In My Garden

Santa Fe Noodle Bake

When Kraft first introduced Philadephia Cooking Cream, I received a coupon for a free tub. I knew I wanted to use it for some type of pasta dish. Inspired by some of the other noodle dishes I've made, I decided to make a noodle casserole. The cooking cream is a good substitute for sour cream or cottage cheese. If you have kids or are in the mood for comfort food, this dish is for you!!!



Santa Fe Noodle Bake

Ingredients

• 1 tub Philadelphia Santa Fe Blend Cooking Cream
  
• 1-¼ pound Ground Chuck
• 1 can 15-ounces Rotel Tomatoes
  
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 8 ounces, Egg Noodles
• 1 cup Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Brown ground chuck in a large skillet. Drain fat, then add tomato sauce. 1/2 teaspoon salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Stir, then simmer while you prepare the other ingredients.

Cook egg noodles until al dente. Drain and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine Philadelphia Cooking Cream and meat mixture. Add plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Add to noodles and stir.

To assemble, add half of the noodle and meat mixture to a casserole. Top with half the cheese. Repeat with noodles and meat mixture and top with remaining cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, or until all cheese is melted.

I am linking this to Tasty Tuesday, Tuesday's at the Table and Tuesday Night Supper Club.

Meet Me On Monday

Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! There's no official Meet Me on Monday over at Never Growing Old today. I decided to go back and answer the questions from one before I started participating.

1. What do you put on your hot dog?
Mustard! About the only time I eat a hot dog is at a summer baseball game!

2. Do you play Sudoku?
Nope! Words with Friends and Angry Birds for me!

3. What is your favorite vegetable?
This is a hard one. I love vegetables. There's hardly any I don't like. I guess it would be asparagus!

4. Do you color your hair?
Violet red. Think Sharon Osborne, only not as violet!

5. What is your favorite brand of clothing?
I am more of a bargain than brand shopper. My favorite brand is whatever pair of jeans fit me!

How about you, what's your favorite veggie?

Pink Saturday

Happy Pink Saturday!

Lemon, Rosemary and Balsamic Grilled Chicken

In the summer we grill at least two nights a week. There's always chicken in my fridge and I'm frequently looking for new ways to grill it. I love it when I find a recipe that uses ingredients I have in my kitchen. Even better when it uses one of the herbs from my herb garden. This recipe does both of those things and it's delicious.





Lemon, Rosemary and Balsamic Grilled Chicken
Recipe courtesy of Emeril Lagasse

3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup rosemary leaves
3 tablespoons thinly sliced garlic
2 tablespoons lemon zest
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
8 chicken thighs (I used chicken breasts)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

In a medium bowl combine the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, rosemary, garlic, lemon zest and red pepper flakes. Whisk to combine and pour into a 1-gallon resealable food storage plastic bag. Put the chicken thighs in the bag and seal it. Turn to ensure that the chicken is evenly coated, then refrigerate, turning occasionally, for 2 to 4 hours.

Preheat a grill to medium-low and brush the grates lightly with an oil soaked cloth. Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat dry. Season the chicken well on all sides with salt and pepper, then place on the grill, skin side down. Cook the chicken about 8 to 10 minutes, turn and continue to cook an additional 8 to 10 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from the heat and serve while hot.

I am linking this to Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum and Miz Helen's Full Plate Thursday!

From The Good Life - Tempo of Twilight

Omaha's botanical garden, Lauritzen Garden's has a concert series in the summer called Tempo of Twilight. Each concert features a different Omaha 70's or 80's cover band. On this particular night, we were treated to the tunes of The Fabulous Rogues. We enjoyed a bottle of wine and a picnic dinner in the beautiful setting of the garden's courtyard.




The garden is also featuring an exhibit of large scale ceramic sculptures by artist Jun Kaneko.

Graduation Candy Pops

A few weeks ago I was looking to make something fun for Mike's graduation party! I found this recipe for graduation pops on Bakerella's blog. When Mike saw them, he said "crafty"! We all laughed about the different meanings of "crafty". In this case, I am hoping he meant that in a good way.

You'll find the assembly instructions here! I used red hots for the tops and Ghirardelli chocolate squares for the mortarboards. These were easy to make. The most challenging part was finding all of the ingredients.



I am linking this to Tuesday's at the Table, Tasty Tuesday's and Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays!