Cheesy Chicken Chowder

Cheesy Chicken Chowder

3 Cups Chicken Broth
3 Cups Potatoes diced & peeled
1 Cup Carrots diced
1 Cup Celery diced
½ cup Onion diced
1 ½ tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. Pepper
¼ Cup Butter
1/3 Cup Flour
2 Cups Milk or Half and Half
2 Cups or 8 oz. Shredded Cheddar Cheese
2 Cups Chicken breast cooked and diced
•In 4qt. pan boil chicken broth
•Reduce heat add potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, salt and pepper
•Cover & Simmer 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender but not mushy
•Melt butter in sauce pan add flour; mix well
•Gradually stir in milk – Cook over low heat until slightly thickened
•Stir in cheese cook until melted
•When cheese is melted add to vegetables along with chicken
•Cook over low heat until heated though.
Makes 6-8 Servings

Mitzi's Meat Loaf

Mitzi's Meat Loaf
2 to 2 ½ lbs. Hamburger
1 Pkg. Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage
1 Cup Bread Crumbs
1 Egg
1 bottle Chili Sauce
1 to 2 Tbsp. Minced Dried Onion Flakes
½ Tbsp. Poultry Seasoning

Mash Hamburger and Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage together.
Mix in Bread Crumbs, Egg, Chili Sauce, Onion, and Poultry Seasoning with your hands
Put into large loaf pan and smash down really well.
Before baking slice across 5 times
Bake @ 350 for 1 to 1 ½ hours Remember to drain off the fat.

Black Eyed Pea Salsa (Poor Mans Caviar)

Marinade

1 cup vegetable oil

½ cup apple cider vinegar

½ cup sugar

¾ tsp. salt

¾ tsp. pepper

Wisk the marinade ingredients together in a sauce pan and bring to a boil; set aside to cool to room temperature

In large bowl mix

1 can black eyed peas drained

1 can black beans drained

1 pkg frozen shoe peg corn (white corn)

1 cup chopped celery

1 cup chopped green bell pepper

1 cup chopped sweet yellow onion or red onion

Mix with cooled marinade let chill at least 2 hours or overnight.

Serve with Tostitos bowl tortilla chips

Chicken Salad Sandwiches

3 cups coarsely chopped cooked Chicken (about 1 pound)
1 cup chopped Celery
1 cup chopped Cashews
½ cup Mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
Salt and Pepper (to taste)
Crushed Pineapple (to taste)

Mix well
Serve on Croissants

I think I have made these sandwiches for every baby shower I've ever done. They are just tasty and simple. You could probably put a piece of lettuce with this sandwich and it would be so much more yummy. Lots of people have told me that they have had a similar sandwich but without the pineapple but that the pineapple is such a good addition. I just love all the tastes of this nummy sandwich. Enjoy!

Farfalle Florentine

We just call this one Bow Tie Pasta in our house.

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 8 oz (small package) fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 cup frozen peas (you can put as much or as little peas as you want)
• 1 thick slice Black Forest ham, julienned (I cut the ham into bite size pieces)
• 2 Tablespoons dried parsley flakes (this can also be adjusted to your taste)
• 12 oz farfalle (bow tie) pasta
• 2/3 cup fresh Parmesan cheese grated (this can also be adjusted to your taste)

1. Heat cream and chicken broth to a boil.
2. Stir in mushrooms and continue boiling until mushrooms are tender and sauce is slightly reduced, about 10 minutes. Start cooking farfalle in large pot of salted water until al dente, about 10-12 minutes.
3. Stir in ham, peas and parsley into the mushroom mixture and cook 4 minutes.
4. Once pasta is ready drain water return to pot and add sauce.
5. Cook until sauce simmers and coats the pasta. Stir in Parmesan cheese.
6. Serve warm.

We all love this meal in our house. Madilynn (my 3 year old) will eat this up and ask for seconds which is unbelievable.

Brett likes his bow tie pasta with some balsamic vinegar. I just like mine with a slice of grilled french bread. Nummy Yummy!

Italian-Style Grilled Pizza

• 1 cup (4 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese


• 1/4 cup (1 oz) grated fresh Parmesan cheese


• 4 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced (1 1/2 cups)


• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, sliced into fine ribbons


• 1 can (2.25 oz) sliced pitted ripe olives, drained


• 2 Tablespoons olive oil


• 1 Tablespoons red wine vinegar


• 2 garlic cloves, pressed


• 1/2 teaspoon each salt and coarsely ground black pepper


• 1-2 cups grilled chicken or steak, cubed (if desired)


• 1 package (16 oz) prebaked pizza crust

1. Prepare grill for direct cooking over medium heat. Place mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, tomatoes, basil and olives in a large bowl. Mix gently.


2. In small bowl combine oil, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper Lightly brush 1 Tablespoon of the oil mixture onto prebaked crust.


3. Place crust top side down on the center of your grill. Grill crust, uncovered 4-5 minutes or until deep golden brown. Remove being careful not to tare crust.


4. Add remaining oil mixture to cheese mixture and mix well. Spoon cheese mixture evenly over top of crust; return pizza to gill. Cover and grill 8-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and bottom of crust is deep golden brown.


5. Remove to cutting board and serve.

We love this pizza! The first time we made it I couldn't find a prebaked crust that I thought would work so I got one of the crusts in a can. You know you have to roll it out and bake it in the oven and then you put your toppings on. It worked and was really good. The faster way for me though is to use a prebaked crust. We found the Boboli crusts while we lived in Arizona but since we moved to Iowa we can't find them. So now I buy whatever brand it is that they have at the store and they work great. They are the ones that you think would probably taste like cardboard because they look like cardboard. They have holes poked all over. They actually end us tasting really good.

We make this pizza with chicken and again I use that precooked freezer stuff by Tyson. I use the grilled chicken and then heat it up in the microwave. It has a really good flavor and adds to the pizza.

Kind of from trial and error we have figured out how best to cook the pizza on the grill. We preheat our grill at high heat then lower it to medium when we put the crust on face down. We leave it on until we have really good grill marks which is just a few minutes. Then when we put the entire pizza on we cook over medium heat making sure the crust on the bottom doesn't get too dark. You want grill marks and your cheese to melt but you don't want it burned.

This is another one of our favorite recipes.

Chicken Enchilada Lasagna

• 1/2 cup Old El Paso Thick 'n Chunky salsa
• 4 cups cooked chicken, cubed
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup sliced green onions (8 medium)
• 2 Tablespoons Old El Paso taco seasoning mix (from 1 oz package)
• 8 corn tortillas (6 inch) cut in half
• 2 cups shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese (8 oz)
• 2 cups tortilla chips
• 1 cup chopped tomato (1 large)
• 2 Tablespoons sliced ripe olives
• Fresh cilantro (if desired)

1. Heat oven to 375F. Spray 13x9-inch (3 quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray. In small bowl, mix enchilada sauce and salsa:reserve 1/4 cup of the mixture. In large bowl, mix remaining enchilada sauce mixture, the chicken, sour cream, 1/4 cup of the green onions and the taco seasoning mix.


2. Spoon reserved 1/4 cup reserved enchilada sauce in bottom of baking dish. Arrange 8 tortilla pieces over sauce, overlapping as necessary. Spoon half of the chicken mixture over tortillas; sprinkle with 2/3 cup of the cheese. Repeat layers. Cover with foil.


3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until hot. Layer tortilla chips, tomato, olives, remaining 1/4 cup green onions and remaining 2/3 cup cheese over top of casserole. Bake uncovered 5 minutes longer. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with cilantro.

This dish is so yummy. The first time we tried it we loved it. I made it while my sister was visiting and her husband said that she needed to get the recipe. It's really one of my new favorites and I'm going to make it for dinner tomorrow.

The recipe in the book calls for 1 large rotisserie chicken, cubed. I buy a bag of the frozen already cooked oven roasted chicken. I cook it in the microwave before adding it to the mixture. The first time I made this I used the rotisserie chicken and it was good but I thought to make it easier and quicker I could use the freezer stuff and it's just as good. Brett (my husband) said he couldn't even tell the difference. The recipe in the book also says that you can make this with ground beef. I have yet to try that but I'm sure it would be good. I thought it might be yummy with some beans and maybe rice added in but then not everyone likes them so I just serve them on the side. Maybe I'll put them in next time.