Atomic Chicken

I got this from a Real Simple magazine a while back.

- 4 chicken breasts
- 1/4 jar of Smuckers Apricot Preserves (I just eye it)
- 1/4 cup of Wishbone deluxe French dressing (I use any of the ones at IGA & again I eye it)
- 1/4 package Lipton Onion Soup Mix (I divide one of the packages up into 4 different baggies and use one.)

Mix all together, pour sauce over thawed chicken breasts and bake @ 350 for 45 min. Serve over rice. This does have a bit of a bang to the taste, but we like it! I hope you do to!

BBQ Chicken with a Twist

Place thawed chicken pieces in 9x13 pan. In a small bowl, combine:

1/2 c ketchup
1/4 c barbeque sauce
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 env. onion soup mix
1/4 c water

Blend and pour over chicken. Cook at 350 for 45 min. This can be used over pork chops or steak in the same way. It's great over rice or potatoes. If you want more of a twist, just put some slices of raw bacon on top of the chicken before cooking. Yum!

Sweet and Sour Chicken

1-2 c. cooked chicken
1 c brown sugar
3-4 Tbsp cornstarch
2 c. water
¼ c vinegar
1 c ketchup
Shake of salt
Shake of soya sauce

Combine the brown sugar and cornstarch together before adding to other wet ingredients. Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat. Mixture will thicken. Add desired vegetables (pineapple, green pepper). Add bite-sized, cooked chicken or pork pieces. Serve over rice.

*I usually half this recipe and still have leftovers. This is a fast, easy meal that can be ready in 10-15 minutes. My kind of cooking!*

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

to bring a little "fall" to Grenada - try these!

1 box Spice Cake mix
1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 16 oz. can of pumpkin

mix together and bake for 10-12 min @ 375 degrees
so easy and so yummy!

Ziti Parmesan

12 oz pasta (ziti, or penne)
16 oz cottage cheese
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 to 1 tsp crushed red pepper
pinch of oregano
pinch of basil
1 can of spaghetti sauce
1-2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

cook the pasta to al dente. mix the cottage cheese, parmesan cheese, red pepper, oregano, and basil together. add the pasta and mix till pasta is covered.
put half the mixture in a baking dish. cover with half the spagetti sauce and then half the mozzarella. repeat the layers.
Bake at 350 (or 180 here) for 30-40 min.

We usually serve this with garlic bread or breadsticks with balsamic vinegar and olive oil to make us think we are at the Macaroni Grill! (yeah, right huh!)

Vegetarian Chili

Since I'm lazy I'll just post the link where you can find this yummy yummy recipe!!

Sweat and Sour Meatballs

Meatballs:
1 lb hamburger
1/2 c. bread crumbs
1/4 c. milk
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Sweet and Sour Sauce:
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 T. cornstarch
15 oz. can of crushed pineapple, juice included
1/3 c. vinegar
1 T. soy sauce (Terryiaki sauce is also good)

Method:
Meatballs- Squish all ingredients together until mixed well. Shape into 1 inch balls. Preheat oven to 400 F and bake for 20-25 min.

Sweet and Sour sauce- Mix everything together. Simmer over medium heat until it is a little thick. Add meatballs and simmer for about 5 min. Pour over rice.

Oven-Fried Chicken Chimichangas

2/3 C. or more picante sauce
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried oregano leaves, crushed
1 1/2 C. chopped cooked chicken
1 C. shredded cheddar cheese
2 green onions, chopped
6 flour tortillas
2 T. margarine or butter, melted

Mix picante sauce, cumin, oregano, chicken, cheese, and onions. Place about a 1/2 c. chicken mixture in center of each tortilla. Fold opposite sides over filling. Roll up from bottom and place seam side down on baking sheet. Brush with butter. Bake at 400* for 25 minutes, until golden. Garnish with additional cheese and green onion. Serve with sour cream and salsa.

Here in Grenada, I usually toss all the ingredients in the crock pot and let it cook to save on the heat in the house. Then I put in the tortillas and bake.

Black Bean Burritos

Ingredients
2 (10 inch) flour tortillas
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 teaspoon minced jalapeno peppers
3 ounces cream cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Heat oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Place onion, bell pepper, garlic and jalapenos in skillet, cook for 2 minutes stirring occasionally.
Pour beans into skillet, cook 3 minutes stirring.
Cut cream cheese into cubes and add to skillet with salt. Cook for 2 minutes stirring occasionally. Stir cilantro into mixture.
Spoon mixture evenly down center of warmed tortilla and roll tortillas up. Serve immediately.

I know I have shared this recipe with a lot of you, but I thought I would post anyway. It is quick, easy, and delicious. You can put shredded chicken in it as well.

Asparagus Chicken

Sauce

¾ c. water

½ c. soy sauce

¾ c. brown sugar

¼ t. garlic

1/8 t. ginger

1 t. lemon juice

Simmer for 2 min.

Chicken breasts

Asparagus

Swiss cheese

Place chicken breasts in a casserole dish and pour sauce over top and marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour or overnight.Discard juice until you have about 1/8 inch on the bottom and cover with tinfoil. Cook chicken 375 for 15 min till chicken is almost done. In the mean time wash and steam enough asparagus 4 to every breast of chicken you have. Place 4 spears on each breast and lay one slice of swiss cheese on top of each breast of chicken. Return to oven uncovered and cook for 10 more minutes till cheese is melted and chicken juices run clear.

I use canned asparagus in Grenada and it has been fine. Fresh is better, but the canned is a good substitute.

"Sloppy joes...slop, sloppy joes"

1 lb. browned hamburger
1 c. celery-diced (optional)
1 c. chopped onion

cook together and drain grease then add...
1/2 c. catsup
1/4 c brown sugar
1/2 Tbs. mustard
2 Tbs. vinegar
1/2 c. water
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
1/4-1/2 c. bbq sauce
salt and pepper

simmer until thick. serve with rolls, enjoy!

Mexican Cornbread

1 C sour cream

1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin mix

2 eggs

2 T sugar

1/2 C butter

14 oz. creamed corn

1 can diced jalapenos chilies (opt.)

Melt butter in a 9x9 pan, move butter around to coat the bottom of pan. Mix all other ingredients together. Pour into melted margarine. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes until the top cracks and sides are golden brown.

Cafe Rio Salad (or as close as it can get)

We LOVE this recipe!! I haven't used it in Grenada yet, so let me know if you can't find some of these ingredients, but it's soooooo delicious! Hopefully it will help with your Cafe Rio with drawls :)

Cafe Rio Pork Simplified

3/4 lb pork shoulder

1 bottle taco sauce (Pace Mild Taco Sauce 3/4 bottle)

1 T cumin

1 C brown sugar

1 can Coke

salt and pepper to taste

Put roast in crock pot in enough water to cover and cook on low overnight.  In the morning, shred the meat with a fork.  Put back in the crock pot and add additional ingredients.  Cook at least one more hour.

Can serve as burrito or salad.  

Additional fixings: shredded cheese, sour cream, guacamole, cilantro, chopped tomatoes, green onions, black olives.

Lime Rice

1 C rice

2 C chicken broth

juice of 1 lime

chopped cilantro

Brown the rice in butter.  Add chicken broth to cook.  Stir in lime juice and cilantro.

Ranch Tomatillo Dressing

1 pkt Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix

1 C buttermilk

1 C mayo

1-2 tomatillos

1 clove garlic, minced

1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

1/2 t lime juice

1/2-1 bunch cilantro, chopped

Mix together and refrigerate.

For the "cafe rio" salad just mix all recipe's together with the black bean and corn salad (below) and lettuce. Voila! Hope you enjoy as much as I do!

black bean and corn salad

2 can black beans, drained

1 (15 oz) can corn, drained

2 Roma tomatoes, diced

1/4 C diced red pepper

1/4 C diced green pepper

1/4 C diced red onion

2 T chopped cilantro

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

4 T red wine vinegar

3 T honey

1 T salt

1 t pepper 

generous pinch of cumin

Mix all ingredient together.  Marinate in the refrigerator.

I am a salad fanatic, and I also like that they are cold so they don't heat up the kitchen!

Chicken Couscous

This is a family favorite at our house! I haven't tried it here yet, but I've managed to find all the ingredients, so I will let you know how it turns out. It's nice and light but filling enough for a main course.

Half of a roasted chicken, shredded
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups corn, frozen or fresh off the cob
1 1/2 cups couscous, uncooked
1 cup tomatoes chopped
1/2 cup peppers, green, red or orange
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup lime juice (Use fresh it is so much better)
2 Tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce (I just shake in a couple of drops of sauce)
2-3 green onions chopped

Saute turkey or chicken breasts, with salt and pepper to taste (I just shred 1/2 of a Costco roasted chicken), set aside.
Place broth in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Add corn to pan and boil for 3 minutes if using frozen corn. Otherwise remove from heat and add couscous. Cover and let sit 5 minutes. Fluff couscous with a fork. Combine meat and couscous with remaining ingredients in a bowl and toss well. Yields 6 meal size servings of 1 2/3 cups.

in case anybody cares : (353 calories, 47.7 grams CARB, 6.1 g FAT, 27 g PROTEIN, 4.5 g FIBER, 47 mg CHOL, 2 mg IRON, 377 mg SODIUM 34 mg CALCIUM)

Tin Foil Dinners!

Ok, I lied. That was not my last one for today. These are fun to make anywhere. Not just while you are camping,...you can do them at a bar-b-cue or even in your own oven. You can add or subtract from these things if you don't like them. I am pretty sure these calculations are for one tin foil dinner.

Ingredients:
- Tin foil
- 1 Potatoe (cut up)
- 1/3 lb of hamburger
- 1/2 onion (add however much you would like)
- Mushrooms (sliced)
- Baby carrots
- Salt and Pepper (lots of it)
- Butter cut into little cubes
- Suggestion: After it has cooked, we like to eat it with ketchup.

Get two pieces of tin foil and lay them in a "t" shape. Mix everything together and add it onto the tin foil. Put the butter on last, cut up into little pieces, then wrap the tin foil up. Bake @ 350 for 30-40 min. Enjoy your hearty meal!

Creamy Crock Pot Chicken!

Last one for today. Gabe is asleep so this is working out well. This is a good flavorful dinner for Sunday or any day of the week. I am improvising with this one a little here in Grenada. I will let you know how it goes.

Ingredients:
- 2-3 boneless, skinless frozen chicken breasts
- 8 oz. cream cheese
- 1 (10 1/2 oz.) can cream of chicken soup (or favorite cream soup)
- 1 pkg dry Italian salad dressing mix ( I usually use the Zesty Italian one, but they don't have the dry packets here so I bought the Kraft Zesty Italian dressing already mixed up. We will see how it goes)
- UPDATE: It went well. I would recommend using half the bottle of the actual Kraft dressing, instead of the whole bottle. It was a tad strong for me, but if you like the flavor stronger, use the whole thing!

Place all ingredients in crock pot and simmer on LOW all day (8-10 hrs.) I have always done it in 4-6 hrs and it still tastes delicious. Shred or chunk chicken about an hour before serving; continue to simmer. Serve over rice, mashed potatoes, noodles or French bread. Make a big pot and freeze for several dinners.

Saturday Chicken

It's me again. Sorry, I am all over this blog. This recipe is really good and again, it's easy. I am all about that. Oh, it does take a little while to cook, though, so you have to plan ahead.

Ingredients:
- 6 pieces of chicken (I usually use 4)
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 c. cream (I use half & half- don't use milk)
- Salt
- Garlic salt
- Paprika
- Chopped Parsley

Take chicken, salt, garlic salt & paprika it thoroughly. Next, spread chicken out in one layer in shallow baking pan. Dilute the soup with the cream; pour it over the top of the chicken and sprinkle the chopped parsley on top. Bake, uncovered, @ 350 for 1 1/2 hrs.

Casey's Slush Berry Dessert!

Ok, here is one of my favorite dessert recipes!! It is very refreshing and you can make it here in Grenada, plus it is easy. It is the total package!

Ingredients:
- 1/2 gallon of Pineapple sherbet ( I buy the Blue Bunny tub they have here)
- 1 (12 oz) bag of frozen raspberries
- 3-4 banana's sliced (firm)
- 1 can of crushed pineapple (drained)

(I usually use half the tub of ice cream, a little more than half the raspberries, 3 banana's and a can of crushed pineapple)

Soften sherbet, and mix everything together. Put back in freezer for a couple of min. so everything can slush up. Enjoy and think about eating more and more and more of this,....forever. Ha! j/k.

Easy Chicken Pot Pie

So, I have been a little behind on posting any recipes, so I might play catch up right now. he.

Ingredients:
- 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 1 1/2 (10.75 oz) can condensed cream of chicken soup
- 1 (32 oz) bag of frozen vegetables (but I only use about half of it)
- 1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie (They have a delicious one at IGA-"Betty Crocker" Pie crust, makes 2 and all you do is add water!)
- Salt
- Suggestion: You might want to try and add a can of "Libby's" sweet cream corn or use as a side.

This is seriously very easy, and so yummy!
Boil or steam chicken until done. Dice up. Mix together undiluted soup, vegetables & diced chicken in a bowl. Make pie crusts. Pour mixture into pie shell, and cover with second crust. Crimp edges, and make slits in the top crust. Bake @ 375 degrees for 40-45 min, or until crust is golden brown.

Da Big Kahuna's!

This is a favorite between Ren & I. Great for bar-b-cue's and any other time,...like feeding the missionary's! ha!

Ingredients:
- 1 lb of hamburger
- Any type of ham, sliced thick & grilled
- Pineapple slices (in the can)
- Bar-b-cue sauce (we have been using "Kraft- Hickory Smoke" from IGA)
- Mayo
- Some good buns

Make the hamburger's into Patties and put them on the grill. Toast the buns and put a good amount of mayo on them. Next comes the Bar-b-cue sauce, then a slice and a half of the pineapple slices. Put on the hamburger and the ham and presto,....you got one big Kahuna!