Pancit Bihon (Filipino Noodles)

I found a picture a while back of my 16th birthday dinner where I was blowing out my candles and there was tons of Filipino food surrounding my cake on the table. It made me reminisce back to those days and miss them so very much; especially my mom who made all of those delicious meals! After finding the picture, I made it my goal to try to cook (and master) all of the Filipino dishes my mom and other family members used to make. 

Since I set my goal, I've mastered a few of the Filipino dishes; one of which is Pancit Bihon. This is yet another of my childhood favorites that most Filipinos can't get enough of. Whether the occasion is Christmas, Thanksgiving, a birthday, or just a family get together, my mom always made enough of this to feed my whole family and still had leftovers for me when they left! This is mainly used as a side dish, but I like eating it by itself as well!

Pancit Bihon is a noodle dish consisting of various vegetables with either chicken or pork. This very simple dish seems to satisfy people from many different cultures. I remember different people coming to my family's homes to have dinner with us on our many different occasions and truly enjoying this dish, so here I am to share it with you!


INGREDIENTS:

1 package Excellent Rice Stick Noodles (found at most Oriental stores)

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, shredded

3/4 cup shredded, carrots

3/4 cup shredded, cabbage

1 small onion, chopped

1 scallion stalk, sliced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

3 cups chicken broth

about 5 tbsp soy sauce

3 tbsp vegetable oil
salt and pepper to taste

1 lemon


DIRECTIONS:

I first started by boiling my chicken for about 25 minutes until fully cooked. While my chicken was cooking, I shredded and chopped my vegetables. Once the chicken was full cooked, I started sauteing my onions and garlic in the vegetable oil for about one minute.

I then poured in my chicken broth.

Next, I added the rest of my vegeatables, soy sauce, salt, pepper, and shredded chicken.

Once my vegetables were placed, I let them boil for about 5 minutes and then I added my rice noodles, which I broke in half. (If you make this recipe, you'll see what I mean about breaking the noodles in half because the bundle of noodles are long and won't fit in your pan properly.)

My final step was to let the noodles boil down for about 3-5 minutes until they were soft. This recipe really takes no time once the chicken is cooked. When the noodles are soft, easily move around the pan, and most of the liquid is absorbed, the recipe is done. I usually eat this dish with chicken adobo or barbeque with a side of rice and my Lumpia. You'll want to squeeze a slice of lemon on top of the Pancit and...

Voila! Pancit Bihon is served!

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

With the changing of the weather here in Alabama, my daughter and I weren't feeling very well last week so I decided to make us something soothing and warm to help us out and get us feeling a little better. It was the night of Halloween, it was a little chilly outside, and with us having a cold, I thought it would be the perfect time to make some soup. I've done this recipe a couple of times before and Stacy loves it as well so I figured why not!

I got a couple of recipes online that helped me figure out how to make this recipe on my own with my own twists.

INGREDIENTS:

1 package hickory smoked bacon

1 cup sour cream

1/4 cup flour

3 cups chicken broth

4 baked potatoes

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp basil

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 clove garlic, minced

1 small onion, chopped

1 can cream of potato soup


DIRECTIONS:

I begin baking my potatoes in the microwave with the baked potato setting based on the number of potatoes that I am making. I usually bake my potatoes in the microwave until I can easily stick a toothpick into the potato. Once the potatoes are done, I chop them into 1 inch pieces.

 I then fry my package of bacon in my cast iron skillet. In the past I have used a package of Real Bacon bits and then just fried a few pieces of bacon for garnishing purposes but this time I thought it would be better with all of the bacon being home cooked.

When my bacon was done, I drained off most of the grease but reserved about two tablespoons for sauteing my onions and garlic. I always make sure to saute my onions for a minute or two longer than my garlic so that I don't burn the garlic because garlic cooks fast!

After I got my onions to the consistency that I wanted them, which is not mushy, I added my flour. This is the part that makes the gravy. I usually add a little more cooking oil when I make my flour so that I can get my rue to a very thick consistency. 

Once all of my flour is clumpy and wet with grease, I start making my gravy by slowly adding the chicken broth. Also, when making homemade gravy, make sure to turn the heat down on your stove to the low setting.

Once I finally got my gravy to the thick consistency that I wanted, I added my cream of potato soup which also helped in getting the soup to the thickness I like it. This is also the step where I added my basil, salt, pepper, and baked potatoes!

Next, I added my cup, or so, of sour cream.

Then I added most of the  bacon...

 Once all of that was done, I let the soup simmer for about 5-7 minutes on medium-low heat. I then garnished it with the cheese, bacon, and parsley.

This definitely made Autumn and me feel better after eating it. It's so comforting and it has become a regular meal at our home during the winter time!

Bacon Cheddar Cream Cheese Ball!

This is the best cheese ball I've ever put into my mouth. Sadly though, I can't claim it as my own. I was given this recipe by one of the children's mothers that I used to take care of at the daycare I used to work at. I remember her bringing a cheese ball in for all of the teachers. (Shh, don't tell anyone but the other teacher that shared the room helped me eat all of it by the end of the day! ;))
INGREDIENTS:

12 oz cream cheese, softened

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 tsp Mrs. Dash Original

1 small package Real Bacon Bits (about 1 cup)

1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

It's just this easy:

All you have to do is mix the first four ingredients up, for that into a ball, and then roll the ball in the walnuts. Once all of this is done, simply refrigerate your cheese ball overnight and you're done.

-Best served with crackers. :)

Yes, I know these aren't the best pictures. I'm not the best photographer. I'm going to have to get a new and better camera along with some pretty serving platters. (Cough* Hint for Christmas presents *Cough) :)

Mexicali Skillet

This recipe was given to me a few years ago when I first started cooking. This is probably Stacy's absolute favorite recipe, which surprises me because he is so picky. I've introduced this recipe to a lot of different people and they all have enjoyed it so now I am here to share it with you guys. It's very good!

INGREDIENTS:

1 small onion, diced

1/2 lb ground beef

1 package cocktail sausages

1 can stewed tomatoes, undrained

1 can pinto beans, undrained

1 can green chilles

3/4 cup white rice

1 tbsp chili powder

1 cup water

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

1 can mushrooms (optional)

A few splashes of Frank's Hot Sauce (optional)


DIRECTIONS:

I start by sauteing my onions for about two to three minutes until soft. I then remove the onions and brown my grown beef. Once the ground beef is done, I throw in all of the other ingredients, including the  sauteed onions. I let all of this simmer for about 20-25 minutes on medium to medium-low heat. I stir it occasionally so that the rice doesn't burn to the bottom of the pan. You'll know your dish is done when the rice is fluffy and you can bite into it without it being hard. Duh! ;)

Yep, this recipe is that easy. This simple little dish will serve about 6 people easily. I love it so much because it has so much flavor and I absolutely love cocktail sausages!

Enjoy!