Chicken Salad

I make different varieties of chicken salad. The easiest takes fifteen minutes. The longest takes time for a chicken to bake and the medium involves a rotisserie chicken. The other two have a little more flavor, but canned chicken is the easiest.

Ingredients:
2 cans of chicken
Craisins
Celery
Onion
Sweet pickles
Pepper
Mayonnaise

Drain the chicken and crumble in a bowl. Pour as much of the items over as you like. Make it colorful! I use half a bag of Craisins, half an onion, some of my homemade sweet pickles, and a stalk of celery. Just use as much mayo as you need to mix it together. I store this in a closed container for up to three days. I usually make it on Sunday for Matthew to take with him on the road. One container, chips and a loaf of bread equals lunch for a week.

Party Ham Biscuits-(We Freeze for Special Occasions)

Ingredients:
1 pan miniature rolls in aluminum pan
1/2 pack shredded cheese of your choice
Less than a 1/2 stick butter
Poppy seed
Tiny bit of mustard
2 cans cooked ham

Cut the bread in half so you have a top and a bottom loaf like a sandwich. Soften the butter and add spread on bottom layer of bread. Add just a tad of mustard on top of the butter layer, and then sprinkle with poppyseed. Shred the ham with your fingers, and then layer on top of the poppyseed. Then sprinkle a generous layer of cheese on top. Place the top layer of bread on the cheese. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes at 350.
Enjoy!

Crockpot Lasagna

This is a Pinterest recipe. It is a very easy dish to make. We baked ours for five hours, and then we turned the crockpot off to let it rest for an hour. We thought it was going to have too much liquid in it after cooking it for five hours, but the extra hour of setting up did the trick. We used regular lasagna noodles and broke them in half. This dish only took about 30 minutes to prep. Every crockpot is different, so yours may take more or less time. I think we could have cut it off at four hours, and it would have been just as good.

http://busycooks.about.com/od/groundbeefrecipes/r/cplasagna.htm

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef
• 2 onions, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 48-ounce jar chunky low sodium pasta sauce
• 14-ounce can diced tomatoes salt free, undrained
• 3/4 cup water
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 15-ounce container part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 16 ounce package mafalda noodles (mini lasagna noodles) gluten free
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:

In a large skillet, brown ground beef, while you saute the chopped onions and garlic in a different pan. Season with season salt and pepper to taste. Drain thoroughly. Add spaghetti sauce, diced tomatoes, and water. Simmer 10 - 15 minutes. In a large bowl, combine ricotta cheese, parsley, and egg, and beat well. Add half of the mozzarella cheese. In 5-6 quart crockpot, pour 1 cup of the beef and sauce. Then top with a layer of mafalda noodles. Top with 1 cup mozzarella cheese, more ground beef and sauce, then a layer of the cheese mixture. Repeat layers to fill crockpot 3/4 full. Cover crockpot and cook on low for 4 to 5 hours - DO NOT STIR. Top with Parmesan cheese and serve. Serves 8-10

Squash & Potato Casserole

This is a Pinterest recipe. We enjoyed it, but we think you can put any type of cheese you like. It tastes great, but Italian seasoned potatoes are still our favorite. I will post that recipe at Thanksgiving.

Here's the web address:
http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-potato-squash-and-goat-90647

Picture from www.thekitchn.com

Potato, Squash, & Goat Cheese Gratin

serves six2 medium yellow squash, about 1/2 pound
4 small to medium red potatoes, about 1 pound
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 ounces goat cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup whole milk
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon thinly sliced basil or thyme leaves
Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a 1 1/2 to 2-quart casserole dish with a drizzle of olive oil.
Use a mandoline or chef's knife to slice the squash and potatoes into very, very thin slices, 1/8-inch or less. Toss the sliced vegetables with the 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large bowl.
Place 1/3 of the squash and potato slices in the bottom of the dish — no need to layer them squash-potato-squash; just spread evenly — then season with salt and pepper. Top with half of the goat cheese, scattered evenly in large chunks. Repeat with another 1/3 of the vegetables, seasoning again with salt and pepper and topping with the other 1/2 of the goat cheese. Finish by layering on the final 1/3 of the vegetables and seasoning with salt and pepper.
Pour the milk over the entire dish. Top with the parmesan cheese. Bake, covered, for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake 15 more minutes, until the top browns. Scatter on the fresh basil, if using.

Emeril-Farm to Fork

**Update: I make this recipe now with couscous instead of rice. It's wonderful!  Freezes beautifully.
I made my version of stuffed peppers tonight. The pepper mix recipe is from Emeril's Farm to Fork book. We love the taste.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Boil a large pot of water. Place four unseeded peppers in and cook until your desired tenderness is reached. Take out, cool them down in cold water, and then place them on a few paper towels to dry.

Brown one pound of Italian sausage. We like it hot.
Slice and dice one bell pepper, four cloves of garlic, one medium size onion, and three tomatoes while the meat is browning. Cook the meat for about six minutes, and then add the pepper, onion and garlic. Cook for six more minutes, and then add the tomato. Cook with the tomato for two minutes and add salt and pepper. Total cooking time is 14 minutes.

Put the sausage and rice mixture in the peppers. Combine six tablespoons of Parmesan cheese and three tablespoons of bread crumbs. Top the peppers with the cheese mixture and drizzle some olive oil over the cheese mixture. Bake for 35 minutes in a casserole dish with a half inch of water.

We serve it with an organic salad with Crushed Olive products. We like the Italian Herb Olive Oil and Pomegranate balsamic vinaigrette.

Celebrate cleanup with a lovely cup of coffee!

Pinterest Chicken Spaghetti

Use you favorite half box of noodles, cook as stated on the box. You can use a whole box if you like, but we like to use less noodles for a thinner casserole.
Pan sauté three or four chicken breasts in olive oil. We use Italian Herb Olive Oil from The Crushed Olive in Hickory.
Mix one jar of Alfredo and one of Marinara (just like on the chicken parm recipe below), with one small container if Parmesan cheese and a cup of mozzarella.
After you mix the sauces and cheese, add the chicken and pasta to it, stir it all together, and then spoon into a 9x11 casserole dish.
Place your favorite turkey, pork, or goat :) pepperoni on top.
Bake for 35 minutes at 350 degrees.
It's a good, little dish. It fed five adults and one child last night for dinner. We served with a garden salad and knot rolls.

Laundry Detergent

It's not cooking, but it is helpful. Matthew is out of town this week, so I am not cooking much. We would prefer to have him at home, but we have to deal with this occasionally. It's life! We will have cereal tonight for supper!

I made a batch of laundry detergent today, so I thought I would share that with you.

Take two cups washing soda, two grated bars of soap and two cups of Borax. Mix it together, and you have about 60 loads ready to go. I usually use one bar of Ivory soap and one bar of Dr. Bronner's Lavender Castile soap to give it a nice scent. I use between one and two tablespoons depending on the load. I use a cheese grater for my bars of soap. Happy Grating!!

Roasted Greenbeans and Mushrooms

This is another Pinterest recipe:
http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2009/01/recipe-for-roasted-green-beans-with.html

My Take: This is a great recipe! We loved it!! Matilyn ate two helpings!

Roasted Green Beans with Mushrooms, Balsamic, and Parmesan
(Makes 4-6 servings, recipe created by Kalyn)

Ingredients:
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced in 1/2 inch slices (I used brown crimini mushrooms, but any mushrooms will work)
1 lb. fresh green beans, preferably thin French style beans
1 1/2 T olive oil
1 T balsamic vinegar
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
2 T finely grated parmesan cheese

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 450F/230C. Wash mushrooms and let drain (or spin dry in salad spinner, which is what I did.) While mushrooms are drying, trim ends of beans and cut beans in half so you have bite-sized pieces. (An easy way to trim them is to gather a small handful of beans, stand them up on cutting board, holding loosely so they will fall down and have ends ends aligned, then trim. Repeat with other end.) Cut mushrooms into slices 1/2 inch thick.

Put cut beans and mushrooms into a Ziploc bag or plastic bowl. Whisk together olive oil and balsamic vinegar and pour over, then squeeze bag or stir so all the beans and mushrooms are lightly coated with the mixture. Arrange on large cookie sheet, spreading them out well so beans and mushrooms are not crowded. Roast 20-30 minutes, starting to check for doneness after 20 minutes. Cook until beans are tender-crisp, mushrooms are cooked, and all liquid on the pan from mushrooms has evaporated. Season beans to taste with salt and fresh ground pepper, then sprinkle with finely grated Parmesan. Serve hot.

Garlic Dutch Oven Chicken

Here's the web address. This was a Pinterest recipe.
http://dutchovenmadness.blogspot.com/2010/09/day-263-breaded-garlic-chicken-in-lemon.html

My Take:  This is a wonderful recipe. It is a flavor explosion. I was a bit concerned at first about the egg crust. I think it was going to taste like a chicken and egg biscuit, but it has a ton of good flavor. It sounds like a very difficult process, but here's all you need to do.. Flour four chicken breasts, add a little salt and pepper. Crack three eggs and mix with 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese in a pie plate. Melt one tablespoon of butter with one tablespoon olive oil in a pan or a dutch oven. Dip the flour coated chicken in the egg batter. Cook chicken two minutes on each side. Cut up five cloves of garlic and a tablespoon or so of parsley. Throw the garlic and parsley in the in the dutch oven or pan with the juice of 1/2 a lemon and four tablespoons of butter. Heat for two minutes, then throw your chicken back in the pot. Flip the chicken once so that the sauce is on both sides, then put the cover on and bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. It's a great dish!

Breaded Garlic Chicken in Lemon Butter Sauce
12" dutch oven

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup seasoned flour (1 cup flour, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper)
5 cloves of garlic, finely minced (see garlic tutorial here)
1 tablespoon parsley flakes or 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, from about 1 lemon
3 eggs
1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil
5 tablespoons butter

Place the seasoned flour in a large gallon-size ziploc bag. Set aside. In a shallow pie plate, beat the eggs until mixed and add the Parmesan cheese. Whisk to combine. Set aside.

In a dutch oven over a full spread of coals, melt one tablespoon butter and one tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Let it begin to heat and sizzle while you prepare the chicken but be careful not to let the butter burn and turn brown.

Put the four chicken breasts in the bag with the seasoned flour, close the bag, and shake to coat the chicken in the flour. One by one, take the chicken out of the bag and dip into the egg/Parmesan mixture. Place the chicken carefully in the skillet with the hot oil/butter. Repeat with the other chicken breasts. Let the chicken cook on the first side, without moving or flipping the chicken, for 1-2 minutes until a nice, golden crust has formed. Carefully, using a wide spatula, flip the chicken and let it continue to cook for 1-2 minutes on the other side until it is golden brown. The chicken will flip easiest if it has had time to sizzle and cook to form a nice crust.

Remove the chicken from the pot and keep warm.

In the same dutch oven that you browned the chicken, melt the remaining four tablespoons butter. Add the minced garlic, lemon juice, and parsley. Simmer the sauce for 1-2 minutes, stirring and scraping up any browned bits that were on the bottom of the skillet.

Return the chicken breasts to the pot and spoon the sauce over the chicken.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Serves 4.

A Pinterest Chicken Parmesan

Put a pot of water on to boil.
Mix one small jar of Alfredo sauce with marinara sauce, two teaspoons of McCormick's sodium free Italian seasoning, one cup of shredded parmesan, and two cups of mozzarella in a large bowl.
Coat five chicken breasts with something wet--milk, egg or mayonnaise. It's up to you.
Roll the chicken with Italian breadcrumbs and toss it in the oven for 45 minutes at 350.
While the chicken is baking, boil a box of penne pasta as directed on the box. Drain pasta and pour the sauce over it in a sprayed 9x11 baking dish.
Mix it together and bake for 25 minutes.
So, you have 20 minutes to mix all of the pasta items together. You can then put the pasta dish in the oven when the chicken has 25 minutes left to bake. Place the chicken on top of the pasta or the pasta on top of the chicken and serve with a side salad.

Matthew's Avocado & Salsa Burger

Pat out burgers made of one pound lean ground beef or sirloin. We use grass fed beef. Toast onion rolls or your favorite buns with a little butter or olive oil on them. Melt some mozzarella cheese on you burgers after they cook. Top with sliced avocado and salsa. Matthew makes his own salsa with onions. Serve with a side salad. It's an awesome twenty minute meal!

Crockpot Roast or London Broil & Sandwiches (Freeze shredded meat for sandwiches in freezer bags)

MEAL #1

You can use any type of Chuck, Sirloin, or London Broil for this dish. I use whatever is cheaper at the grocery store that week. Take one packet of Italian salad dressing dry mix, one packet of brown gravy mix, and one ranch packet. I combine those with one cup of water to mix up the packets. I pour that over my meat, and then I add enough water to cover the meat. Cook on high in a crock pot for five hours or on low for eight hours.
We serve this with potatoes and a green vegetable.

MEAL #2

This one is really simple.. I shred the meat, and I place it in plastic bags for the next day. I also store a little cup of the broth in the refrigerator for each of us. I pack whole wheat sandwich bread, meat, an apple, and a salad for lunch the next day.

Pumpkin Cupcakes

http://www.daydreamkitchen.com/2012/09/pumpkin-spice-cupcakes-with-cream-cheese-frosting/

The link is to one type of cupcake, but I make something much easier.
Recipe courtesy of Amanda Wilson.

CUPCAKES:

Take one can of pumpkin puree and combine it with one spice cake mix and as much milk as you like to make the mix moist. Fill cupcakes 2/3rds full for about 20 minutes at 325, and then you can frost or not frost. We like these for breakfast this Fall without the icing.


FROSTING:

• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Frozen Yogurt Dots

http://theothercourtney.wordpress.com/2012/03/07/frozen-yogurt-dots/

Matilyn loves these! She calls them yogurt bites. I have to be really careful with how many I give her. She'll eat the equivalent of a large cup of yogurt for a snack if I do not watch her.

It's a very simple recipe. You just fill a sandwich bag with yogurt, cut a small hole in the corner of the bag and make lovely little dots on a sheet pan. Freeze those, then put them back in the rinsed out yogurt container. Matilyn gets these after snack time on the weekends and as dessert after dinner. Use any kind of yogurt you like!

Shredded BBQ Chicken & Chicken Soft Tacos-My Basic Freezer Chicken Recipe

 MEAL #1
**We freeze 12 bags of this chicken per month. The bags thaw in five minutes under cold water in the sink.
Here's the recipe I found on Pinterest. The chicken is delectable! This is one of our favorite recipes.
http://www.thekitchn.com/dinner-recipe-barbecue-pulled-chicken-in-the-oven-or-slow-cooker-recipes-from-the-kitchn-168003

Barbecue Shredded Chicken
8 to 10 servings
3 to 4 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, or a mix of thighs and breasts
Olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 (or more) cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
2 teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper
12 (1 1/2 cups) ounces barbecue sauce (low sodium and low sugar is key, either store bought or homemade-Bi-Lo and Ingles have an all natural low sugar brand I love) plus more for serving
Heat the oven to 325°F. Remove the chicken from its packaging and pat it dry.
In a Dutch oven or heavy pot (with a lid) heat a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic for 5 minutes or until quite soft. Add the smoked paprka and stir. Add the chicken piece by piece, stirring to mix well with the onion. Stir in the salt and a few generous grinds of black pepper. Pour in the barbecue sauce and bring to a simmer. Turn off the heat.
Cover the pot with a heavy lid and put in the oven. Bake, covered, for 90 minutes, or until the chicken is extremely tender. Remove from the oven and use a slotted spoon to remove the chicken to a large bowl. Use two forks to shred the chicken finely.
Meanwhile, while you're shredding the chicken, put the sauce, uncovered, back on the stove over high heat. Bring to a boil and reduce the liquid in the pan to about half of its volume. Pour this thickened sauce over the chicken and stir.
Serve with buns, slaw, avocado, and extra barbecue sauce on the side.
Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. We freeze single meal portions in freezer bags. Thaws very quickly.
Slow Cooker Instructions:
Follow the recipe as written above, but instead of putting the chicken and sauce in the oven, pour it all into a slow cooker. Cook for 5 to 7 hours on LOW. If desired, you can lift out the chicken and reduce the sauce in a separate pan on the stovetop, but this may not be necessary; it simply depends on your preference.

MEAL #2

 I use plastic sandwiches bags for food storage because it is less to keep up with the next day. I try to be environmentally friendly, but I spend way too much money per year on plastic storage containers. Here's what I do for meal #2 as I clean up meal #1.
I pack my chicken in plastic bags, one for me and one for my husband.
I cut up one tomato, one onion, cilantro, one jalapeno, and I combine those items with cheese and shredded romaine lettuce in a second bag. Bag three gets a little bit of salsa and sour cream. We each get two wraps in a fourth sandwich bag. Take that to work, heat the chicken and wraps, and then pour all the other items on top of each wrap. It is a wonderful lunch, and it tastes much different than the meal you had for dinner the night before.

Leftovers can sometimes be boring because you are eating the same meal twice. I will post a different lunch recipe for every dinner recipe.

The image below is from http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/santa-fe-grilled-chicken-tacos-50400000112449/.
I haven't started taking pictures of my dishes just yet!

Crockpots, Dutch Ovens, & Money--Oh My!

Has a picture of a delectable dish on Pinterest ever made your mouth water? Have you ever made one of those dishes and been less than impressed? I have... Have you ever wished someone you trusted would cook those meals and give you feedback? I have, and that is what I am going to do for you! My husband and I love to cook, and we have started paying attention to our food budget. It is alarming how much we have been spending on food at home and in restaurants!  My goal is to spend $100 a week on food for a family of three, cook most of our meals, and eat like Kings! $100 a week on food is expensive, but that is cheap compared to what we have been spending eating out. We used to spend $100 a weekend easily. My family consists of two adults and one child.

I have three new goals in my kitchen!
1. Budget my food expenses.
2. Cook healthy meals for my family.
3. Utilize leftovers in fun and delicious ways.

The purpose of this blog is to try new recipes from Pinterest, Food Network, other websites, reader suggestions, and my own personal creations. I will let you know if they worked for my family, any leftover suggestions I have, and other information for your meal preparation.

I hope you enjoy the ride as you follow along with the Brown's and our cooking experience!
Thanks for reading!