Classic Repeat: Buffalo Chicken Wing Soup

It has been long enough since I posted this that I needed to share it again, especially since the weather is so wonderfully cooling down. This smooth soup with just a bit of kickback is exactly what one needs to make these cold days even better. We love this soup and it is so easy and quick to make with such basic ingredients! The picture is courtesy of Allrecipes.com. My original post for this soup can be found here.

Taco Pasta Salad

Taco salad is one of my favorite go-to recipes. It is so quick, easy, and delicious. When I found this recipe on Sadie's Kitchen Adventures I knew that we had to try it! I am really happy to report that it turned out delicious. I love the addition of that pasta as I felt it gave the dish more substance so it was more filling. Still very easy too! The picture is courtesy of this site here.

TACO PASTA SALAD
From Sadie’s Kitchen Adventures

2 cups uncooked spiral pasta (I used Garden Rotini-YUM!)
1 pound lean ground beef
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground oregano
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced

OPTIONAL: (The bolded/italicized ones are the ones I used)
3 cups shredded lettuce
2 cups tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped
1/2 cup Ranch salad dressing
2 cups shredded cheese
1 avacodo, chopped
1 cup corn
1 cup sliced olives
Tortilla Chips

Cook pasta according to package directions. (If you are using corn you can just throw in frozen corn in the pot with the pasta towards the end - that way you don't have to dirty 2 pans.) Meanwhile, cook beef, onion, garlic, cumin, oregano, and chili powder in a skillet over medium heat. Let cool.

Drain pasta and rinse with cold water, stir into the meat mixture. Add any of the optional ingredients you want. Toss to coat. Serve with tortilla chips.

Deep-Dish Taco Pizza

We love Mexican food around here (surprise, surprise...) and this one was a huge hit! Pretty versatile too. I added some things to add more substance and I am really glad that I did. It made the Pizza almost impossible to eat without a fork but I felt like it made it more filling and "better" for you. This definitely isn't the most healthy meal you will encounter, but it was such a big hit with everyone. We were watching our niece, Serenthia, and she ate almost an entire piece by herself (12 months old)! Abrielle couldn't get enough of it either and Jake was raving about it. Try this one. You will really like it! The recipe below is my modified recipe. If you would like to see the original please visit the wonderful site http://threeonfood.blogspot.com/.

DEEP-DISH TACO PIZZA
From Three on Food

1 lb. hamburger meat
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 (15 oz.) cans Rotel, drained
1 pkg. Taco seasoning
1 cup frozen corn, rinsed
1 can medium olives, sliced
2 (10 oz.) cans refrigerated pizza crust dough (for a thinner crust use just 1)
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar (We used 1/2 cup cheddar and 1 1/2 cups Monterey Jack because that is what we had!)
Salsa (optional)
sour cream (optional)

Preheat oven to 425°. Cook beef and onion in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until beef is browned, stirring to crumble. Drain well, and return beef mixture to pan. Stir in rotel, corn and taco seasoning; cook over medium-high heat 1 minute or until thoroughly heated; set aside. Unroll pizza crust dough. Press into bottom and halfway up sides of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Spoon beef mixture over pizza crust dough and top with olives. Bake at 425° for 12 minutes. Top with cheese, and bake 5 minutes or until cheese melts and edges of crust are browned. Let stand 5 minutes before slicing. Serve warm. Top with salsa and sour cream, if desired.

Penne in a White Sauce

I'm sorry I haven't posted a lot lately. We have had so many expenses this month that we have been eating as simply as possible. Lots of quesadillas and taco rice. lol. But this is a dish that I threw together with things that we just had around the house the other night. When I make a dish up it is usually because it is a bunch of things that just sound good. We really liked it and it was really easy - so here you go! It was really late when we made this and so I didn't take a picture. But the picture looks a LOT like it and is courtesy of this site.
PENNE IN A WHITE SAUCE

8-12 oz. penne noodles
3 tsp minced garlic
1/3 cup sliced green onions
juice of 1 lemon
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup - 1 cup milk to desired consistency
1 - 2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (optional, or you can just use canned chicken)
Paremesan cheese

Cook noodles according to package directions; drain. In the meantime, in a large skillet, saute the garlic until golden brown on medium heat. Mix in green onions and lemon juice and mix together. If you are using chicken, add it to the skillet and mix. If you want to make this a vegetarian meal you can add cooked broccoli or peas instead. Mix in cream of chicken soup and milk. The sauce should be slightly thick so don't add too much milk. Also, the thicker the milk you use the creamier your sauce will be. Mix in the cooked penne and toss to coat. Serve warm with paremesan on top.

Beach Street Lemon Chicken Linguini

Oh.My.Yum!!!!!! This is one of my new FAVORITE pasta dishes. Such a great flavor and, as long as you remember to marinade ahead of time, relatively simple to make. The flavors are a rich combination of so many different kinds of flavors that they just roll over your tongue. And it is still subtle and light without the thick creams added to so many pasta sauces.

Don't be afraid of the lemon zest. Just rub a lemon on the small part of a cheese grater. It takes about 2 minutes, if that. And the picture shows SHREDDED  parmesan, but we used grated and it was wonderful.  Seriously, this is one you will WANT to try! It ranks up there in my book with the Balsamic Chicken Noodle Bowl!

The recipe and picture are courtesy of My Kitchen Cafe and can be found here.

BEACH STREET LEMON CHICKEN LINGUINI

From My Kitchen Cafe
**This recipe requires marinating the chicken for 3-12 hours so plan ahead!**

1 lb. linguine
2 tablespoons olive oil
Zest from one lemon
Juice from one lemon
3 green onions, chopped (white and green parts)
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Marinade:
½ cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
Juice of one lemon
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 chicken breasts, sliced

Combine the marinade ingredients in a bowl and whisk lightly before pouring into a ziploc plastic bag. Pat chicken dry and toss in marinade to coat. Refrigerate 3-12 hours.

When ready to cook, preheat skillet over medium heat and pour contents of plastic bag (both marinade and chicken) into the skillet. Saute over medium-high heat until chicken is cooked.

Combine juice of one lemon, lemon zest, olive oil, green onions and fresh parsley together in a small bowl. Set aside.

While the chicken is sautéing, cook linguine in boiling salted water until done; drain and return to warm pot. Pour lemon juice/olive oil/green onion mixture over pasta and mix lightly. When chicken is finished cooking, add hot pasta mixture to the skillet with the chicken and toss well. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and toss in parmesan cheese. Serve warm.

Mango Pico De Gallo

When I was pregnant I could not stand Mexican food. The only exception? Chips and Salsa. I craved chips and salsa more than anything else that there was available. Since I have had my baby I have not been able to quench my Mexican craving. I CONSTANTLY want tacos, burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, or especially, CHIPS AND SALSA!!!!

My favorite salsa is the Garden Fresh Salsa from Sam's Club. But this one is my favorite homemade salsa! I love Our Best Bites and they definitely didn't disappoint with this recipe. It is the perfect combination of flavors, and this is coming from someone who DOES NOT like Mangos!!!

The picture and recipe are courtesy of Our Best Bites and can be found here.

MANGO PICO DE GALLO
Recipe by Our Best Bites

1 c. small cubes of mango (about 1 medium to large mango)
1/2-1 large jalapeno pepper (1/2 without seeds is a nice, mild-medium heat; go from there)
1/4 c. chopped cilantro
1/4 of a medium red onion, finely chopped
Juice of 1 lime
2 cloves garlic, minced
Kosher or sea salt to taste

ROCKET SCIENCE ALERT: Combine ingredients. Serve. This will keep for a day or so (like it will last that long), but after that, the mangoes will get mushy.

PS! Do you remember the Crockpot Creamy Southwestern Chicken Nachos? This salsa makes that recipe, if it were possible, a million times better!

Classic Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

I was craving a dessert and I had all of the ingredients for this one on hand. I have tried them before but they turned out so FLAT! This time they were much better, as evidence of the picture. YUMMY! Super easy to make too. This is a great cookie go-to recipe! I have highlighted what I believe to be the crucial step below.

CLASSIC OATMEAL CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
From My Kitchen Café

1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour
2 3/4 cups oatmeal
2 cups chocolate chips

Cream together the butter and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. Add Baking soda, powder, and salt and mix. Add flour, oatmeal and chocolate chips. Mix until combined. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Yield : about 3 dozen.