Appetizer - Grilled Chicken Wings

This past weekend was Memorial Day here in the States and we always celebrate with a big cookout at my house!  We had several friends/family over and it was a great time!  My husband found a recipe for Grilled Chicken Wings and I thought what a perfect opportunity to make these at my Memorial Day cookout to serve as an appetizer!  I have never made wings before.  But they were just amazing...I made 45 wings and they were gone in 7 minutes...I watched the clock!!  And I only had 9 people over!! 

My husband found this recipe at our local grocery store so please look out for excellent recipes at your local grocer!!  This one is Gluten Free.  It's a lot of prep work but so worth it...my husband is already asking when I'm making them again!  LOL!  I tripled my recipe below. Enjoy this one...try this recipe for your next cook out!  It's a great appetizer!

Ingredients:

4 Tbsp. fresh minced garlic
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (increase if you want them hot...I like mild)
1 tsp salt
1 lb chicken wings
1 1/2 cups Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
2 Cups KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce (I used the original recipe)

Directions:

Light charcoal or gas grill.  Mix garlic, cayenne pepper and salt.  Rub on wings.  Pour Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing into a big bowl, add wings and stir until all wings are nicely coated. 

Remove wings and place on aluminum foil and fold into pockets.  I recommend spraying each aluminum foil pocket with a non stick spray so they don't stick.  I placed about 10 wings in 1 pocket.  Place the pockets on the grill for 90 minutes. (The meat was falling off the bones at 90 min so you could lessen it to 80 minutes if you want).

Remove the wings from the pockets and finish over moderate flame.  Baste with BBQ sauce and leave on the grill for maybe 3-4 minutes...just enough to get the BBQ taste.  Serve with Ranch and Blue Cheese dressing.

Chicken with Parmesan Noodles

I just made a YUMMY dinner!  My daughter had 2 FULL servings!!  For Mother's Day, my husband bought me a magazine called 30 Minute Dinners and that is where this one came from. He wrapped it up in a big basket with another magazine and a basket FULL of relaxing bath bubbles and salts and oils...my man is amazing!  He touched on my favorite things for mother's Day...Food, Reading and Bath Stuff :)

It's been in the mid 90's here today so I thought it would be good to make a pasta dish that is GLUTEN FREE and light for summer.  I paired this one up with a glass of white wine and salad and it made it extremely tasty!

I'm adding a couple of pictures of me cooking since I had some time tonight!  Start to finish - this one took 20 minutes.  This one is Gluten Free if you use gluten free noodles.  Again, I recommend Quinoa...you just cant taste the difference!  Here's the ingredients:

Ingredients:

1 9 ounce package of noodles (use Quiona if you are Gluten Free)
2 Tablespoon butter or margarine
4 large carrots, thinly sliced
1 1/2 lbs skinless, boneless chicken breasts halves, cut into 1 inch cubes
1/4 cup of purchased basil pesto (I bought Classico)
1/4 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese (1 ounce) - make sure you buy a fresh block and grate it...it tastes so much better
Dash Ground Pepper
Olive Oil
Fresh basil Leaves
Dash Salt

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.  Meanwhile, in an extra-large skillet, melt 1 Tablespoon of the butter over medium heat.  Add carrots and stir for 5-7 minutes or until carrots become slightly tender.

2. Add chicken in a separate skillet with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.  Cook and stir for 7-10 minutes until chicken is no longer pink.  Add pesto; toss to coat.

3.

3.  Drain the pasta.  Return to pan and toss with the remaining 1 Tablespoon butter.  Divide pasta among four plates.  Add chicken to plates.  Top chicken with Parmesan cheese; if desired, sprinkle with pepper.  If desired, drizzle chicken with olive oil and/or garnish with basil.  Makes 4 servings.

Each Serving: 567 cal., 19 g fat, 164 mg chol, 452 mg sodium, 47 g carbs, 5 g fiber, 52 g protein.

Orange Walnut Salad with Sweet & Sour Dressing

It's summertime!!  And it's hot here in Phoenix, AZ!  Well, not today actually.  We went from 110 last week to 89 today and it's supposed to stay cool this entire Memorial Day weekend!  I hope everyone has a wonderful long weekend and is planning to grill or BBQ or cook it up and spend time with loved ones!

This recipe is from Paula Dean.  It's a great summer salad and it's light.  I just love it.  I haven't made this on in awhile so I copied the picture of the salad from Mrs Paula Dean's site...she probably wont mind since I'm quoting this picture is hers :)

This one is Gluten Free and Dairy Free.  And - you get to make your own dressing with this one!  Enjoy - this one is tasty :)

Salad Ingredients:

 3 heads small Bibb Lettuce
1 1/2 lbs fresh spinach
3 oranges, peeled and into bite size pieces
3/4 med red onion - sliced into thin rings
3/4 cups chopped walnuts
3 tsp butter

Dressing Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups olive oil
3/4 cup vinegar
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp celery seed
1 1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 1/2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp grated onion

Directions for Dressing:
Combine all ingredients in a jar and shake well and chill for 2-3 hours. 

Directions for Salad:

Combine lettuce, spinach, orange and onion in a large bowl.  In a saucepan, saute walnuts in butter until lightly browned.  Add to lettuce - toss with sweet and sour dressing.

Brenda Rowland's Chicken and Rice Casserole

Well, the southern girl is coming out in me....this recipe is not healthy and is not gluten free.  But it's beyond delicious!  Growing up in the south in a Southern Baptist church, we had pot lucks all the time.  This recipe came from our dear friend Brenda Rowland.  I called this one "Brenda Rowland's Chicken and Rice Casserole" for a long time growing up so the name sticks.  I'm not changing it...it's been almost 20 yrs since I've had this recipe!

My kids love this one....you could make this one gluten free with gluten free cream of chicken and cream of mushroom...butit wont taste the same.  Anyway - this one is beyond excellent!

Ingredients:

2 cans of Premium white chunk chicken (drain and smash up the chicken) OR boil your own chicken breast in garlic and salt and pepper.

2 cans sliced water chestnuts

2 “Boil in a bag” bags of rice (white or brown – your choice)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 cans chicken broth
1 tsp sage
1 oz jar of cheese whiz
½ onion
1Tablespoon butter
2 sleeves of Ritz crackers

Directions:

Combine all ingredients into a big bowl and stir together.  Make sure on the cheese whiz jar you use about 1/3 of a cup in your casserole.

Bake on 350 for an hour covered with aluminum foil.

Then, take ½ an onion and chop it up and sauté in butter.  Then take crumbled up ritz crackers and stir into a bowl.  Pour the Ritz crackers mixture on top of the casserole and broil until crackers are lightly toasted.

Veggie Pasta Salad

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful mommies out there!! I've had a blessed weekend so far!  My mom graduated college on Friday night and we had a blast at her graduation party last night!  Yesterday day we spent the morning with my 89 yr old mother in law who is beyond precious!  Her wish was for all her kids (she has a lot) come to her church service so we packed our family up and spent the morning and early afternoon with my in laws.  I love my in laws...they are such a great group of people!

And since it was mother's day weekend there was, of course, a pot luck!!!  We were not able to attend BUT I was asked to bring a pasta salad.  I found this one on SparkPeople yesterday and decided to make it.  It was a good pasta salad and it CAN be made Gluten free is you use gluten free noodles.  This one is a great recipe for a summer dish...it's light and good for you!  

Ingredients:

1 box of Rotini pasta (Gluten Free if you choose)
4 cups Fresh Broccoli, bit size pieces
1 6oz can of whole Black Olives, drained
1/4 Red onion, chopped
1 Sweet Red Bell Pepper, sliced
3/4 cup Lite Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
4 Tbsp Lemon Juice Fresh (juice of 1 whole lemons)
3 Tbsp Fresh Parsley
1 Tbsp Lemon Pepper
3-6 Fresh Basil Leaves (rolled and sliced thin)

Directions:

Cook rotini according to package directions.

Drain and rinse and pour into large bowl.  Add all other ingredients, stirring after the addition of each one.

Pour into large plastic container and refrigerate for at least 2 hours so that ll the flavors incorporate.

Number of Servicing - 8

Nutrition Info:
Calories: 226.7
Fat: 3.78g
Carbs: 43.4 g
Protein: 7.4 g

Roasted Green Beans with Mushrooms, Balsamic and Parmesan

Oh my goodness - Pinterest is the BEST place to find recipes!  If you are not on Pinterest, let me know and I'll send you an invite!!  You probably have seen this one out on Pinterest...that's where I found this recipe.  I made it last Sunday night and it was so great!  It's a different way to make green beans but has the best flavor ever!  This one is Gluten Free and really good for you!  Goes great with steak or chicken or fish!  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced in 1/2 inch slices
1lb fresh green beans, preferably thin French style beans (I get mine at Costco)
1 1/2 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
2 Tablespoons finely grated Parmesan Cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450F.  Wash mushrooms and let drain.  While mushrooms are drying, trim ends off beans and cut beans in half so they are bite size pieces.

Put cut green beans and mushrooms into Ziploc bag or plastic bowl. Whisk together olive oil and balsamic vinegar and pour over, then squeeze bag or stir until all beans and mushrooms are lightly coated with the mixture.  Arrange in a 13x9 Pyrex dish and cook them for 30 minutes .  Cook until beans are tender and crisp.  All liquid should have evaporated.  Season beans to taste with salt and pepper and sprinkle with grated Parmesan.  Serve hot.  Makes 4-6 servings

Autumn Chopped Salad

I love salads.  I downloaded an app on my ipad for 2001 recipes on just salads alone because I love different varieties of salads!  I found this particular recipe on Madison Mayberry's blog and it looked good so I tried it!  This salad recipe is BIG so feel free to cut it if you are just serving yourself.  This recipe serves a total of 4 to 6 servings. It goes great as a side salad for a steak dinner or even a pasta dinner.  This one is Gluten Free.  I think chopped chicken may be tasty on this one...I'll have to try that one next time!  Enjoy!

Ingredients:
6 to 8 cups of Chopped Romaine Lettuce
2 medium pears, chopped
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup chopped pecans
8 slices thick-cut bacon (I used turkey bacon) crisp and crumbled
4 to 6 oz feta cheese, crumbled
Poppy Seed Dressing
Balsamic Vinaigrette (I like Newman's Own Light Balsamic Vinaigrette)

Directions:

On a large platter, combine lettuce, pears, cranberries, pecans, bacon and feta cheese.  Drizzle generously with poppy seed dressing, followed by some of the balsamic vinaigrette. (I would estimate that I used about a cup of dressing...70% poppy seed dressing and 30 percent balsamic vinaigrette).  Toss and serve immediately!