October Exchange

Cassie-CrockPot Lemon Chicken
Kimberly-Mango Chicken Tacos
Lindsey-Spinach and Tomato Tortellini
Haley-Panko Crusted Pork Chops
Holly-Steak Sandwiches
Lauri-Pecan Crusted Salmon
Jami-Crockpot Potato Soup
Kristi-Chicken Manifica and Rice
JoLayna-Lime Baked Tilapia
Danelle-Baked Chicken Taquitos

Crockpot Potato Soup

1 30oz. bag of frozen, shredded hash browns {I used Ore Ida}

3 -14oz. cans of chicken broth
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
1 pkg. cream cheese {don’t use fat free. It WON’T melt!!!}

In a crockpot, combine everything EXCEPT for the cream cheese. Cook for 6-8 hours on low heat. About 1 hour before serving, add cream cheese and keep heated until thoroughly melted. Serve with cheese, sour cream, bacon bits, green onions, or whatever else you think would be good!!

Lime Baked Tilapia and Green Beans

Lime-Baked Fish Fillets (from Lion House Lite Recipe book)

½ cup lime juice (fresh is best)

4 T butter

1 tsp parsley flakes

½ tsp kosher salt

2 clove minced garlic

¼ tsp pepper

8 white fish fillets

Preheat oven to 400 degress. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray; set aside. In a small saucepan, combine all ingredients except fish. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until butter is melted. Arrange fish fillets is prepared dish and pour lime sauce over them. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Serve immediately.

Steak Sandwiches

Ingredients:

1 lb USDA Choice Beef Loin Tri Tip Steak

Peppers

Onion

Swiss cheese

Buns

Steak marinade (I don't have measurements since my husband prepared a large batch for all 10 dinners): olive oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, worcestershire, cayenne pepper and chili powder

Peppers & onion seasoning: 1/2 tsp each smoked paprika, garlic salt, pepper

Directions:

Trim excess fat from steak and cut into slices. Marinade steak for at least 8 hours.

Slice peppers and onions into strips and saute in pan with olive oil and seasoning until limp. 

Drain any excess marinade from steak bag before cooking in a separate fry pan with a bit of olive oil over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes. 

Combine peppers, onions and steak and cook for another 30 seconds. 

Prepare buns to your preference - mayo, ketchup, etc. then add steak, peppers and onions and top with cheese. You could put the sandwiches open face in the oven under broil for a bit to melt the cheese.

Panko Crusted Pork Chops

• coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup panko
• 4 boneless pork loin chops (6 ounces each), trimmed of fat
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar

1. Place flour, egg, and panko, each in separate shallow bowls; season each with salt and pepper. Dip pork chops into flour and then egg, shaking off excess. Dip into panko, pressing to adhere.
2. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium. Add pork, and cook until browned and cooked through, 4 to 6 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate.
3. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together ketchup, Worcestershire, sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; season with salt, and stir to combine. Thinly slice chops crosswise, and serve with sauce on the side.

Optional-Serve with Napa Salad

• 1/2 small napa cabbage, thinly sliced crosswise (6 cups)
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar

Make salad: In a medium bowl, combine cabbage and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper; toss to combine. Set aside.

Mango Chicken Tacos

2-3 chicken breasts
1 container Mango Chicken Salsa from Costco
1/3 cup brown sugar
Lemon Pepper
Tortillas
Shredded Cheese

Boil chicken, shred and season with lemon pepper. Mix with Mango Chicken Salsa and brown sugar. Serve on tortillas with shredded cheese.

CrockPot Lemon Chicken

3 to 4 pounds chicken thighs
1 (6-ounce) box Lemon Jello powder
3 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon prepared Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon dried minced onion flakes (or one tiny onion, finely diced)

Use a 4 to 6 quart slow cooker. I used a 4-quart for this one, and didn't brown the legs beforehand. The color on the chicken you see up above came only from slow-cooking. If you prefer more of a brown color, or more texture, go ahead and brown beforehand. 

Place the chicken into your slow cooker. In a small mixing bowl, combine the jello powder, melted butter, dijon mustard, and onion flakes. Stir together to make a paste. This isn't liquidy at all--- it's sort of a combo between paste and playdough. Smear this onto your chicken the best you can.
Cover, and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. I cooked our chicken on low for exactly 7 hours, then kept it on the warm setting for another 2 hours.
Serve with mashed potatoes, or rice pilaf and something green.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies

the signature chocolate chip cookies from Kim Boyce’s “Good To The Grain.”

Ingredients

• 3 cups whole-wheat flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 16 tablespoons (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped into 1/4- and 1/2-inch pieces

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper (you can use one to bake the cookies and the other to freeze the cookies).
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a mixing bowl, adding any large bits of grain or other ingredients that remain in the sifter.
3. Combine the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer; beat on low speed for about 2 minutes, until just blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing to incorporate after each addition, then add the vanilla extract.
4. Add the flour mixture and beat until barely combined. Stop to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the chocolate and beat on low speed just until evenly distributed.
5. Now scoop your cookies. I like to use an ice cream scoop with a release button, but you can also just use a spoon and your hands to scoop up dough, roll it into a ball and flatten it on the sheet. When you finish, pop the cookies you want to bake into the oven for 15 minutes or so, until the cookies are golden brown on the outsides and fragrant. Let them cool for a bit on a cooling rack, then eat them!
6. If you freeze the others, leave them on the sheet in the freezer until frozen and then pluck them into a freezer bag. They’ll keep that way for a month or two.

Chicken Manifica

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 can cheddar cheese soup

1 can stewed tomatoes, undrained

1/4 c. minced onion

1/8 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp. paprika

1/4 tsp. parsley

1 tsp. basil

1 tsp. salt

Combine all ingredients.  Bake at 350 in a 9x13 baking dish for 30-40 minutes, or cook in a crockpot all day on low heat or 4-5 hours on high heat.  Serve over rice.  Side dishes recommended:  veggies and breadsticks