Chicken a la King

Source: Tammy's Recipes


Chicken a la King

1 cup butter (do not use margarine)
1-1/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp. salt
4 cups (32 oz) chicken broth
4 cups (32 oz) milk
7 cups diced cooked chicken
16 oz canned sliced mushrooms, drained
1 red bell pepper, diced
*Chicken bouillon powder

1. In a large Dutch oven melt butter. Whisk in flour and salt. Add chicken broth and milk and cook and stir until thickened.**
2. Once thickened, stir in chicken, mushrooms and bell pepper. Cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes to let the flavors blend together.
3. Serve over hot rice, broken toast or egg noodles.

Makes 4 batches (so 4 separate meals worth) of 4 servings each.

*Taste as it’s cooking after the chicken, mushrooms and bell pepper are added and if desired, add some chicken bouillon powder to taste to create a stronger flavor. You may or may not need to add this depending on your preference.

**Make sure to let the base thicken before you add in the remaining ingredients or it will not thicken up afterwards.

To freeze: Let cool and divide into quart or gallon size freezer bags. Remove excess air and seal. Lay flat to freeze.

To serve: Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Heat through and serve.

Chicken & Stuffing Stuffed Shells

Chicken & Stuffing Stuffed Shells
Source: luckymommyto2boys on BBC

2 cups cooked and shredded chicken
1 box Stove Top Stuffing mix (turkey or chicken)
1/2 cup light mayonnaise
1 box large shells
2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
1-1/4 cup chicken broth
Italian cheese blend

1. Cook shells until al dente (I cook mine for 10 minutes). Rinse in cold water.
2. While shells are cooking, prepare stuffing according to package directions. Add in chicken and mayonnaise.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the condensed mushroom soup and chicken broth. Mix well.
4. Stuff the shells with the chicken mixture and place in two 8x8-inch pans. (You can also do one 9x13-inch pan for one larger meal instead of two.)
5. Cover with mushroom soup mixture. Top with shredded cheese.
6. Bake at 350*F about 30 minutes or until heated throughout and the cheese is melted.

To freeze: Do not bake, and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Label and freeze.

To cook: Thaw in fridge overnight. Bake at 350*F for about 30 minutes or until heated throughout. (If you're like me and forget to thaw it, you can bake it, loosely covered, at 350 degrees for about 1-1/2 hours. Uncover and bake an additional 15-20 minutes.)

Makes about 32 stuffed shells (about 16 per pan for 8x8 size).



*****

I actually made this dish ahead of time and froze both portions right away. I ended up cooking mine from frozen (I tend to forget to thaw things) and it still turned out great. I honestly expected my oldest daughter to turn up her nose at this one tonight, but she declared it a keeper - with the stipulation that I don't tell her what was in it because she might then have to tell me that it's gross. Fine by me. I didn't tell her what was in it, and it's a keeper recipe for everyone who ate it.

White Chicken Chili

White Chicken Chili
Source: SparkPeople

4 cans (15 oz. each) cannellini beans (8 cups cooked beans if cooked from dried)
1 can (29 oz.) petite cut diced tomatoes
1 can (4 oz.) chopped green chiles
2 pkgs. McCormick White Chicken Chili seasoning
3 cups water
2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 lb.)

1. Drain and rinse beans (this is to reduce the sodium since canned beans are high in sodium). Add beans, tomatoes, chiles, seasoning packets and 3 cups water to crockpot. Stir ingredients to mix well. Lay chicken breasts on top.
2. Put the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.
3. Before serving shred chicken and mix throughout chili.

Makes approximately 12 (1 cup) servings.

*****

*I used a large turkey tenderloin instead of 2 chicken breasts.

My husband declared this recipe a winner. I'm on the fence. It was good, but I'm definitely not in love with it. It will still go into our rotation of meals though. Like I said, it was a good meal, but I wasn't in love with it. I've never had a white chicken chili before, so I might try another recipe sometime in the future. Until then, this is definitely in our meal rotation.

Taco Joe aka Taco Chili

Taco Joe aka Taco Chili
Source: GroceryBudget101.com

1 (16 oz) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups frozen corn kernels
1 (15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14.5 oz) can Fire Roasted tomatoes, undrained
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chilies
1 envelope taco seasoning
1/2 cup diced onion (I left this out)
1 lb. ground beef, cooked and drained
*For chili add 1 (29 oz) can diced tomatoes

Combine all ingredients and cook over low heat until flavors combine. Can also be cooked on low in a slow cooker.

Serve over brown rice, in whole wheat tortillas, with tortilla chips or corn bread.

*****

Everyone declared this recipe a keeper. I honestly expected my oldest daughter to take one bite and turn up her nose, but she did the opposite. She took one bite and declared that she loved it. She and I ate ours like a dip with tortilla chips. My husband ate his on whole wheat tortillas, and my three year old son at his with a spoon (with cornbread and tortilla chips as a side).

The only thing I might do differently next time is just to use a can of petite diced tomatoes instead of the fire roasted tomatoes. No real reason for the possible swap other than to see how it turns out.


Please excuse the almost empty looking pot. I forgot to take a picture until after we ate dinner. The picture is also deceiving because there was a lot more leftover than it looks like.

Pizza/Calzone Dough

Pizza/Calzone Dough
Source: The Kitchen

1-1/2 cups warm water
2 tsp. active dry yeast
4 cups all-purpose flour
3 tsp. salt

1. Combine the water and yeast in mixing bowl, and stir to dissolve the yeast. Let sit for 2-3 minutes. The mixture should be light brown and milky.
2. Add in salt and flour. Using a stand mixer, mix the dough for about 5 minutes. The dough should be tacky but not stick to you like gum. If it does, then add a pinch of flour at a time until it no longer sticks to you and is just tacky to the touch.
3. Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover. Let dough rise for about an hour and a half. It will double in size.
4. Divide dough. You can make two pizzas with this batch.
5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
6. Stretch dough out to approximately a 10-inch round pizza on a pan. If dough starts to shrink back, let it rest about 5 minutes and then try again. Brush the edge of the crust with EVOO. Top with sauce, cheese and toppings. Bake for about 12-15 minutes, until the crust starts to brown and then slide off of pan and bake and additional 3 minutes to crisp up the bottom of the pizza.
7. Remove from oven and eat once cool enough to enjoy.

Makes 2 (10-inch) pizzas.

*****

This recipe was orignally supposed to be for two thin crust pizzas. I had doubled the recipe - to the above amounts - and made two regular pizzas. The crust was perfect. Not too thick, and not too thin.

This pizza crust was declared a winner. My husband and myself both enjoyed this pizza crust much more than the previous recipe we have been using. It does require more planning since you need to let the dough rise and possibly rest, but it's definitely worth it. You can refrigerate this dough for up to three days before using (after letting it rise), and you can also freeze the dough. I prefer to make the pizzas and then freeze them before baking, if I'm going to freeze something pizza related.

Here are the two pizzas that I made last night: Turkey pepperoni and a buffalo chicken pizza. Yummy!!!

Broccoli & Cheese Stuffed Chicken

Broccoli & Cheese Stuffed Chicken
Source: I have no clue!

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 oz 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
1 pkg. frozen chopped broccoli, thawed
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 tbsp. seasoned bread crumbs

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Trim chicken. Hold sharp knife parallel to cutting board and along one long side of breast; cut almost in half, leaving breast attached at one side. Open breast so it lies flat; cover with plastic wrap. Using flat side of a meat mallet, lightly pound to 1/4-inch thickness.
3. In a large bowl, combine broccoli, cream cheese, shredded cheese, and bread crumbs. Stuff a scant 1/3 cup into each chicken breast. Secure with toothpicks.
4. Brown chicken over medium-high heat in two batches in a nonstick skillet for 3 minutes. Transfer chicken to a baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, until cooked through.

Makes 6 servings.

To Freeze: Do not bake. Brown chicken and then arrange in a single layer on a pan to freeze. Cover tightly with aluminum foil. Label and freeze.

To Bake: Thaw overnight in refrigerator. Bake as directed above.

*****

Oh my goodness! This was so yummy! We used to buy some frozen broccoli stuffed chicken breasts that were absolutely delicious. I no longer buy them, and have really missed having them. This recipe turns out to taste really similar. The only real difference being that the frozen ones that I used to buy were processed chicken and breaded on the outside. These are so much better!

If you need a visual on how to flatten the chicken breasts, here is a visual on Taste of Home's website.

Ranch-O Bacon Chicken

Ranch-O Bacon Chicken
Source: I have no clue!

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 packet dry ranch dressing mix
6 tbsp. pre-cooked crumbled bacon

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Spray baking dish with cooking spray. Arrange chicken breasts in a single layer. Sprinkle ranch seasoning evenly over chicken.
3. Evenly cover chicken with bacon crumbles. Use the back of a spatula to gently press down and help the bacon to adhere.
4. Bake until the chicken is fully cooked, approximately 20-25 minutes.

Makes 6 servings.

To Freeze: Do not bake. Cover tightly with foil and freeze.

To Bake: Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Bake as directed above.

*****

I honestly wasn't sure if I was going to like this or not when I was making it, but I really liked it a lot. Everyone enjoyed this dish and it will definitely be a repeat in our house. Very easy and very tasty.

Cheeseburger & Fries Casserole

Cheeseburger & Fries Casserole
Source: Taste of Home

2 lbs. lean ground beef
1 can (10-3/4 oz) condensed golden mushroom soup
1 can (10-3/4 oz) condensed cheddar cheese soup
1 pkg. (20 oz) frozen crinkle-cut french fries

1. Brown the ground beef; drain off fat.
2. Stir in soups (undiluted) with ground beef. Pour mixture into two greased 8x8-inch pans (or one 9x13-inch).
3. Arrange french fries on top. Bake, uncovered, at 350* for 50-55 minutes or until the fries are golden brown.

Makes 4-8 servings. (Each 8x8 pan = 4 servings; 9x13 pan = 8 servings.)

To freeze: cover tightly with foil. Label and freeze.

To cook after freezing: Preheat oven to 350*. Bake approximately 60-90 minutes, uncovered, until the fries are golden brown.


For bulk cooking:

4 lbs. ground beef
2 cans (10-3/4 oz) condensed golden mushroom soup
2 cans (10-3/4 oz) condensed cheddar cheese soup
1 pkg. (5 lb) frozen crinkle-cut french fries

Cook as above and divide into four 8x8-inch pans or two 9x13-inch pans.



10 lbs. ground beef
5 cans (10-3/4 oz) condensed golden mushroom soup
5 cans (10-3/4 oz) condensed cheddar cheese soup
2 pkg. (5 lb) frozen crinkle-cut french fries

Cook as above and divide into ten 8x8-inch pans or six 9x13-inch pans.

Crockpot Chicken and Stuffing

Source:

Very simple recipe and was fairly yummy. My daughter did not like the stuffing (that's nothing new with her) and my husband LOVED the stuffing. No complaints from my son (3 years old). I was neutral - I didn't love it, but it wasn't bad either. It probably would have been even better had it been cooked and eaten right away. When I made this, I forgot that we had a previous commitment at dinner time that night. So it was cooked, stuck in the fridge (still in the crockpot) and then reheated the next day (in the crockpot), so that might have had something to do with it.


Crockpot Chicken and Stuffing

4 boneless skinless chicken breast
1 package stuffing mix (i.e., Stove Top)
1 can cream of chicken soup (or SOS mix, prepared)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup water

Place chicken breasts on the bottom of the crockpot. Top with dry stuffing mix. Combine condensed cream of chicken soup, sour cream and water. Pour over stuffing. Cook on low 4-6 hours.

*I might leave out the water in the recipe the next time and see how it turns out since I thought some of the stuffing was really really mushy. Tasted fine, but the mushy texture turned me off.

**I used SOS Mix, prepared, instead of the cream of chicken soup.

Easy French Dip Sandwiches

Source: A Thrifty Mom

This is the easiest recipe for French Dip sandwiches that I have come across. The result was very yummy and made my husband drool (okay, maybe not really, but he was close!) over it. The bonus factor of cooking the meat this way is that it can be a double duty recipe because the leftover shredded beef is awesome to make steak quesadillas, bbq steak sandwiches, etc.


French Dip Sandwiches

1 hunk of roast beef meat (approximately 3.5 lbs)
1 pkg. dry Italian dressing mix (or equivalent)
Beef bouillon (3 tsp.)
Water (3 cups)

Place your meat in the crock pit. Sprinkle with Italian dressing mix. Add enough water to cover meat by 3/4. For each cup of water that you use, add 1 beef bouillon cube (or equivalent). Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Remove meat and shred. (I learned a nifty trick recently, and I use my stand mixer with the beater blade to shred the meat quickly.) Serve on sub rolls (w/optional cheese) with juice to dip in.

*We used a lean cut of meat (top sirloin) since I don't care to use the more fatty cuts of meat. We ate ours on sub rolls that were sliced in half and then lightly toasted in the oven for 5 minutes at 400 degress. We then topped the bread with provolone cheese and placed it in the oven long enough to melt the cheese before topping with the shredded meat. Absolutely delicious!

Chicken Pot Pie

If you're the type that buys pot pies from the store occasionally, if you try this basic recipe (that you can tweak any way you like), I practically guarantee that you won't go back to the store bought ones again. It took me all of 5 minutes to literally throw this recipe together and in the oven and it tasted just as simple and yummy as the store bought itty bitty ones that you need more than one of to feed a "healthy" person.



Chicken Pot Pie
Source: Never trust a skinny cook...

2 pie crusts (dough), uncooked (homemade or store bought)
1 cup shredded chicken breasts or 1-1/2 cups diced chicken*
1 can cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 can of mixed vegetables***

1. Spray pie plate with cooking spray. Roll out one pie crust and fill the bottom of the pie plate and up the sides.
2. Mix together remaining ingredients and fill the crust.
3. Top with second pie crust, pinching edges/seams to seal.
4. Bake according to the pie crust directions (if store bought), until crust is golden brown and no longer doughy. ***I baked mine at 425 for about 30 minutes before it was done.

*I used 1 cup shredded chicken because that's what I had on hand. It's definitely more visually appealing with diced chicken, but still very yummy.

**You can substitute fresh of frozen veggies that have been steamed and add in about 1/4 cup water.

This recipe is very easily customized. Mix up what veggies you use. Change up how you season and cook the chicken that you use. Add in some seasonings that you like to change up the flavor, etc.

*****
11/07/12

I recently made this again and changed things up a bit. I used:

2 pie crusts (dough), uncooked (homemade or store bought)
2 cups shredded chicken breasts
1 large can cream of chicken soup, undiluted (or three small)
3 cans of mixed vegetables (drain 1 can, use 2 undrained)
1 can of diced potatoes, drained

I made this in a 9x11 casserole dish. One crust on the bottom of the pan, one on top of the filling. Worked great and spread the dish even farther. YUMMY!!!


On this pot pie, I cut apart the top crust to fit. You really don't have to do this, but that's why it looks so funky.

Pepperoni Rolls

This recipe has LOTS of room for modification and still turn out great.

Pepperoni Roll/Log

Bread/pizza dough (enough for 1 loaf of bread or 1 pizza per roll)
Pepperoni
Mozzarella cheese, shredded
Italian seasoning
Garlic powder
Any other favorite pizza toppings

Roll out dough into a square/rectangle around 11 inches wide. I used a premade canned pizza dough and just rolled it out and then made it into an even layer - mine ended up a rectangle. Then you are going to cover the dough completely (don't leave an edge) with your meat and other pizza topppings. Top with a light layer of mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning (don't go too heavy on this) and garlic powder. Then you're going to roll up your pizza into a log. Start at one end (the narrow end if it's in a rectangle), and tightly (and carefully when you're starting to roll) it up into a log. Once done, place on your baking sheet and cook in a preheated 375 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. The crust will be golden brown and when you flick it, it will make a thump - similar to testing cooked bread. Now here is the really important step: Do not cut into the log/plan to eat it, until it cools. This give the dough that's all the way in the center the ability to cook completely. It also makes it much easier to cut into slices. This can be served cooled with warmed pizza sauce to dip in and it still tastes absolutely yummy. It only takes about an hour for it to cool.

Ok, now on to my notes. I cut my log in half and separated it before cooking since I wanted to leave no room for error on the dough cooking all the way through. It was perfect the way it was. Also, most people brush melted butter or an egg wash on the top on the rolls before baking but I skipped this step and I think it wasn't necessary anyways. Might be if you use bread dough, but I'm not sure. Some people slice their roll into slices (kind of like you would for cinnamon buns) before baking and have great results. I might try that another time.