Easy Pasta Primavera

3 cups (8 oz.) rotini pasta, uncooked

1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen vegetable blend

1/2 lb. (8 oz.) velveeta (2% milk) pasteuized cheese product, cut up

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 black pepper

make it:

add pasta to 2 quarts (8 cups) boiling water in a large sauce pan. boil 3 minutes. stir in vegetables; cook an addtional 7 minutes or until pasta is tender. drain; return to saucepan.

add velveeta (made with 2% milk) and seasonings. cook until velveeta is melted, stirring frequently.

 
*I cook up some cubed chicken breast and add that in, too....more hearty....and a little more poly friendly :)

Enchiladas

I think these are fairly easy. They are my mom's recipe and I have been afraid to make them thinking they'd be difficult, but I was surprised at how easy they are. For just me and my husband I only make about 1/2 of what this calls for and we still have leftovers for lunch. It's really flexible, so if you don't have all the beef it calls for just do a little less in each enchilada.

Enchiladas

Sauce:

1 10 oz. Las Palmas Enchilada sauce

1 8 oz. can tomato sauce

Mix and warm

Beef Filling:

1 ½ lb. ground beef

1 tsp. salt

½ bunch green onions (bottoms)

Other ingredients:

1 small can chopped olives

1 ½ lb. sharp cheese (grated)

Corn tortillas

Green onion tops

Cook meat, onions, and salt until meat is well broken into small pieces.

Dip tortillas into sauce. Fill with meat, olives, cheese. Turn rolled side down into baking pan. Put remaining sauce, a few olives, chopped onions (tops), and cheese over all. Bake 450 for 15 mins.

Garlic Lemon Baked Salmon

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 tablespoons light olive oil

1 teaspoon dried basil

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped (or dry parsley conversion)

2 (6 ounce) fillets salmon

1. If cooking immediately, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C), otherwise after step 2.

2. In a medium glass bowl, prepare marinade by mixing garlic, light olive oil, basil, salt, pepper, lemon juice and parsley. Place salmon fillets in a medium glass baking dish, and cover with the marinade. Marinate in the refrigerator about 1 hour (optional), turning occasionally.

3. Place fillets in aluminum foil, cover with marinade, and seal. Place sealed salmon in the glass dish, and bake 35 to 45 minutes, until easily flaked with a fork.

Anne's Fabulous Grilled Salmon (allrecipes.com)

(this is really easy and really yummy!)
INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root
2 tablespoons honey
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon finely chopped shallots
1 (3 pound) salmon fillet, with skin


DIRECTIONS
Make a pan out of aluminum foil by doubling up layers of foil large enough to hold your fillet. Place the foil onto a cookie sheet. Lay the fillet onto the foil with the skin side down. In a small bowl, stir together the oil, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, ginger, honey, basil and shallots. Pour over the salmon and let it marinate while you preheat the grill, about 20 minutes.
Preheat a grill for medium-low heat. Slide the foil with the salmon off of the cookie sheet and onto the grill. Cover with the lid and grill the fillet for 10 minutes per inch of thickness, about 20 minutes. Salmon should be able to flake with a fork, but not be too dry. When you serve the salmon, the skin will stick to the foil and your grill will remain clean. Simply slice and use a spatula to scoop the fillet off of the skin to serve.

Pizza

This is more a recipe idea than an actual recipe...

At Walmart/Target (anywhere I'm sure) you can get $.50 "just-add-water" pizza dough. Get some mozzarella cheeze, some tomato sauce, and some topping and you're good to go. Very easy and very tasty!

For an even easier meal, cut up your topping when you have time prior to the meal. Then when it's making time, making your pizza(s) is super fast.

Pita Pizzas

6 Pita Breads

6 Tbsp Marinara or Pizza Sauce

2 Tbsp chopped Parsley or 3/4 tsp Dried Parsley

1/3 cup grated Parmesan Cheese

2 Bell Peppers

1 cup sliced Mushrooms

1/2 cup sliced Black Olives

3/4 cup sliced Pepperoni

1/2 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese

1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella Cheese

(You can use any pizza toppings that you like. This is just what we use.)

Heat over to 450 degrees. Place pitas on a backing sheet. Spread each Pita with 1 tbsp sauce. In a small bowl, combine parsley & parmesan cheese. Divide Parmesan mixture evenly between pitas. Place the sliced bell peppers, mushrooms, olives & pepperoni evenly on top of each pita. Sprinkle with Cheddatr & Mozzarella. Bake until cheese is melted, about 10 minutes.

Mini Meatloaves

1 lb. Extra Lean Ground Beef

1 pkg. (6 oz.) Stuffing Mix

1 cup Water

3/4 cup Marinara Sauce

1 tsp. Italian Seasoning

3/4 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Heat over to 375 degrees. Mix meat, stuffing pkg, water, & Italian seasoning together. Spray 12 muffin cups with cooking spray. Press meat mixture into miffun cups. Make an indentation in center of each mini meatloaf with finger or spoon. Fill with marinara & sprinkle with cheese. Cooke for 30 minutes or until meat is cooked through.

Cheesy Chicken & Salsa Skillet

2 cups Multigrain Penne Pasta ~ uncooked

1 lb. Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts ~ cut into bite sized pieces

1 1/4 cups Thick & Chunky Salsa

1 cup Frozen Corn ~ thawed

1 large Green Pepper ~ cut into short thin strips

1 cup Mexican Style Shredded Cheese

Cook pasta as directed on package.

Meanwhile, heat a large non stick skillet, sprayed with cooking spray, on medium-high heat. Add chicken, cook & stir 2 minutes. Stir in salsa, corn & peppers. Bring to a "boil." Simmer on medium-high heat for 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Stir occasionally.

Drain pasta. A dd to chicken mixture, fold lightly. Sprinkle with cheese. remove from heat, cover. Let stand 1 minute or until cheese is melted.

Satay Chicken Pizza

So this chicken pizza was SUPER easy!

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, chopped
1 cup prepared Thai peanut sauce
1 bunch green onions, chopped
4 small (4 inch) pita breads
4 slices provolone cheese

DIRECTIONS
Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Saute chicken pieces in hot oil for 6 to 7 minutes. Do not overcook!
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
To Assemble Pizza: Spoon 1/4 of peanut sauce onto each pita. Sprinkle 1/4 of the browned chicken and 1/4 of the scallions on top of each. Top each 'pizza' with 1 slice cheese. Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Let stand for 1 to 2 minutes outside of oven before you cut with a pizza cutter.


(So instead of using pita bread (which I couldn't find) I used individual sized Boboli already prepared pizza crust and they were awesome! I Also drizzled some of the peanut sauce over the chicken instead of just the pizza dough. Also, I used kikkoman Thai peanut sauce that I found at Smiths for like $2.05 and it was quite good!)

Key West Chicken

Key West Chicken

PREP TIME: 15 Min
COOK TIME: 15 Min
READY IN: 1 Hr

Ingredients

3 Tbs Soy Sauce
1 Tbs Vegetable Oil
1 Tbs Honey
1 tsp lime juice
1 tsp chopped garlic
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Directions

1. In a shallow container, mix soy sauce, vegetable oil, honey, lime juice and garlic. Add chicken breasts to the mixture, and turn to coat. Cover and marinade in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes

2. Preheat outdoor grill to high heat

3. Lightly oil grill grate, discard marinade, grill chicken on each side for 6-8 minutes

Mmmm...this is such good chicken. The flavors blend together nicely and it tastes like summer (I know how lame that sounds). We've tried this recipe grilled outside, grilled inside on the Foreman, and baked in a conventional oven. It was great each way, but I think just about everything tastes better grilled. Also, even though it says to marinade for at least half an hour, I've never let it sit for less than 3. Not sure if half an hour is long enough to get the flavors to mix well.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

Cajun Chicken Pasta

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut in thin strips
4 tsp. Cajun seasoning
4 Tbs. Butter or margarine
1 red pepper, sliced thin
1 green pepper, sliced thin,
2 pkgs linguine noodles cooked and drained
grated, fresh parmesan cheese
1 bunch green onion, sliced
2 c. heavy cream (I think it's also called heavy whipping cream)
½ tsp. Dried basil
½ tsp. lemon-pepper seasoning
½ tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. Garlic powder
½ tsp. Pepper

Place chicken and Cajun seasoning in a resealable plastic bag; toss or shake to coat.
In large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken in butter until almost tender.
Add peppers and onions; cook and stir for 2-3 minutes. Reduce heat. Add cream and seasonings; heat through. Add pasta and toss; heat through. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Baked Pesto Chicken

This recipe is super easy and fast to make! I serve this with pasta (with butter and parmesan)

Baked Pesto Chicken

PREP TIME: 5 Min
COOK TIME: 25 Min
READY IN: 30 Min

SERVINGS: 4

INGREDIENTS
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 5 oz. each)
1/2 cup BUITONI® Refrigerated Pesto with Basil
2 plum tomatoes, sliced (optional)
3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line baking sheet with heavy-duty foil.
Place chicken and pesto in medium bowl; toss to coat. Place chicken on prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center. Remove from oven; top with tomatoes and cheese. Bake for an additional 3 to 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Taco Soup from a can

Ok, this is the easiest recipe. The soup is decent, not amazing, but it can pass for a pretty decent meal. And sometimes when I am really lazy or there is nothing in the fridge, I leave out the cheese, and chips and optional extras. It's the perfect recipe for food storage too, since it's all cans.

So are you ready?

1 can Stewed Tomatoes (the mexican kind is good, or regular, but don't get italian-that's just weird)
1 can Yellow Corn
1 can Black Beans
1 can Kidney Beans
1 can Green Beans (Just the regular cut kind)
Taco Seasoning (I usually use half the packet, to cut down on sodium)
Shredded cheese
Tortilla Chips

Optional:
Sour Cream
Guacamole
Browned Beef

So open all the cans and dump them into a big pot. Yes, even the juices from the cans. Then I cut up the stewed tomatoes a bit. Turn the heat on medium or medium-high. Add your taco seasoning and beef (optional). It should be warm in about 8 minutes. Pull the pot off the stove and serve into bowls. Top with tortilla chips, cheese and sour cream and guacamole.

So easy...open cans, pour them in a pot.

White Chicken Chili

1 lb chicken tenders or skinless breast cubed (use any chicken you have)
medium onion
1 tbl oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp oregano
1 7 oz can chopped green chilies
1-1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 tsp cumin
1 can chicken broth
2 cans white beans, drained & rinsed
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream or half & half

Saute chicken, onion & garlic. Add beans, broth, chilies & other seasonings. Boil & reduce heat. Simmer 30 minutes. Remove from heat & add sour cream & half & half. Serve.

My notes:
Will use a little less onion next time.

Sante Fe Wraps by Kraft

Prep Time: 20 min

Total Time: 20 min

Makes: 4 servings, two wraps each

Ingredients:

4 cups torn romaine lettuce

1 pkg. (6 oz.) OSCAR MAYER Southwestern Seasoned or Grilled Chicken Breast Strips

1 large tomato, chopped

1 can (11 oz.) whole kernel corn, drained

1/2 cup KRAFT Mexican Style Shredded Cheese

1/4 cup KRAFT Ranch Dressing

1/4 cup TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Thick 'N Chunky Salsa

8 flour tortillas (6 inch)

Cook chicken, mix everything together, roll up in tortillas and eat.

My notes:
1. Just used a normal chicken breast.
2. Used whole wheat tortillas.
3. Could have left out the ranch and would have tasted just as good, but a little healthier.
4. Had enough mixture to make more than 4 tortillas worth.

Recipe details here.