Monday, October 12, 2009

Chili's / On the Border Gift Card Giveaway!!!


We’re leaving today on a road trip to Arkansas and Indiana. Big D hasn’t decided yet if he’s going to let me blog on vacation (I bought an html for dummies book in case I’m grounded from my laptop), so I thought I’d get this contest in before I go.

I have a $25 Chili’s/On the Border/Macaroni Grill/Maggiano’s gift card that I want to give away.

I am a very unimaginative cook. I’ve told you before that my goal in cooking is to feed my family well for as little money and time as possible. We’re usually at the swimming pool from 5-6 pm so I like having meals that can be cooking while we’re gone. There’s nothing like coming home with cold, wet, hungry kids to a house that smells like yummy dinner.

To enter the giveaway leave a comment with a delicious, low-cost, easy prep meal-in-one dish that can be prepared ahead of time. It can be a crock pot recipe or one that bakes in the oven for at least two hours.

I’ll draw the winner upon our return, which I think will be next Monday.

17 comments:

  1. Here is our favorite! It makes tons and freezes well too if you have leftovers. If you need it mild for little ones, just use the mild rotel.

    Shredded Beef Tacos
    2-4 lb. arm roast
    Chili powder
    2 cans Rotel
    1 can cream of mushroom soup
    1 c. dry pinto bean, rinsed.

    Coat each side of the roast with chili powder and rub it in. Put it in the crock pot. In a separate bowl, combine the Rotels, soup and beans. Pour over the roast in the crock pot. Make sure the beans are covered in the liquid so they will cook. Also make sure there is a little liquid under the roast. Cook on medium for 8 hours. Towards the end, start breaking up and shredding the roast with two forks. Serve on flour tortillas with sour cream, cheese, onions, tomatoes, jalapenos, salsa, guacamole, lettuce, olives, etc…

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  2. Taco Junk (I got this recipe at a Weight Watchers meeting, and it has been a staple at our house ever since)

    1 lb beef (lean if you like)
    1 can corn, drained
    1 can tomatoes
    1 can kidney or black beans
    1/2 pkg of ranch dressing mix
    1/2 pkg of taco seasoning mix
    2 Cups Salsa

    Cook on low 8 hours (for uncooked beef)
    Cook on low 2-4 hours (for pre-cooked beef)

    I serve over chips, over lettuce, or in tortillas.

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  3. I love Chili's so I'd love this card.
    Here's one of our favorites.
    Crock-pot Lasagna
    1 package egg noodles
    1 can spaghetti sauce (your choice brand/flavor, we like Four Cheese)
    2 lbs ground beef
    16 oz cottage cheese
    16 oz ricotta cheese
    1 package mozzarella cheese

    Cook the noodles until just soft, not all the way cooked or they will be mushy. Brown the ground beef, mix in the sauce. Mix the ricotta and cottage cheeses together, it makes the layering go faster. Layer in crock pot: noodles, meat mixture, cheese mixture, then again until it's all used up. Top with mozzarella cheese. Cook on low for a few hours. It's good to fix in the morning for lunch, or right after lunch for supper. We usually have a loaf of garlic French bread warmed up with it. Yummy!

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  4. MMM. These sound yummy! Don't tell BigD, but there was a computer with internet access in the lobby. The three little ones were crawling down the hallway last time I saw them, though. Oops, they've been busted by the hotel staff. I can't wait to try these recipes when I get home!

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  5. I am so excited to share my ideas with you!! I am a homeschooling mom of 4 and next to sharing ways to feed our soul, this is my absolutely favorite thing to share!
    I'm linking my response to a blog posting I did today that features one of our favorite fast fix recipes http://aroundthetablewithtami.blogspot.com/2009/10/make-it-again-mom.html but I also have recipes that will show you how to put 4 meals in your freezer in 4 minutes. And then you can pop them into a slow cooker whenever you want.

    I started a business in 1997 (to help feed those 4 kids!). The business is all about how to help other moms with this very question ~ How do I feed my family on a budget and make it taste great?


    I'm sure you are thinking I'm a crazy sales person trying to take advantage of an opportunity on a blog. I can only tell you that as the Founder of Homemade Gourmet, I truly am sharing here because I am over the top excited about helping families come to the dinner table with fast and fabulous meals. In fact, if you like the recipe you see on my blog...send me an email (link on the blog) and I'll send you the mixes to make the meal for free. God Bless, Tami

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  6. Oven Stew

    1.5 lbs lean meat
    4 potatoes (quartered)
    4 carrots (cut in pieces)
    3 onions (cut in pieces)
    4 celery stalks (cut in pieces)
    1 Tb sugar
    salt and pepper
    1 Tb tapioca
    8 oz. can tomato sauce

    Bake covered at 250 for 4 hrs

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  7. Easiest way to cook a whole chicken -

    Take one whole chicken (any size that will fit in your crockpot). Remove the skin and everything inside. :) Put breast down in crockpot, pour in one can of chicken stock and one can of water and cook on low for 8 hours (or high for 4).

    You can do anything with this after it's cooked - chicken enchiladas, pulled bbq chicken sandwiches, chicken noodle soup, chicken salad sandwiches...the list goes on and on. =)

    Enjoy!

    rchampagne@bocmail.net

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  8. My favorite quick meal, either for the slow cooker or the oven.

    boneless skinless chicken-
    1 can cranberry sauce- either the jelly or whole berry
    1 envelope onion soup mix
    16 oz of Dorothy Lynch dressing

    Add everything together and bake in oven covered with tinfoil, or in slow cooker until chicken is done. I used to serve a piece of chicken per person, but as they have gotten older and eat more, I started cooking the chicken and then cutting it up before serving. I serve over rice, but you could also use noodles. It makes great leftoves, but it usually gets wiped out first meal!

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  9. Easy Crockpot meal---

    A couple chicken breast
    and taco season w.water

    Cook on low for the day and then when ready shred and you have chicken tacos!!

    So good and easy!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Yummy - Italian Chicken Crockpot Meal:

    4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
    1 cup Italian salad dressing
    5 to 6 potatoes, peeled, & cut into wedges

    Place chicken in bottom of crockpot. Pour 1/2 cup of the Italian dressing on top of chicken. Place potatoes over chicken (you could add baby carrots as well). Add the other 1/2 cup of Italian dressing.

    Cover; cook on low 6-8 hours. (You could add freshly grated Parmesan cheese to the top when serving.)


    Yummy & Easy!!
    lisabradford101@gmail.com

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  11. People say "yuck" to tuna casserole but I love it! (2c cooked noodles, 1 can tuna, 10oz cooked peas, 1/2c Cheez Whiz, 1 can Cream of Chicken soup, 1/4c milk: Mix, Bake at 375 for 25min or so. Quick easy!) BUT, I love this even more:

    Tex-Mex Taco Dinner

    1lb. lean ground beef
    1T chili powder
    1c light sodium-free chicken broth
    1c water
    2c instant white rice, uncooked
    1/2c Cheez Whiz
    2c shredded lettuce
    1 large tomato, chopped

    Brown meat
    Add chilli powder, broth and water; stir. Bring to boil
    Stir in rice and Cheez Whiz; cover. Simmer on low 5min, stirring occasionally
    Serve topped with lettuce and tomatoes

    (I used cooked rice and stirred it in after the 5min simmer.)

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  12. This one is a staple in our house (my boys love it!)... heatherdemke(at)gmail(dot)com

    Salsa Chicken
    4 chicken breasts
    1 can Cream of Mushroom soup (LOW sodium)
    1 packet reduced sodium taco seasoning
    1 Regular size Jar Salsa

    Put chicken in crock pot and sprinkle with taco seasoning. Pour soup and salsa over the top. Cook on High for 3-4 hrs. Serve over rice and add sour cream and cilantro.

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  13. Ok...my cousin sent me an email this week with hundreds of crockpot recipes. The bad thing is they are individually linked..so i can't post the link, but I will send it to you...but its the coolest thing ever!

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  14. Hundreds might be a little overwhelming for me, Noelle.

    I can't wait to get home and try some of these wonderful recipes! I made King Ranch Chicken last night and the Texans loved it, but I'm not so sure about the Hoosiers. Tex-mex is a way of life for us, but I forget it's not for everyone.

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  15. I would love the gift card!!!

    Here is my favorite crock pot recipe!

    Italian Chicken

    Ingredients:
    1 Cube of Butter
    1 Pack of Italian Seasoning Mix
    4-6 Chicken breasts (or 8-10 tenders)

    Put top three ingredients in crock pot for about 4 hours on low

    Take chicken out and chop it up

    In crock pot mix:
    2 cans cream of chicken
    8 oz cream cheese (warm before to prevent chunks)
    1 c milk (add extra to obtain desired thickness depending on the brand of cream of chicken you may need up to 2 cups of milk)

    Put chicken back in and heat
    Serve over rice

    ENJOY!
    iamtheluckiest3@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  16. Smokey Beef Tacos

    2 to 3 Tablespoons chopped canned chipotle chilies in adobo
    1/2 cup ketchup
    8 garlic cloves, chopped
    2 teaspoons dried oregano
    coarse salt and ground pepper
    1 boneless beef chuck roast (about 3 lobs) excess fat trimmed
    16 corn tortillas

    1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a heavy pot with a tight fitting lid, stir together chilies, ketchup, 1 cup water, garlic, oregno, 2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

    2. Cut beef into four equal pieces. Add to pot and turn to coat. Cover, and bring to boil. transfer pot to over. Bake covered, until beef is fork-tender about 2 1/2 hours.

    3. Transfer beef to a bowl. With a large spoon, skim off and discard fat from cooking liquid. Shred beef with two forks, moisten with cooking liquid as needed. Season with salt and pepper. Serve beef with tortillas and desired toppings.

    I have made these Smoky Beef Tacos many times and they are great!
    jedoggett@embarqmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  17. Yikes, I about missed it!

    A recipe we like to use on Sundays is:

    Crock Pot Pizza

    Throw in the crock pot:
    Noodles (your choice, precooked)
    1/2 - 1# hamburger (precooked)
    pepperoni (optional, but oh so yummy!)
    jar of spaghetti sauce (homemade if you like)
    shredded cheese

    Cook on low while you're gone (it only has to warm since everything is precooked, so a couple of hours is plenty, but a little more won't hurt it)
    Toss a salad and call it lunch!

    Amy @ Raising Arrows

    ReplyDelete

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I'm an on-the-run mom to 6 kids who studied and taught exercise science in a previous life. I love all things running, nutrition, and health-related. I usually run at zero dark thirty in the morning and am often quite hungry before, during, and after my run, but I live a rich, full, blessed life with my children, family, and friends. My faith in God is my anchor, and looking to Him and His promises allows me to live fully even when life circumstances are difficult. While running gives me an appetite, my desire is to hunger and thirst for righteousness more than for physical food.