This is a super easy and inexpensive one!
Ingredients
4 frozen chicken breasts
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. teriyaki sauce
1 can pineapple chunks, drain half the juice out
Crushed red pepper flakes
Directions
Throw it all in the crockpot and turn it on. My chicken was not frozen so I cooked it on low for 4 hours and it was perfect.
Serve over rice or noodles with broccoli! Delicious!
** Recipe from: www.sixsistersstuff.com **
This is one of the most familiar items on the menu at Outback Steakhouse—I seriously think I’ve only eaten their three times, but certainly ate this each time I was there. Good stuff. I can’t say if it really tastes like the “real thing” but it is good regardless!
Ingredients
4 chicken breast, pounded to an even thickness
1 bottle Lawry's Original Seasoned Salt marinade
4 slices bacon
1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 cups cheddar jack cheese, shredded
1/2 cup honey mustard dressing
Directions
1. Marinate the chicken in the Lawry's Original Seasoned Salt marinade for at least 30 minutes. The longer the better.
2. While the chicken is marinating, cook the bacon in a large skillet. Set aside. Reserve 2 Tablespoons of bacon fat. Sauté mushrooms in bacon fat until softened. Set aside.
3. Grill the chicken 12-15, minutes until done. You can also cook the chicken in a skillet on the stove if desired.
4. Preheat the broiler on your oven. Place cooked chicken on a rimmed baking sheet. Spread 1-2 Tbsp honey mustard on cooked chicken. Top with bacon, mushrooms and cheese. Broil until cheese is melted.
Tips from a Kitchen of Reality:
I am a bit of a thrifty shopper and wasn’t buying the marinade since I had the actual Lawry’s Seasoning Salt in my cabinet. I just sprinkled the chicken with it and let it sit in the fridge about a 1/2 hour.
I also used plain old cheddar—it was what was in the fridge! Still very tasty!
** Recipe from www.plainchicken.com **
Can you tell that we have had a week of new recipes!? While sometimes it might get boring with the same type of food throughout the week, I’ve found that it works better with my budget to make things with similar ingredients. So 3 of the last 7 days—we’ve had Mexican food.
Ingredients
1 pound lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
2 1/2 cups salsa
1 can (15 ounces) black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup Italian salad dressing
2 tablespoons taco seasoning
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
6 small flour tortillas
1 small can of drained corn
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Mexican cheese blend
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
Directions
1. In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.
2. Stir in the salsa, beans, dressing, sour cream, corn, taco seasoning and cumin.
3. Spoon a generous layer of meat mixture on bottom of baking dish. Sprinkle with grated cheese.
4. Place a flour or corn tortilla on top of meat mixture. Layer with half of the meat mixture, and cheese. Repeat as many layers as you like.
5. The last & final layer should be grated cheese.
6. Cover with foil that has been sprayed and bake at 400° for 25 minutes, or until hot & bubbly.
7. Let stand for 5 minutes before topping with lettuce, tomato and cilantro.
Tips from a Kitchen of Reality:
- I made mine in a 9 x 13 pan. Made two stacks of three tortillas each and was able to just cut it out in squares to serve.
- Of course I left out the onion and cilantro and I used the random mix of cheese I had in the fridge—but it still was delicious. Nothing new and exciting, just rearranged a little.
(Recipe from Just Get Off Your Butt and Bake)
So my my husband asked me while eating dinner, “Is this just a glorified hamburger helper recipe?” Good question… I’ve never eaten hamburger helper, so perhaps it is. He quickly tried to make up for the fact that it wasn’t from a box by saying “It tastes much better than that, you can tell it has fresh ingredients.” Yea, yea. Too late for that now Mister! It was a great change up from our normal Mexican meals, definitely kid friendly, hope you enjoy it.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef or turkey
- 8-12 ounces medium pasta shells
- 1 small onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes with mild green chilies, drained (if making this for kids you might want to use just plain diced tomatoes)
- 1 packet (4 tablespoons) taco seasoning
- 3 ounces cream cheese
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Salt and pepper
Directions
1. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook pasta according to the package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water. Set aside.
2. In a large skillet, cook the ground meat over medium-high heat until no longer pink. A few minutes before the meat is cooked through, add the chopped onion to the skillet. Once the meat is cooked through, mix in the garlic, taco seasoning, and diced tomatoes. Let simmer over medium heat for about 3-5 minutes.
3. Stir in the cooked pasta, cream cheese, sour cream and reserved pasta water, and continue stirring until the cream cheese is melted and the sauce is well blended. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer over medium-low heat 3-5 minutes to reduce the sauce a bit if it is still too thin.
4. Toss in the cilantro right before serving for some fresh color and flavor. Serve with a green salad.
Tips from a Kitchen of Reality:
- I left out the onion and cilantro. Not big fans of either. Since I was hoping the kids would eat it, and one of the two did, I didn’t get the tomatoes with chilies.
- Didn’t think it was going to thicken up, but it did. Just be patient.
