Cheesy Chicken & Rice in One Pan

I love new recipes. Pinterest is a great way to find them and it's how I found this one.
I love recipes that are delicious (of course), cheap, healthy, and quick. It sounds like a tall order, I know.

I'm always looking for new ways to sneak in vegetables. My husband is a "meat and potatoes" kind of guy... or maybe I should say meat and pasta. He loves pasta! Who doesn't?

Anyway, I found this yummy recipe that's a quick one pan take on the traditional chicken & rice casserole we all grew up with (minus the condensed soup too!)

The Girl Who Ate Everything is responsible for this deliciousness so I won't take the credit but yum!!!

Ingredients: 
3 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 yellow onion (diced)
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts (cut into bite sized pieces)
2 cloves minced garlic (I used 2 tbsp of minced garlic from a jar - for shame! I know.)
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup uncooked long grain rice (she uses white, but I used brown)
2 1/2 cups broccoli florets (smaller is better, so cut them down)
2 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 cups extra sharp cheese (shredded)

Head over to The Girl Who Ate Everything to get the directions for making this quick and delicious meal for your family tonight.

This was so tasty! Even my two year old ate two bowls, which is saying a lot since he's in the middle of that stage where he doesn't want to eat anything. 
It's quick too! It took me about 30 minutes from start to finish, all prep time spent chopping and measuring included.

Enjoy!
-The Crazy Earth Mama

(Image from The Girl Who Ate Everything -- and takes way better pictures of food than me!)

5 Ingredient Gluten Free Meatballs

Ingredients:

• Sugar
• Water
• Ketchup
• Oats
• Ground Beef or Turkey

Instructions:

1. Mix 1 cup oats with 1 pound ground beef or turkey in a large bowl.
2. Form small meatballs with oat and meat mixture.
3. Put meatballs into 9 x 13 casserole dish.
4. Mix 1/2 cup sugar, 1 cup ketchup, and 1 cup water in a separate bowl.
5. Pour ketchup mixture over meatballs. 
6. Bake meatballs in oven for one hour on 350 degrees. 

Tips:

• Some people with gluten allergies have a reaction to oats. If this is the case, be sure to use certified gluten free oats.
• For sweeter meatballs, use ground turkey. For more savory meatballs, use beef.
• My favorite thing to do is make these the night before and let them marinate in the ketchup mixture in the fridge over night before cooking. They're great either way, but if you can let them marinate for a while they'll really soak up the flavors!

These meatballs are perfect for serving with toothpicks at a party or with some pasta for dinner. We love them both ways! 

See, gluten free can be easy, cheap, and delicious!

Enjoy! - Crazy Earth Mama

**pictures are coming I promise!

For more great gluten free recipes I love, check out Gluten Free Life.

Pins for Wednesday

I really love Pinterest. There are so many super useful pins. I find all kinds of great stuff! I get tons of ideas for everything from birthday party planning, to making my own natural cleaners, and all sorts of things in between!

Pinterest is like Google with pictures and reviews!

With that in mind, I want to try something new. Every Wednesday I'm going to share my top 5 pins of the week with you! 

• DIY Honey Face Mask: This one is so easy! You probably already have all the ingredients at home. There's no weird clay or crazy expensive spice you have to go track down first. It's also super fast and leaves your skin feeling magnificent!Also, if you have oily skin like me, you'll love this because there is no oily residue.
• DIY NO Sew Shirt: This would make such a cute maternity shirt! I love clothing redesign ideas. I love new clothes but my budget doesn't always allow for new duds. Plus, I feel super guilty about buying new clothes when mine are perfectly wearable.  Redesigns like this one are fabulous because they don't require any sewing, which means I don't have to try to convince my mom to make them for me.
• Family Night Ideas: This is a great ebook from Janet Lynn Phillips. She has some awesome and unique ideas for having a frugal family fun night together. It's so worth checking out if you're looking for fun stuff to do with your kids that fits into your budget. 
• Crock Pot Creamed Corn: This is soooo good! I made it for Thanksgiving dinner. There were no leftovers. I had cousins grabbing bowls full of this stuff. It's that good! You can make a meal out of it. (Full disclosure: I did add a little extra milk while cooking as the liquid cooked down.)
• 7 Spiritual Challenges: These are some challenging ways to strengthen your child's relationship with God (and your own!). I love all the tips at the end about fitting God into the conversations you have with your kids.

If you want to see more of my favorite pins, you can follow me on Pinterest!

-Crazy Earth Mama

Visit Sara's profile on Pinterest.

Cheez-It Chicken

Here is another of my favorite recipes. I always get requests for this one. It's easy, affordable, and delicious!




Ingredients:

1 box cheez-it crackers

8o oz. Sour cream

4 Tbsp melted butter

4 chicken breasts






Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Slice chicken breasts to thin them out. This way they cook faster and each bite has more flavor!

3. Crush the crackers inside a ziplock bag. I like to use my fist and get out whatever frustration I've been harboring.


4. Coat chicken breast with sour cream.

5. Put coated chicken inside bag of crackers and shake until fully coated with crushed crackers.

6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 with each chicken breast.

7. Place all coated chicken breasts in casserole dish.

8. Drizzle chicken with melted butter.

9. Bake in oven for 30 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.

10. ENJOY!

-Crazy Earth Mama