Quick maple-glazed pork chops (page 211)

I thought the pork chops were very tasty, though a little on the sweet side. They had a gourmet and ritzy flavor. I paired the pork chops with rice pilaf & peas. Very quick & easy!

Skillet Chili Mac (page 147)

Anne & I joke frequently about how similar we are. Well without previous discussion, we both chose the Skillet Chili Mac as one of our first dishes. Ha! I tried the alternative corn & chili version. I also added ½ tsp red pepper flakes & used habanero cheese. The only thing I would suggest for this recipe, agreeing with Anne, is to decrease step 3; 1 cup of cheese is plenty- there is no need to add a 2nd cup. I would put a bowl of cheese on the table & if someone really wants to add a little more they can, but I think a single cup of cheese was way more than enough. But the recipe was really fast, and I finished within 30 minutes & even had time to unload & reload the dishwasher!

Broiled Maple-Soy Glazed Salmon Fillets with Toasted Sesame Seeds ~ page 240

This was outstanding! I would highly recommend making this! It was indeed done in under 30 minutes and was so moist on the inside while being caramelized and almost crisp on the outside. You broil it, so it goes fast. Loved it, and wouldn't change anything about it. I didn't have a broiler pan, so I just used a cookie cooking rack as you can see in the pic below. It worked great, I just had to scrub it several times to make sure my cookies wont taste like salmon next time I bake! --Carissa

30 Min Red Roasted Potatoes

I am used to making sure I start my roasted potatoes long before I start the rest of dinner- I had never even thought of nuking them in the microwave for a bit first :)  This worked really well and ALL of the roasted potatoes were eaten! 

I did toss mine with minced garlic after taking them out of the oven to cool.  Yummy! 

Almond- Crusted Chicken Breasts with Cranberry-Orange Relish

Another success!  I used pretty big chicken breasts, so I had to cook mine in the oven a bit longer than it says to just "warm" them.  I loved the crust, and we both enjoyed the cranberry relish.  Danny asked if I used a can of cranberry sauce- and when I told him I had used craisins and made the sauce from scratch, he was once again shocked we were eating so quickly and it was so yummy!  I REALLY am enjoying being able to come inside from playing outside at 5:30 pm and have dinner on the table by 6:00 ish!  Without much thought earlier in the day- except to get my meat out to thaw in the morning.

Make sure you use Panko bread crumbs- if you've never used them before, you will be hooked!  They stay crispy and crunchy.  Look for them in the chinese/asian section of the grocery store.

Quick Cheesy Ravioli Bake

"How'd you make that so fast?" 

That was the comment my husband had when I said dinner's ready!  I did a whole recipe of the sauce, but only one 9 oz container of Buitoni ravioli- so I froze half of the sauce for another meal.  This was very yummy!  I have a recipe for a similar version but it uses canned ravioli- this was MUCH better!  We ate all of the leftovers.  This is a great kids dish- Brayden loved it!

This took me 25 minutes from start to table.

Chicken Fricassee with Artichokes and Leeks

I made this for my hubby, son and brother in law last week and if my husband had kept his mouth shut about their being artichokes in it, they would have all devoured it!  Instead they picked through the sauce, but ate all of the chicken.   It was super yummy and easy to make.  We usually eat white chicken breasts, but the juciness and smoothness of the bone-in thigh chicken was a yummy treat!  It took right at 30 minutes from start to table.  A success in my eyes!