean Salad as my friend Tonya refers to it because it is addictive). That recipe is coming soon.

I also serve fried plantain, but pictured here are sweet potato fries which you can find in the grocers freezer. The preferred cocktail is, of course, a Mojito. Oh so cool on a hot summer evening.

Preparation: 15 minutes (that’s all) plus an hour of marinating

1 Tbs. ground allspice
4 garlic cloves minced
1 Tbs. minced fresh ginger
1 large pickled jalapeño pepper (more or less depending on the level of heat you like)
¼ C white wine vinegar (I make it more Caribbean by cutting the vinegar in half and adding 1/8 C lime juice and some lime zest)
1 ½ Tbs. brown sugar
1 ½ Tbs. olive oil
1 ¼ tsp. black pepper
½ tsp. kosher salt
4 boneless skinless chicken breast or Mahi Mahi fillets
8 scallions
2 large red bell pepper
fresh pineapple chunks (or canned)

Combine allspice, garlic, ginger, jalapeño, vinegar, lime juice, brown sugar, oil, pepper, and salt in large bowl. Measure out 2 Tbsp. mixture and set aside. Add chicken to mixture remaining in bowl and turn to coat on all sides. Refrigerate for only one hour. Trim scallions and cut into three pieces each.

Soak bamboo skewers in water and skewer the scallions, bell pepper, and pineapple alternately. Heat grill to medium heat. Take chicken out of marinade and place on well oiled grill. Brush reserved marinade onto the skewered vegetables. Grill turning chicken and skewers once for 10 to 15 minutes.

Today is the first day of my new site GottaMakeDinner.com. This whole idea started with my passion for great food. Add to that my penchant for giving friendly, tasty advise on topics ranging from useful kitchen tips to delicious (but easy-to-make) meals.

Some people see cooking as a simple necessity. Most of the time, I see it as an art. After a long day at the office, when my family and I are starving for something good to eat, our repeated mantra at 5:00 p.m. is “Gotta make dinner”. So, I decided to turn that dread into a medium for my creative cooking side. On this new site, I will show you anything from how to make mouth watering meals out of those cold left-overs to cooking like an award-winning gourmet. It is much easier than you think.

Think of it as a puzzle with your final product being a full sensory picture that will have everyone raving. But, I must warn you: Be prepared to entertain! Once your friends taste what you can do in the kitchen, they will want to come to your house all the time. Enjoy and welcome to GottaMakeDinner.com.