Author: Busy Mom

My family went to lunch at a soup/salad/sandwich place on this lovely rainy day. Although I had been there a couple times before, this time just didn’t meet our expectations. Part of it was the kids being fussy and not eating any of their food. And part of it was that the food wasn’t that great.

To make a long story short, we regretted spending our time and money there.

For dinner, I wanted to make up for the not-so-great lunch experience. My husband took the kids on a walk in the rain and when they returned, there was a splendid dinner awaiting them. Although the mashed potatoes, salad, and steamed zucchini were yummy, this Crispy Baked Chicken is what really made the dinner stand out.

Crispy Baked Chicken Recipe

Ingredients (for 4 chicken thighs):

•  4 chicken thighs (remove outside skin/fat)
• 3 Tbsp. butter
• 1/2 Tbsp. mustard
• 1/2 Tbsp. honey
• breadcrumbs from 1/2 slice of bread (get it crispy in the toaster and then just crumble it up)
• 2-3 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese (I used the powdered kind)
• 2 Tbsp. parsley, minced
• salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. and get out a 9×13 inch glass baking dish.
2. Melt butter in a bowl in the microwave. Stir in mustard, honey, and some salt and pepper.
3. On a plate, combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and parsley.
4. Dip chicken in the butter/mustard mixture, then in the breadcrumb mixture. Place in the baking dish. If there is any leftover butter and/or breadcrumb mixture after each chicken thigh is in the dish, then drizzle the leftovers on top of the chicken.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, or until chicken juices run clear. Cut into the crispy baked chicken thighs to make sure they’re done before eating.

Enjoy!

*Inspired by THIS recipe.

Dinner was so easy to make tonight with this One Pot Pasta with Sausage recipe! Although the sausage was a little spicy, it added a wonderful flavor. The sauce turned out just right. Not to thick, and not too runny. It was cheesy, but not overloaded with cheese. The parsley is a must. It’s green color adds the perfect contrast for the pasta and sausage.

We served this pasta dish with crispy, torn Romaine lettuce leaves on the side (our quick go-to salad these days… I know, not fancy at all).

One Pot Pasta with Sausage Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 9-12 oz. cooked sausage, cut into bite-sized pieces (I used Aidells All Natural Cajun Style Andouille Smoked Pork Sausage. Was a bit spicy for toddlers but my husband and I enjoyed it a lot— and I don’t usually go for spicy food)
• 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 C. milk
• 2 C. chicken broth
• 8 oz. elbow pasta (I used a quinoa/corn blend and it tasted great!)
• about 1/4 tsp. each of salt and pepper
• 1/3 C. chopped parsley
• about 1 C. shredded cheese (I used medium white cheddar)

Instructions:

1. Heat a pan to medium-high heat and swirl the oil to coat the bottom of the pan.
2. Add onion, garlic, and precooked sausage. Saute until onions become translucent.
3. Add diced tomatoes, milk, chicken broth, and pasta. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper and give it a stir. Bring to a boil, cover with lid and reduce heat to low. Let simmer about 12-14 minutes, stirring and re-covering occasionally.
4. When the pasta is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed (not all of it though!), remove from heat. Stir in chopped parsley, then sprinkle cheese on top. Cover with lid for 2-3 minutes to let the cheese melt before serving.

Goes great with a green salad on the side.

*Inspired by THIS recipe.

This Slow Cooker Pulled Pork recipe uses just 3 simple ingredients and turns out great!

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 (2.5 lb) pork loin roast, completely thawed (you can also cut it into smaller chunks before placing in the slow cooker)
• 1 can black beans, undrained
• 1 (16 oz) jar salsa (I used Safeway Southwest style)

Instructions:

1. Mix together the black beans and salsa in the slow cooker. Place the thawed pork roast in the slow cooker with the beans and salsa.
2. Cook on low for 7 hours, shred the meat, and then cook on high for 1 more hour. (Or cook on high for 4 hours, shred the meat, and cook on high again for the last hour).

You can make pork quesadillas, carnitas, tacos, burritos, salad, and use some of the leftovers in Pulled Pork Crescent Rolls. You can also freeze the leftovers for later. We made some carnitas by heating up corn tortillas and filling with a little pulled pork, Green Salsa, avocado, and sour cream. They were pretty yummy!

*Inspired by THIS recipe.

This quick pizza dough with whole wheat flour was so easy to make. It doesn’t call for yeast so you don’t have to wait and let it rise. Just mix the ingredients up, put it on a pan, and pop it in the oven. Simple, quick, healthy and delicious!

I really wanted to use up some spaghetti sauce I had made a few nights ago, but didn’t want to make pasta because my little boy is going through a no-pasta phase right now, and I wanted to get a serving of veggies in him tonight. I had made the sauce by sauteing an onion, some garlic, and mushrooms and then simmering the saute with a can of crushed tomatoes and some Italian seasonings.

So instead of pasta, I decided to make a pizza. A whole wheat pizza. It was 4:00 PM, and my kids are usually hungry for dinner around 5 PM. We had orange and white medium cheddar cheese and a container of powdery Parmesan cheese. My husband wanted a little meat with the dinner tonight, so I pulled out some precooked ground beef from the freezer and stuck it in the microwave to defrost. Added some salt, garlic powder, and Pizza Seasoning to the ground beef.

It was a great pizza! Whole wheat crust topped with a homemade vegetable sauce, sprinkled with a little cheese and some ground beef. We had cucumber slices on the side. And guess what… it was all ready by 5:00. 🙂 And we enjoyed it very much.

Quick Pizza Dough with Whole Wheat Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 C. whole wheat flour (spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then level off)
• 1/2 C. all-purpose flour (again, spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then level off)
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. garlic salt
• 2 tsp. pizza seasonings
• 3/4 C. lukewarm water
• 1/4 C. olive oil

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. You can use a non-stick baking tray or lightly grease your baking tray.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together flours, baking powder, garlic salt, and pizza seasonings.
3. Add water and olive oil. Mix until mixture is moistened throughout, then knead gently with your hands for about 2 minutes.
4. Transfer dough onto baking sheet and spread as evenly as you can. This dough felt a bit tacky, but it spread pretty easily when I worked with the palm area of my hand. If it tears, just press the sides of the dough back together. (At first I thought maybe I should have doubled the batch to cover a whole baking sheet with this dough, but to my surprise, it did spread out just fine to fit the baking sheet!)
5. Bake the dough without toppings in the preheated oven for about 7-9 minutes.
6. Remove from oven, add sauce, cheese, and toppings of choice. Bake in the oven for about 8-10 more minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and crust starts looking golden.
7. Let the pizza set and cool about 3-5 minutes before slicing.

Enjoy!

*Inspired by THIS recipe.