Grilled chicken ceaser salad

I had a craving for a chicken Cesar salad. This is what I came up with.. It really hit the spot


Cesar salad:
2 roman heads lettuce, chopped
1 shallot, finely sliced
1/2 cup croutons
1/4 cup Cesar salad dressing
1/2 cup cherry tomato's, cut in half
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
Mix all together in a large bowl, set aside
Chicken:
4 chicken breast, flattened
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
Mix lemon juice, oil and seasoning in a bowl, marinade chicken for at least 15 Min's. cook on grill until done, about 3-5 Min's per side.
Put the salad on a plate and top with sliced chicken,.. serve with garlic bread.

My Girl Paula: Bobby's baked chicken with dijon and lime

This was a big hit tonight for dinner, my 2 yr old had 3 helpings plus he finished his sister's chicken. This will be something i make again, for sure. This is a Bobby Deen recipe, but I couldn't pass it up it just sounded so good. I served it with roasted veggies (consited of broccoli, egg plant, red, green and yellow bell pepper and onion) and with white rice.

1 (3 1/2lbs) chicken, cut into 8 pieces
3 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp mayo
1 garlic clove, minced
finely grated zest and freshly squeezed juice of 1 lime
3/4 pepper
salt to taste
chopped parsley to garnish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Rinse the chicken and pat dry. In a bowl, whisk together the mustard, mayo, garlic, lime zest and juice and pepper. Season the chicken generously with salt. Pour the mixture over the chicken, tossed well to coat. In a large baking pan, arrange chicken in a single layer. bake until it is cooked through; breasts take about 30 mins and legs will need 5 -10 mins more. Serve the chicken with pan juices drizzled over and garnished with chopped parsley.

My Girl Paula; Grilled Tuna with Pineapple Salsa

So I'm back to posting again. Things have been tough here lately, but things are getting back to normal now. This weeks Paula was anything goes. I am tryingto eat healthier. So I decided to make this tuna dish. It came out yummy.

Chipotle Salsa:
1 cup diced pineapple, preferably fresh (I used canned)
1/4 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
3 tbsp finely chopped scallions (white and green parts)
1 lime, juiced
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp seeded and minced chipotle chili in adobo sauce
Grilled Tuna:
4 (8-ounces) tuna steaks
2 tbsp olive oil
Paula Deen House Seasoning

For the salsa:
In a small bowl, mix together all the salsa ingredients together. Cover and let stand at room temperture until ready to serve.
Grilled Tuna:
Light the grill or preheat the broiler.
Coat the tuna steaks with the olive oil and sprinkle with house seasoning. Transfer the steaks to a backing sheet, if broiling, or put them on the grill. Broil or grill the fish intil cooked until desired doneness, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a serving platter and serve topped with the salsa.

My Girl Paula; Lemon Basil Chicken Salad

This week I wanted to do something simple. For My Girl Paula it was a salad or veg. So I made a chicken salad.. This was very simple to make and taste delicious. I made it for dinner last night along with a salad. I topped the sandwiches with tomato, avocado, onion, lettuce, provolone cheese and a little cream cheese.


4 cups cooked, diced chicken (I used canned chicken, drained)
1 rib celery, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

In a small bowl, combine chicken, celery, basil and almonds. In another small bowl, combine sour cream, mayo, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Add to chicken mixture, tossing gently to coat. Cover and chill

My Girl Paula; Green Bean Bundles

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year.. My mom and brother, Jimmy, came up for Christmas. It was great seeing them. Samantha and Austin and even the dogs were excited... I decided to make these green bean bundles to go with Christmas dinner. They turned out great tasting. It had to be the easiest thing to make.

1 pound freash grean beans
Olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Bacon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Blanch green beans for 3 minutes. Toss in olive oil, salt and pepper. Bundle about 5 green beans (I did more than 5, well all had different amounts) together and wrap in bacon. Place on roasting pan and roast about 10 - 15 minutes, until bacon is cooked

Green Chili Pork Burritos

My husband showed me this one and I made it better. Steve used canned and i made from scratch. I feel inlove with it the first time I ever had it.

1 pork loin (about 2 lbs) diced into 1/2 inch pieces
5 large green tomatos (tomatillos), quartered
1-3 jalopeno's (depends on how spicy you like it, seeded or un seeded), halved
3 green onions, diced
1/4 cup cilantro
1 (15oz) can refried beans
2 cups chedder cheese, shredded
8 tortilla, burrito size
salt to taste

In a large pot, put the tomatillo's, jalopeno, cilantro and green onion in water to boil. Cook until tender. Drain, save about 1/2 cup of water, and add to food processer, blend well.
In a large nonstick pan, cook the pork until browned. Add about a quarter of the beans and the green chili mixture. Heat through..
Heat the tortilla's. Spread some beans, then cheese then the pork mixture.. Serve with rice.

My Girl Paula: Pumpkin Cake with Maple Frosting

So this week we had to choose a dessert.. I decided to make a cake. I didn't want to do chocolate (trust me i Love chocolate), wanted something different. I'm so glad I chose this one. It came out so yummy. Very moist. I was very easy too. I kept catching my son digging into the frosting. They each had a slice tonight, Samantha and Austin both ate every single bite, down to the last crumb. Austin was about to start licking his plate.


Pumpkin Cake
Makes 1 (9-inch) cake
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
3 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/2 cup milk
Maple Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350*. Spray 2 (9inch) round cake pans with nonstick baking spray with flour.
In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar at medium-high speed with electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in pumpkin until smooth.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg, salt and allspice. Gradually add to butter mixture, alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mix. Spoon batter evenly into prepared pans, and bake for 22-27 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks. Spread Maple Cream Cheese Frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake. Store cake in refrigerator.

Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
makes about 4 1/2 cups

12 ounces cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup butter, softened
2 tbsp pure maple syrup
1/4 tsp cinnamon
4 1/2 cups confectioners sugar

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter at medium high speed with a electric mixer until fluffy. Reduce speed to medium low; add syrup and cinnamon. Gradually beat in confectioners sugar until mixture is smooth. Use immediately

My Girl Paula: Hamburger Bun Toast

I made these to go along with the bacon cheeseburger soup. They sure did taste good together. You can find this recipe in the noc/dec magizine.

3 tbsp butter, melted
1 tbsp mustard
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
4 hamburger buns, split
1 1/2 cups shredded swiss cheese
1 1/2 tsp garlic salt with parsley

Preheat broiler. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, combine melted butter, mustard, and worcestershire sauce. spread over the cut sides of buns. Place, cut side up, on prepared baking sheet; top each evenly with cheese. Sprinkle each with garlic salt with parley. Broil, 5 inches from heat, for 2-3 minsor until cheese is melted and buns are golding brown. Serve immediately.

My Girl, Paula: Bacon Cheesebuger Soup

This weeks My Girl Paula was anything beef. Since its been really cold here i decided to make a soup. This one was a hit with my usband and I, kids liked the broth. Instead o
f usinf the french fried onions I used the crispy bacon. And I also used beef broth, but that was a mistake, didn't realize it was beef stock until I poured half the cantaner in. It still came out really good.. Just might have to make it again. This recipe can be found in the nov/dec magazine.

10 slices bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 pounds ground chuck
1 onion, chopped
2 tsp, minced garlic
1 (32oz) box low sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5oz) can petit diced tomatoes
1 (10.75oz) can chedder cheese soup
1/4 cup dill pickle relish
2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
french fried onions, optional

In a large Dutch oven, cook bacon until crispy; remove from pan, and drain on paper towels. Add ground beef, onion, and garlic; cook for 6-8 mins, or until beef is browned and crumbly. Drain well. Add broth, tomatoes, soup, relish and worcestershire. Cook for 10 to 15 mins longer, until heated through. Garnish with french fried onions, if desired.