Huevos rancheros

I've never made or had huevos rancheros before. Now that I've had them, unless someone tells me they are the best thing ever, I don't know that I would ever order them. There wasn't anything wrong with this recipe, there just wasn't anything that was stand out about it. I'd make it again, but it's nothing I think I'll crave. I also feel like you could just warmed up jarred salsa with some additional spices if you want to save even more time (not that this takes long anyway). Additional plus side-this dish can be gluten free if you use corn tortillas!

Huevos rancheros-adapted from Comfort Food by Cooking Light
Total time: 15 minutes
Serves 4

• 4 (6-inch) flour tortillas
• 1 red onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 can chopped green chiles
• 2 teaspoons chile powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon tabasco sauce
• 1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 4 large eggs
• 1/4 cup shredded Mexican cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat tortillas with cooking spray and place on a baking sheet. Bake tortillas for about 12 minutes or until crispy.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium high heat and spray with cooking spray and saute onion and garlic for about 3 minutes. Add green chiles, chile powder, cumin, oregano, tabasco sauce, and diced tomatoes. Cook, for 3 minutes or until thickened. Reduce heat and simmer until eggs are cooked.

In a large skillet, heat cooking spray over medium heat. Cook eggs to your preferred method (I used over easy), about 3 minutes or until cooked through.

Top each individual tortilla with about 1/4 cup tomato mixture. Place egg on top and sprinkle with cheese. Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Zucchini and Rice Casserole

This was a great casserole! We ate it for a main dish, but it would be a fantastic change up for a side dish too. It would go great with chicken, ham or pork chops. I pretty much love everything with zucchini in it.

Zucchini and Rice Casserole-adapted from Comfort Food by Cooking Light
Total Time: 60 Minutes
Serves 8

• 2 1/2 pounds zucchini, sliced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 2 cups cooked rice
• 4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 ounce grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. IN a large stock pot, bring zucchini, onion and chicken broth to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes. Drain; partially mash with a potato masher.

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Spoon mixture into a greased 9x13 inch pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until bubbly and browning.

Cajun Cornmeal Crusted Fish

This recipe called for catfish, but I used swai instead and it ended up delicious! The cajun seasoning adds a lot to this simple fish recipe. Also, the amount of cornmeal mix was perfect-I didn't have a ton leftover like I normally do with breading meats.

Cajun Cornmeal Crusted Fish-adapted from Cooking Light's 'Comfort Food'
Total Time: 20 Minutes
Serves 4

• 3 bacon slices
• 1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
• 2 teaspoons cajun seasoning
• 4 fish fillets

Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan; reserve 2 teaspoons drippings in pan. Reserve bacon for another use.

Combine cornmeal and cajun seasoning in a shallow dish. Dredge fillets in cornmeal mixture. Heat reserved drippings in pan over medium-high heat. Add fillets; cook 5 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

French Onion Soup

My grandma and mom always seemed to get french onion soup when we would go out to eat in the winter time. For the longest time I didn't want to try it because it was brown, and looked kind of gross, and I knew it had a lot of onions in it (which I thought I didn't like).

Now that I'm older, I've tried this soup at restaurants and love it! I put onions (especially cooked ones) in almost everything where it makes sense. I love cheese. I love bread. I love warm soups! I was so excited when I found this recipe! It had great flavor to it, and would be great as a side to steak or chicken for dinner.

I don't have oven safe bowls, so I just put the soup with bread and cheese in the microwave for about a minute to melt the cheese. It's not quite the same as broiling it, which is why I'm keeping the recipe that says that. But it's still delicious!

French Onion Soup-Adapted from Cooking Light's "Comfort Food"

Total Time: 2 and 1/2 hours

Serves 8

• 2 teaspoons olive oil 
• 4 cups thinly vertically sliced sweet onion 
• 4 cups thinly vertically sliced red onion 
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar 
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup dry white wine 
• 8 cups less-sodium beef broth 
• 1/4 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme 
• 8 (1-ounce) slices French bread, cut into 1-inch cubes 
• 8 (1-ounce) slices reduced-fat, reduced-sodium Swiss cheese

Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onions to pan; sauté for 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in sugar, pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Reduce heat to medium; cook 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Increase heat to medium-high, and sauté for 5 minutes or until onion is golden brown. Stir in wine, and cook for 1 minute. Add broth and thyme; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 2 hours.

**If you have oven safe bowls follow directions below. If not, add the bread and cheese and pop in the microwave for about 1 minute**

Preheat broiler. Place bread in a single layer on a baking sheet; broil 2 minutes or until toasted, turning after 1 minute. Place 8 ovenproof bowls on a jelly-roll pan. Ladle 1 cup soup into each bowl. Divide bread evenly among bowls; top each serving with 1 cheese slice. Broil 3 minutes or until cheese begins to brown.

Breakfast Tacos with Homemade Salsa

I love breakfast for dinner! I don't do it often, but it really is a cheap, quick and simple way to make dinner. Scott isn't a big fan, so when I told him I was making breakfast tacos, he wasn't thrilled. The end result, however, was FANTASTIC! This was definitely filling enough to make for dinner! Plus the flavors of the salsa were amazing. If I remember right, we both went back for seconds!

Breakfast Tacos with Homemade Salsa

Breakfast Tacos with Homemade Salsa-Adapted from Cooking Light's Comfort Food Diet
Total Time: 15 Minutes
Serves 4

• 1 cup chopped tomato
• 1/2 cup chopped red onion
• 1 tablespoon dried cilantro
• 1 teaspoon minced jalapeno pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 4 teaspoons fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 cup refried beans
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon low-fat milk
• 6 large eggs, lightly beaten
• Cooking spray
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions
• 8 (6-inch) tortillas
• 1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese 
• 8 teaspoons reduced-fat sour cream

Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Stir in 2 teaspoons juice and 1/2 teaspoon garlic. Combine beans, remaining 2 teaspoons juice, remining 1/2 teaspoon garlic, and cumin in another bowl.

Combine milk and eggs in medium bowl; stir with a whisk. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add green onions to pan; saute 1 minute, stirring frequently. Stir in egg mixture; cook 3 minutes or until soft-scrambled, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Warm tortillas according to package directions. Spread 1 tablespoon bean mixture on each tortilla. Spoon about 2 tablespoons egg mixture down center of each tortilla. Top each serving with 1 tablespoon tomato mixture, 1 tablespoon cheese, and 1 teaspoon sour cream.

Meatless Manicotti

This is definitely going to be a new staple in our house for vegetarian meals. It was so incredibly awesome. And relatively easy-with the exception of stuffing the shells. But next time we might add some mushrooms too it. But you could add whatever you like, the base is awesome!

Meatless Manicotti-Adapted from Comfort Food Cookbook

Total Time: 1 hour 15 Minutes

Serves 7

• 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1 (16-ounce) carton fat-free cottage cheese 
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese 
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 
• 1 (8-ounce) package manicotti (14 shells)
• 1 (26-ounce) jar fat-free tomato-basil pasta sauce
• Cooking spray 
• 1 cup water

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Combine 1 1/2 cups mozzarella, cottage cheese, and the next 5 ingredients (through black pepper) in a medium bowl. Spoon about 3 tablespoons cheese mixture into each uncooked manicotti. Pour half of tomato-basil pasta sauce into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange stuffed shells in a single layer over sauce, and top with the remaining sauce. Pour 1 cup water into dish. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella evenly over sauce. Cover tightly with foil. Bake at 375° for 1 hour or until shells are tender. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Tuna Noodle Casserole

Scott made this dish a few weeks ago and I just never got around to putting it up! This was a pretty good tuna casserole, just a little beefed up from your Tuna Helper! Nothing extraordinary about it, but still yummy!

Tuna Noodle Casserole--Adapted from The Comfort Food Cookbook

Total Time: 30 Minutes

Serves 6

• 8 ounces wide egg noodles
• 2 tablespoons olive oil 
• 1/2 cup chopped yellow onion 
• 1/3 cup chopped carrot 
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 
• 2 3/4 cups fat-free milk 
• 1/2 cup (4 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed 
• 1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided
• 2 (5-ounce) cans albacore tuna in water, drained and flaked 
• Cooking spray 

1. Preheat broiler.
2. Cook noodles according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion and carrot; cook 6 minutes or until carrot is almost tender, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually stir in milk; cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly with a whisk until slightly thick. Stir in cream cheese, mustard, salt, and pepper; cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
3. Remove pan from heat. Stir in noodles, peas, 1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and tuna. Spoon mixture into a shallow broiler-safe 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray; top with remaining 1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Broil 3 minutes or until golden and bubbly. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Turkey Tetrazzini

One of the cookbooks we got for Christmas was Cooking Light's "Comfort Food Cookbook", and we absolutely love it! We've tried a few dishes that have come out well, and I can't wait to try some of the others! This dish was alright, but a little bland. Nothing to really make it great.

Turkey Tetrazzini-adapted from The Comfort Food Cookbook

Total Time: 30 Minutes

Serves 6

• 10 ounces uncooked vermicelli
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 pound turkey breast cutlets
• 3/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons dry sherry
• 16 ounces presliced mushrooms
• 3/4 cup frozen green peas, thawed
• 3/4 cup fat-free milk
• 2/3 cup fat-free sour cream
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 can reduced-fat cream of chicken soup
• 1/3 cup dry breadcrumbs
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle turkey with 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Add turkey to pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until done. Remove turkey from pan.
3. Add 1/4 teaspoon onion powder, sherry, and mushrooms to pan. Cover and cook 4 minutes or until mushrooms are tender.
4. Combine peas, milk, sour cream, cheese, and soup in a large bowl. Chop turkey. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, pasta, turkey, and mushroom mixture to soup mixture, tossing gently to combine. Spoon mixture into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
5. Combine breadcrumbs and butter in a small dish, tossing to combine. Sprinkle breadcrumb mixture over pasta mixture. Bake at 450° for 12 minutes or until bubbly and thoroughly heated.