Recipes

The last couple of weeks haven't involved much in the way of meal planning, price matching, and coupon using.  I've been shopping for just a few days at a time, and tend to look for something that is cheap, quick, and doesn't involve lighting the oven.  But, despite all that, I still have used some new recipes, and just haven't been good about blogging about them.


The first I kind of stumbled on.  Jarrod didn't want any of the options I had for dinner one night, so I threw a bunch of things I had in the fridge together.  I sauteed half of a zucchini, some onion and garlic with some smoked sausage, then added it all to cooked pasta, tossed in black olives, and added about half a jar of spaghetti sauce.  It turned out really good!  Gavin loved it and we even made it again for the girls when they visited.


Last weekend, we made some grilled shrimp one night and served two new dishes on the side.  The first were zucchini cakes and they were delicious!  Here's the link to that recipe: Zucchini Cakes

The second side dish we made that night was a simple pasta side.  Jarrod liked it, Gavin and I did not.  Gavin wanted me to pick all the bread crumbs out.  Lol!  I can't even get that recipe to load now, so maybe it's a sign I shouldn't share it with anyone!


Then tonight, we made a recipe we saw courtesy of Mr. Food on our local news' morning show.  Jarrod was getting ready on Monday and I was still laying in bed and we both looked at each other and said "That looks good!" at the same time!  :)  It was super easy (aside from the fact that grilling onions drives me up a wall) and delicious!  And for some extra veggies (because I love how grilled veggies taste) we added some red peppers.  I think next time, I'll also add some shrimp.  Here's the recipe for Grilled Caesar Salad.  


There....I feel better now.  I've added some of the new recipes we've been trying!  Enjoy!  If you try them, make sure you let me know what you think.  :)

Recipe - Pasta Isabarte

I have still tried to continue on with my resolution to make a new recipe each week, but to be honest, with vacation, my aunts visiting, and Jarrod's baseball schedule, we haven't stuck with a menu very well.  I sat down last Thursday to make our menu and realized our next week looked like this:

Friday - date night

Saturday - Jarrod had two games

Sunday - I have a playgroup baby shower, so I won't be home for dinner

Monday - Yay!  We can have dinner together!

Tuesday and Wednesday - Jarrod will be gone for work

Thursday - I have my baby shower

A couple weeks ago, we did make this new pasta recipe that was really good.  Pasta Isabarte

We, of course, left out the egg because Jarrod isn't a fan.  I will say that we didn't use as many veggies - I used leftover peppers and onions so done of them were whole, and there were a TON of veggies.  I loved that, but Jarrod did pick some out.  

I'm hoping after this next busy week, we can get back on track.  By then, baseball will be over!

Recipes

I just realized I haven't posted a recipe in a while.  Two weeks ago, we tried Skillet Nachos for a quick dinner before I had a party.  We made them with ground beef though since that's what we had in the freezer.  They were yummy...typical nachos if you ask me with just a little twist.  


Last week's new recipe got pushed to this week.  I feel like our dinners have been a little off because of parties and Jarrod's baseball schedule.  But, we finally got around to making last week's recipe a couple nights ago.  I tried Bayou Bourbon Glazed Salmon for us.  I'm not a huge fish person, like I've said before, but Jarrod wanted us to try a salmon recipe.  I ate this, and of course I loved the Bayou Bourbon - it's one of my favorite Tastefully Simple products.  I can't say I loved this recipe, but I did like it.  I preferred the Mahi Mahi when we made that.  I just don't think salmon is my favorite.  

Recipe - Mahi Mahi

I'm not a big fish fan - I LOVE shrimp, crab, and lobster, but aside from shellfish, I don't eat it.  But, Jarrod has been asking if we could make more fish since it's good for us and he likes it.  So, when we went out to dinner to celebrate our ultrasound, he ordered fish tacos with Mahi Mahi and I tried it and it wasn't bad.  So, I bought some for dinner this week.  


Last night, I made a marinade with 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/4 cup orange juice, a clove of garlic minced, and 2 tbsp. soy sauce with a little salt and pepper.  I left the mahi mahi to sit in it for about 45 minutes and then we grilled them on the grill pan and served it with rice and veggies.  To my surprise, I really liked it...even went back for more.  And, what REALLY shocked us both was that Gavin took several bites!  Looks like I'll be making mahi mahi more often.  :)

Recipe - Singapore Fried Noodles

I saw this recipe on a message board last week and couldn't wait to try it this week.  It was really easy and really yummy!  I used green onions instead of garlic chives just because Walmart doesn't exactly have the best produce selection and they were similar enough.  I can't wait to make these again!  Jarrod was late coming home from work and ate his reheated and thought they were so good he didn't even save me leftovers! :)
Singapore Fried Noodles

Recipe - Crunchy Onion Chicken

I found this recipe in the newspaper while clipping coupons and was excited to try it.  I must say, I was disappointed.  It definitely needed more flavor...not my favorite of our new recipes we've tried.  But, Gavin ate it...so that's always a plus!
Crunchy Onion Chicken

Recipe - Tempting Taco Chicken Pasta

For dinner tonight, we tried out a Tastefully Simple recipe with our new Tempting Taco Cheese Ball.  It was quite delicious!  We left out the Fiesta Party Dip Mix because that is too spicy for Gavin, and Jarrod said he wasn't a fan of the cilantro in it, but everything else was great!  
Tempting Taco Chicken Pasta

Recipe - NY Style Hot Dogs

I guess technically this is a stretch for a new recipe, but our menu this week was pretty basic.  The day I made it, we got a flyer from Sonic in the mail - with pics of their new 'premium' hot dogs.  One sounded so good I added it to our menu to try the topping combination.  So last night, we grilled hot dogs and topped them with spicy mustard, grilled onions and sauerkraut - and ther were WONDERFUL!

Recipe - NY Style Hot Dogs

I guess technically this is a stretch for a new recipe, but our menu this week was pretty basic.  The day I made it, we got a flyer from Sonic in the mail - with pics of their new 'premium' hot dogs.  One sounded so good I added it to our menu to try the topping combination.  So last night, we grilled hot dogs and topped them with spicy mustard, grilled onions and sauerkraut - and ther were WONDERFUL!

Recipe - Sloppy Joes

I remember a time when Jarrod and I were first living together when we ate sloppy joes a lot!  Always the kind out of a can...Manwich!  :)  Well, I decided to try a Tastefully Simple recipe and make our own Sloppy Joes.  I honestly can't remember the last time we had these.  This was Gavin's first experience with Sloppy Joes, so it's been a while!


Brown a pound of ground beef with 2 tbsp Onion Onion.  Drain as needed.  Then stir in 1 tsp mustard (I used spicy mustard since I love it so much during this pregnancy), 3/4 cup ketchup, 1 tbsp brown sugar, and Seasoned Salt to taste.  Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes and you're done.  They were so delicious on toasted buns!

Recipe - Chicken Bacon Ranch Pizza

Last night, we made our new recipe - Chicken Bacon Ranch pizzas.  It's not a recipe I found online or in a cookbook, but rather just a new idea for us to try when grilling pizzas.  I got the idea for grilled pizzas on this websites, Annie's Eats, and use her recipe for pizza dough.  Last night we used Tastefully Simple's Bacon Ranch Dip (discontinued item, sorry...) as the base and topped the pizza with grilled chicken, bacon and cheese and it turned out delicious!  Yum, Yum!

Recipe - Baked Ziti

This week's new recipe doesn't have a link.  It was more of an idea I found and we just tried it.  Early this week we bought a rotisserie chicken from Sam's Club (because they are the best!) and used half of it for chicken noodle soup (one of my secrets for the soup Jarrod says I've officially mastered).  But I needed an idea for the rest of the chicken, so I decided to try this baked ziti.  Basically, we just boiled a box of pasta (we used rigatoni - I wish I'd bought penne), then stirred in a jar of sauce, some shredded mozzarella, and the chicken, topped it with more cheese, and baked it at 350 for about a half hour.  It was very yummy!  I think we're going to try it again sometime with ground beef, seasoned like we would to make meatballs.  Quick and easy!

Recipe - Chicken Tortilla Soup

We tried our new recipe for the week last night, and it was delicious!  My friend, Lindsay, has basically ruined canned soup for me.  I used to always eat canned soup, but ever since she made me homemade chicken noodle soup, I can't eat it!  It just makes me gag.  So, we've mastered some homemade chicken noodle soup, but this time, I tried a Fitness Magazine recipe for Chicken Tortilla Soup and it was super easy and super good!  You can check it out here: Chicken Tortilla Soup  The only thing different we did was not add the green pepper, only because they looked awful at the grocery, so I didn't buy one.  It was great!  Enjoy!

Recipes - Soup and Dessert

I mentioned last week that we were making French Onion soup in the crockpot, but I hadn't posted the recipe yet.  This recipe came with lots of great reviews from friends, so I was looking forward to it, but it didn't do much for me.  The soup itself wasn't great, but not awful...the croutons to put on top turned out really gross and I ended up scraping them out of my soup.  I don't think we'll make it again, but if anyone wants to take my friends' advice and try it, you may like it!  Here's the link:  French Onion Soup

On Saturday, I made some 'Light' Lemon Bars I'd seen in Fitness Magazine.  They were pretty simple to put together and really yummy!  Jarrod and I ate the whole pan by Sunday afternoon.  I'll definitely be making them again.  Here's the link for them:  Light Lemon Bars

This week's new recipe - Chicken Tortilla Soup!  

Recipes - Pork Chops with Soy-Orange Sauce

This week, we're actually trying two new things.  I had planned to try French Onion soup in the crockpot, which we will today.  Last night, we had pork chops on the menu and were planning to just do them the same old way - with Tastefully Simple's delicious Bayou Bourbon sauce, of course!  But last week I read somewhere about using orange juice when cooking them, and it got me intrigued.  So, I did some research yesterday, and found this recipe here:  Pork Chops with Soy-Orange Sauce  I ended up not having soy sauce like I thought, so I used teriyaki sauce, and instead of the safflower oil, I just used olive oil, and they were delicious!  Jarrod was literally eating the leftover sauce with a spoon!  He mentioned that it would make a great sauce for chicken wings, too.  Definitely one more new recipe to add to our list of favorites! 


The homemade French Onion soup will be going in the crockpot in just a little while, so I'll be sure to update it a little later this week to let you know how it was.  :)


If you try any of these new recipes I'm posting about, I'd love to know what you thought of them!

Recipe - Dripping Roast Beef Sandwiches

Our new recipe for this week was an easy one.  I saw a picture of these sandwiches in a magazine and had to try them.  Dripping Roast Beef Sandwiches  They were very good, but I wasn't a fan of how soggy they made the bottom bun.  We'll likely make them again but I'm thinking of changing things up a little.  I wonder if we just toasted the bun without the meat on it if it would get so soggy so quickly.  Or, maybe they'd be better served open face on a thick piece of Texas Toast.  I also thought this would be good if the roast beef was cut up into small pieces and served over egg noodles or mashed potatoes.  Maybe add an extra can of soup to make it a little runnier, or mix a can of soup with some beef gravy.  Lots of possibilities!  Despite the soggy bun, just writing about this is making me want the leftovers for lunch.  Yum!

Recipe - French Toast Casserole

For our new recipe this week, I tried a breakfast item I had heard great things about.  We loved this French Toast Casserole, but I especially loved that I was able to put it together on Saturday evening and let it sit in the fridge all night and just pop it in the oven in the morning.  The blog is awesome because it gives you step by step photo directions and you can see just how she made it.  Then at the bottom (just for you mom) you'll see that you can select how you want to print it...full page, or in smaller card sizes to put in a recipe box.  We baked ours for a little over an hour, since the bread pudding result was not what we wanted.  It was super delicious, and made a lot.  Jarrod and I both had some leftovers yesterday morning and I had some more today...and there is still some left!  Gavin is in a weird eating phase lately and wasn't interested in this.  He eventually took his 'one bite' that is our rule, but that was it.  


Anyway, here's the link again:  French Toast Casserole  Enjoy!  

Adding to my list...

I decided to make it another goal this year to try at least one new recipe each week.  We've been good lately about trying new things, but I really want to start using some recipes I've collected from blogs and the cookbooks I have and never open.  I'll share any I recommend here.


Last night we had Chicken and Dumplings in the crockpot.  I found the recipe on a blog and was excited to try it.  It was DELICIOUS and I can't wait for lunch to reheat leftovers.  You can find the recipe here:  Chicken and Dumplings

The only thing I did differently was shred the chicken before adding the vegetables (it doesn't say to in the recipe) and I only used half a bag of the veggies since Jarrod isn't a huge fan of peas and the bag I had included peas.  It was a perfect ratio of chicken and veggies and the dumplings were so yummy!  Enjoy!  Let me know what you think.  :)

Some things to check out

I haven't been taking many new pictures lately - it's been pretty rainy here and we really haven't been doing much! So instead of Gavin pictures, I'm just going to write about something I think you should check out. :)

I found a new blog that I like to read and decided to try a recipe that I saw rave reviews for. Go to http://shaversfamily.blogspot.com/2009/12/recipe-crockpot-shredded-bbq-chicken.html and try these sandwiches! They were so easy to make and so delicious! We used 4 chicken breasts and had enough for dinner and lunch on two different days. Gavin even ate this....it was yummy!

I've been introduced to Money Saving Mom and Hip2Save blogs and the joys of couponing. I've always used coupons, but never saved a ton of money. These ladies are wonderful and do all the ad searching for you; they tell you where to buy things on sale and which coupon to use. It's been fun (for me...remember, I'm a dork) to check the site each day or two, make my list, and head off to get deals. You can't pass up paying $0.42 for BBQ sauce or $0.60 for dish soap! :)

And lastly, if you have a picky eater and want some inspiration, check out www.babyjustinwhite.blogspot.com. She just started this part of her blog, but Melanie has great ideas for sneaking healthy foods into your toddler's diet. Things we probably could all think of but don't.... :)

Fun Times Friday

I love that Gavin is getting to the age where we can do crafts (minus coloring since crayons still get eaten) and I'm excited to do some baking this holiday season. On Tuesday, we surprised Daddy with some of his favorite holiday treat. Gavin loved helping! I put 3 M&Ms per pretzel, but you can tell which ones he helped with, because they have 5 or 6. :) He was just grabbing handfuls of M&Ms and laying them on the chocolate.

So, how do we make these? Melt white chocolate chips in a double boiler, stirring frequently. Then, take a small spoon to drop the melted chocolate on the pretzels. (I line the pretzels on wax paper first.) Top with M&Ms and let the chocolate harden before removing from the wax paper. Simple and oh so yummy! The perfect combination of salty and sweet.