Coco's Kitchen - featuring The Cast Iron Diva!

My Panaeng Curry Pork Dish! Well this week it seems I have been inspired to make spicy Asian dishes and I mean spicy lol. I just can't get enough of curry dishes. Anything spicy works for me and I am lucky enough to have a very willing guinea pig to help! I was lucky enough to have access to a free trial of the Rouxbe cooking school, courtesy of the Cooking Club of America and having watched many instructional videos I happened upon this dish. My first attempt was supposed to be my first proper Stir Fry, a Panaeng Curry with Pork . However if I am being truthful, during the cooking process it ended up looking more like a Green Curry dish than anything, but it all sorted itself out in the end. Having said that, it did still taste yummy non the less thank God, so not a complete wast! My next attempt at an Asian inspired dish was a  Sweet and Sour Chicken! recipe which was surprisingly easier than I thought it would be and actually turned out pretty well. Lets put it this wa

Well I have to say I hope you guys try this as I was so surprised at how relatively easy this dish was to make and honestly you will never want to bother with Panda Express again lol...well maybe if your in a hurry! This really was a fun dish to make and I look forward to making this many, many times. You will need the following: 1 lb of skinless Chicken Breasts 1 Green Peeper 4 Slices of Pineapple 1 small to medium Onion 1/4 cup of Corn Starch 3 Tbsp of Vinegar 4 Tbsp of Sugar 4 Tbsp of Ketchup 1/2 tsp Sesame Oil I know...looking at those ingredients who knew right! I will admit though that I did not have any sesame oil and it was just fine. Of course I will keep an eye out when shopping for future reference. Now cut your chicken up into 1 inch cubes approx, then put into a bowl and mix in 1/2 cup of Corn Starch. Now there is a two step process here for the chicken but not difficult at all. The Cornstarch seals in the moisture for more tender chicken. Once your chic

Well this week it seems I have been inspired to make spicy Asian dishes and I mean spicy lol. I just can't get enough of curry dishes. Anything spicy works for me and I am lucky enough to have a very willing guinea pig to help! I was lucky enough to have access to a free trial of the Rouxbe Cooking School , courtesy of the Cooking Club of America and having watched many instructional videos I happened upon this dish. My first attempt was supposed to be my first proper Stir Fry, a Panaeng Curry with Pork. However if I am being truthful, during the cooking process it ended up looking more like a Green Curry dish in the making than anything. Having said that, it did still taste yummy non the less thank God, so not a complete wast! The cool thing too, is that I have been wanting to try out Asia World Market for some time and this recipe gave me the perfect excuse to visit the store. It is such an interesting store with so many cool foods/spices/sauces and other kitchen items. No

"For love of country they accepted death...  ~James A. Garfield" I know I am posting this late but I have been busy, so I hope you will overlook my tardiness. I hope everyone had a wonderful Memorial day weekend with family and friends. I know I did. I got to use my Char-Broil American Gourmet Charcoal Smoker for the very first time and it turned out wonderfully, considering I had never used it before! The Menu started with home made Salsa, along with the our home made renowned Devil Eggs! Followed by Smoked Lemon Chicken, Smoked Mesquite Ribs, combined with our new favorite home made Red Beans and Rice! Of course we had to have desert lol....so I made Chocolate Ice Box Pie, a current favorite in our household and although I am not fond of Chocolate when it comes to pies/cakes, if I say so myself, this pie was delicious and so simple! If you have read my previous post you will also note that I do favor the odd tipple, usually a nice chilled glass of Bailey's, or a ni

Ok kids, there are many, many recipes out there for this and as you know like most recipes they range from easy to hard. Well that special someone loves Chocolate Ice Box Pie and so it was a must that I not only learn how to make it, but make it really, really yummy, just like Grand Ma made it lol! So I searched and searched and found a recipe that to me sounded too easy, so easy in fact that I just had to try it and see how it would go down! Well I followed this really easy recipe to a T, and whalla, it made the most delicious pie ever, so much so that I even liked it and I don't do chocolate pies/cakes, although I do love chocolate lol! So here you go...give it a whirl and see what you think! You will need the following...such a long list...NOT! This is a stock photo of my baby! 1 Pint of Vanilla Ice Cream. 1 Cup of Milk. 1 Large packet of Chocolate Instant Jello Pudding . 1 9" pie shell, of course if you have time, you can make your own pie crust. Then you p

Ah the joy of finally using my Smoker! I have been wanting to try this for ages and finally this Memorial Day weekend presented the perfect opportunity. So I bought a rack of Baby Back Ribs and a good size Chicken. I cleaned out the Chicken and took off the silver skin at the back of the ribs. I liberally used a blend of spices on both. For the Chicken I used a Lemon Rub, for the Ribs I used a Mesquite Rub. I didn't "rub" into the meat, just liberally coated both on all sides. I then covered  each in saran wrap and put them in the fridge overnight. Now for the smoker. As this was the first time I used it, the manufacturer recommended giving it a good 2 hours "smoke" time to season the smoker at a temp of 200-220, just for the first time using it. In the smoker box to the side, I used a combination of  charcoal and Mesquite chunks to fire it up, and then just let it smoke away with the vents 1/4 ways open, as recommended. All the while keeping an eye on it

Well I have to tell you that this recipe was cause of some contention in our home as this is my hubbies own personal recipe! However in the spirit of Memorial day weekend and "for the greater good", (Chant - the greater good - Hot Fuzz reference lol), I have permission to share; you are special indeed! So for this recipe I used the following: 1 Dozen Eggs. 1 Tablespoon of Mayonnaise. 1/2 Tablespoon of Caesar Dressing. 1/2 Tablespoon of Ranch Dressing. 1 Teaspoon of chopped/minced Dill Pickles, reserve 1 teaspoon of    juice. 1/2 Teaspoon of Mustard, we use yellow mustard. 1/2 Teaspoon of White Vinegar. Salt and Pepper to taste. Paprika for later, to sprinkle over finished Deviled Eggs. Boil your eggs. When ready, pop the eggs into a bowl of iced water. This prevents the egg yokes getting that blueish color around the edges. Shell the eggs, then slice them in half. Pop out the yellow yokes into a separate bowl  and place your empty halved egg whites onto a t

Well if you like Salsa, you will like this recipe. It is very quick and very easy. You will need the following: 4-6 Tomatoes, if really big Tomatoes, just use 4. 1 Large Onion. 1-2 Jalapeno Peppers, depending on how hot you like your salsa. 1-2 Limes, depending on their size. If small, use 2. 1-2 tablespoons of Cilantro. I just eyed it and used a handful. 1 Teaspoon of Salt. 1 Teaspoon of Pepper. 1 Teaspoon of Garlic powder. I got all of my ingredients ready, washing the veggies thoroughly. I loosely chopped up everything, the tomatoes, onions, jalapenos and cilantro, then bunged them all into my trusty Ninja Kitchen Prep and blended. I added my salt, pepper and garlic as well. Don't foget to add your squeezed lime/s! Word of advise. When blending, rather than just hand chopping your ingredients, be careful not to blend too much or your Salsa will go slushy, not a good look for a Salsa! When you have blended too a consistency your happy with, your done! Grab a bag

I have been scouring through blog after blog today, looking for inspiration. What started out as a fun task to get some unique recipes for the week, has turned into an "OMG" what have I let myself in for, moment!  The blogs I have viewed today are so wonderfully put together, the layouts, and of course the recipes. Wonderful people with wonderful ideas and expertise, it is all so incredible. These food blogs are so far beyond anything I am doing at the minute that I have to admit, I am very intimidated and find all of this kinda scary to say the least. Should I even continue, should I even bother? I took a deep breath and a break and did some soul searching, along with a nice cold glass of Baileys on the Rocks! Whew...amazing what a little alcohol and some space can do lol! I decided to stop looking through blogs and look for some inspirational quotes. I don't know if you have noticed, but quotes feature big time on my blogs. So I came across this one and thought, h

  Creamy Asparagus Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes Pastas By: Melanie Barnard Here is a dish that looked very delicious and not too complicated to make, I hoped! Love Pasta, love Boursin Cheese, and Asparagus, come one whats not to love! This is a dish I definitely had to try. As we are meat eaters in our family, I thought it would be a nice twist to add some meat. So I pulled out a pack of vacuumed sealed grilled chicken I prepared last week, and let that defrost so I could add to the pasta later. So proud of myself that I had this chicken already prepared, from the nights that I cooked up batches of meat for later use; so it really does work lol! Check out my food ramblings for food preparedness! A Girl Guide is ALWAYS prepared! OK these are the ingredients. 1 box farfalle (bow-tie pasta) 2 cups diagonally sliced thin asparagus (1 inch) 1 (5.2- to 6.5-oz.) pkg. garlic and herb spreadable cheese, such as Boursin 3/4 cup drained sliced oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes 1/2 cu

Well tonight I decided to make Jalapeno Meatball Sliders and I have to say they where very easy to make and according to my “In-house" Tester, they where delicious. I totally recommend making these as they are easy and will go down a treat.    What you will need: 1 lb of Ground Beef 80/20. Of course you can use Sausage/Chicken/Turkey. 1 Cup of Breadcrumbs, store bought or home made, I made my own. 1 Large Onion. 2 Jalapeno peppers seeded. 1 Cup of grated Pepper Jack Cheese. 1 Egg if large, 2 if not. 1 can of Fire Roasted Tomatoes. 1 Tsp of Tomato Paste. 2 Tsp of Olive Oil. 1 packet of any rolls that you like for your sliders.   You can use any spices you like and any amount. I used a tsp of the following:   Onion Powder. Ancho Chili Powder. Chili Powder. Paprika. Salt and Pepper to taste.     Normally I mix all my ingredients together in a large bowl but tonight I blended everything accept the meat, in a Ninja Master Prep just for the heck of it, to see ho

It was a gorgeous Sunday today and I was quiet industrious. As I was feeling good, I decided to be proactive and get a start on dinners for next week or the following, whichever. Just handy to have items ready in the freezer for those days you just can't be bothered.   I got some Ground Beef and Chicken and was all gun ho! I prepared the Ground Beef dinners and our dinner for tonight, then decided to leave the Chicken till tomorrow, whew! Good intentions and all that! For the Ground Beef dinners, I cooked up some Burgers stuffed with cheese, some Meatball sliders and also some Tostado meat. My "in-house taster" loves Tostados and we have to keep'em happy don't you know! Once cooked and cooled down, I used my handy FoodSaver handheld and vacuum sealed the lot and popped them in to the freezer. Bingo Bango, done and dusted. As for tonight’s dinner, I couldn't be  as.., sorry, couldn't be bothered doing the whole "Sunday Roast" production, too n

YOU MIGHT BE A CAJUN IF:..... Watching "Wild Kingdom" inspires you to write a cookbook. Follow along for an Awesome Red Beans and Rice recipe. Here is what I did, and this is what you will need. Ingredients: 2 Stalks of Celery. 1 Big Onion. 2 Green Peppers (I used Jalapeño Peppers for extra spice instead). 2 Cloves of Garlic (I used a heaped Tbsp of minced Garlic instead). 1 Stick of Butter. 1 Ring of Spicy Sausage of your choice (I used a pack of Hot Links instead). 2 Cans of Red Beans. 1 Cups of water. 1-2 Cups of Long Grain Rice. (Cups depends on how many your feeding). Spices to me listed later. I chopped the "The Trinity" of vegetables and sautéed them in butter in my deep Cast Iron Skillet until Onions where translucent. Then I added the 2 cans of Red Beans, liquid and all. I added the 1 cup of water and then turned up the heat to medium. I added the Hot Links taking the skins off, messy but worth it. I like Hot Links skins on or off, all good either wa

Please be advised that I have been updating this blog and in the process, "Tex Mex Night" was inadvertantly reposted, so apologies for that. Bare with me as I am finding my way a little at a time.

Tex Mex is a big favorite in our house hold and so I thought what the heck, tonight I will go all out and try make everything from scratch. As I have just started this blog tonight AFTER I cooked dinner, I did not take pictures but I will in future so bare with me. Its all a work in progress as are my culinary skills! So I will use stock photos where possible for now, where fitting. So earlier in the day, I got two boneless breast of chicken out that I had defrosted and I butterflied both of them. This made it much easier to cut in to thin strips. When I was done cutting the chicken up into strips, I placed them in a container, and added the following, mostly eyeballing as I went. You can use a plastic seal bag too if you like. Whatever works best for you. Chicken Marination: 3 tbs of lemon juice and 3 tbs of lime juice - Enough to coat the chicken when all the spices are added. 1 tsp of Paprika. 1 tsp of Chili. 1 tsp of Cayenne pepper. 1 tbs of Ancho Chili Powder. 1 tsp of Garlic p