New Recipes

I've tried a couple of good recipes from Pinterest and wanted to share. Especially because they are super easy!

Cheesy Crockpot Chicken and Rice

This is SO easy and SO yummy! I prepped everything in the morning, turned the crockpot on and dinner was done. I already crave it again.

Ingredients
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 large onion, chopped
1 -8 ounce box Zatarain's Yellow Rice Mix, cooked according to directions
1 cup cheddar cheese
1 - 10.5 ounce can cream of chicken soup (regular or fat free)
1 -15 ounce can whole kernel corn, drained

Instructions
Place chicken in bottom of slow cooker. Scatter chopped onion over top. Spoon cream soup over top of that. Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours or on high 3-4 hours. A few minutes before serving, add in cooked rice, corn, and cheese. Stir to combine. Serve hot.

Here's a link for pictures and more detailed instructions.

http://www.southernplate.com/2010/09/slow-cooker-cheesy-chicken-and-rice-the-downside-of-being-a-swan-princess.html

Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta

This recipe comes so highly recommended that I wonder if my expectations might have been to high. It is yummy and easy to make but I felt like it was missing something. A freshness to it if you may. Like a squeeze of lemon juice and some zest? I don't know. The flavor was good. It just felt like something was missing to complete the flavors. Maybe fresh basil? I don't know. If you try it and figure it out let me know. I substituted fresh tomatoes at the end instead of cooking them. I also used fresh garlic. The recipe serves two so you may need to double to feed a family.

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

4 ounces fettuccine, cooked

2 teaspoons cajun seasoning

2 tablespoons butter

1-2 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes

1 green onion thinly sliced

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon dried basil

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder (I used fresh minced garlic)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Place chicken and Cajun seasoning in a bowl and toss to coat. In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken in butter or margarine until chicken is tender, about 5 to 7 minutes. Reduce heat add green onion, heavy cream, tomatoes, basil, salt, garlic powder, black pepper and heat through. Pour over hot pasta and toss with Parmesan cheese.

Creamy Shrimp and Mushroom Pasta

I guess you could say that today was All New Recipes day in the Nielsen house.

I found this recipe here and that's also where the picture came from. I have a house of seafood lovers so this was a giant hit here. I imagine it takes a lot like a shrimp Alfredo would, but I wouldn't exactly know because I'm not a fan of Alfredo. This is so yummy! It's easy to cook but paired with garlic bread and a green salad you could serve it at your fanciest of dinner parties. As I was cooking it I thought it would make a great anniversary or valentine's dinner. (Why was I thinking that? Who knows?!?!?!)

4-8 oz. fettuccine or linguine. (I used fettuccine. The author says she prefers less noodles but I had a family to feed. I used about 12 oz. of fettuccine.)

10 TBS butter (The author says, I know, but I've tried it with less and it's just not the same.)

8 oz. fresh, sliced mushrooms

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 oz. cream cheese, cut into small pieces

2 TBS fresh parsley, chopped

1 TBS fresh basil, chopped. (The author says you can use dried herbs if that's all you have, but I(Kristen) know dried and fresh measurements are not the same and I don't think the flavor is as good with dried.

2/3 cup boiling water (from your noodle pot)
1 lb. cooked shrimp (feel free to buy frozen)

1. Boil and salt a large pot of water and cook your pasta.

2. While your pasta is cooking, cook your shrimp if necessary and reserve. If your shrimp are pre-cooked and frozen, quickly thaw them under running water.

3. In a large skillet melt 2 TBS butter over medium heat and saute mushrooms until soft and brown. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Reserve cooked mushrooms and melt remaining butter in the skillet. Add minced garlic, cream cheese and herbs. At this point, I generally fell like something has gone terribly wrong. The cream cheese doesn't really melt and starts to look almost curdled, don't worry about it It will all smooth out and be wonderful when we add the water, I promise.

5. Simmer cream cheese mixture until well blended. Get a scoop of boiling pasta water from your noodle pot and mix it in, stirring quickly to smooth out the sauce.

6. Keep sauce hot and add shrimp and mushrooms. Mix well and simmer (stirring often) until everything is hot and thickened, about 10 minutes. You won't ruin this sauce by accidentally boiling it so don't worry.

7. Toss sauce with cooked noodles and serve.

Caramel Sticky Buns

I've seen a lot of types of these recipes but I've never tried them before. I decided that I liked the idea of making it last night and having a yummy thing ready to go for Sunday morning. These are so good and we devoured it!

I found the recipe here and that's also where the picture came from.

18 frozen dinner rolls (Rhodes work perfectly)

1/2 package (3.5 oz.) butterscotch cook and serve pudding. (NOT INSTANT)

1 stick butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

chopped nuts - optional

Note from Kristen - nuts and optional don't go together for me. I used pecans.

Grease or spray a bundt pan with non-stick oil. Sprinkle with nuts. Place frozen rolls in pan. Now, sprinkle HALF of the package of pudding over rolls. Make sure the pudding is NOT the instant kind! Melt butter and brown sugar together and pour over rolls. Sprinkle with a few more chopped nuts. Cover pan with greased foil and put a dishtowel over the foil. Place in a warm place overnight (the oven works great, as long as it is turned off). In the morning, bake at 325 degrees for 1/2 hour. Invert immediately onto a large plate.

Crazy Noodles

I saw this on pinterest and thought I'd have a cooking night with the girls. We all had a blast sticking noodles into the hot dog slices, then we laughed and laughed at what they'd become after they were cooked.

I didn't eat any but my girls put parmesean cheese on them and said, "delicious, yummy and I like them mama."

Cashew Chicken

I tried this recipe last week and it was a huge success.  This is one of my favorites to order at chinese restaurants, so I am excited that I can make my own at home now.

Dallin even added it to this month's menu, so he enjoyed it as well.

No pictures, but here is the link: http://gimmesomeoven.com/cashew-chicken/

Cashew Chicken Recipe (腰果鸡丁)
Ingredients:
Stir-fry Ingredients:

• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenderloins, cut into 1″ cubes
• 1/2 cup cashew nuts
• 1 green bell pepper, cut into about 1″ pieces
• 5 slices ginger, peeled and minced (about 2 tsp.)
• 1/2 yellow onion, cut into 1/2″ dice
• 2 scallions, diced (optional)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Marinade:

• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. corn starch
• 1/2 tsp. rice wine (or rice wine vinegar)

Sauce:

• 3 Tbsp. water
• 1 Tbsp. oyster sauce
• 1 tsp. soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp. rice wine (or rice wine vinegar)
• 1/8 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/8 tsp. ground white pepper
• Salt to taste

Method:
Marinate the chicken meat with the baking soda for 15-20 minutes, and then rinse the chicken off thoroughly with water. (Please make sure that the chicken is properly rinsed clean of the baking soda.) Pat the chicken meat dry with paper towels. Then stir in the cornstarch and rice wine in with the chicken, and let marinate for another 15 minutes.

Mix the sauce together and set aside.

Heat up a wok or skillet with 1 tablespoon of cooking oil and stir-fry the chicken meat until the color turns white or half-cooked. Dish out and set aside.

Add another 1 tablespoon of cooking oil into the wok and add in the ginger, bell peppers and onions. Stir-fry until you smell the peppery aroma from the green peppers. Then add the chicken meat back in, along with the green onions, garlic, and cashews. Stir and let cook for another two minutes.
Add in the sauce and stir continuously until the chicken meat is cooked and well coated with the sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste if you’d like.

Chili Cheese Frito Salad

Courtesy of Laura Powell and "Real Mom Kitchen".
Sorry no picture.

3 (14 oz) cans corn, drained well
1/4 red pepper diced
1/4 green pepper diced
1/4 red onion, diced (after making this I wouldn't use this much because it's a little strong for my family- I also prefer to grate the onion not dice it)
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 1/4 cup mayo
1 bag (9 1/4 oz) Chili Cheese Fritos

Combine corn, peppers, onions, cheese, and mayo in bowl.
Place in refrigerator until ready to serve.
Just before serving add most of the chips into the vegetable mixture reserving some to sprinkle on top.

Serves 8-10

Easy Lasagna Cups

1 pkg wonton wrappers
1 jar spaghetti sauce (add your meat of choice if you like it in lasagna)
2+ cups of cheese (any kind you like in lasagna: italian mix, mozarella mixed with ricotta, etc.)

Spray muffin tins with a little cooking spray, put down one wonton wrapper at the bottom of each muffin spot, then layer sauce, cheese, another wonton wrapper cut in a circle about the size of the muffin tin by a cookie cutter or a rounded edge glass, then keep layering in that order until it is to the top of the muffin tin and you end with cheese.

Bake at 375 for 15-20 min.  So easy, not a huge mess, the kids prefer these to regular lasagna.  You could also mix it up and use chicken and alfredo sauce.  The possibilities are endless.  I made 18 with about 2 1/2 cups of cheese.

I have a picture but blogger won't let me put it on.  So I will do it as soon as it will let me.

Cabbage-Apple Salad

I follow the Super Healthy Kid blog and I've used many recipes.  My goal is to use more and there is nothing I love better then a fresh healthy salad, especially this time of year.  So we tried this one tonight. I tweaked it just a tad.  The picture is from SHK blog.  Plus, the last year I have learned to love cabbage.  I use it a ton in Oriental cooking.

Here is the recipe:
Bagged shredded cabbage (as much as you like)
Cut up apples
Cranberries
Sliced Almonds
I didn't have cranberries so I just used extra apples.

Dressing:
Favorite poppy-seed dressing (which I didn't have on hand so I made my own)
Recipe:
1/2 cup fat free miracle whip
1/4 cup  milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 cup white vinegar
1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
(I don't really like the taste of miracle whip, so I used 1/4 cup mayo and a 1/4 cup regular miracle whip- then I added some salt and a bit of apple cider vinegar, because I love it!)
Yummy! I love it, my kids were ok with it, but I'm going to be munching on this tomorrow.

Lemon Pesto Chicken & Raviolis

I really wish I could remember where I found this recipe. I might have even printed it off of this site! I just found it in my cookbook one day, and can't remember where I got it. Anyway, I made it for the first time last week, and it was really good!

5-6 chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces

3 Tbsp Olive Oil or Canola Oil

1/2 Pesto Packet (like taco seasoning packets)

2 Tbsp. Lemon juice

1 Cup milk

2 small yellow squash

2 small zucchini

2 Tomatoes

1/4 C. Parmessan

Salt & Pepper to taste

In a skillet, add in oil, and chicken. While chicken is browning, add in lemon juice, and cut the squash and zucchini into slices. When the chicken is brown on each side, (still pink in the middle), add in the squash & zucchini. Sprinkle pesto packet over everything in the skillet. Pour the milk on top, and mix around until everything is coated. Salt & pepper. Let cook at medium heat for about 10 minutes (until veggies are soft but not soggy). Add in sliced tomato and parmessan, stir. Remove from heat.

Serve over raviolis, or in my case, (I didn't have raviolis on hand), serve over pasta.

But here's another tip: Try it served over the Herb & Butter flavored Pasta Roni. I had some leftover from the kids dinner the next night, so I tried it. It was SO yummy!

Fluffy Orange Fruit Dip

1- 8 0z package cream cheese, softened
2 teaspoons orange zest
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice(use some juice from the orange that you zested)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
Pinch of salt
1- 7 oz jar marshmallow cream

Beat cream cheese, orange zest, orange juice, vanilla and salt until smooth and creamy. Add marshmallow cream and beat until combined.

Serving suggestion: Serve with fresh cut fruit. I used strawberries, oranges, apples, bananas, kiwi and fresh pineapple.

Family Favorite

It's been a while since a new post on here.  Hopefully, everyone is busy having fun. This year's menu for us (so far) has been full of dishes that are "all-in-one"type dishes- with a little something from each food group to make it a complete meal.  Ham Fried Rice: rice, ham, carrots, peas, scrambled eggs.  Pesto Pasta: topped with turkey bacon, tomatoes, and a little cheese. And this Dorito Taco salad. I'm sure you all have this recipe, but I thought I'd share anyway.

1 pound ground beef or turkey

3/4 head of lettuce 

3 tomatoes

Doritos (you can use baked if you want)

1 can kidney beans (we like black better) drained and rinsed

a little onion

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

3/4 bottle Thousand Island dressing (you can use light or Fat Free)

Chop and mix tomatoes, lettuce, and cheese.  Mix with dressing.  Brown hamburger, drain, and add the beans. Simmer for 10 min. Add to salad.  Serve with crushed Doritos.  I like it topped with sour cream and avocados.

Taco Soup

Here is the soup I made for our Fabulous Friday. This is Tammy Thompson's recipe, but I have tweaked it a little bit.

1 lb ground beef
chopped onion
2 cans petite diced tomatoes
1 can kidney beans undrained
1 can corn undrained
1 cup salsa (I use Pace Chunky Salsa, Medium)
1 packet taco seasoning

Brown ground beef with onion. Drain. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Ladle into bowl. Top with cheddar cheese and sour cream. Serve with tortilla chips.

I put mine in a crockpot and cooked on high for about 2 hours.

Dream Cake

• Prepare one white cake mix according to directions on box.



• Combine 1 cup powdered sugar, 8 oz softened cream cheese, and 8 oz thawed cool whip.



• Spread cream cheese mixture over cooled cake.



• Combine one container strawberry glaze and sliced strawberries, fresh or thawed. Spread over white layer. (I spread the glaze first then covered it with the sliced strawberries.)



• Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

Ranch Chicken

This is one of my favorite chicken recipes. So easy and yummy!

3/4 c. cornflakes, crushed

3/4 c. Parmesean cheese, grated

1 pkg. ranch salad dressing mix

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half

1/2 c. butter or margarine, melted

In a shallow bowl (I use a pie tin) combine the crushed cornflakes, Parmesean cheese, and salad dressing mix. Dip chicken in butter, then roll in cornflake mixture to coat. Place chicken in 9x13 baking dish. Bake uncovered at 35o for 45 minutes or until chicken juice runs clear.

I have used many of your recipes and now it is my turn. This is a quick and easy one dish meal that we love.

Baked Chicken Fajitas

1 pound chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes with green chilies, drained

1 medium onion, cut into thin strips

1 medium green pepper, cut into thin strips

1 medium red pepper, cut into thin strips

2 Tablespoons canola oil

2 teaspoons chili powder

2 teaspoons cumin

¼ teaspoon salt

Flour tortillas, warmed

In a 9 x 13 baking dish coated with cooking spray, combine the chicken , tomatoes, onion and peppers.
Combine the oil, chili powder, cumin and salt. Drizzle over chicken mixture, toss to coat.
Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 20 – 25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and vegetables are tender. Serve with tortillas. Serves about 6

This is what it looks like before the oven...........This is what it looks like after.

I rarely follow a recipe exactly so I changed this up a little. I used tomatoes and a jalapeno pepper from my garden to replace the canned tomatoes. I also I didn't have a ripe red pepper so used green ones, also from my garden. I like to add garlic to everything to that was added in too. We serve these with some sour cream and grated cheese (everything is better with cheese, right?) chips and salsa Enjoy!

BBQ Meatballs

I have had this recipe for years. I got it off Good Things Utah. I seem to forget about it and everytime I make it again I am reminded how much I like it. It has simple ingredients that are always on hand, the meatballs are really tender and the sauce is really good.

Barbecued Meatballs

1 egg lightly beaten

1 (5 oz) can evaporated milk

1 cup quick-cooking oats

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1 tsp salt

1 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp pepper

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef

In a bowl, combine all ingredients except beef. After ingredients are mixed well, crumble beef over mixture and mix. Shape into 1 inch balls. Place in a greased 9 x 13 pan. Bake uncovered at 350 for about 20 minutes. Remove from oven.

Sauce:

1 cup ketchup

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp garlic powder

Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Pour over meatballs. Bake in oven at 350 12 minutes.

Serve over rice.

Spaghetti Carbonara

I have so many versions of this in my recipes and I've never tried it. It wasn't until reading "Garlic and Sapphires" by Ruth Reichl (a food critic) that I found an easy enticing recipe that I had all the ingredients for. I didn't get a picture because my family ate it up SO fast. Proof that it was so YUMMY!!

1 pound spaghetti

1/2 lb thickly sliced bacon

2 cloves garlic

2 large eggs

Black pepper

1/3 cup grated Parmigiano cheese, plus extra for the table (I used much more than this because I love cheese)

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. When it is boiling, throw the spaghetti in. Most dried takes 10 min. to cook, and you can make the sauce in that time.

Cut the bacon into pieces about 1/2 inch wide. Put them in a skillet and cook for 2 min., until fat begins to render. Add the whole cloves of garlic and cook another 5 min. until edges begin to crisp. Do not overcook.

Meanwhile, break the eggs into the bowl you will serve the pasta in, and beat them with a fork. Add some grindings of pepper.

Remove the garlic from the bacon pan. If it looks like too much fat to you, discard some, but you're going to toss the bacon with most of its fat into the pasta.

When it is cooked, drain the pasta and immediately throw it into the beaten eggs. Mix thoroughly. The heat of the spaghetti will cook the eggs and turn them into a sauce. Add the bacon with its fat, toss again, add cheese and serve.

I threw on fresh diced tomatoes on top because I just love them.

Confetti Bean Dip

I've had lots of requests for this recipe, so here it is! I don't have a picture of it though. So next time I make it, I'll take a pic and put it on here. You'll just have to trust that it is DELICIOUS, without seeing the pic! ;)

Confetti Bean Dip

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can shoepeg corn, no need to drain
6 roma tomatoes, diced
3 avocadoes, diced
Fresh cilantro, finely chopped
Juice of 1 lime

Mix above ingredients together, then mix:

1 pkg. dry Italian dressing mix
1/4 cup white vinegar

Add that mixture to the rest, stir, and enjoy!
Serve with tortilla chips.

Poppyseed Chicken

We made this chicken recipe tonight for enrichment, and it was delicious! I don't have a picture, but trust me it was really good. Everybody was asking for the recipe, and it will be a regular at my house. It is so easy too!

POPPY SEED CHICKEN

8 Cooked boneless, skinless, chicken breast halves to fit in a 9x13 pan.

SAUCE
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 tsp. seasoned salt
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. sage
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper

TOPPING
1 Sleeve Ritz Crackers crushed (2 1/2 cups)
6 Tbs. Butter (no substitiutes)
2 Tbs. Poppy seeds

Boil chicken in water for 15 minutes. (For added flavor you can add chicken broth
or bullion, a tsp. of salt, 1/2 of a small onion, and a couple of celery sticks)
Place cooked chicken in buttered 9x13 pan.

Mix soup (undiluted), sour cream, and seasonings together and pour over chicken.

Crush crackers, mix with butter and poppy seed. Sprinkle over top.

Cover dish with aluminum foil.

Bake @ 350* for 30 minutes. (remove foil for last 5 minutes of baking time).

Salisbury Steak

This is a favorite at our house. Dallin actually made it this time, it's so easy and so yummy.

Salisbury Steak

1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1 envelope brown gravy mix, divided
1 teaspoon dried minced onion
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon prepared mustard (I omit this)

In a bowl, whisk the egg and milk. Add bread crumbs, 1 Tbsp gravy mix and onion. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into 3-5 patties about 3/4 inches thick. Broil 3-4 inches from the heat for 6-7 minutes on each side or until meat is no longer pink and a meat thermometer reads 160.

Place remaining gravy mix in a small saucepan; stir in the water and mustard. Bring to a boil, cook and stir until thickened. Serve gravy over the beef patties.