Mexican BBQ chicken Salad

My cousin posted this recipe on her blog and I tried it the other day and LOVED it! She said the recipe is from Nordstrom's Cafe. Never been there but I love it already! This is really easy to put together and very versatile! You can adjust the amount of ingredients to your needs. Enjoy!

tortillas
lettuce torn
BBQ chicken breasts shredded
corn
black beans
tomatoes
avacado
ranch dressing

Layer and enjoy!

BBQ Stirfry

I was super skeptical about this dish because it sounds so - weird. But I had everything to make it one night, so I tried it and Bryan and I loved it! You can also change things up - add whatever veggies you like in stir fry and use whatever meat you have. It calls for steak strips, but pork was on sale so I used pork sirloin steaks and I have used chicken too. I also add a drizzle of sesame oil to the dish right before serving and stir it in. Also, bell peppers can be pricey, but if you ever find them on sale, you can cut them in strips or dice them up and freeze them in baggies. Then just toss them frozen with your stir fry (or chili or whatever you use cooked peppers for).

2 bell peppers, any color
1 small onion (I have also used green onions)
1 lb. well trimmed boneless beef sirloin steak, cut into strips
2 cloves garlic (I have used garlic powder)
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 T soy sauce
1/2 cup BBQ sauce (I like Sweet Baby Ray's Original)
2 cups rice

Heat large skillet on medium-high heat. Add a couple tablespoons of oil and saute peppers and onions for 6-8 minutes or until tender but still a little crisp. Transfer to a large bowl and cover to keep warm. Add meat and garlic and black pepper to same skillet. Cook and stir for 3 minutes or so. Add soy sauce and continue cooking until meat is cooked through. Add BBQ sauce and stir until heated through. Toss with vegetables and serve over rice. NOTE: If you want more sauce (who doesn't??) I just add a little more soy sauce and BBQ sauce in proportion to the recipe until you get the amount of sauce you want.

Pulled BBQ Pork

This is a fav of mine and Christina requested the recipe. It's so simple it's embarrassing but it works great if you're feeding a large crowd!


1 boneless pork roast (I've only used the ones from Costco that come in the 3 pack)
1 c. bbq sauce
1/3 c. brown sugar
2 tbls. worchestershire sauce

Put pork roast in crock pot and cook on low 6-8 hrs. or on high 4 hours. When you have about an hour of cooking time left, add the bbq sauce, brown sugar and worchestershire sauce and cook the remaining time. Shread using two forks and serve as the main dish or on rolls as sandwiches.

When cooking for a large crowd (like after baby blessings) I double, triple or quadruple this recipe and serve with rolls. It goes really far!

Indonesian Plank Grilled Salmon

Brent's (and Bryan's) cousin Sandy had us over for dinner and made this amazing amazing amazing dinner. You have to try it!

Indonesian plank grilled Salmon

1 fillet Salmon

1 cedar plank, soaked in water for at least 30 min.

1/4 C. butter

1/4 C. olive oil

1/2 tsp. red chili flakes

4-5 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 C. brown sugar

1/2 C. fresh lime juice

1/2 C. soy sauce

3 tsp. cornstarch to 3-4 tsp. water

Melt butter in saucepan. Add olive oil. Heat to boil. Add chili and garlic. Doesn't need to cook too long. Add brown sugar and stir. Combine soy sauce and lime juice. Add and bring to a boil. Add cornstarch mixture. When its the right consistency; take off heat.

This is the sauce to bast the Salmon with. I cut the salmon and place on the plank. I then put the sauce all over the Salmon. I heat my grill to a medium heat. Put the plank on the grill. When I check the Salmon, I bast it again. It should take about 30-40 min to grill depending on how hot your grill is. I start my potatoes before I put the Salmon on. While it is grilling...I mash my potatoes and steam my spinach. To plate; mashed potatoes, spinach, Salmon, and don't forget to drizzle! When we have company over, I double the sauce recipe and I use two fillets. I hope this makes sense. The spinach is fresh. Enjoy!

BBQ Chicken Salad

I found this in the Good Things Utah Cookbook and just knew it would be so so yummy! And, it doesn't call for weird ingredients. SO EASY. It's a keeper!

3-4 chicken breasts grilled with BBQ sauce, cubed
1 head lettuce, cut
1 cup shredded cheese (I used cubed)
6-8 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
1 cubed tomato
1 can kidney beans
green onions
fritos

Place lettuce in a large bowl. Sprinkle with cheese, kidney beans, tomato, onions, and bacon. Toss. Top with fritos and cubed chicken.

Dressing
1/2 cup BBQ sauce
1/2 cup Ranch dressing

Mix and serve over salad.

BBQ Chicken

Enough desserts, on to main courses! I found this recipe in a magazine a long time ago and have made some minor changes. It's really easy to make, I guess it could be a 30-minute-meal if you didn't have to cook it for so long! I mix the sauce in a large Pyrex measuring cup so that I don't have to transfer honey and stuff from a measuring cup to a bowl, it makes it really easy.

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, thawed completely (if frozen)
3/4 cup barbeque sauce (any kind, I use original flavor)
3/4 cup honey
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup loosely packed brown sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place chicken in a 9x13 pan. Mix bbq sauce, honey, ketchup, and brown sugar. Pour sauce over chicken. Cover pan with foil. Bake for 55 minutes.

Taco Burgers to Spice Up Your Night!

So I love burgers and I am so glad that Stina decided to start this blog with burgers!!! I made these the other night when I wanted burgers but didn't have any buns - but I did find a pack of tortillas in the back of my fridge! Enjoy!

1 pound ground beef
2-3 green onions, chopped
1 to 1 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
2 tsp cumin (if you don't have chili powder or cumin, use taco seasoning instead)
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Cheddar cheese or Pepperjack cheese

Mix ingredients, form into four burgers and cook 7-8 minutes on each side. Place cheese on top and let it melt. Place burgers in the middle of a tortilla (bigger tortillas work best). Top with grilled onions, tomato, avocado or guacamole, salsa, and sour cream. Cilantro is good too (unless you are Kelli). I even like these without the tortillas on or bun or with just the burger. P.S. My blog is coming!!!

Betty Crocker's Hamburgers

Who makes their own hamburgers? I used this when I didn't have any frozen ones and they're our favorite now! Especially if cooked right--they're nice and juicy!


1 lb ground beef, pork, or turkey
3 TBSP finely chopped onion
3 TBSP water
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
4 slices cheese
4 hamburger buns, split and toasted

Mix all ingredients except cheese and buns. Shape mixture into 4 patties, each about 3/4 inch thick. Broil, panfry or grill. Grill patties about 4 inches from medium coals 7-8 minutes on each side for medium, turning once, until no longer pink in the center and juice is clear. Brush bbq sauce on patties before and after turning, if desired.