Polenta

bring 6 cups water and 1 Tbs. sea salt to a boil. Slowly add to boiling water 1 1/3 cups corn meal.

I love polenta. I grew up with it and just love it! Ryan thinks it's okay, but for me it's the bomb! I don't have a picture of polenta, if you don't know what it looks like.... google it. I usually serve polenta with spaghetti sauce. It's good stuff.

Mexican Sweet Pork

This is like the sweet pork at Costa Vida or Cafe Rio. It is super good.

This recipe is my sister Michelle's.

3-4 lbs. pork
1/2 can coke (diet or regular)
1 cup. brown sugar
8 oz. salsa

put it all in a crockpot and cook 5-6 hours on high or 8-10 hours on low.
If it is too dry double the ingredients.
To Serve: place on a tortilla with black beans, lettuce, salsa, cilantro, sour cream, guacamole, ranch dressing,etc.

Ryan's Review: LOVE IT!
Renee's thoughts: LOVE IT!

Mom's Best Baked Chicken

Menu: Mom's Best Baked Chicken, Rolls, Green Beans, Rice

Saute:
1/4 c. chopped onion
1/4 - 1/3 c. bell pepper, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped

Add:

1 T. mustard

1 1/4 c. ketchup

1/3 - 1/2 c. brown sugar

2 tsp. lemon juice

Pour mixture over chicken breasts, thighs, or drumsticks. Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour.

Leek and Potato Pie

Menu: Leek and Potato Pie, Peaches with Cottage Cheese

Leek and Potato Pie:

2 large leeks

1 3/4 lbs. potatoes, peeled or scrubbed and thinly sliced

1/4 c. flour

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/4 c. butter or margarine

2 1/4 c. milk

Mix together the flour, salt and pepper. Place 1/3 of potatoes in a layer in a baking dish (9x13). Sprinkle half the leeks on top, half of the flour mixture, and 1/3 of the butter.

Spead a layer of potatoes on top and sprinkle with the rest of the leeks and seasoned flour. Dot with half of the butter. Top with the remaining potatoes. Dot with rest of butter.

Heat milk and pout over potatoes. Cover with foil or lid and bake for 45 minutes at 450 degrees. Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes.

Rating: We had guest show up unexpectedly for dinner (which I don't mind at all) and everyone loved it. This has been a long time favorite of mine.

BBQ Chicken Kebabs

Menu: BBQ Chicken Kebabs with seasoned Egg Noodles and grapes

Kebabs:
Cut up chicken, bell peppers, and onions and marinade them in Italian Dressing for a couple hours.
Put on skewers adding pineapple as well. Cook on BBQ. Cook egg noodles and season with Italian Dressing as well. Serve together.

Note: I made this up a couple years ago and it is one of our favorite dishes. It is sooooo good. The noodles are lightly seasoned and go really well with the kebabs.

Baked Potato Soup

Menu: Baked Potato Soup, Crescent Rolls, Peaches with Cottage Cheese

Baked Potato Soup:
Remove skins, mash, and set aside: 4 Baked potatoes

Cook and set aside: 2 strips of bacon

Add to pan with drippings:
1/2 c. celery, chopped
1 can (14 oz) chicken broth
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 c. green onions, sliced thinned
1 1/2 c. milk
1 1/4 tsp. salt
Mashed Potatoes

Bring to a boil and then simmer for 10 minutes. Then stir in:
3/4 c. light sour cream
bacon, crumbled

Note: I like the potatoes mashed lumpy.

Rating: Huge hit. We love this dish!

Giada's Pasta

1 Box or 1 lb. short pasta - shells, bowties, etc.
Asparagus or broccoli heads
1 1/2 Tbs. olive oil
4 Tbs. Butter
3 cloves gralic, chopped very fine
5 anchovies, chopped (don't worry, they aren't as bad as you think)
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
salt
1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water, with salt in the water, to a boil. Add the pasta. Cook about 5 minutes or until slightly soft, but still crunchy. Add either asparagus or broccoli into the pasta water. Cook about 4 minutes. Do not over cook the vegetable. Meanwhile in a very large skillet, melt butter and oil together. Once melted, add garlic. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add anchovies, crushed red pepper, and salt. Stir and cook for a few minutes. Add vegetable straight from pasta water to skillet with butter mixture. Sautee for about 3 mintues. Add pasta into pan with everything else. Add 2-3 ladels of the pasta water into pan. Add parmesan cheese into pan. Stir all together. Can be served hot or at room temperature.

Ryan's review: Good, Good, Good! I love it!

Renee's thought: I usually use broccoli but asparagus was good too. This was so good.

Fish Tacos and Spanish Rice

Fish Batter:
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup milk
dash of cayene pepper
1-2 Tbs. chili powder (depends on how you like it, I used 1 Tbs)
1/2-1 tsp. cumin (I used 1/2 tsp)

Mix all together. Thinner batter is better. If it is too thick, add a little more milk.
Cut your fish into small pieces, like nuggets or fish sticks (I used Pollack for my fish, but any white fish is okay to use). Drop the fish into the batter one at a time. Place in a pan with hot oil. If the fish cooks too fast or too slow adjust heat accordingly. My oil was not super deep, so I had to flip my fish to cook both sides. You can cook about 3 at a time. Do not cook to many at once, if you do it will cool the oil down and the fish won't cook properly. Place cook fish on a paper towl to absorb excess oil.

To Serve: Place 1-2 fish pieces on a small corn or flour tortilla (warm them up first). Add chopped cabbage, cilantro, tartar sauce (I like it thinned with some milk), salsa/tapatio, fresh lime juice, tomatoes. Fold tortilla over and enjoy!

Spanish Rice: This recipe is not exact with measurements, but it is so good: sautee about 1/2 cup onion and 1/2 a green pepper. Add 1 cup Rice, 2 cups Chicken broth, 1 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp, chili powder. Mix well. Add canned and drained tomatoes (add how much you want, I think I added about 1/2 cup). Bring to a boil, cover, and reduse to low heat. Cook for 20 minutes. After it is done add fresh cilantro on top. Super yummy!

Ryan's Review: HOLD ME BACK PEOPLE!! This was the best meal ever! The tacos were so good, I don't love rice, but this was pretty good. The tacos were the best!

Renee's thoughts: This is one of those meals that I will be making regularly. This was my first time making them, but it won't be the last.

Mud Soup (Lentil Potato Soup)

I know, the name is awful, but this is a great soup. We named it that when were kids because we thought it looked like mud.

Menu: Mud Soup, Fruit Salad, Rolls

Mud Soup:
2 strips bacon (optional)
1 onion, chopped and sauteed
1 c. uncooked lentils
1/4 c. flour


Mix the above ingredients together in large pot and add:
6 c. beef broth
2 chopped carrots
2 chopped celery stalks
2 chopped, peeled potaoes

Simmer until lentils and vegetables are all cooked (about 2 hours) adding water as it simmers.
After it is all cooked add:
1/4 c. fresh parsley or 2 T. dried parsley
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
a little nutmeg (about 1/2 tsp.)

Rating: My parents and Renee were over for dinner and we all agreed that it was super-duper good. See how much my dad is enjoying it!!!

Lemon Bake Chicken (4/3/08)

Menu: Lemon Baked Chicken, Baked Red Potatoes with Cottage Cheese, Knot Rolls, and Green Beans

Lemon Baked Chicken:

4 chicken breasts

1 T. onion, raw

2 T. lemon juice, fresh

2 tsp. canola oil

1/4 tsp. paprika

Arrange chicken in baking pan. Chop onion and spread over chicken with remaining ingredients. Bake at 350 degees for 40 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Rating: This was so GOOD! We loved it - it was very flavorful and moist. The potato was an especially nice compliment.

Sauteed Halibut with Gazpacho Salsa (4/2/08)

Menu: Sauteed Halibut with Gazpacho Salsa, Seasoned Rice, Steamed Broccoli, and Whole Wheat Rolls

Sauteed Halibut:

2 fillets of Halibut
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 T. Olive oil
Gazpacho Salsa

Spinkle fish with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large killet over med.-high heat. Add fish and cook until done.

Gazphaco Salsa:

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped

1 large ripe tomato, chopped

1 celery rib, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced (I always about three)

1 T. olive oil

1/2 tsp. red wine vinegar

1 tsp. lemon juice

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl; cover and chill.

Rating: Normally we love this dish, but tonight it didn't turn out as good. It was good, just not spectacular!

BLT's (4/1/08)

Menu: BLT's with Pasta Salad

Uhhh, if you don't know how to make a BLT then you may want to be exploring another sight (like a sight for third-graders). BUT, on the off-chance that you don't here it is:

BLT stands for Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato. I always toast the bread (these slices got over toasted), add a little mayo (and a dab of Italian Dressing if I needing some zing), and I usually opt for cheese over the tomato (I am not a big tomato fan).

Pasta Salad: It is a little secret called Suddenly Salad...$1.10 at the grovery store.

Rating: I was in a rush that night so we never got around to ratings. But this is always yummy!

Mustard Dill Chicken

1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
1 Tbs. plain fat-free yogurt
pinch of garlic powder
1 tsp. dried dill weed (can use rosemary too)
4 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Combine mustard, yogurt, garlic powder, and dill weed in a large ziplock bag. Mix really well. Add chicken and mix well again. Let it stand for at least 30 minutes. Tear off a large piece of aluminum foil and place on a baking sheet. Place chicken on foil and gather/fold foil around chicken to seal it. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 350*. Then open foil and broil chicken for 5 minutes of until it begins to look golden brown.
** Note: This is for one chicken breast only. It doesn make more sauce than you would think though, so use your own judgement on how many breasts the sauce is good for. I usually double the sauce if I cook 2 breasts.

Ryan's review: For chicken it was good. The entire meal was very good. (Ryan loves asparagus).

Renee's thoughts: I like this chicken because it is easy to make and this chicken goes with everything - rice, potatoes, corn, beans, fruit, etc. I really like it.

Southwestern Chicken and Pasta

1 cup uncooked rigatoni
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into pieces
1/4 cup salsa
1 1/2 cups canned tomato sauce
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cumin (I usually add a little more)
1/2 tsp chili powder (I usually add a little more)
1/2 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup fresh or canned corn
1/4 to 1/2 cup cheese (depends on how cheesey you like it)

Cook pasta according to directions. Meanwhile in a large, deep skillet saute chicken (spray pan first or use a little oil), until chicken is browned and opaque throughout. Stir in the salsa, tomato sauce, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, black beans, and corn. Stir thoroughly and cook until heated through. Add the pasta and gently toss to mix evenly. Sprinkle cheese over the top and allow to melt.
**Note: this recipe says it has 2 servings, but I half it and we still have left overs, so making a whole recipe should feed 4 people (or at least I would think so).

Ryan's review: good! Renee did not give me enough to begin with and then gave the rest to my brother, so I was hungry later...... I wanted seconds. So, it was good.

Renee's thoughts: This is one of those meals that I always have the ingredients for and comes together really quickly. I also like that it is healthy; not a lot of fat or grease. I used left over chicken from the other day and it worked great. I like this meal a lot. It tastes better than it looks.