Azoresgal~Life on an Island

It’s SO simple to make homemade cranberry sauce, and it makes such a beautiful, festive addition to any holiday dinner table.  Fresh cranberry sauce is delicious, AND it can be made it in advance! Fresh orange juice and zest  compliment the cranberries really well. Trust me skip the can stuff this year and make fresh cranberry orange sauce instead. 2 cups granulated sugar 1 cup water 1 cup orange juice 4 cups fresh or frozen cranberries zest of 1 orange directions: 1. Rinse cranberries with cold water. In a medium saucepan, add sugar, water, and orange juice. Stir until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil and add cranberries and orange zest. Return to a boil and then reduce heat to medium low. Cranberries will start to burst, cook about ten 15 minutes, to thicken. 2. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. It will continue to thicken as it cools. Pour sauce into a serving bowl and chill in the refrigerator. Serve chilled.

This is so  fast and easy, I made it in under 10 minutes. Throw everything in a blender then cook for a few minutes on the stove until thickened. Seriously, you can make it, and within the hour use it as a dipping sauce for chicken fingers, egg rolls or drink it with a straw... .trust me it's that good !   3 large garlic cloves, peeled 2 red Jalapeño or Serrano peppers, (deseeded if you want less heat) ¼ cup white distilled vinegar ½ cup sugar ¾ cup water ½ tablespoon salt 1 tablespoon cornstarch 2 tablespoons water In the blender, purée together all the ingredients, except for the last two. Transfer the mixture to a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to medium and simmer until the mixture thickens up a bit and the garlic-pepper bits begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Combine the cornstarch and water to make a slurry. Whisk in the cornstarch mixture and continue to simmer one more minute. The cornstarch will help the sau...

This is one of my very favorite things to eat, sesame noodles, I love it better than  chocolate . It is easy, and can be thrown together really quickly. The sauce is light, a little bit sweet, and a little bit spicy. All you have to do is cook the pasta, whisk together the sauce and Voilá your done ! I like to use rice noodles, but you can use any pasta you like. It's perfect for a late night snack  dinner after a long day of work. You can add chicken or beef or even shrimp if you like, or crunchy sugar peas. I hope you give it a try !  1 package rice noodles/ or pasta 1/4 cup  soy sauce 2 tablespoons sugar 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 tablespoons sesame oil 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 2 tablespoons olive oil 3 green onions, sliced toasted sesame seeds Cook rice noodles/ or pasta according to package directions. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the water before draining. Meanwhile in a large bowl add soy sauce and all other ingredients ex...

This is another one of our favorite meals at our house ! It is super easy to make, requires 3 ingredients, and a crock pot ! If you start it in the morning, by the time everyone is coming in the door, dinner will be ready. I have not  added a specific weight for the pork, because that really depends on the size of your crock pot. I like to serve this with coleslaw, and mac and cheese. It  is great in the winter for comfort food, but lovely in the summer, when you don´t want to go near the stove ! Try using a really good BBQ  sauce, as it is the only other ingredient of 3 . If you would prefer to add some spices, go for it, it certainly wouldn't hurt. I hope you give it a try ! Ingredients 1 Pork shoulder roast/ pork loin/ pork tenderloins 1 can of Dr. Pepper/ root beer/ coca cola 2 cups of barbecue sauce, one for now and one for later some splashes of liquid smoke ( if you have some ) Instructions: Place the pork roast in your Crock Pot. Pour Dr. Peppe...

This cranberry ketchup is fantastic and festive too. The tangy, tart bite of the cranberries, and the sweetness of the onion and sugar, make it a winner ! It was really fast to make, less than 30 minutes ! I added extra spices, because I just can´t leave things alone. I will be serving this tonight with Tourtiere for our Christmas Eve dinner. I think they will compliment each other really well ! Hope you give it a try ! 1 2/3 cups fresh cranberries 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup chopped shallots ( onions would be ok ) 1/4 cup cider vinegar 1/4 cup water 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (*pinch of cayenne) *pinch of cinnamon, pinch of cloves (added by me) Preparation Combine cranberries, brown sugar, chopped shallots, cider vinegar, water, salt, and red pepper in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil. Cook 10 minutes or until thick, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; let stand 10 minutes. Pour into a blender; pro...

These Chicken Fingers are a meal my kids just love....Mr.G and I love them too! Plus, I love knowing that we are eating real chicken. The dipping sauce is delicious, and I think both together in a sandwich would be out of this world ! Both are super simple to make and your family will love them! Ingredients: 2 chicken breast fillets 1/3 cup plain flour 1 garlic clove, crushed Salt and pepper to taste 2 eggs, lightly beaten 2 cups flavored bread crumbs ¼ cup to 1/2 olive oil Method: Cut chicken into strips approximately 1cm diameter and 10cm long. Toss chicken strips in flour, shake off excess. In a bowl whisk eggs, add garlic, salt and pepper. Cover chicken strips in egg mixture then roll in breadcrumbs. Heat oil in a deep frypan and fry the chicken strips in  batches until golden brown. Dipping Sauce  : 1/2 cup mayonnaise 2 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 2 tablespoons honey 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice Mix ...

This easy mushroom sauce is excellent with steak or roast beef. Try and get the mushrooms nice and caramelized, it will give the sauce a great color. Even better is if you use the same pan where you fried your steaks. All those great little bits left behind, will allso give your sauce flavor and color. Fresh mushrooms are great here, but don't hesitate to use canned. 1 cup sliced mushrooms, (or more) 1 tablespoon butter 1 tablespoon olive oil splash of Worcestershire sauce 1/2 cup dry red wine 1 cup beef broth** 1 teaspoon cornstarch 3 tablespoons cold water salt and pepper, to taste Sauté mushrooms in butter and oil for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally; add a splash of Worcestershire sauce ,add red wine and simmer for a few minutes. Add beef broth and simmer to reduce a bit, about 5 minutes. Combine cornstarch and cold water and whisk until smooth. Stir into the mushrooms until well blended. Season to taste and simmer for about 1 minute, until thickened. I...

This salsa is so easy to make, trust me. It is made with some lovely fresh ingredients, and tastes 1000 times better than anything you buy in a jar. I like my tomatoes peeled, I promise it just takes a couple more minutes, but makes a huge difference. As for the seasonings, play around with it, to your liking, I sometimes add some cumin, or smoked paprika. I really hope you give it a try ! 4 large ripe tomatoes (peeled is best ) juice of one lime 2 garlic cloves, peeled 1 jalapeño, seeded (optional) roughly chopped ( I like 3) 1/2 small white onion, roughly chopped 1/4 cup cilantro 1 teaspoon chili powder salt and freshly ground black pepper  Slice the tomatoes into large wedges. Squeeze the lime juice into a food processor. Add the garlic, jalapeño, onion, cilantro, spices, and tomatoes. Process until the vegetables are finely chopped and the mixture is chunky. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. If you prefer more heat, add another jalapeño o...

Nacho Cheese Sauce....seriously your not in the kitchen yet ?? This is so yummy, easy, inexpensive and much healthier than anyhing you buy in a jar. After you make this a couple of times, trust me you will , you can adjust the flavors to your liking, add some cumin, or diced jalapenos etc. Make it as hot or as mild as you like ! 1 cup grated  cheddar cheese ( try and use block cheese, it will melt better) 1 tablespoon corn starch 1 can evaporated milk 2 teaspoons hot sauce ( Franks,tabasco,piripiri) or more.. Toss cheese and cornstarch, in a bowl, mix well. Add to a medium saucepan, with  1 cup evaporated milk and hot sauce. Cook over low heat, stirring with whisk until melted, bubbly, and thickened (about 5 minutes). Mixture will look thin and grainy at first, but keep stirring , it will thicken and come together after heating. Thin to desired consistency by adding more evaporated milk. Serve with tortilla chips. *** you can mess around with t...

     Simple, quick, and delicious. Great as an appetizer, or cook up some pasta of your choice, and serve as dinner or lunch. Either way, this is a keeper, hope you try it ! Ingredients: 1 kilo New Zealand half shell mussels 5 cloves of garlic, minced 4 bay leaves, 4-5 green onions, chopped, the whole thing 1/4 cup olive oil 2  chili peppers, thinly sliced (remove the seeds if you do not want the heat) 2 cups of white wine, 200 ml cream, or creme fraiche Fresh parsley, a handful, chopped Heat a large pan,  on medium heat. Once heated, toss in the garlic and onions and bay leaves cook for a few minutes, or until the onions soften. Toss in the chili peppers, and heat for another minute. Add in your wine and cook for about 4-6 minutes. Next, toss in your mussels, and cover, cooking for another 5-7 minutes. Remove the cover,lower the heat, add in the cream stir well, shaking the pan and cook for another 5 minutes (but without boiling the c...

                                                                                                                                                                                This was dinner last night. I won't lie to you.....it was awesome ! Crispy fish, and a very yummy dipping sauce. It got rave reviews all around the table. We don't fry alot of food at our house, so once in a while it's a nice treat ! You can use regular bread crumbs,but the Panko real makes it crunchy.  for the fish : 2 cups panko (coarse Japane...

 This sauce is a keeper, the meatballs, cook in the sauce for an addtional 25 minutes. Again very quick to make, with pretty basic ingredients. I use passata, so as to avoid tears at the dinner table, the kids are not fond of chunky textures. Just before serving, I added in some fresh chopped basil. Ingredients from here 1 tablespoon good olive oil 1 cup chopped yellow onion (1 onion) 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic 1/2 cup good red wine, 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, or plum tomatoes in puree, chopped ( I used 2 jars of Passata) 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 1 1/2 teaspoons  salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper  I chopped the onion, the garlic, and the parsley, all at once, in the food processor. Heat the olive oil in the same pan the meatballs were fried in. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and c...

Ohhhhhhhhh Man, these are trouble ;) I have seen this recipe pop up all over the net, the first time I saw it was here , I saved it right away, so that I could try it out, on my family. Well, I made them last night, dinner was a little blaaah, yes that does happen around here ! Well they were a big hit, so nummy yes that is a word, somewhere, one of those little gems you can put together quickly, for watching a soccer game on TV, or perhaps for a night of poker, even a birthday party. The only thing you may decide to leave out, are in fact the poppy seeds, my kids don´t really care for them, as my son say's : " all they do is get stuck in your teeth mom". He may indeed have a point, there. Next time I make these, I will buy a cheese that melts is ooey gooey better, perhaps, havartti, or even mozzarella. The mustard sauce, is really good, I have some plans already for it, perhaps on ribs or a burger. So you see, you have got to make these, it's the weekend, inv...

This shrimp dish was sooooooooo good. My husband absolutely loved it, he said it was a 9 out of 10 yes he will do that, rate a new recipe I try, he mostly does it to bug me, especially when he says, a meal is an 8 :) . It has a bit of a kick to it, you could adjust that by using less chilli flakes/hot sauce. But around here we don't mind hot food, it just means you can wash it down with some more "vino". Considering Valentines day, is just around the corner, I think this would make a fantastic dinner for two. Served with this salad, some garlic bread, a little wine........... you can see where I am headed with this. Try it, you won't be disappointed. Shrimp in Spicy Vodka Sauce Ingredients 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 cloves garlic minced ( I used WAY more) 1/2 cup vodka 1 (14-ounce) can crushed tomatoes ( I used a jar of plain tomato sauce) 1/2 cup heavy cream 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes/ tabasco  to taste Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1/2 p...

This sauce is so yummy, and so quick to prepare. You can serve it over, ice cream, brownies, cake, coffee, you can even eat it out of the jar by the spoonful ( don't laugh........ trust me..... you will want to  ;) don't be like me.....use a bigger pot ;) Salted Butter Caramel Sauce Ingredients: 1/2 cup SALTED butter (no substitutions) 1 cup brown sugar (dark or light) 200 ml/ 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract In a small saucepan melt butter. Add the brown sugar; whisk until combined and thickened (about 2 minutes). Whisk in the whipping cream, until thoroughly blended (3 more minutes). Mix in vanilla until combined (this sauce will thicken up  when cool/ refrigerated) Keep in fridge, lasts 2 weeks ( it will disappear before this ) xo,Diana

This is a white sauce, I use to make my chicken enchiladas with. You have the option of adding green chilies, if you like, I never add them, because they are to spicy for my kiddos. The chicken broth, I save from boiling up the chicken breasts to make the enchiladas, but not to worry you may use broth from a can, or 2 cups hot water plus 3 Maggi cubes. White Enchilada Sauce 3 tablespoons butter 3 tablespoons flour 2 cups chicken broth 1 cup sour cream 1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles In a saucepan, melt the butter. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the chicken broth, whisking until smooth. Cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly. Stir in the sour cream and green chiles. Pour sauce over the top of the chicken enchiladas