Asparagus

Wash, cut off ends, place on foil on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and rosemary. Bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes. So good!

Quick Chicken & Vegetable Soup

INGREDIENTS:

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 onion, chopped

4 carrots, diced

2 cups thinly cliced baby spinach

3 cloves garlic, minced

6 cups chicken broth

1 can chicken

2 cups cooked brown rice

2 zuchinni, chopped small cubes

1/4 tsp garlic salt

1/4 tsp Cajun seasoning

salt and pepper

PROCEDURE:

Heat olive oil in large pot over medium. Saute the onion, carrots and spinach for about 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the zuchinni and garlic; stir 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth, chicken, rice, garlic salt, Cajun seasoning. Reduce heat and simmer for 15-30 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Chicken & Spinach Enchiladas

INGREDIENTS:

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

10 oz. bag baby spinach, chopped

4 boneless skinless chicken breast, cooked and shredded

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 10oz can Mild Rotel tomatoes

2 cans cream of chicken

1 cup green enchilada sauce

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup pureed yellow squash-4 cubes (optional)

2 dozen corn tortillas

2-4 cups shredded cheddar cheese

PROCEDURE:

1. Place oil in a large skillet over medium high. Saute onion, about 5 minutes, then add garlic, about 1 minute. Add chopped spinach and cook until wilted down. Stir in chicken, salt, pepper, garlic salt, cumin, and Rotel tomatoes. Reduce heat to low and simmer.

2. In a bowl, mix soup, enchilada sauce, sour cream, squash, and milk.

3. Warm tortillas on a flat pan for easy rolling.

4. Ladle a small amount of soup into the bottom of a 13 X 9 pan (you will need two of these pans, or you can stack them all in one pan). Place a spoonful of chicken mixture into tortilla and a little cheese, roll and place seam side down in pan. Fill all tortillas until you use up all the chicken. Top evenly with sauce and cheese. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Juanita's chicken soup via Shauna

The first time I had this was at book club. My friend Shauna made it and I loved it. Tonight I made this for dinner and the kids inhaled it!

1 lb. of chicken breast or thighs (cut into 1" pieces)
2 large white onions (finely chopped)
4 (or more) garlic cloves (minced)
2 T. butter
1 T. Cinnamon
1/2 Cayenne pepper or to taste (if you aren't a super spicy person I would be careful with this ingredient, I uded 1 tsp of chili powder which is milder)
2 t. Cumin

Saute all of the above until onions are translucent (add garlic at the end) then add the following to the pan

4 C. chicken broth (you may need more)
juice from half a lime
1 t. salt or to taste (check chicken broth for sodium content)
1/2 t. black pepper
2 cans of garbonzo beans drained

I like to garnish it with different things such as ripe avacados, extra wedges of lime, chopped cilantro, julienne some radishes and/or carrots, finely chopped red onions, scallions, tortilla chips and maybe some queso fresca.

Another yummy pasta!

Creamy Chicken Fettuccine

INGREDIENTS:
3 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/4 inch strips
salt and pepper
2 Tbsp. butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. grated lemon zest
2 Tbsp. lemon juice (1 lemon)
1 pound fettucine (fresh or dried, I use my homemade pasta)
2 cups frozen peas
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup yellow squash puree (you can leave this out)

PROCEDURE:

1. Pat chicken dry, season with salt and pepper. Melt butter in large skillet over medium high. Cook chicken, about 3 minutes. Transfer to plate.

2. Add garlic to skillet and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add cream, lemon zest, and lemon juice and simmer until sauce is slightly thickened (3-5 min), then add squash puree. Remove from heat, cover and keep warm.

3. Boil water in large pot and cook pasta. Add peas to pot and cook for 1 minute (the last minute the pasta has to cook). Drain pasta and peas and return to pot. Toss with sauce, cheese, and basil. Season with salt and pepper.

Here are a few side dishes!

Brown Rice with peppers

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups brown rice

3 cups water
2 Tbsp. butter

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 red (or green) pepper, sliced

3 scallions, thinly sliced

2 tsp. chicken bullion

1/2 tsp. oregano

PROCEDURE:

1. Heat the butter in a skillet (one with a lid). Add bell peppers and scallions until soft, then add garlic.

2. Add rice, water, chicken bullion, and oregano. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook on medium low for 30 minutes, then low for 30 more minutes. Check rice, sometimes it gets done sooner.

Coconut Sweet Potatoes

INGREDIENTS:

4 sweet potatoes

1 can coconut milk

cinnamon

100% pure maple syrup

PROCEDURE:

1. Peel and slice sweet potatoes.

2. Place one layer of them in 9 X 9 baking dish.

3. Sprinkle with cinnamon and drizzle with maple syrup.

4. Repeat with remaining potaoes.

5. Pour coconut milk over sweet potatoes. Sprinkle with more cinnamon and maple syrup.

6. Bake at 350 degrees uncovered for 45 minutes or until done. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Brussels Sprouts

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts

olive oil

salt & pepper

PROCEDURE:

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with foil.

2. Cut stems off brussels sprouts and cut in half lengthwise.

3. Put on pan and drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper.

4. Arrange in an even layer, cut side down.

5. Bake 25-35 minutes until the sprouts are deep brown.

Tuscan Garlic Chicken Pasta

Ingredients:

6 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

6 Tbsp. olive oil

4 boneless skinless chicken breast

salt & pepper

1 pound pasta (I use homemade pasta)

1 bag baby spinach (or arugula)

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil

6 Tbsp. lemon juice (from 2 lemons)

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Procedure:

1. Combine garlic, red pepper flakes, and oil in glass bowl and microwave until garlic is golden and fragrant, about 1 minute.

2. Pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Transfer 1 tablespoon of oil (from step 1) to large skillet and heat to medium-high. Add chicken and cook until well browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to cutting board and tent with foil. Let rest 5 minutes, then slice thin and set aside.

3. Add 1 tablespoon salt to a pot of boiling water and cook pasta. Drain pasta and return to pot. Stir in sliced chicken, spinach, basil, lemon juice, Parmesan, and remaining garlic/oil mixture. Season with salt and pepper.

I got this recipe from Cook's Country magazine. This is the best pasta I have ever made!

Homemade Pasta

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups wheat flour

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 egg, 4 egg yolks

1/2 cup pureed vegetables (4 food cubes)

*You can add another whole egg if you do not want to use pureed vegetables.

PROCEDURE:

1. In a large bowl mix all ingredients together (use your hands until it forms a ball).

2. Wrap in plastic wrap and let sit an hour (or refrigerate up to a day).

3. Roll out the dough on a flour dusted counter until paper-thin.

4. Cut with a knife into strips any width you like.

5. Cook the noodles in boiling water for about 7-10 minutes.

Honey Lime Enchiladas

A co-worker of Cords told him about this recipe. Which I thought was pretty funny. Men talking food/dinner at work? So I found the recipe and he was right -- it was really good! The recipe came from here a great food blog.

• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/4 cup lime juice (about 2 large limes)
• 2 teaspoons to 1 Tablespoon chili powder
• 2 large cloves of garlic, finely minced or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 large breasts), cooked and shredded
• 12 corn tortillas
• 2 cups of Mexican cheese blend, shredded (1 small bag usually is 2 cups)
• 1 14-oz can of green enchilada sauce (mild or medium, to your taste)
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup of heavy cream
• nonstick cooking spray
• 1 Tablespoon of chopped cilantro, to garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place the cooked and shredded chicken in a medium sized bowl. Set aside. In a small bowl, place the honey, lime juice, chili powder and minced garlic or garlic powder. Whisk together thoroughly to combine. Pour this mixture over the chicken and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to marinate while you prepare the tortillas, 30 minutes or up to 1 hour, in the refrigerator.

Heat a large griddle till a drop of water skitters across (about 350 degrees F). Spray the surface with non-stick cooking spray or a oil it with a little bit of canola oil in between each round of tortillas. Heat tortillas about 20 seconds on each side till warm and flexible and some golden brown spots have appeared. Remove the tortillas from the griddle and keep them between a couple of paper towels until ready to use.

Spray the sides and bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish lightly with cooking spray.
In a medium bowl combine the enchilada sauce and the heavy cream. Spread about 1/2 cup of the mixture in the bottom of the oiled baking dish.
Add a large spoonful (about 2 tablespoons) of the chicken mixture to the center of each tortilla in a line. Cover the chicken with a large tablespoon (or big pinch) of cheese, then roll the tortilla up from one side to make a rolled enchilada - it will be more of an over lap on the seam side that rolled tightly. Place the enchilada seam side down in the baking dish starting at one end with the long edge parallel to the longest side of the pan so that you end up with two columns of six enchiladas each.

Repeat with the remaining chicken, cheese and tortillas. You will use about 1 1/2 cups of the cheese for the filling and set the remainder aside for topping the enchiladas in the pan. Add the remaining marinade mixture to the enchilada sauce and cream mixture, if desired. Pour this mixture over the top of all the enchiladas. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

Bake the enchiladas for 30 to 35 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbly and starting to brown on top. Serve with sour cream, black beans, and rice or a green salad for a great meal.

Strawberry Cake

I have had a few requests for this recipe -- So I thought I'd share it with one and all. This is a favorite at my house the kids devour it and well lets say that Cord has a few small pieces too.

Base layer
1 white cake mix
Prepare according to package directions. Bake in a jelly roll pan for 15 minutes or until done.

Middle layer
1 package (8oz) cream cheese softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 small tub Cool Whip

With your mixer beat the cream cheese and the sugar together until smooth. Add the cool whip and gently combine . Spread this layer on top of the cooled cake.

Top layer
3-4 pints of strawberries sliced
2 packages of strawberry Junket or other purchased strawberry pie glaze --(feel free to make your own as well)

Prepare the Junket and when cooled stir in the sliced strawberries. Spread this strawberry mixture of top of the cream cheese mixture and chill about 1 hour.

Enjoy!!