fruit salad

small carton whipping cream
sugar
fruit of choice {strawberries, bananas, peaches, pineapple, apple, kiwi, plum, pear, mandarin oranges, blueberries}

whip cream in a large bowl until stiff. add about 1/4-1/2 c. sugar {depending on how sweet you like it} fold in fruit until well coated with cream. chill and serve.

steak shish-ka-bobs

1-2 lbs. steak meat, cubed
yoshida's original teriyaki marinade
1-2 green bell peppers
1-2 yellow squash
cherry tomatoes
1 can pineapple chunks
bamboo skewers

place meat in a glass dish or tupperware. pour enough marinade over meat to cover. let sit 3-6 hours or overnight in fridge. soak bamboo skewers in water while prepping the rest of the ingredients when ready to cook, slice peppers and squash into large chunks. thread meat, squash, peppers, tomatoes and pineapple onto skewers. brush with additional sauce. grill for about 5-10 minutes until meat is cooked through.

outrageous chocolate chip cookies

these are pretty yummy and pretty outrageous.

1 c. butter
1 c. peanut butter {i used crunchy}
1 c. sugar
2/3 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
2 c. flour
1 c. oats
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. baking soda
1 12-oz. bag milk chocolate chips

mix butter, peanut butter, sugars, eggs and vanilla until creamy. add flour, oats, salt, baking soda and mix until well combined. add chocolate chips. drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. bake for 10-12 minutes* at 350 degrees.

*if you want a really soft cookie bake less

pizza dough rolls

1 loaf rhodes pizza dough, thawed and raised {takes about 4-5 hours}
2 TBS butter, melted
parmesan cheese

separate dough into small balls. roll into long strips and twist to look like a small cursive "L". brush with butter and sprinkle with cheese. bake for about 15-20 minutes at 350.

pasta w/zucchini, tomato and chicken

this recipe uses balsamic vinegar at the end, but i don't like that stuff...it's yucky. so i skipped it.

2 c. uncooked short pasta {penne, bowtie, whateve}
1 chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
2 roma tomatoes, chopped
1 smallish zucchini, sliced and then quartered
2 TBS olive oil
mozzarella cheese
balsamic vinegar

heat chicken and olive oil over medium heat, cook until chicken is done and golden brown. season with salt and pepper. meanwhile, cook your pasta. drain pasta and set aside. add zucchini and cover, cooking until zucchini is fork-tender. add tomatoes and cook until tender and juice has been released. add cooked pasta to pan, and toss to coat. sprinkle individual servings with mozzarella and balsamic vinegar.

zucchini bread

this recipe makes 2 loaves. i halved it and it was still good.

1 c. oil
2 c. sugar
3 eggs
2 c. shredded zucchini*
3 tsp vanilla
3 c. flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 c. chopped nuts {optional}

beat oil, sugar and eggs until fluffy. add zucchini and vanilla, beat well. add the remaining ingredients and beat until just combined. pour into a greased {and sugared} loaf pan and bake for 55 minutes at 350 degrees.

*my mom always shreds zucchini as she gets it out of her garden and then freezes it in ziploc bags by cup amounts. that way you don't have to make zucchini bread like crazy when your zucchinis get ripe.

guacamole

1 ripe avocado
salt
pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp lime juice
a couple spoonfuls of pico de gallo*

spoon avocado flesh into a bowl. mash with a fork until somewhat smooth. add salt, pepper, garlic and lime juice. stir in pico and serve with chips, or on tacos/quesadillas.
*i usually don't have pico and won't add just any salsa because it changes the flavor of the avocado. you don't want to cover the taste with salsa.

black bean, corn and shrimp salad

the name of this recipe is salad but i would call it more of a soup or sauce. i got it from cooking light but it definitely doesn't taste like it's lowfat even though it really is. it was really yummy with a cheese quesadilla and some guacamole and sour cream.

1-1 1/2 lbs. shrimp, peeled and deveined {i used already cooked}
1 TBS chili powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 c. frozen corn
1 15-oz. can black beans
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
2 TBS lime juice

coat a large frying pan with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. mix chili powder, cumin and garlic. toss shrimp to coat. cook in frying pan until pink. add 1 TBS lime juice, toss to coat. remove shrimp from pan and add corn, sauteeing for a couple minutes. add beans, cilantro and lime juice. cook until heated through. add shrimp back to pan and heat over low until ready to serve.

easy peasy fruit salad

this makes just a little bit and can be altered depending on how many people you are feeding.

1 banana
1 peach
6-8 strawberries
1/2 c. plain yogurt
2-4 TBS honey {depending on how sweet you like it}
1 TBS lime juice

slice fruit into bite size chunks. whisk yogurt honey and lime juice until it is smooth and the honey has dissolved. pour over fruit and toss until fruit is well coated. chill until ready to serve.

sausage green pepper calzones

i had some leftover ricotta from the manicotti and a green bell pepper that was going to go bad, hence this new recipe.

1 lb. frozen pizza dough*
1-1 1/2 c. low fat ricotta cheese
1 c. mozzarella cheese
1/4 c. parmesan cheese
1 egg
salt
pepper
dash red pepper flakes
dash basil flakes
1/2 small onion, chopped
1/2 lb. HOT breakfast sausage
1 green bell pepper, chopped
favorite marinara sauce, for dipping

cook onion with sausage until sausage is cooked and browned. meanwhile, mix cheeses, egg, salt, pepper, red pepper and basil flakes, set aside. divide bread dough into 2-4 pieces {4 pieces makes 4 smaller calzones, 2 makes 2 large calzones}. roll dough pieces into large oval shapes. evenly divide sausage, bell pepper and cheese mixture between the dough ovals putting the filling on only half of the dough. fold dough over filling and seal edges by pinching and then folding up and pinching again. bake at 400 for 20-30 minutes until the crust is golden brown. dip in warm marinara sauce.

*you can find frozen pizza dough in the bread section {i buy rhodes in like a 3-pack} you can also use the dough for pizza or french bread. it takes like 4 hours to thaw.

cheese manicotti

1 pkg. manicotti noodles {large tube pasta}
2 c. low fat ricotta cheese
2 c. mozzarella cheese
1/4 c. parmesan cheese
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 TBS parsley flakes {i didn't have parsley so i used 1 TBS dried basil flakes}
1 large can spaghetti sauce

cook pasta according to package directions. lay on foil to cool. meanwhile mix ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, egg, salt, pepper and parsley. once noodles are cold fill with cheese mixture. place filled pasta in a baking dish. pour spaghetti sauce over the top, covering all the pasta. bake covered at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes. remove foil, sprinkle with a little more mozzarella or parmesan and bake until cheese is melted.

summer squash

2 crookneck yellow squash, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 TBS olive oil
salt
pepper

put sliced onion and squash into a medium size pan, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. cook over medium high heat until onions and squash are translucent in color and soft when poked with a fork {about 10-15 minutes}.

italian chicken

we had a salad mix that some friends of ours gave us when they were going out of town. it was a fancy lettuce mix with dried cranberries, sugared almonds and feta cheese. it also came with a really yummy white balsamic dressing. i wanted to have just the salad for dinner so i cooked up a chicken breast for us to cut up and put on top. super easy peasy. this would also be really great on the grill instead.

1 chicken breast
fat free italian dressing
1 tsp olive oil
salt
pepper

coat chicken breast in dressing and place in pan with olive oil. sprinkle liberally with pepper, not so liberally with salt on both sides. cook until opaque (about 5 minutes on each side). chop into bite size pieces and sprinkle over your favorite salad.

spinach salad

this is my favorite salad. probably because it has fruit in it. it's very easy, and there's no real method to the madness. this would be great with cubed grilled chicken or leftover turkey from thanksgiving.

3 parts baby spinach
1 part craisins
1 part mandarin oranges
1 part candied almonds*
kraft poppyseed dressing

*to make candied almonds just mix some sugar and chopped almonds {if you like more "candy" coating use more sugar} in a small fry pan over medium heat. stir constantly until the sugar starts to melt and stick to the almonds. you want the almonds to be a light to medium caramel color. remove from heat and cool.

baked beans

1 15-oz. can baked beans in tomato juice
1 can kidney beans (or any other type of beans)
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 TBS mustard
1/4 c. ketchup
2-4 TBS onion chopped
couple dashes Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper

mix together and bake in a casserole dish at 350 for 30-45 minutes.

corn bread (not sweet)

i know i already have a cornbread recipe on here, but this one is not sweet and is good for eating with chile (like the black bean and corn chile) or just slathering with butter and honey.

1 c. yellow cornmeal
1 c. flour
2-4 TBS sugar
1 c. milk
1/3 c. oil
1/2 tsp salt
4 tsp baking powder
1 egg

mix all ingredients and pour into a greased 8 in. square pan or into a greased muffin tin (makes about 6-9 muffins) bake at 425 for 20 minutes.

black bean chile

this recipe is excellent without meat, but i think it would be also really good with shredded chicken

2 15-oz. cans black beans (drained and rinsed)
1 10-oz. bag frozen corn
2 cans chopped tomatoes (don't drain)
2 TBS olive oil
1 medium onion chopped
4 cloves garlic
2 tsp cumin
1 can chopped green chile
2 cups chicken stock
3/4 tsp salt

in a large pot heat oil and cook onions over medium heat until onions are soft. add garlic and cumin and cook until fragrant (about 2 minutes more). to the pan add the beans, tomatoes in their juice, chile, chicken stock and salt. bring mixture to a boil and reduce heat and simmer until soup is thickened (about 20 minutes). pour 2 cups of soup mixture into the blender and puree until smooth. add back into soup with corn and simmer until heated through (about 5 minutes). serve hot with a little grated cheese, fresh chopped cilantro and a dollop of sour cream.

macaroni and cheese

i know i know, who makes macaroni homemade? well i have always loved the homemade stuff {it tastes so much better than kraft} but been too afraid to try it. making a sauce with melted cheddar cheese seemed kind of daunting to me for some reason. we really enjoyed it.

1/2 lb. elbow macaroni cooked
1/2 small onion chopped
2 TBS butter
2 TBS flour
2 c. milk
a couple dashes of cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
2 c. cheese {you're supposed to use 1/2 yellow and 1/2 white cheddar, but i used 1 1/2 c. taco blend b/c it was all i had and 1/2 c. parmesan}
1/2 c. bread crumbs

melt the butter in a large saucepan. add onion and cook 4-5 minutes until onion is soft and translucent. add flour and wisk, cook for a couple minutes to cook flour. add milk in a slow steady stream while stirring make sure there are no lumps. cook until a boil {sauce will be thickened} add 1 1/2 cups of cheese and stir until cheese is melted. toss in cooked pasta. pour into a 9x13 casserole dish. mix remaining 1/2 cup cheese with bread crumbs and sprinkle over pasta. bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until crumb topping is browned and pasta sauce is bubbling.