YUM-O

I've been doing a lot of things in the kitchen and wanted to share some of the good ideas and recipes! In my Monday post I shared a link for Homemade Taco Seasoning Mix. Well, I also made Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix too!

These are pint size jars and it's perfect for the ranch mix. But I really needed a bigger jar for the taco seasoning mix. I have already used both mixes and they turned out great. Last week I made Tex Mex turkey burgers. I used a generous amount of taco seasoning mix on both sides of mine and the Hubs burgers. I just sprinkled a little on the boys. Then I mixed about 1/2 tsp seasoning mix into about 2-3 TBS of mayo for a yummy spread! These burgers were sooo good! I'm going to use it this week for tacos! I also made the ranch dressing/dip mix. You use 2 TBS of the mix with 1 c mayo and 1 c buttermilk. I will admit that this dressing is not exactly like the packet stuff but it is really good! And the longer it sits in the fridge the better. I suggest making it a day ahead before using it. I think next time I might use 3/4 c butter milk and 1/4 c milk, just to cut the tang of the buttermilk. I made ours on Saturday night and it was gone after we ate dinner last night (we had chicken finger salads)! Everyone seems to like it, even my worst critic, Luke. Although, I did kind of have to 'trick' him. I spooned it out of the dish I had mixed it in, into a little cup for him without him seeing it. So, he never knew it didn't come out of a bottle! Just making these two little changes have made me feel so much better!

I have another non-recipe to share with you, like the Tex Mex burgers. It's not really a recipe, more of an idea! I made Chicken, Feta and Spinach Quesadillas last week and they were SUPER! Here are the basic ideas, you can really do whatever you like!

Shredded Chicken, cooked
Spinach (fresh)
Feta Cheese
Mozzarella Cheese (shredded)
Garlic/Onion
Olive Oil

I used a rotisserie chicken for these quesadillas. In a pan, I sauteed a chopped onion and a little garlic for a few minutes in olive oil. Next, I added a few handfuls of baby spinach to let it wilt a little. Put it aside and start assembling your quesadilla. I do a tortilla on bottom, layer my ingredients, then a tortilla on top. Some people do one tortilla and put the ingredients on half and fold it over. Either way, place tortilla in hot pan and layer shredded chicken, spinach mix and then cheese. Put another tortilla on top or fold tortilla over. Cook until bottom is crispy, flip and repeat. Let cool slightly before cutting. When I do this, I usually turn my oven on warm and keep the finished tortillas on a sheet pan. These were soo good! The reason I added a little mozz. cheese is because the feta doesn't melt as well. So, the mozzarella is more for melting purposes and the feta more for flavor! These would be good with mushrooms too! You know, you can put anything in a tortilla! I think I've said that before! ;)

Last night I made another Heavenly Homemaker recipe: Banana Cake. I didn't make a cake though, I made muffins! The recipe is already healthier that most muffin recipes, so I just made the recipe and left off the icing! These muffins are really good! I did sprinkle a tiny bit of sugar and cinnamon on top! I made 12 muffins and then had enough to do one mini loaf. I burned the mini loaf though. Long story, that is a result of a 19 month old who still likes to wake up around 11pm sometimes! I left out 8 muffins for us to much on this week and froze 4 for a quick breakfast one day next week!

*Side note about this picture: As I was taking it, Luke asked me what I was doing so I told him I was taking pictures of our muffins. He said, "Oh, well they won't say cheese!" ;)

I also have a yummy chocolate pie recipe to share but I'm going to save that for later! Tonight I'm making Crustless Broccoli Cheddar Quiche with my farm fresh eggs! :)

Happy Eating!