Chicken, Cheddar and Broccoli Pinwheels

This is a quickie because I am getting ready for a Cinco de Mayo party tomorrow, which will be full of delicious pictures and recipes- I know I'm a slacker by not getting you guys the recipes beforehand, but hey they will be good for any day of the year. Especially grillin time. Enjoy your weekends!


Ingredients

• 1 batch of home made pizza dough (or store bought)
• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced into small bite sized pieces
• 2 heads of broccoli crowns, cut into small florets
• about 1-2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese (depending on how cheesy you like it)
• salt, pepper and red pepper flakes
• 1 lemon, juice and zest

Directions

1. Preheat your oven it 450 degrees F
2. In a skillet heat some oil on high and cook off the chicken just until it isn't pink (try to not cook it all the way through because it will finish cooking in the oven). Season with salt and pepper and red pepper flakes
3. During the last minute or so throw in the broccoli and season with more salt and pepper and then add the lemon juice and zest. Turn off the heat and then set aside until it is cool enough to handle.
4. Sprinkle your working surface with flour and roll out your pizza dough into a large rectangle. (I also didn't use the entire batch of homemade dough- just throw left over dough in a ziplock and put in the fridge for next time) I rolled mine roughly into a size about a foot high and foot and a half long.
5. Sprinkle the dough with your cheese. Then spread out the chicken and broccoli- try to shake off any excess liquid before placing on the dough.
6. Put some flour on your hands and carefully start to fold over the edge closest to you onto itself- aka you are rolling up the dough now into a log shape.
7. Once it is all rolled up cut into about 2 inch slices. Gently squish together a bit to keep the shape and place on a baking sheet lined with foil and sprayed with cooking spray.
8. This makes about 10 pinwheels.
9. I like to drizzle and rub each one with a touch of oil before baking for about 15 minutes.

Cool and enjoy! (Also if you need to reheat quickly- cut in half and pop under the broiler for a couple minutes)

Beefy Southwestern Casserole

So this is basically a hamburger helper but way more delicious.  When I tasted this it was amazing.  Also super easy to make.  Originally I was making tacos but I got lazy and made a casserole instead.

Potential other names for this dish:
Beefy Burrito Casserole
Taco Pasta Casserole
Beefy Taco Casserole
and the list goes on...

If you wanted to add things like fresh peppers and onions that would be great in here too.

Ingredients

• 1 pound of pasta- your choice.  I used half whole wheat rotini and half regular elbows
• 1 1/2 lb of ground beef
• 1 cup of salsa
• 1 cup of cheddar cheese, plus a little more for sprinkling on top
• 1 can of beans, drained and rinsed- I obviously used black beans
• 1 can of corn, drained
• 1 packet of taco seasoning (usually I make my own but we all cut corners sometimes)

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F
2. Boil water for the pasta, cook until al dente, drain and reserve
3. (If you are adding fresh ingredients like peppers or onion cook them in the skillet before the meat.  Cook only a couple minutes then incorporate them into the meat while browning.)
4. In a skillet brown the meat and crumble.  I followed the directions on the taco seasoning packet- when the meat is brown, drain and then add the seasoning and about 1 cup of water.  Heat until thick.
5. In a big bowl or right in a large 9 x 13 casserole dish mix the pasta, meat, cheese (leave some for the top!), salsa, beans and corn.
6. Sprinkle the top with some cheese, cover and pop in the oven for 20 minutes. 
7. If you wanted a brown cheesy top- turn on your broiler, remove the foil and let it sit under the broiler a couple minutes until brown and bubbly.
8. Top with jalapenos, sour cream, more salsa etc- whatever you like on your tacos!