Hi everyone!

Hope you had a great Wednesday!  Ours was up and down (pool stuff), but now the three of us our lounging on the couch watching Psych, so it’s all good!

We also had an awesome dinner, so I wanted to highlight that and a couple other recent recipes.

First, the ones that aren’t mine.

Tonight’s dinner was straight out of Fitness magazine.

Chicken parmesan burger with provolone, marinara, and spinach

We followed this recipe exactly, except I used shredded parmesan cheese instead of grated and we grilled the burgers instead of making them on the stove.  We’ve never grilled chicken burgers, and James was skeptical, but these chicken parm burgers were delicious!  So flavorful and juicy!  Highly recommend!

Especially with sweet potato fries

Next, I made these pancake muffins, which is an idea I got from Ashley.

Pumpkin pancake muffins

Hers look even better, but these turned out pretty good too!  I used 2 cups of pumpkin pancake mix, 1 1/2 cups of milk, 2 eggs, and a handful of chopped walnuts.  Thanks for the idea Ashley, they were wonderful!  Also, check out Ashley’s page in general, all her recipes look so amazing!

Now, an incredibly easy chicken bake that I came up with a few days ago when I wanted something homemade, but had very little ingredients in the house.

Chicken and Tomato Bake

Ingredients:

- 2 chicken breasts

- 1 can of diced tomatoes

- 1 can of Italian style stewed tomatoes

- 1 cup of panko crumbs

- 1 T of Italian seasoning

- black pepper to taste

- 1/4 to 1/2 cup of shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  In a bowl, mix the tomatoes, seasoning, panko, and parmesan cheese in a bowl.  You may have to add additional panko crumbs until all of the liquid from the tomatoes is soaked up.  Place the chicken breasts in a square baking pan and cover with the tomato/panko mixture.  Cover the pan with foil and bake for 20 minutes.  Then, remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes.  Finally, top the bake with the parmesan cheese and bake for an additional 3-5 minutes until the parm is melted.

Enjoy!

I love this recipe because I always have all these ingredients in my house, even when I haven’t gone grocery shopping, so it’s easy to always get a home cooked meal even with empty cupboards.

That’s it for tonight, have a happy Thursday!!

Hi everyone!

Thanks for your incredibly kind words about my grandma.  She passed away on Christmas Eve, so last weekend’s memorial really was about a celebration, but it’s always so nice to get support.  My family definitely appreciates all your thoughts and prayers.  You’re the best!

Tonight, I have to share a recipe that I came up with last week that was a huge hit with James and made excellent leftovers, which is always a plus!  Hope you like it!

Easy Taco Skillet

Ingredients:

- 1 yellow onion, diced

- 1 bell pepper, diced (I used four mini sweet peppers because that was what I had)

- 1 pound of lean ground beef

- 1 can of black beans, drained

- 1 can of sweet corn, drained

- 1 can of diced tomatoes with chiles, drained

- 1 lime

- 1 packet of taco seasoning

- 1 bag of spinach

- 1 jar of salsa (I used medium)

- handful of cilantro

- 1 cup of mexican blend cheese

- 0% plain greek yogurt (for topping)

- 1 avocado, diced (for topping)

I know it sounds like a lot of ingredients, but trust me, most of this is stuff you probably always have, and it’s super easy!  Just look…

Directions:

In a skillet, heat the onion and peppers in a tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat for 5-8 minutes until soft.

Remove from heat and place into a bowl.  Add the hamburger to the now empty skillet and brown over medium heat.  While the meat is browning,  add the black beans, corn, and diced tomatoes to the bowl with the onions and peppers.  Add the taco seasoning and the juice from one lime to the bowl and combine (note, this alone makes an excellent salsa).

Once the hamburger is browned, add the vegetable mixture from the bowl and the jar of salsa to the skillet with the beef and combine.  Heat over medium heat until the mixture is warm all the way through.  Add the spinach and stir until wilted and combined.  Add the handful of cilantro and combine.

Turn the heat off and top the mixture with the cheese.  Cover and let sit until the cheese is melted.  Top each serving with a dollop of plain greek yogurt and diced avocado.

And there you have an incredibly easy and oh so delicious taco skillet, loaded with plenty of vegetables and taco flavoring.  Enjoy!

I hope you have a wonderful Monday evening!!

Ready for the pulled pork recipe I promised?  Of course you are!

Back in law school, I really wanted to incorporate root beer into my pulled pork and my mom gave me a crock pot cookbook with a version that I have adapted into my own.  And it’s amazing!

Root Beer Pulled Pork:

Ingredients:

- 1 pork shoulder (I used a 2-pounder for James and I)

- 1 2 liter of Root Beer

- 1 yellow onion, cut into thick pieces

- 1 16 oz bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce

- 1 clove of garlic, minced

- salt, pepper, and cumin to your liking

- Whole wheat sandwich buns

- Sweet pickle slices

Directions:

Add the onion, garlic, pork shoulder, and spices to the crock pot.  Add 1 and 1/2 cups of root beer and 1/2 cup of the BBQ sauce to the crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours.

When the shoulder is almost done cooking, heat another 1 and 1/2 cups of root beer and 2 cups of BBQ sauce over medium heat in a skillet.  Stir until the ingredients are combined and the sauce thickens (about 15-20 minutes).  Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Place your buns on a baking sheet and bake for about 5 minutes until toasted.

Remove the pork shoulder from the crock pot and drain the liquid.  Add the shoulder back to the crock pot and shred the meat, removing the fatty portions and the bones.  Once the meat is shredded, dump the skillet of sauce over the meat and combine.

Add to your sandwich buns and top with additional BBQ sauce and pickles.  Enjoy with your side of choice (I recommend sweet potato fries, roasted brussel sprouts or kale chips).

This is insanely, crazy delicious.  Keep in mind, pulled pork is my favorite food, but I would seriously eat this everyday.  LOVE it!

Hope you enjoy!

Also, one more think before I go:  Cinnamon, over at Eat, Pray Tri, has a new program called Snap to It.  It’s a weekly photography assignment program that is for everyone where she will share tips and resources about photography and give you an assignment. You’ll share your assignment photo with Cinnamon and she’ll compile the photos and write a post on her blog every week.  Sounds fun, huh?  Check it out!

Have a wonderful Wednesday!