Showing posts with label simple recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label simple recipes. Show all posts

Summer Tortellini Salad

It's time for another 20-minute Tuesday! Today I'll be sharing a quick recipe with you that is easy to make but full of flavor. My kids eat it too!
 
I made this salad as a quick side dish for a recent meal of pulled pork sandwiches. I was out of traditional pasta salad ingredients, so I improvised.  It took only a few minutes to make, and using the corn and the peas right out of the freezer chilled the whole dish, allowing me to serve it "chilled" right away. 

Ingredients:
1 16oz bag frozen cheese tortellini
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup frozen peas
2T pesto
1T olive oil

1 16oz can stewed tomatoes

Directions:
Boil tortellini according to package directions (about 2-3 minutes). Drain and rinse with cold water.
 In a large mixing bowl, combine remaining ingredients and stir. Add tortellini. Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with fresh basil, if desired.


Enjoy!

Linking up to these great parties:

>Funky Junk's Sat Nite Special

20-Minute Tuesday: Chicken and Dumplings Recipe

Today I'm excited to introduce a new feature here at Busy at Home. It's called Twenty Minute Tuesday and it will feature projects that can be completed from start-to-finish with about 20 minutes of hands-on time.  I'll be sharing recipes, crafts, preschool activities...you name it!
 
As a mom, there are times when I feel like it's so hard to see any tangible rewards for my labor. Noses are wiped, dishes are done, floors are swept...and then minutes later they're all dirty again. I'm making a difference in the lives of our family and friends but there's not always a result to show for it, at least not that very same day. Know the feeling? My hope is that these Twenty Minute Tuesday projects will serve as a resource for when we desire to work on a project--and then have something immediate and tangible to show for it!

For our very first 20-minute Tuesday, I'm sharing one of my go-to recipes for my busiest days. I keep the ingredients for this on hand and when it's one of those days, it's what's for dinner.


Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

Ingredients
2-3 boneless chicken breasts(or any boneless chicken)
2 cans cream of chicken or cream of celery soup
1 empty soup can of milk
1 16-oz bag mixed vegetables
1 can refrigerated buttermilk biscuits or 1 recipe drop biscuits

Directions
Cut chicken breasts into bite-size pieces and line them in the bottom of a slow cooker. Combine soup, milk, and vegetables and pout over chicken. Cook on low for 5-6 hours or high for 2 1/2 hours. About 1 1/2 hours before serving, place biscuits on top of the mixture in the slow cooker.

Comments
This is a *very* forgiving recipe. I've never paid too much attention to timing and it always comes out wonderfully. The chicken always ends up being very tender, and the vegetables are covered in so much yummygoodness that even the pickiest of children will enjoy them. It's a one-dish crowd pleaser!

If you want to cut back the calories a bit, you can substitute skim milk, low-fat "cream of" soups, or make the drop biscuits with white whole wheat flour.


Let me know if you try it and tell us all how your family liked it!


If you have a 20-minute project to share and are interested in being featured on Busy at Home, please tell me in the comments or email me: BusyatHome ~AT~ live ~DOT~ com.

Ham and Pineapple Pizza


Just before going into the oven.

We love pizza night. I recently started making my own semi-homemade pizzas instead of using a frozen. It's almost as easy and much, much more yummy. And cheaper. And possibly better for us, although I'm not sure.

Recipe:
  • frozen bread dough, thawed according to the manufacturers directions
  • sauce
  • mozzarella
  • 1/2 can pineapple, drained. (save the extra for smoothies, or for carrot and raisin salad, which I'm using mine for tonight)
  • ham, cut up (here I used cold cuts, because we had them)

layer the above and bake for 400F or until the cheese is melted.

Easy sauce recipe:
  • 1 can of diced tomatoes, drained
  • 1/2 can tomato paste
  • 1 tsp oregano 
  • 1 T minced garlic
Blend the above in the food processor. store extra tomato paste in a ziploc in the freezer for next time!