Restaurant Knock-off: Yummy Fajitas

{Eating out....at home}

Is the price of gas killing you??? Here in PA it's about $3.60, but each time I go to finish writing this, I have to adjust that number HIGHER!!  Our budget is starting to strain some......and I'm not driving anywhere!

Truthfully, we rarely go out to dinner.  We only have $30 budgeted a month for entertainment....not enough for 5 people to go to a restaurant, so we often have to be very creative.....lots of Redbox movies and pizza!

I'm thinking that with gas so expensive, a lot of people are starting to cut out the "extras"..... so I wanted to share a yummy meal that is as good as eating at Chili's!

This recipe works for beef or chicken....because I had guests, I made both!  I used strip steak (because it was BOGO!!)  and 3 chicken breasts and this fed 7 people.....I count my kiddo's as people because they sometimes eat more than my husband!

To make the marinade:

Cut as much meat as you think your family will eat and put into a ziploc bag.  Add 2 Tablespoons of lemon juice.

Add 2 Tablespoons of Canola oil.....

Now you are going to add an array of spices.....to be honest, it's only been recently that I've collected all the spices needed for this recipe.....just use what you have!  As long as you have the first 2 and some of the others.......you're good!

1 1/2 tsp. seasoned salt

1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1 1/2 ground cumin

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp. paprika

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes, optional

*This original recipe was a clipping out of an old (like 15 years ago old) Taste of Home magazine....I think??

Mmmm.....it smells so good!



Wriggle your bag all around until everything is mixed up.......the recipe says to refrigerate for 1-4 hours......again, it all depends upon how organized I am!  Sometimes I dump it immediately into the skillet because dinner is.....NOW! 

Putting it all together.....

When you are finished marinading, put your meat into a skillet.  You don't need to add more oil....the recipe calls for 2 more Tablespoons, but really, you have plenty of juice to cook in......save your arteries!

While your meat is cooking, start cutting your vegetables.......notice, there are mushrooms in this picture but not the next.....



Yeah....I ate them.....all......oops!



Once your meat is pretty much cooked through, add your vegetables......now you are cooking the meat to get it crispy and yummy.....that sizzling good that you get when they bring the skillet to your table at the restaurant!

Embellishing.....

Make your "fancy" plate of fun toppings....

To get your chips to taste "restaurant-ish", heat them in the oven for about 10-15 minutes at 275 degrees.

Dessert:

Now the best part......dessert!  Put a little bit of canola oil in a skillet and heat over medium heat.



Add a flour tortilla and fry on both sides.......you want to fry it until it is brown and crispy.  This takes about 2-ish minutes.

Add about 1/4 cup of brown sugar to a dish......sprinkle with about 1-2 tsp. of cinnamon.

Take your fried tortilla and place both sides into your cinnamon-brown sugar mix.....let the oil absorb the mixture....



Yummy goodness on a tray....



I like to serve it with chocolate syrup.....if I had whipped topping that would have gone on too with some chocolate shavings!!



Eating out......in!   Total saved....a whole whopping lot!



I hope that you enjoy your knock-off dinner as much as we did!  The next day we made "super nachos" with the leftover meat, cheese and chips!

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