Stuffed Tomatoes

I found this recipe by accident while searching online one day a few weeks ago for some recipe ideas to use our extra tomatoes. It was posted by a lady as an answer on one of those pages where people type in questions in the search box (Google or yahoo, etc) and readers just randomly reply. The lady didn't have any info and Ive since lost the web page, so I sadly cant link her to give her credit. We made the recipe for the first time last night for dinner, and we (all 3!) really liked it! I especially love it because its one of those recipes that's almost 'too' simple! *wink*
We think it would be best used as a side to go with grilled chicken breasts, steaks or etc.

Ingredients:
Tomatoes (the bigger the better so you can stuff them -I made 3 out of this recipe)
croutons (about 1 cup for 2 tomatoes ...you can use bread crumbs instead like I did and I used 3-4 slices for the 3 stuffed tomatoes we had)
1/2 small onion, chopped
2 minced garlic cloves (*optional)
olive oil for cooking the onions
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp basil &/or Italian Seasoning
tomato sauce (optional*)
Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Take a thin slice off of the top of the tomatoes, and gently scoop out the pulp. Reserve pulp aside in another bowl. Turn tomatoes cut side down, and allow to drain on a paper towel.
Saute onion and garlic until translucent in olive oil.
Mix the croutons/bread crumbs with the reserved pulp, onion saute mixture, and add salt, pepper and seasonings. (I used Italian Seasoning, Basil, black pepper, and some garlic salt since we didn't have garlic to use) I also added a small amount of tomato sauce too just for more flavor.
Fill tomatoes with the stuffing mixture and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Place in baking dish and fill 1/2" of the bottom of baking dish with water. Bake at 375 for about 25 minutes.

Russian Pelmeni

So Ive been homesick for Russia a lot lately, as well as having some major cravings for some of my favorite foods from there. The other night I decided to make some Pelmeni. Mmmmm...
Nina, our area coordinator in Voronezh would teach us how to make some common Russian dishes, but she often didn't have ingredient amounts, so this is kind of my adaptation to the recipe.
Pelmeni are kind of like ravioli, in a sense, since they are 'filled little pasta-guys'. The filling is usually a meat mixture, but is also really good when just red peppers and tomatoes and etc. (The pictures shown were actually my first time making them in years, and my very first time using meat) They're really simple to make, need only a few basic ingredients, and only take a few minutes to cook once assembled! Russians usually eat them with sour cream and butter... but vinegar, ketchup (Russian ketchup comes in flavors and is awesome), or your favorite pasta sauce. They also freeze well and can be frozen for large amounts of time! This recipe makes about 30-40 pelmeni.

Ingredients:

Dough:
2-4 cups of flour (depends on consistency... it needs to be a manageable but slightly sticky dough)
1 cup milk
a 'dash' of salt
1 tbsp oil (I used olive oil this time but veggie is ok)
2 eggs

Filling:
Some finely chopped veggies (red peppers, tomatoes, etc)
....or some sort of meat mixture.
For the meat I did:
1 lb ground beef
1 sm. chopped/grated onion
1 crushed clove of garlic
(garlic)salt and pepper

Directions:
Mix meat/filling mixture and dough in separate bowls.Roll out and gently knead dough. (You can either roll out entire thing of dough very thing and cut out circles with a cup... or, you can do it like me) Break off about a tablespoon sized piece of dough and rolling to a ball, then flatten into a thin circle (the thinner the better, mine are never quite as thin or as small as the Russians, but they still taste the same! -just beware that they plump up a lot when cooked) In the center of your dough circle, put about a teaspoon sized dab of you filling. Fold dough in half over it and pinch edges to close. (so it should have a flat edge and a half circle rounded edge with the filling inside. Take your two corner edges and pull around to meet, making a ball/circle shape and pinch together to hold. (I should've taken pictures for you since that was probably confusing, but my hands were too doughy! They should look similar to the finished -uncooked- ones pictured below though)

They're really simple and quick to make, but I probably wrote that so it was pretty confusing, sorry! Hope the picture helps!
Then boil a pot of salted water and add a few pelmeni at a time. When they are cooked they should float to the top. (when I did the meat ones I let them boil while floating at the top for a few extra minutes just to be safe that it was cooked enough)
Once finished, dab with a bit of butter, a blob of sour cream, and salt and pepper (I use garlic salt on mine) or other sauce that sounds good... Dan mentioned that they'd probably be really good with soy sauce as well(though that would make them more like Asian pot stickers! *wink*)
Enjoy! -let me know if you have any questions! (I will have to add some pictures to illustrate the wrapping so its not as confusing)

Chicken & Veggie Stirfry

I love making this! Its so simple, pretty quick, and a good way to get in TONS of veggies! Dan laughs because I call this 'My Experimental Stir-fry Veggies with a Hint of Rice' ... its always different depending on what we have available at the time (hence 'experimental') and its like a whole pan full of veggies .... with a little rice. :) This is totally one of those meals you just make up as you go with what you have and what sounds good!

Ingredients:
Chicken breasts (we usually do 2-3)
Veggies, chopped (various peppers, peas, carrots, corn, squash, zucchini, water chestnuts, etc)
Rice (I go by looks since we keep our rice in a plastic container, but usually its about 2 cups)
Soy Sauce and/or Teriyaki Sauce
Salt & Pepper to taste *optional

Directions:
Cube and cook chicken well in a large frying pan. (Add a splash of Teriyaki if you like)
On another burner cook your rice. (we usually have the 'instant' kind around, so it only takes a minute or so)
Chop and add your veggie medley to the pan with the chicken. Saute until tender.
Add rice, some soy sauce, and mix well. I usually cook it all together for another minute or two after adding the rice.
Add soy sauce or seasoning as you like it and enjoy!
(makes about 6 servings)

Bow ties with Veggie Cutouts

One of my favorite cookbooks growing up, ...well, make that 'ever'... is the Disney Family Cookbook! Its not only yummy (and adorable!) recipes, but they're also recipes made to try to interest kids in cooking. I seriously recommend it. :)
Ive been looking around for a yummy recipe to make with squash and zucchini.... not only because I like it and my lovely friend Tannie gave us some form her garden, but also because it needed t be something yummy that I made with them so as to help convince my veggie-hating-husband that he likes them too. I kept coming back to this recipe(which Ive always wanted to make -probably mostly because its the cover picture and is so cute!) so I decided this was it.
....Not only did we all (including Addie) like it, but it was super easy and really quick! -which is always a big plus right?! :)
**I couldn't find a picture online, and I didn't take one of the meal I made because we didn't have all the ingredients so it wasn't as 'pretty' as the photo in the book -though it was still just as yummy! The only photo I could find to use (for now) is a picture of the cover of the book. Doesn't show it too well, but you get the idea right?

Want to try it? Here's what you need:

Ingredients:
2-3 cups vegetable cutouts (carrots, zucchini, yellow squash, red & green peppers, etc)
*the picture shows cute little 'cutouts' of veggies in shapes, but we just did the basic chopping veggies into bite sized pieces ... also, I didn't measure by cups, I just added 1 squash 1 zucchini, etc...
1 pound bow tie pasta, cooked (*we just used Penne because that's what I already had -and again, just 'dumped' a good amount in, didn't measure an actual pound)
2 Tbsp Olive oil
1/3 cup ground almonds (*we didn't have any and it was still good without it)
1/3 cup milk
3 crushed garlic cloves (again, I didn't have at the moment so improvised with garlic powder/salt)
1/2 tsp salt
black pepper
Parmesan cheese

Directions:
To make cutouts, slice the vegetables into 1/8 or 1/4"thicknesses, and cut into shapes with tiny cutters (cut from the fleshy side) .... OR, just be boring like me and chop your veggies into basic bite sized pieces. Set aside.
While the pasta is cooking, heat 1 Tbsp Olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Saute the vegetables for 3-4 minutes.
Remove vegetables and add the remaining olive oil and the almonds. Stir until lightly browned. (*again, we didn't have the almonds, so I just left the veggies int he frying pan and added the rest of the ingredients).
Return the vegetables to the pan and add the milk, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
Drain pasta, and toss it with the vegetable mix in a large bowl. Serve with Parmesan if desired. (which we did).

It took like 10 minutes total, and was not only yummy, but a success in getting the picky husband (probably 'kids' in your case) to eat their veggies! *wink*

Easy Enchiladas

We love these because they're SUPER easy, quick, and good!... Also great, because you can easily tweak it to whatever sounds good to you.

Ingredients:
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
2 (10 oz.) cans enchilada sauce
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (you can also do mozzarella too)
1 pkg. tortillas
1/2 chopped onion
1chopped tomato
olives
sour cream for topping
*can also switch this out with chicken or beans
*I slice olives in half (long-ways) and lay one piece cut-side-down in center of each enchilada, just because my favorite Mexican restaurant (La Casita in Springville, Utah) always does that. :)

Directions:
Heat oven to 400°F. Brown ground beef over medium-high heat until thoroughly cooked; drain. Stir in 3/4 cup enchilada sauce, onions, tomato and 1 cup cheese. Spoon enchilada filling onto tortillas, roll up and place seam-side down in lightly greased baking dish. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over top; sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 15 to 20 minutes.
*I usually serve with Mexican rice (from a box) that Ive added salsa and/or tomatoes to.

Pizza (sauce & dough)

*the dough I'm not sure where I got the recipe for the dough, but the sauce I'm pretty sure I got from my Aunt Sherrie (maybe the dough too?) when I was like 12 or something. I LOVE homemade pizzas... especially on a pizza baking stone!

Ingredients:

Dough:
2 tsp dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1 tsp salt 3 cups flour
1-2 tsp olive oil
Extra flour for rolling dough

Sauce:
2 sm. cans (8 oz) tomato sauce
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
*seasoning amounts I use vary on however I feel that day, and whatever sounds good to me
** Boil together for 10-25 minutes.

Toppings: (whatever you like, this is what 'I' like)
tomatoes
olives
green peppers
red peppers
Canadian bacon
mozzarella ...etc

Directions:
Dissolve yeast in water for 5 minutes. Add salt, flour, and 1 tsp of oil. Mix to make a ball of dough. Knead dough until smooth, and roll in olive oil in a bowl. Let rise 1-2 hours (doubled in size). Punch down dough, and flatten out on floured baking sheet (or stone).
Cover with sauce, cheese, and toppings ... then bake at 450 degrees for 15+ minutes. (I like my crust thick and kind of doughy, and usually I just watch it until it looks 'done' to me)

Chicken & Veggie Casserole w/Biscuits

*another one of my hybrid recipes, and stolen pictures :)

Ingredients:
2 cans (10 3/4 oz) Cream of Chicken Soup
1 can (10 3/4 oz) Cream of Celery Soup
1/4 cup milk
egg noodles (Ive never measured, I just guess on amounts) or rice
3/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 half onion, chopped
1 bag (16 ounces) frozen vegetable combination (peas, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots), thawed
2-4 chicken breasts (I boiled first, and cube)
1 can flaky refrigerated biscuits
*some people add shredded cheese on top, I don't, but its up to you
**I also add random seasonings that sound good that day. The veggies vary depending on what we have (sometimes just peas... sometimes all...etc)

Directions:

Heat the oven to 400°F. Stir the soup, milk, cheese and black pepper in a 3-quart shallow baking dish. Stir in the vegetables and chicken.

Bake for 15 minutes or until the chicken mixture is hot and bubbling. Stir the chicken mixture.

Top the chicken mixture with the biscuits. Bake for 15 minutes or until the biscuits are golden brown. (the 15 minutes are what the can of biscuits calls for, but I find that's sometimes too long, so I do about 12 minutes)

Creamy Crock-pot Chicken & Rice

*this is the closest pic I could find to what my recipe looks like. Sometimes I make it 'plain' (given below) and sometimes I 'spice it up' by adding chopped onions, other mixed veggies, and etc... whatever just sounds good at the moment.

Ingredients:
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 cups water
1 box rice (6 oz.)
4 large carrots, chopped
4-6 chicken breasts
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp black powder
4 oz cream cheese

Directions:
-In a crock-pot mix soup, water, rice, and carrots
-Add chicken making sure it's evenly coated
-Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or high 4-5 hours, or until done

Mexican Lasagna

**Another from NieNie's 'CuisineNie' blog...

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh cilantro leaves

4 scallions, coarsely chopped

Coarse salt and ground pepper

10 ounces fresh baby spinach

Nonstick cooking spray

8 (6-inch) corn tortillas

1 (15.5 ounces) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup prepared salsa (mild or medium)

8 ounces Pepper Jack Cheese, grated (about 2 cups)
* we liked it this way, but we also like adding ground beef to it

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a food processor, combine cilantro, scallions, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper with as much spinach as will fit; pulse, adding remaining spinach in batches, until coarsely chopped.Coat an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray. Lay 4 tortillas in bottom of dish (they will overlap slightly). Layer with half of beans, salsa, spinach mixture, and cheese; repeat with remaining ingredients, ending with cheese and pressing in gently.Cover dish with foil; place on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes; remove foil, and continue baking until golden, 15 to 20 minutes more. Cool 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Whole Wheat Pasta Mixed w/ Arugula, Onions, & Tomatoes

**Another recipe from NieNie's 'CuisineNie'

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 large onions, halved and thinly sliced (4 cups)
Coarse salt and ground pepper
12 ounces plum tomatoes, cored and diced (about 2 cups)
3/4 cup lentils, picked over and rinsed
12 ounces whole wheat pasta
1 bunch (8 ounces) arugula, stemmed and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving (optional)

Directions:
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onions and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cover, and cook until onions wilt, about 20 minutes. Uncover; raise heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, until onions are dark brown, 20 to 25 minutes more.
Add 1/4 cup water; stir to loosen any browned bits from pan. Stir in tomatoes; remove from heat.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, cover lentils with water by 1 inch. Bring to a simmer. Cover; cook until lentils are tender but still holding their shape, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain; stir into onion mixture. Season with salt and pepper.
Cook pasta in a pot of salted water until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water; drain pasta, and return to pot.
Add lentil mixture, arugula, cheese, and reserved pasta water; toss. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with more cheese, if desired.

Herbed Whole Wheat Pasta w/ Lemon Butter

**I got this one from NieNie's food blog 'CuisineNie'.

Ingredients:
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1/2 pound whole wheat pasta
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh herbs, such as parsley, tarragon, and chives
crumbled feta

Directions:
In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente according to package instructions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water. Return pasta to pot.
Stir in butter, lemon zest, juice, and herbs; season with salt and pepper. Add some of the reserved pasta water to adjust consistency, if needed. Top with crumbled feta.

Rosemary Skewered Chicken with Orange Glaze

** We just had a fresh salad with it. It turned out really good though, and was way easy. We will add it to our new little collection of favorites.

Ingredients:
Juice of 3 oranges
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes
6 large sprigs of rosemary about 10 to 12 inches long, with half the leaves removed
**We did the whole skewers with fresh rosemary, as well as just grilled chicken breast pieces seasoned with dried rosemary and etc... and it didn't make a noticeable difference either way, so you can omit the fresh sprigs of rosemary if you'd prefer.

Directions:
Preheat a grill or grill pan on medium high heat. (we used our 'Foreman')Place the orange juice into a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until the orange juice has the consistency of a very thin syrup.
Add the Dijon, honey, garlic, and ginger and continue cooking over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes.
Remove from heat to allow flavors to meld and reserve.
Evenly divide the cubed chicken among the rosemary sprigs and skewer the chicken onto the exposed part of the rosemary sprigs.
Lightly brush the grill with oil and grill chicken for 1 to 2 minutes on each side or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165F on an instant read thermometer.
Remove skewers from the grill to a serving plate, drizzle with the orange sauce and serve immediately.

*(This recipe was on TV during The Biggest Loser's season 7 Superbowl episode)

Bruschetta 'n Cheese-Stuffed Chicken Breasts

This recipe is for 'Bruschetta 'n Cheese-Stuffed Chicken Breasts' that we really like. My friend Erin recommended it to me, and its from 'Kraft Foods' (<--see link for video and original recipe). Its WAY easy and pretty quick to do as well.

Ingredients:
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained
1-1/4 cups Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese, divided
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (** we used dried)
1 pkg. (6 oz.) Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Chicken
8 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (2 lb.)
1/3 cup (Roasted Red Pepper) Italian with Parmesan Dressing (** we just used the Italian dressing we had at home)

**we also didn't use that many chicken breasts, so we had a bunch of 'stuffing mix' leftover... we just added it to the pan around the stuffed chickens, and sprinkled it all with cheese too... turned out really good, and made our house smell amazing!!)

Directions:
Heat oven to 350ºF.
Mix tomatoes, 1/2 cup cheese and basil in medium bowl. Add stuffing mix; stir just until moistened.
Place 2 chicken breasts in large freezer-weight resealable plastic bag. Pound with meat mallet or side of heavy can until chicken is 1/4 inch thick. Remove from bag; place, top-sides down, on cutting board. Repeat with remaining chicken.

Spread chicken with stuffing mixture. Starting at 1 narrow end, tightly roll up each breast.

Place, seam-sides down, in 13x9-inch baking dish. Drizzle with dressing.
Bake 40 min. or until chicken is done (165°F).

Sprinkle with remaining cheese; bake 5 min. or until melted.

Simple Pasta & Meatballs

(I promise that's just liquid from the sauce under the meatballs...lol they really ARE cooked all the way through!)

We just make a basic pasta and sauce and then added the easy meatballs. ...We think they turned out really good... I'm not a big meatball fan in general, but I liked them, ....and Dan really liked them, so it was a big hit. I especially liked that it was easy and quick! That's always a big hit at our house! :)

The Pasta: For the pasta, we usually just use whatever pasta noodles we have around the house, and I usually make the sauce by 'tossing random stuff in' (example: basic tomato sauce in a can spiced all sorts of awesome by whatever I thought sounded good that night). So, just make whatever pasta you like, and 'experiment' making your sauce, or take the easy route and buy some pre-made pasta sauce in a jar.

Meatballs:
I got the recipe from my new friend, "The Biggest Loser Family Cookbook" (which I recommend if you're like us and need good ideas for 'budget-friendly healthy meals' ...I bought mine at Amazon.com, so that's where I linked the title too). The meatball recipe is actually titled 'New Favorite Meatballs'... but that sounded too cheesy so I just call them 'simple'. :) So here's the recipe with my comments:

Ingredients:
Olive Oil (**the book recommends for most their recipes that you keep your olive oil in a spray bottle and use it that way... for this one I was lazy and just used our regular pan cooking spray)
2 egg whites
1/2 cup cooking oats
1/4 cup fat-free milk
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley (**was good, but somehow I think you'll survive without it if you'd prefer)
1 tablespoon dried minced onion
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4+ teaspoon of salt (** I wrote the + because both Dan and I commented that they could use more salt, but again, its from a 'healthy' book, so less is probably better... but just keep that in mind if you're not planning on eating them all covered in sauce like I do...)
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (**again, something I'm sure you could live without, and we didn't have any so we went without... however, -I have a weird obsession with cinnamon and paprika-, so I tossed in a pinch of paprika 'just because'... we liked it)
1 pound extra lean ground beef
**The next time I made them I added some paprika and other misc spices, and increased the salt just a little bit and they were WAY good! :)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Lightly coat a non-stick pan (we used cookie sheet) with olive oil (we used regular cooking spray).In a medium bowl, using a fork, mix together egg whites, oats, and milk until well combined.
Add the parsley, onion, oregano, garlic powder, salt, and crushed red pepper flakes and mix well.
Mix in beef (with hands is easiest so Dan did this part because I have a raw meat phobia!).
Then roll into (about 32) uniform meatballs... about 1 1/4" in diameter it says (Dan just used his hands, but you could use spoons or a small ice cream scoop if you want to go all fancy). Arrange balls, not touching, on your greased pan. Bake for 7-10 minutes, or until no longer pink inside. (took us a almost 11 minutes).