Baked Ziti

Courtesy of: Karlie Merrill

1 pound dried ziti pasta
Kosher salt
3 1/2 cups Quick Tomato Sauce, recipe follows
1 pound fresh mozzarella, half cut into 1/2-inch cubes and half thinly sliced
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, divided

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt generously, and boil the pasta until al dente, tender but still slightly firm. Drain.

Toss the cooked pasta with the marinara sauce, cubed mozzarella, half parmeasan cheese. Transfer the pasta to an oiled 9 by 13-inch baking dish. Cover the top of the pasta with the sliced mozzarella, and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan. Bake until lightly browned and hot, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

Quick Tomato Sauce:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound sweet and or spicy Italian sausage
1/4 medium onion, diced (about 3 tablespoons)
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 28-ounce can + 1 16 oz can petite diced tomatoes
Sprig fresh thyme
Sprig fresh basil
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook the sausage until beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the onion and garlic, stirring, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes more. Add the tomatoes and the herb sprigs and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.

Remove and discard the herb sprigs. Stir in the salt and season with pepper, to taste. Use now or store covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 2 months.

Copyright 2004 Television Food Network, G.P. All rights reserved
Yield: about 5 cups
Prep Time: 8 minutes

Slow-Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken

Tasty Kitchen Blog

3 pounds Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs

Salt And Pepper, to taste

¾ cups Honey

½ cups Soy Sauce

¼ cups Plus 2 Tablespoons Ketchup

1 Tablespoon Canola Oil

1 Tablespoon Sesame Oil

1 Tablespoon Minced Or Grated Fresh Ginger Root

4 cloves Garlic, Peeled And Minced Or Pressed

¾ teaspoons Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

4 teaspoons Cornstarch

¼ cups Cold Water

Optional Garnishes: Thinly Sliced Scallions, Sesame Seeds

6 cups Hot Cooked Rice, For Serving

Very lightly season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper and place them in the slow cooker.

Whisk together the honey, soy sauce, ketchup, canola and sesame oils, ginger, garlic and pepper flakes in a mixing bowl and pour over the chicken thighs. Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 4 hours, or until the chicken is tender and cooked through.

Use tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer the chicken to a rimmed plate or bowl and cover lightly with foil, leaving the sauce in the slow cooker.

Stir the cornstarch into the water with a fork or small whisk until dissolved. Whisk the mixture into the sauce in the slow cooker. Cover the slow-cooker and turn the heat to high. Let it cook and thicken for 15 minutes.

Carefully transfer the chicken back into the slow-cooker and mix to coat the chicken with the thickened sauce.

Serve the pieces of chicken over hot cooked rice. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and garnish with sesame seeds and scallions.

Cafe Rio Pulled Pork

SWEET PORK:
2 pounds pork (we like to use boneless pork ribs)
3 cans Coke (NOT diet)
1/4 c. brown sugar
dash garlic salt
1/4 c. water
1 can diced green chilies
3/4 (1ooz) can red enchilada sauce (I used Old El Paso brand, medium spiciness)
1 c. brown sugar

Put the pork in a heavy duty Ziploc bag to marinade. Add about a can and a half of coke and about 1/4 c. of brown sugar. Marinade for a few hours or overnight.

Drain marinade and put pork, 1/2 can of coke, water, and garlic salt in crock pot on high for about 3-4 hours or low for 6-8 hours (or until it shreds easily, but don't let it get TOO dry). Remove pork from crock pot and drain any liquid left in the pot. Shred pork.

In a food processor or blender, blend 1/2 can Coke, chilies, enchilada sauce and remaining brown sugar (about a cup, you can add a little more or less to taste..). If it looks too thick, add more Coke little by little.

Put shredded pork and sauce in crock pot and cook on low for 2 hours. That's it!

Serve with tacos, or burritos.

For a traditional Cafe Rio Salad serve with: 6 large tortillas, shredded cheese (mexican blend), cilantro lime rice, black beans, lettuce, pico de gallo, guacamole, sour cream, tortillas strips, cotija cheese (or parmesan cheese), and cilantro ranch.

You can find tin plates at the dollar store.

Chicken Bundles

6 oz Cream Cheese

4 TB Butter

1/8 tsp Pepper

2 Cups Cooked Cubed Chicken

2/3 Cup Chopped Mushrooms

1/2 Cup Chopped Celery

2 PKGs Large Crescent Rolls

4 TB Butter (Melted)

Seasoned Bread Crumbs

1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup

1/2 Cup Milk

Cream together cream cheese, butter, and pepper. Stir in chicken, mushrooms, and celery. Separate crescent rolls into triangles. Roll each one slightly with a rolling pin to make them a little bit larger. Put a heaping spoonful into the center of each roll and roll them into bundles. Seal any openings. Dip each roll into melted butter and then roll them in bread crumbs. Bake on a cookie sheet at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes. Heat soup and milk together and serve as gravy for the bundles.

White Chili

Courtesy of: Vickie Ricks

Saute:

1 lb. chicken

1 onion, chopped

1 Tbs. vegetable oil

1 1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder

Add and bring to a boil:

1 can (15 oz) chicken broth

1 can chopped green chilies

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. oregano

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

Reduce heat and just before serving add:

2 cans great northern beans, drained

1 C. Sour Cream

1/2 C. whipping cream

Sweet Salsa Chicken with Cilantro Lime Rice

Courtesy of: Rebecca Damron

Cilantro Lime Rice:

2 cups jasmine rice or long grain rice

Grated zest of 2 limes

2 Tbs. fresh cilantro, washed

4 C. Hot Chicken Broth

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Heat chicken broth until hot. Than add other ingredients and mix in a 9x13 pan. Cover with foil. Cook at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until all liquid is gone and rice is soft. Cooks great in a rice cooker too!

Sweet Salsa Chicken:

4-6 chicken tenders

2 Tbs. olive oil

Chili Powder to taste (about 1/2 - 1 Tbs)

1 C. salsa

1/4 C. apricot jam

1/4 C. water (omit this if using fresh restaurant style salsa)

1 Tbs. cilantro, chopped

1 Tbs. lime juice

1 (15 oz.) can Black beans, drained and rinsed

Cut chicken breast into bite size pieces. In large skillet, heat oil; add chicken and chili powder. Cook until juices run clear. Add salsa, apricot jam, water, cilantro and lime juice. Bring to boil. Stir in beans, reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes. Serve over rice.

Sour Cream Salsa:

1 C. Sour Cream

2 tsp. lime zest

2 Tbs. lime juice

1/3 cup cilantro, chopped

4 plum tomatoes, chopped

1/2 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients together and refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve over chicken and rice.

Grilled Pizza

Courtesy of: Jesse Lindstrom

The dough

We prefer to use whole wheat dough on the grill. (Though white works well too) I use a recipe from Martha Stewart Everyday Food that I found on Natalie's recipe blog that she keeps with her friend. I've noticed that the dough is so much more lovely after it has been frozen and thawed. My recommendation is to make it a couple of days ahead (it will keep in the freezer up to 3 months), so that the yeast can go through the freeze/thaw/rise routine. I'll usually make up a double batch, let it rise, divide it up and then stick it in the freezer. Then I have dough ready for a few pizza nights.

The sauce

Walmart's Best Value brand Thick and Zesty Spaghetti Sauce. It is made from a seasoning packet found on their isle of gravy/sauce mixes. I make it according to directions, omitting only the oil. (If I have spinach in my crisper, I'll shred it up and throw it in for good measure. Shhh.)

The process

• Light up the grill on medium heat.
• Thaw/prepare dough and roll into circles.
• Take the crusts to the grill and put them down on direct heat.

• Let them cook for 2-3 minutes.
• Then bring them in, grilled side up, and sauce and top. The bottom of the crust will still be raw.

• Return them to the grill, this time on indirect heat.
• Close it up and let them cook for 7-10 minutes.

The crust will get crisp. So will the exposed pepperoni- my favorite part. The pizza will taste different from anything made in the oven. Has anyone tried this before? How do you make your pizza?

Chicken Parmigiana

Courtesy of: The Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

• 4 whole (up To 6) Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, Trimmed And Pounded Flat
• ½ cups All-purpose Flour
• Salt And Pepper (to Taste)
• ½ cups Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 whole Medium Onion, Chopped
• 4 cloves Garlic, Minced
• ¾ cups Wine (white Or Red Is Fine)
• 3 cans (14.5 Oz.) Crushed Tomatoes
• 2 Tablespoons Sugar
• ¼ cubes Chopped Fresh Parsley
• 1 cup Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1 pound Thin Linguine

Preparation Instructions

Mix flour, salt, and pepper together on a large plate.
Dredge flattened chicken breasts in flour mixture. Set aside.

At this time, you can start a pot of water for your pasta. Cook linguine until al dente.

Heat olive oil and butter together in a large skillet over medium heat. When butter is melted and oil/butter mixture is hot, fry chicken breasts until nice and golden brown on each side, about 2 to 3 minutes per side.
Remove chicken breasts from the skillet and keep warm.

Without cleaning skillet, add onions and garlic and gently stir for 2 minutes. Pour in wine and scrape the bottom of the pan, getting all the flavorful bits off the bottom. Allow wine to cook down until reduced by half, about 2 minutes.
Pour in crushed tomatoes and stir to combine. Add sugar and more salt and pepper to taste. Allow to cook for 30 minutes. Toward the end of cooking time, add chopped parsley and give sauce a final stir.

Carefully lay chicken breasts on top of the sauce and completely cover them in grated Parmesan. Place lid on skillet and reduce heat to low. Allow to simmer until cheese is melted and chicken is thoroughly heated. Add more cheese to taste.

Place cooked noodles on a plate and cover with sauce. Place chicken breast on top and sprinkle with more parsley. Serve immediately.

Vern's BBQ Chicken

Courtesy of: Vern Akauola

8-12 Chicken thighs and legs
1 bottle Soy Sauce
2 C. water
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/2 onion, cut in large pieces
BBQ Sauce
Honey

In a large pot, add chicken, soy sauce, water, garlic, and onion. Bring to a boil then simmer for 2o min. then Drain. Mix BBQ Sauce and honey together. Cover chicken in BBQ sauce and gill until outside is browned.