Saturday, January 31, 2009

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins

This isn't dinner... but a yummy treat! Or healthy enough to go with breakfast! :) I like to make mini-muffins and use mini chocolate chips instead of regular ones.

2-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1-3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1-3/4 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup baking cocoa
1-1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 egg whites
1 egg
2 cups unsweetened applesauce
1-3/4 cups fat-free milk
2 TBLS canola oil
1-1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1-1/4 cups chocolate chips

In a large bowl, combine the flours, brown sugar, cocoa, salt, baking powder and baking soda. In another bowl whisk the egg whites, egg, applesauce, milk, oil, and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in chocolate chips.

Coat muffin cups with cooking spray. Fill 3/4 full with batter. Bake for 18-20 minutes at 350 degrees or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans.

Monday, January 26, 2009

Parmesan Meatballs

Makila originally gave me this recipe. She discovered it on the back of a grated Parmesan cheese bottle.

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped, fresh parsley
1 egg
1 clove garlic, minced

Preheat oven to 375*. Mix meat, cheese, parsley, egg, and garlic. Shape into 12 meatballs. Place in a slightly greased pan. Bake 25 minutes or until cooked through. Makes 6 servings, 2 meatballs each.

This recipe is so easy to adapt to what you have in your cupboards! I never use fresh parsley, I use 4 t. of dried parsley flakes. Makila has used Italian seasoning and garlic powder instead of parsley and minced garlic. I typically use shredded Romano cheese instead of Parmesan. Find what works best for your family and make them that way!

Making more than 12 meatballs decreases the cooking time a bit because the meatballs are smaller. These are easy to freeze by placing on a cookie sheet or putting in a mini muffin tin. Put into freezer baggie once completely frozen.

Poppyseed Chicken

1 cup sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 T poppyseed
1 t dill weed
4 cups cooked, diced chicken
3 cups cooked rice (white or brown)
1-1/2 c. butter flavored cracker crumbs (I usually use 1 tube of wheat saltines)
1/2 c. butter, melted

In a large bowl, combine sour cream, soup, poppyseed, & dill. Mix well & stir in chicken and rice. Spread into greased 9x13 pan. Combine crumbs and melted butter. Sprinkle over casserole. Bake uncovered at 350* for 30 minutes.

If using brown rice, it will have less of a salty flavor than if using white rice. Season according to your taste. I do cook my brown rice with chicken bouillon cubes to give it more flavor.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Blondies (aka Blonde Brownies)

1/2 c. margarine
1 1/2 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp vanilla
chocolate chips

Melt butter, stir in everything but chocolate chips. Spread in greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle with chocolate chips...you decide how much. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

You can double this recipe for a thick brownie. Put doubled recipe in greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees, check it after 35 minutes or so and then keep checking it so it doesn't get over done.

Ham and Potato Casserole

2lbs. frozen hashbrowns, thawed
1/2 c. butter, melted (you can use less)
2 c. cubed, cooked ham
1/3 c. chopped green onion (I never put this in but use onion powder or dry minced onion)
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 c. (16oz) sour cream
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Topping:
2 c. crushed corn flakes
1/4 c. melted butter

Combine all casserole ingredients and mix well. Place in 9x13 in. pan. Combine topping ingredients; sprinkle on casserole. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

This makes a very large batch for a 9x13 pan. You can easily split this into 2 8x8 or 9x9 pans and possibly even 3 depending on how full you fill the pans.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Makila's Chocolate Chip Cookies

3/4 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup butter (softened)
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
3 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups chocolate chips

Combine sugars. Add butter, vanilla & eggs. Add flour, baking soda & salt.

Stir in chocolate chips (yes, 3 cups...most recipes call for 2 cups)

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Best if under baked.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Applesauce Cake

1/2 c margarine
1 1/2 c sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 eggs
2 c flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 c applesauce
topping:
Chocolate chips (I just sprinkle until it looks like enough and then add a few more :)
4 T sugar
Mix all ingredients together. Pour into 9x13 greased pan. Sprinkle with chocolate chips and 4 T sugar.

Bake 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until toothpick/cake tester comes out clean.

Goldfish Chicken Nuggets

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 cups crushed whole grain Goldfish crackers
1 cup bottled light ranch dressing, divided

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a 9x13 pan with foil. Cut chicken into nuggets. Put the crushed crackers in a shallow bowl and 2/3 cup dressing in another bowl. Dip the chicken in the dressing and then roll it in the crackers. Place on the foil lined pan. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Use the rest of the ranch dressing for dipping.

French Tacos

Recipe from Katie K.

2 lbs ground beef
1/2 c sour cream
2 packages of  Pastry sheets (4 sheets total)
Chopped tomatoes
Green onion, chopped
1 pkg taco seasoning mix
1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese
Shredded lettuce
Black olives, chopped

Brown, drain and crumble beef. Mix ground beef, seasoning, sour cream and shredded cheese. Cut each thawed pastry sheet into 4 equal squares. Place 1/4-1/3 cup of meat mixture in the center of a puff pastry. Pull the 4 corners up and secure the edges with a toothpick. Bake at 375 until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Remove the toothpick. Garnish with the lettuce, tomatoes, onions and olives. Salsa can be used too.

Optional:
Melt 1 pound of Velveeta and 4 ounces of picante sauce, serve over tacos.

I buy the puff pastry sheets in the freezer section near the pie crusts. I get the sheets and then cut them into squares. They have to thaw a bit so check the package for how long to thaw them.

When I made these today, I had 16 french tacos.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Chicken Tortilla

submitted by Jerilynn B.

3 whole chicken breasts
1 package corn tortillas
1 can of Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can of Cream of Chicken soup
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 c. chicken broth
1 can chili on carne Without beans
1 small can green chiles
8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded
8 oz monterey jack cheese, shredded

-Stew chicken breasts, cut up into chunks
-Lay chicken chunks in 9x13 in baking dish
-Break up 1 dozen corn tortillas over chicken
-Mix remaining ingredients (EXCEPT CHEESE) and pour over chicken and tortillas
-Spread both cheeses over top

Bake at 350F, UNCOVERED for 30 mins or until cheese is totally melted.

Chicken & Rice

submitted by Jerilynn B.

Preheat oven to 375

1 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 cup water
3/4c. rice
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp paprika
4 chicken breasts

-mix soup and water in 9x13 in baking dish
-blend in rice and spices
-place chicken breasts on top of rice mixture ~sprinkle chicken with paprika

Cover tightly with foil and bake for 45 mins. (I bake 55-60 mins if I use flash frozen chicken)

Uncover and enjoy!

Garlic Creamed Chicken

2 lbs. chicken breast, cut into strips
1 can cream of mushroom or cream of chicken
1 cup sour cream OR plain, Greek yogurt
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 garlic cloves, minced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place chicken strips into an ungreased 9x13 baking dish. In a medium bowl, combine the soup, sour cream, cream cheese, and garlic. Mix well and spread mixture over chicken. Bake uncovered for 1 hour. Serve over rice.

Garlic Lime Chicken

1 t. salt
1 t. pepper
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
1/4 t. paprika
1 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. onion powder or onion flakes
1/2 t. thyme
6 chicken breast halves (Between 1-1/2 and 2 lbs. I usually cut 3-4 chicken breast halves into 6-8 pieces depending on how big the halves were to begin with.)
2 T. butter
2 T. olive oil
1/2 c. chicken broth (I use 1/2 c. water and 1 chicken bouillon cube)
2-4 T. lime or lemon juice

In a bowl, mix together the first 7 ingredients. Sprinkle mixture on both sides of chicken breasts (or just one side works, too!) In a skillet, heat butter and olive oil together over medium high heat. Saute chicken until golden brown, about 5 minutes on each side. Turn down the heat, remove the chicken (keeping warm) and add the lime juice and chicken broth to the pan, whisking up the browned bits off the bottom of the skillet. Keep cooking until sauce has reduced slightly. Add chicken back to the pan to thoroughly coat. (At this point, I like to cover the skillet and let the chicken cook a little longer to make sure that it is completely done.)

I like to serve this with brown rice and broccoli. The sauce is great on both the rice and broccoli, too! (A hint on brown rice - it has more flavor if you cook it in chicken or beef broth. When I make it, I use 2 cups of water, 2 chicken bouillon cubes and 1 cup of brown rice, not instant!)

Cavatinni

1 box of noodles (any kind, 16oz approx)
1 lb ground beef
1lb italian sausage
1 jar pizza sauce (15-16oz)
1/2 jar spaghetti sauce
1/4 lb sliced pepperoni
1/2 c shredded mozzarella
1/4 c cheddar cheese
garlic powder

Cook noodles. Brown meat. Mix noodles, meat and sauces. Grease 9x13 pan. Put meat mixture into pan. Top with pepperoni, cheese and sprinkle garlic powder. Bake at 350 until hot throughout...usually 30-40 minutes.
I usually use more cheese and I have no idea how much pepperoni I actually use, I just put one layer on it. If the meat mixture seems dry, you can add more sauce.

Parmesan Chicken

1/4 c butter or margarine
1/2 c flour
1/2 c parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
6 split chicken breasts
1/3 c milk
Stir together everything but chicken and milk. Dip chicken breasts in milk then coat with flour mixture. Place chicken in greased baking pan. Cut up butter around chicken. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until chicken is fork tender and golden brown.
The original recipe calls for you to melt the butter in the dish and then place the chicken in the melted butter. I always make mine ahead so I just cut up the butter around the chicken and it melts while cooking.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Italian Meatloaf

1 lb ground beef
1 egg
3/4 C bread crumbs
1/4 c onion
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp oregano
1/8 tsp pepper
1 (8oz) can pizza sauce
2 c mozzarella cheese

Mix ingredients together and pat into baking dish or loaf pan. Sprinkle 2 c cheese down the middle and roll meat over so cheese is in the middle. (I usually put half the meat in the loaf pan, put the cheese on and then put the rest of the meat. This seems easier than trying to roll the meat around the cheese) Bake 1 hour at 350. Pour pizza sauce over and bake 15 minutes more.