Linguini with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto and Feta Cheese

the goods:

1 (9 oz) pkg. linguine
3/4 c. oil-packed sun-dried tomato halves, drained
1/4 c. loosely packed fresh basil leaves
2 T. slivered almonds
2 T. pre-shredded fresh Parmesan cheese
1 T. bottled minced garlic
1/2 tsp. salt1/4 tsp. pepper1/2 c. (2 oz) crumbled Feta cheese

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt. Drain through, reserving 1 c. cooking liquid. Return pasta to pan.
2. While pasta cooks, place tomatoes and next 6 ingredients (through black pepper), in a food processor; process until finely chopped.
3. Combine tomato mixture and the reserved 1 c. cooking liquid, stirring with a whisk. Add to pasta; toss well to coat.
4. Sprinkle with Feta.

This is another one of Melessa's recipe's. It is delicious and super dooper easy! We all really enjoy this one. It's definitely one of those meals you can throw together really quick, when you don't have a whole lot of time.

Brown Rice and Black Bean Burritos with Jicama Salad

the goods:

2 cups chicken stock or water
1 cup brown rice
Salt and ground black pepper
3 Tbls. EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
1 jalapeño, chopped
1 tsp. cumin
1 (15 oz.) can fire-roasted tomatoes, diced
2 (14 oz.) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
4 large, whole wheat tortillas
1 cup of smoked white cheddar
1/2 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
4 small tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 scallions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
1/2 bunch (about a handful) of cilantro leaves removed from stems

1. Place a medium pot over medium-high heat with the stock or water and brown rice. Season with salt and pepper, and bring up to a bubble. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to low and simmer until the rice has absorbed all the liquid, about 25 minutes. Fluff the rice with a fork.


2. While rice is cooking, place another pot over medium heat with 1 turn of the pan of EVOO, onion, garlic, jalapeño, salt and ground black pepper. Cook until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in cumin and cook about 1 minute then add tomatoes and beans, and heat through, about 2 minutes. Keep warm until the rice is ready.


3. Just before the rice and beans are ready, place a dry skillet over medium heat. Warm the tortillas in the pan until hot and lightly blistered. Transfer finished tortillas to a plate and cover them in a clean kitchen towel to keep them warm.


4. When everything is ready, lay down the tortillas and divide the cheese evenly between them. Divide the rice and beans between the tortillas as well as the lettuce, tomatoes, scallions and cilantro. Roll up each burrito.

Salad goods:

1 Tbls. honey
Juice of 1 lime
A few dashes hot sauce
1 jicama, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1 red onion, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks

1. For the salad, whisk together honey, lime juice, hot sauce, salt and ground black pepper and remaining 2 tablespoons EVOO. Toss with jicama, red onion, and carrots. Serve on the side with a burrito.

Twist-A-Roni's and Spring Salad

My girls think this is a fun way to eat pizza. Chad and I really enjoy them as well. They're easy and fun to make and eat. It's a fun way to put a new "twist" on pizza. Try 'em!

the goods:

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 15-ounce can fire-roasted crushed tomatoes
Salt and pepper
1 tube ready-made pizza dough,

Pillsbury
24 slices pepperoni
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Unflavored cooking spray

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• For the dipping sauce, heat a small saucepot over medium-high heat with 1 turn of the pan of EVOO, about 1 tablespoon. Add the onions, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes, and cook; stirring every now and then until soft, about 4 minutes. Add the fire-roasted tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Bring up to a bubble and simmer the sauce for about 10 minutes.
• Once you have the sauce going, unravel the pizza dough onto a lightly floured surface and stretch to make an even rectangle. In an even layer, on half of the rectangle, place the pepperoni down leaving a 1-inch border and sprinkle with the mozzarella cheese.
  
• Fold over the other half of the dough and press down gently on the edges to close the halves together. With a rolling pin or your hands, gently roll over or pat down the folded dough.
• Use a knife or a pizza cutter to cut 8 to 10 thin, strips about 1-inch thick.
• Holding each end of the strip, twist it a few times and transfer to a baking sheet. Spray the entire tray, including the twist-a-ronis, with cooking spray and pop in the oven until golden brown in color, about 10-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve with the dipping sauce alongside.

The salad is easy:

lettuce, cherry tomaotes (sliced), fresh chopped parsley, thinly sliced onions, EVOO salt and pepper. Mix around in a bowl and serve. Very light and good.

Chicken Pot Pie Pockets

It was really fun to make these. I really like chicken pot pie and thought these would be really fun for the girls to eat. It took some coaxing to get them to eat dinner that night, but they did finally eat it all gone. Chad and I really like these!

the goods:

2 tablespoons butter, plus additional to grease baking sheet
2 tablespoons flour, plus additional for rolling out pie dough
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup milk or half-n-half
Salt and ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 cup finely chopped cooked chicken – I can use rotisserie, deli-sliced or leftovers
2 scallions, finely chopped
1/4 cup frozen tiny green peas
1 small carrot, grated and finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped -- I didn't use fresh
2 sheets prepared pie dough
1 egg, lightly beaten with a splash of water

Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Heat a small skillet over medium heat with 2 tablespoons butter. When the butter has melted, whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the stock and milk or half-n-half and season with salt and pepper. Cook the sauce, whisking often, for a couple of minutes until is has thickened up, then stir in the Dijon and remove pan from heat. Add in the chicken, scallions, peas, carrot and dill and give it a good stir to combine everything. Set this mixture aside while you prepare your pie dough.

Grease a baking sheet lightly with butter. Lightly dust your work surface with flour and lay out the pie dough. You want it to be about the thickness of a nickel, so you may need to roll it out a bit to make it thinner. Cut the dough into eight evenly sized triangles (just like you’re cutting a pie). Transfer the triangles to the baking sheet and repeat the rolling and cutting with the remaining dough.

Divide the filling among the triangles on the baking sheet leaving a little room at the edges to seal the pockets. Brush the edges of each triangle with some beaten egg and then top each triangle with the remaining wedges of dough, pressing lightly around the perimeter to seal the filling inside. If you like, you can take a fork and lightly press the very ends of the tines into the border of each pocket to give it a fancy finish.

Brush the tops of the pockets with the remaining egg wash and cut a small x in the top of each one with a paring knife or pair of scissors to let the steam escape. Bake the pockets until they're deep golden brown and crisp, about 20 minutes. Serve hot.

Hot Ham and Cheese Sandwiches with Broccoli Salad

This sandwich recipe was given to me by Melessa as well. It is so easy and good that it's hard not to make it. Plus I usually have everything on hand. They are really good and SUPER easy.

the goods:

Shaved ham

Swiss, provolone, or white cheddar cheese

Hoagie buns

1/4 butter, softened

2 T. Dijon mustard

1 tsp. poppy seeds

1 tsp. dill

In a small bowl, combine the butter, Dijon, poppy seeds and dill. Stir until very well mixed. Then spread a small amount of the butter mixture on both sides of the hoagie bun. Then add your cheese and your ham to your liking.

Wrap each hoagie in foil.

Bake @ 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

For the Broccoli Salad:

1 head of fresh broccoli, chopped

1 can mandarin oranges, drained

1/4 c. red onion, chopped

8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled (I used turkey bacon)

2 c. mozzerella cheese, shredded

1/2 c. sunflower seeds

Craisins, optional

Dressing:

1 c. mayo

3 T. apple cider vinegar

1/2 c. sugar

Mix together dressing and pour over salad right before serving.

**This salad is nice because you can add things to how you like them. Chad was out of town the night I fixed this meal, so the salad I made wasn't as big and I didn't even need to use all the dressing because it made to much for just me to eat. So just eye it and see what you like and dislike. But it is REALLY good.

Taco Salad

I know that this one is self explanatory, but the whole idea of this blog was to give us more meal ideas to fix for our families, right? So here is another idea. I LOVE mexican food! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE IT!! I actually think I'm 1/2 mexican....seriously, I could live off of it. One of our favorite (and easy) things to eat is taco salad. I know everyone does something different but this is ours.

the goods:

1 lb. hamburger

1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning (you can buy in the spice section at most grocery stores)

Cook hamburger over the stove. Add kidney beans. Cook until beans are warmed through. Season with salt and pepper and Tony Chachere's.

Layer the following:

Handful of doritos, slightly crushed

Shredded lettuce

Cooked hamburger and bean mixture

Shredded cheddar cheese

Tomatoes, diced

Onions, chopped

Avocado, chopped

Ranch dressing

Salsa

Sour cream

Enjoy!

Spaghetti with Salad and Breadsticks

If I'm having a hard time thinking of things to fix for dinner, then sometimes I'll ask the girls to tell me something they would like to have. Rylee REALLY wanted spaghetti with a breadstick, plus she knows it's Papa's favorite food and she loves her Papa. Plus Chad has scouts on Wednesday nights, so I'll usually try to do an easier meal those nights. There's no secret to this one! =)

the goods:

Whole wheat spaghetti noodles

1 lb. lean, ground beef

1 jar Classico Four Cheese marinara sauce

Romaine lettuce

Carrots, sliced

Tomatoes, diced

Red onion, diced

Avocado, diced

Cucumber, sliced

Ranch dressing, or whatever you enjoy

Texas Toast Breadsticks, found in the frozen section

Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes

the goods:

1 pound LEAN ground sirloin
1 medium-sized onion, chopped
1/4 cup steak sauce
1 cup beef stock
Salt and ground black pepper
4 dinner rolls

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
3/4-1 cup milk
1 cup provolone, shredded

For the salad:
1/2 pound salami, chopped
1/4 pound provolone cheese, chopped
1 small jar pepperoncini (I don't really love these)
1 head Bibb lettuce
1 bunch arugula
2 tablespoons EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

In large skillet over medium-high heat add LEAN ground sirloin and brown, about 5-6 minutes. Add the onion and cook another 3-4 minutes, until the onions start to get tender. Stir in the steak sauce and beef stock, season with salt and pepper, bring up to a bubble and cook about 2 minutes.

Split open rolls and toast under broiler, keep your eye on them so they don't burn!

While the meat is cooking, melt the butter in a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the flour and cook about 1 minute. Whisk in milk, bring up to a bubble and let thicken, about 2 minutes. Turn off heat and stir the cheese in a figure-eight motion until it is all incorporated.

In a salad bowl, toss the salami, cheese, pepperoncini, Bibb lettuce and arugula with the EVOO and red wine vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

To serve, place a scoopful of the meat mixture onto the bottom of the rolls, then top with the cheese sauce and replace the top of the roll. Serve the salad alongside.