Shepherds Pie

It has been getting pretty cool around here lately and cool weather makes me think of warm comfort food. Shepherds pie is a great cold weather dish. I like that with this dish I can sneak in veggies and turkey and no one knows the difference. I have a hard time getting veggies in my 5 year old, and my husband! My 10 month old even devoured this!

I debated posting a picture because it turned out looking a big mess! I was in a hurry because I started dinner late so I didnt let the sauce thicken enough and it didnt really hold a shape. It was still delicious!








Shepherds Pie

Ingredients:
1.5lb ground turkey
1/2 medium zuchinni
1/2 small onion
1c baby carrots
3 cloves garlic
1.5T Worcestershire sauce
2T tomato paste
1/2t dried thyme
1 can beef broth
Salt and Pepper to taste

3C mashed potatoes
1/4C Colby Jack cheese


Directions:

-In a large skillet brown turkey until no longer pink.
-Place zuchinni, carrots, onion and garlic in food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Add mixture to meat cooking for 3 minutes.
-Add Worcestershire sauce and tomato paste.Season with thyme and cook 1 minute. Add broth and simmer 10-15 minutes or until sauce has thikened. Transfer beef to a deep baking dish. Top with mashed potatoes.
-Bake for 30 minutes at 375F or until top is brown and heated through.

Meal Plan Monday!

In no particular order....


- Morrocan Chicken with Couscous
- Shephards Pie
- Key West Chicken
- Chicken Tortilla Chowder
- Pork Steaks

Chili Rubbed Tenderloin with Apricot Glaze

Delicious! There's not really much more to say. This tenderloin is packed with flavor and requires very little effort to make. If you dont like spicy food, then this probably isnt for you, or you could always adjust the heat level to suit you, but trust me it is delicious as is!






Chili Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Apricot Glaze
Adapted from Allrecipes

1lb pork tenderloin-trimmed of fat

Spice Rub:
1/2T chili powder
1/2T garlic powder
1/4T sugar
1/2t salt
1/2t black pepper

Glaze:
3/4C Apricot preserves
1/4C BBQ sauce- I used Sweet Baby Rays- Sweet Vidalia Onion
1/2t ginger powder
1/2t hot sauce- I used Tabasco
1 lime- Juiced

Directions:
-Place tenderloin in a ziploc bag. Mix all the Spice Rub ingredients together and rub into the meat. Refridgerate 2-24 hours.
-Pre-heat the oven to 350F. Bake tenderloin for 45 minutes. Remove and add the glaze, baking for 20 more minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 160F.

Toasted Orzo with Herbs

Im posting this today because I realized I havent really posted any side dishes. Im always on the search for sides, because I get so tired of the same ol' thing. For me, sides need to be fast and easy to throw together because I usually forget about them until the last minute. Oops! The ingredients for this are beyond simple, but the flavor is fantastic! I was a little suprised at how much I enjoyed this. My 10 month old devoured it too, bonus! I got the recipe from one of the wonderful ladies over on my Cooking For Your Family board, and changed it up a bit. Enjoy!






Toasted Orzo with Herbs

1C orzo
1 can low sodium chicken broth
1/2t dried rosemary leaves
1/2t dried thyme leaves

Directions:

In a saucepan toast orzo over med-high heat until golden brown. Add in chicken broth and seasonings. Reduce heat and simmer 10-15 minutes or until desired tenderness. Stir right before serving.

Lemony Marinated Chicken

This is such a simple dish I almost didnt post it. However, after eating dinner last night my husband told me that this chicken was perfect and I have to make it again. Ok, you should know I dont think my husband has ever said something food wise was perfect, unless he made it of course, so a huge compliment from him! The chicken has a light lemon flavor and was very moist.







Marinated Lemon Chicken

1lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 lemon
1/2c olive oil
1/3c white wine
1/2t kosher salt
1/2t pepper
1t minced garlic

Directions:

-Place chicken in a ziploc bag. Slice the lemon in half and squeeze juice over chicken, throw lemon in the bag too. Place remaining ingredients into the bag, close and refrigerate at least 2 hours.
-Cook over med-high heat in a nonstick skillet until done. Mine cooked about 5 minutes or so per side.

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

I have never made gumbo before but have always wanted to try. I finally decided it was time! I was not dissappointed! I couldnt find any one recipe that sounded right, so I combined a few and made my own. Most gumbos that I found had a few of the following, but I decided to leave out for taste preferences: okra, celery, carrots, and bell pepper. Because I have little ones I didnt add as much cayenne, but it would have been even better with a bit more! I will say now that it is time consuming and you will be standing over the stove quite a bit, but the end result is worth it. Enjoy!











Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 lb smoked sausage- sliced
2 onions- diced
1T minced garlic
1/2c vegetable oil
2/3c flour
1.5T parsley
1t dried thyme
8c water
1/8t cayenne
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

-Start out by filling a large pot with water. Add salt, and the diced onion. Bring to a boil and add chicken. Cook until chicken is done. Once done, remove from pan and shred. Reserve the water and onions!!!
-While the chicken is cooking, in another pan brown sliced sausage, drain and set aside.
-In a large pot heat vegetable oil, once it's hot add flour and stir constantly. This is the roux. The darker the roux the more flavor you will get. Mine was a peanut butter color and took about 10 minutes to get.
- Once you get the desired color, add the cooked sausage, garlic and parsley. Next stir in 8 cups of your reserved water and onion mix. If you dont have enough just add water from the tap. Add shredded chicken.
-Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.
-Serve over hot rice!

Meal Plan Monday

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I have been feeling so lazy since getting back from vacation that I have slacked on cooking, and im ashamed to say...we have eaten out a lot! Anyways, im back and cant wait to try out some new recipes!!






Monday- Guiltless Chicken Alfredo, Garlic Knots, and Broccoli

Tuesday- Southwest Egg Rolls with Spanish Rice

Wednesday- Sweet Broiled Salmon with fresh veggies

Thursday- Haitian Chicken with Quinoa

Friday- Leftovers

Crepes

If you've never had crepes you should try them. The are thin, slightly sweet, and you can fill them with numerous things. I like mine simple with powdered sugar sprinkled on top.



The picture didnt turn out great, but the crepes did!





Crepes

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1c unbleached all purpose flour
3/4c milk
1/2c water
1t vanilla

Directions:

Mix all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir until well blended. Spray a small saute pan with pam. Pour in about 2T of batter and swirl to cover the bottom of the pan. Cook for 1 minute, flip and continue to cook for another 30 seconds or until it just starts turning a golden brown. Remove to a plate a cook remaining batter.

You can spread your favorite jam, honey, apple butter, fruit, or powdered sugar then roll into a cigar and Enjoy!

Chicken Tortellini

Let me start this post by saying that I am a huge fan of Baby Led Weaning. What is that you ask? Well, once a baby turns 6 months old you go straight to giving them finger foods. No yucky mush in a jar! I really wish I had heard about this with my daughter, I think she wouldnt be as picky as she is now. My son started out with fresh fruits and veggies cut into sticks, then into cubes. He now eats pretty much whatever we are eating. I love it, my husband loves it, and most of all my little man loves it! That being said, I am always looking for recipes that are more baby friendly. This definitely qualifies! Its simple and delicious!






Chicken Tortellini Soup

Ingredients:
2T olive oil
1 small onion-chopped
1 clove garlic-minced
2C cooked chicken- shredded
4C low sodium chicken stock
1C milk
1C cream of chicken soup
1/2t oregeno
2T grated parmesan
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/2C frozen chopped spinach
1 bag cheese filled tortellini

Directions:
Heat olive oil in a large soup pot. Add onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Add chicken stock, milk, cream of chicken, chicken, oregeno, parmesan, salt and pepper. Cook for about 10minutes. Add tortellini and spinach, cooking 10 minutes longer or until tortellini is heated through.