Apple Wild Rice Salad

So after making this dish I learned Scott is not a fan of wild rice. Which shocks me! I love the heartiness of wild rice and think it really brings something extra to a meal! The one thing I'm not particularly fond of--how long it takes to cook! I don't know that I've ever cooked with true wild rice (not from a box), so that was a bit of a shock for me!

Back to the recipe...

I didn't realize how much this recipe makes, but its TEN FREAKING SERVINGS! so I would definitely recommend halving it unless you want a lot of leftovers or are bringing this to a party. I like this idea for a party because it's actually supposed to be served cold! Because I'm terrible at fully reading directions before I start something, I didn't realize how long this would take and we ate it warm. It was still pretty good, but, if you're like Scott and not a wild rice fan, it's most likely not for you!

Apple Wild Rice Salad-adapted from Taste of Home

Total Time: 1 hour + chilling, if desired

Serves 10

• 1 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice
• 2 gala apples, chopped
• 2 tablespoons, plus 1/2 cup orange juice
• 4 teaspoons olive oil
• 4 teaspoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Cook wild rice according to package directions. Transfer to a large bowl.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, toss apples with two tablespoons orange juice. In a medium bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients together. Add apples to rice, and drizzle dressing, tossing to coat. Refrigerate until chilled, if desired.

Apple Chicken

This is a great chicken recipe for fall or winter! Very hearty and delicious! Also, eat the apples--they just melt in your mouth!

Apple Chicken-adapted from The $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook by Erin Chase
Total Time: 8 hours
Serves 6

• 1 cup apple juice
• 6 bone-in chicken thighs
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 onion, quartered
• 2 large gala apples, sliced
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Grease a 5-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Pour in apple juice. Season chicken with salt and pepper, and place in the slow cooker. Place onion quarters around chicken. Place apples, lemon juice and cinnamon over chicken. Cook on low for 8 hours or until chicken is cooked through.

Bruschetta Pork Chops

Fresh bruschetta is one of our new favorite things. I love how fresh everything tastes, and when you get some nice crunchy bread, and a good balsamic sauce with it, there's nothing better. Because I don't consider myself a huge tomato fan, you'd think that I wouldn't like it, but I can't get enough of this!

The original recipe calls for lamb chops, but, come on, who can afford those these days? The flavors were great, and having fresh tomatoes will make this even better!

Bruschetta Pork Chops-adapted from 30-Minute Dinners by Better Homes and Gardens
Total Time: 20 Minutes
Serves 2

• 2 pork chops, about 1-inch thick
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1-2 roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 green onion, diced
• 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Sprinkle pork chops to taste with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook pork chops until they begin to brown on both sides and are no longer pink in the middle.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine tomatoes, onion, oregano and vinegar until blended. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve over pork chops.

Recipe Redo: Salad with Green Beans and Peanut Dressing

I decided to try this recipe again. The second time around this turned out great! I love the flavor of the peanut butter. It tastes so fresh, but this makes a lot of salad, so cut it in half if there aren't a lot of you eating! In the original recipe, I didn't write where I found this, so I guess this is an original now??

Salad with Green Beans and Peanut Dressing
Serves 6
Total Time: 15 Minutes

• 1 bag (16 ounces) frozen french cut green beans
• 1 head lettuce
• 1/2 bunch green onions, chopped into 1/4 inch slices
• 3 tablespoons bottled minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon sliced ginger
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 jar (18 ounce) smooth peanut butter
• 1-2 cups warm water
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/2 jar (8.5 ounce) hoisin sauce
• 1/4 cup soy sauce

Thaw green beans in a colander and pat dry to remove excess water. Clean lettuce and cut into bite size pieces if necessary; set aside.

In a food processor, combine the green onions, garlic, ginger, and jalapeno. Process until uniform. Add the oil and process briefly to form a paste.

Transfer paste to a large bowl. Add peanut butter and 1 cup warm water. Add the remaining water, 1 tablespoon or so at a time, if necessary to make dressing a smooth consistency. Whisk in cilantro, hoisin sauce, and soy sauce.

Thai Noodles with Shrimp

I've never made anything before with Thai peanut sauce. Let me tell you, it's totally worth it! It's got a bit of a spice kick to it, but it really steps up the dish! This recipe just has 5 ingredients but it's fantastic and easy to make. It's even good cold the next day!

Thai Noodles with Shrimp-adapted from 5 Ingredient 15 Minute Recipes by Pillsbury
Total Time: 20 Minutes
Serves 4

• 4 ounces uncooked spaghetti
• 4 ounces fresh snow peas, cut into thirds
• 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 pound cooked, deveined, peeled medium shrimp, tails removed
• 1/2 cup Thai peanut sauce

Cook and drain spaghetti as directed on package. In a large bowl, mix all ingredients.

Sun-Dried Tomato Guacamole

For tacos tonight, I decided to try a new guacamole. To be honest, the base of the guac still came from my favorite, go-to guac, but I switched up a few things. I swapped out the tomatoes and onion in the original, to add sun dried tomatoes, sour cream and tabasco sauce. For me, this was too spicy--pretty sure it was the tabasco, I'm just not a fan. But Scott loved it. Just make sure you dice the tomatoes really small, otherwise they get a little chewy.

Sun-Dried Tomato Guacamole-adapted from Every Day with Rachael Ray
Total Time: 10 Minutes
Serves 6

• 4 avocados
• 1 jalapeno, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 3 teaspoons lime juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 ounces sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
• 1 teaspoon sour cream
• 1 teaspoon tabasco

Peel and remove the inside of the avocados from the shell into a medium bowl. Mash avocados and stir in the remainder of the ingredients. You can add additional to taste.

Ginger and Soy Chicken Wings

These chicken wings were incredibly easy to make and very easy! The marinade brings a lot of flavor, although it doesn't really look like it while it's marinating. We just really like the ginger, soy and garlic flavors that go into this! Give them a try-they really only take 15 minutes (mine took 12)!

Ginger and Soy Chicken Wings-adapted from Step by Step Cook's Encyclopedia
Total Time 2 hours to overnight
Serves 4

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1-inch piece of ginger, grated
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon sweet chili sauce
• 2 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 pound chicken wings

Mix together the first seven ingredients. Place chicken in a large 9x11 baking pan, pour mixture over and toss to coat. Marinate for at least 2 hours, up to overnight.

Preheat the broiler, and place marinaded chicken on a foil lined broiler pan. Broil for 12-15 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked.

Chicken Taco Soup

One of my best food memories growing up is how much I liked Chili's tortilla soup. Don't ask me why, but it just always sticks in my head! I've been looking for a good taco/tortilla soup recipe and I think I found it! This recipe was super simple, and most of the stuff you will likely have on hand at home! I thought the flavors were fantastic, and you can always use hotter or milder salsa, depending on your taste.

Chicken Taco Soup-adapted from Family.com
Total Time: 30 Minutes
Serves 6

• 1 pound chicken, cooked and shredded
• 2 pounds black beans, cooked and drained
• 2 cups prepared salsa
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 1 packet taco seasoning
• Tortilla chips, cheddar cheese and/or sour cream as a garnish

In a large stock pot, combine all ingredients except garnish and heat over high heat. Bring to a boil and then simmer about 15 minutes, or until flavors are blended. Serve with tortilla chips, cheese and/or sour cream, if desired.

Slow Cooker Stuffing

Stuffing is one of those things that is just necessary for Thanksgiving. I can tell you that I've never really been a fan. My grandmother used to make this crazy, weird stuffing that includes the liver and everything else from the turkey. It was good, but not what most people think of for stuffing. I've also never had a desire to actually STUFF the bird. So this year, with the limited resources of my oven, I decided to try a slow cooker stuffing recipe.

I actually got the idea from my mom, and as I was talking to her Thanksgiving morning, we realized we ended up making the same recipe! She said she just bought a bag of bread crumbs, while I ended up using fresh bread. I think the best thing about that is you can really use whatever kind of bread you have on hand. I bought a french bread loaf earlier in the week, cut it into cubes on Wednesday night and they were nice and dry Thursday morning!

I did read a lot of the reviews on this recipe before making it, and the one thing everyone said was to not add all the chicken broth right away. I'd definitely have to agree! I only added two cups, thinking it was just moist, but by the end of cooking it was very wet. I ended up adding in some additional cornbread breadcrumbs I had on hand, and placing a paper towel under the cover to soak up some of the condensation. That being said, it turned out really tasty!

Slow Cooker Stuffing-adapted from AllRecipes.com

Total Time: 5 hours

Serves 16

• 1 cup butter
• 2 cups onion, diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 8 ounces mushrooms, diced
• 12 cups dry bread cubes
• 1 teaspoon rotisserie seasoning
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried sage
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Up to 4 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 2 eggs, beaten

Melt butter in a medium skillet and saute onion, celery and parsley until tender.

In a 6 quart slow cooker, combine vegetable mixture, bread crumbs and seasonings by stirring gently. Slowly pour in broth, about 1/2-1 cup at a time until just moistened. Mix in eggs. Cover and cook on low for at least 4 hours. Check stuffing once an hour and stir. If it is getting dry, add more chicken broth. If too wet, add additional bread crumbs or cubes, and/or place a paper towel between the cover and slow cooker to catch the condensation.

Parmesan Rosemary Mashed Potatoes

Normally when I make mashed potatoes, I just throw in some seasoned pepper, garlic salt, sour cream, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, milk...really whatever I have on hand. For Thanksgiving, I decided to try an actual recipe for mashed potatoes. I thought these ended up fluffy and tasty! As always with mashed potatoes, don't just pour in the entire amount of milk. You'll want to add it gradually so you don't accidentally make them into soup.

Parmesan Rosemary Mashed Potatoes-adapted from Taste of Home
Total Time: 45 Minutes
Serves 12

• 5 pounds baby red potatoes, peeled (optional) and cubed
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons crushed rosemary
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1- 1 1/4 cups whole milk
• 3 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese

Place potatoes in a large stock pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and cook for 15-30 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender.

Drain; return to pan. Mash potatoes, adding in all other ingredients. Slowly add milk to reach desired consistency.

Turkey Gravy

I made this gravy for Thanksgiving dinner. Next time, I need to be more careful with the flour instead of just throwing in how much the recipe says. This ended up incredibly thick, and I even added a ton of chicken broth to it! The flavors were great though, so I'll still hang onto the recipe!

Turkey Gravy-adapted from Taste of Home
Total Time: 20 minutes
Makes 2 1/2 cups

• Drippings from roasted turkey
• 1/2-1 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup fat-free milk
• 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
• 1/4 teaspoon rotisserie or poultry seasoning
• 1/8 teaspoon white pepper

Pour drippings into a 2-cup measuring cup. Add enough broth to the drippings to measure 2 cups. Transfer to a small saucepan and bring to a boil.

In a small bowl, combine flour and milk until smooth. gradually stir into the boiling mixture. Stir in the bouillon granules, and seasoning. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.