New Dinners

First off, happy birthday to my sweet friend, Kerri! She turned 35 today and I know its been her BEST birthday yet because now she has sweet Madeline in her life! Happy birthday, friend, you deserve it!! :)

So I have been trying to cook more "real meals" lately (which means less skillet sensations and other frozen stuff) and had some good luck with some new recipes I snagged off fellow bloggers sites this week!

So far this week, I cooked 3 meals and ate 1 meal leftover. On Monday Matt requested one of his favorite ww meals and since it was so easy I obliged. It is Tomato, Basil, and Mozzarella Pasta (ill post recipe at the end). I never have smoked mozzarella and rarely fresh basil, but it tastes just as good with regular mozzarella and dried herbs. I like this meal because it is soo easy and is a good leftover too. Pairs nicely with a salad!

Tuesday, I got adventurous and tried out Giving Up on Perfect's Cheesy Beef Enchiladas. Yum-o! One thing I look for in recipes as a working momma is fast, easy, and ingredients that are regularly found in my pantry! I did tweak this recipe a little, just using about 1lb ground beef, 6 tortillas, and then to make this cheesy meal a little more healthy, I used light Velveeta, 98% fat free soup, light sour cream, 2% Mexican cheese and Mission’s 96% fat free tortillas. I figure every little bit helps! I also used a can of rotel instead of just the green chilies. This meal was SO tasty and easy. I was able to make it quickly while the boys were playing and eating their dinner, and then I put it in the refrigerator until we were about to put boys to bed and then popped it in the oven while we settled them in so it was ready when we were finished! We had a side of blacked beans with this and it was perfect. Even better, with just the 6 enchiladas, we had another 3 left that we were able to enjoy Wednesday night with a side of the fat free refried beans. It was just as good the 2nd day!

And then tonight, I snagged a recipe off Kelly's Korner recipe blog...Artichoke Chicken! It was very tasty too. It was a little salty so I think I would cut the garlic salt down but even with that, it was still really freakin good. As always, we used lite mayo and tasted just fine! **Just went through the comments and seems like several people thought too salty, try a tsp not a TBSP of garlic salt**We served it with a salad and rice and was delish! Tonight I did add a glass of white wine to meal because, you know, its been that kind of week! ;-)

Hope that maybe you will enjoy some of these recipes too. Seriously, they were all quick and easy and tasty and it makes me happy when I am able to actually make a good meal.

On the Z front....about 20 minutes of crying after I left tonight, door lock is working well. Fingers crossed and a few prayers said that he sleeps through the night. And very thankful Mark again slept through it all!

Tomato, Basil and Smoked Mozzarella Pasta Salad il main meals POINTS® Value: 6 Servings: 6 For an interesting flavor boost, add sun-dried tomatoes to this recipe. Place 1/4 cup of dried sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl and cover them with boiling water; set aside for 10 minutes to allow the tomatoes to plump up. Drain well and substitute them for half the cherry tomatoes in the recipe ngredients 1/2 cup(s) part-skim mozzarella cheese, smoked, diced 1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste 1/2 cup(s) basil, fresh, chopped 1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste 2 tsp olive oil 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, or more to taste 1/2 tsp dried oregano 1 cup(s) cherry tomato(es), or grape tomatoes, halved 16 oz uncooked fusilli, or other spiral pasta Instructions Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and transfer to a large bowl. Add vinegar, oil and oregano; toss to coat. Fold in tomatoes, basil and mozzarella; season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm or chilled. Yields about 1 cup per serving.