This recipe is a family favorite.  My mom made it a lot when we were growing up.  It's a delicious way to eat chicken.  You can serve it with potatoes, veggies, salad, rolls...anything really.  Any kind of chicken would work but I like to use chicken tenders because they bake fast.

12 chicken tenders

2 eggs

little bit of milk

2 sleeves Ritz crackers

1/2 packet Good Seasons Italian dressing mix

Crush up the Ritz crackers in a big ziplock bag.  Add the seasoning and mix well.  In a bowl, beat the eggs and milk.  Dip the chicken in the egg mixture and then coat with the Ritz crumbs.  Place in a baking dish.  Put a few dollops of soft butter on top. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  (Longer if you are using chicken breasts).

BBQ Pork Sandwiches

There's nothing better than a delicious dinner that you can make in the crockpot.  Life is busy and the crockpot saves so much time!  We love these BBQ pork sandwiches.  Super easy and super filling.

2-3 lb. pork loin roast

3/4 cup water

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. garlic salt

1 tsp. fresh ground pepper

Hamburger buns or rolls

Butter, softened

BBQ sauce

*Cook pork roast in crockpot all day on low with the water and seasonings.  Don't put any BBQ sauce in crockpot.  Shred up when done cooking.  When ready to eat, generously butter the bread of your choice.  Toast, butter side down, on the stove in a frying pan. This is crucial...don't skip it.  Top toasted rolls with pork and your favorite BBQ sauce.  We love Sweet Baby Rays sauce.  Enjoy!

Green Chicken Enchilada Casserole

It's always good to have a few solid casserole recipes for those times when you need a good potluck item or when you take dinner to a big family.  Even better is having casserole recipes that are easy but still taste great!  I got this recipe from my friend/cousin (frousin), Kylie, at a big family picnic we had at the park in the Spring.  It tastes just like chicken enchiladas but without the hassle of rolling up enchiladas.  Yay!

1 1/2-2 cups cooked chicken (you can use canned, rotisserie or cook it and shred it yourself)

Cooked rice (I used 1 1/2 cups before cooked)

1 can green enchilada sauce (I used half of a big can)

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup sour cream

2 cups shredded cheese

salt/pepper to taste

1 tsp. garlic powder

pinch of oregano and cumin

onion, if desired

Mix all ingredients together in a big bowl using only half the cheese.  Pour into a 9x13 and cover with remaining cheese.  Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

The Easiest Homemade Lasagna

If you are still buying frozen lasagna, this is the recipe for you.

It really could not be easier and is so delicious.  I mean, who doesn't love homemade lasagna?!  Whip up a green salad and some garlic bread and you are golden.  A super easy meal that people will be super impressed by.

1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef

1 jar marinara (I use Trader Joe's tomato basil)

16 oz. cottage cheese

8 oz. sour cream

1 cup parmesan

18 slices of mozzarella (or shredded works, too)

8 oven ready lasagna noodles (I use Barilla)

*Brown the ground beef on stove.  Add marinara sauce and simmer.  In a 9x13 pan, put a little bit of the meat sauce.  Just enough to cover the bottom of the pan.  Lay down 4 of the noodles.  Mix the cottage cheese and sour cream together in a bowl.  Spoon half of that mixture over the noodles and spread.  Put 6 slices of the mozzarella over that.  Pour half of the remaining meat sauce over the mozzarella.  Sprinkle half of the parmesan.  Start again with noodles and repeat steps.  Top with remaining slices of mozzarella.  Cover with foil (without it touching the cheese) and bake at 350 for 1 hour.  Remove foil and bake for 10 more minutes.

Sidenote:  You can make the lasagna bigger by doing more meat sauce and more white sauce.  I will often do that when we are feeding more than just our family of six.  All the other ingredients stay the same.

GRILLED HONEY LIME CHICKEN

I said a while back I was going to be more diligent about posting to this sad little blog - I lied.  A few things got in the way -like cooking for 150 girls (with 4 wonderful other friends) for a girls church camp.  I haven't wanted to cook or even think about going to the grocery. That is now in the history book and here is what we're having for dinner tonight.  Easy and yummy.  I didn't even have to make a trip to the store.  I'm serving with quinoa for me, white rice for husband. He's still living in the dark side!!  And we're having a few slices of avocado - can you even get enough of those things and some fresh watermelon.  Dinner is served!!

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I pound them so they're even thickness)

MARINADE:
1/4 c. fresh lime juice (about two large limes)
2 t. lime zest
1/4 c. honey
2 T. olive oil
1 T. soy sauce
1 T. packed brown sugar
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1/4 t. onion powder
1/4 granulated garlic or fresh (hate the smell of garlic on my hands - wimpy I know)
1/8 t. cayenne (yes, this makes it taste good - just a little kick)

Whisk all ingredients for marinade together.  Put chicken breasts in a Ziplock bag and pour in marinade, reserving about 3 T. to baste chicken with later. Don't keep marinade that has been on the chicken.  Marinate overnight or for 45 min.  Drain and discard marinade and grill over medium heat for about 6 minutes on each side.  Remove from grill and baste with reserved marinade.  Serve. 

EASY TORTELLINI LASAGNA

Thanks to my cute friend, Loni, this is a delicious and easy way to make lasagna! We had it for "Sundee" birthday dinner yesterday and it was a hit! Mrs. Sam's Club and Mrs. Costco sure can make cooking a breeze! Sam's Club carries the Artisan Fresh brand of ravioli and it comes in a 2 pack.  Costco carries a different brand but they both taste the same. They are stuffed with chicken and cheese and some herbs. The two pack will make a 9x13 pan of "lasagna" but if you want a smaller amount, only use one pack and make it a 9x9 pan.  You could actually use any ravioli! A good idea for taking a quick meal to someone (especially if you forget and it's 4 o'clock)! I may or may not have done that a few times!!

1 two pack of stuffed ravioli (see above)
1 small container Ricotta cheese 
1 container shredded Parmesan cheese (or a blend)
Mozzarella cheese
Your favorite marinara sauce 

Spoon a small amount of marinara sauce in bottom of 9x13 pan.  I used a bottle of Ragu mixed with a little leftover sauce I had from spaghetti last week. Lay one of the two packs of ravioli in a single layer on top of sauce.  Spread Ricotta cheese on top and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.  sprinkle with a layer of Mozzarella cheese.  Spread with a layer of marinara sauce.  Repeat the next layer without the Ricotta. (There is only Ricotta in the middle). 

 I actually made two of these yesterday and left Ricotta out of one of them--some in my family don't like it.  Bake at 350 for 30 min.  Serve with a nice green salad and garlic bread.

QUINOA CHICKEN PEPPERS & KALE

This is one of those dishes that you just "do" and it turns our right. I actually took several quinoa recipes I have seen and concocted my own version. I'm trying to eat "cleaner" and fool the husband into thinking it's good and not just healthy. He has an aversion to anything he thinks might be "healthy". To him, that means it tastes awful! Think--white bread, white rice, etc.

That being said, I haven't had luck getting him to eat this, but I'm working on it.  This is great heated up the next day.

Cook 1 cup quinoa grain in 2 cups of chicken broth.  I use my rice cooker and here is a great hint I read online:

**Quinoa has a bitter natural coating on the outside.  Rinse it very well before cooking.  It will remove the coating and bitter taste without removing any nutrients.  I was having a hard time eating quinoa before I did this. I think it really helps-- a lot!! 

Set aside the cooked quinoa.  Note--it seems to cook a little faster than rice, so I turn the cooker off before it goes off automatically--I burned some and it wasn't pretty!!

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2-3 T. olive oil

Cut chicken breasts into small cubes.  Saute them in olive oil, just until they are done (no pink).
Add:

1/2 red bell pepper cut in small pieces
1/2 yellow bell pepper cut the same
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1/2 clove garlic, minced (I use the kind out of the jar--I hate    the smell of garlic on my hands!!)
Continue sauteing until onions and peppers are just crisp, tender.  Add:

1/2 bunch of kale, washed, dried and torn into bite size pieces.  You can adjust this proportion--more or less.  Saute just until the kale is wilted. Mix with the cooked quinoa and add salt and pepper to taste.  

I also splashed mine with a little soy sauce, mixed with a little balsamic vinegar (my favorite) and garnished with a little diced avocado and coarse grated Parmesan cheese.  I'm sure there are lots of other things you can add to this dish.

I told you it was "do" as you go!!

Easy Beef Stroganoff

Happy 2013!!

Hope it's been a good year for you so far.

I didn't do a lot of dinner-making during the month of December. In fact, we may have set a record for largest number of hot-and-ready Little Caesar's pizzas consumed in one month.  I hope the person that came up with that idea got a raise.  Best idea ever.  

But now it's a new year and we don't have an activity every night of the week and I'm cooking again!  Hooray!

This dinner is so easy and family-friendly.  Kids like anything with ground beef and noodles, right?  And it tastes great!

Just make sure and serve something green with this dish because it's not exactly the role model for healthy dinners.

1 pound lean ground beef
diced onion
1 can cream of mushroom
3/4 cup sour cream
salt
fresh ground pepper
garlic powder
egg noodles

*Brown beef with onions.  Add soup and sour cream.  Mix well.  Add a little salt to taste and a generous amount of pepper.  Add garlic powder to taste.  Let simmer over medium low for 10 minutes or so.  Serve over cooked egg noodles.

BUTTERMILK ALMOND BAKED CHICKEN FINGERS

Yesterday late afternoon our friends invited us to watch the BCS Bowl Game (sorry Notre Dame fans) and have dinner. I saw this recipe a few days ago on How Sweet It Is (howsweeteats.com) and had thawed some chicken tenders to make--I don't know what. I had buttermilk left over from a dish I made for New Years (that stuff lasts FOREVER) so I tried these!  Delicious!! I made a few changes from her original recipe.  She used smoked paprika--I used chile powder. She used whole wheat Panko--I did not.  These were sooooo easy!!  I didn't have almond meal and I ground whole almonds until they were fine in my food processor.  Worked great!!  I also only marinated them in the buttermilk about 3 hours.  The key to these being crunchy is baking them on a rack.  They were perfect!!

Ingredients:

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken tenders
2 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 cup almond meal (I ground almonds in food processor)
3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon  paprika (or chile powder

Directions:

Add chicken to a baking dish and pour buttermilk over top to coat. Let soak for 4-6 hours refrigerated, or overnight.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire rack on top. Spray the rack with nonstick spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine almond meal, panko, flour, salt, pepper and paprika. Remove each chicken tender from the buttermilk and dip in breadcrumbs, gently pressing to adhere. Place on the wire rack. Spray each with a mist of olive oil or nonstick spray. Bake for 12 minutes, remove from over, gently flip and mist with spray, then bake for 12 minutes more.

[The key to crunchy chicken fingers and keeping the breading on the chicken is the wire rack AND the misting spray!]

Pan-roasted Chicken with Root Veggies

I have a SIL that is such an amazing cook that she has turned my brother into a food snob! :)  She recently shared this recipe with us (from Cooks Country) and I made it the other night and it was to die for! In fact, it was so good I am actually making it again tonight! This is a super delicious and super easy dinner.  I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

PAN-ROASTED CHICKEN WITH ROOT VEGGIES

SERVES 4

We halve the chicken breasts crosswise for even cooking.  Use brussel sprouts no bigger than golf balls, as larger ones are often tough and woody.

3/4 pound brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
3/4 pound red potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 pound shallots, peeled and halved
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces, thick ends halved lengthwise
6 garlic cloves, peeled
4 teaspoons minced fresh thyme
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
1 teaspoons sugar
Salt & Pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 1/2 pounds bone-in chicken pieces (2 split breasts cut in half crosswise, 2 drumsticks, and 2 thighs), trimmed

1.  Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees.  Toss brussel sprouts, potatoes, shallots, carrots, garlic, 2 teaspoons thyme, oil, 1 teaspoon rosemary, sugar, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together in a bowl.  Combine butter, remaining 2 teaspoons thyme, remaining 1 teaspoon rosemary, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in second bowl; set aside.

2. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt & pepper.  Place vegtables in a single layer on rimmed baking sheet, arranging brussel sprouts in center.  Place chicken, skin side up, on top of vegtables, arranging breast pieces in center and leg and thigh pieces around perimeter of sheet.

3. Brush chicken with herb butter and roast until breasts register 160 degrees and drumsticks/thighs register 175 degrees, 35-40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through cooking.  Transfer chicken to serving platter, tent loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for 5-10 minutes.  Toss vegetables in pan juices and transfer to platter with chicken.

Serve and Enjoy!!