Southwest Eggrolls

Ingredients

1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, pounded flat
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp chopped bell pepper (red or green)
2 Tbsp chopped green onion
2 Tbsp chopped fresh jalapeno pepper
3/4 cup black beans, rinsed (1/2 of 15 oz can)
3/4 cup whole kernel corn, rinsed (1/2 of 15 oz can)
2 Tbsp chopped, frozen spinach
1/4 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
dash cayenne pepper
salt to taste
4 oz shredded Monterey Jack cheese (or Pepper Jack for a little extra kick)
5 whole wheat tortillas, 8 inch
1 medium avocado

Directions

Broil the chicken breast until the juices run clear. Set aside to cool.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the bell pepper, green onion and jalapeno pepper. Saute a few minutes, until the vegetables are tender.
Shred the chicken breast. Add the chicken, black beans, corn, spinach and spices to the skillet and mix well. Cook for a few more minutes on low, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in cheese until melted.
Heat each tortilla and add 1/5 of the mixture. Fold the tortilla so it is completely closed. Place on a small cookie sheet folded side down. When all five are filled, put cookie sheet in the broiler and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side of the eggroll or until the tortilla is crispy and golden brown. Cut each eggroll diagonally and serve with mashed avocado.

You can dip in sour cream, salsa, or guacamole. Not included in nutritional values.

You can always adjust the spices to your taste.

*if made in advance and frozen for later, bake the eggroll 25 -30 minutes at 350 and then broil each side for a 2 - 3 minutes to get the crispy shell.

Cafe Rio Rice

Cilantro Lime Rice

3 c water
3 c rice
3 chicken bouillon cubes
1 tsp salt
¼ cup lime juice
1/2 small onion
2 cloves garlic
1/2 bunch cilantro, remove large stems
1 small can green chiles

Place water, rice, bouillon, and salt in pot. Bring to boil. Place lime juice, onion, garlic, cilantro and green chilies in a blender and puree. Stir into rice. Simmer, covered, for about 25 minutes.

Cafe Rio Black Beans

Black Beans

1 can black beans, rinsed
2 Tbl finely mined onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1 cup tomato juice
3 Tbl chopped Fresh Cilantro
1 tsp salt

Fry onion, garlic and cumin in a small amount of olive oil. Add beans, tomato juice, cilantro and salt and heat through.

Tilapia

Dressing
1	tablespoon honey
1	tablespoon rice vinegar
2	teaspoons grated gingerroot
1/2	teaspoon salt
Salad
1/2	medium cucumber, cut in half lengthwise, thinly sliced
1/4	red bell pepper, diced
3	green onions, thinly sliced (3 tablespoons)
1	teaspoon chopped fresh cilantro
Fish
2	tablespoons Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
1	teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
1	cup Progresso® panko crispy bread crumbs or Progresso® plain bread crumbs
1	egg white
1	tablespoon water
4	tilapia or other white fish fillets (6 oz each)
1	tablespoon vegetable oil

1.	In medium bowl, mix dressing ingredients. Stir in salad ingredients to coat.
2.	On plate, mix flour and lemon-pepper seasoning. On second plate, place bread crumbs. In medium bowl, beat egg white and water with wire whisk or fork. Coat each piece of fish with flour mixture. Dip into beaten egg white; coat well with bread crumbs.
3.	In 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add fish fillets; cook 3 minutes. Carefully turn fish over. Reduce heat to medium; cook 3 to 4 minutes longer or until fish flakes easily with fork. Serve fish topped with salad.

Hummus Pita's

Hummus
1	can (15 or 19 oz) Progresso® cannellini beans, drained, rinsed
2	tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1	tablespoon olive oil
1/4	teaspoon salt
1	small clove garlic, chopped
1/8	teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
2	tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
Sandwiches
4	whole wheat pita (pocket) breads (6 inch), cut in half to form pockets
1 1/2	cups loosely packed fresh spinach
4	very thin slices red onion, cut in half
8	thin slices tomato, cut in half

1.	In food processor bowl, place all hummus ingredients except basil; process 1 to 2 minutes or until smooth. Add basil; pulse to mix.
2.	To assemble sandwiches, spoon about 2 tablespoons hummus into each pita bread half. Place spinach leaves, onion and tomato slices in each.

Oatmeal

Baked Apple-Raisin Oatmeal

From eatbetteramerica.

Prep Time:10 min

Start to Finish:1 hr

makes:8 servings

2	cups chopped unpeeled apples or pears (2 medium)
2 2/3	cups old-fashioned oats
1/2	cup raisins
2	teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4	teaspoon salt
4	cups plain or vanilla soymilk
1/4	cup real maple syrup
	Additional soymilk, if desired
	Chopped toasted walnuts, if desired

1.	Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 2-quart casserole with cooking spray. In casserole, stir together apples, oats, raisins, cinnamon, salt, soymilk and syrup.
2.	Bake uncovered 45 to 50 minutes or until most of liquid is absorbed. Pour additional soymilk over each serving; sprinkle with walnuts.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No change.

turkey meatloaf

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds lean ground turkey
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 bunch fresh spinach, thick stems removed and leaves chopped (about 4 cups)
• 1 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1/2 cup whole-wheat bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 large egg white
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 pounds red potatoes, quartered
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 cup marinara sauce (optional)

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400° F. In a bowl, combine the turkey, onion, spinach, parsley, bread crumbs, mustard, egg white, and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper.
2. Transfer the mixture to a baking sheet and form it into a 10-inch loaf. Spread with the ketchup. Bake until cooked through, 45 to 50 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, place the potatoes in a large pot of cold water. Simmer until tender, 15 to 18 minutes. Drain the potatoes and mash in the pot with the buttermilk, oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
4. Serve the meat loaf with the marinara sauce (if using) and potatoes.

Chicken Tostado

Chile Lime Chicken Tostadas

• 1 can diced green chilies
• 4 cloves of minced garlic
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. chili powder
• 3 Tbsp. lime juice
• 1 diced medium onion
• 2 lbs. boneless chicken breasts
• 1 can fat free refried beans, warmed
• 10 tostada shells
• Desired toppings such as: shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, salsa, light sour cream, sliced olives, guacamole

1. Add chicken and onion to a slow cooker that is at least 3 1/2 quarts.
2. In a bowl combine green chilies, garlic, chili powder, and lime juice. Pour over chicken.
3. Cover and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours.
4. Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred. Mix in 1/2 cup of juice remaining in slow cooker to the shredded chicken.
5. Spread warmed refried beans on tostada shells.
6. Top with hot chicken mixture and any other desired toppings.

another recipe I want to try

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos
print recipe text only

1/3 C (3 oz) cream cheese
1/4 C green salsa
1T fresh lime juice
1/2 t cumin
1 t chili powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/4 t granulated garlic, or garlic powder
3 T chopped cilantro
2 T sliced green onions
2 C shredded cooked chicken (for extra yumminess, use grilled taco chicken!)
1 C grated pepperjack cheese

small corn tortillas (and actually, flour ones are really good as well)
kosher salt
cooking spray

Heat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and granulated garlic. Stir to combine and then add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese and combine well.

You can prepare up to this step ahead of time. Just keep the mixture in the fridge.

Work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them between damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 seconds will do it. If you find yours are cracking when you roll them or are coming unrolled right away, just try heating them longer and try the paper towel thing.

Place 2-3 T of chicken mixture on the lower third of a tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges.


Then roll it up as tight as you can.


Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or an oil mister and sprinkle some kosher salt on top.



Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown.

The ones pictured below are actually flour tortillas- which I found out I like just as well (maybe even better!) than corn ones.

This salad too

I want to try this:

Sweet Sesame Dressing
Recipe from Helen Klann

2/3 C rice vinegar
1 C canola oil
2 Tbs sesame oil
4 cloves garlic, pressed or very finely minced
2 Tbs soy sauce
1/2 C sugar
4 Tbs sesame seeds

Place all ingredients into a quart jar (or something equivalent) and shake vigorously. If desired, make ahead of time and store in the fridge.

Asian Wonton Salad

2 heads romaine lettuce
3 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed or shredded
cherry tomatoes
1 red onion, sliced thinly
1 cucumber, sliced
1 package wontons
vegetable oil for frying
optional: cashews (Mel noted in the comments that cashews are a yummy addition, I'll have to try it!)

Sweet Sesame Dressing

Heat about 1 inch of oil in a pot on the stove top. Use pizza cutter or sharp knife to cut wontons into thirds (3 strips). You may not need the entire package, depending on how much salad you're making. I usually use about half of the wonton wrappers. You'll want the oil at about 375 degrees. Test by dipping a wonton in and seeing if it bubbles up quickly. Fry wontons a few at a time and set on paper towels to dry. These can be made ahead of time and kept in an air tight container.

Tear clean lettuce into chunks and place in a large salad bowl. Top with cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumber, and red onion. Add shredded chicken and top with Sweet Sesame Dressing. Toss salad together. Once everything is well coated, add wonton strips and gently toss to combine.

Mystery Shop

Oh and I also got paid 56 dollars for doing mystery shops in Nov. I should get the same amount for Dec.

Rebates

I put in for some beer rebates on Monday. One from Coors for the gift card rebate and one from Budweiser for 6 dollars from buying meats and cheeses and stuff.

cottage cheese salsa

• 2 large ripe tomatoes
  
• 1/2 cucumber (Is this throwing you off? It threw me off too but actually REALLY makes the dish.)
  
• 1 green onion
  
• 1 avocado
• salt
• fresh ground pepper
• 2 cups of cottage cheese
  

Chop up all of the veggies, slice the onion, and mix together with the salt and pepper. Serve over cottage cheese and eat with tortilla chips. Oh yum! I'm hungry all over again.

Serves: Oh, I don't know........2 hungry people or 4-6 snackers.

Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 can diced tomatoes (14.5 oz size - southwest style, if possible I used petite diced tomatoes w/ sweet onion)
1 packet enchilada sauce mix (or if you can't find this, mild taco seasoning works well too, this is what I used)
1 1/2 C water
1 can (8 oz)tomato sauce
1 can ( 10 3/4 oz) cream of chicken soup
2 C milk
3-4 boneless chicken breasts (I only used 2 chicken breasts)

In crock pot, mix the enchilada packet together with the water and tomato sauce. Add cream of chicken soup and milk and whisk together until smooth. Add chicken. Pour drained black beans, drained corn and diced tomatoes on top of that.Cook on low 6-8 hours.Before serving, take out chicken and shred or dice, then put back and stir it all together. Serve with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, lime, avocado, or tortilla chips. (We just did cheese and sour cream, we forgot about chips)

Chinese Chicken Salad

I want to try this chinese chicken salad

ngredients:
1 chicken breast (grilled and chopped)
1/2 head of lettuce
2 stalks of celery
1 stalk of green onion
2 8 oz. cans of mandarin oranges
1 8 oz. can of water chestnuts
4 oz. of slivered or sliced almonds
1/2 cup of sugar

Dressing:
1 cup of canola oil
2/3 cup rice vinegar
2 T soy sauce
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar

Directions:
Heat almonds and sugar at medium heat in a small pan. Stir continuously until the sugar has heated through and coated the almonds with a nice caramelized coating. (Don't worry if the sugar gets all clumpy and seems to not be working. Just keep stirring.....it will melt.) Then spread over foil and let cool completely. Chop up all of the remaining salad ingredients and mix together in bowl. In a cruet, mix in all the ingredients for the dressing. Shake until completely blended. The dressing isn't soluble so you'll have to shake again right before pouring over your salad.

One last note: The dressing made is a bit too much for the amount of salad. So I always pour the dressing over individual portions of salad. But if you'd like to pre-mix your salad if you're headed to a pot luck, make sure to watch how much you're using in the salad. Sample it before serving.