Chicken meatballs - a hit with the toddler

What I had:

• 2 lbs ground chicken
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup Philly Italian Cheese & Herb Cooking Creme
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp panko bread crumbs
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

What I did:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees
• Combine all ingredients and form into golf sized balls; I got about 45 meatballs
• Place on cookie sheet and cook for 18 minutes
• Enjoy!

We've had them as is, with different dipping sauces. Oliver ate them for dinner 2 nights in a row and loves them. What higher endorsement could I get? I forgot to take pictures :( but I promise they looked and tasted great!

Eggplant parmesan - no fry

What I had:

• a medium eggplant, sliced thin
• 2 eggs, beaten
• panko bread crumbs mixed with some Italian seasoning
• 1 lb mozzarella sliced thinly
• 1/2 c grated Parmesan
• dried basil
• 1 c pasta sauce

What I did:

• salted the eggplant sliced and left them sitting for 20 minutes to let the water out
• dip the eggplant slices in the egg, then the bread crumb mix, and lay them on a cookie sheet
• bake the slices for 10 minutes on each side at 350 degrees
• layer half the pasta sauce on the bottom of a 9X13 pan
• layer half the eggplant slices over the sauce
• place mozzarella cheese slices over the eggplant and sprinkle Parmesan cheese over that
• do another layer of sauce, eggplant, cheese and cheese
• sprinkle dried basil over everything
• bake for 35 minutes at 350 degrees

Enjoy!

Slow cooker BBQ short ribs

What I had:

• 3 lbs beef short ribs, quartered
• 1 bottle BBQ sauce, I used Jack Daniels
• 1 medium yellow onion, sliced thinly
• 4 carrots, peeled and cit into 1/2 inch circles
• a little bit mustard
• salt, pepper and garlic to taste

What I did:

• rub the ribs with salt, pepper and garlic and refrigerate overnight
• put the onions and carrots on the bottom of the slow cooker
• put the ribs over the veggies
• pour whole bottle of BBQ sauce over ribs
• pour a little bit of mustard into the mix
• cook on low for 8-9 hrs
• serve over mashed potatoes or rice

It might not look good but oh my goodness, it was delicious. The meat was tender and the veggies were almost caramelized.  We had it over rice and Oli ate a bowlful by himself.

Garlic knots

What I had:

• a can of refrigerated biscuits
• 1/4 cup meted butter
• powdered garlic
• dried oregano
• parmesan cheese

What I did:

• take biscuits out of the can and cut each in half
• roll each half into long strings
• knot each string
• mix rest of ingredients and brush over each knot 
• bake at 450 for 9-12 minutes keeping an eye on the bread till it's brown
• brush some more of the butter mixture as soon as you take the knots out of the oven
•  eat them all within 15 minutes enjoy as a side with your favorite meal

Egg white frittata

What I had:

• 2 cup egg whites
• 1 cup frozen spinach
• 1 medium white onion chopped
• 1/2 bell pepper, chopped
• 2 jalapeno peppers, diced
• salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

What I did:

• saute the onions and both types of peppers till soft
• add spinach and cook for 2 minutes
• add salt, pepper and garlic powder
• pour the egg whites over the veggies
• cover the skillet and let it cook for 10 minutes or till eggs are cooked through 

Enjoy with your favorite fruits on the side.

Slow cooker pork chops

What I had:

• 2 bone in pork chops, frozen
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• Salt and pepper to taste

What I did:

• Put pork chops in slow cooker
• Mix all other ingredients and pour over chops
• Cook on high for 2-3 hours till the chops are thawed, then on low for another 5/6 hours till they are cooked through

Enjoy with your favorite bread and veggies.

It was so tender you can see it was falling off the bone. You could taste the sauce through the meat, it was delicious! Definitely a keeper.

Strata

I found this idea when I was searching for vegetarian options for a brunch I was hosting. A strata is a  layered baked dish of eggs, bread, cheese, and often sausage, vegetables, and herbs, according to dictionary.com.


As part of my healthy eating initiative, I've been making breakfast items with egg whites over the weekend for the whole week. So, I'll make omelets, or a quiche and divide it into servings to last through the week. I figured baking a breakfast strata would be a wonderful way to change things up a bit.

What I used:

• 7 slices Italian bread, torn into bite sized pieces
• 1/2 cup chopped bell pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped red onion
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 10 slices hot sopressata cut into quarters (you can use your favorite meats)
• 2 cups 2% milk
• 2 cups egg white
• greased 9X13 glass baking dish

 What I did:

• Layer half the bread at the bottom of the pan. Spread the bell peppers and half the meat over the bread. Sprinkle half the cheese over this.
• Layer rest of the bread over the cheese. Spread the onions and the rest of the meat. sprinkle with rest of the cheese.
• Whisk milk and egg whites together and pour over everything in the pan.
• Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least 12 hrs. I left it in till the next evening.
• Bake covered at 350 for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 20 minutes. the initial recipe had called for 35 covered and 15 uncovered, but the eggs were still runny so I let it go another 15 minutes.
• Enjoy with your favorite hot sauce!

I didn't even use any salt or pepper, and it tasted delicious. You can add seasonings if you want but the hot sopressatta I used provided enough seasoning.