Fiesta Egg Casserole

This was an interesting breakfast dish!  I was so excited to try it, and while the flavors were really good, it was just missing something.  Maybe substance?  We loved it however rolls into tortillas as breakfast burritos!!! 

Fiesta Egg Casserole
via The Fitnessista

 

1/2 lb chorizo, or your favorite breakfast sausage

2 sliced tomatoes

1 sliced avocado

1 1/2 cups of frozen hash browns or tater tots (optional), thawed

8 eggs

splash of milk of choice

salt, pepper

 

Preheat the oven to 350 and spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.  In a medium saucepan, brown the chorizo or sausage on medium-low for about 10 minutes.  Add the chorizo or sausage to the baking dish, then top with tomato slices, avocado slices and the hash browns or tater tots.  In a bowl, whisk your eggs with a splash of milk, some salt and pepper, and pour the egg mixture on top.  Bake for 35-45 minutes until set, bubbly and delicious.  This is perfect served in tortillas with salsa & sour cream!

Chile Rellenos

I have tried at least three times prior to make chile rellanos and they just never turn out for me.  While these are not the same as the ones we order at our favorite Mexican restaurant, they are by far the closest, and are really yummy!  We have made these twice so far, and I'm sure will many more times.  The breading is really light and fluffy and they are actually relatively easy to put together.  We saw the recipe on a Diners, Drive-ins, & Dives episode!

 

Chile Rellenos

via Mom's Tamales via Diners, Drive-ins, & Dives

 

4 pasilla chiles

1 pound queso fresco cheese (or monetary jack/pepper jack shredded)

1/4 cup diced onion

Toothpicks

3 eggs

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided

1 cup oil

 

First you will roast the pasillas (pablanos).  Pre-heat your oven to broil and broil peppers on all sides until blackened.  Remove from oven and put in a plastic bag for 10 minutes to sweat out any moisture and cool.  Remove from the bag, peel peppers, slit them down one side and remove the seeds.

Mix cheese and onions.  Use your hands to form into four cylinders (this is easier to do if the cheese has sat out of the fridge for a few minutes).  Stuff the peppers with the cheese and use toothpicks to hold them together.

Separate the egg yolks from the whites.  Add the egg whites to the bowl of your mixer. Reserve the egg yolks.  Beat the egg whites with an electric beater until the whites fluff up (I mean really fluff up!  Like you are making angel food cake or whip cream.  It will take a good few minutes). Add in 1 tablespoon flour and the egg yolks and mix until completely incorporated.

Add the oil to a frying pan over medium heat.  Place the other tablespoon of flour in a low bowl or plate.  Dip the stuffed peppers into the flour, coating all sides, then dip in the egg batter and fry until golden brown on both sides. Remove from the oil to a serving platter.  Serve with salsa!
 

Restaurant Style Salsa

Not even joking when I say I've made this salsa like the last five or six weeks in a row.  It makes a ginormous batch and somehow we continue to finish it off within a few days.  Its incredible.  Oh and so simple!  You basically open a few cans, chop a couple small items, and throw it all in the blender!  Its easy to half this recipe too if you think you won't finish it all.  Its important to taste and season how you and your family likes.  And leave out jalapeno or cilantro if you aren't a fan!

 

Restaurant Style Salsa

via The Pioneer Woman

 

1 can (28 Ounce) Whole Tomatoes With Juice
2 cans (10 Ounce) Rotel (diced Tomatoes And Green Chilies)
1/4 cup Chopped Onion
1 clove Garlic, Minced
1 whole Jalapeno, Quartered And Sliced Thin
1/4 teaspoon Sugar
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Ground Cumin
1/2 cup Cilantro (more To Taste!)
Juice from 1/2 Lime

 

Note: this is a very large batch. Recommend using a 12-cup food processor or a blender.

Combine whole tomatoes, Rotel, onion, jalapeno, garlic, sugar, salt, cumin, lime juice, and cilantro in a blender or food processor. Pulse until you get the salsa to the consistency you'd like---I do about 10 to 15 pulses. Test seasonings with a tortilla chip and adjust as needed.

Refrigerate salsa for at least an hour. Serve with whatever you would like!

 

Mexican Pizzas

These are so easy to whip up, especially since we usually have most of the ingredients on hands at all times.  They are easily customizable too.  We had them again Saturday night, but this time we made smaller ones and used leftover barbacoa beef on a few and left a few with no meat.  While they were delicious with all the below ingredients, they are not all required to get a good Mexican pizza!  Just use whatever you like or have on hand and enjoy!

 

Mexican Pizzas

via Eat Live Run

1 lb lean ground turkey or beef
2 tbsp taco seasoning
1 can refried beans
1 cup Mexican cheese blend
4 flour tortillas
Optional Toppings:
avocado, diced
salsa or taco sauce
red onion, diced
tomato, diced
green onion, diced
cilantro
shredded lettuce (not pictured, but loved adding it the second time!)
sour cream

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a large skillet with nonstick spray and crank the heat to medium/high.  When hot, add the turkey and the taco seasoning — use your spatula to break the ground turkey apart.  Continue cooking for about five minutes until the turkey has cooked through.  Remove from heat.

Place a flour tortilla on a sheet tray. Spread refried beans on top of tortilla then top with turkey and grated cheese.  Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Bake “pizzas” for about 10-12 minutes, until cheese has melted and tortilla is crispy. Serve with desired toppings!

 

Pumpkin French Toast

Great little breakfast right here!  Every since we had Reese (over a year ago) I have loved to make breakfasts like this one at the beginning of the week that we can eat on all week.  They make for quick and easy mornings as Corey is rushing out the door.  This is a really yummy twist on normal French toast.  You can top it with maple syrup or sweetened cream cheese as I did! 

 

 

Pumpkin French Toast

via Recipes4All

 

5 1/2 – 7 1/2 cups 1-inch bread cubes (I filled a 9x13in pan w/ French bread)

7 large eggs

2 cups milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

3-4 tablespoons brown sugar for topping

 

Cut any kind of bread into 1-inch cubes.  Just use enough slice to fill a lightly greased 9×13 baking dish quite full.

 

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, vanilla, pumpkin and pie spice until well combined. Pour over bread and push down with a spoon or your hands until it’s all soaked and mostly covered. Cover with saran wrap or lid and refrigerate overnight (or for a good amount of time).

 

In the morning, preheat oven to 350 degrees, uncover and top with brown sugar.  Bake for 35-45 minutes or golden brown and no longer wet.

 

Serve immediately with maple syrup, or a little cream cheese mixed with brown sugar. Store leftovers in the refrigerator covered for up to a week.

Italian Drunken Noodles

Delicious!  Simply delicious and such a beautiful dish!  This pasta has Italian sausage, bell peppers, tomatoes, and wine.  It is so flavorful and just a really different pasta dish.  Its very easy to make and the perfect entertaining meal. 

Italian Drunken Noodles
via Easy Cookbook Recipes

Olive oil
4 spicy Italian sausage links, casings removed
1 large onion, quartered and sliced thinly
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon cracked black pepper
1 red bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
1 orange bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, pressed through garlic press
½ cup white white (I used Chardonnay)
1 (28 ounce) can stewed tomatoes with juice
parsley
basil
8 ounces Pappardelle noodles, uncooked (I used fettuccine)
3 tablespoons butter


Prepare the noodles according to package directions.

Place a large, heavy-bottom pot over medium-high heat; add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and once the oil is hot, crumble the spicy Italian sausage into the pan in small chunks, allowing it to brown; once the crumbled sausage is browned, remove it from the pan/pot with a slotted spoon and place into a small bowl to hold for a moment.

Add the sliced onion into the pan with the sausage drippings, and allow it to caramelize and become golden for roughly 5 minutes or so, stirring to keep it from burning (add a touch more olive oil, if necessary); once the onion starts to become golden, add the salt, Italian seasoning and cracked black pepper, and stir to combine.

Add in the sliced bell peppers, and allow those to saute with the onion for about 2 minutes until slightly tender and golden; next, add in the garlic, and once it becomes aromatic

Add in the white wine and allow it to reduce for a few moments, until almost completely reduced.

Add in the stewed tomatoes with their juice, and return the browned spicy Italian sausage back into the pan, and gently fold the mixture to combine; allow it to gently simmer for about 3-4 minutes to blend the flavors, then turn the heat off; to finish the sauce, drizzle a bit of the olive oil to create a silky, rich flavor.

Next add the cooked noodles & the butter to the sauce and stir until butter is melted and all is combined.  Taste and season accordingly with salt, pepper, garlic powder, basil, parsley, etc.  The sauce will thicken as it sits and really become more flavorful!  Add a bit of red pepper flakes for even more spice.

Crock Pot Chicken Philly Sandwhiches

These are amazing and so simple to make!  I love recipes where you can use leftovers for all kinds of things, like nachos for example!  I added butter, garlic powder, parmesan, and a sprinkle of salt to the French bread before toasting in the oven and it was delicious! 

Crock Pot Chicken Philly Sandwiches
via Food Family Finds

 

4 tablespoons butter

1 large sweet onion, sliced

2 green bell peppers, sliced

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I used frozen even)

2 tablespoons Dale’s Steak Seasoning

sliced Mozzarella cheese (I used provolone)

hoagie rolls (I used French bread)

butter, garlic powder, salt, parmesan (optional)

 

Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray and turn to LOW heat.  Add butter, onions and green peppers.  Toss chicken with steak seasoning, salt and pepper, then add to slow cooker.  Cover and cook for 5 hours.  Spread French bread with butter, then sprinkle with salt, garlic powder, and parmesan.  Add a slice of cheese to one side and broil watching closing in the oven until toasted.  Serve chicken on French bread as sandwiches, yum!

 

Cuban Chicken Dinner

Corey got to try out Rick's Boathouse recently for a work dinner and loved it.  He ordered the Cuban chicken dinner and immediately wanted me to try to recreate it.  This dinner is so delicious!  And while it seems like it has a lot of parts to it, they are all relatively easy.  The meal includes chicken marinated in mojo criollo, black bean chili, brown rice, corn & avocado salad, and pico de gallo.

 

Cuban Chicken Dinner

inspired by Rick's Boathouse

 

Mojo Criollo marinated Chicken idea from here

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
juice from 1 lime
splash orange juice
drizzle olive oil
oregano
cumin
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt & pepper

 

Combine all ingredients and marinade for at least 30 minutes or a few hours if possible.  Discard marinade and grill chicken breasts.

 

Black Bean Chili idea from here

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste

1/2 tablespoon chili powder

1 to 2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon dried leaf oregano

1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes in juice

3/4 cups water

1/2 can (6 oz.) tomato paste

2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed

 

Heat the oil in a sauce pan and saute the onions, garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook 1 minute, then add tomato paste, chili powder, and cumin and cook 2 minutes, stirring.  Add remaining ingredients and stir.  Simmer for 20 minutes or longer, tasting and seasoning if necessary.  This gets better the longer it sits! 

 

Brown Rice

Cooked according to package directions.

 

Pico de gallo

3 roma tomatoes (or about 1-2 cups cherry tomatoes)

1/2 jalapeno (optional)

juice from 1/2 lime

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1/4 cup diced red onion

drizzle olive oil

salt & pepper

 

Combine all ingredients and place in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes if possible.  Measurements are rough estimate!

 

Avocado Corn Salsa

2 cups corn

3/4 cup halved cherry tomatoes

1 avocado, diced

drizzle olive oil

salt & pepper

juice from 1/2 lime

1/4 cup chopped cilantro 

 

Combine all ingredients except avocado and place in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes if possible.  Stir in avocado before serving.  Measurements are rough estimate!