tomato tortellini soup & bacon grilled cheese

time: 30 mins
ingredients:
1 9oz pkg of refrigerated cheese tortellini
2 cans 10 3/4 oz each of reduced sodium condensed tomato soup
2 cups veg or chicken broth
2 cups of milk (i used skim)
2 cups of half & half
1/2 cup of chopped sun dried tomatoes
1 tsp of onion powder
1 tsp of garlic salt
1 tsp of dried basil
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 cup of parmesan cheese

cook tortellini as directed. in a big pot combine soup, broth, milk, half & half, sun dried tomatoes and seasoning. heat through. drain tortellini, add to soup and stir in cheese. serve with bacon grilled cheese...delicious!

Super fast pizza dough

We really love this pizza dough recipe. It is fast and super easy. I keep pepperoni and grated mozzarella cheese in the freezer. On one of those days where you were too busy or nothing sounded good, just whip up some dough and throw the toppings on from the freezer. You have great homemade pizza in a flash.


Mega Quick Pizza Dough
Dissolve: 1 Tbs dry yeast
1 cup of water
In a bowl: 2 1/2 cups of flour
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 tsp salt

Stir the yeast into the water and let it sit while you put the other ingredients in the bowl. Then stir in water/yeast. Stir just until makes a dough but don't over mix or it will be tough. Let it rise for 5 minutes (while you get out pizza toppings).
Spread out, top with sauce, cheese, etc. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
(We love ours on a pizza stone, add a little corn meal on top of pizza stone before placing dough down to prevent sticking)

Pesto Ravioli with Chicken

Soooo yummy and easy to make!!

4 servings

2 tsp olive or vegetable oil

1 pkg (15 oz) chicken tenders

3/4 c. chicken broth

1 pkg (9 oz) refrigerated cheese filled ravioli

3 small zucchini, cut into 1/4 in. slices

1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced

1/4 refrigerated pesto

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Heat oil in 12 in. skillet over med-high heat. Cook chicken in oil about 4 minutes turning occasionally, until brown. Remove chicken from skillet.

2. Add broth and ravioli to same skillet. Heat to boiling; then reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 4 minutes or until ravioli is tender.

3. Stir in zucchini, bell pepper and chicken. Cook over med-high heat about 3 minutes stirring occasionally, until veggies are crisp-tender and chicken is no longer pink in center.

4. Toss with pesto. Sprinkle cheese.

5. And enjoy!!

I usally cut the chicken in bitesize pieces either before or after cooking it. But you probably already would know that. ha ha I just wanted to sound very cook savy :)

tex mex quesadillas

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 package (10 oz.) frozen corn, thawed
2 cans (15 oz. each) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 package (10 oz.) frozen leaf spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
flour tortillas (10-inch)- i dont like the precooked ones
8 ounces pepper jack cheese, shredded
salsa & sour cream

In a large pan cook onion, garlic and cumin for about 5 mins, or until onion is soft. Add in corn, beans, spinach and chicken. Cook until everything is heated though. Cook tortillas as directed on package. Then layer cheese and tex mex mix. Cook until cheese is melted. Cut and serve with salsa & sour cream.

Ashley--

I'm waiting to see some awesome recipes from the World Wide Ward cookbook.

Beefish Inchy-Ladas

So on Monday night, we decided to make enchiladas and we kinda morphed two recipes together. They turned out DELISH, although they were kinda time consuming to make!



We used a recipe from Taste of Home's Healthy Cooking magazine, and Pioneer Woman's Enchiladas. Her post has lots of pictures and step by step instructions if you want it. My tweakings are in bold.

TIP: A Slap Chop makes the whole thing faster. Its awesome for dicing things up super small (Perfect for onion-phobes)

BEEFY INCHY-LADAS

FOR THE SAUCE:
1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
1 Tablespoon All-purpose Flour
1 can (28 Ounce) Enchilada Or Red Sauce
2 cups Chicken Broth (used bouillon, of course)
½ teaspoons Salt
½ teaspoons Ground Black Pepper
2 Tablespoons Chopped Cilantro
_____
FOR THE MEAT:
1-½ pound Ground Beef (we used less than a pound, and we used ground turkey of course)
1 whole Medium Onion, Finely Diced
2 cans (4 Ounce) Diced Green Chilies (we used one can)
½ teaspoons Salt
1 can of black beans, drained, rinsed and mashed (the bottom of a cup works great)
1 cup of sauce (above)
____
FOR THE TORTILLAS:
10 whole (to 14) Corn Tortillas
½ cups Canola Oil
_____
TO ASSEMBLE:
3 cups Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese (we used mild-it's less greasy)
½ cups Chopped Black Olives
1 cup Chopped Green Onions
½ cups Chopped Cilantro

Preparation Instructions

Step #1 – The Sauce
In a large saucepan over medium heat, add oil and flour and whisk together to make a paste, cooking for one minute. Pour in the red sauce, chicken broth, cilantro, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30-45 minutes.

Step #2 – The Meat
Brown the meat with onions in a skillet. Drain off fat. Stir in 2 cans diced green chilies and seasoned salt. Add beans and 1 c of sauce. Set aside.

Step #3 – Tortillas
Heat canola oil in a small skillet over medium heat. One by one, using tongs, fry tortillas in oil until soft, not crisp – about 30 seconds per side. Remove to a paper—towel lined plate. Repeat until all tortillas have been fried.

Step #4 – Assembly
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour ½ cup red sauce in bottom of baking pan. Spread to even out. Dip each tortilla into red sauce, then remove to work surface. Spoon meat, a little grated cheese, a little black olives, and green onions in the center of tortilla. Roll up and place, seam down, in baking pan. Repeat until pan is filled. Pour extra red sauce over enchiladas. Top with remaining cheddar cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly. Sprinkle cilantro over enchiladas before serving.