Mexican Chicken Casserole

September 21st, 2009

Lizzie asked for this recipe, so here it is. A quick disclaimer… there is nothing redeeming about this meal. There are no healthy veggies hiding in the mix. There’s no unspoken fiber, no fruits. Nothing at all even waving at healthy from a distance. And it’s not even really a casserole. It is, however, really yummy. Just don’t make it often.

Mexican Chicken Casserole

  • 2 cans cream of chicken soup
  • 1 can cream of cheddar soup
  • 1 can Ranch beans
  • 2 cans of chicken (yeah, that’s right, canned chicken)
  • 1 package of taco seasoning
  • a little bit of chicken broth
  • (you can also add a can of Rotel if you’re feeling crazy)

Mix it all together into a big glop. Pour it into a baking dish & bake at 350 till all warm and bubbly.

There are lots of options for what to do at this point. Mike’s favorite is for me to serve this over chips with queso. You can also roll it into tortillas for enchiladas. You can serve it over rice.

Enjoy.

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Pork Tacos

July 28th, 2009

As part of my 101 List, I set a goal to try new receipes and review half of them here. This one is a keeper. Here’s the recipe. 101 IN 1001

Pork Tacos

  • 1 can chipotles in adobo sauce
  • minced garlic
  • 1/2 medium onion, chopped
  • 3 tbs olive oil
  • 2 tbs honey
  • 1 tbs cider vinegar
  • kosher salt
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 3 1/4 c chicken broth
  • 4 lbs boneless pork shoulder, cut into chunks
  • fresh ground pepper
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 cinnamon stick

*In a blender, mix the garlic, chipotles in adobo sauce, onion, olive oil, honey, cider vinegar, salt and oregano.

*Pour the mixture into a dutch oven or deep saucepot and add chicken broth. Simmer till blended well.

*Add the pork, bay leaves and cinnamon stick. Cook covered in a 350 degree over an hour and 45 minutes. Uncover and cook another 30 minutes.

*Remove the bay leaves and cinnamon stick. Shred the pork with two forks and season as needed with salt and pepper.

*Serve with warm tortillas and toppings.

Optional Toppings

  • radishes
  • scallions
  • salsa
  • queso fresco (crumbled)
  • fresh avocado
  • lettuce
  • red cabbage and jicama
  • tomatoes
  • mangoes

Notes…

__This is a recipe from the Feb/Mar Food Network magazine. I changed it a little bit. I left out the ancho and pasilla chiles (couldn’t find them at the Publix) and increased the chipotles from 2-3 to the entire can (about six). Not the best choice. Much hotter than the kids could eat. I ended up taking the pork out of the mixture about halfway through the cooking time and replacing the sauce with crushed tomatoes to cool it down some. Worked like a charm.

__You can also do this in the Crock-Pot. Just put it all in the CP instead of in the oven. Cook on high for five hours.

__The magazine suggests ‘upgrading’ your toppings. The odd sounding toppings are from them. The more traditional, from me.

__I started Weight Watchers recently, and this recipe will give you eight servings at 5 points per serving. With the queso fresco, salsa, radishes, and tortillas, the whole thing is 9 points.

Our Thoughts…

__Mike gave it a 4 out of 5, saying it was a different taste (pork, radishes, spinach, salsa and queso fresco) but a good different.

__Griff and Eliza both gave it a 5, which is rare around here and which probably means they won’t eat it at all the next time I make it. But Griff ate his with with radishes & Eliza had her’s with spinach, so it was a good meal all around.

__Me… I enjoyed it. But it was a lot of work. Now, sure, my toe hurts & I mostly just told Mike what to do, but it seemed like he did a lot of work. But it was tasty, and it would be a nice alternative to the typical tacos every now and then.

__And I would have taken a photo, but we gobbled them up way too fast.

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Veggie Burgers… really!

March 12th, 2009

One of my goals for the 101 in 1001 Days was to serve my family one vegetarian meal per week. I haven’t been quite that consistent, but I did make some amazing veggie burgers last night. I got the recipe from the new Food Network Magazine (a subscription I got for free thanks to my Coke reward points!).

Now, I did adjust some of the recipe for us… no mushrooms. Ew. But if you like that sort of thing, saute some mushrooms in olive oil and spread over the top of the burger. The recipe also called for 1/3 cup of chopped walnuts, but given our nut allergies, we skipped that one just for kicks.

So here goes…

  • 1 15 oz can kidney beans (I used white kidney beans), drained and rinsed
  • 1 small red onion, shredded and squeezed dry
  • 1 small carrot, finely diced (I used more than this. We like our carrots.)
  • 1 cup dried breadcrumbs
  • 2 tbs parsley
  • 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • kosher salt and fresh pepper, to taste
  • English muffins

Put the beans in a bowl and mash with a fork until chunky. Put pretty much everything but the muffins in the bowl and mix. To be honest, I didn’t really measure anything. I just plopped stuff in till it looked good.I also threw in a small handful of shredded parm just for good measure.

Then, scoop out the mixture and make four burger patties. They’re delicate, so don’t try to grill them. Just put them on a hot skillet long enough to sear the sides and warm the insides.

While the burgers are warming, slice and toast the muffins. I used whole wheat muffins to give just a little extra fiber. When I took the muffins out of the toaster, I spread each side with Laughing Cow cheese (my newest favorite thing) so it got all melty.

Top with a burger pattie and mixed greens. Yummo.

On a scale of 1-5, I got a 4 from Mike and a 2.5 from Griff (though he ate the entire thing in about three bites). Eliza, of course, didn’t even try it. If it weren’t for bananas, apples and chips, that child would starve. Whatcha gonna do?

On the mama scale, it was a hit. I’ll make this one again. I loved it!

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Fondue Fun…

January 4th, 2009

This weekend, we had the cousins stay with us, and last night, I made fondue. It was a good time, I have to admit. We had cheese fondue with veggies (followed by a rotisserie chicken… I had to fill up two pre-teen boys, after all) and then chocolate fondue with fruit and marshmallows. Yummy all around.

As part of my 101 List, I wanted to try new recipes, so I used a recipe from Paula Deen for the cheese fondue. The recipe is…

2 c grated Gruyere

2 c grated Swiss

2-3 tbs flour

2 1/2 c white wine

nutmeg

Grate cheese. Mix flour in with cheese. Simmer the wine in a pan or skillet on the stove and then add the cheese a bit at a time until it’s all melted and the mixture is thickened. Transfer to a fondue pot.

** I used Sparkling Grape Juice with the kids, and it gave the fondue a slightly sweet taste. I also used a bit of Havarti and some Buttercase, too, in with the other cheeses. Instead of nutmeg, I added freshly ground pepper.

For the chocolate fondue, I melted several squares of Ghiradelli semi-sweet chocolate with a handful of white chocolate chips and semi-sweet chocolate chips with just an itty-bit of oil. We used firm, fresh strawberries and bananas as our fruit dippers.

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Menu Plan Monday - the family visit week

December 7th, 2008

As I write this on Sunday morning, we’ve got the cousins here with us, and I’m making sausage muffins for breakfast. These are some of my very favorite muffins, and I’m thinking I’ll make another batch later in the week and freeze them for next weekend.

Mike’s dad and his sweet wife are coming to visit next weekend, and they’ll arrive Saturday afternoon, hopefully after Mike is finished with his winter commencement. Muffins would be the perfect, easy Sunday morning breakfast. Add a little fresh fruit, and badda-bing, breakfast!

So… here we go… this week’s menu…

Sunday - Breakfast - sausage muffins … Lunch - turkey burgers … Dinner - leftover night with cheesy biscuits (come on, now, you’ve gotta have something to make leftovers better)

Monday - Omlets (for the boys) and biscuits with ham … apple slices

Tuesday - Chicken Cordon Bleu Pinwheels

Smoosh chicken tenders between two pieces of wax paper. Sprinkle with seasoning. Place one thin slice of ham and one thin slice of cheese (mozz or swiss) and roll up. Skewer to hold shape. (I sometimes slip in a piece of spinach. Ninja veggies, remember?) Bake at 350 till chicken is done through. Serve with brown rice.

Wednesday -Tapas Night - We’re going to have cheesy fondue (with carrots and broccoli and bread) and Veggie Pizza Minis. I’m going to have the kids help with both.

Thursday -Turkey Club Wraps (from the Hungry Girl cookbook) with fruit salad on the side

Friday -Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken Skewers (again, the HG cookbook) … served over couscous.

Saturday -breakfast - just me and the kids - donuts … lunch - just me and the kids - sandwiches … dinner - everyone! Mike’s going to smoke a couple of pork roasts, and I’ll make the sides. Most likely, we’ll have glazed carrots (I’m very good at those.) and cheesy mashed potatoes and marshmallowy sweet potatoes. For Hayden, I’m going to make a red velvet cake for dessert.

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