Quick Chicken Soup or 15 minute Chicken soup

Literally. Healthier and better than Ramen noodles too.

Ingredients:
Water (to fill a large saucepan-6 cups I think it was)
Pasta (I used little stars)
2 boneless chicken breasts-cut into bite size pieces
1 1/2 cups or half bag of frozen mixed veggies (ie: carrots, peas, corn, beans)
Bouillon/chicken stock powder (I had a whole food powder type thing) OR substitute chicken broth for water
Dash pepper
dash bay leaf
dash garlic powder
dash parsley
*I also threw in some broccoli

Boil water, add chicken chunks. They'll cook fast. After a few mins I added the veggies and pasta and seasonings. That was it. Perfect for last night with Kevin's flu, my cold, no one felt like cooking or shopping. Soooo easy. Granted it's not quite the same as the one that cooks for hours with real chicken bones, but when you're in a pinch and don't want canned junk, there ya go. And Kian could eat it too.

Sweet/Spicy Stir Fry

Of course I made this up, modeled after may other recipes and meals I've tasted.
You can use chicken, pork or beef. I prefer chicken or beef, as they have milder taste and pick up the other flavors better. And cook faster!

Ingredients:

2 cups rice (cook as directed by package) 1 bag frozen stir fry vegetables (wegmans makes a variety so you can choose the veggies you prefer) *I use about half of the bag for me and Kevin, with some leftover

1 lb chicken or pork, boneless, cut into bite-size pieces

Sauce:

1/2 cup apricot preserves (I use wegman's triple fruits with apricot, peach, and some other orange fruit)

1/2 tsp ground black pepper (I use Jane's crazy mixed up pepper)

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4-1/2 tsp garlic powder

dash salt to taste (salt after meal is together for best flavor)

few tablespoons of water

*all spices to taste, if you want it spicier, add more ginger and pepper

1. cook rice according to package directions.

2. while cooking rice, saute' meat in frying pan, on medium, with tiny bit of olive oil

3. add veggies to frying pan, may need to add a few tbsp of water

4. while that is cooking, in a small bowl mix all ingredients of sauce together. if it's really thick, add a bit of water.

5. when meat is done and veggies are almost done, add sauce into frying pan.

6. I put the rice in a bowl, and top with veggies and meat and some sauce. You may have to play with the measurements of the sauce if you want some leftover to drizzle on top of the meal. It can cook into the meat and veggies fast if the heat is up high.

Lasagna

I haven't lately, but here's my fave dish:

Ingredients:
about 1-1.5 lbs of meat (I like to do half ground beef and half ground pork)
1 box lasagna noodles
1 Jar sauce (or I sometimes get tomato puree/crushed tomatoes and add my own seasonings)
1/2 of small onion, chopped
Mozzarella cheese (I use an 8 oz bag, shredded)
Parmesan cheese
8 oz. Ricotta
1 egg (plus dash cinnamon)

Seasonings:
garlic salt
dash pepper
basil
oregano

Optional:
green/red peppers
mushrooms
spinach
broccoli/other veggies (yes I have made a meat & veggie lasagna before)

Directions:
*Boil water-add a little olive oil to prevent sticking, add noodles, cook until 'al dente'. You don't want them too soft, nor too hard. While boiling noodles:
*Cook meat in frying pan. I add some garlic salt/powder, basil, oregano (or just use Italian seasoning) When no longer pink, drain off any grease. If using vegetables, can add in the meat and cook until semi-soft.
*Add ricotta, egg, 1/3 of mozzarella, dash of cinnamon, dash of garlic powder, dash of basil (can you tell I LOVE herbs and seasonings?) and mix together.
*Drain noodles, spread a little sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Arrange one layer of noodles, to cover bottom.
*Add meat, spread with some sauce and top with some mozzarella.
*Layer noodles on top. Spread ricotta mixture on top, and spread a little sauce on top of that.
*Arrange another noodle layer. Top with a generous amount of sauce and mozzarella cheese.
*Bake at 375 for almost an hour. Can put foil on top of pan to prevent cheese from browning, just remove about 15 minutes before lasagna is done.

*You can layer however you want. I just like putting the heavier meat on the bottom, as the ricotta is lighter and doesn't hold the shape as well. My mother layers noodle, meat/ricotta, noodle, meat/ricotta, noodle, etc. So do as you wish.

Roasted Potatoes

How can you not love roasted potatoes? They're much healthier than fries, mashed potatoes, possibly even baked potatoes-unless you're one of those weird people who eat baked potatoes plain-who does that? I made these for just Kevin and I, and Kian had one little piece. It would probably feed 3 as a side dish. So, double if you have more than that. Anyways, without further ado:

The Ingredients:

4 medium Red potatoes

about 1/2 tsp Rosemary

about 1/4 tsp Thyme

about 2 tbsp Olive oil

about 1/2 tsp Garlic salt

*I say about because I don't measure, I dash a few things in here and there, but I use my eye to guess about how much it is. But, we've been over this before. I also went light on the herbs because Kevin doesn't really care for herbs the way I do. If things are too covered in herbs he says I have "put birdseed and grass all over his food". Hmph!

Cut potatoes in quarters or eighths, (meaning smaller ones can be quartered, but larger ones should be cut into eighths so that they're all about the same size and cook uniformly)

I then toss them in a bowl, add the seasonings, stir, then add just enough olive oil to coat them lightly.

Then I dump them into a pan, any old pan will do really.

I baked/roasted them at 400 for about 40 mins. Just check with a fork or knife before bringing out. If they're starting to stick to the bottom, add a bit more olive oil. I turned them over and stirred them up about half way through.

Then Eat!! Easy AND Delicious, who could ask for more?

Split pea soup

Ingredients:
7 cups water
1 lb bag of split peas
3 medium carrots-chopped
1 small onion-chopped
2 cloves garlic-minced
black pepper
Ham (either on bone or ham steak, chopped into bite size pieces)
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp chopped bay leaf
dash savory
Optional: Bouillon cube and/or goya sauzon packet

First empty split peas into bowl, make sure there are no pebbles, rocks, etc. Then rinse by adding water, swirling or stirring around to make any "junk" float to the top then pour off.
Peas after washing

Add water into large pot, add peas, turn heat to med-high. Add onions:

Add carrots:

Add garlic:

Add in dash black pepper, bay leaf, (salt either now or at the end-if you add at the end you will end up using less because it won't cook in and you'll taste it more)

If using ham on bone, add now. If using ham steak, can chop into bite sized pieces and add at any time. I chose not to use bouillon cubes as they are just full of salt and "junk" I can't pronounce. And I was giving this to Kian. Bring to a boil:

Then cover pot, turn down to a simmer and let cook until peas are tender, I think mine cooked for about 2 hours. I like mine really "mushy". Then I added salt and ham at the end. I gave it to Kian without the ham or salt. Picture of finished product coming soon!

Chicken Parmesan

Yes, I use 95% of Wegmans products and yes I even suggested to them that they have a blog on their website for weird people like me! I made this for company a few weeks back so I couldn't take pictures of every step, but the end result was delicious and looked great. Maybe next time.

Ingredients:
Chicken breast or thin Chicken breast cutlets
2 eggs
1 jar sauce
1 box spaghetti or pasta of choice
mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese
Olive oil
Italian bread

Breading Ingredients:
1-2 cups Italian style breadcrumbs
handful of grated Parmesan cheese (about 1/4 cup I believe)
1 tsp garlic powder
dash black pepper
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning (I love seasonings)

Mix all these together in a somewhat shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl beat 1-2 eggs together. Take your chicken breast, pat dry, dip into egg, coating all over. Then lay it in the breading bowl and make sure it is entirely covered. Lay onto a baking sheet (either sprayed with Pam or wiped with Olive oil so that it doesn't stick). Repeat with remaining chicken. I prefer not to fry it in a saute pan first because that just adds more oil and fat and calories.

Bake at 375 for about a half hour. I use the thin breast cutlets so it doesn't take as long. When chicken is about done- I take the tray out, spread a couple spoonfuls of sauce on each piece, then top with a mixture of mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Return to oven for about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted but not browned.

Serve over pasta, side of salad and of course bread! Try that bread with the herbed butter!

Garlic Parmesan Pasta with Chicken & Veggies

Long name, good stuff.

1 box penne
1 clove garlic mashed/minced
about 2 tbsp chopped onion
1 lb - 1.5 lbs of boneless chicken breast
about 1/2 cup peas
about 1/3- 1/2 cup tomatoes (I used grape tomatoes cut in half)
Olive oil

Sauce:2 tbsp butter
2-3 tbsp flour
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups milk
1tsp -or more- basil
close to 1/2 cup parmesan
3 deli slices provolone
dash ground black pepper
*I eyeball everything, I really don't use measuring cups*

While pasta was boiling, I cut the chicken into bite size pieces (about an inch or so) sauteed them in some olive oil with the garlic and onion.

Sauce: In a saucepan, on medium, I melted the butter, added a bit of salt, the basil, then the flour (a wire whisk works great here--basically making a rue to begin with). Then slowly add the milk, a little at a time, whisking it smooth and giving it time to thicken each time. When that is done, I added the provolone and parmesan (you can use any cheese instead of provolone, mozzarella is okay but tends to get very stringy, provolone melts without being too stringy).

I then threw the peas and tomatoes in the sauce, but you can also put them in the chicken pan. I wanted the tomatoes warm and soft but not totally mushy. Then add the drained pasta and the chicken together. Voila! I wish I had a picture because the pasta with the greens of the peas and reds of the tomatoes looked darn good! And it was yummy! And Kevin liked it, so that means it's good.