Strawberry Spinach Salad

Found recipe here - http://allrecipes.com/recipe/strawberry-spinach-salad-i/

Even if you don't like spinach, everyone loves the strawberry spinach salad crumbled with feta and this is a tasty one!

• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika

• 1/4 teaspoonWorcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon minced onion
• 10 ounces fresh spinach - rinsed, dried and torn into bite-size pieces
• 1 quart strawberries - cleaned, hulled and sliced
• 1/4 cup almonds, blanched and slivered
  *feta cheese
  *candied walnuts (chop some walnuts, rinse them under hot water, sprinkle with powdered sugar, salt, and cayenne and cook lightly

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, olive oil, vinegar, paprika, Worcestershire sauce and onion. Cover, and chill for one hour.
2. In a large bowl, combine the spinach, strawberries and almonds. Pour dressing over salad, and toss. Refrigerate 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

I've been in love with all of my new Pampered Chef tools and it has made cooking so fun! Strawberries went from awesome to Amazing! ;0) The core and more scoops the top off perfect and the egg slicer slices them into perfect thin even slices! I left out the sesame seeds, added candied walnuts and of course feta! My husband asked me to make more! which took me seconds to throw another batch together!

Chicken Taco Soup

This another recipe I can't believe hasn't been posted yet. This one is the EASIEST to make, not quite as good as the white chicken chili, but it's close! Use the recipe found here.

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 (16 ounce) can chili beans (I use kidney beans)
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans
• 1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle beer (I obviously use chicken broth instead :)
• 2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
• 1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning
• 3 whole skinless, boneless chicken breasts (I use 1/2 can of Costco canned chicken)
• shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)
• sour cream (optional)
• crushed tortilla chips (optional)

Directions

1. Place the onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, broth, and diced tomatoes in a slow cooker. Add taco seasoning, and stir to blend. Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Set slow cooker for low heat, cover, and cook for 5 hours.
2. Remove chicken breasts from the soup, and allow to cool long enough to be handled. Stir the shredded chicken back into the soup, and continue cooking for 2 hours. Serve topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips, if desired.

I chop my onion and saute it in a little oil in a big pot. Then I add the beans, corn, sauce, broth, tomatoes, taco seasoning, chicken until it heats through. The optional sour cream, cheese and chips are really not optional. :) It is YUMMY!

BBQ Chicken Salad

Slight variation from a taco salad.

Lettuce

1 can black beans

1 can corn

red onion

cheese

chicken nuggets coated with BBQ sauce

ranch dressing

additional bbq sauce as you like

I topped mine with crushed corn chips and pineapple. Yummy and Easy!!

Black Bean Tacos

Black beans are my best friend. That is no surprise. So it mexican. So to combine the 2 gives you a great cheap, meatless, fast meal!

There was an awesome recipe I used from a book I got from the library, but I didn't have it and never wrote it down, so I used one found here - http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/black-bean-soft-tacos/detail.aspx It's definitely not as simple, but still yummy.

• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 can diced tomatoes with green chiles (I had 1/2 can in my fridge. You could use more if you wanted probably)
• 1 can diced green chilies
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 8 (6 inch) flour tortillas, warmed
• 1/2 cup shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese
• 1 large ripe avocado, peeled and sliced (optional)

Directions

1. In a nonstick skillet, saute onion and garlic in oil until tender. Stir in the beans, tomatoes, chilies and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 3-5 minutes or until mixture begins to thicken. Spoon about 1/2 cup off center on each tortilla; sprinkle with cheese. Fold one side of tortilla over filling. Garnish with avocado.

We ate ours on corn tortillas with sour cream!

Alfredo Mesquite Chicken Pasta

Oh my goodness, this was SO GOOD! But warning, so not healthy. That shouldn't be surprising though right? :)

I didn't feel like cooking and Jack offered to make dinner while I took a nap. I said I left the recipe open on the computer, he couldn't find it, so instead of waking me up made up his own and it was divine! I need to ask him again what he did, but it was something like this-

Half block butter

Half block cream cheese

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

some milk

mesquite seasoning

melted and poured over pasta with cut up chicken nuggets :)

White Chicken Chili

I can't believe I haven't posted this recipe yet. It is by far my favorite 5 minute meal. Open a few cans, a dash of seasoning and you have a delicious meal.

Use variation of recipe found here - http://allrecipes.com/recipe/cha-chas-white-chicken-chili/detail.aspx

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 (4 ounce) cans diced green chiles
• dash of ground cayenne pepper
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 can of Costco canned chicken
• 1 can white beans
• 1 can black beans
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 can corn
• 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Slowly cook and stir the onion until tender. Mix in the garlic, green chiles, cumin, oregano and cayenne. Continue to cook and stir the mixture until tender. Mix in the chicken broth, chicken and beans, and corn. Simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. *BUT if you don't feel like waiting, eat right away and enjoy!

I don't think this tastes nearly as good without sour cream, cheese, and a little salsa mixed in then served with chips. You won't be disappointed! ;)

5 Minute Meals

These don't fall under the meatless category, but they are still super quick to make so don't get their own posts either. So that they don't get ignored by labels, here they are!

Fajitas - Cook your chicken or beef with some fajita seasoning and mix in some peppers and onions. Serve on a tortilla. That simple.

Meatball Sandwich- I love Costco meatballs and they can be used for quick fixes so easily! If no time to cook, throw in the microwave and serve on a hot dog bun with some spaghetti sauce and cheese. Wa-lah!

Hamburgers - We all have frozen hamburger patties in our freezer. Throw a couple on your foreman and you're done in a few minutes.

Chicken Salad Sandwiches- Love Costco's canned chicken for quick meals. Mix it with mayo, celery, onion and serve on bread, rolls, or canned crescents!

Ribs - throw some in the crockpot with BBQ sauce (okay, okay. They don't take 5 minutes to cook, but only 5 minutes to prepare!)

Meatless and/or 5 Minute Meals

I'm getting around to tagging my recipes, but when I list my dinners for the month, I don't always include every one in it's own separate post if recipes are simple. Meatless is usually my 5 minute I don't feel like actually cooking meals. So if you're looking for those, you won't be able to see them if they aren't tagged in their individual posts. So... here is my list-

Sweet and Sour Rice w/ Veggies - basic recipe, leave out your chicken or meatballs

Tostadas-shell with refried beans, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, etc

Spaghetti - pasta and red sauce

Pasta Alfredo - pasta and white sauce (use the packet when I don't feel like making it)

Baked Potatoes - I grew up on baked potatoes as a meal with some green beans or corn. Jack thinks he needs chili or sour cream and cheese on top. Whatever. It's still a very cheap meal however you do it.

Fish Sticks & Fries - no explanation really needed :)

Mac and Cheese - Kid Dinner if I'm not really hungry

Tuna Melts or Grilled Cheese - really, any kind of sandwich can do if it's one of those days

Pancakes -I usually like spam and toast with it if I'm doing it for dinner

French Toast, Omelets, lots of breakfasts are meatless so go with that!

My fake meatless foods-

(They actually have meat, but I still consider them cheap [which is why I mainly do meatless] if they're fake meats :)

french bread pizza - I usually put our lunch meat (ham) and pineapple on it. Of course, you can always make any pizza vegetarian style

Chicken Sandwiches - you know, the cheap patties on a hamburger bun. Toppings are endless, seriously so many varieties you can make!

Chicken Strips & Pasta-roni

hot dogs

chili dogs

pigs in a blanket

Taco Salad

Simple, fast, cheap meatless meal!

lettuce

black beans

corn

taco seasoning

cheese

salsa

corn chips

french dressing OR ranch dressing

Mix together, enjoy! :)

Biscuit Pizzas

I was surprised how yummy these are. Biscuits can be bought for like 3 for $1, sometimes even .25 so this is great without spending too much money when you do not feel like making dough and doing the whole sha-bang.

can of biscuits

spaghetti sauce

cheese

add any toppings you like

Spread the biscuits to thin circles, top with sauce and cheese and bake for 10 minutes. That's it!

White Sauce Enchiladas

I found the recipe here- http://www.food.com/recipe/chicken-enchiladas-white-sauce-rich-131628

For my review, see below-

• 1/8 cup butter
• 1/8 cup flour
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 4 ounces sour cream
• 4 ounces chopped green chilies, undrained
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken breasts (I use 1/2 can Costco chicken)
• 1/2 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 cups monterey jack cheese
• 4 flour tortillas

Directions:

1. 1
   In medium saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour, add chicken stock, heat and stir until thickened and bubbly.
2. 2
   Add sour cream, green chilies and cayenne. Remove from heat.
3. 3
   In a separate bowl, toss cooked chicken and chopped onion. To this bowl, add 1/2 cup sauce mixture from the saucepan. Stir well.
4. 4
   Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture, roll up and place seamside down in oblong greased casserole.
5. 5
   Pour remaining sauce on top.
6. 6
   Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, covered.
7. 7
   Remove from oven, take off foil and sprinkle cheese over top.
8. 8
   Return to oven and broil until cheese becomes browned a little.
   
   
   
   
   

Jack and I really aren't enchilada fans. We don't like them mushy so usually let the cheese brown. There is another recipe I normally use, which I will include below. With that, the cheese gets crispy, but this recipe called out to me because it looked like cheesy goodness so I thought I would give it a try. Plus, it's pretty fast and simple. I liked the taste of this one better. I topped with lettuce, tomatoes, and corn. Jack threw some tortilla chips on his to give it a crunch, but he likes my other recipe better. He felt this was too greasy. And with the butter it does have more of that texture. So if you're looking for a similar taste, with less grease, my other enchilada recipe is as follows:

1/2 can Costco chicken

cream cheese

onions

I mix these together in a saucepan until the cheese is melted. Sorry I don't know how much cream cheese I use, just to get a good consistency. I roll it up in tortillas. Open a can of green enchilada sauce pour a little on the bottom of the pan, put my tortillas in, pour a little on top of the tortillas and top with cheddar cheese. I then let it cook until the cheese gets crispy. And that's it!

Southwestern Salad

Black beans, corn, and red onion have SO many uses it's unbelievable. There was nothing special to this salad, I served it with baked potatoes so it's another easy, meatless, cheap dinner. However, I will post the dressing I mixed up to serve atop.

Lettuce

Black beans

corn

red onion

monterey jack cheese

cherry tomatoes

Lime Vinaigrette

• 1/2 cup of chopped cilantro (I didn't have so simply left out and it still tasted good atop salad)
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1-2 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar OR red wine vinegar
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp oregano

Black Eyed Pea Salad

I've made this a couple times and it is a great healthy, light, super easy salad. I served it alongside some grilled tuna melts.

I found the recipe here - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/neelys/black-eyed-pea-salad-recipe/index.html

Ingredients

• 1/2 large tomato, diced
• 1/4 medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 small red bell pepper, finely chopped (didn't have)
• 1/2 jalapeno, finely chopped (never use)
• 1 tablespoon chopped green onions
• 1 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves (or 1 tsp dried)
• 1/8 cup unseasoned rice wine vinegar
• 1/8 cup canola oil
• 14 teaspoon sugar
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (15-ounce) can black-eyed peas, drained

Directions

Combine the first 6 ingredients in a bowl.

In a separate small bowl, whisk together the rice wine vinegar, canola oil, sugar, and salt and pepper.

Toss all together and let marinate for at up to 8 hours in the refrigerator before serving. (Again, I've made this and eaten it right away, still great!)

Cranberry Spinach Salad

Found recipe here -

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/jamies-cranberry-spinach-salad/detail.aspx

I wanted a simple, light summer salad for dinner and this worked great. I served with baked potatoes.

• 1/2 tablespoon butter
• 1/4 cup almonds, blanched and slivered
• 1/2 pound spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries (craisins)
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds (I actually didn't have any and it still worked great)
• 1/2 tablespoon poppy seeds
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon minced onion (I used dried onion flakes)
• 1/8 teaspoon paprika
• 1/8 cup white wine vinegar
• 1/8 cup cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Cook and stir almonds in butter until lightly toasted. Remove from heat, and let cool.
2. In a large bowl, combine the spinach with the toasted almonds and cranberries.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, onion, paprika, white wine vinegar, cider vinegar, and vegetable oil. Toss with spinach just before serving.