Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

I have been trying a lot of new recipes lately. This one was a hit with everyone...even ALL my kids! Surprise, surprise! They were a snap to make also since I used canned chicken from Costco. Love that canned chicken.

Chad grew up eating taquitos but they are so bad for you. I love this recipe since it makes them so much healthier!

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos by Our Best Bites
(go to the link for more complete pictures and tutorial)

1/3 C (3 oz) cream cheese
1/4 C green salsa
1T fresh lime juice
1/2 t cumin
1 t chili powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/4 t granulated garlic, or garlic powder
3 T chopped cilantro
2 T sliced green onions
2 C shredded cooked chicken
1 C grated pepperjack cheese (I used cheddar and it was fine)

small corn tortillas (and actually, flour ones are really good as well) (I used corn)
kosher salt
cooking spray

Heat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and granulated garlic. Stir to combine and then add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese and combine well.

You can prepare up to this step ahead of time. Just keep the mixture in the fridge.

Work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them between damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 seconds will do it. If you find yours are cracking when you roll them or are coming unrolled right away, just try heating them longer and try the paper towel thing. (I did the paper towel thing and it is important to do if you use corn tortillas! Worked like a charm.)

Place 2-3 T of chicken mixture on the lower third of a tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges.

Then roll it up as tight as you can.

Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or an oil mister and sprinkle some kosher salt on top.

Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown.

The ones pictured below are actually flour tortillas- which I found out I like just as well (maybe even better!) than corn ones.

Dip 'em in salsa, sour cream, guacamole, or this dressing.

I forgot to write down how many this recipe makes, but I remember being happy that it made exactly the amount of tortillas I had and I think that was 16. I'll make sure to double check next time I make them!

Homemade Granola Bars

Here is a simple recipe that we love. I really like the versatility with homemade granola bars. You can add in anything you want to make it just perfect. I made this batch this morning and it made a great mid afternoon snack.

5 cups quick oats
1 cup coconut
1 cup almonds, chopped (I like them chopped small)
1 cup dry milk
1 cup honey
1/2 cup oil
1 tsp. salt
1-2 tsp. vanilla extract

Then decide what you want in your granola bar. Some good things to add are:
mini m&m's, raisins, chocolate chips, craisins, small apple chips, sunflower seeds, etc. Add as much as you want to the recipe.

Mix all ingredients together well. I like to use my hands to get it all mixed up really well. Then press into a large cookie sheet and bake at 300 degrees for 30 minutes for chewy bars, 45 minutes for crunchy bars. Cut into bar shape while still warm and let cool in the cookie sheet for a few hours. When they are cool, cut and store them in an airtight container. Makes approximately 44 granola bars.

Pizza Rolls

We had these for dinner tonight and they were so delicious! They looked so good and tasted even better! This is another great recipe from sisterscafe.blogspot.com. I'm sure it will be a big hit with all your kids.

Pizza Dough
1 c warm water
1 tsp sugar
1 Tb (1/4 oz package) active dry yeast
3 Tbsp olive oil

2 ½ c flour
1 tsp salt

Put warm water in bowl. Stir in sugar and yeast and let proof for 1o minutes. Stir in rest of ingredients. Mix until a ball, knead 10 minutes by hand or 5 minutes in mixer. Let rise for 1.5 hours. Roll out and arrange pizza toppings on top. Bake in 400 degree oven (on preheated pizza stone for best results).

Pizza dough, raw (see above)
mozzarella cheese, shredded or cubed

pepperoni, cut into fourths

1/2 green bell pepper, diced small

1/2 small onion, diced small

1/4 cup chopped olives

Roll pizza dough out into a large rectangle. Using a pizza cutter, cut into 12 pieces. Layer the toppings in the center of each square of dough; about 2-3 Tb total of toppings on each. Now stretch and fold the dough around the toppings, pinching to seal edges. This is the tricky part - the more toppings you use, the harder it gets to tuck them all within the dough! (fyi: pepperoni and cheese or ham and pineapple are much easier, as you can imagine.) Now place seam side down in a lightly greased casserole dish or glass baking dish. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle generously with garlic salt and Italian seasoning. (oregano, basil and thyme, etc) Bake in a 400 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or until rolls are light brown. Serve with your favorite marinara sauce for dipping. Dig in and have fun!
We just used some Ragu spaghetti sauce to dip these in and it was great (instead of marinara). I think it is a good idea to let them rise for a little bit after you get them rolled and in you baking dish.

Garlic Black Beans

Another yummy recipe from sisterscafe.blogspot.com. I've always loved black beans, but was never sure how to prepare them. Well, let me tell you, this is a great way! They are so tasty. The original recipe has them as part of a shredded sweet pork salad (like from Costa Vida), but they are also great alone or with Cilantro Lime Rice.

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/3 c tomato juice

2 cloves garlic, minced (1 tsp)

1 tsp cumin

2 Tb canola oil

1/2 tsp salt

2 Tb chopped cilantro

Heat oil then add garlic until cooked (it turns brown) and cumin. Add rest of ingredients and serve warm.

Be careful when adding the garlic to the hot oil. When I made in the first time I kept waiting for the garlic to "pop" like it said in the original recipe and before I knew it the garlic was black and charred!

Honey Lime Enchiladas

I found a delicious food blog from a family of LDS sisters called sisterscafe.blogspot.com. They have so many wonderful recipes and ideas. I made this for Neal and Marilyn when they came to visit last week and they both loved it (post heart surgery and all). Marilyn was astonished at how much he ate while out on the road!

1.5 lbs pork or chicken, cooked and shredded

Sauce:

1/3 c honey

1/4 c lime juice

1 Tb chili powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 (10 oz) cans green enchilada sauce

equal parts mixed together of:

mozzarella cheese, shredded

cheddar cheese, shredded

flour tortillas

Mix together sauce ingredients then add to shredded pork or chicken. Let the sauce soak into the meat for about 30 minutes.

Lightly spray 2 pans with non-stick baking spray. (I usually use one 9x13 and one 9x9 but it may vary with how thick you stuff your enchiladas) Pour green enchilada sauce into pans to coat the entire bottom. Fill tortillas with shredded meat and desired amount of cheese. Roll and place in dish.

Pour remainder of sauce over enchiladas and sprinkle more cheese on top - don't be stingy! (I sometimes use more like 1 1/2 cans- you can freeze left over enchilada sauce in a baggy.) Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Then turn on broiler and place enchiladas nearer the top of oven. Let it broil until cheese is slightly brown and crispy. It is now time to WOW your family!!

Instead of letting the cooked meat soak in the sauce, I threw the raw meat and sauce in the crockpot together and let them cook for a few hours on high.

Cheesy Roll Ups

Recipe from A Thrifty Mom

1 box lasagna noodles
1 jar spaghetti sauce

Cheese Mixture:
1 16 oz pkg ricotta cheese
1 1/2 c. fresh grated parmesean cheese (set aside 1/2 cup for the top)
2 c. mozzarella cheese, grated
1 large egg
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp nutmeg
2 Tbl. parsley, fresh or dry

Start cooking your pasta. Put the noodles in a large pot. As they soften up you can slide them down into the pan so they are totally covered with water. Just don't push them as you don't want them to break. Cook them for 10 minutes. (while they are cooking make the cheese mixture). Do not overcook! When done drain and rinse so they are cool enough to handle. Pour the spaghetti sauce in your baking dish.

In a bowl add all the cheese mixture ingredients. Mix until well blended. Lay out the noodles and pat them dry with paper towels. Spread the filling mixture out in a flat layer over the noodle. Leave the last inch open so the noodle will stick together. Roll it up and place seam side down in a pan with the spaghetti sauce. Sprinkle the 1/2 c. parmesean cheese on the top. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes, then another 10 minutes without foil for a total of 35 minutes.

When I make this I put the other half in a foil disposable pan and cover with foil to freeze. I write the directions & label it on top in a permanent marker so I don't forget what's in there or how to bake it.

Blueberry Jello Salad

This is the jello salad that I have made for a few family get togethers. Indira has asked me a few times for the recipe and I am finally posting it! This jello salad is like Nate's family's orange jello salad to my family. We all love it and it is almost at every family get together!

(1) 6 oz. Box Raspberry Jello
(1) 20 oz. Can Crushed Pineapple, undrained
(1) Can Blueberry Pie Filling

Dissolve jello in 2 c. boiling water and stir until well dissolved, about 2 minutes. Stir in the pineapple and pie filling and pour into a greased 9x13" pan. Refrigerate until set. Top with delicious topping below.

(1) 8 oz. Cream Cheese (can use low or no fat varieties), room temperature
1 c. Sour Cream
1/2 c. Sugar

Beat together cream cheese and sugar, then beat in sour cream. This can sometimes be a little lumpy, but it seems like warming the cream cheese to room temperature and using beaters usually does the trick.