Fish Fry Friday

 --- Fish Tacos two ways, plus sauces... in recipe card form.

Let me know what you think of the new recipe card look... Would you rather me post them this way, or the old way of typing everything out? These can be printed as regular 4x6 photos, then placed into a photo book turned into recipe book.
We had this for dinner last night (grilled version). It was delicious. I didn't have yogurt for the white sauce, so I used sour cream. It wasn't as runny as it should've been... but it had a nice kick to it. The salsa makes a ton, so be ready with a couple of bags of chips (which we are lacking... so not cool). I think this is going on the menu again for next week, it was just that good.

Shake 'n' Bake Chicken

I'm so sorry it's been so long since I've posted. I was planning on making this post DAYS ago... but for some reason never got around to it. But here it is. It is probably the most simple thing you could make. It's great for lunch... dinner... or just a snack! :) Really, all you need is chicken, a tomato and a few pickle slices (and some shake n bake). The best part is, if you make a few extra, you can just reheat them for a sandwich, or cut it up into a salad. Super yum!!

The inspiration from this comes from a meal my mom always cooked growing up. Exactly the same items, except we had sliced cucumbers and sliced tomatoes on the side. I mixed that with McDonald's Southern Style Chicken Sandwich. Mmmmm...

Shake 'n' Bake Chicken w/ tomato and pickle "salad"

Ingredients:

4 - boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 pkg. Shake N Bake - any flavor, I prefer Chicken
fresh tomatoes
sliced hamburger dill pickles
salt and pepper

Box of Chicken Rice-A-Roni

Instructions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 375. Pour Shake seasoning into Shake Bag and place 1-2 breasts at a time inside. Shake well, making sure to completely coat chicken. Repeat until all chicken is used up (if using more than 5 breasts, it's best to use 2 bags/seasonings).
Place chicken on a foil-lined pan. Place in oven and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until completely cooked.
2. Meanwhile, prepare rice according to package directions.
3. Slice (or chunk) tomatoes and dice up pickles. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and combine.
4. Serve and enjoy!

The different textures and flavors are so perfect! If you don't like raw tomatoes, you definitely won't like this meal and you shouldn't try it without. It's just not the same. But it's definitely worth it to just give it a try. My mouth is watering.....

Chicken Pockets

This meal is so simple and quick. And it really only calls for a handful of ingredients. A great meal idea on those days you're stretched for time. My first time tasting a similar recipe was from my husband's sister, Maarsi. I instantly fell in love.

Chicken Pockets

Ingredients:

1 can chicken breast
2 8oz cream cheese
2 crescent roll tubes
2C mozzarella cheese, shredded
Salt
Pepper
Celery Salt
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Italian Seasoning
1/4C Panko Bread crumbs
drizzle of olive oil
*once again, I just throw the spices in until it tastes right. Feel free to experiment.


Instructions:

1. Set oven at temp. according to roll instructions.
2. Allow cream cheese to soften, either by leaving out for a few hours, or microwaving for about a minute. In a large bowl, combine chicken, cheeses and spices. Set aside and prepare the rolls.
3. To prepare the rolls, open and unroll one tube. Separate rolls, not by the crescent shape that they're supposed to be, but in rectangles (2 rolls = 1 rectangle). Place onto a cookie sheet (each tube should yield 4 rectangle pockets.
4. Place about 2 heaping TBS in center of pocket. Enclose filling and pinch edges closed, leaving a little gap in the top. Continue until all 8 pockets are filled. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with bread crumbs.
5. Bake 25-40 minutes until outsides are golden brown.

A Classic: Spaghetti

When it's so easy to make a REALLY great sauce, why would you spend money buying a pre-made, packaged sauce with extra JUNK that's bad for you?! Sometimes, I'll start with a bottled sauce and add fresh veg and spices to it (and meat). But today (err... yesterday), I made it from scratch. Yum. Because it's my own concoction, I didn't really measure spices. Just taste it. If it's too spicy/salty, add some sugar and/or vinegar.


Ingredients:

1lb. ground hamburger
1 small onion, diced
1 pkg. sliced mushrooms
2 Cans Tomato Sauce
1 Can diced tomatoes
Italian Seasoning
Garlic Powder
Red Wine Vinegar
Red Chile Flakes
Salt and Pepper
*optional: diced Bell Pepper, minced fresh garlic (if you have time, which I didn't)

Whole Wheat pasta (I used Ronzoni Healthy Harvest Thin Spaghetti)

Instructions:

1. Boil large saucepan/stock pot half full of hot water with about 2TBS salt. Once boiling, add pasta and cook accordingly. Drain.

2. Brown hamburger in medium saucepan. Once almost browned, add onions and mushrooms. Sautee until hamburger is completely browned and add diced tomatoes and sauce. Throw in your spices until it tastes right.

Side note: this is the garlic bread I use. Walmart sells it in a 2 pack for just around $2 and it's super yummy and easy to make!