Category Archives: Easy

January 23, 2011 · 9:15 pm

Poached Cod with Pasta Sauce

This couldn’t get any easier…three ingredients!

Ingredients:
1 lb. cod
1 jar pasta sauce
Parmesan cheese, grated

Instructions:
Simmer pasta sauce in a skillet; add cod fillets, cover and cook until just firm; top with parmesan.

We had this with green beans and a baguette.

Did I change anything? I didn’t actually use the whole jar of pasta sauce. I probably used about 3/4 of it though. Also, the cod filet I bought was pretty long, so I cut in half so that it would all fit in the pan and cook more evenly.

What did the family think? Hubby and I really liked this. The boys had fish sticks.

from Food Network

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Fish, Italian, Lent, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make

January 21, 2011 · 10:24 pm

Italian Sausage, Mozzarella and Spinach Panini

I saw this on Cooking Light’s website; I just added some mozzarella cheese and some pasta sauce to jazz it up a bit.

Ingredients:
Cooking spray
4 Italian sausage links, cut in half crosswise
4 cups baby spinach
4 (1 1/2-ounce) French bread rolls
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
Pasta sauce

Instructions:
Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray, and place over medium heat until hot. Add sausages, and cook 10 minutes, turning occasionally.

Remove sausage from skillet; carefully slice each piece in half lengthwise, cutting to, but not through, other side. Open the halves, laying sausage flat. Return sausage to skillet, placing cut sides down; cook 2 minutes or until sausage is done. Remove sausage from skillet; set aside, and keep warm. Add spinach to skillet; cover and cook 2 minutes or until wilted. Remove spinach from skillet; set aside, and keep warm.

Slice each French bread roll in half horizontally. Fill with one sausage, 1/4 of the spinach and 1/4 of the mozzarella cheese.

If you have a panini maker, use it. If not, heat a skillet over medium low heat and spray with cooking spray. Place sandwich in skillet and put a heavy skillet on top of it for a few minutes. Flip the sandwich over, place the skillet on top of it again and cook for a few minutes on that side until cheese is melted.

Serve with heated up pasta sauce in little bowls for dipping your sandwich into.

What did the family think? Everyone loved it. The spinach didn’t even bother the boys because they were too busy dipping their sandwiches in the pasta sauce. Yum!

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Italian, Sandwich, Six Ingredients or Less

January 19, 2011 · 6:05 pm

Santa Maria Chicken

Some friends from church had us over for dinner a few weeks ago and this chicken was so good I had to ask for the recipe. The kids liked it so much that is was almost embarrassing how much they ate. It is so easy, too…four ingredients…it doesn’t get much easier than that.

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup catsup
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup soy sauce

Instructions:
Put all ingredients in a Ziploc bag and marinate for at least four hours.

When you are ready to cook it, heat up grill to medium-high. Throw out marinade and cook chicken on grill until cooked through.

We had this will salad, bread and butter and corn.

What did the family think? Like I said before, the kids ate so much of this at their house that I was embarrassed. I was kind of worried that mine wouldn’t turn out right, but it did and they ate it right up.

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Filed under Chicken, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Make Ahead of Time, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make

· 9:15 am

Super Easy Crock Pot French Dip Sammies

My very dear friend, Candy, posted this on Facebook not too long ago and I thought I would give it a try. I had a feeling the boys would like it and I like anything that’s easy that involves provolone cheese.

Ingredients:
3-4 lbs beef brisket (use more or less depending on your family’s appetite)
1 can beef broth
1 packet of Lipton Beefy Onion Soup Mix
yellow or white onion, cut in wedges (totally optional–the flavor of the beef comes out just as good without this)
Italian Seasoning (totally optional, again)
Sliced bread, hoagie rolls, or other “bun” of choice
Provolone cheese (totally optional, again)

Instructions:
Spray inside of crock pot with nonstick cooking spray.

Take the Italian Seasoning (if you are using it) and sprinkle on all sides of the beef.

Place beef (fat side down) in crock pot.

Add onions, if you are using them.

Mix beef broth and soup mix by whisking a few times in a bowl.

Pour the combined beef broth/soup mix into crockpot with beef (& onions).

Cook on LOW setting for 8 hours or HIGH for 4-6 hours. (This is much better when cooked SLOW and long rather than on high and for shorter amount of time, but I have done both. If you’re in a pinch for time, then go with the HIGH setting if you must!)

Once beef is done, simply slice or shred up, place in bread or bun of choice, top with cheese (we have also used shredded cheddar and have omitted cheese completely and it’s been fine!).

Ladle out au jus sauce from crock pot and put in a small bowl for each person.
Dip sandwich to your liking, eat, and enjoy!

Did I change anything? I left out the onions and I couldn’t find the exact right flavor of Lipton soup mix at the grocery store, so I used Beef and Mushroom instead.

What did the family think? Hubby was out of town, so he missed out. Our oldest loved it and so did I. Our youngest really liked it too, but he decided to dip his in catsup instead of au jus.

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Make Ahead of Time, Sandwich, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make

January 11, 2011 · 8:49 am

Ravioli and Meatball Casserole

This takes a little while to bake, but it was perfect for last night. We were watching the BCS football game, so it baked while we watched. It was worth the wait, too. There was not one drop of this left…the whole family loved it.

Ingredients:
1 (26 ounce) jar tomato pasta sauce
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed cheddar cheese soup
24 frozen cooked meatballs
1 (9 ounce) package refrigerated cheese ravioli
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a 2 quart casserole mix pasta sauce and soup until smooth. Stir in meatballs and ravioli.

Cover and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 15-25 minutes or until bubbly.

Remove from oven, sprinkle with cheese, let stand for 5 minutes to melt cheese before serving.

Did I change anything? The only thing I wish was different about this recipe is that it made more food. We all wanted more. 🙂

What did the family think? It was a hit!

from food.com

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Italian, Six Ingredients or Less

January 9, 2011 · 9:56 pm

Herbed Fish

This was quick and easy and tasty too.

Ingredients:
1 lb fish fillets, about 1/2 inch thick
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
1/2 flour
1/4 cup Italian crumbs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh or 1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
Lemon

Instructions:
Cut fish into 4 serving pieces. In 10-inch skillet, heat oil over medium heat.

In small shallow dish, mix flour, bread crumbs, basil and salt.

In another shallow dish, beat egg. Dip fish into egg, then coat with flour mixture.

Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook fish in oil 8 to 10 minutes, turning once, until fish flakes easily with fork and is brown on both sides.

Sprinkle with lemon juice.

Did I change anything? I added the lemon juice part of the recipe and the recipe also said that your should used Bisquick instead of flour, but I didn’t have any Bisquick so I used flour. Also, I used sole. One pound of sole is a lot of sole. LOTS! Next time I will either get a thicker cut of fish or less sole.

What did the family think? Hubby and I liked it. Our oldest tried it, but was not impressed. The youngest stuck with fish sticks.

from Betty Crocker

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Fish, Lent

January 5, 2011 · 7:18 pm

Creamy Cole Slaw from Bobby Flay

I made this tonight to go with the chicken we had (that recipe to come later). Hubby ate one bite, looked up and asked me if made this. I was a little hesitant to answer because I didn’t know if that meant this is really bad and I don’t want to offend you by saying I hate or this is so awesomely good I didn’t even know you knew how to make cole slaw like this. Luckily, it was the latter.

Ingredients:
1 head green cabbage, finely shredded
2 large carrots, finely shredded
3/4 cup best-quality mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons grated Spanish onion
2 tablespoons sugar, or to taste
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon dry mustard
2 teaspoons celery salt
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Instructions:
Combine the shredded cabbage and carrots in a large bowl.

Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, onion, sugar, vinegar, mustard, celery salt, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl, and then add to the cabbage mixture. Mix well to combine and taste for seasoning; add more salt, pepper, or sugar if desired.

Did I change anything? I left out the onion. I also used a bag of broccoli slaw instead of shredding the carrots and the cabbage. Since the pre-made slaws come in different size packages, I would make the dressing and then add the cabbage mixture to the dressing slowly, stirring it, to make sure you get the cabbage to dressing ratio that you like. Also, I made this a few hours ahead of time so that all of the flavors had time to mix together. I think coleslaw always tastes better when it’s had time to sit for awhile.

What did the family think? Hubby and I thought is was super yummy. The kids ate it, but cole slaw isn’t their favorite.

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Salad, Side Dish, Uncategorized, Vegetarian

January 3, 2011 · 9:30 pm

Cake Mix Cookies

I was looking for a recipe for easy cookies…yep, doesn’t get much easier than these.

Ingredients:
1 (18.25 ounce) package vanilla flavored cake mix
2 egg yolks
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup sugar

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Beat egg yolks and margarine together until well blended. Stir in vanilla. Gradually add cake mix while beating with an electric mixer. Mixture should be stiff. If it is sticky to the touch, refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Form teaspoonfuls of the dough into balls, and dip tops in sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake at 350 degrees for 11 minutes for soft cookies, and for 13 minutes for crispy cookies.

Did I change anything? I didn’t this time, but I got to thinking that if you can use vanilla cake mix, why couldn’t you use chocolate cake mix or carrot cake mix or whatever cake mix you wanted to use? I bet these would be SUPER tasty with chocolate cake mix.

What did the family think? We had these as our New Year’s Eve dinner dessert with a bowl of vanilla ice cream. It makes quite a few, so we are still eating them along with the leftover ice cream. Everybody loves them!

from allrecipes.com

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Filed under After School Snacks, Definitely Making it Again, Desserts, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

· 9:20 pm

Crock Pot Lasagna

Tried out another Jessica Seinfeld recipe tonight. I don’t think this one is in her new cookbook, but this is one that she made on Oprah a month or so ago.

Ingredients:
3 cans (14.4 ounces) crushed tomatoes
3 cloves garlic , finely chopped
2 Tbsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 containers (15 ounces each) fresh ricotta
2 cups (8 ounces) grated mozzarella
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
12 lasagna noodles (about three-quarters of a 1-pound box)
5 ounces (about 6 cups) baby spinach

Instructions:
In a medium bowl, combine the tomatoes, garlic, oregano, salt, red pepper and black pepper. In a separate bowl, mix the ricotta, 1 cup of the mozzarella and Parmesan.

In the bottom of a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker, spread a thin layer of the sauce. Top with 3 of the noodles (breaking to fit as necessary). Spread about 1 cup of the sauce over the noodles and layer with 2 cups of the spinach and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese mixture. Repeat twice more with the noodles, sauce, spinach and cheese mixture. Top with the remaining 3 noodles, sauce and 1 cup mozzarella.

Cook on low, covered, until the noodles are tender—especially in the center of the lasagna—about 3 to 3 1/2 hours.

Did I change anything? The only thing I changed is that I couldn’t fit all of the ingredients into the Crock Pot, so I didn’t use all of the cheese mixture or all of the spinach. I also added 1/2 lb. of ground Italian sausage to it which I cooked before I put it in the Crock Pot.

What did the family think? The kids loved it! My youngest said it was the best lasagna he’s EVER had. I would say that it was good, but definitely not the best I have ever had, but if my kids will eat it, then I like it.

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Filed under Easy, Everybody Ate It, Italian, Lent, Vegetarian

December 31, 2010 · 8:56 pm

Rosemary Roasted Salmon

Happy New Year, everyone! This was part of our New Year’s Eve dinner and it was SO good!

Ingredients:
2 large bunches fresh rosemary
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
1 2-pound center-cut salmon fillet with skin
2 large lemons, thinly sliced
1/3 cup olive oil

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 450°F. Arrange half of rosemary sprigs in single layer in center of heavy baking sheet. Arrange sliced red onion atop rosemary.

Place salmon, skin side down, atop red onion. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Cover salmon with remaining rosemary sprigs. Arrange lemon slices over rosemary. Drizzle olive oil over. Sprinkle lemon slices with salt.

Roast salmon until just cooked through, about 20 minutes. Transfer salmon to plates. Serve with roasted onions and lemon slices.

We had this with a salad and a baguette.

Did I change anything? I also roasted some potatoes, carrots and Brussel sprouts along with the salmon. I started roasting the veggies before the salmon since the veggies take a bit longer.

What did the family think? The salmon was fantastic! The onions and Brussel sprouts cooked a little too much, but the potatoes and carrots were perfect. I think next time, I will cook the veggies separately on a lower rack in the oven and maybe for not quite as long.

from epicurious.com

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Filed under Easy, Fish, Lent, Six Ingredients or Less