California Chicken

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 pinch salt
1 pinch ground black pepper
2 avocados - peeled, pitted and sliced
2 ripe tomatoes, sliced
1 (8 ounce) package Monterey Jack cheese, cut into 10 slices


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Warm oil in skillet and add chicken and onion powder. Cook 15 minutes or until chicken is browned and just about done. Add salt and pepper to taste.***
Place chicken on cookie sheet and top each breast with 1 to 2 slices of tomato and 2 to 3 slices of cheese. Place in oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until cheese melts. Remove from oven, add 2 to 3 slices of avocado on top of each breast, and serve immediately.

***I hate sauteing chicken, I hate how it pops and the time it takes and see it as pointless in a lot of recipes so instead of sauteing it I baked the chicken at 350 for 30 minutes(cut open to see if it is done) and then went from there following the recipe. It was easier and less of a mess.

Veggie Scramble

This recipe was created one night when I didn't know what else to make! We had lots of leftover vegetables in the refrigerator and so this meal was dreamed up!  We love to have it with some homemade biscuits!

1 tbsp butter
1 1/2 cups of veggies***

8 eggs 

1/4 milk

1/4 cup of cheese (whatever cheese you would like)

Heat up saute pan to a low heat.  Melt butter and saute until the veggies are tender, remove from the pan and set to the side. Beat eggs and add milk. Add eggs to the saute pan. Turn heat up to a medium low heat. Stir and scrap the cooked egg off the bottom until the eggs are done. Turn the heat off Add the veggies back and stir in the cheese.  Serve hot. 

***You can do any combination of veggies, some that we like are onion, peppers, tomato, and  mushrooms.  Just have 1 1/2 cups worth total. 

Italian Meatballs

1 1/3 lbs lean ground beef
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/4 cup ground parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon italian seasoning
1/4 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons dried onion flakes
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 egg, beaten
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
pepper

In large bowl, mix all dry ingredients. Add rest of ingredients and lightly mix, but mix well, with hands. Form into meatballs. Place them on lightly oiled cookie sheet. Sprinkle tops lightly with coarse ground pepper. Bake in 400º over for 20-25 minutes.

Stuffed Border Burgers

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 (4.25-ounce) can chopped ripe olives, drained
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon fajita seasoning
6 (1-ounce) slices Monterey Jack cheese with peppers
6 onion rolls, split and toasted

Combine first 6 ingredients. Shape mixture into 12 (4-inch) patties. Fold cheese slices into quarters; place cheese on each of 6 patties. Top with remaining 6 patties, pressing to seal edges.
Grill, covered with grill lid, over medium-high heat (350° to 400°) 4 to 5 minutes on each side or until done. Serve on rolls with Tex-Mex Secret Sauce and desired toppings.

Easy Chicken Roll-Ups

Ingredients
2 cups cooked chicken, cubed
1 onion, diced
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup cream cheese, softened
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons butter
1 can cream of chicken soup
8 crescent rolls

Directions
Mix together the chicken, onion, cream cheese, salt, milk, and butter.
Spoon onto crescent rolls and roll up.
Bake 20 minutes at 350*.
Mix together and heat the sour cream and soup.
Spoon over roll-ups and enjoy!

And of course I switched it up a bit, instead of plain cream cheese and an onion I used low-fat chive and onion cream cheese. They were super yummy.

Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Chicken Breast

I got this recipe from one of my cousins who got it from another one of our cousins! Both of them swear by it and this is one of our favorite ways to cook chicken! I never eat the bacon but it gives it amazing flavor. It's so easy but sure to impress a guest!

4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
1 Container of Low-Fat Chive and Onion Cream Cheese
12 Slices of Bacon

Preheat oven to 375. Place 1 Chicken Breast at a time into a zip lock bag and pound out until it is 1/4 inch thick. Repeat with each chicken breast. Divide the container of Chive and Onion Cream Cheese evenly onto the 4 chicken breast. Roll up and wrap 3 slices of bacon around each piece of chicken. Bake in oven for 45 minutes.

Fudgy Pecan Tartlets

CRUSTS
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup flour
FILLING
1 egg yolk
3 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons butter, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled
12 pecan halves

In a small mixing bowl, cream butter and cream cheese until light. Gradually add flour beating until blended. Roll into 1 inch balls. Press into the bottom and up the sides of 12 mini muffin cups that have been coated in cooking spray. For filling, in a bowl, combine the egg yolk, sugar, butter, milk and vanilla; gradually stir in melted chocolate. Fill shells 3/4 full. Place a pecan half on top of the filling. Bake at 375 for 18-22*** minutes or until shell is lightly browned and the filling is set. Cool for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

***The last time I made these I only cooked them for 15 minutes and I think they turned out much better. The filling was way more fudge like which everyone seemed to enjoy more.

Baked Chicken and Zucchini

1 egg
1 tablespoon water
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 cup dry bread crumbs***
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
5 medium zucchini, sliced
4 medium tomatoes, sliced
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
2 teaspoons minced fresh basil


In a shallow bowl, beat egg, water, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Set aside 2 tablespoons bread crumbs. Place the remaining crumbs in a large resealable plastic bag. Dip chicken in egg mixture, then place in bag and shake to coat.
In a skillet, cook chicken in 2 tablespoons oil for 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown; remove and set aside. In the same skillet, saute zucchini in remaining oil until crisp-tender; drain. Transfer to a greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish.
Sprinkle the reserved bread crumbs over the zucchini. Top with tomato slices; sprinkle with 2/3 cup mozzarella cheese, basil and remaining salt. Top with chicken. Cover and bake at 400 degrees F for 25 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 10 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

***I always use Italian Seasoned Panko Crumbs. It gives it more flavor and a better crunch.

Fruit Crisp

4 Cups - Fruit (Any berries, apples, pears, peaches or any combo, my favorite winter combo is apple cranberry my favorite summer combo is raspberry blackberry)
1/2 cup to 1 1/2 cups - sugar (depends on the tartness of the fruit and how sweet you want it)
1 tablespoon - AP flour

Directions: Set oven to 375. Wash fruit. Spread in the bottom of a square Pyrex dish (double the recipe for a bigger pan). sift flour over the top of fruit (this helps to thicken the juice). Sprinkle sugar over the fruit.

1 Cup - Oatmeal
2/3 Cup - Brown Sugar
2/3 Cup - AP Flour
3/4 Cup - Softened/Melted Butter

Put Dry Ingredients in a bowl. Add Butter. Mix until crumbly. Top the fruit with the crumble. Bake in oven for 25 to 40 minutes depending on the fruit. (berries take less time than apples but just use a fork to see if the apples or pears are done)

Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake

I got this recipes from Allrecipes.com It's soooo good!

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground cloves
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Blend in eggs one at a time. Remove 1 cup of batter and spread into bottom of crust; set aside. Add pumpkin, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg to the remaining batter and stir gently until well blended. Carefully spread over the batter in the crust. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until center is almost set. Allow to cool, then refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight.
I actually just put in the freezer for about 1 1/2 hours and it was nice and cool when it was time to cut.