Baked Chicken Taquitos

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (4oz) cream cheese
1/3 cup green salsa (optional)
1 Tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2  tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/8 cup chopped cilantro
2 Tbsp sliced green onions
2 cups shredded cooked chicken (I like chicken cooked in the crock pot with salsa and taco seasoning)
1 cup grated cheese
about 20 flour 6 inch tortillas

Directions:
Heat oven to 425 degrees.   Lightly coat baking sheet with cooking spray.
Heat cream cheese in microwave for 20 seconds.  Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, and garlic powder.  Stir to combine and then add cilantro and green onions.  Add chicken and cheese and combine well.

Place 2-3 Tbsp of chicken mixture on tortilla.  Roll it up as tight as you can.  Place seam side down on baking sheet.  Lay all the filled tortillas on a baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other.  Spray tops lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle some salt on top.

Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown.

Balsamic Chicken

I found this recipe on Melissa's bargain blog. I love all things balsamic and I love food cooked in the slow cooker because it makes dinner time so much less stressful. Everyone in my family loved this chicken. This will definitely become a regular at our house.

Ingredients:
4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Halves – approx. 1.5 to 2 lbs.
½ C. Olive Oil
½ – 1 C. Balsamic Vinegar – depending on how tangy you like the recipe
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
3-4 cloves of garlic minced or pressed
2 t. crushed dry oregano

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in Crockpot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Shred chicken with a fork and serve chicken and sauce over rice or angel hair pasta. The consistency and taste of the sauce is sweet and tangy like an Italian barbeque sauce.

Hawaiian Haystacks

We recently had these at a church activity. Super easy to make and tasty too. It's easy to customize to everyone's taste with the different toppings you can put on top. My favorite toppings are the chow mein noodles, green onions, cheese, and pineapple. Yum.

Ingredients:1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups milk
1 (10 3/4 oz.) can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup sliced mushrooms
6 chicken breasts, cooked and cut into pieces

Directions:Melt butter in large saucepan. Add flour and salt and stir. Add milk and cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Add cream of mushroom soup, mushrooms and chicken. Simmer on low heat for 15 minutes. Serves 8.

Serve over sticky, white rice with the following toppings:

grated cheddar cheese
chopped celery
chowmein noodles
pineapple tidbits
chopped tomatoes
coconut
toasted sliced almonds
chopped green onions
soy sauce

Hawaiian Chicken Bowl

I found this recipe on On my Menu (and stole her picture too :) It was a hit at my house. It was one of those rare meals that everyone loved. Surprisingly they even all tried it with the ranch and loved the ranch dressing on top. Besides tasting good, I loved that it was soo simple to make and put together.

Ingredients:

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 can (8 oz) crushed pineapple

1 bottle (16 oz) barbecue sauce

4-6 cups rice, cooked

Steamed broccoli

Ranch dressing

Directions:

Place meat in 3 1/2-5 quart slow cooker. Combine pineapple and barbecue sauce and pour over meat. Cook on high heat for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. Layer in bowls: rice, chicken, broccoli, and a little ranch dressing. Makes 4-6 servings.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:
1/2 cup diced carrot
1/4 cup celery
1/4 cup onion
1 tsp butter
6 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups diced cooked chicken (I used 1 can chicken)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp marjorum
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp parsley
1/8 tsp pepper
1 1/4 cups egg noodles
1/2 cup frozen peas

Directions:
In a large saucepan saute carrot, celery and onion in butter until tender. Add broth, chicken and seasonings; bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Add noodles and frozen peas; cook for 10 minutes or until tender.

Mexican Chicken with Jalapeno popper sauce

This recipe came along just in time for my bumper crop of jalapenos. I found it on On my menu, where I find all kinds of great recipes. I was excited to try this one out and it lived up to all my expectations. Shane told me he wanted me to make it again. The next day I had more sauce and no more chicken but I was craving the sauce. So for breakfast I made myself an open faced scrambled egg sandwich with the sauce on top. It was soo good. I still have some sauce left and I can't wait to have the same breakfast tomorrow.

Ingredients:
3 Chicken Breasts
A Sprinkle of Cumin per Breast
A Sprinkle of Chili Powder per Breast
A Sprinkle of Salt per Breast
2 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
3 Jalapenos, Seeded and Chopped
8 Oz. of Cream Cheese
2 Cups of Chicken Broth
3 Slices of Bacon
3/4 Cup of Shredded Cheddar or Colby Jack
1 Tbsp of Fresh Cilantro, chopped + more for garnish

Directions:
Fry bacon until crisp. Remove to paper towel-lined plate.
Sprinkle chicken with seasonings (I mixed 1 tsp of the cumin, chili, and salt together and then sprinkled that on the chicken) while the bacon crisps. Add the chicken to the hot bacon fat in the skillet. Cook chicken, turning every few minutes, until juices run clear and no longer pink. Remove from skillet and keep warm.
Add chopped jalapenos to the skillet and cook for a couple of minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds to a minute more, until fragrant.
Add chicken broth, deglazing pan. Bring to a boil.
Add cream cheese and stir until melted and smooth. Add in shredded cheese and bacon, stirring until the cheese in melted. Turn off heat and stir in cilantro.
Serve chicken on a bed of Mexican or Taco rice (I made cilantro lime rice) and topped with sauce. Garnish with additional cilantro if desired.

Chicken Tettrazzini

This is a recipe I've been making for years. It's a simple meal to put together that most everyone in my family will eat. The one that won't eat it is vegetarian so she doesn't reallt count.

Ingredients:
2 T butter
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 medium onion, chopped
1 26oz can cream of chicken soup
1 1/4 cup milk
3 cups cubed cooked chicken (I just used one can, we aren't big meat eaters here)
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/3 tsp pepper
4 cups hot cooked spaghetti (8oz)

Directions:
In skillet over medium heat, in hot butter, cook mushrooms and onion until tender, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. In bowl, combine soup, milk, chicken, cheese, parsley, pepper, and mushroom mixture. Add spaghetti; toss to coat. Spoon into 3 qt. Oblong baking dish. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes or until hot and bubbling. Stir. Sprinkle with additional cheese if desired.

Chicken Curry

Ingredients:
1 3.8 oz Golden Curry sauce mix
1 1/2 lbs chicken (beef or pork would also work)
2-3 large potatoes, chopped
1-2 stalks of broccoli, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
3-6 carrots, sliced
1 onion, chopped
optional: mushrooms, cauliflower, pineapple, or any vegetable
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Cut meat into bite size pieces. In a little oil, brown the meat with the onions. Pour 4-5 cups water into a large saucepan. Cut potatoes and carrots and add them to the meat. Boil for 5 minutes. Add the other cut vegetables to the pan. Simmer about 3 min. Add cut up pieces of curry to the mixture. Simmer for 5 more minutes, stirring constantly. The sauce should thicken during this period. Pour curry over rice and serve.

Teriyaki Chicken

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 Tbsp water
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup soysauce
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp pepper
Boneless skinless chicken breasts


Directions:
Whisk together all ingredients (except chicken) in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the sauce thickens. Place chicken in a 9x13 pan. Pour sauce over chicken. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes, turning chicken every 15 minutes. Serve with rice.

Big Time Gumbo

My husband used to frequent a restaurant with his friend, Charles, to get gumbo. They loved their gumbo. Well the restaurant went out of business and so Charles asked them if he could get their gumbo recipe so he could still enjoy their gumbo. They were nice and gave him the recipe. And Charles gave the recipe to Shane. I never make this recipe. Way too much work and too complicated for me. Luckily for us, Shane loves to make gumbo. It is especially good.

Ingredients:
2 tsp Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 chicken (fryer)
1 lb andouille (Cajun Hollar at HEB or smoked sausage) cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 rib celery chopped
2-3 cloves garlic minced
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup flour
1-2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
2-3 green onions, tops only, chopped for garnish
File powder to taste--about 1 Tbsp
2 quarts stock (or chicken broth)

Directions:
Skin and de-bone chicken, cutting meat into 1-2 inch pieces. Use bones and trimmings to make 2 quarts stock. Season chicken with Creole seasoning and pepper. Brown quickly, remove and reserve for later. Brown the sausage, pour off fat and reserve for later.
In a large heavy pot, heat the oil and cook the flour in the oil over medium to high heat (depending on your roux making skill) stirring constantly, until the roux reaches a dark reddish-brown color, almost the color of coffee or milk chocolate for a cajun style roux.
Add the vegetables and stir quickly. This cooks the vegetables and also stops the roux from cooking further. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, for about 4 minutes.
Add the stock, seasonings, chicken and sausage. Bring to a boil, and then simmer for about 1 hour, skimming fat off the top as needed.
Serve over rice in large shallow bowls, garnished with the chopped scallion tops. Accompany with a good root beer and lot of hot crispy french bread.

Marsala Chicken and Mushroom Casserole

This is another great recipe from On my Menu. It's one of my favorites, if not my very favorite food blog. Its a blog with so many yummy recipes that use normal ingredients that aren't too difficult to make. This normally wouldn't have been a recipe that I would have chosen to make but Marci gave it such good reviews I thought I better try it. And it is REALLY good. And a great way to use up leftovers from a rotisserie chicken, or just a different way to serve a rotisserie chicken.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
10 ounces sliced mushrooms
(I added 1 t minced garlic and 1/2 white onion, chopped)
1 1/2 tablespoons flour (or cornstarch)
1/2 cup marsala wine or white wine (I used marsala cooking wine)
1/2 cup heavy cream (next time I'll try using a FF version instead)
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Salt and pepper
1 cup long-grain rice
2 packed cups coarsely chopped rotisserie chicken
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
1.Preheat the oven to 350°. In a large skillet, heat the butter over medium-high heat until just melted. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle the flour on top and stir in for 1 minute. Stir in the marsala and cream and simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in 2 cups water, the parsley, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
2.In a greased 9-inch-by-13-inch casserole, spread the rice in an even layer; top with the chicken. Pour the mushroom gravy on top. Cover snugly with foil and bake until bubbly, about 35 minutes. Discard the foil, sprinkle the parmesan on top and bake for 5 minutes more.

Chicken Soft Tacos

This is so easy and so good I can't believe I didn't know about this recipe before. It's another great one from my niece, Lia. She posted it on her food blog, Lia's Cookbook

Ingredients:
1-11/2 lbs frozen, boneless, skinless chicken breasts
14.5 oz can low sodium diced tomatoes with green chile's
1 envelope low sodium taco seasoning
tortillas
toppings of choice: guacomole, salsa, cheese, sour cream, lettuce etc.

Directions:
Place chicken breasts in slow cooker. Mix tomatoes and taco seasoning. Pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours. Serve in soft tortillas with toppings of choice.

Southwestern Chicken Lasagna

I get daily emails from Allrecipes.com with new recipes. Most of the time they aren't recipes that interest me but this one looked really good and I had a jar of spaghetti sauce already opened in my fridge that I needed to use up. Shane and I both really liked it. As I was eating it I kept thinking this has a familiar flavor--then I realized it was the spaghetti sauce. It really is a combination of lasagna and enchiladas. I kept thinking it should taste like enchiladas but it really had a lot of lasagna-ness about it--which I guess is how it should be since it's a variety of lasagna!

Ingredients:
3 cups shredded, cooked chicken breast meat (I used canned chicken)
2 Tbsp butter
2 large onions
1 jalapeno, chopped
2 Tbsp minced garlic
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
2 cups spaghetti sauce
2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup fresh salsa
16 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
16 oz shredded cheddar cheese
15 (6inch) corn tortillas

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. In large skillet brown chicken in butter. Add onions, jalapeno, garlic, basil, and oregano. Then add the spaghetti sauce, tomato sauce and salsa. Stir all together. Cover skillet and simmer for 10 minutes over low heat.
In lightly greased 9x13 pan, place a layer of tortillas, then a layer of the chicken/sauce mixture, then a layer of mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers twice, then top casserole with cheddar cheese and sliced olives. Bake in oven for 35 minutes, until cheese is bubbly.

Szechuan Chicken

Ingredients:

1 lb chicken

1/4 cup cornstarch (I'm guessing here--may have been less)

1-2 Tbsp oil (I used olive oil but was thinking sesame oil might be good)

1 1/2 Tbsp minced garlic

3-5 Tbsp Soy Sauce

1-2 Tbsp White Wine Vinegar

1 Tbsp Sugar

1/4 cup water

3 diced green onions

dash of cayenne pepper

Directions:

Cut chicken into 1 inch cubes and lightly coat with corn starch (I do this by putting the chicken in a ziploc bag with the cornstarch and mixing it all around until it's covered). Heat oil in a frying pan and add minced garlic. Add chicken and fry until all sides are white. Add soy sauce, vinegar and sprinkle with sugar. Add the water--more or less depending on how strong of a flavor you want and how runny you want the sauce. Add diced green onions and cayenne pepper. You can make it as spicy as you want. Serve with rice.

Chicken Enchilada Ring

This is an old pampered chef recipe. It probably came with the southwestern seasoning mix I bought many years ago. I really like it and keep my supply of the seasoning mix just for this recipe.

Ingredients:

2 cups chopped cooked chicken (I use canned)

1/4 cup chopped pitted olives

1 cup (4oz) cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese blend

1 can (4oz) chopped green chilies undrained

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 T Southwestern Seasoning Mix (pampered chef)

2 plum tomatoes

1 tsp lime juice

2/3 finely crushed tortillas chips

2 pkgs (80z) refrigerated crescent rolls

1 cup salsa

1 cup sour cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Chop chicken and olives. Add cheese, chilies, mayo, and seasoning mix. Seed and chop 1 tomato. Add tomato and lime juice to chicken mixture. Reserve 2 Tbsp of crushed chips and add the remaining chips to chicken mixture and mix well. Sprinkle reserved crushed chips over flat surface. Unroll crescent dough. Place dough, sticky side down, onto crushed chips; press down lightly so chips adhere to dough. Separate dough into triangles. Arrange triangles, chip side down, in a circle on Round pan with wide ends overlapping in the center and points toward outside (there should be a 5 inch diameter opening in center.) Scoop chicken mixture evenly onto longest end of each triangle. Bring points of triangles up over filling and tuck under wide ends of dough at center of ring. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Sesame Chicken

 

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts
1/4 c flour
2 T peanut or sesame oil
salt and pepper
1/3 c soy sauce
1/3 c sugar
1/3 c green onions chopped

Directions:
Cut chicken into pieces and add flour and salt and pepper in a bag to coat.
Brown in sesame oil.
Mix the soy sauce, sugar and green onions and pour the mixture over the chicken.
Cover and cook until the chicken is cooked through.
Top with sesame seeds and serve over steamed rice.

Chicken and Black bean Enchiladas

Ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil

1/2 cup chopped onions

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch pieces (I used 1 can chicken)

1 15oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 4oz can diced green chile's

1/3 cup salsa

2 T chopped cilantro

4 8" flour tortillas

1 1/3 cup shredded Monterrey jack cheese (I used whatever I had)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat, add garlic and onions and saute for 2 minutes, add chicken and saute for 5 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through. Stir in black beans, green chile's, and salsa; simmer 5 minutes until sauce thickens. Remove from heat and add cilantro.

Top each tortilla with chicken mixture and place side by side in baking pan. Top tortillas with cheese. Bake enchiladas 15 minutes or until cheese is golden.

Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 cups chicken broth

4 carrots

4 celery sticks

3 potatoes

1 whole onion

1 bay leaf

4 Tbsp butter

1/4 cup flour

1 1/2 cup milk

1/4 tsp thyme

2 piecrusts (refrigerated pillsbury crusts)

Directions:

Saute chicken breast in a little oil until brown. Season both sides with salt and pepper. (Can use 2 cans of canned chicken--or I like to use leftover chicken) Shred and set aside.

Saute vegetables (celery, carrots, onion, and potatoes) with bay leaf and butter for 12 minutes--do not overcook. Add flour to veggie mix and whisk until flour is dissolved. Add milk, broth, and thyme. Continue to whisk. Add chicken. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour into piecrust and cover with a top crust. Cut vent slits. Bake at 400 for 30 minutes.

Posole

Ingredients:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 small pork roast
1 large can of hominy
1 large can of enchilada sauce
1 pkg of taco seasoning
1 head of iceberg lettuce
a bunch of radishes
green onions, sliced
a bunch of cilantro, chopped
several small limes

Directions:
In a crock pot put the chicken and pork, hominy (with it's juices), enchilada sauce, and taco seasoning. (Note: if the meat is not covered then add another can of enchilada sauce).
Cook on low until the meat can be easily shredded. Skim all liquid fat off the top of soup. Remove meat and shred. Put shredded meat back into the soup. Chop all the vegetables and serve as soup toppings.

Thai Chicken Curry

This is another one of my favorites from On My Menu . It is so so good. I don't like coconut so I was surprised I liked this but the curry flavor overpowers any coconut flavor. I've made it both with the red curry paste and using the substitution and they are equally good.

Ingredients:

2 large chicken breasts

1 13.5oz can coconut milk

1 medium yellow onion, cut into wide slices

1 medium tomato, cut into thick 1 inch pieces

1 bunch asparagus or green beans, ends cut off and then cut into thirds (I used green beans)

1 1/2 Tbsp Thai red curry paste *

1-2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Optional:

pineapple

1 tsp sugar

1/4 cup water

*Instead of curry paste: 1 Tbsp fresh ginger, 1 tsp curry powder, 1 tsp chili powder, 1/4 tsp cayenne.

Directions:

Cut chicken into thin strips. Season with curry and broil on low, DO NOT overcook as it will simmer later. Heat vegetable oil in a large pan. Saute onions first, add asparagus/beans, then add tomatoes. Add the following ingredients one at a time and taste it as you go: curry paste, coconut milk, curry powder, salt, pepper, chicken. Simmer and taste and re-season until you can't wait anymore. Serve with steamed rice.