Ground Turkey Enchiladas (or Enchilada Casserole)

This is a very fast, easy recipe, and gratefully, my kids liked it!  The recipe as written is for individual enchiladas, but I didn't have time to cook the tortillas and fill individual enchiladas, so I just made it into a casserole.  As written, this serves 6.  I doubled the recipe and had plenty for my family, as well as a pan to give away. I made this recipe based on this recipe and this recipe.

Ingredients

Filling:

1.5 pounds lean ground turkey

1 onion diced

2 tablespoons taco seasoning

1 can black beans (not a part of the original recipe, but extra fiber and protein are always great)

2-3 cups cooked brown rice (also not part of the original recipe.  I just used leftover rice from another meal)

Enchiladas:

12 corn tortillas (I bought a package of street taco tortilla from Costco, and used 3/4 of it)

3 tablespoons cooking oil vegetable oil or canola oil (I did not use this for the casserole)

20 ounces red enchilada sauce (1 medium can or 2 small cans) (I prefer homemade or Las Palmas)

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Garnish (optional)

freshly chopped cilantro

freshly chopped green onion

pico de gallo

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350˚F (for the casserole I did 425).

In a large skillet, cook the ground turkey and chopped onion over medium heat. Break the meat up as it cooks until it is cooked through and no longer pink. Drain any excess grease and mix in the taco seasoning.

Once done, remove from heat. (For the casserole, I then poured enough enchilada sauce into the meat to make it a sloppy joe consistency.)

Add 1 tablespoon of oil to a small skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the tortillas and flip each side to quickly warm and coat with oil. Repeat with all tortillas, adding additional oil to the skillet as needed. (I skipped this step for the casserole - I just used the tortillas straight out of the bag.)

Pour 1/4 cup of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of a large baking dish. I used a 9x13 inch casserole. Spread to coat the bottom.

Fill each tortilla with a spoonful of meat mixture and roll tightly placing seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat until all of the turkey filled enchiladas are rolled and in the pan. (Instead of this, I put a layer of tortillas on the bottom of the pan, then layered it with meat, black beans, brown rice, and cheese, then another layer of tortillas and fillings, then a final layer of tortillas on top.)

Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the enchiladas so that they are all covered in sauce, then sprinkle the cheese over the top.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the edges start to bubble. Garnish with your choice of chopped cilantro, green onions, or pico de gallo.

Notes

Substitutions: 

Swap the meat – Substitute ground chicken or a lean ground beef for more variations for enchiladas.

Onion – white onions are traditional for Mexican cuisine, but sweet, yellow, or red would also work.

Cheese – My cheese of choice is sharp cheddar because it has a stronger flavor, is less greasy than other cheeses, and is a great melting cheese. Mexican blend, colby jack, and Monterey jack are also good options.

Corn tortillas – Use corn shells for a traditional Mexican flavor. I use 8 regular size corn tortillas, but if you can find the street size corn taco shells, the work the best. 

Flour tortillas can be substituted but it will not have the same taste and texture as the corn shells.

How to Store: To save leftovers, separate into meal sized portions and then place in an airtight container and store them in the refrigerator for 3-4 days or in the freezer up to a month

How to Freeze: This recipe freezes well. It can be frozen up to 3 months in advance or after cooking. See “how to freeze” section in original post for full instructions.

How to Reheat: This can be reheated in the microwave in 30 second increments, or cover with tin foil and place into the oven to reheat.

How to Scale: This recipe can easily be doubled if you are feeding a crowd or halved for smaller portions.

Crescent Dinner Rolls

 My family loves these bake-off winning rolls!  I found the recipe here.

Prep time:  3 hours

Cook time:  20 minutesServings: 24 crescent rolls

Ingredients

  

• 1 ½ cups warm water around 95°F
• ½ cup warm milk around 95°F
• 1 Tablespoon instant yeast*
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• ½ cup boxed potato flakes
• 2 large eggs room temperature
• ½ cup butter flavored shortening
• ¼ cup unsalted butter softened
• 6 cups bread flour divided

For rolling up:

• ¼ cup unsalted butter melted

Instructions

 

Prepare the crescent roll dough

• To the bowl of a stand mixer, add the ingredients for the cinnamon roll dough: the water, milk, instant yeast, sugar, salt, dry potato flakes, eggs, shortening, butter, and half the flour. Mix with the dough hook attachment, on low speed until combined and smooth, about 1 minute.
• While on low speed, gradually add the remaining flour, about 1/2 cup at a time. You may or may not need the entire amount of flour. You can stop the mixer and check the dough by lightly tapping on it with your fingertip - it should feel soft, slightly tacky, but not wet. *When in doubt, it’s always best to go lighter on the flour. You can always add more flour later, but you can’t take flour away. Too much flour in your dough will give you dry, dense rolls.
• Knead the dough on low speed for 10-15 minutes, or until it's smooth and cohesive. It should be mostly cleaning the sides of the bowl. If you take a piece of dough, you should be able to stretch it a few inches apart without it tearing.

Bulk Fermentation

• Spray a large bowl with nonstick baking spray. Remove the dough from the mixer and place it the bowl. Cover it with a clean kitchen towel and let it rise until doubled in size, about 60-90 minutes.

Rolling out crescent rolls

• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Melt the 1/4 cup of butter and set aside.
• Flour your work surface and divide the dough into two equal pieces. If you are weighing it, each piece should weigh about 28 ounces/790 grams. Round each piece into a ball shape by pulling the sides under and pinching the dough together underneath. This will make it easier to roll out into a circle.
• Flour your work surface. Working with one ball of dough, use a rolling pin to roll it to a 16-inch circle, about ¼ inch thick. Brush the top with 2 Tablespoons of the melted butter.
• With a pizza cutter, cut the dough into 12 equal wedges, just as you would a pizza. Stretch one of the wedges to lengthen a bit. Starting with the wider end, roll it up, pulling slightly to tighten it up as go. Tuck the end under and place the crescent roll on the prepared baking sheet with the tip side underneath. Roll up the remaining rolls.

Final Proof

• Allow the crescent rolls to rise in a warm place until puffy and doubled in size, about 45-60 minutes.

Bake

• Bake on the middle rack, in preheated 350°F oven for 16-20 minutes or until golden brown.
• Allow to cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Or serve warm. Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 6 days.

Notes

1. This recipe has been updated from its original version. The original version called for 2 cups of warm water and 1/4 cup of powdered milk. I updated the recipe because I found that using regular milk was more available for bakers, and it yields the same results.
2. *You can replace the instant yeast with active dry yeast – be sure to proof it first. Proof it by adding the active dry yeast to the water with 1 Tablespoon of the sugar. Let it sit for up to 15 minutes to foam up. If it doesn’t foam, replace yeast with a fresh package.
3. Freeze unbaked crescent rolls: You can freeze the rolls to bake later. After rolling up and placing the them on parchment lined cookie sheet, put the entire pan in the freezer and allow the rolls to freeze for 24 hours. Once frozen, remove the sheet pan and you can pop them off, place them in a ziplock bag, and store in the freezer for later use. When baking frozen rolls, remove them from the freezer bag and place on a baking sheet. Allow them to rise at room temperature and bake as usual. This could take 3-5 hours, depending on how warm your kitchen is. 
4. Overnight rolls: Make overnight crescent rolls by rolling them out, place on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator overnight. They tend to rise quickly, even in the refrigerator, so I suggest only refrigerating for 8 hours. 
5. Make the dough the night before: You can make the dough the night before and refrigerate - roll them up in the morning and let rise to double in size, about 45 minutes before baking.
6. This is the same dough for my Homemade Cinnamon Rolls. You can double this recipe and make both dinner rolls and cinnamon rolls with the same dough.
7. Substitutions: You can swap out butter for the butter flavored shortening. You can also swap out 1/3 cup cooked potato for every 1/2 cup of the potato flakes. You can use all-purpose flour instead of bread flour - you may need a little bit extra to make it less sticky.

Herb and Butter Stuffing

 This is a really yummy stuffing - nothing crazy about it, just good. It really does taste like a better version of Stove Top.  And it freezes great, too, so you can make it ahead of time! I found the recipe at Plum Street Collective.

 Servings12

 AuthorShannon Lyon

Ingredients

• 1½ loaves of crusty white bread, dried and cubed (about 15 cups) (I like the Italian round loaves in the bakery section of the grocery store)
• 1 ¼ cups unsalted butter (2.5 sticks)
• 1 yellow onion, diced small (medium sized onion)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons celery seed
• 2 teaspoons dried onion flakes
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh sage, chopped
• 4 cups chicken stock
• cooking spray

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Chop bread into roughly 1-inch cubes and lay out onto a large baking sheet. (I like to chop it into smaller cubes - easier to eat!)
• Bake bread for 20-35 minutes until very well dried out. You want it to be completely dry and hard.
• Once bread is dried and cooked, transfer to a large bowl. Then you can begin cooking down the onions.
• In a large saucepan, add butter and diced onions. Cover and cook over medium heat until onions are translucent.
• Once onions are cooked, add salt, celery seed, and dried onions. Stir to coat celery seed and dried onions in the butter.
• Add chopped fresh herbs (parsley, thyme, and sage). Mix well.
• Slowly add the chicken stock and mix until incorporated.
• Remove mixture from heat and slowly and evenly pour over the dried bread in the large bowl. Once poured, mix well with two large spoons until bread is evenly coated. Make sure you mix it really well, so there are no dry pieces of bread. They should all be hydrated.
• Spray a 9x13" baking dish with cooking spray, then pour stuffing mixture into pan. Spray top of bread with a little additional cooking spray to keep the top from drying out.
• Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes remove aluminum foil and bake uncovered for 5-7 more minutes, until top is golden.
• Remove from oven and serve immediately.

Cranberry Orange Relish

 This has been our go-to cranberry dish the past few Thanksgivings.  It is the perfect complement to the other Thanksgiving staples.  I found the recipe at Plum Street Collective.

A fresh burst of flavors - made with only a couple ingredients and no cooking! This Cranberry Orange Relish will complete your Thanksgiving meal.

Perfect on turkey, stuffing, rolls, and even mashed potatoes!

 Servings12

 AuthorJessica Allred

Ingredients

• 3 cups fresh cranberries (one 12 oz. bag) (can use them from frozen too)
• 1 apple, rough chopped
• 3 small mandarin or clementine oranges, rough chopped (peel on) (or you can use 1 large navel orange - but zest it and only add the zest, not the whole peel- the peel on a large orange is much thicker than the clementines)
• 1 2/3 cups white sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice

Instructions

• In a food processor or high-powered blender, add cranberries, apple, sugar, oranges, lemon juice, and spices.
• Blend ingredients together until relish consistency (not a smooth puree but no huge chunks).
• Pour Cranberry Orange Relish into an airtight container. It needs to chill for 4 hours, up to overnight before serving. This allows the flavors to come together. (And you can store in the fridge for 7-10 days.)
• Once it has chilled for several hours, enjoy!

Firecracker Chicken

It's been a crazy summer and a minute since I cooked dinner.  When I saw this recipe here, it looked quick, delicious, and worth a try.  I made a few modifications to ensure it wasn't too hot for my heat-averse husband (iykyk), and it was a winner! It got the "I'd eat this twice a week" rating from said husband :).  The original recipe post has a lot of tips for making this chicken, so if you're looking for more detailed instructions, visit the link above.  

Prep Time:  10 minutes

Cook Time: 8 minutes

Servings: 6 servings (I had to double this for my family, but will probably triple or quadruple it in the future so there will be plenty, with leftovers for lunches)

Ingredients

For the Chicken:

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into 1 inch pieces

2 tbsp corn starch

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp vegetable oil (or canola) (I used olive oil)

4 cloves garlic pressed

2 tsp fresh ginger grated

For the Sauce:

1/3 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup orange juice

2 tbsp sriracha (I substituted an equal amount of Thai sweet chili sauce (Trader Joe's) to minimize heat)

2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (I omitted this, but let those who wished add some to their plate)

1/4 cup green onions sliced

Instructions

Make the sauce by whisking together the brown sugar, orange juice, sriracha (or sweet chili sauce), rice wine vinegar, and crushed red pepper (if you're using it).

Season the chicken with salt, then toss it with the cornstarch until evenly coated.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, place the chicken in the skillet and let it cook for 2 minutes, then flip it and let it cook for 2 additional minutes.

Stir in the garlic and ginger then add the sauce mixture and reduce the heat to low. Let the sauce simmer for 3-4 minutes or until it reduces and becomes thick. 

Stir in the green onions and remove from heat.  Garnish with fresh green onions and additional red pepper flakes and sriracha as desired and serve hot with rice (we used brown).

Notes

Substitutions:

• Chicken breast – You can substitute chicken thighs or tenderloins per your preference
• Spiciness:  As mentioned above, to minimize the heat, you can substitute Thai sweet chili sauce for the sriracha, and you can omit the red chili flakes
• How to Store: To save leftovers, separate into meal sized portions and then place in an airtight container and store:
• in the refrigerator for 3-4 days
• in the freezer up to a month

How to Freeze: This meal can be prepared as a freezer meal and will keep for up to 6 months in the freezer.

• Prepare and cook chicken as directed.
• Mix ingredients for sauce and store in a freezer bag or freezer friendly container.
• Store chicken in a separate container.
• Freeze.
• Once ready to eat, reheat chicken in a hot skillet and then add sauce and reduce as directed.

How to Reheat: This can be reheated in the microwave in 30 second increments, or cover with tin foil and place into the oven to reheat.

Edible Cookie Dough

 My kids are true fans of this edible cookie dough.  We keep it refrigerated, but it doesn't typically last long.  I found the original recipe here.

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (you'll heat-treat this in your microwave!)

• 1/2 cup salted butter, room temperature

• 1/4 cup granulated sugar

• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar

• 2 tbsp milk

• 1 tsp vanilla

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Instructions

1.  Start by heat-treating your flour. Measure out the flour into a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave the flour for 30 seconds and then stir. Heat again for 30 more seconds.

2.  Stir and then spread the heated flour onto a cookie sheet and set aside to allow it to cool down.

3.  In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl with an electric hand mixer, cream together the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light in color and fluffy in texture.

4.  Mix in the milk and vanilla until evenly distributed.

5.  Add the flour and salt to the bowl and mix until a cookie dough forms.

6.  Fold in the mini chocolate chips and enjoy!

7.  Store in the fridge for up to 1 week.

Chicken Salad

This is great on croissants, toasted (or not) bread, or with crackers.  It's definitely better after the flavors have had a few hours to combine, so make it ahead if possible.  I got the original recipe here.

Yield: 8 servings        Prep Time: 30minutes        Total Time: 30minutes 

Ingredients

Chicken Salad:

4 cups cooked, shredded (or small chopped) chicken (see note)

1 cup small diced celery (I usually just use a full bunch)

1 cup red grapes, halved or quartered

½ cup chopped slivered almonds or cashews (I usually omit these)

2-3 tablespoons finely diced green onions or chives

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (I never put this in)

Dressing:

1 cup mayonnaise (I like to use the Primal Kitchens avocado oil mayo)

2 tablespoons sour cream

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice or red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

½ teaspoon coarse, kosher salt (use a bit less for table salt)

⅛ teaspoon black pepper, I use coarsely ground

⅛ teaspoon dried dill (I'm not a dill fan, so don't use this)

⅛ teaspoon garlic powder

⅛ teaspoon onion powder

Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions 

Combine all of the salad ingredients in a large bowl.

Whisk together all of the dressing ingredients until smooth.

Pour the dressing over the salad ingredients and mix until evenly combined. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if needed.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Serve on lettuce, bread, croissants, or rolled up in tortillas or flatbread.

Notes

Chicken: A rotisserie chicken works great here. Otherwise, here's a great method for cooking chicken for recipes like this. Another option is to throw a couple chicken breasts in an electric pressure cooker with 1-2 cups chicken broth, salt and pepper, and cook for 8-10 minutes high pressure. Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes, then quick release remaining pressure. Drain liquid and shred chicken to use in recipe.

Dressing: the flavors of the dressing get better with time so while the chicken salad can be served right away, it tastes better if it is refrigerated for 1-2 hours. The dressing can be made ahead several days in advance.

Adaptable: this recipe is very adaptable. Leave out ingredients (like nuts) if you can't eat them/don't like them, or add in others that you like (dried cranberries, drained mandarin oranges, etc).