Christmas Week...my favorite of the year.

Merry Christmas everyone! I know this week might be filled with lots of parties, baking, and loved ones; but I still have to cook, how about you? Needless to say, I have a crazy week and so I needed some easy meals, so here they are.

Monday- Spinach Mandarin Salad

Tuesday- Baked Pesto Chicken with Angel hair and herbs

Wednesday- Stir fry (chicken, beef or vegetable)

Thursday- Sweet and Salty Wraps

Friday- Chipotle style burritos

Spinach and Mandarin Salad

So I made this for my mom's group a few weeks ago and they loved it. I thought it would be appropriate for dinner as well. You can pair it with some yummy rolls as well. I make the dressing in the recipe, but if you are in a pinch you could buy your own. I never use the rest of the dressing, so I save it and make the Sweet and Salty Wraps later in the week. Recipe and picture from Our best bites.

http://www.ourbestbites.com/2010/01/spinach-mandarin-poppy-seed-salad/
Baked Pesto Chicken with Angel Hair and Herbs

I haven't made this one before but I have been wanting a new pesto recipe. I make my own pesto: http://www.marthastewart.com/314321/basic-basil-pesto. It is not hard, so don't be scared. The rest of the recipe seems very simple. Recipe from Momswhothink.com

Chicken breast

1/2 cup basil pesto

2 plum tomatoes

Shredded mozzarella cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cover cookie sheet with foil.

2. Put pesto and chicken in bowl. Toss until chicken is covered.

3. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

4. Place slices of tomato on top of chicken and sprinkle with cheese.

5. Bake another 3-5 minutes.

6. Serve with a box of angel hair pasta and herbs and French bread.

Stir Fry

Chicken/beef whatever you feel up for

Olive Oil

Onion

broccoli

carrots

Red pepper

Green Beans

Whatever veggies you have on hand or like

Rice

Soy Vay Teryiaki or your favorite teriyaki sauce

• Heat some vegetable oil in a pan until warm
• Add onion and stir fry for a few minutes
• Add remainder of veggies and stir fry for a few more minutes
• Add meat and cook thoroughly
• Add teriyaki sauce and cook for a minute or until warm
• Serve over white/brown rice

Sweet and Salty Wraps

Here's where you use the leftover Poppy Seed dressing! These are super easy and yummy. I have even used chicken nuggets in here when I ran out of chicken. So tasty. I serve this with a fruit salad and even some baked beans. Recipe and picture of course from Our best bites.

http://www.ourbestbites.com/2010/07/quick-fix-sweet-salty-salad-wrap/
Chipotle Style Burritos

So I am not sure if you all like Chipotle, but I do. I wanted to try and recreate the burrito and I think this tastes pretty close (at least to me).

Chicken

Taco Seasoning

Fresh Salsa

Black or Pinto Beans

White or Brown Rice

Avocado (if you like it)

Tortillas

Mozzarella cheese

• Grill diced Chicken until cooked
• Add taco seasoning according to package directions
• Cook rice
• Place chicken to tortilla and top with toppings

Shopping list

Spinach

Avocado

red onion

mozzarella cheese

broccoli

green beans

Fresh basil

Toasted pine nuts

chicken

pinto/black beans

fresh salsa

tortillas

taco seasoning

dried cranberries

feta cheese

bacon

carrots

red pepper

plum tomatoes

mandarin oranges

green onions

balsamic vinegar