Bubble Up Enchiladas

So part of my (hopefully) more frequent posting is my new weekly meal planning. I have started to plan out my weekly meals the weekend before and I gather my recipes and ingredients and make a shopping list for the things I need to pick up for the week ahead. This is really aimed to get me out of the cooking rut that I've been in for awhile and I'm now looking forward to cooking dinner every day instead of trying to think of what I have thawed out and trying to make it into something like usual.

For my first meal...I have finally given into the hype and made Bubble Up Enchiladas. I've seen these all over the internet and knowing our love of enchiladas I figured what the heck. In these "enchiladas", refrigerated biscuits replace the tortillas and it is made into a casserole using typical enchilada flavors. Overall this was really good and quick. I did use reduced fat biscuits, cheese, and lean hamburger meat...but you can do it however you like.

Bubble Up Enchiladas (adapted from plainchicken.com and recipe-diaries.com)

1 pound ground hamburger (or turkey if you prefer)
1 can refrigerated biscuits (I used Reduced Fat Grands)
1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 packet taco seasoning
1 1/4 cups shredded Mexican cheese

Brown hamburger meat and drain. Stir in enchilada sauce, tomato sauce, and taco seasoning. Cut each piece of biscuit dough into 4 pieces, stir into hamburger mixture. Spray a baking dish with cooking spray, pour mixture into baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Pull out casserole and top with cheese, bake an additional 10 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve with salsa and sour cream!

Super Bowl Food: Jalapeno Popper Dip, Creamy Cole Slaw, Creamy Rice Casserole, Chocolate Chip Cookies

Jalapeno Popper Dip (from Our Best Recipes)

2 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup Parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic, pressed or finely minced
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chilies
1/2-1 (4 oz) can diced jalapeno peppers, drained (1/2 for milder dip, whole can for spicier dip)
8 oz bacon, cooked and crumbled

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Reserve 2-3 tablespoons of bacon for top of dip. Combine cream cheese, mayo, parmesan, garlic, green chilies, jalapenos, and bacon. Sprinkle top with reserved bacon. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until dip is bubbly and golden brown. Serve with tortilla chips.

Creamy Rice Casserole (adapted from Delta Kappa Gamma Cookbook)
1 (10 oz) bag yellow rice mix
1 (5 oz) bag yellow rice mix
1 large (15.25 oz) can corn
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chiles
1/2 stick butter, melted
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Prepare rice according to package directions. Stir in corn, chilies, butter, cream of chicken soup, and sour cream. Spread in a a greased casserole dish and top with cheese. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes until bubbly.

Creamy Cole Slaw (adapted from Bobby Flay)

1 bag angel hair slaw (or regular if you prefer)
2 large carrots, finely shredded
3/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon white sugar (or to taste)
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon celery salt
Salt and pepper, to taste

Combine the slaw and carrots in a large bowl. Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, onion powder, sugar, vinegar, mustard powder, celery salt, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Add to cabbage mixture and mix well; taste for seasoning (can add more salt, pepper, or sugar).

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies (from Allrecipes.com)

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 (3.4 oz) packages instant vanilla pudding mix
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together the flour and baking soda, set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat in the instant pudding mix until blended. Mix in the eggs and vanilla. Blend in the flour mixture. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips and nuts. Drop cookies by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes in the preheated oven until cookies are golden brown.

Meals for Every Night: Chicken with Mushroom and Balsamic Cream Sauce and Stuffing-Topped Turkey Casserole

Here are a couple of easy meals that are a quick to put together. They take no time to prepare and using a few convenience items they don't involve a lot of prep work. For instance, with the chicken with mushrooms, using packages of pre-sliced/cleaned mushrooms saves a lot of prep time. For the turkey casserole, you can use leftover turkey from Thanksgiving chopped up OR you can buy some boneless turkey breasts and saute them and chop them up for the casserole. I think this recipe would be equally good with boneless skinless chicken breasts or chopped rotisserie chicken. These both will be crowd pleasers so give them a try!

Chicken with Mushroom and Balsamic Cream Sauce (adapted from Rachael Ray's recipe)

Who needs frozen dinners when you have good leftovers to take for lunch? Yum!













2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt, Pepper
2 tablespoons butter (I used light butter and it worked just fine)
2 packages sliced white mushrooms
1 package sliced baby portobello (cremini) mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons heavy cream or half and half (I used fat free half and half and it also worked fine)
3 tablespoons chopped parsely, if desired

Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and add olive oil. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to hot skillet. Cook the chicken for 5-6 minutes on each side. Remove the chicken from the pan and cover with foil to keep warm. Return the skillet to the heat and add the butter. Once the butter melts, add the onions, garlic, and mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally for about 4-5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and thyme. Sprinkle the flour into the pan and cook for 2 minutes more. Stir in the stock, balsamic vinegar, and cream. Turn the heat up to high and simmer for about 2 minutes or until thickened. Slice the chicken on an angle and add back to the skillet and cooke 1 minute to heat it back up. Garnish with parsley if desired. Serve on top of orzo pasta or rice. For the most flavorful orzo, cook in chicken broth instead of water.

Stuffing Topped Turkey Casserole

4-5 cups cubed cooked turkey (either leftover or about 4 sauteed turkey breasts)
4-6 slices of smoked Provolone cheese (Use enough to cover the dish)
1/2 cup milk
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chilies
1 package Stove Top Cornbread Stuffing mix, lightly crushed
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
1/4 teaspoon thyme
2 tablespoons melted butter



Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray baking dish with cooking spray, set aside.  Place chopped turkey in prepared pan, top with cheese slices. In a medium sized bowl and stir together soup, milk, and drained green chilies; spoon evenly over cheese. In a separate bowl, mix together stuffing mix, butter, sage and thyme; sprinkle over top of soup mixture. Bake for about 35 minutes until hot and bubbly and the top is golden brown.