Chicken and Cheese Enchilada Chowder

Recipe source: tasteandtellblog.com

This was a fast and easy crockpot dinner.  We had it with Liz's cornbread from the last post.  The cornbread was so yummy dipped in the chowder!  We put sour cream and these tortilla strips on top.  It was delicious.  (P.S. I found these tortilla strips in the salad dressing aisle right beside the croutons.)   

To make this even faster, you could use those frozen grilled chicken strips instead of chicken breasts. Those would just need to be nuked for 3-5 minutes and then cut into chunks.

 

1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
1 10-ounce package frozen whole kernel corn
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped yellow, green, or red bell pepper
1 10-ounce can enchilada sauce
1 10.75-ounce can condensed cream of chicken soup
2 cups milk
1 cup shredded Pepperjack cheese (4 ounces)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (4 ounces)
4 chicken breasts


In a 3 1/2 to 5 quart slow cooker, combine drained beans, drained tomatoes, corn, onion, and bell pepper. In a large bowl, whisk together enchilada sauce and soup. Gradually whisk in milk until smooth. Pour sauce mixture over ingredients in cooker.

Cover; cook on low heat for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours.

Cut chicken into bite sized cubes. Cook over medium heat until cooked all the way through. Add into soup.

Stir in shredded cheeses. Can be topped with avocado, sour cream, or crushed tortilla chips.

Creamy Cornbread

I got this recipe from Grandma Mitchell's cookbook, and we loved it!

3/4 Cup yellow corn meal
1/4 Cup sugar
2 Tbl baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 Cup flour
1 Cup sour cream
1/4 Cup milk
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbl melted butter

Mix ingredients just enough to blend.

Bake in greased 8 inch pan in 425 degree oven for 20 min.

This recipe is very yummy, enjoy!!!

Parmesan baked salmon

Recipe source:  kraftrecipes.com

Here is our other favorite salmon recipe.  We had this tonight, and it's just delicious and easy-peasy.  We LOVE it.  I like to serve this with potato wedges and fresh green beans.  I'll post those recipe another day. :-)

1/4 cup Mayo (I used light.)
2 Tbsp. Grated Parmesan Cheese
1/8 tsp. ground red pepper (I used black pepper.)
4 salmon fillets (1 lb.), skin removed
2 tsp. lemon juice
10 RITZ Crackers, crushed (about 1/2 cup) (I used the honey flavored ritz, and we like those better than original ritz.)

HEAT oven to 400°F.

MIX mayo, cheese and pepper until well blended; set aside.

PLACE fish in shallow foil-lined pan; drizzle with lemon juice. Top with mayo mixture; spread to evenly cover fish. Sprinkle with cracker crumbs.

BAKE 12 to 15 min. or until fish flakes easily with fork.

Carmelized Onion & Prosciutto Pizza

Recipe source: thepioneerwoman.com

I cannot begin to describe the delicious-ness of this pizza.  Please, please, please make this.  This is me begging you to make this pizza for dinner.  I wish I could have you all over to feed you this pizza, but I'm so sad that I can't.  So you'll have to make it!  I would definitely pay to eat this pizza, it is to-die-for good.  Okay, I think I've gone on enough.  Just trust me, this is so, SO good.  I don't know if kiddos would like it, so I just did a plain ol' pepperoni pizza for them.

I'll give you the recipe, but go here for step by step pictures.  I did actually refer to the pictures when I made this today.  Pioneer Woman gives a pizza crust recipe to use for this pizza.  Her crust is supposed to be made at least 24 hours in advance.  I didn't want to do that, so I used a half recipe of my pizza crust (below), and it was still amazing.  I'm sure PW's recipe is great, too, if you remember to make the crust beforehand. 

Also, she says to find prosciutto in the specialty cheese section of the grocery store.  In mine, that section is close to the deli.  That's where I found the fresh mozzarella, but I didn't find prosciutto, so I used pancetta.  Prosciutto is an italian style ham, and pancetta is an italian style bacon.  So if you use prosciutto, you don't have to precook it.  If you use pancetta, chop it in pieces and cook it up like you would bacon, and put it on the pizza in place of the prosciutto. 

Okay, enough chatter.  Here it is:

Pizza Crust
Olive Oil, For Drizzling

1 whole Large Red Onion, Halved And Thinly Sliced
¼ cups Brown Sugar
Kosher Salt To Taste
Parmesan Cheese, Grated
10 ounces, weight Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, Thinly Sliced
8 slices Prosciutto (more To Taste)

Preheat oven to 475 degrees.


Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet. Add onions and brown sugar and toss/stir for several minutes, or until onions are brown and cooked. Set aside.

Roll out pizza dough to a rectangular shape.  (I pressed mine into a regular round pizza pan.)  Drizzle on olive oil, sprinkle on a little salt, followed by a little Parmesan.

Lay slices of mozzarella evenly over the top of the crust. Arrange caramelized onions over the top of the mozzarella. Randomly lay slices of prosciutto over the onions.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.  Serve immediately.

Barbecue Pineapple Chicken

This recipe is easy easy easy.......is that too many easy's??? NO WAY! I cannot get enough easy's when it comes to cooking and this one is really great.

These amounts can be changed with how many people you are feeding, but this is what I do for our family:

1 bottle bbq sauce of choice
1 big can pineapple chunks (including juice)
*6-8 frozen chicken strips (or 2-3 chicken breasts cut into strips, and it doesn't have to be frozen if you don't want, you will just cook it for less time)

There are two ways of cooking this meal, I have tried both and it is delicious either way

1.) Put all ingredients in crock pot and cook on low for 4-5 hours (I did all day because I was at work all day but it doesn't need that long.)

2.) Put all ingredients in baking dish and put in 35o degree oven for 45 min to an hour, or until the chicken is done.

And I usually serve this with mashed potatoes but it is great with rice too.

*This recipe makes quite a bit of sauce depending on the bottle of bbq sauce you use, and so you can add more chicken to go with the amount of sauce and the amount of people you are feeding :)

See, I told you EASY EASY EASY!!!!! (and scrumptious of course!!!!)

Liz

The best & easiest pizza dough, no kidding!

Recipe adapted from realmomkitchen.blogspot.com

Seriously, guys.  This has to be the easiest pizza dough out there.  It is my backup meal that I make when there's nothing else to make.  I always make sure I have the stuff for this, because I can throw it together and have it in the oven in about 10 minutes.  The kids love it, and we love it, too.  This dough is thick and doughy, which I love in a pizza crust.  I usually double it so we have two pizzas for our fam.  If you are trying to be calorie conscious, I often halve the dough for a thin crust pizza, and it's still yummy.  I've used this recipe for traditional pizza, chicken alfredo pizza, chicken pesto pizza, barbecue chicken pizza, and we also love veggie pizza. Oh, and you can also use this dough for grilled pizza, if you are into that sort of thing.  I tried grilling pizza last summer, and it was so fun!  I'll put the instructions at the bottom, just in case you want to try it.



3 cups flour, more or less (I know humidity and elevation affect how much flour is necessary. 2 1/2 cups of flour is perfect here, but I'm not sure about anywhere else.)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon oil
1 cup warm water
1 tablespoon yeast
1 teaspoon garlic salt
I also have a pizza seasoning grinder that I bought in the seasoning aisle at the grocery store, kind of like the pepper grinders.  I do several twists of the grinder, but it tastes great without it, too.

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Mix all pizza dough ingredients together, except the flour. Add flour and knead for a bit then press into pan.  I use a stand mixer to do the kneading; it just takes a minute or two. Top dough with sauce and toppings. Bake 12-15 minutes. Makes 1 large pizza.


To grill pizza:

Make 1 ½ recipes of the dough to make 6 personal sized pizzas that are about 7 inches in diameter. 

Turn your grill on and set it to high for 15 minutes. While the grill heats up, roll out your dough. I rolled it out to about 7 inches in diameter and I'd guess it was around 1/4-1/3 inch thick. Roll out your first piece of dough and brush one side with olive oil. Place oil side down on a piece of aluminum foil and brush the other side. Then top with a piece of foil. Follow this same process with the next piece of dough. You're gonna make a little stack of oiled dough in between foil pieces. The oil keeps the dough from sticking to the foil and grill and adds to the flavor of the crust. I am able to fit 4 of these pizzas on my grill at a time. Now you're ready to grill the dough. So now you turn the grill down to medium. Place the dough on the grill. Just take off the top layer from your stack using the foil and flip it on the grill. Once the dough is all on the grill close the lid and let it cook for 2 minutes. Now, no peaking during the 2 minutes even though you may want to. After the 2 minutes check the dough to see if it's done. The dough will get nice and puffy, about twice the size it was when you put it on there. If not let it go a little bit more. Now you want to have a cookie sheet nearby. Remove the dough from the grill with your tongs and place on the cookie sheet grilled side up. Now you get to top your pizzas however you like. Once topped carefully place the pizzas back on the grill with the aid of your tongs, to cook the underside of the dough. I turned my grill down to low at this point because the underside of crust was cooking faster than the toppings were getting heated. Close the lid again and cook for another 5-7 minutes until the cheese is all melted. Remove from the grill using your spatula and enjoy!

Bajio Chicken

Recipe source: realmomkitchen.blogspot.com

This chicken is so, SO good.  We LOVE to use it in taco salad, but I'm sure it would also be great in tacos or burritos.

5 chicken breasts
1/2 cup salsa
1 Tbsp cumin
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp brown sugar
1 4 oz. can diced green chilies
3/4 cup Sprite (Sprite Zero works great! And it has NO calories.)

Salad dressing: mix 1 part ranch with 1 part salsa.  So good!  (I am usually not an advocate of fat free ranch, but I actually didn't mind it in this dressing since it is mixed with the salsa.) 

Combine all ingredients in a crock pot. Cook on low for 5-6 hours or high 2.5-3 hours. Remove chicken and shred. Return to crock pot and cook 1 more hour. Thicken the juices with a little cornstarch mixed in water. (I mixed 1/4 cup of cornstarch with 1/4 COLD water, and then mixed it in to the chicken, and it seemed to do the job.)

Serve with corn chips, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, olives, green onions, red or yellow bell pepper, and anything else you like on your taco salad.