Cornbread Chicken Casserole

Tonight I threw together a pretty delicious dinner from what I had on hand. I made a chicken and veggie filling (like a pot pie filling), topped it with cornbread batter, sprinkled on Parmesan cheese, and baked on 425* for 20-30min. I wanted the cornbread batter cooked all the way through and browned on top, so I cooked it covered for 20min and another 10min uncovered.

3 cooked chicken breast, chopped or shredded
1lb veggies
1 1/2cu sauce
2 boxes Jiffy cornbread

1. Preheat oven to 425*. Mix chicken, veggies, and sauce together and place into 9x13 baking pan.

2. Prepare cornbread as directed on back of box and spread over top.

3. Cover with foil and begin to bake.

My lunch today...

I started a new job where it's easier to pack my lunch each day, so stay tuned for what I'm having.

Today I'm having the tuna salad I made last night on a toasted bagels thin with spinach, pineapple chips, and green grapes. The tuna salad is water packed tuna that was drained, chopped hard boiled egg, shredded carrot, diced bell pepper (red, orange, and yellow), chopped yellow onion, chives, mayo, and mustard.

Crockpot Beef Stroganoff

The temperature here in North Carolina has been over 100* for the last weeks which makes standing in front of a hot stove or baking something almost unbearable. That's why I haven't posted much because we've been having leftovers and simple foods. I decided though to try a new recipe I've made from a few different beef stroganoff recipes floating around the internet. This is usually served over egg noodles, but would be just as good over mashed potatoes.

2-3lbs beef stew meat
1-2 cans golden mushroom soup
1 envelope onion soup/dip mix
1 small onion, chopped
1 cup frozen corn kernels
8oz sliced mushrooms
2tbsp worchestershire sauce
4oz cream cheese
1/2cu sour cream

1. Place all ingredients except cream cheese in slow cooker and cook on low for 8hrs. If you like a thicker sauce only add one can of soup. I used 2.

2. Stir in cream cheese and sour cream just before serving.

What's for dinner? Monday Edition...

Tonight, against my better judgement in this 80* weather, I made teriyaki country ribs with potatoes and steamed broccoli for dinner. I basted the ribs every 30 minutes with my favorite teriyaki sauce. They baked an hour at 350* and 30 minutes at 425*. You can cook them at 350* the whole time, but it will take much longer to get that fall off the bone tenderness...

Spinach Artichoke Dip

This is one of my favorite dips ever. I don't think I've been to a restaurant that serves it where I haven't tasted it. It's surprisingly easy to prepare at home and can even be low fat with a few modifications. I used an artichoke dip that was just like marinted artichoke hearts except already chopped. I will give you my regular and lowfat recipes as they cook the same.

Regular

2 8oz packages cream cheese, softened
12oz bag chopped frozen spinach, defrosted and drained
10-13oz jar or can marinted artichoke hearts, chopped if needed
6 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
2cu shredded white cheese, swiss or parmesan are good divided into 1 1/2cu and 1/2cu
Red pepper flakes
Seasoning

Low-Fat
1 8oz package low fat or Neufatschel cream cheese, softened
1 can navy beans, rinsed and mashed
12oz bag chopped frozen spinach, defrosted and drained
10-13oz jar or can marinted artichoke hearts, chopped if needed
2cu low fat cheese, divided into 1 1/2cu and 1/2cu
Red pepper flakes
Seasoning

1. Preheat oven to 375*. 2. Combine all ingredients using 1 1/2cu cheese. Season to taste. 3. Sprinkle remaining 1/2cu cheese on top and place into oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes until bubbling and browned on top. 4. Let sit for 5 minutes. It can be served warm or cold with a choice of dippers.

Frosty berry lemonade

Today my boys and I were going to go to the pool to cool off, but it was closed for repairs. Instead we washed my car and played in the water. When we came inside I wanted something refreshing to drink and immediately thought of the strawberry lemonade you get at restaurants with the berries floating in it. I put a twist on that by blending everything together using a Mic of blueberries and strawberries. It was a bit tart and sweet. Plus you get in some fruit servings from using whole berries. Delicious!

1/2 cu lemon juice
2cu water
2cu frozen berries
Sweetener to taste

Place all the ingredients into your blender until well combined. Serve immediately or freeze in ice pop molds for a refreshing warm weather treat!

Crock Pot Curry

Today I decided to take a flavor trip to Asia with a crock pot curry. I used chicken thighs because they were the cheapest meat and the deep flavor of dark meat is great in a curry. This will be served over brown and jasmine rice cooking in my small crock pot. I also got some naan bread which is kind of like a pita without the pocket.

8 boneless skinless chicken thighs
6 small red potatoes, cut into eigths
1/2 bag frozen California blend veggies
6oz sliced okra
1 jar curry sauce

1. Layer potatoes, okra, and frozen veggies in crock pot. Add half the jar of sauce.

2. Place chicken on top, pour over rest of sauce, and allow to cook for 6-8hrs.

Mmm, enchiladas!

Stay tuned for the recipe for this delicious dinner!

Mark's Tacos

For as long as I can remember my dad has made his tacos like this and they're DELICIOUS! You fry the meat right onto the shell so there's no fear of the meat falling out while you dig in. I have made these tacos with pork, beef, chicken, and turkey so it's up to you what to use!

1lb seasoned ground meat
Corn tortillas
toppings

1. Place about 2tbsp of meat onto one half of a tortilla and use a fork to press it down to form a thin layer.

2. Heat 1/2cu of oil in a large skillet and add in your tortillas so they lay in the oil just past the meat part of the tortilla. Let cook for one minute and fold in half.

3. Allow to continue to cook, flipping frequently, until desired crispiness is achieved. Place upside down on a paper towel lined plate to drain, stuff with your favorite toppings, and enjoy!

*Note: I set myself up a little prep station by the stove when I'm doing these as they don't take very long to cook. That way I can prep tacos as there are some in the oil cooking while keeping an eye on them.

Carraba's Chicken Bryan remix

For date night a week ago we went out to Carraba's to eat and my boyfriend had their chicken bryan. It was a chicken breast topped with basil, sundried tomatoes, goat cheese, and a lemon butter sauce. I got one bite of it and decided it definitely needed to be made again at home. I marinated my chicken overnight with Italian seasonings, a little oil from the sundried tomatoes, and lemon juice. This chicken starts in a skillet and finishes in the oven. Mine was served over whole wheat angel hair pasta with steamed veggies.

4 boneless skinless chicken breast
Extra virgin olive oil
Basil cut into thin strips
Sundried tomatoes in oil
Goat cheese cut into thin disk
1/2 cu butter or margarine
1tbsp flour
3tbsp lemon juice
2 garlic cloves minced

1. Preheat the oven to 425*. Put a small amount of EVOO into a skillet and cook the chicken on medium high for 10 minutes each side. You don't need to move the chicken around in the skillet. Just allow it to brown up nicely. Transfer the chicken to a baking dish.

2. Put the butter into the skillet you cooked the chicken in and melt. Add the garlic cloves and sautee for a minute before sprinkling in the flour. Allow this to cook for a minute then whisk in the lemon juice. Pour over the top of the chicken breast. Place into oven and bake for 10 minutes.

2. Layer the goat cheese and sundried tomatoes on top. Place back into the oven until the cheese is bubbly. Remove and immediately top with basil. Allow to rest for 5 minutes and serve.

Country style ribs

I baked these ribs low and slow for over 4 hrs on 325*. They were dry rubbed with McCormick bourbon brown sugar and chipotle seasoning packets overnight. I placed them on a parchment lined cookie sheet (I would have used foil, but I was out).  I flipped them every 30 minutes while basting with some hickory brown sugar Jack Daniels bbq sauce. Cooked until falling off the bone tender and that slight charring I love in a rib. I also roasted corn in the husk for about 30 minutes until it was done. The corn steams in the husk. Nothing special done to it. Just tossed it right in the oven on the rack.

Homemade trail mix

I travel to different stores daily for my job and hate eating fast food when I'm feeling munchy. I bought craisins and a deluxe nut mix (aka the one with no peanuts) today. When I got home I used snack sized baggies to make my own trail mix baggies with about a 1/4cu of each in a baggies. You could add in mini chocolate chips if you have Jo worries about them melting or mini pretzels. They're easy to just grab and go for light lunch with fruit and milk.

Sunday morning breakfast

Waffles with honey goat cheese, strawberries and a drizzle of syrup, eggs, and a 4 berry banana smoothie...

Lunch for the kiddos

A tortilla spread with pb and rolled around a banana, orange, vanilla yogurt with strawberries, and snack mix of cherrios, craisins, and sesame cashews...

Surf and Turf Dinner for 4 less than $15

I'm doing a simple surf and turf dinner tonight for the family. Chuck steaks, salmon fillets, steamed veggies, and a quickie scallopped style potatoe. The steak and salmon were each less than $5 a pack for four pieces at Walmart. For the potatoes I scrub them, pricked all over and nuked until just tender. Then I sliced them, placed into a buttered pan, topped with bechamel sauce, and sprinkled with cheese. My bechamel (white sauce) recipe is below. You could add in about a cup of shredded cheese to make your own cheese sauce as well. The meat and potatoes both baked at 450* for 10 minutes before being served. The steak and salmon was perfectly cooked. The potatoes had a slight browning around the edges as well...

Bechemel Sauce
2tbsp butter
2tbsp flour
1 1/2cu milk, warmed
herbs and seasonings

1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and add in the flour. Cook while stirring for 1-2 minutes until well combined.

2. Add in your herbs/seasonings and slowly whisk in the warm milk. Cook for another 5 minutes or until thickened making sure to stir regularly. I used two whole basil leaves, three smashed garlic cloves, salt, and pepper to season my bechemel sauce. I removed the basil leaves and garlic cloves before pouring over the potatoes for a hint of flavor. If the sauce is too thick just whisk in a bit more milk. If it is too thin cook it down some more.

These are the steaks and salmon fillets. Just simple seasonings on the steaks. The salmon is brushed with honey mustard and sprinkled with seasonings before they're both baked right on the same sheet.

Make enough potatoes so that you have an even layer in the pan you're baking them in. Normally you'll spend about an hour making scalloped potatoes, but these are ready in 20 minutes or less.

After you pour the bechemel sauce over the cheese and potatoes it's ready for the oven!

Less than 20 minutes and this dinner is served!

Bacon Wrapped Chicken Tenders

BACON!!!! Now that I have your attention, join me for a delicious dish that features a meat which has inspired countless products that should not taste or smell like it (bacon scented bandaids anyone?). Bacon wrapped about bonless skinless chicken breast tenders are great to serve for dinner with the family or at your next party. They're also super easy to make. You can get away with just two ingredients, but I'm all about punching up flavor, so I take it a step further.

3 boneless skinless chicken breast cut into 24 pieces
8 slices of bacon cut into thirds
Brown sugar
Spicy seasoning of choice

1. Preheat oven to 425* and fit a baking sheet with a baking rack. If you don't have one, that's ok. You can still bake straight on the sheet, but you might want to drain the chicken on a paper towel before serving to remove excess bacon fat.

2. Wrap each piece of chicken in a piece of bacon. If the pieces are smaller you can just wrap it right around the piece and place into the pan loose ends down. If the chicken is longer wrap it around spiral style and place with both loose ends down. Sprinkle with seasoning if using. I left the seasoning off the pieces I was feeding my anti-spicy kids.

3. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes and flip over. Sprinkle brown sugar and more seasoning. Rotate pan and place back into oven for another 15 minutes. The bacon should be nice and crispy. Enjoy!

These are the three spicy seasonings I have in my cupboard. I used my Jim Beam Spicy Bourbon tonight.

This is how big I cut the chicken and bacon.

You can see the smaller pieces at the top have the bacon just wrapped around them. The larger pieces have the bacon going around in a spiral style.

This is what the chicken should look like after 20min when you're ready to flip. The ones in the bottom left do not have spicy seasoning on them.

Flip them over and sprinkle with brown sugar and more seasoning if using.

All done!

Crispy Oven Fries

It's possible to get deliciously crispy fries in the oven just from baking at a higher temperature and using a little cooking spray. Cut your potatoes thin and leave the peel on for extra fiber. I like to bake mine with fresh herbs or garlic for even more flavor!

3 large russet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into thin wedges
3 cloves minced garlic
Cooking spray

1. Place baking sheet into oven and preheat to 450* as you slice the potatoes.

2. Once you slice the potatoes and any herbs you might want to use generously spray your sheet. Add the potatoes and herbs then spray their tops with more spray.

3. Cook in 15 minute increments turning for even cooking until desired doneness. My kids like their french fries extra crispy, so mine went for over 30 minutes.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Chicken cordon bleu seems like a really complicated meal, but it's actually pretty easy to make since there are three variations to it. The basic flavors of chicken, ham, and cheese with a crunchy outer layer will be there no matter how you choose to make it. In order from easiest to hardest here are the ways you can make it. First, you can just lay the ham and cheese on top of the chicken breast and carefully bread the whole thing before setting into the baking pan. Second, you can cut a slit into the chicken breast taking care not to slice all the way through and stuff the ham/cheese inside before breading. Third, you can pound the chicken breast until they are very thin (or save the hassle and start with cutlets) then lay the ham/cheese on top and roll them up before breading. In this rendition I go for the middle ground with the slit cut into the chicken breast.

4 boneless skinless chicken breast
4 slices cheese
4 slices deli ham
1 egg
1/2cu milk
bread crumbs

1. Preheat the oven to 450* and spray a baking pan. Prepare the chicken breast however you please. I cut a slit running about a half inch from each end and almost all the way through to the other side. Stuff a slice of ham and cheese into each chicken breast.

2. Beat together the egg and milk then dip each chicken breast before fully coating with bread crumbs. Place each breast into the prepared pan and spray with more cooking spray.

3. Bake on a lower rack in the oven for 20 minutes or until the edges of the breast start to brown. Rotate the pan and finish baking another 10-15 minutes until the juices from the chicken run clear and the bread crumbs are golden brown.

It's Friday!

For many people the work week is over and they're ready to enjoy the weekend. I'm going to enjoy a brew while I cook some bacon wrapped chicken tenders. Stay tuned for new blog post :-) I've got chicken cordon bleu, garlic oven fries, and tonight's dinner to post! What do you have cooking?

Drunk Pulled Pork

Meat taste better when its drunk. I mean cooked in alcohol. It imparts a depth of flavor that's hard to get with a standard marinade. Tonight for dinner I cooked a pork roast in the slow cooker with a can of Jeremiah Weed Spiked Cola. It's flavors are reminiscent of Jack and Coke with a much lower price tag. I seasoned my roast with brown sugar and a Jim Beam barbeque rub I found at Walmart. In the crock pot while I enjoyed Mother's Day! There's no real recipe here. Just put enough meat in the pot to feed your family, add a cup or two of your favorite beverage combo, and let the slow cooker do all the work...