Basic Chicken Salad

Since I hope that this will still exist when my kids begin to cook, I'm going to add this quick recipe on here. This is a recipe that I learned from Mrs. Cheri Sutherland. A wonderful woman who can whip up a mean chicken salad in a hurry.  The quantities of the ingredients are solely up to the maker. If you have a crowd, use more. If making for one, just less. This is a sweeter chicken salad. The relish & pineapple give it a little sweeter taste than the typical chicken salad.

Chicken Salad

What you need: 
Shredded Chicken  (I usually make about 1-2 lb.)
2-3 Celery stalks, finely chopped
1 can of pineapple tidbits, drained & finely chopped  *The crushed pineapple has too much liquid, makes it too sweet*
Mayonnaise to taste
1 tsp Celery Salt or to taste
Salt & Pepper to taste
Sweet Relish
1/2-1c. Roasted chopped pecans (or nut of choice) 


How to make it:
-Boil or bake chicken until finished. Allow chicken to sit until it reaches room temperature. You can choose to let it sit overnight in the refrigerator. 
-Shred chicken or finely chop chicken and place in a large bowl. 
- Finely chop celery & pineapple. (This depends completely on the maker. If you want more of each or none as well as how large you like) Place into bowl with chicken.
- Add mayonnaise to taste. I start with 2 Tbsp and work up. Can always add more, can't take away. 
- Add salt & pepper & celery salt to taste. 
- Add relish. Again, I start with a Tbsp and add to liking. 
- Add roasted pecans to liking. 
- Stir it up. Taste and tweak to liking. 
- Serve on toasted wheat bread, crackers or on a bed of mixed greens. 


Enjoy!

Sloppy Joe's (BIG HIT @ Casa de Lamotta)

Who knew homemade sloppy joe's would be a big hit in my house. I made this recipe last week and my kids ate it up! Super simple and delicious.  Good way to get veggies in without kids knowing :)

*Another Rachel Ray recipe

Sloppy Joe's 

What you need: 

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
• 1 package, 1 1/3 pounds, ground turkey breast or lean ground turkey
• 1/2 red onion
• 1/2 red bell pepper
• 1 tablespoon grill seasoning blend 
•          (recommended: McCormick Montreal Grill Seasoning or Mrs. Dash seasoning for poultry)
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup tomato sauce,( 8- ounce) can
• Hamburger Buns or bread of choice
• 12 celery stick
• 12 carrot sticks

• 
  

How to make:

Place a big skillet over medium high heat for you. 
Add some extra-virgin olive oil.

Add the ground turkey to the pan. 
Break the turkey up with a big wooden spoon.

Chop up 1/2 of a red onion and 1/2 red bell pepper.

Mix in a small bowl: grill seasoning blend, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and the tomato sauce.  When all the ingredients are combined, pour the sauce evenly over the meat and stir everything together really well. Turn the heat down to simmer and cook the sloppy mixture for 10 minutes. 

Place meat on buns and server with celery & carrots. :) 

*I put some ketchup on top and it was delicious! 

Homemade Mac n' Cheese with Cauliflower

Thank you Rachel Ray for this deceptively delicious meal! If you have a hard time getting your kids to eat veggies (like mine) this might be just the recipe for you. :)

Homemade Mac N Cheese

Yummy! 

What you need:
2 TBsp butter
2 TBsp all purpose flour
1 c. chicken stock (or if you are vegetarian-use vegetable stock)
1 1/2 c. milk
2 c. grated sharp cheddar cheese
salt & pepper
1 TBsp dijon mustard
1 lb. pasta (whole wheat or regular) *I used penne but you can use whatever you want
1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets and steamed until tender  (I chopped it up pretty fine so my kids couldn't pick it out)

Your sauce will look like this

How to make it:
In a sauce pot, melt the butter over medium-low heat, add flour, cook for about a min. Whisk in chicken stock and milk.  Thicken the sauce for 5 mins. (BASIC ROUX recipe)
Stir in cheese and season with salt & pepper, then stir in mustard. (secret ingredient)
Toss the sauce with pasta & cauliflower. Sprinkle a little extra cheese on top for garnish.












DONE. Delicious!
Sira LOVED it!! Let me know if you try it. I'm sure you can add all kinds of combos to suite your family's likes. :)