Quesadilla Burger

Our family's favorite meal at Applebee's is their Quesadilla Burger.  I only had to have it once to know that I needed to make it myself.  I love being able to recreate something from a restaurant and make it for my family at home.  It saves tons of money since we don't need to eat out to get the meal we love.  For a change up from a regular burger, make sure to give this one a try.

1 lb. ground beef
4 flour tortillas
salsa
bacon bits
pepper jack cheese
chopped lettuce
garlic salt

Make burger patties and fry them up. I sprinkle a little garlic salt on the patties before flipping them the first time.  I use a griddle when making these.  It helps get more done at a time.  To get rid of as much grease as I can, I put them on a plate with paper towel before the next step.

While the burgers are cooking I prepare the other ingredients.  I chop some lettuce, very lightly butter the tortillas.  You can see here the Hormel bacon bits that I use.  I love these things.

After I take off the burgers and scrap the grease off, I put down two tortillas, butter side down.  Put the burger patty on one side and top it with a slice of pepper jack.  I break it into two pieces to spread out the goodness to the whole burger.

Then I top with some salsa.  Just a spoonful or two.  Sprinkle with bacon bits.

Let it cook until the bottom tortilla is nicely browned.  Add lettuce.

Flip the empty side over.  Press down gently so that the tortilla stays in place.

Cut in half.  This makes for a much more manageable way to eat!

I always serve this with fries baked in the oven.

Enjoy!

Chicken Tostadas

Many years ago when my girls were in elementary school there was a school fair. A lady had a tostada  booth that we thought was amazing.  Of course, I had to work at recreating it. I love to do that.  It has been a long time, so I really don't know how close my creation is to hers, but we still like it.

2 chicken breasts ( I would prefer to use chicken on the bone and cook it down, but I don't have that on hand)
large can of diced tomatoes
1 cup chicken broth
salsa (use to add more moisture if needed while cooking,)
large onion
red pepper flakes (to taste)
Tostada shells

Cook whole chicken breasts in the rest of the ingredients on a medium/low heat.

This usually takes about 20 minutes or so.

Pull chicken out and shred.

Put back into tomatoes and let simmer for about 5 to 10 more minutes.
Warm shells in oven.
Put chicken mixture on top of shell.  Top with cheese and sour cream!  Ole!

Fish - Nikki Style!

I know that not everyone is as lucky as me to have a wonderful stepfather who provides me with all the fish I could ever want.  Emma prefers the fish to be fried and as much as I love it too I just can't bring myself to cook it that way too often.  I cook it on the healthy side.  Since the fish is in small pieces it doesn't always look so great when I am done with it, but it always tastes great.

I take fish and lay it out on paper towel to let it dry some.  Then I place it in a large frying pan.  I usually have to cook it in two batches.

 I add a couple of tablespoons of lemon juice and worcestershire sauce to the fish.  Sprinkle it with garlic salt, paprika and pepper. ( notice that no oil was added.)  ( I said it was healthy!)

I usually only flip it once, otherwise it breaks up too much.  

I served it with a baked potato and green beans.


Do you eat much fish?  I would love to hear how you cook yours.

Bruschetta Chicken

This was dinner last night.  Pretty tasty stuff.  I think I still need to work on my bruschetta, though. I personally didn't think it was a good as the stuff my neighbor brought over a few weeks ago.  Since my girls are now in love with the stuff I think I will be getting more practice.

I took chicken breasts and marinated them in some basalmic vinegar and a touch of olive oil and sprinkled with salt.  I then grilled it.
After it was really close to being done I put some slices of mozzarella on and let it melt.

For the bruschetta, I used 2 large roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped.  A handful of fresh basil, chopped.  Three cloves of garlic and 1/2 of an onion.  Added salt, balsamic vinegar and just a tough of olive oil.

We topped the chicken with mozzarella on top with some bruschetta.  Served with a side of pita chips.

I haven't figured out the calories yet, but I think this will end up pretty low.

I also, just found out that I have been pronouncing bruschetta wrong.  I don't know where the "k" sound comes from.

This ended up being a great summer dinner.  Let me know if you try it.  Do you have a better recipe for bruschetta?  I would love to have it.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

Wow!  It has been a while since my last post.  I enjoyed a great visit with my mom last week.  I had a week off of cooking.  You have to enjoy that when you get it.

This weekend we made some chocolate chip cookies.  On these hot summer days, baking isn't on the top of my list of things to do.  When you scoop cold, creamy ice cream in between two cookies it is worth every bit of the heat.

I used the typical Toll House cookie recipe and vanilla cream.  Let the cookies cool, put a scoop of ice cream in between two cookies and put into container to freeze. Easy as that! 

I hope you are all enjoying your summer.  Try cooling off with these delicious treats.

Homemade Dog Treats

How about something homemade for your dog?  These were not too difficult to make and Maxine loves them.  We have been trying to eliminate certain foods from her diet to see if it helps her not chew her feet.  I found the recipe on-line and gave them a try.  This website has tons of options to try. Give them a try for your dog.



½ cups water(add more water later if required)
½ cup oil
2 eggs
3 tablespoons peanut butter
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
½ cup cornmeal
½ cup oats


Blend wet ingredients together. Whisk dry ingredients together and mix into wet mixture to form a ball of dough. Roll out and shape. Put onto a non-stick cookie tray or lightly greased one. Cook 20 minutes at 400 F. Turn off oven and allow the biscuits to cool in oven until crisp and hard. Store in airtight container. 

Cajun Chicken Pasta

We were supposed to go to our church picnic the other night, but a  thunderstorm kept us home.  I made a dish to pass before we made the decision to stay home.  I took this recipe and adjusted it slightly.  I love being able to take a recipe and make it mine.  

Here is my version:

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces uncooked pasta
• 1 pound chicken breast strips
• 1-2 tsp Cajun seasoning (or to taste)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium green pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 medium zucchini, sliced into strips
• 8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 1/3 cup skim milk
• 1 tbsp flour
• 3 tbsp light cream cheese
• pepper 
• salt to taste

*In a small blender make a slurry by combining milk, flour and cream cheese. Set aside. 

*Season chicken generously with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder and salt.

*Make pasta in salted water according to directions on package.

*Heat a large heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; spray with cooking spray and add chicken. *Sauté 5 to 6 minutes add veggies and garlic and cook until they are almost tender.

*Add mushrooms and tomatoes and sauté 3-4 more minutes or until vegetables are tender. Season with 1/4 tsp salt, garlic powder and pepper to taste.

*Reduce heat to medium-low;  pour in slurry stirring about 2 minutes.

*Add linguine; toss well to coat. 

Servings: 5 • Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups 
Calories: 300 • Fat: 6g • Protein: 25g • Carb: 44.1 g  


We actually ended up having more than 5 servings.  I am not sure I even used a whole pound of chicken. For the four of us we ended up having at least 7 servings.  My whole family was very surprised to find out that this recipe wasn't bad for them.  We will definitely do this one again.