Tag Archives: dinner

Spinach Salad with Strawberry Poppyseed Dressing

17 Apr

This salad is great for summertime!

Summer has arrived early around here, and we’ve been doing all of our usual summertime things early too! That includes some of what we’ve been eating as well.

A long time ago, before we had kids, I found a recipe for Strawberry Poppyseed Dressing and Salad. I know it is from a long time ago because I have it written in the back of the cookbook that my college roommate gave to me, and I used to make it all the time before we had kids but I hadn’t made it in years and years. Recently we were planning out our meals and my husband said, “Didn’t we used to make a strawberry spinach salad a long time ago?”

Yes, yes we did, and the recipe was right where I remembered it was.

The recipe for the salad itself is simple: strawberries and fresh spinach leaves (or you can use Romaine or Boston Lettuce instead of spinach).

The recipe for the dressing is below. I also know my friend Donna makes a similar salad also, so when I find out her recipe for dressing, if it’s any different I’ll post hers at a later date as well.

STRAWBERRY POPPYSEED DRESSING
INGREDIENTS

2 Teaspoons Honey

1/4 cup lowfat strawberry yogurt (I always do a cup of yogurt and increase the other ingredients accordingly.)

1/4 tsp. poppyseeds

1 cup sliced strawberries (or as many as you want.)

Chopped pecans (optional and we don’t use them.)

I serve the dressing on the side so that people can take as much or as little as they want. If you don't have poppyseeds, they're not crucial to the recipe, but they do add a little special something to the salad and the overall presentation.

DIRECTIONS

Mix first three ingredients for dressing.

Arrange salad on a plate.

Top with sliced strawberries.

Drizzle dressing over the top.

Add chopped pecans if desired.

This salad makes a great dish to bring to a summertime BBQ or party!

ENJOY!

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Shrimp and Asparagus Pasta

10 Apr

I know I’ve mentioned it before, but I really love the “Daily Recipes” that I get in my email inbox from Allrecipes.com. I’m constantly making a note to try one out “some day” and last week I had a chance to try a new one. I had everything on hand with the exception of one ingredient: mushrooms, which I had actually had on hand but it turned out they weren’t good anymore so we threw them out. The recipe was fine without them but I’d add them in if I had them next time.

Everyone loved this recipe and I’d definitely make it again. I made some notes and adjustments below.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 pound fresh asparagus (I used a bag of frozen from Aldi’s.)
  • 1 (16 ounce) package egg noodles (I used a pound of wheat spaghetti.)
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (This was a lot. I’d do less next time and add a bit more lemon juice instead.)
  • 1 cup butter (I think you could cut some of this out as well. Maybe down to  1 1/2 sticks instead of two.)
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 pound medium shrimp – peeled and deveined (I used a bag of frozen from Aldi’s.)
  • 1 pound fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

  1. In a small saucepan, boil or steam asparagus in enough water to cover until tender; chop and set aside.
  2. Bring a large pot of salted water to full boil, place the pasta in the pot and return to a rolling boil; cook until al dente. Drain well.
  3. In a large saucepan, saute garlic in the olive oil over medium-low heat until the garlic is golden brown.
  4. Place butter and lemon juice in the saucepan. Heat until the butter has melted. Place the shrimp in the saucepan and cook until the shrimp turns pink. Place the mushrooms and asparagus into the saucepan, cook until mushrooms are tender.
  5. Toss the shrimp and vegetable mixture with the egg noodles and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

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Knorr sauce mix: sometimes you just need quick and easy

5 Apr

I was going to put the salad right on the plate, but I just couldn't. I'm definitely an "on the side" girl!

Not everything has to be from scratch, not everything has to be a full course meal every time.

Yup, that’s what I try to tell myself on a regular basis.

Don’t get me wrong, we have mac and cheese with hot dogs at our house too.

Sometimes.

On occasion.

Next time we do, I’ll take a photo and post it.

Shortcuts are good!

I actually LOVE mac and cheese and hot dogs, and it has to be the kind of mac and cheese out of a box.

With the powdered cheese sauce.

But, I digress.

With busy schedules that are never the same and with holidays and birthdays mixed in there, sometimes I just need something quick and easy to make for dinner.

Last week’s dinner was one of those nights. I had to leave right after dinner for Girl Scouts and while I was cooking dinner I was helping whoever needed it, with homework too. This ended up also being the night that my daughter accidentally fell on the stairs while trying to jump up and touch the door jamb, hitting her head instead and knocking herself out, with a slice of pepperoni in her mouth.

It was a crazy night.

But again, I digress.

My cousin had given me a package of Knorr Garlic and Herb sauce that she’d tried, when I was at her house last. She’d had it over veggies (cauliflower, broccoli, carrots) and she thought I’d like it.

I was going to make it over a veggie to go with our meal last week, tortellini, when I realized that on the front of the package itself it showed the sauce over tortellini, so I decided to try that. I chose asparagus for my veggie and had a fast and easy, complete, relatively healthy meal in a matter of a few minutes.

My kids all liked it, so I’d make it again for sure.

So today’s post isn’t a recipe exactly, it’s more a product review I guess, or a meal suggestion. The recipe for the sauce is contained on the back side of the packet of sauce. Give it a try and see what you think.

And tell me: what is your best shortcut meal idea?

Everyone gave this meal a two-thumbs-up review!

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Another new recipe!

29 Mar

I love anything with balsamic vinegar, so I thought this recipe was worth trying.

I get daily recipe emails from a few different places. One of them is Allrecipes.com, whose website I frequent. This one sounded good and I love anything with balsamic vinegar, so I decided to try it. It’s one reason I bought so many cans of diced tomatoes last time they were on sale. I had several recipes calling for them and this was one of them.

Overall, I think everyone liked it. We served it with whole wheat spaghetti, so anyone who didn’t like the chicken could have pasta and the tomatoes were big enough that they could be picked out if anyone didn’t like those. I liked the whole thing and I think I’d make it again.

BRAISED BALSAMIC CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS

6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (I used about 10-12 tenderloins instead.)

ground black pepper to taste

1 tsp garlic salt

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, thinly sliced (I chopped rather than sliced.)

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (I ran out and only had 1/4 cup but I think 1/2 would have been too strong.)

one 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried rosemary

1/2 tsp dried thyme

DIRECTIONS

1. Season chicken breasts with ground black pepper and garlic salt. Heat olive oil in medium skillet and brown the onion and seasoned chicken breasts.

2. Pour tomatoes and balsamic vinegar over chicken and season with basil, oregano, rosemary and thyme.

3. Simmer until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear, about 15 minutes.

We served ours on a bed of whole wheat pasta, which worked out great!

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Grandma Grello’s Mashed Potato Bake

21 Mar

My memories of our summer days at the beach are very special to me.

As a kid, I spent at least half of each of my entire summers with Grandma and Grandpa Grello down by the beach near their house. We often slept there for a couple of weeks at a time while my parents worked. I have great memories of all the times we spent with them, the things we got to do, and of course, all the great things we got to eat while at their house. They made the best french toast, the best omelettes, the best pizza, the best everything.

As an adult with my own kids, I have made sure to take advantage of the fact that until recently we still had both of them in our lives and even now, we have her in our life still. I know how lucky we are, how lucky my kids are, and I do my very best to cherish this time with her, hoping to make similar memories for my kids to cherish too.

I tell you this not because I’m going off on a tangent, but because today’s recipe is another one of her recipes and it’s one that she made for our family a couple of summers ago after a day at the beach. Very often we would to take our kids to the beach, spend a good part of the day there, and then come back to her house to shower and change up for dinner.

In the time we’d spend at the beach, and entire dinner would be prepared for us, including appetizers, which was usually their famous homemade pizza and spinach pies.  Oftentimes there was a homemade blueberry pie sitting on the counter cooling as well, and ice cream in the freezer to go with it. (Hungry yet?) We’d eat our dinner, and then sit out on their deck for hours, having coffee and dessert out there while the kids played in the yard while the sun set, chasing rabbits (there were always so many rabbits in their yard, it seemed.) It was idyllic, to say the least.

I think of Grandma Grello and our days at the beach near her house, every time I make this.

One particular visit, she served us a whole roasted chicken with this amazing Mashed Potato Bake on the side. It wasn’t anything complex, but it was so delicious I couldn’t believe we’d never had it before. Now, every time we make it ourselves, I think of her and those times we spent at their house.

As you know, she’s famous for her homemade French Meat Pies, and since she gives us one for our freezer every year, I usually will make this Mashed Potato Bake as the side dish to go with it. This year Don made the mashed potato bake to go with the meat pie and it was as delicious as ever.

I don’t have a specific recipe for you, but it’s really super easy:

1) You make a basic recipe of mashed potatoes using as many potoates as you normally would, but when you are mashing them, add in about a half block of shredded cheddar cheese (more for a big batch, less for a smaller batch.)

2) Spread the mashed potatoes into a casserole dish and top with more cheddar cheese, bread crumbs and bacon bits.

3) Bake until crispy and brown around the edges.

Super easy, super delicious and for me, full of happy memories.

Gram Grello's Mashed Potato Bake with her French Meat Pie: the perfect combination of tastes and memories! Enjoy!

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A new pork chop recipe to try

20 Mar

This recipe was super-easy, and delicious too!

As you know, pork chops aren’t our favorite “other white meat” here. I love them though, and I get tired of chicken over and over again, and pork is very affordable, so I’m always trying out new recipes. Here’s one I read on a food page I’m part of on Facebook, and from the link I can see the person who posted it found it on Food.com. I liked it and it was easy.

If you try it, let me know what you think!

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 -4 pork chops , 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch thick
  • ¼ cup chicken broth
  • 1⁄8; cup honey
  • 1⁄8; cup soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon ketchup
  • ¼ teaspoon ginger
  • 1⁄8; teaspoon garlic salt

    I love it when you can mix everything in one measuring cup. Less dishes to do later.

    DIRECTIONS

  1. Brown pork chops on both sides.
  2. Place in greased casserole dish.
  3. Mix all remaining ingredients and pour over pork chops.
  4. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for one hour.

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A new-to-me recipe: Brown Sugar Lemon Chicken

15 Mar

I love when people send me recipes to try out. This one from Shawn was delicious!

Everyone knows I’m always on the lookout for great recipes to try out and everyone pretty much knows what my tastes are (dessert for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert) so I am often sent new recipes to try out because someone just knows I’ll love them. Today’s recipe is one such recipe. It’s a recipe that has two words  in the title alone, which ensure that I’ll love it:

Brown Sugar.

That equals dessert for dinner in my book.

Today’s recipe was sent to me as a “must try” from my friend Shawn. She’d tried it and knew for sure I’d love it, and she was so right. It seems that the recipe came from a blog, Cooking with Cristine and even she got it from somewhere else as well. Either way, it was delicious. Give it a try, let me know what you think and be sure to check out her blog as well!

INGREDIENTS
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Juice of one large lemon
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons brown sugar
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350.
Using a meat mallet pound the chicken breasts thin. Set aside.
Combine the flour, paprika and salt in a large shallow bowl and stir to combine. Dip the chicken breasts into the flour mixture to evenly coat.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken breasts, cooking two minutes per side. You are just browning the outsides, not cooking completely through. Remove from pan and set aside.
Pour the lemon juice into the pan and stir to de-glaze the pan. Put chicken breast in a casserole dish and pour lemon juice mixture on top. Sprinkle with brown sugar and lemon zest. Bake for 30 minutes or until temperature reaches 165°F.

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Chicken A La King

6 Mar

Thick, rich, creamy...all my favorite things!

This recipe is probably sooooo not healthy, but it’s really soooo delicious. It’s one that I got out of my “Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook” a few years back. I distinctly remember wanting to make something new and different that day and trying to find a recipe that I actually had everything for. This was that recipe. It’s really very good. Most of the time I make the “Cheesy Chicken A La King” version, which is listed below. I love Swiss Cheese and the combination of the Swiss and the Sherry is just amazing. It says to serve it on toast points, but I do my usual bed of rice or egg noodles. At least if you do egg noodles and someone doesn’t like the chicken, they’ve got pasta.

All the ingredients laid out, except the mushrooms.

CHICKEN A LA KING

Ingredients:

 1/4 cup margarine or butter

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms or one four ounce can of stemps and pieces, drained (I use fresh)

1/3 cup all purpose flour

1 3/4 cups milk

1 cup chicken broth

2 cups cubed cooked chicken or turkey

1/4 cup chopped pimiento (I don’t use this)

2 tablesppons dry sherry (optional but I always use it)

8 toast points or 4 baked patty shells (I use white rice or buttered egg noodles instead)

You'll be able to tell when the sauce is ready, it starts out very thin and then thickens.

Directions:

 In a saucepan melt margarine.

If using fresh mushrooms add mushrooms and cook til tender.

Stir in flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Add milk and chicken broth all at once.

Cook and stir til thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 1 minute more.

Add canned mushrooms if using.

Stir in chicken or turkey and pimiento and if desired, dry sherry.

Heat through and spoon atop toast points.

I always serve over rice or over egg noodles rather than toast.

Alternative: CHEESY CHICKEN A LA KING 

Prepare as above except add 1 cup shredded American or swiss cheese to the thickened mixture before adding the chicken or turkey and stir til cheese melts.

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Nature vs. Nurture and Alex’s List

5 Mar

Our youngest....

When you have a child, one of the first things you notice is how different life is, how different you yourself become. When you have more than one kid, you realize again how different life is, how different you are, and now, how different they each are from each other.

As most of you know, we have three daughters, no boys, and it always amazes me how different they each are, how individual they are despite the fact that we “raise them all the same.”

I’m amazed at who is daring, who is nurturing, who is cautious. Although they may each have indicators of being all of those things, they each have their strengths, weaknesses, and differences. It’s kind of like a science experiment, watching them grow.

As much as we both love to cook, we are strong supporters of the theory that we are not a restaurant, we are not short order cooks and therefore, we only make one meal per night. For the most part, all the kids like at least some part of each meal and if they are still hungry there’s always fruit, yogurt, cheese or cereal if needed. This seems to work out fine for the most part.

However, there’s Alex. Our lefty, our brown-eyed girl, our youngest daughter, our cutie-patootie. She’s always been the one to go off the beaten path, even when she was a baby. For the most part, she hates meat, almost all meats. Every now and again she’ll eat a bbq rib or a meatball, overall she seems to like ground beef and they all love fish. But chicken, or “the other chicken: pork,” or steak, cubed beef, no no and no again. She’s been this way since she started solid foods. We’ve always said she’s our little vegetarian, even though technically she does eat some meat, so yes we do realize she’s not *really* a vegetarian.

One night last week after dinner, when again she did not eat the meat (but had cheese instead) I called her over to me and said that I was beginning to worry because it seemed like she never really liked anything we ate for dinner, and that I was running out of ideas for things to make that she would like. After I said that she looked up at me with her big brown eyes, and she looked sad, like she was in trouble, even though she wasn’t. I instantly felt bad. She said to me, “Mommy, tomorrow I’m going to make you a list of all the things I like because there are more things I DO like than things I DON’T like.”

I love her. I could just eat her up.

Sure enough, the next day she came home from school, did her homework, and asked me for a sheet of loose leaf paper so that she could make me her list. It was so stinkin’ cute, I just had to share it here. I’ve translated it, although I put her original spelling first. I know that she’s left some things off of both lists, and I’m not so sure it helps me with planning out my meals a ton, but we did indeed have “spgety with met ball” for dinner that night.

She does like pizza...

ALEX’S LIST:

I Don’t Like…
corn
chickin   (chicken)
lefstovermacarone   (leftover macaroni)
star berry Jilly    (strawberry jelly)
opukot Jilly    (apricot jelly)
I Like….
frot          (fruit)
pee’s        (peas)
Frinch tost      (french toast)
walfle       (waffle)
pan  cake’s    (pancakes)
maciches     (mac and cheese)
pissa      (pizza)
spgety with met ball    (spaghetti with meatballs)
grild chees     (grilled cheese)
jicinagits    (chicken nuggets)
backin    (bacon)
saled    (salad)

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Food on the Table: A new website and a new pork chop recipe

1 Mar

We tried out a new pork chop recipe at our house recently.

We have a tough time with pork chops in our house. Don doesn’t love them, Alex hates almost all meat including “the other chicken, the pork kind,” and the other two kids sometimes love them and sometimes hate them. I personally love them. I try to make them on nights it’s just the girls and me, and I try to find new ways to make them all the time.

This most recent recipe was one that I got from a new website that’s out there now called Food on the Table.

The website allows you to search recipes, create meal plans, and will even make your list and search the local grocery stores for sales on the items on your list. It’s a comprehensive website.

They allow you to create a meal plan with up to three recipes per week for free. So far I have tried two of my three recipes. I liked this one and didn’t like the other one. I will be trying more recipes though.

This recipe is supposed to be for the grill, but since it’s winter and we are currently out of propane for our outdoor grill, we broiled inside instead.

I personally liked this recipe quite a bit. Don seemed to like it, for as much as he likes pork chops, and the kids gave it mixed reviews. Alex still hates meat.

If you try it, let me know what you think. And, if you try out Food on the Table, let me know what you think of that also.

GRILLED HONEY GARLIC PORK CHOPS

INGREDIENTS

1/3 cup ketchup

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup soy sauce (it says to make gluten free, use wheat free tamari.)

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 five to six ounce pork chops

salt and pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS

Combine ketchup, honey, soy sauce and garlic. Set aside.

Lightly season pork with salt and pepper.

Brush each chop with sauce to coat.

Grill chops on grill, basting with sauce often for about 5 minutes on each side or until meat is cooked through.

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