Cooking from the Couch: Red Chile Chicken and Rice with Black Beans

This was a really nice change from your traditional chicken and yellow rice dish. Super easy to throw together and you can add whatever veggies you like! This makes a nice big pot and is great served with a simple salad and of course...a staple...plantains!!!

Red Chile Chicken and Rice with Black Beans

2 T oil, divided
3 chicken breast, cut into 1” pieces
½ package of Taco seasoning, divided
2 c rice

3 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ cans chicken broth
15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
Salt and Pepper
1/2 c frozen peas
1/2c frozen corn
1 pimento, chopped
Salsa and sour cream for serving

Heat one tablespoon of the oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the diced chicken breast and season with salt, pepper and 1/4 package Taco seasoning. Brown chicken 2-3 minutes (doesn’t need to be cooked all the way through). Remove the chicken and add the second tablespoon of oil to the pot and add the rice. Cook on medium-low, make sure to stir until the rice turns from translucent to opaque. Add the garlic and  the broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover, and cook for 10 minutes.

Add the chicken back to the pot along with the beans, corn, peas and pimentos. Cook on low for 10-12 minutes. Check rice to see if tender. If not, cover  for another 5 minutes or so. Keep and eye on it though so it doesn't burn.

Cooking From the Couch: Ravioli Casserole

We made the Ravioli Casserole tonight and it was super easy and really yummy! I would definitely recommend trying this quick and easy recipe out! It is a great spin off of the traditional spaghetti and meat sauce. Not the most dietetic dinner, but it sure was good!

Cheese Ravioli Casserole


1 lb Italian sausage, casings removed
1 T olive oil
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 T tomato paste
1 can tomato sauce
1/4 c heavy cream (I used milk)
salt and ground black pepper
1lb frozen cheese ravioli
1 c mozzarella cheese

Bring a pot of water to a boil. In another pan, brown the sausage. Make sure to chunk it up as it cooks. If it doesn't chunk up small enough, put the cooked sausage in the food processor for a bit until it looks like ground beef. Remove and set aside.

Once water is boiling, cook ravioli according to directions. I cook to al dente.

In the same pan, add oil, garlic and tomato paste. Saute for a minute or two and then add tomato sauce. Allow to simmer for a 3-4 minutes. Then, add milk and seasoning. Simmer a few minutes longer.

Combine drained ravioli and sauce in a baking dish...cover with mozzarella and bake at 350 degrees until cheese is melted. (This step can totally be skipped)

Cooking from the Couch: Sloppy Joes

Sloppy Joes are something I ate a lot as a child. I really LOVE my sloppy joes. Yet, it is something I had to introduce them to my hubbie. I always ate the typical canned variety, but it has onions, so that was quickly nixed. Hence, I came up with my own Sloppy Joe recipe to accommodate my hubbies hatred for onions.

The nice thing about this recipe is my hubbie can make it completely on his own with no instruction necessary. I had him make a double batch so we could freeze a few meals for post baby. Try it out and let me know what you think!

2 ½ lb ground beef
2 T tomato paste
3/4 c smoky BBQ sauce

2/3 c ketchup
¼ c Worcestershire sauce
¼ c soy sauce
pepper (I like a lot of pepper)
1T paprika
Brown the ground beef, then drain off the excess oil. Add in the remaining ingredients and mix well. Then, bring to a boil and simmer for a few minutes. Serve on buns.

Meal Plan Monday!!

I love the sound of that..Meal Plan Monday! I wish I was on top of things enough to make sure to have my meal plan posted every Monday. Hey...nothing like a new goal right!!!!!

Here is what we are thinking for this week:

Sunday- My Birthday...no cooking here!
Monday-Sloppy Joes (homemade)
Tuesday-Cheese Ravioli Bake with Garlic Cheese Bread
Wednesday-LO
Thursday-Red Chile Chicken and rice with plantains and salad
Friday-LO
Saturday-Grilled pizzas
 
I know many of these meals (like the sloppy joes) could also have a left over day, but I am going to start freezing some of the leftovers now so when baby does decided to come we have some frozen meals ready. I know my hubbie is doing great learning to cook, but I cannot guarantee that I will have it all together ahead of time to put my meal plan and cooking directions together when the new little one gets here. AND, I certainly don't think he will have it all together to be preparing meals every night in addition to taking care of our 2.5 year old, me and a newborn. We are all great multi-taskers, but we all have limits...lol!!

Bento: Jello Snacks

I recently introduce my son to jello snack cups. It was love at first bite! As I looked at the back of the box, I was saddened to see all the ingredients I could not read. So, I knew that was going to be a one time buy. In the meantime, I knew I had to find an alternative plus I would be thrilled to $$. Those little jello cups were $2.79 for 4, that is $0.70 a piece plus everything else you put in the lunch box. It all adds up! So, when I saw our local store had V8 Splash for BOGO, I knew what I was going to do.

Kiwi Strawberry Jello Cups

1 1/2 cups strawberry kiwi V8 Splash juice, divided

1 cup frozen strawberries ( I used fresh strawberries had frozen earlier in the season)
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1 tablespoon granulated sugar (I used Agava Nectar)
 
Blend 1 cup of juice and the frozen fruit until smooth.(I like to keep it a bit chunky) Pour into a small pan and bring to a boil. Stir to avoid those little frothy bubbles. Put the remaining 1/2 cup juice in a large bowl. Sprinkle the gelatin over the juice and let stand 1 minute. Add the hot juice and whisk until the gelatin completely dissolves, about 5 minutes. Stir in the sugar. Allow to cool a bit before you pour the jello into small reusable containers. (I also strain off any remaining foam) Refrigerate until firm, about 3 hours. Do not add lids to the containers until completely set.
 
 
***These can be done with virtually any juice/fruit combination.

Bento: What's for Lunch?

I have been making my son's lunch for the past few weeks now. It was easy at first. A protein of some sorts, a fruit, a dairy and a snack. Even as I tried to mix things up I started to notice how much processed foods were making their way not only into my home, but most importantly into my son's lunch. That got me thinking...we buy these things because they are easy and convenient.

So, I am now finding recipes to make some healthy alternatives for my son's lunch. My first find...peanut butter balls. Yes, I know real creative right! haha! I have made these before, but forgot about them! The best thing about this recipe is you can you what ever HEALTHY cereals you have on hand.

Healthy Peanut butter Snack Balls
2/3 cups honey (I used agave nectar)
2 cups peanut butter (I used creamy)
1 cups rice krispies
1/2+ cups grape nuts (I used lowfat granola)

1/4 cup applesauce
2/3 cups coconut
1 cups crushed cereal (I use cheerios and Chex)
1/2+ cups chocolate (I used raisins)
1.5-3 T powdered milk
2/3 cups crushed mini-wheat cereal (or graham crackers)
 
Mix everything but the last ingredient. Roll into 1" balls, then roll in the crushed cereal. You can refrigerate or freeze. This sized batch made over 50 balls.

(I forgot to add that I put flax seed in with the rest of the ingredients)

Southwest style burger and Campfire Potatoes

Southwest style burgers are a real hit in this household which is a surprise with my super picky hubbie.


Southwest Style Burgers
1 can of chipolte peppers in adobo sauce
1lb ground beef
1t garlic powder
Salt and Pepper
Fixings: Colby Jack cheese, tomato, avocado buns, ketchup

I cut up 1 pepper and added just a bit of the sauce (maybe 1-1.5T) into a bowl with the meat. Then, seasoned with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Then, my hubbie grilled up the burgers. I sliced up the tomato and avacado.

Campfire Potatoes
Red potatoes, diced small (I used 5 med potatoes)

A1 sauce
Hot sauce
Lawry's Seasoning Salt
Red pepper flakes
Salt and Pepper
Worcestershire sauce

In a non-stick skillet heat the potatoes over high heat for a few minutes. (cut them small so they cook quickly) Cook until tender, but not soft. Add enough A1 sauce so all the potatoes have a thin coating over them. Next add some red pepper flakes, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and Lawry's. (Use as much or as little of each) Continuously turn the potatoes until they are cooked through. The sauce will form a crunchy outer layer. About 5 minutes before finishing add a little more A1 and hot sauce, tossing to coat.