My Favorite Chili

I thought this would be an appropriate recipe to go with the weather we have had in North Carolina lately – it started last Friday night with heavy snow and low temperatures and continued today with freezing rain that fell on top of the still icy roads. I have been out of work for the past two days and haven’t even started my car since last Friday afternoon. Since I’m someone who really likes to get out of the house, you know that is some pretty bad weather.

Tomorrow I have to go back to work (although the students will still be out), and I pulled some of this chili out of the freezer to take with me for lunch. Usually when I make this chili, it will yield two large servings for Scott and I to enjoy for dinner and three smaller portioned lunches for me to take to work.

When it comes to chili, for a long time I did not have a consistent recipe. It was something that I would play around with and had a different result every time. A few months ago, however, I made the best batch to date and immediately wrote the recipe down. Since that day, it has been my go-to recipe.

My Favorite Chili

- 1 T. olive oil
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 T. chili powder
- 1 T. hot Mexican chili powder
- 1 t. black pepper
- 1 t. salt
- 1 12 oz. beer (I use Blue Moon.)
- 2 15 oz. cans chili beans (I use one mild, one medium.)
- 1 15 oz. can crushed tomatoes

Brown the beef, onion, and garlic in the olive oil over medium high heat and then drain:

Then add in the seasonings and stir until fragrant:

Pour in the beer, let it come to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half:

Add in the beans and tomatoes and let simmer for at least 30 minutes so the flavors can combine:

Serve plain or with toppings (I like diced red onion and cheddar cheese).

Enjoy!

Parmesan-Panko Crusted Tilapia

I always make one trip to the grocery store and buy all of our food for the entire week at once, but my last trip didn’t happen until late in the day. So, I was looking for something to make for dinner that night that would be extremely quick to prepare but still be healthy. I decided to go with the fresh tilapia that was on sale at the seafood counter.

Once I got home, I searched the pantry and fridge for vegetables and decided to serve the fish with steamed broccoli and baked potatoes. The meal went from the grocery bag to the table in just under fifteen minutes, and the best part is that I mostly used items that were already in my kitchen.

I started by preheating my broiler and a large skillet on the stovetop. I made a mixture with 3 tablespoons panko bread crumbs, 1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese, and 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley flakes:

Then I topped the tilapia with salt, pepper, and lemon juice:

Then I sprayed the skillet with a small amount of nonstick cooking spray, added the tilapia, covered it with the panko mixture, and immediately put the skillet under the broiler:

Five minutes later, the fish was finished. I really like this method because the fish quickly cooks from both sides (the bottom in the preheated skillet and the top under the broiler), which allows it to cook evenly as well.

The bread crumb topping also adds a nice salty crunch to the top of the fish without adding all of the calories from the normal three step process of dredging in flour/egg wash/dipping in bread crumbs. There is just enough cheese in the mix to melt and allow it to adhere to the fish without the extra steps, and since the fish is only breaded on one side, it remains pretty healthy. In fact, the entire amount of the panko mixture clocks in at under 100 calories. Not too bad for breading!

I think this recipe would also work well with thicker pieces of fish, such as cod or even salmon, but I would cook it for a full minute or two in the skillet before breading and broiling. In the amount of time it would take to cook thicker fish entirely under the broiler, the panko would definitely burn.

Please let me know if you give this one a try, and I hope you enjoy!

Spicy Chicken Lasagna

This post was sponsored by Foodbuzz and Pace.

A few weeks ago, I received two jars of Pace Picante Sauce through the Foodbuzz Tastemaker program. I immediately started thinking of recipe ideas that went beyond opening a bag of chips and pouring, even though that’s what I really wanted to do!

After thinking about what exactly what I wanted out of my Pace recipe (a main meal, something filling, and freezable leftovers) I decided to make a lasagna. I actually tested this recipe with both chicken and beef, and Scott and I both agreed that the chicken was much better.

Spicy Chicken Lasagna
*a Rachel ♥s Food creation*

- 8 lasagna noodles, broken in half
- 1 T. olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
- 1 c. Pace Chunky Salsa
- 4 oz. cream cheese
- 1/2 t. salt
- 1/2 t. black pepper
- 1/3 c. fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 16 oz. jar Pace Picante Sauce
- 2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

1. Boil lasagna noodles in water according to package directions, drain, and set aside.

2. While noodles cook, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook onions until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 additional minute.

3. Stir in shredded chicken, salsa, and cream cheese and heat until the cheese melts and the mixture is bubbly. Turn off the heat and stir in the salt, pepper, and cilantro.

4. Spray an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray and cover bottom with a thin layer of picante sauce. Then layer 4 half noodles, chicken filling, picante sauce and 1/4 c. cheddar cheese. Repeat the layers two additional times.

5. Place the last 4 half noodles on top and cover with remaining picante sauce and cheddar cheese.

6. Bake at 375 for approx. 20 minutes until the cheese is browned and the lasagna is bubbly.

7. Let the lasagna sit for at least 10 minutes before cutting into 9 servings.

Scott and I have enjoyed this dish twice now. It makes a great dinner paired with some vegetables and either chips and salsa or garlic bread. The lasagna also freezes and reheats nicely – I just thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and then heat it in the microwave or the oven at 350 for 10 minutes.

I hope you enjoy!

CEiMB: Chicken Chop Suey

It’s Thursday again, so here is the latest CEiMB offering! This week we made Chicken Chop Suey, and this recipe was hosted by Ali of The Healthy Hostess. I think one of my favorite parts of participating in this group is exploring the other members’ blogs as they host. Check out Ali’s blog – she has a lot of great recipes and tips for entertaining and green cleaning!

As for the Chicken Chop Suey, I have to admit that I didn’t think chop suey was a real dish. I had heard the term before, but had never had it. Maybe I didn’t think it was real because I had only heard of it on TV? Who knows.

This recipe included another of Ellie’s extremely long ingredient lists, but that didn’t bother me as I had most of the ingredients on hand…or so I thought. As I was making the dish, I almost felt like it was a comedy of errors – so many things went wrong!

As you can see in the picture, my chop suey included broccoli instead of cabbage. When I cut open the cabbage to prep it for the recipe, I discovered it had succumbed to dry rot. It was mottled all throughout the cabbage, not just on a few leaves, so into the trash can it went.

You may also notice white rice on my platter instead of brown. I was SO sure I had a big bag of brown rice in my pantry, but when I went to get it I couldn’t find it anywhere! I was thinking “Where is my brown rice? I KNOW I have some!” Oh wait, I used it a few weeks ago to try to soak water out of my cell phone after it took a trip through the washing machine. Silly me.

Finally, my wonton skins almost burned while I was distracted with the above problems and my desperate search to find a substitute for cooking sherry (guess what – water works just fine).

Even with all of the problems, this recipe was a winner. I did not use the amount of oil called for in the recipe because it seemed excessive, so I used cooking spray on the wontons, only two teaspoons of vegetable oil and only one tablespoon of sesame oil instead of two. I did really enjoy the combination of chicken broth, soy sauce, sesame oil and cornstarch to make a stir fry sauce, though, and I’ll probably use it again in the future and just mix and match the other ingredients according to what I have in the refrigerator and pantry. The sesame seeds and wonton skins added a nice crunch, and I also sliced a few extra green onions to garnish as well.

Thanks Ali, it was fun cooking with you this week!

White Bean Burgers

This recipe was an experiment, one of those where you throw things in a bowl and hope that it all comes out. Fortunately, I think this recipe for bean burgers was fantastic!

According to my weekly meal plan, we were scheduled to have hamburgers on Wednesday night. When it came time to cook dinner, though, the idea of eating beef did not appeal to me at all. I decided to go ahead and make the burgers for Scott and find something else for myself. Unfortunately, I could not find any thing that could be prepared as quickly as the burgers and I wanted to eat dinner at the same time as Scott.

Finally, I dug around to the back of my cabinet and found a can of butter beans that I had planned to marinate and use in salads. I decided to try my hand at a bean burger. How hard could it be? I thought it should be pretty simple, as long as I stuck to the formula for regular burgers or meatloaf: protein, seasonings, and a binder. This is what I came up with:

1 can white beans, rinsed and drained
1 T. olive oil
3 T. panko breadcrumbs
seasoning salt
pepper
hot sauce
Worcestershire

I mashed the beans slightly with a potato masher, then threw in the rest of the ingredients and stirred it all together. Finally, I formed the mixture into two patties and cooked them in a skillet with cooking spray for approximately 3 minutes on each side, until browned. Then I topped them with cheddar cheese slices and placed them in the oven (which was on to bake fries) just long enough for the cheese to melt.

I think this was a nice combination of flavors – the oil kept the mixture moist, and the Worcestershire lended a slight meaty flavor. I tasted the mixture before forming the patties and ended up adding more hot sauce for a total of approximately 1 teaspoon for the whole mixture.

I am also proud to say that I convinced Scott, a.k.a. Hater of Beans, to try burger. His official review? “Not for me.” At least he tried!

If you are looking for an alternative to regular beef or turkey burgers, I suggest you give this recipe a try!

CEiMB: Chicken Sate with Spicy Peanut Sauce

It’s Thursday again, which means it’s time for CEiMB! This week was hosted by Cathy of The Tortefeasor, and she chose Chicken Sate with Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce. It seems like we are continuing with the Thai theme from last week, which is fine with me because I love Thai food but don’t eat it all that often.

Once I read over the recipe and got over the initial shock of the lengthy ingredient list, I rummaged around my pantry and realized I only had to buy three things to complete this meal: coconut milk, chicken stock, and bamboo skewers. Yes, that’s correct – I have fish sauce in my pantry but not chicken stock. Crazy, right?

When I mixed the marinade for the chicken, I have to say that I wasn’t that fond of the smell and was afraid I would not like the finished product. However, I think the ingredients really came together in the grilling process, just like last week’s Thai salad dressing/marinade. The chicken was very moist, slightly salty from the soy and fish sauces, and had a little bit of brightness from the lime zest.

I also really enjoyed the peanut sauce. The only change I made was to substitute sriracha for the red curry paste – I don’t like curry very much, but I love chili sauce. I used a generous amount, probably close to 1 1/2 tablespoons, and found that the sauce was perfectly spicy for my taste. I noticed that some other CEiMB members commented that the sauce was too thick, but I didn’t think so. It may be because I used a no-stir natural peanut butter than regular, but I also blended it for a long time. Maybe that made a difference, maybe not.

As you can see in the picture, I also stir-fried some broccoli and straw mushrooms to go along with the chicken. It was very simple. I used vegetable oil, broccoli, and one can of drained mushrooms then finished it off with a drizzle of sesame oil for extra flavor. This was my first experience with straw mushrooms, and they were just okay – next time I’ll use sliced fresh instead.

To round out the meal, I wanted some kind of starch. Since I love spicy things and Scott loves pasta in any way, shape, or form, I picked up these Simply Asia Chili Garlic noodles at the grocery store for a quick addition to the meal. I’m not sure what kind of noodles these were, but before cooking they looked similar to soba noodles. The spiciness level was labeled “medium,” but I found the noodles rather mild. They were good, but next time I would probably add some sriracha to spice the dish up even more. The best part was definitely the chili flakes sprinkled on top!

I’ll mark this one as a success. Thanks to Cathy for another great recipe choice!

CEiMB: Grilled Thai Beef Salad

This week’s CEiMB recipe was Grilled Thai Beef Salad and was hosted by Jen of Jen B’s Cooking Carveout.

My husband and I just ate a steak salad last week with balsamic vinaigrette and bleu cheese, so I considered skipping this week in favor of trying something new. We both enjoyed the first salad, however, and I don’t want to get into the habit of skipping weeks in the cooking club since I’m enjoying it so much. So, I decided to make it anyway, hoping that Scott wouldn’t ask “Didn’t we just eat this a few days ago?” (Which he did, by the way.)

I think the best thing about a steak salad is that they provide a great way to incorporate beef into a dinner that is otherwise light and low in fat. We had our salad served with a baked potato (one that Scott and I split in half) and it made a very filling meal.

I also love Thai food and this was a good way to recreate and enjoy the flavors at home while still having a healthful meal. I have to admit, though, that I usually steer away from Thai dishes that are extremely heavy on basil, so the amount called for in this recipe (1 cup) seemed like too much to me. I cut it down to less than half and still found the flavor a little overwhelming.

This recipe requires you to make a dressing (using lime juice, oil, soy sauce, ginger, brown sugar and garlic) that is divided to both marinate the meat and dress the salad. I thought the marinade was quite good on the beef, but I did not enjoy it uncooked as a salad dressing – I think the flavors needed to be heated on the grill to really come together. I also believe this would be a good marinade for other protein as well and I will probably try it on chicken or shrimp in the future.

I did make two changes to the dressing – first, I used crushed garlic and grated ginger rather than mincing the two ingredients. I personally hate biting down on a piece of either of these items raw, and I found that crushing them helped to emulsify the dressing rather than having these ingredients sink to the bottom. I also used sriracha instead of curry paste just because I enjoy the flavor more.

Finally, I used thinly sliced onions on top of the salad instead of shallots. Unfortunately my grocery budget for the week did not allow me to pay $4.00 for three shallots when I already had an onion at home.

Overall, I enjoyed the flavors of this recipe but not the final product. If I make this again, I will marinate and grill the meat and possibly serve it with a side salad, but I do not plan on combining all of these ingredients into one composed dish again.

CEiMB: Stuffed Turkey Burgers

This week’s CEiMB recipe was Stuffed Turkey Burgers, hosted by Peggy of Pantry Revisited.

At first I planned on making the burgers substituting beef for the turkey, but I changed my mind during a last minute trip to the grocery store for supplies. My husband and I ate a lot of turkey burgers last year, almost once a week for the majority of the summer months, and I just got so tired of them! I thought I never wanted to eat another turkey burger again but decided to give them another shot.

The recipe was very simple, only using ground turkey, roasted red peppers, mozzarella cheese, salt and pepper. I got a little creative, though, and added a few crushed red pepper flakes and some Worcestershire to the meat for extra flavor. I also mixed the salt and pepper into the meat rather than sprinkling the outside of the patties to ensure the meat was flavored throughout.

While I was mixing the red peppers and mozzarella cheese to stuff the burgers, all I could think was pimento cheese. I guess it was pimento cheese in its most basic form, but the smell of it was fantastic and got me a little more excited about the recipe.

(topped with Dijon mustard, romaine, tomato and onion and
surrounded by one of my Light Brioche Sandwich Buns)

I noticed in some of the comments for the recipe that other people noted these burgers are very messy, but I didn’t think so at all. I had no problems with the filling leaking out while I was grilling the burgers or running out when I cut mine in half.

Here are my tips for a mess-free stuffed burger:

- Rather than forming two thin patties of equal size, I made the bottom patty a little larger than I wanted the final burger to be and added the stuffing. Then I made the top patty just large enough to cover the stuffing and overlapped the bottom patty and sealed it instead of just pinching the edges together.

- I also let the burgers rest for a few moments after grilling, not only to redistribute the juices in the meat but to allow the cheese stuffing to set up a little. That prevented the stuffing from running out.

My husband and I both enjoyed these burgers. His official review: “You could make these again…,” and let me tell you that’s the same as two thumbs up. I, however, enjoyed the stuffing more than the actual burger and will probably go back to my original idea of using beef instead of turkey. Either way, I know Scott will enjoy them because he has never met a burger he wouldn’t eat!

Thanks to Peggy for choosing another great Ellie recipe!

Jambalaya

Hi everyone! I hope you are having a great Sunday.

This was my guest post that ran last week on RhodeyGirl Tests, but I decided to post it again on my blog so I can archive it. This is one of my favorite recipes and I hope you enjoy it!

A few years ago, I took a short cooking course with a personal chef who specialized in Mediterranean and Cajun cuisine, and one of my favorite recipes from the course was Jambalaya. This is definitely a favorite in my house and is requested often!

Over the years, I have made a few healthful substitutes that lighten the dish but, in my opinion, retain most of its integrity. For example, I have omitted the ham and substituted turkey smoked sausage for regular, halved the total amount of mean, upped the amount of veggies, and used low sodium beef broth instead of double strength.

I would also like to say that this recipe is obviously not for vegetarians, but I think it could be turned into one! Just substitute vegetable broth for the liquid and omit the meat, and possibly add cubed tofu as a substitute. I would definitely let it get nice and brown before adding any other ingredients.

Enjoy!

Jambalaya

serves 5-6

• 1 T. olive oil
• ½ lb. turkey smoked sausage, cut into small chunks
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large bell pepper, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 c. uncooked Jasmine rice
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 t. dried thyme leaves
• 1 14 oz. can low sodium beef broth
• ¼ c. water
• 1 14. oz. can diced tomatoes
• ½ lb. cooked chicken OR raw, peeled and deveined shrimp

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or deep skillet over medium high heat, and then cook sausage until browned, about 5-6 minutes.

Stir in onion, bell pepper, and garlic and cook for two minutes to soften.

Add rice, salt, pepper, and thyme and stir until rice is golden.

Add the broth and water, stir to combine, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes.

Add the tomatoes and chicken/shrimp. Stir to combine, and cook until tomatoes and chicken are heated through or the shrimp are cooked.

Notes:

- Add two celery stalks for a true trinity (celery, onion, bell pepper). I personally hate it!

- Chop the vegetables into large pieces so they do not overcook during the long simmer.

- Although I love whole grain brown rice, I always use Jasmine for this recipe because it is more flavorful and I prefer the texture. You can substitute brown with great results.

- I think the best tomatoes to use are diced with green chilies.

- This is delicious with a little (or a lot) of hot sauce!

- For a slightly different but still delicious taste, garnish with chopped fresh mint leaves.

CEiMB: Cobb Salad

So I decided to join Craving Ellie in My Belly, as I mentioned in an earlier post, but immediately got behind. I did make last week’s recipe, Cobb Salad, at the right time. However, life got in the way and I didn’t get the opportunity to post until today. Sorry to the other CEiMB members, I promise the next one will be on time!

This Cobb Salad recipe was chosen by The Feast Within, and I was very excited to try it. I love Cobb salad but rarely order it in a restaurant to avoid the heavy toppings and typically creamy dressings, and I have never make one at home before. I was also a little concerned that my husband wouldn’t play along, but he actually enjoyed it. Note to self: serving salad as a main entree will go over well as long as there is plenty of protein as a topping!

I was also determined to make this recipe exactly as written since it was my first post for CEiMB, but I was not able to find watercress at either of the two grocery stores where I shop and substituted arugula instead. I also made a half recipe since it was just me and my husband and we found that it made three servings total instead of two.

Some other notes on the recipe:

• I really enjoyed the dressing and will make it again for other salads. It is a little tangy, however, so I would include something with fat to cut the tartness rather than serve it over plain greens.
• I also enjoyed subbing Black Forest ham for bacon, but found the amount called for in the recipe to be way too much. I would cut the amount in half for the future.
• While the salad was beautiful with the ingredients all lined up, it seemed almost to be a waste of time since they all mixed together upon serving. In the future, I will probably spread all of the toppings evenly over the salad greens.

Here is the recipe:

Cobb Salad

source: Food Network, Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger

Ingredients

For the Dressing:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the salad:

• Cooking spray
• 1/4 pound sliced Black Forest or other smoked ham
• 2 hard-boiled eggs
• 6 cups romaine lettuce (about 6 ounces) coarsely chopped
• 2 cups watercress, thick stems removed
• 2 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced (about 2 cups)
• 1/2 avocado, diced (about 3/4 cup)
• 1 cup cooked diced chicken breast 1 (6-ounce) breast
• 1/2 cup crumbled Roquefort or Blue cheese (about 2 ounces)

Directions

In a small bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients and set aside.

Slice the ham into 1/2-inch strips. Spray a nonstick skillet with cooking spray and preheat over a medium-high heat. Add the ham to the skillet and cook over stirring frequently, until the ham is warmed through and crisped, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Remove and discard the yolk from 1 of the hard boiled eggs. Chop the remaining egg white and whole egg and set aside.

In a large bowl toss the romaine and watercress with 2/3 of the dressing. Put the dressed greens onto a large serving dish. Place the tomatoes on top forming a row down the middle. In strips on either side of the tomatoes place the avocado, chicken, cheese, diced egg, and the crisped ham on top of the greens. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and serve.

Per Serving:

Calories 360; Total Fat 24 g; (Sat Fat 7 g, Mono Fat 13 g, Poly Fat 3 g) ; Protein 28 g; Carb 11 g; Fiber 4 g; Cholesterol 115 mg; Sodium 770 mg

Mediterranean Style Tilapia

A few years ago, I took a 10 week long cooking class that was sponsored through the adult education program of a local high school. It was taught by a man, whose name I sadly cannot remember, who was a personal chef for other people in the area. This class was one of the best experiences I have ever had, and it definitely opened up my eyes to new techniques, cuisines, and flavor combinations that I had never tried before. Since then, I have made the ten recipes many, many times and for some have tweaked them to better suit myself and my husband.

This recipe was from the first night of class, and was originally titled Mediterranean Style Chops as the original recipe calls for pork rather than fish. I would call it Mediterranean Style (Insert Protein Here) because I have now made it successfully with pork, chicken, and as you see here, tilapia. I also think the sauce could be made alone and used on vegetables or even served just with crusty bread because it is THAT delicious. In fact, I think a little bit of leftover sauce ended up spooned over the green beans you see in the picture.

The original recipe serves four, but I usually halve it since it is just me and my husband. The recipe also reflects my personal changes, such as using white wine instead of marsala, and of course the change in protein. Also, don’t be afraid of the long ingredient list – everything melds together nicely and it is worth the work of chopping and measuring everything out. It is savory from the onions and garlic, sweet from the tomatoes, raisins and sugar, salty from the olives and capers, and tangy from the vinegar and lemon zest. You definitely don’t want to miss out on any of this flavor adventure!

I also think this would make an excellent vegetarian dish by subbing vegetable broth for the chicken broth and either omitting the protein or using tofu or tempeh.

Mediterranean Style Tilapia

• 4 tilapia filets
• 1/4 c. olive oil
• 1 1/2 c. sliced onions
• 1 c. golden raisins
• 2 T. chopped garlic
• 1/2 c. white wine
• 1 1/2 c. chopped roma tomatoes
• 1 c. chicken broth
• 1/4 c. white wine vinegar
• 2 T. sugar
• 2 t. oregano
• 1/2 c. pimento stuffed olives
• 2 T. capers, drained and crushed
• 2 T. chopped fresh parsley
• 1 T. lemon zest

Heat oil over medium high heat, then add onions and sauté for three minutes. Add the garlic and raisins and cook for one minute.

Deglaze the pan with the wine, then stir in tomatoes, broth, vinegar, sugar, and oregano. Bring to a boil, then nestle the tilapia filets into the sauce. Cover and reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the olives and capers and simmer until heated through. Garnish with parsley and lemon zest.

* Note: If you make this recipe with chicken or pork, begin by searing the meat (either plain or dredged in flour) on both sides, then remove from the pan and follow the rest of the recipe as written. Return the meat to the pan where the directions say to add the tilapia filets.

When we made this recipe in class, it was served with orzo mixed with olive oil and parmesan cheese. In the picture, however, you can see I used brown rice. I think this would go well with any kind of small pasta or grain, so have fun mixing and matching!

Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: recipe,fish

Dealing with a few issues, but I have exciting news (x 2)!!

Sorry I haven't been around in awhile. I have been keeping up with everyone else's blogs in the past few weeks, but I feel like I have NO time lately for anything other than work and school. Full time work + full time grad school is really taking a toll on me, especially these past couple weeks before fall break. I didn't have any midterms, but the assignments have been very large and time consuming.

I've also been dealing with some health things, mainly pain in my right hip/thigh/knee. Eventually I went to the doctor (after it was excruciating to even sit down, we won't even talk about driving) and found out I have bursitis in my hip. At first I felt like an old lady, but after a little research I found out it can happen from repetitive activity (kind of like carpal tunnel, I guess). Luckily it was not infected! The pain is still lingering, but steadily going away. Forcing myself to exercise has helped.

I did manage to make some food during my busy weeks, though. A friend from school had a copy of Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine in class one night and I saw some interesting recipes, so I bought my own copy and tried the Spinach and Prosciutto Lasagna. It was delicious, but a little salty from the prosciutto. Next time I will cut the amount in half, or even omit it completely, because I think it would be just as good without it. Also, I recommend cutting it into six servings instead of four. It was extremely filling - I could never eat 1/4 of it in one sitting!




OK, on with the good news. First of all, I found out that I will graduate a semester EARLY! How often does that happen? I guess it paid off to work my butt off and take 27 graduate credit hours in three terms. I only have one class and a practicum left, then I'll be finished!

And...a HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT:

The Boyfriend is now....the FIANCE!! That's right, as of Friday night, I am engaged!

My ring:

Even closer up:

I'll admit that I'm a little nervous about planning a wedding, but I'm so excited! And it really helps to know that I'll be graduating early so I don't have to worry about that while finishing up wedding plans. We don't have a specific date yet, but we're thinking November of next year.

If anyone has tips to help me get started, they would be greatly appreciated.

Have a great night!

Dinners

When I went to the Fresh Market for the chicken sausage, the friendly guy behind the meat counter talked me into buying some boneless, skinless chicken breast that was on sale for this week. I think their chicken tastes so much better than what I usually buy, so I got enough for two nights.

I didn't feel like making anything special or new, however, so the first night we had barbecue chicken. Sometimes I have a hard time cooking thick pieces of chicken to the right temperature, so I put this in the oven. I browned the chicken on both sides in a skillet, then stuck the pan into a 350 degree oven for around 10 minutes. After I took it out of the oven, I brushed the chicken with sauce (Kraft Spicy Honey tonight) and let it stay in the hot pan until the sauce thickened.

I also attempted to make a noodle dish with my leftover ricotta salata, but it didn't turn out quite like I wanted it to. My aunt used to make a baked dish with egg noodles and farmer's cheese, which melts and browns in the oven, but the ricotta just stayed the same while the noodles dried out. We ate part of it anyway just so it wouldn't completely go to waste.

Barbecue chicken and noodles with steamed broccoli and 1/2 baked sweet potato:




I was feeling nostalgic on Friday night and wanted some comfort food, so I made one of my favorite dishes from my childhood: Chicken Casserole (and yes, the word casserole does signify that cream of mushroom soup is included).

The good thing is, the amount of this can easily be altered to feed one person or twenty. Just mix the following things in a bowl: boiled chicken (which has been torn into small pieces), mushroom soup, low sodium chicken broth, paprika, salt, and pepper. Put it in a baking dish and top with dry herb seasoned stuffing mix. Bake at 375 until the top is brown and the liquid is bubbling.

Even though this is definitely not a fancy dish, it is one of my favorite things in the world to eat. The boyfriend likes it too, and I think he may have tried to hide the leftovers from me.

With green beans and 1/2 baked potato with light sour cream and lots of pepper: