Kung Pao Chicken

Kung Pao Chicken.

Ingredients.

2 Tablespoons dark sesame oil.

1 cup chopped onion.

2 garlic cloves minced.

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs cut into 1-inch pieces. We used chicken breasts for less fat.

3/4 cup water.

3 tablespoons lower sodium soy sauce.

2 teaspoons cornstarch.

1 teaspoon brown sugar.

1/2 teaspoon bottled minced ginger.

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper.

1 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper. (about one large pepper)

1 cup snow peas trimmed. Craig doesn't care much for snow peas, so he used less of them and more onions. :-)

2 tablespoons chopped unsalted, dry roasted peanuts.

1. Heat sesame oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add onion to pan; saute 3 minutes or until softened.

Add garlic; saute 30 seconds, stirring constantly.

Add chicken; saute 3 minutes or until chicken begins to brown.

2. Combine 3/4 cup water and the next 5 ingredients(through crushed red pepper), stirring with a whisk until sugar dissolves.

Add water mixture to pan; bring to boil.

Add bell pepper and snow peas to pan; cook for 2 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender and sauce thickens. Isn't this looking good?.

Sprinkle with nuts.

We served this over Ramon noodles for a nice tasty dish! You could use any type pasta or rice.

Marinated Asparagus, roasted garlic basil potatoes

We served these with out tasty spicy sweet pork cutlets.
Marinated Asparagus.
Clean and break off tough stems.
Put in a bag with,
1 Tbl olive oil,
2 Tbl soy sauce,
2 Tbl lemon juice,
2 Tbl balsamic Vinegar.

Mix well and let sit at room temp for about an hour.
Drain and put on a greased pan under the broiler for 10-15 minutes until fork tender.
Serve with spray butter and Parmesan cheese.
Roasted garlic Basil Potatoes.
Clean and towel dry potatoes. We used red skinned.
Cut potatoes into bite sized pieces.
Put in a bag with
2 Tbl olive oil,
1 Tbl Basil,
1 tsp granulated garlic,
1 tsp chives, fresh or dried,
1 tsp paprika.

Roast on a greased pan at 450 for about 40 minutes. Turning a couple of times.
Serve buttered.

Salisbury Steak

Here's a real easy tasty Salisbury steak dinner.

Ingredients
1/3 cup grated onion, divided
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground sirloin, we used extra lean ground beef.
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon butter
8 ounces cremini mushrooms, quartered. or you can use any kind of mushrooms.
1/3 cup dry red wine
1 1/4 cups fat-free, lower-sodium beef broth
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

Preparation
1. Combine 1/4 cup onion, pepper, salt, garlic, and beef. Shape into 4 (1/2-inch-thick) patties. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Coat with cooking spray.
Add patties; cook 3 minutes on each side or until browned.
2. Melt butter in pan. Add mushrooms; saute 4 minutes.
Stir in wine and remaining onion; cook 2 minutes.
Combine broth and flour; add to pan, and bring to a boil. Cook 5 minutes or until thick.
Add patties and vinegar to pan; cook 2 minutes.

Now we served it with boxed mashed potatoes instead of real mashed potatoes cause we were lazy.
And we had squash.
I forgot to get a pic before we ate, so I got this one off the Cooking Light website.
But it was good!

spicy-sweet pork cutlets

Add a spicy-sweet kick to your traditional pork chop recipe by simmering pork chops in a honey, Dijon mustard, ground ginger, cinnamon, and clove glaze.


Ingredients
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
Cooking spray
4 (4-ounce) boneless center-cut loin pork chops (about 1/2 inch thick)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preparation
Combine first 5 ingredients in a bowl.
Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper; cook 2 minutes on each side or until browned. Reduce heat to medium-low; add honey mixture. Cook 10 minutes or until done, turning pork once.


To go with the pork, I sliced potatoes about 1/8 inch thick, put in a pan with 3 tbl oil, covered and cooked on medium low, stirring frequently until cooked through. Then remove the top and cook on medium stirring frequently until nicely browned. The entire cooking time is about 30 minutes so start these before the pork.

Don't these look delish!

We served them with steamed broccoli for a tasty dinner!

Cabbage Roll Casserole #2

Here's a slightly different version of Craig's Cabbage Roll casserole.

2 lbs lean Hot Italian Sausage
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 can(15 ounces) tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cups cooked rice
1 medium head cabbage (2 pounds) shredded
1 cup (4 ounces) mozzarella cheese.
1/4 cup bacon bits.

In a large skillet, cook the sausage, onion and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink, drain.
Stir in one can of diced tomatoes and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
Stir in the rice and bacon bits, heat through. Remove from heat.

Layer half of the cabbage in a greased 13in. x 9in. x2 in. baking dish.
Top with meat mixture.

Top with remaining cabbage. Pour tomato sauce over the top.

Cover and bake at 375 for 45 minutes.
Uncover and sprinkle with cheese.
Bake 10 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.
Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Creamy Hot Italian Turkey Sausage pie

1lb light hot Italian sausage
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 oz package fat free cream cheese
I pkg frozen spinach, thawed and pressed of excess water
1 can sliced mushrooms
1 pkg low fat refrigerated biscuits or pizza dough(the kind in a rolled can)
2 eggs
1 24 oz fat-free cream-style cottage cheese
1/4 cup reduced fat Parmesan cheese
1 tbs corn starch
chopped tomatoes
chopped chives
4 oz. fat free shredded cheddar cheese

Saute onion, drain, set aside.
Brown sausage, drain, add sauteed onion, stir in cream cheese and mushrooms, set aside.

In a 9 x 13 dish, lightly grease and press dough onto bottom and up sides just over top.

Spoon in meat mixture evenly.

In a bowl, combine eggs, cottage cheese,spinach, and corn starch.

Spread mixture over meat mixture

Bake uncovered 25-30 min. at 350

Sprinkle cheese and let melt. Remove from oven and let rest 5-10 min. Garnish with tomato and chives.

Enjoy! makes more than enough for leftovers too!

Tortilla Lasagna

Here's a tasty twist to Lasagna, ....Tortilla Lasagna.

I don't have pics showing the steps because I thought I had already posted this recipe. So this is a pic of the leftovers.

Recipe.......

1 Tbl vegetable oil.
1 lb ground beef. You can also use chicken or turkey.
1 cup chopped onion.
1 1/2 cups chopped green and/or red pepper.
1 cup corn
1 4oz. can of sliced black olives.
1 4oz. can diced green chilies.
1 pkg taco seasoning mix.
1 16 oz. jar mild taco sauce, divided.
10 flour tortillas, divided.
2 cups Mexican blend shredded cheese, divided.

Pre-heat oven to 375.
Grease a 13x9 baking dish.
Heat oil in large skillet over med heat. Add ground beef; cook stirring occasionally until no longer pink. 5-6 min. Stir in vegetables, chillies and seasoning mix. Reduce heat to low; cook, stirring occasionally 3-4 min or until veggies are tender.
Spread 1/2 cup taco sauce on bottom of baking dish. Cover with 5 tortillas. Spread with 1/2 the meat mixture and 1/2 the taco sauce. Sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until heated through and cheese melted.
Enjoy!