Parmesan Roasted Asparagus ****

My 5-year-old (almost 6, OMG!) has been begging me to make this again ever since the last time.  That was back in April, so he was getting pretty peeved.  With my oven being out of commission for 2 months, I never got a chance to do them for him.  So, since we got the new oven in last week, I made them for him again tonight.  I kid you not, my kids actually FIGHT over these things.  They're nothing really special, but for some reason, the kids are just crazy about them.  Of course, they also think it's hilarious that asparagus makes their pee smell funny, but what can I say?  Whatever gets them to eat their veggies, right? ;-)

PARMESAN ROASTED ASPARAGUS
(Reagan ~ Recipes Made My Way)

1 lb medium stalk Asparagus
abt. 1 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Sea Salt
1/4 cup Bread Crumbs
Fresh Parmesan for Grating (I just used dried parm. and I'm sure it would be a lot better with fresh!)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees with a rack set in the middle. Rinse and pat dry the asparagus. One spear at a time, snap off the bottoms of each stalk where it wants to break naturally. Lay the asparagus on a sheet pan with just enough extra virgin olive oil to coat and a generous pinch of salt; toss to coat. Sprinkle the bread crumbs evenly across the spears and put the tray in the oven to toast for 7-10 minutes, when the bread crumbs are golden brown. Grate Parmesan over the asparagus.

Previous reviews:
4/6/11 ~ I'll start by saying that my kids are not huge veggie fans. I can get them to eat veggies, but it's always with the knowledge that there's going to be a lot of whining involved. From the kids too. Ha! Seriously, though, spinach is about the only veggie that they continually will eat without much complaint. When I told them we were having asparagus with dinner tonight, I got the typical moans and groans. The end result was that both kids ate two helpings, and my extremely picky 5-year-old actually tried to go back for thirds! Hubby wasn't home to eat with us, so I was saving some for him. Out of the entire bunch of asparagus, hubby and I got 5 stalks each. The kids devoured the rest. The only way I could convince my youngest not to eat the 5 I was saving for hubby was to promise to make it again this weekend. Seriously. I am still in shock. Needless to say, we will be making this one many, many, many times!

Smoked Sausage Pierogi Bake ***

We do love pierogies around here, so when I saw this one pop up on my blogger dashboard from Cassie Craves, I knew I had to make it.  Especially now that I have an oven again (can I say "woo hoo!" one more time? lol).  It definitely did not disappoint.  The kids absolutely loved it.  They kept going on and on about how it was restaurant-quality.  If you know my kids, you know that they're full of baloney most of the time, but they really did seem to like this one.  Especially since it combined two of their favorites: ravioli and mashed potatoes, lol.  I used turkey smoked sausage, neufchatel cheese, no-fat and low sodium chicken broth, and diced fire-roasted tomatoes.  Browning the sausage first gives it a really nice smoky flavor.  It took me all of 35 minutes to make everything, from start to finish.  It was so unbelievably easy.  Definitely a keeper for us.

SMOKED SAUSAGE PIEROGI BAKE
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ via Cassie Craves, adapted from Lemons and Love)

1 16-ounce package frozen potato and cheese pierogies
1/2 pound smoked sausage, cut into small pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 ounces cream cheese
1 cup chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Green onions, thinly sliced

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Arrange the frozen pierogies in a baking dish coated with cooking spray.
2. In a large skillet, cook smoked sausage over medium heat until edges are browned and crispy. Add garlic; cook and stir for 30 seconds. Add cream cheese, chicken broth, diced tomatoes and pepper. Heat through until cream cheese is melted.
3. Pour the smoked sausage-cream cheese mixture evenly over the pierogies. Bake uncovered for 15 minutes until thoroughly heated. Add cheddar cheese; bake an additional 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Sprinkle with green onions.

Blog Hop!

I love these things! There are several good recipe links on here, so feel free to browse. And make sure to let me know if you try any that are really good! ;)

Dirty Rice ****

I made this for the third time tonight, and we still love it!  My 7-year-old has actually requested that I make it again tomorrow night.  And this is coming from a boy who claims to hate red and green peppers!  He cleaned his entire plate!  I really do need to make it more often, since it's so easy and so good.

DIRTY RICE
(Mommy2Serena ~ TheRecipeReview.com ~ Adapted from Allrecipes)

1 lb hot sausage
1 onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 cup white rice
2 cups beef stock

In a skillet, over medium-high heat, cook sausage, onion, red and green pepper until the sausage is cooked through and the vegetables are tender. Add the cup of white rice and two cups of beef stock and stir well. Bring this to a boil, put a lid on the skillet, reduce heat to low and let simmer for 20-25 minutes.
*Amy's notes: I like to double everything but the meat and veggies.  I also sub turkey smoked sausage and roasted red peppers.

Previous reviews:
1/24/11 Wow, we LOVED this one! The kids said it tastes kind of like Granny's jambalaya, and it kind of does. She makes the Zatarain's package and adds a lot of extra white rice to it, to give it less of the heat. This has no heat at all, which makes it perfect for the kids! Dh and I loved it too. You honestly cannot beat how easy and quick this was to throw together. My only complaint is that, as is, it really only makes about 4 servings. I normally make 6-8 of everything, so that we'll have leftovers for lunches and such. I ended up doubling the rice and beef stock mixture, and it was perfect for us. I also subbed the beef boullion dissolved in water for the beef stock, turkey smoked sausage, and roasted red peppers. Sadly, we were in such a hurry to get to the kids' practices that I didn't have time to take a pic. I'll have to do that the next time I make it - because there WILL be a next time. :) Love, love, love this bad boy!!! 

Kramer Crockpot Chicken Tortellini ***

As usual, there were plenty of "wows" around the table for this one. Initially, I was worried about the celery and carrots, but the kids actually had fun trying to guess what all was in it. It tastes almost like a thick chicken noodle soup. Dh said it reminded him of the flavors in a chicken pot pie. I like to use the pre-cut matchstick carrots.  I also usually put in all of the chicken broth from the can and use a 20-oz pkg of refrigerated tortellini.  This time, I had a bunch of sliced mushrooms that would have gone bad soon, so I threw them in.  WONDERFUL addition!  I'm going to do that one from now on!

KRAMER CROCKPOT CHICKEN TORTELLINI
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy)

2 whole boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of mushroom soup
1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of celery soup
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup minced celery
1/4 cup shredded carrot
1 cup chicken broth
1 (12 ounce) package spinach and cheese tortellini

Place everything but tortellini in your crock pot and cook on low all day (6-8 hours) or on high for 3-4 hours.
Either cook tortellini according to package directions and mix in before serving, or place uncooked tortellini in crock one hour before serving and turn it up to high setting, but stir gently often.
* Amy's notes: I use the full can of chicken broth and a 20-oz pkg of refrigerated tortellini.  I also like to add a cup or two of sliced mushrooms.

Grilled Cabbage ***

This was so good!  My kids even ate half a wedge each.  I was shocked.  I threw it on the grill with the brats, and it was absolutely wonderful to cook the entire meal without heating up the house.  My only complaint is that I think my cabbage must have been larger than the OP used.  Even after cooking 50 minutes, the inner parts of the wedges were still just a tad to crisp.  That's easily remedied, though.  Next time, I'll cut the head into 6 wedges instead of 4.  I also used turkey bacon this time, and I really don't think it was the best choice.  I didn't get that smoky flavor that a lot of the reviews mentioned.  I'm going to try it with regular bacon next time.  And there will be a next time.  :-)

Photo courtesy of Food.com

GRILLED CABBAGE
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ Food.com)

1 head cabbage
4 teaspoons butter
4 slices bacon
     Spice mix:
     1 teaspoon salt
     1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
     1/4 teaspoon pepper
     2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

Cut cabbage into four wedges.
Place each wedge on a piece of doubled heavy-duty aluminum foil.
Spread cut sides with butter.
Mix spices together in a small container and sprinkle all of the mixture equally over each wedge.
Wrap bacon around each wedge.
Fold foil around cabbage, sealing each wedge tightly.
Grill cabbage, covered, over medium heat for 40 minutes or until the cabbage is tender, turning twice.

Slow Cooker Creamy Tacos ***

We loved these.  I followed the suggestion of adding a can of corn and a can of pintos.  That made it come out a little less "creamy" and a little more "runny" than it would have otherwise, but the flavor was delicious.  I'm thinking next time I'll just drain the tomatoes some.  That should help with the runny part.  It was our first time to use the cooking creme, and I have to say, I am definitely a fan.  The kids and I had ours in taco shells with shredded cheese.  I added black olives to mine.  Dh had his on top of tortilla chips, kind of like chicken nachos.  I'm thinking I may do that next time as well.  This will definitely be made again.  It took me all of 5 minutes to throw it all together.  I used b/s breasts and then shredded them after they cooked.  Mine weren't frozen, but since they weren't shredded, they still took about 6 hours to cook.  I just wish I'd remembered to take a picture of it!

SLOW COOKER CREAMY TACOS
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ A Year of Slow Cooking via BlogHer and Kraft)

2 pounds chicken breast pieces (mine were frozen solid)
1 (14.5-ounce) can fire roasted tomatoes (you can use garlic-seasoned, or plain in a pinch. I wouldn't do tomatoes with chiles if feeding kids)
1 (10-ounce) container PHILADELPHIA Cooking Creme--- Santa Fe flavor
taco shells or corn tortillas
1 cup frozen corn, or 1 can corn, drained (optional)
1 can black or pinto beans, drained and rinsed (optional)
optional fixins': sour cream, avocado slices

Use a 4-quart slow cooker (if adding the optional add-ins, a 6-quart might be a better fit).
Put the chicken into your cooker. Add the entire can of tomatoes. Scrape out all the Cooking Creme (lick the container. It's GOOD!)
Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until chicken shreds easily with a fork. Stir well and serve in taco shells or corn tortillas with your favorite toppings.