Almond Chicken Rice Bake

When I had my daughter Madison 11 and 1/2 years ago, my neighbor Karen Price brought this casserole to us for dinner. We loved it and have been making it ever since. I have given the recipe to several people who also love it. It's so good, but probably pretty fattening with all the mayo.

Ingredients:

1 lb. cooked and shredded chicken
2 small cans cream of chicken soup
1 Tbs. lemon juice
1 cup rice (not cooked)
1 cup mayonaise
slivered almonds

Spray a 9/13 baking dish with cooking spray. Add all ingredients- except almonds to the dish and mix together. Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour. Remove dish from oven and cover the top of the casserole with a layer of slivered almonds. Return to oven for 5 to 10 minutes to toast almonds.

Rate It!
Jen: 8
Kile: 7
Kiley: 10
Madee: 7.5
Destrie: good

Mom's Chicken Noodle Soup

This recipe came from my mom. Every year when the "boys" go hunting in Clarkston, mom makes this soup for everyone to eat. Kile loves it and has been asking me to make it for several years. When I called my mom to get the recipe, she told me it was just something that she "made up". She is a very good cook. She gave me instructions how to make it and Kile said I did it right-yay!

Ingredients:

4 to 5 chicken breasts cooked and diced
Carrots
Wide Egg Noodles
1 large can (or 3 small cans) Cream of Chicken Soup
1 large can ( or 3 small cans) Cream of Mushroom Soup
Milk
1 small bag of frozen corn
salt
pepper
accent
onion powder
parsley flakes

Dice the carrots (about 1 1/2 cups) Boil until tender. Drain water- set carrots aside.
Bring 2 qts. water to boil, add noodles and cook 10 to 12 minutes. Drain.
In a large pot combine soups, noodles,chicken and carrots. Add milk to desired consistency. Heat through. Add frozen corn. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add accent seasoning (I used between 1 or 2 tablespoons) Add a dash of onion powder and parsley flakes for some added color. Heat a few additional minutes to warm corn.

Rate It!

Jen: 9
Kile: 9
Kiley: 6.5
Madee: 8
Destrie: Good

Hawaiian Haystacks

Ingredients:

1 can condensed cream of chicken soup

1 C chicken broth

2 C chopped, cooked chicken

Add chicken to cream of chicken soup. Add chicken broth until desired consistency. Heat.

Serve on white rice. Add additional toppings. We used- pineapple chunks, chow mein noodles, cheese, diced green peppers..

Rate It!

Jen: 9

Kile: 8

Kiley: 8

Madee: 6.5

Destrie: not good

Menu Planning Monday

As I mentioned previously, this week is all about chicken. Here we go!

Monday: Mom's Chicken Noodle Soup
Tuesday: Almond Chicken Rice Bake
Wednesday: Hawaiian Haystacks
Thursday: Chicken Fettucini Alfredo
Friday: Chicken Bundles

Cranberry Pecan Banana Bread

This recipe is my creation. I took a basic banana bread recipe and played around with it and this recipe is the result.

Ingredients

• 1 cup mashed bananas
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 1 1/3 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Craisins- (add your desired amount)
• Pecans- (add your desired amount)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour- two 7x3 inch loaf pans.
2. Combine banana and sour cream. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla and banana mixture. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt; stir into the banana mixture. Stir in cranberries and pecans. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pans.
3. Bake for 50 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean.

Rate It!
Jen: 8
Kile: 3
Kiley: 5
Madee: 5
Destrie: not good

Let me just clarify, there is nothing wrong with this bread recipe, although it may seem so because of the low ratings from my family. As we talked about this recipe I was told by my family members that they do not like nuts and they do not like cranberries... good to know.

Chicken recipes for Meal Planning Monday

This upcoming week is going to be all about chicken. I got a screaming deal on a big package of chicken tenders @ Sam's Club. I opened the chicken to use in my Bajio Chicken Salad this week and needed to cook the rest of the chicken before it went bad. I put all the chicken I had left in a crock pot with half a can of chicken broth and cooked on low for about 8 hours. I then, took the chicken out and shredded it and packaged it in 1 lb. servings to freeze and use when needed during the upcoming week. I am now on a mission to find 5 yummy chicken recipes to use up this chicken. If anyone has a great chicken recipe that I could try, please send it to me and I will use it next week, during "chicken week".

Ham, Egg and Spinach Pizza

This recipe came from Ellie Krieger on the Food Network.

Ingredients

• 1 store-bought baked thincrust pizza(I actually used Rhodes dough to make a pizza crust)
  
• 4 cups (about 4 ounces) baby spinach leaves, thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 3 ounces prosciutto di Parma, thinly sliced ( I used ham.)
  
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan (1 1/2 ounces)
• 3 cloves thinly sliced garlic
• 4 eggs ( I used 5, since there are 5 people in our family)
  

Directions

Prepare Rhodes Dough to make a pizza crust. Bake according to package directions. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Scatter spinach all over crust. Drizzle with oil. Evenly distribute ham, Parmesan and garlic on top of spinach. Crack eggs onto pizza, roughly positioning 1 yolk on each pizza quarter. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until spinach is wilted and egg whites are just fully cooked. Cut into slices.

* The kids and I thought this recipe would be better minus the eggs. Kile thought the eggs were ok, but a weird addition to the pizza.

Rate It!!
Jen: 6.5 (if no eggs)
Kile: 5.5
Kiley: 7 (if no eggs)
Madee:8 (if no eggs)
Destrie: good w/ no eggs

5 Bean Chili

This recipe came from Sandra Lee on Food Network.

Ingredients

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 2 cups chopped onion ( I used minced onion flakes-about 1/4 cup)
  
• 1 (15-ounce) can light red kidney beans, drained
• 1 (15-ounce) can dark red kidney beans, drained
• 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained
• 1 (15-ounce) can butter beans, drained
• 1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, drained
• 2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans diced tomatoes with jalapenos
• 2 (1 1/4 ounce) packets chili seasoning mix
• 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup water
• Salt and pepper
• Suggested servings: sour cream, cheese, chips
  

Directions

In a skillet over medium-high heat, brown ground beef with the onions. Be sure to break up clumps as much as possible. Put the mixture in a slow cooker.

Add remaining ingredients and stir together. Cover and cook on high setting for 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours.

Ladle into bowls and serve with your favorite chili fixings.

Rate It!

Jen: 7.5

Kile: 6.5

Kiley: 6

Madee: 8.5

Destrie: good

Menu Planning Monday

Monday: Salmon, Rice, Veggies
Tuesday: 5 Bean Chili
Wednesday: Burgers on the grill and Baked Fries
Thursday: Egg, Ham, and Spinach Pizza
Friday: Nacho Night

Bajio Chicken Salad

This recipe and photo came from a blog called Home Based Mom- the link to this site is on the side of my blog.
5 chicken breasts (I only used 4 large ones)
1/2 cup salsa
1 Tbsp cumin
1/2 cup brown sugar (more to taste)
1 4 oz. can diced green chilies
6 oz. Sprite (1/2 can)
Combine all ingredients in a crock pot. Cook on low for 5-6 hours. Remove chicken and shred.   Thicken the juices with 2 T. cornstarch- mix well.   Return chicken to crock pot and cook 1 more hour.  
Serve with romaine lettuce, cheese, black beans, tortilla strips and cilantro lime dressing.

Rate It!
Jen: 9
Kile: 8.5
Kiley: 8.5
Madee: 8
Destrie: not good

Cilantro Lime Salad Dressing

This recipe came from the Home Based Mom.

1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing (dry mix)

1 cup buttermilk

1/2- 1/3 bunch of cilantro, chopped

1/2 – 1 small jalapeno (remove seed)

1 cup mayo

1 tsp. lime juice

1-2 tomatillos (remove outer papery skin)

1 garlic clove

Blend all ingredients in blender! Serve with the Bajio Chicken Salad.

Rate It!

Jen: 9

Kile: 7.5

Kiley: 7

Madee: 8

Destrie: not good

Crispy Parmesan Potatoes

4 medium potatoes- thinly sliced
2 small onion- thinly sliced (I used mince onion flakes)
3 t. butter- melted (I used I can't believe it's not butter spray)
1/4 c parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/8 garlic powder

Place 1/2 of potatoes in a greased baking dish. Top with onions. Put on remaining potatoes. Drizzle with butter. Sprinkle cheese and spices on top. Bake at 450 degrees for 30 minutes.

* I had to cook these a little longer to get them crispy.
* I served these with sour cream.

Rate It!
Jen:6
Kile:8
Kiley:3
Madee:6
Destrie: not good

BBQ Baked Chicken

This recipe from a cook book that I purchased awhile ago back. The cook book is called "What's for Supper?" This book has 20 weeks of menus, recipes, and shopping lists.

I had to modify this recipe slightly because as I began making dinner, I realized I was missing several ingredients that I thought I had.

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts (I used chicken tenders)
1 Tbs. flour
1/4 c. water
1/4 brown sugar
1/4 c. ketchup (I used salsa- seriously who doesn't have ketchup????)
1 Tbs. vinegar
2 Tbs. lemon juice (I used lime)
2 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
2 small onions- chopped ( I used minced onion flakes)
1 tsp. ground mustard
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. chili powder ( I used a pinch of cayenne pepper)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper

Place chicken in a greased 13/9 pan. Mix flour and water together. Combine brown sugar, ketchup,vinegar,lemon juice, and w. sauce. Bring to a boil-cook and stir until thickened. Stir in onion, mustard, paprika, chili powder, salt and pepper. Pour over chicken. Cover and refrigerate for several hours. Remove from fridge 30 m. before baking. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

* I have to say I did not really love this recipe, but I did substitute ingredients as I mentioned. I will have to try this again when I have the correct ingredients. I will say though, that the chicken was very moist.

Rate It!
Jen: 5
Kile: 7
Kiley: 6
Madee: 6
Destrie: good

Waffle Creams

When Kile worked at Moore he got the recipe for this syrup from a guy he worked with. This guy had been a Saucier in a four star restaurant in Arizona. Kile and some of the guys he worked with got the idea to serve this syrup on a waffle topped with vanilla ice cream. They named it Waffle Creams and it is tasty!!!

Ingredients for Syrup:

1 1/2 c. sugar
3/4 c. buttermilk
2 Tbs. corn syrup
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c. butter

In a saucepan, mix all ingredients. Bring to a boil. Boil for 7 minutes. Take off heat and mix in 2 tsp. vanilla. Serve over a Belgian Waffle topped with vanilla ice cream.

Rate It!
Jen: 9.5
Kile: 8
Kiley: 9.5
Madee: 10
Destrie: GOOD! He told me to make it again soon.

Menu Planning Monday

Once again, we are skipping salmon night. We are having friends over for dinner and we are having Waffle Creams- which should be really good! (More to come on this recipe later...) Here is a look at our upcoming week.

Monday: Waffle Creams, Sausage, Bacon Cheesy Eggs
Tuesday: Supper on a Slice
Wednesday: Eating out tonight!
Thursday: Baked Chicken, Potatoes, and Corn
Friday: Burgers and Fries

Friendship Dip

This recipe came from Real Mom Kitchen Blog. I made this for a Superbowl Party we went to.


Friendship Dip

1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese, softened
1 (15 oz) can of chili
1 (4 oz) can diced green chilies (use just 1/2 a can for less heat-it's pretty hot!)
shredded cheddar cheese
sliced olives
diced green onion (optional)

In a large pie plate (or a pizza pan will work) spread cream cheese. Then layer on top of cream cheese in this order: chili, green chilies, shredded cheddar cheese (enough to cover), and sliced olives. Bake at 350 degrees until hot and melted (approximately 20-25 minutes). Garnish with green onion and serve with tortilla chips.

Rate It!

Jen: 8

Kile: 9

Kiley: 6

Madee: 4 to spicy

Destrie: he did not have any

Smores Topped Brownies

Another recipe from Real Mom Kitchen Blog. Made this for the Superbowl party also.


Smores Topped Brownies

1 package brownie mix (you need the 9 x 13 size and I prefer the Betty Crocker one)
ingredients needed to make the brownie mix
3 (1.55 oz) Hershey’s milk chocolate bars
4 graham crackers (full size, you know as big as the Hershey bar)
1 (7 oz.) jar of Marshmallow Creme

Mix up your brownie mix according to package direction. I mix them according to the instructions for cake like brownies. Put them in your pan according to package directions. The Betty Crocker one say to put it in you 9 x 13 pan with the bottom sprayed with cooking spray. Then bake according to the package directions. When it’s done. Let it cool for 5 minutes. Then drop spoonfuls of the marshmallow creme down the center of the pan of brownies. Then let it sit for a few minutes. The warm brownies will help the marshmallow spread out over the top of the brownies. you can gently use a knife to help it go to the corners if needed. Then chop up your graham crackers and chocolate and sprinkle of the the top of the marshmallow layer. Allow to cool more and enjoy!

Rate It!

Jen: 5

Kile: 7

Kiley:6

Madee:6

Destrie: Good

Red and White Pasta

This recipe came from Real Mom Kitchen.

• 4 cups penne noodles
• 1 (15 oz.) jar Alfredo sauce
• 1 (24 oz ) jar marinara sauce
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (I actually used cheddar cheese)
  
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cook and drain pasta according to package directions.
3. Mix the two sauces together in a large mixing bowl.
4. Add mozzarella cheese and combine. Add drained pasta.
5. Pour into a 9×13 casserole dish and bake about 20-25 minutes until hot and bubbly.
6. Sprinkle Parmesan on top and bake another five minutes. (I also sprinkled mine with fresh parsley just before serving.) Enjoy! Serves 6-8

Rate It!
Jen: 9
Kile: 9
Kiley: 9
Madee: 8.5 yummy :)
Destrie: good!

Pizza Soup

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 cans (26 ounces each) condensed tomato soup, undiluted
• 6-1/2 cups water
• 1 jar (28 ounces) spaghetti sauce
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
• Additional shredded cheddar cheese, optional

Directions

• In a soup pot cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add soup, water, spaghetti sauce and Italian seasoning; bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Add cheese; cook and stir until melted. Garnish with additional cheese if desired. Yield: 16 servings (4 quarts).
  

Rate It!

Jen: 8
Kile: 8.5 -said he would call it "spaghetti soup"
Kiley: 8- said she wanted to call it "lasagna soup"
Madee: 9 YUM!
Destrie: good

Menu Planning Monday

Monday: Pizza Soup and leftover White Chicken Chili
*We are going to take a break from salmon night. Madee has been begging me to make pizza soup so we will try that tonight. If it's a hit- I'll post the recipe.

Tuesday: Chicken Bowls- This creation idea came from Kentucky Fried Chicken. Our bowls are much better than theirs though!

Wednesday: Sandwiches
Thursday: Red and White Pasta
Friday: Kile and kids choice- I'm going to Bunco!