Recipe: Sausage and Tortilla Chip Lasagna

Estimated Cost:  $12.00

Prep Time:  15 minutes

Cooking Time:  25 minutes

Serves:  6

Very easy to put together with terrific results.  Kids of all ages love this lasagna.

1 pkg. (16 oz.) Hillshire Farm Smoked Sausage
1/2 cup onion, chopped
2 cans (8 oz. each) tomato sauce
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 can (15.5 oz.) pinto beans, drained
3 cups lightly crushed tortilla chips
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 can (3.8 oz.) sliced black olives, drained
shredded lettuce, sour cream, chopped tomato as optional toppings

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

2. Cut sausage into 1/4-inch slices. Heat a large non-stick sauté pan over medium heat for 3 minutes. Add sausage and onion; cook, stirring frequently, 3-4 minutes, or until sausage is lightly browned.

3. Add tomato sauce, oregano, and pinto beans to browned sausage mixture. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low and cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Place 2 cups of crushed tortilla chips in the bottom of a lightly greased 13×9-inch baking dish. Sprinkle 1 cup of cheese and half of the olives over the chips. Pour sausage mixture over top; spread evenly. Sprinkle with remaining 1 cup of chips and 1 cup of cheese.

5. Bake at 350°F for 12-15 minutes or until heated through and cheese is lightly browned. Cut into squares and serve with remaining olives, shredded lettuce, sour cream, and chopped tomato if desired.

Mike’s comments:

I always have a bottle of Sriracha hot sauce on hand as the perfect condiment for this lasagna for those who prefer to bring a little heat!

Recipe: Easy Chicken Stock

Estimated Cost:  $2.00

Prep Time:  15 minutes

Cook Time:  4 hours

Serves:  4 – 6 cups stock

Having refrigerated (or frozen) chicken stock on hand can jump start so many recipes.  Not only does it speed up preparation time, homemade chicken stock just adds extra love into whatever you are cooking.  
I use a lot of precooked rotisserie chickens in my recipes, many of which are already available here at Kitchen Survival.  I NEVER throw away the carcass of the bird before making up a batch of chicken stock.

Leftover bones and skin from a cooked or raw chicken carcass
1 lg. onion, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped (include some leaves)
1 large carrot, chopped
1 tsp. parsley
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

1. Put chicken carcass (including skin) into a large stock pot and cover with cold water. Add onion, celery, carrot, parsley, salt, and pepper.

2. Bring to a boil and immediately reduce heat to bring the stock to a simmer. Simmer uncovered at least 4 hours, occasionally skimming off the foam that comes to the surface.

3. Remove the bones and strain the stock.

4. Stock may be refrigerated (for up to 10 days) or frozen for future use.

Mike’s comments:

I always freeze my chicken stock in 1 cup portions using Ziploc containers. You can thaw it in minutes, either on the stove or microwave. In this way you don’t risk letting your hard work spoil in the fridge.

Recipe: Quick and Easy Chicken Gravy

Estimated Cost:  $2.00

Prep Time:  10 minutes

Cook Time:  10 minutes

Serves:  2 cups of gravy

Making gravy from the drippings of a roasted chicken is great.  It also requires the time to roast a chicken.  I am sure you are like me and don’t always have the time to make chicken gravy the way Mom used to.  For just those times, I present “Quick and Easy Chicken Gravy”.  I doubt even Mom would be able to tell the difference!

2 cups chicken stock (broth)
4 Tbs. flour
1/2 tsp. ground sage
1/2 tsp. ground thyme
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
3 Tbs. butter
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1 tsp. garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

1. Either in the microwave, or on the stovetop, heat the chicken stock to a boil; remove from heat, cover, and set aside.

2. In a small-bowl combine the flour, sage, thyme, and black pepper; mix well.

3. Roughly chop onion. Melt butter in a 10-inch (or larger) sauté pan; add chopped onion and garlic. Over medium heat, sauté the onions until they are translucent and tender.

4. Add the flour mixture into the sauté pan and slowly cook until it is a golden brown.

5. Add the chicken stock to the flour mixture and whisk continuously to incorporate the broth. Once the broth and flour mixture are combined switch the whisk out for a rubber spatula.

6. Continue to cook the gravy over medium heat until it reaches your desired thickness. Taste the gravy and add salt and pepper to taste. Be sure to keep scraping the sauté pan with the rubber spatula to avoid clumping.

7. For a smooth gravy, pour liquid through a cooking sieve to remove the onions. I generally skip this step but that’s just personal taste on ones gravy consistency.

Mike’s comments:

Have some leftover chicken in the fridge? Cube or tear the chicken, and drop it in a batch of this gravy. Serve over a hot bed of rice or egg noodles and you’ve got a fast and very yummy meal.

Recipe: Easy Cajun Smothered Pork Chops

Estimated Cost:  $10.00

Prep Time:  15 minutes

Cook Time:  15 minutes

Serves:  4

At just $2.50 a serving, and a preparation that couldn’t be easier, this is a great Ace in the Hole recipe.

When you need to put something out that impresses and delights, but its 8:30PM on a Tuesday, and you are beat – drop this Ace!

4 bone-in pork loin chops, 1/2-inch thick, trimmed of fat
2 tsp. Cajun spice blend
2 tsp. vegetable oil
1 medium onion, sliced
2 cans (10 oz.) Rotel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies, undrained

1. Sprinkle both sides of pork chops with seasoning blend. In a large, nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion; cook about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly tender. Push onion to one side of skillet.

2. Add pork to other side of skillet. Cook about 3 minutes, turning once, until browned. Add tomatoes. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover; cook 4 to 8 minutes or until pork is no longer pink in center.

Mike’s comments:

You can certainly use a store-bought Cajun spice blend. Or you can save a few bucks and make a homemade blend that tastes even better. Here is a link to a recipe that shows you how to easily do just that:

Cajun Spice Blend

Recipe: Cowboy Caviar

Estimated Cost:  $8.00

Prep Time:  15 minutes

Refrigeration Time:  2 hours

Serves:  12

“Black beans and olives, rather than sturgeon roe, take prize of place here.  After the yummy taste of southwestern ‘caviar,’ it’s hard to go back to the itty-bitty stuff city folk call caviar.”

That’s exactly how this recipe was described in the book I originally stumbled across it in.  I’ve made a few modifications but I still agree with the above statement.  It makes for a beautiful presentation and guests are guaranteed to love the tex-mex flavor.

1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (4 oz.) chopped black olives, drained
1 can (4 oz.) diced green chilies, drained
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
2 Tbs. lime juice
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
2 green onions (with top), chopped

1. Mix all ingredients except cream cheese, eggs, and green onion. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

2. Spread cream cheese on serving plate. Spoon bean mixture evenly over cream cheese. Arrange eggs on bean mixture in a ring shape. Sprinkle green onions inside ring of egg (see photo).

3. Serve with nacho chips.

Mike’s comments:

One of my favorite dishes to bring to a potluck or party – the easy recipe yields a very professional looking presentation and this dip is brimming with yummy flavor.