Mexican Stuffed Shells

I always love it when my husband comes home from work and asks if I had blogged about dinner the previous night.  Usually it means he brought leftovers for lunch and all the lady teachers around the table want to either try what he brought or make it themselves!

Such was the case last night when he came home.  I had made these Mexican stuffed shells the night before and sent them for lunch the next day.  They take a little prep, which is why I put them together Sunday afternoon, so that when I got home from work on Monday, all I had to do was add the taco sauce on top and pop them in the oven.

These are a great combination of those infamous Italian stuffed shells and tacos.  The salsa on the bottom combined with the taco sauce on top make the perfect sauce and you control the heat – we use mild everything in our house, but go for the hot stuff it that’s what you like!  And who doesn't like melted cheese.  I topped mine with sour cream and the hubs ate his as-is.

Give these a try and to the ladies at FIS – enjoy!

Mexican Stuffed Shells

Mexican Stuffed Shells

What You Need:

• 1 lb. ground turkey
• 1 package taco seasoning
• 4 oz. cream cheese (I used 5 wedges of this)
• 18-20 jumbo pasta shells
• 1 ½ c salsa
• 1 c taco sauce
• 1 package shredded Mexican blend cheese

How You Do It:

1. Cook shells according to package.  Drain and let cool.
2. While the shells cook, cook ground turkey in large skillet until no longer pink.
3. Add taco seasoning and required water, and stir to combine.
4. Add cream cheese and incorporate until blended.  Let meat mixture cool.
5. Once shells and meat are cooled, pour salsa in the bottom on a baking dish (I used a 9” square dish)
6. Fill shells with meat mixture and place seam-side-up in dish.
7. Top with taco sauce, cover with foil, and bake for 30 minutes at 350*.
8. Remove foil and top with cheese. Bake an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Mexican Stuffed Shells recipe adapted from The Way to His Heart.

Mushroom Ramen

Last night’s main dish didn’t even make it out of the pan… I don’t know if it was a sour jar of lemon curd or a faulty recipe, but it just wasn’t happening.  In fact, the sour smell was so awful, the dish went from pan to garbage to dumpster within minutes, and dishes promptly washed to rid the kitchen of the awful smell.  Too graphic?  Sorry… it was just that bad.

However, I will say the side dish was the saving grace and turned into my husband’s complete dinner.  Talk about easy, inexpensive, and flavorful.  Find yourself a package of sliced mushrooms, a package of ramen noodles, and a little butter, and you’ve got yourself a side dish (or in this case, main dish swap out) in minutes.

This really comes together in no time at all – the mushrooms sauté up as quickly as the noodles take to soak, toss it together, and you’re in business.

So while the chicken was less-than-appetizing, I’ll certainly give the side dish three thumbs-up for quick, easy, and delicious, and a gold star for salvaging what was a horrifying attempt at dinner.

Mushroom Ramen

Mushroom Ramen

What You Need:

• 1 package chicken-flavored ramen noodles
• 1 package sliced mushrooms
• 1 tbsp butter

How You Do It:

1. Sauté mushrooms in a saucepan with ramen seasoning packet.
2. While the mushrooms cook, soak noodles in hot water until soft.
3. Once mushrooms are cooked and noodles are soft, drain noodles and add to mushrooms.  Add butter and toss to combine.

Mushroom Ramen recipe adapted from Food Network

Saucy Chicken and Spinach Skillet

Meeting with the trainer last night, I knew when I got home I was going to be much too exhausted to cook dinner, so I had totally planned on throwing something into the slow cooker yesterday morning.  But, much to my dismay, I had forgotten to pick up the key ingredient for the recipe when I went grocery shopping this weekend.  So I whipped together this one that had been sitting in my stack (ok, mountain) of recipes to try and luckily I had everything on hand. 

Now, I will admit, I would use a different jar of sauce next time since I didn't particularly care for the one I used, or even make my own and measure it out to the 24-oz needed, but overall this was really good, really easy, and a really balanced meal… especially since I about tripled the amount of spinach the original recipe called for.

A quick and easy meal to whip together, even after getting your ass kicked at the gym.

Saucy Chicken and Spinach Skillet

 

Saucy Chicken and Spinach Skillet

What You Need:

• ½ box spaghetti
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
• 4 cloves garlic, pressed
• 1 jar pasta sauce
• 16 oz fresh baby spinach
• Shredded mozzarella cheese

How You Do It:

1. Cook pasta to desired doneness.
2. While pasta cooks, cook chicken in a deep skillet until no longer pink.
3. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant.  Add sauce, stir to combine, and simmer 8-10 minutes, or until chicken is fully cooked.
4. Add spinach in batches, and cook until wilted, stirring frequently.
5. Serve chicken/spinach mixture over pasta and sprinkle with cheese.

Saucy Chicken and Spinach Skillet recipe adapted from KraftRecipes.com

Stove-Top Mac & Cheese

Alright friends, I know it’s been a while and there has been a lot going on, but I’ve got to share this amazing mac and cheese recipe I made this past weekend for Friendsgiving 2013.

Now, I must start with two points:

1.  I don’t like homemade mac and cheese.  I can’t get the consistency right.  So I just don’t make it.
2. This was a special request from my favorite Shaw.  Otherwise, see point 1.

So, now that’s all out there, I have to admit – this recipe was to die for.  To.  Die.  For.  Yes, I used whole fat milk and whole fat cheese and yes, it was totally worth it.  This recipe is cheesy and gooey and does not solidify and become granular as so many of the other mac and cheese recipes I’ve tried does.

I doubled the original recipe (my version is below with a full pound of pasta) which I totally recommend.  We had 18 people around our Friendsgiving table and this was by far the first thing to go – even before coveted Green Bean Casserole or “Carrot Stuff”.

I made this ahead of time and kept it warm in a slow cooker before our meal and had to add some additional milk to keep it moist and creamy – next year I would do this just before dinner to avoid any chance of drying out and to keep that amazing creaminess this offered.

So when you’re in the mood for some serious (and I mean serious!) cheesy comfort food, try this.  You won’t be sorry.

Stove-Top Mac & Cheese

 

Stove-Top Mac & Cheese

What You Need:

• 1 box (1 lb) elbow macaroni
• 1 stick butter
• 4 eggs
• 12 ounces evaporated milk
• 1teaspoon hot sauce
• 3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
• 2 8-oz blocks sharp yellow cheddar, grated using a box grater
• 1 8-oz block mild yellow cheddar, grated using a box grater

How You Do It:

1. In a large pot, cook the pasta until desired doneness. Drain and return to pot and melt in the butter. Toss to coat.
2. While the pasta cooks, whisk together the eggs, milk, hot sauce, salt & pepper to taste, and mustard. Stir into the drained pasta and mix to combine.
3. Add the cheeses and stir to incorporate and melt
4. Continue to stir over low heat until creamy.

Stove-Top Mac & Cheese recipe adapted from the amazing Alton Brown via FoodNetwork.com.  

Cheesy Turkey and Bow-Ties

Last night we were supposed to toss something on the grill for dinner.  It has been a pretty hectic week and I wasn't really interested in putzing around in the kitchen.  Alas, something on the grill!  However, yesterday morning I got a text from the hubs asking if I had a backup plan: it was pretty gross outside - rain, fog, a real mess.  I knew there wasn't much in our refrigerator (read: a pretty hectic week) and that I really didn't want to go out or even order in, but I did have a package of ground turkey in the freezer.  The hubs took it out to defrost.

That brings us to last night's dinner - this pretty much tex-mex-ish mac and cheese.  The sauce takes a little help from the grocery g-ds, canned soup and prepared salsa, but sometimes you just need a little help - nothing wrong there!  Combined with a little corn hitting on my midwestern roots, ground turkey instead of beef to hit the somewhat-health factor, and some veggie pasta, I had dinner on the table in under 30 minutes.  Take that, Mother Nature!

The slight salsa flavor paired with the cheese soup really made a nice combination of mac and cheese meets chips and salsa.  For something quick and easy to hit the table on a night when you don't really feel like cooking, give this a try!

Cheesy Turkey and Bow-Ties

Cheesy Turkey and Bow-Ties

What You Need:

• 2 1/2 c uncooked bow-tie pasta
• 1 lb lean ground turkey
• 1/2 chopped onion
• 1 can condensed Cheddar cheese soup
• 1 c salsa
• 1 c frozen corn (do not defrost)
• 1 1/2 c shredded cheese

How You Do It:

1. Boil pasta according to package directions, or done to your liking.
2. While pasta cooks, in a large skillet, brown turkey.
3. Add onion and saute until slightly softened.
4. Add soup, salsa, and corn, stir to combine, and let simmer while pasta finishes cooking.
5. Drain pasta and add to meat mixture.  Sprinkle on cheese and let melt.

Cheesy Turkey and Bow-Ties recipe adapted from Pillsbury.com.

Skillet Chicken & Noodles

Do you ever have one of those nights when comfort food sounds like the only thing that will hit the spot but when you think about how many times you'll have to hit the gym to work if off,  you change your mind?

Well this skillet version of chicken pot pie actually isn't so bad.  Combining veggies with chicken, noodles instead of crust, and a low-fat sauce, you've got that comforting chicken pot pie sans pie.  And - it's all done on the stove-top in one pan.  Perfect for a weeknight comfort.

Skillet Chicken & Noodles

Skillet Chicken & Noodles

What You Need:

• 1 lb chicken breasts, sliced thin
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 c chicken broth
• 1 can condensed cream of celery soup (I used this)
• 1 package frozen vegetables
• 2 cups uncooked spiral pasta
• 1/2 tsp lemon pepper seasoning

How You Do It:

1. Cook chicken and onion in a large skillet with a cover until chicken is browned and onion is tender.
2. Add remaining ingredients, bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and cook 15 minutes until noodles are tender and chicken is fully cooked.

Skillet Chicken & Noodles recipe adapted from Pillsbury.com.

Orange Teriyaki Beef and Noodles

I rarely serve dinner in a bowl.  The hubs doesn't so much love when I do and sometimes it makes dinner feel less like dinner.  I know, strange.  Anyway, tonight's dinner - perfect for a bowl. 

I also rarely make a recipe that calls for beef strips.  My husband and I prefer our beefed cooked to different doneness and it's hard to get it rare enough for him and acceptable enough for me at the same time without the grill.  Tonight's dinner - beef strips.

And finally, I rarely make a dinner with a known ingredient not favorable to one of us.  Case in point: snow peas.  Tonight's dinner - snow peas.  (Thankfully, the hubs will kindly push them aside and offer them up once done.)

All that aside, this dish was really good!  A little sweet from the orange marmalade, a little salty from the teriyaki and broth, and a little saucy for, well, a saucy dish!   You could probably do this with chicken and any veggies you prefer - if I make it again, I will use broccoli (to please the husband) and mushrooms (also to please the husband).  Needless to say, a quick and easy midweek meal.

Orange Teriyaki Beef with Noodles

Orange Teriyaki Beef and Noodles

What You Need:

• 1 lb beef sirloin strips
• 1 3/4 c beef broth
• 1/4 c teriyaki sauce (I used Mr Yoshida's Classic)
• 2 tbsp orange marmalade
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 1/2 c snow peas
• 3 oz uncooked egg noodles (I used these)

How You Do It:

1. In a large skillet with a lid, cook beef until brown, 2-4 minutes.  Set aside and cover to keep warm.
2. Add broth, teriyaki, orange marmalade, and red pepper flakes to skillet.  Bring to a boil.  Add snow peas and noodles, cover and cook over medium heat 5 minutes.
3. Add back in beef and stir to combine.  If necessary, add a roux to thicken.

Orange Teriyaki Beef and Noodles recipe adapted from Betty Crocker.

Skillet Chicken Manicotti

Usually manicotti recipes usually call for some ricotta,  but the hubs is anti-ricotta and interestingly enough, this recipe didn't call for any.  A win for him, for sure.  And usually you have to boil the pasta, combine all the filling, stuff the shells, and bake.

Tonight's dinner, however, is another one of those simple meals made in one skillet.  Granted, you need two small bowls do some mixing and get your hands pretty messy, this is as easy as mix-stuff-boil.

Taking some help from store-bought sauce and dressing, combined with cooked chicken and a couple pantry staples and you have a simple meal in 30 minutes... again.

Top it with a little cheese and away you go!

Skillet Chicken Manicotti

Skillet Chicken Manicotti

What You Need:

• 1 1/2 c spaghetti sauce
• 1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/2 c water
• 2 c diced cooked chicken
• 1/4 c Italian dressing (I used this)
• 1/4 tsp dried basil leaves
• 1 c shredded Italian blend cheese (I used this)
• 8 manicotti shells, uncooked

How You Do It:

1. Combine sauce, tomatoes, and water.
2. In separate bowl, combine 3/4 c sauce mixture, chicken, basil, dressing, and 1/2 c cheese.  Stuff into manicotti shells and place in rimmed skillet.
3. Top with remaining sauce and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer 8 minutes.
4. Turn, recover, and simmer an additional 8 minutes.
   Top with remaining cheese and let stand until melted.

Skillet Chicken Manicotti recipe adapted from Kraft.

Creamy Chicken Ramen with Spinach and Mushrooms

Tonight's dinner brought me back to the days of Freshman Year in Territorial Hall when the best - and only - heat source for cooking in your room was the microwave sitting atop your mini-fridge.  And there really were only a couple things one would make, or frankly could afford:  Easy Mac and Ramen Noodles.   So when I saw this recipe for a different take on Ramen noodles, I was totally interested.  I mean really - when is the last time you had Ramen noodles?

But this was more than just your freshman-dorm-room ramen.  This is what I'll call "adult ramen" - loaded with veggies and chicken, combined in a creamy sauce.  The flavors are far more than the salty packet of seasoning packaged with the noodles.  It's creamy and light and really complements the veggies and noodles well.

While it's been quite some time since the days of dorm-room-ramen and the "Adventures of Liz and Molly" (who would have thought a two-story Target would have a cart escalator?!), this ramen dish was a nice remake of a college staple.

Creamy Chicken Ramen with Spinach and Mushrooms

Creamy Chicken Ramen
with Spinach and Mushrooms

What You Need:

• 3/4 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, sliced thin
• 1 package sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 1 c water
• 4 oz light cream cheese (1/2 package)
• 1 3-oz package chicken-flavored Ramen noodles
• 2 handfuls fresh spinach
• 1/4 bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 5 grinds fresh black pepper

How You Do It:

1. In a large skillet, cook chicken until lightly browned and cooked through.  Remove from pan and set aside.
2. Add mushrooms, onion, and bell pepper and cook until onions are translucent.
3. Add water, seasoning packet, and cream cheese.  Bring to a boil, stirring until the cheese has melted and the texture is smooth.
4. While the sauce cooks, boil water, break noodles in half, and cook until done.  Drain.
5. Add cooked noodles, chicken, and spinach to sauce.  Add pepper and stir to combine.

Creamy Chicken Ramen with Spinach and Mushrooms recipe adapted from Costco Connection.

Baked Chicken and Spinach Shells

You know the ol' saying "mothers know best"... Well, my mother [almost] always knows best.

You see, last night on my way home (hands-free for all you worriers) we were discussing what we had made for dinner the night before and what was on the menu for last night when I admitted to a flopped dinner two nights ago (one of these times maybe I'll share a flop story) and how I was worried about how dinner was going to pan out last night. After last night's miss and while we waited for the best eggplant parm in the area to arrive at our doorstep, I prepared dinner for last night.

I followed the recipe, adding more garlic of course. I cubed and browned the chicken, added in the minced garlic, wilted the spinach, and added the wine. I boiled and drained the pasta and tossed it all together. Sprinkled the cheese over the top and popped it in the fridge.

My concern - no liquid. Enter mom. Her suggestion: add some chicken broth and bake it covered. So, marching orders were given to the hubs as to how much broth to add and when to pop this sucker into the oven and I twisted my zumba butt off.

When I got home, I pulled the dish out of the oven and tasted to ensure mom's plan worked... SUCCESS!

Thanks mom - you always know the tricks!

Baked Chicken and Spinach Shells

Baked Chicken and Spinach Shells

What You Need:

• 3 chicken breasts, cubed
• 8 large garlic gloves, pressed
• 1 bag baby spinach
• 1/4 c white wine
• 1 box pasta shells
• 1/2 c chicken broth
• 2 c shredded mozzarella

How You Do It:

1. In a large pot, cook pasta as directed.
2. While the pasta cooks, in a large skillet, cook cubed chicken until the juice run clear.
3. Add garlic and cook an additional minute.
4. Add spinach and cook until wilted.
5. Add wine.
6. Once pasta is done cooking, drain and add to chicken and spinach mixture.
7. Pour into deep 9x13 baking dish. Pour broth around edges and top with cheese.
8. Lightly cover with foil and bake 25-30 minutes at 350*.

Baked Chicken and Spinach Shells adapted from Bitchin Camero.

HG Veggie-Loaded Pasta Amore

Meatless Monday was in full effect in our house last night.  I whipped together this little doozy of a pasta dish, loaded with sautéed veggies of my favorite sorts, and a creamy tomato sauce.  I got home from the gym and in the amount of time it took to boil the water and cook the pasta, this puppy was a go! 

A quick, easy, and veggie-packed pasta dish ready in no time!

HG Veggie-Loaded Pasta Amore

HG Veggie-Loaded Pasta Amore

What You Need:

• 8 oz. uncooked thin spaghetti
• 1 c creamy tomato soup 
• 1/2 c light sour cream
• 1/3 c chopped fresh basil
• ¼ tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 package sliced mushrooms
• 2 small zucchini, chopped
• 2/3 c frozen peas, 
• 1 roasted red pepper, drained and chopped

How You Do It:

1. In a medium-large pot, cook pasta per package instructions.
2. In a medium bowl, mix tomato soup with sour cream until uniform. Stir in basil and Italian seasoning.
3. While the pasta cooks, bring a large skillet sprayed with nonstick spray to medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and zucchini. Cook and stir until softened, about 5 minutes.  Reduce heat to low. Add peas, chopped roasted red peppers, and soup mixture. Cook and stir until hot and well mixed, about 2 minutes. 
4. Add cooked pasta, and toss to coat.

HG Loaded-Veggie Pasta Amore recipe adapted from HungryGirl.