Healthy Tacos

I know it's been a while since I have blogged, but it is time for me to get back to it now!  So last night we had tacos with a delicious, healthy spin to them!  The tacos were made with turkey meat and instead of using taco shells I used Romaine lettuce!
The first thing I did was cook the turkey meat.  Once the meat was no longer pink I add a can of black beans that I rinsed and drained.

The Romaine lettuce comes in a big bundle, so I would pull each leaf from the main stem and then rinse it off of course!  I then prepared the toppings.   I used cheese, avocados, green onions, sour cream, and hot sauce. 

This is really such an easy meal.  After the meat is fully cook spread it down the middle of your shell, and then add the toppings you desire.  The big stem at the end makes it easy to hold onto with sides folded together!

Banana Peach Bread

I was craving something sweet the other day, so I looked around in my kitchen and decided to use what I had to make this delicious, moist bread!  I combined a zucchini cake recipe with a banana bread recipe, added a few peaches to the mix, and voila "Banana Peach Bread!"  Since this was a first for me in making my own bread recipe I had my family judge it for me.  My sister Jami said it was a great fall bread with the cinnamon and cloves.  She also added I should make one for my Memaw(who is the ultimate cook).  I also took some to my dad to take home for him and my mom.  Well the bread didn't make it home for my mom to taste!  I hope you try this one, and let me know what you think!

Ingredients
1 banana
4 slices of canned peaches
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 and grease bread pan.
In mixing bowl, smash banana and peaches.  Pour melted butter over and mix. Mix in sugar, egg, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, and salt.  Mix in flour.  Pour in bread pan and bake for 45-60 minutes.  I baked mine for approximately 50 minutes.  Let cool for 1 hour before you transfer out of bread pan!

1 Chicken = 3 Delicious Meals

Buying a whole chicken can go a long way when it comes to making meals.  There are a ton of casserole's that require chicken!  This past week I cooked three traditional delicious meals, and still have a little chicken left to make chicken salad!

I cook my chicken in the crock pot along with a stick of butter and seasoning.  I pretty much just use a combination of whatever I have in my pantry.  Usually salt, pepper, garlic powder, and seasoning salt!  Let your chicken cook on low for 8 hours, let it cool and then separate the chicken from the bones.  Now for the delicious meals!

Chicken N Dumplings

Ingredients

• 1 can cream of mushroom
• 1 can cream of chicken
• 2 soup cans of water
• 2 cups of chicken, chopped
• salt
• pepper
• 1 tube of 8 big buttermilk biscuits, each biscuit cut into 4 sections

Directions
Combine soups, water, chicken, salt, and pepper in crock pot and mix well.  Add biscuits to the top and gently push in the soup mixture letting them still float on top.

Cook on Low 4 to 6 hours.

Enjoy

 

Mexican Chicken

Ingredients



• 1 can cream of mushroom
• 1 can cream of chicken
• 1 can of rotel
• 2 cups of chicken, chopped
• Frito's
• Grated Cheese

Directions

• Mix soups, rotel, and chicken together.  Heat mixture in pot on top of stove.  Line casserole dish with Frito's. Pour soup mixture on top.  Cover with grated cheese.
• Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes

 

Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti

 

Very similar to the Mexican Chicken!
Ingredients

• 1 can cream of mushroom
• 1 can cream of chicken
• 1 can rotel
• 6 oz Velveeta cheese, cubed
• 2 cups of chicken, chopped
• 8 oz cooked spaghetti noodles
• Grated Cheese

Directions

• On stove top, combine soups, rotel Velveeta cheese, and chicken.  Mix until cheese is melted.
• Mix with noodles and pour into a casserole dish.
• Cover with grated cheese and bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.

 

All these meals are budget friendly!

Mom's Mexican Salad

This was my absolute favorite dinner my mom made when growing up.  It's safe to say it was a household favorite, and the choice for many birthday dinners!  It was also the first dinner I made for Ryan, and probably a crucial part in his decision that he wanted to marry me. LOL!  I've made my own version that you can find in an early post that uses different chips and a different dressing.

Ingredients
Iceberg Lettuce, shredded
Tomatoes, Cut in smaller pieces
Purple onion, Chopped
1 can red kidney beans, rinsed & drained
1 lb ground beef, fully cooked
Frito's
8 oz Catalina dressing
Grated cheese

Directions
Combine all ingredients in bowl.  Toss with dressing and top with grated cheese!  This meal is great for an evening you don't have much time to spend in the kitchen!

Coupon shopping at CVS week 8/26

This week deals require you to buy the Sunday's paper that include coupon booklets.  There are three different coupon booklets.  1. Smart Source (SS) this one does not come in the Paris, only in the Dallas Paper. 2. Red Plum (RP) Is always in the Paris Paper. 3. Proctor & Gamble (PG), comes out once a month, my favorite coupons!  This week you only need the RP and PG, so if you don't already have the paper you might be able to find one at a convenient store.  Also check with parents, grandparents, or neighbors to see if they use the coupon books that come in Sunday paper.  Most of the time you will need multiple coupon booklets.  This week I used four.

All the deals I got this week were done at CVS.  I did two separate transactions that way the Extra Bucks I received in the first transaction I used in the second. 

Transaction #1 (Advil, Dawn Dish Soap, John Frieda Hair Product)

John Frieda Deal
Buy 1 John Frieda Full Repair Root Lifting Foam $4.99
Buy 1 John Frieda Full Repair Shampoo $4.99
Buy 1 John Frieda Full Repair Conditioner $4.99
Buy 1 John Frieda Full Repair Styling Spray $4.99
Spend $20.00, Receive $10.00 Extra Bucks, Limit 1Pay $19.96, Receive $10.00 Extra Bucks
Final Price: $2.49 each, when you buy all 4

Advil Deal
Advil, 40-50 ct, PM 16-20 ct, Children’s Liquid, 0.5 or 4 oz $4.49Buy 2, Receive $4.00 Extra Bucks, Limit 1
Use $1.50/1 – Advil Children’s Product, limit 4 – (facebook.com)
Or $1.00/1 – Advil P.M, 16ct or Larger – (advil.com)
Or $1.00/1 ThermaCare 2 ct or larger, Advil 40 ct or larger, Advil PM 16 ct or larger, Children’s Advil 4 oz or larger, or Infant Advil 1/2 oz or larger from RP 8/26 (exp 10/13)
9/14)
Pay $6.48, Receive $4.00 Extra BucksFinal Price: $1.24 each, when you buy 2

Dawn Dish Soap Deal
Dawn Dishwashing Liquid, 9-10.3 oz $0.99
Use $0.75/1 Dawn Hand Renewal, Power Clean, Bleach Alternative or Oxi, excludes trial/travel size, Limit 4 like coupons per household per day from PG 8/26 (exp 9/30)
Use $0.50/1 Dawn Product, excludes trial/travel size, Limit 4 like coupons per household per day from PG 8/26 (exp 9/30) Final Price: Dawn Hand Renewal $0.24, Regular Dawn Dish Soap $0.49

Transaction #2 Cover Girl Eye Shadow

Buy 8 Covergirl Eye Enhancers Eye Shadows $5.79, regular price
Buy One Get One 50% Off
Spend $30.00, Receive $10.00 Gas Card, Limit 5
Use four $3.00/2 Covergirl Products, excludes trial/travel size limit of 4 like coupons per household per day from PG 8/26 (exp 9/30)
Pay $22.74, Use your Extra Bucks from Transaction 1 of $10.00 & $4.00, Now Pay $8.74 Receive $10.00 Gas CardFinal Price before using Extra Bucks: $1.59 each, when you buy 8


Always double check your reciept.  I almost paid full price for some of my eyeshadows before I noticed they didn't take off the 50% on some of them.

Slow Cooked Pork

I love cooking dinner in my slow cooker!  There is really nothing to it.  You literally throw your ingredients in, and let it cook all day while filling your house with a yummy smell.  This particular dish would be great for Sunday lunch! 

• 4 cups of baby carrots, or 3 medium carrots sliced
• 1 boneless pork shoulder roast(3-4 lbs)
• 1 can (15oz) black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can (10oz) green enchilada sauce
• 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro

Place carrots in slow cooker.  Add roast, beans, enchilada sauce and cilantro.  Cover and cook on low for 5 hours.

After 5 hours of cooking enjoy this tasty meal! 

Portobello-Chicken Lo Mein

I'll keep this blog short and sweet!  This Asian pasta dish is one of my favorites!  I don't think you can go wrong with the blend of carrots, mushrooms, spinach, and slightly sweet sauce!

Ingredients
4 oz. linguine
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 cup chicken broth
1 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 Tbsp honey
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into strips
2 Tbsp sesame oil, divided
2 medium carrots, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1-3/4 cups sliced baby portobello mushrooms
2 cups fresh baby spinach

Directions

• Cook linguine according to package directions.
• In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch, broth, vinegar, honey, salt, and ginger until smooth; set aside.
• In large skillet stir fry chicken in 1 Tbsp oil until no longer pink.  Remove from skillet and keep warm.
• Stir fry carrots and onion in 1 Tbsp oil for 2 minutes.  Add mushrooms; stir fry for 2 minutes.

• Add spinach; stir fry 1-2 minutes longer or until vegetables are crisp-tender and spinach is wilted.  I just love the colors in this stir fry!

• Stir cornstarch mixture and add to the pan.  Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened.  Drain linguine. Add chicken and linguine to the pan; heat through.

Enjoy!!