Dinner Highlight: Taco Lasagna

Ole! (blast the Mariachi music in the background)

I personally enjoy Mexican food a lot, and when I tasted this I immediately knew I had to make it for dinner one night. The recipe is one of those that have been distributed from Publix supermarkets, so yes, you will be able to find it on their website. Trust me; it is a definite keeper... just ask my hubby! :-D

Taco Lasagna

Ingredients:
1.5 lb. ground turkey
1/4-1/2 cup sofrito
1 Box dinner kit Old El Paso/Taco Bell soft tortilla
1 14 oz. can black beans, drained
3/4 cup salsa (plus more if need be)
1 4 oz. bag shredded monterey jack cheese

Directions:
In a large skillet, brown ground turkey with sofrito. Add taco seasoning (from the boxed dinner kit) and black beans. Cook until meat, beans and flavors thicken. Remove about 2 cups of the meat mixture and set aside. Lower heat. Spread remaining meat mixture at the bottom of the skillet. Layer about 3-4 flour tortillas (in boxed kit) over meat. Add salsa and spread on top of the tortillas. Using the meat mixture that was laid aside, layer some over the salsa. Repeat process of layering until there are about 3-4 layers, ending with some meat mixture on top (the meat on top does not have to completely cover the top of the taco lasagna). Sprinkle the shredded cheese all over the top of the lasagna. Cover the skillet with its lid and cook for 10-15 minutes, or until hot and bubbly. This goes great with a side salad, rice and beans, a side of your favorite veggies, or all of the above. Buen provecho! :)

Dessert Highlight: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes

Cupcake + cookie dough = a blast of yumminess on your taste buds!

I first encountered this recipe as I was researching online for unique cupcake recipes. I found a couple of ideas I wanted to try, and this particular recipe was one of them. I remember having a cookie dough frenzy growing up... I would always order chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, I'd snack on the tub of cookie dough (I know, I know...that's bad for me...but it's oh-so-good! :-D), and I would even make my own chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream at home! I was quite on a diet, as you can see. ;-P

This recipe is super easy to make, especially since it is semi-homemade. If you have a favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe from scratch, by all means, please use it as your cookie dough recipe. Same thing with the chocolate cupcakes. Here's the link below if you would like to see where I found the recipe:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes Recipe

For the chocolate topping, I used Nesquik chocolate powder instead of unsweetened cocoa powder. It tasted fantastic. I hope y'all enjoy this recipe as much as we have. Below are the pictures of my yummy cupcakes. :-) Have fun baking!!

Dinner Highlight: Adobo (Filipino Stew)

Yay to Filipino food! :-D

Ever since I got married, I had wanted to make sure I also cooked Filipino food for my husband. I'm so thankful that my husband is not a picky eater... ;-)

Adobo is a well-known dish in the Philippines, and is one of those that is made almost every month in a typical Filipino household. It is very simple to make, and it is extremely delicious and flavorful. Many Filipinos have their own versions, but I found this recipe in a slow-cooker cookbook, however I also made some revisions of my own. No worries, it tasted authentic and wonderful. It is best served with warm white rice with the sauce poured all over the rice. Mm-mmm, good!!

Adobo

Ingredients:
6-8 chicken thighs without skin
1 Tbsp oil
1/2 - 3/4 cup soy sauce (I recommend the brand, Datu Puti - can be found in your local Filipino/oriental store)
1/2 - 3/4 cup white vinegar (also Datu Puti brand)
1 Tbsp brown sugar
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 Tbsp peppercorns
2 small bay leaves
3 small yellow onions, halved then thinly sliced
1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:
Mix together oil, soy sauce, vinegar and sugar in a bowl. In a medium or large stockpot, arrange chicken at the bottom. Pour the liquid mixture all over the chicken. Sprinkle the crushed garlic, peppercorn and shredded cheese all over the chicken. Add bay leaves then the onions on top. Leave chicken to marinade in the pot for about 1 hour.
Heat the stockpot (with the lid on top) on high until the adobo starts to boil. Let it boil for about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to the lowest setting and let the adobo simmer for at least 2-3 hours. The chicken will be falling-off-the-bone tender....yumm-oh! Serve with steaming hot white rice. Enjoy! :)

Travel Highlight: Winter Boston Trip

Brrrrr was it COLD! :-D

Last December, my husband and I rendezvoused with his brother for a weekend trip to Boston. Let me tell you....what a beauuutiful city! The history...the architecture...the people...the food... it was all amazing. This trip was definitely one of the most memorable for me and my husband (especially for my hubby ;-P). If you are planning on taking a trip there one day, here are a few recommendations on what you can do.

• For a guided tour of the historical city, take the Freedom Trail. It is a 1.5 hour walking tour with a costumed guide, and he takes you to specific spots within the city. It was very inexpensive (about $9 per person) and the guide was very entertaining. Well worth it! This tour starts at the Boston Common - another place that is a must-visit!

• Eat at the Union Oyster House. It is the oldest restaurant in the United States, and it also brews its own root beer! Of course, they mainly serve seafood, and it was recommended to us to have their lobster ravioli. It was sooo good! A little on the pricey side, but well worth the food investment. The restaurant also has an oyster bar. The atmosphere boasts the historical nature of the city - very comfortable and very homey.

• Watch a Patriots game. I believe this was the highlight of our trip. The Lo Presti family members are huge New England Patriots fans, so, of course, we watched a game! And yes! The Pats won. :) What an experience, and boy was it cold!! :-D

• Take a Trolley tour bus ride to see the rest of the city. You can get off and hop back on at any of the tourist sites, some of which included Harvard, Fenway Park and the TD Garden. There are a handful of companies offering such a tour. The bus drivers are the tour guides, and they are one of the most knowledgeable people in Boston. Each guide has a little bit of extra information regarding the history of the city and each site, so every time you board the trolley, you acquire new insights; it's never a dull moment! If you are staying at a hotel (or something similar), ask the concierge if they offer any discounts.

• Eat at Finagle Bagel for breakfast, lunch or for a mid-day snack. I won't give any details, but the bagels and sandwiches are delicious, and don't forget to check out their rotating blade they use for slicing their bagels... It's quite the sight. :)

• Take a walk along Newbury Street. They call it the "Rodeo Drive" of Boston. There are many restaurants and little eateries, but it is well-known as a shopping scene. Stores such as H&M, Longchamp, Camper, Urban Outfitters, Cartier, Valentino, Cole Haan, and the like can be found on that street. It was especially beautiful walking down the street at night during this Christmas season due to the lights.Another shopping strip is Fanhuil Hall Marketplace. The stores include Abercrombie and Fitch, Gap and Banana Republic.

• Visit the Omni Hotel (aka Omni Parker House) where the original Boston Cream Pie was invented. It was oh-so-good! Especially when ordered with some hot chocolate. :) A little fun fact: Ho Chi Minh, the Vietnamese communist leader, was the pastry chef's assistant when this sweet treat was first invented, long before Ho became infamous.

• If you have extra time, visit the Prudential Tower's Observatory. It is a sky-high view of the whole city of Boston. It was beautiful. :)

There are many more things to do in Boston, but these were a few highlights of the trip we made. I hope you enjoyed it, and if you do decide to visit the city, make sure to have lots of seafood and to have fun! :)

Dinner Highlight: Bangus (Filipino Milkfish)

Chances are, if you've stayed at a filipino's house long enough, you probably saw them eating fish...a whole fish, that is. ;-D

This is the first time I made this fish for my husband and he really enjoyed it...he ate a whole one all on his own! :-D It is called "bangus" in Tagalog, but in English it is milksfish. I bought it in the Filipino store near the Florida Mall in Orlando, and the one I got comes as a 4-pack in the freezer section, pre-marinated and ready to cook. As you can see on the picture, there is some fat around the middle of the fish, but in my opinion, that's one of the best parts of the fish. You have the option of not eating the skin, and depending on the size of the fish, you can eat most, if not all, of the bones (they're tiny and pliable so they're easy to chew and swallow).  The plastic cover indicates the cooking directions, but I simply broiled the thawed fish on high for about 10-15 minutes, or until the fish is brown. It tastes great with some rice and veggies. If ever you do decide to get some, I hope you'll enjoy it as mush as we did! :)