Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup

Credit: Two Peas & Their Pod
Recipe: http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/italian-sausage-tortellini-soup/

Cochran Review: This was really good. You may notice on the labels I have Meatless and Slow Cooker. Meatless is tagged because you can make this meal without the Italian Meatballs... unless you're cooking for me boys. Ha! I had a jam packed day when I made this so I altered the meal to a slow cooker method. However, you do not have to make this in the slow cooker. Just follow original recipe for stove top cooking.

One cautionary word of advice, I found rolling a zillion tiny little meatballs time consuming and tedious. So, if preparing this on a work day or busy day, you may want to do this step in advance. You could put them on wax paper in fridge to keep or even freeze them. Also, I ended up scooping all of the tortellini for our original meal and buying another batch to make for leftovers. My family likes a chunky, hearty soup over mostly broth. I will definitely make this again with doubling the tortellini. Enjoy!

Here are some pics from our dinner:

I made the meatballs about the size of a baby spoon.

I couldn't decide which pic to use, so I offer both. Ha ha! Also, I decided to top the soup with freshly grated Romano cheese I had on hand from another recipe.

Slow Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken

Credit: The Comfort of Cooking
Recipe: http://www.thecomfortofcooking.com/2012/08/crock-pot-honey-sesame-chicken.html?m=1

Cochran Comments: This was super easy and super yummy! Lots of flavor. I only did a few things different from the recipe. I used 2 pounds of frozen chicken thighs. I threw them in the slow cooker, and generously seasoned them with salt and pepper. I didn't do both sides as the recipe indicated since my chicken was frozen. I would've thawed and seasoned both sides if this wasn't a last minute dinner effort. I then cooked my meal for 3 hours on high since the chicken was frozen. They were done and tender.

I removed the chicken and made the sauce as indicated. After the sauce thickened, I threw in about a cup of frozen sweet peas and let them cook in the sauce on warm until we were ready to eat (15-20 mins). I opted to omit the scallions because my boys are not fans, and added peas to incorporate a veggie. It turned out great, and everyone was happy.

As for the rice, I made four servings of brown Jasmine (sticky) rice in our rice cooker. This was the perfect amount. The quantity of chicken suggested in this recipe made 4 servings plus a small toddler serving for our family. We had some sauce leftover, but not an obnoxious amount. I think what I'll do next time is go ahead with the entire 3 lb bag of chicken and follow the same sauce measurements. Enjoy!

Below is a picture of our meal:

Steak: Fabulous w/o a Grill

Credit: Lauren's Latest
Reciepe: http://www.laurenslatest.com/steak-its-a-beautiful-thing/

Cochran Review: These were succulent and wonderful! I highly recommend making this recipe! Quick, too! One to two minutes of prep and nine minutes of cooking. I did a few things different from the original recipe post due to comments on the blog, but basically followed the blogger's original instructions. Here's how I made our steaks:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Fill skillet (safe for stove top and oven use) with 4 Tbsp of butter and olive oil. Oh yeah! LOL
While waiting for the skillet mixture to scream at you on medium heat, start next butter mixture.

Butter mixture:
- 4 Tbsp of butter
- 1 Tbsp of basil
- 1 tsp of white pepper
- 2 tsp of minced garlic
- put ingredients in a heat resistant bowl and set on oven so oven heating up softens butter

Salt and pepper steaks.
When skillet mixture is sizzling place steaks in the skillet seasoned side down. Don't move them, they're fine.
Cook steaks for 3-4 minutes. I did 4 and our steaks maintained a pinkish middle, but no bloody drippings.
Season steak side facing up with salt and pepper while other side is cooking.
Flip steaks after 3-4 minutes.
Turn stove top off.
Top steaks with butter mixture.
Place skillet in the oven at 400 degrees for 5 mins. Again, don't fuss with them.

Original recipe suggest plating them to rest, but I put them in a casserole dish so I could pour all of the yummy juice with them.
Cover with foil.
Allow to rest 15 minutes to an hour. I let them rest for an hour, but we ended up heating them a bit when my husband got home from work. I'd probably shoot for 30 minutes nest time.

I served this with tricolor quinoa with green beans mixed in and a salad on the side for the original meal. Yum, yum, yum! Enjoy!

For next day leftovers:
I sprayed olive oil cooking spray in a hot pan & added tortillas.
Then heated cut up steak and quinoa in the pan.
While meat mixture was heating I smashed fresh avocado in the tortillas and squeezed fresh lime.
Wish I had cilantro to add, but I didn't.
Add meat mixture to tortillas.
Top with salsa. Our favorite is Mrs. Renfros Mango Habenero.
Enjoy again!

Deer Chops in a Slow Cooker

<pic coming soon. Blog system having issues when I posted this>

Credit: allreceipes.com
Receipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/deer-chop-hurry/Detail.aspx

Cochran Comment: Dad brought us some venison chops from hunting season. Growing up a never liked venison chop dinner night. With an open mind and all due respect to our family hunters we'll give this a go, but have the pizza delivery number at the ready. LOL! Stay tuned.

Bacon Egg Cups

Credit: Fat Girl Trapped in a Skinny Body
Receipe: http://www.fatgirltrappedinaskinnybody.com/2011/04/bacon-egg-cups/

Cochran Review: We served these to our guests over the holidays with English muffins and fruit. Easy, tasty, and great! Perfect for serving several people bright and early in the morning. Upon suggestion within the reviews, we cooked the bacon a little bit before lining the muffin cups. This step could easily be done the night before. Leftovers warmed up easily. So, perfect to make over weekend to have quick week day breakfast available. Enjoy!

Dirty Shrimp in Butter Beer Sauce

Credit: EdsGirlAngie via Food.com
Recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/dirty-shrimp-in-butter-beer-sauce-79606

Cochran Review: This was a family favorite! I served it over angel hair pasta and everyone couldn't get enough. Enjoy!

Turkey & Barley Soup

Credit: skinnytaste.com
Recipe: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/09/beef-barley-soup.html?m=1

Comments: Making this for dinner tonight. I'm substituting beef with ground turkey. Stay tuned.