Bacon Cheddar Pork Chops

Many of you have noticed Bacon Cheddar Pork Chops on my weekly menu plans, and I have gotten several requests for the recipe.  So, I figured it was about time to share it.
I came up with these a while back when I needed to make something for dinner, but was running low on groceries.  I hadn't yet made a trip to the store because of an illness I suffer from called 'Grocery Store Crowd Avoidance Syndrome' - also known as GSCAS.  If you are also a sufferer of GSCAS, I completely understand your condition - and you can rest easy knowing that you can find support here.  
Anyhows - back to these pork chops.  Looking through what groceries I did have, I pulled out a few things & set to work to see what I could come up with. What I came up with was marvelous, and became a main dish staple in my home.  Everyone raved over it the night that I created it, and my 2 year old devoured a whole pork chop himself.  And even though I have made it countless times, the raving never stops - and it still gets devoured by every member of my family.
Ready for the recipe?  Of course you are.  Why else would you be here?  Oh wait, that's right.  For the GSCAS support group.  We meet down the hall, second door on the right.
Here's what you need:

Set out two pie dishes, or similar kind of dish.  In one dish, whisk together 2 eggs and a couple splashes of milk - and in the other, mix together your bread crumbs, shredded cheese, & bacon bits.
Now, I've tried freshly fried bacon with this too...but it just doesn't taste as good.  Go figure.

Dip the pork chops into the egg mixture & then dredge into the breadcrumb mixture.  Shake any excess off, and then repeat - making sure to press the breadcrumb mixture into the pork chops on both sides the second time around.
Lay in a baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.  If you have a cast iron, use it as it helps form a beautiful crust.  However, if you don't have one - don't worry about it.
Sprinkle any remaining breadcrumb mixture on top of the pork chops, and press down lightly.

Bake in a preheated oven (set to 400 degrees) for 30 minutes - carefully flipping the chops halfway through.
Sprinkle with a little bit more cheese & pop them back in the oven for a couple of minutes, just enough to melt the cheese. Remove from the oven, and garnish with chopped green onions if desired.

Serve 'em up to your family and watch how fast they get gone.  

Bacon Cheddar Pork Chops

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Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, medium thickness pork chops
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup of milk
• 1.5oz real bacon bits (half of a 3oz package)
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 1.5 cups shredded cheddar or cheddar blend cheese
• chopped green onions to garnish

Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Set out 2 pie dishes, or similar dish.  In one, whisk together the eggs & milk. In the other, mix together the bacon bits, bread crumbs, & 1 cup of the shredded cheese.  
Dip the pork chops in the egg/milk mixture & then into the breadcrumb mixture. Shake off any excess crumbs & then dip back into the egg/milk mixture again. Dredge in the breadcrumb combination & press the mixture into each side.
Spray a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray, and place the pork chops in.  Cast iron works best as it helps crisp the crust better, but it's not a necessity if you don't have one.  Sprinkle on any remaining breadcrumb mixture, and press down lightly.
Bake for 30 minutes, carefully flipping over halfway through cooking.  Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese & return to the oven for 2 minute, just enough to melt the cheese.
Garnish with chopped green onions.



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Peanut Butter & Jelly Balls

Peanut butter & jelly sandwiches are the classic brown paper bag lunch. Unfortunately, they can get quite boring.  So, I set to take a different spin on them & jazz it up in all areas - flavor, presentation, & nutrition.  
These peanut butter & jelly balls aren't time consuming or difficult to make at all.  You can make a batch of them during the weekend, and store them in the refrigerator for quick lunches or snacks throughout the entire week.  

Another great thing about them is they freeze beautifully, so there's no pressure to use them up all at once.  You can even double or triple the batch for the freezer so you don't have to make them so often.  
Don't have a jelly lover in the house?  Feel free to omit the jelly if you want. Have a child with a peanut allergy?  Substitute soy or sunflower butter.

Peanut Butter & Jelly Balls

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Ingredients:

• 1 cup honey
• 1-1/4 cup peanut butter (creamy,crunchy, or natural - take your pick)
• 1.5 cups dry powdered milk
• 3 cups quick or old fashioned oats
• 4 tablespoons flax seed
• 1/2-3/4 cup jelly or jam or your choice

Instructions:

Using an electric mixer, combine the first 5 ingredients in a large bowl.  Take a tablespoon worth of the peanut butter mixture and flatten it out by pressing it in between your hands making a 2" around 'pancake' shape.  Using your thumb, create a slight indentation of the center of your 'pancake'.  Drop 1/2 teaspoon of jelly into the indentation, and fold up the sides.  Create another small circle with the peanut butter mixture and press it down on the top of the ball, and roll it around in your hands to tighten & seal.  Repeat with the remaining dough & jelly.  Place the formed balls on a baking sheet lined with wax paper & place it into the freezer for 30 minutes, or until set.  Remove, & place the balls in a large container or resealable plastic bag & store in the refrigerator.

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Southwestern Egg Rolls

Don't you just love those recipes that you tell your family that you're making for dinner, and every single one of their eyes light up?  These Southwestern Egg Rolls are that dish for us.  Every single member of my family goes crazy for these - even my picky 2 year old.  

They are packed full of hearty ingredients, and then baked off for a wonderfully crispy crust.  I always serve these with my Cilantro Cream Sauce because the 2 flavors are just destined for each other.  You can eat them by themselves, or with ranch too - but I'm tell you.  If you don't serve them with the cilantro cream sauce, you're really missing out!
You simply saute all the ingredients in a large pan for your eggroll stuffing pleasure.

I love how colorful the mixture is after the fresh spinach has been added.  Don't you?

Then you simply roll the ingredients up in a taco sized flour tortilla, give it a nice brushing of olive oil, and bake it them off in the oven until crispy.

I just love this dish, and I really think ya'll will too.  
Make sure you head over to get the recipe for my cilantro cream sauce so you can puree you up a batch real quick to serve along side this dish to make it even more delicious.

Southwestern Egg Rolls

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Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for brushing
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts - diced
• 1 medium-large onion, minced
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 1 (14.5)oz can black beans, rinsed & drained
• 2.5 cups fresh baby spinach
• 2 jalapenos, seeded & minced
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 cups shredded pepper jack cheese
• salt & pepper to taste
• 10 taco sized flour tortillas

Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. 
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil on medium.  Add in the chicken, season with salt & pepper to taste, & saute for 5 minutes.  Stir in the diced onions & cook until the chicken is cooked through.  Stir in the spices, jalapeno, black beans, corn, & baby spinach and cook until the spinach has wilted. Remove from the heat, and stir in the pepper jack cheese.  Spoon about 1/4 cup of filling into the center of each taco sized flour tortilla, and roll up like a burrito.  Brush each side with a good coating of olive oil, and place in a baking dish.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, flipping halfway through, until crispy.
Serve with Cilantro Cream Sauce, if desired.



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Make-It-Fresh! Sub Sandwich - Homemade Lunchable

I had the pleasure of meeting Laura from MOMables while on the California Dairy Tour. We recently decided to get together to do a back to school series.  MOMables has all sorts of homemade, fresh ideas for your kids lunchbox - great ideas just like the one she is sharing today.  

We all know that making a sandwich is not rocket science, so don’t settle for the prepackaged ones! They may be convenient, but are severely lacking in nutrition and content.

The boxed sub sandwich lunch contains a small loaf of bread, pressed turkey lunch meat, and processed cheese slices, all individually wrapped in plastic, plus a squeeze packet of mayonnaise and a tiny marshmallow rice krispy treat. When I look at this, all I see is processed foods and lots of plastic waste! Besides that, where are the fruits and vegetables?

If my kids were left with only this, they’d be starving after lunch! If our kids aren’t getting a filling and balanced meal, how can we expect them to preform and behave at their best?

At MOMables™ we take on those boxed lunches and remake them healthier, fresh and quickly. We realize all grocery budgets are not the same, but it doesn’t take much more to use real turkey breast, real cheddar cheese and real whole wheat bread. Our lunch includes fruit too! Something the boxed lunch was missing. I suppose you can also include a homemade rice krispy treat.

By taking a few moments to pack healthy lunches for my family, I get the satisfaction of knowing they have nutritious food that is real and fresh.  This is what their bodies need instead of fillers, artificial ingredients and preservatives. I feel good when they feel good!

-- Laura Fuentes shows parents how to make fresh school lunches over at MOMables™.  A wife, mother of 3 and a lunch enthusiast who insists on healthy, wholesome food for her family.  
On her personal blog, Super Glue Mom, she writes about managing motherhood on a deadline.  She’s also a food contributor and recipe developer to numerous sites, and helps busy parents overcome the difficulties of cooking real food in a hurry. You can find Laura on Twitter and on Facebook and MOMables on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. 

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Homemade Chicken Nuggets

I had the pleasure of meeting Laura from MOMables while on the California Dairy Tour. We recently decided to get together to do a back to school series.  MOMables has all sorts of homemade, fresh ideas for your kids lunchbox - great ideas just like the one she is sharing today.  

Chicken nuggets are a favorite of most kids. I know mine would eat nuggets every day, if I’d let them! They are found on the menu in most restaurants and even in school cafeteria hot lunches. At the store you can find them taking up entire freezer sections, with different shapes and varieties for kid appeal. They also come in the refrigerated boxed lunches. The ingredients alone will scare any semi-health conscious person.  Yet, parents buy them because kids eat them.

The prepackaged, store bought chicken nugget lunch is quite a disappointment. The first thing we noticed was how little food it contained: Four processed nuggets, ketchup for dipping, and two sandwich cookies.

Where’s the nutrition? My child surely won’t be full on a meal like this. Most importantly, the mix of chemicals that make up what they call a nugget can hardly be called food.  Because of this, we are happy to share with you our version of homemade nuggets.  They are silly-easy to make and you can freeze them and have them ready for when you need them! Talk about convenience.

The MOMables lunch version contains four fresh homemade chicken nuggets (recipe below), dipping sauce, and two sandwich cookies. In addition, ours has the fruit & vegetable servings missing from the boxed lunch; crunchy carrot sticks and juicy grapes.

The only reason to pay for the boxed lunch is for a colorful box; but since you can get some pretty cool lunch boxes now-a-days, it’s a mute point.

MOMables menu plans provide you with healthy, fresh meals you can make in 10 minutes or less, but unlike store bought lunches, they allow flexibility in portioning and choice of sides so you can customize each lunch to suit your family’s tastes and appetites. We even tell you what to make and prep ahead so you can save time and money on wasted food.

MOMables Homemade Chicken Nuggets

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Ingredients:

·         1 lb ground chicken
·         1/4 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
·         1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
·         1 tsp Zatarain's Creole Seasoning,divided (or paprika)
·         1/2 tsp garlic powder
·         1/4 tsp black pepper
·         3/4 cup breadcrumbs

Instructions:

1. In large bowl, combine chicken, oatmeal, half the grated parmesan (1/8 cup), half the Zatarain's seasoning (or paprika) (1/2 tsp), garlic powder and pepper. Knead dry ingredients into ground chicken.

 2. Moisten hands to prevent sticking and form 1 tbsp of chicken mixture into a ball. Press into a cookie cutter for shaped nuggets or flatten with fingers for a basic nugget shape.

 3. In a small bowl, combine breadcrumbs with remaining Zatarain's seasoning and grated parmesan.

 4. Press nuggets into bread crumb mixture and turn over, patting crumbs into surface to coat evenly.

--At this point you can freeze-- or

5. To bake: Preheat oven to 375° F. Arrange nuggets on cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray or lined with parchment paper. Lightly spray nuggets themselves with cooking spray or olive oil for a crispier coating (optional).

6. Bake 15-20 minutes, turning once, and checking - don't overcook! These baked nuggets will not really brown (unless you pan fry in oil) - if browning is desired, place under broiler for a couple of minutes at the end of cooking.

These nuggets don’t have to be baked right away; you can freeze the breaded nuggets on a cookie sheet, then transfer them to an airtight bag or container and store them in the freezer until you’re ready to bake as few or as many as you like for up to 3 months. Add about 3-5 minutes to your usual cooking time if baking from frozen.

-- Laura Fuentes shows parents how to make fresh school lunches over at MOMables™.  A wife, mother of 3 and a lunch enthusiast who insists on healthy, wholesome food for her family.  
On her personal blog, Super Glue Mom, she writes about managing motherhood on a deadline.  She’s also a food contributor and recipe developer to numerous sites, and helps busy parents overcome the difficulties of cooking real food in a hurry. You can find Laura on Twitter and on Facebook and MOMables on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. 

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MOMables Make-it-Fresh! Taco Tray (Homemade Lunchable!)

I had the pleasure of meeting Laura from MOMables while on the California Dairy Tour. We recently decided to get together to do a back to school series.  MOMables has all sorts of homemade, fresh ideas for your kids lunchbox - great ideas just like the one she is sharing today.  So make sure you check out her site, and be back here every Thursday for 4 weeks to see what else she brings - and her site as well for a few back to school guest posts from me!  

Kids love chips and they love dips.

What parents like are fresh and real ingredients - the MOMables™ way. 

Those boxed lunches dangling on the shelves at the grocer right at the kids’ eye level sure are tempting, aren’t they? Convenient – sure. Nutritionally – empty. Sure it has colorful, fun packaging, but that’s where anything good about those prepackaged lunches ends. At MOMables™, we love showing parents how you can turn simple and fun lunches into healthy and fresh meals.

If you want nicer and more colorful packaging, get rid of the zip bag and invest in some fun and reusable lunch containers.

 

The prepackaged lunch comes with tortilla chips, salsa, and cheese dip. “Cheese” - if you can really call it that, since cheese is not even one of the first 3 ingredients listed. The box lunch includes a sugary fruit-flavored drink and candy. You might be thinking, well… if kids eat it, why not buy it? Because the boxed lunch has so many ingredients that aren’t real food that you might as well not call it lunch.

Taco night is very popular in most households, right? Often times you have one left over serving of taco meat and wonder: what the am I going to do with this?  I’ll tell you.  You can make taco tray the MOMables way.

Our taco tray contains high quality beef, shredded real cheese, shredded lettuce, a serving of fruit and whole grain tortilla chips. The only things not pictured are a small container of salsa I usually include, a reusable napkin and utensils.  

This lunch took two or three minutes to prepare and I didn’t need any special tools to make it.  Healthy lunches can include left overs; you just have to re-purpose them!  If you need more lunch ideas you can always visit our blog, Facebook or Pinterest.  Helping busy parents make fresh lunches is what we do!

-- Laura Fuentes shows parents how to make fresh school lunches over at MOMables™.  A wife, mother of 3 and a lunch enthusiast who insists on healthy, wholesome food for her family.  
On her personal blog, Super Glue Mom, she writes about managing motherhood on a deadline.  She’s also a food contributor and recipe developer to numerous sites, and helps busy parents overcome the difficulties of cooking real food in a hurry. You can find Laura on Twitter and on Facebook and MOMables on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. 

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Bananaberry-Kiwi Kabobs

Here's a fun little recipe that I created for Life Around Home that involves absolutely no cooking whatsoever - just a little bit of assembly, and you're all done.  If you haven't checked them out yet - Life Around Home is the first ever social media driven television show, and I happen to be the cooking neighbor for it.  I share new recipes every Monday there, so make sure you go give them a 'like' so you don't miss out on anything.  There is something for everyone too - everything around home, that's what their about.
Now - back to your regularly scheduled recipe...  :)
These fruit kabobs would be a fantastic treat to jazz up the kid's lunchbox, appetizers for a party, or just a snack to serve up when you're hungry.  Kids & adults alike will love the fun colors, pretty presentation, & of course - the flavor!

Bananaberry-Kiwi Kabobsscroll down for the recipe card designed by Life Around Home

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Ingredients:

• whole fresh strawberries, hulled
• fresh blueberries
• bananas, sliced into 1 inch thick pieces
• kiwi fruit, peeled & quartered
• wooden skewers

Instructions:

Place all the ingredients on a wooden skewer in the following order per kabob.  1 strawberry, 1 banana slice, 1 kiwi quarter, & lastly 4-5 blueberries. Serve immediately. 

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{Not Your Typical} Walking Tacos

Once August & September hits - it begins camping season for us.  The temperatures are beginning to get much milder, and the weather is usually perfect.  Sometimes we head out to an actual destination, while other times - we just pop up a tent in the backyard.  Backyard campouts are fun too!  
One of my favorite things about the camping is the food. S'mores, hot dogs, anything cooked in a cast iron skillet - I love it all.  Another one of my favorites are Walking Tacos. But I make mine a little different than the typical recipe.  I don't use taco seasoning, and instead I use fresh ingredients - and the flavor that you end up with because of it is unbeatable.  When Life Around Home asked me to send over a lightened up camping recipe, I just knew that my walking tacos were the ticket.  

They are super fun to make, and to eat.  The kids just go crazy over them! Oh heck, who am I kidding - I go crazy over these too!!
And, you certainly don't have to wait for a campout to enjoy these.  Make them up any time.  They'd even be a really fun lunch option for when you or your kids brown bag it.

{Not Your Typical} Walking Tacos

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Scroll down for the printable recipe card, courtesy of Life Around Home

Ingredients:

• 6-8 - 1oz snack packs of baked cheese flavored tortilla chips (like baked doritos)
• 3/4 pound pound ground sirloin (ground turkey or chicken can also be used)
• 1/2 cup diced red onion
• 1 jalapeno, seeds removed & minced (optional)
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• salt & pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup black bean & corn salsa
• optional toppings of your choice, such as shredded cheese, shredded lettuce, cilantro, chopped tomatoes, etc

Instructions:

For the prep before camping trip:

In a skillet, start browning the ground meat.  Stir in the onions, jalapeno (if using), garlic powder, chili powder, salt & pepper. Cook until the meat is cooked through and the onions are translucent.  Drain any grease that has come off the meat.  Stir in the black bean & corn salsa.  Allow to cool, and then transfer to a plastic container or wrap the mixture in a large piece of heavy duty aluminum foil.  Chill in a cooler until ready to eat at the camp site.

For the camp site:

Warm the meat mixture in a cast iron skillet, or if using a tinfoil packet - warm over the campfire.  (The mixture can also be served cold, but is better warmed) Evenly distribute the mixture in between the snack size tortilla chip packs, crimp the edges, and give each pack a good shake.  Top with any toppings you desire & eat straight from the bag.  

***Remember, you can make these ANY TIME - not just for camping!!***

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Watermelon Lime Agua Fresca

Our local farmers market has been loaded with watermelons lately, and with such an abundance of them - the prices have been really good too.  So, we have been in watermelon heaven!  
Now, usually I just cut it up, sprinkle on a little bit of salt - and eat to my hearts content - but this year, I've strived add them to various things, like the watermelon feta salad tarts I made not that long ago.  But, I wanted to do a beverage of some sort too.  I stumbled across a recipe inside of Rachael Ray magazine for watermelon agua fresca, and it looked delicious.  I adapted it a little for our tastes by increasing the lime juice that was called for - from 1/3 of a cup to 1/2 of a cup.  I just couldn't taste the 1/3 of a cup, and I wanted to have a little background of tartness in it.

The combination of the watermelon with a slight hint of lime is the perfect combination.  Not too sweet, not too tart.  Perfect for sipping on the front porch on a summers night.  

Watermelon Lime Agua Frescaadapted from Rachael Ray magazine

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Ingredients:

• 8 cups seedless watermelon cubes
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 6 tablespoons honey
• 1.5 cups water
• sliced lime & mint for garnish

Instructions:
Puree the watermelon in a blender or food processor.  Strain with a sieve, and discard the pulp.  Stir in the lime juice, honey, & water.  Place pieces of sliced lime inside the pitcher.  Chill & serve over ice - garnish with mint & additional sliced lime.




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