Sausage and Peppers

Ingredients:

6 Italian sausage or chicken sausage

2 green peppers

1 red peppers

1 large red onion

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 cans Italian diced tomatoes

2 T. Italian seasoning

bread

noodles

mozzarella cheese

Recipe: 

1. Split between two bags, seal, mix, lay flat, freeze.

2. To cook: add drizzle of olive oil, cook on low 6 hours, serve over hot noodles or fresh French bread with mozzarella cheese.

Rating: 3 of 5

This one was fine, but not great. I felt like it was lacking in taste....as funny as that sounds. We had it on bread, but I think next time we'll serve it on Italian herb and cheese bread or something. I just thought it was a very bland dish. But, it has a ton of potential with some tweaking. 

Source: Ring Around the Rosies, Sausage and Peppers

Bell Pepper Chicken

Ingredients: they're all approximate as I was just throwing things in as I went along

2 chicken breasts, thawed

1 can cream of chicken soup

1-2 t. chicken bouillon

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

5-6 shakes of hot sauce

up to 1/4 c. sour cream

1/2 to 1 c. water

1/2 each red, orange, yellow, and green bell peppers, sliced

rice

Recipe: 

1. Mix soup, sour cream, garlic, water, bouillon, hot sauce and garlic together. Add chicken and bring to a boil.

2. Boil for a 5-10 minutes. Simmer chicken until cooked through. The mixture should be somewhat runny, so add more water if needed.

3. With 5-10 minutes left, add pepper slices to chicken mixture until tender.

4. Serve over hot rice.

Rating: 4 of 5

So, for a throw-in dinner, this turned out really well. It reminded me a little bit of jambalaya. It has great flavor, but very little heat. It's great over rice, but I think it'd be good over quinoa, too. I'd definitely make this one again.

Source: my own

Colorful Quinoa, Black Bean and Corn Salad

Ingredients:

1 c. quinoa, thoroughly washed in a fine sieve

1 3/4 c. water

15-oz. can black beans, thoroughly rinsed

1 c. frozen corn *

1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped**

1 Jalapeno chile pepper, seeded and minced

1/2 red onion, finely chopped ***

1/4 c. cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

1/3 c. olive oil

1/4 c. balsamic  vinegar****

salt and pepper

*used a can instead

** I used what I had on hand and that meant cutting out the red pepper and jalapeno and replacing it with just a green bell pepper.

*** I didn't have a red onion on hand so I just used my normal onion substitute of dried chopped onion.

**** I don't really like the balsamic taste, so I substituted it with lime juice. Much better.

Recipe:

1. Combine the quinoa and water in a rice cooker and cook according to the manufacturer's instructions. Alternatively combine the quinoa and water in a medium saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer (not removing the lid!), until all of the water has been absorbed. *

2. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and let cool slightly.

3. In a large bowl, combine the quinoa, black beans, corn, red bell pepper, jalapeno, onion, and cilantro. Mix well.

4. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil and balsamic and pour over the quinoa; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper.

*I don't have a rice cooker. I followed the instructions on the packaging.

Rating: 4 of 5

Did I like it? Yes. Would I make it again? Yes. Did LaDon like the quinoa? Surprisingly, yes! I really don't think I would have liked this with the balsamic, so I'm glad I switched it out for the lime juice. Cilantro and lime go better together anyway. Even Ally liked it and that girl never eats new food.

Source: Girl Cooks World, Colorful Quinoa Black Bean and Corn Salad

Easy Cajun Jambalaya

Ingredients:

2 t. olive oil

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces *

8-oz. kielbasa, diced (aka: Polish sausage. Think U-shaped meat at the market)

1 onion, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

1/2 c. celery, diced

2 T. chopped garlic **

1/4 t. cayenne pepper

1/2 t. onion powder

3/4 t. salt

1/4 t. black pepper

2 c. uncooked white rice

4 c. chicken broth

3 bay leaves

4 t. Worcestershire sauce

2 t. hot pepper sauce

* We went to the beach today and was just feeling WAY too tired to thaw, cook, and cut chicken. So, I just used canned chicken instead.

** Didn't have any garlic on hand, so I just used minced garlic. Actually, I never have garlic on hand. I always use minced garlic.

Recipe:

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Saute chicken and kielbasa until lightly browned, about 5 minutes

2. Stir in onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic.

3. Season with cayenne, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Cook 3 minutes or until onion is tender and translucent.

4. Add rice; stir in chicken broth, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce, and hot pepper sauce.

5. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer about 18 minutes or until rice is tender. Discard bay leaves before serving.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

Loved the kick in this! Not too much, not too little. I was pleasantly surprised by this dish. I was also surprised at how big of a batch this makes. For some reason, 2 c. of rise and 4 c. of broth didn't set off the "cut the recipe in half" alarm in my head. So, now we have a witche's kettle sized jambalaya dish. I also like the kielbasa and chicken combo. The veggies were perfect and I couldn't really tell the bell peppers were bell peppers.

Source: AllRecipe Dinner Tonight, pg. 46

Fruit Salsa

Ingredients:

1 c. finely chopped strawberries

1/3 c. orange, peeled and finely chopped

2/3 c. kiwifruit, peeled and finely chopped

1/2 c. finely chopped fresh pineapple or one 8-oz can crushed pineapple, drained

1/4 c. green onion, thinly sliced

1/4 c. yellow or green sweet pepper, finely chopped

1 T. lime or lemon juice

1 fresh jalapeno chile pepper, seeded and chopped, optional

1 recipe Cinnamon Tortilla Crisps

Recipe:

1. In a bowl combine strawberries, orange, kiwifruit, pineapple, green onions, sweet pepper.

2. Cover and chill for 6-24 hours. If you're going to chill for longer than 6 hours, then stir in the strawberries just before serving.

3. Serve with Cinnamon Tortilla Crisps.

Rating: 4 of 5

Well, LaDon did not think this was going to be good at all. But, surprise! It actually was. The green onion is pretty strong among all the fruit, but it off-sets everything well. Also, the sweet pepper is noticeable but is good with the kiwi and strawberry. I will definitely make this again at some point.

Source: Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book, pg. 65

Southwest Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 lb bowtie pasta

1 14-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

2 Roma tomatoes, diced or about 3/4 c. of halved cherry tomatoes *

1 large red, yellow, or orange bell pepper, diced

1/2 c. sliced green onions

1/2 c. frozen fresh corn **

zest from 2 limes

8 oz diced cooked chicken, optional

1/2 c Queso Fresco or Cotija cheese or grated jack, cheedar, or pepperjack

* I used 3 tomatoes

** I just used one can of corn

Dressing:

6 T. fresh lime juice (about 3 juicy limes) *

1/4 c. white wine or rice vinegar

4-5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1 1/2 t. chili powder

1 t. cumin

1/2 t. coriander

1/2 t. kosher or sea salt

2 t. sugar (add a touch more if your limes are extra sour/bitter)

3/4 c. canola oil

1/2 c. roughly chopped cilantro

* I got enough juice out of 2 limes

Recipe:

1. Place pasta in salted water until cooked. While it's cooking, prepare dressing.

2. Zest your limes and place the zest in a large salad bowl.

3. To prepare dressing: place the lime juice, vinegar, garlic, chili powder, cumin, coriander, salt and sugar in a blender. Process until smooth. *

4. With the motor running slowly, add the oil in a steady stream until incorporated. Add the cilantro and pulse so it gets broken up, but some pieces still remain in tact.

5. Salad: When pasta is done cooking, drain and rinse immediately with cold water to cool. Place the pasta in the large salad bowl with the lime zest.

6. Add black beans, tomatoes, diced pepper, green onions, corn, and chicken if desired.

7. Toss with dressing. Taste, and add additional salt and pepper to taste.

8. For best results, chill for 1 hour before serving. Right before serving, sprinkle cheese on top. Serve with extra lime wedges if desired.

* My blender blade doesn't reach low enough to do this, so I just whisked it in a bowl and really chopped the cilantro.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

This is a good pasta salad. Much better than I expected it to be. I really liked it. The lime taste is pretty strong as is the chili powder/cumin. But, still really good. Be warned though, this makes a HUGE batch. As in it's lasted 2 adults lunch and dinner for 3 days and still have some left. A lot. We alternated shredded cheddar and Parmesan on top. Also, plain cheese quesadillas are an excellent side with this. Oh, and I really don't think you need that extra lime wedge. That would be TOO much lime....and I like lime.

Source: OurBestBites.com, Southwest Pasta Salad

Pico de Gallo

Ingredients:

about 3 Roma tomatoes

1 smallish jalapeno pepper *

1/2 small onion

Measurements for remaining ingredients are approximate:

1/2 lime juiced (for more flavor juice the whole thing)

1/4 c. chopped cilantro

Kosher salt to taste, optional

*our local produce store was out! So, we decided to experiment with pepper tastes and went for an Anaheim pepper.

Recipe:

1. Cut ends off tomatoes and then slice in half lengthwise. Under running water, gently run your finger under the membrane that contains the seed. It's okay if some seeds get in there, but if you have all of them, it's going to get a little sloppy. Cut into small chunks

2. Finely dice the onion. Toss with the tomato.

3. Finely chop the jalapeno, removing the seeds if desired. Toss with the tomatoes and onions.

4. Add the fresh-squeezed juice of 1/2 of the lime. Taste. If you want more lime flavor, add a little more.

5. Add your giant pinch of cilantro. Combine well. Add a generous sprinkling of Kosher salt, taste, and add more if desired.

6. This is best if it stands for a few hours before you serve it, but the juices will run and gather in the bottom of the bowl.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

We like this recipe. The Anaheim pepper was really hot, but I think the jalapeno would decrease some of the fire. I rarely use raw onion in anything (always a dried chopped onion kinda girl) so the onion was a little surprising and strong for my taste. Love the lime and cilantro. In fact, I doubled the called for cilantro and used the whole lime instead of half. Next time I think I will cut the amount of onion in half and definitely try to find a jalapeno pepper!

Source: OurBestBites.com, Pico de Gallo

Santa Rosa Valley Salad

Ingredients:

Salad:

1 box Uncle Ben's Wild/Long Grain Rice, cooked

juice of 1 Lemon

3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded or chopped

4 green onions, sliced

1 red bell pepper, chopped

3 oz snap or snow peas

1 avocado

1/2 cup pecans (opt)

lettuce for garnish

Dressing:

2 cloves garlic

1 T. dijon mustard

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. sugar

1/4 t. pepper

1/2 c. rice vinegar

1/3 c. olive oil

Recipe:

1. Mix the salad ingredients together and set aside.

2. Mix together the dressing ingredients.

3. Place lettuce leaves on a plate and pile salad mixture on top.

4. Pour the dressing on top of the salad or mix it in.

Rating: TBD

Once again, this was one I missed at salad night. It looked very delicious though!

Source: Sariah Tolley

Mango Quinoa Salad

Ingredients:

2 c. cooked quinoa at room temperature, or chilled*

1 14-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 medium mango, peeled and diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

6 green onions, thinly sliced

1 handful chopped cilantro (about 1/2 cup)

4 T. red wine vinegar

3 T. extra virgin olive oil

1-2 T. fresh lime juice

kosher salt

freshly cracked black pepper

*Quinoa can be cooked in water or broth. I suggest using vegetable or chicken broth for enhanced flavor, but plain water works great too.

Recipe:

1. Place cooked quinoa in a large bowl. Add mango, red pepper, green onion, black beans, and cilantro.

2. In a small bowl combine vinegar, olive oil, and lime juice. Whisk until smooth and pour on top of salad. Toss to combine and add salt and pepper to taste. Chill for at least one hour before serving.

Rating: TBD

I don't know why I didn't see this one at salad night! I really like mango and now that I know I like quinoa type pasta, I'm sure I would have liked it! Almost all of my most favorite ingredients are in this recipe! Definitely going to be trying this one....maybe when LaDon is out of town though.

Source: Shayla Taylor, From Our Best Bites

Beef Chimichangas

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 t. taco seasoning mix, or more to taste *

1 t. dried oregano

1/4 c. sour cream

1 4-oz can chopped green chilies

2 T. distilled white vinegar

1 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

1/4 c. margarine

6 7-in corn tortillas

* I didn't have any taco seasoning on hand, so I just substituted it with ground cumin and a little ground red pepper

Recipe:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

2. Brown the ground beef, onion, garlic, taco seasoning, and oregano in a skillet over medium heat, breaking the meat up into crumbles as it cooks, about 8 minutes.

3. Drain off excess fat. Stir in sour cream, chilies, and vinegar until well mixed. Remove from heat, and mix in the cheese.

4. Melt margarine in a small skillet over low heat. When melted, dip each tortilla into the margarine for about 30 seconds, or until soft. Place the softened tortilla onto a baking sheet, and fill with about 1/3 c. of the meat mixture.

5. Fold the right and left sides of the tortillas over the filling, then the top and bottom, making an envelope that completely encloses the filling. Flip the tortilla seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas and filling.*

6. Bake in the preheated oven until the tortilla is crisp, about 15 minutes.

* I think the next time I make these I will either get bigger corn tortillas, or not fill them as full, or just use large flour tortillas. The 7-inch ones are so small that I could hardly wrap around the prescribed 1/3 c. filling. Also, rather than dipping it in butter next time, I think I will just spray the chimichangas with cooking spray before they go in the oven.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

I thought the taste was "authentic" enough. We didn't do any garnishing like tomatoes or guacamole, but we will next time. I didn't really think to get any toppings when I went shopping. Daniel loved the chimi which is great since all the beef cooking I do is to raise his iron levels. Dipping the tortillas in the butter did make them turn out nice and crispy, which is why I love chimichangas in the first place. I love that I was able to get the crispy aspect without having to fry anything.

Source: AllRecipes, Dinner Spinner iPhone app

Garlic Chicken with Artichokes

No picture! Sorry!

Ingredients:

12 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 c. chopped onion

1 T. olive oil or cooking oil

1 8-9 oz. package frozen artichoke hearts

1 red sweet pepper, cut into strips

1/2 c. chicken broth

1 T. quick-cooking tapioca

2 t. dried rosemary, crushed

1 t. finely shredded lemon peel

1/2 t. black pepper

1 1/2 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thighs

4 c. hot cooked brown rice

Recipe:

1. In a small skillet cook garlic and onion in hot oil over medium heat, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes or until tender. In a 4-qt crockery cooker combine the garlic mixture, frozen artichoke hearts, sweet pepper, chicken broth, tapioca, rosemary, lemon peel, and black pepper. Add chicken; spoon some of the garlic mixture over chicken.

2. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 6-7 hours or 3-3.5 hours on high. Serve with rice.

Rating: 3 of 5

This isn't a terrible recipe at all. I liked it, but I felt there was a certain something missing. Like....it needed more spice or something. Somewhat of a bland dish. Super easy though. I love crockpot meals. This recipe does make the chicken super tender, so I ended up kind of shredding it as a pulled in out of the crockpot. I would probably make this again.

Source: Better Homes and Gardens, p. 239

Thai Chicken

Ingredients:

Sauce:

4 chicken breast halves - steamed and cubed or shredded

1 c. chicken broth

2 T. soy sauce

4 T. chunky or creamy peanut butter

1 garlic clove, crushed *

red pepper flakes to taste (usually about 1/4 t.)

Condiments: (whatever you would like)

chopped peanuts

coconut

crushed pineapple

red, green, yellow diced peppers (Melissa's favorite!)

canned Mandarin oranges (my favorite!)

raisins or Crainsins

chow mein noodles (are those the crunchy ones?)

cilantro, chopped

* I usually just used minced garlic

Recipe:

1. Combine and heat chicken broth, soy sauce, peanut butter, garlic, and pepper until peanut butter is dissolved.

2. Add pre-cooked chicken.

3. Serve over steamed rice with your choice of condiments. *

*I like to make my rice chicken flavored by adding a bouillon cube to the water. So. Much. Better.

Rating: 5 of 5

This is one of our absolute favorite recipes! We love it....so good. The great thing about this dish is that it's new every time you have it because you can make it taste so different depending on what you put on it! And, if you don't like too much kick you have total control over that and can experiment with just the right amount. We, however, like the kick. Oh, and I usually don't have all the favorite condiments on hand, but I usually have enough to make it work! Another perk, this is quick!

Also use the sauce can be used for Satay Chicken Pizza.

Source: Melissa Black

Pork Barbacoa ~ Cafe Rio Style

Ingredients:

4-5 lb. pork roast

21 oz. Dr. Pepper or Coke, do NOT use diet soda

1 c. brown sugar

3/4 c. white sugar

1 clove garlic, minced

7 oz. can chipotle chilies in adobo sauce (only use sauce unless wanted desire spice and blend 2-3 of the chilies)

6+ oz. salsa

1 t. dry mustard

1 t. cumin

1/4 t. cayenne pepper

Recipe:

1. Place roast in crock pot, cover halfway with water and cook on low for 12 hours.

2. After 12 hours, drain water from pork.

3. Mix remaining ingredients together in a separate bowl. Do so until sugar dissolves.

4. Add mixture to the roast and cook on low an additional 4 hours.

5. Take out roast and shred. Add back to sauce and cook for 2 more hours.

Rating: 4.5 of 5

I thought this tasted like the real deal. Definitely having more of this in the future.

Philly Sandwhiches

Ingredients:

Spread:

1 c. mayonaise *

2 cloves garlic, minced

Filling:

1 T. olive oil

1 lb. beef round steak, cut into thin strips **

2 green bell peppers, cut into strips ***

2 onions, sliced into rings ****

4 hoagie rolls, split lengthwise

mozzarella cheese *****

1 t. dried oregano

* I only used about 1/4 c.

** I actually bought a 1 lb. Philly meat package from Wal-Mart. It comes with 4 slabs of meat, but as you cook it, the meat falls apart and eliminates the task of thinly slicing the meat.

*** I used about 1/2 of a large green pepper and 1/2 of a red pepper.

**** I definitely didn't use 2 onions. I only used about 1/2 of an onion.

***** I ditched the mozzarella and went with provolone slices.

Recipe:

1. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise and minced garlic. Cover, and refrigerate.

2. Preheat oven to 500 degress.

3. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute beef until lightly browned. (I drained the oil and juices before the next step.)

4. Stir in peppers and onion, and season with salt and pepper. Saute until vegetables are tender, and remove from heat.

5. Spread each bun generously with garlic mayonnaise. Divide beef mixture into the buns. Top with cheese and sprinkly with oregano.

6. Place sandwiches on a baking pan. Heat sandwiches in oven until cheese is melted or slightly browned.

Rating: 4.75 of 5

For a homemade Philly....I don't know if it gets any better. So, so, so good. While it was a more expensive meal (by our standards), each sandwich was about $2.00 which is cheaper than you're going to get it elsewhere. I really liked the garlic spread and thought it added just the right taste to the sandwich.

Source: from AllRecipes.com.

Hawaiian Haystacks

Ingredients:

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 can chicken broth *

3 c. cooked, cubed chicken

steamed rice

* I just made 1 c. of chicken broth with a bouillon cube.

Toppings:

Chow mein noodles

pineapple chunks or tidbits

cheese

oranges

green onions, diced

peanuts

green pepper, diced

Recipe:

1. Mix soups together and simmer.

2. Add chicken and simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Ladle chicken sauce over rice and add toppings.

Rating: 4 of 5

Either this was really good or we just haven't had haystacks in years! We added some extras to the toppings, like cilantro (WAY good) and red peppers. Super good and felt really good to eat after an intense workout. You know how after working out you don't want any thing heavy? Well, this is dense, but not heavy.

Source: Somewhere off the web. I don't have it written down because I looked it up on the ipad.