Green Enchilada Sauce

A lady from church makes her own Chili Verde sauce.  It is delicious, it is a bit spicy, and she usually cooks pork in it and serves it with a hefty portion of frijoles (beans). One day, I will have to have her show me this magic in the kitchen of hers, but for now, I am experimenting making my own 'green enchilada sauce' and chili verde.  I have looked up many recipes and tried my first one!   

Green Enchilada Sauce:
(recipe modified from Our Best Bites)

Ingredients:

• Olive oil for sauteing
• 1 large onion
• 5-6 cloves of garlic
• 2 green peppers
• 1-2 jalapeño peppers
• 1 1/2 lbs. tomatillos
• 1/2 bunch cilantro
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp. cumin
• 4 cups chicken broth

Directions:

1. Saute onion and garlic cloves in oil.
2. Blend together tomatillos, the peppers, and cilantro.
3. Pour the blended mixture over the onions and garlic.
4. Add in chicken broth and salt, pepper, and cumin.
5. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes up to an hour.  This will depend on the consistency you want.  The sauce will thicken the longer it cooks.

Notes:

• Vary your number of jalapeño peppers to make the sauce more or less spicy.
• This freezes well to be used later.
• Brown meat, pour sauce over meat, finish cooking meat. YUM!!!

See you in the kitchen!

Katie

Ranch Chicken & Pasta in a Slow-Cooker

Betty Crocker is sending me one Slow-Cooker recipe a day (for 29 recipes or so) to help warm up these cold winter months.  I gave the 'Slow-Cooker Bacon-Ranch Chicken and Pasta' a try.  It was easy and delicious! 

Ranch Chicken & Pasta in a Slow-Cooker:
(recipe modified from Betty Crocker)

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken breasts
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 package of dry ranch dressing and seasoning mix 
• 1 can of condensed cream of [chicken] soup
• 1 cup sour cream
• Pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup water
• 8 oz spaghetti, cooked

Directions:

1. Grease slow-cooker and place chicken breasts at the bottom.
2. Mix together remaining ingredients excluding the spaghetti.
3. Cook on low for ~6 hours or around 3-4 hours on high.
4. Shred chicken.
5. With fifteen minutes or so before serve time, cook spaghetti according to package directions, drain, and toss w/ chicken mixture.

Notes:

• Serve w/ bacon, green onions/cilantro, shredded cheese on top for garnish and extra flavor.
• Be careful w/ added salt.  This dish can get to be a bit too salty; can also adjust down the added powdered ranch dressing to 1/2 packet.

I don't have a picture of the final product as it was eaten up too quickly, but the below picture is the ingredients photo!

See you in the kitchen!

Katie

Crockpot Lasanga

It is just my husband and I at home.  However, this doesn't keep me from cooking for a family of eight.  Making meals for two is still quite the task for me; but cooking for eight gives us the added bonus of leftovers for DAYSSS.  Instead of eating leftovers for DAYSSS, I portion out single servings and freeze them so that they can be used for lunches over the next few weeks. I do this with soups, enchiladas, beans, etc. Also, I will now be doing this with lasagna.  

This was actually the first time I have ever made lasagna and it will now become a staple of our diets! So easy, so delicious, and so many ways to mix it up!  


Crockpot Lasagna:
(recipe modified from itsalwaysautumn)
(check the link for nice progression pictures)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 to 1 pound of ground meat (turkey, beef, chicken)
• ~36 ounces of spaghetti sauce
• 16 ounces cottage cheese
• 2-4 tablespoons of cream cheese (can be omitted, just makes it cheesier and creamier)
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (optional)
• 1 egg
• Italian seasoning/Spaghetti seasoning
• Lasagna noodles (uncooked)
• 8 ounces shredded cheese

Directions:

1. Brown the meat and then mix with spaghetti sauce.
2. Mix together (in separate bowl) the cottage cheese, cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, egg, and Italian seasoning.
3. Spray crockpot with nonstick spray and pour ~1/3 of meat sauce in the bottom of crockpot.
4. Break ~3 lasagna noodles to fit and lay on top of the meat sauce.
5. Spread ~1/2 of shredded cheese over noodles.
6. Then sprinkle about half of the cheese mixture on top.
7. Repeat -> more meat sauce, noodles, and the rest of the cheese mixture.
8. Top with breaking and laying more noodles on top.
9. Pour remaining sauce over last layer of noodles.
10. Cover crockpot and cook on low for 5-6 hours until noodles are tender.
11. About 20 minutes before serving, sprinkle remaining shredded cheese on top to melt into the lasagna.

Notes:

• No need to boil the noodles beforehand; just use the regular lasagna noodles and it will come out like a charm!
• Sometimes I add in ricotta cheese, no Parmesan, whatever combo. you like!
• So delicious! Enjoy!

See you in the kitchen!

Katie