Cream Cheese Chicken Enchiladas

(don't know why the picture is sidesways!)

Source: back of the Old El Paso Enchilada sauce can

Ingredients:

1 4.5 oz can chopped green chiles
8 oz cream cheese, cut up
3-1/2 c cooked, chopped chicken (I use left rotisserie chicken mostly)
8-10 flour tortillas
1 can green chile enchilada sauce
1-2 c Cheddar & Monterrey Jack or Mexican blend cheese, grated

Directions:
1. In skillet over med-high heat add green chiles, chicken & cream cheese. Stir constantly until cream cheese melts. Remove from heat.

2. Spoon chicken mixture down center of tortillas. Roll up tortillas and place seam side down in lightly greased 13X9 baking dish. Repeat.

3. Pour enchilada sauce over enchiladas & top with as much cheese as desired. Bake in 400 oven for 15-20 minutes, until bubbly & cheese is lightly browned.

Verdict:
This is a good, easy, fast recipe to use up leftover chicken. I usually have all the ingredients on hand so it's a great "oh crap, what's for dinner" recipe.



Pumpkins Muffins

Source: Libby's

Time: 20 minutes prep - 20-30 minutes cooking

Yield: 30 muffins

Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour

2.5 cups white sugar

2 t baking soda

1.5 t salt

1 T plus 2 t pumpkin pie spice*

1 can (15 oz) Libby's Pure Pumpkin

4 Large eggs

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup applesauce (or vegetable oil)

Directions:

PREHEAT oven to 350° F. Paper-line or grease 30 muffin cups.

COMBINE flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Combine sugar, pumpkin, eggs, oil and juice in large mixer bowl; beat until just blended. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture; stir just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling 3/4 full.

BAKE for 25 to 30 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Store muffins in covered container or resealable plastic bags.

*I didn't have pumpkin pie spice, so I made my own using this recipe:

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
big pinch of cardamom (or you can substitute mace)
Blend all spices together, working out any lumps that might occur.

Verdict:

These were super yummy! Just enough pumpkin flavor and the homemade pumpkin pie spice was perfect. 

The recipe makes 30 regular muffins, or 24 regular muffins and 12 mini muffins. 

Nutrition (per regular muffin & using applesauce): Cals - 122; Carbs - 27g; Fat - 1g; Prot - 2g; Fiber - 1g

Stuffed Peppers

Prep Time: <15 minutes
Cook Time: 20-25 minutes

Ingredients: 

4 peppers - green, red or yellow
1 lb ground meat - turkey or beef (this time i used turkey)
1-2 cups cooked rice - i used leftover rice
14.5oz can diced tomatoes with basil & oregano
shredded cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat overn to 375. Cut the tops off peppers and remove the seeds. Place in dish, cover with saran wrap and microwave for about 3-4 minutes until crisp, tender.

2. Meanwhile, brown meat. Add rice and tomatoes. Season with italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Stir until warm throughout.

3. Spoon meat mixture into peppers about half way full. Srpinkle in some cheese. Fill the rest of the way up and top with more cheese. I say, the more cheese you can fit in those suckers the better!

4. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Verdict: 
This was pretty good. I feel like it was missing something, but i'm not sure what. I'm going to scour some other stuffed pepper recipes online and see what I can add to give it a little more flavor. Maybe pasta sauce? Any ideas?

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars

Source: Six Sister's Stuff

Time: 1.5 hours

This is my first dessert to make it on the website! I don't bake much so I don't make a lot of desserts. But since this one took me so long to make I thought I'd add it on the blog. Although I'm not sure if I'll actually make it again. Not because it wasn't good, but because it wasn't chocolate!

Ingredients:

Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 cup Smart Balance Buttery Spread Original Flavor, softened (could be substituted with butter or margarine) 

Cheesecake Filling:

3 (8 ounce) packages fat free cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar, plus 1/4 cup, divided

3 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Apples:

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Streusel Topping:

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup quick cooking oats

1/2 cup Smart Balance Buttery Spread Original Flavor, softened (could be substituted with butter or margarine)

Caramel Topping:

1 cup Kraft caramels

1/4 cup heavy cream

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a mixing bowl, combine flour and brown sugar.  Mix in Smart BalanceButtery Spread with a fork until mixture forms crumbs.  Press crumb mixture into a 9x13 pan, lined with foil and bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. 

In a large mixing bowl, beat together cream cheese  and 1 cup sugar until smooth.  Stir in eggs and vanilla.  Pour cream cheese mixture over warm crust.

In a separate bowl, mix together chopped apples, 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Spread mixture over your cream cheese layer.

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, flour, oats and Smart Balance Buttery Spread.  Mix until crumbs form and sprinkle over apples.  Bake for 50-55 minutes or until filling is set.  Melt caramels and heavy cream in a microwavable bowl in 30 second increments, stirring each time, until smooth.  Drizzle melted caramel over your cheesecake and let cool.

Verdict: 

Other people enjoyed this dessert. I thought it was just ok. But i'm not a great judge of desserts that are not chocolate. To me, any dessert worth the calories has chocolate in it and this does not. I was looking to make a more "fall" dessert and this fit the bill. But it would have been so much better if it were chocolate! 

Cream Cheese Chicken Chili

Source: all over the internet - google it!

Prep Time: about 5 minutes
Cook Time: 6-8 hours, mine cooked for low 9 hours then switched to warm for another hour or 2

Ingredients:
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, undrained
1 can Rotel
1 ranch dressing mix packet
1 Tbsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 8 oz package cream cheese
2 chicken breasts or 5 chicken tenders, frozen

Place chicken in crock pot, top with corn, rotel, and black beans. Top with seasonings and ranch mix. Place cream cheese on top. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Stir cream cheese into chili and use 2 forks to shred chicken. Stir together and let cook for 30 more minutes. 

Verdict: This is really good. Much like the Santa Fe Chicken recipe with cream cheese added. Adding cheese always makes things better! This will definitely be a staple to our crock pot selections!

Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry

Source: Everyday Food Magazine

Servings: 4
Total Time: 25 minutes
Nutrition per serving (not including rice): 295 cal; 17g fat (3g sat); 25g protein; 12g carb; 3g fiber

Ingredients: 
2 T soy sauce
2 T rice vinegar
2 T oyster sauce
1 T cornstarch
1 t toasted sesame oil
2 T vegetable oil
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1/2-inch strips
3 T minced fresh ginger (I used the bottled ginger to save time)
2 cloves garlic, minced (again, i use the bottled kind)
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 bunch broccoli, cut into small florets
cooked white or brown rice, for serving

Directions:
1. In a wok, heat vegetable oil over high heat. Add chicken and cook until browned, 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, whisk together soy sauce, vinegar, oyster sauce, cornstarch and sesame oil.

3. Once chicken is browned, add ginger, garlic, scallions and broccoli to wok and cook until broccoli is bright green, 3 minutes.

4. Add 1/4 cup water, scarping up brown bits.

5. Stir in soy sauce mixture and cook until thickened, about 1 minutes.

Verdict:
This was super yummy and super easy. It looks like a lot of ingredients, but it's all stuff that I typically have on hand. The sauce was really good. I was a little scared at all the ginger, especially using the bottled kind, but it was a really good flavor. I'll definitely be making this again. Both kids ate it up.

Beef Satay with Peanut-Ginger Ramen

Source: Everyday Food Magazine

Servings: 4 - 2 adults and 2 kids, not 4 adults though
Total Time: 25 minutes including marinating
nutrition per serving (not including cucumber): 443 cal; 18g fat (5g sat); 33g protein; 39g carb; 5g fiber

Ingredients:
3 T soy sauce, divided
2 T lime juice, divided
1.75 t sugar, divided
2 t grated fresh ginger, divided
1 lb flank steak, thinly sliced across the grain
1/3 c creamy peanut butter
2 packages (3 oz each) Ramen noodles, cooked according to package & seasoning discarded
thinly sliced cucumber, for serving

Directions: 
1. Soak 12 wooden skewers in water for 15 minutes. In shallow dish combine 1 T soy sauce, 1 T lime juice, 1 t ginger and 1 t sugar. Add beef, toss, and let sit for 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a blender, puree 1 T lime juice, 3/4 t sugar, 1 t ginger, 2 T Soy sauce with peanut butter and 1/3 cup water.

3. Heat grill or grill pan to med-high. Grill beef until charred and cooked through 3-4 minutes per side.

4. Toss Ramen with peanut-ginger sauce.

5. Serve with beef and cucumber.

Verdict:
I thought this was ok. Dave and the kids really liked it. I may have liked it more if one, I hadn't overcooked the meat and two, it was warm when I ate it. These days by the time I sit down with my plate after getting everyone elses, my food is cold. One day I'll get hot food again. It was really easy and the noodles were really good, but pretty peanut-y. I'll probably make it again.

Beef Macaroni

Source: simplyrecipes.com

Servings: 4-6
Total Time: 20 minutes
Nutrition per serving (based on 4 servings): 442 cal; 6 g fat; 61g carb; 35g protein; 5g fiber

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1 yellow onion, chopped
1/2 t seasoned salt (I used lawry's)
Dash crushed red pepper
1/2 t celery seed
1-28oz can diced tomatoes (I used 2-14.5 oz can tomatoes with green peppers)
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 cups uncooked macaroni

Directions:
1. Cook macaroni according to package.

2. In a skillet, brown beef in a tablespoon of olive oil. Once browned, add onion and cook until soft.

3. Add crushed red pepper, seasoned salt, celery seed, Worcestershire and canned tomatoes. Simmer for 5 minutes.

4. Add cooked, drained macaroni and parsley. Simmer an additional 5 minutes.

Verdict: 
This was better than I thought it would be. I knew the kids would love it, and they did. But i'm surprised at how much I liked it. And looking back at the picture, I realize I forgot the parsley, and it was still really good. My parents first made this for the kids when Dave and I were in Mexico and they told me how much they liked it. I'm just now getting around to making it and am now wondering why I waited so long. It's a great alternative to regular spaghetti and will definitely have a place in our future menus!

Easy Shrimp Lo Mein

Source: allrecipes dot com

Time: 15 minutes TOTAL!

Servings: 4 small - this fed the four of us for dinner with no leftovers

Ingredients:

10oz shrimp (I used frozen)

1 T sesame oil

2 - 3oz packages Oriental flavored Ramen noodles

1 - 16 oz frozen stir fry vegetables (I used a snap peas mix)

1.5 cups water

1 T soy sauce or fish sauce (I used fish because I was worried about it being salty)

Directions:

1. Heat oil in wok over med-high heat. Add shrimp and fry until brown, about 3 minutes per side. 

2. Meanwhile, bring water to a boil. Add ramen noodles, reserving the seasoning packets. Boil for about 2 minutes, just long enough for the noodles to break apart. 

3. Microwave frozen vegetables in package for about 2 minutes. Add to wok with shrimp and season with one seasoning envelope. Cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender, but not mushy.

4. Drain about half the water from the noodles and add remaining seasoning envelope. 

5. Add noodles to wok with shrimp and vegetable mixture. 

6. Add soy sauce or fish sauce and cook for a minute or two longer. 

Verdict: 

This was much better than I expected, coming from Ramen noodles. And not nearly as salty as I thought it would be, although I do like salt so my threshold for saltiness might be higher than others. Next time I might add another package of Ramen and some more shrimp so I have leftovers for lunch. But this meal was so fast an easy. The recipe originally called for tofu, but we don't eat tofu. But I'm sure you could use any meat or fake meat product. Shrimp is easy because it's so fast. The recipe said to fry the tofu for 15 minutes, which would have added a lot of time.  

I'll definitely make this again. 

Santa Fe Chicken

Recipe source: skinnytaste dot com

Time: <10 minutes hands on

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts
14.4 oz can diced tomatoes with green chilis
15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
8 oz frozen corn
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
14.4 oz can chicken broth
3 scallions, chopped
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste) - I used about 1/4 tsp and it wasn't spicy at all
Salt to taste

Mexican cheese blend (for topping)
Sour Cream (for topping)

Directions:
1- Combine all ingredients (except cheese) in the crock pot. Cook on low for 10 hours.
2- Half hour before serving remove the chicken, shred, and return to the crock pot.
3- Serve with rice or in soft tortillas. Top with cheese, if desired.

Verdict:

This is really good. And so so simple and fast. I served it over lime cilantro rice (cook white rice, add 1/2 lime and some fresh cilantro) the first day. The second day I served it on crunchy taco shells. I'm sure it'd be good on tortilla's as well. It was even better 2 days later as leftover for lunch. All 4 of us ate this one up. Definitely a keeper. 

Ham & Swiss Sliders

Ham & Swiss Sliders

For the sandwiches:
24 Hawaiian rolls (or other rolls/slider buns)
24 slices ham (~1.25-1.5 lbs thinly sliced ham)
24 small slices Swiss cheese (~ 6-8 0z thinly sliced swiss)
Mayonnaise, if desired

For the sauce:
4 tsp yellow mustard
4 Tbsp butter, melted
2 tsp. onion powder
½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
Poppy seeds, for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 350˚F.  Split the Hawaiian rolls and spread the insides lightly with mayonnaise, if desired.  Fold a slice of ham to fit on each slider bun, and top with a slice of Swiss cheese.  Replace the top bun to assemble the sandwiches.  Place the sandwiches on a baking sheet.
To make the sauce, combine all ingredients except the poppy seeds in a small bowl and whisk to combine.  Drizzle the sauce over the tops of the slider buns.  Sprinkle with poppy seeds.  Cover loosely with foil and bake 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.  Remove the foil and bake 2 minutes longer.  Serve warm.

Verdict: These things are yummy!! The sauce on top is so good, it almost tastes like a honey mustard. I only made half a recipe for us for dinner and it was enough for dinner plus one of us to have lunch. YUM!

Source: delish-blog dot com

Crock Pot Italian Beef

4-4 1/2 lbs of shoulder roast (typically 2 pkgs)

Mix together and pour over roast:
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup peperoncini juice
1 pkg dry au jus (McKormick)
1 pkg dry zesty Italian dressing
Put peperoncinis on top ( I actually mix in with above ingredients.  As many as you like.)

Cook in crock pot on low all day or high for 5-6 hours

Verdict: I've tried a lot of different crock pot beef recipes, and this is by far the best and most flavorful. This recipe makes enough for a large crowd, so I usually use a smaller piece of meat when making it and still have plenty to freeze.

I served the meat on mini rolls with a piece of cheese melted on top. YUM!

Source: Vicki G.

Garlic Pork Tenderloin

1lb. pork tenderloin

1Tbsp. GOOD SEASONS Garlic & Herb Dressing Mix

1/2tsp. each paprika, dried thyme leaves and dried sage leaves

HEAT oven to 425°F.
PLACE meat in foil-lined shallow baking pan. Mix dressing mix and seasonings until blended; rub evenly over meat.
BAKE 20 to 25 min. or until done (160°F).
CUT into slices. Serve with barbecue sauce.

Verdict: Again, I've tried many different pork tenderloin recipes, and this one is by far the easiest and tastiest.

Source: kraftfoods.com

Chicken Fried Rice

1 egg

1 tablespoon water

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cups cooked white rice, cold

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 cup cooked, chopped chicken meat

Frozen peas & carrots (i used matchstick carrots this time b/c i didn't have any frozen)

1. In a small bowl, beat egg with water. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium low heat. Add egg and leave flat for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from skillet and cut into shreds.
2. Heat oil in same skillet; add onion and saute until soft. Then add rice, soy sauce, pepper and chicken and frozen veggies. Stir fry together for about 5 minutes, then stir in egg. Serve hot.

Verdict: I love fried rice and this is an easy way to use leftover rice. I usually already have all the ingredients I need to make this on hand. This is especially good with rotisserie chicken. If you're cooking the chicken, pound it flat and cut into thin strips, then cook before doing everything else.

Source: all recipes dot com

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

Time: 25 minutes prep - 8 hours cooking

Ingredients:

• 1 boneless beef chuck roast (3 pounds)
• 2 large russet potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 medium parsnips, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 large carrots, sliced thickly on the diagonal
• 2 large ribs celery, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 large onion, cut into chunks
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) beef broth
• 1 can (14-15 ounces) diced tomatoes

Directions:

1. Cut roast in half; place into a 5-qt. slow cooker. Top with potatoes, parsnips, carrots, celery, onion, and garlic.
2. In a medium bowl, combine thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, pepper, broth, and diced tomatoes; pour over vegetables.
3. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or until meat and vegetables are tender. Remove bay leaves before eating

Verdict:
This was good pot roast. Allison loved the meat and carrots. She wasn't big on the parsnips, but Dave and I enjoyed the different flavor they added. Pretty decent recipe as far as crock pot things go.

Pasta with Tuna Sauce

Source: allrecipes.com

Servings: 6
Total Time:

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves crushed garlic

1 tablespoon capers

1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 (6 ounce) cans tuna, drained

1 (16 ounce) package dry pasta

Directions

1. In a large saute pan, heat oil over low heat. Add onion and garlic; cook and stir until onion is tender. Stir in capers, tomatoes, lemon juice, and parsley. Season with red pepper flakes to taste. Simmer gently for 3 minutes to thicken sauce. Fold in tuna, and heat through.
2. While sauce is cooking, add pasta to a large pot of rapidly boiling water; cook till just tender. Drain well.
3. Toss pasta with sauce, and serve.

Verdict:
This was pretty good. i think next time i'll use a different pasta, probably just spaghetti. But it was a really easy recipe using things i had on already in the pantry. (i used dried parsley instead of the fresh). And it was a good way to eat more fish. Allison thought it was chicken!

Easy Italian Chicken

Servings: 4
Total Time: less than 5 minutes prep; 50-60 mins cooking

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 bottle italian dressing
package of pre-sliced mushrooms

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a bag and marinate for several hours. I use frozen breasts, combine everything in the morning before work, put in the fridge and allow breast to marinate and defrost all day.

Pour contents of bag into a foil lined (optional, but makes clean up easy!) baking dish. Bake on 350 for 50-60 minutes or until chicken is cooked.

Verdict:
This was really yummy and so so so super easy. This will definitely be a keeper in our house for weeknight meals.

Beef and Broccoli

Everytime I post a picture of the food I make, I really think, wow, I should use a better camera than my cell phone. But then I get lazy again. And really, who has time to break out the big camera when your yummy dinner is just sitting there waiting to be eaten.

So not the best picture, but this is so yummy!

Recipe source: canyoustayfordinner.com

Servings: 4

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 pound flank or sirloin, sliced thinly across the grain
• 1 pound broccoli florets, blanched or bag broccoli wokly
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tbsp water

Beef Marinade:

• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp Chinese rice wine (or dry sherry)
• 1/2 tsp cornstarch
• 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Sauce:

• 3 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tsp Chinese rice wine (or dry sherry)
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 tbsp brown sugar

Directions:

1. Make the marinade: Stir together the beef marinade ingredients in a medium bowl. Add the beef slices and stir until coated. Let stand for 10 minutes
2. Make the sauce: Stir together the sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside. 
3. Blanch the broccoli: Cook the broccoli in a small pot of boiling, salted water until tender-crisp, about 2 minutes. Drain thoroughly.  OR If you want to cheat (which is what I did): buy a bag of broccoli wokly florets that steam in the bag. I cooked it in the microwave for about 1.5 minutes.
4. Heat a wok over medium-high heat until a bead of water sizzles and instantly evaporates upon contact. Add the sesame oil and swirl to coat. Add the beef and immediately spread the strips out all over the surface of the wok or pan in a single layer (preferably not touching). Let the beef fry undisturbed for 1 minute. Flip the beef slices over, add the garlic to the pan and fry for an additional 30 seconds to 1 minute until no longer pink.
5. Pour in the sauce.
6. Add the blanched broccoli and bring to a boil.
7. Pour in the dissolved cornstarch and cook, stirring, until the sauce boils and thickens, 30 seconds.
8. Serve over rice and enjoy!

Verdict: 

This was super yummy and so super fast and easy. It took the rice longer to cook than it did for me to make this. And it's pretty healthy to boot. 

Per Serving (not including rice): Calories - 292 Fat - 17 Carbs - 10 Prot - 25 Fiber - 2