Trinity Rice with Almonds

There's a whole bunch of things you can make with leftover rice:  rice pudding, fried rice, and breakfast rice to name just a few.  Today, though, I didn't want to make any of these.  I was looking for a way to use up about 2 cups of cooked white rice.  I found a recipe here that looked good, changed a few ingredients (wasn't in the mood to put raisins in it) and everyone was happy with the result.  This recipe would be just as good with brown rice as it was with white.

I called it "Trinity Rice" because it uses the vegetables that, in French cooking, are called the "trinity"--carrots, celery and onion, all chopped the same size.

TRINITY RICE WITH ALMONDS

Get the recipe and nutrition facts at Cook and Count!

Sally's Magic Chicken

When I was in the hospital after surgery last month, a good friend showed up at our house with dinner for my family--twice during my 5-day stay. One of the meals included chicken drumsticks with a delicious sweet and spicy sauce. After returning home, I thanked her for the meals and asked for the recipe for the "Magically Delicious" chicken, because all my kids had been raving about it. That's when she looked embarrassed and told me that her husband had picked up the chicken all prepared and ready to bake at a local grocery store. Then she decided to figure out how to make it herself.

A few weeks later she showed up at choir practice with a half-full jar of the Secret Ingredient: Frank's Red Hot Sweet Chili Sauce.  That's pretty much all it is:  just this sauce, poured over chicken drumsticks and baked until done.

This is a simple, can't-miss, 3-ingredient chicken dish.

Get the recipe with nutrition information at Cook and Count!

We served it with sauteed broccoli rabe and red potatoes with parsley.

Chicken Caroline

An original recipe by my friend Caroline! We loved it.

Get the recipe with photo and nutrition facts at Cook and Count!

Easy Enchiladas

I was in the mood for some enchiladas yesterday, and I remembered that Amanda had posted a recipe for Enchilada Sauce that I wanted to try. I changed the recipe a bit to reflect what I had in the house, and we really liked the result. (Also, I skipped the part about using a blender.) This is a great way to use leftover chicken (or turkey, or pot roast).

ENCHILADA SAUCE
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce

1/4 cup chopped green chilies and 1 tbl juice (I buy the chilies in a jar)

2/3 cup water

1 tbsp chili powder

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1 heaping TBL garlic, minced
2 TBL minced onion, mixed with 2 TBL water and allowed to sit 15 minutes

Place all ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 5-7 minutes.

ENCHILADAS (makes 8)

2 cups cooked, shredded chicken, beef or pork mixed with 1/2 cup enchilada sauce
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1 1/2 cups cheddar-jack cheese, shredded (reserve a little for topping)
8 flour tortillas (8-inch size)
1 cup enchilada sauce

Cover the bottom of a casserole dish with a little enchilada sauce.
Add a scoop of the chicken-and-sauce mix to each tortilla. Top with a handful of cheese and some onion and roll like a burrito. Place in the casserole dish.
When all enchiladas are in the dish, pour the rest of the 1 cup of sauce over the top. Sprinkle a little cheese over the top of the enchiladas as well.
Bake, covered, at 400 for 15 minutes.

Three for Three!

I don't usually put my family through 3 new recipes in a row like this, but I was just in the mood to try some new things this weekend.

On Friday, I veered off last week's menu plan and made Tami's Pizza Rollups, using my homemade sauce and Barbara's pizza crust recipe.

Saturday, we tried 20-Clove-of-Garlic Chicken. It smelled delicious and tasted good too.

And tonight I made Turkey Gyros. Fabulous!

Tried and True

Some recipes we've tasted that are definitely "keepers!"

Amanda's Homemade Pull-apart dinner rolls. EASY--there is no "rise after shaping" and the salt on top is yummy. Great with soup.

Barbara's Sweet Tea: yummy!

Barbara's Melt-in-Your-Mouth Braised and Barbecued Chicken. Long title. Great chicken.