The life of my IP and AF

2/28 made cajun chicken pasta using frozen pre prepped chicken peppers & onions
in IP pasta, water to cover, chicken stock concentrate for flavor 3HI QPR
frozen chunk over to the side (not directly over the heating element)

3/1 homemade pizza in the AF using the plainchicken.com st. louis style pizza crust
see 'Pizza 101' 9/19/12 Parbaked the crust ahead of time, also in the AF

3/2 cooked rice, removed from pot
sauteed celery onions hot sausage garlic and turned it into Red Beans and rice soup
Made Jiffy cornbread and cooked it in the AF in a 6" pan 

3/3 Cooked Lentils to add to Taco Meat
1c. lentils 1 3/4 to 2 c. water, optional salt & pepper 8HI (10HI for softer lentils)
remove lentils and use the pot on Saute to cook/mix Taco meat
after it's done, add lentils back in and mix

I then used the empty pot (no I didn't wash it) and mixed my meatloaf right in there.

3/5 Mashed potatoes to go with Meatloaf (baked in the oven)
Quarter potatoes, add 1 c. water, optional salt 10HI
Removed water w/turkey baster so I didn't accidentally dump my potatoes into the sink.
Added butter, salt, pepper, milk and mashed right in pot.

3/6 Friday - sides for Fish Fry
put elbow macaroni in the bottom with water to cover (added a bit of chicken stock concentrate for flavor
put the trivet on top of the macaroni and put of bowl of frozen green beans on top
4HI QPR, remove green beans, remove trivet, added butter, cheese, milk (didn't remove any water, although most of it was absorbed by the pasta) to make a quick mac n cheese.
Put a small bowl among the pasta to hold the bowl of green beans on top. Pressed 'keep warm' to hold while I went and got Fish from church.
This pic is from last week where I did quinoa and edamame.

3/7 Made rice in the IP using 'pot in pot' cooking. This means the inner pot doens't get dirty.
I'll but putting the rice in the AF to make crispy rice with it.

3/8 crispy rice in the AF - soy sauce, sesame oil, red pepper, or sriracha for spice
cook til crispy, stir every 5 minutes

3/9 made a quick piece of garlic bread

3/11 new recipe experiment:
1c. water 1c. flour dash salt mix well & let sit a couple minutes
painted this into a hot dry pan (no spray) cooked in hot dry pan (no spray) no need to flip & cook the other side
fill with a small amount of taco meat and cheese 
AF 370 15min or so - light, crisp and yummy!

Also put meat & cheese on tostadas and cooked them in the AF 370 8 min

3/12 made a few choc chip cookies in the AF on parchment 340 5 / flip 5 more

3/13 made a Farro (high fiber & protein) Porcini mushroom 'mix' in the IP 10HI NPR 1c mix 2.5c water

3/14 reheated leftover pizza in my Air Fryer

3/16 toaster strudels in the Air Fryer

3/18 tried to remove printed on labels from a metal can by boiling them in the IP-didn't work :(

Is your Air Fryer/Instant Pot helping you??

 These two kitchen appliances can do SO much!                                                                    

AIR FRYER - *see 1/19/20 for recipes                                                   

*biscuits/rolls                                                      

burgers - on foil to contain mess
360 8 minutes/flip & cook for for 5-8 more minutes as needed                                                                      

*chicken & broccoli - orange & general Tso sauce

cottage cheese wrap - cook on parchment/scrape off parchment & flip/finish cooking 
use for a sandwich or pizza                             

croutons - toss in a bowl w/olive oil & spices                         
cook on foil to contain mess

donuts/use flaky biscuits                                                                                         
360 5min/flip & cook for 2-3 more minutes as needed
dip in glaze (powdered sugar/milk/vanilla) or cinnamon sugar       

drumsticks (start in IP to shorten cook time) instead of wings-10HI                                                               

egg rolls - 360 8 minutes flip 7-8more minutes                                                                                               

fresh veggies - brussels sprouts are done in 15min                                                                                          

fried foods - anything frozen that is meant to be fried                                                                                      

grilled cheese - can use mayo or butter (use toothpicks to hold bread)                                   

homemade pizza - see 'pizza 101' 9/19/12
https://www.plainchicken.com/st-louis-style-pizza/         

hot dogs/brats/sausage                                                                                                  

jalapeno poppers - wrap in bacon?                                                                                                 

meatballs - buffalo chicken 1lb. ground chicken, 1/4ea. oats & bread crumbs, 1 egg, hot sauce as needed    use cookie scoop to make balls, no need to roll, use foil
360 8 min/flip & cook 8 min more as needed                                                                      

potato skins -cook potatoes in IP 15HI     
let cool, cut in half, scoop out centers (make mashed potatoes)
spray top and bottoms with olive oil spray-cook both sides for 8 minutes
save for later or fill w/cheddar and bacon and cook                                                                                         

puff pastry                                                                                                  

reheat pizza - an air fryer is SO perfect for this                                                                                               

revive stale bread/chips                                                                                                  

roast vegis                                                                                                  

*salmon/fresh fish/shrimp/tuna steak                                                                                                  

scones - cook from fresh or frozen

single scone - easily double, triple (freeze extras)

1/3 c. flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt (I skip this bc I use salted butter)

1 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp cold butter

2 1/2 Tbsp milk (I used vanilla almond milk)

2 Tbsp mix-in of choice (blueberries/bacon cheddar/cinnamon chips)

add whatever spices you want

Form into whatever shape you like.

If you like a soft center, make 1 big one.

If you like crispy edges, cut into two smaller.

Air Fryer - 340 8 min. / turn over / 3 more min.

small batch baking                                                                                                  

sweet potato fries - cut a bit larger as they shrink
toss in brown sugar & cinnamon                                                                                                  

toast nuts - couple minutes at a time, toss frequently                                                                                       

AIR FRYER DESSERTS                                                                                      

*cheesecake                             

*ONE cookie - or keep premade portioned dough in the freezer for 'emergencies'!                                        

*shortbread                                                                                                  

*lava cake

puff pastry anything                                                                                                  

INSTANT POT - *see 1/19/20 for recipes                                                                                           

applesauce - apples, water(not much), cinnamon, sugar 5HI 10NPR
throw some crumble on top and air fry for a quick apple crisp                                                              

artichokes - 14HI for average size QPR drizzle w/melted butter and parmesan                                              

baked potatoes - 15HI then spray w/oil, add spices and cook in AF to crisp up
could turn into hasselback potatoes too
use foil to contain mess                                                                                           

batch cooking - chicken, rice, whatever will help you through the week                                     

*beef broccoli - make rice first, set aside                    

bone broth - boil a whole chicken from Sam's or CostCo                                                                                

*bread pudding - use the French Toast Casserole recipe
put in AF to crisp up top                                                                                           

brew tea                                                                                           

*cajun chicken pasta - great to prep ahead
make extra chicken & vegis and freeze
the sauce froze well also!

chicken wings - 12HI frozen 10HI defrosted (pat dry & add spice)

corn on the cob - 2HI leave it til you're ready for it                                                                                          

defrost frozen meat/other - 10HI QPR                                                                                     

double boiler                                                                                                 

dried beans                                                                                           

dulce de leche - cover can of condensed milk with water to MAX fill
20-30HI NPR for dark 10-15HI NPR for light  

*egg casserole

garlic - wrap in foil and add to something else for 5HI

hard boiled eggs - 6HI experiment to get the 'doneness' you prefer                                                      

*hawaiian chicken

*homemade bread - see recipe
air fry to toast the top                                                                                       

lentils - 1:3 8HI 15NPR QPR                                                                                    

make cottage cheese - 1 gallon milk makes 2 cups?!                                                                                       

make yogurt - much higher yield!                                                                                           

pot in pot cooking                                                                                           

prep ahead cooking - cook from fresh (defrosted) or from frozen                                                                   

proof/raise dough - get a 2 hour rise in 30 minutes
(no water) grease pot, turn off 'keep warm', press 'yogurt" setting, (goes for 30 minutes)                              

*meatloaf - sounds weird 
the recipe fits perfectly in a 6" square cake pan                                                                                          

*ribs - time depends on style of rib                                                                         
see recipe for baby back ribs
center cut ribs are less expensive                 

rice - white 1:1 4HI 10NPR/brown 1:1 22HI 10NPR (don't use minute rice)                                                  
make extra ahead of time so you can have fried rice later in the week                    

rice pudding                                                                                           

ripen a banana - 1c. water, skin on 5HI QPR, let cool                                                                                      

*risotto  - see shrimp risotto recipe                                                                                          

*roast 
recipe includes how to add potatoes & carrots                                                                                          

simmer pot                                                                                           

*soups - see chicken noodle & minestrone recipes                                                             
also red beans & rice soup                             

*spaghetti sauce

spaghetti squash - cut in half across (not longways)/remove seeds                                                                  1c water, trivet, 8HI for al dente (10HI for softer) QPR
to cook whole-pierce skin to allow venting, 25HI QPR                       

*spinach artichoke dip - make ahead & put in containers for last minute guests
put in AF to crisp up the top

steam vegis - **can do two together

*steel cut oats - 1:3 3HI NPR                                                                                           

sterilize bottles                                                                                           

make vanilla?                                                                                           

INSTANT POT DESSERTS                                                                         

*cheesecake                                                                                           

*lava cake                                                                                           

creme brulee - per serving (1egg yolk, 1Tsp sugar, 1/4c heavy cream or milk, dash vanilla)
wrap ramekins in foil, 1c. water, place on trivet, 
experiment with time 10-13HI 15NPR, depends on container size, refrigerate to chill
add sugar & torch just before serving                                                                                          

DON'T add cottage cheese to IP!    

turn off sound - press the - button until you see SOFF press + for SON

Find some great ideas here:

https://www.countryliving.com/food-drinks/g5040/best-instant-pot-recipes/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=mgu_ga_clv_d_bm_prog_org_us_g5040&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=11669601809&gbraid=0AAAAACq-Irtn29FvFV67dKfqQBn7OBP1g&gclid=Cj0KCQiAsY3LBhCwARIsAF6O6Xg27k3Th6nXFJATzBb1mk52U5uzwmxTyViIw7rTlXBQsqnmN2260S0aAiinEALw_wcB

check out TRIED TESTED AND TRUE - on youtube
Six Sisters' Stuff - 20 of the best things to make in an Instant Pot

on my list:

https://damndelicious.net/2018/06/05/instant-pot-shrimp-boil/

https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/20-minute-thai-peanut-chicken-ramen/

https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/instant-pot-barbacoa-beef/#tasty-recipes-60562-jump-target

https://www.number-2-pencil.com/instant-pot-pressure-cooker-chicken-enchiladas-6/

https://sweetandsavorymeals.com/instant-pot-orange-chicken/#recipe

https://pinchofyum.com/instant-pot-mac-and-cheese

https://www.number-2-pencil.com/instant-pot-pressure-cooker-french-dip-sandwiches-17/#recipe

https://leelalicious.com/instant-pot-cajun-chicken-rice/#recipe

https://cookiesandcups.com/instant-pot-salted-caramel-cheesecake-2/

Tote Bags

 

A couple cake designs...

 

Soup 101 - October 5, 2025 Class

 To begin, visit Soup 101 - 10/18/20 post

8-can Chicken Taco Soup
1 can ea. pinto, black, sweet corn (drain & rinse)
1 can diced tomatoes (or fire-roasted)
1 can Rotel - w/green chilies
1 can chicken (or 1 1/2c. cooked chicken)
1 can chicken broh
1 packet taco seasoning
Dump in pot, simmer 15-20 min. stirring occasionally
Serve w/sour cream, shredded cheese, lime, tortilla chips, cilantro

5 minute soup - under 'soups'

Chicken Enchilada Quinoa Soup
from letsmealtalk.com -Healthy Meal Planning & Prepping Made Easy
cook til softened:

1/2 yellow onion
yellow pepper
2 cloves garlic
add seasoning blend:
1 tsp. ea. salt, oregano, chili powder, cumin
add:
1 1/2c. chicken broth
16oz. green enchilada sauce
16oz. diced tomatoes
2 c. cooked chicken
1/2c. quinoa
1 can black beans (drain & rinse)
Stir well, bring to low simmer, cook covered for 10 min. til quinoa is soft.
Add more spice if needed.

New Cookie Design - without the actual cookie cutter

Coming soon - graduation gown

DIY Soft Scrub

Mix even amounts-Dawn, baking soda, epsom salts
Works great on glass shower doors, shower walls, etc.
Make a small amount to use because it hardens if trying to save it for later.