Cafe Rio Dinner

Okay, so I know every recipe blog out there has Cafe Rio Pork, but it's pretty much a staple around here so I had to add it to my blog too! When we make Cafe Rio Pork, it has to include Cilantro Lime Dressing, Cilantro Lime Rice and Bean and Cheese Dip! We serve it with lettuce, salsa, sour cream, enchilada sauce, tomatoes, large and small flour tortillas. That way we are covered if we want a Pork Salad, Pork Burrito, or Pork Tacos!

For the Pork:

Large Pork Butt Roast (I usually shoot for 3-5 lbs because we like leftovers!)

1 can Coke 1 large can green enchilada sauce, divided

1 tablespoon cumin

1/2 cup brown sugar

Place pork roast, fatty side up in crock pot. Pour coke over roast. Cover and cook on low 5-7 or high 3-5 hours. At this point I trim the fat off the top and throw it out. Remove most of the liquid from the crock pot to a large measuring cup. Shred pork. Discard about 1/2 the liquid leaving about 1 cup. Add 1/2 large can of enchilada sauce, cumin and brown sugar to remaining liquid. Pour over pork, mix and continue cooking 30-60 minutes.

For the Rice:

2-4 tablespoons butter

2 1/2 cups rice

2 cans chicken broth

1/2 cup water

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons lime juice

4 tablespoons cilantro

Mix all ingredients in a rice cooker or pot. Cook until done. (I do it in the microwave, about 7 minutes on high, then I stir it and put it back in for 30-45 min at 50% power)

For the Dressing:

1 1/3 cup sour cream

3/4 cup mayonaise

1 packet dry ranch dressing mix

4 tablespoons enchilada sauce (from can above)

1 bunch cilantro

2 garlic cloves

1/8 teaspoon tabasco

4 tablespoons lime juice

Blend!

For Bean Dip:

1/2 cup cream cheese

16 oz. refried beans

5 drops tabasco

1/3 cup green onions, chopped

1 cup monterey/colby jack cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon taco seasoning

1/4 cup parsley

1 cup cheddar cheese (on top)

Using a hand mixer mix all ingredients except cheddar cheese. Top with remaining cheese. Bake at 350* 20 minutes. This may sound like a lot of work to do all the sides, but really it takes less than an hour, and IT'S SO WORTH IT! This is the order I do it in:

1. Start Rice

2. Drain pork and mix sauce

3. Make bean dip and put in oven

4. Make dressing

5. Chop lettuce and tomatoes.

Sausage, Spinach and Tomato Pasta

I love this recipe. (DISCLAIMER: I love Spinach!) I really wasn't in the mood to cook dinner tonight, (I was working on getting our basement ready for sheetrock all day) but this was quick and easy and I love the flavor from the fresh tomatoes and spinach. Honestly my kids and husband weren't as impressed, I probably could have chopped the spinach up smaller and used about 1/2 to appease them.

1 lb. italian sausage

3 cans Italian style diced stewed tomatoes

1 box medium shells

2 1/2 cups water

4 garlic cloves, pressed

1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

1/2 tsp. salt

4 tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup Parmesean Cheese, grated

8 cups spinach leaves

Cook sausage in a 12 in. skillet. Drain stewed tomatoes into a bowl, reserve 1 cup for later use, add tomatoes, remaining liquid, water, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pasta. Cover and cook 13-15 minutes or until pasta is tender, stirring occaisionally. Add in tomatoes, spinach, Parmesan cheese and reserved liquid. Cook 1-2 minutes until spinach is wilted, stirring constantly.

Basket Round-Up!

This week's Conventional Basket

This week's Mexican Pack

This week's Organic Basket (This is actually my friend's basket, but I thought you might like to see what's in those boxes!) This week's menu:

Cafe Rio Pork w/ Cilantro Lime Dressing, Cilantro Lime Rice, Bean Dip and Salsa

Pork Roast

Green Enchilada Sauce

Brown Sugar

Cumin

Sour Cream

Mayonaise

Cilantro

Ranch Dressing Mix

Garlic

Tabasco

Lime

Butter

Rice

Tomatos

Peppers

Pasta with Spinach, Sausage, and Tomatoes

Pasta

Spinach

Sausage

Tomatoes

Garlic

Parmesean Cheese

Italian Diced Stewed Tomatoes

Chicken and Asparagus Risotto SkilletRice

olive oil

boneless, skinless chicken breasts

condensed cream of chicken soup

asparagus spears

milk

onion

Parmesan cheese

garlic

lemon zest

Turkey and Summer Squash Casserole

ground turkey

onion

squash

carrots

cream of chicken

sour cream

stuffing mix

Sunday Pork Roast with Carrots and Potatoes

pork roast

onion soup mix

carrots

potatoes

Chicken Tortilla Chili

This is such a yummy chili! We had our church Chili Cookoff last night, I won "Best Looking Chili." Although last year I won "Best Chili" with THIS recipe (my nephews were really excited about me defending my title, I said to one of them, "Best Looking is pretty good too" and he said, "eh") I personally think this years is better! This would be the PERFECT recipe for anyone who got a Mexican Pack and Tortillas this week! The one thing you could do if you got the mex pack is add in some hot peppers to taste! 4 yellow corn tortillas
1 large onion, diced
1 medium zucchini, diced (I used 2 yellow squash, if you got a Mexican Pack use the squash in that!)
1 T vegetable oil
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
4 garlic cloves, pressed
1 T ground cumin
3-4 cups chicken stock
2 cans diced fire roasted tomatoes, undrained
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 small rotisserie chicken
1 t salt
Optional toppings: diced avacado, lime wedges, crumbled queso fresco, cilantro, tortilla crisps

Place tortillas in a blender or food processor to form fine crumbs, set aside. Place oil and onion in 4 quart pot, cook and stir over medium heat 4-6 minutes until onions are tender. Add cilantro, garlic, and cumin. Cook an aditional 20-30 seconds until fragrant. Stir in tortilla crumbs, zucchini, stock, tomatoes, and beans. Bring to a gentle simmer, reduce heat to medium-low and cook 15-20 minutes to thicken, stirring frequently and scraping bottom of pot. Stir in chicken and salt. Cook 3-4 minutes or until zucchini is tender and chicken is hot. Serve with toppings if desired.

Ham and Veggie Quiche

This is a delicious quiche! It was my first attempt at baking one and it turned out to be easy and delicious! We also had fresh squeezed orange juice because most of our box of navels was starting to go bad. About 1/2 way through eating I remembered that I wanted to make some fresh blueberry muffins to go with the quiche, so maybe I will go and make them for dessert instead!

1 Pillsbury® refrigerated pie crust, softened as directed on box
1 cup chopped ham (I used sandwich meat)
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella or Swiss cheese (my hubby doesn't love swiss but it would be yummy if you do!)
1 cup chopped broccoli florettes
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
1 diced tomato
1/2 onion chopped
8 eggs
1 1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon mustard
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
optional
sour cream, salsa, extra cheese

Preheat oven to 375* Roll out pie crust and place in pie tin. (I used a Pampered Chef Deep Dish Pie Plate, if you aren't using a very deep pan you will have to half the egg/milk mixture, and possibly use less veggies!) Mix together ham, cheese, and veggies. Fill pie crust with veggie mix (should come up about 2/3 of dish) Mix together eggs, milk, salt, mustard, and pepper. Pour over veggies. Bake for 45-60 minutes or until a knife comes out clean. Let stand 5-10 minutes before serving. Top with sour cream, extra cheese and salsa if desired.

Chicken and Cauliflower Curry w/ Homemade Mango-Pineapple Chutney

Tonight's dinner was sweet and hot. I love stir-fry because it's quick and easy. I was actually surprised how well my kids ate this! I didn't scoop the extra chutney on top of theirs because it had some KICK! If I made it again I would probably leave out the red pepper flakes and make it more of a sweet chuteny, but my husband likes the heat so he wasn't complaining at all. (I always cool things down for the kids) **IMPORTANT** The chutney takes about an hour to make before you can start the dinner, so plan for that. I made mine earlier in the day and then it was ready, you could even make it a day or so ahead and keep it in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Mango Pineapple Chutney (makes about 2 cups)

2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (leave these out if you don't want A LOT of heat!)
1/2 sweet onion, minced
1 inch piece fresh ginger root, peeled and minced
1/3 large yellow bell pepper, diced
1 large ripe mangoes, peeled, pitted, and diced
1/3 small pineapple, peeled and diced
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
3 tablespoons cup apple cider vinegar

Heat the vegetable oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the red pepper flakes and cook until they begin to sizzle, then stir in the minced onion. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally until the onions have softened, about 5 minutes. Remove the lid, increase the heat to medium, and stir in the ginger and yellow bell pepper. Cook and stir until the ginger is fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the mangoes, pineapple, brown sugar, curry powder, and vinegar. Bring to a simmer, and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cool the chutney completely when done and store in airtight containers in the refrigerator.

Pork and Cauliflower Curry

1 1/2 cups uncooked rice
2 cans chicken broth, divided
4 cups cauliflower florets
4 (4 ounce) pork chops, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup mango-pineapple chutney (could substitute store bought pineapple or apple chutney)

Cook rice using 1 1/2 cans of the chicken broth. Meanwhile, heat oil in skillet over medium high heat. Season pork chops with 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder, salt and pepper. Cook pork 5-7 minutes stirring occaisionally. Remove from skillet and set aside. In a small bowl, combine the rest of the chicken broth, curry powder, buttermilk and flour. Add to skillet and heat to a boil stirring constantly. Add in pork, cauliflower and chutney. Cook until sauce is thickened and cauliflower is tender. Serve over rice and top with extra chutney.

Yummy Shells and Asparagus

Wow! That pretty much sums up tonight's dinner. I promise you this dish is worthy of being served at any Italian Restaurant. I used the original recipe found at Favorite Family Recipes and modified it.
1 pkg. medium shells pasta
1/2 c. (1 cube) butter (the real stuff)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz sliced mushrooms
3/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1-2 chicken bouillon (I use 2 tsp. boulion powder)
1 (12oz) can evaporated milk
salt & and pepper to taste
1 bunch asparagus cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 c. bacon, crumbled
1/4 c. chopped pistacios (or to taste)
Parsley, to taste
Parmesan cheese, to taste

Boil bow tie pasta in salted water until al dente. Do NOT over cook.
In wok or heavy skillet melt butter. Add minced garlic, mushrooms and asparagus saute a minute or so.
Add Parmesan Cheese and bouillon. When the bouillon is dissolved, slowly stir in heavy cream and salt & pepper. Bring to a boil stirring frequently until thickend slightly. Add cooked pasta, crumbled bacon, toasted pistacios, and parsley and toss together. Serve immediately, sprinkle with additional Parmesean cheese to taste.

Chicken and Dumplings

This dinner was so yummy and it is great if your kids don't like to "see" veggies! I chopped up the celery, onion and mushrooms very tiny! You could add carrots or peppers or really any veggies you wanted to in and chop them up tiny and the kids might never know! I gave you the recipe below as I prepared it, the original had several differences, I added the mushrooms, potatoes, herbs and doubled the chicken soup and dumplings. Those chefs at Top Chef would criticize my "presentation" I am sure, but I'd bet they'd love the flavor anyway!

Chicken
2 (10.75 ounce) cans reduced fat cream of chicken soup
1 (14.5 ounce) can low-fat, low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
8 oz. chopped mushrooms
2 cups cubed or chopped potatoes
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into bite size pieces
3 sprigs oregano leaves, finely chopped
1 sprig rosemary leaves, finely chopped
ground black pepper to taste

Dumplings
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1-2 sprigs oregano leaves, finely chopped

In a skillet heat oil over medium high heat, add in chicken, celery, onion, and mushrooms. Saute until chicken is cooked through. Meanwhile, in a large pot combine chicken soup, stock and milk. Add in oregano, rosemary, and pepper. Add in chicken mixture and potatoes. Cover and simmer over low heat 30-40 minutes, stirring occaisionally. In a small bowl mix together flour, baking powder and salt and oregano. Mix milk and oil separately and add to dry ingredients. Stir just until combined. Mixture will be wet and sticky! Drop tablespoonfulls of dumpling mixture on top of the chicken mixture. Cover and simmer 15-20 minutes or until dumplings are cooked through, without peeking.

Makes 6 servings as prepared
Recipe adapted from Chicken and Dumplings III on allrecipes.com

Basket Recipe Round-up!

Another great week for Bountiful Baskets! I just want to put in a plug for all of your AWESOME Voulunteer Site Coordinators...PLEASE go and VOLUNTEER once every 4 baskets you get! This morning my site only had 7 WONDURFUL people helping for 94 baskets, that's just not fair!Each week I will post the names of the recipes and the ingredients on Saturday (or maybe Sunday) so if you want to make something you can get the things you might need. These ingredients are rough, because I change things up as I am cooking. Then each day I post the "official" recipe with any adjustments I made/would make. In addition to my basket, I got another Italian Pack. This Friday we have a Chili Cook-Off at our church, other than that I am not exactly sure what days I will cook what, I have to check cooking times and fit it into my schedule. The great thing with this week's basket is that everything was very "common" things to cook with so these will be great to use in the future as well!

Recipes and (Rough) Ingredients

Chicken and Dumplings
2 (10.75 ounce) cans reduced fat cream of chicken soup
1 (14.5 ounce) can low-fat, low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
8 0z. sliced mushrooms
3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 teaspoon celery seed
oregano
garlic
ground black pepper to taste
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
parsley

Ham and Veggie Quiche
1 Pillsbury® refrigerated pie crust, softened as directed on box
1 1/2 cups cubed cooked ham
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup broccoli florets
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1 diced tomato
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dry ground mustard
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Curried Pork Chops w/ Mango Pineapple Chutney
1 1/2 cups uncooked rice
4 cups cauliflower florets
4 (4 ounce) pork chops, trimmed
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup buttermilk
6 green onions, chopped, divided
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 large sweet onion, minced
4 inch piece fresh ginger root, peeled and minced
1 large yellow bell pepper, diced
3 large ripe mangoes, peeled, pitted, and diced
1 small pineapple, peeled and diced
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

Chicken Tortilla Chili
4 yellow corn tortillas
1 large onion
2 small yellow squash
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1/4 cup cilantro (Those of you in Arizona and Utah who got Cilantro can use it in this!)
4 garlic cloves
1 tbsp cumin
3 cups chicken broth
2 cans fire-roasted diced stewed tomatoes
1 can kidney beans
1 small rotisserie chicken
salt
optional-avacado, lime

Anniversary Bowtie and Asparagus
1 pkg. bow tie pasta
1/2 c. (1 cube) butter (the real stuff)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1-2 chicken bouillon cubes
1 pint heavy cream
salt & pepper to taste
10-15 spears asparagus, blanched
1/2 c. bacon, crumbled
1/4 c. toasted pinenuts (or to taste)
Parsley, to taste
Parmesan cheese, to taste

Quick Chicken Cacciatore

Tonight's dinner came together so quickly and it was such a yummy homemade spaghetti sauce! I ended up adding some oregano in with the basil at the end because I had it to use from my Italian pack. I am getting another Italian pack tomorrow so my hubby is very excited about more mushrooms!

1 cup all-purpose flour
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (4 oz each)
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1/3 cup tomato paste
1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth
4 garlic cloves, pressed
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
1 head cauliflower, cut into pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
8 oz sliced mushrooms
1 can (14.5 oz) Italian-seasoned petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil and oreganoleaves
12 oz cooked spaghetti noodles

Coat chicken in flour, heat oil in 12 in. skillet over medium-high heat 3 minutes. Add chicken, cook 2-3 minutes on each side.(chicken will not be fully cooked) Remove chicken from skillet and keep warm. Combine tomato paste, broth, garlic, cornstarch, salt and pepper and mix. Combine mushrooms and cauliflower in skillet Cook and stir 3-4 minutues. Add broth mixture and tomatoes; bring to a simmer. Stir in herbs and add chicken back to skillet. Cover and simmer 5-7 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and sauce is thickened. Serve over spaghetti noodles.

yeild:6 servings, calories per serving: 480

Cabbage Chili w/ GREEN Chili Lime Corn Chips

Remember the Super Bowl Corn Chips that Bountiful Baskets offered? Well, we were cheering for the Steelers, SO I threw the green tortillas into the freezer for St. Patricks Day! Today I sprayed them with a little oil and sprinkled with salt and chili lime rub and baked them at 350* for 15 minutes, to serve with our chili! Yummy!

1 lb. ground turkey
2 small onions, chopped
1 red or green pepper, chopped
About 3 (hot) chilies (to taste), finely chopped (I used hot banana peppers)
1 Cabbage, chopped
3 fresh tomatoes
1-2 cans stewed tomatoes, undrained
1-2 cans kidney beans
2 small yellow squash, chopped (optional)
2 heaped teaspoons of cumin seed;
2 teaspoons curry powder
pepper to taste

Heat a large pot over medium high heat. Add turkey and onions. Cook 5 minutes. Add in cabbage, tomatoes, squash, beans, peppers and seasonings. I had a very large cabbage, so I used 2 cans of the tomatoes and beans, remember the cabbage will cook down quite a bit though. The chili will seem very dry at this point, but as the cabbage simmers it will release lots of liquid. Simmer over low heat 30 minutes stirring occaisionally.

Whenever I cook something like Chili, I like to see what older veggies I have in the fridge that I can add. It's a great way to add more vitamins and usally doesn't effect the flavor of the chili. I didn't have any this time, but when we get brussels again (not my favorite veggie) I am going to try adding them to chili!

Recipe adapted from The Giant Cabbage

Hearty Chicken and Rosemary Stew

The flovor of fresh rosemary in this recipe really gets infused into the chicken and veggies! This dish cooks for a long time, but was really very easy to throw together. It worked out nicely because I put it in the oven and then took my daughter to ballet and when we came home it was ready to eat. I'll bet you could do it in a crock pot before work as well!

1 lb. small Yukon gold potatoes, cut into chunks
1 large onion, diced
3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced diagonally into 1/2 in slices.
8 oz. whole mushrooms, quartered
2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (could use thighs), cut into 1 in. pieces
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
3 garlic cloves, pressed
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 lemon
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 375*. Combine potatoes, onions, carrots, mushrooms, chicken, rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper in a deep baking dish, mix well. Whisk together broth, tomato paste, and cornstarch in a bowl until cornstarch is disolved. Pour over veggies and chicken. Bake covered 1 1/2-2 hours stiring after 45 minutes. After baking, zest lemon to measure 1 tsp. zest. Stir in zest and parsley. Let stand covered 10 minutes.

yeild: 8 servings, calories per serving: 260
Recipe from NEW Pampered Chef Dinner in your Deep Covered Baker

Sweet and Sour Pork and Pineapple Stir Fry

Wow, tonight's dinner was a total winner! The kids loved it and the adults loved it! Plus it was super quick and easy too.

1 lb pork tenderloin, quartered lengthwise and sliced into 1 in. pieces
2 tbsp plus 1 tsp cornstarch, divided
2 cups fresh green beans, snapped into 1 in. pieces (my kids prefer the green beans to be fairly soft, so I also boiled them for 5 minutes or so, then drained, before using them in the stir-fry)
1 medium pineapple, cut into chunks
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1/3 cup apricot preserves
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 medium red onion, cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges (optional)
3 cups hot cooked rice (optional)

Combine pork and salt and 2 tablespoons cornstarch. Heat oil in 12 in skillet over medium high heat 3 minutes. Place pork into skillet in a single layer and cook undisturbed 4-6 minutes. Turn pork over and cook and aditional 1-2 minutes. Add onion and green beans. Cook until onion begins to brown. Reduce heat to medium. Add Pineapple ans sauce. Cook 1-2 minutes or until sauce is thickened, stiring constantly. Serve with rice.

Yeald:4 servings, calories per serving: 320
Recipe adapted from TPC Spring Summer Seasons Best Cookbook

15 Asparagus Recipes for your 15 lbs of Asparagus!

For this Saturday if you are getting a case of Asparagus here are a few recipes that I thought looked delicious to try out!

Oven Roasted Asparagus

Asparagus Hollandaise Puff

Asparagus Omelet

Chicken and Asparagus Risotto

Fast 'n Fresh Fritatta

Roasted Asparagus with Balsalmic Brown Butter

Chinese Chicken Salad

Angel Hair Pasta with Shrimp, Asparagus, and basil

Asparagus and Chicken Enchiladas

Cream of Asparagus Soup

Anniversary Bowtie and Asparagus Pasta

Balsalmic Chicken Asparagus

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Asparagus, and Green Beans

Pasta with Mushrooms and Asparagus in a Pesto Sauce

Asparagus, Mushroom and Ham Quiche with a Potato Crust

Chimichurri Steak Salad

I love chimichurri! The dressing on this salad is also used as a marinade for the steak after it has been cooked. I cut up the steak into bite size pieces before placing it on the salad. The raw garlic gave a nice bite to the dressing.

Steak
1 lb boneless top sirloin steak aprox. 3/4 in. thick
1/2 tsp salt
Chimichurri
1 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons vinegar (I used balsalmic)
1/2 tsp salt
1 garlic clove pressed
1/4 tsp. ground cayenne pepper (optional, I didn't throw that in)

1 medium sunchoke (optional)
Salad
1 head lettuce, chopped
1 cup tomatoes diced

Heat grill pan over medium heat 5 minutes. As the pan heats rub steak with salt. Place steak into pan and cook 6-8 minutes on each side for medium doneness. As steak cooks prepare chimichurri by mixing together in a small bowl. Remove steaks from heat and top with 3 tablespoons chimichurri. Let stand 10 minutes. Thinly slice lettuce and cut tomatoes and place in a large bowl. Toss with remaining chimichurri sauce. Divide salad onto serving plates and thinly slice steak and arrange over top of salad.

yeild: 4 servings, calories per serving: 330

Recipe adapted from TPC 29 Minutes to Dinner

notes: This is one I won't double because 1 lb of steak will be plenty for my family. I plan on making some garlic bread to serve with this meal.

Creamy Pasta with Spring Vegetables

This recipe had such great flavor! I love the fresh basil and roasted veggies. This recipe was adapted from a recipe in The Pampered Chef Main Dishes cookbook, which is now out of print. Most recipes that I make in my home I go off of an idea and then add or take away things until it's what I want. I doubled the recipe, with a big family that's a must, plus that way I could use the whole can of evaporated milk.
8 oz. thin fresh asparagus spears, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
8 oz. baby portobello mushrooms, quartered
1 large bell pepper, cut into 1 in pieces
1 yellow squash, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, pressed
1/2 tsp. salt (I like course sea salt)
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, snipped
8 oz. penne pasta (I use whole wheat)
3/4 cup fat free evaporated milk (could use heavy whipping cream or regular evaporated milk)
2 oz fresh parmesan cheese grated

Preheat oven to 425*. Chop up veggies and place in a large bowl. Add olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Toss gently. Spread out on a cookie sheet with sides. Roast 18-20 minutes until veggies are tender. (if you like crisp veggies only roast 10-12 min). Cook fat free evaporated milk in a small sauce pan over medium low heat until slightly thickened. Add in parmesan cheese and stir until incorporated. When veggies are done, return to large bowl, top with sauce and basil and toss together. Top with additional black pepper and parmesan cheese as desired.

yeild-4 servings, calories per serving: 120

notes: Tonight I made this vegetarian style, but it would be great with grilled chicken breasts cubed and tossed in. Also, I used veggies that I had on hand, it's easy to add or take away veggies in a meal like this to suit it to your tastes!

What's Dinner in a Basket?

About me: I am a stay at home mother of 5 kids between the ages of 1 and 8. I love to cook healthy meals for my kids and make sure they eat plenty of fruits and veggies. About a year ago I discovered Bountiful Baskets and fell in love! I am now a VSC (voulenteer site coordinator) for a site in Idaho Falls and enjoy finding and making new recipes with my basket items. I decided to make this blog for anyone who might be looking for new recipes to use their basket items, each week I plan my menu around what comes in my basket. I will post the recipes for these later tonight and put up a picture and review of each as I try it.

This week's conventional basket:

Picture from Healthy Mom's Kitchen

Italian Pack:

This week's dinner menu:

Sunday-

Creamy Pasta With Spring Vegetables: Asparagus, Baby Portobello Mushrooms, Garlic, Basil, old basket: red bell pepper

Monday-

Chimichurri Steak Salad: Lettuce, Tomatoes, Parsley, Garlic

Tuesday-

Sweet and Sour Pork and Pineapple Stir Fry: Pineapple, Green Beans, Red Onion

Wednesday-

Hearty Chicken and Rosemary Stew: Mushrooms, Rosemary, Garlic, Parsley, old basket: Baby Gold Potatoes, Carrots,

Thursday-

Quick Chicken Cacciatore: Cauliflower, Onion, Mushrooms, Basil, Garlic

Friday-

Cabbage Chili: Tomatoes, old basket: Asian Pack-Napa Cabbage