Easy Farmhouse Chicken Chowder

This recipe was fabulous! I adapted it from a Cooks Country Recipe (again!) and it was a hit at our house! go ahead and wipe the drool off your laptop or computer desk...it is really as delicious as it seems!

Easy Farmhouse Chicken Chowder
adapted from "Farmhouse Chicken Chowder" in the April/May 2011 Cook's Country Magazine

6 slices bacon, chopped
6 scallions, white parts chopped fine and green parts
2 carrots, peeled and sliced thin
1 celery rib, cliced thin
salt & pepper
6 tablespoons flour
5 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 pound red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3 cups cooked and shredded chicken breast (I boiled mine first, then shredded it)
1 cup half and half

Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel lined plate. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from pot. Cook scallion whites, carrots, celery and 1/2 teaspoon salt in bacon fat until vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Add flour and cook until golden, 1 to 2 minutes.
Stir in broth and potatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until vegetables are tender, about 10 to 12 minutes. Add chicken and half and half. Simmer for about 2 minutes until the chicken is heated through. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with bacon and scallion greens and serve!

Waffles with Easy Strawberry Sauce

This was my Mother's Day breakfast...I didn't make these (although I have several times)...but they were DELICIOUS! Go Jason! This recipe is from the Food Network Magazine, but I couldn't find it on their website. So here it is:
Classic Waffles
Dry Ingredients:
2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
5 tablespoons melted shortening
4 tablespoons melted butter

Whisk all dry ingredients together. Mix in the wet ingredients one at a time. Cook in a waffle iron until crisp. Top with butter and syrup.

Easy Strawberry Sauce
1/4 cup strawberry (really any flavor works) jam
Place the jam in a microwavable mug and heat the jam for about 30 seconds. Serve. (I know...who knew it could be this easy!)  

Low Fat Whipped Potatoes (Easy Easter Dinner)

This Easter (this is also a great easy 30 minute meal for any day of the week...not just Easter, or holidays) we went for easy...our family is small and really not worth the effort of a BIG  ham . So I bought some ham slices from the refrigerator section of our local Wal-Mart (we like Farmland Best one pound ham in slices). I warmed them in a skillet with a little bit of water for about 15 minutes on medium-low. I also steamed some asparagus and made my low fat whipped potatoes. TADA! An Easter meal in just 30 minutes! Here is the recipe for the delicious whipped potatoes.
Low Fat Whipped Potatoes
3 pounds Idaho potatoes, peeled and cut into roughly 2 inch pieces
1/2 cup fat free sour cream
1/3 cup fat free milk (depending on the creaminess...you can add more)
3 tablespoons of Brummel and Brown Spread 
Salt


Put a big pot of water to boil. While the water is heating up, peel your potatoes and cut into pieces. When water is boiling, add the potatoes and cook for 15 minutes or until a fork goes into a potato piece smoothly. Drain the potatoes and place into a mixing bowl (I use my Kitchenaid). Using a hard whip attachment, whip the potatoes for a minute. Add the sour cream and milk. Continue to whip adding more milk as desired for the perfect whipped consistency. Add the spread and a little salt for taste (sometimes we add flavors like shallot salt, garlic or onion powder). Serve immediately!


 

Creamy Dreamy Potato Soup

Oh dear! This recipe is YUMMY! and not that good for you, but I did use low-fat creme cheese! The leftovers were fabulous! My husband thought it was too cheesey (that is not really in my vocabulary because I think all things should be topped with cheese!), so maybe next time I won't add as much cream cheese, or add more chicken broth...BUT I thought it was perfect!
Creamy Dreamy Potato Soup
4 pounds of red potatoes, chopped into chunks
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
8 cups low sodium chicken broth
16 oz low-fat (or regular) cream cheese (don't use no fat!!!)
optional toppings (as shown above):
crumbled bacon
shredded cheddar cheese
chopped green onion or chives

You can either make this soup on the stove-top or in your crock pot...it just depends on your day!

Stove-Top Directions: Place chopped potatoes, garlic, salt, pepper and broth in a large pot. Boil until you can stick a fork in the potatoes and they are soft (NOT mushy), about 15 minutes. Then slice the cream cheese into chunks and add to the broth. Mix into the soup and let melt, takes about 5 minutes. (These 5 minutes are a good time to get all of the rest of your toppings finished!)

Crock Pot Directions: Place chopped potatoes, garlic, salt, pepper and broth in your slow cooker. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8. About 30 minutes before it is finished add the sliced cream cheese chunks. Replace the lid and let cook for another 20 minutes. Stir the soup frequently to allow the cream cheese to melt and blend completely.

Skillet Pork Chops and Rice

This fast and easy meal was a winner for my family! Once again I found it in my trusty Cook's Country 2011 Recipe Book. It is in the 30 minute meals in August/September.

Skillet Pork Chops & Rice
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (I soften my butter in the microwave for 8 seconds)
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley ( I used dry and it was still great!)
1 cup long grain rice
2 1/4 cups low sodium chicken broth, divided
4 boneless pork chops, 3/4 to 1 inch thick, trimmed
salt & pepper
1 onion
1 garlic clove minced (I did a few...I LOVE garlic)
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

Combine 2 tablespoons of butter and parsley in a small bowl.
Microwave 1 cup broth and rice in covered large bowl until liquid is absorbed, 6 to 8 minutes.
Pat pork chops dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a 12 inch skillet over medium-high heat. Brown chop, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer to plate and tent loosely with foil.
Melt remaining butter in the now empty skillet over medium-high heat. Cook onion until browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Stir in parcooked rice and remaining 1 1/4 cups of broth and bring to a boil. Return the pork chops and their juices to the pan and cook covered over medium-low heat until pork is cooked and rice is tender.
Serve each piece of pork with a slab of parsley butter.

Tex-Mex Chicken & Rice

Looking for a quick meal tonight?! Here is an easy crowd pleaser! YUMMY! And it is healthy to boot...just don't go overboard on the Fritos!

Tex-Mex Chicken & Rice (adapted from Cook's Country 2011)
1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 cup long grain white rice
salt & pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
Pam
1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes (10 oz)
1 can black beans (16 oz), drained & rinsed
Fritos
Shredded Mexican Cheese blend

1. Combine 1 cup broth and rice in a large bowl. Cover with plastic and microwave until liquid is absorbed, 6 to 8 minutes.
2. Pat chicken dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper. Spray a large saucepan with Pam. Cook chicken until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to plate.
3. Add remaining broth, parcooked rice from the microwave, tomatoes, and beans to now empty skillet. Bring to a boil. Return chicken and juices to skillet and cook, covered over medium low heat until chicken is cooked through and rice is tender, 12 to 15 minutes.
4. Remove chicken from the rice and let it rest on a plate tented with foil, for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, letrice mixture stand covered for 5 minutes.
5. Cut chicken into bite size slices. Serve with crushed Fritos and cheese.

Garlic French Bread Pizza

Well, I guess I better get started with these posts! I will try to do one a day for a while. We will see how this goes and I hope that you LOVE my collection of recipes. I will label them as best as I can so that you can find it again in a hurry! Mind you... my recipes are mostly not of my own making. They are usually good recipes that I have found and put my twist on it. I am NOT for inventing the wheel...there is no time for that in my house! So instead I will try recipes and put them on here if I like them with comments on how I made it better!
One of Jason's favorite things in the whole world is probably pizza. I mean who doesn't like a good warm pizza. How about we make it even better by putting it on a good piece of French Bread! Yummy! This recipe is one of our family favorites and it is a 30 minute meal! AWESOME! The french bread is super crispy and with a hint of garlic and Parmesan! You will have to try it soon!
**TIP** Cook's Country is one of my absolute favorite cook books. Cook's Country is actually a magazine that is published 6 times during a year, but at the end of the year they sell a book of all of the magazines from that year hard bound with an index! LOVE IT!

Garlic French Bread Pizza
Adapted from Oct/Nov 2007 Cook's Country Magazine French Bread Pizza

6  tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (If you can, get the glass bottled Kirkland brand from Costco...it's the best and I am a snob!)
4  garlic cloves, minced
4  tablespoons of fresh basil, divided ( I use dried basil if there is no fresh on hand...about 1-2 tablespoons)
Dried Oregano
Salt
1  loaf of French bread cut crosswise into 8 even pieces (not a baguette...the supermarket French bread)
1/2 cup  Parmesan cheese
1 cup  crushed tomatoes (from a can...I use Contadina or Hunts, freeze the rest for pizza in the future!)

Toppings (optional...pick what you like!):
Mozzarella cheese, shredded
Pepperoni, cut into quarters (this allows you to spread the pepperoni out more, with less calories!)
Green Peppers (about 1/2 a green or red pepper) cut into small squares (freeze the rest for pizza later)
Olives, sliced (sometimes I saute them first in a little bit of oil)
Onions, diced (yellow or red)
Mushrooms, sliced

1. Adjust oven rack to the upper-middle position and turn your oven to 425*. Microwave oil with the garlic and 2 tablespoons of basil basil in a mug until fragrant...about 40 seconds.

2.  Brush half of oil over the bread (including the crust and edges of the bread) and arrange cut side up on a foil lined baking sheet. Sprinkle parmesean all evenly on the bread. Bake until cheese begins to brown, about 3-4 minutes.

3. Pull bread out of the oven and top all slices with a good spoon full of crushed tomatoes. Drizzle with remaining oil. Sprinkle remaining basil, salt and oregano. Add your toppings. Sprinkle lightly with mozzarella. Bake until cheese is melted, 5 to 7 minutes. Serve hot!

**These pizzas are great for left overs the next day! They freeze really well too!