Ranch Chicken & Potato Packets

This recipe is meant to be done with a grill, but I did it in the oven. It turned out fine and was super easy... but it took about an hour in the oven to cook.

Ingredients:
1 large potato
6 boneless chicken strips (uncooked)
Sprinkle of chicken marinade (I used the Montreal Chicken from Grill Master)
some bacon bits
Ranch dressing

Instructions:
1) Heat the grill up or preheat your oven to 400 degrees F

2) Take your raw potato and slice them into thin or small chunks. The smaller the better because they will cook faster.

3) Cut and place 2 sheets of foil onto a baking sheet and divide the potato pieces between the two sheets of foil

4) Sprinkle seasoning and bacon bits on top of the potatoes

5) Place raw chicken (3 pieces per foil sheet) on top of the potatoes

6) Squirt desired amount of ranch dressing on top of the chicken. Be generous!

7) Wrap each packet of foil on the cookie sheet and place them on the grill or oven

8) Cook for 45-50 minutes or until the chicken and potatoes are tender and break apart easily.

Serves: 2

*Note- Picture up top is BEFORE I put them in the oven... not after. They didn't last long after I pulled them out of the oven.*

Chicken Fettiuccini Alfredo

Takes about 30-45 minutes... not bad for a whole meal!

Ingredients:
1 jar of Alfredo sauce
5 chicken strips
1 head of broccoli
1/2 a tomato or 6-7 cherry tomatoes
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
Olive oil

Directions:

1. Pour olive oil in a skillet and cook your chicken until the inside is no longer pink and it's easy to shred with a fork.

2. Shred the chicken into small pieces and add broccoli and tomatoes. Add more olive oil if necessary, cook until vegetables are soft. About 3-5 minutes.

3. Pour in Alfredo sauce and add seasoning. Stir while skillet is hot for about a minute, mixing everything together

4. Boil water and add fettuccine noodles- following directions on the box. Serve with sauce.

You can make it healthier by adding more vegetables and/or finding an Alfredo sauce that isn't loaded in calories. The Alfredo sauce is the LEAST healthy thing in the pasta.

Something you can also add is bacon. I know that prevents it from being as healthy, but it does add to the flavor!

Spicy Cajun Chicken Pasta

This is a knock-off of TGIF's receipe, and let me tell you it is AMAZING! It feeds 2 people very very generous portions!

Ingredients:
4 Tbsp. butter
1 bell pepper diced
1/2 white onion, diced
1 clove of garlic, diced
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tsp. olive oil
1 med. tomato diced
4-6 mushrooms, diced (optional)
1 cup chicken broth or 1 boullion cube
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. thyme
4 to 6 quarts water
1/2 package of noodles

Directions:

1. Melt 2 Tbsp. butter in skillet and saute' bell pepper, onion, and garlic until vegetables begin to soften (about 5 minutes)

2. Cut chicken into bite size pieces and place in chicken in the skillet with the olive oil. Stir 5 to 7 minutes and make sure the chicken isn't pink or raw

3. Once vegetables are soft and the chicken is done, combine them together and add tomatoes, mushrooms (optional), salt, cayenne pepper, pepper, and thyme

4. Allow it to simmer for 10-12 minutes until it thickens

5. In the meantime, pour your water into a large pot and bring to a boil

6. Add noodles to cook and then remove (10-12 minutes)

7. Drain the noodles, add butter, and then serve the chicken-vegetable sauce over the top of the noodles.

Overall, I was able to dice everything and get it cooked in about 45 minutes. Not a super quick, but definitely worth it. And with all the vegetables it's fairly healthy and Sophie ate it. I didn't think it was that hot... but some might want to tone down the peppers if they find it too spicy. But for your first attempt... try it using all the ingredients, and then taste, because I really didn't find it too spicy.

Sweet & Tangy Loose BBQ Beef

Ingredients:

7 lbs. beef chuck roast
1 c. water
3 Tbsp. white vinegar
4 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 tsp. dry mustard
4 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
3 c. ketchup
2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (aka- red pepper)
6 cloves garlic, minced

Directions:

1. Place roast in slow cooker with water. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours or until beef shreds easily with a fork.

2. Shred beef and remove fat. Remove 1/2 c. of the broth. (Removed broth maybe used later to add to beef to keep moist if necessary).

3. Add vinegar, brown sugar, dry mustard, worecestershire sauce, and ketchup and place in crockpot.

4. Mix salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and garlic. Then place in crockpot and mix with the meat so it is well coated.

5. Cover and cook beef on LOW for 4-6 more hours. Add broth if necessary if meat appears to be going dry.

6. Serve on toasted buns.

*No picture available*

Easy Enchiladas

Everyone seems to have to have their own enchilada recipe... well here is mine for Chicken Enchiladas and they are WONDERFUL!

Ingredients:
3 med. chicken breasts
3 small or 1 large bell pepper
1/2 onion
1 pkg. cream cheese
1 pkg large flour tortillas
1-2 cups of homemade salsa ( you can get homemade salsa from Walmart if you don't make your own)
1 can green enchilada sauce

Directions:
-Use olive oil and fry chicken cutting it into small pieces
- Chop bell peppers and onion into fine pieces and add to cooked chicken
- Next add cream cheese and salsa to the mix
- Take a tortilla and add cheese and then scoop the chicken mix into the tortilla
- Roll the tortilla and place in a cake pan
- Continue until all the filling is gone. Usually makes 6.
- Pour green enchilada sauce over the tortillas
- Sprinkle cheese over the top
- Place pan in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes and remove.

You can also make this healthy by using fat free cream cheese and fat free cheese. It's a very very good recipe! My in-laws love it and I'll be making it again for them when they come! It's super easy and really really good!