Chicken Sautee with Creamy Mushroom and Leek Sauce

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, (1-1 1/4 pounds)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, or canola oil
1/2 pound cremini, or baby bella mushrooms, wiped clean and thinly sliced (2 1/2 cups)
1 small leek, trimmed, washed (see Tip) and thinly sliced (3/4 cup)
1/2 cup dry white wine, or vermouth
3/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/3 cup reduced-fat sour cream
3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/8 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions:
1.Trim visible fat from chicken breasts. Remove the tenders (the long thin flaps); reserve for another use (see Tip). Place trimmed chicken breasts between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Pound with a rolling pin, meat mallet or heavy skillet until flattened to an even thickness, about 1/2 inch. Combine flour, salt and pepper in a shallow glass dish. Dredge chicken in seasoned flour, shaking off excess. (Discard any leftover flour.)
2.Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until well browned and no longer pink in the center, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, cover and keep warm.
3.Add mushrooms and leek to the pan; cook over medium heat, stirring often, until most of the moisture has evaporated and the mushrooms are beginning to brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Add wine (or vermouth) and deglaze, scraping up any browned bits, for about 1 minute. Mix broth and cornstarch in a small bowl. Add to the pan and cook until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in sour cream and mustard; cook until heated through, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon over the chicken and sprinkle with parsley.

Carlic Chicken with Honey Butternut Squash

Ok so the picture above isn't exactly what this meal looks like, but it's the closest I could find! This recipe was VERY tasty! The little boy next door ate dinner with us and he loved it. Then his mom came over and nibbled on it and she loved it too! I ended up making some more cous cous and gave her all the leftovers to take to the rest of her family for dinner!

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts cut into 2 inch cubes

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 cup dry white wine

15-20 cloves garlic

1 butternut squash, cut into 2 inch cubes, peeled

various spices to coat chicken (I used oregano, rosemary, thyme, garlic powder and onion powder)

1 package cous cous (any flavor - we prefer wild mushroom and herb)

1 tablespoon honey

Directions:

1. Mix cut up butternut squash with 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper and 1 tablespoon honey

2. Add the cut up pieces of butternut squash to the bottom of a crockpot. Add can of cream of chicken soup, white wine and cloves of garlic.

3. Mix spices with a splash of EVOO. Rub this mixture into the chicken and then cut chicken into small cubes; add chicken to crock pot,

4. Cook on low 2 hours or high 1 hour until consistency is soup-like.

5. Serve over cous cous and enjoy!

Baja Battered Fish Tacos

This recipe was so much fun to make! AND, so easy! I bought Tilapia on sale, so all in all, these tacos cost about $0.30 each to make! I also put together a sauce that I mixed in with the cabbage made of Thousand Island dressing and red taco sauce and it was delicious!

Ingredients:
3/4 cup beer, preferably lager or pilsner
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1-1 1/4 pounds tilapia, or other firm white fish, sliced into 1/2-inch-by-2-inch strips
3 tablespoons canola oil, divide

Directions:
1.Place beer, all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, salt, oregano, mustard, cayenne and pepper in a blender; blend until smooth, scraping down the sides as necessary. Transfer the batter to a shallow baking dish. Add fish, turning to coat all sides.

2.Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Transfer one-third of the battered fish to the pan, placing each piece into a little oil. Cook until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer cooked fish to a plate; keep warm. Add 1 tablespoon oil and half the remaining fish to the pan; cook as directed above, reducing the heat if necessary. Cook the remaining fish with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Serve immediately.

Mama's Chili Cheese Quiche

This is one of my all time favorite foods! My mom made this for Elijah's baby shower and it was a huge hit! The green chili's are mild so the quiche is loaded with flavor without the spice!

Ingredients:
10 eggs
1 pint Cottage Cheese
1Teaspoon baking powder
1 Teaspoon salt
10 drops tabasco, tapatio or taco sauce (to taste_
1/2 cup flour
1 pound Jack cheese
1 7-8 can green chilis
1/2 cup butter melted

Directions:
1. Whirl first 6 ingredients in a blender. Grate cheese into bowl, add chilis and butter. Pour blender mix into bowl. Mix all together. Pour into sprayed 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Mama's Ham and Swiss Quiche

This quiche is SO tasty! My mom made this quiche for Elijah's shower and everyone loved it! The swiss gives it a very uniqe flavor...mmmm!

Ingredients:
9" unbaked deep dish pie shell
12 oz. can evaporated mild
3 large eggs
1.4 cup flour
1 cup Swiss cheese
1/2 cup cooked ham
1/4 sliced green onions
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/4 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Whisk liquids--stir solids--pour into shell.
3. Cook 45-50 minutes

Mama's Broccoli Casserole

This recipe is a family favorite! My mom has been making this recipe for special occasions for as long as I can remember. It's such an easy recipe and can be made anytime, but what makes it special to me is that we have always had it for special occasions. It's pretty rich but super tasty!

Ingredients:
1/2 can mushroom soup
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup grated cheese
1 small onion chopped
1 beaten egg

Directions:
1. Drain and dry 1 pound box of chopped broccoli. This step is very important. I let frozen broccoli sit out until it defrosts then put in colander to drain. Then with paper towels and dish towel, push all water out of broccoli.
2. Pour all ingredients into buttered casserole dish--sprinkle top with 18 Ritz cracker crumbs. Dot wtih butter. Bake 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

*Serves 4-6

Crunchy Vanilla Almond French Toast

This recipe is from Rachel Ray. I love to try new things for breakfast and while I have never actually tried this recipe, I want to! Sounds delicious!

Ingredients:
Bacon (1 pound applewood smoked bacon)
Toast:
8 large eggs
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup half-and-half
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 pinches salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, ground or freshly grated
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 cups corn flakes, lightly crushed
1/2 cup sliced almonds, lightly crushed
4 tablespoons butter
12 (1 1/2-inch-thick) slices challah bread or soft "Italian" style bread•Medium or dark amber maple syrup to pass at table
Mint sprigs and edible flowers, for garnish (optional)
Fancy Fruit Topping (optional):
•1 large navel orange, peeled and chopped
•12 large strawberries, sliced
•1/2 pint blueberries
•1/2 pint raspberries
•1/2 pint blackberries
•2 tablespoons sugar
•1/4 cup orange liqueur, such as Grand MarnierPreparationPre-heat oven to 350°F.

Directions:
1. Arrange bacon on slotted broiler pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar and place in oven to bake until crisp, 20-22 minutes.
2. Pre-heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.
3. In a shallow dish, beat together with a wire whisk: eggs, half-and-half, vanilla, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. In a second shallow dish combine flakes and nuts.
4. Add two tablespoons butter to warm skillet. Place a cookie sheet lined with foil (for easy clean up) near the stove. Coat 4-6 slices of bread in egg, depending on the size of your skillet, then coat bread in cornflakes and nuts. Cook slices two minutes on each side and transfer toast to cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining slices and transfer toast to oven. Bake 10 minutes, with already cooking bacon.
5. While bacon and toast are in oven, combine fruit, sugar and liqueur in a serving bowl and reserve.
6. Remove toast and bacon from oven. Warm syrup in a small pitcher in microwave for 15 seconds on high. Serve toast and bacon on plates with optional garnish of mint and edible flowers.
7. Pass syrup and topping at the table.