Chicken and pasta skillet dinner

This recipe comes from the Super so fat, low fat, no fat cookbook by Betty Rohde. I've had it for a long time, but haven't tried anything new out of it in ages. This recipe was chock full of veggies - which was great for the family since we ate chuy's for lunch and no one had any veggies other than salsa. For a meal so full of veggies it wasn't bad. 3 star to me. I think it could be tons better without the cabbage and peas. If I left those out, I would not add the additional water. It would still have plenty of veggies, and more flavor with less veggies spreading the flavor thinner.



Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups pasta (I used rigatoni)
• 6 frozen breaded chicken tenders
• 1/2 cup chopped onion (1/2 small onion)
• 3/4 cup chopped celery (I used 2 stalks)
• 1/2 cup chopped green peppers (I used 1/2 a green pepper)
• 1 14 oz can stwed tomatoes
• 1/2 tomato can water
• 1/2 teaspoon basil
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon italion seasoning
• 2 cups chopped raw cabbage
• 1 cup frozen green peas

Directions

In a medium saucepan, cooke the pasta according to package directions. Drain, set aside.
Meanwhile, in a large deep skillet or dutch oven, brown the chicken tenders lightly. Add the chopped onions, celery and peppers; saute until just starting to soften. Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces with a spatula. Add the stewed tomatoes, water, basil, lemon pepper, oregano, and italian seasoning. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the cabbage and green peas (I actually only added the cabbage and simmered fo a while then added the green peas.) Continue simmering, stirring occasionally until vegetables are desired tenderness. Carefully stir in the pasta and simmer a few minutes longer.

Strawberry cheesecake pancakes

This recipe is from the Taste of Home website. We used strawberries instead of blueberries because I had bought Stawberries at the store. Unfortunately we didn't have extras for topping. They were tasty though. Brandon made the cream cheese and I guess didn't pay attention and used the entire 8 oz package of cream cheese then kept adding the cool whip until it was a good consistency. This would be tasty with jam or triple berry sauce - or make a sauce like triple berry or blueberry sauce with strawberry or whatever fruit you are using. We did need a second batch of pancakes.
Ingredients

• 1 package (3 ounces) Kraft Philadelphia® - Cream Cheese, softened - we used 8 oz
  
• 3/4 cup whipped topping -we used most of a container
  
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1-1/4 cups buttermilk
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (we used strawberries)
  
• 3/4 cup maple syrup, warmed
• Additional blueberries, optional

Directions

• For topping, in a small bowl, beat cream cheese and whipped topping until smooth. Chill until serving.
• In a large bowl, combine the flour, cracker crumbs, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Combine the eggs, buttermilk and butter; add to dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in blueberries.
• Pour batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto a greased hot griddle; turn when bubbles form on top. Cook until the second side is golden brown. Spread topping over pancakes. Top with warm syrup; sprinkle with additional blueberries if desired. Yield: 12 pancakes (3/4 cup topping).

Classic Italian Lasagna, Marinara Sauce

This recipe is from Giada De Laurentiis' book everyday italian cookbook. The cover says 125 simple and delicious recipes. I have to disagree with the simple business. This has to be the most complex lasagna I have ever made. I had looked at the recipe and knew that, so I had planned ahead, but it was a lot of work. I had to make 2 seperate sauces from scratch one of which had to simmer for an hour. Anyway, at least it was good - probably not my favorite lasagna on the planet, but it was pretty good. I just like my lasagna the way I'm used to lasagna. This had a creamier flavor.



Ingredients

• salt
• 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
• 15 dry lasagna noodles (about 12 oz)
• 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 1/2 cups Bechamel Sauce (see below)
• 1 1/2 cups Marinara Sauce (see below)
• 1 1/2 pound ricotta (I only had 15 oz. Was going to buy more but didn't. It was fine like this, and I can't imagine it being fuller)
• 3 eggs (I used 2 since I used less ricotta)
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 2 10 oz packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (I used 1 16 oz. package and can't image having used more)
• 3 cups shredded mozzarella
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the vegetable oil. Cook the lasagna noodles until almost al dente, about 6 minutes. (This isn't fully done.) Drain, then rinse noodles under cold water to stop cooking. Set aside.
2. Brown beef - I used my pre-cooked.
3. Position rack in center of the oven and preheat to 375
4. In medium bowl, mix bechamel and marinara sauces to blend.
   
5. In anotehr medium bowl, mix the ricotta, eggs and 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper to blend. Set aside.
6. Spread the butter over a 9 X 13 pan. Spoon 1/3 of the red sauce over bottom of the dish. Arrange 5 noodles on the sauce. Spread the ricotta mixture evenly over the noodles. Top with spinach. Arrange 5 more lasagna noodles on the spinach, then top with ground beef. Spoon 1/3 red sauce on top. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. Top with the remaining 5 noodles. Spoon remaining red sauce over noodles, then sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese and the parmesan cheese.
   
7. She put it on a lined cookie sheet, but since I was lacking a few things, I didn't.
   Bake until lasagna is heated through and the top is bubbling, about 45 minutes.

Bechamel Sauce

Ingredients

• 5 Tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup flour
• 4 cups warm whole milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• pinch of white pepper
• pinch of nutmeg

In a 2 quart saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually add teh warm milk whisking constantly to prevent any lumps from forming. Simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the sauce is thick, smooth, and creamy about 10 minutes (do not allow the bechamel sauce to boil). Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt and pinch of pepper and nutmeg. Season with more salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste. (I did a great job making this with no lumps, but as it cooled and formed a skim then when I stirred it it was lumpy - didn't make the lasagna taste bad, I was just sad I stirred for so long for nothing.)

Marinara sauce

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 small onions, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 celery stalks, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 32 oz cans crushed tomatoes (I had 2 28 oz cans and used 8 oz from another can)
  
• 2 dried bay leaves

In a large pot, heat the oil over a medium-high flame. Add the onions and garlic and saute until the onions are translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and bay leaves, and simmer uncovered over low heat until the sauce thickens, about 1 hour. Remove and discard the bay leaves. SEason the sauce with more salt and pepper to taste.
Marinara Sauce

Fired-up Mac & Cheese

This recipe is from The food Nanny Rescues Dinner book. I doubled it and used the lesser amount of spice because my kids aren't big on super spicy. I didn't think it was spicy at all. It did have a decent flavor. I wasn't a fan of the parmesan combined with the sharp cheddar. It was a bit too sharp for me. Next time, I think I would use cheddar and another cheese -not parmesan - maybe part cheddar, part colby jack, or part sharp cheddar, part regular cheddar, and try a bit more spice.
I actually made this one exactly like the book said, so I'm only including my picture. It is on page 36 in the book.

Chicken with apples and cheddar

This recipe comes from Saving Dinner. (P. 93) It originally used turkey cutlets. We used chicken breast and flattened them. We also forgot the cheese. It was still very tasty. It looks a lot like the pork in the previous picture, but they taste nothing a like. We served it with brown rice. Next time I would double the sauce. It was really good with the brown rice.


Ingredients

• 1 lime, juiced
• 5 chicken breasts (flattened, then chopped in 1/2)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 cup chili sauce (pretty much the whole jar)
• 2 apples, chopped
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions

1. In a bowl, toss together lime juice and chicken; salt and pepper to taste. Set aside while preparing the rest. Preheat broiler.
2. In a saucepan, combine remaining ingredients except the cheese. Simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.
3. Place chicken on a broiler pan and broil on both sides - 3 minutes or less, depending on thickness. Serve hot apple/corn sauce over chicken and top with a little shredded Cheddar cheese.
   

Mexicali pork chops

This is another one from the plaid betty crocker cookbook. I have notes all over it, so I guess I have to write it out again. Mostly I was just doubling and making up for the fact that cans seem to be different sizes nos. The original recipe is on p. 252. I think I need to get back to writing these down on the day we eat them, not later. It makes it harder for me to remember if they were any good. It seems like this one was just OK. Aha, I just looked at the picture and remembered this a bit more. The rice took a long time to cook. I usually have that problem when I cook rice with tomatoes. I cooked it longer, but really didn't have time to cook it too much longer. I also thought the flavor wasn't much better than just cooking it with some salsa, and I even added chili powder, garlic salt and taco sauce. I would have liked more cumin or taco seasoning or something. I also cooked it differently. They cut the fat off the pork, cooked it, and saved the drippings too cook in. #1, I don't cook with that much fat. #2 - I don't think I even had that much fat on my pork chops.




Ingredients

• 6-8 pork loin chops cut 3/4 inch thick
• 1 chopped green pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped onion (1/2 onion)
• 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 15.5 oz can corn, drained
• 1 15.5 oz can kidney beans, drained
• 1 cup long grain rice
• 1 cup water
• 1 7 oz can green chilies
  
• chili powder (I think I used a teaspoon)
  
• garlic salt (1 tsp ?)
  
• taco sauce a couple of tablespoons - should have used more.
  

Directions (oven at 350)

Trim excess fat from chops; Spray pan with cooking spray (or heat 1 tsp - 1 Tablespoon oil in pan and fry pork chops. Season with salt and pepper. Set chops aside. Add 1 Tablespoon of butter to the pan (unless you have some nice pork drippings - I didn't.) Sautee green pepper and onions in butter till tender. Stir in tomatoes, corn, kidney beans, uncooked rice, water, chili peppers, seasonings. Bring to boiling. Turn into a 9 x 13 pan. Arrange pork chops on top. cover and bake in a 350 oven for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 to 15 minutes more or till meat is tender.

broccoli salad

This is just regular broccoli salad. I think I first got the recipe from someone at work. I know it is in my ward cookbook, so that is where I looked for it this time. It is the same everywhere I've seen it. I like it. We actually didn't let it chill this time - it is better with the 4 hour chill to let the flavors mix. We didn't have sunflower seeds so we used pecans this time. The picture is pretty sad. I didn't take it. It was way shadowy and I did my best to lighten it to be viewable.


Ingredients and directions:

Mix together

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 c. sugar or 5 Tablespoons Splenda (I've always used splenda)
• 2 Tablespoons vinegar

In a large bowl, combine:

• 2 bunches broccoli, trimmed and chopped
• 1/2 cup red onion, sliced or chopped
• 6 to 8 slices bacon, fried crisp and crumbled
• 1/2 cup cheddar cheese (optional - didn't use it this time, but I have.)
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup sunflower seeds or chopped walnuts (I usually use sunflower seeds, this time it was pecans. We're not as big of a fan of walnuts, so we rarely use them.)
  

Stir all ingredient together. Chill 4 hours