Teriyaki Chicken Rice Bowl like Pei Wei

I love going to Pei Wei for Chinese food. My favorites there are the crab wontons and the Teriyaki Chicken bowl.  That place really rocks. I love the neon lights and watching the chefs cook in the giant woks.

Teriyaki-Orange Chicken Rice Bowl 

RECIPE FOR TERIYAKI CHICKEN RICE BOWL WITH VEGGIES (Like Pei Wei)
3 Chicken Breasts seasoned with garlic salt, season salt and lemon pepper
2 medium carrots sliced thinly
1/4 cup red onion
1/4 cup red, orange or green pepper
1/2 cup chopped cabbage in 1/2 inch chunks
6 mushrooms sliced thin
1/3 cup sugar snap peas
a few shakes garlic salt
1/4 cup orange sauce mixed with 1/4 cup teriyaki sauce (or more if you like more sauce) I like the bottled Panda Orange sauce and the Ebarra Spicy Teriyaki sauce.
a slight pinch red pepper flakes (optional)

Today I had a yen for some chinese food. But you know, it's just veggies and rice with some stir fried chicken. So I decided to experiement and see if I've got the Pei Wei taste down.

I like to add the Orange sauce with the Teriyaki sauce...it makes a yummy sauce! 

I decided to use the veggies I had in my fridge, which were, 1/4 of a red and green pepper, 4 mushrooms, some carrots, pea pods, some celery and some cabbage and red onion. Use whatever you have in your fridge. If you love broccoli or bok choy, you could add that instead of some of the others. The picture below shows my teriyaki sauce. I like the taste of the Ebara brand.

I love cabbage with the rice, so I add the chopped cabbage the LAST MINUTE to the rice cooker, just so it gets SLIGHTLY STEAMED. I like it still crunchy but I want it to barely wilt in the rice steamer....

 Be sure and wash your rice so it will not be super sticky. I do 1 1/2 water to 1 cup of rice in a rice cooker. So if you do 2 cups of rice, use 3 cups of water and a few shakes of salt.

Here are my veggies after stir frying them....I just put a lid on the bowl till everything else was ready...

Then I chopped veggies thin (except for the cabbage, chop that in fat pieces) then stir fried the veggies with a few tablespoons of oil in a stainless steel pan.  I ended up with about 2 cups of veggies. I put them aside in a bowl with a lid to keep them warm.

Seasoned chicken breasts...I cut them up into 1 1/4 inch pieces to stir fry them....

After 3 minutes on each side I added the sauce and coated the Teriyaki chicken pieces....

Then I had been seasoning the boneless chicken breasts in the fridge for a few hours with lemon pepper and garlic and some seasoning salt.  Then I sliced the chicken up into 1 1/4 inch pieces and fried them in a grilling steel pan, adding another bit of oil. I turned them after about 3 minutes on each side.

Teriyaki-Orange Chicken Rice Bowl

Then I added the sauce and simmered the chicken for a few minutes turning them in the sauce. Lastly, I added the warm veggies, coating them in the sauce. The sauce is completely made, you only need to warm it up. And boy is it delicious! You can get the Panda orange sauce from Costco.

Here's my finished Pei Wei Teriyaki Chicken with rice and stir fried vegetables. Yummy and healthy too.

I think this recipe is the hub's favorite of all the foods I cook!  Try it. 

Chocolate Cake with Raspberries and Almonds

Chocolate Cake with Raspberries and Sliced Almonds

3/4 cup of  real butter

1 1/2 cups of sugar

¼ cup cocoa

2 eggs

1 1/2  teaspoons vanilla

½ cup sour cream

2 Tablespoons oil
1 cup of chocolate chips (spread over top of cake before baking)

Dry ingredients

2 cups of flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup hot water

Yummy Chocolate Cake

I love chocolate cake. It is probably my favorite dessert. When I have had a long day, am stressed out, or I just want to make an easy, delicious treat, this is what I go for. I use boxed mixes 90 percent of the time. But today I didn't have a chocolate cake mix. This recipe is a pretty easy and great substitute. It whips up quickly and I usually have all the ingredients on hand. 
And it was one of those days where I just needed some chocolate. Ever have one of those days? mmhmm.....chocolate cures just about everything, doesn't it? 

Want some raspberries on your decadent chocolate cake? Yum! 

Start by creaming butter, cocoa and sugar together.  Add eggs and vanilla and sour cream and mix until smooth. In a separate bowl blend the flour, soda and salt together.  Add flour mixture to the cocoa mixture. Then add hot water a little at a time and beat until smooth.  Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for approximately 30 minutes depending on your oven and altitude.  Bake cupcakes for 18-20 minutes.

Chocolate cupcakes with raspberries and almonds

I like to make both cupcakes and a cake for my dessert.  My grandkids love cupcakes when they come over and I can give a few away as a gift. (who doesn't like cupcakes?)

Cream sugars and butter and Mix it all up in your Kitchenaide Mixer.....add the eggs and flour mixture....

Pour the batter into a 9 x 9 cake pan and 9 cupcake papers and bake them up in 350 degree oven

I topped my chocolate cupcakes with about 7 chocolate chips each...to make them richer and tastier

 So with this mix I did 9 cupcakes and a square 9 x 9 glass cake pan with the remains. I put about 3/4 cup of chocolate chips onto the cake batter just after I poured it into the pan.  I put about 6 to 7 chocolate chips into each cupcake paper.  I put both just on top, last thing to go into the mix.  

Add the eggs to the mix

With the cocoa and flour and sugar

I used these red, foil, cupcake papers for my chocolate cupcakes

I made a 9 x 9 chocolate cake and 9 chocolate cupcakes....what's with all those 9s? 

Then I baked them, checking the cupcakes after about 18 minutes. I have a convection oven and sometimes it takes longer when I have it on, and sometimes I am surprised how fast stuff cooks in there!! I leave the cake in and start checking it after about 25 minutes. 

I threw about a 3/4 of a cup of chocolate chips on top of my chocolate cake

Homemade chocolate buttercream icing on top of my chocolate cake

HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM ICING

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter 
• 1/3 cup cocoa
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 3 + Tablespoons milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons real vanilla
• add more sugar if it is too runny, add more milk if it is too dry. Mix up in your mixer.

Top with sliced almonds and then add 3 raspberries to each cut piece of cake, or cupcake, when serving.

When they were done I frosted them with chocolate buttercream frosting and topped them with fresh raspberries and sliced almonds. Sooooo Yummy! 

Don't you wanna bite of my chocolate cupcake? Hmmm?  YES YOU DO! 

Sausage Egg and Cheese Biscuits like McDonalds

Well, today I had a craving for a sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit while I watched the Olympics Opening Ceremony on my Tivo. But I don't want to drive over to McDonalds. So I'm going to make my own. It will be fun! 

McBiscuit! 

Sausage Egg and Cheese Biscuits (The hubs called them Patty McMuffins)

I used a recipe for the biscuits using my boxed pancake mix. I used a drinking glass to make the round shape of the biscuits after rolling out the dough about 1/2 inch thick. The thicker ones made the better biscuits.

Using Pancake Mix to make a Biscuit....

Mix it up with egg, milk and butter for flaky biscuits....

I used a plastic glass for my biscuit cutter....

Bake on a parchment paper covered cookie sheet for about 10 minutes......Yum! 

RECIPE FOR SAUSAGE, EGG AND CHEESE BISCUITS (Patty McMuffins)

2 1/2 to 3 cups of Pancake/Waffle Mix

1/4 cup butter

1/3 cup milk 

1 egg   Mix together with a spatula. Roll out. Cut into circles. Bake on a cookie sheet for 10 minutes at 400 depending on your oven and altitude.

Top it with sausage patties and cheese and egg for a McBiscuit!

So I got out my pancake griddle and went to work on the eggs while the biscuits were baking.

Then do some scrambled eggs for your sausuage, egg and cheese biscuit...

I tried using canning rings to make circle eggs.....too much mess and trouble....

One more thing; don't forget to spray the canning rings like we did when we poured the egg inside. You notice how I said "we" even though I was the only one cooking? Yeah, I blame others when things go bad in the kitchen. It turns into "our mistake" lol.

I think next time I'll just fold the eggs up into a square as I make the scrambled eggs...it's just easier that way....

I used my pancake griddle to do the scrambled eggs....

 My scrambled eggs also started leaking out of one of the rings that was slightly bent. So I'd just scramble your eggs and fold them in half in a little square. I'll do that next time. It's way easier.

Gotta love a McDonalds copycat! 

Got a deal on Jimmy Dean Turkey sausage.... a tiny bit healthier than the other kind.....

Microwave the sausage patties for a minute..... I cut 4 squares of cheddar cheese to put on the sausage patties. I added the cheese to the top for  another  20 seconds....

I had found these Jimmy Dean sausage patties already cooked for a real deal! So I bought them thinking of my craving. :D Yeah, there's a method to my madness. They are fully cooked so I just microwaved them with a slab of cheese on each piece for a minute. Then I  sliced the hot biscuits and buttered the insides just before assembling them with the egg and cheese with the sausage. Yum!  

Patty McMuffins....Sausage egg and cheese biscuits.

Yum, gimme a bite of that! 

Next time they will look prettier.  But they tasted wonderful! McDonalds, you got nothin' on me! 

FROG EYE FRUIT SALAD

Yummy Frog Eye Fruit Salad 

FROG EYE FRUIT SALAD

• 1 box (1 pound box or bag) Rosa Marina pasta, OR orzo pasta
• 1 can (20 ounces) crushed pineapple
• 1 can (20 ounces) pineapple tidbits
• 1 jar (8 ounces) maraschino cherries
• 2 cans (11 ounces) mandarin oranges
• 3  eggs, beaten
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 container (16 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed

Frog Eye Salad is called all sorts of names....I don't know why. I guess it's because the tiny pasta it is made from makes it look like little eyes? 

I start by making the custard. You use the juice from the pineapple and the Mandarin oranges and mix it with the eggs, the flour, sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan on medium heat. Do not use the juice of the Maraschino cherries. When the custard starts to come to a boi thicken up (about 10 minutes), take it off the heat and put it in a bowl and chill it in the fridge for a few hours.  

The egg custard for the Frog Eye Salad

When it is done, just dump in all the drained fruits (retaining about 8 of the cherries for a garnish on top), then mix the fruits with the custard and a regular container of Cool Whip, and put it into a large, pretty bowl. I top mine with about 8 of the Maraschino cherries just for presentation. 

Try Frog Eye Salad for your next dinner party. It feeds an army of people! And everybody always loves it. 

Texas Caviar or Black Eyed Pea and Corn Salsa

Texas Caviar or Black Bean and Corn Sals

TEXAS CAVIAR 

• 1 (15 ounce) can white corn, drained 
• 1 (15 ounce) can black eyed peas, OR black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 Roma tomatoes diced
• 1 bunch finely chopped cilantro
• 2 Tablespoons small red onion, finely chopped (optional)
• 1/2 green or orange pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 Tablespoons lime juice
• 1 avocado - peeled, pitted, and diced
• A dash of Lawry's or Johnny's seasoning salt
• A few shakes of black pepper
• 3 Tablespoons Zesty Italian or House Italian Dressing 

I LOVE this recipe. I can sit and eat the whole thing myself in a few days. It is so colorful, healthy and yummy on wheat crackers or on Tostitos chips. Or on these new Pretzel Crackers. They get gobbled up REAL FAST! 

I want to make a batch of it today in honor of Pioneer Day! In Utah July 24th is a day to celebrate the trek the pioneers made across the country to help build the West. 

Happy Pioneer Day! 

Texas Caviar or Black Eyed Peas  and Corn Salsa! It's SOOOOOO  yummy! 

Cherry Crisp

My finished  Cherry Crisp

Cherry Crisp is an easy recipe you can make anytime!

I had worked all day yesterday reorganizing my kitchen cupboards and drawers. NOT my favorite job. And so there wasn't a lot of time for cooking. So I went and got takeout at Goodwood Barbeque in Draper, my favorite BBQ place.

They have the best potato salad and corn muffins....and....well...I didn't have to make it!  Here's John's brisket....

EasyIngredients for Cherry Crisp.....minus the crushed pineapple..

And I'm making a cherry dump cake to go with it.  It is soooooo easy but yummy. Not great diet food though. I've been TRYING to cut down on bad for me foods. ("and how's that goin' for you?" says little red devil on my shoulder). Here is the recipe

CHERRY DUMP CAKE

1 can cherry pie filling
1 can crushed pineapple, including juice
1 butter cake mix
1 stick butter
chopped walnuts or pecans

Preheat oven to 350, Spray 9 x 13 pan with Pam. spread cherry pie filling, top with crushed pineapple. Sprinkle cake mix on top and dot with sliced butter and nuts. Bake for 45 min. to an hour till golden and bubbly.

Just use a can of cherries for the Cherry Dump Cake

Spray the pan, line with the canned cherries for Cherry Crisp....

Then add the pineapple and pecans...just dump them in! 

Dump the cake mix on top and dot with butter pieces....THAT'S IT! 

Cherry Dump Cake (kind of a cherry crisp) all finished and half eaten!!

And like some desserts, it is actually better the next day when the crispiness has hardened a little and isn't soft and mushy. Here it is after we ate half of it. Yum.

My ribs....Thanks GOODWOOD BARBEQUE! 

And here is my Goodwood Barbeque take-out on my new square, white dinner plates from TARGET. My husband loves the brisket, I love the ribs...the potato salad is pretty great there too. Now if only Goodwood was next door and not all the way in DRAPER!  Thanks hubs. You rock!