We had this last week and loved it.  What a great dish to share with friends on a cold, January evening.  It’s similar to chicken pot pie, but different enough and definitely worth your while.  Feeds a bunch, and if you do have leftovers, is plenty yummy the next day too.  I made it all ahead (see recipe for the how-to) and it came out beautifully.

I’ve made this at least a dozen times, so I figured it was about time to put the recipe in my “book”.  You’re looking at a solid white chicken chili that you can easily adjust the heat level of, can make healthy or totally indulgent, and goes super well with my favorite Buttermilk Cornbread.  It’s made in the slow cooker which makes for an easy weeknight dinner when you need it.

Need I say more?

I don’t think I could take another day looking at that chicken tetrazzini.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s a yummy dish, but enough is enough.  I haven’t exactly been making the time to blog, obviously, but I still use the site as my recipe book almost daily and I just needed something else to look at.  Amen.

I made this cake earlier in the week for our small group and it was a hit.  Mostly because of the frosting.  And I’m not gonna lie.  It’s awesome.  We don’t eat cake with anything but it, and we’re more than stoked to know we get to have it two more times this month for my birthday and then for Jesus’ too.  Sweet.

The frosting is light, with just the right amount of sweetness, and, well, pretty much perfect.  It’s best on chocolate cake, but any will do.  I liked the red velvet for the Christmas season.

For the cake I used a box mix (Duncan Hines, people.  It’s the best.) and baked it in a sheet pan for about 18 minutes.  Then I cut it into thirds.  Okay, that’s not entirely true.  It may have started out as fourths, but we needed to do a little QC, so the cake ended up with only three layers.  If you have more self-control, a four layer cake would be even prettier.  Then layer on a platter with the frosting (recipe below) and finish with red and white sugar (not shown because I didn’t get that idea until after I took pictures) but don’t skip that step because the little added crunch was a great finishing touch to the cake.

Give this a try over the Christmas season.  It’ll be a hit with your guests, I promise!

I’ve always had a soft spot for Chicken Tetrazzini.  When I was in college, my grandma would bring me a big meal after our home volleyball games and usually there would be a whole pan of this stuff included, just for me.   (Along with chocolate pie and cinnamon apples…more of my favorites.  Cinnamon Apples is just this before the apples are mashed.  So good.)  And what was so awesome, even though I didn’t realize it then, that because I had to work out hours upon hours every day, I didn’t think twice about eating all this food.  Nowadays, that’s an entirely different story.

For the record, I completely dislike having to think about what kind of food I enjoy.  Eating healthy totally stinks.  And I’m not at all happy that I didn’t make cookies today for my family because I was worried about how many I’d eat.  What a lame way to live.  Ugh.

Anyways, if God blesses me with grandchildren someday, that is exactly the kind of grandma I want to be.  My grandkids are gonna get whole pans of their favorite dishes, whole pies, huge batches of cookies, whatever they absolutely love, just for them when they’re away at school.  Because there’s not much better than amazing home-cooked food that reminds you of your childhood in college.  Amen.

Oh, I’ll do the same thing for my own kiddos too.  Just in case you were wondering about their well-being.  I promise, I didn’t forget them.

Okay, back to Chicken Tetrazzini.  I’ve been making a version of it for years, but it takes a good hour and a half (at least) and uses canned soups, which I’m unfortunately losing a taste for, so I haven’t made it for some time.  But when I saw this recipe in the Dierberg’s magazine, I couldn’t resist.  What I love about this skillet variety…for starters, it’s start to finish on the table in 30 minutes.  There are no cans involved in the making of this dish.  And my favorite, after every bite my 2-year-old little guy took, he said, “Mmm, weely good, Mommy, weely good.”  He even got seconds, which is saying something since most of the time it’s a struggle to even keep him at the table.  I loved it too.  So much so we’re having it again for dinner tonight.

Can’t wait.

The Phoenix’s aunt left a Dierberg’s magazine at our house a few weeks ago because it had a recipe in it she wanted to show me for apple crisp.  I haven’t tried it yet, but I did basically cook my way through their “week’s worth of recipes” this week and, WOW, they were divine.  This is probably my favorite of the bunch, but just barely, the others will make it on here too.

You’re actually getting two recipes today for the price of one.  One, because you need the first to make this Mexican casserole, and two, because The Phoenix only took pictures of the first inside and with a flash.  And that’s just gross.  Not a good representation of how awesome the food is.  Not one bit.  So the best way to have this meal is to have the Southwest Beef Roast over Hot Noodles first, and then whip up this Chilaquiles Casserole a day or so later.  I made something totally different on the “in-between” day because I didn’t want to get tired of the beef, but it’s so good, I’m pretty sure that wouldn’t have happened.

Now, this recipe would work well with shredded chicken too, but I absolutely loved the beef.  It gives the dish luxuriousness, almost melt in your mouth goodness.  I don’t know if I can describe it well, I’m no food writer, well, except on here of course, but I really couldn’t get enough of this and will absolutely make it again and again.  A few tips : Grate your own Monterey Jack cheese.  And cut the corn off the cob or just leave it out if fresh corn isn’t available.  It makes a difference, I promise.

I’m a morning dieter.  Or at least that seems to be the theme of my thinking lately.  I’ll wake up and think to myself, “Okay, Vanessa.  Today’s the day.  We’re going to make ALL healthy food decisions and start a fast from sweets.  Maybe we’ll even throw in some sit-ups and a walk if we want to be super awesome. “

And some days go better than others.  I might make it to afternoon nap time, or maybe even after the kiddos go to bed at night if I’m really being strong.  But then the cravings are more than I can handle.  For whatever reason, most of my sweet cravings have come after baby, rather than during pregnancy this time around.  I mean, for most of my life, I haven’t even liked ice cream much, and now I could eat a huge bowl of chocolate, with oreos mixed in – that’s important, every stinkin’ night.  And if cookies are in the house, like these that I posted about last time, forget about it.

Grrr, you silly hormones, you.

But, mornings seem to be easy.  My will is stronger then (and I’m much more preoccupied with the little birds – most days I manage nothing more than water til at least 10).  And lately I’ve been liking a yogurt parfait for breakfast.  I’ve made this homemade granola a few times now, and between my daughter and I, it’ll last us about a week or so, though I think it would keep up to 2 weeks in an airtight container.  You could switch up the mix-ins (the pecans and coconut) for other nuts too if you’d like, and even throw in some dried fruit.  Serve with vanilla yogurt and fresh fruit for a satisfying breakfast.

And please someone come remove all the cookies and ice cream from my home.

Let me introduce to you our family’s current favorite cookie.  Please meet the old-school M&M variety.  With one of the most delicious actual cookie batters out there, as in, even if they didn’t have M&M’s, they’d still make a great cookie.  We like them with Peanut Butter M&M’s; what isn’t made better with a little touch of peanut butter in it.  Yum.  Yum.  Yum.

I had this recipe saved in my “Give it a try” folder for a LONG time, maybe a year or so, and finally dusted it off earlier this summer.  We may or may not have made them three times since then.  They’re addicting.  I can’t help it.

And read this recipe.  As far as cookies go, it can’t get much easier.

You really, really should give them a try.  Delicious.  And addicting.  But don’t say I didn’t warn you.

The Phoenix could not stop talking about how much flavor this dish had.  Maybe he was shocked that he liked it at all  (I know I was).  The guy’s not exactly a big fan of tomatoes or tilapia, but I thought this looked easy and was a way to get us to eat some fish this week, so I gave it a try knowing full-well I probably wouldn’t get a good response.  I was even a little worried that I would like it, but we both gobbled it up and were wishing for more.  Somehow these few ingredients made an absolutely delicious fish dish, that really did have huge pops of flavor.

At one point I believe The Phoenix even uttered, “Welcome to Flavortown.”

(Name that Food Network Star.)

Let me just preface this by saying that we’re not talking fancy, gourmet food today.  (Not that I ever would call my food that.)  But today is more about a quick, super easy lunch that The Phoenix and I have become quite fond of lately.  With a new baby, I wanted to stock up our freezer, and while searching for recipes, stumbled upon this.  It’s become one of our go-to lunches and I love that I can prepare these one day, stick them in the freezer, and have a good lunch for both of us in no time many days over.

We like them heated in the oven because then you get a good crispness to the tortilla, but you can also microwave them for a minute or two as well if you’re in a time pinch.  And they are best generously topped with this restaurant-style salsa.  Trust us.  Yum.  No need to thaw, these can go straight from freezer to oven.  (Just don’t forget to take the plastic wrap off.)

By no means am I the Sandwich Queen, but every once in a while I love a well-executed one for dinner.  (Did you guys watch The Next Food Network Star?  I was thrilled when Jeff, aka The Sandwich King, won and then equally disappointed to find out his show airs on Sunday mornings when, barring one of our kiddos being sick, we are never home.  I can’t understood why they run new shows every Sunday morning…seriously, Food Network, not cool.)  But anyways, back to the matter at hand.  I loved this sandwich. The grilled chicken is elevated to another level with this slightly spicy, crunchy slaw with a cool, creamy sauce and who, tell me who, doesn’t like a little Hawaiian bread.  That stuff rocks.  This is one sandwich I wouldn’t mind having again and again.

And as to why I’ve been all but absent from the blogosphere this summer, I briefly mentioned it before, but I’ve been cooking up something sweet as can be, and she’s finally here with us.

Our new baby girl joined our family earlier this month and we couldn’t be more thrilled.  And we’ve been very, very busy showering her with love and teaching how to give “gentle” kisses and hugs.  As you can imagine, with two toddlers and a newborn, blogging hasn’t exactly been easy to find time for of late, but I’m hoping to be able to get back into it soon.  I sure haven’t stopped trying new recipes, to that I’m afraid I’m forever addicted, but actually getting pictures of these recipes, and getting them online with recipes seems a bit daunting right now.  But stick with me, I do think I’ll come around.

So until next time, here’s a delicious sandwich perfect for a summer evening meal.  Enjoy!