Taco Salad

As I mentioned in my post about Jordann's birthday, I made Taco salad for her dinner.

Here is the recipe for it



Ingredients:



1 Ib. Hamburger Meat

1 can Kidney Beans, drained

Bag of cheese

Lettuce, to your liking

Pico de Gallo, to your liking

Fritos

Taco Seasoning

Directions:

1. Brown Hamburger and season with taco seasoning.

2. Add in Kidney beans till warm.

3. Place hamburger & beans in big bowl, add cheese and mix together. Once cheese is melted add lettuce, Pico and Fritos.

Taco Seasoning:

1/2 tsp. Onion Powder

1 tsp. Paprika

1 tsp. Garlic Powder

1 tsp. Chili Powder

1 tsp. Red Pepper

1 tsp. Cumin

1 tsp. Jalapeno Pepper

Pico de Gallo:

1 medium tomato, diced

1 onion, finely chopped

1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

2 sprigs fresh cilantro, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1. In a medium bowl, combine tomato, onion, jalapeno pepper (to taste,) cilantro. Season with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Stir until evenly distributed. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Chicken Taco Bowls

Wednesday I had another new recipe I wanted to try out for the slow cooker. So, Wednesday morning I got everything together and put in the cooker and set for 8 hours. I love cooking in our slow cooker and coming home to dinner done. Makes for an easy night of not being in the kitchen for an hour preparing dinner. LOL.

This recipe turned out pretty good and we would like to try it again but using something different rather than rice, maybe like rolling it up in a tortilla shell or eating with tortilla chips.



Ingredients:

Instead of using the seasoning I just made some taco seasoning and used that. I did use the minced garlic & oregano.

11/2 lbs. chicken breasts

1 (16 oz.) jar salsa

1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained

1/2 lb. (8 oz.) frozen corn

1 Tbsp. chili powder

1/2 Tbsp. cumin

1/2 Tbsp. minced garlic

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp. salt        

Cracked pepper, to taste

2 cups dry rice

8 oz. shredded cheddar

1/2 bunch cilantro (optional) 

Directions:

1. Add everything except the rice, cheese, and cilantro to the slow cooker along with ¼ cup of water (for good measure). Give everything a good stir and make sure the chicken is covered in the mixture.

2. Secure the lid on your slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hrs.

3. Near the end of the cooking time, cook the two cups of rice according to the package directions (Bring the rice and 3 cups of water to a boil in a medium pot with a lid in place, as soon as it reaches a boil, reduce the heat to low and let simmer for 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork before serving).

4. After 8 hours of cooking, carefully remove the lid of the slow cooker. Stir with a fork to shred the chicken (it should be super tender and will shred easily). Build the taco bowls by placing rice on the bottom, then the taco chicken mix, shredded cheese and fresh cilantro.

Pad Thai

Last night for dinner we tried another new recipe and it turned out pretty good.  We had Pad Thai and Sushi. Shane has been making sushi at home for a few weeks now. I'm not a huge sushi fan but I'm trying to like it more because he loves it. The Pad Tahi I just became a fan of when we went out for his birthday I had that while he ate sushi. LOL

Pad Thai. This was really easy to make and didn't take super long.

Here is our meal. I didn't eat all the sushi, I'm still trying to get used to the taste of it. LOL



Ingredients:

For the sauce:
1 1/2 Tablespoons tamarind concentrate/paste
1/4 cup fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon Sambal Oelek (chili sauce)
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon fresh black pepper

For the noodles:
8 ounces Thai rice noodles
2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon cornstarch
3 Tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
Vegetable oil, for stir-frying
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 cups fresh bean sprouts
1/4 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup sliced carrots, for garnish
1/2 cup shredded red cabbage, for garnish
1/4 cup cilantro leaves, for garnish
1/3 cup roughly chopped peanuts, for garnish
Lime wedges, for garnish

Directions:

Make the sauce:

1.      In a medium bowl, whisk together the tamarind concentrate with 1/2 cup warm water. Whisk in the remaining sauce ingredients. Set aside.

Make the noodles:

1.      Fill a large pot with hot water. Add the rice noodles and cover the pot, allowing them to soak and soften for 8 to 10 minutes, or until they're barely al dente. (Alternately, cook the noodles according to the package instructions.) The noodles will be stir-fried so do not overcook them at this point.

2.      Drain the noodles and rinse them with cold water to prevent them from sticking together.

3.      Cut the chicken breasts into thin, 1-inch slices. Place the chicken in a medium bowl. Whisk together the cornstarch with the soy sauce then pour it over the chicken, stirring to coat.

4.      Heat a wok or large nonstick sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil then add the minced garlic and crushed red pepper flakes and cook, stirring continuously, for 30 seconds until the garlic is golden brown and fragrant. Add the chicken to the pan (including all liquids), and cook, stirring frequently until it is no longer pink. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of chicken stock at a time to the pan while the chicken is cooking to prevent it from drying out. (You may not use the entire 1/4 cup of chicken stock.)

5.      Add the noodles to the pan then pour in the prepared sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil, and using two flat spatulas, lift and turn the noodles to combine all of the ingredients. (Don't stir the noodles too vigorously or they'll break.) Continue cooking the noodles for 1 to 2 minutes until the sauce thickens slightly, then add the bean sprouts and cook for 1 more minute. The noodles are fully cooked when they are chewy and no longer crunchy.

6.      Transfer the noodles to serving dishes and garnish with the sliced carrots, shredded red cabbage, cilantro, scallions, peanuts and lime wedges.

 



Cajun Chicken Pasta

Every week I have been trying to add one new recipe to our menu for dinners. I have so many on Pinterest that I thought I should start trying them! Last night I made this pasta dish and it turned out amazing! We will definitely be having this again! 

Ingredients:

8 ounces uncooked linguine

1 pound chicken breast strips

1-2 tsp. Cajun seasoning (or to taste)

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced

1 medium yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced

8 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced

1/2 red onion, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 medium tomatoes, diced

1 cup fat free low sodium chicken broth

1/3 cup skim milk

1 tbsp. flour

3 tbsp. light cream cheese ( I didn't put cream cheese in ours)

Fresh cracked pepper

2 scallions, chopped

Salt to taste

Cooking Spray



Directions:

1. Prep all your vegetables.

2. Make a slurry by combining milk, flour and cream cheese. Set aside.

3. Season chicken with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder & salt.

4. Prepare pasta in salted water according to package directions

5. Heat a large heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; spray with cooking spray and add the chicken.

Sauté 5 to 6 minutes or until done, set aside on a plate.

6. Add olive oil to the skillet and reduce to medium; add bell peppers, onions, and garlic to skillet, sauté 3-4 minutes.

7. Add mushrooms and tomatoes and sauté 3-4 more minutes or until vegetables are tender. Season with 1/4 tsp salt, garlic powder and fresh cracked pepper to taste

8. Reduce heat to medium-low; add chicken broth and pour in slurry stirring about 2 minutes

9. Return chicken to skillet; adjust salt and Cajun seasoning to taste, cook another minute or two until hot. I added a little more flour to mine to make it thicker since I didn't use cream cheese.

10. Add linguine; toss well to coat. Top with chopped scallions

Happy Birthday Kira Dog

Yesterday was our little Kira dogs birthday and she turned 9 years old. I have had her since she was 8 weeks old. I look back at pictures of her when she was a baby and can't believe she is so big now, Haha! I decided to do something different for her this year and bake her a birthday cake. We normally just get some toys and treats to give her but a cake sounded more fun, plus she got toys and treats from Grandma for Christmas. :) I have found a couple different recipes on Pinterest for dog birthday cakes, so I picked on and made it last night.

Peanut Butter Delight: Dog Birthday Cake

This is the little piece we gave her last night with peanut butter frosting.

Ingredients:
1 cup white or whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup shredded carrots
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup honey
1 egg

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix together flour and baking soda. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into a ring mold sprayed with a nonstick spray. I just used a bread pan to make it in.
3. Bake for approximately 40 minutes

Once cake is cool, frost cake with low fat cottage cheese and decorate with carrot pieces. Store in refrigerator for up to one week, or slice thinly and freeze in individual plastic baggies. (One this step I didn't use the cottage cheese like she did, I used peanut butter instead. Kira loves PB so this was the perfect frosting for the cake).

Of course I took some pictures of her enjoying her first birthday cake!

She was excited to see what she was getting!

The peanut butter kept sticking the paper towel so we had to help her get if off. Haha

She really enjoyed her cake and wanted more. I didnt' want to just let her dig into the whole cake b/c I didn't know if she would get an upset tummy or not with eating something new, but she did fine. We are going to give her some more tonight when we get home. She will be so excited!

Chocolate Cake w/ Whipped Frosting

For my brother's birthday I made a chocolate cake with whipped chocolate frosting. It turned out super yummy, a little sweet but very good! The whipped frosting I made this time is by far my favorite!

I made the chocolate cake recipe before but instead of doing a cake I just made cupcakes. I got lots of positive feed back on this cake so that made me feel good! I always get nervous making things from scratch and people not liking them, but this was a success! I look forward to making this cake again and maybe trying a Vanilla frosting and tone down the sweetness. :)

For the Cake

Ingredients:

3 cups flour

2 cup sugar

2 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. salt

2/3 cup cocoa powder

1 cup oil

2 cup water

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 tbsp. vinegar

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix all ingredients together until moist & well blended

3. Bake 30-35 minutes.

4. Frost with your favorite icing



For the frosting:

Ingredients:

I doubled this recipe just to make sure I had enough to frost the cakes

1 cup heavy cream

1 regular bag of chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Bring cream to almost boil….but don’t boil it

2. In large mixing bowl, pour over the chocolate chips and stir until chips are melted and well blended

3. Cool for 1 hour on counter

4. I let it sit in the fridge overnight then whipped it. I'm sure letting it sit for a couple hours will work too.

Spicy Sausage Pasta

I made this for dinner Monday night and it turned out better then what Shane and I both thought. It turned out very tasting and good. We will be trying this again.

I added some seasonings of my own to make it more spicy.

This picture wasn't taken by me this was from Pinterest. When we make this again I will take my own picture to add to our recipe book.



Ingredients:

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. smoked sausage
1.5 cups diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 (10 oz.) can Ro-Tel tomatoes and green chiles, Mild
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 oz. penne pasta
1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper, each
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
1/3 cup thinly sliced scallions

1/2 tsp. Cajun Seasoning (Added myself)

1/2 tsp. Jalapeno Seasoning (Added myself)

Directions:

1. Add olive oil to an oven-safe skillet over medium high heat until just smoking. Add sausage and onions and cook until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

2. Add broth, tomatoes, cream, pasta, salt and pepper and stir. Bring to a boil, cover skillet, and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until pasta is tender, about 15 minutes.

3. Remove skillet from heat and stir in 1/2 cup cheese. Top with remaining cheese and sprinkle with scallions. Broil until cheese is melted, spotty brown, and bubbly.

Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup

Another yummy recipe added to our cookbook!! I love chicken noodle soup so I was very excited to make homemade and try it, it turned out very good! Looking forward to making this again!



Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts

5 medium carrots, peeled and chopped (1 3/4 cups)

1 medium yellow onion, chopped (1 1/2 cups)

4 stalks celery, chopped (1 1/4 cups)

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

6 cups low-sodium chicken broth (3 - 15 oz. cans)

1 cup water

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

1/2 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed

1/4 tsp. celery seed, finely crushed

2 bay leaves

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

2 cups uncooked wide egg noodles

3 1/2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Saltine crackers or Parmesan cheese, for serving (optional)

Directions:

1.      To a slow cooker, add chicken (un-cut), diced carrots, onion, celery, and garlic. Drizzle olive oil over top then add in chicken broth, water, thyme, rosemary, celery seed, bay leaves and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook on low heat 6 - 7 hours.

2.      Remove cooked chicken and allow to rest 10 minutes, then dice into bite size pieces. Meanwhile, add egg noodles and parsley to slow cooker. Increase temperature to high, cover and cook 10 minutes longer (or until noodles are tender). Stir in lemon juice and toss in cooked, diced chicken. Serve warm with saltine crackers or top with Parmesan cheese if desired.

3.      I just crushed the rosemary in the palm of my hand then for the celery seed, I placed it in a Ziploc bag and crushed it with the flat side of a meat mallet.

 

Oreo Cookie Fudge

This fudge is SO GOOD!! It's a must try if you like fudge

Ingredients:

3 cups sugar

3/4 cup butter or margarine (1 1/2 sticks)

5 oz. can of evaporated milk

12 oz. package milk chocolate chips

7 oz. marshmallow crème

1 tsp. Vanilla

12 Oreo cookies, broken into 6 pieces

8 Oreo cookies, finely crushed

Directions:

1.      Line a 9x9 inch square pan with foil, spray lightly with non-stick cooking spray

2.      Break your 12 Oreo cookies by hand. I broke each cookie into about 6 pieces. Set them aside. Finely chop the other 8 Oreo cookies. A food processor works great. Chop it with the Oreo filling-this will keep it moist.

3.      In a large saucepan bring the sugar, butter and evaporated milk to a full rolling boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 4 minutes or until 234 degrees Fahrenheit on your candy thermometer. Stir it the whole time!

4.      Remove from heat and add vanilla, chocolate chips, crushed Oreo crumbs, and marshmallow crème. Stir until well blended and chocolate chips are melted.

5.      Pour into prepared pan and smooth stop with spatula. sprinkle broken Oreos on top. Use hand or spatula to push Oreos gently into fudge.

6.      Cover and chill for at least one hour until firm. Store in fridge in airtight container for up to 3 days

 

 



Slow Cooker Jambalaya

I love my slower cooker in the Fall/Winter time. It makes cooking so much easy and I love coming home to dinner already done! Makes for an easy night. :)

Ingredients:

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 pound smoked sausage, cut into 2-inch slices

1 large onion, chopped

1 large green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes with juice

1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes with juice

3 cloves garlic, chopped

2 cups chicken broth

1 tablespoon Cajun

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 pound extra-large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 3/4 cups long-grain rice

 Parsley, optional

Directions: 

1. Combine chicken, sausage, onion, greep pepper, celery, tomatoes, garlic, chicken broth, spice mix, thyme and oregano in a large (5-quart) slow cooker, Cook on low for 5 hours.

2. Add shrimp and rice: raise heat to high and cook for 30 mintures or until rice is cooked and no longer tender.

3. Sprinkle with chopped parsley, if desired.

 

Fried Chicken

Shane has been telling for awhile now that I need to make fried chicken. I was very unsure about this and never did, LOL. Last week he asked about it again...So, I hopped on Pinterest to see if I could find a good recipe to make fried chicken. It didn't take me long to run across one that sounded very good and pretty easy to make. I sent it to Shane and told him I would give it a try. Monday night we had fried chicken, mashed potatoes and corn for dinner. The friend chicken was so easy to make and didn't take very long either. It turned out to be super delicious! I can't wait to make this again! I did add some more seasonings to our batter then what the recipe called for, I love spices in my life! Haha!

Ingredients:

• 3 large eggs
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 cup hot sauce
• 2 cups self-raising flour
• 1 tsp. black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. Cajun seasoning (I added this myself not included in original recipe)
• 1/2 tsp. Jalapeno seasoning (I added this myself not included in original recipe)
• A pinch of Habanero seasoning (I added this myself not included in original recipe)
• 2 chicken breast or how many is needed for your family

***After I made this for just 2 of us this batter made WAY to much for just 2 chicken breast. I would say if you are just making for a small group to cut this in half***

Directions:

1. Heat oil to 350 degrees. I used an electric skillet.
2. Prepare chicken by rinsing with cold water and patting dry. Set aside on plate.
3. In medium bowl, beat eggs with water. Add hot sauce and stir together.
4. In another bowl, combine flour, pepper, salt, Cajun, jalapeno and habanero seasonings. Mix well.
5. Dip chicken in egg mixture, then coat well with flour mixture.
6. Fry chicken in oil till brown and crisp, about 13-14 minutes for dark meat (thighs, wings, legs) and 8-10 minutes for white meat (breasts).
7. Optional - Preheat over to a warm setting of 200 degrees or less. Prepare a baking sheet topped with a cooling rack. Have this handy to transfer the cooked chicken into the over to keep warm if frying in batches.

Oreo Fluff Dip

Sunday we had the family over to plan Thanksgiving. Instead of making a meal I decided just to have some snacks while everyone was over, I wanted to make a yummy dessert too. So, I hopped on Pinterest and started searching through my dessert pins and found this Oreo fluff dip that sounded easy and super yummy! 

Ingredients:

• 24 Oreos, crushed
• 2 cups mini marshmallows
• 8 oz. cool whip
• 1 box white chocolate instant pudding mix
• 2 cups milk

Directions:

1. In large bowl whisk together milk and pudding mix for 2 mintues.
2. Add cool whip, Oreos and marshmallows
3. Stir well
4. Refrigerate until ready to serve
5. I served mine with Oreos and Grapham crackers



Funfetti Gooey Bars

This past weekend I was in the mood to bake yet again. So, I went through my desserts on Pinterest and decided to make these little guys.

I did change a couple things in the recipe, nothing major, I used St. Patty's Day sprinkles instead of the colorful ones just to use them up and I also added chocolate chips and white chocolate chips together. These turned out pretty good. They made a bunch so I sent some to work with Shane for his group so we didn't eat them all. :)



Ingredients:

• 1 box yellow cake mix (I used my own recipe)
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
• 1 egg
• 2/3 cups sprinkles, divided
• 1/2 cup (from a 14 ox. can) sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line 9x9 pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.
3. Add cake mix, butter and egg to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix until a thick dough forms.
4. Add 1/3 cup sprinkles and stir until incorporated.
5. Press about 2/3 of the dough into the bottom of the prepared pan.
6. Sprinkle with white chocolate chips and remaining 1/3 cup sprinkles.
7. Pour sweetened condensed milked over the top.
8. Separate the remaining dough into small balls and evenly space over the top of the bars. Press down to flatten.
9. Bake for about 30 minutes or until they just begin to brown.
10. Cool completely before slicing.

Cookies ‘N Cream Oreo Fudge Brownies

I have a TON of dessert recipes on Pinterest, so a couple weekends ago I wanted to make a yummy dessert. I jumped on my Baked Goods board to see what I should make. I can came across these little babies and thought they looked awesome, so I gave them a try.

They didn't turn out like the picture, but I know nothing ever does, but I think they should have come out a least close to it. These were good but I believe the could be much better. I'm going to have to give these a try again to see if I can get them more fudgey.

Ingredients:

• 1 box brownie mix (I used my own recipe)
• Eggs & Oil (as directed on the brownie mix)
• 1 heaping cup (6 oz) Cookies & Cream Ice Cream
• 1/4 cup hot fudge (chilled or room temp.)
• 1 pkg Oreo cookies (I used double stuffed)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven according to the brownie box.
2. Spray 8x8 pan with cooking spray
3. Combine brownie mix, eggs & oil as directed on the box, but do not add the water.
4. Add ice cream and hot fudge to brownie batter and stir to combine.
5. Pour half the mix into the baking dish, layer with Oreos, then top with the remaining batter.
6. Bake 40-50 minutes or as directed on the box.