Fiesta Pasta Salad

16 ounces bowtie pasta, cooked al dente
1 (16-ounce) can black beans, rinsed
1 1/2 cups frozen or fresh white corn
3 to 4 chicken breasts, cooked, cut into bite-size pieces
8 ounces grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 (4-ounce) can sliced olives
1/4 cup green onions, sliced
Red & green peppers, diced (as desired)

Dressing
1 packet Ranch Fiesta (Spicy) dry dressing
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar

Mix dressing ingredients well in a blender. Toss over pasta mix just before serving.

Orange Chicken

Marinade
2 lb. Chicken cut into cubes
2Tblspn. Soy Sauce
2Tblspn. rice wine vinegar
2tspn. sesame oil
2tspn. cornstarch

Marinade in Ziplock bag for at least 15 min. or up to 24 hrs.

Batter
2/3 cup flour (I use Wonder flour)
2/3 cup cornstarch
2 egg whites lightly beaten
2Tblspn. Canola oil
2/3 cup warm water as needed

1. Heat 3 cups oil in a deep fryer or a deep skillet to 375 degrees.

2. To make the batter, combine flour and cornstarch, stir in egg white and oil. Add as much of the water at needed to form a thick batter.( like a pancake batter)

3. Stir marinated chicken into the batter so they are completely covered on all sides with batter.

4. Drop each piece of chicken into the batter one at a time so they don't stick together. Only place about 10 pieces in the pan at a time . Fry chicken 4 - 5 min. until it is light golden brown and float to the top. Set on a paper towel to drain off excess oil.
( At this point you can lay them out on a large sheet pan and put in freezer for 1 hour. Then put in Ziplock bag for another day. To heat up just pop it in the microwave in the for 4 - 5 min. It tastes just as good as fresh!!!)

5. Combine chicken in a pan with Orange chicken sauce. I Like the Panda Express Sauce that you can get in the grocery store. Or you can make your own sauce...

Orange Sauce
3Tblspn soy sauce
1/3 cup water
2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup white vinegar
3Tblspn cornstarch mixed with 1/2 cup cold water mix together before poring into mixture)
1Tblspn orange zest.

Stir together on stove and mix with battered chicken.

Pumkin Seed Dried Cherry Trail Mix

Ingredients

• 2 cups baby pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
• 1 cup slivered almonds
• 3/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
• 6 tablespoons pure Grade B maple syrup
• Coarse salt
• 1 cup dried cherries or cranberries

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

In a large bowl, toss the pumpkin seeds, almonds, and sunflower seeds and the syrup until evenly coated. Spread the nuts and seeds out, in an even single layer, on the lined baking sheets and season with salt to taste. Bake the nuts, stirring several times with spatula or wooden spoon, until just golden, about 20 minutes.

Cool the nuts completely on the pan, then add the cherries and toss to combine. Store cooled trail mix in an airtight container at room temperature.

You can add any type of dried fruit that you like. I used cranberries and cherry's and my family loves it!

Fruit and Nut Granola

Ingredients:

2 cups rolled oats 1/2 cup spelt flour 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger 3 tablespoons canola oil

1/4 cup applesauce 3 tablespoons maple syrup 1/4 cup diced dried apricots 1/4 cup chopped pecans 3 tablespoons flax seeds, ground

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2.	Toss the rolled oats, spelt flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, canola oil, applesauce, maple syrup, dried apricots, pecans and ground flax seed together in a bowl, and mix well. Spread the granola mixture on the lined baking sheet.
3.	Bake for 20 minutes, stir the granola, then bake for another 15 minutes until dry. Cool completely before serving.

Dinner Time Blues

I don't mind cooking I just hate thinking of what to cook. So from time to time I'm going to post what I cooked for the last week so that when I'm in a rutt I can see what I've cooked in the past.

1) Southwestern egg rolls
2) Toco Salad with lime dressing
3) Enchilada casserole
4) Chicken nuggets
5) Turkey burgers
6) Pizza
7) Rigatoni

For the upcoming week I actually made a list of dinners.

1) Bacon and feta stuffed pork
2) Kung Pao Chicken
3) Orange Chicken
4) Spagetti and meatballs
5) Pizza
6) 5 min. Alfedo

Southwestern Egg Rolls

I have a favorite website that I like to visit called dealstomeals.com she has great info on food storage and good deals.  Here is a recipe I tried this week.  Wow full of flavor and easy!

Soutwestern Egg Rolls

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked & cubed
1/2 red bell pepper, dicedpepper and saute (or bake) until cooked thoroughly. Add the cooked
2 T. green onion, sliced
1 can or 1 c. frozen or canned corn
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can diced green chilies
1 t. cumin
1/2 t. chili powder
1/2 t. salt
Dash of cayenne pepper
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
Flour tortillas
Avocado Dipping Sauce:1 c. ranch dressing
1 avocado, seeded and mashed
Juice of 1 lime
Salt and pepper to taste
*FREEZER MEAL: Chicken mixture can be frozen for later.
Main Dish Recipes
1. To Make Marinade: Combine 2 T. chicken broth, 1 tablespoon mixture and mix together. Place chicken pieces in a glass dish or bowl and add marinade. Toss to coat. Cover dish and place in refrigerator for about 30 minutes. 2. To Make Sauce: In a small bowl combine chicken broth, soy sauce, oil, cornstarch/water mixture, chili paste, vinegar and sugar. Mix together and add green onion, garlic, water chestnuts and peanuts. In a medium skillet, heat sauce slowly until aromatic. 3. Meanwhile, remove chicken from marinade and saute in a large skillet until meat is white and juices run clear. When sauce is aromatic, add sauteed chicken to it and let simmer together until sauce thickens. Serve over rice. (If you like extra sauce, sauce can be doubled) *Recipe adapted from allrecipes.
Cut boneless chicken breasts into chunks. Season with salt and chicken cubes into a bowl and add the diced red bell pepper, green onion, corn, black beans, green chilies, shredded cheese, and seasonings. Take one flour tortilla at a time and place a 1/3 c.-1/2 c. of the chicken mixture into the center of the tortilla. Roll up the tortilla burrito-style as tightly as you can. Roll all of the tortillas and set aside. Cook the tortilla/burritos in a pannini maker or bake on a cookie sheet until golden brown (spray with cooking spray so they don't stick). For the dressing, combine the ranch, avocado, lime juice and salt & pepper until smooth (use a handwand or a blender). Dip the warm 'egg rolls' into the avocado sauce.

Spinach and Artichoke Hummus

Well I don't know if you can count this as actual hummus since I didn't put the full amount of chickpeas in the dish.  I planned on it except my blender overheated and I was too hungry to try and figure out a way to add the other 2 cups of beans.  But my laziness paid off it was delicious.  Even my 20 month old loved it.  I used tortilla chips since I didn't have pita bread and my baby would lick the hummus off the chip and hand me back a soggy chip wanting more.

This recipe came from Bob Warden's "Slow Food Fast" cookbook.  I have now tried several things and have had one failure, but it wasn't the recipes fault.  I used the wrong potatoes that were too starchy and ended up with a pot full of sludge.  It had a weird jiggle to it.  Are potatoes supposed to jiggle?  Anyway.... this cookbook has some fantastic recipes and I've had fun over the weekend trying them out. 

Chickpeas
3 cups dried chickpeas
2 quarts water, or enough to cover peas by 2 inches
2 tablespoons vegetable oil to prevent foaming
1/2 teaspoon salt

Hummus
1 jar marinated artichoke hearts 12-14 oz.
1 TBS lemon juice
1 TBS minced garlic
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 cup fresh spinach leaves
salt and pepper to taste

Cook the chickpeas, water, oil and salt in pressure cooker for 35 min on high. Let the pressure release naturally.  When done drain and cool chickpeas to room temperature.   Add chickpeas and all hummus ingredients to blender or food processor and blend until smooth. 

If you want to make it like I did only use 1 cup of chickpeas.  Yum!