Lemon Cream Pasta with Chicken

Ingredients

• 2 lbs shredded or cubed cooked chicken
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 9 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 1/2 (16 ounce) packages tube pasta 
• 3 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
• 
  
• Freezer Meal Instructions:

1. In a large saucepan, heat 9 cups of chicken broth. (OPTIONAL: season broth with a little garlic powder and pepper). 

2. Bring to a boil and add lemon juice and pasta. 

3. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes.  Watch carefully the last 10 minutes so it does not stick to the bottom of the pan.

4. Add thawed chicken and cream sauce and cook, stirring, over low heat for 5 minutes (or long enough to heat the sauce and melt the Parmesan cheese.) 
5. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes.  Stir thoroughly before serving.

March Plan--Oriental Pork Ribs

Hello!

I hope you are ok with a repeat again.  I am going to prepare the Oriental Pork SpareRibs that I did last April.  If anyone wants an adaptation to the recipe, please speak up now.

Lasagna

Lasagna

1 lb lean ground beef OR

        ½ lean ground beef and ½ of Italian sausage

1 cup chopped onion

1 can Italian diced tomatoes

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 8oz cans of tomato sauce (or more if you like your sauce saucy J)

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons basil

1 cup Ricotta cheese

1 cup cottage cheese

¼ cup shredded fresh Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

½ teaspoon oregano

4 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese

½ cup shredded fresh Parmesan cheese

8-12 Lasagna noodles uncooked

Brown beef (and sausage) with onion.

Add tomatoes, garlic, tomato sauce, 1 Tablespoon parsley, sugar, salt, and basil.

Heat to boiling. Reduce heat simmer for 1 hour.

Mix Ricotta, cottage cheese, ¼ cup Parmesan, 1 tsp parsley, and 1 tsp oregano. 

Reserve ½ cup to 1 cup of meat sauce for the top. I

n ungreased foil baking pan, make 2 to 3 layers each of sauce, uncooked noodles , mozzarella cheese mixture. 

Spread reserved sauce over top. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Cover with extra heavy foil. Label and freeze. Aprx. 12 serving.

Serve with Bread Sticks and salad.   

 JEANS BREAD STICKS                  

1 ½ cups warm water            ½ tsp salt
2 Tbl sugar                            1 cube butter
1 Tbl yeast                            Garlic salt
3 to 4 cups bread flour          Grated Parmesan cheese

Dissolve yeast in water and sugar.  Add flour and salt.  Mix and knead 5 to 6 minutes.  Let rest 10 minutes.  Break off into golf ball size balls and roll into bread sticks.  Put in deep cookie sheet.  Melt butter and spoon over each bread stick.  Lift each bread stick to get butter under .  Sprinkle with garlic salt and Parmesan cheese (liberally).  Let rise 15 to 20 minutes.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

Hi All,
I was so sad about having to leave the group and thought of an alternate plan. I asked my friend Maren Nichols to share the meals with me. If this will work for you, and you wouldn't mind splitting my meals into two meals, like what we do for Kendra and Natalie, we would greatly appreciate it. Let me know if this is a problem for anyone.
This month Maren will do the meal and she has decided to make Lasagna, the recipe will come later.
Thanks Darla

Rosemary Chicken and Wild Rice

INGREDIENTS:
3 cups wild rice or a wild rice/brown rice mix
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed 
2 tablespoons dried rosemary 
2/3 cup orange marmalade
4 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Freezer Meal Instructions: Wild rice is cooked at a 3:1 ratio. So if you use all 3 cups of rice that I gave you, put in 9 cups of water (though I highly recommend cooking it in chicken broth if you have it!!) Cook rice for an hour (I've never cooked more than 2 cups of rice at a time, so 3 cups may take a little longer!)  Meanwhile, thaw and gently reheat the chicken.  Mix the chicken into the rice when the rice is cooked.

Cilantro-lime-peanut pesto w/ Linguini

(Adapted from a Martha Stewart Recipe)

Ingredients

•   2 bunches cilantro, 1/4 cup leaves reserved for serving
•   2 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
•   2 TBL fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
•   4 tablespoons canola oil
•    2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
•    1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
•    1 teaspoon grated lime zest plus 4 tablespoons fresh lime juice
•   1 TBL light-brown sugar
• 1 cup roasted peanuts, divided
•   3 to 4 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
•   24 ounces spaghetti or linguine, cooked according to package instructions

Directions

1. In a food processor, combine cilantro, garlic, ginger, vegetable and sesame oils, red-pepper flakes, lime zest and juice, brown sugar, and 1/4 cup peanuts. Pulse until a coarse paste forms. Season with soy sauce and pulse to combine. In a large bowl, toss pesto with pasta. Roughly chop remaining peanuts and sprinkle over pasta along with cilantro leaves.
   
   Frozen Meal instructions:  defrost pesto in refrigerator or on counter. Cook Linguine and toss pesto with hot pasta.  Sprinkle peanuts on top.
   

Side Dishes

We loved french bread and fruit salad with this!

Baked Ham and Egg Cups

12 eggs
1 1/4 c. shredded sharp cheddar
3/8 c. parmesan cheee
3/8 c. cottage cheese
5 oz frozen spinach, defrosted, squeezed of water and chopped
1 large red pepper, roasted and chopped
2 oz finely chopped canadian bacon
1/4 c. green onions
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
24 slices ham lunch meat

Preheat oven to 350.  Combine all ingredients except ham slices.  Place one slice of ham in each of 24 muffin tins.  Divide the egg mixture evenly between the ham "wells", about 1/4 c. each.  Fill them to the top, but try to keep the egg in the ham and not spilling out into the muffin tin.  Bake 15-20 minutes.  Egg will puff as it bakes and fall as it cools. 

FOR FREEZER MEAL:  The egg cups are already baked for 15 minutes.  Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.  Place in muffin tins and bake for 10 minutes at 350 to warm.  Or, if you want them to be a grab and go type thing, they can just be microwaved wrapped in a paper towel for 30-45 seconds. 

We ate these with toast and fruit for a breakfast for dinner.  Those who like spice wanted Tapatio or Tabasco on theirs, I didn't put it in them for those who don't like the kick.   They have LOTS of ingredients and my little ones were leery of them, but if you can just get them to TASTE it.....Mine all love them and keep asking me to make them over and over. 

Beef Taquitos

Kellie's plan is Beef Taquitos this month.  They just need to be placed on a cookie sheet and baked for apx. 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees.  Serve with lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream and your choice of side dish. 

Barbecue Pork Loin Chops

Pork loin chops (browned)
2 cans tomato soup
2 T brown sugar
2 T vinegar
Worcestershire sauce (2 tsp - optional)
Pour sauce over top of chops.  Can cook in crockpot a few hours on low, or bake for an hour at about 325.   I like them in the crockpot because they just fall apart and don't seem tough like pork chops sometimes do.