This post is sponsored by Princess Cruises.

You guys know how much I love cooking with shrimp. These quesadillas are the bomb dot com. Okay, did I just say that? I said it in my head and then I typed it. Okay, please don't laugh at me!

I have shared how to truly relax on a cruise and this strawberry colada drink recipe. It's time to share another recipe inspired by my Mexican Riviera with Princess Cruises.

These are so ridiculously simple to make, you can make it for dinner or make a few for appetizers for friends when they come over. Totally up to you!

This shrimp & green bean curry salad that I had almost every day while on my cruise. This is my second Princess Cruise and I remember this dish from my last cruise to Alaska!

Cut up the veggies, including the mushrooms.

First cook up the mushrooms and then clean the pan…next up the peppers and onions.

All cooked up!

This is how I cook quesadillas! So you have some sealed edges…this was Curtis' genius idea years ago.

Add the cheese and mushrooms.

Then, the onions, peppers and then shrimp and then add more cheese!

I know you want these and I know you want to make them! If you don't like the mushrooms, you can totally omit them!

Serve with a squeeze of lime, sliced avocado, salsa and sour cream and you're golden. So easy to make…let me know if you make them!

Print

Shrimp Quesadillas

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 7 to 8 pieces of shrimp peeled and deveined
• 5 to 6 mushrooms cleaned and sliced
• 1/4 green pepper sliced into strips and then cut in half
• 1/4 yellow onion peeled and sliced
• 1/2 jalapeno seeds and ribs removed, sliced
• grape seed oil or olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 2 medium-sized flour tortillas
• 6 Tablespoons cheddar or monterey jack cheese
• sliced avocado sour cream, homemade salsa (for serving)

Instructions

• Peel and clean the shrimp. Slice in half length-wise. Using a paper towel, dry off the shrimp.
• Put 1 teaspoon oil into a non-stick skillet and cook the mushrooms on medium heat for about 5 to 6 minutes. Remove mushrooms and set aside. Wipe down the pan with a paper towel.
• Next, add 1 teaspoon oil into the pan along with the green pepper, yellow onion and jalapeño. Cook on medium heat for about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove vegetables from the pan and set aside. Wipe the pan again with a clean paper towel.
• Melt 1/2 Tablespoon of butter in the pan on medium heat. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper and add them to the pan and cook for 60 to 90 seconds on each side. Remove from the pan.
• Melt another 1/2 Tablespoon of butter in the pan and add 2 tortillas to the pan, half of each touching the bottom of the pan. Put 1 Tablespoon of cheese and half the of the mushrooms on each tortilla, along with half of the onions and peppers. Then add the shrimp and 2 Tablespoons of cheese on each tortilla.
• Close the tortilla and continue cooking for about 2 minutes. Flip over and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until the desired doneness on the inside and outside.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Princess Cruises. I only share with you brands that I love and share with you my own opinions.

The post Shrimp Quesadillas appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

It's the holidays! It's our favorite of the year, especially Curtis'. He loves when the weather gets a little cooler and really enjoys all of the holiday decorations. In fact, he's the one who puts up our Christmas tree. We have an artificial tree and it's a process…all the branches have to be fluffed and be just right. I love how much he loves the holiday season- it makes me even more excited for it!

I'm excited to be working Hidden Valley Ranch and Glad, both companies make great products. This recipe is a recipe I have been wanting to make and share with you for a while. It's inspired by a dip I like to order at my favorite Tex Mex restaurant. It's creamy and a little bit spicy, perfect for any holiday get together with friends and family. I will definitely be making this for our holiday get together with friends this year!

I used the Original Ranch Hidden Valley Dips Mix for this recipe. I bought the mix along with everything I needed at Walmart.

Add the buttermilk and mayo to your blender first and then add the tomatillo salsa, pickled jalapenos, juice from the jar of jalapenos and the cilantro.

I added a lot of cilantro this time because I love it. The dip is a little bit more green than usual because of that. So the amount of cilantro you want to add is up to you!

Then, add the Hidden Valley Ranch Dips Mix (just one packet is all you need) and then blend.

What's lovely about this recipe is it only takes a few minutes to put together!

When I'm entertaining and throughout the year honestly, I make sure I have plenty of Glad containers- so guest can take home leftovers! These ones are deep dish size and are perfect for storing leftovers or sending leftovers home with guests.

If you like a little kick- you'll love this recipe. It's great to dip tortilla chips and veggies and is perfect for your next holiday party and even better it takes minutes to put together!

Print

Spicy Jalapeno Ranch Dip Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 3 1/2 cups

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup tomatillo salsa
• 1/3 cup pickled jalapeño slices from a jar
• 3 teaspoons jalapeño juice from a jar
• 1 to 2 Tablespoons cilantro washed
• 1 1-ounce packet Hidden Valley Dips Mix, Original Ranch

Instructions

• Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until well blended. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving with chips and vegetables.

PS You can get the red mixing bowl that I used for the chips and the footed bowl at Walmart too! They are from my friend, Ree's (The Pioneer Woman) new collection!

Disclosure: This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Glad & Hidden Valley Ranch. The opinions and text are all mine. There are affiliate links in this post.

The post Spicy Jalapeno Ranch Dip appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

Last week was a little crazy, I did a lot of driving…3 days last week, I was in the car for at least 2 hours each day. It was fun though! I attended a small blogging conference at Walt Disney World and I met…

It was super fun! Last Wednesday, I had a few things planned, I was going to meet my friend for coffee but she wanted sushi instead. I had a planned dinner with other food bloggers (those are always fun, we ate at one of new favorite restaurants in Orlando, The Smiling Bison, I highly recommend it!). And then, I met my sister at BART (a bar in Orlando) and enjoyed some treats from Sushi & Seoul On The Roll food truck. Should I even admit this? I sound like a total pig…I had three meals over a period of like 6 hours. Oops. It was all soooo good. And this recipe is based on Spicy Krab Nachos I had from Sushi & Seoul. So so good! They used imitation crab and I used lump crab I found in a refrigerated, sealed container from my grocery store's seafood department. Either one will work!

I am often inspired by food I have at restaurants and on trips. As soon as I had this, I told my sister, I will be making this at home! Less than a week later, here's the recipe.

What I love about this recipe is that it's so easy. It literally takes less than 15 to 20 minutes to put together.

I cut wonton shells into 4 triangles each and mix it up with sesame oil and sprinkle with sesame seed.

I baked them for about 6 minutes in the oven. The food truck fries their wonton nachos, I couldn't get my grocery store wontons to crisp up the same way they did theirs so I baked them similar to the wonton chips for this recipe.

They used imitation crab but I thought I would use lump crab meat. It's cooked and pasteurized and it's pretty much my new favorite ingredient to cook with now.

Mix up the crab with the sriracha hot sauce with mayo.

Top the wonton nachos with the crab salad, jalapeños, green onions and some more sriracha sauce. This is sooo good. Go make it…if you don't have the ingredients, go get the ingredients and make it. I know you'll love it. I loved it so much, I made it again. I was snacking on this while I was writing this post.

It's spicyyyyy, if you like it even hotter, add more hot sauce. There are glasses of water in these photos for a reason!

Print

Spicy Crab Wonton Nachos Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 10-12 wontons
• 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon sesame seed optional
• 4 ounces cooked lump crab (can use imitation crab)
• 2 Tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1/2 Tablespoon sriracha hot sauce plus additional for serving
• 1 jalapeño sliced (optional)
• 2 green onions sliced (just the green parts)

Instructions

• Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil.
• Cut wontons 4 triangles, cut about 4 pieces at a time, using kitchen shears or a knife on a cutting board. Place wonton triangles onto baking sheet, add sesame oil and toss to distribute. Place wontons flat and in one layer on the baking sheet. Sprinkle sesame seed over the wontons. Bake for 5 to 6 minutes until golden brown. (Watch these carefully as they will burn easily.)
• In a small mixing bowl, add crab, mayo and hot sauce. Mix together.
• Place cooled wonton nachos on a plate or serving dish. Add crab salad and top with jalapeño slices and green onions. Top with more hot sauce and serve immediately.

Notes

from The Little Kitchen (inspired by Sushi & Seoul On The Roll food truck)

The post Spicy Crab Wonton Nachos appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

A little over a week ago, Charley's (our 10 year old Shepherd mix canine) MRI showed a pinched nerve in his lower back where he has a bulging disc. The recommendation by the surgeons is to do surgery to relieve the pressure and compression on the nerves. The scary part is if we do nothing, it can lead to paralysis of his hind legs and other not so fun stuff. We know that rest and meds won't work because he's been on so many meds for months now for other pain problems associated with hip dysplasia. The operation to fix his bulging disc is scheduled for tomorrow and since I have not been thinking about it too much, I haven't been too worried. But it's TOMORROW MORNING…it's getting closer and I'm getting more and more nervous. We're anxious to know if this is the right decision (who doesn't second guess themselves?) and at the same time are ready for him to be done with it and get to rehab and to healing. Please cross your fingers for us. I'm going to be a big ball of tense tomorrow.

In comes this soup, I'm going to be making another pot of this chicken tortilla soup this week. It's a big pot of comfort. I love soup because it's warm and comforting. I made this the week of my birthday and had it for leftovers for 4 or 5 days afterwards. It's really nice and easy and I love the addition of zucchini. I add the zucchini at the end so it doesn't overcook. Top this soup with tortilla chips, sour cream and sharp cheddar…all a must!

Chop the veggies.

Then chop the canned tomatoes. I love canned whole plum tomatoes so I use a 28 ounce can of those and chop up the tomatoes. Don't get rid of the tomato juice. That will add flavor to the soup!

Butter…everything with butter is better, right? I use butter and olive oil to start with in this soup and add the vegetables (but not the zucchini) and garlic along with my homemade taco seasoning all into my French oven. I have used other chicken tortilla soup recipes that are quick and easy but they didn't have the depth of flavor I was looking for. This one does…the taco seasoning has so many levels of flavor from the paprika to the chili powder and cumin that adds so much flavor along with the chicken and the vegetables.

This is after I add the drained and rinsed black beans, tomatoes and chicken broth.

After you bring it to a boil and allow to simmer, add the cooked chicken and zucchini and cook for another 5 minutes.

It's done and ready to serve.

The toppings are a must. And the next time I make this soup, I'm going to freeze some so if the craving hits me…even if it's in the middle of hot hot Florida summer, I can have a bowl. Make this…you'll thank me for it! Soup under 40 minutes, yay!

Check out the video I made for this recipe too!

Print

Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 6 to 8

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon salted butter
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon homemade taco seasoning
• 1 jalapeño ribs and seeds removed, diced
• 1/2 medium onion diced
• 1 large garlic clove chopped
• 1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, chopped (keep tomato juice)
• 1 14.5-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 14.5-ounce cans low sodium chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups diced zucchini about one
• 1 1/2 cups frozen or fresh corn
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups cooked chicken cubed (see Note)
• crushed tortilla chips cheddar cheese and sour cream for serving (optional)

Instructions

• In a French oven or a large heavy bottom pot, melt butter and heat olive oil on medium heat for about 2 minutes. Add taco seasoning, jalapeño, onion and garlic. Sauté for about 3 minutes.
• Add tomatoes, black beans and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and allow soup to simmer for 10 minutes.
• Add zucchini, corn and chicken and heat for about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, if necessary.
• Serve in bowls topped with crushed tortilla chips, cheddar cheese and sour cream.

Note:

• You can use leftover cooked chicken or if you don't have any. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add a boneless skinless chicken breast. Boil for 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from pot and place on a clean cutting board. Cut into cubes.

Here are some other recipes for you to try:

Healthy Chicken Tortilla Soup from Aggie's Kitchen
Chicken Tortilla Soup from The Lemon Bowl
Chicken Tortilla Soup from PW

The post Chicken Tortilla Soup with Black Beans and Zucchini appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

I’m so excited to be working with Land O’Lakes this year to share some recipes and one of my favorite things in life, butter. This year, I’ve partnered with Land O Lakes® Butter and Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, together to bring you Kitchen Conversations. We have three other fabulous food bloggers joining the conversations: Brenda from A Farmgirl’s Dabbles, Sommer from A Spicy Perspective and Maria from Two Peas & Their Pod. The goal of the Conversations is to inspire home cooks to feel more confident in the kitchen and to provide a platform to learn from each other’s hits and misses.

You can follow the food-filled conversation and recipe ideas through the hashtag #KtchnConvo on Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram. Of course, I’ll also keep you up to date through ongoing blog posts and recipes on The Little Kitchen!

So, our first topic of conversation is food trends. What is inspiring you in your kitchen? Each blogger took a different food trend and created a signature recipe to share. Check out all the creative recipe ideas from the Kitchen Conversation bloggers on landolakes.com.

There are a bunch of food trends every year, but the one that’s most relevant to me is incorporating Asian cooking. As some of you know, I’m Vietnamese and I’m definitely seeing Asian influences in fashion, in décor, and—in a big way—in food.

If you have never heard of a banh mi before, I'll tell you about them. Banh mis are the Vietnamese's equivalent of a submarine sandwich – and usually includes paté and cha which is a Vietnamese pork cold cut. I don't eat pork so I haven't had an authentic banh mi in a longgg time! This beef version is inspired by a visit to a banh mi shop in Orlando – they do an Americanized version and put a fried egg on top and I just had to recreate it!

Pickled Carrots and Daikon – first things first, prep the veggies, I used a julienne slicer for these and set them aside for two hours. (This is my Mom's recipe for quick pickled carrots & daikon.)

I'm lucky to have a couple of lemongrass plants in my backyard, thanks to friends who gave me parts of their plant last year to start me off. You can also find lemongrass at Asian grocery stores, fresh or frozen. If you can't find it, substitute with a little bit of lemon zest.

Cut off the ends and then cut the lemongrass in half lengthwise and in half again.

And then chop into as small pieces as you can.

Next cut the beef across the grain and then chop into smaller pieces. Marinate beef with lemongrass, sesame oil, salt and pepper.

I love these half sticks of Land O Lakes® Butter! A lot of the time, I only need one tablespoon or half a stick, and it’s much easier than a full stick (most of the time). I say “most of the time” because sometimes I’ll use a full stick for a recipe.

For this recipe, I used a Land O Lakes® Salted Butter half stick.

Melt Land O Lakes® Salted Butter in a nonstick skillet.

Add the beef and cook until all of the juices disappear and the beef is browned.

Looks perfect.

Prep your hoagie rolls by slicing them and add the beef and the toppings including Land O Lakes® Muenster cheese (this is the Americanizing part, there usually isn't cheese in Vietnamese banh mis), sliced jalapenos, cilantro, cucumbers and of course the pickled vegetables.

Fry one or two eggs at a time in a Land O Lakes® Salted Butter and top the banh mis.

Honestly, put a fried egg on top of anything and I'm there. Do you feel the same way? These sandwiches are fantastic…I can't wait to make them again!

Print

Lemongrass Beef Banh Mi Recipe

Prep Time 3 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4 sandwiches

Ingredients

Quick Pickled Carrots and Daikon

• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 Tablespoon sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup carrots cut into matchsticks
• 1 cup daikon white radish, cut into matchsticks
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons lemongrass chopped fine
• 1 pound beef sirloin top filet cut across the grain and chopped small
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• salt & pepper
• 1 half stick 4 Tablespoons Land O Lakes® Salted Butter
• 2 foot long hoagie rolls
• 2 small cucumbers sliced into spears
• cilantro
• 2 slices of Land O Lakes® Muenster Cheese
• 1 jalapeno sliced (optional)
• 4 eggs

Instructions

How to Make Pickled Carrots and Daikon

• Combine vinegar, water, sugar and salt in a medium-sized mixing bowl and mix until the sugar and salt has dissolved. Add carrots and daikon and cover and set aside for at least 2 hours.
• In another medium-sized bowl, add beef, lemongrass, sesame oil, salt & pepper. Allow the beef to marinate for at least 10 minutes.
• In a nonstick skillet, melt one tablespoon of Land O Lakes® Salted Butter on medium heat. Add half of the beef and cook until all of the juices disappear and the beef is browned, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove beef from skillet and wipe clean with paper towel. Add 1 tablespoon Land O Lakes® Salted Butter and cook the other half of the beef. Remove beef from skillet and turn off heat. Wipe clean with paper towel again.
• Cut hoagie rolls in half so that you have 4 separate sandwiches. Then, slice lengthwise and add beef. Layer ingredients starting with cheese, cucumber spears, pickled vegetables, jalapenos and cilantro.
• Add 1/2 or 1 tablespoon of Land O Lakes® Salted Butter (depending on one egg or two eggs at a time) to the skillet and turn on heat at medium low. Crack egg and place in skillet, being careful not to break the yolk. Fry the egg until desired runniness is reached, usually about 2 to 4 minutes. Place egg on top of banh mi sandwich and enjoy! (Repeat with the remaining eggs.)

What’s your favorite food trend for 2013? Here are a few more tips for incorporating food trends into your everyday cooking.

If you have a picky eater in your house like I do, try mixing a new ingredient with ones they already know and love.
For example, usually Curtis would turn his nose up at pickled vegetables (except for regular pickles), but because this banh mi involves beef, lemongrass and cheese, kind of like a cheesesteak, which he knows and loves, I was able to get him to try the pickled carrots and daikon, and he actually liked it!

I love to incorporate new trends by mixing up a classic recipe. One example of this is making baked mac and cheese with panko bread crumbs instead of regular breadcrumbs.

I love, love doing this. Another example is making fried zucchini with panko breadcrumbs!

Making a meal plan for the week over the weekend makes it really easy to incorporate new things and trends into your weeknight meals.

I like to make a list of meals for the week on Saturday or Sunday, and then I’ll make a grocery list based on those meals. Makes it so much easier during the week!

I’m constantly inspired by new trends and the meals I have at restaurants and try to blend them into meals I make at home.

So much so that I keep lists in my Evernote app to keep track of my ideas. I even take pictures of menus so I have all of the information I need for inspiration to try them at home!

Try to keep it simple by taking shortcuts with some ingredients (such as stocks and broths) but at the same time using fresh ingredients when you can.

Sometimes we don’t have hours to cook a weeknight meal. I think it’s fine to take shortcuts, but don’t scrimp on your favorite ingredients like butter and cheese!

I'm excited to share with you this wonderful giveaway from Land O'Lakes which includes a Le Creuset cast iron skillet and some fun goodies from Anthropologie and of course…Land O Lakes® Butter! To enter, hop on over to the giveaway.

Disclosure: I've partnered with Land O'Lakes for an exclusive endorsement of Land O Lakes® Butter for their Kitchen Conversation blogger program. This blog post is sponsored by Land O'Lakes. I always share my own honest opinions and only work with brands that I love.

The post Lemongrass Beef Banh Mi with Fried Egg on Top appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

Are you ready for the Super Bowl yet? I have a confession to make, we don't really watch the game – sometimes the commercials and sometimes not even the commercials. But even if we're not, I always make a TON of appetizers and fun game day food and that's what we eat on Super Bowl Sunday.

Do you like jalapeno poppers? Quite frankly, these are the best jalapeno poppers I have ever had! The combination of the Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry and the roasted garlic in the popper filling is what brings this appetizer over the top. My only regret? I forgot to take a picture of the inside of the popper so you can see it!

First thing, put Puff Pastry sheets in the refrigerator to defrost for 40 minutes and turn on your oven so you can roast some garlic. Cut off the end of the garlic and wrap it in some foil with olive oil. Thirty minutes later, you have these little beauties. I didn't use the whole thing for this recipe so I froze the rest for a recipe in the future.

Clean and cut up your jalapenos and remove the seeds and ribs with a spoon – don't you use your fingers and be careful, sometimes the juices go flying. It's not fun to get them into your eyes. I have no idea how I know that.

Isn't the puff pastry beautiful? This is what it looks like after I unfolded it.

Cut each sheet into 12 squares. I used kitchen shears to this, I'm sure you can use a pizza cutter too.

Stuff the jalapenos with your cream cheese filling and put your jalapeno face down in the middle of your puff pastry (I have it face up to show you how much I stuffed into the jalapeno) – at an angle.

Seal and pinch to close the jalapeno poppers.

Brush the egg wash on them and add some cheese on top. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Let them cool for a few minutes and you're good to go.

Curtis really enjoyed these and since I don't eat bacon, I made half of them without…seriously this is going to be my go to jalapeno poppers recipe. And they microwave really well too. I put them on a plate lined with paper towels and started at 30 seconds – and adding additional 15 second intervals until they were ready.

Be sure to visit PuffPastry.com for more recipes, tips and how-videos and vis the Puffection™ tab on the Pepperidge Farm facebook page where you can share your own Puff Pastry recipes.

Print

Jalapeno Poppers in a Blanket Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Servings 24 poppers

Ingredients

• 1 egg
• 1 Tablespoon water
• all-purpose flour
• 1 package  17.3 ounces Pepperidge Farm® Puff Pastry Sheets, thawed according to package directions
• 1 package  8 ounces light cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 cup finely shredded Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese blend about 3 ounces
• 4 cloves roasted garlic mashed
• 3 strips bacon cooked and crumbled
• 12 medium jalapeño peppers cut in half lengthwise and seeded

Instructions

• Heat the oven to 400°F. Beat the egg and water in a small bowl with a fork.
• Sprinkle the work surface with the flour. Unfold 1 pastry sheet on the floured surface. Roll the pastry sheet into a 9x12-inch rectangle. Cut the rectangle into 12 (3-inch) squares. Repeat with the remaining pastry sheet, making 24 squares in all.
• Stir the cream cheese, shredded cheese, garlic and bacon in a medium bowl. Spoon about 2 teaspoons cheese mixture into each pepper half.
• Place 1 filled pepper half diagonally, cheese-side down, onto each pastry square. Fold the pastry up over the pepper and press firmly to seal. Brush the filled pastries with the egg mixture. Sprinkle with additional shredded cheese, if desired. Place the pastries onto 2 baking sheets.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until the pastries are golden brown. Let the pastries cool on the baking sheets on wire racks for 10 minutes.

Ingredient Note:

• You can use store-bought roasted garlic or make your own. To make your own, cut 1/4 inch off the top of a whole garlic bulb. Place the garlic onto a square of aluminum foil and drizzle with olive oil. Wrap tightly and bake at 400°F. for 30 minutes or until the garlic is very soft. Squeeze the garlic cloves out of the peel to use in this recipe.

Notes

From Ravenous Couple and Pepperidge Farm.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry. As always, opinions are always my own and I only work with brand I love.

The post Jalapeno Poppers in a Blanket appeared first on The Little Kitchen.