Somewhat Healthy Homemade Chicken Nuggets

Last week, I knew I wanted to make something with the chicken tenderloins in my freezer, but I wasn't sure what.  Well that same day, I drove by McDonald's and saw they had a special on chicken nuggets.  I wondered if there was a healthy way I could eat some chicken nuggets, so I went online and searched for recipes.  I took a little from all the recipes and came up with my own interpretation of somewhat healthy chicken nuggets.  When I made these chicken nuggets, they were so good and will definitely be made again.  I took the leftover chicken nuggets and made my husband a chicken salad to take to work.  I know you and your family will enjoy this recipe.  

Recipe: Ranch Style Chicken Nuggets

Ingredients:

1 pack of chicken tenderloins (chopped into bite size pieces...not too small)

Seasoned wheat bread crumbs

2-3 Tbsp of olive oil

Seasoning: season all, black pepper, and garlic powder

2 tbsp of grated Parmesan and Romano cheese

About 1/2 cup of ranch dressing

Cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.  Spray a baking dish with the cooking spray.  Wash your chicken.  Cut the chicken tenderloins into bite size pieces. pieces.

2. Place the olive oil in a bowl.  Season chicken with seasonings listed above. Mix chicken in the bowl with olive oil.  The place the half cup of ranch on top of the chicken.  Mix well.  

3. Place the bread crumbs in a separate bowl from the ranch chicken.  After you have mixed the ranch, chicken, and olive oil in a bowl, place in the bread crumbs (not all at once, a handful at a time).  Make sure all the chicken is nicely coated.  

4. Place all the breaded chicken on to the baking dish.  Then lightly spray the chicken with the cooking spray.  Let the chicken cook for about 12 minutes.  Take a spatula or a spoon and stir the chicken.  Let it cook for another 3-5 minutes.  

5. Serve.  I served mine with mac and cheese for the kids and sweet potato french fries for the hubby and me. 

Memorial Day Favorites

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service as well as those who are currently serving.  I am so thankful for the soldiers who have served and are serving in the name of freedom.  Soldiers sacrifice their lives everyday for us.  I thank all soldiers, past and present for their bravery, courage, and sacrifice.  

People do a variety of things on this day.  They go to the cemetery, have a picnic, and most commonly have a barbecue.  Below are some really good recipes: beverage, appetizer, side item, main entree, and dessert.  I hope you enjoy them all.  And remember, if you see a soldier, please thank them for their service and commitment to our country.

Recipes (All courtesy of kraftrecipes.com, except the potato salad is all me)

Beverage: Watermelon Lemonade

Ingredients: 

1-1/2 pounds of sliced seedless watermelon

zest of 1 lemon

3/4 cups of fresh lemon juice

1/2 cups of mild honey

1 lemon, thinly sliced, for garnish

Directions:

1. In the bowl of a food processor, place watermelon and process until very smooth. Strain through a coarse sieve set over a bowl, stirring to push through any pulp. Pour juice into a large pitcher. Add lemon zest.
2. In a bowl, whisk lemon juice and honey until honey dissolves; stir into watermelon juice. Stir in 1 1/2 cups cold water; cover and refrigerate until very cold. Serve over ice and garnish with lemon slices.

Appetizer: Fresh Tomato Salsa

Ingredients:

3 tomatoes chopped

1/4 cup finely chopped red onions

1/4 cup of chopped fresh cilantro

1 jalapeno pepper finely chopped

1/4 cup of Kraft Italian dressing

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients.  Mix well and serve with tortilla chips

Main Entree: Sweet and Hot BBQ Chicken

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup of Kraft Original BBQ sauce

2 tbsp of honey

1-1/2 tsp of hot pepper sauce

1/4 tsp of garlic powder

1 broiler fryer chicken (3lbs) cut up or boneless chicken thighs

Directions:

1. Heat greased grill to medium heat.  Mix all ingredients except chicken

2. Grill chicken 35-40 minutes or until done turning occasionally and brushing with BBQ sauce mixture for the last 10 minutes. 

Side Item: Mama's Famous Potato Salad

Ingredients:

potatoes (I use about a half a bag)

4 large eggs

1/4 cup of relish

bacon bits

1 tsp of paprika

2-3 tablespoons of mustard

1/2 cup of mayo

salt, pepper, and garlic powder

1/4 cup of milk

Directions: My mother gave me this recipe and it is a hit everywhere we go.

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Peel potatoes and then cut them into chunks.  Wash them and then add to the boiling water until they are tender but still firm. When they are done cooking, drain the water.  Add potatoes to a large bowl.  Get a masher and mash the potatoes (almost like you are making potato salad).  

2. Place eggs in a small pot and boil them.  When eggs are done boiling, remove from heat, let them cool, and then peel your eggs.   

3. Add milk, mayo, mustard, relish, salt, pepper, and garlic to the bowl.  Mix well.  Place in a large pan.  Cut up eggs and place on top of the potato salad.  Then sprinkle potato salad with bacon bits and paprika.  You can serve this warm or you can refrigerate until you are ready to serve!

Dessert: S'mores

Ingredients:

4 Honey Maid Honey Grahams, broken in half (8 squares)

4 Jet-Puffed Marshmallows toasted

1 Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar quartered (1.55 oz)

Directions:

1. Fill graham squares with marshmallows and chocolate squares to make 4 s'mores.  

*If you are going to use the microwave:

1. Do not toast marshmallows.  Place 4 graham squares on microwaveable plate.  Top with chocolate and marshmallows.

2. Microwave on HIGH for 15-20 sec or until marshmallows puff.  Cover with remaining graham squares.  Press together to secure and then serve!

Alternate Dessert: Patriotic Poke Cake

Ingredients:

2 baked 9 inch round white cake layers, cooled

2 cups of boiling water divided

1 pkg. (3oz) of JELL-O Strawberry flavor Gelatin

1 pkg. (3oz) of JELL-O Berry Blue flavor Gelatin

1 tub of COOL WHIP whipped topping, thawed

Directions:

1. Place cakes, top-sides up, in clean 9-inch round pans; pierce with large fork at 1/2-inch intervals.

2. Add  1 cup boiling water to each flavor dry gelatin mix in separate small bowls; stir 2 min. until completely dissolved. Pour red gelatin over 1 cake and blue gelatin over remaining cake. Refrigerate 3 hours.

3. Dip bottoms of cake pans in warm water 10 sec.; unfold. Fill and frost cake layers with COOL WHIP. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Italian Style Cubed Steaks

I had a pack of cube steak in the freezer and I didn't want to make the usual smothered cubed steak.  I looked in my food pantry to see what other ingredients I had.  I noticed an unopened can of Italian style bread crumbs.  I have had pork chops and chicken breaded with Italian bread crumbs, so I thought why not try it with cubed steak.  It actually came out really good.  I served mine with corn and a side salad.  It's super easy and super good.  Happy cooking and eating everyone!

Recipe: Italian Style Cubed Steaks

Ingredients:

4-6 Cubed Steaks

1 cup of Italian style bread crumbs

Seasoning: Garlic Powder, Season All, black pepper

1/2 cup of canola oil

2 tbsp of butter

Directions: 

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Season cube steaks with seasonings listed above.  Place bread crumbs in a pan.  

2. After meat is seasoned, dredge each piece in the bread crumbs.  Make sure each side is well coated with bread crumbs.  You will not need to use an egg/milk mixture for this recipe. After each piece is dredged in the bread  crumb mixture, place in a separate plate until all the meat is coated. 

3. Add the 2 tbsp of butter to the pan right before frying your meat. When butter is melted, fry pieces of steak in butter/oil mixture. Flip when sides are deep golden brown and cook about 2-4 minutes on the other side.  At this point, your kitchen probably smells really good and you are tempted to do a taste test!

4. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate to let all the excess grease drain.  

5. Serve with a vegetable.  Some type of bread is also really good with this meal.  ENJOY!!!

Mother's Day D&D Menu: Dinner and Dessert

"Love is patient; love is kind. Love is not jealous; is not proud; is not conceited; does not act foolishly; is not selfish; is not easily provoked to anger; keeps no record of wrongs; takes no pleasure in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth; love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things."
 ~I Corinthians 13:4-7


Mother's Day is just around the corner.  Being a mother is the most rewarding, challenging, and fulfilling job ever.  It really is a full time job.  Many people can't do our job.  We have to do laundry, clean the house (sometimes two or three times a day), cook, take care of boo boo's, comfort when sad, participate in tea parties, dress up as superhero's, attend academic and sporting events, and the list goes on.  Sometimes we do all of that in one day.  Like I said, rewarding, challenging, and fulfilling.  It's great to have a day where we are pampered and our love ones show us how much they appreciate all of our hard work.


 Here is a recipe you can make during a week day or for a special occasion like Mother's Day.  To all the mom's out there, Harrell's Haven hopes you have a wonderful and blessed Mother's Day. 

Dinner Recipe: Asparagus and Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Ingredients:

• 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• salt and black pepper to taste, garlic powder, season all
• 8 asparagus spears, trimmed - divided
• 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs

Directions:

*This recipe has about 390 calories per serving

1. Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F.  Grease an 8x8-inch baking dish.
2. Place each chicken breast between two sheets of heavy plastic (resealable freezer bags work well) on a solid, level surface. Firmly pound the chicken with the smooth side of a meat mallet to an even thickness of about 1/4 inch. Sprinkle each side with seasonings.
3. Place 4 spears of asparagus down the center of a chicken breast, and spread about 1/4 cup of mozzarella cheese over the asparagus. Repeat with the other chicken breast, and roll the chicken around the asparagus and cheese to make a tidy, compact roll. Place the rolls seam sides down in the prepared baking dish, and sprinkle each with about 2 tablespoons of bread crumbs.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until the juices run clear when pricked with a fork, about 25 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F 
5. Serve with rice or mash potatoes. 

Dessert: Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sandwiches

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups of all purpose four

1/2 tsp of baking soda

pinch of salt

8 Tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter (room temperature)

1 cup of sugar

1 large egg

1 cup of smooth peanut butter

1 tsp. of vanilla extract

3 cups of ice cream of your choice (softened)

**If you do not want to make your own peanut butter dough, you can buy the dry package of peanut butter cookie mix in the baking aisle

Directions:

**Each serving has about 410 calories

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.  Sift flour, baking soda, and salt together.  Using a mixer on medium speed, beat butter and sugar together until light, about 2 minutes.  Add egg; mix well.  Beat flour mixture into butter mixture.

2. Roll dough into 1-1/2 inch balls.  Place 2 inches apart on sheets.  Flatten with a fork in a crisscross design.  Bake until golden (12-15 minutes).  Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes; transfer to a rack to cool. (TIP: When using the fork to make crisscross design, dip your fork in water before pressing down on each cookie).

3. Place 1 scoop of ice cream on a cookie, top with another cookie and carefully press down.  Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze.  Repeat with remaining cookies and ice cream.  Freeze for 45 minutes and serve.  

*If you are going to use the packaged cookie dough, follow instructions on package for baking.  Then refer to step 2 of the directions listed above.

 

ENJOY and again Happy Mother's Day!!!

Fingerlicking Good Garlic and Brown Sugar Chicken

What a delicious recipe!  My whole family enjoyed this recipe.  We had it for dinner and then for lunch on the second day.  For lunch, we cut the chicken up and made sandwiches.  I found the recipe on Pinterest, but added some things to make it my own.  I used chicken thighs for this recipe, but you can use boneless chicken, chicken tenders, or even chicken wings.  If you are trying to eat healthy on a budget, this recipe has about 160 calories and cost about $10.00 to make.  This is one recipe that will for sure stay in the recipe collection.  Happy cooking and eating everyone!

Recipe: Garlic and Brown Sugar Chicken

Ingredients: 
4-6 Chicken Breasts (Again mine were not boneless)
4 garlic cloves- minced (The Pampered Chef garlic press is excellent for mincing garlic)
4 tablespoons of brown sugar (I used light brown sugar)
3 teaspoons of olive oil or canola oil
Seasoning: Season All, a dash of garlic powder, black pepper, and paprika
1 tablespoon of butter


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 500°F and lightly grease a baking dish.  Season chicken with seasonings listed above.  In a small saute pan, saute the garlic with the oil until tender.  

2. Remove from heat and stir in the brown sugar and the tablespoon of butter.  Then place the chicken in the baking dish and cover with the garlic and brown sugar mixture.  

3. Bake chicken uncovered for 15-30 minutes.   

4. Serve with a vegetable or some mashed potatoes.  The gravy is great over mash potatoes or rice. 

Dr. Pepper Pork Chops

I saw this recipe on pinterest and just knew I had to try it.  I added a few more ingredients and cooked it a different way, but it still came out great.  This is a meal I would make again.  Happy cooking and eating everyone!

Recipe: Dr. Pepper Pork Chop

Ingredients:

6-8 pork chops

1 12oz can Dr. Pepper

12 oz ketchup

3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Seasoning: Garlic Powder, Season All, Black Pepper, Crushed Red Pepper (optional)

Directions:

1. Wash your meat.  Pat dry with a paper towel.  Season meat with seasonings listed above.  

2. If you have a crock pot, place all ingredients in the crock pot, and cook on low for 6 hours or until the pork chops are cooked through. Remove the chops and whisk in 1 tablespoon of flour to thicken the sauce into a gravy. 

3. If you do not have a crock pot, you can cook your pork chops the way I did.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large baking dish, add the dr. pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and ketchup.  Then add your meat into the mixture.  Cover and bake for 45 minutes.  Uncover and continue to bake for another 30 minutes.  Make sure to check on it every ten minutes and baste it with the gravy.  

4. Serve over rice.

Teacher Appreciation Gift Ideas

The 2012 Teacher Appreciation Days are May 7th-May 11th.  Some of you may be wondering what to get for your child's teacher or for your teacher is you are in school.  As a teacher, I can't tell you how much it meant to receive tokens of appreciation.  Our job as teachers is not only to educate students, but also to encourage and provide support to families! Teacher appreciation week shows that all of our handwork throughout the school year is acknowledged.  

Gifts can come in all different shapes and sizes (it's that thought that counts).  Some of my favorite gifts were books, handwritten poems/cards, gift cards and edible gifts.  This past week as I have been pinning on Pinterest and updating my Pampered Chef website.  I found some really creative and cool gift ideas.  Hopefully one of these work for you!  

Gift Idea #1: Pampered Chef- Some teachers have families at home too.  A nice gift giving set would be a nice, practical gift.  Click on the link below to see gift sets.  If you are interested, please contact me!

http://www.pamperedchef.com/ordering/category_details.tpc?code=GS&id=73&parentCatId=73&parentId=

Gift Idea #2: Teacher Survivor Kit- This is a really cute gift idea. You basically fill a tackle box or a sewing box full of stuff teachers need on a daily basis (paper clips, staples, CHOCOLATE, etc.  You can decorate the front of the box with the teachers name or however you want.  It's inexpensive and also something practical.  Visit this website for more details: http://eighteen25.blogspot.com/2010/04/box-of-teacher-goodies.html

Gift Idea #3: Summer Survival Kit- Teachers look forward to summer break just as much as the kids do.  How about helping them get a jump start on summer by creating this cool gift.  All you do is get a towel in their favorite color, some candy, magazines or a book to read at the pool or beach, maybe sunscreen and flip flops.  Then wrap it all up in a pretty bow and you are all set.  You can get all of this stuff for under $10.00.  Visit the following website for more information. 

http://www.therachelberryblog.com/2008/06/teacher-thank-you-gifts.html

Gift Idea #4: Starbucks Gift Card- I am not big into Starbucks, but I know a lot of teachers who LOVE it.  Here is a cute idea: Get a clean cup and stuff it with brown tissue paper and white tissue paper.  Add the gift card inside the cup.  Add a tag that states, “Thanks a Latte!”

Gift Idea #5: Flowers- This is one of the cutest flower ideas I have seen.  You just get a black flower pot, yellow construction paper, and a white sharpie.  It's simple and really creative.  

Gift Idea #6: M&M Candy Jar with Poem- This is a great edible gift idea and it's sweet (figuratively and literally).  Get a mason jar, fill it with M&M's (peanut and plain).  Add the M&M poem (below) and decorate the jar how you would like.

Poem- 

Green is for the inspiration you give me each day.

Blue is for your patience in showing me the way.

Orange is for your warmth and caring style.

Yellow is for the way you always make me smile.

Red is for my life that you have touched this year.

You’re a very special teacher just like this jar, that’s clear.

You place knowledge in our children’s hands

and melt into their hearts and lives forever.

You’re a “Magnificent” & “Marvelous” teacher

Thank you for being my M&M.

I hope you enjoy the gift ideas.  I am sure your child's teacher will be happy with whatever you give them.  Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!!!