Crispy Ranch Chicken

Ingredients:

2 C. Rice Krispies

1/2 C. Grated Parmesan Cheese

1 Packet Ranch Salad Dressing Mix

2 Egg Whites Beaten

8 Pieces Boneless Skinless Chicken

Preheat the oven to 350.  Spray baking sheet with cooking spray.  Combine rice cereal, Parmesan and Ranch mix in large bowl.  

 

Place egg whites in medium bowl.  

Dip each piece of chicken in the egg and the cereal mixture to coat evenly.  

 

Place chicken on baking sheet and bake until golden brown 20-25 mins. 

Jamaican Jerk Chicken

Ingredients:

1 Tbl. Jerk Seasoning

1/4 Tsp. Salt

2 Tsp. Olive Oil

4-6 Chicken Breasts (Depending on size)

Mix Seasonings, Salt and Oil into a shallow bowl.  Dip/Toss chicken with mixture (make sure you get all of the goodness on the chicken). 

 Arrange on pan.

Bake at 450 for 35 minutes or until juices run clear.  **Sorry again, no finished picture.**

Enjoy!!!!

Onion-Roasted Chicken & Potatoes

Ingredients:

1 Pkg. Lipton Onion Soup Mix

1/4 C. Olive or Vegetable Oil

1/2 Tsp. Garlic Powder

4 Chicken Breast Halves

1 Lb. Potatoes (red or regular)

Preheat oven to 450.  

In a large plastic bowl, add all ingredients. Close and coat evenly.

**We mixed the oil, soup mix, and Garlic powder in a bowl and poured the mixture over the pan instead of coating.  It seemed to work just fine.  Make sure you spray the potatoes with cooking spray so that they all have a little bit of oil.**

Bake 45 minutes, basting half-way through.

ENJOY!!!!

Pepper-Lime Chicken

Ingredients:

6 Skinless, Boneless Chicken Breast Halves

1 Tsp. Finely Shredded Lime Peel

1/3 Cup Lime Juice

3 Tbl. Cooking Oil

1 Tsp. Dried Thyme or Basil, crushed

1/2 Tsp. Coarsely Ground Black Pepper

1/4 Tsp. Salt

2 Cloves Garlic, Minced

Bottled Salsa (optional)

Lime Wedges (optional)

Place chicken breast halves in a resealable plastic bag set in a shallow dish.  For marinade, stir together lime peel, lime juice, oil, thyme, pepper, salt, and garlic.  Pour over chicken; seal bag.  Marinate in refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat broiler.  Drain chicken, reserving marinade.  Place chicken on the unheated rack of a broiler pan.  Broil 4-5 inches from the heat about 6 minutes or until light brow. (Sorry, I obviously need to get a broiler pan).

Turn chicken and brush lightly with reserved marinade.  Discard any remaining marinade.  Broil for 6-8 minutes more or until chicken is no longer pink.  If desired, serve with salsa and lime wedges. (Again, I didn't get a picture when it was done.)

You can use any leftover Pepper-Lime Chicken in Chicken Burritos, on a salad, really anything! :)

Simple Shepards Pie

Ingredients:

1 Lb. Browned Ground Beef

1 Can Green Beans

1 Can Kidney Beans

1 Can Black Beans

1 Can Tomato Soup (can also use Cream of Chicken or Cream of Mushroom soup)

2+ Cups Mashed Potatoes, you can use leftovers or packaged (shown below)

Combine meat, beans and soup in a medium crock pot/slow cooker.

Mix well and season to taste.

Pour mashed potatoes over the mixture and spread.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Perfect recipe to prepare in the morning and have for dinner.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 Package Frozen meatballs (or make your own - 1 to 2 lbs)

1/2 C. Brown sugar, Packed

2 Tbls. Soy Sauce

1 Tbls. Lemon Juice

2 Tbls. Cornstarch

1/2 C. Vinegar

1 Can Pineapple Chunks

1 Bell Pepper, Chopped

1 C. Celery, Chopped (or as much as you want)

1 C. Carrots, Chopped (or as much as you want)

1 Onion, Chopped

Drain the juice from the pineapple into a measuring cup.  Add water the juice to make 1 Cup.  Combine Pineapple liquid, brown sugar, soy sauce, lemon juice, cornstarch, and vinegar in a pan on the stove.  Mix well while cold.

 Cook on high stirring constantly until sauce thickens and changes to more of a brown, clear color.

Put meatballs, pineapple and chopped veggies in a 13x9 pan.  Cover with sauce.

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until heated through.  Serve over rice or egg noodles. (Sorry friends -  I didn't get a picture of the finished product.  I'll update one ASAP.)

Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 Lb Ground Beef

1 Egg

1/2 C. Milk

1/3 C. Soft Breadcrumbs (the smaller-the better)

2 Tbl. Onion-Finely chopped (or Dried Onion Flakes)

1/2 Tsp. Pepper

1/4 Tsp. Dry Mustard

1/4 Tsp. Garlic Salt

1 Tsp. Worchester Sauce

Mix all ingredients together.

Scoop mixture into small balls and place on a greased broiler pan.

Broil for 8 minutes, turn and cook for 8 more minutes.  You may need to adjust the cooking time to how well done you want the Meatballs.

These meatballs can be used in everything from Spaghetti and Meatballs to Sweet and Sour Meatballs.  As always, the seasonings can be adjusted for what you and your family like.  Enjoy!!

Freezing Ground Beef

If you can purchase ground beef in bulk, you can freeze the meat.  Break the meat into one pound sections and put one section into Gallon freezer bags.  Use a rolling pin to roll the meat flat in the freezer bags (making sure the air is out, but the also squeezing out any extra air bubbles).  This will help store the meat in the freezer.  It also makes it easy to defrost (only takes 30-45 minutes).  Most recipes call for one pound of meat, this makes it easy for portions. **Remember to put the date on the package so that you know how old it is!**

You can also cook, season and freeze the ground meat.  Cook and season ground beef with taco seasoning, cool, place in baggies and freeze.  This will make for a very simple 'Taco Night'.  **Again - remember to put the date on the package!**