Cheesy Tex Rice

Tex-mex Beef & Rice Casserole

Made: February 3, 2014

Ingredients
- 1 pound extra-lean ground beef
- 1 14 ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 11 ounce can corn with red and green bell peppers, undrained
- 1/2 cup chopped onions
- 1 10 ounce tub PHILADELPHIA Santa Fe Blend Cooking Creme, divided
- 3 cups cooked long-grain white rice
- 1 cup KRAFT Shredded Colby & Monterey Jack Cheeses, divided
- 1 cup crushed tortilla chips
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions
- Heat oven to 350 F
- Brown meat in large nonstick skillet; drain
- Return to skillet
- Add tomatoes, corn, onions and 3/4 cup cooking creme; mix well
- Combine rice and 1/2 cup shredded cheese in 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; spread to cover bottom of dish
- Top with layers of meat mixture, remaining cooking creme and remaining shredded cheese; cover
- Bake 30 min. or until heated through
- Top with crushed chips and cilantro

I had to improvise, as the store didn't have the Santa Fe Cooking Creme, so I used onion and chive. I think it came out good, very tasty. My rice still stuck to the bottom of my dish, but that's rice for you! I didn't use cilantro though, it's not a welcomed flavor in the house.

(Recipe used: Recipe.com)

Semi-Mexican Chicken

Chicken Taco Casserole

Made: January 30, 2014

Ingredients
- Nonstick cooking spray
- 12 ounces chicken breast strips for stir-frying
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons canola oil
- 1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
- 1 medium red or green sweet pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1 10 - ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
- 1 1/2 cups purchased salsa
- 4 6 - inches corn tortillas, coarsely torn
- 3 ounces reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (3/4 cup)
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, chopped (optional)
- 1/2 of an avocado, pitted, peeled, and chopped (optional)
- Fresh cilantro leaves (optional)

Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 F
- Coat an unheated large nonstick skillet with cooking spray
- Preheat skillet over medium-high heat
- In a medium bowl, toss together chicken, garlic, and chili powder
- Add to hot skillet
- Cook for 4 to 6 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink, stirring frequently
- Remove chicken from skillet; set aside
- Pour oil into hot skillet
- Add onion and sweet pepper
- Cook over medium heat about 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally
- Stir in spinach
- Coat a 2-quart square baking dish with cooking spray
- Spread about 1/2 cup of the salsa into the bottom of the baking dish
- Top with half of the tortilla pieces, half of the chicken mixture, and half of the vegetable mixture
- Pour half of the remaining salsa over the vegetables and top with half of the cheese
- Repeat layers once, except do not top with the remaining cheese
- Bake, covered, for 30 to 35 minutes or until heated through
- Sprinkle with the remaining cheese
- Let stand for 5 minutes before serving
- If desired, garnish with cherry tomatoes, chopped avocado, and/or fresh cilantro

I didn't use avocado or cilantro, but I used the tomatoes and sour cream to use as toppers. I also used onion powder and onion flakes instead of onions. I think it came out very flavorful and I plan on making this sometime again.

(Recipe used: diabeticliving.com)

Ham in the slow-cooker

Honey-dijon ham

Made: December 25, 2013

Ingredients
- 1 bone-in cooked man (5lb)
- 1/3 cup apple juice
- 1/4 packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard

Directions
- In 4-6 quart slow cooker, place ham
- Add apple juice
- In small bowl, mix the brown sugar, honey and mustard
- Spread mixture over ham
- Clover, cook on low heat 6-8 hours
- Remove ham from slow cooker
- Cut ham & serve

I used a 3 pound, boneless ham to fit into our small slow-cooker. (and because we don't have too many people eating ham at Christmas). I used a combined tablespoon of mustard and dijon since the kind we had on hand was a little too zesty for my liking. We also cooked it for about 6 hours and it seemed to come out juicy and flavorful

(Recipe used: Pillsbury Christmas 2010)

Casserole, crab style

Maryland Crab Casserole

Made: December 25, 2013

Ingredients
- 1 pound crabmeat, well-picked
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
- 5 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted and divided
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Dash pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon prepared mustard
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped green bell pepper
- 1/2 cup soft bread crumbs

Directions
- Grease bottom and sides of a 2-qt. baking dish
- Combine crabmeat, eggs, parsley, 3 tablespoon butter, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, milk and green pepper
- Gently pat into dish
- Combine bread crumbs with remaining butter; sprinkle on top
- Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes or until set

I added in some old bay seasoning to the top topping. I also doubled the recipe to fill a 3qt dish, but I used 1 can of evaporated milk (which was 1 1/2 cups) which seemed to fit perfectly in the dish. I also omitted the green peppers for my Granny. But 1 tablespoon wasn't much to worry over anyway.

(Recipe used: recipelion.com)

Healthy smoothie

Orange-Banana Smoothie

Made: November 8, 2013

Ingredients
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1 small, ripe banana
- 1/4 cup instant non-fat milk powder
- 1/3 cup ice cubes
- 1/4 cup club soda

Directions
- In blender, process orange juice, banana, milk powder and ice cubes until mixture is thick and ice cubes are crushed
- Add club soda, stir and serve immediately

At work, I joined an 8-week program called "Lose and Win" where we learn about making healthier choices and creating a healthier lifestyle for the longrun. For this week, my group was picked to pick a recipe to make. So I got the smoothie. We had to post the nutrition facts as we're learning how to count calories and balance our energy levels. So this makes 2 servings of 130 calories each. But it tasted pretty good, although the banana really packs a flavor punch.

(Recipe used: unitedheathcare.com)