Zuppa Toscana (just like Olive Garden's!)

So I made this soup tonight, and as little Ethan was sipping his broth he busts out, "this de-WISH-ous!"  Talk about making my day!  (Soooo reminded me of when Jacob said the same thing when he was two--at Davis's wedding about the italian sodas--haaha!)  Anyhow, here's the recipe.  It totally rocks!

1 lb. mild italian sausage
1/2 pkg. bacon
3/4 c. onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large baker potatoes, cubed
10 c. water
10 chicken boullion cubes
1 c. heavy cream
1 bunch kale, stems removed, leaves chopped
*red pepper flakes-- Jason likes his spicy and just adds these to his bowl.

Get bacon and sausage cooking while you chop all your veggies-- I usually do the sausage in the pot I intend to make the soup in!  Set meats aside on paper towels to drain.  Cook onion in large pot until almost clear. Add garlic and crumbled bacon- cook for an additional minute.  Add potatoes, sausage, water, and boullion cubes.  Simmer/boil for 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.  Turn off heat.  Add kale and cream.  Stir, allow kale to just wilt, and ENJOY!  Best served with crusty garlic bread and caesar salad!

Garlic Pesto Chicken with Tomato Cream Sauce

Garlic Pesto Chicken with Tomato Cream Sauce

Marinade:

1/2 bottle of lawrys Herb and Garlic Marinade

2 large spoonfuls of Pesto 

2 boneless chicken breasts.

Cut chicken into one inch strips. Using same knife make slits into chicken. Pour lawrys marinade and pesto over chicken. Marinate over night (I did mine Sunday morning and cooked mine Monday evening so it marinated a while!!)

Sauce:

8 ounces of your choice of pasta (I used whole wheat penne) 

2 tablespoons of olive oil

3 cloves of garlic

2 spoonfuls of pesto

1/2 cup of chicken broth

8 ounces of tomato sauce 

1 cup of half and half

Boil water and start on noodles.

Pour entire batch of chicken, marinade and all, into skillet and cook chicken fully (the marinade will evaporate/cook down)

Heat olive oil, cook garlic. Add pesto. Simmer in chicken broth until half has cooked down. Add tomato sauce. Then add milk. Simmer for 5 minutes. Toss pasta in. Add flour if it needs to be thickened. Place chicken on top.

** Shannon's notes- I didn't marinate over night and it had plenty of flavor.  I don't think it really needs the olive oil.  I'd skip it next time since there's plenty of liquid to cook the garlic in.  We used whole milk instead of half and half.  Leftovers saved really well, sauce didn't separate at all!  I'm curious about marinading the chicken, then throwing it and everything else to cook for a few hours in the crockpot. Hmm...

Pesto Baked Chicken ( & Pesto Recipe)

Um, yeah, delicious.

Pesto Baked Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/4 c. + 1 T. prepared pesto*
1 1/2 t. sour cream
1 1/2 t. mayonnaise
2 T. shredded parmesan cheese
2 T. pine nuts or walnuts

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Arrange chicken in a single layer in a shallow baking dish.  Combine pesto, sour cream and mayo in a small bowl.  Brush over chicken. Sprinkle with cheese and nuts. Bake 15-25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

*Costco sells a great pesto, or I have included a good recipe for pesto below.

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Pesto

1/4 c. walnuts
1/4 c. pine nuts
5 c. basil, packed
3 T. minced garlic (about 9 cloves)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 1/4 c. olive oil
1 c. parmesan cheese

In blender combine nuts and garlic. Add the basil, salt and pepper. With blender still running, add the oil followed by the parmesan cheese.

This makes 4 cups. You could half the recipe if you don't want that much, but I like to make it and freeze it in ice cube trays. When frozen I pop them out and keep them in bags in the freezer, and just defrost as needed. They last quite a while since a little pesto goes a long way (thanks for the ice cube idea Lisa!).

Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken

This is a super easy, really good recipe I got from Shauna!

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. soy sauce
3 T. cider vinegar
3/4 t. minced garlic
Salt & Pepper

Whisk together sugar, soy sauce, vinegar and garlic.  Season chicken with salt and pepper and place in slow cooker. Pour sauce over chicken and cook on high for two hours (or I did low on 4). Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred.

This is good over rice, or would be great in tacos. Maybe with some pineapple :)

Mizithra Cheese

If you have ever been to The Old Spaghetti Factory, you may have seen this dish on their menu.  It is one of my favorites, and sooooo easy to make.  It's very rich, so I tend to use it as a side dish with some grilled chicken and broccoli.  Or if you want to go for a vegetarian night, try making it your main course with sides of tomato caprese, veggies, and bread.

1/2 lb. thin spaghetti or angel hair
1 cube butter
mizithra cheese - sometimes spelled myzithra, you can find this in the specialty cheese area of your deli, I usually have luck at Smith's

Cook your pasta to desired firmness.  While pasta is cooking, put the butter in a small saucepan and cook it until it is brown. You will know it is done when it boils down and the milk solids turn brown and sink to the bottom as they solidify.  The butter will also smell deliciously nutty.  WATCH IT CAREFULLY as the next step after brown is burnt.

Drain pasta.  With tongs, dip pasta briefly into the butter then onto your plate.  Use your smallest shredder or microplaner to shred the mizithra cheese all over your pasta-- I like it pretty snowy.

Kimbre's Pasta

1 lb. pasta (penne or rotini work best)
1 pkg. ground italian sausage (I like mild, but you can do hot if you like your food spicy!)
3  14oz cans stewed tomatoes
1 cup cream (you can also use half & half if you want to go cheaper/ less fat)
parmesan cheese (the more expensive shredded stuff is delish, but grated works too)

Start water boiling for your pasta.  In a large skillet brown your sausage.  While sausage is browning, pour the stewed tomatoes undrained into a blender or food processor.  Pulse until you get the consistency you like-- I like mine a little chunky.  Once sausage is brown, add tomatoes and cream- it will be kinda soupy.  Let it warm through while pasta cooks.

Cook pasta UNDER desired tenderness-- a little hard in the middle is just about right.

Drain pasta, but DO NOT RINSE.  Pour pasta and sauce into casserole dish.  Sprinkle generously with cheese and mix in.  Top with more cheese if desired--I like lots!

Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, or until pasta has soaked up all that goodness and is tender!  This is a new favorite italian comfort food for our family!

Apricot Chicken

4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 c. Russian salad dressing
1 c. apricot jam
1 pkg. dry onion soup mix
2 tsp. curry powder *optional
Cooked Rice

Combine dressing, jam, soup mix, and curry.  Pour over chicken in a casserole dish.  (You can marinate it in the fridge, but I usually just pop it in the oven.) Bake uncovered at 350 for 40 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Serve over rice.

I usually halve this recipe for my family and it still makes a lot.  I also like to shred the chicken and mix with the sauce.

BBQ Ribs

Mom and Dad made these tonight. YUM!

- Boil ribs in water for about 2 hours.

- Cook for a few minutes on the BBQ (just to get a smokey flavor, meat is already cooked)

- Flip the ribs and coat the cooked side with BBQ sauce

- Cook for a few more minutes.

- Flip again, coat other side with BBQ sauce

Dad says it's easy to burn once the sauce is on the meat so be careful!

Alice Springs Chicken (Outback Steakhouse)

Source: DIY Pinterest

Ingredients

Honey Mustard Marinade:
1 c. Grey Poupon Dijon mustard
1 c. honey
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1 tsp. lemon juice

Chicken:
4 chicken breasts
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 c. sliced mushrooms (10/12 mushrooms)
2 Tbsp. butter
salt and pepper
paprika
8 slices bacon, cooked
1 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 c. shredded Cheddar cheese
2 tsp. finely chopped fresh parsley

Instructions:

- Use an electric mixer to combine the mustard, honey, mayonnaise, and lemon juice in a small bowl. 
- Whip the mixture for about 30 seconds. 
- Place chicken in a Ziploc bag and pour in about 1/3 of the marinade. 
- Seal the bag and press out as much air as you can and marinate in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.  Chill the remaining marinade until later. 
- After the chicken has marinated, remove chicken from bag and discard the marinade that it has been soaking in. 
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and heat an ovenproof frying pan large enough to hold all four breasts and 1 Tbsp. oil over medium heat. (If you don’t have an ovenproof frying pan, transfer the chicken to a baking dish).
- Sear the chicken in the pan for 3-4 minutes per side or until golden brown.
- Remove pan from heat but keep chicken in the pan. 
- As the chicken is cooking, in a small frying pan saute the mushrooms in the butter. 
- Brush each seared chicken breast with a little of the honey mustard marinade being sure to save a little extra that you can serve on the side later with the dish.
- Season the chicken with salt, pepper and paprika ( I am usually pretty generous with the paprika, I love the flavor). 
- Stack two pieces of cooked bacon, crosswise on each chicken breast. 
- Spoon the sauteed mushrooms onto the bacon, being sure to coat each breast evenly. Sprinkle 1/4 cup Monterey Jack cheese evenly onto each breast followed by 1/4 cup of cheddar.
- Bake the pan of prepared chicken breasts for 7-10 minutes or until cheese is thoroughly melted and starting to bubble. 
- Sprinkle each breast with 1/2 teaspoon parsley before serving. 
- Put extra honey mustard marinade into a small bowl to serve on the side.

Crockpot Lemon Garlic Chicken

Source: The Country Cook

Ingredients

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3rds

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup butter

salt & pepper

1 packet Good Seasons Italian dressing mix

1 tsp. minced garlic

1/2 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup chicken broth

Directions:

Cut chicken breasts into thirds.

Note: You can leave chicken breasts whole for this, just adjust cooking time accordingly.

Coat chicken breast pieces lightly in flour, shaking off excess, and place on a plate.

Heat 2 tbsp. butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When butter is melted, add in half the chicken pieces and brown on both sides (about 3 minutes per side).

Season chicken with a bit of salt and pepper while it's in the pan.

Take those pieces out, add in another 2 tbsp. butter, let it melt and brown last batch of chicken.  

Then put chicken into the crock pot.

Sprinkle chicken with dry Italian dressing mix.

Add in minced garlic. Then pour in chicken broth and lemon juice.

Cover with lid and cook on low for about 3 to 3 1/2 hours.

The chicken will be very tender so take care when pulling it out of the crock pot.

Drizzle a bit of the lemon sauce on top of the chicken when serving.

Enjoy!