Chipotle Chicken Burritos

As I was planning meals and making my grocery list recently, I was trying to think of meals I make that don't require pulling out a recipe card. I'm not talking about recipes I have memorized, I'm talking straight from my head, thrown together meals I have made that turned out well. For example, chicken burritos. We LOVE Chipotle, and while we have recently made the switch from burritos to the burrito bowl, I still like to make burritos at home and pretend we're eating at this beloved restaurant :)

I experimented a little bit with different chicken and toppings, and this eventually came to my rescue. Yep, pre-packaged, pre-seasoned, fully cooked chicken. STOP! Don't look at the ingredient list or nutrition content...I haven't either, and I'm still sitting here typing this, so at least you know you won't die.

The best part (in my opinion) about burritos for dinner? No need for a side dish!!
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Chipotle Chicken Burritos

Ingredients:
flour tortillas, burrito-sized
John Soules Foods' Chicken Fajitas chicken strips (whatever size bag you need)
sour cream
canned black beans
shredded cheese, I like the "Mexican" bag or Monterrey Jack and Colby cheeses
rice (again, I go for easy, so I do 90 second rice in a bag...chicken flavored seems to taste the best on these burritos, the Garden vegetable has worked well, too)
canned sweet corn
Anything else you want: diced tomatoes, guacamole, etc...

Instructions:
(I like mine layered differently than Chipotle, but all of this is obviously your own preference)
1. Heat tortillas in microwave or however you prefer
2. Spread sour cream over tortilla
3. Throw chicken, black beans, corn, and cheese on top.
4. Roll it up ever so carefully and EAT! :)

Sloppy Joes

Yummy! But these are sweet, so if you like your sloppy joes more on the tangy side, these might not be your style...For the record, my recipe called for 3/4 cup of brown sugar, and I cut it down to 1/4. Wow, I can't imagine it with any more!

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Sloppy Joes

Ingredients:
2 lbs. ground beef
1/4 c brown sugar
1 T prepared mustard
1/2 cup bbq sauce (I love Sweet Baby Ray's, so that added to the sweetness of our joes!)
2 T ketchup

Instructions:
1. Brown your beef and drain it.
2. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.
3. Slop it on a hamburger bun and eat it up!!

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I threw some watermelon on the plates and called it dinner!

Poppyseed Chicken

Even my five year old said this dinner was "delicious!!" So easy to make, ingredients you probably have in your fridge and pantry, only cooks 30 minutes. Yummy!!

Unfortunately for me, I was nursing sore gums and teeth from a visit to the dentist today, so my dinner was tomato soup with goldfish. Oh well, hopefully I can enjoy the leftovers tomorrow! :)
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Poppyseed Chicken (aka Creamy Chicken Casserole)

Ingredients:
3 c chopped cooked chicken (I boiled 3 breasts for each dish...I froze an extra dish of this)
10 3/4 oz. cream of chicken soup
8 oz. sour cream
1 T poppy seeds
Crushed crackers (I used 1 sleeve of Ritz crackers)
1/4 c melted butter (I skipped this since Ritz are buttery enough for me!)

Instructions:
1. Combine and mix chicken, soup, sour cream, and poppy seeds in a bowl.
2. Spread into greased baking dish.
3. Combine crushed crackers and butter and sprinkle over top of chicken mixture.
4. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes!

Beef Enchiladas

Make sure to follow directions carefully on this one. I often mix up the order of things, and this one has a lot of steps!
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Beef Enchiladas
yummy!!!!

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef (can substitute shredded chicken)
1 can (10 oz. enchilada sauce)
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 can condensed tomato soup
10 flour tortillas
2 c shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions:
1. Cook and drain beef.
2. Combine enchilada sauce and soups in a bowl.
3. Pour 1 cup enchilada sauce into greased 9x13 pan. Pour 1 cup enchilada sauce into beef.
4. Stir 1 c cheese into beef and sauce mixture.
5. Spoon 1/4 cup-fulls of beef mixture down center of tortilla shells.
6. Roll tightly and place in pan, seamside down.
7. Top with remaining sauce.
8. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.
6. Cover with rest of cheese and bake uncovered for 5-10 minutes.

*This is a good meal to freeze. Just make an extra batch and freeze before baking. Thaw and bake according to above instructions!

Calzones

These are messy to make, but they come out of the oven well if you do a pretty decent job of pinching those corners together. Whatever happens, the kids will probably eat it...so who cares what it looks like :)
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Calzones

Ingredients:
Refrigerated Pillsbury pizza dough
pizza sauce
pizza cheese
any pizza toppings you like (we just use pepperoni, sausage, and various cheeses)

Instructions:
1. Roll out dough onto cookie sheet and cut into six squares.
2. Add a couple spoonfulls of sauce to each and spread.
3. Add cheese
4. Add toppings
5. Fold corners of dough over toppings and pinch together. (Seal as well as you can.)
6. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Easy Chicken Pot Pie

So many recipes have "Easy" in the title...and then they're hard for me.

And then there are "30 minute meals" that take me an hour by the time it's all said and done.

I named this blog "Not a cook at heart" for a reason. When I come across meals and recipes that I can do myself without having to look up the meaning of words, I want to share with my friends who might be in the same predicament I am in.

I thought this recipe was one that I would be able to make with my eyes closed. I had made it numerous times, although it had been awhile. Well, I messed it up. And do you know what's worse than messing up a meal? Making an extra dish of something so you can freeze it for a later date...and then messing that one up, too. Frustration, stress...I am not a cook.

Hopefully, the steps I switched around and the spraying of the pan ("in an ungreased 9" pie pan...") won't mess up our dinner too much (and that of the pie in the freezer.) At least my family knows I'm trying :)

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Easy Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients:
bag of frozen mixed vegetables THAWED (use as much as you would like)
1 cup cut-up cooked (boiled is best) chicken
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup Bisquick baking mix
1/2 cup milk
1 egg

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Mix vegetables, chicken, and soup in ungreased 9" pie pan.
3. Stir remaining ingredients with a fork until blended.
4. Pour into pie plate (on top of other ingredients.) Don't stir.
5. Bake 30 minutes or until golden brown.

EASY...as long as you follow directions ;)

Pizza Quiche

I kept putting this dinner off, because the word "quiche" makes me gag. Little mini spinach quiches at brunches and baby showers? I can handle those...but something about hearing "quiche for dinner!!" doesn't sound appetizing to me. Nevertheless, I made it and we liked it.
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Pizza Quiche

Ingredients:
1/2 # sausage (I used the pre-cooked/pre-crumbled sausage in a bag instead)
2 refrigerated pie crusts (not frozen)
3 eggs
1 c ricotta cheese
2 t Italian seasoning
1 c shredded mozzarella
3 1/2 oz. pkg. pepperoni, chopped (I used mini pepperonis instead)
1/2 c grated parmesan cheese
1 jar pizza sauce

Instructions:
1. (Brown and crumble sausage unless you bought the pre-cooked bag.)
2. Line 9" pie plate with first crust.
3. In bowl, beat together eggs, ricotta cheese, and Italian seasoning.
4. Stir in sausage, pepperoni, mozzarella, and Parmesan.
5. Spoon into pie crust.
6. Top with second crust, pressing down the edges.
7. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
8. Serve with warm pizza sauce over individual slices.

Tofu Tacos

This is a classic for our family. Piece of cake to make, with very few ingredients and little prep. My kind of meal!!
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Tofu Tacos

Ingredients:
1/2 c water
1/4 c lentils
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
Taco seasoning
8 oz. Extra firm tofu, chopped
Hard taco shells

Instructions:
1. In saucepan, combine water and lentils.
2. Bring to boil, reduce heat. Simmer (covered) 30 minutes
*or until lentils are tender and liquid is absorbed.*
3. Stir in tomato sauce and taco seasoning. Cook about 5 minutes.
4. Bake taco shells according to package directions.
5. Stir in tofu and heat through.
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I serve this with rice and some fruit. This meal is not the best as leftovers, so plan accordingly!

Chex Party Mix

Everyone should have this recipe. It's fun to make with your kids, and they'll eat it, too :)
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Chex Party Mix

Ingredients:
6T butter
2 T Worcestershire Sauce
1 1/2 t seasoned salt
3/4 t garlic powder
1/2 t onion powder
3 c each Corn, Rice, and Wheat Chex
1 c mixed nuts
1 c bite-sized pretzels
1 c bagel chips

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. In ungreased roasting pan, melt butter in oven.
3. Stir in seasonings.
4. Stir in rest of ingredients.
5. Bake for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Cool on paper towels.