Chicken Etti

While watching an episode of 19 kids and counting, Anna the wife of the oldest Duggar son made this for dinner. I thought the name was so clever, short for chicken spaghetti. The ingredients she used are all things our house enjoys so I thought I would adapt and make my own chicken etti. Hopefully you will enjoy it too.

Ingredients:
1/2 package cooked spaghetti
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 ounces cut up velveeta
1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 green bell pepper chopped
1/2 red onion chopped
1 can rotel
2 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese


Make It:
Heat a large pan over medium heat, spray with pam. Add peppers and onions to pan, cook and stir until softened. Stir in soup, rotel and velveeta, cook and stir until combined and velveeta is melted. Add chicken and broth to pan, stir to combine. Stir noodles into sauce, making sure all noodles are coated. Sprinkle cheese over top and cover pan until cheese is melted. Enjoy!

Menu for April 26th - May 2nd

Wow we had a busy weekend. Last weeks menu got all mixed up, thats why I didn't post any new recipes. Should be a normal week, then the choctaw festival on saturday. I bought a magazine last week called clean eating and I really enjoyed, so gradually i'm going to start changing the way I do some of my recipes. If I do a big change the kids and hubby will freak out. It involves eating mainly whole grains and nothing thats over processed. Lets be honest though we are never going to give up flour and sugar. I don't want to be extreme, just a little healthier. We didn't get a chance to go by the farmers market this week, so its on schedule for next week. I also got a request for more fast dinners, so i'm working in that. I'm not sure homemade and fast go together but I can try.


Monday- Meatballs with mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes. carrot sticks
Tuesday- Chicken Etti, green salad
Wednesday- Migas, fruit salad
Thursday- Chicken with Broccoli Stir Fry, ramen noodles
Friday- Sushi
Saturday- Onion Steak(crock pot), rice pilaf, asparagus
Sunday- Stuffed Shells, garlic bread, green salad

Dessert of the Week: Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Super Quick Chili Mac

I try as often as possible to make homemade, but sometimes you need quick and easy. This recipe combines canned chili beans and some fresh veggies to make a fast yummy dinner.

Ingredients:
2 cans chili beans
1 bell pepper, diced
1/2 onion, diced
1 pound ground beef
1 tablespoon chili seasoning
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups uncooked macaroni noodles
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Make It:
In a medium size saucepan boil water for noodles. Heat a large saucepan over medium high heat, add ground beef to pan, using a spoon to break up the meat. Add noodles into boiling water and cook for 10 minutes. Once the meat is almost completely browned, add onions and bell peppers to pan. Stir and cook until peppers and onions are soft. Drain off grease. Stir in chili beans. Drain noodles, and add to saucepan, stir to combine. Add salt and chili seasoning to mixture, stir. Simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes. Mix in a 1/2 cup of the cheese, stir until melted. Sprinkle the other 1/2 cup of cheese over the top and cover for about 2 minutes until cheese is melted. Enjoy!

Menu for April 19th - April 25th

A couple exciting things happened this week, Loki started nodding yes when you ask him a question. Also one of my best friends delivered her 3rd baby, a little girl, she is so beautiful and so small. Babies amaze me. This week is just a normal week, but our weekend will end with a crawfish boil at a friends house. I'm excited I have never had a crawfish before. Nothing new in the seasonal produce department, we got broccoli and asparagus along with more citrus. Oh I almost forgot the local strawberries are available, nothing better than a fresh picked strawberry. I found a recipe for a spanish breakfast dish called migas, that i'm excited to try this week. My poor 5 year old crock pot died last week, so I will have to pick up a new one for this week. As long as everything goes as planned this week I will be trying 4 new recipes. My energy levels have been low so it might not happen, but i'm going to try. My fingers are crossed for a great week!

Monday- Breaded Pork Chop, Cheesy Potatoes, butter carrots
Tuesday- Beef Tacos, Refried Beans, fruit salad
Wednesday- Beef and Spring Veggie Stir Fry, sticky rice
Thursday- Swiss Steak Spaghetti, peas
Friday- Meatballs in Cream Sauce, Mashed Potatoes, green salad
Saturday- Chicken & Broccoli over Rice Pilaf(crock pot)
Sunday- Crawfish Boil

Dessert of the Week: Strawberry Sweetcakes

Butter Carrots and Rutabagas

Well this is my first stab at serving rutabagas to my kids, and they loved them! I'm starting to think my kids will eat anything with butter and honey on it. If only my parents would have thought of that. Just kidding.


Ingredients:
1 rutabaga, pealed
2 carrots, scrubbed and pealed if you want( I don't peel mine)
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons salt

Make It:
Cut rutabaga in half, then slice into chunks. Slice carrots. Bring a pot of water to boiling add rutabaga and carrots and cook for 6 minutes. Drain and add butter, salt and honey. Stir to coat. Enjoy!

Meatball Sandwiches

My husband loves meatball sandwiches, but I have never been brave enough to make them. I don't know why they seem easy enough. So I got brave and they were really good. I'm still on a perfect meatball mission though. Also you can use frozen meatballs for this if its easier for you. This makes 12 to 14 meatballs and I used 3 per sandwich.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 egg
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup shredded parmesan
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 teaspoons chopped fresh garlic
1 tablespoon italian seasoning
1 tablespoon chopped fresh italian parsley
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes(optional)
1 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 jar spaghetti sauce or 2 1/2 cups homemade spaghetti sauce
french rolls
provolone cheese

Make It:
Mix meat, bread crumbs, parmesan, salt, pepper, 2 tablespoons basil, garlic, italian seasoning, parsley and red pepper flakes together in a bowl. Once combined, whip egg a little and pour into meat mixture. Stir to combine, I use my hands to get the mixture completely combined. I use a small ice cream scoop to measure mixture, into 1 1/2 ounce meatballs, roll them into a ball in the palm of your hand. Heat a skillet over medium high heat, add vegetable oil to pan. Add meatballs to pan, don't overcrowd. Brown meatballs on all sides, then place in bottom of crock pot. Once you have done all the meatballs, pour sauce over meatballs, and stir. Cover and cook for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low.  In last 1/2 hour of cooking add the 3rd tablespoon of basil. Turn broiler on low. Take each roll, open it up pour in 3 meatballs and some sauce, place two slices of provolone over top, place on a cookie sheet and place under the broiler for about 2 minutes or until cheese is melted. Repeat with all sandwiches. Enjoy!

Menu for April 12th - April 18th

Nothing exciting going on this week. Just the normal work, take kids to school, help with homework, laundry. I'm still wishing the weather would stay nice, hmm maybe next week. I think I might take the kids to murray farms next weekend, I have wanted to for a while. It looks like a very fun place for kids and adults too. This weeks menu is all new recipes, so I will be doing a lot of posting. One of the recipes was inspired by an episode of 19 kids and counting. I watch that show occasionally to remind myself that if that woman can be that calm with all those kids I should be fine. Everybody have a great week!

Monday- Ham and Cheese Calzone, asparagus
Tuesday- Ribeyes, homestyle mashed potato, orange salad
Wednesday- Chicken Etti, broccoli
Thursday- Meatball Sandwiches, green beans
Friday- Quick Chili Mac, green salad
Saturday- Stuffing Chicken Casserole, artichokes
Sunday- All American Cheeseburger, fries, butter carrots


Dessert of the Week: Chocolate Chip Cookies

Menu for April 5th - April 11th

Well spring break week is over. Time to get back into a routine again. I love that my veggies think its spring but I sure wish the weather would stay nice, the hot and cold is driving me crazy. April brings a downhill slide of months that involve lots of birthday parties in my world. Good thing I love parties! I'm planning on starting to go back to the farmers market this week, so that will begin new veggie and fruit posts again. This weeks menu is simple with some repeat recipes from past weeks. I don't want to exhaust myself after my relaxing week. I'm trying 2 recipes out of the pampered chef cookbook I got, I will post my adapted versions if they come out good. Everyone eat well and enjoy!



Monday- Shredded Chicken Burritos, green salad
Tuesday- Cheesy Chicken and Rice, asparagus
Wednesday- Birthday Dinner
Thursday- Ham and Cheese Scramble, Country Potatoes
Friday- Mexican Sloppy Joe's, chips, orange and kiwi salad
Saturday- Wonton Purses, Chicken Stir Fry over Noodles
Sunday- Ribeye Steaks, Baked Potato Chowder


Dessert of the week: Strawberry Angel Food Cake

Spaghetti Pie

Every week I cook a whole box or bag of noodles, and then try to find two recipes that are different from each other to use the noodles. I save myself a good amount of time by doing this. So last week I made spaghetti and meatballs and this week we had spaghetti pie they are similar but different and both are very yummy.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1/2 cup water or red wine
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 carrot, chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped
1 zucchini, shredded or chopped
5 mushrooms, stem removed, and sliced
1/2 bag of spaghetti noodles, cooked
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded


Make It:
Heat a large saucepan over medium heat, add meat to pan. Use a spoon to break up meat as it browns. Once meat is completely browned, drain of the majority of the grease, leave a little to cook veggies in. Add all vegetables and garlic to pan. Preheat oven to 375. Stir and cook vegetables until they are tender. Add spaghetti sauce to pan, stir to combine. Add wine or water to jar and swish around, pour into pan. Spray a deep dish pie plate with cooking spray. Toss all the noodles in the sauce. Place 1/2 of the noodles into the pie plate, use a spoon to spread noodles out and up sides of the pie plate. Put 1 cup of the mozzarella into the well of the noodles and spread it out. Pour the rest of the noodles and sauce onto the cheese. Spread the rest of the cheese over the top of the noodles. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes until the cheese is melted and a little browned and bubbly. Enjoy!

Creamy Lemon Chicken Primvera

This is a very light and very spring recipe. It's quick and good for a week night. Also for the kids it covers fresh veggies with a yummy cream sauce. This version is to feed two, but can be doubled easily.

Ingredients:
2 cups uncooked shell noodles
1 chicken breast cut into bite size pieces
1/2 cup fresh asparagus spears cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 cup sugar snap peas cut into thirds
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons chopped fresh garlic
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup chopped onion, any kind
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese


Make It:
Fill a medium size pot with water, put over high heat and bring water to a boil. Once it's boiling add noodles, and stir. Cook for 7 minutes, then add asparagus and snap peas, stir. Cook another 3 minutes, drain, put back in pan and pour lemon juice on them. Meanwhile heat a skillet over medium high heat. Spray pan with cooking spray, add chicken to pan, stir and cooked until browned all over. Add onion and garlic to pan, stir and cook until onion is tender. Lower heat to medium, add butter to pan, once the butter is melted add flour. Stir and cook until completely combined. Add milk a little at a time, stirring to combine after each addition. Cook and stir until thickened and a little bubbly. Turn to low and stir in noodles and veggies. Once combined salt and taste. Sprinkle with parmesan stir to combine. Enjoy!

Happy Easter

They are bunny and nest cookies! At least thats what they are supposed to be! lol. I tried, as you can see my decorating is not to good. Things always look really good when I first think of them but the execution never comes out. Anyways everybody have fun hunting eggs!