1ST BIRTHDAY PARTY SUCCESS!

Good Monday to all!
So this past Saturday was Chloe's 1st birthday-where has the year gone??!! Needless to say it was a great party attended by wonderful friends and family! Craig's Mom & Gram drove down from Canada to partake in the festivities!

I decided on Friday to prep as much food as I could, reserving a few hours before the party for final prep and cooking of the hot foods-timing wise it all worked out.

Thanks to our early rising daughter, we were able to get the house decorated Saturday morning. I know that a few weeks back I shared Chloe's decorations-well I took one of the napkins to our supermarket to have them put the design on her cake and here it is!



Cute right?! We loved it and it tasted good!
And they even made her a "baby cake"

She had fun tearing into it-she was kind of dainty about it, but once she figured out that is was cake and okay to eat she tore into it!

I has so much fun planning the party, and didn't skimp on the food. Now I know that I shared my menu a few weeks back, but working and hosting guests etc. I decided to scrap a few items on the menu and get help from the super market deli.
So here is what the final menu consisted of.

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
Mini-Twice baked potatoes
Veggie tray
Fruit Tray
Stuffed cucumbers
Cheese and crackers
Mini Pita Sandwiches
Cake & Ice Cream

I made everything except for the pita sandwiches and the cake.
So I was asked by a few of our friends if I could share the recipes and or course I said I can-just check my blog!
So here they are.

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp

Ingredients:
Bacon (I LOVE fully cooked bacon)
Fully cooked shrimp-peeled & deveined
Garlic Powder

Directions:
Sprinkle Garlic Powder over the shrimp, then wrap each in a single piece of bacon. Place the wrapped single layer on a baking sheet and broil in the oven for 5 minutes. Serve with toothpicks and enjoy! Easy Peasy!

Mini-Twice Baked Potatoes

Ingredients:
Mini new Potatoes(Red skinned potatoes)
1/2 c Milk
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped bacon
Salt & Pepper to taste
Chives for garnish
1/4 cup Olive Oil

Directions:

Pre-Heat the oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl combine the olive oil and salt & pepper along with the potatoes. Coat with the oil mixture and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes. Once baked turn the temp down on the oven to 350. Remove the potatoes and once cool cut in half and scoop out the insides-leaving a layer around the inside to hold the potatoes "up" once filled. Put the potatoes in the bowl with the remaining ingredients. Fill each potatoe skin with the filling and place single layer on a baking sheet. Bake in the 350 degree oven for 5 mintues or until the cheese has melted. Take out place on a serving dish and garnish with the chives! YUMMY!

Everything was yummy and filling since this was a party happening during the dinner hour! I would say that my little Monkey enjoyed her first birthday! She not remember it but we have made memories that we can share with her later in life!

Like this one!

 And this one!

Cheers!

Erica

BLAH!!! Wednesday!

So yeah..it's Wednesday! YIPPEE...throw a party-NOT! I was up wayyyy to late last night cleaning for the in-laws visit. They roll into town this evening, and while they don't pull the white glove treatment when they come to visit I feel the need to have my house SPOTLESS! So yeah that's the reason for the blahs today. Upside to the day it's nice outside so I will be able to get out during lunch and walk and breathe in the clean Colorado air (no not a cliche-it really is clean).

As it stands right now I should be working-but clearly I find this to be a more enjoyable way of getting through my morning, but seriously I need to finish this blog up, drink my coffee in silence and work my little booty off!

I will post dinner tomorrow-I am cooking tonight, and I know you are dying to know if Craig got chili in a can last night-well he didn't I did what I do best second to cooking-I dialed Pizza Hut!

Happy Friday Wednesday (see already trying to fast forward the week)!


Cheers ~
Erica


PS-Little gossip to get you through the day! U R WC!


Dancing with the "stars"-yeah this cast is a little light in the stars category!


Kendra Wilkinson-Known for dating Hugh Hefner and posing for Playboy.


THE KARATE KID!! Ralph Macchio-I had a poster of Ralph taped to the back of my bedroom door when I was like 11!


Kirstie Alley-Cheers, Look Who's Talking, Veronica's Closet-that's about it for her!

There are more "stars" this season but I don't know who they are, why they are on this show so I think this one will be a snore fest!

Tuesday Mash-Up

So it's Tuesday, and with my week being crazy I figured it was only fitting that my blog followed suit!
This blog is about everything and maybe a little bit of nothing!
First up dinner last night.
Now with a busy week at work and getting prepared for my in-laws to be here tomorrow I knew there was absolutley no way I was cooking last night-first I informed Craig that dinner would be chili in a can. Once we got home that plan changed. I managed to go beyond cracking open a can! Proud of me I know right...!?
We did have a "meal" that I made quite a bit when I was single-I give you rotini with mushromm basil sauce! Don't be fooled by the name I dolled it up-it's box of rotini noodles and a jar of mushroom with basil sauce! That's it..I won't go into the instructions for this one-I think it's self explanatory! Nonetheless-it was yummy!
Tonight-well tonight really will be chilie in a can-I have stuff to do in preparation of the in-law's coming into town tomorrow night!
I anticipate cooking so I will be able to share that with you!

Other stuff on my radar-well the Oscars, The Bachelor and the new cast of Dancing with the "Stars". Yup, you got me I like boring awards shows and reality TV!

While I enjoyed watching those awards being handled-even though I watching the entire show on fast forward-THANK YOU DVR! I really watch the show for the fashions! Here are some of my hits and misses! IMO


Loved this simple, yet elegant look on Jennifer Lawerence!


Keeping with the red theme-I am BEYOND loving this look on Sandy B. honestly this is my fave of the night! Eat your heart out Jesse James


Reese Witherspoon-simple and classy! She is a favorite!

Celine Dion-making new mother's this world over jealous! Think she's wearing spanx under the dress?


Can you say-"Hello, Old Hollywood!"-Amy Adams nailed the look!


Natalie Portman-Making pregnant women look good!


Cate Blanchett-I just don't get it!

All in all I think everybody played it safe in the fashion arena-but they were great to look at an commentate on nonetheless!

Well-I gotta get off my rear and get outside!

Cheers

Erica

DIET!!! AHHHHH!!!!!!!!

I have uttered the one word that I never thought I would ever have to utter-DIET!!
AHHH!! Say it isn't so-but sadly it is. Chloe will be 1 next weekend and I still need to lose another 30 lbs. of baby weight. The baby weighs 20 lbs now, so I can't keep up this facade! Enter the diet!
Step 1: Getting off my butt on my lunch hour and getting outside(weather premitting)or on the treadmill in our office gym.
Step 2: Giving up my beloved-that's right I gotta say bye-bye to my love Dr. Pepper! We've been through thick and thin-but I think you are keeping me thick so sayonara!
Step 3: Changing the way I eat. Now I don't eat horribly, I have the occassional fries from McDonald's, or have a piece of pie-but I gotta think heathlier. Enter the dinner that I "made" last night.
Now I warned Craig that I wasn't sure how it would taste. We had Chicken Tostadas-yeah they were okay but since I didn't put sour cream on them they were a little dry-and I forgot the black beans! But if you are brave, I am going to share this recipe with you. Maybe you can tweak it  and let me know how it works for you!

Chicken Tostadas

Ingredients:
Whole Wheat Tortillas
Black Beans-cooked
Brown Rice
Avocado-Chopped
Fire Roasted Tomatoes(heated if you like)
Chicken-chopped( I used a rotisserie chicken from my local deli)
Baby Lettuce
Greek yogurt
Cilantro-chopped


Directions:
Place the tortillas in a hot oven-I went for 450. Bake until crisp about 3-5 minutes.
Top your tortilla with 2 cups lettuce, 1/4 cup rice, 1/4 cup beans, 1/4 cup tomatoes, 1/4 cup chicken, 1/3 cup avocado, 2 tbsp cilantro and 3 tbsp yogurt.

Now yours might taste better since you won't forget to add the beans-I will attempt this recipe again sometime maybe with the beans mine will be better 2nd time around!
let me know what you think!!!


I am known for having a sweet tooth-so to satisfy those after dinner cookie cravings I like to have this little "treat" simple, easy and yummy.


Fruit "Parfait"

Ingredients:

Low-Fat Vanilla Yogurt
Granola
Blueberries
Strawberries-chopped


Directions:
Spoon 1/2 cup of your yogurt into your favorite bowl top with 1/4 cup granola, and 1/4 cup of the berries and enjoy!

I have served this one for breakfast as well as dessert.

So off I go on my quest to lose my baby belly!
Wish me luck!

Party Time Preparation!

I cannot believe that my baby will be 1 in less than 2 weeks!!! Where did the time go???
She's toddling around and drinking whole milk out of a sippy cup!! Soon we can potty train and ditch those nasty diapers!! But first I must plan-and I am just about done!

First off I had to come up with a theme-taking from Chloe's nickname of Monkey I found a really cute 1st birthday website that had the perfect little girl Money themed decor. I highly recommend this website for all of your planning needs http://www.birthdayexpress.com/
They sent me a catalog with coupons and when I placed the order online I had forgotten the coupon codes, so I got on the live chat and was able to get the codes! They shipped out the package with an anticipated delivery date for this week-but I got the box last Friday WOO!HOO!

Check out the theme!

Cute right??!!

I picked up the streamers and extra plates in the pink color from Wal-Mart just in case.
Now I have been told the 1st birthday party is more for the parents than the child-a celebration of her turning 1 in 1 piece and Mommy & Daddy still functioning at 100%! So bring on the party!!!

We decided not to invite kiddos to this party-it will be close friends and Craig's Mom & Gram are coming down from Canada-so 10 people total! It will be a nice time with Chloe as the center of attention!!

I just have to order her cake, get balloons and wrap up her presents! I just keep thinking back to this time last year and March 5th couldn't get here fast enough, and now here we are a year later!! It flew by!! Sometimes I wish that I could just stop time!

Lasts stop on the party planning train will be food-I love a good party and enjoy making the food and planning out all the yummy nummy stuff.
Here is what I have planned so far-keeping in mind that 98% of the guests are adults!

Veggie & Dip Tray
Fruit with Fruit dip( I will share my yummy fruit dip recipe the closer we get to the party-it's not chocolate!)
Cheese and crackers
Mini twice baked ptoatoes
Chicken skewers with a sesame ginger dipping sauce
Bacon wrapped shrimp
Chive stuffed cucumbers
I might come up with a few more-but I think that is plenty along with cake and ice cream!

So more to come later!!

CHEERS!
Erica

Ahhh...the weekend!

So here I am on a Sunday night doing my usual....laundry, chasing after Chloe and attempting to cook something yummy-yet healthy for dinner. I think I have accomplished that goal tonight-true test will be in about 40 minutes when everything is cooked.

So tonight is my last night to eat and drink WHATEVER I want. Tomorrow I start eating super clean, no sodas and I intend on running starting tomorrow WISH ME LUCK-I'm gonna need it! So tonight even though I should be eating something fatty and greasy I am going for yummy and healthy. Join me won't you??!!

Tonight is lemon-herb roasted chicken with zucchini and squash saute with a side salad and cresent rolls(there's the fat & carbs).

So first the bird!!

Lemon and Herb Roasted Chicken

Ingredients:

1 roasting chicken

1 lemon

1tbsp mixed herbs(I used oregano, parsley, thyme and a little garlic with pepper)

1 tbsp olive oil

Directions:

Pre-Heat oven to 375. While oven is heating prepare the bird. Remove the giblets, neck all the gross innards. Throw them out, use them for gravy whatever you want-just get them out of that bird.

Slice the lemon in half and place one half in the cavity of the bird. Squeeze the other half of the lemon into a bowl, mix in the olive oil and herbs. Brush the bird with the lemon and herb mixture. Place the bird breast side up into a roasting pan and bake for 90 minutes or until your meat thermometer reads 185 when placed in the thickest part of the thigh. Also make sure all juices run clear-not pink.

Once cooked take out and place a tin foil tent over and let the bird rest before cutting into it-this allows for all of the juices to re-distribute back into the meat-thereby preventing a dry chicken. I would suggest removing the skin before serving to cut down on some of the fat. YUMMY!

Zucchini & Squash Saute

Ingredients:

3 medium zucchini sliced

3 medium squash sliced

1 tbsp olive oil

1tsp parsley

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp pepper and salt

1 tsp onion powder

1 tbsp minced garlic

1/3 cup part skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Saute the sliced veggies and garlic on a pan with the oil. Cook until crisp-tender. Stir in the hersb and reduce heat to med-low for 2 minutes. Remove from heat add cheese and cover until the cheese metls. Serve with your favorite main dish!

ENJOY-let me know what you think!!

CHEERS!

Erica 

VALENTINE'S DAY AT HOME

Happy Belated Valentine's Day!


So let me set this up for you. Even before the weekend we had already planned to have Valentine's Dinner at home, but without me cooking it!!! There is this fabulous catering company here in town that I use exclusively for work, and who also catered our wedding last! I knew they would have yummy food-so lucky for me they were running Valentine's dinner specials-take and eat at home. They were offering 3 different packages and after looking at the selections we went with the mouthwatering Tri-Tip and all the sides! We have had this Tri-Tip 2 other times so we knew what to expect and we weren't disappointed! So, funny enough Sunday Craig started feeling pretty lousy and was walking around in a Ny-Quil induced coma of sorts, so having this dinner at home worked out!!!


I went after work and picked up our full meal. They had it packaged nicely, along with re-heating instructions and even provided a taper candle for our table!


I was fully prepared and went out an bought a Valentine's Day table runner, nice candle holders and heart shaped floating candles! Along with the dozen red roses that Craig got for me our table looked great! I heated everything up, poured us each a glass of red wine and pulled the high chair up to the table while Craig threw a log into the fireplace!


Now it wasn't as romantic as I am making it sound. For one I had a husband who felt like crap, I had a headache and Chloe was sooo fussy that we spent more time entertaining her than talking, but we did toast to the meal so there is that!!


Craig bought a dozen roses for me, and a dozen pink roses for Chloe-very sweet right??!!


This year we went the sentimental route for gifts(no jewelry here!) Craig got for me a really beautiful Willow Tree figurine decpicting our family, and a nice pen with my name on it.
I went a different route for him. I bought a simple glass jar with a top and found 31 different love quotes, thoughts about marriage and love printed them on red and white paper, folded them and put them into the jar and tied it with ribbon. He took his first one last night and assured me the gift wasn't corny-it was sweet and very unique! But I did give him a picture of me from 2 years ago in a nice heart frame.


Chloe was a little harder to buy for-but I got slightly creative. I purchased a heart shaped basket and got a sweet little stuffed animal, a small Valentine's themed snow globe, a new rubby ducky with kisses written on it and a stretchy necklace and bracelet since she is obsessed with mine-she liked her gifts as much as an 11 month old can!!


All in all it was a nice Valentine's Day at home!!
How was your day of love??!!

A Simply Devine Sunday!!

Here we are Sunday.....ugh! Only because tomorrow is Monday, but Monday is Valentine's Day and we have something great planned here at the house! But more to come on that later.
First we tackle Sunday!!! So this is normally our easy, lazy day but it was soooo beautiful here in Colorado Springs-unseasonably warm in fact it was in the 70's-so warm I had the sliding glass door open-CRAZY!!!
Craig looks to be coming down with the flu, and what started out as a trip out to walk in the beautiful weather with our new all-terrain child carrier ended with Craig & I sitting in our family room eating popcorn and watching stuff on the DVR while Chloe napped. As I write this entry he is asleep on the bed-and it's not even 6:30. He assures me that once dinner is ready he will come back downstairs-we shall see.
So since I am folding laundry, finishing up for tomorrow and keeping an eye on my little monkey I have dinner "cooking" in the oven. This is something I haven't tried before but when I found the recipe I thought it sounded yummy and bonus easy to prepare...did I mention it takes one bowl and a casserols dish-even better less dishes that I have to load into the dishwasher. I HATE DOING DISHES!! In case I hadn't mentioned it...that is why when our 20+ year old dishwasher recently made it's hasty retreat to appliance I immediately had to get another one-VOILA less than a week later and my new love was in the house!!
So back to dinner-yes I need medication for this self-diagnosis of ADD <J/K>

I present Busy Day Chicken Casserole

Ingredients:

1 (10.75 oz) can of condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 (10.75 oz) can of condensed cream of celery soup
1 cup water
1 cup uncooked white rice
1 (4.5 oz) can mushrooms-drained
1 pinch garlic powder
ground black pepper to tasts
1 (1 oz) pgk dry onion soup mix
8 skinless bonless chicken breasts

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325
In a large bowl combine the soups, mushrooms, rice, water, garlic & black pepper
Pour mixture into a 9x13 baking dish and spread on the bottom
Lay chicken pieces over soup/rice mixture and top with the dry soup.
Cover with time foil and place in the oven for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until done and chicken is cooked through.

Yummy!! I am making cresents roll and a light salad to go with our dinner!!

Cheers!

Erica

Sooo Yummy Saturday Night!

So hello all....Sorry again for being silent the last few days! Sadly, I haven't had much to share beyond the fact that for most of the week I was sick!! I truly figured none of you would be interested in my hospital like menu!
But I am back and cooking up a storm!!! So after running around all day-literally we are home and settling in for the night. I am making something, yummy, easy and good for you!

So tonight's dinner is Chicken Parmesan-but if you are like me I burn just about anything that I fry in my skillet-this one is baked in the overn. So it's easy, and better for you since you are cutting out the fat-greasy yuck!!!

Here ya go!!


Chicken Parmesan:

Ingredients:
1/13 cup bread crumbs(I like the Italian Style crumbs)
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp garlic powder
4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 egg whites
1/2 cup milk(we use soy and it tastes great!)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
4 boneless, skinless chicken bresasts pounded to 1/2 in. thickness
Olive Oil cooking spray
1 jar good quality marinara sauce(3 1/2 cups)
3/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
2 tbsp parmesan cheese
1 box of your favorite pasta

Directions:

pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
Please the bread crumbs on a baking sheet and brown for 12 minutes

In a medium bowl toss the crumbs, oregano, paprika, garlic powder, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper

in another bowl whisk the egg whites and milk

In a third bowl  combine the flour, remaining salt & pepper

Dip each piece of chicken 1 piece at a time 1. into flour mixture 2. into milk & egg mixture 3. into crumbs shaking off the excess

Increase your oven temp to 400 degrees, place the breaded chicken into a glass baking dish and spray each side with the cooking spray.
Bake about 15 minutes until cooked through and the crumbs are browned.
Top with the marinara sauce and cheeses, bake an additional 10 minutes minutes until the cheese is bubbling.

Serve with your favorite pasta-tonight we are having a whole wheat linguine.
Top your pasta with a breast-spoon the excess sauce on top and enjoy!!

Tonight we are enjoying our's with some cheesy garlic bread and a great Red Wine from S. America!!

Until tomorrow!!

Cheers

Erica

Are you Ready for some Football??!!

IT'S THAT TIME AGAIN-SUPER BOWL!!!!

We are hosting a small gathering here at the house, and I knew that I had to feed everybody something yummy, and filling since they will be here during the dinner hour! SOLUTION-Chili-YUM-O! Chili in the crock-pot, even better!!

I also came up with some light appetizers and snacks to keep everybody happy! First up-Veggies with an easy ranch dip-this is just a packet of ranch flavoring mixed with a tub of your basic sour cream-easy right?!

Next I bought 3 different kinds of cheese, in a block and a summer sausage. I cut the cheese up into little cube, sliced the summer sausage into discs and added some Triscuit Rosemary & Olive Oil crackers and voila-and easy and tasty appetizer!

To accompany all of this yumminess I am putting out a bowl of olives, salted peanuts and pub mix. Nothing fancy here folks it is after all the Super Bowl!

But you can't eat all of that and not have dessert, so I am making 2 different desserts. trust me they are easy peasy!

Keep in mind all of this will work for any day of the week!

Enjoy!!!

Chunky Beef Chili

Ingredients:

4 lbs of your favorite cut of beef-cut into 1/2 inch pieces

2 tbps chili powder

2 cans tomato paste

1 container beef broth

2 cans tomoato sauce

2 tsp granulated garlic

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground oregano

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp ground red pepper

1 can black beans

1 green bell pepper cut into chunks

Directions:

Couldn't be any easier then this are you ready???

Throw it ALL into your crock pot! That's it-turn that puppy on low and slow for 4-6 hours and get ready to enjoy!!

We like our with a little shredded cheese on top, Craig likes to scoop it all up onto a saltine cracker! However you like it I know you will enjoy this one!

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup cold butter

1 pouch Betty Crocker oatmeal chocolate chip cookie mix

3 eggs

2 pkgs(8oz ea) cream cheese softened

1 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

Heat over to 35o degrees. Spray bottom of a 13x9 inch baking dish with cooking spray

In a large bowl, cut the butter into the cookie mix using a fork and stir in the egg-stir until the mixture is crumbly. Spoon 3 cups of the mixture in the bottom of the pan and press. Bake for 15 minutes

In a small bowl beat the cream cheese mixture with the 2 eggs, sugar and vanille until smooth. Pour over the baked cookie  crust and spoon the remaining cookie mixture on top.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown and firm to the touch. Cool for 30 minutes and refrigerate at least 2 hours or until chilled. Cut into bars and store in the refrigerator! ENJOY!!

Lemon Creme Bars

Ingredients:

1/2 cup cold butter

1 pouch Betty Crocker Oatmeal Cookie mix

1 egg

1 can sweetened condensed milk(do not use evaporated)

2 tsp lemon peel

1/4 cup lemon juice

Directions:

Heat oven to 350. Spray bottom of an 8 inch backing dish with cooking spray

In a large bowl combine the butter, cookie mix and 1 egg. Mix until crumbly.

Press half of the cookie mixture into the bottom of pan, and back 15 minutes

In a samll bowl combine the condensed milk with the lemon peel and lemon juice. Stir until smooth. Spread over the baked crust and crumble the remaining cookie mix on top. Bake an additional 25 minutes or until golden brown. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until set. Cut into bars!

YUMMY!!!

CHEERS!

Erica

SATURDAY NIGHT-SWEITZER STYLE!

Well it's Saturday night in the Sweitzer house-and man did we have a B-U-S-Y day...all while trying to stay warm and dry while the snow was falling!
We did manage to get a few errands done before the biggest part of the snowfall started! We did get Chloe's ears pierced today, it was tough to know that we were causing that pain, but I did give her some Motrin before we went in, and the girls pierced both ears simultaneously-she cried but not for very long! She looks even cuter than before!!!
So we are hosting a small Super Bowl party tomorrow night and we had to get all the fixins to feed our friends during the big game!! Mission Accomplished!!
One the menu tomorrow will be a big serving of chili from the crock-pot with all the fixins'!
Also, veggies and ranch dip, cheese and sausage with crackers, chips and guacamole, all kinds of little snacks and to finish it all off 2 different desserts! 1 is a lemon cookie bar, the other is an oatmeal-chocolate chip w/cream cheese brownie!!!
I knew that I would be busy tomorrow getting the house cleaned up soo I did all the prep this evening, and have the second dessert in the oven as I am typing this!! Of course I will provide the recipes in my next post!
But tonight's post is what I made for dinner-it's super yummy, is a teeny bit spicy but it is sooo easy to make you just can't resist!
Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas. Now I am a diehard cheese with red sauce enchilada kind of girl-but this is sooo good you can't help but change!
So without further adieu!!!

Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas:

Ingredients:
2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken(I get a savory flavor one from the deli and take the skin off before I shred it)
1/12 cup shredded cheese(your choice) divided
1/2 cup ranch dressing
1/4 cup sour cream
1 can (19oz) green chili enchilada sauce
4 10-in flour tortillas, warmed

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a bowl combine the chicken, 3/4 cup of the cheese, ranch dressing, and sour cream.
Stir until well blended. Divide the mixture evenly into the tortillas and place seam side down in an oiled 9 inch baking dish. Pour the sauce around and on top of the tortillas and top with the remaining cheese.
Bake for 20 minutes, or until the cheese ifmelted and bubbly. Once cooked let set for a few minutes before serving.

Accompaniments:
Spanish, Mexican Rice. Re fried black beans and OLE!!


CHEERS!!
Erica

I'm back!!

Hello to everybody!
Sorry that I have been silent on here for the past few days. Honestly, when Craig is out of town cooking comes to a complete halt. But yippee-Craig will be home this afternoon. I knew that I had a ton of stuff today(laundry, dusting, floors-you get the point) so when I planned out my grocery shopping yesterday I took that into account!
So tonight dinner is in the crock-pot! It's already in there!!! Tonight is Chicken Cacciatore! Here's the low down on this super simple meal!!!

BTW-I am still cranking the tunes cause along with not be able to cook without music, I also cannot clean without some beats!
I've dragged out my iPod-so the selection is ALL over the place!!
Anywho, here is what you are really here for(I know you!)

Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

Ingredients:
1/4 cup zesty italian dressing
1lb chicken breast
1/2 lb fresh mushrooms-sliced makes about 2 cups
1 medium onon-coarsely chopped
1/2 each. red & green bell pepper sliced
 1/4 tbsp garlic minced
1 can(14.5) ozs crushed tomatoes
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dried thyme leaves
3 cups instant rice


Directions:
Put the igredients listed above into the slow-cooker on low-6-8 hours or high for 5 hours.
Once the chicken is cooked through, cooked rice as directed on the package. Serve the chicken mixture over the rice.
SEE I TOLD YOU-SUPER SIMPLE!!!!

Hints: Becuase I know I will be making pepper steak tomorrow night while I was cutting the pepper up for this dinner, I cut the other halves of the peppers and put them into baggies for tomorrow night!
Also, I used the already minced jar of garlic that you can find in the produce section of your grocery store!

Off to get chores done, and all the while I will be able to smell this yummy dinner cooking in the slow cooker!

Enjoy & of course CHEERS!!!!
Erica

It's Friday!!! Hip!Hip!Hooray!!!!

It's Friday-need I say anymore??? Well I guess I should since this is a blog and that would be a really short read!
Sorry for the "silent" treatment the last few days. I haven't made anything earth shattering the last few days. Sadly, this is the norm when Craig is out of town. I will be glad when Chloe can start eating what we eat, then I can cook for the 2 of us when Craig is gone!
Last night's dinner was pizza delievered to my door! I love delivery-my lazy self loves living close to places that deliver. Now I just need to find a chinese food restaturant that delivers. On second thought it's probably better that I don't!!!

In the next few weeks my menu choices will be changing, not that I cook a lot of fatty foods, but I need to lose more weight, and some of my choices in food aren't helping the situation!

If it's helps I might even give you the calorie count on the meal that I prepare! I found a really great book that has yummy receipes in them, but are lowers in calories. In fact some of the recipes that I've made recently came out of this book! More on that later!

Well gotta run-too much to do and not enough hours in the day!

Cheers!
Erica

Reheat Tuesday night!

Hellooooo Tuesday night! So today was almost identical to yesterday! Only difference, I'm not cooking tonight. Nope, you can't make me do it!!! LOL!
Craig is out of town for work, so I figured I made enough last night to just re-heat and eat tonight! I know, smart girl :-)
I knew I wasn't go to feel like cooking tonight. Whenever Craig is out of town, I have a hard time cooking. It's just not as enjoybale to cook for 1!!!
So sadly tonight I do not have a recipe to share with you fine folks out there! But fear not-I still have a glass of wine.
Tonight the wine of choice is...(DRUMROLL PLEAASE!!!)....Cararra Semillion Chardonnay...yummy!

Well party people off I go to enjoy my night with my little monkey!

MMMM! Monday night!! Chicken Penne Pasta!

Evening all!!! So it's that dreaded day of the week-MONDAY! But I will say for a Monday, my day wasn't all that bad. It was long, but I had plenty to do-so Yay! for that.

 Craig is going out of town tomorrow for work, and has been stuck at the airport all day working on the camera install for the plane they have to use for the job. Needless to say, he is worn out and is looking forward to dinner! He said to call him when it's almost ready-so no can chili for him!!! Tonight's menu is Chicken Penne Pasta-it has become one of our favorites, and it's ready in 30 minutes!

Music: A little of the hard stuff tonight-some old skool tunes GNR(Guns N Roses!)-welcome to the our jungle indeed!!!

Wine: I haven't even gotten that far-WTH??!! I will come back to that one!

So here it is-the main event.....

Chicken Penne Pasta

Ingredients:
8 ounces uncooked penne pasta
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into 1/2 in. pieces
1 small green pepper chopped
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove minced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup fresh sliced mushrooms
1 8oz jar marinara sauce
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/3 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Cook pasta according to the package directions, drain. In a large non-stick skillet stir-fry the chicken, pepper, onion and garlic in the oil until the chicken is no longer pink. Add the pasta, mushrooms, sauce and italian seasoning. Heat through about 10 minutes on medium. Remove from heat. Sprinkle with cheese-let stand until the cheeses is melted! MMMM!!!

This has become a favorite of mine-it's quick and easy. You can cut down on the cutting by buying pre-sliced mushrooms, and the jar of minced garlic that you can find in the produce section!

Recommended accompainments:
Garlic Bread.
We are also have in a small slice of key lime pie after cause it's Monday and I say why the heack not!!!!

CHEERS!!!!

Erica

Sunday night dinner!!! Sweitzer style!

Okay first of all I don't know how to define Sweitzer style-I guess if I had to define it would be easy??? So let's just go with that shall we??

Anywho, Sunday night dinner in my house is always a little bit more involved but still quick and easy. I prefer to use Sunday to slow cook, or let something cook in the oven, These are things I tend to stay away from during the week for obvious reasons. But if you are new to this blog, then the reasons are as follows:
1. I just don't want to be chained to my stove after working all day.
2. I have a 10 month old-enough said!
3. Sometimes Craig travels for work, and I am not interested in making a big involved meal if he isn't going to be here to enjoy it!
So there you go!

So where was I, oh yes dinner for tonight!

I am going old school with Meatloaf and Potatoes but with a little twist!
My meatloaf is far from dry-it's moist and full of flavor! As for the potatoes-well I try to stay away from mashed potatoes, not because I don't like them. 2 reasons they aren't at the top of my list-well I cooked them a lot before Craig, and I don't have a proper masher to make them true mashed potatoes. So I make something a little bit different, but still yummy!

Music:  Tonight is a compliation of music that I put on CD's. 80's music and anything to get my toes tapping!

Wine: I haven't opened the wine for tonight just yet. But since we are having beef, something a little bit heartier was in order. Tonight's will be Woodbridge Shiraz!


So without further ado-I give you Sunday night dinner-Sweitzer Style!!

Meatloaf with Potatoes w/ Green Beans, and Creamy Garlic Pasta


Meatloaf

Ingredients:

1 Envelope of Lipton Recipe Secrets Onion Soup Mix
2 Lbs. extra lean Ground Beef(I prefer a 96/4)
3/4 cup plain bread crumbs
2 eggs
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup ketchup

Directions:
Preheat over to 350. Combine all of the above ingredients in a large bowl.
Shape into a loaf and put into a 13x9 in. baking or roasting pan
Bake uncovered 1 hour or until done.
Let stand 10 minutes before serving


Potatoes w/Green Beans

Ingredients:

1 16oz can of cut green beans
1/3 cup water
6 potatoes cut into wedges(use whatever type of potatoe your prefer)
1 tbsp onion powder
1/2 cup fat-free Italian salad dressing

Directions:

Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook for 5-7 minutes or until tender. Open the can of green beans place in a microwaveable bowl with the water and heat for 5 minutes in the microwave. Drain the potatoes and green beans and place in a bowl. Add the onion powder and dressing; toss to coat! Serve and enjoy!

Lastly, the Creamy Garlic Pasta-this one comes courtesy of the Lipton people! I am all about making something good, and taking a short cut here and there. This is one of them. This is a pouch of Lipton's Creamy Garlic Pasta. You can find these in the noodles aisle of your local grocery store.

A great accompainment for this one would be some French bread!!

So there you go-easy, peasy!!!

Cheers!

So what Sunday!!!

This is what I'm saying so what to today!

• So what if I don't feel like doing the laundry today-I'm still gonna do it because I'm almost out of clean underwear-but I'm not gonna like doing it!
•  
• So what if I look forward to what I'm going to be cooking for dinner later! Goals people-gotta have a goal! Mine is to have something yummy to eat!
•  
• So what if I'm also looking forward to a respectable time when I can start having my adult beverages! It's 5 o'clock somewhere right??!! CHEERS!
•  
• So what if I kinda sorta look forward to work-it's not that bad of a job and it keeps me busy!

It's Sunday-lazy day so what about you????

Saturday Night is alright!!! CHICKEN PICATTA!

So here it is!! My first recipe post!!

Saturday night in my house is slightly more relaxed, so dinner tends to be more relaxed as well!!!

Let me breakdown preparations and dinner as a whole!

Whenever I cook I HAVE to have music playing in the background. I cannot cook in complete and total silence. Additionally, I like to have a glass of wine while I am cooking!!

So here is last night's dinner breakdown!

Music: A random shuffle of Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Def Leppard and The Little River band. I know it's a weird combination but it's keeps me hoppin while I'm choppin!!

Wine: Mondavi Pinot Grigio. This is a light, crisp wine that doesn't overpower the dish!

This one takes 15 minutes for prep, and 25 minutes of cook time!

So without further ado-Chicken Picatta!!!


Chicken Picatta

Ingredients:
1 4-pack boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and Pepper
2 Cups All purpose flour-for dredging
6 tbsp. unsalted butter
5 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup chicken stock or chicken broth
1/4 cup brined capers
1/3 cup parsley-chopped(optional)
1 package angel hair or spaghetti

Directions:
Season Chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.

In a large 10-12in skillet over medium-high heat, melt 2 tbsp. butter with 3 tbsp of olive oil. Once the butter and oilve oil begin to sizzle add 2 pieces of the chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Once browned, flip over and cook for 3 minutes. Remove and transfer to a plate. Melta 2 more tbsp. of butter and another 3 tbsp of olive oil. When butter and oil being to sizzle add the other 2 pieces of chicken and brown both sides in the same manner. Remove pan from heat and add chicken to the plate.

In a large stockpot boil water with 1/4 tsp of salt. Once the water is to a rolling boil add your preferred pasta and cook until al dente.

Reduce heat to medium-low and add the lemon juice, stock and capers. Return to stove and bring to a boil scraping up bits from the pan for extra flavor. Check for seasoning. Return all the chicken to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes-check that chicken if cooked all the way through. Remove chicken to platter. Add the remaining 2 tbsp. of butter to the sauce and whisk vigorously. Plate you pasta with chicken on top and pour the sauce on top. Garnish with parsley if desired!

Some accompainments to this dish!

Light Caesar Salad
Rustic Italian bread or Garlic bread.

Enjoy this light and yummy meal!!!!

And so it begins!

Here I am posting my first blog!!! Let me start out by saying that I am probably one of the LEAST creative people you will ever mmet, so for me to do a blog is something out of my league! BUT I have been asked by many of my friends to post the yummy and delicious recipes that I use to creat my dinners! So thus the reason for this blog!!!
Hopefully I won't screw this things up tooo much! Please be patient with me as I figure out the world of blogging, and all that it entails!
Now let the blogging begin!!!