Foil-Pack Chicken Fajita Dinner

I love this concept and the flavor was awesome but the rice definitely did not cook quite right. I don't know exactly what happened. But I do know that these were fantastic leftovers when the rice had been able to sit for a while longer and was actually soft. If you want to be adventurous and try this recipe as written, go for it. Next time I make it I will cook the rice separately and then serve the ingredients of these foil packs on top of it.

This picture and recipe are courtesy of Kraft Foods and can be found at this site here: http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/foil-pack-chicken-fajita-dinner-111262.aspx

FOIL-PACK CHICKEN FAJITA DINNER

From Kraft Recipes

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1-1/2 cups instant white rice, uncooked

1-1/2 cups hot water

1 Tbsp TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Taco Seasoning Mix

4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)

1 each green and red pepper, cut into strips

1/2 cup TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Thick 'N Chunky Salsa

1/2 cupKRAFT Mexican Style Finely Shredded Taco Cheese

HEAT oven to 400ºF.

FOLD up all sides of each of 4 large sheets heavy-duty foil to form 1-inch rim; spray with cooking spray. Combine rice, water and taco seasoning; spoon onto foil. Top with remaining ingredients.

BRING up foil sides; fold to make 4 packets. Place in 15x10x1-inch pan.

BAKE 30 to 35 min. or until chicken is done (165ºF). Cool 5 min. Cut slits in foil to release steam before opening packets.

Slow Cooker Chicken Marrakesh

We love love loved this Morrocan-style meal! So many wonderful flavors come together to make a satisfying and filling meal that is SOOOO easy to make! And guess what? 290 Calories and 2 grams of fat per serving! You can't beat that! I even loved the chickpeas in the dish as they added a wonderful new texture; however, my mother also made this dish and can't stand chickpeas so she just substituted great northern beans. Whatever your preference, be adventurous and try this dish tonight!

This recipe and picture are courtesy of Allrecipes.com and can be found at this site here: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/slow-cooker-chicken-marrakesh/detail.aspx

SLOW COOKER CHICKEN MARRAKESH

Adapted from Allrecipes.com

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Yields 8 servings

• 1 onion, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (optional)
• 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced into ½ inch rounds
• 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
• 1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon curry
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• ¾ cup apple juice

1. Place the onion, garlic, carrots, sweet potatoes, garbanzo beans, and chicken breast pieces into a slow cooker. In a bowl, mix the cumin, turmeric, curry, cinnamon, black pepper, parsley, and salt, and sprinkle over the chicken and vegetables. Pour in the tomatoes and apple juice, and stir to combine.
2. Cover the cooker, set to High, cook for 1 hour. Change slow cooker setting to low and continue to cook for 5 hours or until the sweet potatoes are tender and the sauce has thickened.

Amount Per Serving Calories: 290 | Total Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 66mg

Molly's Rolls

This is the recipe for my all-time favorite "quick" rolls. This is my go to recipe for rolls! These are so delicious I have made this recipe probably a dozen times. They are easy and come out fluffy yet chewy at the same time. I have changed up several of the ingredients in the times I have made them to make them as healthy as possible. I wish I had a wheat grinder... but until then these delicious rolls are well worth any amount of calories needed to consume them. Just try to hold yourself back better than I can and eat 1 or 2 instead of 4 or 5....  :-)

This picture and recipe are courtesy of the wonderful Real Mom Kitchen and can be found at this site here: http://realmomkitchen.com/139/mollys-rolls/

Molly’s Rolls

Adapted from Real Mom Kitchen

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1 cup warm water
1 cup warm milk (I just heat it in the microwave for 30 seconds and let it sit while the yeast bubbled; I recommend using whole milk because it will help your rolls to have a better consistency but if you absolutely need to cut back on fat and calories I have used skim milk before with success)
1/3 cup honey
1 package yeast(2 1/4 teaspoon)
2 Tbsp + 2 tsp olive oil

2 Tbsp + 2 tsp applesauce
1/2 T salt
1 egg, beaten (or 2 egg whites)
flour (I ended up using around 5 cups)

In mixer combine yeast, honey, and warm water; let grow until bubbly (about 5 minutes). Add milk and mix. Mix in oil, applesauce and egg. Slowly add 2 cups flour, mix and then add salt. Add 1/2 cup flour at a time until it comes away from side of bowl. Place in a greased glass or metal bowl, cover with a clean cloth and let rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes. Form rolls as desired and place on a greased cookie sheet. Cover again with a clean cloth and let rise an additional 30 minutes. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Brush hot rolls with melted butter. I made 2 dozen with this recipe.

Baked Oatmeal

This terrifically easy and tasty breakfast is one that I wish we could have in our house more often; however, I don't think it can be classified as "healthy" per say. Mel at Mel's Kitchen Cafe has made some ingredient list changes to lighten it up but I still think it is a ways away from the best choice you can make for the most important meal of the day.

That being said, however, this would make a wonderful breakfast for a special occasion. It comes out tasting like a big cookie without being too sweet and we loved it scooped out of the pan right out of the oven with some extra milk. This is one that will stay in my recipe book. Loved it!

The recipe and picture are courtesy of Mel's Kitchen Cafe and can be found at this site here: http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2009/07/baked-oatmeal.html


Baked Oatmeal

from melskitchencafe.com 

6 cups oatmeal, either quick or old-fashioned

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup applesauce

2 cups milk

4 beaten eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon baking powder

2 teaspoons salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and pour into a greased 9X13-inch baking pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve with milk and/or fresh fruit.

The recipe can be easily halved and baked in an 8X8-inch pan.

Fluff

This recipe is an incredibly easy side dish that goes great with many different meals. I would recommend cutting back on the boxes of strawberry jello. It definitely didn't need 2 and got to be kind of grainy. I think next time I will only do 1 and I will definitely cut up some fresh strawberries to go with it. Or even banana slices would be yummy! The best thing about this is you can change it up to any flavor you want. Orange with mandarin oranges in it, or pineapple with pineapple chunks! Be creative and go for it!

This recipe and picture are courtesy of Sadie's Kitchen and can be found at this site here: http://sadieskitchen.blogspot.com/2011/05/fluff.html

Fluff

From Sadies Kitchen

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3 cups cottage cheese

2 (3 oz) boxes of strawberry jello (Add the second box slowly to adjust to your personal tastes)
1 container of cool whip
Strawberries (optional)

Whisk the jello powder into the cool whip. Add cottage cheese and stir well. Add fresh, sliced strawberries (optional) or have them for garnish. Refrigerate until serving.