Anniversary Chicken and Make Ahead Fiesta Wraps

Anniversary Chicken

(Recipe adapted from Allrecipes.com)

Ingredients

½ lb bacon (original recipes uses bacon bits and instead you cook chicken in 2 Tbsp vegetable oil)
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
½ cup teriyaki basting sauce
½ cup Ranch salad dressing
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3 green onions, chopped (I don’t normally have these on hand so I leave them off)
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (again, I don’t have this on hand so I leave it off)

Directions:

1.         Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.         In a large skillet, cook bacon, remove bacon and put on paper towel.
3.         In bacon grease sauté 4 to 5 minutes on each side until lightly browned.
4.         Place browned chicken breasts on a 9x13 inch baking dish. Brush with teriyaki sauce, then spoon on salad dressing. Sprinkle with cheese, green onions and crumbled bacon. (Our family likes crispy bacon so I cook for 20 minutes then add cheese and bacon for final 5 minutes of cooking)
5.         Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear. Garnish with parsley and serve.

This is one of my favorite last minute meals with very little prep work. It is also great because it can be assembled earlier in the day and then cooked or reheated later for crazy nights. We usually eat it with some form of rice (buttered rice is my favorite) and some homemade bread (because that’s my favorite thing).

Make Ahead Fiesta Wraps

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked brown rice
2 cups water
2 (15 oz) cans black beans
1 (15 oz) can pinto beans
1 can Mexi-corn (or regular is fine)
1 (10 oz) can diced tomatoes and green chilies
16 (10 inch) flour tortillas
1 pound Pepper Jack cheese, shredded

I also add:

chopped fresh cilantro to taste
diced red onion to taste
garlic powder to taste
cumin to taste
    *Sorry I don't have specifics. I just throw some in and call it good. Don't go overboard--just a little of each.

Directions:

1. Combine rice and water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 35 to 40 minutes, or until tender. Remove from heat, and cool.
2. Place black beans and pinto beans into a colander or strainer, and rinse. Add corn and diced tomatoes with green chilies, and toss to mix. Transfer to a large bowl, and mix in rice and cheese. Add cilantro, red onion, garlic powder, and cumin if desired.
3. Put a generous amount in each tortilla and roll up. You want a lot but not so much that they are difficult to roll tightly. Wrap individually in plastic wrap, place into a large freezer bag, and freeze. Reheat for approximately 3 minutes (if frozen) in the microwave. Top with salsa and/or sour cream.

Description:
We love these at our house. They were Adam's staple food last year at school. I make around 15 at a time then freeze. They reheat in the microwave and are great for lunch. Very yummy and very healthy. The recipe as listed below is my version of a recipe I found on allrecipes.com. I've made several small changes each time I made it to add more flavor. My version is also half of the original and it still makes 12-15 wraps. You can look up the original "Make Ahead Lunch Wraps" on the site if you'd prefer.

That was the description from my SIL. I freeze a bunch of these so I don’t have to eat mac and cheese every day. Yummy!

Shared by Dessi

Chicken Salad

Ingredients
2 cups chicken breasts, cooked with salt & pepper and cubed (about 1 lb)
1 ½ cup red seedless grapes, cut in half
1 cup apple, cut into bite size pieces
2/3 cup celery, chopped finely
1 tablespoon red onion, chopped finely
Optional add-in's: raisins, nuts

1/3 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 ½ tablespoon lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt

Directions
Combine yogurt, mayonnaise, lemon juice and salt in a bowl, set aside. Combine chicken, grapes, apple, celery, and onion in a large bowl. Pour yogurt mixture over top and mix until well coated. Serve in pita pockets.

Submitted by Alisha

French Dip

Submitted by Brenda: Summer is full of sandwiches for us and here is one of our quick and easy favorites. Everyone probably makes French Dip sandwiches but this combo is a winner!

This makes around 4 sandwiches depending on the bread you choose and how loaded you like them...

Ingredients:
4 Bolillo rolls or hoagie buns
1 Au Jus gravy mix
1 pkg roast beef sandwich meat or leftover shredded roast
1 8oz pkg cream cheese (we like using whipped)
8 slices cheese (I love provolone- my hubby prefers Swiss, mozzarella also works)
1 green or red pepper
1/2 onion

Slice and sauté' the onion and pepper in a little oil for about 5 minutes or until soft. Set aside. Lay open and toast the bread under the broiler or in the toaster oven (any bread really but we LOVE Bolillo rolls for this one- they are sort of football shaped and kind of have a chewy crust- we just get them at the local grocery store). Generously spread both sides of bread with cream cheese (whipped is much faster to spread). Cook the Au Jus according to the pkg then dump the meat in to get soaked and warm. Layer one side of bread with the sautéed peppers and onions, the other side with the juicy meat topped with cheese. Toast one more time until the cheese melts slightly, close sandwich and use the leftover Au Juice for dipping. I could eat these every day!

Here is our favorite Jell-O salad to go with:

Purple Parfait
1 Large box any blue or purple flavor Jell-O
1 cup water
1 pkg 8oz cream cheese
1 can (15oz) crushed pineapple, undrained
1 can blueberries in light syrup, undrained
1 pkg (8oz) Cool Whip

Let your cream cheese sit out to room temp. Boil one cup water (yes only 1) and add the Jell-O until dissolved. Immediately add the cream cheese- whisk or blend until smooth- it has a much better texture if they're no lumps! Add the pineapple with its juice and the blueberries with its juice. Refrigerate until only partially set- pudding like consistency then fold in the cool whip(this is key for extra tasty- if you add the cool whip in after it is completely set up it is still ok, but for some reason adding it before is much better) at this point if I am taking it somewhere (it's a Relief Society favorite...) then I transfer it to a pretty glass bowl and heap it like a mountain so when it finishes setting up it will look presentable). Put it back in the refrigerator to chill until set completely.

BLTE and Smoked Cheddar & Chicken

Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, and Egg
(recipe for 1 sandwich)
2 slices whole grain bread
1 oz cheddar cheese
lettuce
2 tomato slices
2-3 slices of bacon (if it is cut in half) (we use maple bacon)
1-2 tsp mayonnaise
1 egg*

Cook bacon and pat off grease. Toast 1 slice of bread; put mayon on that slice and top with tomato, lettuce and bacon. Put cheese on the other slice of bread and get ready to broil it. Start cooking egg in pan; you want to cook the egg to over easy. Right before the egg is done start broiling the cheese; broil until it is bubbly and melty. While that is broiling finish cooking egg and put the egg on top of the bacon. Immediately put the cheese slice of bread on top of the egg. Slice the sandwich in half and let it sit for a minute before you eat it. This way the egg can finish setting up as it comes down the sandwich. Enjoy!

*Yes, that is right, an egg. If you substitute turkey bacon for the bacon it is good.

Smoked Cheddar & Chicken
(recipe for 5 sandwiches)
2 large chicken breasts, sliced into 3rds, uncooked
4 oz Smoked Cheddar Cheese, sliced- it has to be smoked
5 Italian hoagie or sub sandwich bread
1/2 jar of roasted red bell peppers or roast 1 red pepper yourself
1 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp or less of flour
3 tbps of parmesan

To make an easy job of slicing chicken breast so thinly, take the thawed chicken breasts and put them in freezer, flat, for 5-10 minutes. It will be easier to slice and it won't be so frozen that you can't use it to cook it. Cook the chicken in a pan or on a grill. Do not salt and pepper it. While the chicken is cooking make the rest of the sandwich.

Cut the bread in half and lightly toast in toaster oven. (Don't over toast it because you will be toasting again soon) This light toasting will keep the bread from getting soggy when you put on the sauce.

If you jar of bell peppers have been in the fridge then warm them up in a saute pan.

In another saute pan, melt butter. Add flour and whisk. Slowly add cream and simmer. Also add the parmesan cheese. You want it to thicken a bit, but don't make a gravy.

Now, take the bottom of the toasted bread and spread some of the sauce on it. Take the cooked chicken and lay it over the sauce. Top with a bell pepper. Spread a little more sauce on top of that. Place the cheddar cheese on of the side of the bread and broil just until melted. Put sandwich together and enjoy.

Submitted by Shasta: Since it is the summer and it gets really hot and humid here, I don't really like to use the oven much. I use my toaster oven a lot. I know it sounds like these sandwiches should take a really long time to make but I can make the BLTE in about 15-20 minutes. The Smoked Cheddar & Chicken took me about 20-25 minutes to make. I hope you enjoy these sandwiches as much as we have.

Swiss Tuna Melts

Prep/Total time: 20 minutes

Recipe says 1 but I use 2 cans of Tuna, drained and flaked
3/4 cup shredded swiss cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped celery
Pepper to taste
8 slices of bread
2 to 3 tablespoons butter, softened

In a bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Spread over four slices of bread, about 1/2 cup on each; top with remaining bread. Butter the outsides of the sandwiches.

On a griddle or in a large skillet over medium heat, grill sandwiches for 4-5 minutes on each side or until lightly toasted.

Submitted by Lyndsey: I like a little more celery for more crunch in my munch. My kids love this and always are good eaters when I make this. The filling stores well for a couple of days. And I think it tastes best on Whole Wheat bread. So much better than any tuna melt I have ever had.