Mely Cooks Monday - Special Link-Up Edition

Today I am linking up with one of my favorite bloggers Andrea over at Momfessionals for her Recipe Club to share an Easy Peasy Teriyaki Chicken Bowl!

Disclosure: I don't know if this even qualifies for a recipe because it's so DANG easy and only requires 3 things and a microwave but I promise, it's TASTY!

 

A few years ago I discovered Trader Joe's Teriyaki Chicken and with a bit of hesistance I bought a bag fearful that it would be gross. Well it was anything but gross, it's the greatness of Teriyaki Chicken without having to cook any chicken or whip up any sauces. I love this stuff with some steamed white rice and veggies. I posted the recipe using frozen Jasmine rice that heats up in the microwave but really you can combine this Teriyaki Chicken with anything your heart desires. Want to omit rice and serve it over sauteed veggies? Go for it. Want to use steamed brown rice instead of white rice? You got it. You can also serve it over some Chow Mein Noodles!

 

 

 

 

This recipe feeds 4

 

What you will need:

 

1 bag (21 OZ) of Trader Joe's BBQ Teriyaki Chicken

2 Pockets of  Frozen Thai Jasmine Rice (Found in the frozen Veggie Section)
1 Bag of Birds Eye's Steam Fresh Frozen Veggies (Broccoli, Cauliflower and Carrots)

 

This is what the Trader Joe's Teriyaki Chicken Looks like!

 

I found this Rice at Safeway but you can get any other kind elsewhere

 

Easy Steamfresh Fresh Frozen Veggies!

 

 

Okay, empty your chicken into a large microwaveable bowl and heat it up in the microwave for a 4-5 minutes according to directions and then empty your sauce packets on top and heat up another minute to defrost the Teriyaki sauce on the heated chicken.

 

Take your pouches of rice and heat them up in the microwave according to directions on the packet (should only take 3-4 minutes)

 

Now steam your bag of veggies for 4-5 minutes

 

Layer your rice, veggies, and chicken into seperate individual bowls and serve!

 

That's it. No pots or pans dirty, super easy and super tasty. You wouldn't even know this is done all in a microwave in less than 15 minutes! Believe me when I say I am not one who cooks everything in the microwave but sometimes you just want something that's easy, really tasty, filling and fast. This is perfect for a Monday night :)

 

PS: And for my almost-famous chocolate chip cookie recipe for a sweet dessert, click here!

 

~Mely 

 

Favorite Things Party

Today I am doing a fun link up with Andrea over at Momfessionals. It's the Favorite Things Party with all things under $10! Of course this link up spoke to me! SPOKE to me because I am very budget friendly and I love saving some cash money yet still being playful and buying girly things here and there.

 

Shall we begin?

Forever 21 Coconut Body Cream -- $4.80!

I got this cream as a little Christmas treat from one of my favorite coworkers and the stuff smells so good! Everytime I put it on I feel I smell like a Pina Colada. The stuff is actually pretty decent for being a Forever 21 Lotion but it's a fun Summer cream you can use for a casual day of running around in the sun. Yum!

 

 

 

 

Sally Hansen's Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear -- $2.50

When I discovered these nail colors I was so excited! Target always has a huge variety of colors in stock and I LOVE their color selection. I have at least 15 of their colors and I love them because they have such cute colors for summer. The colors also wear and last really long and they're less than $3 a pop! I always get compliments on the "Mint Sorbet" and the "Color Reef." So ladies, next time you're at Target go over to the nail area and pick yourself up a few colors. You'll thank me later ;)

 

 

 

 

Simply Lemonade with Raspberry

 

Simply Orange is my favorite brand of Orange Juice and I love their collection of Simply Lemonades and Simply Limeade. These are all natural and I just recently got a bottle of Simply Lemonade with Raspberry and Simply Lemonde with Mango on sale at Target 2 for $4. These usually run anywhere from $4-$5 and they are refreshing treat for those hot summer days.

 

 

 

 

Starbucks Shaken Iced Peach Green Tea Lemonade

 I am a coffee girl through and through but once in a while I like to enjoy an iced tea and when I do it's usually a Starcucks Teavana Iced Tea and this is one of my favorites! I don't usally like Green Tea either but this Iced Tea tastes JUST like a peach ring! Did I mention how much I love peach as well? Starbucks only has the Peach flavor available during the summer so go get yourself a Peach Green Tea Lemonade :)

 

No Boundaries Juniors' Yoga Shorts

For somebody that doesn't do any Yoga I sure do love to wear Yoga shorts and Yoga pants. I love to buy these shorts from Walmart because they are super comfy to wear at home and they are great for summer! I love to sleep in them or just lounge around the house in them. These are usually around $4 a pair at your local Walmart and come in all sorts of cute colors and designs.

 

And there you have it! These are just a few of my summer favorites under $10. Thanks for stopping by. I can't wait to see what all you other bloggers post :)

 

~Mely

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weekend Story - Monster Post

 

Friday

 

On Friday I called in sick to work. I pretty much hung out at home and did nothing. Later on we went to my Mom's house for dinner. She made Beef Tongue Tacos. So good!

 

This is Chester and I am his favorite Master. This is an Instagram pic of his evil laser eyes.

 

 

Saturday

Saturday we headed to the river with my pals! I brought homemade chicken salad, watermelon, lemonade, chips, pringles and some Pinot Grigio - classy! I didn't take many pictures because my phone was hidden away in Tony's backpack. I managed a couple and my pal Connie took a cute one of Tony and I in the water :) Connie is the official group photographer and she also snapped these other pics!

 

That is my pal Connie, Tony and I taking a trelfie. Tripe Selfie. Yes I just said it.

 

 

This is Connie, myself and my pal Crystal

 

 

 

 Tony and I

 

 

 

 

 

We got home from the River exhausted. We took a shower and rested for a bit and headed out for some Chinese! There's a place walking distance from our house and we took off on foot. I must say I was a bit dissapointed with the food, it had good flavor but was too salty. We probably won't be going there again.

 

 

Sunday

Sunday I was up early and Tony slept in a little longer. I headed out to my Momma's house to hang out there for a while and pick up some Corundas she made, I found this picture online. Corundas are basically tamales without meat and in a smaller rounder form. They usually have green sauce or cheese inside. You serve them with sour cream and more green sauce.

 

 

My mom wasn't home so I just hung out with my sister in law and my nephew. I affectionately call my 6 year old nephew my Sugerplum, he's not too keen on it but I can't resist. I took this Snapchat of him creatively searching through the pantry. I mean he's too cute!

 

 

And I couldn't resist snapping a few pics and making a collage of Chester because look at that face! Love my Ches.

 

After I left home I went to the mall and I got a swimsuit from Forever 21 for $7! I love me a good deal :)

 

Then I stopped by Trader Joe's for some groceries and headed home to Tony. We decided to head out to the Sonoma County Fair!!! We checked out the Flower Show which was "Peace, Love and Fair" themed. Then we saw the livestock, a Sea Lion show and we walked around and grabbed some yummy fair food. On the Fair Menu: Giant Corndog, Chili Cheese Fries, Cinnamon Funnel Cake, Fresh Squeezed Lemonade and Pasta!

 

 

 

The cows were super cute! I felt terrible knowing that they are going to be slaughtered :( I honestly questioned whether I want to eat Beef anymore.

 

I also took this live picture of a cow peeing. Let me tell you, right before I took this picture there was a cow propelling poop a few feet directly in front of me. Once Tony told me to watch out I BOOKED it. My life flashed before my eyes... kidding, but seriously I was terrified of getting poop on me.

 

 

We walked around some more and I took this oh so sexy Snapchat of Tony and I with no makeup, duck face and frowny face included.

 

 

 

We came home around 8 PM and watched a couple of episodes of our current favorite show on Netflix before bed:

My First Home on TLC

 The episodes are old but this show takes you into the homebuying process of first time homeowners. We always crack up when they mention the prices these people pay for full size homes in the midwest and east coast. What's that? $120,000 for a 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom, 1800 Square Feet home? It makes us question home ownership in our Bay Area California where you need to spend at least $450,000 to get a decent 1500 Square Feet home. Jeez.

 

And that's all folks!

 

~Mely

 

 

Mely Cooks Monday Late Edition: Cheesy Baked Ziti

Cheesy Baked Ziti

 

I came across this recipe online. Of course, I tweaked it because God forbid I ever follow a recipe word for word. I am really over pasta at this point, lately I crave vegetables, beans and lean protein. Which is essentially my body telling me "You've been eating too much crap and it's time to cut it out" Nevertheless, I had the ingredients for it and I needed to use them so I made this dish knowing I would probably not eat any. It turned out good and very cheesy. If you like rich pasta cheesiness then I recommend you try this dish. Tony said it came out delicious. What I love about this dish is that it doesn't dry out in the oven, therefore it's great for storing and reheating.

 

1 Box (16 OZ) Ziti

1 container (15 OZ) Ricotta

1 ball of Mozzerella (16 OZ)

1 C Grated Parmesan or Romano Cheese + a little bit to top off for baking

1 24 OZ Jar of Marinara

1 LB Ground Beef (use 90/10 or 85/15 highest fat ratio)

5 TBSP of Fresh Chopped or Freeze Dried Parsley

1 egg yolk

Olive Oil

 

Cook your pasta according to directions, drain and set aside.

 

 

Confession: I accidentally bought Rigatoni instead of Ziti. Close enough.

Now preheat your oven to 425 Degrees

 

 

Cube your Mozzerella

 

Now in a large bowl mix your mozzerella, 4TBSP of your Parsley, egg yolk, Ricotta and Parmesan or Romano.

 

 

Mix that cheesy goodness together and then mix in your drained pasta.

Brown your beef with some Garlic salt

 

 

 

Now add your Marinara. I used this stuff but I have my heart set on trying Rao's Pasta sauces. I hear their pricey but worth the cost.

 

 

 

Let flavors cook and merge together for 5 minutes.

 

Okay this will require a large baking dish. It's a big meal! Drizzle your large pan with Olive Oil and empty your cheese and pasta mixture on the bottom and pour your sauce mixture on top. Mix everything in the baking dish until there isn't any white spots left. Your pasta will look pink:

 

 

Top with some Parmesan Cheese or Romano and remaining Parsley

 

 

 

Bake for 20-25 minutes until cheese is bubbly

 



 

Serve immediately.

 

Cheesy, rich and tasty!

 

~Mely

 

Cookie Baking Adventure

I recently posted my chocolate chip cookie recipe. Last weekend I baked two batches of Cookies and took pictures along the way to share.

 

I originally wanted to bake Snickerdoodles because I've never baked Snickerdoodles and I am a big fan. I was going to use this recipe but when I got to the grocery store I didn't feel like paying $7 for a bottle of Cream of Tartar because I wasn't going to be baking a ton of Snickerdoodles soon. I also recall seeing a bottle of Cream of Tartar at my Momma's house so I can just borrow it next time I go over. After ruling out Snickerdoodles I browsed the Baking section for other options and I found these:

 

 Reese's Peanut Butter Chips

If you know my husband you know he is a huge peanut butter fan. I immediately thought "Reese's Peanut Butter AND Chocolate chip Cookies. Sold.

 

Then I see this:

Ghirardelli White Chocolate Premium Baking Bar

 Then I thought "White Chocolate Chunk and Chocolate Chip Cookies" YES!

 

P.S. I apologize for the poor lighting. There's bad lighting in my in-laws' kitchen. I guess this is where a fancy camera would have been nice.

 

I already had these chocolate chips that I love using in my cookies at home:

 

Guittard Real Semisweet Chocolate Chips

These are my favorite chocolate chips. A good chocolate chip cookie must have a supreme chocolate chip!

 

Friday night after I let my butter soften for a solid 3 hours my first batch went like this:

 

Ingredients:

1 C. (2 sticks) softened salted butter

1 large egg

1 1/2 C packed brown sugar

1 TSP Pure Vanilla Extract

2 1/4 C All Purpose Flour

1 TSP Baking Soda

1/2 TSP salt

3/4 of a 10 OZ Bag of Reese's Peanut Butter Chips

1/2 bag (6 OZ) Guittard Semisweet Chips

 

(this is simply my original chocolate chip cookie recipe with the chocolate mixed and matched to my liking)

 

I beat the butter, egg, brown sugar and vanilla

 

 

 

 

Then I added my flour, salt and baking soda

 

Then I mixed with my hands and added the chips 

 

 

After I was done making my PB/Choc. chip dough I transferred it to another bowl for later use. Did I mention how much I love my Pyrex bowls? I got a set as a wedding gift and I use them every single time I cook. On the real though, if you don't have yourself a set, go buy one. Click here. No, Pyrex doesn't pay me to advertise on my blog but I really love my Pyrex bowls. I use them for baking, cooking and storing and I want to buy another set when Tony and I purchase our home.

 

 

 

 

Then I used my original bowl to make another batch of dough. This time though...

I added chopped white chocolate chunks and Guittard chocolate chips. I used a 4 OZ bar and the other half of my chocolate chips that remained from the peanut butter chip cookie dough.

I transferred both doughs into large Ziplock bags. On the top is the chcolate chip/white chocolate chunk dough and on the bottom is the peanut butter chip cookie dough. These doughs refrigerate beautifully and I wanted to bake one dozen Friday night and continue the fun Saturday night.

I preheated my oven to 375 then...

 

... Baked for about 8 or 9 minutes.

at the top is 1/2 dozen peanut butter chip cookie and the bottom is 1/2 dozen white chocolate and chip cookies. I let them cook for about 15 minutes before removing.

 

Look at that beauty!

 

 

This is the back of one of my cookies. I don't know what compelled me to take a picture of it but it looked tasty and I just did. Notice the soft buttery texture!

 

And that's it! Phew!

 

~Mely