Tequila Lime Chicken

From Applebee's, via topsecretrecipes.com.


Marinade
1 cup water
1/3 cup teriyaki sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon mesquite liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 cup tequila

4 chicken breasts

Mexi-Ranch Dressing
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons minced tomato
1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 teaspoon minced canned jalapeno slices
1 teaspoon minced onion
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
1/4 teaspoon Tobasco
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/8 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon cumin
dash garlic powder
dash ground black pepper

1 cup shredded cheddar/jack cheese blend
2 cups crumbled tortilla chips or fried tortilla strips

Prepare marinade by combining marinade ingredients. Add chicken and chill for 2 to 3 hours (not more, or the lime juice may toughen your chicken).

Make the Mexi-ranch dressing by combining all of the ingredients in a medium bowl. Mix will until smooth, then cover and chill until needed.

When  you are ready to prepare the entree, preheat the oven to high broil. Also, preheat you grill to high heat. When the grill is hot, cook the marinated chicken breasts for 3 to 5 minutes per side, or until they're done.

Arrange the cooked chicken in a baking pan. Spread a layer of dressing over each piece of chicken (you'll have plenty left over), followed by 1/4 cup of the shredded cheese blend. Broil the chicken for 2 to 3 minutes, or just until the cheese has melted.

Spread a bed of 1/2 cup of the tortilla strips or crumbled tortilla chips on each of four plates. Slide a chicken breast onto the chips on each plate and serve with your choice of rice, and pico de gallo or salsa.

Scot's Macaroni & Cheese

12 ounces elbow mac (about 3 cups)

4 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

3 cups milk (or equivalent from powdered milk/water)

1 egg, slightly beaten

salt

pepper

8 ounces Velveeta, cut into smaller cubes

4-8 ounces sharp cheddar

Preheat oven to 375°. In a large pot of boiling water, cook macaroni with oil and salt until al dente. Drain.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Add flour. Whisk together and cook for about 1 minute. Add milk and egg. Cook and stir for 1 minute. Stir in Velveeta cheese and half the cheddar; cook on low heat until cheese is melted and sauce is smooth.

Add cooked macaroni to sauce. Stir over low heat for 1 minutes. Taste and add pepper and extra salt, if necessary. Pour mixture into a large greased 9x13-inch pan. Top with remaining cheddar and cover with foil. Bake for 35 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes, until cheese on top is melted and macaroni is bubbly throughout.

Cool slightly and serve.

Red Enchiladas

1 (46-ounce) can tomato juice
1 (7.75-ounce) can El Pato tomato sauce
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Cold water
Vegetable or canola oil
Corn tortillas
Shredded cheese

Mix tomato juice, El Pato, and sugar in a large saucepan. Bring to boil. Combine equal amounts cornstarch and water. Pour slowly into sauce while whisking vigorously.

Meanwhile, heat about a half inch of oil in a small skillet. Once oil is hot, fry each tortilla for a few seconds, until soft. Drain on paper towels.

Layer tortillas, sauce, then cheese on each plate. Top with sour cream and lettuce.

Poppy Seed Chicken

8 chicken breasts
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cups sour cream
3 cups Pepperidge Farm Dressing (Not "Cubed," the bread chunks are too big.)
2-3 tablespoons poppy seeds
2 sticks butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350. Cut chicken into bite-sized chunks. Brown in a hot skillet. Spread across the bottom of a 9x13 casserole, or 2 8x8s.

Mix soup and sour cream; pour over top of chicken.

Mix together dressing, poppy seeds, and melted butter. Spread over top of soup.

Bake 30 minutes until bubbly throughout.

Beef burritos

As a warning, this is one I kind of made up, recalling something my mom used to make. I like to adjust the recipe to may feelings that day, so feel free to add spices that you like.

Ingredients:
Beef Chuck Roast ~ 2# (will serve 4-6 people)
Garlic Salt
Cumin
Chili Powder
Onion, sliced into half rings
Black beans
Green Chile (optional)
Potatoes, the frozen cubed kind (or o'brien, which has a few extra ingredients)

Season the chuck roast* with garlic salt (~1 tsp per side), cumin (~1/2-1 tsp per side), and chili powder (~1/2 tsp per side). You can also add other spices you like, such as oregano, real garlic, cayenne, etc. Slice onion into thin half rings. Place meat and onion in slow cooker (crock pot) on low for ~6-8 hours or until the meat is easy to shred. Remove meat and shred and place back in slow cooker.

*Any cut of meat will generally work, such as round or rump roast. Use a cheap cut of meat because the slow cooker will allow for the tougher stuff to be broken down and shredding the meat makes it plenty tender.

Drain can of black beans and add. Add a small can of green chiles or fresh roasted chiles as desired. If you have access to Bueno's green chile sauce (usually in the frozen section), it is really good. Sautee potatoes (~1 cup) in 1 Tbls butter until golden brown. Add to slow cooker. Mix and season to taste.

Serve on warm tortillas with your choice of toppings: sour cream, cheese, guacamole, lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, etc.

Santa Fe Chicken

Marinade:

juice from 3 limes

1/4 c. soy sauce

1 1/2 tsp. olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. chile powder

1 1/2 tsp. cumin

1 1/2 tsp. coriander

6 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 tsp. honey

2 whole chicken breasts (4 pieces)

1/2 c. white wine

3 T. chopped cilantro leaves

Marinade chicken in ingredients. (The recipe actually says to add the wine and cilantro 1/2 hour before cooking-but I can never remember, so I just add it all when I make it) Bake at 375 degrees till done, or grill till done. Serve with papaya salsa

Papaya Salsa:

1/2 c. cilantro leaves

1 c. cubed papaya

1/4 c. choped red bell pepper

1/4 c. diced red onion

1 small jalapeno pepper-seeded and minced

2 T. lime juice

Mix together and serve over chicken. You can make this the night before or earlier in the day so that the flavors meld together better. You could also pulse lightly in the blender if you want a smoother salsa.

French Bread

2 1/2 cups warm water
2 tablespoons sugar
2 packages dry yeast (a package is 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons oil
6 cups flour

This is the Waye family french bread recipe. The great thing is that you can simply make the dough and barely let it rise and it will turn out a denser bread, but still great. So you can have homemade bread on your table in an hour!

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, pour warm water; stir in sugar and yeast until dissolved. Stir in 1/2 cup flour. Beat. Stir in remaining flour, salt, oil and stir until all ingredients are completely mixed in, leaving spoon in heavy batter. Allow the dough to rest 10 minutes with spoon, and then stir down. Repeat 5 times (or however much time you have...) Turn dough onto floured surface. Divide into 2 parts. Roll into 9x12 rectangles and then roll like a jellyroll (or just make it into a long loaf shape.) Let rise until double (or, again, however much time you have.) Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Brush with butter after baking.

Oatmeal brown sugar pancakes

1 egg
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup uncooked oats

Beat egg; add milk and oil, mixing well. Combine flour and next 4 ingredients. Add to egg mixture-mix until blended. Stir oats into batter. Use 1/2 cup for pouring on griddle.