Grape Nut PB bars

Got this from the back of the box - so I don't get any points for creativity, just points for effort in trying a new recipe - that turned out to be quite delicious!!

3/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup sugar
4 cups GRAPE-NUTs cereal

Microwave PB, corn syrup & sugar in large bowl for 2 min, stirring after each minute.  Add cereal, mix well.  Press cereal firmly into bottom of 13x9 pan sprayed with cooking spray.  cool completely.  cut into bars. 
Add whatever you like!!

I have actually only halved the recipe and put in in a 8x8 pan.  So far its been a hit and its quick, easy, and a little more on the healthy side than the average treat, I think.  :)

Cilantro Bean Quinoa Salad

This salad feeds lots of people - is easy to make, full of flavor and super healthy.  I pretty take it to most potlucks and always get rave reviews!!

Cilantro Bean Quinoa Salad

1 cup uncooked quinoa
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup orange juice
Cook quinoa in broth, water & orange juice.  It cooks much like oatmeal or rice. 

Sauce:
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup evoo (olive oil)
2 tbsp fresh parlsey (I have used 1 tbsp or dried parsley if no fresh on hand)
3 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp red pepper
2 large garlic cloves
12 olives (I have also used a small can of green chilies when I did not have olives and it was delicious)

Blend all sauce ingredients together - food processor or I just use a blender or my magic bullet.

Once quinoa is cooked you add the sauce and pretty much whatever else you would like.

 The original recipe calls for roasted red peppers (broil skin side up till blackened, put in ziplock bag for 10 min, peel skin off, chop and add).  I have done that - but I usually leave them out and add pretty much whatever I like: tomatoes, spinach, cheese, grilled onions, corn.

The original recipe also calls for 1 can of chick peas or black beans.  I usually do 2 cans of beans cause I love them - one of each - or have used pinto beans as well.  Its always delicious!!!

Asain Lettuce Wraps

Found this recipe online and we love it!

1 lb. ground turkey

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp minced garlic

2 tsp fresh ginger root

Cook turkey with above ingredients in skillet. Break up turkey (like taco meat)

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup water

3 tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp minced garlic

1 tbsp ginger root

1 tsp brown sugar

mix above ingredients for sauce

cooked rice (I cooked my rice with chicken bullion and soy sauce to give it some asian flavor)

shredded carrot

green onions

rd. bell pepper

lettuce leaves

whatever else you would like as toppings

Use lettuce leaves as "shells" - put some meat and rice and top with veggies. Spoon on sauce as desired.

Its super healthy and DELICIOUS - and quick and easy to make!!

Cafe Rio salad

I made this for dinner and it was SO GOOD, i was quite impressed. It was delicious and the closest to cafe rio/costa vida I have come across.

I am going to post the recipe from the blog that I used . . . and then after each recipe I will post the ways I tweeked it in red . . cause i don't know how to follow a recipe exactly.

SWEET PORK
2 pounds pork
3 cans Coke (NOT diet)
1/4 c. brown sugar
dash garlic salt
1/4 c. water
1 can sliced green chilies
3/4 can RED enchilada sauce (I used Old El Paso brand, medium spiciness)
1 c. brown sugar
Put the pork in a heavy duty Ziploc bag to marinade. Add about a can and a half of coke and about 1/4 c. of brown sugar. Marinade for a few hours or overnight.Drain marinade and put pork, 1/2 can of coke, water, and garlic salt in crock pot on high for about 3-4 hours (or until it shreds easily, but don't let it get TOO dry). Remove pork from crock pot and drain any liquid left in the pot. Shred pork.
In a food processor or blender, blend 1/2 can Coke, chilies, enchilada sauce and remaining brown sugar (about a cup, you can add a little more or less to taste..). If it looks too thick, add more Coke little by little.Put shredded pork and sauce in crock pot and cook on low for 2 hours. That's it!

I used Dr. Pepper instead of Coke, I did not marinate the meat the night before . . . Instead I just put some brown sugar into the crock pot in the morning during the first cooking with the other ingredients. I doubled the amount of meat so we would have leftovers . . so I did double the ingredients and cooked the meat before shredding for about 5 hours.

CILANTRO-LIME RICE
1 c. uncooked rice
1 tsp. butter or margarine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
1 can (15 oz) chicken broth
1 cup water
1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tsp. sugar
3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

In a saucepan combine rice, butter, garlic, 1 tsp. lime, chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook on low 15-20 minutes, until rice is tender. Remove from heat. In a small bowl combine lime juice, sugar and cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice and mix in as you fluff the rice.

I used instant rice . . . and it was still absolutely delicous. Also doubled this recipe.

BLACK BEANS
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/3 c. tomato juice
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro

In a nonstick skillet, cook garlic and cumin in olive oil over medium heat until you can smell it. Add beans, tomato juice, and salt. Continually stir until heated through. Just before serving stir in the cilantro. (**NOTE** we added a can of corn, drained, to the beans with a dash of cumin and chili powder, it was AWESOME! We recommend doing this even though it's not "traditional Cafe Rio")

I did add the corn, and it was really good!

CILANTRO RANCH
1 packet TRADITIONAL Hidden Valley Ranch mix (not BUTTERMILK)
1 c. mayonnaise
1 c. buttermilk
2 tomatillos, remove husk, diced
1/2 bunch of fresh cilantro
1 clove garlic juice of 1 lime
1 jalapeno (we like it SPICY so we kept the seeds in it, if you like it mild, just remove the seeds)Mix all ingredients together in the blender. That's it!

I just used Ranch Dressing (2 cups) from the bottle instead of the mix with mayo and buttermilk. It was still really good . . . and I used 1/2 the seeds from the jalepeno and it was still quite spicy!

We just put some cheese on flour tortillas and put them in the oven for 5 min . . . then added the meat, rice and beans . . . with lettuce, tomato/onion and the dressing. Big hit.

We fed 4 people . . . tons of meat and beans leftover (maybe cause my hubby won't eat them) . . . and just a tiny bit of rice leftover. We used about 1/2 the dressing.

Sugar Cookies

So - I had these sugar cookies at a baby shower the other day they were delicious! I had to get the recipe and wanted to share it as it is the season for sugar cookies and other treats. They tasted similar to those Grandmother's sugar cookies you buy at the store - YUM. Maybe its the margarine (totally unhealthy) or the almond extract (and I usually don't like almond extract), but they were wonderful!Here is that sugar cookie recipe before I forget:

Cookies:
1/2 c. butter (room temp)
1/2 c. margarine (room temp)
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. almond extract
3 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. bk powder
1/4 tsp salt

Beat butter and margarine till creamy. Then add sugar, eggs and almond extract. Stir together dry ingredients and combine with wet ingredients. Cover and chill one hour (at least) Roll out dough on lightly floured board. Place on cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 6-8 minutes until lightly browned.

icing:
1/2 bag powdered sugar
1/4 c butter (room temp)
dash of salt
almond extract to taste
1/2 vanilla
milk until desired consistency is reached

Cranberry/Orange Sauce

This is a delicious and nutritious cranberry sauce to serve with Turkey on thanksgiving, or make and use as jam on bread, or eat with a spoon (as I often do).

1 quart fresh cranberries
2 oranges, ground
Zest of 1 orange
1 cup apple, ground
2 stocks (ribs only) of celery
3/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 - 1 cup sugar

Mix together in food processor or blender and let stand in fridge for 24 hours before serving.

Homemade Sloppy Joes

I just made this SOOOO fast for Dane when he called to say he was coming home for lunch. It was so easy and quick and delicious. I actually used 1/2 lb. ground beef and halved the rest of the recipe (except the tomato paste) so I could use the other 1/2 lb. ground beef for something else for dinner. I left out some stuff - but it still tasted good!

1 1/2 lbs ground beef

1 onion chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 can (6 ounce) tomato paste

1/4 cup ketchup

3 garlic cloves (I used powder cause I didn't have cloves)

1/2 Tbs. chili powder

1 tsp. paprika (didn't have any of this so I left it out)

1 tsp. dried mustard (didn't have this either)

1 tsp. white vinegar

3 Tbs. brown sugar

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

Brown the meat and add all the ingredients (add sugar last so it doesn't burn). Put on hamburger buns or bread or whatever your heart desires!!

Italian Cream Cheese Chicken

My family actually just calls this dish Easy and Delicious Chicken, but I took the liberty of giving it a more specified name for blog purposes.

2-4 chicken breasts, cut into bite size peices
italian dressing (I use fat free)
1 8oz. package cream cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup chicken broth (I use water and it still tastes delicious)
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried thyme

Put chicken in crock put, soak in Italian dressing. (I use 1/2 bottle dressing for 2 ckn breasts). Let cook on low for 3-4 hours. Mix remaining ingredients in a bowl. After chicken is cooked, drain out liquid from crock put and put the cream cheese/soup mixture in. Let cook for one more hour. Serve over rice or pasta.

(FYI - I use 2 chicken breasts and it feeds my husband and I for 2 meals. If you want to make more than for larger groups . . . add more (than 4) chicken breasts and just double the sauce).

Chili Cheese Dip

I made this in a LARGE quantity for a big party - so I will put the ingredients I used to get the taste, and you can make less or more as you would like.

2 lb. block of velveeta cheese (size they come in at Costco)

3 cans Hormel Beanless Chili

2 cans Rotel tomatos - lime flavor

Just heat and serve!

You can add or take away anything as you like or dislike. My hubby hates beans so I served it like the above recipe for a family party - then I added one can of black beans (drained) to the leftovers to stretch it for another party.

Everyone loved it - great appetizer and a big hit!

Pumpkin Cookies

1 box spice cake mix
1 small can pumpkin puree
1/3 cup to whole bag of chocolate chips to taste

Mix together and bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes
--Submitted by Tamara

Quick Chicken Cacciatore

1 package (10.5 ounces) frozen fat-free breaded chicken breast patties, partially thawed
1 medium green bell pepper, cut into strips
4 ounces mushrooms, sliced (about 1 cup)
1 small onion, sliced into wedges (about 3/4 cup)
8 ounces uncooked linguine
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) Italian-seasoned diced tomatoes, undrained
1 garlic clove, pressed
Fresh grated Parmesan cheese (0ptional)

To partially thaw chicken patties, microwave on HIGH 1 minute only. Cut chicken patties into 3/4-inch strips (or cut them into cubes).
Cook linguine according to package directions in 4-qt casserole. Drain and keep warm.
Meanwhile, heat large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add some olive oil, and add chicken patty strips (cubes), cook for 3 minutes, turning frequently.
Add bell pepper, mushrooms, onion and garlic, cook for 2-4 minutes (until vegetables are tender but not mushy). Add tomatoes, bring to a boil, and cook for 2 minutes.
Serve over hot linguine. Sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese, if desired.

I love this recipe, it takes less than 30 minutes to make and it looks like a gourmet meal!

Southwestern Chicken Pasta

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2055/2526397775_308b60e0f5_o.jpg

1 can Cream of Mushroom soup

1 cup sour cream

1-2 cups salsa depending on taste

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/2-1 cup cheddar cheese (optional)

Mix soup, sour cream, and salsa together

Cut chicken breasts into bite sized pieces and place in crock pot.

Pur sauce over chicken and set crock pot to cook for 2-3 hours (or bake in oven at 375 degrees for 45 minutes)

Serve over pasta or rice (with melted cheese on top if desired)

--Recipe submitted by Tamara Oborn