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Friday, February 19, 2010

Tater Tot casserole, revisited and revised!

So today around 4pm I realized oh no I forgot to defrost meat for dinner!
Then I remembered I had this HUGE package of ground beef in my fridge from my costco trip the other day. Hooray!
Well back to it being 4pm, still didn't have much of a dinner plan so I thought what the hey tater to casserole!
Too bad I didn't quite have all of the ingredients needed so I improvised some.... hope it works out! ha ha ha

1.25 lbs ground beef
salt and pepper to season
Kirkland signature, organic no salt seasoning
1 can cream of celery
1/2 can of milk
1 12 oz jar of turkey gravy
1 C of frozen peas
1 C of frozen corn
1 C shredded cheese
1 28 oz bag of frozen tater tots

Fry up the ground beef (I seasoned the meat with Nortons Salt & Pepper seasoning) drain off fat and layer in bottom of 9x13" glass pan.
Shake organic seasoning over top of layered meat, about 4-6 shakes worth.
Spread peas and corn over meat, then pour cream of celery, then gravy, then milk over top of that.
Cover with tater tots and then top that all with the cheese.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

mmmmmmnnnnn, tacos

So I hope to make some tacos for the family this week and wanted to make my own shells!
How many of you have tried buying ready made corn shells only to open the box and find a 1/3 of them broken to bits!?! Annoying right?
So here is a simple way to do it yourself.
How to fry up your own shells at home

As for my meat, I will most likely fry it up in some taco seasoning (which we buy in bulk at Costco) and maybe some chopped onion as well.
I use romaine for lettuce around here and just chop it up finely as romaine has better nutrients in it then regular iceberg which is just a filler food with no good value to it at all.

Marinating in thoughts.....

A lot has been going on around here lately and it has me thinking about marinating for cooking juicier meats.
This evening we had pork chops that I had marinated (unintentionally) for a day and a half.
I kind of threw this sauce together by the skin of my teeth but it came out pretty good!

1/2 C low sodium soy sauce
2 C chicken broth
2 shakes of lemon/pepper seasoning
4 shakes of cumin
4 shakes of curry
3 shakes of dried parsley

I made sure the liquid covered all of the chops and also flipped the bag once in the morning after it being in all night and then again the next night so it had an even "swim" time. :)

Then I baked the chops for an hour at 325 degrees Fahrenheit and then finished it off at 350 degrees until the temp reached 130 degrees.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Creamy Fettucini Alfredo

Ok so no cute names for this one, but it sure is good tasting!

Creamy Fettucini Alfredo

1 8 oz package cream cheese, cubed
3/4 C (3 oz) grated parmesan cheese
1/2 C margarine
1/2 C milk
8 oz fettucini, cooked, drained

I am also adding steamed broccoli to this one for my sake, and maybe some chicken for my husband and kids.
Also I am using low to non fat cheeses.

In large saucepan, combine cream cheese, parmesan and margarine and milk.
Stir over low heat until smooth.
Add fettucini; toss lightly.

4 servings

Chicken Stir (crazy) Fry

I have to admit I'm going a bit stir crazy around here, don't know why but I am!
Maybe it's all the sun we've been having, one day it's spring outside and the next you remember it's still February....oh well.

I've been a bit lax on the blog lately and I apologize for that. We have been eating at home, well ok one day we had KFC but at least it was grilled chicken!

Chicken Stir-Fry


You MUST use the sesame oil in order to attain the flavor that really makes this dish. You will find it in the Oriental section of the supermarket. It does not need refrigeration after it is opened. The meat from chicken thighs is excellent in this recipe. Breast meat tends to become dry if cooking in not precise. Some supermarkets sell thighs deboned, which speeds up the preparation time.

1 1/2 lbs chicken thighs, skinned and boned (1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
2 Tbs soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
2 Tbs lemon juice
2 tsp brown sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
4 drops Louisiana or Durkee's hot sauce
2 Tbs canola oil
1 C diced zucchini or broccoli flowerets
1 C diced celery
1 C diced fresh mushrooms (I will probably leave this out due to the muchroomaphobes in my house.)
1 tsp cornstarch
pre cooked rice

Cut chicken into strips or bite sized squares, combine soy sauce, sesame oil, lemon juice, brown sugar, garlic and hot sauce. (This mixture is the marinade for the chicken)
Place chicken into marinade and let sit for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Heat the canola oil in a wok or large skillet and stir fry the zucchini (or broccoli), celery, and mushrooms until tender-crisp.
Remove the vegetables with a slotted spoon to a warm platter.
Drain the chicken, reserving the marinade.
Stir the cornstarch into the reserved marinade and set aside while you cook the chicken.
Add the chicken to the wok and stir fry over medium heat until cooked through, stirring and flipping the pieces to separate them.
Add the marinade-cornstarch mixture to the wok along with the cooked vegetables.
Turn the heat to high and let mixture boil to thicken, stirring constantly.
Serve at once with hot fluffy rice.

Serves 3

Saturday, February 6, 2010

LaZZzzzzy Lasagna

The Great American Brand Name Cookbook, is a wonderful tool. It is a collaboration of all those recipes you see on soup can labels or different food packagins.
Instead of having to carefully peel a label off of something though you can just crack this book open and have a browse!

Lazy Lasagna (with a few tweaks of my own)

1 lb ground beef or turkey
1 jar (32 oz) spaghetti sauce
1 lb cottage cheese ( I am using cottage and ricotta cheese as I prefer this mix)
8 oz dairy sour cream
8 uncooked lasagna noodles (I am using the no boil kind)
3 packages (6 oz each) or sliced mozzarella cheese (or you can do what I did and just use a package of pre-shredded cheese)
1/2 C grated Parmesan cheese
1 C water

Cook beef in large skillet over medium-hight heat until meat is brown, stirring to separate meat; drain fat.
Add spaghetti sauce, reduce heat to low.
Heat through, stirring occasionally; set aside.
Combine cottage cheese and sour cream in medium bowl; blend well

Spoon 1 1/2 c of the meat sauce in bottom of 13x9" pan.
Place 1/2 of the uncooked noodles over sauce, then 1/2 of the cottage cheese mixture, 4 slices of the mozzarella, 1/2 of the remaining meat sauce and 1/4 C of the Parmesan cheese.
Repeat layers starting with the noodle.
Top with remaining 4 slices of mozzarella cheese.
Pour water around the sides of the pan.
Cover tightly with foil, Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
Uncover; bake and additional 20 minutes or until bubbly.
Let stand 15-20 minutes.
Garnish and desired.

Makes 8-10 servings.

Friday, February 5, 2010

That's just Tarragon!

Can't say I have EVER used this herb before but it looked interesting, this is another goody from the beginners cookbook.

1 cut up chicken (2 1/2 to 3lbs of meat)
2 Tbs oil
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp paprika
1 can cream of chicken soup (10oz)
2 tsp tarragon
2 Tbs Parmesan cheese
1/2 C white wine
(we don't drink at our house so it was an adventure finding wine! I ended up getting one of those cheapo single serving ones that have about 8 oz in a bottle)

Wash and dry chicken well, heat oil in a large frying pan.
Sprinkle chicken with garlic powder and paprika, then brown in oil on all sides.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Remove chicken to shallow baking pan.
In a small to medium sized bowl, combine the chicken soup, tarragon, cheese and white wine; mix well then spoon over chicken pieces.
Cover baking pan with a lid or aluminum foil and place in oven.
Bake for 1 to 1 1/4 hours.
Serves 4

Oven vs. Crockpot

I have often wondered if crock pots are really all that better then just a low temp bake in a standard oven.
Are they really that much safer then just leaving your oven on say 200 degrees all day long?
When I was younger a friend of mine left her coffee maker on and started a house fire so if a little coffee maker can do that, what can a crock pot do!?

This week I got my meal ideas from 2 different recipe books that I've had for awhile, so long in fact that one was really my husbands before we even met and the other I snagged from my mom after begging for it.
Funny thing is that I rarely refer to either one of them!
The one from my husband is called 'The absolute beginners cookbook 2' and it is where I got tonight's dinner from.

Kay's Pork chops

4 pork chops (roughly 1/2" to 1"thick)
1 egg, beaten
pinch of salt
pinch of paprika (I used more)
pinch of pepper
1/4 to 1/3 C of fine bread crumbs
2 Tbs of margarine
1 Tbs oil
1 Tbs water***

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit, trim excess fat from chops.
Dip pork chops into beaten egg and then dip moistened chops into bread and seasoning mixture.
Heat a large frying pan and add the margarine and oil, brown chops over low to medium heat until nicely browned on both sides (about 3 minutes each side)
Place chops in a single layer in a shallow baking dish and add water to the pan (just enough to moisten the bottom of the pan; you don't want the chops sitting in water.)
Cover tightly (foil is fine) and bake for 4 hours.
Serves 4

***If you use a 9x13" pan, 1 Tbs of water is enough o add; however if you plan to serve these chops at a party and need more than 4 you will need to increase the recipe proportionately and use a larger pan-roasting pan or even a cookie sheet-and add 3-4 Tbs water. Remember to keep the chops in a single layer and covered.

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Tortillas are my friend

Dinner today is from the recipe book of Sally Crawford, that wonderful lady who is my Mother in Law! :)

Chicken Casserole in a Crockpot

9 corn tortillas
6 boneless/skinless chicken breasts (can be cut up or used whole)
1 medium diced onion
1 can ortega green chilis
1 can chopped black olives (I used jumbo olives that I chopped myself)
3/4 C grated mexican cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup (since my husband HATES mushrooms I use cream of celery or just 2 cans of cream of chicken instead)
1/2 can of water

Layer tortillas, onion, chilies, olives and then chicken on top of that. Repeat 2 or 3 times.
Mix cream of whatever soups with 1/2 can of water then pour over top of layers.
Using a long handled knife or spoon, separate casserole from walls of crock pot make sure the soup is circulated throughout dish.
Cook on high for 3 hrs.

Smooth(ie) Sailing

As most of my friends know I have been trying to lose a few pounds this past month or so and so far so good!
What helps me out is drinking smoothies instead of eating a regular meal. If it works for those on Slimfast why not me?
I first learned about nutrient smoothies a few years ago but never really got into that health craze.
It wasn't until a MOPS meeting a month ago that I really hopped on the bandwagon, so here is a recipe for my current favorite smoothie along with the extras I put into it to help super charge me for the day! :)

Breakfast Smoothie

1-2 c. Sliced frozen strawberries
1 banana
1/2 C Odwalla Superfood (this comes in green or red, I prefer the red one)
1 scoop Trader Darwins Soy Protein Powder
1 scoop Trader Joes Super Green drink powder
1/2 C plain non fat yogurt

I place the strawberries and bannanas in first, then the powders, yogurt and juice last.
Blend on high until smooth and everything is mixed well together.