Tacosagna

This is a Rachel Ray recipe, it turned out so good, I will definitely be making this again. I love the fresh lettuce and tomatoes served on top, and that it had grated carrots and zuchinni "hidden" in the meat mixture.

Tacosagna

2 Tbs. vegetable oil
2 lbs. ground turkey
1 zuchinni
2 carrots, peeled
3 cloves garlic
1 medium onion
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1 can large black olives, drained and chopped
taco seasoning
salt
pepper
1 c. beef broth
6 soft taco sized flour tortillas
4 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
2 green onions, chopped
2 hearts romaine, chopped
2 roma tomatoes, chopped

Preheat oven to 400.

Heat large skillet with vegetable oil. Add the meat and brown for 5 minutes. While the turkey is browning grate the zuchinni and carrots and add to meat mixture. Add the onion, garlic, red pepper, and olives. Add about 1/4 c. of taco seasoning and salt and pepper to taste. Add beef broth and let simmer until veggies and turkey are cooked through. Spray a 13X9 pan with cooking spray. Layer 2 flour tortillas, 1/3 of meat mixture, 1/3 of cheese and repeat two more times. Sprinkle a little taco seasoning over top and bake for about 15 minutes, until hot and cheese is melted. Top with green onions, lettuce, and tomatoes and serve.

Simple Glazed Fruit Salad

This is a very simple fruit salad, by no means is it gourmet, but I like it because it adds a pretty, sweet glaze to the fruit. I love making this in the summer when the strawberries are in season!

Simple Glazed Fruit Salad

1 pint strawberries, rinsed and cut in half
2 banans, sliced
1 large orange, cut in cubes
2 cups green grapes
1 small box vanilla instant pudding
milk

Toss all fruit together in a large bowl. Sprinkle about 2/3 of the package of instant pudding over the fruit, pour about 1/2 a cup of milk over fruit. Toss gently until the milk and pudding combine to make a nice glaze. Add more milk if necessary. You can use all kinds of fruits and puddings, I tried coconut pudding once and it was yummy too.

Luscious Lemonade Cupcakes

Mmmm, mmmm! These cupcakes are perfect for spring! The lemon cream frosting really makes these delicious, and ta da! This recipe is actually from the Cooking Light magazine, who would have thought I would bake anything low fat? :) This recipe makes a two layer 9 inch round cake or about 20 cupcakes.

Luscious Lemonade Cupcakes

1 1/3 c. sugar
6 Tbs. softened butter
1 Tbs. grated lemon rind
3 Tbs thawed lemonade concentrate (I used MinuteMaid)
2 tsp vanilla
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
2 c. flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 c. lowfat buttermilk

Frosting:
2 Tbs butter, softened
1 Tbs grated lemon rind
2 tsp thawed lemonade concentrate
1/2 tsp vanilla
8 oz. 1/3 less fate cream cheese
3 1/2 c. powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350.

Beat sugar, butter, lemon rind, lemonade concentrate, and vanilla together for 2 minutes. Add eggs and egg whites one at a time, beat well after each addition.
Combine baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to batter, beginning and ending with flour. Pour batter into two greased 9 inch round cake pans (or makes 20 cupcakes). Bake for 20 minutes (15 for cupcakes), let cool for 10 minutes in pan and invert onto a wire rack.

For frosting combine first five ingredients. Add in enough powdered sugar to reach the consistency you like. I did add in a little yellow food coloring to make them look lemony. Frost cake and store in refrigerator. Cupcakes are best eaten the same day.

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

This soup is amazing! So flavorful and delicious! It's even better served in a bread bowl. Thanks Dawn!

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

1 6 oz. box Uncle Ben's long grain and wild rice, prepared according to package
2 Tbs. olive oil
3 chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
2 c. sliced mushrooms
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 1/2 c. water
4 chicken bouillon cubes
1/4 tsp dried tarragon
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 c. evaporated milk
2 Tbs. cornstarch

Heat oil in a large stock pot, add chicken, mushrooms, onion, and garlic; saute for 5-8 minutes.

Add rice, water, bouillon, tarragon, and thyme to chicken mixture in pot. Bring to a boil. Whisk together cornstarch and evaporated milk in a small bowl, add to soup. Reduce heat to low and let simmer until thickened. Serves 5-6 adults.

Crock Pot Mexican Chicken (for Tacos)

This is a great, easy recipe for chicken tacos.

Crock Pot Mexican Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 16 oz. container salsa
1/3 c. finely diced onion
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 can drained corn
1 can rinsed and drained black or pinto beans

Combine salsa, onion, and seasonings in crock pot, add in chicken. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours or on high 3-4 hours. Before serving remove chicken and shred, add back into pot. Add in corn and beans.

Corn Salsa

There is nothing I like better in my burritos than corn salsa, I just love the little bursts of sweetness it adds. You can use thawed frozen or drained canned corn, I haven't noticed a difference either way.

Corn Salsa

2 c. corn (thawed frozen or drained canned)
1 c. seeded and diced tomato
2 green onions, chopped
3 Tbs chopped cilantro, more or less to taste, whatever you like
1 Tbs. seeded and finely minced jalapeno
1 Tbs lime juice
salt to taste

Combine all ingredients and let chill in the refrigerator for at least two hours.

Cilantro Lime Rice

This tastes just like the rice at Cafe Rio and Chipotle, super yummy. It's so good you could serve it as a side dish or as a filling in tacos and burritos.

1 c. uncooked long grain rice (I like Jasmine)
1 Tbs. butter
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp fresh squeezed lime juice
2 1/4 c. water
1 chicken bouillon cube
1 Tbs. fresh squeezed lime juice
2 tsp sugar
3 Tbs. fresh chopped cilantro

In a medium saucepan combine the rice, butter, garlic, 1 tsp of lime juice, and water. With your fingers, gently break apart bouillon cube and stir into rice and water mixture. Bring to a boil and cover with lid. Turn heat down to medium low and let cook for apprx. 20 minutes; remove from heat. In a small bowl combine 1 Tbs lime juice, sugar, and cilantro. Pour over hot rice and mix in as you fluff with a fork.

Lemon Cookies

This is the King Arthur sugar cookie recipe that I talked about in my last post. It called for almond extract, but I don't really care for that, so I added 2 tsp. of lemon zest, they turned out to be amazing lemon cookies! The next time I make these, I am going to drizzle with a lemon glaze to really put them over the top.

Lemon Cookies

3 c. unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 c. butter, softened
1 1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 Tbs. light corn syrup
2 tsp lemon zest
1 large egg

Glaze if desired:

2 c. powdered sugar
fresh lemon juice, just keep adding until you reach the right consistency

Preheat oven to 375.
Lightly grease two baking sheets, or line with parchment.
In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
In a large bowl cream together the butter, sugar, and cream cheese for 2 minutes, until light and fluffy.
Beat in the vanilla, corn syrup, and egg. Scrape down sides of bowl to insure a good mixing.
Add flour mixture, mix at low speed until the dough is evenly moistened.
Place 3/4 c. of sugar in a small bowl.
Roll tablespoons of dough and drop in sugar, roll around in sugar to coat and place on baking sheet.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, cookies will barely begin to brown. Let cool on pan 5 minutes before transferring to a rack. Let cookies cool completely before glazing.

BEST Sugar Cookies

I recently had the idea to have a sugar cookie taste testing, BRILLIANT if I do say so myself! :) My husband, sister-in-law and I had so much fun judging them! I tried out a white velvet (made with lots of cream cheese), a recipe from King Arthur Flour Co., and one I found off of Allrecipes.com. In addition to the other two sugar cookie recipes I've tried in the past, here is my all time favorite sugar cookie recipe! It is crispy on the outside, chewy in the middle, and the flavor is delicious!

Chewy Sugar Cookies

2 3/4 c. all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 c. butter, softened
1 1/2 c. white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 Tbs. buttermilk + more for glaze

Preheat oven to 375.
In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Gradually blend in dry ingredients. Add the buttermilk to form a soft dough.
Roll rounded Tablespoons of dough and place on cookie sheet or stoneware pan. Flatten slightly with fingers. Using a brush or fingers moisten the top of each cookie with a little buttermilk.
Bake for 8-10 minutes or until slightly golden. Let stand for 2 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool.

They will end up being pretty flat, I covered with frosting and let the kids decorate!

Hawaiian BBQ Dinner- Homemade Teryaki Chicken & Macaroni Salad

I was given these recipes from a Hawaiian family I know, they are delicious! I crave having this meal all of the time!

Teryaki Chicken

2 c. soy sauce
2 c. sugar
3 Tbs. fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced (if garlic cloves are small, use 6)
1 c. water
Chopped green onions for garnish
4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts

In a medium saucepan, combine soy sauce through water. Whisk to combine, pour half into a gallon zip lock bag (set aside remaining half in saucepan for later use), add chicken and marinate for 2-3 hours, no longer. At about the time that the chicken will be done marinating, take the saucepan with the remaining sauce in it and heat on medium heat until it starts to simmer, turn heat down to low and let simmer for 15-20 minutes to reduce while chicken is on the grill.
Grill chicken on medium high heat for 15-20 minutes or until done, turning once halfway through cooking time. Brush with cooked, reduced sauce if desired. Throw away zip lock bag with uncooked marinating teryaki sauce in it, do not use this sauce, it must be thrown away.

To serve I like to place the chicken on the rice, drizzle some of the reduced sauce over the top and sprinkle on some green onions. It is so good!

For the rice I like to either cook in chicken broth instead of water to add flavor, or cook in water and add chicken bouillon to it. I add a little salt too.


Macaroni Salad

1 box elbow macaroni
4 eggs
1 1/2 c. mayonnaise
1 1/2 Tbs. sugar
1/3 c. red pepper, finely chopped
1/4 c. red or yellow onion, finely chopped
1/4 c. grated carrot
1/3 c. sweet pickle relish
1 1/2 tsp all season salt
pepper to taste

Begin by bringing a large pot of water to boil. Add in the eggs, cook for 5 minutes and then add in the macaroni, boil for 7-8 more minutes until el dente, drain.
Peel the eggs and throw away the yolks, chop up the egg whites.
Add the egg whites and macaroni into a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients and stir well to combine. Add more salt and pepper to taste if desired. Serve immediately or refrigerate.