Caite's Kitchen

Well this weekend was another jammed packed one as we had another birthday to celebrate - wish us luck, we now have another teenager! And as the dinner menu requested was recipes I've already shared, (when I say my family loves them, I totally mean it!) I needed to come up with something quick and easy as I didn't have much time to make anything elaborate. Despite my time crunch, I wanted something homemade, good and yummy and decided I couldn't go wrong with the classic flavors of the chicken enchilada. How do you make any dish easy? Throw it into a casserole dish and bake it! With all of these things floating in my mind, I decided to go for it and make a chicken enchilada casserole. When I say the family loved it, that's an understatement...they LOVED it!! In fact, there were no leftovers. Make this the next time you're in a pinch for time and want that classic enchilada flavor and you'll be your family's hero! (Oh and did I mention it's under $20,

This past weekend was Father's Day and I decided to try a new recipe as my hubby has been asking for it for some time now, Étouffée. For those that have no idea what this is, like me before I started doing my research, it's a Cajun dish and its meaning is "smothered". Basically it means yummy goodness served over cooked rice. Being that it's Cajun, there is a bit of spice but it's not too much - even our non-spicy eaters could handle it. The hubby and kiddos thoroughly enjoyed this new dish and I've been told to definitely make this again. Make this the next time your in the mood for something a little spicy and it will be sure to please the entire family! What's cooking in my kitchen this week: Shrimp and andouille étouffée What's you'll need: 1 lb raw shrimp 1 package (12 oz) andouille sausage 1/2 cup oil 1/2 cup flour 1 sweet onion, chopped 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped 4 stalks celery, chopped 3 garlic cloves, finely minced

Well, this past weekend summer made its presence finally known and it was a HOT one! Because of this, I didn't want to cook over a hot stove and decided to head out to the grill. We've had a lot of hamburgers and hot dogs lately, and while there is nothing wrong with the BBQ classics, I was in the mood for something different. With the idea of summer-fresh and light in mind, shish kabobs came to mind. As long as there is meat involved, my hubby is game - how can you go wrong with meat on a stick?! So I decided teriyaki chicken and lemon herb shrimp shish kabobs paired with an assortment of grilled veggies sounded like a sure hit and boy, was I right! Make this the next time you are in the mood to try something different on the grill and your family will be sure to love it! What's cooking in my kitchen this week: Grilled shish kabobs with grilled veggies What you'll need: 1 1/2 -  2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs 1 lb raw colossal shrimp 1 lemon fresh

I'm back! Sorry it has taken me an extra week, but wow moving has been tough and busy, busy! As promised I have a brand new recipe and it's featuring my favorite pepper, the poblano. As I've previously mentioned these peppers have a fantastic flavor and are not spicy, so I decided to whip up a new stuffed pepper recipe with these guys and oh yum, was it good! Even our picky eaters who normally don't like stuffed peppers were happy with these. I finished off the meal with sopapillas and the kids just loved them! Make this dinner next time your in the mood for some Mexican flavors but you want something different that tacos and the whole family will be sure to love it! What's cooking in my kitchen this week: Creamy chicken stuffed poblano peppers, pineapple habanero salsa and tortilla chips, and sopapillas What you'll need: Creamy chicken stuffed poblano peppers 2 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs 8 poblano peppers 2 ears sweet corn 1 sweet o