Breakfast Burritos

One of my favorite things about living in New Mexico is the green chile! Many of you might have only tried chilies in their canned variety but that's hardly living! ;) Here you can get them canned, frozen or fresh!  In the fall you can buy a giant 20 lb. box and have it roasted outside...which I think smells amazing!

The breakfast burrito is one of the most common recipes made here featuring green chile.  You can make these with canned but seriously double check your store for frozen chilies! They are much better. If you can't find them, come visit me and I'll make you one.  If you love food...put fresh green chilies on you bucket list of things to try! The recipe below calls for 1 cup green chilies for 8 burritos but honestly Alex and I probably eat about that much green chili just between the two of us. You can't have too much ;)

Breakfast burritos are seriously one of my family's favorite breakfasts. Fast, handheld,  great for a large crowd, kids like them.  Their list of attributes goes on and on.  We make these at girls camp every year, we make them when company comes to town, we buy them if we go out for breakfast. They have all your favorites wrapped up in one yummy recipe.  Hashbrowns, eggs, cheese, bacon, and of course green chili.  Some people also add onion or salsa. Although bacon is most common you can add any meat you want.  Some favorites are ham, sausage, and chorizo. Try your own combos and see what your favorite is!

Breakfast Burritos (serves 8)
1 bag of shredded hashbrowns
2 T. butter
10 large eggs, scrambled
16 pieces of cooked bacon
2 cups cheddar cheese
1 cup green chile
salt and pepper to taste
8 large flour tortillas

In a large frying pan melt half the butter.  Place hashbrowns in pan and top with the rest of the butter.  Cover and cook until browned.  Meanwhile cook bacon and eggs.  Heat green chile.  Fill each tortilla with hashbrowns, eggs, bacon, cheese and chile. Add salt and pepper if desired. Enjoy!

Cheesy Potato, Sausage and Veggie Bake

I inherited some potatoes from someone going out of town this week and needed something to do with them! So I pulled out some different ingredients I had and started cooking and this recipe was born.  It came together fast and has all your comfort food favorites...potatoes, cheese, turkey sausage.  Okay, so turkey sausage isn't really a comfort food but you know what I'm saying :) I can see this being perfect for a really cold day this winter.

It's also made from scratch, so no cream of anything in it.  You probably have a lot of the ingredients on hand already!  Give it a try.

Cheesy Sausage, Potato and Veggie Bake
4 large baking potatoes
1 turkey smoked sausage ring
1/2 cup salted butter
1 orange bell pepper chopped (any color is fine)
1/2 med. onion, chopped
1 cup chopped broccoli
1/4 cup chopped green chilies (I used frozen, but canned would work)
2 cups milk
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp onion powder
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup shredded monterey jack cheese (plus some for sprinkling on top)
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (plus some for sprinkling on top)

Chop baking potatoes into inch sized pieces.  In a large pot, parboil potatoes for about 30 min.  Meanwhile in large saucepan, melt butter.  Saute bell pepper, onion, and broccoli in butter until tender.  Add green chilies and cook for 1 min. more.  Whisk milk and flour together in a small bowl and add to veggies. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened (about 5min) Add onion powder, salt and pepper, and both cheeses.  Stir until cheese is completely melted.  Place potatoes and sausages in a 9x13 baking dish.  Pour cheese and veggie sauce over top.  (I mixed mine around just a little to make sure everything got covered).  Top with extra shredded cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 min. 

Cheesy Ranch Chicken (Freezer Meal Friendly!)

My sister Christina used to make this all the time growing up.  It was one of our favorites!  I don't think I'd made it since college and then one day whilst planning my menu I remembered it and that it was pretty easy and that the kids would like it.  And they did! True story...the end.

Cheesy Ranch Chicken
6 chicken breasts (cut into large strips)
1 cup ranch dressing
2 T. flour
1/2 cup shredded parmesan
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Cut up chicken into strips (this helps it cook faster and gets more cheesy goodness on each piece of chicken!).  In a medium bowl combine ranch and flour.  Dredge each piece of chicken in ranch mixture and place in a 9x13 baking dish.  Cover with cheeses.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 min. or until chicken is cooked through.

For a crispier topping I like to broil on high for 5 minutes at the end.  Give it a try!

Freezer Meal Method:
Cut chicken into strips (or at least in half).  In a small bowl combine ranch and flour.  Dredge each piece of chicken in ranch mixture and place in 9x13 freezer pan.  Spread any extra sauce over the top of the chicken.  Top with both cheeses.  Cover with two pieces of aluminum foil and label.  Freeze flat.

Keep frozen until ready to use. Tent foil over pan.  Cook at 350 degrees for 45 min.  Remove foil, gently separate chicken strips so that they cook more evenly and continue cooking for another 50-60 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.  (Use a thermometer for best indication-larger pieces may take more time) Turn oven to broil and broil on high for 5 minutes to help the cheese crisp up on top.

Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken (Freezer friendly!)

So as the school year picks up I've been trying out some new recipes in my crock pot.  For this recipe I kind of combined a couple other recipes I had and adapted it for a slow cooker.  It turned out super yummy and my kids even ate it.  It only took about 5 min. to throw together too.  I broiled it at the end just to make it a little crispy.

Teriyaki Chicken (In the crockpot)
1 large package boneless/skinless chicken thighs (about 8-10 thighs)
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup toasted sesame oil (regular sesame oil or even canola oil would work too)
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar (red wine vinegar works well too)
2 T. water
2 T. cornstarch
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
2 T. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
2 T. sesame seeds (optional)

Place chicken in the bottom of a large crockpot.  Combine all other ingredients and pour over chicken.  Cook on low for 5-6 hours (I did 6).  Drain chicken (reserving 1 cup of sauce)

Shred chicken with fork and place in 9x13 in. baking dish.  Cover with reserved sauce from the crockpot.  Broil on high for about 5 minutes.  Serve over rice.


Freezer Meal Instructions: 
Combine all the ingredients the day before, place in a large ziploc bag and freeze it at this point. When you are ready to cook it just dump it in your crockpot and off you go!  The only change would be to add 2 hours to cook time if you cook it from a frozen state. Then shred and broil as indicated above.

 *This is a great freezer meal to take to someone. It transports perfectly in a bag and lets them use it anytime. Double it, keep some for your family and take a busy neighbor a batch just because! What a fun way to make a new friend :)