Sauteed Summer Veggies and Bacon over Cheese Grits

Posted on June 4, 2015 by rebeccacain23

Leftovers… seems to be the theme this week! I guess that’s not a bad thing, right?! Who wants to throw out the leftover bits of food in their fridge? Not me! I like to try to use it here and there before it goes bad! I freeze a lot of leftovers so I have time to use it. Sometimes on the weekend I copy what my mom used to do. I remember, when growing up, we used to have 1 day a week where all of the leftovers would come out of the fridge or freezer, be heated up, and that was our lunch or dinner. We didn’t want to waste good food! So these past few recipes have been me using up food from previous recipes this month. Works well!

This one I actually made for lunch! And I was able to whip it up really quick since I used leftovers!!

Ingredients:

3/4 to 1 cup of leftover (or fresh!) cheesy corn grits (or leftover polenta!)
1 small zucchini
1 large carrot
1 piece of bacon
handful of chopped baby spinach
1-2 TB unsalted butter
salt and pepper to taste
optional topping of parmesan cheese
1 TB chopped onion (I used some leftover onion I had storing in my freezer)

Directions:

Start out by chopping your carrots, and zucchini. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add your zucchini and carrots first. After they start to cook, add the onions and bacon and let the onions caramelize. While this is cooking, heat up your grits, either by cooking from scratch, or if you have leftovers you add 2-3 TB of water (because the grits absorbs all of the liquid when it’s stored in the fridge) and microwave for 1-2 minutes until it is smooth and creamy again. Place the grits into a small bowl or onto a small plate and set aside. At the last minute, when the veggies are slightly browned, but still have a bit of a crunch, toss the chopped spinach into the pan and let just slightly wilt. Pour the veggies over the grits and add parmesan cheese if so desired and serve (or eat!) immediately! Enjoy!

This dish is bright, colorful, crunchy, creamy and filling! Give this quick dish a try today!

And now, for the quote of the day:

#inspirational #quotes

Quick Leftovers Chicken Quesadilla

Posted on June 2, 2015 by rebeccacain23

I’m continuing in this post with using up my leftovers. I used some leftover chicken that I had (you can even use leftover rotisserie chicken for this!!!) This was quick, easy, everything grabbed last minute and MAYBE took 15 minutes! After a busy and crazy day, what’s better than that?! It’s also kid friendly!

I served this with some chips and salsa… you could also serve it with some spinach or some sour cream and salsa to dip it in. It’s actually quite versatile!

This is for 2 quesadillas… just double, triple etc for more!

Ingredients:

2 flour (or corn… or wheat for that matter!) tortillas
1/4 lb of diced of shredded chicken (already cooked)
2 pieces of cooked bacon – chopped
1/2 sliced avocado
3/4 to 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup diced sweet mini peppers (or 1/2 bell pepper chopped)
2-3 TB chopped sweet yellow onion
optional: a few sundried tomato pieces! You can add it in there, or use fresh tomatoes, either would be good!
optional: spinach or a bit of hot sauce

Directions:

Start of by dicing and slicing your veggies. Get your avocado out and slice 1/2. What I do, is slice the whole thing, and ten place the 1/2 that I don’t use in a baggie (pre-sliced and not in the shell) into the freezer that I can pull out later and use in smoothies). Once all of your veggies are cut, you can pull out your chicken and bacon. I used leftovers. If you do not have leftovers, but still want to make this, just quick cook it up in a bit of olive oil with salt and pepper. I usually use pre-cooked bacon and cook it quickly in the microwave and then crumble it up.

But 1/2 TB in the bottom of the skillet and let it melt and medium to medium low temp on the stove. Once melted, place 1 of the tortillas on the skillet. Cover with desired amount of cheese, then place half of chicken, then the veggies, and ending with the avocado. Fold over the tortilla and let it brown for a minute or two, then flip it over with a large spatula. Let it continue to cook for 2-3 minutes, until the cheese is melted and starting to ooze out the side. Remove from skillet and place on a plate, and repeat with the 2nd tortilla. I usually cut each quesadilla in 2-4 pieces with a pizza cutter. Serve with some salsa, maybe some sour cream, and enjoy!!!!

And now, for the quote of the day:

Homemade Wheat Sandwich Bread (with a #vegan option!)

Posted on May 21, 2015 by rebeccacain23

So, we spend a lot of money on bread around our house. Like, it’s ridiculous. Because of my son with food allergies, I am very picky about what brand and what ingredients are in the bread. We have been buying bread from Trader Joes for about $4.00 per loaf (or more… can’t quite remember) because I like the ingredients, and it doesn’t have any allergens in it. But… that much money per loaf and I buy 6 loaves of bread every 2 weeks… that’s a LOT of money for bread! So, I’ve decided I need to make more of my own bread. My mom has a bread machine that I can use… but I don’t like my bread BAKED in the bread machine. So, I make the dough in the bread machine, and then bake the bread in the oven. This recipe came out PERFECT! It’s got a nice crispy crust with a soft and slightly doughy inside… DELICIOUS! I don’t want to buy bread again! My mom also had some FRESHLY GROUND wheat flour. Like, not store bought… she had Wheat Berries, ground them in her Grain Mill, and gave it to me! WHAT?! Yes!!!!! Freshest you can get! I used half of this fresh flour, and half of the all purpose flour (I use Lily Flour…. I also have used King Arthur).

Doesn’t that look delicious!!??

For 1 loaf, so double for a batch of 2.

Whole Wheat Bread

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup warm water (NOT hot! You don’t want to “kill” the yeast)
2 tsp pure cane sugar (organic is preferred)
2 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 TB local honey
2 tablespoons butter , melted (you can use Earth Balance for the VEGAN option!)
3/4 tsp kosher sea salt
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus possible extra White Lily All Purpose Flour

3/4 TB bread machine yeast

IF you have a bread maker this will be quite easy! If not… BORROW ONE!! HA! It just makes it soo much easier! If you WANT one, check out this awesome and ON SALE breadmaker: Cuisinart Breadmaker

Load your bread maker in the order the ingredients are listed. Wet ingredients first, and ending with the bread machine yeast. Then, set to the DOUGH cycle. Do NOT select a bread cycle. You want dough only. Mine was a 1 hour and 20 minute cycle. When the bread machine is kneading the dough, I watch it to make sure it’s only slightly sticky, but still is being kneaded around by the machine and not sticking to one side of the pan. If needed add 1 TB of all purpose flour at a time until it’s just SLIGHTLY sticky… but not too dry! If it’s too dry, add 1 tsp of water at a time. Get a bread pan (glass or aluminum, didn’t matter… I tried both) and grease it either with a bit of butter, or cooking spray and set the bread pan aside.

Once the timer goes off and your dough is done, butter up your hands… or flour them… 🙂 … so that the dough doesn’t stick to your hands when you take it out. Remove the dough (it will deflate, that’s fine!) and make sure the paddle of the bread machine does not stay in the dough! Kind of knead it down a bit, and shape into a rounded rectangle. Place into greased bread pan and then set a damp kitchen towel over top and allow to rise for 30 minutes. At this time, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

After 30 minutes, the bread dough should have doubled in size. Remove the towel, and place into the preheated oven and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. It should be golden brown with a nice crispy crust and chewy moist bread inside!

I cut it right away and me and my 2 kids ate a nice thick slice just dripping in melted butter… OH MAN!! It was DELICIOUS!!!

If you would like some homemade bread… give this one a try! It’s the best recipe I have ever made for homemade sandwich bread! And believe me, I’ve tried MANY!

And now, for the quote of the day:

If the world were to come to an end today and all of the people who believed in the Lord our God as their Savior were taken to Heaven to be with Him for eternity… do you know for sure if you would be with them?!

Pork Loin Chops in a Crock Pot

Posted on April 29, 2015 by rebeccacain23

I love crock pot meals when I am really busy. The other day I had a ton going on, and I knew I was not going to be home to cook dinner, but wanted my sweet hubby and my brother who was helping with the kids, to have dinner. The nice thing about crock pot meals is that when you do have time, in the morning, you can toss everything in and not think about it for the rest of the day! It was so great just knowing it was there and not having to rush before I had to leave.

So… CROCK POT meals! You can use it in the summer or the winter… cold or hot outside… there’s always a good reason to use a crock pot.

Pork Loin Chops in a crock pot:

Servings: 2… so double for more…

Ingredients:

1 butterflied pork loin chop – 1.5 lbs
1 TB flavored vinegar (I used a pear/cranberry vinegar that I got from an oilery)
2 TB olive oil
Cooking spray to grease the inside of the crock pot
1 onion sliced thin
1 clove garlic minced
salt and pepper to taste
5 carrots cut into large pieces
8 yukon gold potatoes quartered (I washed and did NOT peel)
1/4 cup white wine
2 TB unsalted butter
1/2 tsp dried tarragon
1/2 tsp dried sage
1 cup chicken broth

Directions:

Cut up the carrots, onions and potatoes and set aside. Take the pork loin butterflied pork chop (or 2 separate thick-cut pork chops) and salt and pepper both sides evenly. Heat a skillet on medium and put 1 TB olive oil in the skillet. Sear both sides of the pork chop for 2-3 minutes per side and place into the bottom of the crock pot. Put all of the veggies and starches on top. Sprinkle all the seasoning and then add the liquids. Then take the butter and cut into small pieces and placed intermittently on top of the meat and veggies. Let cook for 6-8 hours on LOW or 4-5 hours on HIGH.

It is a wonderful blend of sweet and salty… it’s got a great savory taste with just a hint of sweet. My husband and brother RAVED over this, and the pork just FELL APART when it was ready. WINNER!!!

Try this one for sure!!

And now… a bit of a giggle for the quote of the day:

Sundried Tomato Avocado Chicken Sanwiches with Pesto and Mozarella!

Posted on April 13, 2015 by rebeccacain23

I was seriously craving twice baked potatoes. SOOO bad! Alas, my potatoes were VERY sad looking and VERY small. It’s all I had left. I have had a lot of sauteed and roasted veggies for lunches these last couple of weeks and therefore have none for twice baked potatoes. Boo!

Instead, I made a DELICIOUS sandwich on GREAT HARVEST Sourdough. This is significant. It is not significant because I am affiliate of Great Harvest, it’s significant because it’s just simply the best. https://www.greatharvest.com/ I worked at a Great Harvest Bread bakery when I was 15 years old, and I have never tasted bread as wonderful as they make. They have locations all over… so if you’re near one… STOP AND GET BREAD!! 🙂

Ingredients

This was for 2 servings

6 chicken tenderloins (or more, depending on how many servings you need)
olive oil
2 TB butter
Kosher Salt
freshly ground Black Pepper
Mrs. Dash OR 21 Seasoning Salute
2-3 mozzarella string cheese sticks (OR fresh mozzarella if you have it!)
4 slices of SOURDOUGH bread!!
2-3 TB fresh homemade basil pesto
2 TB diced Sun-Dried Tomatoes
Arugula or any type of lettuce for sandwich
1/2 avocado sliced for in sandwich

INSTRUCTIONS

Lightly drizzle the chicken breasts with olive oil and season with salt and pepper and the Mrs. Dash or 21 Seasoning Salute.
Sautee in skillet with 1 TB of butter. Cook until white all the way thru and then set aside and let rest.
Place 1 TB of butter into the warmed skillet and let melt on med to low. Butter one side of each of the slices of bread (just like with grilled cheese) and put pesto on the opposite side (from the butter) of 2 slices of bread. This is so that each sandwich will have 1 slice of bread with pesto on 1 side of the sandwich. Place the chicken, sundried tomatoes, and cheese onto the bread and place the other piece of bread on top. “Grill” like grilled cheese until the cheese is melted. (I cut the string cheese in half lengthwise, and then width wise.) Flip over to brown the other side of the sandwich.
Remove from skillet and place onto plate. Remove the side w/out the cheese and place the avocado pieces and the arugula (or lettuce) and put back together. Cut and ENJOY!

This sandwich was FULL of flavor. The sourdough definitely was crunchy and the perfect flavor and texture for this sandwich. NO WORDS! Ok… yes, you really have to try Great Harvest! 🙂 The chicken was moist and tender… everything balanced quite well! This is a quick and easy dinner!

I served this with 2 mini sweet potatoes. Aldi has a bag of steamable sweet potatoes that you just pop into the microwave for 8 minutes! I just had the sandwich and sweet potatoes and was quite satisfied! Give this one a try!

And now, for the quote of the day:

Oh, and if you need help waking up in the morning, did you know you can order coffee or k-cups on Amazon and have them delivered for free? You can even sign up for a subscription where it delivers on a schedule. You can even get k-cups for as little as $0.36/k-cup! WHAT?! Seriously!!

Check out this link: 15% off San Francisco Coffee K-cups

Chicken Wrap

Posted on March 27, 2015 by rebeccacain23

I had a meal plan. That plan went out the window tonight. Do you ever do that? Just don’t feel like cooking/doing/eating whatever you planned? Not sure if it was my dog barking at random noises, my son whining at my feet, or my daughter asking to go down to the lake nature trail for the 50th time in 5 minutes, but my energy was suddenly drained. I quickly made the tiny minions , that I made, and adore… their dinner and sat down to figure out what on earth actually sounded good. When I made my meal plan it was cold and rainy outside. I have 2 weeks worth of meals to choose from and they all look “bleh”… so what’s a girl gonna do? My husband was on his way home from work. Granted it takes him 45 minutes to get home… but still!
I hop on pinterest, duh, and find out all about this new Mediterranean Diet. Which of course leads me to travel ideas, which leads me to beach pictures, which leads me to memes and funny pictures of cats. Suddenly my husband’s home, and I haven’t cooked a thing! Darn endless scroll on pinterest! Hehe! So, chicken wraps it was! And you know what? They were good! 🙂

Ingredients

This is for 2 servings

4 chicken tenderloins
1 TB butter
1 TB olive oil
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
Salt and pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 cup vinegarette (I used my leftovers from a previous recipe… you can use any Italian dressing or vinegarette)
1/2 cup baby spinach
2 TB parmesan
Tortillas (flour or whole wheat )
Toppings:
Greek yogurt, sour cream, avocado slices, spinach or lettuce, hummus, Lindsay Naturals Black Ripe Pitted Olives
, tomatoes and or mustard.

Sautee the chicken in a skillet with the oil, and or butter and seasonings until almost done. Add half of the salad dressing and let simmer. 5-8 min until no pink is left and shred it with 2 forks. Top with either shredded cheese or parmesan and then place onto the tortillas. Top as you’d like!

And now, for the quote of the day: saw this random picture… yes, on pinterest, and had to post it!

Quick and Easy Skillet Cabbage with Kielbasa

Posted on March 25, 2015 by rebeccacain23

Sunday night and I need a quick dinner that’s filling, but won’t make me regret it the next morning. When you think Sunday dinner, what do you normally think? I usually think Chinese takeout, pizza, popcorn, oh… the list of easy options where I don’t cook could go on for quite a while! But tonight, I am remembering that I am in a fitness challenge group, and that I will be posting a picture of what I am eating. This, in turn, helps me to keep accountable to eating healthier! So… Cabbage and turkey kielbasa it is!

Ingredients

2 TB butter or margarine
1 small head of cabbage, chopped
1/2 small sweet onion, chopped
1 pound smoked sausage, sliced (I use all natural and nitrite/nitrate free turkey kilebasa)
4 TB olive oil for sauteing
Juice of 1 lemon (1/4 cup or so) plus zest
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Dash (or more if you’d like!) Hot sauce

Directions

Heat olive oil in the skillet on medium heat. Place chopped cabbage into the skillet. Add onion and garlic. Sautee until cabbage starts to get slightly more tender (about 3-5 minutes). Add lemon juice, zest and butter and sausage. Stir until cabbage is soft, bit still has a bit if crunch (unless you like it softer). Season with salt and pepper to taste Serve with hot sauce or a bit of cheese if you’d like. It’s good as a main dish and also as a side dish! Quite filling too! Give this one a try if you want something to make with ingredients you most likely already have in your fridge and have no clue what to make! Isn’t that how great recipe are made?!

Enjoy!

And now, for the quote of the day:

Baked Chicken Fajitas

Posted on March 19, 2015 by rebeccacain23

This recipe is a very easy one! And it’s baked, not sauteed! You get protein and veggies! Also, if you want to save a bit of calories, you can eat it over a bed of spinach or a big green salad!
Today was a bit crazy. I homeschool my daughter and this morning we decided to start school as soon as she was done with breakfast instead of waiting until our normal start time. It actually started our day our marvelously! Then, my threenager made an appearance. Did you know that a feisty 3 year old can inhibit clear thinking school time? 5 time outs and many toys and privileges taken away later… school was over, and I told my kids they must need to play outside! Luckily, they agreed! 🙂
By the time dinner time rolled around I had very little sanity or energy left! So, fajitas is easy filling and also quite delicious! Try this quick one for sure!
My recipe took a total of about 25-30 min including prep and baking time.

This is for 4 servings :

Ingredients

1/2 pound chicken tenderloins – sliced thinly
6 mini sweet peppers – multi color – sliced
1/2 onion – cut in thin slices
2 TB olive oil
1 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne powder
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 lime plus lime zest
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Place chicken, onions and peppers on a greased cookie sheet. Drizzle olive oil over the chicken and veggies.
In small bowl combine chili powder, cumin, cayenne powder, paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Sprinkle dry ingredients over the chicken and veggies and toss together on a large cookie sheet with a lip on each side.
Spread out evenly.
Bake for 20-30 minutes until chicken is cooked and the veggies are soft with a crispy edge. Zest lime over top of chicken fajitas and serve with a lime wedge to squeeze over fajitas if desired.
Serve with tortillas, sour cream, avocado, salsa, and all your favorite fajita fixins!

And now, an idea to have a little fun… a “quote” I saw online!

M	T	W	T	F	S	S
			1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9	10	11
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28	29	30	31

	Air-fried Hash and B… on Asparagus Pesto Pasta with Sun…
	Pam Trease Sjolund on Zucchini “Chips”
	Kim \| Peeled Wellnes… on Quick Leftover Rice – Ch…
	rebeccacain23 on SISTERHOOD OF THE WORLD BLOGGE…
	Kim // Peeled Wellne… on SISTERHOOD OF THE WORLD BLOGGE…

Dancin' and Cookin' in the Kitchen!

Cooking with whole and healthy ingredients while dancing with my kids in my kitchen!

Tag Archives: easy

Sauteed Summer Veggies and Bacon over Cheese Grits

Quick Leftovers Chicken Quesadilla

Homemade Wheat Sandwich Bread (with a #vegan option!)

Pork Loin Chops in a Crock Pot

Sundried Tomato Avocado Chicken Sanwiches with Pesto and Mozarella!

Chicken Wrap

Quick and Easy Skillet Cabbage with Kielbasa

Baked Chicken Fajitas