Friday, February 26, 2010

Super Easy Crock-Pot Roast


Ingredients:
2 lb Eye of Round Beef Pot Roast
1 can Beef Broth
1 can French Onion Soup
1 packet dry Ranch mix
1 packet dry Onion Soup mix
1 cup water
Pepper to taste
 
Directions:
Place roast in bottom of Slow Cooker.  Pour all ingredients over top of roast.  Sprinkle with pepper to taste.  Cook on LOW for 8 hours.  Serve with mashed potatoes, and veggie of your choice.  Delish! 
 
Note:  I always use the leftovers for sandwiches another night.  Make sure to place meat in one container, and au jus sauce in a seperate container (otherwise sandwich will be soggy).  Take a loaf of French Bread, slice, butter (generously), sprinkle with garlic parmesan seasoning, place provel cheese on top. Bake for 6 minutes at 400 degrees.  Place pot roast on top of bread.  Serve with au jus.  This is ALWAYS a hit!
 
by katypresson

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Southwestern Chicken Soup







1 C chopped onion
3 cloves minced garlic
6 C low sodium chicken broth
1/4 C uncooked white rice
1 tsp cumin
1 can beans of your choice, rinsed & drained (sometimes I use corn instead)
3 C chopped cooked rotisserie chicken
1/2 C chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 C chopped tomato (you can use canned)
3/4 C (about 1 medium size) chopped avocado
1 tsp fresh squeezed lime juice
6 lime wedges


Heat a large saute pan over med/high heat. Cover with cooking spray. Add onion & garlic and saute 3 minutes.
Add broth, rice, cumin and beans/corn. Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. Stir in chicken, cilantro, peeper & salt. Simmer 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in tomato, avocado and lime juice.

Serve with lime wedges and tortilla chips

Whole-Grain Mustard Tarragon Chicken

Leaves from 4 large sprigs of tarragon, stems reserved
2 quarts chicken or vegetable broth (may substitute low-sodium broth)
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (4 to 5 ounces each), flattened to 1/2 -inch thick
1 teaspoon whole-grain mustard
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 cups salad greens
 

Place the tarragon stems and broth in a large saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low so the broth is barely bubbling. Add the chicken and gently poach for about 15 minutes or until firm to the touch and cooked through. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and let it cool briefly before cutting into thin diagonal strips.
 

Meanwhile, prepare the dressing. A mini-blender is preferable: coarsely chop the tarragon leaves and puree with the mustard, lemon juice, oil and salt and pepper to taste. Or chop the tarragon finely and whisk in a small bowl with the other dressing ingredients.
 

Divide the salad greens among individual plates. Fan the chicken slices on top of the greens and drizzle with the dressing. Serve immediately.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

SPAM Scrambled Eggs

1 bag frozen hashbrowns, either cubed or shredded (DH likes potatoes o'brien)
2 cans SPAM
5-6 eggs

Cook hashbrowns according to package.  While they are beginning to cook, cut SPAM into cubes.  Add to hashbrowns and continue to cook.  Scramble eggs in bowl.  When hashbrowns are done, push to one side of skillet.  Add eggs and cook just like regular scrambles eggs.  When eggs are done, stir mixture all together.  Voila!  Sometimes we add cheese or ketchup to it for a little more flavor. 

by kaylenpar1

BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

NEED:
approximately 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup BBQ sauce
3 TBL brown sugar
1/4th cup water
Hoagie buns

Cut chicken into strips or cubes, and cook in either an electric or stovetop skillet.  Make sure chicken is cooked through (about 10 minutes).  Remove chicken and shred with fork and knife.  Put back in skillet, add BBQ sauce, brown sugar and water.  Stir around and let simmer about 4-5 mins until sauce is a little thicker.  Add BBQ and brown sugar to taste if you want more flavor of either.  Serve on hoagie buns with your favorite side.

by kaylenpar1

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Potatoes Romanoff

INGREDIENTS
4 pounds grated whole baked potatoes (6 large 50-count Idaho potatoes)
1 1/2 cups minced shallots
5 cups grated white Cheddar cheese
3 cups sour cream
1/1 Tbs./Tsp fine salt
1/2 Tsp. ground white pepper
 
DIRECTIONS
In a large mixing bowl, combine the grated potato, shallots and 4 cups of the Cheddar cheese.
Season with the salt and pepper.
Fold in the sour cream by hand one cup at a time.
Well oil a 2.5-inch deep by 12.5 inch-square baking dish.
Place the potatoes Romanoff mixture in the pan without additional compressing.
Sprinkle the top with the remaining one cup of Cheddar cheese.
Bake in a 350-degree oven for 25 minutes until hot and cheese has browned.

Tollhouse Cookie Bars

2 cups unsifted flour
2tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
3/4 granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
12 oz pkg semi sweet chocolate morsels
preheat to 350
combine flour, baking powder and salt... set aside
mix butter, sugars and vanilla... beat until creamy.
add eggs one at a time
gradually add flour mixture... mix well
stir in chips
spread into 15x10x1 inch pan
bake for 30-35 minutes
cut into 2 inch squares... makes 35 bars

Kahlua Glazed Turkey

This is my mom's recipe. She's made it on many a Thanksgiving Day.

1 12-14lb Turkey (Hens are sweeter)
Stuffing of your choice
1/3 cup apricot jam
1/3 cup Kahlua

Stuff and truss turkey with favorite stuffing or cook stuffing on the side.

Glaze:
Strain jam or smooth in a blender or processor
Add Kahlua and mix well
Baste throughout roasting period.

You may add seasoning to this mixture as well.

My mom lines the bottom of the pan with carrots and onions. They will caramelize in the juices during roasting.

Salsa Chicken

Since we can't seem to add it to an FAQ, here's the recipe:

Take raw chicken breasts cover with a jar of salsa (red or green).

Bake at 350 for 30 mins.

Top with reduced fat shredded mexican blend cheese.

Serve over rice or with tortilla chips

My Great Great Aunt's Sugar Cookies

My mom remembers making these with her mom growing up, and I remember making them with my mom growing up.  I can't wait to share the experience with my own children!  This is a very old recipe, though my mom has been kind enough to update it (the original called for "a glass of milk".  Not a certain sized glass, just a glass!)

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter flavored crisco (original recipe called for lard)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda (dampen with white vinegar)
1 tsp vanilla (use a little extra if using vanilla extract)
2 eggs
1 cup milk
3 cups flower

Cream sugar and crisco. 
Add eggs, stir.
Add baking powder, stir.
Add vanilla, stir.
Add milk, stir.
Add baking soda (dampened with vinegar), stir.
Add flour, stir.

You can either drop on a cookie sheet at this point, or add more flour until it reaches a good consistency to roll out and use cookie cutters.  I normally end up using 5-6 cups of flour total.
Bake at 350 until you can press on the middle of the cookie and it "springs" back up

Southwestern Beef Chili with Corn

 This is one of my absolute favorite meals in the wintertime.  My husband likes to leave out the tomato paste and use this for tacos and burritos, but I think it's fine just as it is!

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 carrots, chopped
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 poblano or bell pepper, chopped
  • 1/2 pound ground beef
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • Kosher salt and black pepper
  • 1/2 cup corn kernels (from 1 ear, or frozen and thawed)
  • 1/2 cup grated Cheddar (2 ounces)
  • 2 scallions, sliced

  1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, onion, and poblano and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Add the beef and cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until no longer pink, 3 to 5 minutes.
  2. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until it is slightly darkened, 1 minute. Stir in the beans, chili powder, 3 cups water, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Simmer over medium heat until the vegetables are tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the corn. 
  3.  Divide the chili among bowls and top with the Cheddar and scallions.

from Real Simple Magazine, September 2008

Chocolate Chip Cookies (the best ever!)

1C butter flavored Crisco
3/4C packed brown sugar
3/4C white sugar
1tsp. vanilla flavoring
1tsp. almond flavoring
2 large eggs
2 1/2C flour
1 heaping tsp. salt
1 heaping tsp. baking soda
As much chocolate chips as you desire (I personally put in about 2C or so)

Pre-heat over to 350-365* (This varies depending on how well your oven heats up and how long you keep the cookies in there for). Mix the ingredients in order. One other tip I should mention is to disolve the baking soda in 1tsp-1tbsp of hot water before mixing in. Once the dough is ready, seperate into four equal parts. With each part roll into a 3 inch "cookie log" and slice with a knive or sturdy yet fine wire into 1/4 inch thick cookies. Bake until they are almost done (7-8 1/2min.) and allow to sit on the baking sheet for another 5-10 min before storing in an air tight container. You can make one roll at a time while refrigerating the rest if you like.

from The Champagne Mom

Monday, February 22, 2010

Spinach Chicken Pasta

This is a great recipe if you're into leftovers and quick healthy meals. I made it up while I was pregnant and needed things to pull out of the fridge quickly in the middle of the night, or the next day for work. It won't break the bank or your diet. You can add as much or as little of any of the ingredients as you like, depending on your tastes, or how much you want to make. It's great for summer picnics or a fresh, warm, at home meal.

1 tomato
1 can garbanzo beans or chick peas
1 package of thinly sliced boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 package or bunch fresh spinach
8-12 ounces of bowtie pasta
1 package (8 ounces)  feta cheese (I get flavored feta with basil and tomato)
Basil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Olive oil

Boil the bowtie pasta, drain and set aside. Season chicken with seasoned salt and pepper. While pasta is boiling, pan fry or grill (we use the Foreman grill) the chicken. Cut the chicken into strips. In large pot, stir chicken and pasta together. Add fresh spinach, beans and tomato and mix trogether over medium low heat until spinach is wilted. Remove from heat. Immediately add salt and pepper, basil, 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil, and feta cheese (as much as you like).

That's it! Enjoy!

Kate