Wendy's Chicken Tacos

This is one my family tried while I was visiting in Minnesota and it was SO good and SO easy.  The perfect taco filling:

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
1 cup salsa
1 packet taco seasoning
1 can black beans
1 can corn

Tortillas, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, sour cream--whatever you top your tacos with!

Directions:
Place chicken, salsa and taco seasoning freezer bag.  Seal, mix, lay flat and freeze.  On cooking day, add to crock pot and cook on low until done (mine cooks fast--like 4 hours).  When finished, remove chicken and shred.  Return to pot and mix in beans and corn.  Voila, you have delicious taco filling ready to go!

Pork Satay

This really might be the absolute best meal I've tasted in years.  It is so so good, I could eat this once a week.  The recipe is for a marinade for pieces of pork (you could use chicken) but we took the marinated meat and turned them into shish ka bobs with the marinated pork, bell pepper, pineapple and red onion and then grilled them.

Marinade:
1 pound boneless stir-fry pork strips (NOTE: This amount of meat fed 3 of us with no leftovers--increase the amount of meat for more people)
3 TBSP lemon juice
2 TBSP peanut butter
2 TBSP soy sauce
1 TBSP brown sugar
1 TBSP vegetable oil
2 cloves minced garlic
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Arrange meat in shallow dish.  Combine all ingredients and pour over meat.  Refrigerate for 4-12 hours, turning occasionally.  Thread meat onto skewers, brush with remaining marinade and grill or broil as desired.  Serve with the warm peanut dipping sauce (below).

Peanut Dipping sauce:
in small sauce pan combine
1/2 cup coconut milk
3 TBSP peanut butter
2 TBSP lemon juice
2 TBSP soy sauce
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (I thought this was a bit too spicy, so maybe reduce the amount of red pepper if you don't like spice)

Mix well, cook and stir until peanut butter melts.  Simmer 5 minutes stirring occasionally.

Caesar Chicken Pasta Salad

This recipe came from good friends of our family, and we tried it last night--it is awesome and would be perfect for a summer meal or potluck!

Ingredients:
3 cups cooked penne pasta (we did about 10 oz)
2 cups thinly sliced romaine lettuce
1 1/2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil or 1 Tablespoon of minced basil from the refrigerated section of the grocery store
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/3 cup Lite Caesar dressing
1/4 cup chopped fresh Parsley
1 4 oz package crumbled feta cheese
1 garlic clove, minced
3-4 roasted skinless boneless chicken breasts cooked and sliced
Option ingredients: avocado, chopped bell pepper, cucumber


Directions:
Combine the first 9 ingredients in a bowl.  Toss well to coat.  Place 1 1/4 cup pasta mixture on each plate and top with chicken breast.  (We chopped the chicken and mixed it in with the salad and then just used a bit of extra dressing).  You could omit the chicken for a vegetarian pasta salad.

Crock Pot Turkey Spinach Lasagna

My mom found this and raves about it, and everyone she's made it for raves about it, so it's on our menu for this month!

Ingredients:
1/2 pound ground turkey
1 large onion
1 TBSP olive oil
1 26 oz jar marinara sauce
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 9 oz package oven ready lasagna noodles
2 cups part skim ricotta cheese
1 8 oz package grated part skim mozzarella cheese
1 10 oz package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
4 TBSP grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1 TBSP oregano

Directions:
1.  In a large skillet over medium heat, saute turkey in oil until it is no longer pink and then drain.
2.  In a large bowl combine turkey, marinara sauce, and tomatoes.
3.  Coat a large slow cooker with cooking spray.  Pour 1 cup of the turkey tomato mixture into the cooker.  Layer noodles, ricotta, mozzarella, spinach and sauce.  Repeat layers twice, ending with the turkey-tomato sauce.  Use all the spinach in the first two layers, ending with sauce and then cheese.
4.  Cover and cook for 2 1/2 hours on low or until noodles are soft and cheese is melted.  Sprinkle with grated parmesan.

Rustic Italian Tortellini Soup

This soup is the thing my husband and I are absolutely nuts about right now--it is so so easy and so incredibly delicious!

from Taste of Home

Ingredients

• 3 Italian turkey sausage links (4 ounces each), casings removed
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1-3/4 cups water
• 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 package (9 ounces) refrigerated cheese tortellini
• 1 package (6 ounces) fresh baby spinach, coarsely chopped
• 2-1/4 teaspoons minced fresh basil or 3/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• Dash crushed red pepper flakes
• Shredded Parmesan cheese, optional

Directions

• Crumble sausage into a Dutch oven; add onion. Cook and stir over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in the broth, water and tomatoes. Bring to a boil.
• Add tortellini; return to a boil. Cook for 7-9 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat; add the spinach, basil, pepper and pepper flakes. Cook 2-3 minutes longer or until spinach is wilted. Serve with cheese if desired. Yield: 6 servings (2 quarts).

Creamy Taco Casserole

our friend Bob Towery made this for us for lunch and it was delicious!

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef or turkey
1 pack taco seasoning
1 cup water
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves chopped
4 ounces taco sauce
3 ounces cream cheese
8 oz can corn kernels (I used a 14 oz can and it was fine)
4 ounce sliced olives
1 bag Fritos corn chips, 10 oz size--he used the chili cheese kind which was great
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend or cheddar

Toppings:
lettuce
tomato
green onion
sour cream
guacamole

Directions:
1. Brown beef with onion and garlic
2. Add seasoning mix, water, cream cheese, corn, olives and taco sauce.--let simmer for 4 minutes
3. Crush fritos
4. In an 8x12 casserole dish layer 1/2 the fritos, 1/2 the meat mixture, and 1/2 the cheese, repeat the layers.
5. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes
6. To serve you can top with lettuce, diced tomatoes, green onion, sour cream, or guacamole (like a warm taco salad).

Banana Muffins

Ingredients:
2 bananas mashed
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup craisens
1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon of buttermilk (we used regular milk and it was just fine!)

Mix together all ingredients and bake on a lower oven rack at 350 for 45 minutes-1 hour for a lof and 25 minutes for muffin tins.