Garlic Mushroom Chicken Thighs

Garlic Mushroom Chicken Thighs 

1 1/2 lbs chicken thighs, around 6 thighs 

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder 

1/2 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp basil

1/2 tsp salt 

1/2 tsp pepper 

2 tbsp olive oil 

1 tbsp butter 

1/3 cup white wine 

8 oz / 250 g sliced cremini mushrooms 

4 cloves garlic minced / 1 tbsp minced 

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp basil 

1 tbsp parsley 

Combine garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, basil, salt and pepper. Pat the chicken dry with paper towel and coat evenly with the combined seasoning. 

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Sear chicken thighs until browned on each side and cooked through, approximately 10 minutes per side or longer to ensure chicken is cooked through.  Transfer to a plate and keep warm. 

Reduce heat to medium and melt butter, add wine and simmer until reduced in half.  Add mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and sautée until soft approximately 5 minutes. Add garlic and second amount of thyme and basil & sautée an additional minute until fragrant. Add additional butter as needed to achieve a buttery sauce. 

Return chicken to the pan and sautée until warmed through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley and serve over rice, pasta or mashed potatoes. 

Vicks Shower Bombs

Vicks Shower Bombs 

1 cup cornstarch

5 tbsp Vicks 

1/2 cup baking soda 

1 - 3 tsp water as needed 

In a medium bowl, add cornstarch and Vicks and mix until well combined. Add baking soda and mix well. Add water as needed to achieve a consistency that will hold together when formed into a ball. 

Press the mixture into a silicone mold and freeze for several hours. 

Remove from freezer, pop out of molds and store in a small airtight container. 

To use, place in the shower near the drain. The steam will fill your shower and clear your congestion. 

Spider Repellent

Spider Repellent 

Add 15 - 20 drops of peppermint essential oil to a spray bottle with 8 ounces of water. 

Spray around door frames, Windows, small crackers, corners and bathrooms. 

For a more potent version, increase the ratio of peppermint oil to water or eliminate the water completely. 

Bath Bomb

Bath Bomb

1 cup baking soda

1/2 cup citric acid 

1/2 cup cornstarch 

1/2 cup Epsom salt

3 tsp essential oil/fragrance oil, skin grade 

2 tsp almond or olive oil 

1 tsp water 

Witch hazel - a few drops 

Food colouring - skin grade , colour & amount > desired results 

Embed 

1/2 cup citric acid 

1/2 cup baking soda 

1/2 tsp colour 

15 drops essential/fragrance oil 

Witch hazel

In a medium bowl whisk all dry ingrediants together until well combined. 

Add fragrance and oil. Using gloves, mix by hand. Add water and mix again.  Add witch hazel adjusting amount depending on how dry/wet the mixture is, ensuring it holds together to form a ball. Add food colouring mixing by hand to desired colour. 

Solidly pack one half of a bath bomb mood. Overfill the other half of the bath balm mold and place both sides together. Push sides firmly together so there is no gap in the centre. 

Making an embed, mix all dry ingrediants well, add fragrance oil, mix well then add several drops of witch hazel to achieve the ability to form into a solid ball. Add food colouring if desired, mix well and pack into small batch bomb molds tightly and pop out. Allow to dry a bit before using. 

If using an embed, lightly pack a good amount of mixture in the first half and place the embed on top of the mixture. The secret to creating a good spin is to place the embed off centre, not in the middle. It has to be off balance in order to spin. Overfill the other half and place both sides together pushing firmly so there is no gap in the centre. 

Once joined, tap each side gently with a spoon, then release one half. Turn over and release the other half. Set on a piece of wax paper and continue the process with the rest of the mix. 

Dry for a minimum of 24 hours, then seal in plastic wrap to retain their fragrance and stop them from absorbing  moisture from the air which will limit their fizz. 

Makes 6 #2 size or 3 oz / 85 g bath bombs without an imbed. 

Types:

Orange Creamsicle - 1 part orange fragrance/2 parts vanilla fragrance 

Honey Almond - honey almond fragrance 

Candy Cane - peppermint essential oil & crushed candy canes in each side of mold 

Bone Broth Instant Pot

Bone Broth Instant Pot 

2 - 4 lbs beef marrow bones * 

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 carrot 

1/2 onion

2 celery stalks 

5 whole garlic cloves 

Kosher salt 

Fresh ground black pepper 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Arrange bones on a baking sheet and bake for 50 minutes. Allow bones to cool slightly and place in the Instant Pot along with the pan drippings. 

Add apple cider vinegar, carrot, onion, celery, garlic, salt and pepper.  Add water to just cover the bones completely ensuring you are 1" below the max line. 

Secure lid, set to the seal position. Press soup and manually set the time to 120 minutes or 2 hours 2:00 on my pot. It will take approximately 30 minutes to come to full pressure. When done allow for a natural release until the pin drops, will take 30 - 45 minutes. 

Remove bones and ladle the broth into a colander placed over a large bowl. Once drained placed the bowl in the fridge and allow to completely cool. Skim the fat off the top and the broth is now ready to use or place in freezer containers for later. 

* Instead of marrow bones, use any leftover chicken, turkey or beef bones and place directly in the pot bypassing the baking step. Save leftover bones in the freezer until you have several pounds. 

Cheese Stuffed Jumbo Pasta Shells

Cheese Stuffed Jumbo Pasta Shells 

1 package 250 gram jumbo shells 

Sauce:

1 can 28 oz crushed tomatoes 

2 large tomatoes, chopped 

1/4 cup tomato paste 

6 cloves garlic, minced 

1 large onion, chopped 

1/2 cup olive oil 

1/2 tsp pepper 

2 bay leaves 

1 tbsp basil

1 tbsp oregano

1 tbsp parsley

Cheese Filling : 

1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped 

1 lb ricotta cheese 

2 eggs 

1 package 10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed & drained 

1 cup mozeralla cheese, shredded and divided 

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated 

1/2 cup Romano cheese, grated 

1/2 tsp pepper

1 clove garlic, minced 

In a large saucepan bring 16 cups of water to a full boil. Add 1 tbsp salt and 1 tbsp canola oil. Add shells to the water and cook uncovered for 10-12 minutes. Drain immediately and rinse in cold water, drain again then stuff with cheese filling. 

In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat and  sautée onions and garlic until tender. Add crushed tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, tomato paste and seasonings. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for approximately 30 minutes until you have a nice thick sauce. 

Combine all cheese filling ingrediants in a medium bowl mixing until well combined, reserving half of the mozeralla cheese.  Spread a layer of sauce in the bottom of a 9 X 13 baking dish.  Fill each shell with cheese filling and place on top of sauce in baking dish. Cover with sauce and remaining mozeralla cheese. 

Bake covered in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes until sauce is bubbling. Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes until cheese is browned. 

Yogurt Instant Pot

Yogurt Instant Pot 

52 oz bottle of whole Fairlife milk or any ultra-pasteurized milk

2 tbsp plain yogurt that has live/active cultures 

1 can sweetened condensed milk 

Add ingrediants to instant pot and whisk until well combined. 

Secure the lid, hit the Yogurt button and adjust to medium setting. The time should display 8 hours, if not adjust. 

Once done, the display Yogt. Remove the lid, and then the inner pot. Cover tightly with foil wrap and refridgerate overnight. 

Remove to air tight containers, will last 2 to 3 weeks refridgerated. 

Ribs Instant Pot

Ribs Instant Pot 

2 racks baby back ribs ( 1 pack ) 

1 cup broth 

1/2 tsp liquid smoke 

4 cloves garlic 

1 onion, sliced 

Dry Rub 

4 tbsp brown sugar

1 tbsp garlic powder 

1 tbsp parsley 

1 tbsp paprika

2 tsp kosher salt 

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp cayenne 

1 tsp dry mustard 

1/2 tsp pepper 

Rinse ribs and pat dry. Remove the thin membrane from the back of the ribs. Cut slabs into 3 pieces each so they can fit standing up and in the Instant Pot. Coat with dry rub massaging into the meat. 

Place trivet/rack in the bottom of your instant pot. Add broth and liquid smoke. Sit ribs upright in the trivet so they are standing next to each other and are not stacked on top of each other. Sprinkle with onion and garlic. 

Place lid on top, set to sealing and set pressure cook to 25 minutes. It will take approximately 15 minutes to come to pressure. Once done, allow for natural release for 15 minutes and turn valve to vent to release remaining pressure. 

Using tongs, carefully remove the ribs onto a baking sheet lined with foil. Generously brush your favourite BBQ sauce on both sides. 

To finish on the grill:  preheat grill to medium high heat and slightly oil the grill using a paper towel soaked in oil. Grill the ribs until nice and crispy about 10 minutes, turning halfway through. 

To finish in the oven:  preheat the broiler. Broil 5-7 minutes, watching carefully not to burn. 

Cheese Steak Soup Instant Pot

Cheese Steak Soup instant Pot 

2 lb soup beef, diced in bite sized pieces 

1 large sweet onion, diced 

2 red peppers, diced 

1 lb sliced mushrooms, roughly chopped 

2 tbsp garlic, minced 

2 tbsp butter 

3 cups beef stock

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder 

1/2 tsp onion powder 

1/2 tsp Italian spice blend

1/2 cup flour 

1 1/2 cups milk 

2 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

Turn Instant Pot to sautée and add butter. Once melted, add beef and sautée until browned. Add onions, peppers and garlic. Sautée until onions start to become translucent approximate matey 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and sautée for an additional minute and hit cancel turning off the sautée function. 

Add beef stock and seasonings & mix until well combined. 

Cover and set on manual pressure for 10 minutes. It will take approximately 10 minutes to come to pressure. When timer is up, allow for 10 minutes natural pressure release and then set to venting and release rest of the pressure. 

Mix flour and milk.  Turn Instant Pot to sautée and whisk in the water flour mixture. Cook on sautée until soup thickens, 3 - 5 minutes. Once soup is thick, hit cancel, add cheese, stir until well combined and serve with crusty bread.  

Pepper Jelly

Pepper Jelly 

3/4 lb (340 grams) jalapeño peppers, stemmed and seeded about 12 medium 

OR 

3 sweet peppers, red, yellow or orange, stemmed and seeded 

OR 

Combination there of depending on how hot you like it

2 cups (500 ml) cider vinegar, divided 

6 cups sugar 

2 pouches Bernardin liquid pectin 

Food colouring, optional

Sterilize 5 - 250 ml mason jars and set aside 

In a blender or food processor, purée peppers with half of vinegar.  Pour purée into a large saucepan, add remaining vinegar and sugar. Over high heat, bring to a boil and boil for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in liquid pectin, return mixture to a full roiling boil, boil 1 minute longer.  Remove from heat, add food colouring, if using and skim off foam. 

Quickly pour jelly into hot jars to within 1/4 inch of top of jar. Wipe jar rim removing any food residue. Centre sealing disk on jar rim, screw band down until resistance is met the increase to fingertip tight. 

Place in a hot water bath at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.