Orange Chicken

Last week my daughter said something really hurtful. She told me that school lunch was better than sack lunch. Ouch. I asked why. She said that the orange chicken she had for lunch that day was way better than a ham and cheese sandwich. I totally agree that *really good* orange chicken is "way better" than a ham and cheese sandwich. But still . . . cafeteria food had my child singing praises? I had to do something and quick! Allrecipes.com to the rescue! Tons of rave reviews? check. Ingredients I already have? check. End result super yummy AND everyone agreed that it is way better than the stuff the school passes off as orange chicken? check. I am pretty much a cooking rock star now in the eyes of a 6 year old. Make this and be the hero of the day in your house too!

here's the link to the original recipe off Allrecipes.com.

Ingredients

• Sauce:
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger root
• 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons chopped green onion
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 
  
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons water
• 
  
• Chicken:
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 3 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

1. Pour 1 1/2 cups water, orange juice, lemon juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce into a saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Stir in the orange zest, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, chopped onion, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat, and cool 10 to 15 minutes.
2. Place the chicken pieces into a resealable plastic bag. When contents of saucepan have cooled, pour 1 cup of sauce into bag. Reserve the remaining sauce. Seal the bag, and refrigerate at least 2 hours.
3. In another resealable plastic bag, mix the flour, salt, and pepper. Add the marinated chicken pieces, seal the bag, and shake to coat.
4. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Place chicken into the skillet, and brown on both sides. Drain on a plate lined with paper towels, and cover with aluminum foil.
5. Wipe out the skillet, and add the sauce. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Mix together the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water; stir into the sauce. Add pepper flakes. Reduce heat to medium low, add the chicken pieces, and simmer, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

* my notes.
#1- Don't like the time consuming (and icky) task of cutting raw chicken into bite sized pieces? Me neither. Which is why I kindly asked the meat counter to do it when I purchased the chicken. Score for me.
#2- Lets talk spicy. If you want MUCHO spicy, add 1 tsp of red pepper flakes to the chicken marinade and add another 1 tsp to the orange sauce at the end (step 5 in the instructions.) If you want semi-spicy, just add anywhere from 1/4 - 1 tsp of the flakes just to the sauce. And if you want a very mild, sweet orangey chicken, omit the flakes all together. I like to add about 1/2 tsp flakes to the sauce at the end. My kids like it better that way.

White Bean Chili

My goal is to make/post more recipes from my "Just a Matter of Thyme" cookbook because when I do make things from it, I ALWAYS love them. I've been wanting to try a white chili for a while and while I quickly scanned the list of ingredients, I realized I already had everything in my pantry. Bonus. In the original recipe, it makes it on the stovetop, bringing to a boil first and then simmering several hours. I bypassed that and brought out the trusty crock-pot, dumped everything in at once and set on low for 5 hours. MMmmm, delish.

Ingredients:
3 (14oz) cans white beans (can use dry beans, roughly 1 1/2 lbs, make sure to soak overnight and drain)
4 cups chicken broth
1 clove garlic minced (or 1 tsp fresh garlic in a jar)
1 onion, diced
1 small can chopped green chiles
scant tsp ground cumin
scant tsp dried oregano
dash of ground cloves (omitted, all out of cloves, oops)
4 cups cooked chicken, diced (or 2 12.5 oz cans of chicken, drained)
3 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese

Reserve cheese as a garnish, mix all other ingredients in a crock-pot and let it do all the work. Serves 6-8, equally great leftover as fresh.

Chicken Potpie in a Pumpkin

This is one of my favorite dishes in the fall. It just seems so festive to me. I first made this 5 or so years ago. The original recipe was from the Martha Stewart website, but after quite a bit of searching, it seems to be gone from the website...no clue why. I will first post the original recipe and then let you know what I did to change it around to work for me. My hubby helped a ton with making this yesterday and it made a huge difference, so if you have a second set of hands, definitely utilize them!!

CHICKEN POT PIE in a Pumpkin--Serves 6

6 two-pound sugar pumpkins, preferably short and squat (if you have trouble finding these, they are also called pumpkin pie pumpkins...I got some of mine at Trader Joe's when I was in Vegas and a few others from a local grocer)
5T butter, plus 2T melted
2 t. salt
1t. freshly ground black pepper
1t freshly grated nutmeg (I have a little microplane that I use to grate the nutmeg and you can buy whole nutmeg in any spice section)
1 pound pearl onions (I think the package they sold at my grocer was 10ounces. I used that amount and it was great)
9 ounces potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (I used extra potatoes. I was serving guests and wanted to make sure to have enough. I cut them pretty small...make sure the potatoes and carrots aren't too big because they don't get much time to cook and will be hard if they are too big.)
12 ounces button mushrooms, quartered if large (no button mushrooms at my grocery store so I bought what they had and sliced them so they would stretch farther.)
8 ounces carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (2 medium carrots)
5T flour
2 1/2 cups chicken brith
1 cup milk
4 1/2 cups poached or roasted chicken (from a 5 pound chicken) (I ended up using two HUGE breasts and 3 thighs since I am a dark meat girl. It was more than enough meat. I steamed it in my steamer to keep in moist. It would have been much easier to pick up a chicken at Costco, but I didn't have a chance to get over there.)
2T. fresh thyme leaves (I have an herb garden so I did use fresh herbs, but I think dry could easily be substituted.)
3T. chopped parsley
2T. fresh chopped sage
1/2 recipe Pate Brisse with Thyme
1 large egg, beaten with 1T. heavy cream for egg wash

I didn't make the Pate Brisse. Instead I made my cheddar buttermilk biscuit recipe and topped them with that. I liked it better. It was easier, heartier and tastier IMO.)
I also added a little more of some of the things I had and then doubled the liquid to make it stretch. It was enough to fill the six pumpkins with just a little left over.

Heat oven to 375*. Slice the tops off the pumpkins. Scoop out the seeds (I find an ice cream scoop helps with this). Using a pastry brush, brush insides of pumpkin with 2T. melted butter. Season insides with 1/2t. salt, 1/4t. pepper, and 1/4t. nutmeg. Place pumpkins on a baking sheet; cover tightly with foil. Bake until tender, about 30 minutes.

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add onions, and let simmer for 15 minutes. Drain; rinse under cold running water. Peel onions, set aside.

Melt 5T. butter in a large, high sided skillet set over medium heat (I used a large dutch oven). Add potatoes and onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes begin to turn golden. Add mushrooms and carrots and cook 4-5 minutes more. Add flour and cook, stirring for 1 minute. Add chicken broth and milk and bring to a simmer. Cook until thick and bubbly, stirring constantly, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in chicken, thyme, parsley, sage, remaining 1 1/2t. salt, 3/4t. nutmeg, and 3/4t. pepper. Remove from heat, and divide amoung pumpkins.

Roll Pate Brisse to 1/8 inch thickness. Pull center of dough upward to form a pumpkinlike stem. Place over the hollow of each filled pumpkin. Using the back of a small paring knife, mark the dough to simulate the lines of a pumpkin. Brush top of dough with egg wash. Bake until golden, about 45 minutes.

or, if you choose to make the biscuit dough:
Make the dough. Roll out to 1/4 inch thickness. Use a bowl of cutter that will cover the top of the pumkins. Cut out dough and place on top of pumkin, covering the hole. Bake until the biscuit topping is baked, about 25 minutes.

Chicken Fajita Quesadillas

Today, I am channeling Pioneer Woman because I have multiple, step by step photos! This recipe is bits and pieces from other recipes and more "I know enough about how this should all work, let me try putting this and this together." Make sense? All I know is, I love Mexican food and this meal is hot and tasty in under 30 minutes.

Let's start by making the fajita part:

1-2 lbs chicken (or meat of your choosing) cut into 2 in pieces
1 small yellow onion, sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
A generous handful of sliced, chopped fresh mushrooms
1/2 packet Fajita seasoning mix
1 tbsp canola oil

In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, add oil, wait a minute, and add your chicken pieces and veggies. Saute for 5 minutes. Sprinkle 1/2 a packet of the Fajita Seasoning Mix over the chicken and veggies. Cook until the chicken is no longer pink and the onion is translucent. Remove from heat.

Now for the quesadilla part:(this is how it should look right before placing the other tortilla on top)

Pre-heat oven to 400.
Have 4 large flour tortillas and 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese ready. Place 2 tortillas on a cookie sheet (I put tin foil down so I wouldn't have to scrub baked cheese off my cookie sheet.) Sprinkle 1/2 cup cheese onto each tortilla, then distribute 1/2 the chicken/veggie fajita mixture onto each tortilla. Sprinkle another 1/2 cup cheese over each chicken/veggie filling and end by placing another tortilla over top. Pop in the oven and bake for 10 minutes, or until cheese is melty.

Remove from oven, and with pizza slicer, cut each tortilla into 6 wedges. Serve loaded with salsa, sour cream and guacamole, with black beans on the side. Dig in! Serves 4.

*a note. The beauty of this recipe, is you can adjust it to feed more people OH SO EASILY! If you're using more than 2 lbs of meat, use the full fajita seasoning packet and up the amount of veggies. Don't like mushrooms but love green peppers? Fix it the way you like your fajitas. Its more of a method than a recipe. Grill meat and veggies, bake with cheese on a tortilla and serve with toppings! Ta Da!

Teriyaki Chicken

From the World Wide Ward Cookbook, page 119, this is Ty's Shoyu Chicken, commonly called Teriyaki chicken. Family hit! Easy, tasty and flavorful. I did mine in the crock pot, see my notes at the bottom.

5-6 cloves of garlic, pressed
1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated (I used dried ginger, about 1 1/2 tsp)
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp cornstarch, mixed with 2 tsp water
1 1/4 cups soy sauce (recipe recommended Aloha shoyu, I used Kikoman)
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
5 lbs chicken thighs (bone-in), skin removed (I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts and since I have a small family, we need only 2-3 chicken breasts to feed us all, please adjust amount of chicken for your family)
green onions, chopped (optional, I did it, I love green onions!)

Combine all ingredients, except chicken and green onions in a large bowl or leak-proof plastic resealable bag. Add chicken to marinade. Marinate at least 4 hours, overnight is best. Place chicken in a single layer in a baking dish. Pour marinade over the chicken. Sprinkle with green onion. Cover with foil and let bake at 350 for 1 1/2- 2 hours. The chicken can also be grilled on a BBQ and basted with marinade. Eat with white rice and Hawaiian style macaroni salad.

*a note. I did mine in the crock-pot, no overnight or 4 hour marinating for me. So I placed the chicken in first, then poured the marinade all over it and let it cook on low for 5 or 6 hours, not all day or else the chicken disintegrates. I reserved the green onions as a garnish, they didn't go in the crock pot. I served it with white rice and chunks of pineapple. Yum!

Chicken Parmesan

This is an easy, yummy meal. Most of the ingredients are out of a can so it whips up fast and if you wanted to dress it up, you could make your own sauce!

Chicken Parmesan

Milk
Bread Crumbs
Italian Seasonings
Chicken
Pasta of choice
Spaghetti Sauce

This is a simple recipe. If you want to be fancy you can make a homemade sauce.

Preheat oven to 350 *.
Pound out chicken breasts until about ¼-1/2 inch thick. I do this by putting the chicken between two pieces of Saran Wrap or wax paper. If you don’t have a mallet you can use a heavy frying pan.
Dip pounded chicken breasts in milk and then breadcrumbs. You can by Italian crumbs or just add some seasoning to plain breadcrumbs. Coat the chicken evenly and place in a heated frying pan that has a little olive oil in it. Repeat with other chicken breasts. Lightly pan fry chicken breasts. Cover with spaghetti sauce. Bake for 30 minutes. I bake these in the frying pan, but this can only be done if your frying pan is oven safe (ex. No plastic or rubber pieces). Otherwise you can transfer the breast to a baking dish, cover with the sauce and cook.

After 30 minutes top chicken with either mozzarella or Parmesan cheese and return to oven for 15 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.
Cook pasta of choice. Serve chicken over pasta and with plenty of sauce. Very yummy!

Thai Chicken with Peanut Sauce

I got this recipe years ago from a Cooking Light magazine. I love it! It has a nice peanut buttery taste...mmmm!

Thai Chicken with Peanut Sauce

WARNING: The first time you make this it is a little confusing. Read directions all the way through before beginning. It gets easier each subsequent time. This is one of my favorites!!

5 oz. Japanese curly noodles (You can find these at an Oriental store or section at the grocery store. I use whatever I find that looks like it could be a Japanese noodle.)
2 t. Dark sesame oil, divided
1 pound Chicken breast (about 4)
½ cup Red bell pepper strips
½ cup Chicken broth
1/3 cup Hoisin sauce (Oriental section)
½ cup Creamy peanut butter
2 T. Rice vinegar
2 T. Ketchup
¼ t. Crushed red pepper
1 T. fresh garlic (I often substitute a pinch or two of dried)
1 t. minced garlic (2-3 cloves, crushed)
½ cup green onions, chopped

Cook noodles. In a frying pan over med-high heat, add 1 t. oil. Add chicken and sauté 4 minutes (until cooked). Add bell pepper and cook 3 minutes or until softened. Remove from heat and put mixture with noodles. Combine broth and next five ingredients and stir with a whisk. Heat a pan with 1 t. sesame oil. Add ginger and garlic for 15 seconds. Stir in broth until heated. Add to noodle mixture along with ¼ cup green onions.

Mom's Tortilla Soup

My mom, that is...this is total comfort food for me...reminds me of being home. It is a little more work intensive, but mighty delish!

Mom’s Tortilla Soup

1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 T. olive oil
4 oz. can green chilies, chopped
15 oz. can Italian-style stewed tomatoes, chopped
4 cups chicken broth
1 t. lemon pepper
2 t. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. chili powder
1 t. ground cumin
½ t. hot sauce or to taste
4 T. flour
½ cup water
1 pound chicken breasts, cut into cubes
1/3 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste
tortilla strips

In a large saucepan, cook the onion and garlic in the oil over medium low heat for five minutes or until the onion is softened. Add the chilies, tomatoes with their juice, broth, lemon pepper, Worcestershire, spices, and hot sauce and simmer for 20 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine the flour with the water until there are no flour lumps. Whisk into the soup. Bring the soup back to a boil and simmer 5 minutes. Add the chicken and simmer for 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Stir in the sour cream and salt and pepper to taste.


Tortilla Strips:

4 corn tortillas
Pam cooking spray

Spray pan with Pam. Cut the tortillas into strips and spread across pan. Bake them at 400* for 10 minutes or until lightly toasted and crispy. Sprinkle lightly with salt, if desired.

**I always make more of the tortilla strips and they typically take longer than 10 minutes to crisp.

Jerk Chicken

This is one of my favorite BBQ recipes. I got it out of Everyday Foods magazine a few years back.

Jerk Chicken Serves 4

1 Bunch scallions, chopped (1 ½ cups)
2 Garlic cloves, chopped
1 Jalapeno chili, chopped (seeds and ribs removed for less heat, if desired)
2 T. Fresh lime juice
2 T. Olive oil, plus more for grates
1 T. Light brown sugar
1 ½ t. Ground allspice
1 t. Dried thyme
½ t. Ground cinnamon
Coarse salt
8 Pieces bone in chicken, skinned and trimmed of excess fat

Make marinade: In a blender, combine scallions, garlic, jalapeno, lime juice, oil, sugar, allspice, thyme, cinnamon, 1 t. salt, and 2 T. water. Blend until smooth. Set aside ¼ cup for brushing.

Place chicken in a shallow dish: season all over with salt. Pour remaining marinade all over chicken; toss to coat. Cover; refrigerate, turning once or twice, at least two hours or up to overnight.

Heat grill to medium-high; oil grates. Lift chicken from marinade, letting excess drip off (discard marinade); place on grill, and cover. Cook, turning occasionally, until chicken is blackened in spots, about 10 minutes.

Move chicken to a cooler part of the grill; brush with reserved marinade. Grill, covered, until chicken is cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes more. Serve immediately.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

Easy home cookin' at its finest. My kids love this!

D grew up in the south eating chicken and dumplings and sometimes I am a good wife and make the real deal, but other days, I just need a quick, easy dish to throw in the crock pot. I have added carrots, celery and potatoes to this as well to make it a little heartier.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

2T. butter

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 onion, finely diced

2 (10oz.) packages refrigerated biscuit dough, torn into pieces

Place chicken, butter, soup and onion in slow cooker and fill with enough water to cover.

Cover and cook for 5-6 hours on high. About 30 minutes before serving, place the torn biscuit dough in the slow cooker. Cook until dough is no longer raw in the center.

Spice-Rubbed Grilled Chicken

Alright, you caught me. This isn't a photo from my camera. I ripped it from the Everyday Food website. But in my defense, this chicken is soooo good, it didn't last long enough for a photo shoot at my house. Give this a try, its flavorful and juicy. It just smacks of summer food. The all-purpose spice rub recipe follows the chicken recipe.

Serves 4

• 4 chicken drumsticks and 4 thighs (3 pounds total)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, plus more for grates
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup All-Purpose Spice Rub

Directions

1. Place chicken drumsticks and thighs in a shallow baking dish. Carefully slide fingers under skin to loosen it from the meat. Rub chicken all over with oil. Season with All-Purpose Spice Rub both under and over skin, patting in gently. Proceed to step 2 right away, or cover chicken and let rest for up to 24 hours. Cover and refrigerate if resting longer than 30 minutes.
2. Heat grill to medium-low. Oil grates; grill chicken, covered, turning frequently to prevent charring, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest part (avoiding bone) registers 175 degrees, 20 to 30 minutes.

ALL PURPOSE SPICE RUB:

Ingredients

Makes 1 1/4 cups (enough to season 5 to 10 pounds of meat, poultry, or seafood)

• 1/3 cup coarse salt
• 1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1/4 cup paprika
• 2 tablespoons ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 2 tablespoons dried thyme leaves
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper (optional)

Directions

1. In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients, using your hands to break up the sugar. Store in an airtight container, away from heat and light, up to 6 months.

Chicken Ceasar Salad Wraps

these are from my good friend Jen Leach, so easy, fast and yummy. My family scarfed them down and if there was any leftover, perfect for lunch the next day. Don't add the dressing to the salad, just drizzle tortilla. that way, the whole salad won't be soggy.

1 rotisserie chicken shredded, (or any kind of cooked chicken, any amount you prefer)
1 bunch green leaf lettuce, torn
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 bottle Ken's Steakhouse brand creamy ceasar dressing
warm tortillas

combine chicken, lettuce and parmesan cheese. place some on your tortilla and drizzle with the salad dressing. enjoy!

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

this is from allrecipes.com, rated 4.5 stars by 1152 reviewers. its a family favorite! toppings we enjoy on it included: shredded cheese, sour cream, salsa and guacamole. keeps very well in the fridge and reheats great for leftovers.

• 1 pound shredded, cooked chicken
• 1 (15 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, mashed
• 1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups water
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen corn
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 7 corn tortillas
• vegetable oil

Place chicken, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, onion, green chiles, and garlic into a slow cooker. Pour in water and chicken broth, and season with cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Stir in corn and cilantro. Cover, and cook on Low setting for 6 to 8 hours or on High setting for 3 to 4 hours. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly brush both sides of tortillas with oil. Cut tortillas into strips, then spread on a baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven until crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. To serve, sprinkle tortilla strips over soup. *a note. i have made this many times and finally wised up to a few things. it tastes better if 1) i cook it on high for 3-4 hours and not use the low setting. my chicken looks disgusting if i cook it for 8 hours. and 2) i don't add cilantro to the soup while it is cooking. it over-powers the taste and i much prefer a generous handful of the fresh stuff on top of my soup in my bowl.

General Tso's Chicken

from Everyday Food Oct.08 issue. its part of a section about making popular take-out items lighter and cheaper at home instead of eating out. travis has declared this his favorite meal ever. fantastic flavor!!

recipe info: serves 4 total time 45minutes

1 1/4 cups long grain brown rice
1/4 cornstarch, divided
1 lb snow peas, trimmed and halved crosswise
4 garlic cloves, sliced
2 tsp grated peeled fresh ginger (i did 1 tsp ginger powder)
3 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp red-pepper flakes
2 large egg whites
coarse salt and pepper
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 tbsp vegetable oil, such as safflower

1- cook rice according to directions. meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together 1 tbsp cornstarch and 1/2 cup cold water until smooth. add snow peas, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, brown sugar and red-pepper flakes; toss to combine, and set aside
2-in another bowl, whisk together egg whites, remaining 3 tbsp cornstarch, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper. add chicken, toss to coat.
3-in a large non-stick skillet, heat 1 tbsp oil over medium-high. lift half the chicken from the egg-white mixture (shaking off excess), and add to skillet. cook, turning occasionally, until golden., 6-8 minutes. transfer to plate; repeat with remaining oil and chicken, and set aside (reserve skillet)
4-add snow pea mixture to skillet. cover; cook until snow peas are tender and sauce is thickened, 3-5 minutes. return chicken to skillet (with any juices), toss to coat. serve with rice.

Chicken Salad Sandwich

i really like that this recipe calls for both mayo and mircale whip, they both bring different flavors and they meld together nicely.

6-8 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
1 cup chopped celery
2 tsp chopped onion
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup miracle whip
2 tbsp chicken stock
1 tsp salt

can add:
toasted silvered almonds
sliced purple grapes
dill
seasoning salt

serves approx 40 medium croissants

*a note. i always add grapes, sometimes the almonds if i am feeling like dressing it up a bit. not a fan of dill so i always omit that. this makes a large quantity, can be halved, or make the whole batch and it keeps well in the fridge for quite a few days!

Garden Chicken Pasta Salad

this is from my good friend Sonja Glick. I first had this at her son Trace's baby blessing about 8 years ago. I've been making it and loving it ever since.

12 oz cooked, drained garden rotini pasta
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 purple onion, thinly sliced
2 crowns broccoli, stems trimmed, cut into bite size pieces
1 chicken breast, cooked and diced
1/2 bottle Kraft brand "3 Cheese" salad dressing

mix all together, let flavors meld and salad chill before serving!

*notes- depending on your family's taste, you can add more or less of the peppers, onions and broccoli. and to make this a meal salad, add lots of chicken. i have found in some grocery stores that there is a lite version of the salad dressing and when i can find it, i buy it, otherwise i try to use just enough of the dressing to coat without glopping it everywhere. and this salad keeps well for several days, i usually make it a day ahead when i fix it.

Skillet Chicken with Pasta and Broccoli

(stolen again from mykitchencafe.com, LOVED IT, will make this again soon!)

Skillet Chicken with Broccoli, Pasta, and Parmesan Cheese
adapted from The Best Skillet Recipes

**The original recipe only used 8 ounces of pasta. I knew that wouldn't be enough for our family so I adapted the recipe to make more for my family. It makes for a very full skillet, but if you have a 12-inch skillet, it should still be big enough. This serves 4-6. If you don't want to make as much, scale down the amounts in the recipe.**

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch squares
Table salt and ground black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
4 medium cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
12 ounces ziti (penne makes a great substitution - I've used both with great results)
4 1/4 cups water
2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
4-5 cups broccoli florets (depending on how much broccoli you want)
1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed and chopped coarse
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (asiago was the cheese in the original recipe and can be interchanged, but I always have parmesan on hand so I used that)
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the chicken in a single layer and cook for 1 minute without stirring. Stir the chicken and continue to cook until most, but not all, of the pink color has disappeared and the chicken is lightly browned around the edges, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to a clean bowl and set aside.

Add the remaining tablespoon of oil, onion, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to the skillet. Return the skillet to medium-high heat and cook, stirring often, until the onion is softened, 2 to 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, oregano, and pepper flakes, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Add the pasta, 3 cups of the water, and the broth. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until the liquid is very thick and syrupy and almost completely absorbed, 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the broccoli, sun-dried tomatoes, and the remaining 1 1/4 cups water. Cover, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the broccoli turns bright green and is almost tender, 2-3 minutes.

Uncover and return the heat to medium-high. Stir in the cream, parmesan, and reserved chicken with any accumulated juices and continue to simmer, uncovered, until the sauce is thickened and the chicken is cooked and heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, passing more grated parmesan at the table, if desired.

Chicken Ole

this is from Staci's kitchen and our family loves it. Who doesn't like velveeta and fritos?

3 purple onions, chopped
3 bell peppers, chopped (i usually use 2 red, one green)
1 tsp garlic powder
2 cans rotel brand tomatoes and chilies
1lb velveeta cheese, cut into chunks
1lb cheddar cheese, grated
6 cups cooked, chopped chicken
1 pint sour cream
1 (3oz) pimentos (optional)
3 cups cooked rice
1 bag small fritos (not so great with the "king size" fritos)

cook onions, peppers, garlic in oil. add rotel tomatoes and chilies (not drained) and bring to a boil. reduce heat and simmer until thick, about 15-20 minutes. add the cheeses and heat slowly until cheese is melted. add chicken, sour cream and pimentos, heat through DO NOT BOIL.
serve over a bed of rice and fritos. ole!
ps- i half this recipe a lot of times because it makes so much. leftovers are better heated over the stove than in the microwave becaue the cheese gets all rubbery in the micro.

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

I got this recipe from an enrichment and ate way too much that day. It is really easy, and really good!

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
2 cooked, boneless chicken breast halves, shredded or 1 large can chicken with juice
1-6.2oz. Rice a Roni or Uncle Ben’s quick cooking long grain and wild rice with seasoning packet
½ t. salt
½ t. black pepper
¾ cup all purpose flour
½ cup butter
2 cups heavy cream

In a large pot over medium heat, combine the broth, water and chicken. Bring just to boiling and then stir in the rice, reserving the seasoning packet. Cover and remove from heat.

In a small bowl combine the salt, pepper and flour. In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in the contents of the seasoning packet until the mixture is bubbly. Reduce the heat to low, then stir in the flour mixture by tablespoons to form a roux. Whisk in the cream a little at a time until fully incorporated and smooth. Cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir the cream mixture into the broth and rice mixture. Cook over medium heat until heated through, about 10-15 minutes. Do not boil once the cream has been added.

Chicken Pot Pie

1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
1/4 t. pepper
1/2 t. thyme
1 can chicken broth
3/4 cup milk
2 cups cooked, cubed chicken (2 breasts)
1/4 cup chopped onion (I use dehydrated)
1 can slice mushrooms (can use fresh)
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables

1 recipe cheddar biscuit topping

Heat oven to 425*. Melt butter in large frying pan. Stir in flour and pepper until smooth. Add chicken broth and milk. Blend all together with a whisk. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Add chicken and vegetables. Heat through. Pour into casserole dish. Cover with topping of choice. Bake 15-20 minutes until topping is browned.

á I typically use the cheddar biscuit topping. You can make a basic bisquick topping or use Pillsbury Grand rolls if time is an issue. Also, if you feel motivated, fresh veges would be great in this.