Cajun Chicken Alfredo Pasta

I tested a few recipes for this dish and this is by far my favorite! The best part? It's made in ONE POT! Hooray for little cleanup!

INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 small package chicken fajita strips
2-4 teaspoons Cajun seasoning, divided
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 cups chicken broth
3 cups half and half
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
12 oz. dried fettuccini pasta
1 cup grated parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:
1.Heat the oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Cube the chicken strips and add the chicken and season with 1-2 teaspoons cajun seasoning. 2.Cook until the chicken is warmed throughout. Add the garlic and continue cooking for 1 minute.
3.Add the broth, half and half, 1-2 teaspoon cajun seasoning, salt, pepper, butter, and garlic powder to the pot.
4.Break the fettuccine noodles in half and add them to the pot.
5.Cover and bring to a rapid boil. Reduce heat to medium low and continue to cook for 10-12 minutes or until the noodles are done.
6.Remove from heat and stir in the parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.

Baked Ziti

I am the first to admit that I am an italian food junkie and Baked Ziti has proven itself worthy of being classified as one of the world's best comfort foods. I changed some ingredients to create this fantastic recipe and I hope you enjoy it half as much as I did!

INGREDIENTS:

◾1 pound italian sausage
◾1 pound ground beef
◾2 Tablespoons extra light olive oil
◾2 Tablespoons minced garlic
◾1 large onion, diced
◾1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes, with juice
◾2 cans (14.5 Oz) marinara sauce (I like traditional Ragu)
◾2 teaspoons italian seasoning
◾Salt and pepper, to taste
◾1 pound ziti pasta
◾1 tub (15 Oz) ricotta cheese
◾1-1/2 pound grated mozzarella cheese
◾1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
◾1 egg
◾Dried Parsley Flakes

INSTRUCTIONS:

Heat olive oil in a dutch oven. Add onions and garlic and cook until translucent. Add Italian sausage and ground beef and brown. Drain off fat.
Add tomatoes, marinara sauce, salt, pepper, and italian seasoning. Cook for 25 to 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a separate bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese, 2 cups of the grated mozzarella, parmesan, egg, salt, and pepper.
Drain the pasta. Pour it into the bowl with the cheese mixture and stir until the pasta is coated with melted cheesy goodness . Add the meat sauce and stir together.
Pour the combined mixture into a greased casserole dish. Top with two more cups of mozzarella shredded cheese.
Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving. FANTASTIC!

Taco Pasta

Ingredients:
4 cups of bowtie pasta
1 14.5 oz can of stewed tomatoes-mexican flavored
1/2 cup of Taco Bell Taco Sauce (if you can't find it, use red enchilada sauce)
1 small onion
1 cup of water
1 lb ground beef
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

Directions: Brown the ground beef and drain. Dice up the onion and add to the ground beef. Add the stewed tomatoes, water, taco sauce, and taco seasoning. Simmer for 15 minutes.

In a separate pan, boil the pasta until fully cooked. Don't forget to salt the water. When pasta is fully cooked, drain and add to the sauce mixture. Once pasta is combined in the sauce, add the shredded cheese to the top and cover with a lid until melted.

Enjoy!

Cheesy Ham and Potatoes

Ingredients 

3 lbs of potatoes, thinly sliced 

1 cup of sour cream

1 can cream of chicken soup 

1 small package of velveeta

1 cup of milk 

2 cups of chopped ham 

1 small onion 

Salt

Pepper 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Dice onions and cook until done in a dutch oven. Add the cream of chicken soup, velveeta, chopped ham, sour cream, and milk until blended. 

While the sauce mixture is cooking, thinly slice the potatoes and place them in a 9X13 glass dish. Make sure you salt and pepper the potatoes before adding a new layer. 

Once sauce is fully combined, pour on top of the potatoes and put in the oven for an hour or until brown and bubbly. 

Serve with salad and bread. Yumo! 

Chicken Spaghetti

This was my favorite recipe growing up with my grandma. She would make Chicken Spaghetti for our entire family and it was DELICIOUS! I tweaked her recipe and came up with this one. I absolutely *LOVE* this comfort food classic!

INGREDIENTS:

1 large rotisserie chicken
1 medium onion, chopped
1 lb velveeta cheese, regular or mexican
1 can of regular or mild ROTEL
1 lb spaghetti pasta
1 stick of salted butter
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 cup of chicken broth
1 can of cream of mushroom soup

Directions:

Shred the rotisserie chicken into pieces. Make sure to use every ounce of meat you can, avoiding the bones and skin. Once the meat is shredded, start chopping the onion. Next, cut the velveeta into squares. Throw the Onion, Velveeta, Rotel, Butter, Cream of Chicken Soup, Cream of Mushroom soup, and Chicken Broth into a dutch oven. Stir until combined and let the flavors merry for about 20 minutes while simmering on low. Boil water in a separate pan for the spaghetti pasta. Once the pasta is cooked, drain the water and combine with the liquid mixture. Serve with salad and garlic bread. YUM!

Spicy Sausage Skillet

This dish is amazing! I didn't have to tweak it AT ALL! Perfect. What I love about this dish is it only uses one pan! Yay for little cleanup! Awesome!

*Note: I find mild Rotel to be plenty spicy. If you like the heat, feel free to substitute medium or hot instead.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 lb smoked sausage, sliced
2 tbsp. dried onion flakes
1 tsp garlic powder
2 cups chicken broth
1 10 oz can mild rotel
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 oz campanelle pasta (if you can't find it, use penne)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 cups Monterey jack cheese, shredded

Directions:
Heat oil over medium high heat in an oven safe skillet until hot. Add sausage and cook until lightly browned.
Add onion flakes, garlic powder, broth, tomatoes, cream, pasta, 1 cup of cheese, salt, pepper and stir. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cover skillet. Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until pasta is tender.

Remove skillet from heat and top with the next cup of cheese. Broil until cheese is brown, bubbly and delicious! Enjoy! :0)

Pizza Casserole

This recipe is family friendly and tastes great! If you have someone that doesn't like onions, feel free to leave them out.

Ingredients:

3 cups uncooked spiral pasta
2 lbs ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
1 14 oz jar pizza sauce
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1 3.5 oz pkg Hormel pepperoni
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a dutch oven, cook beef and onion over medium heat until cooked. Drain. Stir in the tomato sauce, parmesan cheese, tomato paste, pizza sauce, sugar and seasonings. Drain pasta and stir into meat sauce mixture. Simmer for 10 minutes.

Place half of the mixture at the bottom of a very deep casserole dish. On top of that layer, spread half of the cheese on top and add half of your pepperoni on top of the cheese. Add the remainder of the meat mixture on top of that and place in the oven for 20 minutes.

Take out and add the rest of the cheese and pepperoni on top of the cheese and broil until the cheese is brown, bubbly and delicious! Yum!!

Southwest Enchilada Bake

This recipe has great flavor and feeds a lot of people.

15 small corn tortillas
2 lbs lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 small can green chilies
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 can ranch beans
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can mild rotel
1 can enchilada sauce
4 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Brown meat, jalapeno and onion. Drain. Add beans, garlic, soups, rotel, and enchilada sauce.

Create layers of:
Tortillas
Sauce
Cheese
Repeat three times
Pour two cups of cheese on top and bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. Enjoy!

Steak San Marino

This recipe is SO easy. I still can’t get over how easy it is! Healthy AND Yummy! This is a slow cooker recipe so you can fix it-and forget it! All the flavor without compromising the calories. I really enjoyed this recipe.

¼ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
1 and ½ lbs beef round steak, cut into 6 pieces
2 large carrots, diced
1 celery rib, diced
1 8oz can of tomato sauce
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
1 tsp Italian seasoning
½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 cups hot cooked brown rice
Another 1/2 tsp of salt

In a large plastic baggie, combine the flour, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper. Add beef, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat. Transfer to 4 quart slow cooker.
In a small bowl, combine the carrots, celery, tomato sauce, garlic, bay leaf, 1/2 tsp of salt, Italian seasoning and Worcestershire sauce. Pour over beef. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until beef is tender. Discard bay leaf. Serve with brown rice and salad.

Serves 6

Nutrition Facts: Beef with ½ cup rice
Calories: 286
Fat: 5g
Protein: 29g

Goulash

This is VERY similar to my grandmother's recipe, but I add more tomato sauce and bake it in the oven and top with cheese. One of my FAVORITE recipes!

1 lb ground beef
½ onion
½ bell pepper
½ can kernel corn, drained
½ can pinto beans, drained
1 tsp Salt
½ tsp Pepper
Squeeze of Garlic
½ can mild Rotel
1 full can of stewed tomatoes
2 small cans tomato sauce
1 and a half teaspoons Chili Powder
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 small package elbow macaroni
Dash of Paprika
½ tsp of sugar

Directions:
Chop up onions and bell pepper. Brown meat and add onions and bell pepper. Brown together and drain. Add all other ingredients except macaroni, paprika and cheese. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Once the sauce starts to simmer, start boiling the macaroni. After sauce is ready, mix the macaroni into the sauce mixture. Place into a glass baking dish and top with paprika. Top finished mixture with cheese and bake for 350 degrees until cheese is melted.

Serves 8.

Serve with tossed salad and garlic bread.

Chicken and Rice Casserole

This is a Country Classic that I love to make! So good.

One 6.9oz pkg Chicken Rice a Roni
½ stick of Butter
2 and ¼ cups water
1.5 lbs boneless and skinless chicken breast
½ tsp. garlic powder
¾ cup sour cream
One can of cream of mushroom soup
Ritz crackers
Salt
Pepper

1) Salt, Pepper and Oil the chicken and bake for 30 min at 350 degrees.
2) Cook the Rice a Roni on the stove as directed on the package. Be sure to add the butter.
3) Create a separate mixture combining 2 tbsp butter, garlic powder, sour cream, cream of mushroom soup, salt and pepper.
4) Remove chicken from oven and cut into bite sized pieces
5) In a separate bowl, combine Rice a Roni, sauce mixture and chicken. Salt and pepper to taste.
6) Place in a casserole dish and top with crushed ritz crackers. Place squares of butter all over top of casserole.
7) Bake for 35 minutes at 350 degrees.

Round Steak Italiano With Baked Potatoes

This recipe is similar to swiss steak. It is so tender that you can cut it with a fork. Delicious!

Ingredients:

2 lbs beef top round steak
1 8oz can tomato sauce
2 tbsp onion soup mix
2 tbsp canola oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp ground oregano
½ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp pepper
8 medium potatoes
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp cold water

Directions: Cut steak into serving size pieces. Place in a slow cooker. In a large bowl, combine tomato sauce, soup mix, oil, vinegar, oregano, garlic powder and pepper. Pour over meat. Scrub and pierce potatoes and place over meat. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours until meat and potatoes are tender.

Remove the meat and potatoes; keep warm. For gravy, pour cooking juices into a small saucepan; skim fat.

Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; gradually stir into juices. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with meat and potatoes. Serves 8.

Easy Chicken Fajita Quesadillas

I threw this together one night and was shocked at how great it was! I’ve found the meat to be more moist and have better flavor than a restaurant.

Ingredients:

1 16oz pkg of Chicken Fajita chicken Breast Strips
Fajita seasoning (I use the bottle)
½ onion
1 small can green chilies
¼ cup Vegetable Oil
1 8oz block of Monterey Jack Cheese
1 pkg flour tortillas

Directions: Heat up a skillet with ¼ cup vegetable oil. While that’s heating up, dice your onion and green chilies and throw into pan when hot. Add your chicken to the pan and coat everything with a generous amount of fajita seasoning. Cook 4-5 minutes or until chicken is done. (I like a little bit of black on mine). While that is cooking, start shredding your jack cheese. When your chicken mixture is done, set to the side.
Heat up another skillet on medium heat. I keep mine dry. While that pan is heating up, make your quesadilla to the side by placing a little bit of the shredded cheese on the bottom of one tortilla, then place some of the meat mixture on top of that, and then cover again with cheese. Place in the pan for about 30-60 seconds on each side or until Brown. Cut into pieces. Serve with salsa or sour cream. Serves 4-6.

Substitutes: You can substitute chicken with steak strips or ground beef seasoned with taco seasoning.