French Onion Chicken

Yep, it's another slow cooker recipe.  Don't judge!  It's easy, it's quick, it's yummy, and it means minimal dishes.  What's not to love?   I'll confess - this was definitely one of those throw-it-in-the-slow-cooker-and-hope-it-tastes-good days.  And guess what?  It did! Family-approved and everything.

French Onion Chicken

4 frozen chicken breasts
1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream
1/4 cup reduced fat mayo
1 package french onion recipe mix (like Knorr - on sale at GE this week!)

I promise you can do this.  Place chicken in the bottom of slow cooker, still frozen.  Mix together sour cream and mayo.  Dollop evenly on top of the chicken breasts.  Sprinkle french onion mix on top.  Cook on low 6-7 hours.

Enjoy!

Easy Yummy Breadsticks

I thought I had ready-made breadsticks to use for small group snack last night, but when I went to get things ready, it turned out that I didn't!  Rather than try to come up with a new idea at the last minute, here's what I made:

Easy Yummy Breadsticks

3 T. butter
2 T. olive oil
2 cups biscuit mix
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 cup parmesan cheese
italian seasoning

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Mix together biscuit mix & water.  When soft dough ball forms, sprinkle with more baking mix and roll out into 10x6 rectangle.  Cut rectangle in half lengthwise, and then vertically, making 14 pieces.  Melt butter and mix with olive oil, onion powder & garlic powder.  Pour butter mixture into the bottom of a baking pan.  Roll each piece of dough in butter, then bake for 11-12 minutes, until golden brown.  While still warm, sprinkle with parmesan cheese and italian seasoning to taste.  Serve warm with your favorite marinara sauce for an appetizer, or alongside your favorite soup as a dipper.  Enjoy!

2 Meals in One!

Tonight's dinner was approved by both my husband (who likes food) and my cranky, teething toddler (who does not).  It was unseasonably warm again today in western PA, and I really did not want to add heat to the house by cooking.  I did cook a tiny bit, but I did it this morning before it got hot, and just reheated everything this evening. 

However, to tell you about tonight's dinner, I have to start with yesterday's.  A simple yet delicious slow cooker taco chicken.  It goes like this:

Slow Cooker Taco Chicken

4 frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 pkg. taco seasoning (I used low sodium)

1/2 cup salsa (I used corn & black bean salsa)

1 can healthy request cream of chicken soup

Place the frozen chicken in the bottom of the slow cooker.  Sprinkle taco seasoning over the top.  Mix together salsa & cream of chicken, and pour that on top.  Cook on high for 4 hours.  Shred the chicken, mix it back in with the cooking juices, and serve in tortillas with your fave taco toppings/sides! 

That was Dinner #1.

This morning, before it got too hot outside I boiled some ditalini pasta.  Here's Dinner #2:

Taco Chicken Ditalini

1 cup of leftover taco chicken w/ sauce

1 cup of ditalini

1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

2 Tbsp milk

Seriously - that's all you need.  Boil the ditalini according to package directions to al dente.  After draining the pasta, mix the rest of the ingredients in, and warm the whole thing through.  Honestly, I think next time I would add some black beans or corn, or maybe both.  But either way, in my husband's words, "I could eat that... a LOT."

Enjoy!

Creamy Potato Broccoli Bake

I love potatoes, I love broccoli, and I love this type of dish.  It's not way outside my normal cooking set, but it was yummy, so I hope you try it and enjoy it also!

Creamy Potato Broccoli Bake

3 lbs red potatoes
1-1.5 head broccoli (depending on size)
1 can healthy request cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream
1/4 cup margarine, melted (I used Smart Balance Light)
2/3 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Wash potatoes and dice into 1/2-inch pieces. Cut broccoli into bite-sized pieces similar in size to potatoes (so that they cook evenly).  Mix broccoli, potatoes, and cheese together in a large bowl.  Mix cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and margarine together separately, then pour over potato mixture and mix together.  Pour into greased baking dish and bake, covered, at 375 for 40-45 minutes.  

Makes 6-8 servings.

(We had this with pot roast and green beans... but you can put it with chicken, pork, beef, etc.  Hope you like it!)

Spinach Tomato Tortellini

My friend Kristy brought me this yummy dish when my daughter was born, and we loved it so much that I asked for the recipe.  I've made it several times since then, and every time it is just so yummy! :)  This time I did decide to modify it based on a couple of our personal preferences and a couple things I had in the fridge.  (I always try to use what I have rather than buying more things just for one recipe.)  So here's my variation of her already delicious recipe!  Enjoy!

Spinach Tomato Tortellini
(Not sure if that's Kristy's official name for it, but that's what I made up)

1 16-oz package of cheese tortellini (or meat if you prefer)
1 15-oz can tomato sauce (not spaghetti sauce)
3 tsp dried basil
1 cup frozen spinach
1/8 cup flour
1/4 cup skim milk
1 10-oz package Philly Cooking Creme Roasted Garlic (or if you use the plain, just add 2 minced garlic cloves)
3 T. reduced fat grated Parmesan cheese

In a large skillet, pour tomato sauce and begin to defrost spinach in the sauce.  Add basil and stir occasionally.  While this warms, begin to boil water for pasta, and cook according to package directions.  Whisk together milk and flour. Once the spinach is warmed through and the sauce is bubbling, add milk mixture and cooking creme.  Continue to cook until sauce thickens, add parmesan cheese.  Add drained (do not rinse) tortellini to sauce and gently fold to combine.  Enjoy! :)

Makes 4 servings, approximately 420 calories per serving.

Bacon, Fig & Goat Cheese Pizza

I blame Market District for this.  In a very, very good way.  :)

Bacon, Fig & Goat Cheese Pizza

3 slices bacon, cooked
6 Tbsp. fig preserves (available in PA at Giant Eagle)
3 oz goat cheese
1 pizza crust (I used thin & crispy)

Spread pre-cooked pizza crust with fig preserves.  Sprinkle crumbled bacon on top, then top with crumbled goat cheese.  Bake at 400 for 10-12 minutes until hot and bubbly.  Serves 6 slices.

Cranberry Orange Granola

I heart granola! But looking at the label is sometimes frustrating. There's a lot of things in a store-bought granola that I'd rather not consume. Plus, nothing tastes as good as homemade, right? So here's my version of granola bars, after trying out a few recipes I've found online. So far this is my favorite.

Enjoy!

Cranberry Orange Granola

1/2 cup dates, pitted & chopped
1 cup walnuts (could substitute almonds or pecans)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp orange extract
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup dried cranberries (could substitute apricots)
1/2 cup oats
3 cups puffed rice cereal (not Rice Krispies!)
1 14-oz can fat free sweetened condensed milk

In food processor, blend dates, walnuts, vanilla & orange extracts into coarse crumbs. In large bowl, combine walnut mixture, pumpkin seeds, cranberries and oats. Then stir in rice cereal, followed by the milk. (This order is just to help everything get combined evenly.) Line 9x13 pan with lightly greased parchment. Don't skip this step, or you'll have trouble getting them out! Pour granola mixture into the pan, pressing down with greased hands or another piece of parchment. Press into the corners so that it is evenly distributed and pressed into bars. Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes, until golden. Do not try to remove or cut them until completely cooled! Once cooled, lift out of the pan by the corners of the parchment and cut into 12 bars.