(Freezer) Mexican Chicken and Rice

We are within a few weeks of meeting our little man, so whenever I have enough energy and not too much swelling going on (so that combo doesn't happen too terribly often!), I am trying to get a meal stashed in the freezer. Norris keeps reminding me that he can cook for us, but I know we'll both appreciate having some things stored away to just pull out and heat that doesn't include frozen boxed pizza.

I can't attest to the flavor of this dish yet as it is in my freezer still, but I am already looking forward to eating it. I do know that the rice is awesome! I froze cooked rice for the first time recently and it reheated perfectly, so I am excited to have this (x2) in our freezer. I followed her freezer directions and this was really quick and easy to prep for the freezer. I think it would also be good in the crockpot if you don't have/don't want to use a grill.

Mexican Chicken and Rice (links to recipe)

from Once a Month Mom

Pea Salad

Yes, I do still exist. If you have seen me lately, you know I am definitely still eating, too! For a few weeks, I didn't get it together to make lunches for the week and have been eating a lot of cucumbers, hummus, and Greek yogurt (guess it could be worse!), but I got myself in gear this week enough to make this. Will be eating with a piece of fruit every day and maybe a few crackers. This would be a great cookout side dish this summer!

 

 

Fresh Pea Salad

adapted from Closet Cooking

Yield: 4 side dishes

2 cup peas
2 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/4 cup cubed cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons chopped red onion
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

Mix everything and chill in the fridge.

Creamy Parmesan Orzo

This is a quick and excellent side dish recommended to me by a wedding friend! You could sub rice instead of orzo (it's cheaper and more readily available), dried basil instead of fresh, etc. and still get great flavor. Not quite the same as fresh and orzo, but still a great side dish!

 

Creamy Parmesan Orzo

Good Old-Fashioned Pancakes

I think this is my favorite "regular" pancake recipe I have ever made. Nothing will ever beat my dad's pancakes, but these were good stuff, super simple, and made with ingredients most people have in the kitchen. I like all the oatmeal, fruit, wheat, etc. pancakes, but I celebrated snow day #4 (are we really still celebrating or ready to go back to school and get this done??) with pancakes.

Good Old-Fashioned Pancakes

Chicken Alfredo Rollups

Chicken Alfredo Roll-ups

9 lasagna noodles
2  cups alfredo sauce
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken
2 tsp oregano
2 tsp garlic salt
2 cups shredded Mozzarella

Spray an 8x8 pan with non-stick spray and pour in just enough alfredo sauce to cover the bottom of the pan.Cook noodles according to package directions to the al dente stage.

Drain noodles, rinse with cold water, and blot dry with paper towel. Line up the noodles side by side.

Combine all but 1/3 cup afredo sauce, chicken, oregano, garlic salt, and 1 1/2 cups Mozzarella.

Divide filling evenly among noodles. Roll up noodles and place seam side down in baking dish. Top with remaining sauce, then remaining cheese. Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes, or until browned and bubbly.

Pan Fried Crappie

Happy Valentine's Day! My valentine and I went out to dinner a couple of nights ago to avoid the rush (thanks for dinner, Mom and Dad!). We discovered a restaurant new to us that we will be returning to many times!

Tonight, we went for a boat ride, which was far colder than we expected, with hopes to catch dinner. Good thing Norris caught fish last night because we had no luck tonight! After the chilly boat ride, we came home and cooked together. We were done in less than twenty minutes and it was one of the best meals we've had in a while. We tried a little different method than usual and we'll be using it again.

 

 

 

Pan Fried Crappie

 

canola or vegetable oil for frying (about 1/2 inch deep in skillet)

crappie fillets

1 sleeve saltine crackers, crushed (used Ninja to make a fine crumb)

1 cup flour

seasonings

2 eggs

 

Season flour and crackers. Set up breading station with a plate of flour, then eggs, then saltines.

Heat oil to about 375 F.

Dip fillet in flour, then eggs, then crackers, then fry for about 45 seconds on each side or until golden brown. Remove to paper towel lined plate.

Chicken Fried Steak

I know it's the time of year to make a bunch of healthy recipes, but I am pretty much using the same ones of those I've posted before. About once a week, I've been making a more-than-weeknight meal based on Norris' request. This week, the dish was chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes and white gravy. Mmmmm, comfort food. I told him as we were eating it (and he was looooving it) that I can't remember ever even making it before. I may have before, and I have only eaten it a couple of times, but it's pretty easy to know what it's supposed to taste like and whether it tastes good!
It really wasn't too labor intensive and I had most of the dishes done before we sat down to eat, which I always like, so it could be a weeknight meal, but it's definitely not a super quick one. Great for a meat and potatoes man (or woman!).
I made my favorite mashed potatoes on the side--boil potatoes along with peeled cloves of garlic, then season (butter, milk, salt, pepper, sour cream, whatever you like) according to taste. Love that cooked garlic flavor in them and it helps you not need as much butter in the end. I'm just linking you to the recipe since the only change I made was to make 1/3 of the recipe and use skim instead of whole milk, which worked just fine!

Chicken Fried Steak

from Pioneer Woman