Cheesy Turkey Lasagna

The first time I made lasagna I failed terribly. But I feel like I have now perfected the technique, and it is always better the next day. This is a pretty traditional recipe, but made with ground turkey instead of beef. We like it very cheesy.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground turkey
3 eggs
16 oz cottage cheese
15 oz part skim ricotta
4 oz shredded mozzarella
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 large sweet onion chopped
1 container sliced mushrooms
2  24oz jars spaghetti sauce
Worcestershire sauce, season salt, minced garlic, pepper to taste
Lasagna noodles uncooked (I use multi grain)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet season turkey with worcestershire sauce, season salt, garlic, and pepper and brown meat making sure it is cooked through. Turn heat to medium low and add in onion and mushrooms. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring from time to time.

Reduce heat to low and add in spaghetti sauce. My personal favorite is Classico Traditional Sweet Basil.

While that heats, in a large bowl mix eggs, cottage cheese, ricotta, Parmesan, and 2 oz of mozzarella.

Turn off the heat for your meat sauce mixture and spread 1/3 of the meat sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish. Next place noodles side by side on top of the meat sauce.

Spread half the cheese mixture on top of the noddles.

Then place another 1/3 of the meat sauce on top, continue to layer with noodles, and the remaining cheese mixture. Finally top with the last 1/3 of meat sauce. Cover with foil, place on a baking sheet (in case of drips) and bake for 50 minutes. Remove foil, and top with 2 oz of mozzarella and bake for 10 more minutes. Let it sit for about 10 minutes to cool and firm up a little before serving.

Enjoy! Cheers!
CC

Egg and Hash Brown Scramble with Bacon

This is a good, easy, hearty breakfast you can make for your family and you do not need to be an expert in the kitchen to make it. As you can see from the picture...I really class it up with paper plates.

Ingredients:
1 package bacon (I like maple)
1 package frozen potatoes O'Brien (you will also need a little vegetable oil, salt and pepper for these)
4 eggs
1/2 cup milk
Shredded Cheese (cheddar or a cheddar mix works best)
Salsa or ketchup or even some sour cream

I LOVE bacon...but I used to hate cooking it because you either got splashed by grease trying to fry it in a pan, or you smelled up your microwave for a week. Thanks to my friend Cristina...I now will pass on to you an easy way to cook bacon.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with tin foil. Separate bacon slices and lay flat on foil. Bake until you achieve desired crispiness. I like mine a little soft, so I bake it about 15 minutes.

While the bacon is baking....cook frozen potatoes according to package directions. While they are cooking, sprinkle on salt and pepper to taste (I usually use season salt).
 Whisk eggs and milk together.

Whisk eggs and milk together.













Once potatoes are finished pour in egg mixture and cook until eggs are firm, stirring occasionally.

















  Top with shredded cheese and remove from heat











Top with ketchup, salsa, sour cream...which ever you decided.

Cheers!
CC

Finally...A Meal Plan

Tomorrow is going to be grocery day. I just cannot go on the weekends, it is too crowded. :) I spent the last couple hours looking through recipes, cutting coupons, and making my shopping list.

Here is what's on tap:

Turkey Lasagna
Satay Chicken with brown rice and steamed veggies
Marsala Chicken with mashed potatoes and asparagus
Orange Roughy with rice and green beans
Shake & Bake Chicken with my grandma's carrot recipe and scalloped potatoes

I'm also planning a few things for my 1-year-old to try:

Breakfast: French Toast Fingers
Lunch: Turkey & Cheese Roll Ups

I should have plenty of blogging to do for the next couple weeks with these recipes. :)

Cheers!
CC

2 Minute Scrambled Egg

I HATE eggs. Mixed with things they are okay, but by themselves...yuck. However, my 1-year-old has to have her morning scrambled egg. Eggs are a good source of protein, but the thought of getting out the frying pan, etc. can be daunting in the morning, especially if you have busy mornings. So here is a quick and easy way to cook yourself or your kids an egg. TIP: I buy organic when ever possible, especially dairy and meat products.

Ingredients:
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
A sprinkle of grated cheese

Combine egg and milk in a microwave safe coffee mug and whisk with a fork. Sprinkle grated cheese on top. If you buy the pre-shredded kind, it will be super fast! Pop in the microwave for 1 minute. And viola! You are done! You can also add in bacon pieces, ham, or veggies.

Cheers!
CC

Chicken Tikka Masala

I don't always cook from scratch...I know...its horrible. But I have found that there are some good products out there that help make dinner a little easier to make and when I come across them, I like to share them. :)

I found an organic tikka masala sauce that is just really tasty. I love Indian food and this is pretty authentic. You can follow the directions on the jar...and here is how I did it.


Bake 4 Chicken Breasts....pre-heat oven to 375. Grease bottom of baking dish with a thin layer of olive oil. Place chicken breasts in baking dish. Sprinkle on curry powder, season salt, black pepper, and cumin. Poke several times with a fork. Bake for 30 minutes.

Place chicken in a skillet (one that has a lid). Cover with sauce and simmer on medium low heat for 10 minutes, covered. Make sure to stir once in a while so it doesn't burn.

Serve with veggies, rice, or potatoes or even another Indian dish. If you have a Trader Joes near by (which sadly I no longer have), they have some great Indian side dishes in their frozen food section.

Cheers!
CC

Preview for next week

I am still working on my meal plan...but I have some inspiration...Today we went to a Mardi Gras parade and I am learning about the culture here in Louisiana. So in honor of Fat Tuesday this coming week, I am going to attempt to make a King Cake. And I am going to scour my Southern Cooking book for some recipes. :)

Cheers,
CC

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Original recipe came from http://www.plainchicken.com/2012/01/chicken-cordon-bleu-roll-ups.html#more...which I found on Pinterest. But I did things differently and made a casserole instead. I think the way I did it came out really well, and we were able to have it for 3 days. Next time I make it, I will change a few things...so I will note those changes here. :)

Here is the recipe I used:

2 cooked chicken breast, chopped
1 cooked ham steak, chopped (i bought a .03lb ham steak and used half of it for this recipe)
2 cans reduced-fat crescent rolls
1 can 98% fat-free cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup 2% milk
1 cup swiss cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350F.

Spray a 9x13-inch pan with cooking spray; set aside. Mix together milk, soup and half of the cheese. Then add in the cut up chicken and ham and mix it up.

Open 1 can of crescent rolls, flatten out the dough and place on the bottom of the baking dish. Pour Soup and meat mixture over the dough. Top with remaining shredded cheese, then open and unroll the second can of rolls and place on the top.

Bake for 30 minutes or until bubbly and rolls are golden brown.

Next time I make this, I am going to add some fresh chopped broccoli and mushrooms or maybe even some spinach. This makes about 6 servings.

Cheers! CC