Tilapia with Ritz Cracker Crust

I made this tasty fish for Easter Dinner (we aren't big on ham). It is a great recipe, and the entire family raved about it.


The above picture is of the Ritz crackers I used. It is their "toasted chips" variety, and is supposed to be healthier than potato chips.

Here is the recipe:

Ritzy Tilapia

4-6 tilapia fillet, 6 oz each (I got mine from from Costco in the frozen fish section)
40 crackers (more if you want)
2 TBSP butter

• defrost fish if frozen (I put mine in the microwave, 5 minutes at 50% power)


• melt butter


• grease bottom of 9x13" pan


• put defrosted fish in pan


• put crackers in zip lock bag, run over with rolling pin to crush


• brush butter on top of fish


• sprinkle crushed crackers on fish and pat down


• bake at 350* for about 10 minutes

I served the tilapia with rice, corn, and steamed green beans. Let me know if you give the recipe a try, and how you liked it.

Banana Nut Oats from Biggest Loser

Here is a picture of my breakfast yesterday. I decided to try a recipe from the Biggest Loser Weight Loss Planner by Prevention magazine. They are on the magazine racks near the checkout in your local market. This issue had what looked like some great recipes, so I bought it. This is a nice way to eat your daily oatmeal! I enjoyed it, and it is nutritious.

Banana Nut Oats

1 very ripe banana, mashed
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 c. fat free milk
1 pinch salt
1 c. old-fashioned rolled oats
1 TBSP chopped walnuts

Mash banana with vanilla. Set aside. Combine milk and salt in medium saucepan; heat until almost boiling. Add oats and cook, stirring until creamy, 1-2 minutes. Stir in banana mixture. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with walnuts before serving. Makes 4 servings, 180 calories each.

Pumpkin Pineapple Bread

I found this recipe in one of my "church" cookbooks. It is called pumpkin bread in the recipe book, but I added pineapple to the recipe name also. My friend, Peggy, submitted the recipe, but I'm not sure where it originated. I was just thrilled to be able to use up the crushed pineapple sitting in the refrigerator! I was also able to use up a container of pumpkin puree from my freezer. What I like the most about this recipe is that the bread doesn't taste like pumpkin. It has a sweet, tropical taste. I made 3 smaller loaves from this recipe.

Pumpkin Pineapple Bread

2 1/2 c. sugar (you could reduce this slightly)
4 eggs
1 c. oil (you can get away with 3/4 c. oil successfully)
2 c. pumpkin
1 1/2 c. crushed pineapple with juice
3 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp each: cinnamon, cloves (I omitted this), nutmeg
3 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 c. chopped nuts (optional)

Combine wet ingredients and mix well. Combine dry ingredients, mix, and add to the wet ingredients. Put into 2 loaf pans, or 3 smaller loaf pans. Bake 1 hour at 350*. Remove from pans and let cool.

Polynesian Chicken and Rice

Tonight I decided to try a recipe from the Complete Cooking Light Cookbook, that I won in an online contest last year. It is a great cookbook, and I've been pleased with the recipes I've tried.

I had all of the ingredients on hand, so I decided to give this one a go. It tasted great! DH and DS agreed that it is a keeper!

I'm going to be out of town next week for spring break, so, while I'm trying to get back into the cooking/blogging mode, you won't see any posts next week.

Polynesian Chicken and Rice

Prep time: 14 minutes Cook Time 45 minutes

1 1/4 c. chicken broth, fat free, less sodium

3 TBSP sugar (I used 1 TBSP and 2 TBSP sugar free orange marmalade)

3 TBSP ketchup

2 TBSP white vinegar

1 TBSP low-sodium soy sauce

6 oz. pineapple juice

1 TBSP butter

5 skinned chicken breast halves (I used 5 boneless, skinless chicken legs)

1 c. uncooked long grain rice (I used brown rice)

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 c. sliced green onions

1 c. chopped red bell pepper

1 (8oz) can pineapple tidbits, drained

chopped cashews

Combine first 6 ingredients in a bowl; set aside. Melt butter in a dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook 4 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove chicken from pan. Add rice and garlic to pan; saute 3 minutes. Return chicken to pan. Add broth mixture, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes. Stir in green onions, bell pepper, and pineapple. Cook, uncovered 8 minutes. Sprinkle each serving with chopped cashews. Yields 5 servings.

I didn't add the pepper or green onion because I didn't have them. I think that it would be even better with both of those ingredients. Do give this a try!

Chalupas using pinto beans from your food storage

I got this recipe for Chalupas from my wonderful neighbor and friend, Marty. This is a delicious recipe. I served it last Sunday with fry bread and my young adult sons really enjoyed it! You could serve it with tortillas or even with corn bread. The two main ingredients for this recipe are pinto beans, and a small, boneless pork roast. I cooked this in my crock pot for 8 hours (low-med setting) and it was terrific. I got the Hormel boneless pork roasts on sale and used coupons to get the price down to $4. This is definitely an under $5 dinner meal, and served 6 adults with plenty of leftovers. I also liked how quick and easy it is to get it in the crock pot.

Don't forget to sort out your pinto beans on a white plate or other light surface. You can see the rocks in the middle of the picture....pick those out and put them in the trash (unless you like to see the dentist for dental work!). I also rinse the beans before using them in the recipe.

Here is the recipe:

Chalupas

1.5 pound boneless pork roast (I used Hormel)

1 1/2 c. pinto beans, sorted and washed

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 tsp cumin

4 oz chopped green chilies (canned)

1 T. chili powder

1/2 tsp oregano

1 tsp. salt

Combine all ingredients and pour water in to cover meat. Bring to a boil; cover and simmer 6-8 hours. Break up roast and cook uncovered until thick. Serve with tortillas, grated cheese, chopped onion, lettuce, tomatoes, guacamole, salsa and sour cream.

Sorry, I forgot to get a picture before it was eaten!

Thai Tuna Wraps

This is such a great recipe! My understanding is that this is a recipe from Pampered Chef. I got it from a friend, who got it from a friend! I have altered the recipe to decrease some of the mayo.

Thai Tuna Wraps

2 TBSP Lime Juice
1/2 c. mayonnaise or miracle whip ( I use less)
1 TBSP soy sauce
1 TBSP sugar
3 c. cabbage, chopped (or use a bagged coleslaw)
1 medium carrot, shredded
3 green onions, sliced
1 can tuna, drained and flaked
flour tortillas

Mix the first 4 ingredients with wisk. Add the flaked tuna, and mix with the cabbage, carrots and green onions. I didn't have a carrot or the green onions, but I am undeterred by missing ingredients. It tasted great!

You can used spinach tortillas, or another specialty tortilla. This can be served without the tortilla, too!

Turkey Zucchini Cheeseburgers

This recipe came from February 2009 Family Circle magazine. It looked like a good recipe to try, and my intuition was right! These were really good! We started eating before I could get a picture, but I had 2 patties left, so at least I have something to show.

Turkey Cheeseburgers

1 1/4 lb. ground turkey
1 medium sized zucchini, grated (about 1 cup)
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp black pepper

whole wheat or multigrain rolls
lettuce leaves
sliced tomato

Mix ingredients well. You can pan fry these, broil them, or cook them on the grill. Serve on whole wheat rolls with sliced tomato and lettuce. We put some thin slices of monterey jack cheese on ours while the burger was still hot.