Pepperoni pizza chicken sandwich

I missed blogging yesterday, not just the fact that I didn't blog but I truly missed the process of blogging it's kind of a therapy for me. Crazy I know, it's ok though I excepted that fate long ago. Speaking of crazy...today's recipe is amazingly crazy easy!!! And yummy to boot! Do people still say that? To boot??? 

Oh yea back to the food. 

Sandwiches are a real love of mine, bread is life, but the real thing is I only love hot toasty cheesy sandwiches. I am not a fan at all of cold lunch meat sandwiches, my sister in law worked with me one summer and she brought cold sandwiches each day to this day I still have no idea how she did it. This particular sandwich checks all the boxes for me, toasty bread, gooey cheese, flavorful sauce, filling, easy and my kids eat it! 

Note this is not a recipe you make on school concert night. It's a tad messy. My mom always made my brothers or my favorite on concert nights well my fave happens to be spaghetti. To avoid the dropped noodle on the dress meltdown my mom would wrap a huge tea towel around my neck I always felt like the kings in the old cartoons with the giant napkin wrapped around them. Sorry I think I missed the point of my warning, these are messy, I let my kids eat with no shirt on, HA! 

Enjoy! Question what type of recipes would you guys like to see from me? 

6 Thin Sliced Chicken breasts (you can just slice 3 breast in half lengthwise)

2 TBSP EVOO

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 Jar Marnaria Sauce

2 cups Mozzarella Cheese, shredded

6 Italian Rolls (or hotdog buns because obviously that's what I had) 

3 TBSP Butter

Season chicken breasts on each side with salt and pepper. Heat EVOO in a large skillet over medium heat brown chicken breasts on each side they do not have to be cooked through that will happen in the sauce. Once chicken is browned pour sauce over chicken breasts and allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes until chicken is cooked through. While chicken is cooking butter each roll and toast in a 350 degree oven. Just before serving top each chicken breast with some mozzarella cheese allow it to melt. Place each chicken breast on a bun. Pour on some extra sauce if you'd like! I serve these with a nice garden salad I mean life is all about balance. 

15 Go to Ground Beef Meals for the Slow Cooker

Hey friends and I do say friends because you are and because friends give one another some grace especially when it comes to the frequency or infrequency (cough, cough) of their blogs. That's ok I know you all will forgive me especially after you read this post. It could possibly change your life, well probably not but hey you can't say I didn't try. 

What in the world prompted me to finally post a blog again, ha! Well dears it was you guys! I saw several people over the past few weeks asking on their Facebook what some favorite crock pot meals were, especially those with ground beef. I kept commenting and then others would ask for recipes and finally light bulb!!! I needed to do a blog post, hahaha! 

So I will admit I wasn't all that in love with slow cooker cooking for very many dishes outside of roast and soup because so many things ended up mushy, is that a word??? Then I discovered programmable slow cookers, HOLY MOLY!!! If you don't have one and you are serious about adding more crock pot meals to your life add one to your life, Christmas is coming. Yes I ask for kitchen appliances for holiday presents, don't judge me. Here is a link to one I love. The thing about these is that you can select the cooking time then the machine goes to keep warm once that cooking time is over. Say what!!! I know! 

Another problem I had is even with the programmable pot I still felt like many recipes were mushy, still is this a word? Most people who know me know I am a HUGE texture person (hence my aversion to coconut), this didn't bode well for most slow cooking. Then I read a recipe that suggested throwing raw pasta into the cooker...I was nervous but man alive did it help! Most of the recipes I have included have instructions on what to do with the rice or pasta. 

Lastly it drove me crazy to read this delicious recipe that then required me to break out a skillet to cook the meat up ahead of time. Listen lady I really want to make this but for real I am putting this together before 6 am, remembering that I need to brown the meat then drain it is wayyy too much for that time of the morning. This all changed one day when I bought twenty plus pounds of ground beef in the store because it was a good deal, I roll like that. The thing was even though it was a good deal it still was a chunk of change, I was determined to not let this precious meat go to waste in my freezer. I went home and chopped up like 10 onions and began browning hamburger with some onions and salt and pepper. I drained it and cooled it then placed it in quart freezer bags. At this point was thought it would be ready for me to use for tacos, spaghetti sauce, soups whatever I was making for supper that night...then one fateful morning before 6 am I was mad because I forgot to get burger browned for a crock pot recipe I wanted to make. The heavens seemed to open and my deep freezer called my name reminding me of all that glorious burger meat that was pre-browned and waiting for me. 

Obviously a life changing day. HA! But seriously it does make life easier and I save a ton of money when I buy ground beef and can buy it on sale. 

Yes you read that, I am married to a man who raises not only hogs but cattle too and I buy meat but that is another story for another day! 

Below are some of my favorite recipes with links for both pre-cooked burger and using raw burger. If you have any questions please feel free to check in with me. 

 One last question...Do you guys actually enjoy my rambles??? Should the blog continue???

Using Pre-Cooked Burger 

Asian Lettuce Wraps- Below! (I just mix all ingredient in the crock pot and cook all day) 

Stuffed Pepper Skillet-Recipe Link (follow the directions except omit the rice until you get home, then stir in the rice and cook for 30-45 minutes)
Taco Lasagna- Recipe Link
Nacho Soup-Recipe Link
French Onion Beefy Noodles- Recipe Link
Pizza Pasta- Recipe Link (I do not pre-make this, I throw all in ingredients, minus the cheese and pasta and let it cook all day on low, then stir in pasta and let it cook for 30 more minutes, top with cheese.)
Tater Tot Casserole- Recipe Link
Shepard's Pie- Recipe Link
Cheeseburger Soup- Recipe Link (I skip the whole making a thickner in the skillet step and I put my hamburger in first thing in the morning.)
Stroganoff- Recipe Link
Pasta Fagiola- Recipe Link
Cheesy Tortellini- Recipe Link

Using Raw Burger
Mozzarella Stuffed Meatball Subs- Recipe Link (I just place a little cheese in the center of each Meatball as I am rolling them up and also add about 1 cup of water to the sauce)
Barbecue Meatballs- Recipe Link (I take these to the just past the browning step and use the crock pot to cook them in the sauce. 6 hours on low)
Stuffed Cabbage Rolls- Recipe Link (I omit the Rosemary because well I'm not a fan)

Copy Cat PF Chang Lettuce Wraps

Makes 6-8 servings

Ingredients

1 TBSP Olive Oil

1 lb Ground Beef

1 Onion diced

2 Cloves Garlic minced

¼ cup Hoisin Sauce

2 TBSP Soy Sauce

1 TBSP Rice Wine Vinegar

1 TSP Ginger

1 TBSP Asian Chili Paste (or Sriracha) 

1 TSP Teriyaki Sauce

1 TSP Sesame Oil

1 (8 oz) Can Water Chestnuts drained and diced

2 Green Onion Thinly Sliced

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 Head Lettuce (Butter, Ice Berg, Romaine)

Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add in beef, onion, and garlic cook until meat is browned. Make sure to break up the meat as you cook it. Drain off any excess fat.

In a small bowl mix Hoisin, Soy, Rice Wine Vinegar, Ginger, Chili Pasta, Teriyaki, and Sesame Oil. Return meat mixture to the skillet and add in the water chestnuts heat on medium. Pour sauce over the mixture and stir to combine, cook until heated through and sauce has reduced a bit. Add in green onion.

This mixture can now be served in lettuce cups or froze. To freeze allow mixture to cool slightly. Place in a gallon freezer bag.

Serving Day-

Thaw bag in fridge or a warm water bath (if your forgetful like me). Pour mixture into a skillet to warm through. Serve with lettuce. 

Cauliflower Fried Rice

Last week I was honored to be able to speak again to the biggest loser group I am apart of about healthy eating. That night I tried to focus on healthier swap outs. Because in all of my weight loss journey I have not deprived myself of anything I love food and I knew that if I was going to change it wasn't going to be by changing everything about what I ate! 

The night I spoke I had several options for them to try. Spiced Chickpeas as a healthy alternative for afternoon snacking. Avocado Ranch Dip instead of your typical ranch. I gave samples of Turkey Sausage to show how to cut out some calories without losing taste. I also made an alternative to ice cream, with Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bites. As I was preparing for this little class I knew I wanted to prepare a main dish that had and easy swap out and lately I have been needing lots of Chinese Food. That is where my love for fried rice met my dislike for cooked cauliflower. Boy oh boy am I glad I gave this a try. Plus one of the pickiest people in the group was amazed by it and thought it was rice!!! Winner! 

This dish could be served alone for a meat free meal or paired with some awesome crock pot pineapple chicken like I did in the picture above. Note if you have been avoiding trying these recipes because you don't own a food processor NO WORRIES!!! I found in my local Wal-Mart near the bagged lettuce Cauliflower Crumbles!!! Yup that's that right just open the bag and they are ready to use!!! 

Give this a try for a great healthy option to your typical fried rice!!! Oh and someone mentioned to me the other day that I hadn't posted a before and now (not after because I will always be a work in progress) picture in a long time! Well below the recipe there is one, I feel pretty dang great about how far I have come! 

   

Cauliflower Fried Rice 

INGREIDENTS

1 head cauliflower, chopped into florets

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

1 cup frozen peas and carrots 

2 eggs, beaten

1 Tbsp sesame oil

1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

1 Tbsp light brown sugar

1/8 tsp. ground ginger

Pinch red pepper flakes

2 Tbsp green onions, chopped

INSTRUCTIONS

Chop head of cauliflower into florets and place in food processor. Pulse until it starts to resemble rice; set aside.

Heat a large wok (or skillet) over medium heat and drizzle in sesame oil. Add onion, peas and carrots and saute until tender, about 2 minutes.

Meanwhile in a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger and red pepper flakes; set aside.

Slide veggie mixture to one side of the wok and add in the beaten eggs, scrambling until cooked through and then incorporate with the veggies.

Stir in cauliflower "rice" and pour the soy sauce over top, mixing well. Cook for an additional 3 to 4 minutes, until cauliflower is soft and tender.

Top with green onions, serve and enjoy!

The Left is in January of 2014 the right January of 2016

Cheesy Roasted Mushroom and Cauliflower Soup...

Well hello blog, hi my name is Tiffany and I occasionally forget to blog it isn't done intentionally it just happens. Blog of mine I really do love you please forgive me. Because today I have a yummy soup to introduce you to that is hearty and healthy(depending on how many chunks of bread you eat with it!) 

I love soup I could eat it all year round. But the hubs isn't quite so fond so I have to reserve my soup cooking for when the air starts to get its cooler bites to it and guess what... IT IS!!! This soup sounds a little crazy but really it is just like a broccoli cheddar soup just veggies and type of cheese swapped out. I found the recipe and switched somethings around a bit to meet my eating needs. Feel free to increase the milk reduce the stock, add some cream whatever you want to do to make your soup suit your fancy. Just give this puppy a try!

Cheesy Roasted Mushroom and Cauliflower Soup

2 small to medium sized heads of Cauliflower (Broken Down into bite sized pieces.)

16oz of Mushrooms (Quartered)

EVOO

Salt and Pepper

1 Cup Diced Onion

3 TBSP Butter

3 ½ TPSP Flour

1 ½ Cup Whole Milk

4 Cups Chicken Stock

1 TSP Dried Parsley

¼ TSP Dried Dill

¼ TSP Sugar

1 ½ Cup Sharp White Cheddar Cheese

¼ Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese

Pre-Heat oven to 425 degrees. Place cauliflower and mushrooms on baking sheet, dizzle with EFOO and toss to evenly coat, then spread into an even layer and season lightly with salt and pepper. Bake in a preheated oven until golden, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

In a large pot melt butter over medium heat add onion and sauté until tender about 4-5 minutes. Add in flour and cook stirring constantly for a minute or two. Whisk in milk, and chicken stock. Add parsley, dill, sugar, cauliflower and mushrooms, season soup to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and stirring constantly then reduce heat to low. Grab your stick blender! And purée away! I like mine a little chunky so I didn’t go until it was smooth, you could also do this in batches in your regular blender. Turn heat off and stir in your cheeses. Serve with crusty bread! YUM!  

My Oh SO CUTE Sous Chef actually tried this soup and liked it, well she liked it as long as she had bread to dip. But hey I'll take what I can get! 

And now you know that when I have no light in my home I photograph food on my front porch, please don't judge me!

Quick and Easy Saucey Chicken Tostada's...

As I have mentioned a time or twelve before summers are pretty crazy busy around our house. So that makes mealtime a bit of a struggle at times. But this is one meal that I turn to when I need supper on the table quick and I need to not be slaving over the stove. I can get home start the chicken go clean up from work and still have supper on the table in approximately 30 minutes!  I love the meat in this recipe I use it for tacos, nachos, chicken walking tacos, enchiladas, anytime I want a little heat in chicken this is pretty much my go to! Oh and the sauce is the best let’s be honest I could just drink it, so smooth and rich and wonderfully simple.

I have included my recipe for taco seasoning, I have been making this for several years and have found that I really prefer it to the packages, but feel free to use your favorite taco seasoning it will not hurt my feelings! Please make this for your family soon you will not regret it! Oh and if you have any extra I would gladly take a serving off your hands!

Quick and Easy Saucey Chicken Tostada's 

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes

2 TBSP Taco Seasoning Mix

1 ½  cups Chicken broth

8 corn tortillas

Cheddar Cheese

Lettuce

Sour Cream

Place chicken breast in a large skillet with a lid, mix together tomatoes and taco seasoning pour over chicken. Add enough broth to almost cover the chicken. Turn heat on to medium and cover the skillet. Allow chicken to simmer for 20 minutes or until easy shredded, try not to overcook. Once chicken is shredded leave the lid off the pan and turn the heat up for five additional minutes to help thicken the sauce. In the meantime if you have a gas stove take some tongs (metal) and brown your tortillas over the flame turning frequently. If you do not have a gas stove you can crisp them up in the oven by heating it to 450 and placing tortillas directly on the rack. Once tortillas are browned it is time to assemble! Place a tortilla on the plate top with some chicken and plenty of sauce, add some shredded cheese to the top, layer another tortilla and repeat with chicken and cheese, finish off with lettuce and sour cream. ENJOY!!!

Taco Seasoning

2 TBSP Chili Powder

1 TBSP Cumin

2 TSP Corn Starch

2 TSP Kosher Salt

1 ½ TSP Paprika

½ TSP Red Pepper

Combine all ingredients in a mason jar, store in refrigerator for longer freshness.

One Skillet Wednesday...Chicken Broccoli and Wild Rice Skillet...

One skillet Wednesday is BACK!!! Hooray! I know all of you were sitting on the edges of your seats waiting in anticipation. HA! Well if you are sitting at work trying to figure out what in the world you are going to serve for supper look no further! This healthy hearty dish is on the table in right around 30 minutes! What more could you ask for?!?!

I love chicken and rice casserole, just the plain old good one, you know chicken, minute rice, cream of chicken soup, yum! But occasionally I want to zest it up a bit and this does just that, plus you have a serving of veggies built right in, you have to feel good about that! This also is relatively low in fat and calories so very waistline friendly!  Give this a try and let me know what you think! I sure hope one skillet Wednesday is helpful for your family, because these dishes make life at my home much easier!

Chicken Broccoli and Wild Rice Skillet

2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast (roasted and diced)

1 bag Frozen Broccoli Florets

1 box Uncle Bens Wild Rice

1 can reduced Fat Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 cup Cheddar Cheese Shredded

Salt and Pepper to taste

Broth for thinning

Cook chicken breast as desired, roast, sauté, boil…whatever suits your fancy! Then take those breasts and dice, set chicken aside while you prepare the remaining ingredients. In a large deep skillet, prepare rice according to package directions, during the last 10 minutes of cooking add in the broccoli. When all liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, usually 20 minutes, stir in chicken, mushroom soup, and cheddar cheese. Season to taste. Turn heat on low and allow mixture to simmer for 10 minutes or so. Thin with broth if needed. ENJOY! 

Stuffed Pepper Skillet...

I have shared with you guys many times my love for a one pot or one skillet. One dish to clean up YES PLEASE! Today’s recipe fits right into that skillet stuffed peppers, I guess it would be like unstuffed peppers, or stuffed peppers unstuffed or well let’s not worry about the naming of this. Let’s just talk about flavor, flavor, and ease of getting to eat! 

A long time ago I shared my first experience with you guys about making traditional stuffed peppers, you can read about it here . I love my version of stuffed peppers but at times they can be a bit daunting with scraping out the pepper and having to parboil it then stuffing it, just a lot of steps. Steps that Monday through Friday I don’t really have time for. But getting the same flavor without the steps I've got time for that! Let’s do this!

Stuffed Pepper Skillet

Ingredients

1 lb ground Pork, Beef, Turkey (whatever suits you)

½ onion diced

2 bell peppers diced (any color we used red and green Charlot’s choice)

1 box Uncle Ben’s Wild Rice (the kind that takes 20 minutes or so)

1 can Tomato Sauce

1 TBSP Butter

2 Cups Chicken Stock (or Vegetable)

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese (shredded)

Directions

In a large skillet brown your meat with the onion and bell pepper, season with salt and pepper. Drain. Add all remaining ingredients except the cheese and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed. Turn off the heat and stir in the cheese. Allow mixture to set for 5 minutes or so to thicken. Serve with crusty bread YUMMY! Enjoy! 

One Pot Wednesday...Quinoa Taco Bowls

Not exactly one pot more like one pan but still one piece to clean up! Can I get an AMEN! We love and I mean LOVE Mexican style food in our house. Tacos especially! In an effort to expand our food horizons and continue on my journey towards a healthier me I decided that we needed to check out this whole Quinoa thing! I know it has been around and popular forever but as usual I am last to jump on the cool train! So my thought was why not make one of our favorite foods into a healthy hearty simple supper?

This is the kind I bought just for reference

Quinoa Taco Bowls

(serves 6)

1 lb Hamburger

1/2 Onion (diced)

1/2 Bell Pepper (dices)

1 TBSP Cumin

1 TBSP Chile Powder

1/4 TSP Red Pepper

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 can Black Beans (rinsed and drained)

1 can Diced Tomatoes ( I used fire roasted)

1 Pkg Roasted Garlic Quinoa 

1 1/2 Cup Chicken Stock

Taco Toppings-

Lettuce

Tomato

Cheese

Avocado

Sour Cream 

Brown Hamburger with onion and bell pepper, cook until no longer brown, and drain. Return hamburger to the same skillet turn heat to medium add seasonings, stir to coat the meat. Add in beans, tomatoes, quinoa, and stock bring to a boil and reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with taco toppings, serve how you would like just serve and enjoy!

One Pot Wednesday

I don’t know if it is just me being lazy or not wanting to be a slave to the dishes but I love one pot meals. Everything goes in and cooks together beautifully for an amazing meal. Isn’t that every mom’s dream? I see tons of these one pot meals on Pintrest, and typical of me I pin it and forget it! But not anymore!!! I have decided to do a new series on the ole blog, one pot Wednesday’s! Each week will feature a new one pot recipe. So if you have had some recipes that you have wanted to try but haven’t had the time or aren’t brave enough, send them my way! The hubs just loves when I make him try new recipes all the time!

                                       

                                        

Today’s recipe has been on my Pintrest board for quite some time, a lovely chicken, pea and mushroom pasta pot! Super easy and delicious! I made this on Monday night for Charlot’s birthday, it was a beautiful day so we didn’t exactly come inside real early, but with this dish I still had supper ready to go by a little after 6!

Chicken, Pea, and Mushroom Pasta

1 12 oz box fettuccini

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast diced (raw)

1 ½ cups frozen peas

10oz mushrooms sliced

5 cups Chicken Stock

2 Tbsp Italian Seasoning

2 Cloves Garlic minced

Zest of one lemon

½ cup Heavy Cream

½ cup grated parmesan cheese

In a large pot place all ingredients except cream and cheese. Bring to a boil use tongs to break up noodles and to prevent them from sticking. Low heat to where pot is still bubbling but not a heavy boil. Continuing stirring with tongs  for 15-20 minutes until noodles are done to desired tenderness. Remove from heat and stir in cream and cheese. Top with a bit more cheese and serve. 

Copy Cat of Chili's Southwest Chicken Soup

The first time I experienced this soup was a few weeks ago when Charlot and I were having a Sunday shopping lunch date. Chili’s is near Sam’s and Charlot could eat her weight in chips and salsa so Chili’s was the perfect choice. I knew I didn’t want to blow all the good decisions I had made that week so I ordered soup and salad. I thought since this soup was marked as a healthy option it probably would be not so good. Was I wrong…hum Yes! It was chocked full of flavor and spice and just over all deliciousness. Plus it was really filling without being heavy.

I have been dreaming of this soup, I looked online for a Copy Cat recipe but couldn’t find this one. I could find ones for their chicken tortilla soup which were loaded with cheese and I am sure delish but I wanted this one. I knew I just had to give it a go.

This week has been the perfect time for soup, since today is the first day we have seen the sun in nearly a week. I will say for my first shot at it, this was some dang good soup!

Southwest Chicken Soup

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 packet of chicken taco seasoning

1 onion (diced)

1 can diced tomatoes

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 can corn (drained) (I used our fresh frozen corn, use what you like)

1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)

1 can white hominy (rinsed and drained)

1 box vegetable stock

1 ½ cups water

2 TBSP cumin

¼ tsp red peper

1 tsp salt

Heat oven to 350. Place chicken breasts on a sheet pan and sprinkle with ½ of the taco seasoning. Bake for approximately 20-30 minutes. While chicken bakes sauté onion and corn in a large soup pot (I use my dutch oven). Once they get a little color to them add remaining ingredients including the other ½ half of the taco seasoning. Simmer until chicken is done. Dice up your chicken and add it to the pot. Simmer for at least another 15 minutes. Top with tortilla strips if you like!

Chicken Taco Skillet

Well here I am finally back to some sort of normalcy hopefully there will more frequent blog posts! I made this one night last week and got some awesome reviews from husband, child and father-in-law. I found this to be a perfect week night recipe done start to finish in thirty minutes flat. I loved the fact that it had all the flavors of a taco without the mess of shells and assembling. Plus an added bonus is that it is loaded with lots of good healthy proteins and is pretty darn figure friendly.

So if you are stuck on what to feed the fam one night this week give this bad boy a try!

Chicken Taco Skillet (Serves 5-6)

4 boneless skinless chicken breast (diced)

1 onion (diced)

2 cups minute brown rice

1 can diced tomatoes (I like the cilantro lime flavor)

1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)

1 small can sliced olives (drained)

1 ½ cups chicken broth

1 tbsp cumin

¼ red pepper

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Toppings:

Shredded Lettuce

Diced Tomato

Avocado

Lime Wedges

Salsa

In an oven proof skillet brown your chicken breast and onion. Once cooked through add all remaining ingredients except cheese and toppings. Reduce Heat to Medium and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Once rice is puffed top with cheese and brown in a 350 degree oven for 5-10 minutes.

Serve in bowls and top as you please! Enjoy!