Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Soup

Normally on a Sunday, I like to cook meals that involves more time since I don't have time forthat kind of cooking during the week.  BUT...we had a lot going on yesterday so I decided to give this crockpot chicken enchilada soup recipe a try!  It was yummy, I brought it over to my sisters house and she prepared a tasty salad to go with it and bread and butter.  I'd say overall it would be a good, hearty weeknight meal!  I'd make it again, but might try to make a few adjustments.  We added Tapatio and a blend of cheddar and monterey jack cheese to the soup.  (We like things spicy in our household!)

INGREDIENTS:
3 TBSP butter
3TBSP flour
1/2 C chicken broth
2 C milk
1 can (15oz) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14.5oz) Rotel diced tomatoes and jalapenos
1 package (10oz) frozen corn
1/2 C onion, chopped
1/2 C bell pepper, diced
1 can (10oz) enchilada sauce
2 whole chicken breasts
1 C shredded monterey jack cheese

DIRECTIONS:
Melt butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat.  Stir in flour; keep stirring until smooth and bubbly.  Remove from heat and add the chicken broth and 1/2 cup milk, a little at a time, stirring to keep smooth.  Return to heat.  Bring sauce to a gentle boil; cook, stirring constantly, until it thickens.
In a crockpot, combine drained beans, tomatoes, corn, onion, and bell pepper.  Place 2 chicken breasts on top of the mixture.
In a large bowl, whisk together the enchilada sauce and chicken broth mixture.  Gradually whisk in remaining milk until smooth.  Pour sauce mixture over ingredients in cooker.  Cover; cook on low heat for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours.
Remove chicken and cut or shread into bite-sized pieces.  Add chicken back into the soup.  Top with cheese and serve.  The soup can also be topped with avocado, sour cream, or crushed tortilla chips!

Candied Bacon

This is a sweet little twist on a breakfast favorite!

INGREDIENTS:
12 slices of thick cut bacon
3 TBSP brown sugar

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Peel apart your bacon slices and place into a gallon sized zip loc baggie.  Add brown sugar and shake to coat the bacon entirely.  Remove bacon from the bag and place strips onto a foil lined cookie sheet with a wire rack.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Mmmmm!

Rocky Road Popcorn Balls

Suprisingly, my chocoholic son wasn't a big fan (but then again he hates popcorn!).  My husband said he liked them, but then later requested carmel popcorn balls.  I on the other hand loved these! They are fairly simple and its always a ton of fun popping popcorn on the stovetop!

INGREDIENTS
3 TBSP cooking oil
1/3 C popcorn kernels
1.5 C mini chocolate chips
2 C mini marshmallows
1 C salted peanuts (I used chopped raw almonds because I had some already, then I added a little salt to the popcorn)
cooking spray

DIRECTIONS:
Pour the oil and popcorn kernels into a heavy, 3 qt or larger pan with a lid.  Cover pan and shake gently over medium high heat, allowing steam to escape from popping kernels.  Remove pan from heat when popping stops and carefully pour popped kernels into a large micro-safe bowl.  If desired, add a little salt.  Stir in the chips and marshmallows.  Place the bowl into the micro.  Cook on high until the chips and marshmallows get gooey, about 1 minute.  Toss with a wooden spoon, adding the nuts, if using, until all the popcorn is coated.  Spray your hands with cooking spray.  Grab enough popcorn mixture to fill the palms of your hands and form balls while firmly pressing the popcorn pieces together.  Place the balls on a wax paper lined cookie sheet.  After forming all of your popcorn balls (makes about 1DZ.) place the cookie sheet into the fridge and allow to cool and harden completley, about two hours.  Store extras in fridge.

Grandmother's Buttermilk Cornbread

This recipe got EXCELLENT reviews so its no wonder that it was a winner at dinner time!!!  Some things are just worth the extra time and effort, and this my friends, is one of them! And besides...none of those nasty preservatives that you'd be eating with Krustez boxed cornbread. :)

INGREDIENTS
1/2 C butter
2/3 C white sugar
2 eggs
1 C buttermilk
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 C cornmeal
1 C all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS
1.) preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Grease an 8 in square pan.
2.) Melt butter in large skillet.  Remove from heat and stir in sugar.  Quickly add eggs and beat until well blended.  Combine buttermilk with baking soda and stir into mixture in pan.  Stir in cornmeal, flour, and salt until well blended and few lumps remain.  Pour batter into prepared pan.
3.) Bake in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

SWEET BUTTER SPREAD
This is one of my own kitchen creations that came out fantastic!
4 Tbsp butter; softened
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Stir all ingredients together well. :)

Mongolian Beef

This recipe for Mongolian Beef was SO yummy that my husband ate the leftovers for breakfast the next morning!!!  It is definalty a keeper and getting filed into my recipe binder ASAP!!!  This recipe says it makes two servings, but I'd say it makes a little more than that.  My husband had two helpings last night, I had one, and he had some for breakfast (but it wasn't quite a full serving) so you do the math.  :)

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb flank steak, thinly sliced crosswise
1/4 C cornstarch
3 tsp canola oil
1/2 tsp grated ginger (about 1/2 inch piece)
1 TBSP chopped garlic (2-3 large cloves)
1/2 C water
1/2 C soy sauce
1/2 C brown sugar
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
3 large green onions, sliced crosswise into thirds

PREPARE THE MEAT:
First, make sure the steak slices are dry (pat them dry with a paper towel) and mix them with the corn starch.  Using your hands or a spoon, move them around to make sure all pieces are coated.  Place beef slices in a strainer and shake off excess corn starch.

MAKE THE SAUCE:
Heat half the oil in a large wok at medium-high and add the garlic and ginger.  Immediately add the soy sauce, water, brown sugar and pepper flakes.  Cook the sauce for about 2 minutes and transfer to a bowl.  Don't worry if the sauce doesn't look thick enough at this point.  The corn starch in the beef will thicken up later.

COOK THE MEAT AND ASSEMBLE DISH:
Turn the heat up and add the remaining oil to the wok.  Add the beef and cook, stirring until it is all browned (this is a quick thing).  Pour the sauce back into the wok and let it cook along with the meat.  Now you can choose to cook it down and reduce the sauce or leave it thinner.  Add the green onions on the last minute so the green parts will stay green and the white parts crunchy.
Serve it hot with rice.  (I used jasmine)

I'd like to give credit to the website that I got this from, but I can't remember where I got it :( Sorry!

Mexican Stuffed Shells

Mexican or Italian? Mexican or Italian? MEXICAN or ITALIAN?!?! Why not BOTH???
This fun and unique dish combines two of my favoite cuisines, so of course I HAD to try it! I did changed a few things from the original recipe and all in all it was pretty awesome! It makes a lot, so most likely we will be having a leftover night soon.  ***A little spicy for those little mouths***

INGREDIENTS:
1 LB ground beef
1 Package taco seasoning
4 oz. cream cheese
3/4 box of jumbo pasta shells
half a bottle of jarred salsa
1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 bottle of taco sauce
1 C grated cheddar cheese
1C grated monterey jack cheese
3 green onions
sour cream

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a pan cook ground beef, add taco seasonings according to package directions.  Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted.  Blend well.  While ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to directions, drain.  Set shells out individually on a cutting board/baking sheet so that they don't stick together.
In a bowl mix the jarred salsa with the diced tomatoes.  Pour half the mixture on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.  Stuff each shell will a spoonful of meat mixture. Place shells in 9x13 pan open side up.  Cober shells with taco sauce.  cover with foil and bake 20-30min.
After 20-30 minutes, add the remained of the salsa mixture and top with shredded cheese.  Bake for an additonal 10-15 minutes with the foil cover removed.  Top with any condiments you'd like (green onion, sour cream, black olives, more salsa, etc.)  ENJOY!!!

Beef Tips & Noodles

The first and only time I've ever had beef tips & noodles was when I was about 14 years old.  My mom used to manage a local resturant and I remember being there one afternoon and the resturant was filled with this amazing aroma.  I told her whatever I was smelling, thats what I wanted to eat.  And a few minutes later, she brought me out a plate of beef tips & noodles.  I rememberthat it tasted just as incredible as it smelled.  So it was a very exciting moment for me last night when my kitchen started filling up with that familiar, yummy aroma.  And if your wondering, yes, it tasted just as good as I had remembered!!!

This dish took about two and a half hours to prepare.  I plan to try it in my crockpot the next time around.  The last step of the recipe tells you to mix one cup of water with a packet of dry brown gravy mix, I think next time I will leave that step out.  I had a taste just before I added it and I honestly think that the gravy didn't do anything for the taste besides maybe dilute the flavors a little.

INGREDIENTS:
3 TBSP veg. oil
1 onion, chopped
2 lbs cubed beef stew meat
Cornstarch
2 C water
1/4 C soy sauce
1/4 C Worcestershire sauce
3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 (.75 oz) packet dry brown gravy mix - I'm going to say this is optional
1 C water (if you leave the gravy out, then you will also want to leave out this additional water)
1/4 C red wine (optional) I used the red wine...I love cooking with wine!

DIRECTIONS:
1.) Place about a half a cup of cornstarch in a large mixing bowl.  Place the stew meat on top.  With your hands or mixing spoon coat dried stew meat completely.  Place the meat in a collander and shake off any excess.  Set aside
2.) In a large skillet heat oil over high heat.  Saute the onion and garlic until almost translucent. Remove from skillet and set aside.
3.) Add the stew meat to the skillet (and a little more oil if needed).  Cook on high heat until meat is browned on all sides; about 3-5 minutes
4.) Pour 2 cups water, soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce into the skillet.  Stir in salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat.  cover and simmer for 1.5-2 hours
5.) Meanwhile combine the gravy mix with 1 cup water.  During the last 30 min. of simmering add the gravy mix into the meat mixture.  Bring to a boil stirring frequently until slightly thickened.
***I had used 3/4 C water 1/4 C red wine with the gravy.  Next time I will omit the gravy and the water and just add the red wine during the last thirty mintues.  The original recipe did not include the cornstarch step, adding this step in thickens the sauce on its own, therefore leaving the gravy out would not mean that your meat mixutre would be thin***
Serve over a plate of egg noddles.  Rice or mash potatoes would work well too.

Oven Baked Chimichangas and/or Brown Bagged Burritos

When I was a kid, whenever we had left over meat mixture from stir-fry my mom would roll it up into burritos and deep fry them.  She would then wrap them up individually and freeze them. We'd pop them in the micro for a few minutes and walla...they were the BEST quick meals I can remember having!!! (Not to mention the worst as far as calorie count!!!)  I recently came across two seperate recipes and combined with my fond food memory I was inspired to create this meal.  I've been told that a good cook never lets anything go to waste, so I was determined to use up two NY steaks that we had leftover from a BBQ a couple days before.  I then remembered the two recipes I've been saving and thought...hey, why don't I just incorporate all of this together?!?!? So I took my meat, through it in a sauce creation, added some beans and cheese, baked them (which made a DOZEN!!), and with the leftover chimichangas I froze them! They'll make the perfect weekday lunch for when I head back to work!  Keep in mind that you don't have to follow my recipe for this meat mixture, there are SO many possibilites to this recipe.  You can use just about any type of leftover meat for this! (I just happened to use steak) Oh...also I made a few that were beans and cheese only for my son. :)

INGREDIENTS:
2 BBQ'd NY steaks; cut into small cubes
2-3 cloves of garlic; minced
1/2 onion; chopped
1 1/3 C enchilada sauce (I used red, green would be yummy too I'm sure!)
1 can chopped green chilies (4 oz)
1/8 tsp chili powder
garlic salt (as much or as little as you'd like)
1/4 tsp oregeno
2 cans of refried beans
3-4 C Mexican blend cheese (or shred half Monterey Jack and half Medium Sharp Cheddar like I did)
12 burrito sized flour tortillas

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cut the steaks into small cubes.  In a preheated skillet, reheat steak cubes in the minced garlic and chopped onion.  Add the enchilada sauce, chopped green chilies, chili powder, oregeno, and garlic salt.  Simmer on Med/low for 20-30 minutes.  In a saucepan heat up the refried beans.  When those are ready spoon meat filling off center on each tortilla.  Top with beans and cheese.  Fold sides and end over filling and roll up.  Place burritos on a foil lined cookie sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray.  (I had to use two cookie sheets to accomidate all 12 burritos.) Bake for 8 minutes, turn and bake an additional 5 minutes.

TO FREEZE:
Place burritos on a wire rack and allow to cool completely.  Once they are cooled wrap in a paper towel and then in foil.  Transfer your wrapped burritos to a resealable plastic freezer bag.  They will stay good for up to two months.

TO USE FROZEN BURRITOS:
Unwrap foil.  Place paper towel-wrapped burrito on a microwave safe plate.  Microwave on high for 3-4 minutes or until heated through.  Let sit for a minute then eat!!
I had one of these for lunch today, and I must admit...it tasted better today reaheated than it did last night for dinner!  I love when leftovers taste that good!!!

Rosemary Chicken in Butter Wine Sauce and Oven Roasted Red Potatoes

Rosemary Chicken in butter wine sauce and Oven roasted red potatoes
Ive made this chicken dish twice.  The first time I used 1 TBSP fresh minced rosemary as the recipe calls for.  I am a HUGE fan of rosemary, but even that amount was too overpowering for me.  So this time I used dried (because I had some in the cupboard already) and I eyeballed the amount I put in...I'd say maybe 3/4 tsp.  It seemed to be the perfect amount to meet my taste!  My son absolutley LOVES these oven roasted red potatoes.  I like to call them "better than french fry potatoes" because he seems to eat these as well as he would a stack of fries.  :)  Last night he told me that this is his new favorite dinner!

INGRDIENTS (for chicken):
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 oz each) (I used three whole chicken breasts)
4 TBSP butter, divided
1/2 C white wine (or you can use chicken broth.  I recommend using white wine, it'll give you more depth in flavor.)
1/2 C heavy whipping cream
1 TBSP minced fresh rosemary (I used 3/4 tsp dried)

DIRECTIONS (for chicken):
In a large skillet over medium heat, cook chicken in 1 tablespoon butter for 4-5 minutes on each side or until juices run clear.  (Since I used whole chicken breasts it took at least double that amount of time)  Remove and keep warm
Add wine to the pan; cook over medium-low heat, stirring to loosen browned bits from pan.  Add cream and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cook and stir until slightly thickened.  Stir in rosemary and remaining butter until blended. Serve sauce with chicken.

INGREDIENTS (for potatoes)
3 lbs small red new potatoes, halved
1/4 C olive oil
1 tsp salt and freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS (for potatoes)
Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 450 degrees.  Toss potatoes with oil, salt and pepper.  Arrange, cut side down, on a large lipped cook sheet or jellyroll pan.
Roast until tender and golden brown, about 30 minutes (check after 20 minutes)  Transfer to a serving dish.

***My potatoes were done at 20 minutes***

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Baked Potato Soup

This is a very delicious soup that is SUPER easy and fast to make! My husband and I LOVED it :) It was a little peppery so my son wouldn't eat it, but the recipe can easily be adjusted to take care of that if you have picky kids to feed.

INGREDIENTS:
3 bacon strips, diced (I used half a pack of thick sliced bacon because I knew my husband would want more)
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced (psssht! I used three!)
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 cups chicken broth (whenever I boil chicken I reserve the water, measure it out, and freeze to use it for things like this!)
2 large baked potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 cup half and half cream
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
Shredded Cheddar cheese
Minced fresh parsley.

DIRECTIONS:
In a large saucepan, cook bacon until crisp.  Drain, reserving 1 tablespoon drippings.  Set bacon aside.  Saute onion and garlic in the drippings until tender.  Stir in flour, salt, basil and pepper; mix well.  Gradually add broth.  Bring to boil; boil and stir for 2 minutes.  Add the potatoes, cream and hot pepper sauce; heat through but do not boil.  Garnish with bacon, cheese and parsely.

Thai Basil Chicken

I have a feeling that I'll be cooking this one up again really soon!  It was a hit with my hubby and took such a short amount of time to make.  Our only complaint (which I'm not even sure if I'd call it that since we were able to adjust the recipe very easily) was that it wasn't spicy enough.  If you also prefer your thai dishes on the spicy side then you may want to consider revising the recipe as we did.

INGREDIENTS:
3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1x2 inch pieces
2 TBSP Asain fish sauce
1 1/2 TBSP soy sauce
1 TBSP water
1 1/2 tsp sugar
2 TBSP cooking oil (I used olive oil, but I'm sure any kind would be fine)
1 large onion, cut into thin slices (It seems like a lot, but they cook down significantly)
1/4 tsp dried red-pepper flakes (I increased this to somewhere between 1/2 to 3/4 tsp)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 C lightly backed basil leaves (plus a few more if you want to garnish)
***Opitional ingredient: Chili garlic sauce (that was my husbands idea and it worked VERY well! Good job hubby!)

DIRECTIONS:
1.) In a medium bowl, combine the chicken with the fish sauce, soy sauce, water and sugar.  In a large nonstick frying pan or a wok, heat the oil over Med-High heat.  Add the onion and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes.  Stir in the chilies and garlic; cook, stirring for another 30 seconds longer.
2.)  Remove the chicken from the marinade with a slotted spoon and add it to the hot pan.  Cook until almost done.  Add the remaining marinade and finish cooking the chicken.  Remove from heat and stir in the basil.  Serve topped with additional basil if desired.
*** I served this over steamed jasmine rice and topped with some chili garlic sauce (that should get the heat going in your mouth if the red pepper flakes just arent enough for you) :)

Grilled PBP

So what I created  is actually a cross between a grilled cheese and a BLT with an Italiano twist!!  And its almost just as easy to prepare.  PBP stands for: Pancetta, Basil, and Peppers.

INGREDIENTS:
multi-grain bread (thats what I used, but you can probably use whatever you'd like)
olive oil
kosher salt (optional)
marinated roasted red peppers
fresh grated mozzarella at room temperature
basil leaves (sliced into thin ribbons)
pancetta slices

DIRECTIONS:
Brush olive oil on one side of each slice of bread.  If desired, LIGHTLY sprinkle with kosher salt (this can easily become too salty so you may want to shake off the excess as you would with glitter and paper.) On a preheated griddle (Med-Hi) cook your pancetta slices and heat the roasted red peppers.  Set aside. Wipe off any debris left on the griddle with a paper towel if needed.  Assemble your sandwich on the griddle with olive oil side of bread facing down.  Layer with mozzarella, basil, peppers, pancetta, and more mozzarella, and lastly the second piece of oiled bread.  Grill until golden and the cheese has melted, about 2-3 minutes per side.  :)

Seriously one of my best sandwich creations yet!!!

Pumpkin Cinnamon Swirl Pancakes

I was SO excited about trying the Pumpkin Cinnamon Swirl Pancakes two Sundays ago and although they were good, I knew it was a recipe that I'd never follow again.  And after the fact, the idea of the Cinnamon Swirl Pancake just  WOULD  NOT leave my head and I knew that I could possibly recreate the pancake to better meet my needs. So I had to try it again!  Some of you may recall me saying that the recipe involved a lot of ingredients and time, and the pancake itself had a lack of fluff that I tend to  look for in a pancake.  I really enjoyed the cinnamon filling and cream cheese icing so I went with the original recipe on those, but decided to use the cinnamon filling as a topping instead since it got a little messy the first time around.  This recipe can be found in its original form on recipegirl.com

PANCAKE:
2.5-3 C boxed pancake mix (I used Mrs. Butterworths Buttermilk Complete)
3/4 C canned Pumpkin puree unsweetened
1 TBSP pumpkin pie spice

CINNAMON TOPPING:
1/2 C salted butter melted
3/4 C brown sugar
1 TBSP ground cinnamon

CREAM CHEESE ICING:
4 TBSP salted butter
2 OZ cream cheese
3/4 C powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. PREPARE THE CINNAMON TOPPING:  in a small microwave-safe bowl heat butter, brown sugar and cinnamon for 40-60 sec, just until butter is melted.  Whisk the filling ingredients together.  If you want to get fancy with it you can pour the topping into a plastic sandwhich baggie with a zip top and set aside. ( I did the first time around, but for my simplified version I left it in the bowl and used a spoon to drizzle on top)

2. PREPARE THE ICING: In a medium microwave-safe bowl, heat butter and cream cheese 30-60 sec. just until butter has melted and cream cheese has softened.  Whisk in powdered sugar and vanilla and combine until smooth.  Set the icing aside.

3. PREPARE THE PANCAKES:  In a large bowl mix water into the pancake mix.  (I never measure when doing this, but keep in mind that the thinner you make your batter, the flatter your cakes will be.  Keep the batter on the thick side if you like fluffy cakes) After you get your mix to the right consistancy stir in the pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice.  On a large preheated skillet or griddle (Medium heat) add the batter to the pan.  (At this step you can do it one of two ways; cook the pancake like you normally would, or for the fancy factor you can use the cinnamon topping from the zip top baggie before flipping the cake.  To do that, snip a small corner off of the edge and starting from the center of the pancake, drizzle the topping onto the batter creating a swirl resembling a cinnamon roll.  I chose to leave this step out the second time because my cast iron griddle became too hot and melted the mixture once I flipped the cake creating a huge mess! It tasted just as good using it as a topping instead.)  Cook the pancakes 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden.  When plating, if you havent already...drizzle the top of the cakes with the cinnamon topping.  Then drizzle  with the cream cheese icing and serve.  :)

this is what it will look like if you use the cinnamon mix as a filling instead of a topping

finished product when using the filling vs topping

the finished product using my easy revised version. Not as fancy, but tastes even better than the original recipe. IMO. :)

Pumpkin Fudge

This was a fun little twist on a holiday classic. As I often do, I decided to put my own little touch on this recipe, the only problem being is that I completley forgot I was going to add one last step in at the end and I didn't have things ready.  So I found myself scrambling to chop pecans when I should have been pouring the mix into the prepared pan.  Having the fudge sit in the pot a little longer than it should (even for just a minute) will have its consequences.  As a result of my forgetfulness...my fudge was just a little bit grainy.  The taste was still great, but lesson learned...don't forget to chop your nuts!!!

INGREDIENTS:
2 Tbsp butter
2 1/2 C white sugar
2/3 C evaporated milk
1 C white chocolate chips
7 oz marshmallow creme
3/4 C canned pumpkin
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:
1.) Line a 9x9 inch pan with aluminum foil, and set aside.
2.) In a 3 quart saucepan, heat milk and sugar over medium heat.  Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
3.) Mix in pumpkin puree and cinnamon; bring back to a boil.  Stir in marshmallow creme and butter.  Bring to a rolling boil.  Cook, stirring ocasionally, for 18 minutes.
4.) Remove from heat, and add white chocolate chips and vanilla.  Stir until creamy and all chips are melted.  Pour into prepared pan.  Cool, remove from pan, and cut into squares.  Store in a cool, dry place.
* if desired...add chopped pecans (a little or a lot depending on what you like...sorry didn't measure the amount I used) during step 4.