Jalapeno Popper Chicken

I recommend serving with Spanish Rice-a-Roni. If chicken breasts are too thin, prepare them as roll ups, placing the cheese mixture on one end of the piece, folding  over, and securing with tooth picks.

Jalapeno Popper Chicken
Adapted from Elly Says Opa

Prep Time: 15 min / Cook time: 30 min
Serves 2

Ingredients
½ cup bread crumbs
2 tsp. canola oil
2 tsp taco seasoning
1 egg
2-oz cream cheese, room temperature
¼ cup shredded cheddar cheese
1-2 jalapeño peppers, seeds and ribs removed, minced
1 lb. chicken breasts

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375. Spray a oven-save baking sheet with cooking oil and set aside.

2. In a small skillet over medium heat, combine breadcrumbs and canola oil. Stir often, and cook until breadcrumbs are golden and crisped. Stir in taco seasoning, and place mixture in a shallow dish; season with salt and pepper as necessary.

3. In a small bowl, beat egg.  In a separate bowl, combine the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and jalapeños.

4. Cut a pocket into each chicken breast, divide cheese mixture evenly between each chicken breast’s pocket. Use toothpicks to secure, if necessary.

5. Dip chicken pieces into the egg mixture, and then the breadcrumb mixture; make sure chicken is fully coated. Place chicken on the prepared baking sheet and cook 25-30 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.

Mexican Lasagna

Mexican Lasagna

 

Adapted from Mel’s Kitchen Café

 

Prep Time: 15 min / Cook time: 55 min

 

Ingredients

1 ½ lb. ground turkey

1 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

6-oz can tomato paste

1 Tbsp chili powder

2 tsp cumin

Dash cayenne pepper

1 tsp dried oregano

24-oz can tomato sauce

14.5-oz can diced tomatoes, drained

15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 ½ cup frozen corn kernels, thawed

Salt & pepper, to taste

9-12 lasagna noodles (either no-boil, or cook and drain regular noodles)

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup sour cream

8-oz cream cheese

 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees; grease a 9X13-inch pan.

 

2. Brown ground turkey and onion over medium heat in a large skillet until cooked through.  Drain grease. Add garlic, tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, oregano, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, black beans, and corn. Mix well, season with salt and pepper, and heat for about 5 minutes.

 

3. Cover bottom of prepare pan with a thin layer of the sauce mixture.  Layer 3-4 noodles over the sauce, spread 1/3^rd of the sauce mixture over the noodles, and then spread 1/3^rd of the sour cream and cream cheese across the sauce. Top with 1/3^rd of the cheeses. Repeat two more times until all ingredients are used.

 

4. Cover with tin foil, and bake at 350 for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake 10-15 minutes more, until lasagna is bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting into and serving.

 

Make Ahead Directions

Assemble lasagna up to 12 hours in advance. Let the meat/sauce mixture come to room temperature before assembling. Cover with tin foil and refrigerate. Bake as directed, adding an additional 5-10 minutes.

Skillet Butternut Squash, Sausage, and Penne Pasta

Skillet Butternut Squash, Sausage, and Penne Pasta

 

Adapted from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
Prep time: 20 min / Cook time: 22 min 

Ingredients

1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound chicken sausage, casing removed
Salt & pepper, to taste
4 cups chicken broth
8 oz. ounces penne pasta
3 cups peeled and diced butternut squash
4 cups baby spinach
¼ tsp safe
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Grated Parmesan, for topping
 
Directions
1. In a large nonstick skillet, combine onion, garlic, and sausage; season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until the sausage is cooked through, 5-7 minutes. Plate and set aside.
 
2. In the same skillet, bring chicken broth and pasta and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, and cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in squash, simmer 5-7 minutes until squash and pasta are both tender. Squash will break down, and add a creaminess to the sauce. Add more liquid if mixture seems dry.

3. Stir in spinach and sage; cook for 1-2 minutes until spinach wilts. Add sausage and onion back to the skillet; add mozzarella and stir until melted.


 
4. Remove from heat, cover and let pasta sit for 5-10 minutes. Top with Parmesan cheese, and serve.

Vegetable Stew

The Polar Vortex wages on, and soup continues to appear on the menu.  To make soups a more filling dinnertime option, especially soups without meat or pasta, consider serving it in a bread bowl like we do with our Cheesy Tomato Soup.  With that being said, this soup is packed with both vegetables and protein, thickened up with a little evaporated milk and pasta, so no need for bread bowls this time around.  If you're cooking with lean meat, it's unlikely you'll have a lot of excess fat to drain from the pot, but it's good to scoop out whatever excess fat you can.  I had celery, baby carrots, and onion on hand, so that's what I chose to throw into the pot.  I called this a vegetable "stew" instead of "soup" because I thought it seemed particularly hearty.  In all honesty, I don't actually know the difference between "soup" and "stew," do you??

Vegetable Stew
Time: 45 minutes
Servers: 4-6

Ingredients

1 lb. ground turkey
2 tsp olive oil

3 cups diced vegetables (carrots, onion, red pepper, celery)
2 cloves garlic, minced
28-oz. can diced tomatoes
4 cups chicken broth
½ Tbsp dried basil
½ Tbsp dried oregano

½ Tbsp dried thyme

½ Tbsp dried sage

½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup small pasta, such as stelline, orzo or elbow macaroni
½ cup evaporated milk

Directions 

1. In a Dutch oven or large stockpot, brown turkey, stirring frequently until no longer pink.  Season with salt and pepper.  Drain excess fat and set aside turkey.

2. Using the same Dutch oven, combine olive oil and diced vegetables.  Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes or until soft.  Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 3o seconds.

3. Add the tomatoes, chicken broth, and spices to the pot.  Bring mixture to a simmer.  Add pasta, and continue heating on medium until pasta is cooked through, about 10-15 minutes.  Finally, add evaporated milk, and simmer for 5 minutes.

4. Add turkey back to the Dutch oven, and heat until warmed through.  If necessary, season with additional salt and pepper.

Crockpot Lasagna Soup

Crockpot Lasagna Soup

Adapted from Fresh Family Meals

Ingredients
1 lb ground turkey
3 cups chicken broth
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp dried basil
1 small onion chopped onion
28 oz can of diced tomatoes
6 oz can of tomato paste
8 oz can tomato sauce
Italian seasoning, to taste
2 cups uncooked shell pasta
Salt & Pepper, to taste
1 cup pater
Shredded Mozzarella cheese, for topping

Directions
1. Add all ingredients to the corckpot. Note, you do not need to pre-cook the turkey.

2. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours , or on high for 4-5 hours.

Pepperoni Pasta Bake

This dish reminds me a lot of Pizza Spaghetti, so no surprise that it was a big hit with KK! I added a red and green pepper to the dish to sneak some veggies into our meal (and also to use them before they went bad), and it was certainly a positive addition.  I had leftover pasta mixture after filling my 2.5-qt. corningware dish, so I filled a smaller 15-oz. baking dish with the remaining pasta.  I cooked both at the same time, and it did not affect the cook time.  We paired this pasta bake with a 2010 Casa Emma Chianti Classico which is one of the vineyards we visited in Tuscany last fall.  We were thrilled to find a wine shop near Kevin’s parent’s house where Casa Emma wine is sold! As usual, KK and I both topped our servings with a generous amount of crushed red pepper flakes!

Pepperoni Pasta Bake

Adapted from Gimme Some Oven

Time: 55 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients
1 lb. gemelli
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 green pepper, diced
½ tsp dried oregano
4 cloves garlic, minced
24-oz. jar marinara sauce
15-oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese, divided
½ cup Parmesan cheese
30 slides of pepperoni, sliced in half

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and cook pasta al dente according to package instructions.


2. While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Sauté onions for 2-3 minutes. Add diced peppers and cook an additional 5 minutes; onion should be translucent, and peppers should be soft.  Add garlic and oregano to the skillet and cook for 1 additional minute.  Once garlic is fragrant, remove skillet from heat.


3. Stir onion mixture marinara sauce, diced tomatoes, 1 ½ cups mozzarella, Parmesan cheese, and pepperoni into the pasta.  Mix well.


4. Transfer pasta mixture into a greased baking dish.  Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese, cover with aluminum foil, and bake for 40 minutes.  Remove foil and bake an additional 10-15 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and golden brown.  Serve immediately.