Quote Friday

Take care of your family.

There is no better return on your investment.

Your love for them will make the bad times less painful and the good times more joyous.

Quote Friday

Find a purpose in life so big it will challenge every capacity to be at your best.

- David O. Mckay

Quote Friday

Pain nourishes courage.

You can't be brave if you've only had wonderful things happen to you.

- Mary Tyler Moore

Quotes

Another round up of my favorite quotes lately!

Our church just had it's general conference where we get to hear from the prophet and our leaders and it's always a treat to hear their words and lots of these are from that.

Baked Ravioli

On Sunday's I like to make recipes that I am familiar with that do not take a lot of time because when we get home from church I am usually starving!

I decided to make this one week and this could forever be my new "go to" sunday recipe!

I love that it is super quick, i throw it together, get it in the oven, go upstairs to change, and then a bit later it is all done!

That is a winner of a recipe!

To make it you will need: 

1 bag (25 Oz. Bag) Frozen Ravioli

1 jar (26 Oz. Jar) Marinara Sauce

2 cups Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Parmesan Cheese, For Sprinkling

What you do:

Heat oven to 400°F.

 Spray bottom and sides of a 9×13 rectangular baking dish with cooking spray.

Spread 3/4 cup of the pasta sauce in baking dish.

Arrange half of the frozen ravioli in a single layer over the sauce;

top with half of the remaining pasta sauce and half of the mozzarella cheese.

Repeat layers once, starting with ravioli.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove foil; bake uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes longer or until bubbly and hot in the center.

Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

Source: http://tastykitchen.com

Cilantro Lime Chicken Tacos

Cilantro Lime Chicken Tacos

I made fresh tortillas for this recipe myself, you can find that 

recipe here.

For these tacos you make up a cilantro lime pesto and put 

the chicken inside that. 

You really can add anything you like to these, 

they turn out great no matter what. 

To make you will need: 

cooking spray for sauteeing

2-3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in bite sized pieces
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup cilantro lime pesto (recipe follows)
flour or corn tortillas
preferred taco garnishes (salsa, sour cream, cheese, etc)

How to:

Season chicken with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

 In a skillet sprayed with cooking spray, saute chicken over medium high heat and cooked through. 

Toss cooked, seasoned chicken with the pesto. 

Fill tortillas with chicken and top with preferred garnishes.

Cilantro Lime Pesto

 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves (do not include stems)

2 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons sliced, toasted almonds
3 tablespoons chopped, fresh garlic
1 1/2 teaspoon lime juice
1/2 cup shredded asiago (Parmesan or Romano can be substituted too)
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup chicken broth


Using a blender or food processor,

 mix together the cilantro, olive oil, almonds, garlic, lime juice, asiago, salt and chicken broth on low speed for 2 minutes

Finished wonderful product!

Source: http://joelens.blogspot.com

Flour Tortillas

I've been wanting to make flour tortillas myself for a while now, and I finally did it!

I used them for cilantro lime chicken tacos, recipe here.

They turned out just like my grandmother used to make them, and all you do is add water to this mix.

It is SO easy!

Here is the mix you need, I found it at Walmart.

Then you just add water to the amount you need and create little dough balls.

Then roll each one out, 

make sure you put flour on the surface your working on and also the rolling pin,

and roll, roll, roll!

Place then on a medium-high griddle and cook until each side just barely browns.

I then place mine in a tortilla warmer until right before we eat them!

Quote Friday

The minute you begin to do what you really want to do, its really a different kind of life.

Banana Split Bites

I had a girls night and thought these would be the perfect little treats to make.

They were so simple, but so tasty.

Perfect for when I'm craving a banana split, but don't want to eat all those calories!

You will need:

strawberries

bananas

pineapple

toothpicks

chocolate, {i used dove chocolate squares}

To Make:

You can either put the chocolate in a double boiler and put it on the stove and stir until it melts, or you can just put it in the microwave until just melted and then stir.

Cut up all the fruit, slide a toothpick in the middle of the fruit, and then dip one side into chocolate.

Set on wax paper to cool and wa-lah! you've made a delicious treat!

orange cloud pancakes

Orange Cloud Pancakes

I have usually strayed away from recipes that say "stiff egg whites", but I forgot to read through the recipe fully and it was TOO late by the time I realized, and let me say that I was glad that I made them.
I see now why they are called "orange cloud", when you add in the stiff egg whites, and gently stir, it is like a cloud consistency was put into them and they are DIVINE!
Try them yourself!

You will need:

Ingredients

3/4 cup cottage cheese
3 eggs, separated
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Pinch cinnamon
Pinch nutmeg, grated
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon orange zest or 1/8 teaspoon orange oil
 (or as desired, to taste)

1. Combine the cottage cheese, egg yolks, melted butter, orange juice, vanilla and almond extracts, and process ( in food processor) until smooth, about 30 seconds.

2. Stop the processor and add the cinnamon, nutmeg, flour, sugar, salt and orange zest.  Process again until smooth and transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

3. Meanwhile, in the bowl of your standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites until stiff but not dry.

4. Very carefully (and using a rubber spatula), add one large scoop of the egg whites to the pancake batter, and lightly fold them into the batter until smooth.

5. Gently fold the remaining egg whites into the batter until incorporated.

6. With a lightly buttered or sprayed nonstick pan or griddle on medium heat, scoop about 1/3 cup of the batter onto the pan and cook on each side until lightly golden, about 1-2 minutes each side.  
Serve immediately.
Enjoy your heavenly creation!

Source: http://www.thecurvycarrot.com

pasta all'amatriciana

Pasta All'Amatriciana

This was a classic, great italian recipe. 
I finally found pancetta at my grocery store, it was in the deli in front of the counter, and I added the minimal amount of red pepper because I don't like things too spicy.
But overall, it was really yummy with a side of crusty bread!

You will need:  1 1/2 pounds tomatoes (or two 14 oz. cans)

1/4 cup diced pancetta 

3 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil

1 garlic clove, sliced
1/2 to 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 cup dry white wine

salt

1 pound spaghetti or other pasta

freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

freshly ground pepper 


To make:

Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. 
 Add diced pancetta , reduce heat to medium-low and cook until slightly crisped, about 5 minutes -
 stirring frequently.  
Remove meat from the pan and set aside.

Add crushed red pepper flakes and sliced garlic to the oil and cook, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes.  Add the white wine increasing the heat to medium and continue cooking until most of the wine has evaporated, about 3 minutes.

Add the canned tomatoes and meat, reducing heat to low and simmer, covered, until the sauce thickens, about 45 minutes.

Cook pasta according to the package directions.  
Drain when done and transfer to a large bowl.  
Add the sauce and toss to combine.  
Serve with freshly grated Parmesan Cheese, fresh pepper and a few sprinkles of parsley for garnish.



Source: http://livlifetoo.blogspot.com

Chicken with Sun dried Tomato Basil Sauce

Chicken with Sun Dried Tomato-Basil Sauce

I loved this recipe, it was SO tasty.
This recipe calls for pasta with the meal and I would recommend adding that in, I just made it without the pasta and it was delish! 

6 boneless, skinless chicken tenders, thawed
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Fresh ground pepper, to taste
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped (in package, NOT oil packed)
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 16 ounce package spaghetti, uncooked

To Make:
Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.  
Add chicken & grind fresh pepper on each side.

Cover & cook until done, about 5 minutes on each side.
 (When done, chicken will have NO pink on the inside.)  
Remove from heat and set aside, keeping covered.

In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. 
Add garlic, cooking 1-2 minutes, just until soft. 
 Add sun dried tomatoes; stir. 
With a whisk in hand, add flour & stir.  
Slowly pour in chicken broth, whisking constantly to remove any lumps.  
Add cream, still whisking.  
 Continue whisking for 3-4 minutes or until sauce begins to thicken.  
Take off heat and let sit; it will continue to thicken, feel free to stir every so often as you cook the spaghetti:
Cook spaghetti according to package directions.  It is done when it is soft, but still has a bite; al dente.

Add fresh basil to sun dried tomato sauce and give it a good stir.

Place spaghetti noodles on serving plates, placing chicken directly on top of noodles. 
 Spoon as much sauce as you would like over chicken & noodles.



Source: http://www.gabbiskitchen.com