Quinoa with Asian Flavors

Quinoa with Asian Flavors
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup quinoa
2 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
1 clove garlic, minced
2 green onions, chopped
Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in quinoa and allow to toast for 2 to 3 minutes, then add chicken broth, soy sauce, ginger and garlic. Increase heat and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer until all liquid has been absorbed, 25 to 30 minutes. Fluff quinoa with fork and top with green onions before serving.

Barbeque Bacon Chicken Bake

Barbeque Bacon Chicken Bake
cooking spray
8 slices bacon
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
3/4 cup barbeque sauce (such as Cattlemen's(R) or Jack Daniel's(R))
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.  Cook bacon in a skillet over medium heat until the edges begin to crisp, about 5 minutes; drain bacon on paper towels. Wrap each chicken breast with 2 slices of bacon in an x-shaped pattern and place into the prepared baking sheet with bacon ends underneath.  Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes; spread barbeque sauce over chicken breasts and bake until the juices run clear, the chicken is no longer pink inside, and an instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a breast reads at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C), 10 to 15 more minutes.

Quinoa Chicken

Quinoa Chicken
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup quinoa
2 teaspoons vegetable oil, or as needed
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, or to taste, minced
1 1/2 pounds ground chicken
1 1/2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chile peppers (such as RO*TEL)
Bring chicken broth and quinoa to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until quinoa is tender and water has been absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes.  Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onion and garlic in hot oil until onion is translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add ground chicken and break into small pieces while cooking until completely browned, 7 to 10 minutes.  Stir cooked quinoa and diced tomatoes into the chicken mixture; bring to a simmer and cook long enough for the flavors to meld, about 10 minutes more.

Gumbolaya

Gumbolaya
2 tablespoons bacon drippings or cooking oil, divided
1/2 pound spicy andouille or other smoked sausage, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/4-inch
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
Salt and pepper and/or Creole/Cajun seasoning, to taste
1-1/2 cups finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
1/4 cup finely minced celery
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons Creole or Cajun seasoning, or to taste, optional
4 cups water
1 tablespoon chicken base (like Better than Bouillon)
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced or stewed (chopped) tomatoes, undrained
2 cups sliced fresh or frozen and thawed okra
1-1/2 cups instant rice
1/3 cup sliced green onions
Heat 1/2 tablespoon of the oil in a deep and large, lidded skillet, such as a chicken fryer, over medium high heat. Add the sausage and cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes; remove and set aside. Season chicken to taste with salt, pepper and/or Creole or Cajun seasoning. Add another 1/2 tablespoon of the oil and cook chicken in batches, adding oil as needed, only until lightly browned; remove and set aside.  Add remaining oil and the vegetables; cook stirring regularly for 3 minutes; add garlic and cook another minute longer. Sprinkle in the flour and cook, stirring constantly for 3 minutes. Stir in the seasonings, mix together water and base, then begin adding the water a little at a time, stirring until blended. Stir in the tomatoes and okra, bring back to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, cover and simmer at a bubble for 20 minutes.  Return sausage and chicken to skillet. Set aside a pinch of green onion for garnish, then stir in rice and remaining green onion. Bring back up to boil, reduce heat to simmer, cover and continue cooking 8 to 10 minutes longer. Remove from heat and set aside; let rest for 5 minutes. Rice will not completely absorb the liquid. Serve this with some iced tea, French bread and a nice mixed garden salad.

Peanut Butter Banana Pudding

Peanut Butter Banana Pudding
2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies
4 to 5 bananas, sliced
2 cups milk
1 (5.1-oz) box instant vanilla pudding
1 cup smooth peanut butter
1 (8-oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-oz) container Cool Whip, thawed
Line the bottom of a 9x13-inch dish with 1 bag of cookies.  In a bowl, combine the milk, pudding mix and peanut butter. Blend well using a handheld electric mixer.  Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk together and mix with handheld electric mixer until smooth.  Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until well blended.  Pour the half of the mixture over the cookies. Top with sliced bananas. Pour remaining half of peanut butter pudding mixture on top of bananas. Cover with the remaining cookies.

Ratatouille with Chickpeas

Ratatouille with Chickpeas
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 large onion, sliced
2 red bell peppers, seeded and diced
3 tomatoes, cored and diced
1 (13.5 ounce) jar marinara sauce
2 Japanese eggplants, diced
2 zucchini, diced
1 (14 ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
4 sprigs fresh thyme
salt and ground black pepper to taste
Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat; cook and stir garlic until very fragrant, about 1 minute. Reduce heat to low; stir onion and bell peppers into garlic. Cover pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion softens, about 5 minutes. Remove lid; cook and stir until all liquid has evaporated and onion begins to brown, about 2 minutes.  Stir tomatoes into onion mixture; cover and simmer until tomatoes release their liquid, about 5 minutes. Stir tomato sauce, eggplant, zucchini, chickpeas, parsley, basil, and thyme into tomato mixture; season with salt and pepper.  Cover pot with a lid; cook until vegetables are tender, about 40 minutes. Remove lid and simmer ratatouille, uncovered, until thick, about 5 minutes; adjust salt and pepper to taste.

Moody's American Lasagna

Moody's American Lasagna
1lb ground beef
2 cloved garlic
1 can tomato paste
2 1/2 cups tomatoes
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp oregano
1 pkg lasagna noodles
8 oz mozzarella
12 oz cottage cheese
Brown ground beef and garlic in skillet.  Add tomato paste, tomatoes and spices, cover and simmer 20 minutes.  Half-cook noodles and drain.  Coat botton of 9x13 pan with thin layer of sauce.  In pan, alternate layers of cooked noodles with cheeses and meat sauce.  Bake 20-30 minutes at 350.