Southwest Pasta

This is VERY similar to the chicken pasta a few posts ago, but I added to it and wanted to share the yumminess.

Ingredients

3 cups whole wheat farfalle (bow-tie pasta), uncooked

1 lb.  boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces (or 1 lg. can of chicken)

3 slices  OSCAR MAYER Bacon, cooked, crumbled (or use Hormel pieces)

1 can  (14-1/2 oz.) Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained

3/4 can black beans

1 can whole kernel corn, drained

4 oz.  (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) cream cheese, cubed

1/2 cup  water

1/4 tsp.  pepper

3 Tbsp.  KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese

COOK pasta as directed on package, omitting salt.
MEANWHILE, cook chicken in large skillet on medium heat 5 to 6 min. or until done, stirring occasionally. Add rest of ingredients; mix well. Cook 3 min. or until cream cheese is completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring frequently.
DRAIN pasta; place in large bowl. Add sauce; mix lightly. Sprinkle with Parmesan.

Andrew didn't even get a chance to taste this one...Cliff and I had it for lunch on one of his rare days off of work.  It was gone before Andrew made it home from school. 

Valerie Bertinelli’s Seriously Good Sausage Bites

Ingredients:

• cooking spray
• 10 oz. hot Italian sausage in bulk
• 3 cups self-rising flour
• 6 tbsp butter
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 1 tbsp Tabasco sauce
• 1 1/4 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated

Directions: 
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and move your two racks to the top and bottom of the oven. Spray two baking sheets with the cooking spray. Break up the sausage with a spoon in a skillet and cook on medium high until it’s cooked through and no longer pink. Remove the sausage with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Place the flour and butter in a food processor and pulse until it’s a coarse meal. Add in the buttermilk and Tabasco sauce and pulse until the dough combines. Move the dough to a bowl and fold in the sausage and cheese. Form the dough into walnut-sized balls.
Bake the balls on the baking sheets for about 12 to 15 minutes, and switch the pans halfway through. Cool the balls on the baking sheets for five minutes and then serve. Continue baking the rest of the dough balls the same way.


BOBBI'S RECIPE
I just used the Bisquick drop biscuit recipe (on the box) and added the browned sausage and cheese.  I also used Frank's Red Hot instead of Tabasco. This recipe also needs salt.



This recipe made a LOT of biscuits.  They were great warmed up in the microwave.  (Just wrap a few in a paper towel and cook for about 15 seconds.)


The Real Scoop 
by Andrew
These will be great to warm up on school mornings.  I can eat these in the car on the way.

The Lady's Cheesy Mac

This is a Paula Deen recipe that I found this week while looking through library cookbooks.  It was yummy, but needed some salt.  Give it a try.  I had enough to share with the neighbors since Andrew is visiting his Aunt Robin for a couple of weeks.  Darn.  I'll have to make them again.  :-)

Ingredients

• 4 cups cooked elbow macaroni, drained
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Once you have the macaroni cooked and drained, place in a large bowl and while still hot and add the cheddar. In a separate bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and add to the macaroni mixture. Pour macaroni mixture into a casserole dish and bake for 30 to 45 minutes. Top with additional cheese if desired.

Buffalo Chicken Wraps

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon Butter, Melted
• 1 pinch Freshly Ground Pepper
• 1 pinch Coarse Salt
• ½ cups Hot Pepper Sauce, Divided (I used Frank's)
• 1 pound Chicken Tenders
• ¼ cups Ranch Dressing
• 4 whole Large Jalapeno Cheddar Tortillas
• 4 slices Bacon, Cooked And Coarsely Chopped
• 2 whole Eggs, Hardboiled And Roughly Chopped
• 2 cups Shredded Romaine Lettuce
• 1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 1 whole Roma Tomato, Diced 

Preparation Instructions

Combine the butter, cayenne pepper, black pepper, salt and 1/4 cup of the hot pepper sauce in a bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Cover the bowl and marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for an hour or more.

Cook marinated chicken over medium-high, about 8 minutes total. Remove chicken from heat and roughly chop it.

In a small bowl, whisk the ranch dressing with 1/4 cup of the blue cheese crumbles. Or buy blue cheese dressing.

Heat up the tortillas in the oven or microwave and start crafting your wraps. Layer some chicken in the center of a tortilla, followed by bacon, eggs, romaine, tomatoes, blue cheese crumbles, cheddar, the dressing and a few more good dollops of hot pepper sauce.

Roll up the burrito and tuck in the corners. You can throw it on the grill if you want, or if you’re a ravenous freak, go ahead and slice it in half and demolish.

OMG.

I will be using the little bit of leftovers for in a lunch salad tomorrow.

The Real Scoop 
by Andrew

This was too spicy for me.  

I focused more on the side dishes - watermelon and Mom's awesome deviled eggs.

Wanda's Chicken Tamale Casserole

I had this recipe at friend Wanda's house last week and couldn't wait to make it for my next meal.

Ingredients:

• 2 small cans of chicken (or if you are ambitious like Wanda, boil and de-bone one small chicken, then cut the meat into small pieces
• 12 cut up corn tortillas
• 1 chopped medium onion
• 1 7 oz. can of green chilies
• 3 cans of undiluted cream of chicken soup
• 2 teasp. cumin
• dash of southwestern seasoning (like Ms. Dash's chipotle seasoning)

Mix all ingredients together and bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes. 
Top with shredded cheddar cheese and return to the oven till melted.

Serve with rice, beans, or salad.

The Real Scoop
by Andrew

This looked like a messy glob, but the taste was awesome!

The New Philly

I have two secret food obsessions; the first one is Slim Jims, and the second is cream cheese.  Imagine my excitement when I saw this in the grocery store:

The recipe:
Container of Philly Cooking Cream
1 lb. of chicken, cooked
1/2 lb. of spaghetti, cooked
Small bag of carrots, broccoli & cauliflower
Fresh Parmesan cheese
Mix all together and serve.

It wasn't too bad!
It reminds me a bit of Alfredo.
Try this one if you need something quick.

The Real Scoop
by Andrew
This wasn't one of my favorites.
It was a little dry & didn't have much flavor.
I would have rather had one of Mom's Slim Jims.

Another Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:

• 4 cups broccolini florets, chopped broccoli rabe or broccoli florets
• Salt
• 1 pound whole wheat penne, twists or elbows or brown rice pasta
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2 shallots, very finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 small Fresno chili pepper or red cherry pepper, seeded and very finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 1/2 cups whole milk
• Pepper
• 1 1/2 cups shredded yellow sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 cup aged Gouda cheese, shredded
• 1 cup Parmigiano Reggaino cheese, freshly shredded
• A few sprigs of fresh thyme, finely chopped

Preparation:
Bring a few inches of water to a boil. Salt the water and parboil broccolini, rabe or broccoli for 4-5 minutes. Drain and cold shock, then dry on kitchen towels.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta and undercook the pasta by about 2 minutes.

Pre-heat the oven to 425°F.
Heat a saucepan over medium heat with the EVOO and butter. Sauté the shallots, garlic and chilies for 2-3 minutes, then add the flour and stir for 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and season the sauce with salt and pepper; melt in the cheddar and Gouda.
Combine the pasta with the broccolini, rabe or broccoli and the sauce and transfer to a baking dish. Top with the Parmigiano Reggaino cheese, sprinkle with fresh thyme and bake until brown and bubbly.


Of course, I was out of broccoli when I made this.

I was also out of thyme.

We all thought it needed more salt and pepper, but it was pretty good overall.  The only complaint I had was the cost.  With all of those cheeses, it became a bit pricey.  At any rate, it dressed up our meager fish sticks and asparagus.

The Real Scoop
by Andrew

Now THAT'S CHEESY!

Turtle Burgers

When I was little, my parents called me "Turtle."  I am sure it was because of the lightning-fast pace in which I moved.  So imagine my dismay when Mom sent me this recipe....

While your plain hamburgers are cooking, cut a hot dog for the head, feet and tail. When burgers are done, toss in the hot dog parts to brown and curl. Lay a slice of cheese on the burger, and use "heat 'n serve" bacon and weave it like lattice on top of cheese. Attach the head, feet, and tail with toothpicks.  Pop them in the microwave to warm the cheese and burger. Turtle Burgers are the only seafood I will eat!  P.S. These could be made ahead of time and just heated in the oven.    Mom served these to my dad as a joke.  Anyone notice a divorce notice in the St. Marys paper?  LOL