Recipe

Chicken and Cheese Quesadillas on the Grill

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Makes 5 Large Quesadillas

Ingredients:

5 Tortillas (You can use any kind, I used 10-inch white, flour)
4 Chicken Breasts
About 2 cups of cheese (I used a mix of a Mexican blend and Mozzarella)
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper

I made this whole recipe on the grill. The quesadillas cook fast on the grill and they had an extra crisp which was really good!

1. Gather ingredients. Mix a small amount of olive oil and salt and pepper in a bowl and brush on chicken. IMG_41112. Grill chicken on both sides until cooked through – 4-6 minutes on each side or until no longer pink on the inside.
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3. Remove chicken from grill and slice into strips.
IMG_41134. Place a tortilla on the grill and line one side with a few strips of chicken and enough cheese to cover. Flip the empty half on top and then brush that half (the half of the tortilla facing you) with some olive oil. After about 1-2 minutes, carefully flip the quesadilla to grill on opposite side. Grill for another 1-2 minutes or until cheese is melted.
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5. Repeat steps until all of your quesadillas are grilled. Serve alone or with a side of sour cream, salsa or guacamole.
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Pulled Pork and Cole Slaw – Easiest Recipe Ever!

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A few years ago, it seemed like pulled pork became the new dinner craze! I wanted to make it, but wasn’t into the rubs and the full day cooking so I created my own quick, easy and yummy way to make pulled pork using a pork tenderloin.

Ingredients:

Pork tenderloin (can easily find pre-wrapped in grocery store or butcher)
Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce (or any BBQ sauce you love)
Rolls (regular size hard rolls or sliders)
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
Olive Oil

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Take Pork Tenderloin out of package and put in a small roasting pan. I use a Pampered Chef Stoneware stone.
2. Drizzle olive oil over the pork and season with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Bake for 40-50 minutes or until no longer pink in the middle.

This was an exceptionally large piece of meat so I cut it horizontally for the last 10-15 minutes of cooking to ensure that it was cooked through
This was an exceptionally large piece of meat so I cut it horizontally for the last 10-15 minutes of cooking to ensure that it was cooked through

3. Remove from oven and cool slightly.
4. Slice the meat lengthwise so it will fit in the tube of your food processor. Set the food processor up with the shredding blade. Feed the pork in to shred the meat (depending on the size of your processor, you may have to empty shredded meat a few times as you go).

image 5. Pour shredded meat into a bowl and fold in BBQ sauce. The amount of sauce you use will depend on how you like it. I use enough sauce to make sure all the meat is covered and none of it looks dry.

image6. Once BBQ sauce is mixed in, you are ready to serve. I like to serve it on a roll topped with cole slaw (see recipe below).

Cole Slaw

Ingredients:

1 package of cole slaw (any brand you like)
Bottle of Bolthouse Farms Classic Ranch Dressing

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1. Pour cole slaw into a bowl.
2. Add Ranch dressing and mix well (I usually use about 1/2 to 3/4 bottle of the dressing)
3. Refrigerate at least two hours to overnight (I think it tastes better when refrigerated on the longer side)

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Orange Chicken Salad

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I have been making this recipe for over 10 years! It is filling enough to serve for dinner or a luncheon. It is very refreshing and makes a great summer meal! It pairs nicely with a light white wine.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

3 large seedless oranges
1 cup long-grain rice
2 cups water
3/4 cup vinaigrette dressing (separate recipe below)
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 pound cooked chicken, diced
3 tablespoons chopped chives
1/2 cup roasted cashews
salt and black pepper
cucumber slices to garnish

1. Thinly peel 1 orange, taking only the colored part of the rind and leaving the white pith

2. Combine the rind, rice and water in a saucepan. Add a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer over very low heat for 15-18 minutes, or until the rice is tender and all the water has been absorbed.

3. Peel the remaining oranges and cut out the segments, reserving the juice. Add the orange juice to the vinaigrette dressing (recipe for dressing below). Add the mustard and sugar and whisk to combine well. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.

4. When the rice is cooked, remove it from the heat and cool slightly, uncovered. Discard the orange rind.

5. Turn the rice into a bowl and add half of the dressing. Toss well and cool completely.

6. Add the chicken, chives, cashews and orange segments to the rice with the remaining dressing. Toss gently. Serve at room temperature, garnished with cucumber.

Vinaigrette Dressing 

Makes just over 3/4 cup

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons wine vinegar
salt and pepper
2/3 cup vegetable or olive oil

1. Put vinegar, salt and pepper in a bowl and whisk to dissolve the salt. Gradually add the oil, stirring with the whisk. Taste and adjust seasoning.

This recipe was taken from a Barnes and Noble cookbook titled: The Cook’s Encyclopedia of Chicken

Greek Orzo Salad

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A few years back my friend Marie asked me what she could bring to my daughter’s summer birthday party as a side dish to BBQ foods. I wasn’t sure what she should bring and she suggested an Orzo Salad. Since everything she makes is amazing, I said, “Sure!” It was such a huge hit! Everyone loved it and since then it has earned a permanent place on my food table for my daughter’s birthday parties. I am sure there are similar recipes floating around the internet, this one was clipped out of a local newspaper.

Ingredients:

1 cup Orzo
6 tablespoons olive oil
5 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 small red onion, minced
1 ½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
¼ cup minced parsley
2 large tomatoes, diced
1 English cucumber diced
12 Greek olives, halved and pitted
6 ounces feta cheese

In large saucepan bring 2 quarts water to a vigorous boil. Add orzo and cook until slightly at dente (8 to 10 minutes). Rinse, drain, and place in 2 quart serving dish, toss with 1 tablespoon oil.

Whisk together remaining olive oil, vinegar, onion, salt, pepper, oregano and parsley. Pour over orzo, cover and chill for 2 to 24 hours. Toss remaining ingredients with orzo mixture before serving.

Serves 8

Notes:

It’s important to use fresh parsley rather than dried because the fresh parsley is part of the great flavor.
I have made this recipe the day before by following the instructions above and refrigerating. I also chopped the cucumbers and tomatoes and put them in separate containers in the frig. Right before serving I added the tomatoes, cucumbers, olives and feta. This ensures those ingredients stay fresh and don’t get soggy soaking in the marinade overnight.

Zucchini Quiche

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This is a recipe my great aunt used to make and I continue to make for my family. It is fast and easy to make and tastes great! It’s not exactly a “quiche”, it is much fluffier and has no crust. I usually serve it with a side salad. The amount this recipe makes is usually devoured by my family of four in one sitting.

Ingredients:

3-4 cups zucchini
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup oil
4 eggs
1 cup Bisquick
Dash of pepper
Chopped parsley fresh or dried

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Mix together zucchini, cheese, onions and oil
Beat eggs one at a time and then add the four beaten eggs to the mixture
Mix in other ingredients
Put in a greased 13x9x2 pan for 45 mins. When done, should look fluffy and be golden brown on top as pictured.

Notes:

I have used a mixture of both green zucchini and yellow squash and it comes out just as good.
Any oil will work with this recipe, I’ve used olive, vegetable and canola in the past.
There is no salt added in this recipe. I like salt and feel it is a little blah without, so I will add some in the mixture and then on the quiche before I eat it.

Because “Bisquick” is used in this recipe, I did a quick search to make sure I wasn’t plagiarizing a recipe even though this one came out of the family recipe box. I found an extremely similar recipe on the Betty Crocker website. My great aunt probably got it off a Bisquick box long ago, some people on the website commented they have been making it since the 1970’s. Their recipe differs slightly adding more spices, you can find it by clicking this picture: a49e582b-e80a-445e-9179-f131e0f2cc07