Enchilada Casserole

EASY, chicken enchilada casserole in the crock pot



2 large chicken breasts (can be frozen)
1/2 small bottle of zesty italian dressing
1/2 tbsp cumin
1/2 tbsp red chili powder
3/4 of a ranch dressing powder packet (or 2 tbsp. if you have the bottle)
1/2 cup of water
1/2 tbsp of minced garlic

I started the chicken in the crock pot in the morning. Put all ingredients on top of chicken in crock pot and cook for a few hours. about a 1/2 hour to end of cooking, shred chicken. ( I use my kitchen aid mixer for this, takes 30 seconds, SO EASY!) also, the chicken will seem watery, but after you shred it and return it to put, the chicken will soak it up. even if its still watery, dont drain it. just add the rest of the stuff, it will be fine. ;)

Youll also need:
10 oz Can of red enchilada sauce
10 oz Can of rotel diced tomatoes and chilies
Corn tortillias (probably about 12)
shredded monterey jack cheese

After shredding chicken, return to crock pot and dump in rotel. Then add some cheese and mix well. Cut the tortillas up into strips and add into pot. Then top with enchilada sauce and again, Mix well. Top with cheese and cook for about an hour-hour and a half on low, until tortillias are soft. YUM! I don't have a photo because it was so delicious my neighbors and I ate it up, and I didnt even think to take a picture. Then everyone was asking for the recipe, so I'm sure I'll be making it again very soon and can add one later. But trust me, the photo doesn't do the taste justice! EnjoY!

Baked Enchilada Burritos

Tonight I was going to make a recipe I had tried and liked from Pinterest, but I decided to change it up a little. So came about the BAKED ENCHILADA BURRITO! I took the idea for the filling from the Enchilada Puffs from this fabulous lady over at TidyMom---the puffs are delicious as well so try them when you get a chance!

Here is what you'll need:

Chicken breasts or tenders (I use tenders, about 3)

Flour Tortillas

Taco sauce

3 oz cream cheese

1/2 cup shredded cheese

1/3 cup taco sauce

2 teaspoons enchilada seasoning mix (I used McCormicks packet)

1/4 cup shredded cheese for top of burrito

Vegetable Oil

I love to use the crock pot anytime I can so I decided when I made the puffs I'd try to make the filling in that and it came out great, so I did it again for this..

Directions:

Place chicken in crock pot (can be frozen)

Pour taco sauce, cheese, enchilada seasoning, and cubed cream cheese over chicken.

Cook on high for about 2.5-3 hours (depending on your crock pot and what size chicken you use)

About 1/2 hour until done, shred the chicken and mix well.

I open the lid when I see its starting to melt and mix it up so the cheese doesn't burn on the sides of the pot. 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. If you have a cooling rack, you can use that while baking so it can crisp on all sides. (I got mine at the Dollar Tree!) Take filling by the spoonfuls and put it in the tortilla. Fold in the short edges first and then roll somewhat tight. Brush bottom with oil and place seam down. Brush the rest of the sides and repeat until chicken  mix is gone. Bake for about 15 mins, rotating halfway through and recoating the "new top side" so it can crisp up. Then top with shredded cheese! Very easy! I serve it with some shredded lettuce, tomatoes, and zesty Italian dressing. YUM!!! 

Manicotti Lasagna

I served mine with Cesar salad and homemade cheddar bay biscuits!!!

This recipe came from....ME! I had some manicotti noodles I wanted to use and wanted to make something with stuff I already had. It came out SOOO delicious!

What you will need:

1 lb. Ground beef

Small curd Cottage cheese

Onion

Italian seasoning

Garlic powder

Onion powder

12 Manicotti noodles

Marinara sauce

Mozzerella Cheese

Preheat oven to 425. Brown meat with seasonings (italian, onion and garlic powder) and add in chopped onion for extra flavor. Boil manicotti noodles to where they are slightly still stiff so you can stuff them easily. Drain noodles and let cool. (you may want to add some EVOO so they don't stick together). Coat bottom of baking dish with a little bit of the marinara sauce. Add in your desired amount of cottage cheese to the meat mixture. Fill each noodle with the mixture and lay in dish. Cover noodles with marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 15 min. Then uncover and bake for an additional 5 min. MMM, so simple!!!

Parmesan Garlic Chicken

This was my first time making this and it was really good! I got the recipe off of the Good Seasons Italian dressing and recipe mix. Here it is!

You will need:

1/2 cup 100% grated parmesan cheese

1 envelope of Good Seasons Italian salad dressing and recipe mix

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

6 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix cheese, salad dressing, and garlic powder in small bowl.

Moisten chicken with water, and coat with cheese mixture. Place in shallow baking dish.

Bake for 20-25 min or until chicken is cooked through.

For a golden appearance, after chicken is done cooking set oven to broil. Broil for 2-4 min. or until chicken is golden brown.

Enjoy!!!

Weekly Menu Plan

My menu plans do not always start at the beginning of the week, but I do make them for a week. So here is our menu from Thursday to Wednesday!

THURS- Parmesan Garlic Chicken (first time making this..will post recipe if its good!) and salad with balsamic dressing

FRI- Shake N bake chicken, corn on the cob, and saffron yellow rice

SAT- Manicotti noodle lasagna and cesar salad (this is a creation from my own brain so again, if its good I'll post it.)

SUN- Turkey tenderlion stuffing casserole and garlic butter green beans

MON- Louisiana Chicken spaghetti

TUES- Pizza pasta and garlic crescent rolls

WED- Fajitas and mexican rice

(Ranch) Pizza Pasta and Garlic Crescent Rolls

P enjoying his pizza pasta!

This is a favorite among my family, as well as easy to throw together in a pinch, or usually in my case, forgot to defrost meat!!

YOU WILL NEED:

Ranch dressing (if desired)

Your choice of pasta noodles (we like bowtie or penne for this)

Your favorite pizza toppings

Mozzerella cheese

Marinara or spaghetti sauce (I like Newmans own Marinara)

Crescent Rolls

Butter

Garlic seasoning

Prepare noodles as box directs. Preheat oven while water is boiling. While noodles are cooking, take out your rolls and before seperating them, spread with butter and sprinkle with garlic seasoning. Then seperate and roll as normal. Cook as directed on package. When noodles are done, drain and add sauce and your favorite pizza toppings (such as onions, olives, green peppers, pepperoni, mushrooms, etc.) Put in baking dish and top with mozzarella cheese and bake for 10 min. When serving, add some ranch dressing and stir for a little twist on plain pizza pasta!

Another alternative to baking the pasta, is to use mozz cheesesticks and cut into chunks. Add to pasta and return pan to heat and stir. :)

Taco Chicken Twice Baked Potatoes

I have never made twice baked or mashed potatoes from scratch before, but I had some potatoes I needed to use so I thought I would give it a try! I wanted to make it the main course of the meal instead of a side dish so I added the chicken and super stuffed them. Here we go..

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

1 potato for each person

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup milk

sea salt

pepper

EVOO

Season all (if you choose)

taco seasoning

1/2 small onion, diced

Chicken, diced (I am a huge fan of the Tyson Grilled and ready chicken strips found in the freezer aisle!)

1 cup Shredded cheese of your choice (I used Colby jack for this)

Start by cooking your potatoes in the microwave. I like to wrap them in saran wrap and poke holes in the top, then push the "potato" button on the micro!

While that is cooking, start sauteing your chicken and onion and add in some taco seasoning too. Cut chicken to desired size and put in bowl.

Pre heat your oven to 350 degrees.

After potatoes have cooled enough to handle, cut off about 1/3 or 1/4th of the tops. Scoop out the potato filling and add to the bowl, but leave enough of the sides for the potato to stand alone. Then peel the skin of the little tops and add in that potato too.

Then add in your salt, pepper, seasoning, milk, and sour cream and mash and mix. Then add your cheese and mix. leave a bit of cheese for the top of the taters too.

Flip the potato skins over and bush with EVOO and sea salt. Place upright on a baking sheet.

Put your potato mixture in a ziplock baggie and cut a hole on the bottom corner big enough for your chicken chunks to fit thru. Zip it up and you have a nice little piping bag to fill the shells! I like doing this because it gets your filling in every crevice and also allows you to make it fluffy and overfilled without being sloppy.

Top with extra cheese and put in the oven for 15 mins. DONE! Easyyyyyyy! And good to make ahead and refrigerate until you can finish baking them at your convenience.

Menu Plan Monday

I haven't posted in awhile, since my computer was getting fixed. But I'm back and I'm going to try to be better about updating! Now if only I could find a cord for my camera so I don't have to put up cell phone pictures...

Now for this weeks menu plan.. I made some tentative lunch plans, because I use this menu plan to do my grocery shopping for the week, so I want to make sure I have lunch options. But I don't always follow it.

Monday:
L- Taquitos
D- Pasta Carrabba (will do a post on this)

Tuesday:
L- Pizza
D- Steak, baked potatoes, and corn

Wednesday:
L- Tomato soup and crackers
D- BBQ pulled chicken sandwiches- crock pot (will do a post on this too)

Thursday:
L- Quesadillas
D- Spaghetti and Garlic bread (I started using Newmans Own sauce in Marinara and Sockerooni and will NEVER go back to Ragu or Prego! Seriously, try itttt!!!)

Friday:
L-Left overs?
D- Out (will be at Imagination Movers concert with Preston!!)

Saturday:
L- Egg Salad Sandwiches and chips
D- Chicken pot pie casserole (might do a post on this one...)

Sunday:
L- Grilled cheese sandwiches
D- Burgers and Fries

That's what I have planned for this week! hope it gave you some ideas for your dinners too!

Italian Tacos

Here is a small twist on a recipe we all know and love, TACOS!!!!!! But here is how I like to eat them...

YOU WILL NEED:
Taco shells- soft or hard, both are delish for this!
Ground Turkey
Zesty Italian dressing
Tomatoes
Shredded cheese
Lettuce
Green onion
Sour Cream
Taco seasoning

Cook your ground turkey with the taco seasoning as you normally do. Then chop the tomato and green onion. Shred the cheese and lettuce.
Layer in taco shell or tortilla meat, lettuce, tomato, green onion, ZESTY italian dressing, and sour cream if you so desire. Then enjoy! not much direction needed here, just a fun twist on regular taco night!

Louisiana Chicken Spaghetti

If you like creamy and spicy this is the dish for you! You can make it less spicy if you want by using MILD rotel or just reg. can tomatoes and green chiles. I have been wanting to try this for awhile but never found one recipe I thought was perfect. So finally I combined my favorite aspects of three different ones into a little recipe of my own. So here it is!



YOU WILL NEED:
Boiled Chicken- cubed
Noodles of your choice
1 Can Rotel
1 Can cream of Mushroom soup
8 oz Velveeta cheese
Green Bell Pepper
Onion
Butter
Seasoning
Milk

First boil your chicken (I used season all, just dash it in the water) and cube when its done. Preheat oven to 350.
Prepare noodles according to package.
In a medium saucepan saute onion and bell pepper in butter until onion is clear.
Then add your mushroom soup, one can of milk, and 1 can drained rotel.
Melt the velveeta (i did it in the mircowave with a little milk but you can cube it and put it in the pan if you want. i think it will take longer to melt.)
Add cheese and chicken to sauce pan and stir well.
Put drained noodles into a 13x9 baking dish and cover with sauce and chicken mixture.
Toss to coat noodles. The sauce will seem a bit thin but it will set up while its baking.
Put in oven for about 15 min. or until hot and bubbly. Give a good toss when its done and serve!




I am linking to Designs by Gollum's FOODIE FRIDAY!

Taco salad

I didn't make the shell because I didn't have any tortillas and it still came out delish! I just used romaine lettuce, tomatoes, shredded cheese, avacado, sour cream, chicken, and taco sauce!

Boil chicken and shred. Put in pan and add taco seasoning and water if your package calls for it. (I use McCormick from Costco because I like to LOAD it with seasoning!)

To make your own shell just brush tortilla with oil and drape over an upside down bowl and bake in the oven til crispy!

Then top the lettuce with your choice of toppings! I like to use taco bell sauce that comes in a jar at the store. :o]

Mid week menu plan

Soooo I got a late start this week but since I am going grocery shopping today I made the menu plan for a week ahead. I cut about 10 coupons which will save me a little over $10. AND between a sale and my coupon I'm gettin a free ketchup! SAWEEET!

THURS:
L- Ham and Cheese Sandwiches and chips
D- Chicken Tacos and mexican rice

FRI:
L- Mexican Pizza (recipe from my cousin-in-law- find it HERE)
D- Steak, mashed potatoes, broccoli

SAT:
L- Frozen lunch
D- Italian chicken and noodles

SUN:
L-Leftovers
D- Taco Salad (recipe coming soon)

MON:
L-Burgers and chips
D- Spaghetti and texas toast

TUES:
L- Frozen lunch
D- Honey dijon chicken and salad

WED:
L- Pizza
D- Crock pot Beef Ranchero (recipe coming soon)

:o]

Tortellini Alfredo

I took this with my phone, sorry its not better quality.

One of my personal favorite dishes, EVER!

You will need:
Six Cheese Tortellini (I get mine from Schwans)
Broccoli
Sweet onion
Alfredo Sauce (I don't like the jar kind so I use the McCormick Packet of Creamy Garlic Alfredo)

Cook tortellini according to package. Start the alfredo sauce also according to package. Saute your onion in oil and steam your broccoli. When all is done, put in pan and mix together. EASY as 1-2-3!

Menu Plan Monday

OOPSIE! Looks like I'm a little LATE on the date! Oh well..! I have found that shopping on sunday for the entire week and STICKING TO THE MENU reallllly helps! Here is our week...

MONDAY:
L- Ham & Cheese w/ chips
D- Leftovers (pizza pasta and salad from night before)

TUESDAY:
L- Clucks and Fries (Crispy chicken tenders)
D- Steak with baked potatoes and corn (danny's fav. meal- I grilled steak for the first time and it was PERFECT!)

WEDNESDAY:
L- Lunch at Janet's house
D- Four Cheese Tortellini with Alfredo sauce, broccoli, and sauteed onion

THURSDAY:
L- Grilled Cheese for Danny & Preston (kelly and tabby are going out for Tab's b day!)
D- Pot Roast with carrots and onions and Mashed potatoes (Crock Pot)

FRIDAY:
L- Burgers and Fries
D- Chicken Tacos and Homemade Mexican Rice

SATURDAY:
L- We will be out and about this day
D- Crock pot Lasagna

SUNDAY:
L- Quesadillas w/ Avacado Salsa
D- Terriyaki Chicken Kabobs with peppers, onions and rice

I love to get new ideas from others so please leave a comment if you have something to share! I will post about a few of the dishes this week. :o]

What's for dinner?!

Tonight I made Southwestern chicken with FRESH PICKED onion and green bell pepper, and mexican rice. I wanted to share how DELICIOUS it was!




Check out these veggies my grandparents grew...

The chicken came marinated already so I can't give you the recipe for that. And I just tossed in the veggies a few min with the chicken and oil to cook them. The rice is a recipe from my friend Aleena and I am ADDICTED to it! I use el pato in it which my hubby and I love love love! I had to put some sour cream in Preston's since I make it so spicy but he really loved it if you can't tell by the picture..



What did you have for dinner?

Cinnamon Apples

Preston really likes the stewed cinnamon apples from Chili's and my Mom had given me a bunch of apples so I decided to make them for him. I of course called my Mom and said, how do I make stewed apples.. and well, here they are! Great for kids and babies!

YOU WILL NEED:
Apples
Sugar
Water
Cinnamon
Butter

Wash and peel your apples. I didn't put amounts on the supplies because you might just need to judge it by how many apples YOU are using. But I used 3 apples. Then dice them up into your desired sized pieces. Put them in a sauce pan with your water (I used 1/4 cup), Sugar (I used 2 teaspoons), cinnamon (I used 1 teaspoon) and a little bit of butter. (I think I used about a 1/2 tablespoon). Stir and simmer on low stirring occasionally until your apples are to your desired chewiness! is that a word?! Well, Preston LOVED them. Enjoy!

Cinnamon Crumble Bread

I have never made bread before, and I was going to do banana bread but Danny informed me he doesn't like banana bread so I found this cinnamon one and it looked so good! So here it is! I thought it would come out a little bit thicker (like the loaf would be taller) but it tasted great..Good luck!




Ready in: 30-60 minutes
Serves/Makes: 10
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 large egg, lightly beaten
***CRUMBLE TOPPING***
3 tablespoons cold butter, cut up
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a loaf pan. Sift the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. With an electric mixer at low speed, beat in the milk, butter, and egg.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 35-45 minutes (I did 40 but I think i'll do 35 next time and check), or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

For Crumble Topping: Dot the butter over the cake. Sprinkle with the sugar and cinnamon. Cool the loaf completely in the pan on a rack.

Pizza Bites

This was another recipe that is my first time making it so I'll let you learn from my mistakes!

You will need:
Pizza dough (I used pillsbury in a can)
Mozzerella Cheese
Your choice of fillings (I used Mini pepperonis)
EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
Italian herbs (I used McCormick italian herbs grinder shown in pic #2)
Pizza sauce for dipping

Preheat your oven 400 degrees (or whatever the packaging says on your dough)
Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface. Mine was a little lopsided and next time I will use a floured rolling pin to even it out.

Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into squares (at least 2"x2") I got about 20 squares out of mine.

Place cheese and toppings in center of each square. (I will probably use more cheese next time, or maybe use fresh mozz and cut it in chunks instead of shredded, but it works fine if thats all you have like me!)



Then you will take opposite corners of each square and pinch them together making a ball and place them in a greased baking dish pinched part down. I left a TINY bit of space between them so they could expand.

Brush the tops with some EVOO and put on some italian seasonings if you so choose.

Place in oven until tops are golden brown, heat up your sauce, dip, and enjoy!! (I think I baked mine about 12-15 min. but check them often!!)

Crunchy Chicken Parm Bake

This is again, my first time making this. Not only is it easy and quick, but there are very few ingredients! The picture is horrible because I had to take it with my phone. But it looked, smelled, and tasted FANTASTIC! Off we go...

You will need:
Bonless, skinless chicken breasts (defrosted)
Spaghetti Sauce
Shredded Mozzerella cheese
Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Garlic Croutons
E.V. olive oil
Crushed red peppers-dried spice kind (optional)
Minced garlic

Put a few teaspoons in the bottom of a baking dish and add some minced garlic (i used a teaspoon) and spread it around to coat the dish. Sprinkle on your red pepper flakes if you are using it.

Then place the chicken breasts into the dish and top with spaghetti sauce. Make sure you completely cover all the chicken.

Top with both kinds of cheese to your liking (but go easy, you will be adding more!)

Then place a single layer of croutons on top of the entire dish. Add more of both cheeses to the top.

Place in your oven @ 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

YUM!!!!!!

Crock Pot Taco Soup

I found this recipe on a great blog. if you like to cook with your crock pot, this is the site for you! To get the recipe for TACO SOUP click HERE! I made this for myself and my parents neighbors who are sweet people that are in need of a little TLC. It was soooooooo easy! I had a little beef leftover from the night before when I made pot roast and so I shredded it and put it in here. I did mine for 5 hours on HIGH.