Thai Tuna Wraps

This recipe comes from Pampered Chef's Main Dishes cookbook. It is a nice cool meal for the summer time (which will be here awhile longer for us) and would also make a great lunch or even an appetizer if cut in thin slices. I thought the wraps were really good...not to mention a great way to use a can of tuna :-)! I served them with chips and cubed cantaloupe...delish!
**Mike approved of this meal too and wraps are not usually his thing so that says something :-)**

Ingredients:
- 2 T. lime juice
- 1/2 c. FF mayonnaise, divided (you don't need a whole 1/2 c. - you use 2 T. in the sauce and the rest you spread as you wish on the tortillas before wrapping...I used light Miracle Whip)
- 1 T. soy sauce
- 1 T. sugar
- 3 c. cabbage, chopped
- 1 med. carrot, shredded
- 3 green onions with tops, thinly sliced
- 2 T. cilantro, snipped
- 1 can (6 oz) tuna, drained and flaked
- 1 med. red bell pepper
- 6 (8 in) flour tortillas
- 12-18 large spinach leaves

Directions:
I will be omitting the irritating plugs for Pampered Chef products included in their recipes :-)
- Whisk together lime juice, 2 T. of mayonnaise, soy sauce and sugar in a bowl.
- Chop cabbage. Shred carrot. Slice green onions. Snip cilantro.
- Add cabbage, carrot, green onions, cilantro and tuna to soy sauce mixture; mix lightly. Cut bell pepper into thin strips.
- For each wrap, spread tortilla with 1 T. remaining mayo. Top with 1/2 c. tuna mixture. Cover with 2 or 3 spinach leaves and 4 bell pepper strips. Roll up tortilla tightly.
- Repeat with remaining tortillas and filling. To serve cut each roll in half diagonally.

Rice and Lentil Pilaf

Yum! I have definitely been converted into a lentil eater (remember the Lentil Curry)! I found this recipe through Swanson's website and it easy, healthy and tasty (I did add a little garlic salt and lots of pepper to ours)!

INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup sliced celery
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 3/4 cups Vegetable Broth (1 can)
1/2 cup dried lentils, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice
2 medium Italian plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley


DIRECTIONS:
HEAT oil in skillet. Add carrots, celery, onion and garlic and cook until tender.
ADD broth, lentils and rice. Heat to a boil. Cover and cook over low heat 20 min. or until done. Stir in tomatoes and parsley

Oven Fried Chicken

I got this recipe from Taste Buds as well, can you tell I love that site :-)?! This chicken was delish I thought and Mike was excited to have some good old home cooking southern style. We served it with mashed potatoes, gravy and corn.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup buttermilk
5-6 drops Tabasco
1 1/2 c. crushed cornflakes
6 Tbsp flour (or cornstarch/rice flour, etc.)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 lbs chicken parts
4 tsp canola oil

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
-In a large, shallow bowl, combine the buttermilk and tabasco.
-In another shallow dish (or large ziploc bag) combine cornflakes, flour, salt & pepper.
-Dip the chicken in the buttermilk, then dredge in cornflake mixture, coating completely.
-Place the chicken on the baking sheet and drizzle each piece with a little oil.
-Bake 30 min; turn over and bake until cooked through, approx. 10-15 min more.

Brown Rice and Veggie Salad

This another recipe from Taste Buds. I tried this one for lunch today and thought it not only tasted good, but is SOOO good for you too! It would be extra delicious (and more of a meal) with some chicken thrown into the mix too. Even without chicken though I was surprised at how filling it was.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups instant brown rice
1 chopped green onion
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1/2 cup chopped cucumber
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Directions:
Cook brown rice & let cool. Combine ingredients for vinaigrette & combine with rice & vegetables. Serve at room temp.

Roasted Italian Sausages with Tomatoes and White Beans

Mike is actually the one who discovered this recipe in our USA Weekend newspaper insert. I agreed that it looked pretty good so we gave it a try and we all LOVED it!!!
(I cut everything in half for our little family)

Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 lbs. sweet Italian sausage links, cut into 2-3 inch pieces (I used a Pecan smoked garlic sausage because I couldn't find it)
- 3 pints cherry tomatoes
- 1 medium onion, cute into 1 inch chunks
- 4 garlic cloves, sliced
- 3 T. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 T. balsamic vinegar
- 2 t. dried thyme leaves
- 2 whole bay leaves
- salt and pepper
- 3 (16 oz) cans white beans, such as cannellini, drained, with 1/2 c. liquid reserved (I used Great Northern beans)

Directions:
- adjust oven rack to lowest position and, 5 minutes before you are ready to put the food in, turn on oven to 425 degrees.
- Mix everything but beans and their reserved liquid in a roasting pan. Set pan in oven. Roast until sausages are brown and tomatoes have reduced to a thick sauce, about 45 min.
- Remove from oven, stir in beans and reserved liquid, and continue cooking until casserole has heated through, about 10 minutes longer.
- Remove bay leaves and transfer to a large serving bowl.
(We served it over brown rice)

Fast Easy Lasagna

This recipe was emailed to me through a recipe exchange awhile back and it truly is fast AND easy!

Ingredients:
- 1 26 oz. jar pasta sauce (you may want more when serving)
- 1 30 oz. bag frozen large cheese ravioli, thawed
- 1 10 oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
- 1 8 oz. bag shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
(optional: I add 1/2 lb. ground beef...brown meat in saucepan and stir in sauce)

Directions:
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat 9x13 dish with spray and spoon in 1/3 of sauce.
- Arrange 12 ravioli on top and scatter spinach over them.
- Top with 1/2 mozzarella cheese and the Parmesan cheese.
- Cover with foil and bake 25 minutes.
- Uncover and bake 5-10 more minutes, or until bubbly.

Cottage Cheese Chicken Enchiladas

We are BIG Mexican food fans over here and I love trying out new enchilada recipes. These were really good! I used medium enchilada sauce so they had some zing to them, definitely a winner!

Ingredients:
- 1 T. vegetable oil
- 2 chicken breast halves, boiled and shredded (I used a can of chicken)
- 1/2 c. chopped onion
- 1 big can (7-8 oz) chopped green chile peppers
- 1 pkg taco seasoning mix
- 1/2 c. sour cream (I used FF)
- 2 c. cottage cheese (I used lowfat)
- 1 t. salt
- 1 pinch pepper (I used less salt and more pepper)
- 12 corn tortillas (I used 14)
- 2 c. shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
- 1 (10 oz) can red enchilada sauce

Directions:
Meat Mixture: Heat oil in medium skillet over med high heat. Add chicken, onion, and green chile peppers and saute until browned. Add taco seasoning and simmer.
Cheese Mixture: In a medium bowl, mix sour cream with cottage cheese and season with salt and pepper; stir until well blended.
- Preheat over to 350 degrees.
- Heat tortillas until soft (I wrap 3 in a paper towel and heat for 30 seconds in microwave). In each tortilla, place a spoonful of meat mixture, a spoonful of cheese mixture, and a bit of shredded cheese.
- Roll tortillas and place in a lightly greased 9x13 baking dish (instead of greasing I lightly cover bottom of dish with some enchilada sauce).
- Top with any remaining meat and cheese mixture (I had quite a bit of cheese mix left, but not meat), enchilada sauce, and remaining shredded cheese.
- Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Kirk's No-Bake Fudgies

I am once again stealing a dessert recipe from my mom . I definitely remember referring to these cookies as "poop" cookies growing up :-)!

Ingredients:
1 cube butter - melted
2 cups sugar
milk
3 heaping T. cocoa
peanut butter
vanilla
quick cooking oaks
raisins
coconut

Directions:
Melt 1 cube butter, 2 cups sugar and 3 T. of cocoa. Add 1/2 cup
milk and mix.Cook to good rolling boil and remove immediately.
Add 1/2 cup peanut butter and 1 t. vanilla. Mix well,then add
3 cups quick cooking oats, 1 rounded cup raisins, 1 cup coconut.
Mix and drop spoonfuls on wax paper to set.

Mom's Notes:
I always simmer the raisins in a little water to make
them little more plump. I also add a little extra
peanut butter. We keep our cookies in the refrigerator
in a Tupperware with wax paper between the layers.

Mike's Chicken Casserole

Mike is our chef on Sundays and typically he grills something or fries up some chicken (which I will have to post next time he does, it's delicioius). Today he made his super easy casserole and it was yummy. He used to make it a lot when we first got married and we haven't had it in forever :-)!

Ingredients:
- 1 package chicken flavor rice mix
- water (follow rice package directions for amount)
- butter (again follow directions, optional)
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 chicken breast, cut in cubes

Directions:
- Place all ingredients in a 9x13 glass baking dish and mix together.
- Bake, COVERED, at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes. (*Stir half way through*)