Asian Wonton Salad

Ingredients:

2 heads romaine lettuce

3 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed

cherry tomatoes

1 red onion, thinly sliced

1 cucumber, sliced

1 package wontons

vegetable oil for frying

Sweet Sesame Dressing:

2/3 C. rice vinegar

1 C. canola oil

2 T. sesame oil

4 cloves garlic, pressed

2 T. soy sauce

1/2 C. sugar

4 T. sesame seeds

- Place all ingredients in quart jar and shake vigorously. If desired, make ahead of time and store in the fridge.

Directions:

Heat about 1 inch of oil in a pot on the stove top. Use pizza cutter or sharp knife to cut wontons in thirds (3 strips). You may not need the entire package, depending on how much salad you are making. I used about 1/3 of the package. You will want the oil 375 degrees. Test by dipping a wonton in and seeing if it bubbles up quickly. Fry wontons a few at a time and set on paper towels to dry. These can be made ahead of time and kept in an air tight container.

Tear clean lettuce into chunks and place in a large salad bowl. Top with cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumber, and red onion. Add chicken and top with Sweet Sesame Dressing. Toss salad together. Once everything is well coated, add wonton strips and gently toss to combine.

* I cut this recipe in half for the two of us. It makes plenty !

* I also marinated two chicken breasts the night before in a teriyaki marinade with minced garlic and cooked it on the griddler instead of plain cubed chicken.

Hearty Minestrone Soup

Awesome, healthy winter dish. And it cooks itself in the crock!

2 cans (one 28 oz., one 14 1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cups water
2 medium carrots, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium zucchini, chopped
1 pkg. (3-1/2oz.) sliced pepperoni
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 tsp. chicken bouillon granules
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
2 cans (16 oz. each) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1-1/4 cups cooked elbow macaroni
Shredded Parmesan cheese

In 5-qt. slow cooker, combine the first 10 ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until vegetables are tender.
Stir in the beans, spinach, and macaroni. Cover and cook 15 minutes longer or until heated through. Sprinkle with cheese.
Yield: 7 servings

*Tips- I tried to use organic ingredients when possible- especially for tomatoes and carrots which have higher traces of pesticide residue- used turkey pepperoni, and used organic (but natural would be good too) kidney beans. I was buying my beans at Aldi cuz they're super cheap, but noticed that they are also loaded with high fructose corn syrup- yucky and unnecessary! Meijer's natural and organic brands are a fabulous way to avoid these types of ingredients for an even healthier soup!

Fruit Cobbler

2 sticks of butter (yikes! ....i know!)

2 c of fresh berries of your choice

1 3/4 c sugar

1 1/4 c flour

2 tsp. baking powder

3/4 c milk

pinch of salt

Melt 1 stick of butter in 8'' baking dish. Prepare crust by mixing sugar (only 3/4 c),

flour, baking powder, milk, salt, and 1 stick of softened butter. Spread crust over melted butter in baking dish. Mix fruit with 1 c sugar. Pour over batter mixture. Do not stir. Bake at 350

for 1 hour. Enjoy!

Chicken Penne Pasta

5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

10-12 basil leaves, chopped

5 tomatoes, diced

16 oz. mayonnaise

1/2 lb. cooked chicken, diced

12 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese

1 lb. penne pasta, cooked and drained

grated romano or parmesan cheese

Mix garlic, basil, tomatoes, mayonnaise, chicken and mozzarella (reserving 1 cup).

Add the pasta and mix well. Pour into 9x13 and top with remaining mozz. cheese

and grated cheese. Cover and bake at 350 for 45 min. Enjoy!

Creamy Chicken Dinner

4 chicken breasts

1 slice of swiss cheese for each piece of chicken

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/4 c. dry white wine

1 c. herb-seasoned stuffing mix, crushed

1/4 c butter, melted

Arrange chicken in lightly greased 9x13

Top with cheese

Combine soup and wine, stirring well. Spoon

evenly over chicken. Sprinkle with stuffing mix.

Drizzle butter over the crumb. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

Enjoy!

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

8 oz. package pasta
1 cup fresh or frozen broccoli
2 tsp. butter
1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) Cream of Mushroom Soup
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

COOK pasta (linguine is recommended, but I use whatever is cheap) to package directions. Add broccoli for last 4 min. of cooking time. Drain.

HEAT butter in skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken until browned, stirring often.

ADD soup, milk, cheese, pepper, and pasta mixture and heat through. Serve with additional Parmesan cheese.

Thanks!

Great recipes ladies! Thanks for sharing. I can't wait to try many of them. Keep 'em comin'!