Quick Pasta Dinner

I got this idea from Heidi from triedandtruemoms. It's so quick, easy, and really delicious. I modified it the second time I made this. Both were delicious and kid friendly. 

 INGREDIENTS

• 1 package of Boursin cheese (Trader Joes & Costco sell this)
• 1-2 handfuls of cherry tomatoes cut in half
• 1-2 cups of chopped spinach
• 2 frozen garlic cubes (Trader Joes)
• Drizzle of olive oil
• Salt and Pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

2. Place tomatoes, spinach, and Boursin cheese in baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

3. Bake for 25 minutes. 

4. When it comes out of the oven, stir and eat over pasta. 

This was probably 4-5 servings. 

**The second time I made this I sautéed tomatoes and a shallot in a pan with a little oil. After they were soft I added garlic. I pureed this then stirred in chopped spinach, Boursin cheese, and a little cream and parmesan to make it go further to feed my whole family. The kids liked this better since the tomatoes were pureed and not in chunks. Super quick and yummy dinner. We served with rotisserie chicken. 

Greek Chicken Skewers

This recipe is from lillieatsandtells.com. We've made these several times and usually eat with with Greek bowls. https://white-familyfavorites.blogspot.com/2024/03/greek-bowls.html

 INGREDIENTS

• 2-2.5 lbs of chicken
• 1/4 cup fresh oregano - finally chopped (1 1/2 Tablespoons dried oregano)
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley - finally chopped
• 7 cloves garlic (or 7 cubes of Trader Joe's frozen garlic)
• Juice from 1-2 lemons (about 6 tablespoons)
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Chop chicken into 1 ½ inch pieces and place in a large ziplock. 

2. Whisk together all marinade ingredients.

3. Pour marinade over chicken and seal the bag. Move it all around to make sure it’s nice and covered.

4. Marinate up to two hours.  With so much lemon, sitting in the marinade too long could toughen the chicken so don’t leave it all night. A couple of hours is great!

5. Soak wooden skewers (if that’s what you’re using) in water for thirty minutes to help avoid burning. Then thread your chicken making sure to leave some ends to grab! (You can also cover the ends in foil to protect them from burning if needed.)

6. Spray the skewered chicken with a mist of cooking spray on each side, sprinkle with a little fresh pinch of kosher salt, and grill on a preheated, oiled** grill or grill pan over medium high heat for 4-5 minutes per side. Or until you have nice color and it’s cooked through.

• 
  

Ranch Dressing

(Recipe from Barefeetinthekitchen.com)

 INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 cup mayo
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (can substitute regular milk)
• 3/4 - 1 teaspoon dried dill
• 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon dried chives
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• fresh squeezed lemon juice to taste (approximately 1-3 teaspoons) - can substitute plain white vinegar for the fresh lemon juice. 

(One of the times I made this I happened to have a lot of fresh herbs on hand and it was so delicious. Also delicious recipe with dried, but even better with fresh.)

INSTRUCTIONS

Whisk together the mayo, sour cream, and milk until smooth. Add the spices and whisk until combine. Add the lemon and whisk again. Pour into a jar and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. This dressing will keep nicely in the refrigerator for up to a week. 

Beef Stew

INGREDIENTS

• 2.2 lbs beef chuck cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces, extra fat removed
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 Tablespoons all purpose flour
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 medium yellow onions (roughly chopped)
• 5 cloves of garlic (roughly chopped)
• 1 1/2 cups dry red wine (cooking wine)
• 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
• 3 Cups beef broth
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme 
• 4 large carrots (peeled) cut into large chunks
• 1 pound baby potatoes cut into halves

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Pat the beef dry and season with salt and pepper. Then toss meat in flour. 

2. Heat olive oil in a large dutch oven or heavy oven-proof pot on medium-high heat. Brown the beef pieces in batches for 2-3 minutes on each side. Remove from pan. 

3. Sauté onion in the dutch oven for 4-5 minutes until tender and translucent. Then add garlic and sauté for 30 seconds, stirring constantly. 

4. Stir in wine and scrape the bottom brown bits with the wooden spoon. Add tomato paste, beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, bay leaf, and thyme. Stir well. 

5. Add the meat to the pot and stir well. Let the liquid come to a simmer. Then remove the pot from the heat, cover tightly, and put dutch oven into the oven. Braise for about 2 hours until the meat gets tender. 

6. Remove the pot from the oven, return to the stove on medium-high heat, and add the carrots and potatoes. Bring to a simmer. Then cover the dutch oven and return to the oven. Cook for another 40 minutes in the oven until the vegetables are cooked. 

7. Season according to your taste. 

*Can serve with crusty bread, biscuits, over rice, or even omit potatoes and eat over mashed potatoes. 

Spinach Tomato Tortellini

 I just remembered a recipe I used to make all the time. So easy and mostly ingredients you probably have on hand. 

8 servings

Per serving: 292 Calories/14gF/32gC/11gP

1 (16 oz) package cheese tortellini

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with garlic and onion

1 c. chopped fresh spinach

1 1/2 t. dried basil

1 t. minced garlic

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

3/4 c. milk

3/4 c. heavy cream

2 T. flour

1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese

1. Cook tortellini according to package directions.

2. In another large saucepan combine: tomatoes, spinach, basil, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook until mixture begins to bubble.

3. Whisk milk, cream, and flour together in a medium bowl. Add to the saucepan along with parmesan; stir together. Cook until sauce is heated through, 3-5 minutes. Reduce heat and simmer until thick, about 2 minutes.

4. Drain tortellini (do not rinse) and add it to the sauce. Stir it up and serve.

Egg Roll in a Bowl

 I've been making this for a couple years and figured it was time for a permanent place here. All of the ingredients are very forgiving and you can add more or less. This was originally figured for macros. 

28 oz. Foster Farms ground turkey (from Costco), cooked

2 c. (340 g) shredded cabbage

1/2 sweet onion

1 T. avocado oil

3/4 c. shredded carrots

1.5 T. rice vinegar

.38 c. green onion, chopped

1/3 c. chicken broth

4.5 T. Bragg liquid aminos

3. T. pure maple syrup

Mix all ingredients in an instant pot. Set to cook for 2 minutes. When finished do an instant pressure release. Serve with rice, soy sauce, and sriracha if desired.

Macros per serving (recipe makes 6 servings)

Cal 283

F 11.7g

C 19.6g

P 24.5g

Greek Bowls

This is not a recipe as much of a list of ingredients, but this has become one of our family's favorite go-to quick week night meals. 

Base:

Chicken - rotisserie or we grill up chicken tenders seasoned with lemon pepper

Rice - add a little chicken bouillon and the juice of one lemon for flavor

Toppings:

Arugula

Purple onion

Tomatoes

Cucumbers

Purple cabbage

Pepperoncini  

Dill - lots of dill

Feta Cheese

Garlic sauce - find this at Trader Joes in the refrigerated dip section

Hummus and/or lemon vinaigrette or a red wine vinaigrette

We lay it all out and let everyone build their own!  

Easy Homemade Caramel Corn

 This recipe is from Two Sisters blog. It is our favorite caramel corn and so easy!

Ingredients

10 c. popped popcorn 

salt to taste

1 c. butter

1 c. packed brown sugar

2 t. vanilla extract

1/2 t. baking soda

Directions

1. Airpop or use microwave popcorn. After it is popped, salt popcorn and remove all of the un-popped kernels.

2. Melt 1 cup of butter in a medium sauce pan over low/medium heat. Do not let the butter brown. 

3. Add 1 cup of packed brown sugar and stir until the butter and brown sugar are mixed and completely combined. (If you see a thin layer of butter on the surface of the mixture continue to stir on low heat, they will eventually come together).

4. When the butter and sugar are completely combined, increase the heat to medium, just high enough to bring the caramel mixture to a low boil. When the surface starts to bubble, set the timer for 4 minutes and stop stirring. 

5. After the 4 minutes, add 2 teaspoons of vanilla and stir for 1 minute. 

6. Then stir in 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda and take the mixture off the heat. 

7. Drizzle caramel mixture over popcorn and stir to combine. 

Buttermilk Lemon Poppy Seed Pancakes

Ingredients 

1 3/4 c. flour (I used 1 c. Bob's Red Mill gluten free all-purpose flour and 3/4 c. almond flour)

1 t. baking powder

1/2 t. baking soda

1/4 t. salt

2 large eggs

1 c. buttermilk

1/4 c. melted butter 

1 T. poppyseeds

1 t. vanilla

Zest of one lemon

Juice of one lemon

Directions

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the poppy seeds and lemon zest. 

In a separate bowl crack and whisk eggs, then add buttermilk, lemon juice, and vanilla. Beat until the eggs are fully mixed in. 

Mix wet and dry ingredients. Once fully combined stir in melted butter and whisk until fully incorporated. 

Cook on hot skillet that has been brushed with butter. 

*This recipe doubled fed our family perfectly. Our favorite topping for these was raspberry jam. 

The Best Minestrone Soup

 1 Tablespoon Olive oil

1 white or yellow onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

2 large carrots, diced

1 medium (or 2 small) Yukon gold potatoes, diced into 1/2 inch cubes

1 (28oz) can fire roasted crushed tomatoes

1 (15oz) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained 

6 cups vegetable broth (or chicken broth)

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

3/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste

Freshly ground black pepper

8 oz. Green beans, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces

4 cups spinach 

4 oz. Elbow noodles, small shells, or fusilli 

For serving:

Fresh grated parmesan 

Instructions:

 1. Add olive oil to a large pot or Dutch oven and place over medium high heat. Add in onion, celery, carrots, and potatoes. Sauté for 3-5 minutes or until onions soften.

2. Next add in crushed tomatoes, kidney beans, vegetable broth, Italian seasoning, red pepper, salt and pepper. Cover and cook on medium low for 10-15 minutes. (I like to let it simmer for like an hour or 2 here)

3. Next stir in the green beans, spinach, and pasta. Cook uncovered for 8-12 more minutes or until pasta is al dente and green beans are tender. Pour into a bowl and serve with Parmesan cheese on top. I also like to serve with garlic bread, crostinis, or crackers. Personally I think soup makes amazing leftovers and is even more delicious the next day. 

- I love this recipe and didn’t want to lose it, so I’m putting it on the blog! I can’t remember where. I found it.