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Finding recipes that you love is kind of exciting, isn’t it? We’ve all had our Pinterest “fails” in the past. These are seven recipes that we tried and loved and I think you will too. Easy and delicious. Big thumbs up on these Pinterest wins!
With my picky kids off at college, my husband and I were excited to make a wider variety of meals, including trying some new recipes. And when I say new recipes, everyone knows that means heading to Pinterest, right?
If you’re like me, you’ve had tons of recipes that you pinned who-know-how-long-ago and just haven’t gotten around to making. You may also have had your share of Pinterest ‘fails’ in the past.
Don’t ask me about the time I tried making oven-baked crispy taco shells. LOL
But by all means, DO ask about the Pinterest wins we’ve had in the last few months. It’s so much fun to try a new recipe and love it!
Do you have a happy food dance, or is it just the ladies in my family?
Pinterest Recipe Wins
Philly Cheesesteak Pasta and Philly Sloppy Joes
Both of these recipes from Dinner Then Dessert are totally delish and so easy! They start with ground beef, and come together quickly. If I had to pick, I think I’d rate the sandwiches slightly higher than the pasta…but it’d be close. A+ cheesy goodness!
Changes made:
- I leave out the mushrooms (gag)
- Used just provolone (instead of provolone and mozzarella…as called for in the pasta dish)
- Any bell pepper will do fine – I use what I’ve got on hand, red, yellow, orange, green
- Likewise, any short pasta shape works. I think I used penne.
- I don’t always have beef broth on hand…chicken broth is a fine substitute.
Slow Cooker Pesto Mozzarella Chicken Pasta
I made this when my parents came over for dinner one night and it was a big hit! My husband isn’t a huge pesto fan, so I’ve been sitting on this recipe, unsure if I’d ever use it.
Then, I was at Aldi one day and saw that they sell a red pepper pesto. This recipe immediately came to mind and it worked amazingly well! I’ve got two more jars of the pesto in my pantry just waiting…
Changes made:
- Well, the pesto swap, of course
- I left out the lemon and the basil garnish
- Used only 1 cup of shredded mozzarella on top
Cheesy Cauliflower Rice with Broccoli
I am not in the ‘let’s pretend cauliflower rice is real rice’ camp. I feel I need to lead with that. Having said that, I’m also not opposed to adding more vegetables to our diet.
While looking for a recipe for cheesy broccoli and cauliflower, I found this recipe and…YUM!
Changes made:
- The original recipe includes chicken, which would make this a delicious main dish. I may try that sometime, but as of yet, I’ve only made it as a side…omitting the chicken
- I used a bag of frozen cauliflower rice, I didn’t chop my own
- I omitted the paprika and coriander
- We like this with less than the called for 1/2 cup of cream cheese. I’ve made it both ways, however.
Oven Baked Chimichangas
Oh. M. Goodness. I made quite a few changes to this recipe, mainly because of what I had on hand, but the basic gist of the recipe is the secret here. Amazing!
And the leftovers? Possibly even better than the first bake. Just store them in a container in the fridge and pop in the oven until warmed through and crispy again. Next time I make these I plan to find out how they freeze, I’d love to add these to my freezer meals rotation.
Changes made:
- I used ground beef instead of turkey, and I used just 1 pound (These would be delicious with shredded chicken, too!)
- Instead of packaged taco seasoning, I used my own mix of chili powder, cumin, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper (and also omitted the additional seasonings the recipe called for as well…the fresh oregano and cumin)
- Instead of the canned chiles and tomatoes I used salsa (which I reasoned is a mix of chiles and tomatoes, after all!)…I think used about a heaping 1/2 cup(remember…I used less meat than the recipe called for)
- Substituted regular onion for the green onions
Chicken Tamale Pie
Another Mexican food winner! This calls for either canned or homemade enchilada sauce, I used this recipe (minus the hot sauce). It was really tasty, my husband and I both loved it. I felt it needed the added texture of the crunchy lettuce I served on the side…my fella disagreed. He loved it as is with a big dollop of sour cream.
Changes made:
- I used my own cornbread recipe and omitted the cream corn (I think I will add it next time for additional texture)
Crock Pot Creamy Chicken Stew
I made this last Christmas for my ladies cookie-baking day and had been craving it since. I will say that my husband only gave this a sorta-thumbs up due to the size of the potato chunks. His exact words were that it was “too potato-y”. Don’t get me started.
Regardless, we both loved the flavor and I thought it was perfectly potato-y! It’s a small recipe, so I doubled it to fit my crock pot.
Changes made:
- I left the chicken breasts whole and just shredded them after cooking
- I cut the baby carrots in half
- Used frozen green beans, and upped it to a cup per recipe
- Omitted the celery and parsley
- When doubling, I didn’t double the ranch seasoning
Baked Chicken Tacos
OK, I must be the last person on Pinterest to try these, but I finally did. Delish! Similar to other recipes that called for tomatoes and chiles, I subbed salsa. I also loosened up our sour cream with a little water to make it drizzle-able. (If you have a pinch of chipotle chile powder to stir in, it is ah-mazing!)After browsing a number of different recipes on Pinterest, I chose this one because it calls for pre-baking your shells for a few minutes before filling to keep them crispy. Genius!
Changes made:
- Salsa swap mentioned above
- Used my own taco seasonings instead of a packet
- I only used about half of the cheese recommended (but I didn’t really measure)
- I didn’t use the stand and stuff shells, just regular hard shells. The flat bottomed ones would make filling a bit easier, but I found these to be fine.
- Omitted the onions (simply to save a step and not have to clean another pan)
Ah Pinterest, what would we do without you?
I’d love to know what some of your favorite Pinterest wins are…what have you made that you keep going back to?
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