Creamy ranch dressing coats every bite of pasta and vegetables in this Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad. Sprinkled throughout with bacon and cheddar cheese, my kids went absolutely nuts over this salad.

I love making pasta salads and there is no end to the ways that we make them fun and interesting! (I’m looking at you, Deviled Egg Pasta Salad!) I made this pasta salad for the first time about 10 years ago and my kids dove into this for second helpings lightning fast. They polished off almost the entire recipe in one sitting!

Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

I enjoy having easy recipes like this one at my fingertips for nights when it’s too hot to even think about being in the kitchen. A few minutes spent in the kitchen after breakfast and you’ll have dinner ready whenever you are hungry for it.

This salad is a frequent request on our meal plan. And I have to think ahead and stash a portion for myself in the back of the refrigerator if I want to have some left for my lunch the following day.

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For years now, these tender, juicy Broiled Chicken Thighs have been one of my go-to meals on my busiest evenings. With just a few ingredients, and even fewer steps, I can prep a meal that my whole family loves in about fifteen minutes from start to finish.

Chicken thighs are one of my family’s go-to protein choices when we need a dinner that’s satisfying and low-effort. I’ve been making these Oven Baked Boneless Chicken Thighs about as long as I can remember for that very reason! And while that recipe is still a fixture in our house, sometimes you need to get something on the table a little faster. That’s where these thighs come in.

Broiled Chicken Thighs

I have to confess something. I wasn’t a really great cook from the start. My husband can tell you that I started at whatever is below level zero in the kitchen skills department (seriously, I once boiled chicken before baking it–oof).

The broiler can be a little intimidating, but I promise you that it isn’t as hard as you think it might be. Everything in this recipe can be done even by a first-time cook, from preparing to cooking to serving, and it takes just 15 minutes.

Almost more of a method than recipe, this is something I make at least once or twice a month. Change up the spices however you like once you have the broiler method down and you’ll have a whole new way to cook chicken at your fingertips!

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With a buttery, crispy flour tortilla wrapped around melty Pepper Jack cheese and incredible pork carnitas along with a sprinkling of fresh cilantro, this Carnitas Quesadilla is the best lunch I’ve had all week. If you’re making carnitas, add this one to your meal plan. You can thank me later.

Friends, this recipe for carnitas quesadillas is exactly what happens at my house in the days after I make a batch of my slow cooker pork carnitas or pork carnitas in the oven. Leftover carnitas are absolutely perfect for adding to salads, rice bowls, and more.

But, this quesadilla that makes me actively happy about those leftovers. As in, I wake up grinning thinking about lunch. Don’t judge me for that, okay?

Crisp buttery edges. A gooey tangle of cheese and shredded pork in the middle. A little cilantro, because it needs that fresh green pop. That’s the whole thing. And, since the meat freezes like a dream, once you start making carnitas, you’ll always have it on hand.

Carnitas Quesadilla

There are only a handful of foods I could genuinely eat every single week, and carnitas are darn near the top of that list. A batch usually goes pretty fast around here, but whenever there’s a cup or two lingering in my fridge and I’m feeling like treating myself, rest assured that I’m going to use it in this carnitas quesadilla recipe.

And, while I love cheesy quesadillas, I do not actually like my quesadillas overloaded with cheese. I know, I know. Hot take. But, it just makes me feel so lethargic. So, I err on the side of using just enough cheese to hold everything in place. But, if YOU want to add more? I’m on board. Follow your heart.

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Monterey jack cheese, Black Forest ham and spicy green chile are rolled up in boneless, skinless chicken breasts and baked to tender, flavorful perfection in this fun new (and easy!) twist on cordon bleu. This is what chicken cordon bleu would be like after a tour of the American Southwest!

Chicken Cordon Bleu is a classic of French cuisine that became a staple of American restaurants in the 1960s. Before long, home cooks realized how easy it was to make at home and started adding it to their rotation, too.

My family has long loved variations on the theme, including this chicken cordon bleu with creamy white sauce. But, this recipe for green chile chicken cordon bleu is my own Southwestern take, inspired by the classic. And, it’s the version I keep coming back to.

Green Chile Chicken Cordon Bleu

Having grown up in New Mexico and Arizona, I can confidently say that I am more familiar with the flavor profiles of Southwestern cooking than any other. It is absolutely my comfort zone.

So, if I have the opportunity to tuck my beloved green chiles into a dish, you can bet I’m going to try it. In many cases, they are a welcome addition, but here? They create pure magic.

The gentle, smoky spice of green chiles is the perfect foil for the creamy Monterey jack cheese, salty ham, and mild chicken. It is a match made in the land of enchantment. If you’ve been hunting for a new chicken recipe with real Southwestern kick, this is the one.

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Piled high with crispy pork, rice, black beans, corn, crunchy cabbage, and a generous squeeze of lime, this Carnitas Bowl is everything I want in one simple package. Twenty minutes. That’s all it takes. How can I say no?

If you’ve been around here for any length of time, you already know how I feel about carnitas. I have been making them on repeat for well over a decade, and that shows no signs of slowing down. My slow cooker carnitas are the set-it-and-forget-it version for busy days, and these traditional Dutch oven pork carnitas are what I make when I want to go all out. Both are fantastic. And, both leave me with a fridge full of pork that I’m happy to use in new in delicious ways each time we have leftovers.

Carnitas Bowl

Growing up in the Southwest, I’ve eaten my fair share of burritos and tacos. And, I will never turn them down. But, every now and then I crave something a little different. And a bowl satisfies that craving perfectly by letting each ingredient shine on its own.

This carnitas bowl recipe is what happens when leftover pork carnitas meet a really good bowl. Rice on the bottom, all the good stuff piled on top, lime squeezed over everything. It just works.

Wait, you didn’t make carnitas yesterday, or last week, or pull them out of the freezer this morning? That’s ok. Don’t sweat it. Just make them now!

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