TONIGHT'S DINNER

Today, completely and totally fed up with the take-out, I dragged myself to the kitchen and made up eight quarts my mom's fabulous marinara sauce. I even managed to make a pot of tea.
Made the sauce with four pounds of Lara's Lean ground beef.

You didn't actually think I was going to give away my mama's best recipe now did you?
Silly you! That one will go with me to the grave, unless Paddycake takes an interest in cooking.
Actually I wanted to share with you how I make Iced Tea.
Lipton makes a wonderful tea called Lemon Soother. It is caffeine free and it is wonderful! I take seven bags of the Lemon Soother Tea and tie them together, pulling the tags off. I then run about 60 ounces of filtered water through my Bunn-O-Matic Coffee Maker, into a large tea pitcher I have. I let that steep for just a few minutes and then pour over ice and enjoy. We don't use sugar or any sweeter. You really won't need it, and since the tea is lemon flavored you don't need any fresh lemon either.

Broccoli Chicken with Rice

1 8oz block of Low Fat Cream Cheese.
Dijon Mustard
1 Cup of LowFat Hellman's Mayo
1 Can Cream of Celery Soup
Nuke the cream cheese about 30 seconds, to soften.
Dump Dijon Mustard in dish with cream cheese
add Mayo and Celery Soup to that stir well and sit aside.

12 Skinless Chicken Fingers-brown until done in skillet
tear apart and sit aside

2 cups of Brown Rice
1/2 cup of dehydrated onions
1 bag of BirdsEye Broccoli Florets
Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Put rice in pot, add chicken, stir in soup/cream cheese mixture.
Stir well
Dump entire bag of Broccoli along with about three cups of cheddar cheese into mixture. Add 1 cup water, stir well.
Let cook until rice is done.

LAWDY THIS WAS GOOD!!!!

EAT WHAT YOU WANT AND DIE LIKE A MAN

Hey there, bet you thought I had abandoned my frying pan.
No, I have just abandoned my kitchen because people it is too darn hot to cook, much less eat.
So whilst I am on strike from cooking, I am reading, Eat What You Want And Die Like A Man by Steve Graham.
Steve blogs over at Hog On Ice and is a really funny guy.
The book is gloriously politically incorrect. After reading the chapter about his brownies I can only say I wish I had met him back when I was young, and unmarried. ;-)
The Champagne Chicken chapter re-affirmed that notion!
I won't even talk about his Blueberry Butter Cheesecake. HAVE MERCY!
Do yourself a big favor and order this book.

RIBS!

I baked baby back ribs slathered in garlic salt, Emril's Essence, with a nice dose of Wild Turkey for moisture.
Redneck Potatoes-recipe courtesy of Deanna. OH LORDY they are NASTY GOOD!!!!!!

4 lbs new potatoes, quartered (I use the bags of red potatoes when I can’t find new potatoes)
Water
Salt and pepper to taste
Tony Cachere Creole seasoning to taste//(Heather here-I used Emeril's Essence & Garlic Salt)
1 16-oz bottle Ranch dressing
1 bunch green onions, chopped
16 oz sharp cheddar cheese

Cook potatoes in water, drain. Combine all ingredients in large bowl, mixing well. Bake in a 9 x 13 dish at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until bubbly.//(Heather again-I did not bake. The heat coming off of the potatoes melted the cheese nicely.)

Broccoli, Rice and Chicken

2 cups of Brown Rice

1 can of chicken broth

1 can cream of broccoli soup

2 cups of light mayo

2 cups shredded cheddar

1/4 cup of dehydrated chopped onions or 1 fresh onion

1 bag of frozen broccoli florets

12 boneless skinless chicken breast tenders



Brown the tenders in skillet until done throughout.

Pull apart or cut into small pieces.

Dump the 2 cups of rice into greased baking dish or cast iron skillet(my personal preference and what I use)

Dump the chicken on top of the rice.

Mix the soups together and then add water until you have 41/2 cups of liquid to pour over the chicken and rice.

Stir in mayo, cheese, onions and frozen broccoli.

Cover and bake at 400 for 45 minutes.

Remove cover and allow top to brown and liquid to cook down.

NACHOS!

We had nachos for dinner. Mainly because I am tired of tacos, but essentially the same ingredients.
Corn Chips
Layer with cooked ground beef, seasoned with taco seasoning mix, and black beans added for extra fiber.
Top with shredded cheddar.
Melt cheese.
Serve with Salsa, chopped tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, and sour cream.

So funny!

This is so funny. This is from my blogger buddy Joke ovah at Same Thing, But Different.
If you know me or even read my blogs, I love the big club warehouse stores, for the variety of items that you can buy and for being able to stock up my freezer and not have to shop on a weekly basis. This is so much like something I would do.

Go read this