Quick Chicken Quesadillas

Don't you just hate it when you're hungry and don't want to wolf down a whole bag of Pringles by yourself? I usually hit this stage around 6 pm when the Bean is attached to my leg, the house is a wreck, and TJ's no where to be found. So what's an industrious girl to do? Create a new recipe, of course! Check out this remarkably tasty concoction. . .

1 12.5 oz. can cooked chicken in water, drained
1/3 white onion, finely chopped (I use my mini chop food processor and do the onion and mushrooms together)
1 small can mushroom stems and pieces, chopped
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
1 flour tortilla
palmful of shredded cheese
olive oil

Put the drained chicken in a small nonstick skillet and break it up with a fork. Add the onion, mushrooms and poultry seasoning, then heat over medium until onions are cooked and translucent, stirring every now and then. Remove chicken mixture from the skillet and wipe the skillet down with a damp paper towel. Put a teensy bit of oil or melted butter in the bottom of the skillet and swirl it around. Put the tortilla in there, spread some chicken mixture over HALF of the tortilla, then top the chicken mixture with the cheese. Fold over the other half of the tortilla to make a half-moon shape, and cook on one side until golden brown. Flip, and cook on the other side until it's equally golden.

* This would be GREAT with leftover Thanksgiving turkey, shredded, and a little cranberry sauce on top. Fancy, fancy!

Sausage-Stuffed Mushrooms

What a great discovery! The grocery had some great-looking mushrooms on sale and buy one-get one free sausage, so I thought – what can I do with this? It’s a cross between TJ’s favorite game day sandwich and stuffed mushrooms, plus it’s Atkins-friendly at only 3 carbs per serving.

1 lb. hot bulk pork sausage (If you count carbs, check the carb count – some are made with sugar/fillers)
½ medium onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
5-6 white button mushrooms, chopped
2 T. mustard
1 egg, beaten
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
8 slices deli-style provolone cheese
4 Portobello mushroom caps

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a skillet, cook the sausage, onion, pepper and mushrooms together until the sausage is cooked through. Make sure to break up the sausage into small chunks as you cook it. Drain off the fat and mix in the mustard, egg and mozzarella. Place mushroom caps gill-side up in a glass baking dish and pile sausage mixture on top. Cover loosely with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil, top each mushroom with 2 slices of provolone and continue cooking 7-10 minutes until cheese is good and melty on top.

Parmesan-Puffed Tilapia

For someone who professed a dislike for fish, TJ sure fell in love with this tilapia recipe. It’s easy, quick, and really looks impressive! (Feel free to church it up even more and sprinkle some chopped parsley on top – whoo, fancy!) But don't be tempted to make this without the lemon juice - it adds a citrus "zip" that balances out the creamy parmesan sauce.

1 pkg. tilapia filets
1/2 c. mayonnaise
2 T. lemon juice, plus extra for garnish
½ tsp. dill
½ c. grated parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to broil. Thaw the tilapia, rinse in cold water, drain and place on a broil pan. Mix the mayo, cheese, lemon juice and dill and spread a little dollop on top of each fillet. Broil until the sauce puffs and turns golden brown. Squeeze a little fresh lemon juice over the top right before serving for a light, fresh finish.

Shrimp Alfredo

When we lived in Slidell, a neighbor had fresh-caught gulf shrimp for $3/lb. and we bought a TON! Of course, we had to pick out the grass and baby crabs ourselves, but that's an entirely different story. I had to call upon my inner Bubba Gump to figure out how to get rid of all that shrimp, and developed this kick-butt recipe for one of my favorite dishes - it's good, and super easy too.

1 to 1-1/2 c. heavy cream
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese
3/4 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 box fettuccine noodles
1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1T. olive oil
1/2 stick of butter or margarine
3/4 T. minced garlic
Good pinch of ground red pepper or cayenne

Boil the noodles until al-dente. While noodles are going, melt butter with the olive oil in a skillet or sauté pan. Add garlic and cook the garlic for a few minutes to infuse the flavor into the oils. Add shrimp and cook until pink and opaque (don't overcook or they'll get tough). Add cream, parmesan, mozzarella, and pepper. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly (should take 3-4 minutes or so) When noodles are done, drain and pour into a large low pasta bowl. Pour sauce over and serve with a salad and crusty bread.

Pinto Beans and Chile-Cheese Cornbread

Every so often, especially when good “football weather” hits, I feel an overwhelming urge for a big pot of pintos and cornbread. TJ makes the most fabulous chile-cheese cornbread, and I have to say the pintos aren’t half bad either! It’s easy to make even on weeknights if you plan ahead, and will leave 2 people with leftovers for at least a day or two.

Get out a sack of pinto beans and discard the ugly, broken ones. Pour the beans in a big bowl, cover with water, and let it sit overnight. Cut up a big onion and cut the meat off a ham hock. Put this in a bowl or zip bag to use in the morning.

In the morning before you go to work, drain the beans and pour them in the crock-pot. Add the onion, ham, and the following seasonings:
1T minced garlic
1-2 T. chili powder (use smoky-style flavor, if you can find it)
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano (optional)
Salt & pepper to taste

Add enough water to cover the beans (about 3 cups), turn the crock-pot on low, and leave for work. When you get home, the kitchen should smell awesome, beans will be ready, and all you need to do is mix up some chile-cheese cornbread and you’re done!

Chile-Cheese Cornbread
¼ c. solid shortening
Self-rising cornmeal
Milk
1 egg
Shredded cheddar cheese
Small tin of chopped jalapenos

Preheat the oven to 450. Put about ¼ cup of solid shortening (Crisco) in the bottom of an iron skillet and put it in the oven to heat. Follow the directions for regular cornbread (not buttermilk) on the back of the self-rising cornmeal box, and add 1 good handful of shredded cheddar cheese and ½ of a small tin of chopped jalapenos. Pour the batter in the hot skillet (the shortening should’ve melted, leaving a lovely pool of liquid in the bottom of the pan) and bake until the top is slightly browned. When it’s ready, put a dinner plate over the top of the skillet and turn it over – the cornbread should slide right out. Serve hot with lots of butter.

Pork Rind Salmon Patties

I was surprised that TJ liked these so much, but was relieved because they’re so easy. Try it with stewed squash and onions one night!

1 pouch Chicken of the Sea boneless, skinless pink salmon (get the pouch, not the can)
½ bag original flavor pork rinds
½ bag hot pork rinds
1 egg
1 tsp. dill
¾ c. mayonnaise

In a food processor, chop pork rinds until they resemble coarse breadcrumbs. In a bowl, mix all the ingredients to combine well. Shape into patties 2-2.5 inches wide and place on a nonstick baking sheet. Bake at 400 for about 20 minutes, until you start smelling fish in the air and the patties are slightly browned on top. They won’t be as crispy as fried salmon patties unless you make the patties really thin, but they’re just as good. Squeeze some fresh lemon juice over the top – yummy!