BBQ Chicken Tostadas
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Southwest Salsa: A Healthy Alternative to Game Day Snacking
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Restaurant Style Mexican Rice
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Cheesy Baked Bean and Rice Burritos
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Bandera Queso Dip
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Mexican Scrambled Eggs
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Warm Cheesy Bean Dip
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Carne Asada Tacos
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Roasted Chili Corn Salsa
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Black Bean Burger Bowls (and a $100 Visa Gift Card Giveaway!)
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Crescent Roll Taco Squares
Taco seasoned meat sandwiched between layers of crescent roll dough and baked till golden brown. Put out a variety of taco toppings and let everyone customize it to their liking. A fun recipe that appeals to both kids and adults, alike.
Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. Ever. It’s the official kickoff to the holiday season and what a great way to start things off. Costumes, parties, spooky decorations, all things pumpkin, and lots of candy. There are no gifts to buy and no big, elaborate meals to cook. It’s a time for fun family traditions and fun food.
Here are my guys at the pumpkin patch quite a few years ago. One trait we all seem to share in this family is that we never grow out of all of the festivities surrounding the holidays. There’s no such thing in this house as being too old for Halloween or for the pumpkin patch for that matter. Everyone carves a pumpkin, not just the youngsters. If all of these guys were available and in town on the same day, we’d most likely have hit up that same pumpkin patch this year and I’d have snapped a very similar photo. They’re a bit taller these days but their heart is still in it. Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Crescent Roll Taco Squares appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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Tex-Mex Chicken and Rice Skillet
Simple ingredients all cooked together in one skillet to create a quick and easy dinner. A hearty, delicious, all-in-one meal for a busy weeknight.
We headed up into the hills to the Christmas tree farm on Sunday and ambitiously chose a great, big 12 footer which is now proudly sitting in front of our windows in the living room – sadly, without one measly decoration hanging anywhere on it. There’s just not enough time on the weekends to get all the holiday tasks out of the way so tonight after a simple dinner we’ll pop open a bottle of wine, get the Christmas music going, and decorate our humongous tree. I can’t wait to see all those twinkling lights! Whether it’s decorating, gift wrapping, shopping, or school events, it’s always one thing or another that makes these shorter December days way too long to worry about pulling together a complicated meal.
I shared this tasty one-pot meal idea on eHow before Thanksgiving and decided it was the perfect time to tell you all about it. With all the hustling and bustling that will be going on for the remaining weeks of December, quick and easy meal ideas are absolutely in order.
This cheesy chicken and rice skillet with corn, bell pepper, and black beans is a true family pleaser. Serve it in bowls with lots of great garnishments like Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Tex-Mex Chicken and Rice Skillet appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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Crispy Baked Breakfast Taquitos
A no-oil cooking method creates wonderfully crispy breakfast taquitos filled with eggs, sausage, cheese, and assorted veggies. They reheat quickly in the morning for a delicious, portable, grab-and-go breakfast.
No matter how good our intentions, it seems like most mornings end up in a mad dash for the door. My husband believes the best breakfast solution on those busy mornings is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a cup of coffee on his drive to work. Shudder. Sorry, I’ve never been a peanut butter and jelly girl. Peanut butter, yes. Jelly, yes. But for some reason I cannot bring myself to put them together. Weird, I know.
These taquitos are my answer for a wholesome make-ahead breakfast for busy mornings. Absolutely perfect to have on hand for kids to quickly reheat for breakfast before school or a yummy after school snack. They are a breakfast version of my Baked Chicken Taquitos that are very well loved in this house. When my guys were younger, I used to bake up batches of those taquitos and keep them in the fridge to soothe their appetites at all times of the day and night. Young male athletes are always hungry – fact.
Another wonderful thing about them is that they freeze beautifully. See below for the full freezer instructions. Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Crispy Baked Breakfast Taquitos appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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Crock-Pot Chile Verde
Chile verde is typically made with one of the fattier cuts of pork, the pork shoulder, but the recipe I’m sharing today makes use of one of the very leanest cuts – pork tenderloin or the handy dandy pork sirloin tip roast available at Costco. These lean cuts allow you to skip the step of trimming the fat from the meat and they are also a little easier on your waistline, but fear not – the slow cooker method will ensure a beautiful, fork tender result.
Each time I visit my big brother, Jim, I come home inspired and with a new recipe in hand. The man can cook. You may remember my visit with him last year and his out-of-this-world-good country style ribs. Well, my friends, he did not disappoint this time around. Our visit this summer was a quick one so we opted to eat out at restaurants for most of our meals but Jim mentioned this new recipe he’d come up with for a slow cooker chile verde. Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Crock-Pot Chile Verde appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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Tamale Pie
Saucy, seasoned ground beef is cooked with onions, green bell pepper, and corn and topped with a cheese-spiked cornmeal topping. Tamale Pie is pure, old-school comfort food.
I was always thrilled when my mom put Tamale Pie on the dinner table when I was a kid. I honestly didn’t know anyone, young or old, who didn’t love it. The combination of ingredients make it hearty, wholesome, and crave-worthy, and it just screams 1970’s. If you listen close, you’ll hear it. I believe the recipe actually dates back far earlier but it took on some new twists as it moved through time and this is the version I grew to love.
It really has very little to do with it’s namesake, tamales, but this was true of many vintage recipes. I have a recipe from my mom’s collection titled “Chinese Chicken” which is so NOT Chinese, but I’d never dream of calling it anything else.
It’s these throwback recipes that I find myself craving the most. When I’m tired, stressed, or under the weather even just a little bit, I yearn for a meal like this.
Traditional 70’s-style Tamale Pie does not have a thick layer of cornbread on top like many recipes I’ve seen. This recipe, like the one I grew up with, has a thinner cornmeal based topping that includes cheese. It has a light, velvety texture that forms a cozy blanket of goodness over the filling. Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Tamale Pie appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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Mexican Chicken Couscous Bowls
Couscous is loaded up with corn, black beans, and Mexican blend cheese and topped with salsa chicken tenders.
Do you watch Chopped on Food Network? In each episode, four competing chefs are challenged to take a mystery basket of ingredients and turn them into a dish that is judged on creativity, presentation, and taste with minimal time to plan and execute. Sounds kind of like an average night in my kitchen to me.
On many nights as I stand, staring down the contents of my fridge, I feel like I’m in the midst of my own real life Chopped challenge. I do my best to plan and shop ahead but you know how that goes. There are always those nights where you need to get a little (or a lot!) creative with whatever you happen to have on hand and do it FAST.
I had some fun recently when Sargento® in conjunction with Food Network asked me to participate in a Chopped At Home Challenge. Just like the contestants on the show, I was presented with a basket of ingredients and asked to get creative and come up with my best Chopped-inspired dish.
What was in in my basket, you may ask? Drumroll please…… Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Mexican Chicken Couscous Bowls appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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Blackberry Lemonade Margaritas
This festive, refreshing margarita includes fresh blackberry puree, lemonade, and tequila. Tart, lightly sweet, and delicious. A great warm weather party drink!
Our house has become somewhat famous for the margaritas that happen here. These aren’t your run-of-the-mill, jug of margarita mix combined with cheap tequila kind of drinks. I’m talking about fresh ingredients at their peak, lots of fresh squeezed citrus, and high quality tequila – the good stuff! They’re fabulous and a little dangerous. In a good way of course.
My husband has become quite the bartender over the years and I have become completely and thoroughly spoiled by his barkeep skills. It’s a rare occasion that I get a drink anywhere that I feel is on par with his creations which is why I enlisted him as my expert consultant when I came up with this tasty margarita.
Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Blackberry Lemonade Margaritas appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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Beef Enchilada Dip
A substantial appetizer brimming with beef, beans, enchilada sauce, and of course, cheese!
I made this beefy, cheesy, deliciously messy dip today and I also happen to be in a weird mood. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
I’ve been catching myself saying “totally” a whole lot lately. I think now that my boys have grown, I’m reverting back to my 80’s valley girl days when Valspeak was a true way of life. So what if it was Silicon Valley and not San Fernando Valley – oh…mah…gawd, you guys, it’s still like totally a valley.
When confronted with anything we considered to be grody, my Silicon Valley gang of girls and I frequently dropped terms like “gag me with a spoon” which eventually evolved into the more simplified but equally expressive “ugh, gag me”. “Totally to the max” escaped my lips approximately 500 times a day and pretty much every sentence began with “Like”.
Like, you know?
I think it’s time for a remake of the Nicholas Cage classic but this time around it’s called “Silicon Valley Girl”. No? Come on!
Okay, got that out of my system. Shall we talk about Beef Enchilada Dip? Lets! Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Beef Enchilada Dip appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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Jiffy Mexican Style Cornbread
Simple ingredients dress up packaged corn muffin mix to create this super moist and flavorful Mexican Style Cornbread with a cake-like texture.
While I’m a huge fan of cornbread made from scratch (like my tried and true Rustic Sweet Cornbread), the packaged mixes will do in a pinch. Especially when you’ve got a big menu planned or when you just plain don’t feel like making the extra effort. Been there?
You can very easily punch up the flavor and texture of a packaged mix with some simple additions to create this super tasty Mexican version.
The flavors make it perfect to go alongside pretty much any Mexican entree or serve it with some hearty soup and call it dinner. But, as far as I’m concerned, the best way to serve it is with a great big scoop of chili poured over the top. Add some shredded cheese and a little sour cream and I’m a happy mama.
Like many of the jazzed up Mexican style cornbread recipes out there, my recipe includes a can of creamed corn. For even more texture and corn-i-ness, I’ve also added some frozen corn. Sour cream adds amazing moisture and a flavor punch comes from diced green chiles and pepper Jack cheese. Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Jiffy Mexican Style Cornbread appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Simple ingredients are layered together to create this substantial Mexican-inspired casserole.
I sometimes refer to this quick and easy casserole dish as “shortcut enchiladas” because that is precisely what it is. Instead of filling and rolling a pile of tortillas one-by-one, everything is layered together in a baking dish and baked casserole-style.
The list of ingredients is what you would expect – tortillas, chicken, enchilada sauce, and, of course, lots and lots of cheese!
To increase the convenience factor, I totally recommend you make use of a store-bought rotisserie chicken – the ultimate kitchen timesaver. Visit my blog to read the full post! The post Chicken Enchilada Casserole appeared first on From Valerie's Kitchen.
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More Pages to Explore .....
