Mexican Chicken

Mexican Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 can of black beans, rinsed

1 16oz.jar of favorite salsa or homemade

1 can of corn

1 8 oz. cream cheese

Dump everything but cream cheese into a your crock pot. Cook on high for approx. 4-5 hours. Within the last 1/2 hr of eating put your cream cheese in and let melt. Mix well before serving.
I serve this over rice and it is yummo.
Enjoy!

Vanilla Pudding

This was so good and you know what's going into it. When I started looking at labels I stopped buying a lot of things. I love pudding and this recipe is better than the "box". Give it a try.

This recipe serves 4.


4 TBS. Sugar
2 TBS. cornstarch
2/8 tsp. salt
2 c. 2% milk
2 egg yolks, beaten
3 tsp. butter
1 tsp vanilla

1. In a small sauce pan, combine sugar, cornstarch and salt. Gradually stir in milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir 2 mins. longer. Remove from heat.
2. Stir a small amount of hot filling into egg yolk; return all to pan, stirring constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 1 min. longer. Remove from heat. Gently stir in butter and vanilla.
3. Cool for 15 mins. , stirring occasionally.
Transfer to dessert dishes.
Cover and refrigerate for 1 hr.Enjoy!

Salmon Patties

These have got to be one of my daughters favorites. She loves them. We all love them actually. I'm sure you will enjoy them as well.

INGREDIENTS:

2- 14oz. cans wild salmon (I pick out the bones)
1 onion, minced
2 eggs
1 c. bread crumbs
2 TBS worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp hot sauce
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
4 TBS. chopped parsley
All purpose flour for coating
1/4 c. butter
6 TBS. olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

Drain and flake salmon; combine with onion, egg, bread crumbs, worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, black pepper, cheese and parsley; Mix well.
Shape into patties.
Dust lightly with flour.
Chill for 20 mins.
In a large skillet heat butter and oil over medium high heat.
Cook the patties until browned on both sides, about 10 minutes.
Drain briefly on paper towels before serving.

Enjoy!

Celery Salad

This is so good and so easy. It would go great with burgers or something of the like.

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 c. sliced celery
2/3 c. dried cranberries
2/3 c. frozen peas, thawed
5TBS chopped parsley
3 TBS Mayo
3 TBS plain yogurt
2 TBS. Chopped pecans
3 tsp. lemon juice
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp pepper.

DIRECTIONS:
Combine all ingredients. Chill!

Is that easy or what. This recipe serves 4 so feel free to double it to suit your needs.
So simple yet soooo good!
ENJOY!

Mexican Coffee Brownies

I made these last night to go with the Encharritto Casserole and they were delicious. As always I tweaked the recipe to make it healthier. So here is my version.

Wet Ingredients:
3/4 Organic Coconut Oil
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp instant coffee (decaf)

Dry Ingredients
3/4 c flour
1/2 c. sugar (they called for a cup here but I used half and it tasted good to us. If you like things a bit sweeter go for a bit more sugar.)
1/4 c. cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp cinnamon
a pinch of cayenne pepper
3/4 c. dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spray an 8 x 8 pan with non stick cooking spray.
Whisk wet ingredients in a medium bowl until well blended.
Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the wet ingredients all at once and stir to combine.
Pour into greased baking pan.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let cool for 10 minutes then cut into squares.
Serves 6

Enjoy!

Banana Bread

This is yummo. It makes 2 loaves.

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 c. butter, softened
1 1/2 c. Sucanat or regular sugar
4 eggs, beaten
5 crushed bananas
1 1/2 c. wheat flour
1 1/2 c. white flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350.
1. Cream butter and sugar together.
2. Add eggs and mashed bananas
3. Combine well.
4. Mix dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture. Add Vanilla.
5. Pour into greased loaf pans.
6. Bake at 350 for 60 mins.

Enjoy!

Turkey Sausage

My family LOVES this "sausage". It's way better for you then traditional sausage and I guarantee you won't be disappointed. You can double this recipe to suit your needs.

Ingredients
1 lb. ground turkey
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sage
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
3/4 tsp pepper

1. In a medium bowl mix together all the ingredients until well blended. (This is even better if mixed the night before to let the flavors mesh together)
2. Form into small patties. I cook mine on the George Foreman grill but a frying pan would work just as well. You can also use this for sausage gravy. Just don't form into patties. Cook ground up and then put in your gravy.
Enjoy!

Easy Stir Fry without the Wok

Okay you may not even call this "stir fry" but that's what I'm calling it. You might call it yummy chicken stuff over rice. Either way this dish tastes great.

Ingredients:
4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts cooked and cut into pieces.
4 cups cooked rice of your choice.
1 cup chopped carrots
1 1/2 cups chopped broccoli
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves of garlic minced

Easy stir fry sauce:
1 cup water or chicken broth ( I use chicken broth)
3 tsps corn starch
3 TBS soy sauce
1 TBS apple cider vinegar
1 TBS of ground ginger made by Spice World found in refrigerated veggie section at the grocery store. If you can't find it then add 1 tsp. of dry ginger.
Whisk all ingredients together and set aside until needed.

In a large pan add your cooked chicken, broccoli, carrots, onions and garlic. Saute' until veggies are crisp tender, over medium high heat. Approx. 5-8 mins. Reduce heat to medium and add stir fry sauce. Sauce will thicken quickly. Cook another 1-2 minutes and then serve over rice.
Super easy yet super yummy. Serves 6

Encharrito Casserole

Okay the name came from Kathy and I brainstorming at the gym while I told her about this recipe. I think it's appropriate.

I didn't take a picture of this one because I wasn't sure if it was going to be any good. I made it on the fly last night when I wasn't sure what we were going to have for dinner but knew it had to involve some left over ground turkey. My family loved it so I had to write it down really quick before I forgot what I did. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. It's super easy.

Ingredients
1 1/2 lb. ground turkey
1 10z can of Ro*Tel diced tomatoes with green chilies
1 15.4oz can of Amy's Organic refried beans
1 sm can of sliced black olives
1 - 1 1/2 c. grated cheddar cheese
1/2 a package of corn tortillas
Homemade Enchilada Sauce (the canned stuff has msg in it) Recipe below.

Preheat oven to 360 degrees.
Cook your ground turkey or beef in a pan until browned. Drain off excess liquid.
Add tomatoes, refried beans and stir until all is heated through.
Spray a 9 x 13 inch pan with non stick cooking spray.
Cut approx. 15 corn tortillas in half.

Put a layer of tortillas in bottom of pan. (There will be some gaps as the tortillas are round and the pan square.)


Next put half of your meat mixture on top of tortillas and spread evenly around.
Spread half the can of olives on top of that and half the cheese.
Repeat one more time and end with tortillas on top.

Spread about 1 1/2 cups of sauce on top and bake for 20 mins.

Enchilada sauce
3 TBS of olive oil
1/4 of flour
16 oz can of chicken broth ( I use organic)
1 1/2 TBS of Chili Powder
1/2 TBS of McCormick's Chipotle Chili Pepper powder (in the spice aisle)If you can't find that then substitute one chopped chipotle and 1 TBS of the sauce it's in.
Do the last two ingredients to taste based on your heat tolerance. We like things a bit spicy.

In a sauce pan heat your oil over medium heat. Add your flour and wisk constantly until combined. It may be a bit thick that's okay. Add your chicken broth and continue wisking.
Add your seasonings and continue to wisk. Bring to a boil and let thicken (about 5- 10 mins)Wisk occasionally. Remove from heat.
If you want to buy the sauce you can. Don't let that stop you from trying this. It was really good.

Top this off with a dollop of sour cream and Voila' your done!
I hope you enjoy. Let me know if you try it and like it.

Taco Pizza

I make 2 of these to feed our family of 5.

The Meat-
1 lbs. ground turkey or beef
1 chipotle pepper, chopped with a TBS of adobo sauce
2 TBS Worcestershire sauce
1 TBS hot sauce
1 tsp. chili powder
Toppings
1 cup. cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 c. onion, chopped
small can sliced black olives
1 small green or red pepper, chopped

Preheat oven according to what you are using for a crust. (400 degrees if homemade). I have 2 baking stones that I preheat before I place the pizzas on them for a more crispy crust. Sprinkle cornmeal on the stones so the crust won't stick. By the time the oven is preheated your stones will be ready to go.
Cook your ground turkey until done. Drain off excess fat. Add your chopped chipotle pepper and adobo sauce to meat. Omit this part if you don't like spicy but it adds great flavor. I usually add more than this but to keep it on the milder side just add what is called for here. Add approx. 2 TBS of soy sauce, 1 TBS of hot sauce, and a 1 tsp. of chili powder. Now you can adjust this to your heat level tolerance. Mix this all up until combined. Remove from heat.
Divide meat mixture up between both crusts. Add your toppings. I grate my own cheese because it is so much cheaper then buying it already grated. Think about this if you are trying to save money. It doesn't take that much time either.
My homemade pizzas take approx. 23 mins to cook. That's with a homemade crust. Time will vary depending on your crust. If store bought just bake to their directions.
Enjoy!!

Veggie Stuffed Shells

These are great for those times when you don't want a meat but still want to get filled up. They were delicious!


1 box of jumbo pasta shells
2 tsp. olive oil
2 1/2 cups of chopped broccoli
1 cup shredded carrot
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 10oz. box of chopped frozen spinach, thawed
1/4 cup fresh chopped basil
1 cup low fat cottage cheese or part-skin ricotta ( I actually used plain yogurt because I was out of both of those and it worked just fine)
2 TBS grated Parmesan
dash of salt and pepper
1 Jar of favorite spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup Italian blend shredded cheese

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cook pasta according to package directions.
2. Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Saute' broccoli, carrots, onions and garlic 3 mins. or until just tender. Add spinach and 1/2 cup water; cover and cook 2 minutes.
3. Remove cover and cook until liquid is mostly evaporated. Remove from heat and stir in basil, cottage cheese, Parmesan and salt and pepper. Spread sauce on bottom of a 13 x 9 in. baking dish.
4. Fill each pasta shell with a rounded TBS of filling; arrange in baking dish. Sprinkle with Italian blend cheese and cover tightly with foil. Bake 35 mins until hot and bubbly.

Enjoy!