Japanese or Oriental Salad

As per Kristi's request:
Japanese or Oriental Salad
2 chicken breasts, cooked and diced (or as much canned chicken as you want)
2 Tbsp sesame seeds, toasted (I don't think I've ever added these)
1 small pkg of slivered almonds
1 small head of cabbage
1 pkg chicken top ramen (break up noodles, but do not cook)
2 green onions
Mix the above together and prepare dressing.
1 pkg seasoning mix in top ramen
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 oil
1 tsp accent
1 tsp pepper
3 Tbsp vinegar
Mix together and pour over chicken mixture. Refrigerate 5-6 hours.
My recipe actually says to blend the dressing together. I've always just mixed it by hand, I've never tried to blend it in a blender, never really caught that before actually. I don't think you need to blend it though. Also, tonight I made this and decided to add a can of mandarin oranges. I would definitely do that again. So, that's all. :)
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Chewy Granola Bars

Chewy Granola Bars

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup oil

Combine ingredients until well mixed. Add 1 cup chocolate chips/raisins(/anything you'd like really) if desired. Press into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 20 minutes. Let cool completely before cutting.


This is another recipe from my Christmas gift from my sister-in-law, Kim. The first time I made it I didn't mix it very well and it didn't turn out as good. As far as any add ins, I say use as much as you'd like. I never measure with that sort of thing. (Like chocolate chips in chocolate chip cookies. Add to taste I say.) My personal favorite is a mix of peanut butter chips and chocolate chips. If you helped Kristi and Chuck move then you may have had the chance to try these. I, for some reason, can't stop myself from eating these when I make them. I find them a bit addicting.


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Black Bean and Brown Rice soup

Black Bean and Brown Rice soup


1 can (15 oz.) black beans undrained
1 cup water
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/4 Italian salad dressing
3/4 cup instant brown rice

Fresh cilantro and sour cream for garnish

Place 3/4 of can of beans into blender and purée until smooth. Pour into saucepan.
Add remaining beans, water, onion, salad dressing, and brown rice and stir to blend. Bring to boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until rice is tender.
Garnish with cilantro and dollop of sour cream.
Makes 2 hearty servings.

I found this recipe on the box of Western Family brand instant brown rice (which I get on WIC, along with the beans, even without WIC, this should still be a nice cheap meal.) It was nothing spectacular, but if you're looking for a quick, cheap, easy lunch or dinner then this is a good candidate. I skipped the onion and only had about 1/8 cup of the Italian dressing but it was fine. I think this would be an easy meal to play with as far as adding seasonings/garnishes. I like cilantro so I threw some in while it simmered. Also, I obviously skipped the sour cream (I like sour cream, I just opted to skip it for the fat, as I'm trying to lose some baby weight before the cruise and family pictures.) and added cheese. Avery and I also decided to add some gold fish to it. :)







Avery didn't finish her bowl (she rarely does) but she did eat it pretty well. It says it makes 2 hearty servings. I'd probably agree with that assessment. You can kind of see what we ate, and this is what we had left over.


I'd eat it again. Of course, if I wouldn't eat it again I probably wouldn't bother sharing the recipe.

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Cinnamon Vanilla Chia Seed Pudding

I recently discovered Chia Seeds and did a little research. Basically I found that they are what people call a 'super food' because not only is it super rich is nutrients but its also very versitile. I basically put them on everything. I sprinkled some on my breakfast cereal this morning, put it in smoothies, crepes, salads, ect. They keep you feeling fuller longer so they are great if you are trying to loose weight!
 HERE is a website that lists some other great benefits (Great for diabetics mom!).

Like I said you can use them in LOTS of different ways, but here is the pudding I mentioned the other day that I think would be great for your kids (and you) if you are trying to take it easy on the sugar :)




Fair warning: The texture (and appearance) is a little weird, but maybe you can sell it as something cool like frog eyes to your kids? The texture is along the lines of tapioca pudding. Ok. Now for the recipe.

Serves 2

1 cup milk, any kind you like 

3 tablespoons chia seeds

1-2 packets stevia (more or less to taste)*

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 small pinch sea salt

Stir together all ingredients in a small bowl; refrigerate until it reaches your desired thickness, stirring occasionally.  (I usually chill mine about 2 hours, but overnight is fine.)

Here are some of my thoughts and suggestions on the recipe.

-I like to use vanilla almond milk. Im sure rice milk would work fine for little Sophie.

-The first time I made this it turned out a little runny (still delicious), so the next time I added a little more chia seed and it helped to thicken it up. (The chia seeds absorb the milk and swell, forming a gel)

-I dont have stevia.  I used agave nectar. Im sure any sweetener would work just fine. Or if you are using something like the vanilla almond milk that it is already sweet you might be able to just forego the sweetener all together.

-I dont have sea salt. I didnt bother adding table salt. I dont know if it makes a difference :)

-The colder the better!

-It says it makes two servings, but they are decent sized portions, so whatever.

Let me know what you think! If you guys try this and like it and want other chia seed recipes let me know!

Baked Chicken Taquitos

Rather than typing out the whole thing I decided to just take a picture of this recipe. Let me know if its legible enough. If it works for all of you just the same I might do this again and again.
First is the recipe as given to me.




This is the recipe with my notes.




I added more cream cheese cause I felt like there just wasn't much "sauce". So then I added a little more of the salsa verde and a squeeze more of the lime. These ended up a bit spicy for me. Good, but a bit on the spicy side. Jeremy agreed and he has a higher tolerance for spicy than I do. I assumed that the reason they seemed so was the cumin so I wrote the change from 1/2 to 1/4 tsp. Then, just now, I decided to check my salsa verde bottle, I used a "medium" salsa verde (as opposed to mild) so it may have just been that. Or a combination. I really don't know if cumin is "spicy" or not. If you know, leave a comment and share your knowledge with us all. We made it through them with plenty of sour cream.
I ended up with 12 taquitos filling most of them with 2 Tbsp of filling. I would definitely make this again. They were good, I'll just use a mild salsa verde.




I forgot to take a picture when I made them Monday night so this is my leftovers reheated for lunch today. :)

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Black Bean Spinach Enchiladas

I am trying to be healthier and cook healthier this year, plus I watched this documentary called Vegucated.  It is about 3 people who go vegan for 6 weeks.  I am not going vegan, nor will I, but I know they have some healthy recipes.  So, I gave this recipe on pintrest a try.  Scott, my meat lover, was not excited about this dish.  But the nice thing about my meat lover is that he is willing to try anything once.  Scott said it wasn't bad and both he and kaden had seconds.  This is a success in my book!

Black Bean Spinach Enchiladas
Ingredients:

Sauce:
3 c organic low sodium veggie broth ( I used low sodium chicken broth :)
1/4 c tomato paste
1/4 c all purpose flour
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp chili powder
Salt/Pepper to taste

Enchiladas:
15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 c corn ( i used frozen, thawed)
6 oz fresh baby spinach
6 oz green onions, thinly sliced
1/3 c cilantro, chopped
2 tsp cumin
3 c shredded 3 cheese blend or pepper jack ( I just used what I had on hand)
8 whole wheat or flour tortillas

Directions:
Make the sauce: in a saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add tomato paste, flour, 2 tsp cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, and chili powder.  Cook 1 min, whisking.  Whisk in broth, bring to a boil.  Reduce to simmer, and cook until slightly thickened, about 8 min.  Salt/pepper to taste and set aside.  ( at around the 6 or 7 min mark I tasted the sauce and thought it needed some sugar, so I added 2 large pinches of sugar)

Saute the spinach in olive oil over medium heat for 1-2 min until slightly wilted.  In large bowl, combine beans, 2 c cheese, spinach, corn, green onions, 2 tsp cumin and cilantro.
Preheat oven to 375 F.  Lightly spray a 9x13 inch baking dish, and pour a small amount of the sauce to coat the bottom.
Generously fill tortillas with mixture, roll up tightly with ends tucked in, and place seam side down in dish.
Pour remaining sauce over the enchiladas, coating evenly.  Sprinkle 1 c cheese on top.  Bake about 20 mins, and garnish with cilantro and/or green onions (optional)

White Bean Chicken Chili (soup)

My sister-in-law, Kim, gave me a binder full of recipes for Christmas. I needed a recipe in which to use my canned beans that we've gotten being on WIC. Jeremy is not a fan of beans, so I shared this with mom, dad and Kristi when I made it and it was a hit.

White Bean Chicken Chili:
1-2 tsp olive oil
1/2 sweet yellow onion (I'm not a big onion fan, so I bought one white onion for this and about 3 other recipes)
1 7 oz. can diced green chiles
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp oregano
4 c chicken broth
2 tsp minced garlic
1 15 oz. can white beans, rinsed and drained (I skipped the kidney & used 2 cans of these, cause that's what I had)
1 15 oz. can white kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups cooked chicken chopped (I used 1 can and 1 shredded, cooked chicken breast. I'd take the time to cook chicken next time, it was just better.)
1/2 c fresh cilantro, chopped (just yum)

Heat the olive oil in large pot over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring frequently for 3-4 minutes. Add garlic, chiles, cumin, and oregano. Cook for 1-2 minutes and then add broth. Add beans, chicken and cilantro. Simmer on low for 30 minutes.

Suggested Toppings:
2-3 corn tortillas cut into strips
2 green onions, diced
Shredded cheese (I used mozzarella and it was yummy!)

While the soup is simmering heat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray and place tortilla strips on it and spray them with cooking spray and season with salt. Bake 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.

Ok now I want to make this soup again. I might even convince Jer to try it this time. :) If you try it let me know what you think.