Author: Busy Mom

This is a copycat recipe for the Red Lobster biscuits. Soooo yummy, especially when they are warm right out of the oven. Buttery, garlicky, and cheesy.

We ate these biscuits as a snack, but they would make a great side dish to a salad (like THIS one) and baked chicken.

Red Lobster Biscuits

Ingredients (makes about 18 biscuits):

• 2 C. all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 Tbsp. dried parsley flakes
• 1 1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese (I used frozen Colby Jack and it tasted great too.)
• 1 C. buttermilk (or substitute), preferably near room temperature
• 1/2 C. unsalted butter, melted (mine exploded in the microwave, so I didn’t use a full 1/2 C., probably 6 Tbsp. and the biscuits were still delicious!)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, garlic powder, salt, parsley flakes, and cheese.
3. In a separate bowl, stir together melted butter and the buttermilk.
4. Pour liquid mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredients and gently mix with a rubber spatula just until moist.
5. Use an ice cream scoop to scoop the batter onto the baking sheet (I used about 2 Tbsp./biscuit).
6. Bake in preheated oven for 9-11 minutes, or until golden brown.
7. Serve immediately.

*Inspired by THIS recipe.

This Ravioli Lasagna tasted amazing, but was soooo extremely easy to throw together. My kids and I prepared it in about 5 minutes and then stuck it right in the oven. The only dishes we got dirty were the baking dish and two spoons that I used to help get the pasta sauce and cottage cheese out.

You’ve got to try this recipe. Now that I’ve made Ravioli Lasagna, I don’t know if I can ever make regular lasagna again!

Ravioli Lasagna Recipe

Ingredients (about 6-8 servings):

• 1 (24 oz) jar Traditional Prego Pasta Sauce
• 1 (25 oz) bag frozen beef ravioli (about 45 raviolis)
• about 1 lb. cottage cheese (I used 2% milkfat)
• about 1 lb. shredded mozzarella cheese
• about 1-2 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and get out an 8×8 inch glass baking dish.
2. Spread a little of the pasta sauce on the bottom of the baking dish.
3. In a single layer, lay raviolis to cover the bottom of the dish.
4. Put a few dollops of cottage cheese on top. You can gently spread the cottage cheese if you want to. Then sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Then spread some sauce on top of the cheese. Repeat with another layer of raviolis, cottage cheese, mozzarella cheese, and sauce. And repeat for a third time. Finish up with a sprinkle of mozzarella and Parmesan cheese on top.
5. Put the heavy dish on a cookie sheet in case it bubbles over while cooking (mine did not, but better safe than sorry). Bake in preheated oven for 45-55 minutes. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

We ate our ravioli lasagna with a fruit and spinach smoothie, but it would also go great with a fresh green salad.

*Inspired by THIS recipe.

I totally went through a Green Chile Enchiladas phase a few years ago. They just seemed like the best dinner. Warm, flavorful, and filling. I made them several times, but each time I dipped each tortilla, one by one, in the sauce mixture before rolling them up. This created a big mess and was more time consuming than I wished.

Tonight we made a much easier version of Green Chile Enchiladas. A no-dip-the-tortillas version.

Green Chile Enchiladas Recipe

Ingredients:

• 10 soft taco tortillas
• 2 C. cooked, cubed chicken (I just cut up some leftover Rotisserie chicken with kitchen scissors)
• 2 C. Mexican Blend Cheese, divided
• optional: about 3 C. fresh baby spinach, steamed and chopped
• 1 C. plain Greek yogurt (I think I used nonfat this time)
• 1 (10 oz) can Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
• about 3 Tbsp. chicken broth

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and grease a 9×13 inch baking dish.
2. In a bowl, combine cubed chicken and 1 cup of the cheese. You can mix the spinach in with this mixture if you’re using spinach.             
3. In another bowl, stir together the Greek yogurt, green enchilada sauce, and chicken broth.
4. Roll about 2 or 2 1/2 Tbsp. chicken/cheese mixture into each tortilla and place the rolled tortilla seam-side down in the baking dish.
5. Once all the tortillas are rolled up in the baking dish, pour and spread the enchilada sauce mixture on top and sprinkle the remaining 1 cup of cheese on top of that.
6. Bake in preheated oven for 22 minutes. Then turn the heat to Broil and cook 1-2 minutes more (until cheese is bubbly, but be careful not to burn).
7. Let cool 10-15 minutes before serving.

*Inspired by THIS recipe.

I love when my sisters send me delicious recipes they’ve tried! This is one of them, and it is a winner in our home. My husband said it’s one of the best things he’s ever tasted. He does love bacon, but still loved the soup without any bacon sprinkled on top.

My little boy also gobbled up his soup so fast, two nights in a row. He can usually be pretty picky, so this creamy potato soup really made dinner less stressful for those two evenings.

Creamy Potato Soup Recipe

Ingredients (about 12 servings):

• 10 slices thin bacon, cut in 1 inch strips
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 medium/large carrots, washed and diced
• 3 stalks celery, diced
• 6 medium Russet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 8 C. low sodium chicken broth
• 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1 C. milk
• 1/2 C. heavy cream
• 1/2 tsp. salt, plus more to taste
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• optional (and recommended): minced fresh parsley and grated cheddar cheese to garnish

Instructions:

1. I really recommend chopping/dicing all the vegetables before cooking the bacon. Set the onions, carrots, and celery in one bowl and the potatoes in another so they are ready to cook.
2. Heat a large soup pot to medium/medium-high heat and add the bacon pieces. Cook until crisp. (I cooked without a lid for the first few minutes and then added a lid to help them cook faster.) With a slotted spoon, remove bacon from pot (you can put a paper towel over a bowl or plate and set the cooked bacon on that). Pour out most of the bacon fat, but leave about a tablespoon or so in the pot.
3. Turn the heat to medium-high and add the diced onion, carrots, and celery. Stir and cook for 5 minutes or so. Add the diced potatoes, salt and pepper, and cook for another 5 minutes. Stir occasionally. It may help to put a lid on the pot for a few minutes to help steam the potatoes.
4. Pour in the broth and bring to a gentle boil. Let simmer for 10 minutes, or until potatoes are becoming tender. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and milk. Pour into soup and let cook another 5 minutes.
5. Blend about 1/2 of the soup until smooth, then return to the soup pot with the chunkier soup. Use caution while blending the hot soup. You can let it cool down a bit first if you want. Don’t fill up the blender all the way because there will be a lot of steam. You can blend a little at a time.
6. If the soup is cooled, let it heat back up. You can add more salt or pepper if needed. Stir in the heavy cream.

Serve soup garnished with fresh parsley, grated cheese, and crispy bacon. Goes great with a green salad.

Leftovers were just as or maybe even more delicious, even without the parsley and bacon on top.

*Inspired by Alissa and THIS recipe.

It’s been a while (like several years!) since I’ve attempted homemade lasagna, but the stars aligned this evening. We had lasagna noodles. We had basil, farm fresh cheese (tastes similar to Ricotta), mozzarella cheese, a can of crushed tomatoes, onion, and garlic. I just had to make lasagna.

I love Stouffer’s Lasagna very much but it is always a bit pricey. This is a no meat lasagna recipe that is easy and fun to prepare and delicious to eat!

No Meat Lasagna Recipe

Ingredients (for a 9×13 inch baking dish):

• 2 drizzles of olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 4-6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (28 oz)can crushed tomatoes
• about 2/3-3/4 C. chopped fresh basil
• 1 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper (divided)
• 2 C. Farm Fresh Cheese (or Ricotta)
• 1 3/4 C. mozzarella cheese (divided)
• 12 lasagna noodles (you can buy a 1 lb. container and you might have a few noodles left over)
• water to boil the noodles

Instructions:

1. Heat a pan or saucepan to medium heat. Drizzle a little olive oil in and swish it around. Saute onions and garlic until onions are translucent. Add the can of crushed tomatoes, 1/2 tsp. of the salt and 1/8 tsp. of the pepper, and the basil. Stir and simmer for about 10-15 minutes (stirring occasionally).
2. In another saucepan, combine the Farm Fresh Cheese with 1 C. of the mozzarella cheese, the last 1/2 tsp. of salt and the last 1/8 tsp. of pepper. Stir together of medium/medium-low heat until melted.       
3. Cook lasagna noodles according to package instructions.
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. and drizzle a little olive oil into the bottom of a 9×13 inch glass baking dish.
5. When the sauce, cheese mixture, and lasagna noodles are done cooking, it is time to layer them in the baking dish. First some of the sauce, then 3 lasagna noodles, then spread some of the cheese mixture on top of the noodles. Sauce, noodles, cheese, sauce, noodles, cheese, you get the idea. They don’t have to be measured out perfectly. Just save a bit of the sauce to go on the very top. Then sprinkle with the remaining 3/4 C. grated mozzarella cheese (you can use Parmesan if you want).
6. Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. Let cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

*Inspired by THIS recipe.

In my opinion, chow mein is always the highlight of eating at Panda Express. It’s just so good! I was happy to find THIS copycat recipe. I added some carrots for color, but followed the rest of the recipe almost exactly, and it turned out great!

In fact, it turned out too good. I really had a hard time stopping myself from getting more and more and more. Well, eventually I stopped. Made myself brush my teeth and do my whole oral hygiene bedtime routine so that I wouldn’t pick in that delicious chow mein anymore. Now we will have plenty of leftovers for tomorrow— yay!

Chow Mein Recipe (Panda Express Style)

Ingredients:

• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp. grated ginger
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1 Tbsp. packed brown sugar
• 1/4 C. soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp. + 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• about 1 1/2 C. grated carrots (I bought the pre-grated carrots from the store)
• 1 head Napa cabbage, shredded (I usually don’t include the very outer leaves)
• 3 (5.6 oz) packages refrigerated Yaki-Soba noodles (the package I bought contained 3 smaller packages… it was about 17 oz. total, and you can just discard the seasoning sauce packets)

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl, combine the garlic, ginger, black pepper, brown sugar and soy sauce. Stir and set aside.
2. Heat a pan to medium-high heat. Add 2 Tbsp. olive oil. Saute the onions, celery, and grated carrots until onions look translucent, about 4 minutes. Add in the cabbage about 1 C. at a time, stirring occasionally to help it wilt from the heat. Also add the soy sauce mixture along with the cabbage (see note* below).
3. Boil water in a large pot, add the 3 packages of noodles and boil for about 2 minutes to loosen them up a bit. You can use a spoon or fork to help separate the clumps of noodles. Drain all the water out. Add the last Tbsp. of olive oil to the noodles so they don’t stick to the pot.
4. Add the sauteed vegetables to the pot with the noodles. Stir and cook for about 3 minutes. Serve immediately.

We ate this chow mein with some fruit salad. It was nice having something fresh and sweet next to it!

*Note: My pan wasn’t big enough for me to keep adding all that cabbage, so I just added some to the pot of drained noodles and put a fitted lid on top to help it cook faster. Then I added the pan of vegetables to the noodles/cabbage mixture.

**Inspired by THIS recipe.