Lemon Scented Quinoa Salad with Summer Veggies

Quinoa is one of my favorite "grains." It's easy and quick to cook and it even has some protein in it! Here's some facts about quinoa:

• It's not really a grain. It's a seed from a plant similar to kale or chard.
• It has 9 grams of protein per cup (as opposed to 5gm protein/cup brown rice)
• It has lots of iron, magnesium, phosphorus, and folate

It's texture is a little chewy but pretty soft and creamy. It is a great replacement for pasta or rice!

Ingredients

2 cups dry quinoa
1 cup chopped fresh green beans
1 diced red bell pepper
1 diced zucchini
1 diced summer squash
2 cloves of garlic
3 sliced scallions
1 diced tomato
1 lemon
1/4 basil leaves
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp salt
3 TBS olive oil
2-3 cooked chicken breasts (optional)
5-6 cups of stock or water

Directions

Bring stock or water to a boil. Add quinoa and cook for 18-20 mins until the skins start to slide off the quinoa seed. Turn off heat and let it steam. It is best to turn off the heat when the quinoa is still a bit chewy then let it steam with a lid on for 5-10 minutes. I add in the zest of 1 lemon as it steams to infuse the lemon flavor.

Saute green beans, pepper, zucchini, squash, and garlic in olive oil in large skillet. Add salt and dried thyme to taste. Turn off heat when veggies are cooked to your liking.

Add in cooked quinoa and cooked chicken. Mix well. Top with lemon juice, lemon zest, and fresh basil.

This salad tastes great hot or cold!

Chicken Wild Rice Casserole | Easy Week Night Dinner

Ingredients
2 cups Wild Rice
3-4 large Chicken Breasts
2-3 cups Broccoli

2 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup (You can use Campbell's or an Organic version works well too)

1 clove Garlic

Directions

Place 2 cups rice with 4 cups water in stock pot. Bring to a boil and then let simmer for 35-40 minutes or until tender.

Saute chicken in a skillet with olive oil and garlic.

Remove cooked chicken to cool.

Place broccoli in same skillet with 1/2 cup water. Place a lid on the skillet to steam the broccoli.

Dice the cooled chicken.

Mix the cooked rice, diced chicken, and steamed broccoli with cream of mushroom soup.

Place in a baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

You can top with white cheddar or any type of cheese if you'd like!

Chicken Alfredo

Chicken Alfredo is a quick and heart meal! It's definitely not diet food but it is delicious. And it's another meal in which you can eliminate the meat if you'd prefer.

The basics to an and Alfredo sauce is a white sauce or bechemel sauce. It is very easy to make and you can add any type of cheese to change the flavor. It is also the base for homemade Macaroni & Cheese.

Ingredients

1 cup Half & Half or Cream

2 cups Milk

3 TBS Butter

3 TBS Flour

1 cup Parmesan cheese

1 package Penne pasta

3-4 Chicken Breasts, cooked and diced

4-5 pieces cooked bacon

Basil & Parmesan to garnish

Directions

Bechemel Sauce

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter. Whisk the flour into the butter and cook on low-medium heat until it forms a light tan paste. Don't cook too long or it will darken and taste burnt. One your paste is light tan, whisk in the Half & Half or heavy cream. Allow this mixture to thicken and simmer. Once it has thickened, add the milk until you get the right consistency. If the sauce is too thin, let it simmer longer to thicken or add a small sprinkle of flour. If it is too thick, add more milk a little at a time. Once you complete sauce has thickened, add salt and parmesan cheese. Add more salt or cheese to taste. That's your alfredo sauce!

Boil your penne until al dente (slightly firm, still has a "bite" to it).

Add you crumbled bacon and diced chicken to the pasta. Add the Alfredo sauce and mix. Top with more bacon and basil and parmesan.

Enjoy!

Chicken Soup from the Garden

All the ingredients for this soup (besides the chicken) came from the garden! It's so satisfying to make almost a complete meal from vegetables we grew entirely by ourselves! It turned out delicious! Instead of pasta we used potatoes from the garden to add starchiness and more heartiness.

Ingredients

1 whole organic chicken

2 quarts chicken stock

1 large onion or 3 small onions

3 large carrots

4-5 stalks of celery

1-1 1/2 lbs of Red Potatoes

2 cloves garlic

2 TBS Olive Oil

Directions

Boil the chicken in your dutch oven or stock pot for about 1 hour or until cooked through. Remove the chicken to cool and place broth into a bowl to cool so you can remove the fat later.

Prepare you veggies by dicing everything about the same size.

 Saute the veggies in olive oil in the dutch oven or large pot until soft and translucent.

Add the chicken stock from your chicken back in and more stock if desired for the right consistency.

Boil until the veggies are tender. About 25-30 minutes.

Then shred the chicken meat from the bone and add it to the soup!

Retro Recipes-Chicken Tetrazzini

This is another one of Nana's Retro Recipes! You can use chicken or turkey as the main protein for this dish. I used bell peppers and onions from my garden and, of course, this recipe also includes cream of mushroom soup!

Ingredients
4-5 cooked Chicken or Turkey Breasts, diced
1 package Spaghetti Noodles
1 medium yellow onion or 2 small onions
2-3 Red and/or Green Bell Peppers
2 TBS Olive Oil
2 cans Cream of Mushroom Soup or Cream of Chicken
1 cup grated Cheddar Cheese

Directions
Cook Chicken in a saute pan until done. Dice when cooled.
Boil Pasta.
Meanwhile, saute onion & bell peppers in olive oil.

Drain pasta. Mix hot pasta, cooked chicken, sauteed veggies, cheddar cheese, and cream of mushroom soup.

Place in a casserole dish and serve or bake at 300 degrees for 15 mins to keep warm or reheat.

Chicken Verde Enchiladas

Ingredients

3 Cooked Chicken Breasts, chopped
1 Can Verde/Green Enchilada Sauce
1 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
6-8 Flour or Corn Tortillas (I like the raw ones your cook yourself from Costco)
Garnish with Guacamole, Cilantro, Fresh Tomatoes, Lime.

Directions

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Cook chicken breasts. Cool slightly. Chop into pieces.

Cook raw torillas in frying pan.

Cover bottom of casserole dish with Enchilada Sauce.

Layer with pieces of tortilla.

Add pieces of chicken.

Top with Cheese.

Repeat for 3-4 layers.

Top the entire casserole with cheese and more Enchilada sauce.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. I like to use the broiler for 2 minutes at the end to crips up the cheese on top and create a nice golden brown crust!

Garnish with Guacamole, Limes, Cilantro, Fresh Tomatoes, Sour Cream, and Salsa!

Enjoy!