{ Cooking Thursday - Portuguese Coconut Cakes }

 

If you don't yet know, I am a huge lover of coconut.  I just absolutely love coconut anything.  I grew up eating fresh coconut, drinking fresh coconut juice straight out of the coconut, and really there's nothing like it.

 

 

So it goes without saying that since I was a child, one of my favorite cakes are these Portuguese coconut little bars, sometimes they are round cakes too.  If we went to a Pastelaria (cake shop), I would usually order one of these.  

 

I haven't made them in years, but was having a craving for them yesterday, and since I had everything I needed on hand, I whipped up a quick batch.  Needless to say, I have got to be good and stay away from them, or I will eat the whole thing.  They are so good, and I hope you enjoy them too.

 

Bolos de Coco (Portuguese Coconut Cakes)

 

  

2 cups shredded coconut 

1 cup sugar 4 eggs 

1/2 cup butter, melted 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1/2 cup all-purpose flour 

 

Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). 

 

 In a bowl, mix shredded coconut and sugar together. Add eggs and melted butter to the mixture and stir well. Mix in vanilla extract and flour until combined. 

 

Grease a baking pan and pour the batter into it. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool before cutting into squares.

{ Cooking Thursday - Greek Sheet Pan Chicken }

One of our favorite dinners, is this super easy Greek Sheet Pan Chicken.  I am always looking for easy delicious recipes, and one website that I turn to over and over, is The Mediterranean Dish.  Love it, it is filled with the most wonderful recipes, and every single one I have tried from there has been a huge hit.

 

 

 

 

Greek Sheet Pan Chicken

Source: The Mediterranean Dish

 

Ingredients

For the Ladolemono (Greek salad dressing)

• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice Juice of 2 large lemons
• 1 to 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 large garlic clove minced
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

For the Chicken and Veggies

• 1 large red onion, halved and sliced into 1/2 -inch pieces
• 1 medium zucchini, halved and sliced into 1/2-inch pieces (half moons)
• 1 large orange bell pepper, cored and sliced into 1/2-inch thick slices
• 1 large tomato, cut into 8 wedges
• Kosher salt
• ground black pepper
• 6 to 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 1/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives
• 1/4 cup pitted Castelvetrano olives
• 4 ounces feta cheese, cut into chunks
• 1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley, for garnish

Instructions

• Get ready: Position a rack in the middle of your oven and heat it to 425°F.
• Make the ladolemono Greek salad dressing. In a medium mixing bowl, add the lemon juice, oregano, garlic, salt, and pepper and whisk vigorously to combine. While whisking, drizzle in the olive oil and continue whisking until emulsified.
• Coat the veggies. On a large sheet pan, spread the onions, zucchini, bell pepper, and tomatoes. Season well with salt and pepper, then pour about 1/4 cup of the sauce all over the veggies. Toss to coat, then spread the vegetables out so they are all touching the surface of the pan.
• Add the remaining ingredients. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Nestle the chicken, olives, and chunks of feta in between the vegetables and drizzle with the remaining ladolemono sauce, making sure the chicken especially is covered with the sauce.
• Bake. Bake on the center rack of your heated oven until the chicken is cooked through, about 35 minutes. For more color, transfer the chicken to the top rack about 6 inches away from the broiler. Broil for a couple of minutes, watching closely to make sure the chicken and vegetables gain some color but do not burn.
• Finish and serve. Remove from the oven and spoon the pan juice all over the chicken. Garnish with the parsley and serve. 

 

{ Cooking Thursday - Homemade Doner Kebab }

 

 

Since starting my healthy journey and changing our eating habits, I have turned to a more Mediterranean diet, and we have all been enjoying it.  I have always loved Mediterranean food, especially anything like Gyros, Kebabs and Shawarmas.  

 

 

When I came across this easy doner kebab recipe, I immediately put it on the menu and it was a hit.  Will be making it quite a lot in the future.

  

Doner Kebab

Recipe from FoolProofLiving 

 

For The Doner Meat 

▢ 1 onion, medium-sized/peeled and cut into large chunks

▢ 2 cloves garlic, peeled 

▢ 1 lb ground beef, 85/15 

▢ 1 tablespoon tomato paste 

▢ 2 tablespoons Greek yogurt, full-fat or no fat (both would work) 

▢ 1 teaspoon ground cumin 

▢ 1 teaspoon paprika 

▢ ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional 

▢ 1 teaspoon kosher salt 

▢ ½ teaspoon black pepper 

 

 

Instructions 

 

Preheat the oven to 400 °F (204°C). Place the onion and garlic in a food processor and pulse until fully chopped/pureed. Place it in a large bowl. Into that same bowl, add in the beef, tomato paste, Greek yogurt, ground cumin, paprika, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Using clean hands, mix well until thoroughly combined. Divide the mixture into 3 equal pieces*. 

 

Grab a large sheet of parchment paper and place one of the pieces in the middle. Place another sheet of parchment on top and, using a rolling pin (or your hands), roll it out into a rectangle. Do your best to make it as even as possible. 

 

Remove the parchment paper on top. 

 

Starting from the bottom with the short side facing you, roll the meat (with the parchment paper) onto itself in 2-inch increments until complete. Transfer it to a large sheet pan. Repeat the same process for the remaining pieces. 

 

Transfer it to the oven and bake for 20 minutes. When done, unfold the rolled meat and tear it into large pieces. 

 

Add a handful of meat on top of a pita or lavash bread, top with sliced tomatoes, cucumber slices and red onion slices.  I made a garlic yogurt sauce to drizzle on.  Basically just a cup of plain Greek yogurt, some fresh minced parsley and a little salt.  

 

{ Cooking Thursday - Thanksgiving Recipe - Cranberry Feta Pinwheels }

Can you believe that Thanksgiving is next week, exactly a week from today?  

 

With that in mind, over the next week we will dive fully into preparation and cooking and ideas for the big day.  I am starting today with our Cooking Thursday and I'm including a recipe that I have saved for myself to make as an appetizer.....Cranberry Feta Pinwheels.  It sounds and looks absolutely delicious.

 

The recipe comes from Spend with Pennies, a cooking blog I have followed and used over the years, and just love basically all her recipes, so be sure to check it out when you have a chance.  

 

 

Cranberry Feta Pinwheels

Source: Spend with Pennies 

Ingredients  

• ▢ 8 ounces cream cheese softened
• ▢ 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
• ▢ ⅓ cup chopped fresh chives
• ▢ 1 ½ cups dried cranberries
• ▢ 4 large flour tortillas 10-inch

Instructions 

• Place cream cheese in a small bowl and beat until fluffy.
• Add in remaining ingredients (except tortillas) and mix well. Spread the mixture evenly over the 4 tortillas.
• Roll each tortilla in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour. Cut into slices and serve.

 

{ Cooking Thursday -

This is such a quick dish to throw together, it's great as a snack or as a light meal, served with salad, homemade fries or rice.

Hope you enjoy it too!

Ham, Cheese and Sausage Rolls - Rolinhos de Fiambre Recheados

8 hotdogs (if your ham slices are small, then cut them in half, like I did)
8 slices of ham
8 slices of cheese (I used both American and Pepper Jack)
Mustard
2 eggs, beaten
flour
breadcrumbs
salt, pepper, nutmeg, garlic powder

In a bowl, beat the eggs and add the spices, mix well. In another bowl add flour and in another one, the breadcrumbs. We're going to use these to dip the ham rolls in.

Lay a slice of ham flat on a cutting board. Top with a slice of cheese. Squeeze some mustard onto the two, you don't need a lot but enough to hold everything together. Our mustard is going to act as the glue.

On one edge of the cheese slice, lay the hotdog and then roll up gently. Set aside and proceed with the rest of the ingredients.

What I love about this is that you can make as many or as little as you want. If you have more people just double the recipe, but you can also make just 2 or 3 of these if it's just for you.

Once all the rolls are done. Start by rolling in the flour, then dip in the egg mixture, then roll in the breadcrumbs. Now you'll notice that the sides will be open, I just dip those in the egg too and make sure to cover with breadcrumbs.

Fry in hot oil until golden brown. That's it.

You can also make these ahead of time and freeze them until you're ready to fry them up.

 

Cooking Thursday - Massa de Pimentao

 It's one of those things that is often used in Portuguese cooking, or at least for me. I find that it's the best marinade for not only pork but beef, chicken and even fish.

You can find it at the store but I've always made it at home, it's simple and it's really good too and I'm a huge believer in that if I can make it at home and see what I'm actually putting into it, I would rather do that :)

Massa de Pimentao - Roasted Red Pepper Paste

4 large red peppers
100 ml olive oil (that's about 1/2 cup)
10 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon salt (you can add more or less according to your taste)

First I start by roasting the red peppers, all I do is line a baking pan with foil, wash the red peppers well, then lay them on their side.

I turn the oven to 400 degrees, set the timer for 15 minutes and start roasting. After 15 minutes, I take my tongs and turn the pepper about 1/4 turn.

Pop back in for another 15 minutes and I keep doing that until it's nice and soft with black charred skin.

I remove them from the oven and let them cool down on the baking sheet. Once cool, remove all the skin, open them up and remove the seeds too. Set aside.

Pat them dry with a paper towel to remove any excess liquid.

Then pop them into a blender, add the olive oil, garlic cloves and salt and blend until smooth.

Pour into a mason jar and add a bit of olive oil on top to cover, it will help keep it from going moldy and will also preserve it longer :)

Cooking Thursday - Amish Chicken Casserole

 

Easy, quick weekday dinner.

When I want something simple that I know my family will rave about, I turn to my Amish cookbooks. Usually will find loads of casseroles and simple dishes.

This one got the thumbs up from hubby and both kids, they even asked for the leftovers for the following day's lunch.

Amish Easy Chicken Casserole

8 oz. noodles, cooked
2 c. cooked chicken, cubed
2 c. chicken broth (can used canned)
1 c. milk
1 can mushrooms
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 c. margarine
1/3 c. flour
1/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese (I used shredded Colby Jack)

Melt margarine, then add flour and stir until smooth. Gradually add milk and broth, then seasonings and mushrooms. Combine chicken, cooked noodles, and prepared sauce. Put in ungreased 9 inch x 13 inch x 2 inch baking pan and top with Parmesan cheese.

Cooking Thursday - Iced Mint Tea

 

Iced Mint Tea

4 cups of water
1 cup of sugar
1/3 cup lemon juice (I use fresh lemons)
4 tea bags
About a cup of loosely packed mint leaves (I use a mix of spearmint and peppermint)
4 cups of cold water

 

You can do it on the stove, but I make mine in the microwave just to be quicker.



Using my Pampered Chef mixing bowl, I add the first 4 cups of water, pop it in the microwave for about 6 minutes or until boiling hot. Remove, and add in the cup of sugar. Stir it up until the sugar is dissolved.

Then add the tea bags, lemon juice and mint leaves.



Pop the lid on and let it sit for an hour.

Remove the tea bags from the water and discard. Strain the tea mixture into a 2 Quart pitcher. Stir in the 4 cups of cold water, then cover and refrigerate for another hour or so.

Pour into mason jars and add in a few ice cubes and a small leaf of peppermint, if you wish :) Enjoy!!!

Cooking Thursday - Mini Barbecue Chicken Sandwiches

 

Mini Barbecue Chicken Sandwiches

Adapted from: Prudence Pennywise

6 English muffins split and toasted
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
12 paper thin onion slices
2 packages fully cooked chicken
Barbecue sauce
1 cup low fat mozzarella cheese grated


Preheat broiler. Line cookie sheet with foil. Spread toasted muffins with mayonnaise and place on prepared baking sheet.

Top muffins with onion slices and chicken.

Drizzle each half with barbecue sauce.

Sprinkle with cheese and broil until cheese is melted and bubbly.

If you're freezing, allow the sandwiches to cool completely.  Place them on a cookie sheet and place them in the freezer until solid, then take them out, wrap individually or pop into ziploc baggies and place them back in the freezer.

Don't use aluminum foil as metals from the foil may seep into the sandwich during freezing.

To re-heat, let them thaw out completely then pop them in the oven or microwave for a few minutes just until heated through, don't nuke these immediately after removing them from the freezer or you'll end up with a soggy yucky mess.

Keep sandwiches for about 2 weeks tops, no longer. :)

Cooking Thursday - Bacon, Honey Mustard Chicken

 

Bacon, Honey Mustard Chicken

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I like the thin sliced so that I don't have to pound it down)
Bacon (I do 2 slices per chicken breast)
1/2 c. honey
1/2 c. Dijon mustard
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 t. paprika
1/2 t. salt
pepper to taste
American cheese slices (1 per breast)


Preheat oven to 400 F.

Mix together Honey, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, paprika, salt and pepper, in a medium bowl.

Rinse chicken breast and pat dry. If you didn't get the thin sliced breasts, then pound the chicken breast between 2 sheets of wax paper until about 1/2 - 3/4 inch thick.

Add chicken to the marinade bowl, swish around a bit to cover completely and set aside.
Fry the bacon in a skillet, remove when cooked and set aside.

Keep the bacon grease in the pan. Pour off the excess marinade and fry the chicken, 3 pieces or so, at a time, for about 2 minutes on each side or until nicely browned.

Transfer to a baking sheet covered in foil. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes, then remove. Place two pieces of bacon on each chicken breast, then top with a slice of cheese.

Return to the oven for another 5 minutes until cheese is melted.
Serve immediately.I served mine with garlic mashed potatoes. YUM!

Cooking Thursday - Barb's Breakfast Burritos

 

Barb's Burritos

1 lb maple sausage
1 small can of diced green chilies
1 bag of Potatoes O' Brien
Scrambled eggs.....depending on how much you're making either a dozen or half a dozen


In a skillet brown the sausage,



then drain and transfer to a large mixing bowl.  Fry the potatoes, add the can of chilies to the meat, add the potatoes to the chilies and sausage.



In a skillet scramble the eggs then add them to the rest of the mixture, mix everything well.

Spoon the filling into the middle of the tortilla and roll up burrito style. (BTW, the original recipe doesn't call for it, but I like to add cheese to mine too)



I use the little ziploc bags to keep mine in, but you can also wrap them in foil.



Once you're done, just pop them in the freezer, they keep really good for 3 weeks or so. To heat them up just place them in the microwave for about 2 minutes.

Cooking Thursday - Salmon Croquettes

 

Salmon Croquettes

Ingredients 

1/4 cup diced onion

1 pound fresh salmon, skin removed and diced

Salt and pepper, to taste 

1/4 cup of mayonnaise

1/4 cup of bread crumbs

Minced garlic, to taste

1 teaspoon mustard

1/4 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning 

Parsley and Cilantro, to taste

 

 

Directions

 

In a small skillet, add a little bit of olive oil and fry the onion until translucent.  Transfer to a big bowl.  To the onion, add the salmon, salt and pepper to taste, mayonnaise, bread crumbs, garlic, mustard and old bay seasoning  and parsley and cilantro.

Mix well, then form into small croquettes.

In a small bowl, add some breadcrumbs, then roll each croquette in the crumbs and set on a tray.  Repeat with remaining croquettes.  Place in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour.

When time is up, remove from fridge, and fry over medium heat for about 3 minutes on each side.  Serve immediately!

{ Cooking Thursday - Pepperoni Pizzaz }

 

PEPPERONI PIZZAZ
Credit: Tried and True Cooking with Heidi

8 ounces uncooked penne pasta
1 jar (28 ounces) spaghetti sauce, divided
1 package (8 ounces) sliced pepperoni
1 jar (4-1/2 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese



Cook pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, combine 2-1/3 cups spaghetti sauce, pepperoni, mushrooms, green pepper, onion,

Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes in a bowl.
Drain pasta; add to sauce mixture and mix well.

Transfer to a greased 3-qt. baking dish. Combine the tomato sauce and remaining spaghetti sauce; pour over top. (Note: for easier clean up, just empty the tomato sauce into the remaining spaghetti sauce jar, close tight and shake)

Cover and bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until bubbly. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake, uncovered, 5-10 longer or until cheese is melted. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Yield: 9 servings.

{ Cooking Thursday - Bread Lasagna }

 Lasanha de Pao is your typical lasagna but using bread slices instead of lasagna noodles.  The slices are nestled between spoonfuls of delicious meat sauce and homemade bechamel sauce.

Lasanha de Pao - Bread Lasagna

I love a good lasagna and I learned how to make it the traditional way, which is using lasagna noodles.  I'm not saying that I don't still do that, but when I have leftover bread that has gone stale and needs to be used, the last thing I want to do is be wasteful.

This is a great way to make a much loved family favorite, but also use what you have on hand.  The rest of the recipe remains the same, use your favorite meat sauce, use white sauce or ricotta or whatever you wish, but I'm going to show you how I make mine by kicking it up just a little notch.

Other lasagna recipes you may enjoy:

Zucchini and Bacon 3 Cheese Lasagna
Skillet Lasagna
Hot and Spicy Lasagna
Meat Lovers Lasagna

I'm not going to show you all the steps to this lasagna because there are so many different ways, and people have their favorite meat sauces or fillings.  I'll just basically show you how I made mine.  I make my own meat sauce from scratch, as well as the white bechamel sauce, and you can find the steps to those in my previous lasagna recipes above. 

Lasanha de Pao - Bread Lasagna

Ingredients:
1 and half pound meat sauce (use your favorite, homemade or store bought, your choice)
White Bechamel Sauce
Sliced Ham
Sliced Cheese
Sliced Bread (I used my homemade bread)
Shredded Cheese


In a baking dish, add a little of the meat sauce to the bottom of the dish.  Cover with bread slices, then spoon half of the leftover meat sauce, half of the white sauce, cover with sliced ham, sliced cheese and add another layer of bread slices.

Top with the remaining meat, remaining white sauce and cover with shredded cheese.  Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes until bubbly and cheese is melted and brown.

Let stand 5 minutes before serving.