Friday Five-Adventures in Cooking

Today, for Friday Five, I have five new recipes that I have made recently.  Hope you enjoy!

As a side note, the first recipe I did not make so it doesn't actually count as one of my adventures in cooking, but still, you should know about it because it is seriously yummy!

First, Tequila Lime Chicken.

While I am hesitant to post a recipe that involves alcohol, the fact is, we (and by we, I mean Jason) made this and it was so very delicious.  It is, of course, a Pioneer Woman recipe and as usual she did not disappoint.  We did not marinate for the full time the recipe called for and it still turned out very flavorful.  In addition to the chicken we made black beans and rice and served it all with a tortilla, some avocado slices and a little monterey jack cheese.  Super delicious and great for a night when you want to grill and want mexican!  Can't wait for Jason to make this again! 

Second, Blueberry Gems from Paula Deen. 

I may have mentioned that my bff, Rochelle, sent me two Paula Deen cookbooks for my birthday.  She has a love affair with Paula Deen like I do with Pioneer Woman.  And since I have a ton of blueberries from our recent berry farm outings I decided to find a great Paula Deen recipe to make.  These were so scrumptious.  They were also very easy to make and involved no mixer!  I did not have self rising flour, so I made do with all purpose and added the baking powder and salt.  I think that they would have turned out even better if I had used the correct flour.  The only weird thing about these was that they got a little mushy overnight.  I always put leftover muffins in a ziploc to store them, but these did not do well with that method.  Who knows?  I will be making these again.

Next, Pot Pie Cups.

I actually found these on pinterest and decided to try them.  We had them last night and they were pretty good.  Would have them again if I needed something fast and easy.  I thought for sure the girls would love them given the fact that they made of biscuits...but not so much.  Turns out my kids are kind of picky eaters.  I do think that next time I would change the recipe a bit and not use as much cheese or as much onion powder, but that is just me.  Also, the recipe calls for small biscuits (that come in a pkg of 10), but I only had large ones that came in a package of 8.  They may have been a little big which resulted in me having left over filling.  No biggie since I can just buy another can of biscuits, but next time I will look harder for smaller ones.

Fourth, the Homemade Chicken Nuggets I mentioned.

My girls love getting chicken from Chick-fil-A, so I thought making healthy nuggets would win them over for sure.  Boy was I wrong.  These are tasty and I was glad to be able to try out panko bread crumbs in a recipe, but they do have more of an Italian flare.  The recipe uses oregano, parmesan and basil in addition to bread crumbs.  So while Jason and I thought they tasted good (and also were crunchy, not soggy like some other baked nuggets)  I doubt I make them again.  I have another baked nugget recipe I will try and then if they don't like those I guess I will give up!

Last for today Foil Pack Taco Chicken.

I wanted to love this, I really did.  I am constantly looking for good baked chicken recipes because 1.)  I hate cooking chicken on the stove and 2.) I don't know how to grill.  So when I saw this I thought it was perfect.  WRONG.  I am not going to waste anymore time on this recipe except to say that while the chicken was bland and not flavorful at all, the potatoes were delish.  In fact, I may try cooking more veggies the same way.  Will not be making again.


Every time I post a new Adventures in Cooking I am reminded how different life used to be before I would cook.  Jason and I ate out a lot before we had kids and didn't always eat very healthy.  Now, I am not saying that all of the things we make are healthy, but I believe that when you cook at home it has got to be better than going out to eat.  I am also reminded that I used to be a terrible cook.  Sure, I could make some things like tacos or spaghetti, but that was about it.  I am glad that I have overcome that and actually have some confidence in the kitchen.  Not only that, but doing this series has forced me to continue to try new recipes and find new things for my family to eat.  That has been so great since now we have more variety in our weekly meal plans! 

What are you eating?  What are your favorites?  I would love to find some more delicious dinners!