Saturday, December 3, 2011

Grilled Pizza Sandwiches

I wish I could remember which blog I saw this on a couple of days ago. She had made them look absolutely yummy, that I wanted to make them right away. My eleven year old daughter absolutely loves pizza (what kid doesn't?) and I can only give in and have pizza night only so often. This is an excellent compromise and can be made for an easy lunch or dinner. Keep in mind that the recipe is just a guide to follow and to adjust it to your taste.

Grilled Pizza Sandwich
Source: Forkful of Comfort

2 slices of bread
butter
2 slices mozzarella cheese
Italian seasoning
Grated Parmesan cheese
Pepperoni
Any additional pizza toppings you love

Butter the outsides of your two slices of bread. Put one buttered side down in heated pan. Top with one slice of mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle a bit of Italian seasoning and Paremesan cheese on top. Top with pepperoni and any other pizza toppings you wish. Place second piece of mozzarella cheese on top, followed by your second piece of buttered bread - buttered side facing up. Grill like any other grilled cheese sandwich and serve with warmed pizza sauce.

YUM!!!

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Cheesy Ziti

I ended up with this recipe off of a cooking board I belong to, but somehow no one on there seems to know who/where the orginal source of the recipe is. This recipe is extremely simple and absolutely delishious! Warning though, it does make a very large batch. The next time I make this dish, I will be dividing it into two containers - one to eat and one to freeze for later.

Cheesy Ziti

2-1/2 jars spaghetti sauce (I used Ragu Chucky Garden)
1 lb. ziti (or any small) noodles (I used mini penne)
1 lb. ground beef
15 oz. ricotta cheese or cottage cheese (I used ricotta)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 packet Italian seasoning (This is the dry dressing packet. You can also use a lasagna seasoning packet instead, but the Italian gives it a certain zest.)
8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 egg

Cook noodles according to package directions; drain and set aside. In a small bowl mix ricotta, egg, Italian seasoning and parmesan; set aside. Brown ground beef and drain off fat. Add sauce and noodles to ground beef; mix well. Spoon half of noodle mixture into greased (I always forget to grease the pans and it doesn't seem to matter)13x9-inch** dish. Spread ricotta mixture over noodles. Top with remaining pasta mixture. Cover with shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until warmed throughout and cheese is melted.

*Next time I make this, I'm going to use another recipe as a guide and add in 2-1/2 cups of fresh spinach when I do the ricotta cheese layer before topping with the rest of the pasta.

**I now make this and bake it in 8x8 pans instead of the 9x13-inch pans. For our family of four, the 9x13 pan left us with way too many leftovers. So I bake one pan and freeze the second pan for a later meal. To cook from frozen, thaw in the refrigerator overnight and bake as directed above. You may have to bake for slightly longer to be sure it warmed throughout.

Monday, November 28, 2011

Spinach Stuffing Balls

While these don't sound very appealing, they were a hit with both myself and my husband. The particular recipe I chose to make came from MomAdvice.com. I tweaked it slightly, so if you want to see the original recipe, follow the above link.

Spinach Stuffing Balls

2 (16 oz) packages frozen spinach
1 package turkey-flavored stuffing mix*
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
5 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

Thaw spinach and drain in a sieve, use back of a wooden spoon to press the spinach against the sieve to get as much moisture as possible out In a bowl combine the spinach, stuffing mix, Parmesan cheese, eggs, and butter. Mix thoroughly & roll into small balls 3/4 to 1″ size. (I used a "cookie" scoop to scoop out equal amounts and then rolled them in my hands to firm up the balls.) If cooking right away, place on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 7 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. If making for later, place on a cookie sheet and freeze. Once frozen, place in a freezer safe bag or container.

To serve from frozen: Place frozen balls on a cookie sheet and bake at 350F for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned.

*Use turkey, chicken, or any other dry stuffing mix. Experiment and try out different combinations to find a flavor you like.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Oven Hot Dogs



Oven Hot Dogs
Inspiration: In the Wabe

Ingredients:
Hot dogs
Hot dog buns
Toppings (ketchup, mustard, mayo, relish, onions, etc)
Chili (I used Hormel canned chili)
Shredded cheese

Directions:
Line a 9x13-inch casserole dish with aluminum foil. (This step isn't necessary, but it does help with getting the hot dogs out later.)

Fill buns with toppings, such as ketchup, mayo, mustard, relish, whatever you like. Top with a hot dog. Line them up in your pan. You can fit 8 hot dogs in the buns, in your dish.

Top generously with chili, cheese and things like onions if you're using them. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Carefully remove from the pan and eat. If you lined the pan with aluminum foil, you may be able to lift it out of the pan and onto the counter to dish. If you didn't, be careful dishing out the first couple of hot dogs because they will be hot and it's really easy to drop one. Eat like a normal hot dog on a bun, or if too messy with a knife and fork. Either way it's very yummy!

Homemade Potato Chips


Homemade Potato Chips
Source: Allrecipes for inspiration

Ingredients:
1 potato (for a single serving)
Seasonings

Directions:
Cut potato into extremely thin slices. I used what I had on hand, and a suggestion of a tip on allrecipes, and sliced mine with my vegetable peeler. Since this was the method I was using, I peeled my potatoes and dispossed of the peel. I then "peeled" the rest of my potato into thin slices.

Line microwave tray with parchment paper. Spray lightly with cooking oil (just to keep from sticking). Spread out potato slices in a single layer without touching. You may spray lightly with cooking oil (I don't), and sprinkle with seasonings. I just use a little bit of sea salt.

Cook on high until chips are browning. They are done then. Well, at least that's when I think they taste the best. For my slicing method, and my microwave, it's about 5 to 7 minutes when mine are done. Keep in mind the more potatoes in there the longer it takes, therefore the less slices, the shorter the cooking time. Let cool for about a minute and dig in. They are heaven!

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Smores on a Stick

Smores on a Stick
Source: Whimsicle Creations There are awesome pictures on her site of the Smores on a Stick

Ingredients:
Large marshmallows
Pretzel sticks or lollipop sticks
Chocolate almond bark (or candy melt)
Graham crackers, crushed (or sprinkles, get creative)

Directions:
Place on marshmallow on a lollipop stick or pretzel stick. Repeat for all marshmallows.

Melt the almond bark or candy melt in the microwave, be careful not to burn it.

Dip each marshmallow in the almond bark to coat and then roll it gently in the graham cracker crumbs, or whatever topping you chose to use.

Place it on a cookie sheet to let the almond bark set. Once set, put them away until ready to eat.

My daughter and I made these together as a treat for the Fourth of July. We used two bags of large marshmallows, one bag of pretzel rods (we didn't use the whole bag), one package of chocolate almond bark, and 1/2 a box of cinnamon graham crackers. It took us about an hour to make them all, but we had to keep heating up more almond bark and I didn't have a ceramic bowl/cup to keep the almond bark from cooling faster when I melted bigger batches of it.

Warning: They are yummy and addictive!!!

Slow-Cookin' Pulled Chicken

(Image taken by Hungry Girl)

Slow-Cookin' Pulled Chicken
Source: Hungry Girl

Ingredients:
1-1/2 lb. raw boneless skinless lean chicken breasts, halved
1 cup canned tomato sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tbsp. plus 2 tsp. brown sugar (not packed)
2 tbsp. plus 2 tsp. cider vinegar
2 tsp. garlic powder
Optional: red pepper flakes, to taste

Directions:
Place all ingredients except the chicken in the crock pot. Stir until mixed. Add chicken and coat well with the sauce.

Cover and cook on high for 3 - 4 hours OR on low for 7 - 8 hours, until chicken is fully cooked.

Remove all the chicken and place it in a bowl. Shred each piece using two forks -- one to hold the chicken in place and the other to scrape across the meat and shred it. Return the shredded chicken to the crock pot, and mix well with the sauce.

If you're serving a group, keep the crock pot on its lowest setting, so the chicken stays warm. If you like, season to taste with red pepper flakes. Eat up!

MAKES 7 SERVINGS

PER SERVING (1/2 cup): 149 calories, 1g fat, 462mg sodium, 10g carbs, <0.5g fiber, 9g sugars, 22.5g protein -- PointsPlus® value 3*

When I made this I doubled the recipe to make a huge batch (the single recipe should be plenty though). I didn't quite double everything exactly. I used a 15 oz. can of tomato sauce (double would have been 16 ounces, but I couldn't see opening another can for only an ounce of sauce) and I used a large package of boneless skinless chicken breasts that was about 4.5 pounds before I trimmed them. Everything else was doubled.

This make a very yummy shredded barbeque chicken. We ate it on hamburger buns. This is a sweet barbeque, but not overly sweet.

When cooking the chicken, it looks like you will have way too much liquid left over. I shredded the chicken and put it back in the crockpot to cook for another hour on low and then I turned the lid to the crockpot to let it dry out slightly for another 30 minutes while on low. This turned out perfectly and is definitely a keeper.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Tender Chicken Nuggets

Tender Chicken Nuggets
Source: Taste of Home

1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg white
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes

In a large resealable plastic bag, combine bread crumbs and cheese. In a shallow bowl, beat the egg white. Dip chicken pieces in egg white, then place in bag and shake to coat.

Place in a 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 12-15 minutes or until no longer pink, turning once.

Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 3 ounces cooked chicken equals 194 calories, 3 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 68 mg cholesterol, 250 mg sodium, 10 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, 30 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 1/2 starch.

I doubled the recipe. I used 2 lbs. of chicken, 1 cup Italian bread crumbs, 4 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese, 1 egg white.

This made a really decent amount and divided into 4 equal servings (really large servings), the nutritional information is: Amount Per Serving, Calories 344, Total Fat: 6.6g, Cholesterol 141.5mg, Sodium: 691.1mg, Total Carbs 9.6g, Fiber 0.5, Protein 59.6g.

This is VERY yummy and liked by all. My very picky chicken loving daughter rates this as a much requested favorite food item.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Smothered Chicken Italiano

Source: Taste of Home

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon pepper, divided
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 cup crushed tomatoes (I used spaghetti sauce instead)
4 slices part-skim mozzarella cheese (next time I'll use shredded mozzarella)

In a small bowl, combine the oregano, garlic powder, 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper; rub over chicken. In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, brown chicken in oil for 3-4 minutes on each side. Transfer to an 11-in. x 7-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Combine ricotta cheese and remaining salt and pepper; spoon over chicken. Top with tomatoes.

Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 15 minutes. Top with cheese. Bake 5-10 minutes longer or a meat thermometer reads 170°. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1 serving equals 252 calories, 11 g fat (5 g saturated fat), 85 mg cholesterol, 341 mg sodium, 6 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 32 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 4 lean meat, 1/2 fat.

This recipe was a hit with everyone and has already been requested to be a repeat dish. Very tasty and easy to make.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Open-Faced Meatball Sandwiches

Source: Taste of Home

1/4 cup egg substitute
1/2 cup soft bread crumbs
1 Tbsp. dry minced onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1-1/4 pounds lean ground turkey
2 cups garden-style pasta sauce
4 hoagie buns, split
4-8 slices of mozzarella cheese

In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Crumble turkey
over mixture and mix well. Using a small cookie scoop, shape into meatballs. In a large skillet coated with cooking spray, brown meatballs in batches; drain.

Place meatballs in a large saucepan. Add the pasta sauce; bring to a
boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until meat
is no longer pink. Toast bun halves in the oven. Place slices of mozzarella on toasted buns, breaking to fit. Spoon meatballs and sauce onto bun halves.

Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1 sandwich equals 231 calories, 9 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 60 mg cholesterol, 488 mg sodium, 21 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 17 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 2 lean meat, 1 starch, 1 vegetable.

*The meatballs can be cooked in the crockpot after browning in the skillet. I cooked mine on low for several hours until we were ready to eat.

**I now make these meatballs (just the meatballs) in bulk (I quadruple the recipe) and freeze the remaining three portions. This is easy to do since I form my meatballs using a cookie scoop and the bake in the oven at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes. Once cooled, I separate the portions and bag up the ones to be frozen.

Sweet 'n' Sour Pork Chops


Sweet 'n' Sour Pork Chops
Source: Taste of Home

1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple, undrained
1 cup honey barbecue sauce
2 Tbsp. dry minced onion
2 tablespoons chili sauce
1 Family size pack of porkchops (approximately 2-1/2 lbs. and trimmed of any fat)

In a small bowl, combine the pineapple, barbecue sauce, onion and
chili sauce. Pour half into a 3-qt. slow cooker. Top with
pork chops and remaining sauce. Cover and cook on low for 4-1/4 to
5-1/4 hours or until meat is tender.

Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1 serving (1 each) equals 257 calories, 5 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 28 mg cholesterol, 855 mg sodium, 41 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 9 g protein.

Cream Cheese Chicken

Cream Cheese Chicken
Source: Dottie (hokiesmom on BBC)

4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (approximately 2 lbs trimmed)
1-2 pkgs. dry Ranch or Italian Dressing mix (used 1 pkt dry Spicy Ranch, and 1 pkt dry original Ranch)
1 can cream of onion soup (can use any cream of __ soup, can also be left out and it still tastes yummy)
8 oz light cream cheese -- cut into cubes
1/2 cup chicken broth (I never need any chicken broth since I use frozen chicken breasts)
4 oz sliced white button mushrooms (optional - I leave these out most of the time now)
4 cups cooked rice

Place chicken in a Crock Pot, spritz chicken with I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Spray, sprinkle 1 pkg dry Spicy Ranch mix (which ever one you're using) over all. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 7 hours. About 45 minutes before done, I pulled the chicken out of the crockpot and shredded it then put it back in the crock pot. (I no longer do this. Instead, I remove the chicken, and mix in the remaining ingredients. I then add the chicken back in, and chop/shred it up with a wooden spoon.) Add soup, second packet of dry dressing mix, cream cheese, mushrooms and chicken broth (you may or may not need the broth, most of the time I don't add any), and cooked rice. Mix it up and let it cook another 45-1 hour.

This is absolutely deliscious and one of my personal favorites. I cook this fairly often.