Garlic Fried Chicken

I was in the mood for Chicken Parmesan, and came across this recipe on allrecipes.com. I decided to give it a shot, and it came out delicious! Next time I may use less flour and more breadcrumbs. If you are against frying, you could try baking the chicken instead. The chicken came out VERY dark when fried, but still did not taste burnt. I paired it with some angel hair pasta tossed w/ EVOO and sprinkled some parsley flakes.

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons garlic powder, I added a bit more
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - pounded thin (wrapping the chicken loosely in plastic wrap, and then pounding them with a pan works perfectly)
1 cup oil for frying, or as needed


DIRECTIONS
In a shallow dish, mix together the garlic powder, pepper, salt, paprika, bread crumbs and flour. In a separate dish, whisk together the milk and egg.
Heat the oil in an electric skillet set to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Dip the chicken into the egg and milk, then dredge in the dry ingredients until evenly coated.
Fry chicken in the hot oil for about 5 minutes per side, or until the chicken is cooked through and juices run clear. Remove from the oil with a slotted spatula, and serve.

*I just used a regular frying pan and waited for the oil to start rippling.

Simple Asian Salmon

When we want a flavorful and quick healthy meal (they say to eat fish a few time a week), we make this salmon recipe. Neither of us are huge seafood fans, but this is tasty!

Ingredients:
3-4 salmon fillets
1/4 -1/3 cup Teriyaki sauce (enough to coat fillets)
2 tbsp. of Sesame Oil
Lemon Pepper Seasoning (I use Grill Mates Lemon Pepper with Herb Seasoning)
Garlic Powder
1 lemon (to garnish salmon)

*I also make a batch of white rice in the rice cooker to go with this.

Directions:
Marinate salmon fillets in the Teriyaki and Sesame Oil mixture for 10-15 minutes, you can add more or less of the mixture to your liking.

Sprinkle the lemon pepper seasoning and garlic powder on fillets, your preference on the amount.

Place fillets in a heated pan on medium heat with a little oil, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Flip and cook another 5 minutes or until fillets are cooked through.

Served on a bed of rice. Enjoy!

Chunky Chili Recipe

I use this chili recipe for Superbowl Sunday. It's very delicious, and exactly what I think chili should taste like. It's great if you like mild chili, you can add extra chili powder to taste.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium sweet onion, very finely chopped
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
2 cans red kidney beans, drained (optional, Todd hates beans so we skip)
1 jar marinara meat sauce (use a high quality sauce)
1 package chili seasoning
Shredded cheese, for garnish
Sour cream, for garnish
Minced chives, for garnish

*I add a can of drained corn the last 5 minutes of cooking-it adds a nice texture and hint of sweetness

Directions
In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Add onion and saute until softened. Crumble in the ground beef and cook until browned. Add beans and marinara sauce and combine thoroughly. Stir in chili seasoning, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Spoon into individual bowls and garnish with shredded cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and chives.

*We think this tastes better the next day, great for leftovers!

Sandra Lee recipe

Super Easy Pot Roast

I am a no fuss kind of cooker, if it takes too long or has too many steps I don't cook it. We love pot roast, and this is soooo easy. Throw it in a bag, cook/forget about it.

1 package McCormick® Bag 'n Season® Pot Roast
3 to 4 pounds eye round, chuck or rump roast, trimmed
4 cups cut-up fresh vegetables, such as potatoes, carrots, celery and onions
1/4 cup water-I substitute for beef broth

I have also added the following to this recipe:
1 can/bottle of beer (I use Budweiser, don't use light beer)
1 packet of Liption Onion Soup Mix-so flavorful & I hate chopping up onions


DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Arrange opened Roasting Bag in 13x9-inch baking pan. Place roast and vegetables in bag. Mix Seasoning Mix with water. Pour over meat.

2. Close bag loosely with nylon tie. Cut 4 small holes in top of bag to allow steam to escape.

3. Bake in lower half of oven 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Let stand 5 minutes before slicing. Serve roast and vegetables with pan juices. Pan juices may be thickened for gravy.

IMPORTANT: Allow 8 inches for bag to expand while cooking. Roasting bag should not touch oven walls or racks.

The following gravy tips come from Ina Garten:
Skim out fat from the pan drippings, mix flour with room temperature butter until flour disappears. Put butter/flour mix in a sauce pan with drippings, and simmer. (mixing the butter and flour ensures that you don't have flour clumps)

Brown Sugar Meatloaf

This is Todd's favorite, I make this for him on special occasions.

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup packed brown sugar (add more to coat the top of the loaf)
1/2 cup ketchup (add more to coat the top of the loaf)
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
3/4 cup milk
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 small onion, chopped (I have also used 1 packet of the Lipton Onion Soup Mix instead, awesome!)
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 cup finely crushed saltine cracker crumbs (I use plain bread crumbs instead)

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 5x9 inch loaf pan.
Press the brown sugar in the bottom of the prepared loaf pan and spread the ketchup over the sugar.
In a mixing bowl, mix thoroughly all remaining ingredients and shape into a loaf. Place on top of the ketchup. (I then add a mixture of ketchup and brown sugar to coat the top as well)
Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour or until juices are clear.

Allrecipes.com

Noodle Kugel

I wanted to find a traditional but tasty kugel recipe for our Passover dinner, I found this awesome one on allrecipes.com. I have made this recipe twice and have received raves.... huge favorite during Hanukkah, my family loves this recipe!

15 Servings (we have huge family dinners):

INGREDIENTS
1 pound egg noodles
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
8 eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups sour cream
2 cups small curd cottage cheese
TOPPING:
9 cinnamon graham crackers, crushed
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

DIRECTIONS
Cook noodles according to package directions; drain. Toss with butter; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, sour cream and cottage cheese until well blended. Stir in the noodles.
Transfer to a greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Combine the cracker crumbs and butter; sprinkle over top.
Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 50-55 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160 degrees F. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Serve warm or cold. (Best when served warm we think)

Fried/Toasted Ravioli

Ingredients

Olive Oil (or use Vegetable Oil....less bitter when frying) for frying
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups Italian-style bread crumbs
1 box store-bought cheese ravioli (about 24 ravioli)
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 jar store bought marinara sauce, heated, for dipping

Directions
Pour enough oil into a large frying pan to reach a depth of 2 inches. Heat the oil over medium heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 325 degrees F.
While the oil is heating, put the buttermilk and the bread crumbs in separate shallow bowls. Working in batches, dip ravioli in buttermilk to coat completely. Allow the excess buttermilk to drip back into the bowl. Dredge ravioli in the bread crumbs. Place the ravioli on a baking sheet, and continue with the remaining ravioli.
When the oil is hot, fry the ravioli in batches, turning occasionally, until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the fried ravioli to paper towels to drain.

Sprinkle the fried ravioli with Parmesan and serve with a bowl of warmed marinara sauce for dipping.

*After frying, we placed on a cooling rack with paper towel underneath.

Recipe: Giada de laurentiis

Evey's Easy Enchiladas

1 lb. of ground beef (I use lean...easier to drain the fat)

2 10 oz. cans of Old El Paso Enchilada Sauce (hot or mild, your preference...we use Mild, tasty!)

6 oz. of shredded cheese (I use the Mexican blend)

1 (12 count) pkg. of flour tortillas or soft taco shells (corn tortilla shells fall apart too easily)

1 Green Scallion/Green Onion

Heat oven to 400°F. Brown ground beef over medium-high heat until thoroughly cooked; drain. Stir in 3/4 cup enchilada sauce and 1 cup cheese.

Spoon enchilada filling onto tortillas; roll up and place seam-side down in lightly greased 13X9X2" baking dish.

Pour remaining enchilada sauce over top; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Then I add sliced green scallions for taste and appearance.

Bake at 400°F for 15 to 20 minutes.

Todd likes to add Jalapenos to give it a little kick!

Sooo easy and soo delicious, great alternative to taco night.

*Original recipe from Old El Paso 1998 The Pillsbury Company, I just made a few adjustments