Thai Peanut Salad

Thai Peanut Salad Dressing

from: our best bites

1/2 C peanut butter

1 lime, juiced and zested

2 1/2 t sesame oil

1 T seasoned rice wine vinegar

2 T soy sauce

3 T honey

2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1 T minced ginger

1/2 C roughly chopped cilantro (stems and all)

1/2 C vegetable oil

1/4 t kosher salt*

2-3 t sriracha chili sauce*(I used  Thai Kitchen Sweet Red Chili Sauce)

2-4 T water*

*The need for salt may differ depending on the brand of PB you use. Taste first and then add.

*I use 3 t Sriaracha, but you may want more or less depending on your preference of heat levels. Again, taste first and then add.

*Lastly, the addition of the water is purely for consistency which again, depends on the PB brand you use. Add water until you get the consistency you want, or leave it out completely.

Place everything in a blender and mix until smooth. Makes about 2 cups

I tossed it with some cooked pasta (linguine or spaghetti) blanched broccoli slice carrots and red and green bell peppers... serve cold...grilled chicken would have been really good too...

Pistachio- Crusted Chicken/with Garden Spinach and Spicy Carrots

Prep: 1-1/4 Hours  Bake: 35 MIN Yield: 4 servings
Chicken:
1 large sweet red pepper      1/4 tsp. pepper
1-1/4 cups pistachios            1 shallot, chopped
3/4 cup panko (Japanese)     1-1/2 tsp. olive oil
bread crumbs.
1 cup buttermilk                    2 garlic cloves, minced
4 boneless skinless chicken   1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
halves (6 oz. each)
1/2 cup crumbled goat           1/4 cup minced fresh basil
cheese
2 Tbsp. butter, melted            1/4 tsp. salt

Salad:
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. olive oil
3 cups fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup minced fresh basil

Broil pepper 4 in. from heat until blistered. Rotate pepper a quarter turn. Broil and rotate until all sides are blistered and blackened. Place in a small bowl; cover and let stand 20 minutes. Process pistachios in a food processor until ground. Transfer to a shallow bowl; add bread crumbs. Place buttermilk in another bowl.
Flatten chicken to 1/4-in. thickness; dip in buttermilk, then coat with pistachio mixture. Place on a work surface; top with goat cheese and basil. Fold chicken in half; secure with toothpicks if necessary.
Place in a greased 11-in. x 7in. baking dish. Drizzle with butter; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 35-40 min. or until a meat thermometer reads 170 degrees. Discard Toothpicks.
Discard charred skin from pepper; discard seeds and membranes. Place pepper in a food processor. In a small skillet, saute shallot in oil until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add broth; heat through. Add mixture to the food processor; process until blended.
Whisk vinegar and oil. Add spinach and basil; toss to coat. Divide salad among four plates; top with chicken and pepper sauce.

Spicy Cooked Carrots 
1 lb. carrots                       3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced       2 Tbsp. chopped parsley
Salt                                    1/3 cup crumbled or thinly sliced Feta Cheese
2 tsp. hot paprika               1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
12 pitted and diced black or kalamati olives

Boil carrots in salted water until tender (not soft); drain and rinse with cold water. Slice or dice into small pieces. Smash the garlic with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Add paprika, vinegar, and whisk in the oil. Toss carrots with vinaigrette, parsley, cheese, and olives. Taste for salt.

Chicken Taco Salad with Lime dressing

6-8 cups of greens(spinach, iceberg, romaine)
add any veggies you and your family like
cucumbers, tomatoes, shredded carrots, peppers...etc
1 cup olives
1 cup cheese
1 can beans drained and rinsed like black, red, pinto
3 chicken breast grilled, sliced or use a rotisserie chicken
2-3 cups tortilla chips crushed


Dressing:
3TBL vinegar I used rice vinegar
2 TBL oil
1 TBL sugar
1/2 lime juiced I used the whole thing
1 clove garlic crushed
1/4 tsp. salt
mix dressing, drizzle over salad just before serving. 
I think I doubled it to make sure I had enough

Baked Ziti III

This is from allrecipes.com 

Tried and tested very good!

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package dry ziti pasta
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 (28 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce
• 6 ounces sliced provolone cheese
• 6 ounces sliced mozzarella cheese
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream (use light or fat free)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• try layer spinach in it also

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
2. In a large skillet, brown beef over medium heat. Add onions; saute until tender. Drain off fat and add spaghetti sauce; simmer for about 15 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
4. In a lightly greased 2 quart baking dish, place about half of the pasta; top with a layer of provolone and mozzarella cheese slices. Spread on a layer of half the spaghetti sauce mixture and sour cream.
5. Cover with remaining pasta, cheese and sauce; sprinkle a layer of Parmesan cheese and fresh basil.
6. Bake in preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until cheese and sauce are bubbly; serve.

Spicy Roasted Red Pepper and Feta Hummus

Ingredients:

1 15oz. can garbanzo beans, drained
1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese
1 4oz. jar roasted red peppers, drained
(or make your own)
3 TBL. lemon juice
1TBL. chopped fresh flat leaf parsley I would probably use more
and maybe even cilantro
1/ 2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp salt

Place everything in food processor; blend till smooth, sometimes I needed to
add a little juice from the beans or from the peppers to make it a good consistency.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

1 bag of chicken tenders or the amount for your family
chop in bite size pieces and cover with Tony's Cajun
seasoning (generously)

cook in pan with 2-3TBLS. of butter

meanwhile chop up 5 green onions 2-3 peppers(1green 1yellow and red)

spinach (optional but good)

in a bowl mix  cups light whipping cream with...
2-3TBL. of fresh basil torn
2 tsp. lemon pepper
1 tsp. salt I didn't use any the other seasoning is good enough
pepper

when chicken is done add in veggies and cook until soft then
reduce heat slightly and add cream mixture and little more Cajun seasoning
if it needs it, stir until the mixture thickens add a little flour if you need to
but don't let the cream boil. Serve with Angel Hair or linguine pasta. you can toss
a couple of handfuls of spinach in the warm pasta
Add fresh grated parmesan cheese.

This recipe is from Carly thanks it was very good. Sorry we ate before we
got a picture.

Sun-dried tomato artichoke Chicken

 Sorry we devoured this dish before I even thought to take a picture of it. I suppose that's how good it is! Enjoy, really simple but full of flavor!


1 tsp fresh thyme leaves (or dried)
2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bitesize chunks
1/4 cup flour
2 tbs cooking oil
1/2 white wine (I used chicken broth)
1 Tbs fresh or bottled lemon juice
1 can quartered artichoke hearts (drained)
1/3 cup julienne cut sun dried tomatoes
2 Tbs or so of grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat large sauce pan on medium high heat, add oil. Coat chicken with flour. Cook chicken until golden brown. Stir in chicken broth, reduce heat to medium-low, cook 2-3 minutes or until liquid is slightly reduced. Sprinkle lemon juice over chicken, add artichokes and sun-dried tomatoes. Cover and cook 3-4 min. Remove from heat, top with thyme and Parmesan. Serve alone or over any type of pasta. Also good with wild rice.