Italian Chicken and Tomato Pasta Toss

I got this one from Kraft Foods! Surprise, Surprise!

Ingredients:
3 cups curly egg noodles
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces
2 cups grape or cherry tomatoes halved
1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette dressing
3 cloves garlic minced
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Cook noodles as directed on package

Meanwhile, heat oil in large nonstick skillet on med-high heat. Add chicken; cook 6 minutes or until cooked thru, stirring occasionally. Add tomatoes, dressing and garlic. Cook and stir 3 minutes or until heated thru.

Drain pasta. Toss with chicken mixture and basil; sprinkle with cheese.

My 2 cents worth on this one:

• I am NOT a tomato person but my hubby is. This is a good compromise because I can easily pick out the tomatos and not eat them.
• I didn't use basil and it was still good.
• This is yummy and pretty quick to make.
  

Ham Delights

I got this from my sister-in-law's recipe blog. Thanks Melissa!

Ingredients:
2 sticks butter
3 tbsp poppy seeds
3 tbsp mustard
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 small onion chopped, grated, or minced
Ham (lunch meant)
Mozzarella or Swiss cheese slices
2 pkgs prepared pull apart rolls

Slice entire package of rolls lengthwise. Mix 1st 5 ingredients together and spread on both sides of the rolls. Add ham and cheese. Wrap in foil and bake at 350 until warm and cheese is melted.

My 2 cents worth on this:

• I didn't have poppy seeds and so this was fine without it.
• This is pretty easy and yummmy!

Chicken Cheese Ball

I got this one from my friend Carolyn who I use to work with.

Ingredients:
8 oz of cream cheese
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 large can of chicken
small amount of garlic to taste
pecans

Mix first 4 ingredients together. Roll in pecans. Serve with crackers.

My 2 cents worth on this:

• Love it. I could eat it all day.
• I just mix up the ingredients and leave out the pecans and dip crackers in the bowl.
• Yummmy!
• It is GOOD!

Microwave Barbecue Meatloaf

I got this one from Kraft Foods.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Barbecue Sauce
1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup plain dry bread crumbs
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup finely chopped green pepper
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dried basil leaves
1/8 tsp black pepper

Remove 1/4 cup of the barbecue sauce and set aside. Mix remaining ingredients until well blended.

Shape mixture into loaf in 12x8 microwavable dish; top with reserved 1/4 cup barbecue sauce. Cover loosely with wax paper.

Microwave on HIGH 12-14 minutes or until cooked thru, turn dish after 7 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting into slices to serve.

My 2 cents worth on this:

• I am not a meatloaf fan. My husband is. This is a good compromise.
  
• This is easy and does not take long.
• My hubby loved it.
• The BBQ sauce gives it a little something different.
• I may put it in a smaller dish next time.
  

Squash Casserole

I got this one from my Mom who, I think, got it from my Grandmom. Because of that, I don't have a lot of exact measurements. This is actually one of those VERY few recipes that you just put the amount you like of it and since I have had this all my life - I can, surprisingly, still make it even though there are not a lot of exact numbers. SO, I am going to try to tell this to you best I can.

Ingredients:
Yellow Squash Washed and Sliced (2-3 boxes of frozen Squash)
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Bread Crumbs
1 egg
Milk

Cook Squash in water until tender.

Drain water and mash squash. Add shredded cheddar cheese to taste. Add small pieces of bread crumbs. Add egg. Mash all together. Add milk until creamy.

Pour this mixture in ungreased dish. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Bake at 350 until hot, cheese is melted, and firm consistency.

My 2 cents worth on this:

• This is yummy.
• I grew up crumbling pieces of bread and putting in this but the last time I made it I used the store bought plain bread crumbs and Chris said it was much better with the store bought bread crumbs.
• I put LOTS of cheese in this.
• Hannah eats it up. This is a great way to get your little one to eat squash.
  

Sugar Coated Pecans

I got this recipe from my mom but it looks like she got it from cooks.com.

Ingredients
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg white well beaten
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups pecans

Beat egg whites. Add vanilla and brown sugar. Coat pecans well. Spread evenly on buttered cookie sheet. Bake 30 minutes at 250. Let stand in oven to cool. Break apart and store in jar.

My 2 cents worth on this one:

• This does not even sound good to me so I have never even tried it.
• My hubby and some of our friends who have tried it love it so much they can not stop eating it.
• This stuff is gone within hours in our house!
  
• It is really easy!!

Sweet & Sour Chicken Lo Mein / Ramen

I got this one from a site called The Official Ramen Homepage. It has tons of recipes that include Ramen Noodles (and those are cheap!).

Ingredients:
1 package Ramen (oriental or teriyaki)
1 extra ramen flavor packet (oriental or teriyaki)
1 boneless skinless chicken breast, cut up into bite sized pieces
1 small onion cut up into chunks
1/2 cup sweet and sour sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce

Take the cut up chicken and onions and cook in large pan until all the pink is gone in the chicken. Add the soy sauce and one flavor packet to the chicken and let cook as usual. Add the sweet and sour sauce to the chicken while the noodles boil. Once the noodles are finished, drain the water and add the other flavor packet. Put noodles on plate and then cover with chicken and onion mix.

My 2 cents worth on this:

• This is honestly not my favorite but it is really great for a different kind of meal that is not very expensive. And it IS good. Just not my favorite.
  
• Hannah loves it - it DOES have noodles.
• The part I like the least about this is the extra noodles I have afterwards because I had to use the seasoning packet. It is only 17 cents but still.
  

Brunch Casserole

I got this one from my church's Cook Book. It is Mrs. Barbara's recipe. She is so special to Chris and I. She calls herself Hannah and Justus' TN Grandma. They just love her.

Ingredients:
1 lb Sausage
8 oz crescent dinner rolls
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
4 eggs beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Crumble and brown sausage. Drain. Line bottom of 9x13 baking dish with rolls pressing to seal perforations. Sprinkle with sausage and cheese. Combine remaining ingredients, beat well and pour over sausage. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes or until set. Let stand 5 minutes. Cut in squares and serve.

My 2 cents worth on this one.

• I am not a big breakfast eater. I mean I always eat breakfast but it is usually a bowl of Cheerios and I am fine with just that! However, I loved this recipe.
• Chris loved this.
• This is so so so easy and does not require any weird ingredients or instructions!