Chicken, Mushroom, & Spinach Quesadilla

Here's my latest fave!

You'll need:

Tortillas

Chicken, cooked and shredded

Sliced mushrooms

Spinach

Shredded cheese (I used Monterey Jack!)

Olive Oil Cooking Spray

Begin by heating a small skillet on medium-low heat. Spray with olive oil cooking spray.

Build your quesadilla by layering cheese, chicken, veggies, and more cheese. The cheese on both sides helps to hold the quesadilla together.

Place in skillet and cook for about 5 minutes on each side. I like to place a small plate on top as a weight to flatten everything together. 

Flip over when golden brown, and cook for another 4-5 minutes.

 Move to cutting board to cut in quarters, and serve!

Enjoy!

Baked Rigatoni

When I was in college, this was a consistent request from friends. It's the best comfort food and makes great leftovers. :)

You'll need:

1 (1 lb.) package rigatoni
1 lb. lean ground beef

1 jar spaghetti sauce (I used Newman's Own Fire Roasted Tomato & Garlic)

1/2 a medium onion, diced
1-2 cloves garlic
1 tsp. Italian season
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. dried basil (or a few leaves of the fresh stuff)
1/4 tsp. dried red pepper flakes
Salt and Pepper to taste
8 oz. container sour cream
8 oz. ricotta cheese
8 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded


Dice your half onion.

Saute for about 10 minutes on medium heat.

Add diced garlic and saute for another couple minutes before adding your ground beef. Brown the meat, breaking it up into tiny pieces.

Add the whole jar of spaghetti sauce.

Add some fresh basil if you have some on hand. Otherwise, the dried stuff will do the trick. Add Italian seasoning, oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper.

Let the sauce simmer on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes.

While that's simmering, start cooking your pasta.

This is also a good time to mix the sour cream and ricotta in a small bowl.

Cook the pasta according the package instructions and drain.

Return pasta to its original pot and add the meat sauce. Stir that up!

Add half of the pasta mixture to a 9x11 glass dish that's been sprayed with olive oil cooking spray.

Top with the sour cream/ricotta mixture.

Layer that with the rest of the pasta/meat mixture.

Top with mozzarella cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Invite friends over to share, and serve while hot!

Enjoy!

Wrapped & Stuffed Chicken

I rarely eat bacon, but I had a few slices leftover from wrapping jalepenos for THIS RECIPE, so I thought I might as well wrap some chicken, too. I also had some fresh herbs and cheese in the fridge, and voila... Wrapped and stuffed chicken!

You'll need:

2 pieces boneless, skinless chicken breast

4 bacon slices (2 strips per chicken breast)

1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Fresh herbs to taste (I used basil and oregano.)

Salt & Pepper to taste

1/4 cup chicken broth

2 tsp. olive oil (for drizzling)

*Makes 2 servings!

First, clean your chicken breasts by trimming off the fat and giving them a good rinse. Pat dry, and lay on your cutting board.

As far as I know, there are two ways to stuff a chicken breast. You can either grab a sharp knife and cut a horizontal slit through the chicken - not all the way, just enough so you have room to cram in the stuffing. Or, you can do it this way...

Place a chicken breast between parchment paper

Smack it with a hard, smooth surface. If you're fancy and have a meat mallet, use that. I used a can of tomato soup. :)

I flattened my chicken to about 1/4-1/2 inch thick. Try to get both pieces to about the same thickness.

Season both sides of the flattened chicken breast with salt and pepper.

This basil and oregano came from my mom's garden. (Thanks, Mom!)

Just sprinkle the herbs onto one half of the chicken.

And pile the shredded cheese on top of that.

Fold the chicken in half so that the herbs and cheese are enclosed.

Wrap with bacon, securing everything with a toothpick or two.

Place in a pan, and drizzle with olive oil. I like to pour some chicken broth or dry, white wine (like Chardonnay) in the dish to keep everything juicy.

Bake for 25-30 minutes on 350 degrees or until the center of the chicken is no longer pink. The bacon will be crispy on top, but the chicken is perfectly moist underneath.

Okay, I'll let you check out the inside!

All the cheese comes oozing out when you slice open the chicken breast. Delish! Soon I'll post the recipe for those creamy mashed potatoes in the picture above. Yum!!

Strawberry Salad with Saffron Chicken + Citrus Mint Dressing

After all those Nutella recipes, I think we need a healthy one.

You'll need:

Salad:

Spring mix
Alfalfa sprouts
Cucumber slices
Strawberries
Goat cheese crumbles (or feta if that's your thing)
3 Tbsp. olive oil
Shredded chicken - I used rotisserie chicken.
PINCH of saffron
Salt & Pepper to taste

Dressing:
Juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/8 tsp. dried mint
*Makes 2 servings... I've made this dressing before for THIS AMAZING SALAD.

Here's my secret to quick, no-fuss chicken. When I go grocery shopping - usually on Sunday - I buy an already-cooked rotisserie chicken. Then I tear it apart, shred all the meat, and store it in a tupperware container in the fridge. It's good for the rest of the week for sandwiches, salads, chicken nachos, casseroles, just about anything! One day I'll make my own rotisserie chicken, and it'll be more delicious. But not today.

Drizzle the olive oil in a small sauté pan on medium-low heat.

Add chicken, and sprinkle with pinch of saffron. Toss well to coat the chicken in the saffron. If you're not using pre-seasoned rotisserie chicken like me, add some salt and pepper, too. (If you want the chicken to be really moist, add a few tablespoons of a dry white wine or chicken broth.) Sauté for 6-8 minutes until the chicken is hot and begins to turn a golden color.

While that's sautéing, start building your salad... spring mix, sprouts, cucumbers, strawberries, goat cheese, salt & pepper, and really anything else you're in the mood for. I like to prepare my salad in a big bowl so there's plenty of room for tossing.

For the dressing, juice the lemons, using a strainer to catch the seeds.

Add dried mint. (Sometimes I'll add salt & pepper to the dressing, but this time I added that to my salad instead.)

Whisk in 2 Tbsp. olive oil.

Pour over the salad, toss, and plate!

Top with chicken.

I like to add a little more cheese right before serving.

Enjoy!