Broccoli Rice Casserole

Strangely enough, broccoli is one of the few green vegetables that my husband and kids will eat. So a few years ago I started adding some sort of broccoli casserole to the Thanksgiving menu just for them. I haven't really found one that I'm head over heels for yet. A lot of the recipes out there call for Velveeta cheese which I am not too much a fan of. A good number of the recipes out there call for the same ingredients- I just changed/ added a few ingredients. This one turned out pretty tasty! I may still try to come up with something "even better", but for now this will be on the list!

Ingredients
2 (10 oz) packages frozen chopped broccoli
3 cups rice (long grain or instant)
1 (10.75 oz) can cream of mushroom soup
1 (10.75 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 1/4 cups water
1 to 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
1 tbsp butter
1 bunch celery, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
1. Cook broccoli and rice according to packages. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a saucepan over low heat, mix soups and water. Gradually add cheese and stir until melted.

3. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat and saute celery, onion and garlic until soft.

4. In a large mixing bowl, combine broccoli, rice, soup-cheese mixture and vegetables. Season with salt and pepper. Pour into a 9x13 inch baking dish.

5. Bake for 45 minutes until bubbly and golden brown.





ENJOY!

Perfect Mexican Rice

Although I had a "good" recipe for Mexican rice, I was looking to tweak it just a little. The outcome? Perfect!! It was flavorful with a nice fluffy texture. Now to work on perfecting my flour tortillas! :-)

eta: I wanted to make this again, but did not have fresh tomatoes on hand. Instead I used a 15 oz can of diced tomatoes. I pureed them in the blender with the onion and it yielded 2 cups. I think that there must be more liquid in the canned ones becaus the finished product wasn't as "fluffy" as I like. So, you can certainly use canned tomatoes if that is what you have, but I would decrease the chicken broth by maybe 1/4 cup to compensate. But even if you make the rice with all of the liquid, the rice is still pretty tasty!!

Ingredients

2 ripe tomatoes (about 12 oz), cored and quartered

1 onion, quartered

3 medium jalapeno chilies (I left these out b/c I didn't have any)

2 cups long grain white rice

1/3 cup canola oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups low sodium chicken broth (or vegetable)

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 1/2 tsp salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Process the tomatoes and onion in a food processor (or blender) until smooth. You should have 2 cups liquid. If you have more than 2 cups, spoon off excess. If you have less than 2 cups, you can process another tomato or add a little water. It is important to have exactly 2 cups. If you are using jalapenos, remove seeds and mince flesh. Set aside.

3. Put the rice in a strainer and rinse under cold running water until the water runs clear (about 1-2 minutes). Shake rice to remove excess water. Removing as much water as possible is an important step as it will cause a lot of splattering when you put the rice in the oil (trust me on this).

4. Use a 12 inch oven safe pan that has a tight fitting lid. Heat oil in pan over medium-high heat about 1-2 minutes. The oil is ready when you drop in a few grains of rice and they sizzle. Add the rice and stir frequently until the rice is golden and translucent (about 6-8 minutes). Reduce heat to medium and add garlic and jalapenos; cook stirring constantly about 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in pureed tomatoes and onion, chicken broth, tomato paste and salt. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Cover pan and transfer to oven.

5. The total cooking time is 30-35 minutes. Put the rice in the oven and set the timer for 15 minutes. Stir the rice after 15 minutes and return to the oven for another 15 minutes. After the full 30 minutes, stir rice. You can leave the rice covered on the counter until needed. Garnish with a squeeze of lime juice, cilantro, more jalapeno or whatever you prefer!

This is what the rice looks like after 15 minutes. You need to stir it to incorporate everything.

This is after stirring the rice.

This is after the full 30 minutes.

ENJOY!

Chicken Stir Fry

After a day of heavy house cleaning, I wanted to make a dinner that would come together quickly. We had some chicken and fresh veggies so I thought a stir fry would be a good fit! You can change up a stir fry so much depending on what you like. It can be a good way to use up some vegetables before they go bad too! This turned out tasty and made a nice lunch the next day!! But note to self... when doing heavy house cleaning, make something in the crockpot that morning!! (Sorry about the picture- the food was steaming and made it look blurry)





Ingredients

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in bite size pieces
soy sauce
cooking oil
2 cloves garlic minced
1 bunch of broccoli, chopped
1/2 cup shredded or chopped carrots
1 red bell pepper, chopped
8 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup chicken broth
pinch of ground ginger
4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
cooked rice (I used a sticky rice, but use what you like)


Directions
Before cooking, you can add a few dashes of soy sauce to the chicken.

Heat a large wok or skillet with a tbsp of oil and add 1/2 of the chicken. Cook until done and remove to a paper towel lined bowl. Cook remaining chicken and remove.

Mix the sauce: chicken broth, ginger, soy sauce, sugar and cornstarch. Set aside.

Add the broccoli, carrots and bell pepper to the skillet with a small amount of oil. Cook until tender crisp. I wanted the vegetables to be a little softer, so I added a small amount of water and put a lid on the pan for about 5-8 minutes. Add green onions and chicken.

Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables and stir well. Heat to boiling to thicken. Serve over hot rice. Add soy sauce to taste.

ENJOY!