Aunt Lorett'a Chicken

This was one of my favorite Sunday meals growing up.  

Ingredients:

6 chicken breasts

6 thin ham slices

6 pieces of bacon (COOKED!)

Mix:

2 cans of cream of mushroom soup

1 pint of sour cream

Do not forget to cook the bacon before you assemble the casserole!

Line the bottom of the pan with ham. Cook the bacon.  Wrap the chicken with strips of cooled bacon.  Place on top of the ham.  Pour on the mixture of cream of mushroom soup and sour cream.  Bake at 275 degrees for three hours.  You can cook it at a higher temperature for a shorter amount of time.

Angel Hair Pasta w/Chicken

2 T. olive oil

2 chicken breast halves cut into 1-inch cubes

1 carrots, sliced diagonally into ¼ inch pieces

1 (10 ounce) package frozen broccoli florets, thawed

2 cloves garlic, minced

12 ounces angel hair pasta

2/3 c. chicken broth

1 tsp. Dried basil

¼ c. grated Parmesan cheese

        Heat 1 T. oil in a medium skillet over medium heat; add chicken.  Cook, stirring, until chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.  Remove from skillet and drain on paper towels.  

        Heat remaining oil in the same skillet.  Begin heating water for pasta.  Add carrot to skillet; cook, stirring for 4 minutes.  Add broccoli and garlic to skillet; cook, stirring for 2 minutes longer.

        Cook pasta according to package directions.  While pasta is cooking, add chicken broth, basil and Parmesan to skillet.  Stir to combine.  Return chicken to skillet.  Reduce heat and simmer for 4 minutes.

        Drain pasta.  Place in a large serving bowl.  Top with chicken and vegetable mixture.  Serve immediately. 

Chicken Pot Pie

Another recipe from my childhood.  My love for Chicken Pot Pies stemmed from the fact that my mom made them individual sized.  I loved that.  I was also in charge of cutting the tops in any way I wanted.  This time we played with cookie cutters.

Chicken Pot Pie

Pastry for single-crust pie

½ c. chopped onion (one medium)

1 12 oz. Can evaporated milk

¼ c. all-purpose flour

¼ c. water

1 tsp. Instant chicken bouillon granules

½ tsp. Dried sage, marjoram, or thyme, crushed

1/8 tsp. Pepper

1 10-ounce package frozen peas and carrots or peas

1 ½ c. chopped cooked chicken or turkey

        On a lightly floured surface, flatten dough with hands.  Roll pastry to a 13x 9-inch rectangle.  Cover pastry and set aside.

        Spray a cold medium saucepan with nonstick coating.  Add the onion.  Cook and stir over medium heat about four minutes or until the onion is tender but not brown.

        Meanwhile, reserve 1 T. of the milk.  Set aside.  In a small mixing bowl gradually stir the remaining milk into the flour until smooth.  Stir into vegetable mixture in the saucepan.  Stir in the water; bouillon granules; sage, marjoram, or thyme; and pepper.  Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.  Stir in the frozen peas and carrots or peas and chicken or turkey. 

        Transfer mixture to a 12x 8x 2-inch baking dish or 8 ramekins. Place pastry over chicken mixture.  Fold under edges.  Crimp edges of pastry with a fork.  Brush pastry with reserved milk. 

        Bake in a 375 oven for 30 minutes or until the chicken mixture is heated thoroughly and the pastry is golden brown.  Makes five servings.  

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Adapted from: Tyler’s Ultimate Chicken Cordon Bleu on the Food Network.

4 chicken breasts skinless and boneless
4 slices of ham (I use just sandwich meat ham)
4 slices of Swiss Cheese
1/4 cup flour

salt and pepper
1 cup Panko bread crumbs (Find these and use them! They make all the difference. They are just by the normal bread crumbs in a box. I'm in love!)

1 tsp. Thymne
1 clove garlic minced
2 tablespoons margarine or butter melted
2 eggs
Extra-virgin olive oil

First off, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.


Lay out some plastic wrap about 6 inches by 5 inches. I put four down so I could just work with the chicken and not have to get the box out again with yucky hands.

Pound the chicken breasts as thin as you can get it with a meat mallet and if you are desperate cut the chicken breast in half width-wise. I did both to get it really thin.  If they are slightly frozen they don't splatter as much.

Put some ham on the chicken breast and a slice of swiss cheese. Then roll it up into a jelly-rollish shape and wrap up in the plastic wrap to keep it all together or secure with a toothpick.  Repeat.  At this point if you are working with fresh meet you could roll the chicken in foil and freeze for later use.  Don't refreeze chicken that was frozen and then thawed.

Then lay out three pans that you can use to dip the chicken in. Also get out a sheet and put some olive oil on it.

Put flour in one dish and mix some salt and pepper into it.

In the second dish mix the bread crumbs, thyme, garlic, salt, pepper, and melted butter. In the third dish beat eggs and season with salt and pepper. (Do you detect a theme here?)

Remove plastic wrap and dust the chicken with the flour. Then dip it in the egg and then coat it with the bread crumbs. In my opinion, the more the better.

Place on the sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown.

 For the sauce I got this from one of my favorite recipe blogs...http://mmmcafe.blogspot.com/

Ingredients: 1 can Cream of Mushroom soup (I made my own from scratch this time!)

1/4 cup Mayonnaise

3 Tbsp Honey

2 Tbsp Brown mustard or Whole Grain Mustard (I just used normal)

1/2 tsp paprika (optional)

3 Tbs Milk

Combine all the ingredients in a sauce pan and heat thru, add milk to reach the consistency that you desire. Serve the sauce hot with Chicken Cordon Bleu.

All together it is the best stuff!

Honey Lime Enchiladas

I have a hand full of recipes I'm constantly being asked for and this is one of them.  They also freeze great.  I also won an Enchilada competition with this recipe.

I had a friend just have a baby so I made a giant batch of these babies and somehow made three pans!

Honey Lime Enchiladas

Ingredients:

   For the chicken marinade:

    7 Tbsp. honey

     Juice from two large limes

    1 Tbsp. chili powder

    1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Mix all together in a bowl and set aside.

For the enchiladas:

   4 chicken breasts, boiled and shredded

 small  package of tortillas 

   caramelized onions (1/2 a sweet onion chopped fine and cooked with a Tbsp. of balsamic vinegar on low for 1/2 an hour.)

   24 oz. monterey jack cheese shredded

    20 ounces green enchilada sauce

   1 cup heavy cream

    can of black beans drained and washed.

    Mix the shredded chicken and the marinade together and sit int he fridge for about a 1/2 an hour.  Preheat your oven to 350.    Reserve the extra marinade.  Mix the chicken, beans, and onions together in a bowl.  Spoon the filling mixture into the middle of a tortilla and add a dollop of cheese.  Roll up and place in a 8 x 13 pan with a tiny bit of the green enchilada sauce spread on the bottom.  Fill your pan with the rolled and filled tortillas.  Mix the cream, left over marinade, and the rest of the enchilada sauce and pour over the enchiladas.  Top with the rest of the shredded cheese.  Bake for 30 minutes.  

 Enjoy!  To freeze, bake like normal and then let cool completely.  Wrap with foil twice and freeze.  

.

black beans

caramelized onions

marinated chicken

Artichoke Stuffed Chicken with Marinara Sauce

Ingredients:

1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 cup chopped canned artichoke hearts
1 Tbsp. basil
2 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. salt
6 chicken breasts pounded

Pound out the chicken by placing the breast between two pieces of plastic wrap.  Then make a meat tenderizer and go at it.  Its great when you feel frustrated to let it out on a piece of chicken!

Combine cheese, artichoke hearts, basil, oregano, garlic, and salt. 

Spread cheese mixture in the middle of the chicken breast.  Not too much, about 2 tbsp. depending on the size of the chicken breast. 

Roll up the chicken breast with filling at center.  Roll up into plastic wrap and store in the fridge for 30 minutes or until ready to grill. 

Cook for 10 minutes on each side on grill or in a saucepan.  If on the grill turn down the temperature at the end and close the lid and cook for another 10 minutes.  I did mine on a saucepan because our grill ran out of propane and I put it in the oven for 10 minutes at 350 degrees to make sure it was done in the middle. 

The internal temperature needs to be 170 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Serve with marinara sauce.  Delish!

Dad's Dutch Oven Chicken

My dad used to Dutch Oven this Chicken every time we went camping.  It is so good!

Dad's Dutch Oven Chicken (re-done in the crockpot)

4 chicken breasts
1 8 oz. bottle of Russian Dressing (this can be tricky to find, but Wish Bone makes one I found at Walmart)
1 cup Apricot Jam
1 package onion soup mix

Place chicken in a crockpot or dutch oven.  Mix the dressing, jam, and soup mix together in a bowl and then pour over the chicken.  Bake for 4-10 hours depending on the highness of the heat.  I did it for four hours on high on the crockpot.  Then it still wasn't falling apart to my satisfaction so I put it in a saucepan for 20 minutes and then it was perfect.

When you serve it make sure to spoon copious amounts of the sauce on top.  Soooo good!

*The recipe says to bake it in the oven at 350 for an hour and 20 minutes, but its just not as good as doing it in a dutch oven so I do it in the crockpot.  But if you really want to do it right do it in a dutch oven!

Hot Salad Chicken Sandwiches and a Pocket Possibility

Hot Chicken Salad Sandwiches
This is the best sandwich!  I'm usually not a fan of stuffing, but this sandwich is great!

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked and cubed chicken
2 cups diced celery
2 cups small croutons (or I prefer to just use a stuffing mix)
1 cup mayo
1/2 cup slivered almonds
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. minced onions (instant)
1/2 tsp.salt

    Mix all together and then place on rolls or croissants and bake at 450 for 5-10 minutes until golden.

I couldn't find croissants at the store so I just made some rolls to put them on.  I forgot how good these rolls are!  They are amazing!

This time we used it as a pocket filling.  My husband's idea.

Chicken and Rice Soup

Chicken, Rice, Veggie Soup

This is one of my favorite soups my mom would make.

You need:

4 cups chicken broth
1 small onion chopped (about 1/3 cup)
2 medium carrots, shredded (about 1 c.) (I put mine in the food processor so they were super small.)
2 medium celery stalks, sliced (about 1 c.) (same as above)
½ c. uncooked instant long-grain and wild rice mix
1 c. diced cooked skinless chicken breast (about 6 ounces)
1 can (10 ¾ oz.) Campbell’s Healthy Request Cream of Mushroom Soup

In a large saucepan, combine broth, onion, carrots, celery and rice. Bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium and add chicken. Cover and continue cooking until vegetables are tender and rice is done, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in mushroom soup. Serve immediately.

You can also do this in a crockpot easily. Just cook the veggies first and then add rice a few hours later and then the chicken a few hours after that. Add the Cream of Mushroom Soup very last.

Chicken Pot Pie

I tried THIS recipe from Alton Brown the other night but I used a pie crust for the tops and bottoms instead of puff pastry like he uses.  I put them in my ramekins so everyone could have their own pie.  My mom used to do this and I loved it when I was little.