Egg Salad Sandwich

I look forward for Easter just for the egg salad sandwiches. They are one of my favorite things, and they are so easy to make. But yet I tend to only have them at Easter time every year.

Ingredients:
Hard boiled eggs - Dye job not required. But look how pretty they are! And the ones that were slightly cracked while soaking in the dye end up giving the mixture some color.
Mayo - I'm a fan of the Low Fat Best Foods (formly known as "reduced fat", look for the green lid). Low fat = fooling myself into thinking it's slightly healthier for me.
Mustard
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
Optional: diced red onion, green onion, celery, relish, or anything else you may think would taste good and bulk it up.

Instructions:
Use your handy dandy egg slicer (slice, 1/4 turn and slice again). It's all too taste. I honestly never measure. If somethings not right I add more of what I think it needs. If I added to much I'll just add another egg.
I'm a fan of my bread being toasted. So I toast it. This sandwich was also used with Sara Lee Delightful bread (2 slices for 1 point). Again, it's a healthy trick.
And voila! You have a delicious, easy to make sandwich!

Something to Make you Drool...

Although I won't be sharing the recipe for this Bailey's Chocolate Cheesecake that my mom is famous for.

Why?

Cause I don't have the recipe.

Sorry.

Many recipes to come in the upcoming days.

Meaty Man Pasta

or Pasta alla Marlboro Man (compliments of the Pioneer Woman).

I saw this recipe on Pdub's website and thought, that sounds good and looks easy. And I'll even do her TWO better; I'll use whole wheat pasta and ground turkey. My advice, stick to the normal recipe or really know how to doctor it up.
Ingredients:
2 tbs olive oil
2 lbs ground beef
1/2 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 generous tsp ground thyme
2 14-oz cans whole tomatoes
1/4 c freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 1/2 to 2 lbs rigatoni

Instructions:

1. First, heat olive oil in large skillet or pot over medium-low heat. Add onion and cook a couple minutes, until starting to turn translucent. Add garlic and stir, cooking 1 minute, making sure not to brown the garlic.
2. Next, add ground beef and cook until brown. Drain most of the excess fat. Add salt, pepper, and ground thyme. Stir to combine.
3. Now dumb in the canned tomatoes with their juice. Stir, reduce heat to low, and cover pot. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring a couple of times. Uncover the pot and cook an additional 30 minutes.
4. Cook rigatoni according to package directions - don't overcook! Drain and place individual portions into bowls.
5. Stir in 1/4 to 1/2 cup grated parmesan into the sauce. Check and adjust seasonings. Ladle sauce over cooked pasta, sprinkle with more parmesan, and serve.

I'm pretty sure it was the ground turkey that threw things off and not the whole wheat pasta...

Again, I suck at getting a picture of the completed product. Sorry. You'll just have to go visit the Pioneer Woman's page to see her delicious dish.

Penne and Chicken Tenderloins with Spiced Tomato Sauce

One Friday afternoon, (cause that's the new thing, I make dinner for the family Friday nights) I was looking for a recipe to make for dinner. I needed something quick and easy but yummy. So I stumbled upon this recipe. Total time 36 minutes, perfect! First time making it there were a couple boo boos, but it was still good. Second time around it was perfect and delicious! Ask anyone that was at TND this week...

(And of course I don't have a picture of the final product. Why? Cause I'm a slacker liker that.)

Serves 4 (about 1 1/2 cup serving size)

1 teaspoon ground fennel seed
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound chicken breast tenders, cut into (1") pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 cups canned diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup white wine
8 ounces uncooked penne
1/4 cup (1 oz.) freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl; rub over chicken.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 4 minutes, turning once. Remove from heat; set aside.
3. Reduce heat to medium. Add garlic; saute 30 seconds or until garlic is soft. Add tomatoes and wine, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes. Add chicken, and simmer 5 minutes.
4. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain. Toss pasta with sauce in a large bowl. Sprinkle with cheese and basil.

Calories 446; Fat 7.2g; Iron 4.2mg; Cholesterol 70mg; Calcium 153mg; Carbohydrates 57.1g; Sodium 774mg; Protein 38.5g; Fiber 6.5g

Cooking Light, April 2006

Spinach Salad

The simplest, bestest Spinach Salad eva'! My roommate during college used to make this often and it's all we would eat for dinner. It's extremely filling and full of flavor.


Ingredients:
Spinach
Bacon Bits (real or fake)
Hard Boiled Egg, sliced
Red Onion, thin slices
Balsamic Dressing

Instructions:
For the dressing, take a dry Italian packet and use balsamic for the vinegar.

You can layer the salad, or just dump the spinach in a bowl and sprinkle with the rest of the ingredients. I prefer the layer method, that way the goodies are throughout. The quantity of ingredients is all up to you.