Homemade Corn Dogs

See recipe here....

http://www.inthekitchenwithjenny.com/2018/01/homemade-corn-dogs.html 

Walking Tacos

Food in a bag is fun.  Our church makes walking tacos to sell at our church "tent" in late summer at a local event in a nearby town.  They don't use tomato sauce in theirs but I like it saucy so I added it to mine.  It helps everything blend together when you stir.  If you really want to ditch the clean up, use a plastic spoon or fork instead of a metal one you have to wash. 

Walking Tacos

1 pound ground beef

2/3 cup diced green peppers

2/3 cup diced onion

8 ounce can tomato sauce plus 1 can water

2-1/2 teaspoons taco seasoning

4 dashes cayenne pepper (more if you like it spicy!)

4- 1 ounce size bags of Fritos corn chips or Doritos Nacho Cheese chips

Toppings:

shredded Mexi-blend cheese, cheddar, or Chihuahua cheese

thinly sliced lettuce

sour cream

salsa

cheater's guacamole

Cook beef, green pepper, and onions until veggies are soft and the beef is cooked through. 

Add tomato sauce to pan then fill can with water and dump that into pan also.

Simmer for 20-25 minutes or until liquid is almost gone.  It still needs to a be a little saucy.

Time to start layering. For individual bags of chips* open them on their side with a pair of scissors.   They put so much air in bags anymore you will have plenty of room for your toppings.   If you are using Doritos you will want to give your chips a smash to break them up a little.

Sprinkle in some cheese.  I like to add cheese now so when I add the meat the heat will melt it!

 Next is the meat mixture.

 Lettuce. 

 Sour cream.

 More cheese.

 Salsa and guacamole if you feel like it.

Stick a fork or spoon in it, stir and enjoy!  

If you don't want to buy the bags you can layer all your yummies into a bowl.  Just as good, just not as fun!

*(The best I could find for a single size sack was larger (4 oz) without buying several bags together so I had to cut it in 1/3 and dump out some chips to make it equal an individual size.)

Cheesy Bacon and Ranch Chicken Pasta

Cheesy Bacon and Ranch Chicken Pasta

4 ounces pasta (I used gluten free penne)
8 ounces of bacon
1/2 Tablespoon olive oil
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 3/4-1" chunks
2 Tablespoons flour
1/2 T dry ranch mix
1-1/2 cups milk
4 ounces Velveeta or 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions.  Drain and keep a lid on pot until sauce is ready.

Meanwhile, cook bacon in large skillet until crisp.  Drain on paper towel, reserving 1 Tablespoon of the bacon grease in the pan.

Add chicken and cook until no longer pink.  (My chicken was a little frozen so it gave way to juices and didn't brown as nice as it would otherwise.)

 Sprinkle flour onto chicken and stir to coat.

Add milk, stirring as you go to keep lumps from forming.  I really like my flat whisk for this job!

Cook until thick and bubbly.

Stir in ranch seasoning.   Use more than 1/2 Tablespoon if you like.  

Add in cheese and bacon, stirring until cheese is melted. Stir in drained pasta and serve.

Spaghetti Meatballs

Please see new posting here:

http://www.inthekitchenwithjenny.com/2014/11/spaghetti-meatballs-with-gluten-free-options.html

Thank you!!

Philly Cheesesteak Pizza

I'm always looking for a change up in our pizza routine.   One of our favorite toppings lately has been sweet caramelized onions.  They add so much flavor! I made a "wit whiz" with a little variation on "Cheez Whiz" but  you could certainly use it instead.   

Philly Cheesesteak Pizza

1 small onion
1-1/2 Tablespoons olive oil
1-1/2 Tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
4 ounces Velveeta
4-6 ounces of Medium Roast beef from the deli, sliced thin and chunked
shredded mozzarella or Italian blend cheese
grilled pizza dough

Drizzle some olive oil in a non stick pan and add your onions.  Sprinkle a little salt on.  Cook slowly until nice and brown.  This is just the beginning color they start to get.  As you cook your onions you can a little broth or water to keep it from burning but continue the cooking and browning process.

While you onions are cooking make the cheese sauce.  Add olive oil to a saucepan and stir in the flour.  Cook for a little bit to remove raw flour taste.  Slowly pour in milk a little at a time.  Whisking to keep the lumps away. When it is thickened add Velveeta in hunks and stir until melted.  It may seem a little thin but it will thicken some as it cools. You could skip the homemade cheese sauce and use warmed up Cheez Whiz if you want it more authentic.

 Have your oven and pizza stone preheated to 450 degrees. Place pre-grilled pizza dough on the paddle or flat cookie sheet.

 Top with cheese sauce and chopped roast beef.

Sprinkle on the cheese, then the onions. 

Bake for 9-10 minutes until golden brown.

Roasted Pumpkin Chili

Pumpkin, pumpkin, what to do that changes it up a bit?  How about a chili? While I was at it I changed up the traditional beans from kidney to black.  My family liked this chili.  After trying his first bowl, my husband added a drop or two of honey to his next bowlful and gave it a stir.  I must say, it added a dash of sweetness that was a nice compliment.

Roasted Pumpkin Chili                                                                            Printable Recipe

2 pound (approximate) pumpkin for baking (usually says " for pies")
olive oil
salt
1 pound ground beef
2/3 - 3/4 cup diced onion
2/3 - 3/4 cup diced green pepper
15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained 
14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
8 ounce can tomato sauce
1 can water (use tomato sauce can)
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Halve your pumpkins, scoop out the seeds, peel using a vegetable peeler or a paring knife. Cut pumpkin flesh into 3/4 to 1 inch cubes. The pumpkin should yield about 4 cups. Place on baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat.  Arrange cubes into single layer. Sprinkle with salt.  Bake for 15 minutes, flip pieces, continue to bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until soft. 

In a large pot, cook onions, peppers, and ground beef until meat is done and veggies are tender. 

 Stir in beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, and spices. Simmer for 10 minutes. 

Stir in pumpkin chunks and cook for another 5 minutes until everything is heated through.

You can use canned pumpkin.  It will be a smoother, thicker chili so you may need more water to get it to a consistency you like. (Picture here shows canned pumpkin chili on left, roasted pumpkin chunk chili on the right.)

Grilled Chicken with Creamy Sun Dried Tomato and Basil Sauce

Grilled Chicken with Creamy Sun Dried Tomato and Basil Sauce 

1-1/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts
olive oil
salt/pepper

2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons diced shallots
2 Tablespoons flour
1/4 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes 
1/4 cup fresh basil, thinly sliced or 1 teaspoon basil paste (I used Gourmet Garden brand)
1-1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup half and half

4 ounces angel hair pasta (other pasta would work too)

Prep your shallots and sun dried tomatoes.  I started off with julienned sun dried tomatoes and chopped from there. If you are slicing fresh basil, prep it too.  I used the basil paste since that is what I had on hand at the time.

 Measure your half and half and chicken broth.

Drizzle the olive oil in pan, add shallots and saute for just a moment or two so as not to burn the shalllots. 

 Add the flour, cooking for a moment.

Add chicken broth and half and half mixture a little bit at a time.  Whisk along the way so as not to have lumps. When it has thickened stir in your tomatoes and basil.  Place a lid on top so it doesn't skin over while you cook the pasta and chicken.

Trim chicken breasts. I cut them so they are flatter and then cut off the tip so it cooks more evenly and doesn't dry out on the end. I chop up the extras for a meal on another night.

Place chicken in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Stir to coat. Grill chicken until no longer pink inside.

Cook pasta.  Angel hair cooks in 4-6 minutes so make sure you start them a little bit after your chicken. 

If timing is not your thing you can cook your chicken ahead and chunk it up, setting aside until your sauce and pasta are done.  Then throw it all in one big pot, stir, and serve family style! This is most likely how I will do mine next time.

Baked Spaghetti

Eating spaghetti this way is much easier than slurping up the noodles.  Lately we've been using the spaghetti squash from the garden in place of the pasta.  We love it! 

Baked Spaghetti                                                                                       Printable Recipe

8 ounce pkg spaghetti noodles* (I used GF)

1 pound ground beef

1 jar spaghetti sauce (or approximately 3 cups homemade marinara)

2 eggs

1/3 cup grated Parmesan

1/2 to 3/4 cup garlic cream sauce

1 to 2 cups shredded mozzzarella

Pizza Casserole

After I made this, my husband said it reminded him of a pasta dish a popular pizza place makes.  I hadn't thought of it but now that he had mentioned it, yes it does.  It was never one I ordered since the veggies were always still crunchy.  We like soft veggies.  If you like the add ins be sure to cook them first unless you like them crunchy. They also used assorted pasta. Mix and match as you like!

Pizza Casserole

8 ounce box of pasta (I used gluten-free elbow macaroni)
2 - 14 ounce jars pizza sauce (or 3 cups of homemade)
1 pound cooked ground beef
1/2  of a 7 ounce package pepperoni slices (use 2/3 cut in half for in the casserole and 1/3 cut into quarters on top)
2 cups shredded mozzarella (or Italian Blend Cheese)

Other options for stir ins:
mushrooms
green peppers
onions
sausage

Cook and drain pasta.  Mix together all of the ingredients except for the cheese and 1/3 of the pepperoni slices.

 Dump into 9 x 13 pan (you can grease if you want - I never seem to remember to.) If you want to freeze it, slide it into a bag, when ready to use, thaw, dump in dish and bake.

Sprinkle on mozzarella.  I made two dishes, one with and one without mushrooms.

Top with pepperoni slices.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until heated through and the pepperoni is nice and crispy on top.