What's For Dinner

Chicken Salad Sandwiches
Cook chicken breasts and finely chop them up when they are cooled.
Add in mayo, chopped golden raisins, fresh tarragon, sliced almonds, s&p, and a dash of curry. Serve on small, light rolls (today I served this to friends and made the mistake of getting thick rolls and it was too much bread for the salad) with lettuce. Light, cool and yummy!

Nacho Dinner
This is one of my alltime favorites and easy go-to meals. Place tortilla chips on a cookie sheet, drop spoonfuls of refried beans on them, scatter either cooked ground beef or chicken with taco seasoning, corn, black beans, top with cheese and put under the broiler until the cheese is bubbly. Set up a little topping bar of sour cream, salsa, guacamole and some olives and let everyone make their own. It’s the best!!!

Roasted Chicken Soup
I woke up to rain (after 108 degrees last week, no wonder everyone is sick!!) so that calls for soup!.
I roasted 2 chicken breasts bone in, skin on, covered with olive oil, s&p, fresh thyme sprigs, fresh rosemary from my garden and some onions at 450 for ½ hour. I sautéed onions, carrots and some celery in my "magic pot" (dutch oven), deglazed with chicken stock, then added spices to taste with more stock, a little water, some frozen corn and of course the shredded roasted chicken. A little cooked egg noodles or cooked rice can be added for texture.
I will be serving this tonight with some hot crusty french bread!

Chicken Sweet Potato Hand Pies
I’m not going to lie to you – my family was not a big fan of these, but I loved them and my neighbors (who I took them to since my family wouldn’t eat them!) loved them too!
I used store bought pie cruse instead of puff pastry and I made them into little rectangle pies.
Get the full recipe here!
Super yummy, give them a try!

Mommy Girl’s Mack N Cheese
1 lb. elbow macaroni
1 quart milk
8 T. butter
½ c. flour
22 oz. sharp cheddar cheese (roughly 7 c. grated)
1 T. Dijon mustard
1 T. worcestershire sauce
S&P to taste

Cook macaroni according to the box directions in salted water, set aside. Heat milk over med. Heat (don’t boil). Melt butter in a pan, add flour and cook until nutty. Pour in hot milk and take off the heat. Wisk. Add almost all the cheese (save some for the top) and stir until melted. Add the mustard, worcestershire and S&P. Fold in the macaroni. Place into a large, buttered, glass baking dish and cover with remaining cheese. Bake at 375 for 30 min to get a nice crust on top. Enjoy!

Turkey Cutlets
This was the first time I bought them and it was a nice change!
I simply seasoned them with S&P and sage, browned then in a pan of olive oil and butter, and served them with rice pilaf and “orange French fries” aka sweet potato fries. Nothing fancy, just simple and good.

Gemelli Alfredo with Prosciutto and Peas
I promise you – this recipe is super easy and amazing! You will love it!
1 lb. gemelli
4 oz. thinly sliced prosciutto, roughly chopped (I actually use the cubed pancetta found at Trader Joe’s)
1 T. olive oil
1 ½ c. heave cream
6 T. unsalted butter (sorry, I always use salted and add less salt later)
1 c. freshly grated Parmesan
1 c. frozen peas
2 T. chopped fresh parsley leaves
A pinch of nutmeg

Boil pasta in generously salted water as directed. I always place my frozen peas in the colander, then when I drain the pasta, it thaws the peas instantly!
In a skillet, sauté the prosciutto (or pancetta) with a little olive oil until crispy, set aside.
Return cooked pasta to pot and all remaining ingredients except the prosciutto (or pancetta). Cook over low heat, stirring until butter is completely melted and pasta is coated. Serve immediately with the prosciutto sprinkled on top.