Tag Archives | easy dinner idea

Graveyard Chicken with Penne Pasta

By on August 1, 2012 in Complete Family Dinner, Entrees Recipe, Gluten Free, Holiday Recipes, Recipes

Easy Dinner Idea

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Graveyard Chicken with Penne Pasta

Graveyard Chicken with Penne Pasta

Ingredients

  • Boneless skinless chicken breasts- 2 lbs (4-5 trimmed breasts)
  • Diced tomatoes- 1 15oz. can
  • Condensed chicken stock (like Knorr Homestyle Stock)- 1 tub (or 3 chicken bullion cubes, or 2 cans of Chicken Broth)
  • Sliced black olives- 1 small can
  • Baby spinach lettuce- 1 12oz. precut ready-to-eat bag
  • Gluten-free penne pasta (or regular penne if not gluten-free)- 1 lb
    • STAPLES:
  • Poultry Seasoning- 2 tablespoons (or salt & pepper)
  • Butter - 3 tablespoons
  • Olive oil - about 3 tablespoons

Instructions

  1. Place chicken breasts between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound with a meat tenderizer until thin.
  2. Heat butter and olive oil together in large heated or non-stick skillet over medium high heat.
  3. Season chicken breasts with a poultry seasoning or salt & pepper, and sauté until brown on both sides, approximately 5 minutes each side.
  4. Remove chicken to paper towel-lined plate.
  5. Add tomatoes, chicken broth, olives and baby spinach to pan and simmer until spinach is reduced, approximately 4 minutes.
  6. Add chicken back to sauce and spoon sauce over chicken to let simmer.
    7. Pasta:
  7. Boil pasta in salted water until tender.
  8. Before draining pasta, dip a glass measuring cup or coffee cup into pot and scoop out 1 cup of pasta water.
  9. Drain pasta and transfer to serving bowl.
  10. Add about half of pasta water to pasta reserving half in case pasta becomes dry.
  11. Place chicken on top of pasta.
  12. Pour sauce over the chicken and pasta.
http://tonispilsbury.com/graveyard-chicken-with-penne-pasta/

 

Weekly Meal Planning for Busy Families

Weekly Meal Plan

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Spinach Turkey Chili

By on August 1, 2012 in Complete Family Dinner, Entrees Recipe, Gluten Free, Holiday Recipes, Recipes

Turkey Chili Recipe

This is the same recipe we use for our Ghostly White Turkey Chili in our Spooktacular Weekly Meal Plan.

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Spinach Turkey Chili

Spinach Turkey Chili

Ingredients

  • Ground turkey- 1½-2 lbs.
  • Great northern beans- 1 15oz. can, drained
  • White navy beans- 1 15oz. can, drained
  • Cannellini (white kidney) beans- 1 15oz. can, drained
  • Fresh baby spinach lettuce- 1 precut ready-to-eat bag 16 oz.
  • Condensed chicken stock (like Knorr Homestyle Stock)- 1 tub (or 3 chicken bullion cubes, or 2 cans of Chicken Broth)

Instructions

  1. In large soup pot or Dutch oven, brown turkey over medium-high heat until just cooked
  2. Add all three cans of beans, spinach and stock or bouillion along with 4-6 cups of water- just enough to cover (or canned chicken broth)
  3. Bring to boil and let spinach reduce
  4. Reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer for approximately 10 minutes
http://tonispilsbury.com/spinach-turkey-chili/

 

Spinach Turkey Chili is great with homemade corn bread.  For a gluten-free corn bread, try Bob’s Red Mill Cornbread Mix.

Weekly Meal Planning for Busy Families

Weekly Meal Plan

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Grilled Lemon-Basil Chicken, Grilled Portabella & Grilled Garlic Bread

By on August 1, 2012 in Complete Family Dinner, Entrees Recipe, Recipes

Summer Grill Family Dinner Recipe

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Grilled Lemon-Basil Chicken, Grilled Portabella & Grilled Garlic Bread

Grilled Lemon-Basil Chicken, Grilled Portabella & Grilled Garlic Bread

Ingredients

  • boneless skinless chicken breasts- 3-4lbs (6-7 trimmed breasts)
  • lemon- 1, sliced in half
  • basil, fresh- 1 bundle
  • portabella mushrooms, large- 4
  • bakery french bread- 1 loaf, sliced in half length-wise
    • STAPLES
    Chicken:
  • olive oil- ¼ cup
  • minced garlic- 1 tbspn
  • Montreal Steak Seasoning- 1 tablespoon (or 1 teaspoon each salt & pepper)
    • Portabella:
  • balsamic vinegar- ¼ cup
  • olive oil- 3 tbspns
  • crushed red pepper
  • black pepper
    • Bread:
  • butter- 4 tbspns
  • olive oil- 4 tbspns
  • minced garlic- 1 tbspn

Instructions

    For best results,marinate chicken and portabella ahead of time, 2-3 hours to overnight
    Chicken Marinade:
  1. Chop basil.
  2. In a mixing bowl combine chopped basil, olive oil, juice squeezed from lemon, garlic and seasoning.
  3. Place chicken in large zip-top baggie or shallow baking dish.
  4. Cover with marinade and seal or cover to store in the refrigerator to marinate.
    5. Portabella
  5. In same mixing bowl combine vinegar, olive oil, red pepper and black pepper.
  6. Place portabella in quart-size zip-top baggie or storage container, cover with marinade and seal or cover to store in the refrigerator to marinate.
    7. DINNER TIME:
    Chicken and Portabella:
  7. Grill chicken and portabella on outdoor or indoor grill, turning once, until cooked thoroughly.
  8. Chicken will take approximately 15 minutes and portabella will take approximately 7 minutes.
    9. Bread
  9. Melt butter in microwave-safe dish or measuring cup in microwave, approximately 23 seconds.
  10. Add olive oil and mix well.
  11. Brush mixture onto bread.
  12. Grill butter-side down until brown, approximately 1-2 minutes.
http://tonispilsbury.com/grilled-lemon-basil-chicken-grilled-portabella-grilled-garlic-bread/

 

Weekly Meal Planning For Busy Families

Weekly Meal Plan

 

 

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The Underestimated Mashed Potato

By on July 30, 2012 in Holiday Recipes, Recipes, Saving Money, Side Dish Recipes

Homemade Mashed Potatoes

A Stitch In Time Saves Nine. A Penny Saved Is A Penny Earned. Waste Not, Want Not.

Probably one of the most versatile, frugal and efficacious dishes is the mashed potato.  Gracing our Thanksgiving dinner table each year, mashed potatoes are wildly overlooked for the remaining 364 days of the year.

At just pennies per serving, Homemade Mashed Potatoes are not only inexpensive, they’re one of the most versatile side dishes.  By adding a few cloves of fresh garlic during boiling and then mashing with the potato, the gourmet Garlic Mashed Potatoes are created.  By substituting milk with buttermilk, you have Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes.  And, Herb Mashed Potatoes can be made by adding some fresh or dried herbs like rosemary, thyme and parsley.

 

Rosemary Chicken with Herb Mashed Potatoes

Herb Mashed Potatoes

Five Recipes To Make with Leftover Mashed Potatoes

Homemade mashed potatoes can be cooked in bulk to freeze for future use, or stored for use in other recipes- or, like I call “Reincarnate The Leftover”.  Here are some of my favorite recipes using leftover mashed potatoes.

Potato Cake Recipe

Festive Potato Cakes Recipe

 

Bangers and Mash

Bangers and Mash with New Castle Gravy

 

Twice-Baked Cheesy Potatoes

Twice-Baked Cheesy Potatoes Recipe

 

Cottage Pie Recipe

Cottage Pie Recipe, is allegedly a favorite dish of Prince Williams-  a tasty version of the Shepherd’s Pie.

 

Shepherd's Pie Recipe

Shepherd’s Pie Recipe

 

A Stitch In Time

Homemade mashed potatoes freeze and reheat well, so I like making extra and storing for a busy day’s side dish.  I recommend using glass storage containers like Rubbermaid’s Glass Food Storage or Ziploc’s Versaglass that go from the freezer and into the oven or microwave to reheat.

Check out our Homemade Mashed Potatoes Recipe here:

Homemade mashed potatoes recipe

Homemade Mashed Potatoes Recipe

 

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