Crunchy Yummy Carrot Salad
Tag: recipes
Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread
What You Need:
1 large zucchini or 2 small ones finely shredded
1 beaten egg
1 1/2 cups of flour
1 handful of dark chocolate chips
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of vegetable oil
Steps:
1. In one small bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
2. In a separate medium/large size bowl mix the beaten egg, sugar, vegetable oil, and shredded zucchini with an electric mixer.
3. Begin adding the dry ingredients (the flour and spices) to the wet ingredients (the egg and oil) slowly till batter is consistent. Add in the chocolate chips.
4. Generously butter up the loaf pan and pour batter into pan. Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
5. Allow bread to cool for a moment and enjoy!
Cheesy, Saucy, Baked Pasta
What You Need:
Between 1 1/2 lbs and 2 1/2 lbs of ground beef or sweet ground up sausage or you could do a lb of each of meat
2 jars of your favorite marinara pasta sauce we like ragu
1 lb of your favorite pasta noodle (ziti, rigatoni, macaroni, or spiral pasta are all good ones)
3 zucchini’s chopped green and yellow
3/4 of a sweet onion finely chopped
4 – 5 tablespoons of Olive oil
1 heaping tablespoon of jarred minced garlic
2 cups of Mozzarella cheese or extra depending on your cheesy level
1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese
Steps:
1. Heat up a large skillet while you chop your onion, and zucchini. Once skillet is heated through add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sauté the onion, zucchini, and garlic until soft. Lightly season with salt and pepper. Then set aside.
2. Cook pasta as directed in a large pot. (Tip: once the water begins to boil, add a few dashes of salt. THEN add your pasta. That will flavor your pasta) Once cooked, drain your water, and add the pasta to a 9 x 13 baking dish.
2. In the same skillet you cooked your veggies, add your meat. If using ground beef season as you normally would (I like to use salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, a little turmeric, and maybe a little oregano.) If you’re using the sausage you don’t need to season, should already be seasoned. Once cooked, drain fat if needed.
3. Add the veggies to the meat and mix well. Add both jars of pasta to the meat and veggie sauce, reserving about 1/2 cup of sauce. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the sauce and a tablespoon of Italian seasoning mix. Allow the sauce to cook for just of minutes or until heated through.
4. Add the reserved pasta sauce to the naked pasta in the baking dish and mix well. Along with a tablespoon of olive oil.
5. Next add the meaty and veggie sauce to the pasta and mix well. Then add in 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, give or take and mix well.
6. Once fully mixed, top with the rest of the Parmesan cheese and then top with the remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake at 375 for 25 mins covered with foil. Once the 25 minutes is completed, removed foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes.
7. Allow to sit for a few minutes, garnish with fresh parsley (optional ) and serve with your favorite crusty bread with unsalted butter.
Enjoy!!!
Super Easy Chicken Thigh And Veggie Sheet Pan Dinner
What You Need:
1 1/2 lbs of chicken thighs (bone in and skin removed)
1 large sweet potato peeled and chopped into bite size pieces
1 yellow squash sliced with skin on
1 head of broccoli chopped
1/2 of a sweet onion chopped into bite size pieces
1 tablespoon of olive oil plus 2-3 extra tablespoons
1 tablespoon of jarred minced garlic
1 packet of McCormick Seasoning Farmers Market Chicken And Vegetables SHEET PAN
Steps
1. Preheat oven to 400 and line a cookie sheet with foil. While the oven is heating up prepare your veggies and remove skin from chicken.
2. Place veggies and chicken on sheet pan. Prepare McCormicks seasoning packet. Rub majority of mixture on the front and back of the chicken. Any additional mixture add onto veggies.
3. Drizzle the extra olive oil on veggies, next add a few dashes of salt and pepper on veggies, and then add the minced garlic throughout the veggies. Mix well with your hands.
4. Ensure the chicken is directly on the foil surrounded by the veggies (see photo below) . Bake at 400 for 30 mins. Once complete, allow the chicken and veggies to rest for 10 mins.
Best served with rice or potatoes.
Enjoy!
Happy cooking! 🙂
A Classic Baked Sweet Potato
You know how sometimes you don’t eat something for awhile and then you eat it and you remember how much you enjoy it? Well I’m going through that with baked sweet potatoes. I’ve been making them often and they are so good. Skin and all! Of course I add butter and brown sugar but what other way do you even eat it?
Enjoy!
What You Need:
4 sweet potatoes (wash, dried and unpeeled)
4-6 tablespoons of Olive oil
Salt
Unsalted butter and brown sugar for after baking
Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 400 and line a cookie sheet with foil.
2. Rub about 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil onto each of the sweet potatoes. Next, lightly salt each sweet potato.
3. After the sweet potatoes have been rubbed with olive oil and salted you’re going to take a fork and jab it a few times into each sweet potato. 4-5 jabs in each.
4. Bake for 50 minutes or until a fork can be poked through smoothly.
5. Once done, slice each sweet potato and top with unsalted butter and brown sugar. Serve immediately.
So yummy! The skin is even delicious!
Summertime Caesar Salad With Rotisserie Chicken And Avocado
This is the perfect lunch or dinner when you need something quick and super easy!
When the husband approves, it’s a win and worth sharing.
Although, I can’t really take full credit for this. I was inspired by this salad I get every so often at this restaurant in town. Unfortunately I don’t get to eat out often and enjoy it as much as I’d love to because I have 3 little ones that take up a lot of time and energy!
Sometimes you have to improvise when you can’t get your hands on the real deal. But sometimes you come up with something even better! And easier!
Honestly, it’s just buying stuff at the grocery store and combing it all to get this delicious salad full of flavor.
I’m sharing with you all this easy recipe you can make at home that everyone will love.
You won’t feel guilty after eating, perfect for enjoying outside in some nice weather, and pairs well with sangria or your favorite mock-tail.
Enjoy!
Ultimate Rotisserie Chicken Caesar Salad
Serves 4-6 people
(Takes less then 30 mins to prepare)
What you need:
- One rotisserie chicken
- 1 box of suddenly pasta – Caesar flavor
- 1/2 can of black olives chopped finely (optional)
- 1/2-3/4 can of pinto beans
- 1 family size bag of Caesar salad kit
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup of Parmesan cheese
- 1 large ripe avocado diced
- 1-2 handfuls of grape tomatoes sliced in halves
(What to look for)
Steps:
- Prepare pasta as it says on the box (including the seasoning mix) set aside in a medium bowl.
- Shred your rotisserie chicken, chop your tomatoes, dice your avocado, open the can of beans and set aside.
- Prepare the Caesar salad in a bowl.
- Add the chopped olives (if doing) , pinto beans, and chopped tomato. Next add the tricolor pasta and the chicken. Mix well. Then add your diced avocado and mix once more. Top with cracked black pepper and enjoy!
Puff Pastry Twists With Nutella
I made these for my girls for breakfast and we indulged! They were so yummy! Especially with freshly chopped strawberries!
I hope you enjoy these as much as we did!
Servings: 6 pastry twists
What You Need:
1 17oz package of Pepperidge Puff Pastry
5 – 6 generous globs of Nutella (measure with your heart)
3 give or take tablespoons of softened unsalted butter
Egg wash (1 egg white and a dash of milk)
Steps :
1. Thaw out your frozen pastry (35-40 mins). Once thawed out preheat oven to 400.
2. Lay your first sheet of puff pastry on parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Spread the Nutella evenly.
3. Lay the second puff pastry directly on top of the puff pastry covered in Nutella. Slice in 6 strips and twist. The twisting doesn’t need to be perfect at all.
4. Bake at 400 for 13-15 minutes. Bake until golden. Once the pastries are done remove from oven and brush with softened butter and allow it to melt all over the twists. Cool for 5 mins.
5. Serve with freshly chopped strawberries and powdered sugar.
Enjoy!
Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps
This is an easy dinner recipe that’s even better the next day! Perfect meal for enjoying in this summer weather.
Cool crisp lettuce cups served with ground chicken, bell peppers, pineapple, and cashews in a sweet tangy Thai Sauce. Served over rice with sweet chili sauce for drizzling.
What You Need:
1 lb to 1 1/2 lbs of ground chicken
2 bell peppers sliced
3 tablespoons of unsalted butter
3 tablespoons of olive oil
1/4 – 1/2 cup of soy sauce
2-3 tablespoons of Thai Red Curry Paste
3 tablespoons of honey
3/4 cups of cashews
3 teaspoons of minced garlic
3/4 to 1 cup of pineapple
One bunch of cilantro finely chopped (extra for garnish)
1/4 cup of chopped fresh basil
Salt and pepper
Ginger seasoning (optional)
Lettuce for lettuce wraps
And 1 rice recipe click here
Steps:
1. Start by warming up your skillet on a medium heat. Add the olive oil, then your chicken. Season with salt and pepper and the ginger if using. Once the chicken gets cooking add the 3 tablespoons of butter, the minced garlic, and the 2 tablespoons of red curry paste.
2. Once the chicken is cooked through add your sliced bell peppers, cashews, and pineapple. Cook for 5 minutes. Then add your soy sauce and honey. Cook until everything is evenly distributed. Add cilantro and basil, mix, and cook for another minute. Remove from heat.
3. Serve the chicken and peppers mix over rice with lettuce cups on the side. Garnish with additional cilantro and drizzle over sweet Thai chili.
Enjoy!
Easy Oven Roasted Tomato And Garlic Bisque
What You Need:
20 oz of cherry tomatoes
1/2-3/4 of a large yellow or white onion cut in chunks
3/4 cup of chicken broth
3/4 to 1 cup of heavy cream
1-2 handfuls of fresh basil
1 whole head of garlic cut in half
6-7 tablespoons of olive oil roughly (don’t be shy with the olive oil)
Salt and pepper for taste
A few pinches of sugar
Steps:
1. In a 9×13 glass dish place your tomatoes, fresh basil, onion, and garlic heads face down. Drizzle a generous amount of olive oil back and forth a few times. Dash a few times with salt and pepper.
2. Bake at 400 for 40 to 45 mins. Or until tomatoes are soft.
3. Squeeze out your garlic in a medium sized bowl and add the rest of the contents. Add your chicken broth and blend with a hand mixer.
4. Once completely blended add to medium sized pot. Bring to a simmer and add 3/4 to 1 cup of heavy cream. Season with salt and pepper and add a few pinches of sugar. Allow to simmer for 15 mins.
5. Garnish with fresh chopped basil and a drizzle of heavy cream. Serve with a yummy, crispy, gooey, grilled cheese sandwich. Enjoy!
Thai Rice Noodle Soup With Red Curry
What You Need:
1 lb to 1 1/2 lbs of cooked chopped chicken breast or tenders (shrimp would be delish with this too)
click here for my cheat sheet on not overcooking your chicken
1 pack of rice noodles (usually a pack is 6.75 oz, but I only add 3/4 of the pack of rice noodles)
6 cups of chicken broth
3 tablespoons of red curry paste or green curry paste (I’ve tried this recipe with both)
1 red bell pepper chopped up
1 tablespoon of grated ginger (optional)
1/2 to 3/4 sweet onion chopped
4 cloves of garlic minced
1 can coconut milk unsweetened (not the fat free either)
3 teaspoons of light brown sugar give or take
1 tablespoon of fish sauce
Salt and pepper for taste
1 tablespoon of chopped cilantro plus more for garnish
A handful of freshly chopped basil (optional but recommend)
Thinly sliced green onion for garnish (optional)
Steps:
1. Cook your chopped chicken on a nonstick skillet on low medium heat for 6 minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. In a large pot drizzle 3 to 4 tablespoons of olive oil. Sauté the onion, bell pepper, and garlic until soft. Stir in the red curry paste and ginger if using for about 1 minute.
3. Add your chicken broth and coconut milk. Add the brown sugar and fish sauce. Seasoning with salt and pepper. Bring to boil, then to a low simmer for 10 minutes to allow the flavors to mix together.
4. Add 3/4 of your packed rice noodles to the pot and 1 tablespoon of chopped cilantro. Allow to cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add your chicken. Mix well.
5. Serve immediately in bowls with fresh lime juice, chopped basil, sliced green onion, cilantro, and ENJOY!
The Wild Gems 