Corn, black bean, salsa chicken soup

This is similar to Chicken Taco Soup, but I like this one best. Also works as a freezer meal. Definitely double it!

Ingredients

• 15 ounces black beans 1 can, drained and rinsed
• 14 ounces corn 1 can. drained
• ½ cup salsa
• 1 ounce taco seasoning packet
• ⅓ cup water
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Instructions

• If making this into a freezer meal, label a gallon-sized resealable freezer bag with the title of the recipe and how to long to cook in the slow cooker. (If you aren't making it into a freezer meal, jump ahead to step #5).
• Dump the black beans, corn, salsa, taco seasoning, and water in the resealable bag and mix until all the ingredients are combined. Add the chicken breasts and zip the bag closed. Place in the freezer until ready to use (it will last in the freezer for up to 90 days).
• When ready to cook, remove bag from freezer and place in fridge overnight so that it can thaw. Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray and dump bag ingredients into the slow cooker. Cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 6-7 hours (until chicken is completely done).
• Shred meat and serve however you want (in tacos, burritos, nachos, salads, etc). Garnish with cheese, sour cream, avocado, lettuce, tomato, and hot sauce.
• If you aren't making this into a freezer meal, dump black beans, corn, taco seasoning, and water in crock pot and mix together until seasoning is dissolved. Place chicken breasts on top and spread salsa on chicken. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours. Shred chicken and serve however you want (in tacos, burritos, nachos, salads, etc). Garnish with cheese, sour cream, avocado, lettuce, tomato, and hot sauce.

Notes

You can also skip the freezing step of this recipe and dump all ingredients directly into your slow cooker, then cook on high for 4-5 hours (or low for 6-7 hours).You can cook this recipe ahead of time, wait for it to cool, and then put it in the freezer for a quick and healthy dinner when you don’t have time to cook. Either option of freezing works great.

Optional garnish toppings:

• shredded cheese
• sour cream
• avocado (diced)
• lettuce (shredded)
• tomatoes (diced)
• hot sauce

Sheet Pan Italian Pork Chops and Veggies

 

These veggies were so tasty! You could probably use any veggies you want, and they would be equally good.

Ingredients

• 5 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1 ounce package Italian dressing mix
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 Tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 6 4-6 ounce pork chops
• 1 1/2 pounds baby red potatoes halved
• 1 pound baby carrots
• 1 Tablespoon fresh parsley for garnish

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a large sheet pan with non-stick cooking spray.
• In a medium bowl, mix together olive oil, dressing mix packet, paprika, oregano, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.
• Dip each pork chop in the oil mixture, making sure to coat both sides, and place on the prepared pan. Repeat with remaining pork chops.
• Add the potatoes and carrots to the sheet pan and drizzle any remaining olive oil mixture on top. Toss lightly to mix together.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes or until pork chops are full cooked.
• Garnish with parsley and serve.

Notes

• For this recipe, I used boneless pork chops that were about 3/4″ thick, so if yours are thicker or thinner than this, you will want to vary your cooking time.

Sheet pan fajitas

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or coat with nonstick spray.
2. In a large bowl, combine 2 tsp chili powder, 2 tsp cumin, 2 tsp oregano, 1 tsp paprika, 1 1/4 teaspoons salt and 1 1/4 teaspoons pepper.
3. Add 3 tsp minced garlic and 3 Tbsp olive oil. Stir.
4. Place 1.5 lbs thinly sliced chicken, 3 sliced bell peppers, and 1 sliced onion in bowl. Gently toss to combine. 
5. Spread in a single layer onto the prepared baking
6. Place into oven and bake for 25 minutes, or until the chicken is completely cooked through and the vegetables are crisp-tender. Stir in cilantro and 2 tbsp lime juice.
7. Serve immediately with tortillas, pico, and guacamole.

Easy quick bread

 This can be made with lots of different flavor combinations.

1 cake mix

1 small pudding mix (3.9 oz)

1 cup sour cream

3 eggs

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup water

Grease mini loaf pans. Bake at 350 for 25-27 minutes. Test by inserting a toothpick; if moist crumbs are attached it’s done. Cool 10 minutes in pan, then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling. Can be frozen. Makes 4-5 mini loaves.

Flavor ideas:

*Lemon cake mix, lemon pudding, replace water with 1/2 cup lemon juice

*Yellow cake mix, pistachio pudding, add a crumb topping (1 cup brown sugar + 1 tsp cinnamon) 

*Chocolate cake mix, banana pudding, replace oil with mashed banana

Chili

I got this recipe from Marilyn Johnston. It was my favorite at the Ward Chili cook off!

Cook together:

2-3 lbs ground beef

1 large onion

9 cloves minced garlic 

Then add:

1 quart tomato juice

3/4 cup chopped green pepper

1 16 oz can diced tomatoes (or more?)

3 16 oz cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 8ox tomato sauce 

1/2 tsp cumin

1 tsp thyme

1-2 tsp chili powder

4 bay leaves

1 tsp salt

1 quart water

Cook for 45-60 minutes.

Healthy Mexican Mac and Cheese

Healthy Mexican Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:

1 lb cooked 93% lean ground beef, fat drained

4 tsp low sodium taco seasoning mix

9-10 cups cooked cauliflower, cut into small florets (3 12oz bags frozen)

1 cup chopped green chilies (2 4oz cans drained)

1 cup green or red peppers, diced

2 oz pickled jalapenos, chopped (optional)

For the sauce:

2 cups unsweetened cashew milk

8 tbsp or 4oz reduced fat cream cheese

2 tsp dijon mustard

2 tbsp Kraft reduced fat grated parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp garlic powder

3 cups shredded reduced fat Mexican or sharp cheddar cheese

Topping:

2 cups shredded reduced fat Mexican or sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9x13 casserole dish lightly with cooking spray.

Combine cooked ground beef with taco seasoning mix and 6 tbsp of water in a small skillet. Heat over medium high heat. Cook until sauce thickens, about 4 to 5 minutes stirring occasionally.

In a large bowl, combine seasoned ground beef, cauliflower pieces, green chilies, green or red peppers and jalapenos. Set aside.

Pour cashew milk into a medium sized sauce pan over medium-low heat. Add the cream cheese, dijon mustard, parmesan cheese, and garlic powder. Stir until combined and cream cheese is melted. Add 3 cups cheese. Continue cooking until cheese is melted and sauce is nice and smooth, about 2 minutes.

Pour the cheese sauce over the cauliflower beef mixture and stir until everything is coated with the cheese sauce. Pour mixture into a prepared dish. Sprinkle 2 cups of cheese over the top. Bake for about 15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Divide into 8 equal portions.

Lasagna Soup

 This is Janalee’s recipe.

1 1/2 lbs Italian sausage (you can either do all mild or 1 lb mild + 1/2 lb hot) (if you only have 1 lb it works fine)

2 onions finely chopped (a bag of frozen chopped onions works great)

4 cloves (or 4 tsp) minced garlic

2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

2 T. tomato paste (pro-tip: a cookie dough baller is 1 T. and works great for scooping and dropping)

28 oz diced tomatoes (2 regular cans or 1 large can)

6 cups chicken broth (3 cups if you’re substituting veggies for pasta)

2 bay leaves

16 oz fusilli pasta ( if you don’t have fusilli, rotini would substitute well)

1/2 cup finely chopped basil (I never have fresh herbs, so a Tablespoon of dried would work too)

Mozzarella cheese 

Crumble and Brown sausage. Drain fat. 

Add onions and sauté about six minutes. 

Add garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes and sauté one minute.

Add tomato paste and sauté about five minutes.

Add tomatoes (with juice), broth, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes. 

Increase heat back to a boil, then add pasta, cooking til al dente. 

Discard bay leaves. Add basil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with mozzarella cheese .

If you want to make a low carb version, only add 3 cups of broth, simmer as usual, then add small bite-size cauliflower florets instead of noodles and cook until soft. Fresh or frozen work, but if frozen, defrost enough to cut into small pieces before adding to the pot. Sliced half moons of zucchini and squash are also great additions!