Orange Pork Chops

Ingredients

1 cup orange juice

3/4 cup chicken broth

1 finely diced shallot

1 tbs butter

4 boneless pork chops

1 box Zatarains Rice Pilaf

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients in an 8×8 casserole dish. Cover tightly with foil. Cook for 45-50 minutes.

Super Easy! Only one dish!

Tuna Pasta

Serves Two.

Ingredients:

1 cup elbow macaroni

1 5oz can of tuna

1 15 oz can diced tomatoes

2 thick slices of chopped red onion (less than a 1/4 of the onion)

1 chopped garlic clove

1 tsp of red pepper flakes

1 tbs of chopped flat leaf parsley

1/4 cup half and half (or heavy cream. I always use half and half. Because I always have half and half)

Olive oil

Directions:

Cook macaroni according to package directions. While it is cooking start some olive oil cooking in a saute pan. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened (about 3-5 minutes). Add red pepper flakes, diced tomatoes, and drained tuna. Heat through (about another 5 minutes). Towards the end of cooking add in half and half and parsley. Once macaroni is finished cooking, drain and add to sauce. Mix and eat!

Hints:
If you want a thicker sauce you can add 1/4 cup more half and half, and some of the cooking liquid from the macaroni.

I do not add salt to the recipe because the tuna is pretty salty on its own. However, add salt and pepper to taste!

New paint. Finally. I can stop being the woman crawling the pale yellow walls of our house (have you read that short story? I think it was meant to terrify those of us who spend a majority of our time at home).

By the way the paint is a Sherwin Williams knock-off of Benjamin Moore’s Gray Horse color. I got the color idea from this post on Urban Grace Interiors Blog. I couldn’t be more happy with it. In fact I was so excited by the new color I decided I needed to do some other (yet far less expensive) re-do’s. I got super inspired by this post. And from that I created…

Blah.

Fabulous! All with bottles found around the house.

So now that I have discussed all those items…it’s time for Super A’s phrase(s) of the day:

“Pick-e- Up Please” (when he wants to be picked up)

“Where ‘bastian? Where Paddington? I really miss them” (when he is thinking of his doggies at my parents)

“Spider, right there! Spider, right there!” (he has a meticulous eye that is able to catch the tiniest spider…or piece of fuzz. Guess it’s time to vacuum.)

Right under where Super A is sitting there is a clear statement on the truck that says…DO NOT SIT ON THIS TOY.

And finally…

Must Try Brownies.

It’s from Giada at Home. You can find the complete recipe here. It combines raspberry, brownies, and white chocolate. I’m thinking this will go over well when it’s my turn to bring snacks at Bible Study this fall!

Croissant Chicken Pockets

(Makes 3-4 servings depending on package of crescent rolls)

Ingredients:

4 oz softened cream cheese

4 oz softened butter

1/3 cup milk

Shredded Small Rotisserie Chicken (I get a different type every time I go, sometimes the southwestern, sometimes the homestyle)

2 tbs chopped green onions

1/4 cup frozen peas

1 package refrigerated crescent rolls (you can get the small package of eight, or the “grands” package of six)

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine and thoroughly mix all ingredients (except crescent rolls) in a bowl. Now you need to prep the crescent rolls.

To prep crescent rolls; place on a floured surface. Then combine two triangles together, and using a rolling pin, thin and smooth the “dotted” line.It should make a nice flat rectangle (or a really wobbly uneven one. That’s what mine typically look like. Then follow these instructions to fold:

I use an ice cream scoop to get good portions of the chicken mixture.

I use one scoop for the small crescent rectangles and two scoops for the “grands” ones.

Fold One.

Fold Two.

Fold Three.

Fold Four.

Then prick the tops a few times with a fork. Place on a greased baking sheet (or use non stick foil on a baking sheet) and cook the croissant pockets for about 15-20 minutes depending on your oven.

Ingredients:

1 package wide egg noodles

1 lb ground hamburger

1/2 diced onion

10 slices American cheese

1 cup grated cheese

1 tsp Lawry’s Seasoning

1/2 tsp paprika

1 cup milk

2 tbs butter

2 tbs flour

Directions:

In a large soup pot bring water to a boil and cook egg noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet brown hamburger meat and onion until cooked through. In a separate medium sauce pot melt butter on medium heat. Once melted whisk in flour and cook for two minutes. Then whisk in milk and let thicken. Slowly whisk in cheeses and let melt. Stir in Lawry’s Seasoning and paprika. Combine drained egg noodles, hamburger meat, and cheese sauce in a large pan.

Hints:

* You can make this ahead, refrigerate it, and cook it later at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

* I occasionally cook all of the meat and onions then freeze half of it. Then I half the rest of the recipe. Half of the recipe is plenty for three of us!

* I also occasionally add a half cup of quartered cherry tomatoes and some fresh parsley to the top of the dish.

Pizza Sauce Ingredients:

1 15oz can diced tomatoes

5 cherry tomatoes

1 finely diced shallot

1 finely diced garlic clove

1/4 teaspoon dried basil, oregano, rosemary, and kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

Olive Oil

Directions for Pizza Sauce:

Drizzle a few tablespoons of olive oil in a medium size sauce pan. Heat the oil on medium heat and saute shallots and garlic for about 3-4 minutes. Add cherry tomatoes and saute until they begin to burst (about 5-10 minutes). Then add in the diced tomatoes, herbs, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until ready to use.

Pizza Dough:

Prepare pizza dough according to recipe. Here’s an idea of what your pizza dough should look like before and after it rises:

Before Rise

Two hours later!

If you are cooking on a grill:

Heat grill to medium heat. Place dough on grill for two minutes on one side, then flip. Add toppings and close grill for another two to three minutes.

If you are cooking in an oven:

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Place dough in oven for about 5 minutes. When dough starts to look crisp add toppings and cook for another 5-10 minutes.

Chicken Strawberry Salad

This recipe is super easy and so yummy! Thanks to Jessica for sharing the terrific recipe!

Ingredients (Feeds 3-4):

1 bag mixed greens lettuce

2 cups shredded cooked chicken (you can get a rotisserie chicken and shred it, or you can poach the chicken yourself and shred it)

2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup quartered strawberries

2 tbs chopped cilantro

Brianna’s Home Style Poppy Seed Dressing

Directions:

I set everything out and let everybody assemble it on their own. Or you can put it all together and make one big salad. Either way it’s delicious!

The Pioneer Woman’s White Chicken Enchiladas

So here’s how I made it a two for one deal! I took the leftover shredded chicken I had from earlier, cut the pioneer woman’s recipe in half and voila! Chicken Enchiladas (Click on the link above for the full recipe). A few variations that I did was to use half and half instead of heavy whipping cream (because that’s all I had), and I poached a package of chicken breasts for the shredded chicken. I also used flour tortillas instead of the corn, so I could skip the frying step.This cut down the time of making the recipe to probably about 50 minutes start to finish. And they were delicious!

White Chicken Enchiladas (I ran out of monterey jack cheese, so I threw in some sharp cheddar)

]]> http://cupcakesandcommentary.com/monday-night-dinners-chicken-strawberry-salad-to-chicken-enchiladas/feed/ 1 http://cupcakesandcommentary.com/monday-night-dinner-fajita-pocket-tacos/ http://cupcakesandcommentary.com/monday-night-dinner-fajita-pocket-tacos/#comments Tue, 27 Jul 2010 20:03:38 +0000 Cupcakes http://cupcakesandcommentary.com/?p=1634 For most people Monday is the start of another work week. However in our life Monday is the end of my weekend and my work week (in the fall and spring) starts on Tuesday. I try to make one complete, planned out meal a week and for some reason that usually falls on Monday. In honor of this I decided to start a Monday night dinner post on Tuesday. I am hoping I can keep up with it!

Some of the meals will be fancy, some will be quick, and some are super kid friendly. Some take a lot of dishes and some don’t, for the one’s that take a lot of dishes you might want to make an investment….

A dishwasher. AKA the person who eats up the meal that you took the time to plan out, prepare, and make super delicious. It took me 24 years to find a good one. Good luck to you!

ANYWAY. Here is the first in my installment of Monday Night Dinners. Enjoy!

Fajita Pocket Tacos

In our town there is this cute little drive through version of a really fabulous Mexican restaurant. I love their fajita pocket tacos, but I can’t always make the trek over there to get them. Therefore I came up with my own to have at home when we can’t get to the drive through.

Ingredients:

Flank Steak

Two Thick Slices of Red Onion (With all the layers, except of course the outside paper)

Two Thick Slices of Yellow Onion (With all the layers, the same)

4-6 Burrito Size Tortillas (I use the Mission Brand, or Aztec)

6 quartered cherry tomatoes

6 slices of provolone cheese

Marinade for flank steak (You can find great marinade recipes from The Pioneer Woman and Fly Through Our Window blogs) However, I used a bottle of marinade. I was lazy. I either use Lawry’s Mesquite, or Lawry’s Baja Chipolte.

Sour Cream, Salsa, Guacamole

Instructions:

Put a half a cup of marinade with flank steak in a large ziploc bag. Let marinade in refrigerator for at least half an hour and up to 24 hours (I usually do it the night before when I remember).

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat an outdoor grill or grill pan to medium high. Place marinated flank steak and onions on a hot grill. I usually set our outdoor grill to about a medium heat. It takes about 3-4 minutes per side for medium rare and 5-6 minutes for medium well, but each grill is different. Let the flank steak rest for 5 minutes after it’s done. I like the onions to have a bit of a crunch so I do about 5 minutes on one side and then I remove them from the grill.

Here’s how your onions will look (slice them in half after you remove them from the grill)

If you want them less crunchy flip them on the grill and let them cook another few minutes. You can also use an indoor grill pan or saute them.

Now stick all of the tortillas on a plate in the microwave and heat them for 25-30 seconds.

Slice the flank steak in thin long strips perpendicular to the grain. Then slice the strips in half.

Place a tortilla on plate. Add about 5-6 half slices of flank steak in the center. Top with about 5 half slices of onion and around 4-5 quartered tomato slices. It should look like this:

Then top with a slice of provolone:

Then fold top, bottom, side, roll over. Like I do with my cheesy beefy burro recipe. Repeat these steps with all of your tortillas and then pop them in a pan in the oven for the time it takes to make a cheese quesadilla for your own Super Kid (about ten minutes). Top with sour cream, salsa, or guacamole. Or eat it plain as my husband does.

]]> http://cupcakesandcommentary.com/monday-night-dinner-fajita-pocket-tacos/feed/ 0 http://cupcakesandcommentary.com/beyond-pringles/ http://cupcakesandcommentary.com/beyond-pringles/#comments Thu, 08 Jul 2010 20:27:58 +0000 Cupcakes http://cupcakesandcommentary.com/?p=1574 As the nap time clock ticks away, as I munched the last Pringles, while simultaneously watching an episode of General Hospital, and checking my blogs I realized I have absolutely nothing interesting to blog about!

While attending Bible Study this past week we were talking about how there isn’t one of The Pioneer Woman’s recipes that we don’t like. One of my friends and fellow bloggers has been blogging though The Pioneer Woman’s cookbook. She tackled the cinnamon rolls. Based on my past baking experiences, I’m a bit afraid to make any cinnamon roll that doesn’t come out of a can. Maybe it was that sad last Pringle urging me to get a better snack, or maybe it was my realization that I have posted almost no recipes this summer, which was my original plan, but I felt the need to share.

So here are some of my favorite Pioneer Woman recipes, all that can be found at her website.

First, Pizza Dough.

I made the pizza dough out of desperation, when we were completely off of soy. Super A LOVES pizza and I felt so bad that he couldn’t have any for two whole weeks. I was afraid at first to make the dough myself, but it was actually extremely easy. I have to concur with her recommendation of letting it sit for a few days. It makes a ton of dough so we had it the first day we made it and then a few days later and it was good both times, but REALLY good a few days later.

Second, Spaghetti with Artichoke and Tomatoes.

I made this for our weekend Settler’s of Cattan nights. It makes a bunch and it is so delicious and creamy and good as leftovers.

Third, Marlboro’s Man Second Favorite Sandwich.

Otherwise known as lemon pepper chicken sandwiches. This is super easy and yummy. I actually cooked the chicken on the grill instead of the frying pan. Did I mention that it’s a steamy 99 degrees here? I can’t stand the stove/oven running in this heat unless I have to. So I’m heating up the yard. And maybe my basil. It’s starting to look a little sad. I’m wondering if it’s the heat from the grill wafting on to it.

Fourth, Cinnamon Baked French Toast.

I love this because you can make it ahead and then cook it the next day. I pretty much love anything that I can make during the quiet of nap time, when a one and a half year old isn’t pulling on my legs saying “little bite? little bite?” the whole time. I cook mine until it isn’t gooey. I’m not a big fan of gooey.

Fifth, Shrimp Pasta in a Foil Package.

Again I made this and cooked it on the grill. Next time I may throw in some scallops, cause I love them.

Sixth, BBQ Meatballs.

These are great for kids. Super A LOVES them and it is also how we figured out he is allergic to soy sauce. I dumped our traditional BBQ sauce on the meatballs instead of making the sauce that comes with the recipe. And presto…red faced child. Now I make the sauce that comes with the recipe (AKA Soy Sauce Free).

Seventh, Fresh Corn and Avocado Salsa.

Okay now this I love. I love love love avocado’s and I made this with my family chicken enchiladas when my in-laws where here. And we couldn’t eat it up fast enough! I left the cilantro out of mine. Sorry cilantro lovers. No matter how many times I eat it, it still tastes like dirty socks to me. Not that I have eaten dirty socks. Lately.

And lastly, macaroni and cheese.

I really have never met a macaroni and cheese I didn’t like. Super A doesn’ t like it, but Super A doesn’t like ANY macaroni and cheese. I have tried EVERY type. He’ll take a cheese quesadilla over macaroni and cheese any day. And if you are making cheese quesadilla’s you should try the pineapple quesadillas. It’s next on my list. I’ll let you know how it works out!

And no I do not have any pictures. The Pioneer Woman does a far better job of posting pictures with her recipes than I ever could. But just for the grandparents…

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese (I use sharp cheddar cheese)

1 tbs of  fresh chopped tarragon (you could use parsley, or even rosemary. Tarragon is what I had)

1 garlic clove (peeled and smashed)

4 tbs of room temperature butter

1 package of refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (I used Pillsbury)

Directions:

In a food processor combine cheese, garlic, and tarragon. Pulse for a few seconds until the cheese is broken up some. Add in butter and pulse until creamy. Place biscuits on cookie sheet. Using a spatula spread only the tops of the biscuits with cheese mixture. Bake according to biscuit package directions (I had to do one minute extra).