Chicken Wings and Pesto Pasta Salad

Andy's family loves chicken wings, and even though they are not my favorite, I decided to try a wing recipe with Andy last weekend. He doesn't get excited very often, but he sure was excited about those chicken wings. Our first attempt at cooking them was pretty good, I must admit. I pieced together a couple of different recipes and came up with something like this for Meal #2:

Grilled Chicken Wings:

1. I combined the following spices in roughly these amounts:

3.5 tablespoons Mrs. Dash South West Chipotle

2 tablespoons each of garlic powder, chili powder, and seasoning salt.

Pepper (not sure how much)

2. After mixing the spices in a bowl, divided the chicken wings between two gallon sized ziplock bags and then divided the spice between the two bags. I shook the bags to coat the wings evenly and then put the wings in the refrigerator for the rest of the day (probably 5-6 hours).

3. When we were ready to start cooking, Andy grilled the wings for about 20-30 minutes.

Creamy Cilantro Wing Sauce:

1. Combine the following:

1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves

1/4 cup light sour cream

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup plain yogurt

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

Kosher salt and black pepper

2. Enjoy as a dipping sauce!

FYI - This was good, but I think ranch dressing would have been better.

Pesto Pasta Salad

1. Cook 1 box of bow tie pasta.

2. Combine it with one jar of pesto, halved cherry tomatoes, and one container of feta cheese.

Very tasty!

Summer Salad: Bought premade at Fresh Market - the dressing in the picture is truly yummy and worth the extra cost (recommended by Marianne Cox).

Roasted Chicken, Rice, Broccoli, and Pineapple Casserole

Andy and I decided we needed a hobby together, and since he doesn't have the patience required to teach me anything remotely athletic, we decided that cooking might make a good hobby. Since I love to share recipes and since Emily's blog is putting mine to shame, I thought this might be a good place to post our efforts. Here is Meal #1:

Roasted Rosemary Chicken:

1. Stuff a whole Chicken with 1 Lemon quartered, 1 onion quartered, and 1 head of garlic. Put whatever won't fit in the chicken in the roasting pan.

2. Put one sprig of Rosemary under each wing.

3. Rub the outside of the bird generously with butter, pepper, and Kosher salt

4. Pour some chicken broth in the pan to keep the meat tender. Maybe 1/2-3/4 a cup (I didn't measure).

5. Bake at 425 for 45 minutes-1 hour or until a meat thermometer reads 165.

Garlic/Onion Broccoli

1. Sauté cut broccoli with onions, olive oil, and minced garlic until the broccoli is steamy but still firm.

2. Squirt with lemon juice and serve.

Pineapple Casserole

1. Combine 2 cans of drained pineapple with 1/2 cup of sugar, 2 cups of grated cheddar cheese, and 3 tablespoons of flour.

2. Put the combined ingredients in a baking dish. Cover with Ritz Crackers (crumbled) and melted butter.

3. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Rice Pilaf: From a box :)