Back In Action-Ground Turkey Noodle Bake

I actually have a week full of meals planned for the first time in I don't even know how long. I'm not sure if this is an excuse or not, but I was in a 4-wheeling accident about 3 days after my second to last post. After that I didn't do much cooking for a while. I do have a few pictures of meals that I made over the last 3 months, but not much! The accident combined with end of the school year and a very busy summer and I have been slacking in the cooking department. Last night I cooked Sunday Dinner one of the few times in the last 4 years I have had to cook on Sunday. We live a few miles from my in-laws and they make us dinner almost every Sunday. It was Fast Sunday so I wanted something quick and easy. We have 1:00 church so I made this up before going to church and then just had to throw it in the oven when we got home and made up a quick salad with lettuce, tomato, and cucumber from this weeks basket. It was SO delicious!

Ingredients
4 cups uncooked wide egg noodles
1 bunch asparagus, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
1 pound ground pork or turkey
1 garlic clove
1 medium onion, chopped
1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/3 cup BASIC SAUCE MIX
1 1/4 cup water
4 oz reduced fat cream cheese
1 cup shreaded mozzarella cheese (or more realistically I put 2 cups)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375*. Cook noodles with asparagus acording to package directions (al dente), drain and set aside. In same pot combine basic sauce mix, water and cream cheese. Bring to a low simmer until thickened. Add noodle mix back in and toss. Meanwhile, in a large skillet cook ground meat with onion and garlic, drain and return to skillet. Stir in tomato sauce and italian seasoning. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. In a 9X13 baking dish layer noodle mixture, meat mixture, and top with cheese. Bake 25-30 or until hot and cheese is melted.

Notes: I assembled this before hand and refrigerated it then increased cook time to 40-50 minutes.

Instead of basic sauce mix you can use 2 cans of cream of mushroom soup.

Grilled Steak with Jicama Corn Slaw

One of the fun things about Bountiful Baskets is getting to experiment with produce I might never have bought at the store. This was really fresh tasting and flavorful.

Steak

1 pound beef sirloin steak, 1 inch thick

2 tablespoons southwest seasoning

Dressing

1 orange, zested and juiced

2 limes, zested and juiced

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, snipped

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 garlic clove, pressed

1 teaspoon chipolte powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Slaw

1 medium jicama, peeled and cut into julienne strips

1 can corn, drained, or 2 ears kernels

1 medium carrot, peeled and julienned

1/2 red bell pepper, diced

For steak rub southwest seasoning, heat grill pan over medium heat 5 minutes, cook steak 6-8 minutes turning once for medium. For dressing combine zest, juice, cilantro, oil, garlic, chipolte, and salt in a small bowl. For slaw combine jicama, corn, carrots, bell pepper and half of the dressing. To serve, thinly slice steak and serve over slaw. Drizzle with remaining dressing.

Beef Stir-Fry

This is a stand-by basket recipe! It's quick and easy and tastes great. I like to use a beef fajita mix to make things even easier, plus the beef in the mix has a great flavor!

1 bunch broccoli, chopped

4 carrots, peeled and sliced

1 onion, sliced

1 large green bell pepper, sliced

2 tablespoons oil

1/4 cup light soy sauce

1 tablespoon cornstarch

2 garlic cloves, pressed

1 teaspoon fresh ginger root

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

1 package cooked beef fajita meat or 1 lb beef top sirloin steak, sliced

1/2 cup beef broth

2 cups rice

Cook rice according to package directions. Mix together soy sauce, cornstarch, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Place meat in mixture and marinate 15 minutes in mixture while you chop veggies. Heat oil in large skillet. If using raw steak, cook beef 1-2 minutes or until outside is no longer pink, reserving marinade. If using fajita mix skip this step. Add veggies to skillet, stir-fry in oil 3-4 minutes. Add in beef and marinade. Cook another 3-4 minutes until veggies are tender and beef is heated through. Add in beef broth, bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute stirring gently, until sauce is thickened, serve over rice.

Lil' Bit O' Everything Soup

When I don't use all of my veggies up I like to chop them up and freeze them to use in soup later. You can substitute in whatever you like/need to get used up!
2 stalks celery, diced

1 small onion, diced

1 green chili, diced

2 cloves garlic, pressed

1 small diakon, diced (Japanese Raddish)

1 sunchoke, peeled and diced

2 potatoes, chopped

2 carrots, sliced

1/2 cup corn

1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

2 cans Italian stewed tomatoes, undrained

1 can chicken breast meat, drained

water

oil

salt and pepper

Heat 1-2 tablespoons of oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add in celery, onion, chili, garlic, diakon, and sunchoke. Cook 4-5 minutes until tender. Add in potatoes and carrots. Pour in enough water to cover. Bring to a boil. Add in corn, kidney beans, tomatoes, and chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer over medium heat 20-3o minutes. The longer you simmer the more the flavors blend together.

Chicken and Chayote Hash

I made one of the recipes from my Chayote Squash post. It was called Chicken with Chayote Squash and Potato Casserole, but it's not really a casserole at all so I am calling it a HASH. This was really yummy, and MY KIDS ATE IT REALLY WELL. My husband said it would be yummy as a breakfast, with out the chicken with some fried or scrambled eggs.

1 pound chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces

1/2 pound potatoes, chopped

3 chayote squashes, peeled and chopped (I used disposable gloves when peeling, worked out great!)

1 small onion, finley chopped

1 green pepper, finely chopped (I did this more for the benefit of my kids, leave them bigger if you want)

2 tomatoes, chopped

1 tablespoon salt

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 cup oil

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat, add in onion, pepper, garlic, salt and black pepper. Saute 1-2 minutes or until fragrant, add in chicken. (I seasoned my chicken with a Bell Pepper and Herb Rub) Cook 1-2 minutes on each side. Add in potatoes, squash. Stir together and cover. Reduce heat to medium. Stir occasionally until potatoes are soft and chicken is cooked through. Stir in parsley and tomatoes. Cook another 2-3 minutes until tomatoes are heated through.

Sunday Pork Roast (Yes I made this on a Tuesday!)

Growing up I don't remember my parents cooking many things, I am an only child and honestly it was easier for the 3 of us to eat out, especially with 2 working parents. The few things that I remember my parents making either came from a box or a jar, with the exception of a Sunday Roast. This recipe is actually not my parents recipe (which is a good standby): Pork Roast, water, onion soup mix, potatoes and carrots. For today's roast I wanted to use more fresh ingredients from my basket.

1 boneless pork roast (I used a butt because it comes already tied!)

Salt and Pepper to taste

4 garlic cloves, pressed

4 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped

1 lemon, cut into thin slices

3/4 cup water

1 tablespoon chicken boullion (or one cube)

2-3 pounds potatoes

5-6 carrots

1 bunch asparagus

2 tablespoons flour

Disolve boulion in warm water. Place roast in crock pot, rub with salt, pepper, garlic, and rosemary. (If roast is not tied, tie with twine) Tuck lemon slices around roast. Pour chicken broth into the bottom of the crock pot. Cook on low 7 hours or high 2 hours. At this point place chopped potatoes and carrots into the crock pot. Cook on high 1 hour. Stir in chopped asparagus. Cook an aditional 30 minutes, or until veggies are tender. Take Roast and veggies out of crock pot. Let stand 10 minutes then slice pork before serving. Discard twine and lemon slices. Transfer juices to small sauce pan, mix flour with about 1 cup cold water. Add flour mixture to sauce pan and cook until thickened for gravy.

Cafe Rio Dinner

Okay, so I know every recipe blog out there has Cafe Rio Pork, but it's pretty much a staple around here so I had to add it to my blog too! When we make Cafe Rio Pork, it has to include Cilantro Lime Dressing, Cilantro Lime Rice and Bean and Cheese Dip! We serve it with lettuce, salsa, sour cream, enchilada sauce, tomatoes, large and small flour tortillas. That way we are covered if we want a Pork Salad, Pork Burrito, or Pork Tacos!

For the Pork:

Large Pork Butt Roast (I usually shoot for 3-5 lbs because we like leftovers!)

1 can Coke 1 large can green enchilada sauce, divided

1 tablespoon cumin

1/2 cup brown sugar

Place pork roast, fatty side up in crock pot. Pour coke over roast. Cover and cook on low 5-7 or high 3-5 hours. At this point I trim the fat off the top and throw it out. Remove most of the liquid from the crock pot to a large measuring cup. Shred pork. Discard about 1/2 the liquid leaving about 1 cup. Add 1/2 large can of enchilada sauce, cumin and brown sugar to remaining liquid. Pour over pork, mix and continue cooking 30-60 minutes.

For the Rice:

2-4 tablespoons butter

2 1/2 cups rice

2 cans chicken broth

1/2 cup water

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons lime juice

4 tablespoons cilantro

Mix all ingredients in a rice cooker or pot. Cook until done. (I do it in the microwave, about 7 minutes on high, then I stir it and put it back in for 30-45 min at 50% power)

For the Dressing:

1 1/3 cup sour cream

3/4 cup mayonaise

1 packet dry ranch dressing mix

4 tablespoons enchilada sauce (from can above)

1 bunch cilantro

2 garlic cloves

1/8 teaspoon tabasco

4 tablespoons lime juice

Blend!

For Bean Dip:

1/2 cup cream cheese

16 oz. refried beans

5 drops tabasco

1/3 cup green onions, chopped

1 cup monterey/colby jack cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon taco seasoning

1/4 cup parsley

1 cup cheddar cheese (on top)

Using a hand mixer mix all ingredients except cheddar cheese. Top with remaining cheese. Bake at 350* 20 minutes. This may sound like a lot of work to do all the sides, but really it takes less than an hour, and IT'S SO WORTH IT! This is the order I do it in:

1. Start Rice

2. Drain pork and mix sauce

3. Make bean dip and put in oven

4. Make dressing

5. Chop lettuce and tomatoes.

Sausage, Spinach and Tomato Pasta

I love this recipe. (DISCLAIMER: I love Spinach!) I really wasn't in the mood to cook dinner tonight, (I was working on getting our basement ready for sheetrock all day) but this was quick and easy and I love the flavor from the fresh tomatoes and spinach. Honestly my kids and husband weren't as impressed, I probably could have chopped the spinach up smaller and used about 1/2 to appease them.

1 lb. italian sausage

3 cans Italian style diced stewed tomatoes

1 box medium shells

2 1/2 cups water

4 garlic cloves, pressed

1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

1/2 tsp. salt

4 tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup Parmesean Cheese, grated

8 cups spinach leaves

Cook sausage in a 12 in. skillet. Drain stewed tomatoes into a bowl, reserve 1 cup for later use, add tomatoes, remaining liquid, water, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pasta. Cover and cook 13-15 minutes or until pasta is tender, stirring occaisionally. Add in tomatoes, spinach, Parmesan cheese and reserved liquid. Cook 1-2 minutes until spinach is wilted, stirring constantly.

Chicken Tortilla Chili

This is such a yummy chili! We had our church Chili Cookoff last night, I won "Best Looking Chili." Although last year I won "Best Chili" with THIS recipe (my nephews were really excited about me defending my title, I said to one of them, "Best Looking is pretty good too" and he said, "eh") I personally think this years is better! This would be the PERFECT recipe for anyone who got a Mexican Pack and Tortillas this week! The one thing you could do if you got the mex pack is add in some hot peppers to taste! 4 yellow corn tortillas
1 large onion, diced
1 medium zucchini, diced (I used 2 yellow squash, if you got a Mexican Pack use the squash in that!)
1 T vegetable oil
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
4 garlic cloves, pressed
1 T ground cumin
3-4 cups chicken stock
2 cans diced fire roasted tomatoes, undrained
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 small rotisserie chicken
1 t salt
Optional toppings: diced avacado, lime wedges, crumbled queso fresco, cilantro, tortilla crisps

Place tortillas in a blender or food processor to form fine crumbs, set aside. Place oil and onion in 4 quart pot, cook and stir over medium heat 4-6 minutes until onions are tender. Add cilantro, garlic, and cumin. Cook an aditional 20-30 seconds until fragrant. Stir in tortilla crumbs, zucchini, stock, tomatoes, and beans. Bring to a gentle simmer, reduce heat to medium-low and cook 15-20 minutes to thicken, stirring frequently and scraping bottom of pot. Stir in chicken and salt. Cook 3-4 minutes or until zucchini is tender and chicken is hot. Serve with toppings if desired.

Yummy Shells and Asparagus

Wow! That pretty much sums up tonight's dinner. I promise you this dish is worthy of being served at any Italian Restaurant. I used the original recipe found at Favorite Family Recipes and modified it.
1 pkg. medium shells pasta
1/2 c. (1 cube) butter (the real stuff)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz sliced mushrooms
3/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1-2 chicken bouillon (I use 2 tsp. boulion powder)
1 (12oz) can evaporated milk
salt & and pepper to taste
1 bunch asparagus cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 c. bacon, crumbled
1/4 c. chopped pistacios (or to taste)
Parsley, to taste
Parmesan cheese, to taste

Boil bow tie pasta in salted water until al dente. Do NOT over cook.
In wok or heavy skillet melt butter. Add minced garlic, mushrooms and asparagus saute a minute or so.
Add Parmesan Cheese and bouillon. When the bouillon is dissolved, slowly stir in heavy cream and salt & pepper. Bring to a boil stirring frequently until thickend slightly. Add cooked pasta, crumbled bacon, toasted pistacios, and parsley and toss together. Serve immediately, sprinkle with additional Parmesean cheese to taste.

Quick Chicken Cacciatore

Tonight's dinner came together so quickly and it was such a yummy homemade spaghetti sauce! I ended up adding some oregano in with the basil at the end because I had it to use from my Italian pack. I am getting another Italian pack tomorrow so my hubby is very excited about more mushrooms!

1 cup all-purpose flour
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (4 oz each)
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1/3 cup tomato paste
1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth
4 garlic cloves, pressed
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
1 head cauliflower, cut into pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
8 oz sliced mushrooms
1 can (14.5 oz) Italian-seasoned petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil and oreganoleaves
12 oz cooked spaghetti noodles

Coat chicken in flour, heat oil in 12 in. skillet over medium-high heat 3 minutes. Add chicken, cook 2-3 minutes on each side.(chicken will not be fully cooked) Remove chicken from skillet and keep warm. Combine tomato paste, broth, garlic, cornstarch, salt and pepper and mix. Combine mushrooms and cauliflower in skillet Cook and stir 3-4 minutues. Add broth mixture and tomatoes; bring to a simmer. Stir in herbs and add chicken back to skillet. Cover and simmer 5-7 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and sauce is thickened. Serve over spaghetti noodles.

yeild:6 servings, calories per serving: 480

Hearty Chicken and Rosemary Stew

The flovor of fresh rosemary in this recipe really gets infused into the chicken and veggies! This dish cooks for a long time, but was really very easy to throw together. It worked out nicely because I put it in the oven and then took my daughter to ballet and when we came home it was ready to eat. I'll bet you could do it in a crock pot before work as well!

1 lb. small Yukon gold potatoes, cut into chunks
1 large onion, diced
3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced diagonally into 1/2 in slices.
8 oz. whole mushrooms, quartered
2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (could use thighs), cut into 1 in. pieces
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
3 garlic cloves, pressed
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 lemon
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 375*. Combine potatoes, onions, carrots, mushrooms, chicken, rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper in a deep baking dish, mix well. Whisk together broth, tomato paste, and cornstarch in a bowl until cornstarch is disolved. Pour over veggies and chicken. Bake covered 1 1/2-2 hours stiring after 45 minutes. After baking, zest lemon to measure 1 tsp. zest. Stir in zest and parsley. Let stand covered 10 minutes.

yeild: 8 servings, calories per serving: 260
Recipe from NEW Pampered Chef Dinner in your Deep Covered Baker

Chimichurri Steak Salad

I love chimichurri! The dressing on this salad is also used as a marinade for the steak after it has been cooked. I cut up the steak into bite size pieces before placing it on the salad. The raw garlic gave a nice bite to the dressing.

Steak
1 lb boneless top sirloin steak aprox. 3/4 in. thick
1/2 tsp salt
Chimichurri
1 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons vinegar (I used balsalmic)
1/2 tsp salt
1 garlic clove pressed
1/4 tsp. ground cayenne pepper (optional, I didn't throw that in)

1 medium sunchoke (optional)
Salad
1 head lettuce, chopped
1 cup tomatoes diced

Heat grill pan over medium heat 5 minutes. As the pan heats rub steak with salt. Place steak into pan and cook 6-8 minutes on each side for medium doneness. As steak cooks prepare chimichurri by mixing together in a small bowl. Remove steaks from heat and top with 3 tablespoons chimichurri. Let stand 10 minutes. Thinly slice lettuce and cut tomatoes and place in a large bowl. Toss with remaining chimichurri sauce. Divide salad onto serving plates and thinly slice steak and arrange over top of salad.

yeild: 4 servings, calories per serving: 330

Recipe adapted from TPC 29 Minutes to Dinner

notes: This is one I won't double because 1 lb of steak will be plenty for my family. I plan on making some garlic bread to serve with this meal.

Creamy Pasta with Spring Vegetables

This recipe had such great flavor! I love the fresh basil and roasted veggies. This recipe was adapted from a recipe in The Pampered Chef Main Dishes cookbook, which is now out of print. Most recipes that I make in my home I go off of an idea and then add or take away things until it's what I want. I doubled the recipe, with a big family that's a must, plus that way I could use the whole can of evaporated milk.
8 oz. thin fresh asparagus spears, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
8 oz. baby portobello mushrooms, quartered
1 large bell pepper, cut into 1 in pieces
1 yellow squash, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, pressed
1/2 tsp. salt (I like course sea salt)
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, snipped
8 oz. penne pasta (I use whole wheat)
3/4 cup fat free evaporated milk (could use heavy whipping cream or regular evaporated milk)
2 oz fresh parmesan cheese grated

Preheat oven to 425*. Chop up veggies and place in a large bowl. Add olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Toss gently. Spread out on a cookie sheet with sides. Roast 18-20 minutes until veggies are tender. (if you like crisp veggies only roast 10-12 min). Cook fat free evaporated milk in a small sauce pan over medium low heat until slightly thickened. Add in parmesan cheese and stir until incorporated. When veggies are done, return to large bowl, top with sauce and basil and toss together. Top with additional black pepper and parmesan cheese as desired.

yeild-4 servings, calories per serving: 120

notes: Tonight I made this vegetarian style, but it would be great with grilled chicken breasts cubed and tossed in. Also, I used veggies that I had on hand, it's easy to add or take away veggies in a meal like this to suit it to your tastes!