Chicken Noodle Soup

This is a favorite at our house and all 3 kids eat it really good which is always a bonus. We buy a routisere chicken from Costco and add a few sides the first night and then the next night turn what's left into soup. Boil the entire chicken in water for a few minutes and let the juices come out and then take it out and add a package of frozen egg noodles (purchased at almost any store in the frozen section) along with one can of chicken base liquid. Let the noodles cook while removing the remaining chicken and add it to the soup. Add a chicken flavor cube if needed and seasoning salt. Very yummy and fast. It is really filling so we don't add many sides, maybe rolls or fruit.

Orange Julius

This isn't a dinner, but hey, let's be honest. Life without sugar is truly no life at all! It's orange, so count it as your pseudo healthy Halloween treat. After all, it contains orange juice and milk, so it must be good for you! :)

Orange Julius

6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8-9 ice cubes

1. Combine all ingredients except ice cubes in blender.
2. Blend for about 1-2 minutes, adding ice cubes one at a time.

Easy add-on to Pasta Roni

So Last night I made one of my lazy night dishes. For those who don't know, Pasta Roni has microwave directions on the side of the box (same water, milk, butter you add to it but you just put it in a 2qt microwavable dish and cook for ~8 mins). Since these can be a little unfilling by themselves, I just throw on some frozen chicken tenerdloins with everything else at the start and then you have a chicken pasta dish! I just cook up some peas or whatever other veggie and you have to go with it. You get a whole meal in less than 10 mins. It's the perfect amount for 2.

Killer Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup

Who doesn't love grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup? Yet, part of me says, "Am I not too grown up for this?" Well, the answer isn't a strait yes or no: it depends on your ingredients.

Tips for the best growed-up, killer grilled cheese sandwich:
* Use a good quality sharp cheddar cheese. Or, if you're feeling brave, switch out cheddar for gouda, swiss, or whatever type of cheese floats your particular boat.
* Throw in a tomato slice. Fresh veggies = happy immune system.
* If you like pickles, thrown some of them in. They add a zing that can be quite nice.
* Like mustard? Slap some on the inside of a fancy cheezed sandwich.
* Use whatever kind of bread you want, but there's nothing like awesome cheese grilled on bakery bread. Choose whatever you want!

Tips for the best growed-up tomato soup:
*Forget the canned, red-label Campbells. (If you're doing the cheaper, store-version, you've got to cut that out, too). Seriously, it's maybe a dollar more for the good stuff, and that dollar is so dang worth it.
*Before you continue, note that I do not mean make your own tomato soup. Heck, this is an easy dinner. No need for all that trouble.
* Check out higher-quality canned soups. Campbells makes an amazing garden tomato with basil. Check for the white "Select Harvest" label - it's killer.
*Campbells also teamed up with V8 for some amazing boxed soups. The boxed soups (I think) have a better flavor. Their tomato-basil soup is the good kind of chunky and it's to die for.

OK, so now you know all about cheese, bread, and soup. It may end up costing you a dollar or two more to put this one together, but let's be honest. This still isn't an expensive meal. It's fast, it's flavorful, it's comfort food, and everyone likes it. I hate cheese and I like it, so there you go! Killer grilled cheese and tomato soup.

Seven Layer Dip

My husband loves Mexican food so I make 7 Layer Dip a lot for dinner---it is mostly healthy because it is mostly vegetables.

I use:

Refried Beans
Sour Cream (with Taco Seasoning Mixed in)
Corn
Green Peppers
Red Onions
Avocadoes
Olives
Tomatoes
Cheese
And anything else you have or would like to add!

Lemon chicken with potatoes

So tonight for dinner I made lemon chicken with potatoes. I use the frozen chicken tenders. I put a little butter in a pan and brown each side of the chicken pieces. I then rub 3-5 TBSP of lemon juice and 1 TBSP olive oil on both sides. I place it in a oven safe pan and sprinkle fresh or dried Basil on both sides. Now the chicken is ready to go in the oven. I cut up potatoes pieces and put in a zip lock bag (usually the gallon size). Then I put some olive oil in with however much of a packet of the Lipton onion dry soup mix. I shake around a bit and place in a separate dish. I place both in the oven at 350 for 20-30 mins. Makes a great fast meal. If you can't tell I'm all about fast and easy meals.

Chicken cordon bleu

Today for lunch/dinner we had chicken cordon bleu from the frozen section at Costco. If you can't already tell, I love their dinners. They are so good and super fast. It definitely hit the spot.

Recipes

Click on the heading "me, myself, and I" and from the drop down list select "recipes"

Breakfast for Dinner

Last night I made Breakfast Burritos for dinner...I actually enjoy Breakfast foods more at night time than I do at breakfast time.

Breakfast Burrito:
Cook all ingredients together
Eggs
Cheese
Bacon
Hash Browns
Onions
Anything Else You Want

Put in Flour Tortilla with sour cream, avocados, and olives! Delicious!

Cashew Chicken

Saute in 2 T. of vegetable oil:
1 lb. cubed chicken
2 medium carrots sliced
1/2 cup celery sliced

Combine in another bowl:
1 1/2 T. corn starch
1/4 tsp. ginger
3/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup honey
3 T. soy sauce

Add sauce to hot skillet with chicken. Bring to a boil and simmer for two minutes. Add 1/4 cup of roasted cashew. Serve over rice.

Barbecued Pulled Pork

The recipe says to serve over rice with tortillas but we love this as a sandwich on hoagie rolls.
3 to 4 lb boneless pork roast (shoulder or butt)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp ground red pepper (I just use red pepper flakes)
1 medium onion sliced
1 medium green bell pepper, sliced
1 jar (18 ounces) barbecue sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar

Combine salt, cumin, paprika, black pepper and red pepper in a small bowl; rub over pork. Place onion and bell pepper in slow cooker, place pork on top. Combine BBQ sauce and brown sugar; pour over meat. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours. Serve with rice and tortillas if desired, or do it the Post way and eat as a sandwich.

Cheesy Ranch Potato Bake

1 lb Souther style hash browns or plain hash browns
2 cans Cream of chicken soup
3/4 cup Sour Cream
1 envelope Ranch dressing mix
3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded Colby-Jack cheese (1/2 cup reserved for topping)
1/2 cup melted butter (reserve half for topping)
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup Crushed crackers


Add all ingredients to a bowl, mix well and spread into a greased casserole dish.
Add reserved cheese to top of potoato bake.
Mix reserved butter and crushed crackers in separate bowl and sprinkle over top.
Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown on top

Chicken & Broccoli Ring

Life Should Be Delicious!: Chicken & Broccoli Ring

This link is from my friends Holly Food blog. I made this last night and it was great.

Baked Potato Soup

Have you ever made a really nice dinner with beautiful Idaho bakers? I don't know about you, but I always make way too many bakers. And then I'm stuck with cold, leftover spuds. Don't worry, this recipe will kick you in the face, use up those potatoes, and leave you begging for more!

Baked Potato Soup
2 large baker potatoes
6 T thinly sliced green onion
3 T butter
3 T flour
2 t fresh dill or chives o 1/4 t dried dill (note - I used about 1 t of dried chives)
1/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper
4 C milk
1 1/4 C shredded cheese (note - recipe calls for American. I used Cheddar. Use whatever you have/whatever you want)
4 slices bacon, crisp cooked, drained and crumbled
----
1. Take baked potatoes and scoop out white part. Break up white part to small chunkies. Throw away peels.
2. In a large saucepan cook onion in the butter on med-high heat until tender. Stir in flour, dill/chives, salt, and pepper. Add milk all at once. Cook and stir 12-15 min until thickened and bubbly. Add the potato and 1 cup of cheese. Stir till it heats through and the cheese melts completely.
3. Top each serving with cheese and bacon


As you can see, this recipe is for basically a baked potato in a soup. So what if you don't have bacon? Leave it out! Maybe you like sour cream. Throw it in! Have some leftover ham? Why not chuck that in the mix? It's a method that you can add to, and it's so dang good. Plus it makes fabulous leftovers. It's also amazing when served with a hunk of warm bread to dip in it.

Props to this recipe has to go to the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook 2007 edition.

Costco's Spinach Ravioli

I bought a couple of fast easy dinners from Costco. One of my favorites is a Spinach Ravioli in the frozen section. You just Boil the ravioli pockets on a low boil until cooked. Then I put my own spaghetti sauce on and topped with their Parmesan packet. Super yummy and super fast!

Meat to Go!

I really like having meat or chicken already cooked and ready to add to a meal. I freeze appropriate portions. This makes putting a meal together a snap. For example: last night I had some pulled pork in the fridge and tucked it in tortillas with shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, a spoonful each of canned Rotelle diced tomatoes and bottled thick'n chunky salsa verde. I rolled them up and added a splash of the juice cooked with the pork and another sprinkle of cheese. I heated them up in the microwave and they were ready to eat.

We have used the pork for sandwiches (sometimes stirring in some barbeque sauce and serving it on buns) and other dishes calling for pulled pork. It is great just served on a plate with mashed or baked potatoes and a vegetable or salad or in a sauce over rice.

I do about the same with a beef roast: fresh out of the crockpot it is usually eaten with the common additions to a roast beef dinner. The remainder is shredded and frozen for recipes later.

I realize I am talking a meal for just the two of us under our roof. I use an extra large crockpot sometimes with two pork or beef roasts cooked at a time.


Recipe for Beef for Shredded Beef

Large Beef roast
1 pkg. dry onion soup mix
1/2 can root beer or caffeine free pepsi or coke
splash of Soy Sauce

Cook on LOW in large crockpot for 8 hours. Strain and reserve juices
To shred put meat on a large platter and separate with two forks.

Recipe for Pulled Pork

Large pork roast or two or three smaller ones
1/2 can root beer or caffeine free pepsi or coke
splash or Soy Sauce
Optional: a spoonful or two of salsa

Cook on LOW in large crockpot for 8 hours. Strain and reserve juices
To "pull" the pork use two forks

New blog

So I don't know about you but I'm sick and tired of the same old things for dinner. So I've started this blog to get new ideas. Here is how it works. Anyone who wants to can put a post in for what they had for dinner that night. The post can include a picture but please make sure and put your recipe in here. It doesn't have to be a main course, it can be any recipe. Who doesn't like new ideas?