turkey sausage & quinoa stuffed peppers

seems this random grain quinoa popped up out of nowhere. i've been playing around with it for months knowing its' healthy reputation, however, found it to be extremely bitter on its own. i knew it needed some flavorful cast members.
for those that aren't familiar, quinoa is a grain usually being substituted for rice in various dishes.

turkey sausage & quinoa stuffed peppers
1 lb turkey sausage
3/4 c cooked quinoa
2 tbl olive oil
1/4 c red pepper, minced
1 zucchini, minced
1 tbl tomato paste
3 green peppers sliced in half and de-seeded

1. cook quinoa according to package using chicken broth in instead of water. set aside and cool.
2. saute red pepper and zucchini in olive oil over medium heat for 5 minutes. add salt & pepper to taste. set aside and cool.
3. combine turkey sausage, quinoa, vegetables and tomato paste in a bowl.
4. place halved green peppers in a casserole dish and stuff with turkey sausage mixture. cover pan with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 65 minutes.

baked cinnamon apple french toast

i'm hoping you're as behind as i am and have yet to plan your menu for christmas morning brunch?
this recipe looks beautiful and presents as a whole lotta work. you'll be thankful to know that the most time consuming part is peeling the apples. it's a breeze to whip together and guarantees a sweet treat everyone will love.

baked cinnamon apple french toast
18 pieces of french bread, sliced in 1 in. slices
1 c milk
6 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbl sugar

cinnamon apple topping
5 apples, cored, thinly sliced and peeled
1 c lite karo syrup
1 c brown sugar
1 tbl cinnamon

1. arrange bread slices in a 9 x 13 baking dish overlapping slices.
2. whisk together milk, eggs, 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tbl sugar. pour over french bread. cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
3. prepare cinnamon apple topping by combining all ingredients in a saucepan. bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes allowing liquid to thicken. cool and refrigerate overnight.
4. preheat oven to 350 degrees. pour cinnamon apple topping over french bread and bake uncovered for 45 minutes.

ham & cheddar brunch eggs

if you don't think that brunch is hands down the best meal of the day then i'm sorry but we can't be friends. coffee AND eggs AND bloody marys? it's definitely exceptable to slurp down vodka and a beer chaser at 11 a.m. or even 10:30 a.m., but not 7 a.m.? hmmmmmm... i never thought about that but kinda weird. i digress. easter is a couple weeks away. i thought i'd share a staple at all of my family easter gatherings.

ham & cheddar brunch eggs
1 box of seasoned croutons (6 oz)
1 1/2 c sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
9 eggs
2 1/2 c milk
1 tsp worcestershire sauce (betcha you didn't know how to spell that until now)
1 tsp dry mustard powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 lb ham steak, cubed

1. preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. whisk eggs, worcestershire, mustard, salt, pepper & milk together until well combined.
3. pour croutons in a 9 x 11 casserole dish. top with cheese & ham.
4. pour egg mixture over the top and bake for 60 minutes or until eggs aren't wiggly in the middle.

if i could eat one meal before i died...

it would be this. i know you're confused because i said my favorite recipe "ever" was the chicken lasagne. but this, my friends, is my favorite thing to eat ever. i'm actually embarrassed to admit that as this is a down right cream of- casserole, and by no means is it healthy. my mom always made this. in fact, she would always bring a casserole dish of this to my apartment in college. well, it was my sister's birthday yesterday and i asked her what she wanted me to make... crunchy bake it was.
this recipe reminds me of ken, who always raided our fridge in the wee hours of the night in our college day. there is one foggy memory that my old roommates remind me of time and time again. unbenounced to me, ken ate all of my leftover crunchy bake one night. apparently i was pretty upset about it. rightfully so.

crunchy bake casserole

1 15 oz. can chopped tomatoes
2 c uncooked macaroni
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 c shredded cheddar cheese
1 lb ground beef
1 small can durkees french fried onions

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. cook noodles. brown ground beef.
3. add all ingredients to a casserole dish except for french fried onions.
4. bake covered for 25 minutes. add french fried onions on top and bake for an additional 5 minutes.
5. eat all of it.

Pin It

my favorite recipe evah

one of my favorite cook books...pasta cooking by jeni wright. i found this recipe and thought i'd give it a shot. i've made it a million times since. this is my version of chicken lasagne. it sounds scary- it has carrots, but it's delectable. and folks, there's bacon in it... now i got your attention! when i cut the bacon i use just the lean part (not the fat). your call obviously. i cook my own chicken, but feel free to shred rotisserie chicken.
on another note, did you know the average american consumes more than 17.9 pounds of bacon per year? yikes.

chicken lasagne

2 tbl olive oil
4 bone-in chicken breasts (cooked in oven for 60 min at 375 degrees, cooled and shredded)
8 oz bacon, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 large onion, chopped
4 carrots, chopped
3 tbl tomato paste
1 3/4 c chicken stock
12 sheets lasagne, cooked

for cheese sauce:
4 tbl butter
4 tbl flour
2 1/2 c milk
1 c sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 tsp mustard powder
salt and black pepper

1. heat olive oil in large stock pot. brown bacon. add garlic, onions and carrots. cook for 5 minutes or until softened. add tomato paste, stock and seasoning (salt and black pepper). bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 30 min. add chicken for last 10 minutes.
2. on to the sauce... melt butter in saucepan, add flour and gradually blend in the milk, stirring until smooth. bring to a boil, stirring constantly until thickened, and simmer for several minutes. add half of the cheddar cheese and mustard. season to taste.
3. layer the following in casserole dish with chicken mixture, lasagne noodles, cheese sauce (save some for top) repeatedly ending with chicken mixture.
4. pour the cheese sauce over the top and sprinkle remaining cheddar. bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 1 hour or until lightly browned on top.

 

adapted from jeni wright