where the secret ingredient is love
Week of March 3
Monday: black beans & rice
Tuesday: baked rigatoni with bechamel sauce
Wednesday: Bible study dinner/Ben fends for himself- I think he’s planning on tuna mac [blech!]
Thursday: leftovers
Friday: pulled chicken sandwiches
Saturday: breakfast for dinner
Sunday: healthy fried rice
This month for Mystery Dish, Christine from I Dig Pinterest and I Did it Too was the head honcho. She gave us the following ingredients to work with: fresh mushrooms, pork, spinach, cream cheese, pineapple, butterscotch chips, macadamia nuts, Sriracha, Ritz crackers, and tortillas. When I first saw the list, I had dreams of a fabulous dessert. But things just didn’t work out due to family and work things… so dinner it was! But shhhh! Don’t tell these enchiladas they were a second choice because they’d be oh so sad. They were SO tasty and SO spicy and SO worth it.
The two ingredients I used from Christine’s list were spinach and tortillas. I thought about also using Sriracha in the spicy enchilada sauce, but after a quick test taste, I realized there was no way I’d be able to handle the heat if I added that. 🙂 So two ingredients it was! Obviously tortillas are an essential part of enchiladas–but spinach? Sounds a little weird. But I’m never one to shy away from adding veggies where they are unexpected. The combination of chicken, spinach, and corn made for a delightful enchilada filling, and when we had a little leftover, I saved it for quesadillas later in the week. Also an excellent choice for this filling! If a super spicy sauce isn’t your thing, feel free to buy some or try my [old old old] recipe for a classic enchilada sauce.
We loved how flavorful, fast, and unique these enchiladas were, and I bet you will too! Be sure to check out some of the other creations made by my Mystery Dish pals. 🙂
one year ago: Italian Sausage and Red Rice
two years ago: Sausage, Apple, and Egg Casserole
three years ago: Roasted Vegetable Lasagna
Spicy Chicken, Spinach, and Corn Enchiladas
click to print
Ingredients:
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a food processor, combine tomato paste, tomato juice, onion, green pepper, garlic, chipotle peppers, chili powder, cumin, and oregano. Process until smooth. Spread 1/3 of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish.
In a bowl, stir together chicken, spinach, corn, and salsa. Divide mixture between the tortillas, then place seam side down in the baking dish. Top with remaining enchilada sauce and the cheese.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Time: 45 minutes [15 minutes active].
Yield: 4 servings.
1. Grilled Pineapple with Nutella and Macadamia Nuts by Joyful Healthy Eats
2. Hummingbird Cake by Baking a Moment
3. Three-Cheese Spinach Squares by The Well Floured Kitchen
4. Easy Pesto Pita Bread Pizzas by Yummy Healthy Easy
5. Minty Pea Prosciutto Toast by Chez CateyLou
6. Pina Colada Cheesecake by Blahnik Baker
7. Chocolate Banana Cheesecake Chimichangas by Culinary Couture
8. Pork with Pineapple Fried Rice by I Want Crazy
9. Tropical Green Smoothie by The Dessert Chronicles
10. Spicy Chicken, Spinach and Corn Enchiladas by The Pajama Chef
11. Pineapple Drop Cookies by I Dig Pinterest
My sister made these AWESOME cookie bars for our family this Valentine’s Day, along with some red velvet brownies and chocolate chip cookies. Aren’t they cute? They taste just as good as they look, so after my first bite I asked Kathleen for the recipe and made them on Friday. I think it just might become a new Friday tradition.
Strawberries and chocolate are a classic combo–one of my faves [the Chocolate Covered Strawberry Blizzard is my go-to at DQ], so it was no surprise that I loved these cookie bars. I’m usually a homemade-only kinda baker/chef, as you know, but the use of strawberry cake mix is absolutely essential in these cookie bars. I’m sure you can make a good strawberry cake somehow, but all my tries at the homemade variety have been flops. And let’s face it–the store bought box is so easy and so delicious. I served these uber pink bars for a church small group game night, and everyone loved them. Fortunately there were a few leftover so I could snap a quick photo for you! 🙂
I know that I’ll definitely be looking for any excuse to make these pretty pink cookie bars in the future. A little girl’s birthday party [or a big girl’s…:)], Valentine’s Day, or just an average Friday are just three of the instances that come to mind. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did! So happy my sister decided to share them with us. You should definitely check out her blog cause it’s pretty fab. 🙂
one year ago: Asian Peanut Veggie Dip
two years ago: Spicy Sausage, Chicken, & Bean Stew
three years ago: Peanut Butter Chocolate Cupcakes
Strawberry Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars [adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction and my Funfetti Cookies]
click to print
Ingredients:
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8×8 inch or 9×9 inch pan with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, whisk together cake mix and baking powder. In a measuring cup, whisk together oil, eggs, and vanilla. Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, then fold in chocolate chips. Dough will be oily and very thick.
Press dough into prepared pan, then bake in preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, or until edges are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool before cutting into bars.
Time: 30 minutes.
Yield: 16 servings.
Week of February 24
Monday: lemony kale pasta
Tuesday: southwest chicken burrito bake
Wednesday: black beans & rice
Thursday: turkey burgers
Friday: leftovers
Saturday: frittata
Sunday: chicken noodle soup
Happy Valentine’s Day! I’m afraid I don’t have any lovey-dovey dessert to offer you today. For your chocolate overload or cutesy heart shape dessert, you’ll have to look elsewhere. If you need an easy red velvet dessert, check out these Red Velvet Marshmallow Bites I made last year. Yum!
Today all I have to offer you is breakfast. A treat for tomorrow, perhaps? I hope cranberries aren’t too hard to come by in your part of the world on this fine February morning. They certainly make this cinnamon sugar-laced coffee cake something extra special.
This cake is so easy to make, and is a perfect buttery base for those tart berries. I added a bit of cinnamon and cloves to the original recipe, thinking those warm spices would be delicious alongside the orange zest, and you know what? I was RIGHT!
To top everything off, add a light powdered sugar icing. It makes all the difference! I heated up the icing just before drizzling on the cake–a very good move, as it crisped up after meeting the cake. I just love crisp glaze-y icing. Delish!
one year ago: Go-To Pancakes
two years ago: Mexican Chicken Alfredo
three years ago: Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Fresh Cranberry Coffee Cake [slightly adapted from Sweet Anna’s]
click to print
Ingredients:
for cake
for icing
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10 inch tube pan with a removable bottom. Set aside.
In a small bowl, mix together sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer [or with a hand mixer], beat eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy, nearly doubled in size. This will take about 8 minutes.
Add in butter and vanilla, and beat for an additional 2 minutes.
Stir in flour, nutmeg, cloves, and orange zest with a wooden spoon until just combined. It will be very thick.
Spoon half of the batter into the bundt pan, then evenly top with the cranberries and reserved cinnamon sugar mixture. Spoon the rest of the batter over the cranberries [some cranberries may still be visible].
Bake for 45-50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean. Check after about 30 minutes, and cover with foil if cake is browning too much.
Remove to a wire rack to cool, gently using a knife to loosen cake from the bottom and sides of the pan. After cake cools completely, whisk together the powdered sugar and milk, microwave for about 30 seconds, then drizzle over the cake before serving.
Time: 60 minutes [15 minutes active].
Yield: 12 servings.
Linked up with: Weekend Potluck.
The Pajama Chef 