Beefy Rice

1 lb hamburger meat
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 small can sliced mushrooms
1 can diced tomatoes
garlic salt
1 packet onion soup mix
rice
shredded 2% milk cheddar
Hot sauce (i.e. Tabasco, Louisiana Hot Sauce)-optional

Season hamburger meat with garlic salt and cook until browned; drain fat.
Add onion, bell peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, onion soup mix and just enough water to make it juicy so that it will simmer without burning.
Simmer 15-20 minutes until the onion soup mix is cooked.
In the meantime, cook rice.
Spoon mixture over rice and and sprinkle with cheese.
Garnish with hot sauce if you like.

Sweet Salad with Pomegranate Dressing

This is my take on a recipe I got out of a Weight Watchers recipe magazine.

1 bunch of curly red lettuce, rinsed and chopped
2 cups quartered strawberries
3/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
handful of chopped pecans
1/4 cup pomegranate juice
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp canola oil

1. Layer first 3 ingredients in a bowl and top with pecans.
2. Combine juice and next 3 ingredients in a jar. Cover tightly. Shake vigorously. Drizzle dressing over salad, toss and serve immediately.

Pesto Grilled Cheese

Due to allergies, my throat is just about swollen shut so I did not get to taste this "masterpiece" the family loved so much. It's rare that Joe goes on and on about something I cook and doesn't immediately critique it. I say that lovingly. Really, I do. He is a very good cook. Actually, for a long time I was scared to cook for him for fear of embarrassing myself. But I have embraced the love of cooking and (rarely) welcome his critiques. LOL It annoys me when he immediately says, "Next time you should try..." In my mind that's saying, "This is good, but this could make it better." Just be satisfied with what you have! LOL But that's just us. He is always looking for improvement and I'm content with what we have...well, most of the time. But that's why we work, I suppose! Anyhow, he went on and on and on and on and on and on and on about this sandwich, which was incredibly easy to make. He even said, "You must remember the exact portions of what you put on it because this was perfection. You must make this as soon as you can eat it!" Will do, honey bun. Will do. So, here are the exact portions to make this sandwich of perfection. =)
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To serve 4
8 slices of sourdough bread
8 slices of mozzarella cheese
pesto
4 slices of tomato (thinly sliced)
thinly sliced red onion
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Build each sandwich as follows:
bread
small amount of pesto spread on bread
mozzarella
red onion
1 tomato slice
mozzarella slice
bread
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Grill like a grilled cheese or (I prefer to) use a sandwich press.

Taco Bean Soup

My family, both immediate and extended, loves taco soup. I may have put that recipe on here before, if not, I'm sure it will be added at some point. We eat it all the time. The soup I made tonight is actually a Weight Watchers recipe that I modified ever so slightly, but it tastes just like our family's taco soup - only healthier! So, it's a win-win situation! I'm posting the doubled version of the soup since I doubled the recipe to feed three adults plus a kid and wanted to have leftovers. Hana and I would go hungry at lunch time if it weren't for leftovers. =)

2 (15 oz) cans of turkey chili with beans ( I prefer Wolf Brand)
2 (14.5 oz) cans of no-salt-added diced tomatoes (I used the southwestern-flavored ones)
2 large, coarsely chopped zucchini or yellow squash (I used both)
2 cups water
1/2 cup shredded, reduced-fat Mexican blend cheese (I did not double the cheese)
1/4 cup sliced green onions (I also did not double the onions)
***Made with the ingredients listed above, this is only 3 WW points per 1-cup serving of soup, 2 tbsps cheese and 1 tbsp green onion. But I also added...
1 can Ranch-style beans with jalapenos
1 can hominy
1 avocado, diced
handful of chopped cilantro
reduced-fat sour cream
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In a large saucepan, combine first four ingredients plus Ranch-style beans, hominy and cilantro. Cover and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer 12 minutes.
Ladle into bowls and top evenly with cheese, onions, avocado and sour cream.

Red Beans & Rice Casserole

This recipe came out of a Mahatma rice package and calls for a package of their Red Beans & Rice, but I prefer Zatarains.

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1 package Red Beans & Rice mix (I used Zatarains)

1 tbsp chili powder

3 eggs, beaten (I used Egg Beaters)

1/3 cup milk

1 lb sausage, sliced (I used smoked turkey sausage)

1 medium diced green bell pepper

1 medium diced red bell pepper

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 large tomato, diced

1/2 cup chopped green onions

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Prepare Red Beans & Rice according to package directions, adding chili powder. Set it aside to cool. Preheat oven to 350. Cook sausage and bell peppers in a skillet. Once rice has cooled to room temperature, combine with sausage and bell peppers. In a small bowl, whisk eggs and milk then add it to rice-sausage mixture. Pour into a greased casserole dish, top with cheese and bake for 20 minutes. Top with tomatoes and green onions.

Southwestern Quiche

From time to time Joe brings home recipes he comes across in the newspaper that he wants me to make for him. Isn't that sweet? Well, you might not think it is, but since I'm enjoying trying out new recipes these days, I think it's wonderful! This is one of those recipes. I've had it for a while now and am just now getting around to trying it out. I have no idea why I waited so long! This makes a lot, so I hope the leftovers are just as tasty! It tasted like chicken enchiladas to me. YUM!

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2 refrigerated pie crusts, thawed (if they were frozen)

4 eggs, beaten

1 cup half and half

2 cups cooked chicken, diced ( I used a rotisserie chicken)

2 cups Monterrey Jack cheese, grated

1 cup cheddar cheese

1 cup salsa with cilantro

1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

handful of chopped green onion

sour cream, salsa (optional)

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Preheat oven to 350.

In medium bowl, beat eggs and half and half together with a wire whisk.

Stir in chicken, chips, cheeses, salsa, black beans and salt.

Pour into pie crusts.

Sprinkle pepper over top.

Bake approximately 1 hour, until crust is golden brown and knife inserted into middle comes out clean.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream, salsa and Spanish rice.

Hana sure thought it was yummy!

Valentine Krispies

Make Rice Krispie treats following the regular old recipe found on the box of Rice Krispies. I found Jumbo Multi-Grain Krispies!

I also found strawberry-flavored marshmallows.

Use cute sprinkles top decorate them.

Use a cookie cutter or a sandwich cutter (like I did) to cut them into hearts.