Mmmmm...tasty!

I made this chicken recipe last week and have been meaning to post it ever since. I am pretty close-minded when it comes to cooking...I usually follow the recipe, unless it calls for something along the lines of anchovies...then I figure out a substitute. Anyways, who would've thought to use taco seasoning for anything other than tacos?! Huh!

Salsa Chicken...

Ingredients:

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
4 tsp. taco seasoning
1 C. salsa
1 C. shredded cheddar cheese
2 T. sour cream (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place chicken breast halves in a lightly greased 9 x 13 baking dish. Sprinkle taco seasoning on both sides of chicken breasts, and pour salsa over all.

Bake at 375 for 25 to 35 minutes, or until chicken is tender and juicy and its juices run clear.

Sprinkle chicken evenly with cheese, and continue baking for an additonal 3 to 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Top with sour cream if desired, and serve.

I found this on allrecipes.com and we all loved it. I especially liked it because it was super easy! I used quite a bit of taco seasoning, a little less salsa and cheese, and we did use a dollop sour cream. We had corn and Spanish rice on the side...

Try it and let me know how you like it!

Fun Summertime Treat

Here's a recipe for a great summertime cool-down beverage...we got the recipe from our friends, Kurt and Jackie. They got it from a strawberry patch where they went and picked fresh strawberries. We went to their house for dinner that same evening and everything we had had strawberries as an ingredient. What a fun idea! My favorite was these smoothies though!

1 1/2 cans of 7-Up/Sierra Mist/Sprite
1/2 C. sugar
14-16 strawberries (hulled and rinsed...do you hull strawberries?)
About 14 ice cubes

Put ice cubes in blender. Add strawberries and sugar. Add soda. Blend until smooth. You may need to tweak it just a bit because I'm guessing on the amount of ice cubes!! :o) But once you get it just right these smoothies are the best! They're fruity with a little zip, I'd say.

YUM!

Thought I'd share this recipe while I wait for it to finish baking!

Cheesy Pizza Casserole

3 C. uncooked rigatoni pasta (9 oz.)
1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1/4 C. sliced ripe olives
1 can (4 oz.) mushroom pieces and stems, drained
1 jar (26 to 28 oz.) vegetable primavera pasta sauce
1 C. shredded mozzarella cheese (4 oz.)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cook and drain pasta as directed on package.

2. While pasta is cooking, cook beef in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally until beef is brown; drain. Mix pasta, beef and remaining ingredients except cheese in ungreased 2 1/2 qt. casserole.

3. Cover and bake about 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake uncovered about 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

Enjoy!

*Try your own variations--we use black olives instead of green. This time I put some chopped up pepperoni in too. And you don't have to use "vegetable primavera" sauce. Use any kind! We like to have this with french bread or garlic toast. Also makes great leftovers for lunch at work or tomorrow night!

This comes from Betty Crocker's One-Dish Family Favorites--I highly recommend this cookbook. I got it as a wedding gift from my friend Sarah's mom, Kaye. Thanks Kaye!