Asian Chicken Noodles

 I have been going through my recipes and making lists of what my kids will eat for when I have the babies in a few weeks so that whoever is here helping will know what/how to feed my kids.  They are very picky.  This is one of their favorites so I will post a pic next time I make it.

Ingredients:

3 Tbsp. Olive Oil

3 Chicken Breasts, cubed

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. Ginger

1 small onion, diced or dehydrated which is my preferred method

3 heads of Broccoli

4 large Carrots, sliced

3 Cups Water

3 packages Ramen

3 packages of Ramen seasoning

In a large skillet, saute chicken, garlic, and ginger in olive oil until chicken is cooked.  Add cut up and washed broccoli, carrots, and onion.  Fry until fork tender.  Or you can steam the broccoli and carrots separately and then add. Add water, noodles, and seasoning.  Cover and simmer 3-5 minutes until noodles are cooked.  You can also cook the noodles in a different pan and then add. Stir occasionally while cooking.  DO NOT overcook the Ramen or it becomes mushy and gross.  I learned the hard way and no one wanted to eat it.  And it makes a lot.  

Sweet & Sour Chicken

I apologize for my lack of new recipes.  I am 4 weeks away from having twin boys!  Finding or coming up with new recipes hasn't exactly been my top priority the last few months.  But this one is awesome.

 

 

Ingredients:
2-3 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
1/2 cup Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cube butter

1 Green Pepper
A bunch of Baby Carrots
1 large can of Pineapple, save the juice
2 cups Sticky Rice or Minute Rice

Sweet & Sour Sauce:
1 cup Pineapple Juice
1/2 cup Vinegar
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1/4 cup Ketchup
4 Tbsp. Soy Sauce

Taste the sauce and adjust to your liking.

Cut up your chicken into bite size pieces.  Mix the flour and salt in a bag.  Add chicken and shake until completely coated.  Melt butter and place on tin foil in pan.  Put the chicken on the melted butter and mix around until all of the chicken is covered.  Cook for 20 min at 350 degree.

Cut up washed green pepper into large chunks.  Cut up baby carrots into half or fourths.  When chicken is finished put those and the drained pineapple on. 

Sauce: Combine all ingrediencts and pour over chicken mixture.  Stir to make sure everything is covered in the sauce.  Cook for another 20 minutes.  While this is cooking, make the rice.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

This is a super easy recipe.  I don't do mine in the crock pot but you easily could.

Ingredients:
About 40 ounces of Chicken Stock
2 Chicken Breasts
1/2 Tbsp of Salt
1/2 Tbsp of Pepper
A few shakes of Oregano and Basil
4 large carrots, peeled and sliced
3 celery sticks, chopped
1/3 of a bag of Egg Noodles


In my cast iron pot, I add about 40 ounces of Chicken Stock and 2 Chicken Breasts and seasonings.  I put the lid on and cook in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes.  I take it out and shred the chicken into large chunks.  I then add the vegetables and cook for 20 minutes.  I take that out and add the noodles and cook for another 10 minutes.

If you wanted to do it in the crock pot, you basically just follow the same directions but obviously cook each interval for longer.  Don't add the veggies in the beginning of you will end up with pure mush.  And let's be real, no one likes mushy veggies.  Or hard ones so don't put them in too late, either.

Zucchini Bread

When we were in Utah this summer, we went to Park City with my mom, sister and her family.  My sister brought with them some zucchini bread that her friend, Jenny Williams had made.  My kids went crazy and I'm pretty sure ate the whole thing.  Sorry, Suz.  So I wrote to her and begged her for the recipe.  It is pretty amazing.

3 Eggs
1/2 cup Vegetable Oil
1/2 cup Applesauce
2 cups Sugar
2 cups Zucchini, grated
3 tsp. Vanilla
3 cups Flour
3 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1/4 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Salt
If you have any Flax Seed throw some of that in, too

Preheat Oven to 325 degrees.  Grease and flour 2 loaf pans.  Beat eggs until frothy.  Mix in oil, applesauce, and sugar.  Stir in zucchini and vanilla.  mix in flour, cinnamon, soda, powder, salt, and flax seed.  Divide into 2 pans.  Top with a cinnamon streusel.  Bake for 60-70 minutes.

Cinnamon Streusel:
1/4 cup Flour
1/2 cup Brown Sugar, packed in
1 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
2 T. Butter, melted

Combine all ingredients with fork until well mixed.  Place on top of whatever you wish!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

One of my friends, Stephanie, brought me some of her Chicken Tortilla Soup.  I loved it!  One night, I was desperate to make it but didn't have her recipe.  So I googled it and the first one I came to was The Pioneer Woman's recipe.  Of course it would be awesome, so I did it.  Kind of.  Since it was so last minute, I didn't have all of the ingredients so I made it my own.  And I loved it.  Plus she cooks hers for a really long time and I am not that patient.
Now, there are a lot of ingredients but it's not that hard.  Don't be deterred, just do it.  You'll thank me later.

Ingredients:
2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
1 T. Olive Oil
1 1/2 tsp Cumin
1/2 tsp. Chili Powder
1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp. Salt

1 T. Olive Oil
1/2 Onion, diced
1/2 Green Bell Pepper, diced
1/2 Red Bell Pepper, diced
1 clove of Garlic, minced
1 can Rotel Tomatoes & Green Chilis
32 oz Chicken Stock
1 can Black Beans, drained
1 can Pinto Beans, drained
4 Tortillas, cut into strips
1/4 cup Cilantro, finely chopped

Garnishes (optional):
Sour Cream
Avocado
Red Onion
Pico de Gallo
Cheese

Preheat oven to 375.  Mix cumin, chili pepper, garlic powder, and salt.  Drizzle 1 T of Olive Oil on chicken breasts, then sprinkle a small amount of your spice mix onto both sides.  Use about half of it.  Set aside the rest of the spice mix for later.  Wrap the chicken in foil to make sure it is perfectly moist.  Place wrapped chicken breasts onto baking sheet.  Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cooked through.  Use 2 forks to shred then set the chicken aside.
Heat 1 T of Olive Oil in a pan over medium high heat.  Add onion, peppers and garlic.  Stir and then mix in the rest of the spice mix.  Then add the shredded chicken and stir.
Pour in the tomatoes, chicken stock, and beans.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer for about 30 minutes.  Add more spices if needed.  At the very end is when you will want to add your tortilla strips and cilantro.  Stir in and serve.  Top with any garnishes you might like.  I only added cheese to mine but that was mostly because of lack of ingredients.

Pomegranates, Cranberries, & Artichokes

For decorations of course!


Not only are these all delicious, but they are awesome holiday decos, too!

Here's a quick trick to getting the pomegranate seeds out.  Soak the pomegranates in water first.  It's much easier getting the seeds out if you do this.  Trust me.  I soaked mine for a full 24 hours first.  Not on purpose, I just didn't have time to get to them before that.  I'm not sure what the least amount of soaking time would be.  But it's worth it.  My kids LOVE to snack on these.  I guess I do, too.  They are really yummy

Roasted Green Beans & Mushrooms

For Thanksgiving, one of my friends, Christi and her family celebrated with us.  She brought roasted asparagus topped with mushrooms. And another time when we had dinner together, she brought roasted green beans.  So I combined both of her ideas and did this.  I've only ever done green beans not out of the can once other than this and failed miserably.  I never thought to roast them or to top them with mushrooms.  They were delicious, easy, and they look super elegant.

Green Beans
Mushrooms - out of can or fresh, I used canned
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper

Snap ends off of green beans and wash them.  Place on cookie sheet and cover in olive oil and salt and pepper.  Cook at 400 for 15 minutes.
This time, I first sauteed the mushrooms in a little olive oil and then also roasted them when the beans were about halfway through.  I don't know if the sautee-ing was necessary. Next time I might skip that.  I wasn't planning on roasting them at all and then it hit me that it would be a good way to do it.  So I did and it was awesome.

Chicken Pot Pie

I used frozen veggies for this which made it really simple but if you're going for taste, you should really use fresh veggies.  It was still good, though.  It depends on what you're going for, quick and easy or tasty...er.  If you decide to use fresh veggies, I would definitely cook them first to soften them up.

Ingredients:

1 package of thawed Frozen Stew Vegetables (potatoes, carrots, celery, onions)

1 cup of Frozen Peas

1 can Cream of Chicken Soup

1 cup Chicken Stock

2 cooked, cubed Chicken Breasts

Salt and Pepper

1 cup Bisquick

1/2 cup Milk

1 Egg

Directions:

Bake chicken in oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until cooked. Then cube.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine first six ingredients well. Pour in baking dish.

Combine the last 3 ingredients together and spread over chicken mixture. Bake at 400 for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Sweet & Sour Meatballs

Ingredients:
Green Peppers
Red Peppers
Pineapple
Meatballs - fresh or frozen

Ingredients for the Sauce:
1/2 cup Pineapple Juice
1/2 cup Vinegar
5 Tbsp. Brown Sugar
3 Tbsp. Ketchup
1/2 Tbsp. Salt

Mix well and add to either a crock pot or a sauce pan with other ingredients. Be sure not to overcook meatballs and veggies as they will become mushy. If you're using a crock pot, cook on low for about 3 hours.

Prepare Minute Rice as directed on box.

Spinach Smoothies

I know this is the least appetizing sounding smoothie you could possible create while still edible. But I keep hearing about people LOVING these smoothies. Each recipe I find is different so I did what I thought sounded the best.


Prettier before the mixing

Doesn't look edible but I promise it is. And it's good.
I didn't add blueberries but I'm sure they would be pretty good

2 Bananas
4 Strawberries
1/2 Cup Raspberries
1/4 Cup Orange Juice
1 -2 cups of Spinach
1/2 T. Honey

These are a great way to get your fruits and veggies in or if you're not a breakfast person, this would be great for breakfast, too.

Stir Fry

I've been trying to eat a little better lately which is why I've been having such a hard time coming up with new ideas for food. And then I thought, "Stir Fry. That has lots of vegetables!" But it also has a lot of sodium. Which is why I marinate my chicken first in Lawry's Teriyaki Marinade. It has half of the sodium that Soy Sauce does but still has great flavor.

2 Chicken Breasts
2 heads of Broccoli
1 bag of Baby Carrots
1 Red Bell Pepper
1 Green Bell Pepper
2 Green Onions
Lawry's Teriyaki Marinade - enough to cover chicken
3 - 4 Tbsp of Soy Sauce
Rice

Marinate chicken in Lawry's Teriyaki Merinade.
Cut up all veggies and set aside.
Cut chicken up in little strips. You could also do this before you marinate it. Cook it in a pan or wok over medium heat with all of the marinade you used. You may need to add a little water. When the chicken turns white, add the veggies, and soy sauce. Toss really well and cover. Stir every 5 minutes or so until veggies are tender. Serve over rice.

Gumbo

My inspiration comes from Princess and the Frog. I've never had Gumbo, never really thought about trying it. In the movie, it's her dream to open her own restaurant and serve her daddy's Gumbo.
I looked at about 5 million recipes for Gumbo. Each one is different. Everyone has their own take on Gumbo. I took what I liked from each one and made my own.

Ingredients:
1/2 C. Flour
1/3 C. Vegetable Oil
1 Can Beef Broth
2 Cans Chicken Broth
1 Clove Garlic - minced
2 Stocks of Celery
1 Medium Green Bell Pepper
1/2 White Onion
3/4 Tbsp. Salt
3/4 Tbsp. Pepper
1 lb Shrimp
1/2 lb. Hot Italian Sausage

Directions:
Wash and chop veggies. Put them in a frying pan to cook a little.
Put oil and flour in a separate frying pan. Brown for a few minutes. Then add beef broth and whisk until thick.
Brown the sausage in a separate frying pan.
Add all ingredients except Shrimp to crock pot. Cook on low for 4-6 hours. About 2 hours before serving, brown shrimp with a little oil in a frying pan. Then add to Gumbo.
Serve with rice and crunchy bread.

I'm not sure that making the roux is crucial. It's supposed to thicken the gumbo but it really wasn't that thick. Maybe I didn't make enough. But I thought it was fine how it was.

Also, I am not a huge fan of spice. This is super spicy! But we still really liked it. To make it less spicy, just use mild Italian Sausage instead.

The perfect way to end this meal, Deep Dark Chocolate Moist Cake. Mmm!

Ham Fried Rice

I got this recipe from my mom. My exact words when she made this were, "That's not a main dish, that's a side dish!" What did I do? Ate it as my main dish and LOVED it. But you could also use it as a side dish. And I am not a mushroom lover, but I LOVE mushrooms in this dish.

2-3 Cups Minute Rice
1 -2 Cups Cubed Ham
1/2 Green Pepper
1 or 2 Celery Stocks - depending on how much you like celery
1 small can Mushrooms, drained - sometimes I add two because they are SO yummy
3 Green Onions
4 Tbsp. or so of Soy Sauce
2 Eggs

Wash and cut up vegetables and ham. Let cook over medium heat. In another pan, start boiling water for minute rice. Follow directions on box. When your vegetables are cooked, push to the side and add the eggs in the middle of the pan stirring them.  Once cooked (like scrambled eggs) then mix in with the other ingredients. Make sure the eggs are fully cooked. Then add rice and soy sauce.

The Best Broccoli Cheese Soup

I got this recipe from my mom. It is one of my favorite meals and always has been. The only thing missing here is a bread bowl. I've been craving it since it's cooled down. And since I'm in Arizona by "cool down", I mean in the 60's. I've been freezing! :)

2 large or 3 smaller heads of Broccoli or
a bag of frozen broccoli that you can steam in the microwave
6 Tbsp Butter
3/4 Cup Flour
6 Cups Milk
8 oz of shredded Cheddar Cheese
3 Chicken Bouillon cubes
Salt & Pepper to taste


If you are using fresh broccoli, wash it and cut it up. In a big pot, cook your broccoli in a couple inches of water.  If you are using frozen steam-able broccoli, then wait until further instructed.

Pour 6 cups of milk into microwave safe bowl and heat for about 5 minutes or cook in a pot on the stove over medium heat, careful not to curdle it.

To make a roux (to thicken the soup), get a large pot and melt butter over medium heat.  Add flour to melted butter and whisk for about a minute to get rid of the floury taste.

Add the warm/hot milk slowly and whisk until thick (10-15 minutes).  If you add cold milk this process will take much longer and your arm will be very sore.

While you're doing this put the frozen broccoli in the microwave and cook as directed.

Once the roux has thickened, take it off the heat and stir in the cheese.

Cut up the broccoli as small as you would like it and add it.  Add the salt and pepper to taste.  If it is too thick you can add about 1/4 - 1/2 cup more milk or water to thin it.

Zucchini & Squash

1 Zucchini
1 Squash
3 Tbsp Olive Oil
Favorite Seasoning - I use DeVerl's, you could use Season All or just salt and pepper


Wash, slice and put in frying pan with olive oil and favorite seasoning. Cook on medium heat frequently stirring for 5-10 minutes. Once it starts to brown or get tender, it's done.

Roasted Asparagus

1 bunch of Asparagus - the thinner the asparagus, the better!
1-2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper

Wash and cut or snap off ends of asparagus. Place on baking dish and brush olive oil onto asparagus. Then cover with salt and pepper.
Cook at 350 for 10 minutes.

Roasted Vegetables

Use any of your favorite vegetables - I use red potatoes and broccoli.  Depending on what you use you may have to add to some half way through because they'll cook faster.
Olive Oil
Your Favorite Seasoning -
Some suggestions are Italian Seasoning, Salt & Pepper, Mrs. Dash or if you're near Logan, Utah you can go to a local grocery store or to Juniper Take Out and buy the DeVerl's Seasoning, that's my personal favorite.

Wash and cut up vegetables. Place in baking dish and generously coat with olive oil. Then cover with the seasoning of your choice. Cook at 350 for an hour and a half stirring every half an hour.