Walmart Meal Solutions: Poor Man's Lasagna

Today I am posting a quick and easy budget friendly meal. Walmart asked me to come up with a tasty low cost meal solution. I recently became a Walmart Mom, so from time to time you will see different Meal Solutions popping up on my site. I'm so excited to have been selected to be part of a pretty awesome group of Walmart Mom Bloggers.

If you're not familiar with Walmarts Meal Solutions here is a little bit of a run down. Walmart now makes it easy for you to pick up dinner for you family. Walmart stores nationwide have "Tonight's Menu" displays in the grocery and freezer section of you local Walmart. What does this meal? well now you can pick up everything you need to make a quick easy family pleasing meal.

No more running around the store trying to figure out what your going to make for dinner. Walmart makes it that easy by having all the ingredients ready for you to pick up. Every couple weeks Walmart will share featured products in their stores and meal solution that you can make with those specific products.

This is where some of the Walmart Moms come into the picture. We will highlight the meal solutions on each of our blogs. We will showcase the products, the cost of each one and then the featured meal solution for you to see. From time to time we will also show you how we put our own spin on a specific meal solution. It's all about showing you how to incorporate cost saving products to make easy family friendly meals.

Today's Meal Solution is Poor Mans Lasagna. This dish is just a simplified version of a traditional lasagna. If you're looking for a quick dish that you can have on the table in just about 30 minutes than this is the one. It's not only kid friendly but adult friendly as well. Pair this dish with a salad and hot french bread and you have meal for less than $10.

These are the Ingredients you will need:

2 - 7.25 oz Packages Great Value Macaroni & Cheese (.50 each)
1 - lb Ground Chuck or Sirloin ($3.28)
1 - Jar Spaghetti Sauce (use your favorite) (.99)
1 - 8 oz package Great Value Mozzarella Cheese (1.86)
1 - Loaf Bakery French Bread ($1) (not pictured)
1 - Ready Bagged Salad ($1.14) (not pictured)

Total Cost: $9.27

This dish was so easy to throw together. Just prepare the macaroni and cheese according to package directions. Brown and drain the ground beef and add to the prepared macaroni & cheese. Blend in the spaghetti sauce and pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Top with mozzarella cheese cover and bake. It's as easy as that.

Poor Mans Lasagna (Full Recipe)

2 - packages (7.25 oz) Great Value Macaroni & Cheese
1 - lb ground beef
1 - Jar Spaghetti Sauce (use your favorite)
1 - (8oz) package mozzarella cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the macaroni and cheese according to package directions. While the macaroni is cooking, brown and drain the ground beef. Add the ground beef to the prepared macaroni and cheese. Mix in the spaghetti sauce and add to a greased 9 x 13 inch baking pan. Top with mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil sprayed with baking spray and bake for 25 minutes until heated through and bubbly.

Note:Here is another way to assemble the lasagna. Spoon half of the prepared macaroni and cheese into lightly greased 9 x 13 inch square baking dish. Add half of the spaghetti sauce and then the remaining macaroni and cheese. Add the rest of the spaghetti sauce and top with mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes or until heated through and bubbly.

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This post is part of a series of making family meals easier with Walmarts Meal Solutions. Participation in this program is voluntary. Walmart has provided me with compensation and a gift card in return for this post. Opinions stated above are entirely my own. For more great Meal Solutions check out my fellow Walmart Moms.

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Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Brownies {Guest Post} Cooking With Libby

As most of you know I recently moved into a new house, so things have been a bit disorganized and crazy. I have been really busy unpacking which leaves little time for blogging. I have asked a few friends if they would fill in and do a few guest posts for me. I want to say thank you to everyone who has agreed because it has been a huge lifesaver.

Today I want to welcome Libby who is the face behind one of my favorite food blogs. Cooking with Libby. Libby and I go together like peas and carrots. We both love comfort food, so our cooking style is very similar. I guess that's why we get along so well. I'm hoping to be back within the next couple days with another yummy recipe post. Until then I hope you enjoy today's guest. Hello everyone :) I'm Libby from Cooking With Libby. I want to thank Tina for this wonderful opportunity to do a guest post on her site today. I've been a fan of hers for quite some time and it's such a great honor to be able to do this for her :) Before I get to the recipe, let me tell y'all a little about me.

I'm a Military Wife of 8 years to the most wonderful man on the planet. We are stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base in the northern part of Louisiana. I am also a Stay at Home Mom to two of the most beautiful and crazy children who are under the age of 4. It can be insanely chaotic over here at times, but I love it! Now, onto the recipe............... Chocolate Chip and Cheesecake...what a fantastic combination! Even better when they are mixed together to form an ooey-gooey brownie bar such as the one above ;) There is a story behind this dessert and I'm actually shocked I haven't shared it with y'all yet. I must have been around 25 or 26 years old when I discovered this recipe.

Husband Man and I had just gotten married and had received orders to move down here to Louisiana. If you are Military, or were Military, then you know how much our enlisted folks love to throw barbecues. It seemed at least once a month, someone within our nice, circle of friends would throw a barbecue and we all took turns hosting them at each other's houses. If you didn't live in a house, not to worry....we always found a way to throw one.. LOL Being a young, Military Wife at that time, I didn't want to show up empty handed. Upon the advice of my mom (who is also a former Military Wife), I took the liberty of supplying the desserts for all the barbecues. This dessert was the very, very, very first dessert I ever made and bought to the very first barbecue we attended.

The recipe stuck with us for years in our little, tight-knit group...and before each barbecue, someone would always request that these bars be made. Over the years, I have made other desserts, however, this is the main one that would be requested. Even though all of our friends have moved away, the memories of these special get-togethers will always be with us, especially when I make these bars ;)

Thank you again Tina for this wonderful opportunity to guest post on Mommy's Kitchen. I hope that some of you will come join me and the family over at Cooking With Libby. We'd love to have y'all ;)

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Brownies

1 - (30 oz.) pkg. of chocolate chip cookie dough, such as Pillsbury
1 - (8 oz.) packages of regular Cream Cheese, room temperature
1 - egg
1/4 - cup granulated sugar
1/2 - tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut chocolate chip cookie dough in half. Cover the bottom of an ungreased 13x9 inch baking pan or casserole dish with half of the dough, forming a crust. Use your hands for this as if you were filling a pie plate with a homemade pie crust. Bake for 10 minutes.

While baking, beat the cream cheese, egg (or egg substitute), sugar (or no calorie sugar sweetener), and vanilla in a bowl until well blended. Take the crust out and spread the cream cheese mixture on the top being sure to cover the entire top. It will be ooey and gooey and may blend with the crust and this is OK :)

Take the other half of the cookie dough and crumble it on top of the cream cheese coating, being sure to cover it all.Bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving. Store in the fridge, due to the cream cheese

Note: You can also use other cookie dough flavors instead of chocolate chip. Peanut butter, M & M, etc...

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Shrimp Cocktail Dip {Potluck Sunday}

Good morning everyone!!! I'm happy to say that we are finally moved into our new house. Now comes the chore of getting all the boxes unpacked and organized. Everything was pretty much just tossed into the house so were still trying to find things. I'm such an organized person, so this is really driving me crazy.

I know that we will slowly but surly get ever thing in it's rightful place. I would like to say thank you to everyone for understanding my absence and lack of posting last week. Today is really the first day that I have been able to get online and actually accomplish something productive.

I wanted to get a Potluck Sunday post up, because I know everyone loves to link up. Today I wanted to share one of my favorite party appetizers, Shrimp Cocktail Dip. This dip isn't anything new and I know you have seen it on your share of holiday and party tables.

I love shrimp cocktail so this dip is a nice twist to my favorite appetizer. Since we were moving the last two weeks of March I did a Pantry and Freezer challenge for my March Menu. This dip was the result of some shrimp that I had found in the freezer. I alwayshave cocktail sauce and cream cheese on hand so this was a nice treat for me. You can toss the shrimp in the cocktail sauce before spooning it over the cream cheese or you can just add the shrimp on top of the cocktail sauce which is layered over the cream cheese. I like it either way, but some people prefer less cocktail sauce its really your own preference. If your in a pinch and need a quick appetizer to take to a party I recommend this yummy little dish. Alright now it's your turn. Do you have a recipe you would like to bring to our virtual potluck? If so then link up your recipe at the end of this post. Please link directly to your post, not your homepage. Don't forget to include a link back to Mommy's Kitchen so everyone can view all the delicious recipes. I would like to thank everyone who participates every week in Potluck Sunday. I hope y'all will take some time and stop by and visit all of these wonderful blogs.

Shrimp Cocktail Dip

1 - 8oz pkg Philadelphia cream cheese, softened 3/4 lb - small cooked shrimp, tails removed (about 2 cups) 3/4 - cup cocktail sauce 2 - green onions, sliced, optional Spread the cream cheese onto the bottom of a shallow pie plate or bowl. Add the cocktail sauce over the cream cheese and spread to the ends. Add the shrimp and sprinkle with sliced green onions. Serve with an assortment of crackers. Note: You can also toss the shrimp with the cocktail sauce and the spoon over the cream cheese. Leave the shrimp whole of cut into smaller pieces.

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Chicken Divan {Potluck Sunday}

Happy First Day of Spring! Right now it's a beautiful 64 degrees here in North Texas. I love gaining an extra hour of daylight because it gives me a bit more time to take photographs. My photos seem to really suffer in the winter. Just look at the photo above of my Chicken Divan. Although it's not the best photo it sure is a yummy dish, so I apologize for the crummy picture.

Chicken Divan is an oldie, but it sure is a goodie. You can find recipes for this dish all over the Internet. Some are good and some are really fancy. For me I prefer a simple variation of this dish. I have taken a few recipes and tweaked them just a bit to come up with the perfect combination for my taste.

If I have learned one think with Chicken Divan it's best to use fresh broccoli versus frozen. To me the frozen broccoli just ends up mushy in the end. I also add a bit of broth and sour cream to my sauce. I really think it adds creaminess as well as thinning out the sauce just a bit. If you're looking for simple, delicious comfort food then Chicken Divan is your dish.

Alright now it's your turn. Do you have a recipe you would like to bring to our virtual potluck? If so then link up your recipe at the end of this post. Please link directly to your post, not your homepage. And don't forget to include a link back to Mommy's Kitchen so everyone can see all the delicious recipes. I would like to thank everyone who participates every week in Potluck Sunday. I hope y'all will take some time and stop by and visit all of these wonderful blogs.

Here are a few step by step photos this dish. The full recipe is at the end of this post. Using a 9x13 inch baking dish add the cooked broccoli then layer the cooked chicken on top. Mix together soup, mayo, sour cream, chicken broth and lemon juice. Pour over chicken. Sprinkle with cheese. Combine bread crumbs and butter; sprinkle over casserole.


Bake at 350* for 25 minutes covered, 5 minutes uncovered.


Serve over white or brown rice.

Chicken Divan

1 - bunch fresh broccoli, about 1 pound (lightly steamed for 5 minutes first)
3 - 4 chicken breasts, cooked & cut into pieces, reserve 1/4 cup broth
1 - 10.5 oz can cream of chicken soup

1/2 - cup mayo
1/2 - cup sour cream
1/8 - cup chicken broth
1/2 - teaspoons lemon juice
1 - cup shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 - cup regular or lemon flavored bread crumbs (I prefer panko)
2 - tablespoons melted butter

Pepper to taste

Boil chicken until done or cut chicken breast into pieces and saute in 2 tablespoons olive oil sprinkled with a bit of all purpose chicken seasoning. (I use Emeriles). Saute chicken pieces until cooked through. Set aside. Steam broccoli for 5 minutes.

Using a 9x13 inch baking dish add the broccoli first then layer the chicken on top. Sprinkle with pepper. Mix together soup, mayo, sour cream, chicken broth and lemon juice. Pour over chicken. Sprinkle with cheese. Combine bread crumbs and butter; sprinkle over casserole. Bake at 350* for 25 minutes covered, 5 minutes uncovered.

I prefer to saute the chicken breasts in olive oil versus boiling. I think it adds more flavor to the chicken. I also had some reserved chicken broth on hand.

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Guest Post: Mommy Hates Cooking & Mexican Pie

Since I will be busy packing most of the week, I have lined up a few awesome guest posts here at Mommy's Kitchen. We sold our house, so now the big chore of getting everything packed and moved over to the new house begins. The next two weeks will be pretty busy around here, so that won't leave too much time to post any recipes. Hopefully things will settle back down soon. I decided having a few guest posters would be a fabulous idea. So without further delay please welcome today's guest Kristy from "Mommy Hates Cooking".

Photo Credit: Designs by Summer

I recently discovered Kristy's wonderful blog on face book. I was hopping around as usual and noticed the title of her blog {Mommy Hates Cooking} I thought to myself wow that's a different title and why would she hate to cook? That's a silly question coming from me because I love to cook. I couldn't imagine hating cooking!

I poked around at her site and just fell in love with it. For someone who hates to cook Kristy sure has some pretty awesome recipes. Here is a list of just a few that I can't wait to try. Chili Pepper Pasta, Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cake, Slow Cooker French Dip Subs and Smoked Sausage Soup.

Here is a little bit about my new blogging friend. Kristy is a part-time working mom, who recently discovered that she was going to have to put aside her hatred for cooking. Kristy wanted to start putting healthier meals on the table for her family. She decided to start with the basics and each day try a new recipe.

Slowly Kristy turned her hatred for cooking into a passion. She shares her love/hate relationship with cooking as well as her recipes at Mommy Hates Cooking. Today Kristy is going to share a recipe for her yummy Mexican Pie.

I was recently given a recipe by a co-worker of mine that was a Mexican casserole using beef, corn and tomato sauce. Since my family loves Mexican food I knew I would be giving this one a try. As I thought more about the ingredients I knew that I would want a little more crunch to this casserole. That led me to turning this dish from a casserole into a Mexican Pie.

Using flour tortillas, cut them into long narrow slices. Place them lengthwise across the top of the dish, then repeat the same going in the opposite direction. My husband helped and cut ours, so I’m going to give him some slack on the narrowness. The final result should look like a grid.

Lastly, top the tortillas with shredded cheese and bake in the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is nicely melted.

I prefer my meals not to have too much spice to them, so this was perfect for me; however, if you like spicy you could add a can of rotel or a can of chopped green chilies to give it a bit of a kick. Serve as is or with your favorite tortilla chips. I hope you enjoy the recipe.


I would like to say a big thank you to Kristy for Guest Posting here at Mommy's Kitchen. I hope everyone will take a moment and pop over to Kristy's blog. She has some pretty awesome recipes cooking up over there.

Mexican Pie:

1 - lb ground beef, browned
1 - packet taco seasoning
1 - 15 - oz can corn, drained
1 - 8 oz can tomato sauce
Shredded Mexican Style 4 Cheese Blend
Flour Tortillas

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook and drain the ground beef, then add the seasoning as instructed on the package. Spray a 9 inch pie pan with non stick cooking spray then poor the beef on the bottom. Next, top the beef with the canned corn, and pour the tomato sauce over the corn, evenly spreading it out.

Using the flour tortillas, cut them into long, narrow slices and place them lengthwise across the top of the dish, then repeat the same going in the opposite direction. The final result should look like a grid. Lastly, top the tortillas with shredded cheese and bake in the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is nicely melted.

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Mandarin Orange Cake

This week my kiddos are out for Spring Break. I know spring is just around the corner, but I can't help myself from thinking about summer as well. You can blame my lingering thoughts of summer on that yummy Mandarin Orange Cake pictured above.

I am a sucker for most any dessert, but Southern and Old Fashioned Cakes & Pies are always on the top of my list. A few of my favorites are Hummingbird Cake, Coconut Cake , Vanilla Pound Cake , Moms Strawberry Cake and this delicious Mandarin Orange Cake. Some folks call this cake a Pig Pickin Cake, but I know it as a Mandarin Orange Cake.

This is my oldest son's absolute favorite dessert. He could probably eat the whole cake all by himself if I left him alone with it. This pretty orange infused cake is the perfect summer treat. Mandarin oranges are baked into a yellow or butter cake mix (I prefer butter). And the frosting is a fluffy cool whip frosting that has the addition of vanilla pudding & crushed pineapple. This light fluffy frosting makes this the perfect summer cake.

You can prepare this Mandarin Orange Cake days in advance of your get together or party. Because the longer this cake sits the better it taste. If you have never had a taste of a Mandarin Orange cake don't you think it's due time? In usual fashion I have included some step by step photos of just how easy this cake is to make. The full recipe is at the end of this post. Enjoy!

Add the cake mix, oil, eggs and mandarin oranges to a large mixing bowl. Place a few of the mandarin oranges aside for garnish (about 6-8 segments). Mix together the cake ingredients using an electric mixer. Pour into two greased and floured round cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until cake is golden brown and springs back. Remove from oven and let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool on a baking rack. Frost when cakes are completely cooled.

While the cakes cool, prepare the frosting. Mix the dry pudding mix and un drained pineapple together with spoon. Fold in cool whip until well blended. Add some frosting to the first cake layer and

spread the frosting to the edges. Add the second cake layer and use the rest of the frosting to frost the sides and the top of cake.

Finish off by garnishing with the remaining mandarin orange segments.



I know summer isn't here yet, but bake this cake and enjoy a slice of summer a bit early.

Mandarin Orange Cake

1 - 18.25 oz butter recipe cake mix
1/2 - cup vegetable oil
1 - can (15 oz ) mandarin oranges, undrained & separated
3 - eggs

Add the cake mix, oil, eggs and mandarin oranges with liquid to a large mixing bowl. Separate a few of the mandarin oranges aside for garnish. (about 6-8 segments). Mix together the cake ingredients using an electric mixer. Pour into two greased and floured round cake pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until golden brown and the cake springs back. Remove from oven and let cool in pans 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely on a baking rack. Frost when cakes are completely cooled.

Frosting:

1 - can (8 oz) crushed pineapple, undrained
1- 3.4 oz box vanilla or french vanilla instant pudding mix
13 - ounces cool whip (thawed) whipped topping

Prepare the frosting by adding the dry pudding mix and un drained pineapple together and mix with a spoon. Fold in cool whip until well blended. Frost both layers and sides of cake. Garnish with remaining mandarin orange segments. Keep refrigerated before serving.

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Before I go I wanted to ask a favor of my readers. If you have a moment could you stop by Babble.com. Mommy's Kitchen was nominated for the Babbles Top 100 Food Blogs. I am so honored that someone nominated my site. If you have time I would love for you to give MK a vote. I'm at number 14 but would love to move up on the list. Thank you in advance for you vote!

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Alphabet Beef Vegetable Soup {Potluck Sunday}

Good morning everyone and happy Potluck Sunday. Today's post is going to be a quick one, so I apologize in advance. We have a lot's of things on our to do list, so I really need to get busy. Today I am sharing a yummy Alphabet Beef Vegetable Soup recipe with y'all. Now that the cold weather is pretty much behind us we won't be eating too many soups around here. Well fingers crossed on that one because we do live in Texas, so the weather can change in the blink of an eye.

I found this recipe in the October 2009 issue of Family Circle Magazine. My kids loved the little alphabet noodles that were in this soup. But what I loved most about this soup is that it was cooked in the crock pot. You will have to saute' the meat and the vegetables in a skillet first, but doesn't take any time at all. After that the rest the cooking time is done in the crock pot. My whole family really enjoyed this recipe and we will definitely be making it again. So today I am bringing a big crock pot full of soup to our potluck.

Alright now it's your turn. Do you have a recipe you would like to bring to our virtual potluck? If so then come join the fun and link up your dish. Please link directly to your recipe post, not your homepage. Also don't forget to include a link back to Mommy's Kitchen so everyone can see all the delicious recipes. I would like to thank everyone who participates every week in Potluck Sunday. I hope you will take some time and stop by all of these wonderful blogs who contributed recipes.

Cut beef into about 1 inch pieces and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large non stick skillet over high heat. Add beef, don't over crowd the skillet. Cook for 2 minutes and then transfer the meat to a large slow cooker. Add onions and carrot to the skillet and saute for 3 minutes.

Transfer contents of skillet to slow cooker. Add tomato sauce, beef broth, chicken broth and green beans. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours. Remove the cover and add the peas, corn and noodles. Cover and cook for an additional 45 minutes.

Serve with hot crusty bread.

Alphabet Beef Vegetable Soup

1 1/2 lbs - beef sirloin, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 1/2 - teaspoons salt
1 /2 - teaspoon ground black pepper
Dash of Emerils Essence (couple shakes)
2 - tablespoons vegetable oil
1 - small to medium onion, finely chopped
3 - medium sized carrots, finely chopped
1 - 15 oz can tomato sauce
3 - cups low sodium beef broth
2 - cups low sodium chicken broth
4 - ounces green beans
2 -cups frozen peas, thawed
2 - cups frozen corn, thawed
1 - 1 1/2 cups alphabet noodles, uncooked

Cut beef into pieces and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large non stick skillet over high heat. Add beef, don't over crowd the meat. Cook for 2 minutes. Transfer the meat to a slow cooker. Add onions and carrot to the skillet and saute for 3 minutes. Transfer contents of skillet to slow cooker.

Add tomato sauce, beef broth, chicken broth and green beans. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours. Remove the cover and add the peas, corn and noodles. If you feel that you need to add some more water feel free to do so. Cover and cook for an additional 45 minutes before serving.

Recipe source: family circle magazine

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Orange Chicken & Vegetables {Chinese Take - In}

Asian, Korean and Chinese cuisine are my favorite dishes. When my husband and I go out for dinner and he asks me what I want to eat, Chinese food is always my first answer. I could eat Asian food everyday and never get bored. My husband on the other hand not so much.

He is more of a meat and potatoes kind of guy. That's why I take him up on Chinese food anytime it's offered. Since I don't get to eat Chinese take out as much as I would like. The next best thing is recreating those wonderful takeout dishes at home.

Orange Chicken & Vegetables is my new favorite copy cat Chinese takeout meal. I found this recipe while I was doing my usual blog hopping over at Jamie Cooks It Up. (I just love that girl). When I saw the photo I was hooked. Goodness who could resist lightly breaded chicken breast pieces blended with veggies and covered in a sticky, sweet orange sauce. Yum is all I can say.

My husband is a big orange flavored fan when it comes to Chinese food so; his thoughts on this dish were to add a bit of grated orange zest as a garnish. I think that might be a great addition so I will try that next time I make it. All I can say is this was the most delicious homemade orange chicken I have had. So yes this recipe is a defiantly a keeper. Next time you get bitten by the Chinese takeout bug remember this recipe and just stay home and make it yourself.

Let's get started with some step by step photos. first cut the chicken breasts into 1 - 1 1/2 inch cubes. Combine the flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small bowl or large zip lock bag. Toss the chicken around until all of the pieces are covered.

Heat a large skillet or wok. When it's nice and hot add 1 tablespoon of oil and then add the chicken. (add in batches of two so the chicken cooks evenly) you don't want to crowd the pan or it will be harder to brown the chicken pieces.

Cook your chicken until it is golden all over. (Approx 10 minutes) While the chicken is cooking, chop up your veggies. Make sure they are about the same size. When the chicken is golden brown place it on a plate lined with a paper towel. Add another tablespoon of oil into the hot skillet. Add your veggies and cook over medium high heat until crisp but still tender.

While your veggies cook add all the sauce ingredients to a medium sized sauce pan. Whisk them together until they are all combined nicely. Bring to a boil. Once it boils it should start to thicken up. When your veggies are crisp and tender add your thickened sauce to the pan and then add the chicken.

Stir the mixture until all the veggies and chicken is coated with that yummy orange sauce. Serve over white rice or Chinese noodles.

There you have it fast, easy Chinese take out at home.

Orange Chicken & Vegetables

4 - boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut 1 - inch pieces
3/4 - cup flour
1/4 - teaspoon salt
2 - tablespoons olive oil
5 - large carrots, julienned
1 - small onion, cut
2 - bell peppers, red, green or orange, cut into chunks
4 - 6 stalks celery, sliced
1 - 8 oz can water chestnuts, drained
salt and pepper to taste, to taste

Orange Sauce:

3/4 - cup fresh orange juice
1/4 - cup soy sauce
1/2 - teaspoon ginger
2 - teaspoon rice vinegar
1/2 - cup brown sugar
1/2 - teaspoon sesame oil
pinch of red pepper flakes, optional
2 - tablespoons corn starch
1 - cup chicken broth

Cut the chicken breasts up into 1 - 1 1/2 inch cubes. Combine the flour and the 1/4 teaspoon of salt in a small bowl or large zip lock bag. Toss the chicken around in it until all of the pieces are covered. Heat up a large skillet or wok. When it's nice and hot add 1 tablespoon of oil and then add the chicken. (add in batches of two so the chicken cooks evenly) you don't want to crowd the pan.

Cook your chicken until it is golden all over. (About 10 minutes) While your chicken is cooking up, chop up your veggies. Make sure they are about the same size. When the chicken is golden brown place it on a plate lined with a paper towel. Add another tablespoon of oil into the hot skillet. Add your veggies and cook over medium high heat until crisp tender...about another 10 minutes. While your veggies cook add all sauce ingredients to a medium sized sauce pan.

Whisk them together until they are all combined nicely. Bring to a boil. Once it boils it should start to thicken. When your veggies are crisp, yet still tender add the water chestnuts, thickened sauce and chicken into the pan. Stir the mixture to combine. Serve over rice or Chinese noodles.

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Trisha's Crockpot Macaroni & Cheese {Potluck Sunday}

Today's recipe is perfectly fitting for our Potluck Sunday theme. You can guarantee that when you attend most any church or family potlucks that you will find a big dish of Homemade Macaroni and Cheese gracing the table. It's one of these dishes that you know will feed an army and please just about everyone. Today I want to share my girl, Trisha Yearwoods Slow Cooker Macaroni and Cheese recipe.

This macaroni and cheese dish is very good, very simple, and only requires a handful of ingredients. It does take about 3 hours to cook, so the hardest part of the whole thing is just having a little patience. I kept finding myself peeking under the lid to check out what was going on LOL. I know not to do that with crock pot recipes, but it's so hard to resist the aroma.

I'm sure I will get slammed by the high calorie and butter police, but that's OK, everything in moderation right? You can pair this dish with a vegetable and salad on the side to help cut down on some of the fat. Plus you can always substitute with whole wheat pasta, light cheese, 2% or fat free milk and less butter. I'm not sure what the results would be like by changing up the ingredients, so keep that in mind if you go with a lighter version.

As for me I will make it just as the recipe states and just eat less LOL. Believe me I am not eating homemade macaroni and cheese every week. This recipe is one of those recipes I save for a special occasion, potluck, or holiday get together because this dish is that evil.

Alright now it's your turn. Do you have a recipe you would like to bring to our virtual potluck? Come join the fun and link directly to your recipe post , not your homepage. Also please include a link back to Mommy's Kitchen so everyone can see all the delicious recipes. I would like to thank everyone who participates every week in Potluck Sunday. I hope you will pop over and visit all of these wonderful recipe contributions.

I temporarily removed the Linky tool from this post. For some reason it was causing half of my post to not be visible. When I remove it then the post works perfectly. Sorry for the inconvenience.

I have added some step by step photos of just how easy this macaroni and cheese is to make. This is a toss everything in the slow cooker kind of recipe. Well, at least that is what I accidentally did. As you can see by the above photo I forgot to pre cook the macaroni before adding it.

For some reason I thought it said un cooked, but I didn't it said cooked. I am happy to say that in the end the macaroni and cheese turned out great even without cooking the macaroni first. If you're looking for a easy dish to take to a get together, I recommend Trisha's Slow Cooker Mac & Cheese.

Trisha's Crock pot Macaroni & Cheese

8 - ounces elbow macaroni, cooked
1- 12 ounce can evaporated milk
1 1/2 - cups whole milk
2 - large eggs, beaten
1/4 - cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1 - teaspoon salt
Dash of pepper
2 - 10-ounce bricks sharp Cheddar cheese, grated (about 5 cups)
Dash of paprika

In a larger 4 quart crock pot sprayed with cooking spray, mix the macaroni, milk, eggs, butter, salt, pepper, and all but 1/2 cup of the grated cheese. Sprinkle the reserved cheese on top of the mixture and then sprinkle with paprika. Cook on low for 3 hours and 15 minutes. Turn off the crock pot, stir the mixture and serve.

Note: If you don't have a crock pot , grease a 9 x 13 inch pan with butter, add the mixture and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.

My crock pot gets pretty hot, so check your macaroni and cheese after about 2 hours. Mine took a little over 2 hours to cook.

Serves 12

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