Chicken Noodle Soup.

We are NOT soup fans. So when I say that we LOVE this soup and my kids ask for seconds and thirds, I mean this is really really good! I got this recipe from here: http://www.pauladeen.com/recipes/recipe_view/the_ladys_chicken_noodle_soup/  (Paula Deen recipe)
But I changed it a little to make it easier to me.
I usually make this when we have a leftover rotisserie chicken; or the last time I just boiled two chicken breasts in the water.



Photo courtesy of PaulaDeen.Com

 

Ingredients Add to grocery list

4   bay leaves
3   chicken bouillon cubes
1   onion, peeled and diced (I sometimes just do 2 T of the dried stuff)
1 teaspoon Paula Deen Lemon Pepper Seasoning (Just regular is fine)
3   cloves garlic, minced
1   2 1/2 to 3-pound fryer (chicken), cut up
1 1/2 to 2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
3 1/2 quart water
kosher salt and pepper to taste

For Step 2:
2 cups sliced carrots
2 cups sliced celery, with leafy green tops (I rarely have celery on hand but it was still good without)
2 1/2 cups uncooked egg noodles
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (I never use fresh, I usually use 1 to 2 T)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional) (NOT optional!!!! THis makes it sooo good)
3/4 cup heavy cream (optional) (I usually just use regular milk)
1/3 cup cooking sherry (Sometimes I put 2T of a vinegar wine I have on hand)
1 cup sliced mushrooms
Fresh parsley (I never use fresh)
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
Paula Deen Seasoned Salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
crusty french bread, for serving

Directions

What I do is add everything together instead of the chicken, noodles, cream, and parm cheese.  I simmer it for 20 minutes. 
    Note: If you are using a rotisserie chicken then boil in just the water and seasonings for 30 minutes or more. 
Then remove the Bay leaves.
Bring to a boil 
Add chicken
I add the noodles (I make them)
Reduce heat or remove from heat and add the cream/milk and Parm cheese 


For the stock: add all ingredients to a soup pot. Cook until chicken is tender, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove chicken from pot and set aside to cool. Remove and discard bay leaves and onion. You should have approximately 3 quarts of stock. When chicken is cool enough to touch, pick bones clean, discarding bones, skin, and cartilage. Set chicken aside. 

For the soup: bring stock back to a boil, add carrots, and cook for 3 minutes. Add celery and continue to cook for 5 to 10 minutes. Add egg noodles and cook according to directions on package. When noodles are done, add chicken, mushrooms, parsley, sherry and rosemary. Add Parmesan and cream, if using. Cook for another 2 minutes. Adjust seasoning, if needed, by adding seasoning salt and pepper. Enjoy along with a nice hot crusty loaf of French bread.

Fruit Pizza

I made this for a fun girly get-together. Love it! It was a huge hit! 

(I halved the recipe because I wanted to make 1 medium-size pizza...it made 8 large slices...and it was perfect. But the individual ones they made on their blog is so cute too!) 

FRUIT PIZZA

Found Here: Six Sister’s Stuff

Sugar Cookie Crust
1/4 C Milk

1 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 C Butter or Margarine
4 C Flour
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 1/4 Cup Sugar
2 Eggs

Soften margarine slightly, then add sugar, eggs and vanilla. Stir well, then mix in flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and milk. Chill dough for about an hour and it will be easier to roll out.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface until it's a little more than 1/4" thick. You can either transfer it to an ungreased pizza pan to make a big pizza or use circle cookie cutters to make mini pizzas. (If you make the large pizza size, you will only use about 3/4 of the dough, so you can make mini ones with the leftovers!) Bake at 350 degrees for 13 minutes. Let the sugar cookie crust cool completely before adding the cream cheese layer.

Cream Cheese Layer8 oz. Cream Cheese (softened)

1 C Powdered Sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla
8 oz. Cool Whip

Mix together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth, then fold in the Cool Whip and stir well. Spread cream cheese layer over cooled sugar cookie. Then you can start adding the fruit.

Fruit OptionsStrawberries

Kiwi
Bananas
Grapes
Blueberries
Mandarin Oranges
Raspberries
Pineapple
Or whatever fruit you love!!

Red Velvet Cake Pops

I made you all a treat: Red Velvet Cheesecake Pops...they're even Heart shaped!! :) 

Red Velvet Cheesecake Pops:

1 Red Velvet Cake Mix, cooked according to box directions 

1 recipe (or can) of your favorite Cream Cheese Frosting

Once cake is cooked and cooled, dump entire cake into a large bowl. Stir in your cream cheese frosting to make a "paste"-type substance. I put the mixture into some heart-shaped ice cube molds I got in the dollar-bin at target. You can also use a cookie scoop to make small balls, and just put them on a cookie sheet or onto wax paper. Put in freezer for at least 2 hours (you can leave them in there for several days even, if you need to!). 

Once they're frozen, you can melt some white chocolate (baking squares, chocolate chips...whatever floats your boat). If it's too thick to dip, you can add a small amount of shortening. DO NOT add water!

I put the melted chocolate into a cup, to make it easy to dip. I buy the sucker sticks (they come in packages) at Walmart...usually they are near the wedding stuff. Put your sticks into your frozen cake pops, then dip in white chocolate. Place on cookie sheet or wax paper and allow chocolate to harden. Put back into the fridge or freezer, and enjoy as you desire! YUM!!!!! Hope you enjoy them! ;) 

Restaurant Style French Toast

I know it's silly to post a recipe for French Toast, but seriously this is wonderful! I think I personally make a pretty good french toast without any recipe but I wanted something better. So I googled this and trust me you, yes you reading this, needs to try it! It has really good flavor and tastes just like a restaurant breakfast!

1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup milk
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 -10 slices Texas toast thick bread or 8 -10 slices French bread
Toppings:
confectioners' sugar , sliced fruit, butter, and pancake syrup for serving
Directions:
1. In a medium-size bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon.
2. Add milk, eggs, and vanilla. Whisk briskly to remove all clumps.
3. Grease a pan(I just use pam)
4. Heat skillet over medium-high heat until a drop of water sizzles when flicked onto skillet.
5. Dip both sides of bread slice into the batter briefly.
6. Let some of the batter drip off, then place bread in skillet.
7. Cook until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes on the first side and 1 minute on the second.
8. If needed, add a little more oil to the skillet to cook all of the slices.9Repeat procedure with remaining bread slices.10Keep French toast warn in a low oven as you cook remaining slices.11Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve with butter, syrup, or fruit, if using.

I'm sure most people don't need directions on how to cook French Toast but ya never know! Hopefully you'll try this cause it's Delish!

Hearty Beef Soup

This is my version of a soup that my mom used to make when I was growing up. It is fast and easy and you can add or subtract whatever ingredients your family likes. This recipe feeds about 5 people. Double the ingredients if you want to feed a crowd. Serve with some crusty bread and you have a comfort food dinner that is good for you.

Ingredients:
1/2-1 lb. ground beef
1 half onion, diced
3-4 carrots, cut into chunks
2 ribs celery, diced
2-3 potatoes, cut into chunks
1/2 cup frozen peas (if desired)
2 cans beef broth
1 can condensed tomato soup or gluten free substitute (see below)
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 t. dried thyme
1 tablespoon parsley
black pepper to taste
Garlic and Onion powder to taste
Noodles, barley or brown rice if desired.

Brown hamburger with garlic and onion until beef is no longer pink and onion is soft. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cover and simmer for about two hours. You could also make this soup in the crock pot. Cook on low heat for 4 hours or until vegetables are tender.

Gluten Free condensed tomato soup:
8 oz. tomato soup
2 T. sugar
1 T. cornstarch
1/2 t. salt
Mix together and use as the recipe directs in place of one can of condensed tomato soup.

Easy Red Velvet Cookies

You can make these into red velvet crinkle cookies, red velvet white chocolate cookies, or cookies with powdered sugar or cream cheese frosting.....definitely a few fun options. I love these for Valentine's Day! Easy, only a few ingredients, fast, and delicious!

Easy Red Velvet Cookies
1 box Red Velvet Cake Mix (I used Duncan Hines)
2 eggs
1/3 cup Vegetable Oil
Powdered Sugar (optional)
White Chocolate Chips (optional)
Cream Cheese Frosting (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine cake mix, 2 eggs, and oil with a hand blender or wisk. Add white chocolate chips, if desired. Form balls and place on lightly greased cookie sheet, or on a sil pat. You can also roll the balls in powdered sugar if you want to make "crinkle cookies." Slightly pat down top of each ball. Cook for 8-10 minutes, the top of the cookies will crack. Other Serving Options: White hot, lightly sprinkle the top of the cookie with powdered sugar (optional). Or let cool and frost with cream cheese frosting.

Biggest Loser Orange Chicken

The Biggest Loser - Mandarin Orange Chicken

3 Tbs frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
3 Tbs lower sodium soy sauce
1 Tbs minced fresh garlic
1 Tbs hot sesame oil (I didn't have sesame oil, but I did have peanut oil. I googled a substitution for sesame oil and peanut oil was it! BONUS!)
1 tsp garlic chili paste (found in asian section in grocery store)
3/4 c canned mandarin oranges in juice
6 4oz chicken breasts (I'd use tenders)
Add Cooking Step Directions
1. In a large resealable bag, mix the juice concentrate, soy sauce, garlic, oil, and chili paste. Gently stir in the oranges and their juice. Add the chicken, submerging it in marinade. Seal the bag and marinate in the refrigerator at least 6 hours or overnight, rotating once or twice.

2. Preheat oven to 400. Transfer chicken to a 13x9 baking dish in a single layer. Pour the marinade on top. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink on top. Ovens may vary with time. I had mine in for an hour.

Add/Edit NotesNotes:
6 servings

183 calories, 4g fat, 27g protein

This recipe was really good! and even better since it was less calories. I served with Ham fried rice made with brown rice. Enjoy!

Creamy Chicken Tacos

Creamy Chicken Tacos (Crockpot!)
2 pounds chicken breast pieces (can use frozen)  
1 (14.5-ounce) can fire roasted tomatoes 
1 small can green chiles (optional)1 (10-ounce) container PHILADELPHIA Cooking Creme--- Santa Fe flavor
taco shells or tortillas

We like to add black beans; but you can also add:: sour cream, avocado slices  
*optional add-ins to stretch the meal to feed more people: 1 cup frozen corn, or 1 can corn, drained, 1 can black or pinto beans, drained and rinsed  

The Directions. 
 
Use a 4-quart slow cooker (if adding the optional add-ins, a 6-quart might be a better fit). 

Put the chicken into your cooker. Add the entire can of tomatoes. Scrape out all the Cooking Creme.
Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until chicken shreds easily with a fork. Stir well and serve in taco shells or tortillas with your favorite toppings.  

You can find the original recipe Here.

3 Cheese and Spinach Manicotti

3 Cheese and Spinach Manicotti

1 tub (15 ounces) Ricotta Cheese (can also use cottage cheese)
1/2 package (8 ounces) frozen spinach
1 1/2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, divided
1 tbs Parsley flakes
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp basil
1 egg
1 package Manicotti Noodles
1 can, jar, or recipe Spaghetti Sauce
1 cup water (if making night before, or freezing)

Place spinach in microwave safe bow, cover, and cook for 5 minutes. Put spinach in collander and press out excess water with a spoon (or thaw in fridge, and press out water when completely thawed). In a large bowl, combine ricotta, spinach, 1 cup mozzarella, 1/4 cup Parmesan, egg, and spices. Cook Manicotti Noodles for 2 minutes less than directions on the package. Drain and set aside.
Spread about 1 cup spaghetti sauce in an ungreased 9x13 baking dish. Stuff Manicotti with spinach mixture and arrange noodles in pan. Pour remaining sauce over Manicotti. Bake covered for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Uncover and sprinkle with remaining Mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until cheese is melted.

Alternative Cooking Idea/Freezer Meal:
Prepare filling as above. Do NOT cook noodles. Combine spaghetti sauce with 1 cup water; spread 1 cup sauce into ungreased 9x13 baking dish. Stuff uncooked Manicotti with spinach mixture and arrange in pan. Pour remaining sauce over manicotti. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover and refrigerate overnight (or place in freezer; thaw overnight in fridge before cooking). Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake, uncovered at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes, or until heated through.

We are Featured!

Hi Everyone, Just a quick note to let you know that others find the recipes we have shared to be wonderful and "Yum Yum!" I received an e-mail and this blog is now featured on PetitChef.com! Thanks to everyone who continues to share their delicious recipes! Keep them coming! :D