Easy Chicken Tetrazzini

Some time has past since I last posted, and for that I apologize. My life has gotten a bit in the way of my cooking and blogging. My job, where I actually make a living, picked up considerably and has really cut into my personal time, dang it! If I could cook and blog about it all day I would be one very happy old woman. But, alas, I have to make some money in order to cook the food. This may be one of those lessons in how to better organize my time. And I suppose sleep is highly overrated. So, I am going to try to do better...promise.

On to the food. I love the versatility of chicken. It probably adorns our plates at least 3 times a week. I mean, my gosh, it can be baked, fried, broiled, boiled, stir fried, used in soup, salads, casseroles, stews, and its bones used for stock. How good is that?! When whole chickens are on sale I always purchase at least 3. None of it ever goes to waste. I also keep packages of breasts and thighs on hand. I am positive there is more chicken in my freezer than any other type of meat. It even beats out ground beef! That being said, you will probably always see more chicken recipes on this blog than beef, pork or fish.

Now, the recipe. This chicken tetrazzini recipe is probably the best I have run across. It's easy, flavorful and creamy. I found it in the Farm Journal's Great Home Cooking in America. This cookbook is devoted to tracing many of the recipes we use today to our immigrant forefathers. This particular recipe, of course, is attributed to Italian immigrants, although I read somewhere that this really isn't an Italian dish. Oh, well, tastes great anyway. And it is really a great family friendly recipe. Kids even like this!

Ingredients

6 TBS. butter

6TBS. flour

3/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

2 cups half and half

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 cup chicken broth

3 cups cubed cooked chicken

1 8 oz. can mushrooms (stems and pieces) you can certainly use fresh

1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper

12 oz. spaghetti cooked and drained(reserve 1/4 cup cooking water)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Melt butter in 3 qt. saucepan. Blend in flour, salt and pepper. Add half and half and chicken broth; cook, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat. Stir in chicken, mushrooms, and peppers. Toss gently with drained spaghetti and reserved cooking water. Turn into greased 3 qt. casserole dish. Top with cheese. Bake in 350 degree oven 30 minutes.

Notes: This could not be any more simple. It's a great mid week dish for a family meal. Add salad, veggie and bread and you are set. My hubby has been making tetrazzini for ever, using a specific recipe. I actually had him make this one and he declared it much better than the one he had been making. So there's an official endorsement. Enjoy!

Summer Chicken with Peas

As I contemplate the start of another week, I reflect on what Sundays used to be. In my youth, Sundays were a day of worship...in some faiths that meant church twice on Sundays...and a big Sunday dinner, where the family gathered around the dining table and enjoyed a wonderful meal, good company, and a day free from work (unless you were a dairy farmer). It was a day about family. I don't know about the rest of you, but my Sundays are just as crazy as the rest of the week. Trying to gather my grown family to my house on Sundays is pretty much an impossibility. Naturally, the son who lives 3 1/2 hours from here can't make it. And the other three, well their lives are very full and busy. It is even a struggle for everyone to coordinate their schedules during holidays. I miss those big noisy Sunday dinners. Now a days, it's hubby, my mom, and me. At least they still enjoy the big Sunday dinner.

In honor of the big Sunday dinner I am posting a recipe that is the model of a "Sunday come to dinner" dish. This is a time consuming dish to make, but good things come to those who wait. I have discovered that those dishes that the Farm Journal test kitchens deemed the best found their way into several of the cookbooks. Such is the case with this one. And it does deserve that honor. Round up the family for Sunday dinner and this dish, and I promise they will love you and the chicken.

Ingredients

1 broiler-fryer cut up

1 lb. new potatoes or medium red potatoes

6 TBS. butter

salt

fresh ground pepper

2 TBS. lemon juice

3 green onions sliced

1 lb. fresh peas, shelled (1cup) or 1 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen peas

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 cup dairy sour cream

1 tsp. thyme leaves

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp.pepper

Scrub potatoes. If using new potatoes peel a strip around the center; if using medium red potatoes, quarter into uniform sized pieces. Brown chicken and protatoes slowly on all sides in melted butter in large skillet. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle chicken with lemon juice. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 30 minutes.

Add green onions to butter in bottom of skillet. Sprinkle peas and parsley over chicken and potatoes; cover again and simmer 10 more minutes or until

tender.

Remove chicken and vegetables to platter; cover with foil to keep warm. Remove skillet from heat. Pour off excess fat, Add sour cream, thyme, 1/2 tsp. salt and pepper. Stir to loosen pan drippings. Heat over low heat. Pour over chicken.

Notes: First, I have to apologize for the photo. With the sauce poured over the platter, it is difficult to tell the chicken from the potatoes. But, let me tell you, it makes no difference in the flavor. My hubby sort of swooned when he ate his first forkful. The one thing I will do the next time is precook the peas slightly. They were a bit al dente for my tastes. I also substituted plain yogurt for the sour cream. Either works well. As I said, this a great dish for Sunday or any family dinner. It will now be a staple recipe in our home. Enjoy!

Crisp Oven-Fried Chicken

Holy cow! Who doesn't like fried chicken? It is totally unAmerican to not love it. But who likes to stand over a hot skillet, tending it, keeping it from scorching, making sure it isn't raw in the middle? I spent too many years trying to fry the perfect fowl. Sometimes success, sometimes disaster. Then I stumbled upon this recipe in a Farm Journal cookbook. I played with it, added a few of my own touches, and now can be fairly assured of success every time. Caution...naturally it is not low cal. Ask me do I care? For picnics, this is perfect.

Ingredients

2 (3 lb.) broiler/fryers cut up
3/4 cup crushed saltine crackers

3/4 cup crushed white cheddar Cheez-It cracker

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 TBS. minced fresh parsley (I used Italian)

1 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. dried thyme

1 tsp. dried rosemary

1 tsp. dried basil leaves

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. paprika

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 cup half-and-half

1/4 cup melted butter

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly oil a shallow baking pan or sheet with sides. Mix the dry ingredients together. I always use a couple of pie pans for this part. I put the crumbs in one pan and the half-and -half in another. Dip the pieces of chicken first in liquid, then coat with the crumbs. Lay skin side up on baking sheet. And here's the best part...drizzle that melted butter over the chicken. Yuuummmm.

Bake for 1 hour.

This is going to be so crispy and juicy, it will be hard for you to resist chomping right into it. But do let it cool for 5 or 10 minutes so you don't do damage to your taste buds and roof of your mouth. You really want to be able to revel in the flavor.

Notes: I used 1 whole chicken and 8 thighs. But after I cut up the whole chicken, I froze the back and wings to make stock at a later date. This left me with a total of 14 pieces of chicken. The above amount of crumbs and liquid were just the right. And this is absolutely delectable cold. Enjoy!

Black Bean Chicken Soup with Rice

November

In November's gusty gale
I will flop my flippy tail
And spout hot soup-I'll be a whale!
Spouting once, spouting twice
Spouting chicken soup with rice

Chicken Soup with Rice by Maurice Sendak

I loved reading this poem to my kids when they were little. A fabulous way to teach children the months of the year. And since today was such a blustery day, I thought of chicken soup with rice, but, of course, with a twist. Maurice, I hope I did you proud.

Black Bean Chicken Soup with Rice

oil olive or canola

1 lb. large dice raw chicken (I used 1 package of boneless skinless chicken breasts from Costco.)
1/2 cup diced onion
1 cup chopped green or red pepper
3 cloves minced, grated or pressed garlic
4 cups chicken broth
2 cans black beans
1 cup whole kernel corn canned or frozen
1 cup brown rice
1 16 0z. jar salsa or 2 cups homemade salsa
1 1/2 tsp. cumin
1 1/2 tsp. oregano
2 TBS. white vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup sour cream

Heat about 3 TBS. oil in a large soup pot. Brown the chunks of chicken. Remove from pot. Add the onion, garlic and peppers and cook until very tender. If needed add some more oil. Using about a quarter cup of the broth, deglaze the pot. Then dump back in the chicken, beans, corn, salsa, rice, the rest of the broth, the cumin, oregano, vinegar, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, turn the heat to low and cook for about an hour. Add in the sour cream before serving. Top with some grated cheese and serve with either cornbread or fresh fried tortilla chips. This really is yummy on a cold blustery day.

I told you once, I told you twice
All seasons of the year are nice
For eating chicken soup with rice.

Enjoy!

Chicken Salad on Croissants and Pasta Salad....Elegant

Yesterday two of my sisters-in-law came to visit, and I wanted to serve them a nice lunch. After all, they made the three hour trip to see us, the least I could do was to feed them well. And chicken salad is one of my favorites! When dressed up it makes an elegant lunch dish. Both of the ladies loved it. Before anyone was allowed to eat though, I had to photograph it for the blog. If it is a loved dish, it has to have its picture taken.

I served the sandwiches with homemade pasta salad, which really added to the menu. My hubby and I were at the store looking for sides to go with the sammies, and he suggested checking out the deli section for salads. I saw the pasta salad and realized I had everything but artichoke hearts to make it myself. So grabbed a couple of small bottles of the marinated hearts (and low and behold! they were on sale...score!) and headed home to finish up the lunch. Here are the two recipes. Now keep in mind...I didn't measure much of anything. I tend to dump. So I will try to guesstimate the proportions.

Chicken Salad on Croissants

2 cans white chicken breast meat I used the 12.5 oz. size from Costco. You could totally use leftover cooked chicken. I just like the texture of the canned for the salad
1/3 to 1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds
1/4 t0 1/ cup craisins chopped
1 stalk of celery finely diced
mayo...I don't even know how to you how much. I just add until I like the consistency
2 TBS. Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Just mix it all together and spread on sliced croissants. Top with lettuce. This makes about 5 good size sandwiches or 6 smaller ones. You can adjust the proportions to fit your tastes.

Pasta Salad

12 oz. rotini pasta cooked to package directions and rinsed with cold water.
2 6.5 oz. jars marinated artichoke hearts drained....I cut them half lengthwise
1/2 regular size can of black olives sliced...you can munch on the rest while you make the salad
1 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup finely diced red pepper
Newman's Own Balsamic Vinagrett dressing (or any brand you like)
salt and pepper to taste
lots of fresh grated Parmesan cheese The stuff in the green can works fine for some things...not this

Mix all the ingredients together. Just add the dressing until everything is moist. Don't drown it. Let chill for several hours. You made need to add more dressing when you serve it as the pasta will absorb the dressing.

I served the sandwiches and the salad with chips and a deli pickle. And we were stuffed! This really is a great guest lunch. Enjoy!

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

And I'm back. Hubby's surgery basically didn't work out and so now he will start treatment for the cancer. And life goes on. Cooking and working on this blog is good therapy for me so I'm going to get back to work here.

I've decided to change things around a little. Nothing huge. I have just decided I should give the recipes names. Looking for specific recipes should not be a treasure hunt (although I think these are treasures). Through the coming weeks I will go back and edit my posts to reflect the names of the dishes I am posting. Sound like a plan?

Today's dish is a twist on one of my family's favorites. I have been making Green Chicken Enchiladas for about 35 years, slowly improving on it over the years. The one thing I find really time consuming is rolling the enchiladas. When one considers how my hubby dishes them up it is really an exercise in futility. So I have begun layering them instead. Much easier to dish up and just as tasty. And another one of those great budget stretching comfort dishes.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Sauce
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cups salsa verde, either purchased or homemade
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. dried cilantro
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder

Mix the above ingredients together in a saucepan and heat through.

2 TBS. olive oil
2 TBS. butter
1 small diced onion
1 4 oz. can diced green chilies
4 cups cooked chopped chicken
1 tsp. cumin
1-2 tsp. dried cilantro
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp. turmeric
16-18 corn tortillas
3-4 cups shredded cheese...cheddar, monterey jack, or combination of the two
sour cream

In a large skillet melt the butter and oil together. Add the onions and cook for 10 to 15 minutes until onion is fairly caramelized. Add the can of chilies and cook for another 2 minutes or so. Add the chicken and spices and heat through...about 5 minutes. On the subject of the chicken...I like to use leftover chicken. I will freeze leftovers until I have enough to make a casserole. The night before I made the casserole I had made a rotisserie chicken in the crockpot and used the meat from that for this dish. I also freeze the carcass after I strip it to make chicken stock at a later date. In light of the current economic situation I feel obligated to make use of everything.

Back to the casserole.

In a small skillet heat a small amount of oil and quickly heat each tortilla in the oil...just a few seconds on each side. You want the tortillas to stay flexible. Drain on paper towels.

In the bottom of a 9x13 inch casserole dish spread about 1/2 cup of the sauce. Lay out 6 of the tortillas in the dish. Top with half the chicken mixture, then 1/3 of the sauce and 1/3 of the cheese. Layer 6 more tortillas, the other half of the chicken, 1/3 of the sauce and 1/3 of the cheese. Top with remaining sauce and then cheese. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes until the casserole is all melty and bubbly. Top each serving with a dollop of sour cream. This is really Mmm! Mmm! Good! Enjoy!

New Age Chicken and Dumplings

I had originally planned to post a different recipe this weekend, but after making it I decided it needed some more tweaking. It is a really delish dish, but it just needs some refinement. Now you have something to look forward to.

Instead you are getting my take on a recipe Jessica Simpson made for Rachel Ray on TV last month. This is incredibly easy to make and quite flavorful. And on a chilly autumn night very comforting. Boy, with the world in the mess it is right now we could all use some comforting.

Ingredients

3 cans crescent rolls (use the Pillsbury. I initially was going to make this a few days ago with some Walmart brand rolls and ended up throwing the rolls out. Sometimes you just have to use name brands.)

12 oz. cream cheese softened

1/2 cup sour cream

1 TBS. minced chives

2 TBS. minced parsley

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. salt

2 cans chicken breast meat (I get the 6 pack from Costco) you could also use 2 cups of cooked chopped chicken

1 can cream of chicken soup

Pre-heat oven to 400 degreees. In a bowl mix cream cheese and sour cream until smooth. Add in chives, parsley, onion and garlic powders and salt. Mix well. Fold in chicken.

Open the crescent rolls. Stretch each one a little and then put a small spoonful of the chicken mixture in the middle of the roll.

Roll it into a little pillow.

Place in a 9x13 casserole dish. I sprayed mine with some canola oil spray. Use 2 of the cans of rolls. That will fill your dish. You should have a cup or so of the mixture left. Add the can of cream of chicken soup to this, and then spread that sauce over the top of the little pillows. If you don't feel you have enough of the chicken mixture left you can either add sour cream to the soup or another can of soup. It's whatever you prefer. Now take that final roll of crecsent rolls and cut them into strips and lattice them on top of the sauce. Bake for 40 minutes. If the lattice begins to brown too much cover with foil.

This turned out very yummy. Even my son who still has to everything blended threw some in the blender. Both he and my hubby said it was blog worthy and said it definitely needs to be repeated. So, Enjoy!

Fall Comfort Food Chicken and Noodles

With yesterday being the first day of fall I really needed something warm and soothing. Can food be soothing? And I wanted to show off my new Dutch oven. Isn't it pretty? I love red. My mom had a Dutch oven when I was growing up, and I remember some pretty tasty pot roasts coming out of that sucker. I have always wanted one, just hadn't ever gotten around to getting one. And I did it on the cheap, getting it at Walmart. I am in love.

Anyway, one of my favorite fall and winter dishes is "Chicken and Noodles." There is nothing that says "love" and "home" better. This is my mom's recipe that I have tweaked a bit.

Ingredients

1 4-5 lb. chicken
1 medium onion cut in eighths
2 or 3 stalks celery with leaves cut in thirds
2 or 3 springs of fresh thyme
4 cloves mashed garlic

Later you will need
2 TBS. olive oil
1/2 onion chopped
2 stalks celery chopped
3 cloves garlic minced, grated or pressed
1 cup sliced baby carrots you can add more if you like
1/2 cup white wine
2 cans cream of something soup...mushroom, chicken, celery whatever you have will work
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 lb. egg noodles...I found a brand at Walmart called Country Pasta that is outstanding for this recipe
2 cups cream
salt and pepper to taste

Wash chicken, remove innards, and place chicken, not innards, in pot. You can do whatever you deem necessary to the innards. Me, well, I throw them away. Add onions, celery, garlic and water to almost cover the chicken. My Dutch oven is 6 qts., and the water was about an inch from the rim. Cover, bring to a boil, reduced to simmer and let her cook. I can't really give you a time on this. I think mine cooked about 4 1/2 to 5 hours. I just let it go while I was doing other stuff. When the meat starts falling off the bones, you know she's done.

Remove the chicken to a bowl and let cool for awhile. You are going to remove the meat from the bones, and you don't want to acquire 2nd degree burns doing it. Strain the broth into another bowl and also let cool. Throw away the veggies. After everything has cooled enough to handle, remove meat from the bones and skim grease from the broth.

In the bottom of the pot heat the oil and saute the new veggies until all but the carrots are tender. Use the wine (broth will also work) to deglaze the pot. Add the broth, chicken, and cans of soup. Heat to a gentle rolling boil. Add noodles and cook until al dente. Add thyme, cream, and salt and pepper. Stir until everything is well mixed and heated through. Voila, a great one dish dinner for the weekend that just warms the belly through and through. You can definitely leave out the cream. I added that to boost the fat and calories for my son. It is just as good without. Warm crusty bread and you are good to go. Enjoy!

Salsa Verde

The other day as I was perusing my favorite foodie blogs, I came across a recipe for chicken enchiladas with salsa verde. Now, I've made my own version of chicken enchiladas since before there was dirt. But I had never actually tried my hand at making the green version of salsa. So, I said to myself, "Why not?" After spending several days looking at a myriad of recipes, I came up with my own version. And it wasn't half bad. My hubby found it a bit on the hot side, but then his palate is kind of wussy. Sorry, hon, but you know it's true. The nice thing about this recipe is that you can control the heat. And I will guide you through that. Actually, there's nothing to that. But I wanted to sound like the expert that I'm not. Here we go.

The Ingredients

about 2 lbs. tomatillos
4 poblano peppers
4 jalapeno peppers (you aren't necessarily going to use all these peppers but you can save what you don't use for something else)
about 1/4 bunch of cilantro
1/3 cup chopped onion
2 large cloves garlic
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 TBS. lime juice

I know, I know, I didn't put the onion or garlic in the photo. Oh, well.

Here's what I did to my salsa to make it a little different from most of the other recipes. I am sure others have done this, but I didn't see it. I roasted all the peppers. Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with foil and brush it with olive oil. Also brush the peppers with the oil. Place the cookie sheet in the center of the oven. Cook until fairly blackened, turning often.

While the peppers are roasting, husk and rinse the tomatillos. Place them in a pot just covered with water and cook until they change color to a dull green. I think those little tomatillos are so cute. I had never worked with them before and found them pretty darn interesting. I digress. Anyway, here's what they look like from start to finish.

About the time you start cooking the tomatillos, the peppers will probably be done. Remove them from the oven and the cookie sheet and place in a paper bag to cool for about 15 minutes.

When the tomatillos are done cooking remove them from the water with a slotted spoon and place them in a food processor or blender. Add the garlic, onion, cilantro, cumin and lime juice. When the peppers have cooled peel and remove the seeds and veins. Start by adding 1 of each pepper. Believe me, you will definitely want to start on the cautious side when adding the peppers. Pulse the blender until the mixture is smooth. Then check for heat and salt. You can keep adding the peppers until your mouth can't take anymore heat. And, voila, salsa verde!

This made around 5 cups. It is a versatile salsa that you can use with chips, fish, beef, or, as I did tonight, to make chicken enchiladas. And, boy, did I have one happy hubby!

Dreamy Creamy Turkey Soup

You know how after turkey day you have a ton of leftover turkey, and after making a bazillion sandwiches you throw the rest of it into the freezer and then forget about it? Well, I’ve done that more times than I care to count. Several months after the last Thanksgiving I was rummaging around in the freezer when I came across a couple of ziploc bags with leftover turkey. I was trying to figure out what to do with it, because I was afraid it might have that freezer burn disease and wouldn’t be very suitable for casseroles or sandwiches. Then I thought of soup! Soup can hide a multitude of sins. So I took the bags out of the freezer to thaw and searched the fridge for other handy ingredients that might make a palatable concoction. What resulted was truly yummy! My hubby said, "Grab a pencil and write down how you made that puppy. That one is truly a keeper. And, of course, being a dutiful wife (not) I did exactly that. And you lucky people are the first to view and try this dreamy creamy soup. Let me know what you think. And Enjoy!!

Dreamy Creamy Turkey Soup

Here are the ingredients to this lovely soup.
In case you can't figure out all the ingredients from the picture I'll list them for you in the order of their appearance.

3 Tbs. butter

3 Tbs. olive oil

1/2 cup onion chopped

2 stalks celery chopped

3 large cloves garlic grated minced or pressed

8 oz. sliced mushrooms button or crimini

2 qts. chicken broth

4 cups chopped cooked turkey or chicken

1 cubed zucchini

1/2 cup white wine

1 1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning

1 tsp. dried thyme sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

8 oz. small type pasta

1 1/2 cups cream

4 cups chopped or baby spinach

Don't let the long list intimidate you. It is totally worth the effort.

The first thing you need is a big soup pot or kettle. I like to use an eight quart pot because I get less spatter that way. Melt the butter and the olive oil (I always use EVOO) in the bottom of the pot. Add the onions, celery and garlic and saute until tender. Add the mushrooms and continue to saute. I like to slice the mushrooms directly into the pot so I can stand there and take in the aroma as it cooks. But I have to be careful not to take to long or else I will drool into the pot.

Can't you just smell it!!

After the veggies are tender add the broth, chicken, zucchini, spices, and wine. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Then add the pasta and continue to simmer until just a smidge past al dente. Then add the cream, heat through and then the spinach and cook until just wilted

My goodness, talk about your comfort food. The cream really is the secret ingredient. A couple of tips. Use sea salt for the health benefits. When I get more of this blog thing worked out I will put on links to the sites that discuss that. I like to use baby spinach in to save on the chopping and washing. And finally, I use Dreamfields Pasta exclusively. Again, I will tell you all about that in another post. That stuff is fantastic and I will sing their praises to the roofs.

When you finish cooking this serve it up in big bowls with a crusty bread. And there are so many veggies it in that it is a one dish meal. What could be better!!!

As a side note...I am still figuring out the whole camera thing and how to post. Hopefully with time they will improve. Any suggestions to that end will be helpful.