Almond Dijon Baked Chicken

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast fillets

2 T. Dijon mustard

2 T. mayonnaise

½ c. almonds, chopped

cooking spray as needed

Recipe:

1. Preheat oven to 375. combine Dijon mustard and mayonnaise. Place chicken breasts in a baking dish lightly coated with cooking spray.

2. Coat chicken with mustard mixture, and top with chopped almonds. Bake, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes, or until no longer pink in the center.

Rating: 4 of 5

This was a nice tasty dish. LaDon loved it and declared that he doesn't know why we even go out to eat on dates because my cooking has gotten better than restaurant cooking. He's funny. Seriously though, the chicken was nice and tender, the flavor was full and zesty, and the almonds added the perfect crunch factor! If you like the Honey Mustard Grilled Chicken, you'll probably like this as well. Oh, and the best thing of all: I had absolutely every ingredient on hand and it's such an easy recipe that LaDon could make it.....with his eyes closed (if he wanted to cook)!

Source: Food on the Table

Cheesy Italian Tortellini

Ingredients:

½ lb ground beef

½ lb Italian sausage, casings removed

1 16-oz jar marinara sauce

1 14.5-oz can Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained

1 9-oz package refrigerated or fresh cheese tortellini

1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

½ c. shredded Cheddar cheese

Recipe:

1. Crumble the ground beef and Italian sausage into a large skillet. Cook over medium-high hear until browned. Drain.

2. Combine the ground meats, marinara sauce, and tomatoes in a slow cooker. Cover, and cook on low for 7-8 hours.

3. Stir in the tortellini, and sprinkle the mozzarella and cheddar cheese over the top. Cover and cook for 15 more minutes on low, or until the tortellini in tender.

Rating: 3 of 5

This really was a good recipe. We just thought there was too much meat. I also prefer the Italian sausage taste to beef, so I think next time I will double the batch and only use 1 lb. of Italian sausage. I've come to discover that tortellini is not my favorite pasta. I would also try using cheese ravioli next time.

Source: Allrecipes, http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Cheesy-Italian-Tortellini/Detail.aspx

Deviled Eggs

Ingredients: (I did a half dozen)

12 large eggs

6 T. mayonnaise

2 t. mustard

1 pinch cayenne pepper

salt and black pepper *

paprika, for dusting

* I actually forgot to use salt and pepper and couldn't taste the difference.

Recipe:

1. Peel the hard boiled eggs, halve lengthwise and scoop the yolks into a medium bowl, reserving the egg whites.

2. Mash the yolks with the mayonnaise, mustard, and cayenne; season with salt and black pepper.

3. Spoon the mixture into the egg white halves and dust with paprika.

Rating: 3.75 of 5

I love that this recipe is so simple and that I had everything on hand. They tasted very similar to the deviled eggs my mom made growing up which means they're good. I didn't mash them very well, so they were a little chunky and Ally helped peel the eggs so there were some shell remnants in them, but overall, delicious.

Source: EveryDay with Rachael Ray, http://www.rachaelraymag.com/Recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-search/appetizer-starter-recipes/Deviled-Eggs-2

Greek Chicken Cutlets

Ingredients:

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

1/3 c. pitted Kalamata olives

4 oz. Feta cheese, coarsely crumbled (1 c.)

½ c. fresh mint leaves

2-3 T olive oil

coarse salt and ground pepper

1 ½ lb. Thin chicken cutlets (about 8)

Recipe:

1. In a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, olives, feta mint, and 1 T. oil. Season with salt and pepper; set aside

2. Heat a grill pan over high; brush lightly with oil. Season cutlets with salt and pepper. Cook, working in batches as necessary, until chicken is cooked through, 1-2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Top chicken with tomato mixture, and serve.

Rating: 3 of 5

Low rating, not because it wasn't good. It's a Greek dish (supposedly) and is just a different taste than we are used to. I think the thing I didn't like about it was how strong the mint flavor was. So, if I make this one again, I'll cut the mint by half....at least. The chicken was really good though. It's a combination of flavors that I'm not used to, but, hey, now I know what to cook when I want to shake things up a bit!

Source: Food on the Table

Sausage and Broccoli Skillet

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb. ground pork sausage

1 medium onion, chopped *

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 10.75-oz can condensed cream of broccoli soup **

1/2 c. milk

1 16-oz. package frozen chopped broccoli

1/2 c. shredded Parmesan cheese

4 1/2 c. fusili pasta, cooked and drained ***

red pepper flakes, as needed

*I, of course, just replaced it with dried chopped onion.

** I could only find Broccoli and Cheese, so I used that. Also, I recommend 2 cans of soup. The end result is really chunky and not so saucy.

*** When I went to the store, I had no idea what fusili pasta was. Turns out, it's just corkscrew type pasta. I used angel hair. I don't like corkscrew type pasta anyway.

Recipe:

1. Cook the sausage in a sauce-pot over medium-high heat until the sausage is well browned. Stir frequently to break up the meat.

2. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion and garlic to the pot and cook until tender. Pour off fat.

3. Stir the soup, milk, broccoli and 1/4 c. of the cheese into the sauce-pot. Heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the broccoli is tender, stirring occasionally.

4. Put the pasta in a large serving bowl. Pour the sausage mixture over the pasta. Toss to coat. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Serve with red pepper, if desired.

Rating: 3 of 5

This was pretty good. I think next time I will cut the meat and broccoli in half. It was just a little to thick. This was a pretty good dish.

Source: Food on the Table

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:

1 c. onion, chopped

1 t. garlic, minced

3 c. chicken broth

1 14.5-oz can Mexican diced tomatoes*

1/2 t. chili powder

1/4 t. ground cumin

**1 can of corn, drained**

1 1/2 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast, cubed

2 T. cornstarch (don't have cornstarch on hand? Not a problem! Just use flour and double the amount!)

1/4 c. water

1/4 c. Mexican cheese blend, shredded

1 T. fresh cilantro, minced

Tortilla chips

* I couldn't find Mexican diced tomatoes, so I just bought "diced tomatoes with green chilies"

** I added the can of corn to the recipe. I love corn and thought it would make a nice addition....and it did!

Recipe:

1. In a large saucepan, combine the first six ingredients; bring to a boil. Add chicken.

2. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 4-6 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Combine cornstarch and water and stir until smooth.

3. Stir cornstarch/water mixture into soup. Let soup simmer for 15 additional minutes.

4. Serve soup topped with cheese, cilantro and with tortilla chips.

Rating: 4.5 of 5

For soup, we thought this was great. Neither of us are huge soup lovers. But, this recipe is quick and easy. The cilantro makes all the difference though! That being said, we do LOVE cilantro. We wanted to have a dollop of sour cream with it as garnishing, but Ally would have eaten nothing else. We will definitely be having this recipe again.

Source: Food on the Table

All-American Apple Pie

Ingredients:

~Crust~

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. vegetable oil

2 T. cold milk

1 1/2 t. white sugar

1 t. salt

~Apple Filling~

3/4 c. white sugar

3 T. all-purpose flour

3/4 t. ground cinnamon

1/2 t. ground nutmeg

6 Fuji apples, cored and sliced *

~Topping~

1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. white sugar

1/2 c. cold butter (MUST be cold!)

* I always peel my apples. I'm not a fan of cooked skin.

Recipe:

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. In a large bowl, mix together ingredients for the crust until evenly blended. Pat mixture into a 9-inch pie pan, spreading the dough evenly over the bottom and up sides. *

3. Mix together the apple filling ingredients. Sprinkle over apples and toss to coat. Spread evenly in unbaked pie shell.

4. Using a pastry cutter, blend together the topping ingredients until evenly distributed and crumbly in texture. Sprinkle over apples.

5. Put pie pan on a 10x15 jellyroll pan to catch the juices that may spill over. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes or until golden. Let stand before serving.

*I normally do this, but today I decided to make individual servings by placing the crust in a muffin tin.

Rating: 4.5 of 5 (as a pie) and 4.75 of 5 (as individual servings)

I really like the straight up apple pie version of this recipe, but one thing I didn't like was who soupy it would turn out. I'm not sure how to avoid that since it's just the juices from the apples. I rated the individual servings slightly higher because it eliminated the juice problem for me. Either way, this is a super delicious recipe.

Source: AllRecipes Dinner Tonight, pg. 86

Quick Italian Rolls

Ingredients:

1/2 c. water

1 c. milk

1 egg

2 T. butter

2 T. sugar

2 t. garlic salt

1 t. Italian Seasoning

1/2 c. Parmesan Cheese

4 cups bread flour

2 1/4 t. active dry yeast

Recipe:

1. Use Dough setting.

2. Remove the dough from the machine. Punch down. Divide the dough into 4 parts. Divide each part into 4 pieces. Shape each piece into a smooth ball. *

3. Dip tops into melted butter and 1/4 c. cheese. Place in well greased 13x9 cake pan or two 9-inch layer cake pans. Cover; let rise in warm oven about 10 minutes.

4. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes until golden brown. Remove from pan; cool.

Rating: 4 of 5

We liked this bread. I didn't make rolls though. Just loaves this time. They were good. I thought they tasted like it melted in your mouth. LaDon said the bread was a solid 4, "but not higher than a 4, because bread can't be that good." Haha!

Source: Magic Chef Automatic Breadmaker Recipe Guide, pg. 13

Tuscan Lamb Chop Skillet

Ingredients:

8 lamb rib chops, cut 1 in thick

2 t. olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 19-oz white kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 8-oz can Italian style stewed tomatoes, undrained

1 T. balsamic vinegar

2 t. snipped fresh rosemary

Recipe:

1. Trim fat from chops. In a large skillet cook chops in hot oil over medium heat for 9 to 11 minutes for medium, turning once. Transfer chops to a plate; keep warm.

2. Stir garlic into drippings in skillet. Cook and stir for 1 minute. Stir in beans, undrained tomatoes, vinegar, and snipped rosemary. bring to boiling; reduce heat. simmer, uncovered, for 3 minutes. Spoon bean mixture onto 4 dinner plates. arrange 2 chops on each plate. If desired, garnish with rosemary sprigs.

4. Serve with Italian bread and some mixed greens.

Rating: 1.5 of 5

Maybe we aren't lamb people. The bean mixture was okay, but we didn't like the meat. Maybe that's also because it didn't have any kind of seasoning that went into cooking it. But we do like gyros. I dunno. Most definitely won't be making this one again. Sorry, Better Homes and Gardens!

Source: Better Homes and Garden New Cook Book, pg. 354