Stuffed Acorn Squash

Another Taste of Home goodie. I made this once with ground beef since I didn't have any sausage. It was still good, but not as good as the sausage. Luke eats the cranberries and the meat, and then Nick eats the stuffing pieces and the squash so it works out pretty well.

The squash is cooked in the microwave which is so easy! And very fast. It looks gourmet and time consuming but it couldn't be easier. My acorn squashes were 2lbs each, but I still ended up with extra stuffing. I also never made this with the spinach called for.

Ingredients

• 2 medium acorn squash
• 1 pound bulk spicy pork sausage
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 cup fresh baby spinach, finely chopped
• 1-1/2 cups soft bread torn into stuffing sized pieces
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries

Directions

• Cut squash in half; remove and discard seeds. Place squash cut side down in a microwave-safe dish. Microwave on high for 10-12 minutes or until tender.
• Meanwhile, crumble sausage into a large skillet; add onion. Cook over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. In a large bowl, beat egg and milk; stir in the spinach, bread crumbs, cranberries and sausage mixture.
• Turn squash cut side up. Stuff with sausage mixture. Cover and microwave on high for 2-3 minutes. Yield: 4 servings.

Baked Chicken Enchilladas

My mother in law sent me a box recently with all sorts of treasures... Including my favorite, cooking magazines! This came out of taste of home :) Next time I make it I will probably through in some corn. I cut the sour cream in half and substituted with fat free cottage cheese. It was still nice and creamy without being a calorie fest. Luke refused to eat this. I don't know if he was just being cranky, but mommy and daddy liked it! (oh and don't worry, Luke ate dessert so he didn't go to bed hungry)

Ingredients

• 4-1/2 cups chopped chicken (I threw two chicken breasts in the oven for an hour that morning)
• 1 can (28 ounces) green enchilada sauce
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup cottage cheese
• 9 corn tortillas (6 inches), shredded into 1-1/2-inch pieces
• 16 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese (I used a little less)

Directions

• Mix chicken together with enchillada sauce, sour cream, cottage cheese, and most of the shredded cheese 
• In a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish, layer the chicken mixture alternating with the shredded tortillas. The final layer should be torillas. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese
• Cover and bake at 375° for 40 minutes. Uncover; bake 10 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Cheesy Squash, Corn, and Eggplant Casseroles

This dish has the most AMAZING blend of flavors. There is something crazy awesome about the way that melty cheese, sweet corn, savory tomatoes and eggplant compliment each other in this dish.  I noticed the way my hubby was eying up this casserole when I pulled it out of the oven. He asked me what was in it, then looked at it carefully. I could tell he looked skeptical, although he was careful not to say or do anything that might hurt my culinary feelings.  Two bites in, he said "Wow! This is really good!"  I followed this recipe as it was posted here in Healthy Bites Next time I might try adding in ground beef or italian sausage, although it was great without it :-)

Serves: 4-6          Calories/Serving: 356 Ingredients:

• 1 large eggplant, cut into 1/4-inch thick rounds
• 1 large zucchini, cut into medium-sized cubes
• 1 large yellow squash, cut into medium-sized cubes
• 1c. onion, diced
• 2 medium ears of sweet corn
• Cooking spray
• 1/2tsp salt, divided
• 1/4tsp garlic powder
• 8oz (1c) low fat ricotta cheese
• 1c. (4oz) part-skim mozzarella, grated, divided
• 1 large egg
• 1/2c. basil, cut into medium strips
• 1/4tsp thyme
• 1/8tsp oregano
• 1/4tsp pepper
• 1 (15-oz) can of fire roasted tomatoes
• 1 (8-oz) can no salt added tomato sauce
• 1/4c (1oz) Parmesan cheese, finely grated 
•  
•  
• 1. Preheat oven to 425. Spray 2 or 3 baking sheets with cooking spray.  Lay out egglant slices in a single layer on one tray (or two, if needed) Spread the zucchini, yellow squash, and onion on the other. Spray veggies lightly with cooking spray. Sprinkle 1/4 tsp salt on eggplant; sprinkle 1/4 tsp garlic powder on the squash mixture.  2. Remove husks from corn, wrap whole ears of corn in aluminum foil. Put ALL the veggies in the hot oven for 10 minutes. Flip the egglplant, and stir the squash, then put back in the oven for another 10 minutes, or until tender.  Leave the corn in the oven for an additional 15 minutes. 3. Turn the oven down to 325. When cool enough the handle, cut the kernels off the corn cobs. Mix into squash mixture. 4. In a bowl, mix together the ricotta, 1/2c  mozzarella, egg, basil, thyme, oregano, and pepper. Set it aside. 5. In a different bowl, combine the fire roasted tomatoes and the tomato sauce.  6. LAYER-o'clock! (This is the most fun part)  The casserole will have 3 layers. .
                 Layer 1: First, a little tomato mixture to coat the bottom of the dish, then eggplant. Spread on a little ricotta, then squash. Then a bit more tomato.
                Layer 2:  More eggplant, more ricotta,  a bit of tomato, some squash, and a bit of tomato.
                Layer 3: The rest of the eggplant,  remaining squash, remaining sauce, then the remaining cheese on the top. (I sprinkled on some extra spices at this point...I had a "Mediterranean" spice mix that was great) Sprinkle on the remaining mozzarella and the Parmesan.  7. Bake 375 for 40 minutes. ( I covered mine for most of the cook time) 
    Dig in!!!

Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta

Happy Tuesday! Every week I welcome Tuesday, my day off, as a chance to catch up on laundry, errands, and...cooking!! Most importantly, I have time to try out new recipes. Today I followed my usual series of events called Dinner Planning Adventure...which usually goes something like this:

 1) Inspect the cupboard and raid the fridge to analyze the ingredients I have on hand.
 2) Look for recipes that utilize those things.
 3) Improvise/adjust/tweak/healthify the recipe to my heart's content.
4) Consider if hubby will like it
5) Apply apron to self, and start cooking!

Today's result was worth sharing. The basis of this recipe was borrowed from fellow blogger Cynthia Matzat .

 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
6 slices bacon, cooked and chopped
1 and 1/4 cups skim milk
1 packet Hidden Valley ranch dressing mix
2 Tbsp flour
1 bunch broccoli
8 oz whole-wheat pasta (I used Penne)
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Parmesan cheese, to taste.

(Next time I make this, I'm going to add in 1/4 cup chopped onion and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes)

Cut chicken into cubes and cook in skillet with onion until barely browned.Sprinkle flour and dressing mix over chicken, stir to coat. Add milk and continue to cook over medium heat, stirring until mixture becomes thickened and bubbly.  Meanwhile, boil pasta in a separate pot. Add broccoli to boiling pasta for the last 8-10 minutes of pasta-boiling time. Drain pasta/broccoli. Combine with chicken/sauce mixture. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, red pepper and/or Parmesan cheese

Baked Chicken Nuggets with Honey Mustard.

Wow these are good! They aren't heavily breaded like the ones from the freezer and are so good. I made a honey mustard dipping sauce to go with. The blend of seasoning in the chicken is really nice and not something I ever would have though of.

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 pound, boneless chicken breasts
• 1/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 2 tbsp butter, melted
• 2 tbsp warmed milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Cut chicken breasts into 1 1/2-inch sized pieces. In a medium bowl, mix together the bread crumbs, cheese, salt, thyme and basil. Mix well. Put melted butter in a bowl with milk for dipping.
3. Dip chicken pieces into the melted butter first, then coat with the breadcrumb mixture. Place the well-coated chicken pieces on a lightly greased cookie sheet in a single layer, and bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. 
4. Turn on the broiler and bake for 3-5 more minutes until the tops are golden brown

Honey Mustard Sauce (3 servings)

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon prepared mustard
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, honey, and lemon juice. Store covered in the refrigerator.

 

Butter Chicken

This one was so good we ate it before I took any pictures. Same goes for the leftovers! It's an Indian dish, a type of cuisine I am completely unfamiliar with. It calls for a spice blend called garam masala which I have never heard of. Allrecipe's came to the rescue with a substitute blend of spices I could use instead. We ate it with brown rice, so good! I did skip the 1/4 cup of heavy cream at the end. It seemed creamy enough with the yogurt.

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 onions, thinly sliced
• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup plain yogurt (not nonfat)
• 2 teaspoons garam masala or substitute (1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp ground cloves)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, optional

Preparation

1. 1. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring, until softened and beginning to brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Scrape into slow cooker. Place chicken pieces on top.
2. 2. Combine ginger, garlic, almonds, yogurt, garam masala and salt in a food processor and process until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl with a flexible spatula as necessary. Add tomatoes and pulse once to combine. Pour mixture over chicken. Cover and cook in crockpot on low until chicken is tender, 4 to 5 hours. Stir in heavy cream, cover and cook until warmed through, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro just before serving, if desired.

Italian Pork Chops

I love AllRecipes ingredient search. I had sausage in the fridge and lots of pork chops in the freezer. I plugged in my ingredients and out came this little beauty. Andy said it gets 9 1/2 stars. He kindly clarified that only pepperoni pizza can get 10 stars.

• 4 thick cut pork chops
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 pound sweet Italian sausage
• 1 onion, slivered
• 1/4 pound mushrooms, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. Sprinkle pork chops with salt and pepper. In a large frying pan, brown well in olive oil. Remove chops from pan and set aside. Pour off and discard all but 1 tablespoon pan drippings.
3. Remove casing from sausage and crumble meat into same pan. Mix in onions and mushrooms. Cook, stirring until onions and sausage brown slightly. Mix in garlic. Place pork chops in casserole dish, spooning sausage mixture over them. Pour tomato sauce over the meat. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning.
4. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.

Orange Beef (or Chicken!)

I love stir fry, and this one was amazing. It calls for top sirloin which can be a bit pricey, about 5.39/lb here. Well it just so happened to be on sale this week, and since I only needed one pound I didn't mind buying it. Did I mention our grocery store is attached to an open to the public meat processing plant? Don't feel like butchering your own deer or turkey? Well just drop it off here and pick it up later! The meat case is also stocked with interesting things like gizzards, fresh pig feet, and other things I'd prefer not to eat.

I never used fresh ginger before but it was really easy and smells great. You could probably substitute dried ginger. Rice vinegar is worth picking up. Its cheap and has a mild almost nutty smell. It isn't nearly as acidic as other vinegars.

• 1 pound beef top sirloin, thinly sliced (or chicken)
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1/4 cup oil for frying

Directions

1. Cut beef into small inch pieces. Allow to sit in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. 
2. In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, rice vinegar, orange juice concentrate, salt and soy sauce. Set aside.
3. Heat oil in a wok  or large skillet over medium-high heat. Toss beef in flour to coat. Fry in the hot oil until crispy and golden brown; set aside.
4. Add orange zest, ginger and garlic to the remaining oil, and cook briefly until fragrant. Add the soy sauce mixture to the wok, bring to a boil, and simmer till thickens, about 5 minutes. Add beef, and heat through, stirring to coat. Serve immediately over steamed rice, and garnish with broccoli.

Sketti and Meatballs

I was so proud of myself the first time I made meatballs. Sorta like having your second child makes you feel like a 'real mom,' the first time I made meatballs from scratch I felt like a real cook. The second time I made this I placed the meatball mixture into the fridge before forming the balls.  This turned out to be a mistake. The cold meat was harder to get into balls and fell apart in the sauce. It was still good, just turned into meat sauce instead of meatballs. 

Anyway this is a really tasty make again recipe.

 

 

Ingredients

• MEATBALLS
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 cup fresh bread crumbs
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• 2 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 egg, beaten

• SAUCE
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 (28 ounce) cans diced  tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 3/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions

• In a large bowl, combine ground beef, bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, garlic powder and beaten egg. Mix well and form into 12-20 balls. Store, covered, in refrigerator until needed. 
•  
•  In a large saucepan over medium heat, saute onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is translucent.  Stir in tomatoes, salt, sugar and bay leaf. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 90 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, basil, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and meatballs and simmer 30 minutes more. Serve.

Luke's stamp of approval

 

Apricot Chicken

This is really really good!! It reminded me a bit of Chinese takeout. The sauce is so good. Serve with broccoli or green beans and be sure to steal some sauce from the chicken to drown drizzle your veggies


Apricot Chicken

1 tablespoon chili powder
2 tablespoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 pounds bone-in chicken thighs or boneless breasts
3/4 cup apricot preserves
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Preparation

1. In a bowl, mix chili powder, 1 Tbsp. ground ginger, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Pat chicken dry and rub seasoning mixture into chicken. Cover; chill for at least 2 hours.
2. In a small pan, mix preserves, barbecue sauce, remaining ginger, lime juice and garlic. Stir over low heat until well combined.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F; mist a large, shallow baking dish with cooking spray. Warm oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken, turning often with tongs, until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer chicken to baking dish and pour apricot glaze over, turning chicken to coat. Bake until chicken is cooked through, about 40 minutes. Let chicken rest for 10 minutes before serving

Salmon Cakes

These are definitely the best salmon cakes I've ever had. I adapted the recipes from the Food Network. Who has time to ROAST their own freshly caught salmon and brown their own breadcrumbs? The total time on the original recipe is 2 hours and twenty minutes... Ina Garten certainly doesn't cook with a 17 pound baby strapped to the front of her and an overly enthusiastic toddler trying to help break the eggs. My version is much faster and eliminates 1/2 a stick of butter and the fishing pole needed to catch the salmon. The original recipe is here.

Ingredients

• 1 can of salmon, drained and large bones removed
• 1/2 tsp salt and ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup small-diced red onion (1 small onion)
• 1 1/2 cups small-diced celery (4 stalks)
• 1 cup of diced red or green pepper
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp hot sauce
• 1 cup bread crumbs or finely torn bread
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons spicy mustard
• 2 large eggs

Directions

Place large chunks of onion, celery, and peppers and 1 cup of water into a blender or food processor. Blend till finely chopped. Line a colander or bowl with a clean kitchen towel. Pour vegetable mixture into the towel. Squeeze all the moisture out. Or you can torture yourself and finely chop all the vegetables by hand in which case you may also need to saute them to break them down and soften them.

Drain salmon. Remove large bones like any vertebrae. The ribs and skin breakdown very easily and are edible not to mention high in calcium. Add Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Mix with 1 cup of freshly torn bread or breadcrumbs. Add mayo, mustard, and eggs. Add the vegetable mixture and mix well.. Shape into 3-ounce cakes.

cook on a non stick griddle or skillet over medium heat that's been sprayed with pam.Cook a few minutes on each side until nicely browned.