Thai Cashew Chopped Salad

This was so good! Love recipes like this that make a lot. Then I will have lunch ready for myself for the next 2-3 days.
The dressing is to die for! Great vegetarian option when you're trying to cut back on calories and meat intake.

http://therecipecritic.com/2015/02/thai-cashew-chopped-salad-ginger-peanut-sauce/

Rosemary Chicken/Potatoes/Green Bean Sheet Pan Dinner

Does it get any easier than sheet pan dinners? I don't think so! Love these kind of meals! Less clean up is always a bonus!

This is super simple and delicious! Anytime veggies are roasted they are going to taste better (in my opinion!) Change it up to what you enjoy most.

http://littlespicejar.com/one-sheet-pan-rosemary-chicken-with-potatoes/

Homemade Elderberry Syrup

If you don't know about elderberry syrup, I'm so glad you're reading this now! :)

This stuff is awesome! It's a flu/cold preventative that you take every day and it tastes great! Both the kids love it! The recipe below is super simple. Once you make it, store it in a jar in your fridge. She gives you all the details at the link here:

https://wellnessmama.com/1888/elderberry-syrup/

Wish I had made this back in August or September before we all got sick this fall. Great stuff!!

You can buy organic dried elderberries at this site:

https://www.bulkherbstore.com/elderberries-whole-organic-1-2-lb

Let me know if you try this and what you thought! :)

Grilled Lemon Rosemary Chicken

This is a super simple marinade that always turns out great! Very flavorful and tender every time! I use boneless chicken breasts or thighs usually.

For 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs and 2-3 small chicken breasts--

Marinade:
Juice of 3 lemons
4 long stems of rosemary, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves, chopped
salt and pepper

Marinate for at least 3 hours and up to 12 hours. Then grill to perfection!
Half the recipe for a smaller amount of chicken.

Hope you will try this one! So easy and GOOD!

Pumpkin French Toast

Hi, friends! Sorry it's been so long since I posted! Having two little ones makes you fall back on things for sure. Hope you will enjoy this yummy recipe this fall! We actually had it for dinner last night and it was SO good! I sort of made it up as I went along.

Preheat oven to 350.

In a bowl combine:
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup milk
1 t. pumpkin pie spice
4-5 eggs
1 t. vanilla

In a 7 x11 glass pan, I melted 3 T. butter and sprinkled about 1/4 cup brown sugar and mixed them.

I used 8-9 slices of whole wheat sandwich bread and dipped each piece into the pumpkin mixture. Between each layer, I sprinkled chopped pecans. Pour remaining pumpkin mixture over the top evenly.

Bake at 350 for around 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and sprinkled with powdered sugar and drizzle maple syrup over the top.

Easy Crockpot Pork Tenderloin

Made this last night and will definitely make again! Super easy and yummy!

1 lb. pork tenderloin
4 T. olive oil
Sprinkle of each of these seasonings:
dried basil
dried oregano
garlic powder
onion powder

Drizzle pork with olive oil and sprinkle with each of the seasonings. Flip the pork and repeat on the other side. Cook on low for 3-4 hours.

I served it with brown rice/quinoa and roasted broccoli and corn.

Layered Cornbread Salad

As you have probably noticed, if you've read many of my posts, I rarely make a recipe as is without making changes. One reason is that I can't stand going to the store more than once a week for special ingredients. Another is that I try to choose healthier ingredients to save fat and calories.

Here's the original:
http://www.ladybehindthecurtain.com/corn-bread-salad/

Here are my changes:

Used Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.

Used a homemade cornbread mix instead if store bought- super easy and even cheaper than buying a Jiffy mix!

Used black beans instead of pinto.

Added baby carrots (choppped)

Omitted bacon and added chopped black forest ham instead.

This was really good and will be great leftover too!

Penzey's Creamy Peppercorn Pasta Salad

While visiting Seattle last week, I visited Penzey's Spices store.  We have them in TX, but I had never been. I bought their peppercorn ranch seasoning and took a recipe next to it and made this when I returned home. It is soooo good! I made several changes to make it healthier and used what I had here. Definitely yummy! Their website is FULL of awesome recipes!

Used:
Greek yogurt instead of sour cream
Less mayonnaise than called for, to save calories.
Added grilled chicken breast, cut up
Steamed broccoli, cauliflower and carrots before adding so they wouldn't be too crunchy

Omitted:
Hard salami
Green peas

Here's the original recipe:

http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/recipes/r-penzeysCreamyPeppercornPastaSalad.html

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

Made this last week and again tonight :) I love how fast it comes together and it is low carb. We had it with a green salad. Very filling and even Ben approved!

Ingredients:
1 lb. Boneless, skinless chicken tenders
1 t. Olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 regular sized jar marinara sauce (or homemade)
10 oz. Shredded mozzarella (I used low moisture skim kind)
2 T. Parmesan

In separate bowl:
1/2 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
2 T. parmesan
3 T. Olive oil
1 t. Sea salt
1/2 t. Black pepper
1/2 t. Italian seasoning

Cook chicken in olive oil and garlic until done. Cut into bite sized pieces. Put into the bottom of a 9 X 13 pan, pour marinara over chicken. Sprinkle parmesan, sprinkle mozzarella.

Combine breadcrumbs, olive oil and seasonings. Sprinkle over the top of the cheese evenly.
Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes.

Fast Chicken Caprese

This is a keeper! Super easy, flavorful and fast!  

Here is the original recipe: 

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/chicken-caprese/#_a5y_p=1648086

Here is what I changed:

Used sliced provolone over each chicken breast instead of cubed mozzarella.