Birthday Dinner

On Monday night, we grilled some chicken, which we had for dinner. Rather than have the same, grilled chicken again on Tuesday, I decided to look for a recipe that would use the chicken. I stumbled across RR's recipe for Mexican Lasagna. I made quite a few changes, because I just used the ingredients that I already had in my pantry.

I thought it was a good dinner and you could always assemble the lasagna the day before you're eating it and keep it in the fridge until dinner time. But we love Mexican food and we love all these ingredients- corn, onion, black beans, cheese, etc.!

It was also Ivy's first birthday yesterday!!! Can you believe it?!?! I can barely believe that she's ONE! She had the fabulous canine cuisine of porterhouse steak and she absolutely loved it. She literally licked the bowl clean. She also got 2 new toys. Happy Birthday, Ivy!!!

Mexican Lasagna

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 pounds ground chicken breast, available in the packaged meats case
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained
1 cup medium heat taco sauce or 1 (14-oz) can stewed or fire roasted tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn kernels
Salt
8 (8 inch) spinach flour tortillas, available on dairy aisle of market
2 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar or shredded pepper jack2 scallions, finely chopped

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil - twice around the pan. Add chicken and season with chili powder, cumin, and red onion. Brown the meat, 5 minutes. Add taco sauce or stewed or fire roasted tomatoes. Add black beans and corn. Heat the mixture through, 2 to 3 minutes then season with salt, to your taste.

Coat a shallow baking dish with remaining extra-virgin olive oil, about 1 tablespoon oil. Cut the tortillas in half or quarters to make them easy to layer with. Build lasagna in layers of meat and beans, then tortillas, then cheese. Repeat: meat, tortilla, cheese again. Bake lasagna 12 to 15 minutes until cheese is brown and bubbly. Top with the scallions and serve.

E’s Notes:

• I did not use ground chicken breast. I diced up our grilled chicken tenders.
• I sautéed the onions and then added can of black beans, a can of petite diced tomatoes and some frozen corn.
• I seasoned the mixture with chili powder, cumin, chipotle pepper, garlic powder, salt and black pepper. [Taste the mixture to see if it needs more seasoning.]
• Then, I added the chicken and layered the lasagna- I used four cheese Mexican blend.

Ivy is ONE!

Ivy's gourmet dinner.

Once we put the bowl down, she did not look up!

She licked the bowl clean!

Show Stopper

This dessert is really delicious and so pretty. It looks like it's difficult to make or like it takes a lot of time, but it's easy and doesn't take too long. There are several different steps and you do have to wait on the crust to cool, but other than that it's a piece of cake (or tart!). The crust tastes almost like a sugar cookie- it's very soft and sweet!

It does take a little bit of time to slice and arrange the fruit, but it's definitely worth it. Jeremy and I had some and we took a few pieces to our neighbor, because it's not really a dessert that lasts for very long. It's the perfect summer dessert!

Fresh Fruit Tart

Crust:
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened and sliced

Filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping:
Fresh strawberries, kiwi slices, blueberries, raspberries

Glaze:
1 (6-ounce) can frozen limeade concentrate, thawed
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/4 cup granulated sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the crust: In a food processor, combine the confectioners' sugar, flour, and butter, and process until the mixture forms a ball. With your fingers, press the dough into a 12-inch tart pan with a removable bottom, taking care to push the crust into the indentations in the sides. Pat until the crust is even. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until very lightly browned. Set aside to cool.

For the filling and topping: Beat the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla together until smooth. Spread over the cooled crust. Cut the strawberries into 1/4-inch slices and arrange around the edge of the crust. For the next circle, use kiwi slices. Add another circle of strawberries, filling in any spaces with blueberries. Cluster the raspberries in the center of the tart.

For the glaze: Combine the limeade, cornstarch, lime juice, and sugar in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until clear and thick, about 2 minutes. Let cool. With a pastry brush, glaze the entire tart. You will not use all of the glaze. Keep the tart in the refrigerator. Remove about 15 minutes before serving. Slice into 8 wedges and serve with a dollop of whipped cream.

Let Me See Ya Grill

The summer moment I have been waiting for . . . the arrival of our grill! I was very excited! I've been wanting Jeremy to pick one out for such a long time- I think I finally wore him down! I didn't really know what I was getting myself into . . .

Of course, on the box, it says- some assembly required. I'm not sure what that means exactly, but 2 hours later, several cuss words, tons of sweat, a few leftover bolts, and a marriage on the rocks- we had a grill. The instructions said it's helpful for 2 people to put together the grill and work as a team. I'm not sure if I would call it "teamwork," but there were 2 people working on the grill. We chose a very hot afternoon, in the direct sun to assemble our grill, which was no doubt, poor planning on our part. I have a whole new appreciation for grills now!

After we finished putting it together, I didn't know if I even wanted to grill out last night- I was kind of sick of looking at the thing. But after a shower and some iced tea, I was ready to grill. Maybe you're wondering why it's nighttime in all our pictures- we ate dinner at about 9:45pm. Again, took a little longer than expected to put it together!

Dinner tonight- steak, mushrooms, onion, sausage, and corn on the cob!

The grill master!

Cheese on the Cob

1/2 cup mayonnaise
5 ears corn, husks and silk removed
1 cup shredded Parmesan
Chili powder
1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Prepare grill. Brush a thin layer of mayonnaise on corn. Sprinkle the corn with cheese, chili powder, salt and pepper. Wrap each corn with foil and place on the grill. Turn occasionally and cook for about 10 minutes (until kernels begin to brown). Serve warm.

Grill gleamin

Poor little Ivy- we didn't let her come outside!

Puppy Playdate

Mandy brought Harley and Paisley over to our house to play with Ivy. They had a blast! The three of them ran around like crazy and got along so well!

Ivy is waiting for Harley to look away, so she can steal the toy!

Taking a break!

Just a jumble of puppies- what we saw most of the time!

Paisley and Ivy

“If you talk bad about country music, it's like saying bad things about my momma. Them's fightin' words!" - Dolly Parton

Every year, Nashville hosts the largest country music festival- CMA Music Festival. People come from all over to see their favorite stars. Usually, it's raining tons! This year, it wasn't raining, but it was really hot!

All of the artists do autograph signings and picture booths for 4 days and fans line up for hours. Most native Nashville residents, just enjoy the nightly concerts, which features 5 or 6 artists singing four or five of their biggest hits. It's a great chance to see people that you like, but might not want to buy tickets for their entire concert. I went on Friday night and here's the line up:

"Concert hosted by CMT's Allison DeMarcus and featuring Ashton Shepherd (acoustic), Jack Ingram, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood, Josh Turner, Jake Owen (acoustic), Faith Hill and a surprise guest."

The surprise guest was Keith Urban! Everyone did a fabulous job, but the star performer award goes to Carrie Underwood. She was just a really great entertainer. I really wanted to pick Faith, because I love her and I think her husband is fabulous, but Carrie was better! Maybe it was an off night for Faith?!?!

Mandy and I at LP Field (our seats were a little high)!

Carrie Underwood performing.

I did not know how much I heart Josh Turner until tonight!

My favorite- Faith Hill!

Two for One

I love cooking one time and freezing some of a dish to have a few weeks later. Back a few weeks ago, I made enchiladas for my small group. I also put some in the freezer, so we had those tonight! It was the perfect amount for 2 people with a little bit leftover for the next day’s lunch.

The real star of the show was the guacamole! I'm very particular about my guacamole! I don't really like it if it's store- bought or out of a "can." And I think fresh lime juice is the make it or break it for perfect guac!

Dinner tonight- enchiladas, Mexican rice, and guacamole.

Erin’s Guac

2 avocados
Juice of 1 lime
½ of tomato, diced
½ of onion, diced
Garlic powder
Salt

Halve avocados and spoon into bowl. Juice lime on top of avocados and mash together. You can do it as chunky or as smooth as you prefer. Add tomatoes and onion and stir together. Season with garlic powder and salt to taste.

You are what you eat. For example, if you eat garlic you're apt to be a hermit. ~Franklin P. Jones

If you love bruschetta and garlic, you'll really like this dinner! The recipe is very simple and I thought it was good. Jeremy had seconds, which usually means that he is a fan! You probably have most of the items in your pantry or fridge. I didn't make very many modifications. But be prepared, you might not want to make this on a "date" night.

Dinner tonight- ceasar salad and bruschetta chicken bake.

Bruschetta Chicken Bake

(original recipe here)

1 can (14-1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1/2 cup water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1 tsp. dried basil leaves
1 cup KRAFT Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Place tomatoes in medium bowl. Add stuffing mix, water and garlic; stir just until stuffing mix is moistened. Set aside.
PLACE chicken in 13x9-inch baking dish; sprinkle with the basil and cheese. Top with stuffing mixture.
BAKE 30 min. or until chicken is cooked through.

E’s Notes:

• I used chicken stock instead of water.
• I seasoned chicken with salt and pepper and I used some Italian seasoning and basil.
• I used petite diced tomatoes.