Chicken Puffs

These would have been good if they had more filling in them.  I think since I used homemade crescent roll dough they  needed more filling than called for but I would make them again.

Chicken Puffs

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cubed
3 Tb chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
3/4 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese
6 Tb butter
3 (10 oz) cans refrigerated crescent roll dough (or I used homemade crescent roll dough)

In medium saucepan over medium heat slowly cook and stir skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, onion and garlic.  Cook until onions are tender and chicken is lightly browned.

In medium bowl, blend chicken mixture, cream cheese and butter until creamy.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Unroll crescent rolls and divide in half to create 12 rectangles.  Place approximately one tablespoon of chicken mixture on each rectangle.  Fold into balls.

Arrange balls on large baking sheet.  Bake for 12 minutes, or until golden brown.

Fajitas

 I know these aren't hard to make but I'm making a log of all my recipes as I make new ones so I might as well put them all on here.

Cook some chicken until done.  Add fajita seasoning and mix.

Saute a green pepper and an onion.  Then build your fajita:  I used a whole wheat tortilla, sour cream, chicken, veggies, cheese, and salsa.  Roll up and eat!

BBQ Chicken Wraps

Thought these sounded good so I gave them a try.  All I did was bake some chicken in the oven with some garlic powder, chili powder, a bit of cumin, salt and pepper.  Then I diced it up and tossed with bbq sauce.  Roll in a whole wheat tortilla with some red onion, swiss cheese, lettuce and ranch dressing.  Yum!

Nacho Cheese Tortilla Chicken Bake

We were so excited to try this I forgot to get a photo!  It wasn't bad.  I'd make it again but next time I wouldn't put the Doritos on the bottom; I'd wait until the last few minutes and sprinkle them over the top.  And I think I need to find recipes with shorter names!

Nacho Cheese Tortilla Chicken Bake

8 cups nacho cheese tortilla chips, crushed (Doritos, or even the Cool Ranch kind would work)
2 cans (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
2 cups cooked chicken, chopped or shredded
1 cup salsa
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 can (4 oz) chopped green chilies
Additional shredded cheddar for topping

Arrange chips in a greased 13x9 baking dish.  In a bowl, comine the soup, chicken, salsa, cheese, and chilies.  Pour over chips.  Sprinkle with additional cheese.  Bake, uncovered, at 325 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until bubbly.

Wild Rice Chicken Supreme

I got this dish from a friend when I had my daughter.  Asked for the recipe and it quickly became a favorite.  Easy to make and works well for the freezer.  If you wanted to make it more frugal you could even leave out the chicken.  In fact, I prefer it that way.

Wild Rice Chicken Supreme

1 box uncle ben's long grain and wild rice

1/4 cup butter

1/3 cup chopped onion

1/3 cup flour

3/4 tsp salt

dash of pepper

1 cup half and half

1 can chicken broth

2 cups cubed cooked chicken

1/3 cup chopped pimiento

1/3 cup chopped parsley

Prepare rice according to box.  Meanwhile melt butter in saucepan, add onion and cook for a few minutes until tender.  Stir in flour, salt, and pepper.  Gradually stir in half and half and chicken broth (whisking in).  Cook, stirring constantly until thickened.  Stir in chicken, pimiento, parsley, and cooked rice.  Place in 2 quart casserole dish.  Bake 30 minutes at 375 degrees.

Servers 6-8

Chicken Pot Pie

This is an easy one that works well to double and freeze.  We don't really like the frozen veggies in casseroles because they're crunchy so I doubled this recipe and instead used one can each of green beans, corn, carrots, and peas.  I also don't roll out the biscuit topping.  I just mix it up and drop by spoonfuls on top.

Chicken Pot Pie

6 Tb butter/margarine, divided
3 Tb flour
2 cup chicken broth
1 1/4 tsp dried rosemary, divided
1/4 tsp tabasco sauce
1/2 lb cubed cooked chicken
2 medium carrots, sliced and cooked
1 cup frozen peas
1 1/2 cup dry biscuit mix
1/2 cup milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  In large pan, melt 3 Tb butter.  Stir in flour, cook 1 minute.  Remove from heat.  Gradually add broth.  Stir constantly; bring to a boil for 1 minute.  Stir in 1/2 tsp rosemary, tobasco, chicken, and vegetables.  Spoon mixture into greased 2 quart baking dish.

In medium bowl combine biscuit mix and remaining rosemary.  Cut in remaining butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Stir in milk.  On heavily floured surface pat out dough 1/2 inch thick.  Cut into 10 triangles.  Arrange on chicken mixture.  Bake for 25 minutes.

Grilled Glazed Drummies

We ran out of charcoal so I had to do these in the oven.  They were okay.  Not great, but good.  I think they would have been a lot better had they been grilled so we'll try it again sometime. 

Grilled Glazed Drummies

1 cup ketchup

1/3 cup soy sauce

4 tsp honey

3/4 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp garlic powder

3 lbs. fresh or frozen chicken drummetes, thawed

In small bowl, combine the first five ingredients.  Pour 1 cup marinade into a large resealable plastic bag.  Add the chicken; seal bag and turn to coat.  Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.  Cover and refrigerate remaining marinade for basting.

Drain chicken and discard marinade.  Grill, covered, over medium heat for 15-20 minutes or until juices run clear, turning and basting occasionally with reserved marinade.

Burritos

One of our new favorites I've made a few times now. A light, healthy dinner at that.

Burritos

Cilantro Lime Rice: recipe on other post under Sides category
shredded or cubed cooked and seasoned chicken: I seasoned using cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, and pepper
black beans, drained and rinsed (I used frozen, cooked, dried beans)
tomato
onion
salsa
cilantro
shredded cheese
whole wheat tortillas

Layer on desired ingredients, roll up, and enjoy!

Kid wanted his plate pictured as well! Cheese roll and brown rice with parmesan for the picky kids.

Chicken Nuggets Redo

I tried these again and they turned out so much better. There are still a few things I would tweak but I'll be making these often now.

Here's what I did:

Cut raw chicken into cubes and place in food processor. Process until chicken looks smooth and sort of pasty, or until there are no chunks. Add seasonings: I used salt, pepper, garlic powder, and oregano. Mix well.

Place oil in skillet and turn on medium high heat to get hot while you finish getting the nuggets ready. Place two eggs in a dish and beat. Place about a cup of flour in another dish. I didn't season my flour but I would suggest at least adding salt and pepper. As they say, you should season every layer.

Roll chicken mixture into little balls. Dip in flour, then egg, then back in flour. Flatten into a nugget shape. Do this with all of chicken mixture.

Place a few nuggets at a time in oil (once it's ready. Drip in a tiny bit of flour and if it bubbles up it's ready) and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes per side.

Drain on paper towels to get off excess oil. Then eat or bag up for the freezer.

Honey Chicken Kebobs

Yum! That's all I have to say about this. And to adjust quantities to your family's needs. I just made the marinade and then added enough chicken and veggies for my family. This recipe calls for a lot more than I actually made.

Honey Chicken Kebobs

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 tsp black pepper
8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1 inch cubes
2 cloves garlic
5 small onions, cut into 2 inch pieces
2 red bell peppers, cut into 2 inch pieces
skewers

In large bowl, whisk together oil, honey, soy sauce, and pepper. Reserve a small amount of marinade to brush on kebobs while cooking. Place the chicken, garlic, onion, and peppers in the bowl. Marinate in fridge for 2 hours. (Or double the marinade and soak overnight.)

Preheat grill for high heat. Drain marinade from chicken and veggies and discard. Thread chicken and veggies on skewers. Lightly oil grill. Place the skewers on grill. Cook 12 to 15 minutes, until chicken juices run clear. Turn and brush with reserved marinade frequently.

Homemade Chicken Nuggets

I tried homemade chicken nuggets today. They didn't turn out really like I expected so I'll try them again. I think it's because I cooked the chicken first before putting it in the food processor and according to a video I saw on making chicken nuggets like McDonald's, you process it raw and then they cook when you fry them.

I did decide to still fry them in a little oil. I figured that it's still better that I'm making them homemade than not, and wanted the taste and texture to be similar to what the kids are used to.

So for now, just know I'm working on this one and hopefully I'll get it figured out soon and post a recipe.

Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti

This is one of those recipes I found in a cookbook when we were first married and it became one of my husband's favorite meals, as well as a good go-to meal when I needed something quick and easy. You basically throw it all together and put it in the oven for 15 minutes. Simple!

Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti

9 oz uncooked spaghetti
1 c frozen chopped onion
1 Tb bottled minced garlic
2 (14.5 oz) cans stewed tomatoes, undrained and chopped
1 Tb low sodium worcestershire sauce
1 tsp dried Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
3 c chopped, cooked chicken

Preheat oven to 350. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain.

Coat a nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place over medium heat until hot. Add onion and garlic; saute 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, worcestershire sauce, seasoning, and salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes. Stir in 1 cup cheese, cooked spaghetti, and chicken. Spoon into a 3 quart casserole dish. Sprinkle with remaining 1 cup cheese. Bake for 15 minutes. Yields: 6 servings, 1 1/3 cups each.

What I do differently:
--use one can of mild rotel instead of stewed tomatoes
--use fresh onion
--use a little more pasta
--add about a cup or so of spaghetti sauce just for a little more moisture, it seems kind of dry
--this time I added about a cup or cup and a half of pureed broccoli because I'm trying to sneak in veggies for my son. We decided to give up battling him to eat one bite at mealtime and just hide them. You couldn't even tell in this recipe and he even cleaned his plate!
--I also split this into two 8x8 dishes so I could freeze one because a 9x13 is just too much for us. But just reheating it should be fine and the pasta shouldn't be too mushy or runny I don't think.

Easy Enchiladas

When I had my second child my friend brought me this for dinner one night. We fell in love with it! If I would have found this recipe on my own I might not have tried it because the sauce ingredients seem like an odd combination to me, but it's very yummy, I promise. And I know, the picture doesn't make it look too appetizing but trust me, it is! I've done a few things differently so I'll mark those in a different color so you can see both the original and my variation.

EASY ENCHILADAS

1 lb groud beef or turkey (I use shredded chicken)
1/2 diced onion (I omit this, at least in the hubby's and kids')
2-3 cups shredded cheese (I use mexican blend) (Cheddar works fine too but mexican is best)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can tomato soup
1 can enchilada sauce (I usually use a larger can of this)
corn tortillas (or flour since the hubby doesn't like corn ones)

I sometimes double the sauce depending on how much chicken I make.

Brown beef & onion. Season to taste with salt & pepper. Drain. Stir in 2 cups cheese.

Mix soups & enchilada sauce in a large bowl. Soften tortillas by heating for 10-15 seconds per side on hot skillet. (You probably should do this for corn tortillas but I don't for flour tortillas.) (I do this one at a time while filling them). Spread 1 cup of soup mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan. Fill tortillas with one heaping tablespoon of meat mixture and roll up. Place in pan seam side down. Roll as many tortillas as needed to fill pan and use up meat mixture.

Cover with remaining sauce and cheese. Bake covered at 350 for 30-40 minutes until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbly.

This freezes beautifully too, with or without the sauce on it already. I made one dish last night and had enough extra to put another dish in the freezer.