It's too HOT to cook. But unfortunately money doesn't grow on trees, and fast food isn't the healthiest option even if you do order the "salad." And I can't not feed my family. My three-year-old, Peyton, is perpetually hungry these days ... which doesn't bode well for those teenage years--for our food budget anyway. Guess that new mini-van savings account might turn into a Teenage Boy Food Savings Account.
I digress.
In hot weather, your slow cooker is your best friend! What? She's crazy, you say? I'm not -- slow cooking isn't just for chili and cold-weather stews! Google slow cooker recipes and the hits you get will overwhelm you. At least, they did me. Did you know you can make desserts in a slow cooker? Apple dumplings. That's about all I knew of...but there's so much more! And the best part is, you throw it all in the pot in the morning, forget about it, and Voila! At supper-time, you just fill your plate! No more turning on that hot oven, or standing over the stove burning up over the frying pan.
One of my new favorite recipes for the slow cooker is BBQ chicken. That's right. Take three-four cuts of boneless, skinless chicken (thawed), and put in the slow cooker. Then mix up your favorite bbq sauce ... or take the easy way out (which I do) and just pour in the ready-made BBQ sauce straight from the bottle. We like Stubbs BBQ sauce around here. But feel free to use your own favorite. :) Let it cook for 3-4 hours on high, or until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees. When it's finished, you have two choices:
1) Eat it as is. Throw some steamfresh veggies in the microwave, and dinner is served.
-or-
2) Take the chicken out, shred it up, and throw it back in for a few more hours on low so the sauce and chicken can simmer together to get that extra flavor. Serve on a bun with some chips and a salad.
Enjoy!
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
After A Busy Day . . . or Month
Sometimes when you come home after work; or a long day at the zoo :) you just want to whip something up and throw it on the table. But you don't want to sacrifice taste or nutrition. So here's a really easy skillet meal that takes about 20 minutes from fridge to table - I can usually get it done in about 15. Thanks for this tasty, quick meal idea, Mamaw (Sis Sells)--we use it a lot!!!
Happy Cooking!
- 1 pckg of smoked sausage; the traditional rope (substitute turkey sausage if you want to go for a healthier option)
- 1 can of diced tomatoes
- 1 green bell pepper; seeded and chopped coarsely
- 1 small onion (optional)
Happy Cooking!
Saturday, February 26, 2011
The Other White Meat
It seems like pork gets a bad wrap - don't eat sausage, don't eat ribs, don't eat ham and whatever you do stay the heck away from bacon! ...Well, okay ALL pork cuts aren't the healthiest choices, but I say if you're really trying to change your habits to healthier eating (notice - not dieting, especially not fad dieting) then a little indulgence is necessary sometimes, or lookout for that midnight binge on the freezer burned ice cream in the way back of the freezer that you forgot was there, and those last five stale Oreo cookies in the pantry. Okay, no one lets Oreo cookies sit around long enough to get stale - but you get my point!
Now, there are some pork options out there that maintain a healthier reputation - tenderloin, loin chops, and lean ham. Believe it or not - "...Compare pork tenderloin to skinless chicken breast, one of the ideal low fat meats. A three ounce serving of lean pork tenderloin has 102 calories, 2.9 grams of fat and 17.9 grams of protein. A three ounce serving of roasted, skinless chicken breast has 141 calories, 3 grams of fat and 26.4 grams of protein. The pork has 25% fewer calories and it's lower in total fat!" This excerpt was taken from http://www.webefit.com/articles_100_199/article_180_pork.html.
So last night I decided to go with the loin chop - and I even found a rub that tastes great, is super-easy to make, and has a total weight-watchers point value of 5!
Chili Crusted Pork Chops:
2 tsp chili powderd
1 1/2 tsp packed light brown sugar
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
20 oz lean pork loin, boneless center-cut chops, four 5 oz pieces (thawed)
Combine all your spices/salt/pepper in a big ziploc bag and mix well. Toss in your pork loin and coat each piece, rubbing the mixture into the meat. Grill chops for about 3-4 minutes on each side, or until meat has reached an internal temperature of 160 degrees. Or if you haven't reached grill weather yet, throw them on the George Foreman for the same amount of time. MMMMM!!!
For my sides, I threw some Steamfresh Sugar Snap Peas in the microwave and of course you can't serve pork chops without applesauce! I also made up some cheesy-rice because it's a favorite around here!
Cheesy Rice:
(SUPER-easy)
Just make however many servings of white, minute rice as you usually would for your family size. Cook according to instructions on the box. After the rice soaks up the water, add a few slices of American cheese (I make 2 cups rice/water so Matt has lunch the next day, and I usually add about 5-6 pieces of cheese, but you can adjust accordingly). After adding the cheese, cover rice and let sit for a few minutes so the cheese gets melt-y. Then stir, mixing the cheese into the rice. And you're done! Kids everywhere will love this one!
So - if you've banished pork from your menu, consider this - fewer calories than you think and no trans fat makes some cuts of the "other white meat" worthy of adding back to your dinnertime rotation!
Happy Cooking!
Now, there are some pork options out there that maintain a healthier reputation - tenderloin, loin chops, and lean ham. Believe it or not - "...Compare pork tenderloin to skinless chicken breast, one of the ideal low fat meats. A three ounce serving of lean pork tenderloin has 102 calories, 2.9 grams of fat and 17.9 grams of protein. A three ounce serving of roasted, skinless chicken breast has 141 calories, 3 grams of fat and 26.4 grams of protein. The pork has 25% fewer calories and it's lower in total fat!" This excerpt was taken from http://www.webefit.com/articles_100_199/article_180_pork.html.
So last night I decided to go with the loin chop - and I even found a rub that tastes great, is super-easy to make, and has a total weight-watchers point value of 5!
Chili Crusted Pork Chops:
2 tsp chili powderd
1 1/2 tsp packed light brown sugar
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
20 oz lean pork loin, boneless center-cut chops, four 5 oz pieces (thawed)
Combine all your spices/salt/pepper in a big ziploc bag and mix well. Toss in your pork loin and coat each piece, rubbing the mixture into the meat. Grill chops for about 3-4 minutes on each side, or until meat has reached an internal temperature of 160 degrees. Or if you haven't reached grill weather yet, throw them on the George Foreman for the same amount of time. MMMMM!!!
For my sides, I threw some Steamfresh Sugar Snap Peas in the microwave and of course you can't serve pork chops without applesauce! I also made up some cheesy-rice because it's a favorite around here!
Cheesy Rice:
(SUPER-easy)
Just make however many servings of white, minute rice as you usually would for your family size. Cook according to instructions on the box. After the rice soaks up the water, add a few slices of American cheese (I make 2 cups rice/water so Matt has lunch the next day, and I usually add about 5-6 pieces of cheese, but you can adjust accordingly). After adding the cheese, cover rice and let sit for a few minutes so the cheese gets melt-y. Then stir, mixing the cheese into the rice. And you're done! Kids everywhere will love this one!
So - if you've banished pork from your menu, consider this - fewer calories than you think and no trans fat makes some cuts of the "other white meat" worthy of adding back to your dinnertime rotation!
Happy Cooking!
Friday, February 25, 2011
A Lunchtime Solution
So, this isn't the family dinner but as I puttered around my kitchen yesterday trying to determine what to have for lunch it occured to me that sometimes you can move a lunch menu item to the dinner menu and vice versa. So here it is -- Left-Over Quesadilla.
I always keep some soft tortilla rounds or whole wheat wraps in the pantry and it just so happened that I had leftover chicken (oven-baked, plain) in my fridge as well. So, turn your broiler on Low and then throw together this easy Quesadilla.
Happy Cooking!
I always keep some soft tortilla rounds or whole wheat wraps in the pantry and it just so happened that I had leftover chicken (oven-baked, plain) in my fridge as well. So, turn your broiler on Low and then throw together this easy Quesadilla.
- 1 soft tortilla round-or-1 whole wheat wrap
- Sprinkle a little taco seasoning on 1/2
- Slice up your cooked chicken (or other leftover meat - pork, ground beef, steak) and spread out over the taco seasoning
- Slice up whatever fresh veggies you have around (I used green peppers, but go with what you've got at home) and sprinkle over your chicken
- Add some shredded cheddar - you can make this healthier and use a white cheese, very little cheese, or none at all; but I say the more chedda' the betta'
- Fold over the round/wrap and secure with a toothpick
- Throw it in the oven for about 3-5 minutes depending on how crispy you want your shell, then flip it over and put it back in for 3-5 additional minutes
Happy Cooking!
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Breakfast, for Dinner?
Well whatever invading virus that has been striking households across Southern IN got us--which is why I haven't posted recently. But, we finally beat it and banished it from our house! Now enough about germ-y ickyness.
How many times have you gone to start dinner and realized that you had not put anything in the fridge to thaw overnight and it is going on six p.m.? Sure the microwave has a thaw option, but the meat never gets unfrozen enough to work with, or else it starts to cook causing tough spots in the finished product. If you're frying up ground beef for something like tacos or chili, it's really not too big of a deal. Chicken is another story.
So my dilemma tonight - wait around for the micro to thaw some beef, or serve up cold cereal? Neither one strikes my fancy this particular evening, but the cereal begins to lead me in a new direction. Breakfast for dinner.
Call it crazy, but I can remember that some of the best meals I had sitting around the dinner table were actually breakfast foods. Because let's face it; on the average weekday morning no one in my house was forgoing precious sleep to fry up bacon and eggs before school, and usually on the weekend sports practices, Sunday School, and other activities started pretty early as well. So in order to have a family breakfast, we had to do it at supper time. Pancakes, scrambled eggs and cheese, and bacon found their way to the table those evening hours - and as young children we thought it was amazing that you could even do that!
So tonight I took a lesson from Mom and Dad, and I served breakfast for dinner! Our menu was a little different though. Instead of pancakes, I decided to spice it up with French Toast. NOT egg-dipped bread. There is a difference...and please don't serve me fried bread that's been dipped in an egg and tell me I'm eating French Toast. That's just wrong.
This is a simple recipe and can even be a small indulgence to those wishing to cut calories...what?!?! Instead of white bread use whole wheat. Instead of eggs use egg substitute, instead of butter use Pam cooking spray, instead of Buttery Maple Syrup use a light syrup, and just leave out the powdered sugar. Ta-da!
Now the first thing you want to do is make your coating for the bread which is what makes French Toast, French Toast, and not soggy, unappetizing, egg-dipped pan-fried bread. In a small bowl crack 2 eggs, add 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, and a splash of milk and whisk it all together (see - that is so easy, it makes you wonder why people go through the effort to dip bread into the egg and try to pass it off as edible instead of taking five extra seconds to add some spice!). Grab a skillet and melt some butter over medium heat. Dip your bread into the mixture, making sure to coat both sides very well. Cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned. Place your French Toast on a plate and sprinkle with powdered sugar and drizzle some syrup on top - voila! Breakfast for dinner!
I have to say, Peyton ate almost three whole pieces (and we used wheat bread) so even the finicky eaters will love this simple entree!
Happy Cooking!
How many times have you gone to start dinner and realized that you had not put anything in the fridge to thaw overnight and it is going on six p.m.? Sure the microwave has a thaw option, but the meat never gets unfrozen enough to work with, or else it starts to cook causing tough spots in the finished product. If you're frying up ground beef for something like tacos or chili, it's really not too big of a deal. Chicken is another story.
So my dilemma tonight - wait around for the micro to thaw some beef, or serve up cold cereal? Neither one strikes my fancy this particular evening, but the cereal begins to lead me in a new direction. Breakfast for dinner.
Call it crazy, but I can remember that some of the best meals I had sitting around the dinner table were actually breakfast foods. Because let's face it; on the average weekday morning no one in my house was forgoing precious sleep to fry up bacon and eggs before school, and usually on the weekend sports practices, Sunday School, and other activities started pretty early as well. So in order to have a family breakfast, we had to do it at supper time. Pancakes, scrambled eggs and cheese, and bacon found their way to the table those evening hours - and as young children we thought it was amazing that you could even do that!
So tonight I took a lesson from Mom and Dad, and I served breakfast for dinner! Our menu was a little different though. Instead of pancakes, I decided to spice it up with French Toast. NOT egg-dipped bread. There is a difference...and please don't serve me fried bread that's been dipped in an egg and tell me I'm eating French Toast. That's just wrong.
This is a simple recipe and can even be a small indulgence to those wishing to cut calories...what?!?! Instead of white bread use whole wheat. Instead of eggs use egg substitute, instead of butter use Pam cooking spray, instead of Buttery Maple Syrup use a light syrup, and just leave out the powdered sugar. Ta-da!
Now the first thing you want to do is make your coating for the bread which is what makes French Toast, French Toast, and not soggy, unappetizing, egg-dipped pan-fried bread. In a small bowl crack 2 eggs, add 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, and a splash of milk and whisk it all together (see - that is so easy, it makes you wonder why people go through the effort to dip bread into the egg and try to pass it off as edible instead of taking five extra seconds to add some spice!). Grab a skillet and melt some butter over medium heat. Dip your bread into the mixture, making sure to coat both sides very well. Cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned. Place your French Toast on a plate and sprinkle with powdered sugar and drizzle some syrup on top - voila! Breakfast for dinner!
I have to say, Peyton ate almost three whole pieces (and we used wheat bread) so even the finicky eaters will love this simple entree!
Happy Cooking!
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Not on the Menu
Tonight I decided to pull out my recipe box, which is filled with recipes that I received at my bridal shower from family and friends! Tonight's selection: Salsa Chicken & Cheese Straws. The chicken recipe is actually based on a recipe my Aunt April gave me, but I changed it up a bit so I didn't have to run to the grocery! And the Cheese Straws are from the kitchen of my father-in-law, Barry Hicks. Thanks for sharing, April & Barry! Both recipes are super simple and require just a few ingredients (which I have again bolded so you can gather before you begin).
Start off with a pound of thawed chicken breasts (boneless, skinless, 3 or 4 pieces) and pound it so it's less rounded on top and has a bit of a flat, table-like top. Then brown your chicken in a skillet on medium heat with a quarter of a stick of butter. While it's browning, sprinkle a pinch of basil (or other favorite spice you have handy) over each piece of chicken and then cover. Let it cook for about 25-30 minutes, turning occasionally.
While you're waiting for your chicken, you can start on the Cheese Straws. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl combine 2 cups of flour, 2 cups of sharpest cheddar shredded/grated cheese, 1 & 1/2 sticks melted butter, 1 tsp salt, 1 dash crushed red pepper or hot sauce, 4 tbsp ice water. It works a little better if you mix the salt and hot sauce in with the melted butter and then pour that over the flour/cheese mixture so everything gets evenly coated. Mix well. Let the dough chill in the freezer for a few minutes. *If you pre-plan you can mix the cheese straw dough and let it chill in the fridge for an hour before you begin...it's a little easier to roll out that way. Once it's chill, roll your dough out to about 1/4 inch thickness and then slice thin strips (however long you wish, but these tend to be fragile in my experience so the length of a french fry works best for me). Bake for 20 minutes, and voila!
Matt's dad (Barry or "Biz") used to make these whenever he made spaghetti, but they're so good we like them with pretty much anything!
Back to our chicken - After 25-30 minutes sprinkle (or load) the chicken with shredded mozzarella cheese and a little bit of juice from your favorite salsa. Re-cover and cook until cheese is bubbly and melted. Serve topped with salsa! I used the Paula Deen salsa posted Feb. 6th and it was tasty!!!
Plated up my chicken, cheese straws, and five-minute Steamfresh broccoli florets looked like a restaurant dish...but cost a lot less, took a lot less effort, and was enjoyed at our own family table! This is a great family pleaser; or something you can serve to impress your guests!
Happy Cooking!
Start off with a pound of thawed chicken breasts (boneless, skinless, 3 or 4 pieces) and pound it so it's less rounded on top and has a bit of a flat, table-like top. Then brown your chicken in a skillet on medium heat with a quarter of a stick of butter. While it's browning, sprinkle a pinch of basil (or other favorite spice you have handy) over each piece of chicken and then cover. Let it cook for about 25-30 minutes, turning occasionally.
While you're waiting for your chicken, you can start on the Cheese Straws. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl combine 2 cups of flour, 2 cups of sharpest cheddar shredded/grated cheese, 1 & 1/2 sticks melted butter, 1 tsp salt, 1 dash crushed red pepper or hot sauce, 4 tbsp ice water. It works a little better if you mix the salt and hot sauce in with the melted butter and then pour that over the flour/cheese mixture so everything gets evenly coated. Mix well. Let the dough chill in the freezer for a few minutes. *If you pre-plan you can mix the cheese straw dough and let it chill in the fridge for an hour before you begin...it's a little easier to roll out that way. Once it's chill, roll your dough out to about 1/4 inch thickness and then slice thin strips (however long you wish, but these tend to be fragile in my experience so the length of a french fry works best for me). Bake for 20 minutes, and voila!
Matt's dad (Barry or "Biz") used to make these whenever he made spaghetti, but they're so good we like them with pretty much anything!
Back to our chicken - After 25-30 minutes sprinkle (or load) the chicken with shredded mozzarella cheese and a little bit of juice from your favorite salsa. Re-cover and cook until cheese is bubbly and melted. Serve topped with salsa! I used the Paula Deen salsa posted Feb. 6th and it was tasty!!!
Plated up my chicken, cheese straws, and five-minute Steamfresh broccoli florets looked like a restaurant dish...but cost a lot less, took a lot less effort, and was enjoyed at our own family table! This is a great family pleaser; or something you can serve to impress your guests!
Happy Cooking!
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Homemade Salsa
Okay, I promised I wouldn't only post Paula Deen recipes (and I swear I won't), but this was sort of an impromptu Superbowl Salsa. Matt convinced me to ditch the conventional jarred salsa and try my hand at making homemade salsa. I will admit that I should have asked my friend, Dena, for her recipe . . . but like I said, it was sort of last minute. Maybe I'll try hers (if she'd be kind enough to share it with me!) at a later date and post it.
Anyhoo - for those of you who don't like a super-hot salsa this is a perfect recipe. For those of you who do like it hot; Matt and Cameron added some hot sauce in their bowls and really enjoyed it! Or, throw in an extra jalepeno or two. Again, I tweaked the recipe a little (because Matt forgot the red wine vinegar and we love cilantro which isn't in the original) but the original can be found on www.foodnetwork.com. Search Paula Deen's Homemade Salsa.
This is also a really easy recipe to throw together, and I'm sure if you chilled for a couple of hours, the flavors would really meld together even more.
Gather 3 large tomatoes, 1 small onion, 1 small bell green pepper (seeded), 1 4oz. can chopped green chiles, 2 limes (juiced), 1 jalepeno (seeded) and a small bunch of cilantro (stems off). Chop up everything (except the limes, you only need the juice from those) and toss in a bowl!
Happy Cooking . . . well, Chopping! :o)
Anyhoo - for those of you who don't like a super-hot salsa this is a perfect recipe. For those of you who do like it hot; Matt and Cameron added some hot sauce in their bowls and really enjoyed it! Or, throw in an extra jalepeno or two. Again, I tweaked the recipe a little (because Matt forgot the red wine vinegar and we love cilantro which isn't in the original) but the original can be found on www.foodnetwork.com. Search Paula Deen's Homemade Salsa.
This is also a really easy recipe to throw together, and I'm sure if you chilled for a couple of hours, the flavors would really meld together even more.
Gather 3 large tomatoes, 1 small onion, 1 small bell green pepper (seeded), 1 4oz. can chopped green chiles, 2 limes (juiced), 1 jalepeno (seeded) and a small bunch of cilantro (stems off). Chop up everything (except the limes, you only need the juice from those) and toss in a bowl!
Happy Cooking . . . well, Chopping! :o)
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