Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken

It's getting late and I don't have much to say about this recipe.  But Callen loved it and went on and on about it, so I definitely need to add it to my repetoire.  Not to mention it is so easy to make!

So I am going to just copy and paste it from the site where I got it.  And Callen would definitely give it a 5.0.  I'll give it a 4.8  It was really good, but I don't love taco seasoning that much.

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (frozen is fine)

1 cup salsa

1 can condensed cream of chicken soup

1 packet taco seasoning

1/2 cup sour cream

6 tortillas

Place chicken in the bottom of your slow cooker. Sprinkle taco seasoning on chicken. In a bowl, combine soup and salsa. Pour over chicken. Cook on high 4 hours. Shred chicken with two forks and stir in sour cream. Serve on tortillas or as desired.

Red Sauce Enchiladas

Ben came to town.  So, of course, I made red sauce chicken enchiladas.  And since I did not bring my recipes with me to S. Carolina, I had to find a new recipe.  And this one was a hit!  It was a little spicier than my old recipe, but it is definitely one I will make again.

Red Chile Sauce Chicken Enchiladas

*Makes 12 enchiladas

INGREDIENTS:
1 medium onion, chopped fine (didn't use)
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped fine
1 teaspoon canola oil 
3 medium cloves garlic, minced (only used two, it seemed like a lot of garlic)
2 tablespoons chili powder (didn't have any.  Made my own using this recipe.  Although I didn't have paprika, so I just left it out)

• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin
3 teaspoons sugar
2 (8-oz) cans tomato sauce
1 cup water
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 3 large chicken breasts) (I used two)
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese (used mild)
1 cup shredded Monterey jack cheese
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro
12 (6-inch) soft corn or flour tortillas (fajita-size for flour tortillas) (I used the kind you cook yourself, they are definitely the best!)
cooking spray
salt and ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:
In a large saucepan, combine the onion, jalapeno, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and oil. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until the onions and peppers have softened, 8-10 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, cumin, and sugar, and cook until fragrant, less than 30 seconds. Stir in the tomato sauce and water. Bring to a simmer.

Nestle the chicken into the sauce. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until chicken is cooked through, about 12-20 minutes, depending on the size and thickness of the chicken breasts you are using. Transfer the chicken to a plate, and set aside to cool. Continue to simmer the sauce over medium heat until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

Strain the sauce through a strainer into a medium bowl, pressing the onion mixture to extract as much liquid as possible. Season sauce with additional salt and pepper to taste. Transfer the leftover onion mixture from the strainer to a large bowl and set aside. (I don't have a strainer out here and I didn't use the onions, so I just skipped this whole step).

Shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Add to the onion mixture in the large bowl. Also stir in 1/4 cup of the enchilada sauce, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup Monterey Jack cheese and the cilantro. Toss to combine.

Stack the tortillas on a plate and cover with plastic wrap; Microwave on high until warm and pliable, 40-60 seconds. Spread the tortillas on a clean work surface, and spoon 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture evenly down the center of each. Tightly roll each tortilla and lay seam-side down in a greased 9×13 inch baking dish.

Heat oven to 400 F. Pour the enchilada sauce evenly over the top of the enchiladas. Top with the remaining cheese. Cover dish with foil and bake 20 minutes, or until heated through.

Remove foil and bake another 5 minutes, until cheese browns. Remove from oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with sour cream, guacamole, salsa, additional cilantro, if desired.

Make Ahead Instructions: Follow the recipe, letting the sauce, onions and chicken come to room temperature before assembling the enchiladas. Finish following the recipe instructions and instead of baking, cover the pan with a layer of tin foil and refrigerate for up to 12 hours. Bake covered for 20 minutes, uncover and bake an additional 5-10 minutes. Alternately, the assembled enchiladas can be covered with a double layer of tin foil and put inside a jumbo-size ziploc bag (if you don’t have a jumbo-sized bag, make sure the edges of the pan are sealed well with tin foil). Freeze for up to 2-3 months. Bake from frozen, baking for 1 1/2 hours covered at 350 degrees F. Uncover and bake an additional hour until hot and bubbly.

Overall rating, 4.5 stars.  It was a little spicy for me, but everyone else loved it, so I think it was just me.

Banana Bread (Heaven)

Seriously.  A.MAZE.ING.  Enough said.  And I'm sure it's super healthy.  This recipe will change your life.  Go grab those bananas that are starting to get brown spots (cuz seriously, even one brown spot means it's time to bake it or freeze it) and whip these up.  You will not be sad.  I even got Brooklyn to eat all her dinner in anticipation of trying this special treat!

(The pictures within the recipe are copied with the recipe, they are not my own)

Ingredients:

Banana Bread Bars:

1-1/2 c. sugar

1 c. sour cream

1/2 c. butter, softened

2 eggs

1-3/4 (3 or 4) ripe bananas, mashed

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt

1/2 c. chopped walnuts (optional)

Brown Butter Frosting:

1/2 c. butter

4 c. powdered sugar

1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

3 tbsp. milk

Directions:

1.  Heat oven to 375F.  Grease and flour 15x10-inch jelly roll pan.  For the bars, in a large bowl, beat together sugar, sour cream, butter, and eggs until creamy.  Blend in bananas and vanilla extract.  Add flour, baking soda, salt, and blend for 1 minute.  Stir in walnuts.

2.  Spread batter evenly into pan.  Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

3.  Meanwhile, for frosting, heat butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until boiling.  Let the butter turn a delicate brown and remove from heat immediately.

4.  Add powdered sugar, vanilla extract and milk.  Whisk together until smooth (it should be thicker than a glaze but thinner than frosting).  Using a spatula, spread the brown butter frosting over the warm bars (the frosting will be easier to spread while the bars are still warm). 

Yield: 2 dozen large bars

Rating:  DEFINITELY 5 stars.  And honestly, I think I undercooked them a little... remember, I am still living with only a toaster oven.  Only 2 more weeks of that!  The undercooked-ness was perfect!

Frito Pie

One of our new favorites.  Frito pie!

Oven-Baked Frito Pie
source:  What's For Dinner?

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 can (16 oz) chili beans
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes
1 envelope low sodium taco seasoning
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (2% fat kind)
3 1/2 cups corn chips (Frito's)
1 1/4 cup fat free sour cream

Directions:
Cook ground beef until meat is browned; drain. Stir in beans, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, taco seasoning mix and 1/4 c. of cheese. Sprinkle 1 cup corn chips in bottom of 8x8 baking dish or 9x13 dish. Cover with chili. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Spread sour cream over chili. Top with remaining corn chips and cheese. Bake 4-5 minutes longer.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Overall rating:  4.0 stars.  Callen would probably give it a higher rating, but I don't love chili.  I just love fritos.  :)

Cajun Chicken Pasta

I bought Cajun spice the other day and am trying to use up what I have so I found this recipe.  Sorry, the site doesn't have "just the recipe", so I'm having to steal the whole site's explanation of how to make it instead of just the steps.

Cajun Chicken Pasta on the Lighter Side
Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 5 • Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups • Old Points: 6 pts • Points+: 8 pts
Calories: 323.8 • Fat: 6.2 g • Protein: 25.9 g • Carb: 44.1 g • Fiber: 6.3 g • Sugar:3.2 g
Sodium: 126.5 mg (without salt)  


Ingredients:

• 8 ounces uncooked linguine (I used Dreamfields)
• 1 pound chicken breast strips
• 1-2 tsp Cajun seasoning (or to taste)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 medium yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 1 cup fat free low sodium chicken broth
• 1/3 cup skim milk
• 1 tbsp flour
• 3 tbsp light cream cheese
• fresh cracked pepper
• 2 scallions, chopped
• salt to taste
• Smart Balance cooking spray

Directions:

Prep all your vegetables. In a small blender make a slurry by combining milk, flour and cream cheese. Set aside. Season chicken generously with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder and salt.

Prepare pasta in salted water according to package directions.

Heat a large heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; spray with cooking spray and add half of the chicken. Sauté 5 to 6 minutes or until done, set aside on a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken. Set aside.

Add olive oil to the skillet and reduce to medium; add bell peppers, onions, and garlic to skillet, sauté 3-4 minutes. 

Add mushrooms and tomatoes and sauté 3-4 more minutes or until vegetables are tender. Season with 1/4 tsp salt, garlic powder and fresh cracked pepper to taste.

Reduce heat to medium-low; add chicken broth and pour in slurry stirring about 2 minutes.

Return chicken to skillet; adjust salt and Cajun seasoning to taste, cook another minute or two until hot, then add linguine; toss well to coat. Top with chopped scallions and enjoy!

Makes 7 1/2 cups.

We had company over to enjoy it with us.  And it enjoy it we did!  It was excellent!  Overall rating: 4.5 stars.

Avocado Chicken Parmigiana

Keeping in the tradition of my love for avocado, found this one.  Loved it.  (If you can't tell, I'm not in the mood for a lot of words today.  It's been a long, frustrating day in the life of a stay at home mom and frankly, I just want to get the recipes on here and be done with it.  Plus I should've started feeding Syd about 15 mins ago, so I need to get done asap.)

(serves: 4 | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 15 minutes)

Ingredients:
2 Chicken Breast Fillets, halved lengthways
1/2 Cup Plain Flour
2 Tablespoons Fresh Milk

2 Eggs

1 1/2 Cups Dried Breadcrumbs
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil/Cooking Spray
1/2 Cup Tomato Pasta Sauce
2 Avocado, Sliced

1/2 Cup Grated Mozzarella Cheese 
Salad Green, to serve

 

Save Now

Method:-

1. Place chicken breast in a clear plastic bag(alternatively between 2 sheets plastic wrap), using a rolling pin or meat mallet pound until 0.5cm thick.

2. Place flour and breadcrumbs on two separate plate and lightly whisk milk and egg together in a shallow bowl. 

3. Coat 1 piece of chicken breast in flour(shaking off excess), dip in egg mixture then coat in breadcrumbs using your fingertips pressing on to secure.

4. Place on prepared baking tray lay with foil or baking paper, repeat the same process with the remaining chicken breast with flour, egg and etc.

5. Lightly spray or brush the prepared chicken with oil, bake for 8 minutes(turning after 4 minutes to have evenly colours on the breadcrumbs) in preheated 200 degree Celsius(392°Fahrenheit) fan-forced oven. 

6. Remove from oven and spread each chicken breast with 1 heaped tablespoon of pasta sauce. Arrange avocado slices over sauce and sprinkle with decent amount of mozzarella cheese.

7. Return to oven and bake for another 5 - 7 minutes or until golden and chicken is cooked through.

8. Serve with either garden salad or use it as a main topping on cooked pasta.

Overall rating:  4.3 stars.