Easy Italian Chicken

INGREDIENTS

Boneless chicken breasts (cubed or sliced)
1.2 cup Italian dressing
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 cup grated parmesan or romano cheese
4-6 medium potatoes (cubed or diced)

DIRECTIONS
1. Place chicken at bottom of crockpot and cover with half of the seasonings cheese
2. Place potatoes on top and around and cover with the other half of seasonings and cheese
3. Cook on low for 6-8 hours (takes less time when you cube the meat).

I got this recipe from southernfood.about.com

Pineapple Delight Cake

This was my FAVORITE dessert as a child. I've never really liked sugary icing and have always gravitated towards fruity desserts. This whipped icing is really the only kind I will eat. It was my birthday cake request when I was younger and my college roommate even made this for me on my birthdays!

INGREDIENTS
1 Super Moist Yellow cake Mix (and ingredients listed)
1 can crushed pineapple, drained
1 medium tub of Cool Whip
1 small pkg instand vanilla pudding mix


DIRECTIONS
1. Prepare cake in round layers
2. Mix drained pineapple, Cool Whip, and Pudding mix
3. Ice cake with topping

**Keep refrigerated**

Turkey Frittata

INGREDIENTS

Orange/Yellow bell pepper (diced)
Tomato (diced)
Onion (diced)
Ground Turkey or leftover Thanksgiving turkey (cooked)
10-12 Eggs
1/4 c. cream (I've used milk too)
Shredded cheddar cheese
*You can add any veggie really, spinach works well too... or potatoes would go

DIRECTIONS

1. Saute bell pepper and onion in an oven safe skillet
2. Add Tomato and turkey (couple minutes)
3. Whip eggs and cream (I add salt and pepper here)
4. Pour into skillet and stir gently until it sets around the edges (eggs should look both runny and lumpy)
5. Broil in oven until puffy (on the bottom shelf)
6. Top with shredded cheddar cheese and broil until melted


This is a combo recipe from Rachel Ray and from somewhere else???

Gemelli with Sweet Sausage and Spinach

INGREDIENTS:
3/4 pound gemelli, penne, or rotini (I used penne)
Salt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, cut in half and thinly sliced
1 pound sweet Italian sausages, casings removed
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 cups coarsely chopped baby spinach (used 2 c frozen, thawed first)
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, halved (or as many as you want!)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the gemelli until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water.
2. Meanwhile, in a large, deep skillet, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Add the onion and cook over med. high heat, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the sausage and crushed red pepper. Cook, breaking up the meat with the back of a spoon, until no trace of pink remains.
**I added diced red peppers here.**
4. Add the spinach and tomatoes and cook just until softened.
5. Add the gemelli and Parmesan cheese to the pan.
6. Add reserved cooking water as needed.
7. Cook over moderate heat, lightly crushing the tomatoes, until heated through. Season with salt and serve. Add additional Parmesan cheese to each serving if desired.


**I actually didn't add the pasta and parmesan in the skillet and let everyone add it on their own. DH doesn't like parmesan, so he used cheddar cheese and spaghetti instead of penne. He also added some Ragu sauce (he said it didn't "look" right... he's big on how something looks). He loved it though. I loved it the way it is inteded!

This recipe is from Michelle (MMmom), from an online cooking board I'm part of.

Chicken Broccoli Shells

INGREDIENTS
1 jar Alfredo sauce
2 cups frozen chopped broccoli (thawed)
2 cups diced cooked chicken
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
21 jumbo pasta shells (cooked)

DIRECTIONS
1. Combine Alfredo sauce, broccoli, chicken and cheeses.
2. Spoon into pasta shells
3. Place in greased baking dish (I used wax paper)
4. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until heated through (hasn't ever taken this long for me... more like 20 minutes)

I have let Caleb dip his shell in spaghetti sauce too (since he loves to dip!)/ just use the sauce as a topping for penne pasta
I'm also planning to add spinach to the sauce.

Apple Cranberry Crisp

INGREDIENTS

2/3 c. oatmeal (not instant)
3 Tbsp flour
3/4 c. brown sugar
2 Tbsp + 1 tsp margarine
3 Tbsp cornstarch
4 c. apples (peeled and sliced)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/5 Tbsp lemon juice (have used orange too)
1 c. fresh/frozen cranberries

DIRECTIONS
1. Set over to 375 degrees
2. Mix oats, flour, 1/3 c. brown sugar and melted butter
3. In separate bowl, mix the rest of sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon
4. Add apples, lemon juice and cranberries to step 3
5. Place fruit mixture in 2 quart dish
6. Sprinkle with oat topping
7. Bake 35-45 minutes

Serve warm with ice cream

Avocado Black Bean Salsa

INGREDIENTS

1 avocado
1/2 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
1/2 tomato (diced)
cilantro to taste
salt to taste
lime to taste

DIRECTIONS

Basically mix all ingredients together until you get the flavor you like.
Eat as a dip with chips, with pita bread, inside a tortilla,...

Good for a lunch/snack.