Category Archives: Everybody Ate It

June 12, 2010 · 11:30 pm

Chocolate Black Bean Brownies

I made these tonight for my family. We have had these several times before and I have always hid the fact that they have black beans in them for fear of a revolt. Tonight though the kids watched me as I put the beans in with the brownie mix. They were a little confused at first, but they didn’t seem to mind that there were beans in their brownies when they were asking for seconds.

Ingredients:
1 box of brownie mix
15.5 oz. can black beans

Directions:
Preheat the oven to the temperature that is says on the brownie box.

Drain and rinse the beans.

Put the beans back in the can and fill the can to the top with water.

Dump the beans and water in a blender and puree.

In a large bowl, combine the beans and the brownie mix.

Pour mixture into an oiled 9×13 in baking dish.

Bake according to package directions.

What does the family think? They love them.

recipe from Weight Watchers

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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

June 6, 2010 · 9:41 pm

Greek Chicken Cutlets

Broke out the indoor grill tonight which I probably haven’t used in two years. It was a great change of pace and brought our youngest into the kitchen to see what I was doing.

Ingredients:
1 pint of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
4 oz. feta cheese crumbles
3 T olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lb. chicken cutlets

Directions:
Mix the tomatoes, feta, 1 T olive oil, salt and pepper in a medium-sized bowl and set to the side.

Heat a grill pan over high heat; brush lightly with oil. Season chicken with salt and pepper.

Cook chicken about 2-4 minutes on each side or until cooked through.

Put chicken on a serving platter and top with tomato mixture.

Did I change anything? The original recipe called for mint and Kalamata olives. I am not a huge fan of either so I left them out.

What did the family think? Hubby and I really liked the chicken. I like anything that has feta on it though so I am probably not the best judge. The boys ended up eating leftover pasta from a few nights ago along with leftover pizza. We will never get all of that pasta eaten up, but it was worth a try. Hubby and I even had some alongside our Greek chicken. I still have half a pan of the pasta left though. Oh well, we tried. 🙂

from Everyday Food

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Filed under Chicken, Everybody Ate It, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make

June 5, 2010 · 10:30 pm

Cheesy Brunch Casserole

Breakfast for dinner, anyone?

Ingredients:
1 lb. turkey Italian sausage
5 cups herbed seasoned stuffing mix
Cooking spray
1/2 c. chicken broth
2 T. butter, melted
6 oz. sharp cheddar cheese
2 c. milk
1/2 tspn. black pepper
16 oz. egg substitute

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Remove casings from sausage and cook sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Drain.

In a large bowl, combine stuffing and sausage and mix well.

Place stuffing mixture in a 13 x 9 casserole dish coated with cooking spray.

Drizzle stuffing mixture with broth and butter. Sprinkle with cheese.

Combine milk, pepper and egg substitute, stirring with a whisk. Pour milk mixture over stuffing mixture.

Bake 40 minutes at 325 degrees. Let stand five minutes before serving.

What did the family think? I made this for a Mother’s Day brunch and it was a hit with everyone.

from Cooking Light

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Filed under Breakfast, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It

June 4, 2010 · 9:04 pm

Spring-Summer Ziti

I will tell you right now that this recipe made enough food to feed my family and the rest of the block. Unless you are having company or have a VERY large family, cut it in half. I will type it as I fixed it, but you should probably only make half as much.

Ingredients:
2 T extra-virgin olive oil
3 large shallots, thinly sliced
28 oz. can San Marzano plum tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
4 springs fresh tarragon, chopped
1/2 c. fresh basil, thinly sliced
1 lb. ziti
1 lb. thin asparagus, trimmed of woody ends, and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 c. frozen peas
1 c. ricotta
1 c. parmesan cheese
1/2 lb. fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Put a large pot of water on to boil for the pasta.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the shallots and garlic in olive oil for 3-4 minutes.

Then stir in tomatoes and crush them with a wooden spoon. Season the sauce with salt and pepper.

Cook for five minutes then stir in basil and tarragon. Remove from heat.

When pasta has been cooking for about five minutes, add asparagus and peas to pasta. Bring back to a boil and cook for another few minutes. Drain the pasta and the veggies.

Put pasta and veggies in a large bowl. Add all of the ricotta and half the parmesan to the pasta. Mix well.

Pour half of the tomato sauce into a large casserole dish. Add all of the zit and top with the remaining tomato sauce. Dot the top of the dish with the mozzarella and sprinkle with the remaining parmesan.

Bake for about twelve minutes.

What did the family think? Hubby thought it was good. I loved the chunks of mozzarella. Our oldest said it was the best pasta I’ve ever made. (Not sure about that.) Even our youngest ate it without much fuss…can’t ask for more than that. 🙂

from Rachel Ray

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Filed under Everybody Ate It, Italian, Lent, Not so Easy, Vegetarian

May 30, 2010 · 8:35 pm

Gnocchi with Chicken Sausage and Broccoli

I had never made anything with gnocchi before tonight. It was a hit with everyone!

Ingredients:
12-16 oz. gnocchi
16 oz. frozen broccoli
4 T olive oil
1 1/2 lbs. chicken sausage links, casings removed
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/4 tspn. crushed red pepper flakes
Juice of one lemon

Directions:

Cook broccoli and gnocchi according to the directions on the packaging. When they are done, drain and place in a large bowl.

In a large skillet, add olive oil and Italian sausage, cook over medium-high heat. Break up the sausage while it is cooking so that it is in bite-sized pieces. When it is almost thoroughly cooked, add onions, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Continue to cook for about five more minutes. Add the sausage mixture to the gnocchi and broccoli and thoroughly toss. Add lemon juice and toss again.

What did the family think? They really liked it! This is the first time our boys have ever had gnocchi. I thought they would like it, but I wasn’t certain. We had this with buttered baguette slices with thinly sliced radishes on top. Yummy!

adapted from a Rachel Ray recipe

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Filed under Everybody Ate It, Italian

· 12:13 am

Piggy Pudding

With a name like Piggy Pudding what’s not to like? 🙂

Ingredients:
1 lb. breakfast sausage, crumbled
2-3 tart apples, peeled, cored and sliced
7.5 oz. box cornbread mix
Maple syrup

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Prepare cornbread batter according to package directions, but don’t bake it yet.

Cook sausage in a skillet until done. Drain fat.

Arrange sausage in a casserole dish. Place one layer of apples over the sausage.

Pour cornbread batter on top being sure to cover apples.

Bake for approx. 30 minutes or until cornbread is done.

Serve with maple syrup.

Did I change anything? The original recipe called for sausage links, but I made it with ground breakfast sausage. I am sure it is fine either way.

What did the family think? They actually liked it. Syrup was involved, what’s not to like?

from Mama, What’s for Dinner

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Filed under Easy, Everybody Ate It, Six Ingredients or Less

May 24, 2010 · 10:22 pm

Chicken with Herbed Vegetable Sauce

This is a great dish to make out of all of the fresh veggies that are in season now.

Ingredients:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 T fresh thyme
3 T olive oil
2 small zucchini, cut into thin strips
1 small leek (white and pale green parts only) cut into thin strips
1/2 medium carrot, cut into thin strips
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 c. chicken broth
8 large fresh basil leaves, chopped
Salt and pepper to season

Directions:
Heat half the oil in large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add chicken to skillet and season with salt and pepper and half of the thyme.

Cook chicken until cooked through then transfer to a plate.

Add zucchini, leek, carrot, garlic and remaining thyme and oil to skillet.

Saute vegetables for about five minutes.

Return chicken to skillet and add chicken broth. Bring to boil, reduce heat and cover.

After about five minutes, add basil and cook an additional five minutes.

We had this with parmesan risotto that our oldest had been begging me to make. It was actually a pretty good combo.

Did I change anything? Yes…I left out the celery and the tomatoes which were on the original recipe and not because I meant to but because they never made it onto the grocery list. Frankly, though, I think the tomatoes would have been too much; there are already a lot of veggies in this. I also didn’t read the recipe very well and I added an entire can of chicken broth instead of just a cup. It turned out fine though. I just got it out of the pan with a slotted spoon.

What did the family think? Hubby and I liked it. I really liked all of the fresh herbs in it. Our oldest liked it and ate just about everything. Our youngest ate the chicken with some catsup and he also ate the carrots.

Original recipe from Bon Appetit

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Filed under Chicken, Definitely Making it Again, Everybody Ate It

May 23, 2010 · 9:56 pm

Quesadilla Pie

This is a great dish because you can add just about any reasonable ingredient to it and it comes out fabulous.

Must-have Ingredients:
4 large flour tortillas
1/2 lb. shredded cheese (cheddar, Mexican blend or Pepper Jack)

Possible Ingredients:
Beans, cooked (black, pinto)
Tomatoes, chopped
Onions (green, red, white, yellow)
Corn
Squash, chopped or shredded
Pork, chicken or beef-cooked and shredded
Rice (plain or Mexican) already cooked
Chiles
Cumin
Chili Powder
Cilantro

Garnishes:
Avocado
Salsa
Sour Cream

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter bottom and sides of a pie dish that is about the same size as your tortillas.

Place one tortilla on the bottom of the pie dish.

Next add 1/3 the ingredients that you have chosen to add to your quesadilla pie. (Note: all layers don’t have to be the same.) Make sure you put cheese in all of the layers though.

Place a tortilla on top of the first layer and add another 1/3 of the pie fillings. Top that layer with a tortilla, add more fillings and then place the last tortilla on top.

Spread a little butter on top of the last tortilla. Don’t skip this step. 🙂

Cover the dish with aluminum foil and cook for 30 minutes. Then remove aluminum foil, turn oven up to 400 degrees and cook for another 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and let the pie set for about ten minutes before you cut into it.

Did I change anything? One thing we always have with this is a concoction of salsa and sour cream mixed together that we use as a dip for these. Yummo!!!

What does the family think? Hubby and I really like these. The kids are inclined to eat anything that involves sour cream. 🙂

Recipe from Simply Recipes

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Filed under Chicken, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Mexican, Pork, Vegetarian

May 21, 2010 · 10:42 pm

Caribbean Chicken Salad with Pina Colada Dressing

This is the perfect salad for a light summer dinner and it’s super easy.

Ingredients:
Dressing-
6 oz. pina colada yogurt
1 1/2 T. lime juice
1 tspn. Caribbean jerk seasoning

Salad-
4 cups lettuce (whichever variety you prefer)
6 oz. cooked chicken, cooked, cooled and chopped
15 oz. black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 c. mangoes, fresh, from a jar or frozen and thawed
1 c. cheddar cheese, shredded
3 Roma tomatoes, chopped
4 green onions, sliced
1/4 c. cashews (optional)

Directions:
Whisk together dressing ingredients and set aside.

Toss salad ingredients together.

Pour dressing over salad and serve.

Did I change anything? I didn’t put in as many onions. That was just too much onion for us. I also left out the cashews, but will definitely add them in next time.

What did the family think? It was a little too fruity for my hubby. I liked it though and the kids liked it, too. They just picked their way around the beans.

Recipe from www.recipezaar.com

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Filed under Chicken, Easy, Everybody Ate It

May 17, 2010 · 10:30 pm

Singapore Slaw

This is the perfect meal for a hot summer day. I think it would be a nice addition to a picnic lunch, too.

Ingredients:
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
8 oz. bag of shredded cabbage with carrots
1 small can sliced water chestnuts, drained
1 small can mandarin oranges, drained
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 small red onion, chopped
2 T fresh cilantro
2 T peanut oil
4 tspn. rice vinegar
1 T sugar
1 tspn. sesame oil
1 tspn. soy sauce
1/4 tspn. dry mustard

Directions:
Combine chicken, cabbage, water chestnuts, oranges, bell pepper, red onion and cilantro in a large bowl.

For dressing, in a screw-top jar combine peanut oil, rice vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce and dry mustard. Cover and shake well.

Pour dressing over salad and stir well. Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours before serving.

Did I change anything? The original recipe called for jicama. The only jicama they had at the grocery store was huge, so I opted for water chestnuts instead. I also left out the peanuts and the sesame seeds that the original recipe called for. I added the chicken so it was more of a meal instead of just a salad. Also, in the recipe above I listed the quantities that were listed in the original recipe for the dressing, but I actually doubled it.

What did the family think? Hubby and I loved it. It is really great and there are so many flavors all mixed together in there. Our oldest liked it and our youngest liked it a lot more than he thought he would. They both had water chestnuts for the first time tonight and they liked them.