MommaCooks

posted by Nina on Jul 28

You can make these in the morning or the night before you need them and just pop them in the oven when you are ready to eat. (These might be a staple in our house when school, sports, violin lessons, etc., etc. start back up again.) You could also just assemble them, put them in the oven and eat them right away.

Ingredients:
3 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 jar (16 ounces) salsa
1 can (16 ounces) refried beans
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies, drained
1 envelope burrito seasoning
1/2 cup water
16 flour tortillas (8 inches), warmed
16 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large skillet, cook the meat until done.

Next, add, salsa, beans, chilies, seasoning and water. Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes or until heated through.

Spoon about 1/3 cup off-center on each tortilla; top with a little cheese (however much you want). Fold edge of tortilla nearest filling over to cover. Fold ends of tortilla over filling and roll up.

Place in large casserole dish. Top with cheese.

Either bake them right away for about 15 minutes or until cheese is melted or cover them with aluminum foil and put them in the frig for later. If saving them for later, when you are ready to cook them, bake them for about 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted and they are heated through. Remove the aluminum foil first.

Did I change anything? I left out the water. I didn’t do it on purpose, but I think they would had been too watery if I had added the water. I didn’t use shredded meat, I just used ground turkey. Also, the original recipe didn’t call for cheese on top. The more cheese, the happier I am, so I added it.

What did the family think? Hubby and I really liked them and we are going to have them for leftovers tonight. The kids weren’t too thrilled with them. They did eat a little, but it definitely wasn’t their favorite.

Where did this recipe come from? Taste of Home

photo from Taste of Home

posted by Nina on Jun 21

There was a time in my life where all I would order when we went out for Mexican was a plate of chile relleno. Those days are over, but when I saw this recipe I just had to try it…for old time’s sake.

Ingredients:
1/4 lb. ground chorizo
3 (7 oz) cans of whole green chiles
3 eggs
3 tbsp flour
3 tbsp non fat sour cream
1 (3 oz) can of sliced black olives
1 cup of low fat Mexican blend cheese (or more if you want)
1 can black beans, rinsed & drained
1 (15 oz) can red or green enchilada sauce
Sour cream (garnish)
Diced green onion (garnish)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook chorizo in a skillet until cooked through.

Combine eggs, flour, sour cream, olives, salt and pepper to taste then mix thoroughly.

Coat a baking dish with cooking spray. Add a layer of the chiles, and then egg mixture, then cheese, then chorizo, then black beans; repeat layers until gone. Top with enchilada sauce and a bit more cheese.

Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

Top with sour cream and diced green onion.

Did I change anything? I added the chorizo and left out the olives.

What did the family think? The boys had been at a birthday party and were full of cupcakes and pizza, so they didn’t eat. Hubby liked it a lot more than he thought he was going to. He wished there had been more chorizo and that I had cut the peppers up so they weren’t so big.

Where did this recipe come from? For the Love of Cooking

photo from For the Love of Cooking

posted by Nina on Jun 2

Oh my goodness! These are so good. Put these on your menu for next week. If you already made your menu for next week, change it. Really, they are super good.

Ingredients:
8 whole Flour Tortillas
Butter Or Margarine
2 cups Grilled Pineapple, Sliced
3 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
Salt And Pepper, to taste
3 cups Monterey Jack Cheese, Grated
1 whole Jalapeno, Sliced
Cilantro
3 Tablespoons Barbecue Sauce

Instructions:
(To grill pineapple: cut wedges, stick on skewers, and grill over low heat. Cut into slices.)

(To pound chicken, place inside a Ziploc bag and pound with a mallet/hammer or large can to flatten to uniform thickness.)

Sprinkle with salt and pepper and Cajun spice (or cumin/cayenne) Drizzle olive oil on a grill pan and grill on both sides until done, brushing with barbecue sauce. Set aside and slice into very thin slices.

Warm griddle over medium heat and put sizzling butter or margarine in the pan. Slightly warm and toast tortillas on both sides, then remove from griddle and set aside.

To assemble, sprinkle four browned tortillas with grated Monterey Jack. Arrange chicken slices evenly over the surface. Add pineapple slices and jalapeno slices. Sprinkle on cilantro. If desired, drizzle extra barbecue sauce over the top. Add second browned tortilla on top of each one. (You’ll have four complete quesadillas at this point.)

Add to oven to warm, or back to skillet to warm, until cheese is melted. Cut each quesadilla into six wedges. Serve with sour cream, pico de gallo, and lime wedges.

Did I change anything? I forgot the butter, but they still turned out great. Also, it’s really important to thinly slice the chicken or else the quesadillas turn out so lumpy that they are very difficult to eat. Same goes for the pineapple…don’t make the pieces too chunky. Yes, I know all of this because I botched that part of the recipe.

What did the family think? Everyone ate these and loved them! I left the spicy stuff off of the boys’ quesadillas though.

Where did this recipe come from? The Pioneer Woman

photo from The Pioneer Woman

posted by Nina on May 31

Since we love pasta around here, I thought I would give this version from Parents magazine’s June issue a try.

Ingredients:
Nonstick cooking spray
1/2 lb. vermicelli or angel hair pasta, broken into thirds
16 oz jar mild chunky salsa
2 cups cooked cubed chicken breasts
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend, divided
1 T chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly coat a 2-qt. baking dish with cooking spray; set aside.

Cook pasta according to package directions. When done, drain and rinse under cold water.

Mix pasta, salsa, chicken, 3/4 cup cheese and cilantro in baking dish.

Cover with foil and bake 20 minutes.

Uncover, sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake uncovered for 10 minutes.

We had this with some fresh strawberries and blueberries.

Did I change anything? The only thing we ended up doing differently with this is that my oldest thought it might be a good idea to crumble up some tortilla chips and sprinkle them on top. He thought it made the dish ten times better.

What did the family think? Everyone who normally likes dinner at our house loved it and had seconds. The leftovers were even requested by our oldest to be sent to school in his lunchbox.

Where did this recipe come from? Parents Magazine, June 2011, p. 58

photo from goodapples.com

posted by Nina on May 11

It has come to my attention that there are some folks out there who would like for me to really make it super duper clear as to where I am getting all of these recipes from. Some of them are mine, some of them are not and I have always, from the beginning, noted where the recipe came from if it was not my own. However, I will begin, starting today, making it even more obvious where the recipes come from and adding a link if appropriate. MommaCooks has grown to be something more than I ever thought it would be, so I will just chalk this up to growing pains and get back in the kitchen. Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming…

Ingredients:
1/2 lb. ground beef
1 cup chopped Italian plum tomatoes (2 medium)
1 cup julienne-cut zucchini
1/2 cup finely chopped green onions
1 (15-oz.) can black beans, drained, rinsed
1 (10-oz.) can enchilada sauce
1 (8-oz.) container nonfat sour cream
1 teaspoon Taco Seasoning Mix
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas, halved
6 oz. (1 1/2 cups) shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Spray 13×9-inch glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Brown ground beef in medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until thoroughly cooked, stirring frequently. Drain.

In medium bowl, combine tomatoes, zucchini, onions and beans; mix well. Stir in cooked ground beef. Reserve 1/3 cup enchilada sauce; set aside. In another medium bowl, combine remaining enchilada sauce, sour cream and taco seasoning mix.

Spoon 2 tablespoons enchilada sauce mixture in bottom of sprayed baking dish. Arrange 8 tortilla halves over sauce, overlapping as necessary. Spoon half of vegetable-bean mixture over tortillas. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the cheese. Spoon half of remaining sauce mixture over cheese. Repeat layers, reserving 1/2 cup cheese for top. Top with reserved 1/3 cup enchilada sauce.

Cover with foil; refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.

Heat oven to 375°F. Bake casserole for 30 to 35 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Uncover; sprinkle with reserved 1/2 cup cheese. Bake, uncovered, an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with cilantro.

Did I change anything? I didn’t let it sit as long as the recipes says. I only put it in the frig for about 5 hours.

What did the family think? Sadly, I was the only one who liked it. Normally, I wouldn’t put a recipe on MommaCooks that was “a bomb”, but this one wasn’t. Honestly, I wasn’t home last night and had eaten before everyone else and I think someone thought it might be a wee bit easier to take the kids out rather than trying to get them to eat something that has zucchini in it.

Where did the recipe come from? I found this recipe at bettycrocker.com.

from Betty Crocker

posted by Nina on May 6

This was our Cinco de Mayo dish…we didn’t actually get too festive though because I completely messed up our dinner schedule by thinking our 6:30 baseball game was at 5:00. Oh well…it was still a tasty dish.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef, chicken or turkey
2 cans (15 to 16 ounces each) pinto beans
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1/2 cup mild chunky-style salsa
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese (4 ounces)
Sour cream and salsa, garnish
Rice or tortillas

Instructions:
Heat the oven to 375°.

Cook the beef in the skillet over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown; drain.

Rinse and drain the beans in a strainer. Mix the beef, beans, tomato sauce, salsa and chili powder in the ungreased baking pan.

Cover with lid or aluminum foil and bake 40 to 45 minutes, stirring once or twice, until hot and bubbly. Carefully remove the lid, and sprinkle cheese over the top. Continue baking uncovered about 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

The boys had this on tortillas. I melted a little cheese on the tortilla like a quesadilla and then added the beans and meat. You could also serve this over rice with a little salsa and sour cream and that would be good, too.

Did I change anything? I baked it just as the recipe says to, but I think you could totally skip that part and save yourself about 40 minutes. Just put everything in the skillet and heat it up that way. Just put the cheese on at the end in the skillet…it will still melt, but you don’t have to wait for it to bake in the oven.

What did the family think? Well, we didn’t get to all eat together (which is VERY rare in our house) because I messed up the baseball game time. 3/4 of us still ate what I made for dinner and everybody ate it…even our youngest. He picked out the beans, but he still ate it without any fuss.

from Betty Crocker

posted by Nina on May 3

This is not a new recipe for MommaCooks, just a previous one with a tiny twist. Our oldest isn’t a big fan of tacos and will usually just eat the filling and not the tortilla, but he does love tortilla chips, so I decided to make nachos using the taco filling (from Jessica Seinfeld) that I normally make.

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef or turkey
1 14-oz. can crushed or diced tomatoes, with their juice
2 T cup sweet potato, carrot, or butternut squash puree (use baby food)
2 T wheat germ
1 packet taco seasoning
Tortilla chips

Garnish: cheese, sour cream, avocado, salsa…whatever you like on your tacos

Instructions:
Cook meat in large nonstick skillet. Drain fat.

Stir in the tomatoes and their juice, vegetable puree, wheat germ and seasoning mix.
Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the meat is no longer pink and the mixture begins to thicken, 8-10 minutes.

Make nachos by putting tortilla chips on a plate and topping with meat mixture. Add your favorite toppings.

Did I change anything? I added the wheat germ and reduced the amount of puree.

What did the family think? It was a hit!

posted by Nina on Apr 16

Another recipe that was a hit in our house this week…I think it might have something to do with the fact that we ate a lot of noodles/pasta this week. Why is it that my kids will eat just about anything that has noodles of some sort with it?

Ingredients:
1 lb extra lean ground beef, chicken or turkey
2 tbsp taco seasoning
3/4 cup water
4 cups dry pasta
1 cup fresh tomatoes, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
2 cups cheddar, shredded
2 large handfuls of tortilla chips
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Brown the ground beef in a pan. Add the taco seasoning and water, and simmer over medium heat until most of the water evaporated (about 10 minutes). Meanwhile, boil the pasta in a large pot of salted water until al dente.

Drain the pasta when done and combine the pasta, beef mixture, and tomatoes in a large casserole dish and set it aside.

For the cheese sauce, combine the olive oil and flour in a medium sauce pan, stirring over medium heat until it began to bubble. Add the milk and stir with a whisk over medium/high heat until it comes to a boil and has thickened. Remove from heat and stir in cheddar.

Pour the cheese sauce over the pasta.

For the topping, crush tortillas chips and combine them with the parmesan in a small bowl and sprinkle the topping over the tacoroni. Bake in the oven until the topping is golden and gorgeous, about 30-35 minutes.

Did I change anything? The only thing I would change for next time is to add a little more taco seasoning to give it a little more flavor.

What did the family think? Everyone went back for seconds and my oldest even went back for thirds. Let me just say, that our youngest NEVER has seconds of anything unless it’s chocolate, pizza or meatballs, so I am very happy to say he liked it.

from Family Feedbag

posted by Nina on Mar 28

I had never, ever, ever made guacamole until last night, but I had everything I needed to make it so I thought I would give it a try. It turned out great and there were zero leftovers. (By the way, my brother makes the best guacamole I have ever eaten, but I don’t have his recipe. Actually, I don’t think there is a recipe…he just wings it.)

Ingredients:
3 Haas avocados, halved, seeded and peeled
1 lime, juiced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 clove garlic, minced

We had this with Chips and Salsa Chicken.

Instructions:
In a large bowl place the scooped avocado pulp and lime juice, toss to coat. Drain, and reserve the lime juice, after all of the avocados have been coated.

Using a potato masher or fork add the salt, cumin, and cayenne and mash. Then, fold in the onions, tomatoes, cilantro, and garlic. Add 1 tablespoon of the reserved lime juice. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour and then serve.

Did I change anything? I only had one avocado, so I just reduced the amounts of the other ingredients. I wish my avocado would have been a little bit softer, too. I didn’t have time to let it sit four an hour. I just made it and then we ate it.

What did the family think? The boys wouldn’t touch it, but hubby and I gobbled it up.

from Food Network

posted by Nina on Mar 15

I took Jessica Seinfeld’s recipe and tweaked it a bit. These turned out great and everyone ate them!

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef or turkey
1 14-oz. can crushed or diced tomatoes, with their juice
2 T cup sweet potato, carrot, or butternut squash puree (use baby food)
2 T wheat germ
1 packet taco seasoning
1 pkg. taco shells or flour tortillas
Garnish: cheese, sour cream, avocado, salsa…whatever you like on your tacos

Instructions:
Cook meat in large nonstick skillet. Drain fat.

Stir in the tomatoes and their juice, vegetable puree, wheat germ and seasoning mix.

Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the meat is no longer pink and the mixture begins to thicken, 8-10 minutes.

Fill the taco shells/tortillas with the meat mixture and add your favorite toppings.

Did I change anything? I added the wheat germ and reduced the amount of puree. We also always use flour tortillas, so I added that as an option.

What did the family think? It was a hit!