Herbed Mustard - Coated Chicken

Ingredients:
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp Italian salad dressing
1 lg garlic clove, minced
1/2 C soft bread crumbs
2 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
2 tbsp butter, melted
4 boneless, skinnless chicken breast halves
Directions:
Heat oven to 425. Grease 15x10x1 inch baking pan. In small bowl combine mustard, salad dressing and garlic, mix well. In medium bowl combine bread crumbs, parsley, thyme and pepper, mix well. Add margarine; toss to mix well. Place chicken in greased pan. Spread mustard mixture on both sides of chicken. Spoon bread crumb mixture evenly on top of chicken; press firmly. Bake at 425 for 15-20 minutes or until chicken is done, juices run clear. If desired, slice chicken breast diagonally before serving. (Leftovers great on a salad) Use Dijon as a dipping sauce if desired.

~Amanda

Mexican Salsa Chicken

Ingredients:
2 Chicken breasts
1/3 C flour
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp chili powder
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1/4 C salsa
2 tomato slices
4 oz. (1 C) Monterrey jack cheese
Directions:
Place 1 chicken breast half boned side up between two pieces of plastic wrap or waxed paper. Working from center, gently pound chicken with a rolling pin or flat side of tenderizer until about 1/4 inch thick. In a shallow dish, combine flour, garlic powder, paprika, chili powder. Coat chicken with flour mixture. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken in oil 3-4 minutes on each side or until lightly browned and no longer pink. Reduce heat, spoon 1 tbsp of salsa onto center of each chicken breast half. Place a tomato slice on top and sprinkle evenly with cheese. Cover, cook until cheese melts. Serve with additional salsa if desired.

Delish! People will think Emeril Lagasse came over! ;)

~Amanda

Vegan Chili

Now if you love meat, don't let the name turn you off from this recipe - it is really good! & you could easily throw in some ground beef if you like. The flavor is great though. (Found on vegweb.com.)

Vegan Chili

6 carrots, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 onion, diced
4 to 5 cloves garlic, minced
2 (28-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
3 to 4 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
small pinch (1/16 teaspoon) cayenne pepper, or to taste
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained
1 (15-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained
1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, drained

Directions

1. Throw carrots, zucchini, onion, and garlic in large pot and saute 7 minutes.
2. Stir in crushed tomatoes.
3. Stir in chili powder, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.
4. Stir in black beans, kidney beans, and pinto beans. Cover and keep on medium heat until it boils. Turn heat down and simmer 1 to 2 hours. Serve with a baked potato and some avocado--its delicious!

yum yum!

-Court

Mediterranean Beef and Rice

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1 cup cooked rice
1 cup sliced zucchini
salt
1 garlic clove minced

Directions:
Brown ground beef in skillet. Boil rice and combine cooked rice with browned beef, stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and garlic. Steam zucchini and add to skillet while still slightly firm. Add salt to taste.
Sort of made it up so feel free to add any other seasonings! Super easy!!!
~Amanda

Minestrone Soup

This soup is hearty and filling, and full of flavor. The prep is kind of labor intensive, so you may want to chop the vegetables the night before, or make the entire thing the night before since most soups are always better the next day. If you double the recipe, which is what I did for Lifegroup, use the biggest stock pot you can find, because it makes a lot! I couldn't use all the water it called for since it wouldn't fit, but it just made the soup taste yummier and richer. This serves 6.

Ingredients:

1 cup chopped onion
4 cloves minced garlic
1/3 lb. ground beef
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup cubed carrots
2 cups tomato puree (I used an organic brand for better flavor)
2 14.5 oz. cans stewed tomatoes, undrained
1 14 oz. can beef broth
1 10.5 oz. can condensed French onion soup
5 cups water
1/4 cup red wine
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup chopped zucchini
2 cups spinach, rinsed and sliced
1 cup uncooked pasta (I used HEB brand Garden Shells)
1 15 oz. can garbanzo beans, drained
1/4 cup chopped parsley

In a large stock pot, cook onion, garlic, and beef. When onions are translucent, add celery, carrot, pureed tomatoes, whole tomatoes, broth, condensed soup, water, wine, oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Cook for 15 min. Then stir in zucchini, spinach, pasta, garbanzo beans, and parsley. Cook for 15 more min. and serve with fresh grated Parmesan cheese.

Emily

Spaghetti cacio e pepe with roasted asparagus

I saw Rachael Ray cook spaghetti cacio e pepe, which is basically spaghetti with cheese & pepper, on her show once & thought it looked good, but I didn't make it until tonight, after seeing it on the Smitten Kitchen website recently. I'm glad I made it! It was super yummy. We ate it with our favorite veggie, oven roasted asparagus. I copied & pasted the recipe from the Smitten Kitchen entry.

Spaghetti with Cheese and Pepper [Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe]
Adapted very loosely from Mario Batali

As I’ve mentioned, for something with such a simple ingredient list this dish manages to fall all over the map. Some versions use just oil, no butter, some use neither oil of butter; some stud the sauce with large, barely cracked peppercorns and half-melted pebbles of romano; some opt for a smoother cheese, cacio de roma, which I located, auditioned and discovered I liked the saltier and more accessible Pecorino Romano better. There are a lot of ways to approach the dish and people who will find something inauthentic with each of them. I say ignore them all and just enjoy your spaghetti.

Serves 4 as a main, 8 as a first course

1/4 cup olive oil
1 pound dried spaghetti
2 tablespoons butter
4 ounces Pecorino Romano cheese, finely grated
1 1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
Salt (optional)

Cook spaghetti in well-salted water to your al dente tastes in a large, wide-bottomed pot. (You’ll have fewer dishes to wash if you use this pot to assemble the dish as well.) Drain spaghetti, reserving 1 1/2 cups of pasta cooking water.

Dry out your pot, then heat the olive oil over high heat until almost smoking. Add drained spaghetti and 1 cup of reserved pasta water and jump back, this will splatter mightily, also known as “I made this three times, and never once learned my lesson. Do as I say, not as I do.”

Add butter, 3 ounces cheese and ground pepper and toss together with tongs. Taste, adding more pasta water, cheese, pepper or salt (which should not be neccessary, as Romano is very salty) to taste.

Serve immediately, sprinkling with reserved cheese and an extra grind or two of black pepper.

Oven Roasted Asparagus

Snap ends off of asparagus & clean thoroughly, then dry. Spread them on a baking sheet & drizzle with olive oil. Rub olive oil on to thoroughly coat. Sprinkle with sea salt (or just table salt) & coarse black pepper. Roast at 400 - depending on the thickness of the asparagus (we prefer them thin) & how done you want them (we like them with very crispy ends), keep an eye on them - probably at least 20 minutes.

Slow Cooker Lasagna

1 lb ground beef

1/2 C chopped onion

1 t minced garlic

1 6 oz can tomato sauce

1 C water

1 6 oz can tomato paste

4 oz can sliced mushrooms, drained

1 t salt

1 t dried oregano

8 oz pkg lasagna noodles, uncooked and divided

2 C shredded mozzarella cheese

12 oz container cottage cheese

1 /2 c grated parmesan cheese

Brown beef with onion and garlic; remove from heat. Add tomato sauce, water, tomato paste, mushrooms, salt and oregano, mixing well. Spread 1/4 of the meat sauce in the bottom of a 5 quart slow cooker; arrange 1/3 of the noodles over the sauce, breaking the noodles to make them fit. Combine the cheeses together; spoon 1/2 over the noodle layer. Repeat layers twice; top with remaining meat sauce. Cover and heat on low until noodles are tender, about 4 hours. Serves 8.

If you have kids...I add one jar of a baby food vegetable to the sauce and they never know it! Usually I pick a jar of green beans, squash or carrots.

This recipe is a Life Group favorite!

Beatrice