Week 4 -

*Hawaiian Haystacks

*Flat Iron Steak
*Chipotle Cheddar Chicken Pasta
*Baked Potatoes

Hawaiian Haystacks

• 3 chicken breasts
• onion
• 2 cans cream of chicken soup
• 2 cans cream of chicken soup with herbs
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream

Cut onion into slices and grill it in 1 TBSP of butter in a skillet until golden brown. Place chicken breasts in a baking dish and lay the onions on top of the breasts. Cook for 40 minutes at 350. Cut the breasts with the onions still on top of them into bite size pieces. Combine the soups and sour cream in a large sauce pan. When the soup starts to bubble, add chicken and keep warm. Serve over rice with toppings.

Toppings:

• corn
• peas
• tomatoes
• green onions
• olives
• hard boiled eggs cut up
• grated cheddar cheese
• red pepper
• coconut
• cashews
• rice noodles
• raisins
• pineapple tidbits
• mandarin oranges
• celery

Flat Iron Steak

Buy a flat iron steak and grill it on the grill seasoned with McCormick's Montreal Steak Seasoning (Grill Mates).

Chipotle Cheddar Pasta

• 16 oz. bowtie pasta
• 1- 15 oz. can black beans rinsed and drained
• 1- 15 oz. can sweet corn, drained
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1 10 oz. package pico de gallo, drained
• 1 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/2 cup diced red pepper
• 1/2 cup diced orange pepper
• 1 cup grated carrots
• 1 cup diced cucumber
• 2 ripe avocados, diced

1 lime, halved

1/2 (12 oz) bottle Brianna's Chipotle Cheddar dressing

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and run under cold water.

Toss together beans, corn feta and remaining salad ingredients. Squeeze 1/2 lime over the top and cut remaining 1/2 lime into wedges for serving. Add cooled pasta and toss with enough dressing to coat. Chill until ready to serve. Before serving, toss with more dressing.

Baked Potatoes

Wash and prick potato skins. Bake on 400 for an hour or until sides are tender when you squeeze with an oven mit on. Top with butter, sour cream, cheese, and brocolli.

Week 3 -

*Pancakes, eggs/cheese, sausage

*Monterrey Chicken

*BBQ ribs

*Mac n' cheese

Pancakes

• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 3 tsps. baking powder
• 1 TBSP sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 2 TBSP vegetable oil

Mix together and bake on hot griddle.

Cinnamon Syrup

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup corn syrup
• 1/4 cup water
• 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk

Combine sugar, corn syrup, water and cinnamon in small sauce pan.  Bring to a boil and boil 2 minutes.
remove from stove and add evaporated milk.  Serve warm.

Eggs/Cheese

Whisk together eggs and a little milk.  Cook in a skillet.  When done, sprinkle with melted cheese, turn off burner and cover with a lid for 30 seconds.

We love sausage links.

Monterrey Chicken

• Chicken (I use chicken tenders)
• BBQ sauce
• Bacon
• Swiss cheese

Cook chicken in bbq sauce-either grill or bake at 350 for 35 minutes or so. Top with cooked bacon and swiss cheese slices. Cover on grill or bake in oven until cheese melts. I like to serve it with mustard/mayo sauce.

BBQ ribs

• 2 cups ketchup
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1/2 cup liquid smoke
• 4 dashes soy sauce
• 1 cup pace picante sauce
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tps garlic powered
• 6-8 lbs boneless country style pork ribs

Cover ribs with half of the sauce. Bake at 275 for 6 hours, covered with foil or lid. Drain off drippings before serving. Heat up other half of sauce and serve hot over ribs. serves 6-8.

Homemade Mac n'cheese

• 1 TBSP vegetable oil
• 1 (16-oz) pkg elbow macaroni
• 4 TBSP butter
• 1/2 cup shredded Muenster cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded sharp Cheddar
• 1 1/2 cups half and half
• 8 oz cubed processed cheese food
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp ground black pepper

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8-10 minutes or until al dente; drain well and return to cooking pot. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter; stir into macaroni. In a large bowl, combine the cheeses; mix well. Preheat oven to 350. Add the half and half, 1 1/2 cups of cheese mixture, cubed processed chese food, and eggs to macaroni; mix together and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a lightly greased deep 1 1/2 quart casserole dish. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of cheese. Bake for 35 mintues or until hot and bubbling around edges; serve.

Week 2 -

*Chicken Stir Fry
*Sloppy Joes
*Asian Pasta Salad
*Grilled Pork and garlic mashed potatoes

Chicken Stir Fry

• 2 chicken breast cut into little pieces
• broccoli
• carrots
• red pepper
• onion
• bean sprouts
• snap peas

All veggies cut into bite size pieces

Sauce
In a small saucepan, mix together and heat until bubbly.

• 2 TBSP soy sauce
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup pineapple juice
• 1/4 cup orange juice

In a bowl, mix together

• 2 TBSP cornstarch
• 1/4 cup cold water

Add cornstarch mixture to soysauce mixture and stir until sauce thickens.

Stir fry chicken in a TBSP of peanut oil along with a little garlic and fresh ginger. Then add Broccoli and carrots and stir fry until tender crisp, then add red pepper, onion, bean sprouts and peas and stir fry just 1 minute more. Add sauce and stir until coated. Serve with rice.

Sloppy Joes

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 can campbells chicken gumbo soup
• 1 can manwich
• sharp cheddar
• hamburger buns

Brown ground beef in a large skillet. Drain grease. Add 2 cups of soup and mix together. Let simmer 15-20 minutes. Slice cheese and put on buns. Top with sloppy joe mixture.

Asian Pasta Salad

• 16 oz. penne pasta
• 2 chicken breasts cooked in Terriyaki sauce and shredded
• 1 1/2 cups red grapes cut in half
• 1/2 cup celery chopped
• 1 can madarin oranges (optional)
• 1 small can pineapple tidbits (optional)
• toasted sesame seeds
• 3/4 cup slivered almonds toasted
• cilantro chopped

Sauce:

• 1 cup mayo
• 3-4 TBSP soy sauce
• 2 tsp fresh chopped ginger

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and run under cold water. Set aside. Cook chicken and shred. Add chicken to pasta and toss. Add everything to pasta except almonds and cilantro and mix in sauce. Add almonds and cilantro just before serving.

Grilled Pork

6-8 boneless pork chops -- thick

Newman's Own Restaurant recipe Italian Dressing

Marinate pork in dressing all day in a ziploc bag. Grill Pork chops.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

• 8 russet potatoes
• 1/2 warm milk
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• garlic
• butter

Peel and quarter potatoes. Boil until fork tender. Drain water and mash with potatoe masher. Add 1-2 tsp. garlic powder or 3-4 pressed garlic cloves to 4 TBSP melted butter. Add to potatoes along with milk and sour cream. Mash together.

Week 1 -

*Blackened Chicken Caesar Salad
*Pizza bagels
*Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas
*Baked Rotini

Blackened Chicken Caesar Salad

• Romaine Lettuce
• Chef Paul Prudhomme's Magic Seasoning Blend - Meat Magic (blue label)
• 4 chicken breasts
• 4 TBSP butter
• Caesar dressing (I prefer Brianna's Caesar or Paul Newman's light CREAMY caesar, but truth be told, I always eat the good old fashioned HOMEMADE Ranch (bottled isn't acceptable!)
• Caesar salad croutons
• Fresh shredded parmesan Cheese

Cut up Romaine Lettuce. Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter in a large skillet. Pat chicken breasts dry and sprinkle one side until completely coated with Chef Paul seasoning. Lay chicken breasts seasoning side down in the butter and quickly coat other side with seasoning. Sear each side only for a minute and then place on a baking sheet. Pour remainder of butter over chicken breasts and bake for 30 minutes. Slice chicken and serve on lettuce that is tossed with parmesan cheese and croutons and dressing.

Pizza Bagels

• 6 regular bagel thins
• Mozzarella Cheese
• pepperoni
• spaghetti sauce

Cut bagel thins in half and place open face on a cookie sheet. Spread spaghetti sauce on each bagel side, top with cheese and pepperonis and cook until cheese is melted.

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

• ½ cup honey
• ¼ cup lime juice
• 1 TBSP chili powder
• ½ tsp. garlic powder
• 2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
• 2 10-oz cans green enchilada sauce
• 1 cup half and half
• flour tortillas
• shredded Colby jack cheese

Stir together honey, lime juice, chili powder and garlic powder until combined. Add chicken and let sit in marinade for at least 30 minutes. (I put it in a Ziploc bag). Mix enchilada sauce with half and half. Spread roughly ¾ cup of the sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Take a flour tortilla and spoon a little bit of the sauce down the center of it then fill the tortilla with marinated chicken and shredded cheese. Roll up and place side-by-side in the baking dish. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over the top of the enchiladas and top with more cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. (Paul likes olives on top of it.)

Baked Rotini

• 1 lb. rotini (or ziti or penne) pasta cooked to package directions
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 lb. ground beef or Italian sausage
• 1 26 ounce jar favorite spaghetti sauce (I like Emirils Homestyle Marinara)
• 6 ounces sliced provolone cheese
• 1 ½ cups sour cream
• 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 TBSP fresh parmesan

In a large skillet, brown onion and ground beef over medium heat. Drain off fat. Add spaghetti sauce and simmer 15 minutes. In a greased 9x13 baking dish, layer half the rotini, half the sauce, provolone cheese and sour cream. Top with remaining rotini, remaining sauce, mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese. Bake uncovered at 350 for 30 minutes.

WHY?

First of all, I swore I would never have a blog because I really don't like the word BLOG. It sounds like a nasty body fluid or something mean you would do to someone else. But, it was the easiest way for me to keep track of the effort I am making in fixing dinner. It's a dreaded task everyday to come up with something to fix for dinner. The good part about it is I love to cook and I love to take care of my family, so it always is rewarding when they are fed and have enjoyed the meal. Then the even more dreaded task arises.....DISHES! That's what my husband is for, right?

After being asked, "What's for dinner?", the best words for a mom to hear are, "I love this dinner." So, here we go on our dinner adventure. I am going to post 4 dinner ideas every week.