Cinnamon Craisen Cranberry Sauce

Oh boy. I combined a couple recipes from food network and it turned out delicious!

Cinnamon Craisen Cranberry Sauce
1/2 bag fresh cranberries
1/2-1 granny smith apple, skinned and sliced into pieces about the size of the cranberries
1 C cranberry grape juice (or other cranberry juice)
1/2 C sugar
1 cinnamon stick broken in half
1 ish C craisens

Into a med. sauce pan, combine everything but craisens. Heat on med. until cranberries start to burst, add craisens. Lower temps for another 5 min. or so or until it starts to thicken. If it looks too watery, add a few more craisens. It does thicken up upon standing off heat.

The cinnamon makes is so yummy! I bet it would be good with some walnuts in there also.

Classic Stir-fry Sauce

This was adapted from Restaurant Teriyaki Sauce recipe from Gourmet Mom on-the-Go. If you're looking for a good homemade teriyaki sauce, follow that link. It really is good. We just needed something not quite as sweet.

Classic Stir-fry Sauce
Ingredients
1/4 C. soy sauce
3/4 C. water
1-2 cloves garlic, pressed
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 Tbsp. honey
1 1/2 Tbsp. corn starch dissolved in a couple Tbsp. water
a couple drops of sesame oil

Directions
In a small sauce pan stir together all ingredients. except the cornstarch/water mixture. Heat until sauce bubbles and thickens, stirring frequently with a whisk. It's important to get the sauce to bubble so it boils out the "cornstarch" taste. You can add more water if it gets too thick.

We both really liked the sauce for the veggie stir-fry.

I might try variations on this including ginger and crushed red pepper.

The best cheese enchiladas I've made yet

So I've struggled with enchiladas in the past. I continually try and make them, but Matt (and I) are always disappointed. The only enchiladas he's ever eaten that he's liked are Amy's brand organic cheese enchiladas. So that's what I am supposed to try and emulate.

I made a red chili sauce earlier this week for the tamales and it was the best chili sauce I've made yet. So I decided I ought to try the enchiladas yet again. I thought they were good. Matt said they were the best I've made, but they weren't as good as Amy's. I told him it's a good thing I'm not trying to mass market them. He even went back for seconds (gasp!). I thought it was a keeper.

10 min. Red Chili Sauce- Originally found on Allrecipes.com (all my changes are in this color.)
Ingredients
1/4 C vegetable oil
2 Tbsp flour
1/4 C chili powder (Mexican style)
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 1/2 C water
1/4 tsp cumin
2 large cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 onion, finely diced
salt to taste

Directions

1. Soften the onion in the oil (in a medium saucepan) over med. high heat.
   
2. Just as they are getting soft, add in the pressed garlic for a few seconds, stirring to make sure it doesn't burn.
3. Stir in flour and chili powder, reduce to medium heat, and cook until lightly brown, stirring constantly to prevent burning flour.
4. Gradually stir in tomato sauce, water and cumin, and continue cooking over medium heat approximately 10 minutes, or until thickened slightly. Season to taste with salt.
5. After it's cooled a little, blend with a blender or stick blender if you want a smooth sauce.

Cheese Enchiladas-my own recipe I made up tonight (made 6 corn tortilla enchiladas)
Ingredients
2-3 nice sized handfuls of shredded cheese. (I used cheddar and mozzarella because that's what I had. Monterrey Jack, Pepper Jack, Colby, and/or Colby Jack should work fine as well.)
1/4 bell pepper, diced very finely (I used yellow because it's what I had. The flavor worked well for me.)
1/4 red onion, diced very finely
handful of black olives, diced very finely
a spoonful or two of sour cream
A little salt

6 corn tortillas
Red chili sauce (see above)

Directions

1. Mix the ingredients (except the sauce and tortillas) all together.
   
2. In an 8x8 baking dish, spread sauce on the bottom.
   
3. In a skillet (I used my trusty cast iron), put a small amount of oil (I used olive oil), and heat. Warm each tortilla on the skillet before you fill it. If you don't do this, your tortillas will most likely crack when you roll them. My mom used hot water to soften them when she made hers growing up, but every time I try that, they fall apart on me.
4. Fill each tortilla down the middle with the cheese mixture and roll it up.
   
5. Spoon a good amount of sauce over the top and cover the dish with foil.
6. Bake at 375* for 30 ish min. (or until cheese is bubbly).

Serve with a side of beans or rice, lettuce, guacamole, pico, and anything else that floats your Mexican boat.