Cornmeal crusted chicken

I found a recipe in my TOH Dinner on a Dime Cookbook called "Oven-Fried Chicken" which mixes cornmeal and breadcrumbs (along with several other ingredients).  Well it called for tarragon and ground ginger, both of which I did not have on hand.  So I substituted some other spices and recreated this dish to fit our needs/taste/budget. 

This is what it ended up looking like!  Brian gave it 3 1/2 stars because he didn't like the extra crunch of the cornmeal.  I, however LOVE crunch so I loved the cornmeal!!  I gave this 4 stars!  Brian also wishes I had more of one of my spices but we can't figure out which one he liked the best.  : )

1/2 C cornmeal

1/2 c dry bread crumbs

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp Italian Seasoning

1/2 tsp garlic powder

salt and pepper (to taste...I don't measure this ever!)

Combine above ingredients and put in a shallow bowl.

In another bowl combine 3 egg whites and 2 tbsp skim milk.

In a third bowl put 1/2 c flour (I used whole wheat).

Coat chicken (I used chicken breast tenders) in flour.  Then dip in egg white mixture.  Finally roll in cornmeal breadcrumb mix. 

Place on a cookie sheet coated with cooking spray.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes (or until cooked through), turning once.

Not a WW recipe: Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I'm sure CAKE COOKIES is not a new recipe to most people.  I've made them twice in the last couple of weeks and let me tell you why these are one of my new favorite, go-to recipes...
1.  You use any flavor of cake mix as the base (we always have something on hand)
2.  You can add anything you have in the house to these!

The first time I made this I used a yellow cake mix with chocolate chips.  This last time I used devil's food cake mix with german chocolate squares that I chopped up into "chunks."  I would really like to do a devil's food cake with chopped maraschino cherries and chocolate chips (and maybe walnuts!), but I'd be the only one in the house who ate these and I'd eat the entire batch myself. 

Of course we ate all of these before I even thought to take a picture so the photo is courtesy of http://gimmesomeoven.com/chocolate-chocolate-chip-cookies-double-chocolate-chip-cookies/
as it looks just like the ones I made.  (THAT IS NOT THE RECIPE THOUGH).

I lightened up this recipe by using applesauce in it too...

1 box cake mix (any kind/flavor)
2 eggs
1/4 c vegetable oil
1/4 c unsweetened applesauce
1 c any add in (choc chips, chopped chocolate, nuts, etc)

Mix all ingredients together and drop by rounded tablespoon on to a lightly greased cookie sheet.  Bake 375 degrees for 8-9 minutes.  (I find 9 is best).  Let cool on cookie sheet for 1-2 minutes.  Then transfer to cookie sheet to finish cooling.  Good luck not finishing these off right away!  : )  Let me know what kinds of cake mix/add in you make!!

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs

Yum, Yum, Yum!!  I found this recipe on Becoming Betty, but it was originonally a Rachel Ray recipe.  http://becomingbetty.blogspot.com/2010/03/pepperoni-pizza-puffs.html

These were ridiculously easy to make and delicious!!  Double the recipe though!

3/4 cup flour

3/4 tsp. baking powder

3/4 cup whole milk (I used 2%)

1 egg

1 cup shredded mozzarella

1 cup diced up pepperoni

pizza sauce for dipping

fresh basil, finely chopped

Whisk together the flour and baking powder. Then whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in mozzarella and pepperoni. Let sit for 10 minutes. Stir again and then divide batter into a greased mini-muffin pan (24 muffins). Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes until golden. Heat up pizza sauce and add 1 Tbs. basil to it and stir. Sprinkle puffs with basil. Dip and eat!

Fairly Healthy Fruit Pie

I got this recipe out of the Family Circle Magazine.  It's called Millie's August Pie.  http://www.familycircle.com/recipes/comfortfood/reader-recipes/?page=1  It looked yummy, summery and I couldn't wait to bring it to book club.  I really enjoyed it!  It isn't a "typical" pie in my opinion, but I thought it was fairly healthy and even had a piece (or two!) for breakfast.  : )
Above is a picture of a cut piece of the pie, minus the edge crust because I sort of ate it off.  : )  The recipe says to use peaches and raspberries.  I used blackberries as well, but any other fruit really would work fine.  Also, I put all the peaches at the bottom and layered the berries on top.  Next time I would mix all the fruit together so it wasn't separated and maybe the pie itself would look "prettier."
1⁄2 package of 15 ounces of refrigerated rolled piecrusts
2 cups sliced peaches
2 cups Raspberries
1 cup Half and Half  (I used fat free)
1 Egg
1⁄4 cup Flour
2⁄3 cup Sugar (next time I'd use 1/2 sugar / 1/2 splenda)
1⁄2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1⁄4 teaspoon Salt 

Heat oven to 400'

Fit piecrust into a 9" pie dish. Place fruit in pie crust and spread evenly.
In small bowl,combine hak and half,egg,sugar,flour,cinnamon and salt;stir till well blended. Pour over fruit.
Place pie in oven and bake for 50 mins or till center is set. Cool completely on wire rack before serving.

Skinny Minnie Chickie Enchilada Casserole....not really

I found this recipe on the message boards of 30 Day Gourmet Freezer Cooking Website.  The name was catchy and there were not a lot ingredients needed to make this recipe.  Even better, it was a crockpot recipe so I was anxious to try this. 

Unfortunately Brian's first reaction to is was, "Is it supposed to be that color?"  Not a good sign!  I knew he would never eat this.  But as a trooper, he tried it and said that he didn't have to chew it, as there was no texture.  Obviously he gave it 1star. 

I however, did not enjoy this as a "casserole" but if you've ever had buffalo chicken dip...this is just like it and WAY easier to make.  So I happily ate this with tortilla chips.  It would also be good eaten with celery stalks.  As a casserole, I gave it 2 stars, as an appetizer eaten with tortilla chips, I gave it a 4.

Here is this super easy recipe:
2 - 10oz. cans mild enchilada sauce
2 - 10 oz. cans chicken breasts in water, drained
1 c. fat-free sour cream
1 - 8 oz. pkg. fat-free shredded Cheddar cheese
1 - 11 oz. pkg fat-free flour tortillas
Spray crockpot with nonstick cooking spray. In a large bowl, mix the sauce, chicken, and sour cream together until all of the chunks of chicken are shredded and the sauce is well blended. Place 1/4 of each of the following layers in the crockpot: sauce, cheese, and tortillas. Some of the tortillas will have to be torn to fill in the gaps between the whole tortillas and the edge of the crockpot. End with the sauce on top. Cover and cook on low for 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

Parsley Parmesan Chicken Tenders

YUM!  This chicken recipe is good!  All four of us liked this one!

1/4 c Italian Salad Dressing (I used reduced fat)
2 lb fresh fryer parts (I used 10 chicken breast tenders)
1/2 c grated parmesan cheese
1/3 c dry bread crumbs
2 tbsp parsley flakes
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Pour salad dressing into a bowl and add the chicken, coating well.  Cover and chill about 4 hours or overnight.  Turn the chicken in the dressing occassionally. (I did this in a ziplock bag and it made the turning/mixing AND cleanup really easy!)

Combine the parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, parsley, paprika, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl (or another ziplock bag as I did).  Roll chicken in the crumbs then place on a greased cookie sheet.  Spoon the excess dressing over the chicken.  (I cut a tiny hole in the corner of the bag and drizzled a little on each piece).  Bake 350 degrees for 1 hour (if using fryer parts) or until chicken is cooked through. (I cooked mine for about 25 min).

I got this recipe from 30 Day Gourmet Cookbook.

Another yummy shredded beef

Brian and I tried a recipe from the 30 Day Gourmet Cookbook tonight called Crock-Pot Beef Sandwiches.  It was super easy and very yummy!!  No picture this time...we started eating it too quickly.  : )  Needless to say we gave it 4 1/2 stars. 

2 1/2 lbs beef roast, chuck roast or thick chuck steak (fat trimmed and discarded)

2 packets of ranch salad dressing mix

1 c water

Hamburger buns or french bread (strongly suggest the french bread, or at least toast the buns so they aren't so soggy)

In a cold crockpot place the beef roast.  Mix the salad dressing packets and water, then pour over the roast.  Cover and cook on low 8-10+ hours or until fork tender (or on high for 6 hours).  Shred roast with a fork.  We put it in a bowl and poured the "juice" over it so it stayed moist.   Mmmm.....