Tag: dinner for two

Zuchinni All-Star

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You’ll need approximately 4 medium zucchinis for this combo recipe. If you plan on making both, shred all your zuchinni first and take out a heaping cup for the muffins and set aside. My future self will be thanking me for this discovery when my garden is growing wild with produce!

Zuchinni Pizza Casserole and Zuchinni muffins. I purchase a 3 lb. package of ground beef and split it into 5 – 1/2 lbs. I had enough time to do this between the zuchinni de-juicing and the first 10 minutes of it baking. This particular recipe left me with half an onion and half a green pepper which I also sealed up. I already have a tasty plan for those, so stay tuned for a future post!

Make sure to get all the zuchinni juice out!

Zucchini Pizza Casserole

Ingredients

  • 2 cups shredded unpeeled zucchini
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
  • 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
  • .5 pound ground beef
  • 1/2 chopped onion
  • Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes to taste
  • 1 can (8 ounces) Italian tomato sauce
  • 1/2 medium green or sweet red pepper, chopped
  1. Preheat oven to 400°. Place zucchini in colander; sprinkle with salt. Let stand 10 minutes, then squeeze out moisture.
  2. Combine zucchini with eggs, garlic, parmesan and half the mozzarella and cheddar cheeses. Press into a greased 9×9-in. or 2-qt. baking dish. Bake 20 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink, breaking meat into crumbles; season to taste. Add tomato sauce; spoon over zucchini mixture. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses; add green pepper. Bake until heated through, about 20 minutes longer.

If you’re making muffins, grab that heaping cup of shredded zuchinni you set aside and scroll down.

*Also keep in mind to drop your oven temp to 350°F after you pull the casserole*

leave the zuchinni juice for this tasty morsel

Zuchinni Muffins

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • ½ cup apple sauce
  • ¼ cup vegetable oil
  • ¼ cup milk
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup shredded zucchini
  • ½ cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
  • ½ cup chopped walnuts
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease 12 muffin cups, or line with paper muffin liners.
  2. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl. Mix egg, apple sauce, oil, milk, lemon juice, and vanilla extract in a bowl; stir into dry ingredients until just moistened. Fold in zucchini, chocolate chips, and walnuts. Fill prepared muffin cups 2/3 full.
  3. Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.

Enjoy these muffins for dessert or breakfast! They’re absolutely fantastic!

I only put walnuts in a few of our muffins so there were no choking hazards for our 1 year old, consider skipping them if you have a child younger than 4. They can be a choking hazard for young children, largely due to children’s inability to grind food properly.

Chicken Duo Meal

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Chicken Black Bean Sweet Potato Enchilada Skillet and Chicken Quesadillas is how we are going to use a 2 lb. package of chicken.

I’m not sure if we were extra hungry or not, but we finished the whole skillet at one dinner. We made 3 quesadillas and had left over, I’m thinking you could get 6 to 8, depending how you fill them.

you will use the following ingredients in both recipes

  • yellow onion
  • garlic
  • red bell pepper
  • yellow bell pepper
  • chicken
  • corn
  • black beans
  • cheese

Chicken Black Bean Sweet Potato Enchilada Skillet

Ingredients

  • 1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon avocado oil or olive oil
  • 1/2 lb. chicken (breast or thigh), shredded
  • 1/2 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced into 1/2” chunks
  • 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup frozen corn
  • 1/2 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 cup + 1/3 cup freshly grated cheese
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350℉. 
  2. Boil chicken for 15 to 20 minutes until cooked through.
  3. Heat a large cast iron or oven safe skillet to medium-high heat. Add avocado oil or olive oil. Add onion, garlic, and bell pepper and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes or until onions are translucent and peppers are tender. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
  4. Add the chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, the sweet potato, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and chicken broth and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
  5. Add shredded chicken, cook 5 additional minutes
  6. Remove from heat and add corn, black beans, ½ cup grated cheese. Stir to combine.
  7. Top with the remaining 1/3 cup shredded cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until cheese is golden and bubbly and sweet potato is cooked through.
  8. Let sit for a few minutes to cool. Optional to top with Greek yogurt or sour cream, cilantro, scallions, and lime wedges!

Chicken Quesadillas

Ingredients

  • 1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon avocado oil or olive oil
  • 1/2 lb. chicken, shredded
  • 1/2 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed 
  • 1/2 cup corn kernels 
  • 1/2 tsp each onion powder, dried oregano, salt
  • 1 tsp each cumin powder, paprika
  • a pinch each black pepper, cayenne pepper (optional)
  • 1 cup grated cheese
  • 3-4 flour tortillas

Instructions

  • Saute all ingredients (except cheese and tortillas) for 5 to 10 minutes until cooked through.
  • Spray tortilla with avocado oil, place tortilla on work surface, and rub around to evenly coat. Sprinkle bottom half of unoiled side with a bit of cheese, filling, more cheese, fold in half.
  • I prefer to use a panini press or George foreman grill, they take about 2 minutes inside.
  • You can also preheat non stick skillet over medium low heat (no oil, if pan is not non-stick use 2 tsp oil).
  • Place quesadilla in skillet, press down lightly, cover with lid. Cook for 3 minutes until underside is super golden brown and crispy.
  • Carefully flip over the folded edge. Press down lightly. Cook for 3 minutes until crispy (no lid).
  • Transfer to cutting board, cut in slices. Serve immediately!
  • Dipping Sauce options: Sour cream, salsa, Avocado Sauce 

Enjoy!