Full On Chicken Dinner STILL SIMPLE

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Total Comfort Food Here! A full on meal, made as quickly and as easily as possible.  Every where I could, I trimmed down the fat calorie intake as best as I could.  It's not "fat-free" but "low-fat" and STILL SATISFIES a hungry family.

HERE'S ALL IT TAKES

For the Chicken

• 1 (3 to 3 1/2 pound) whole chicken
• salt & fresh ground pepper
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 1 small lemon, halved
• 5 to 7 garlic cloves, whole
• 1 small onion, thickly sliced

For the Noodles

• 1 1/2 cups dry egg noodles
• 1 cup chicken stock/broth from drippings
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup No Fat Half and Half (Land O'Lakes)
• salt & pepper
• ground red pepper flakes (for the grown ups' plates)

Blanched Broccoli

• 1 large broccoli crown, cut into large bite size pieces

Starting with the chicken. Preheat the oven to 425ºF degrees.

Prep the lemon, garlic and onion.  Have your spices measured out in small bowls, so you don't contaminate your spice rack.

Remove the chicken parts from the inside that they always give us.  Rinse out the inside of the chicken and remove any excessively fatty pieces.  Pat the outside dry with a paper towel.  Place the chicken in a roasting pan.

Generously salt and pepper the inside of the chicken.  Sprinkle in the dried thyme, stuff with the lemon, garlic.  Give the outside of the chicken a spritz of canola oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Tie the legs together with kitchen string, or not, and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.  Scatter the onion slices around the chicken.

Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh.  Move to a serving dish and cover with foil.

BEFORE YOU START THE NOODLES

Scoop out 1 cup of broth from the drippings, try to get as much as you can.  If you can't make a cup, you can fill in with water or canned chicken broth.  Put the drippings in the freezer, so the fat can separate and solidify quickly.  Skim off all the fat.

NOW start a large pot of boiling water for blanching the broccoli, then cooking the noodles as directed on the package.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, bring the 1 cup of drippings/broth to a boil.  Pour in No Fat Half and Half, and reduce heat to low just to keep warm.  Do not allow cream sauce to simmer. Think low and slow.

At the same time, blanch the broccoli florets in the boiling water for 2 minutes, scoop out with a slotted spoon and keep warm until noodles are cooked.

Drain off cooked noodles, pour creamy chicken sauce over the noodles and toss.  Allow noodles a few minutes to absorb cream sauce and thicken. Separate chicken while you wait.

Serve it all up family style!

Swirly Peanut Butter Brownies

An OUTSTANDING recipe for peanut butter and chocolate to come together in a dense, cakey delight.

Naturally, as with most dense breads, these brownies are WAY BETTER the next day.  Unfortunately, there weren't many leftover to enjoy.  So, if you're planning to make these ahead of time, HIDE THEM!!!

HERE'S ALL IT TAKES

• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 2 tablespoon milk
• 2 eggs

• 3/4 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/3 cup peanut butter chips
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted

Heat oven to 350ºF. Line a square 8X8 inch brownie pan with parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Be sure to leave enough paper overlapping on the sides to be able to lift out cooled brownies.

Melt the semi-sweet chocolate chips in the microwave on 70% power for 1 minute. Stir until practically smooth.  If it's very lumpy, go another 20 seconds at 70% power.  A few lumps won't hurt anything.

Beat sugars, butter, milk and eggs in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed.  Stir in flour, baking powder and salt.

Divide batter in half, a little over a cup each half.  Stir in peanut butter and peanut butter chips into one half.  Stir in melted chocolate chips into the remaining half.

Use a 2 inch scooper to scoop chocolate batter into pan in a checkerboard pattern.  Scoop peanut butter batter between the mounds of chocolate batter.

Swirl through batters with a knife or spreader for marbled design. Don't worry about the top of the batter being uneven, it will level off when the brownies bake.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool completely.  Cut them as big or small as you like.

FOR THE VISUAL LEARNERS

Don't forget a glass of milk or a cup of hot tea to wash these down.
Mmm MMM! They are good!

Snickerdoodles

Buttery cinnamony cookies- YUM! Do you call them Snickerdoodle Cookies or Snickerdoodles? They are my son's FAVORITE cookie of all time.  Of course, he's merely 9 years old, I'm sure there's time for other cookies in his life.  My favorite part is how they start off with this soft crunchy texture then they just dissolve on the tongue like cotton candy.

This recipe comes straight from my secret cookie book.

HERE'S ALL IT TAKES

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Mixed together in a small bowl and set aside. This is what you'll use to coat the dough balls.

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup unsalted butter or 2 sticks, softened

• 2 eggs

• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt

Heat oven to 400ºF degrees.  Beat 1 1/2 cups sugar, the shortening and butter in a large electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy.  Add in the eggs.

Mix all the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl.  Reduce electric mixer speed to Stir or Low; gradually add in dry ingredients a third at a time. As soon as all the flour is moistened, stop stirring.

Set up your assembly area. Dough bowl - cinnamon sugar bowl- ungreased cookie sheet.

Use a 1 inch scooper to measure out and drop dough balls into cinnamon coating.  Roll the dough ball around until well coated.  Shake off excess coating, then move to cookie sheet.  Place dough balls 2 inches apart.

Bake about 10 minutes or until centers are almost set. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

Cooking Note: The dough is sticky.  Using the scooper and wearing a pair of latex medical gloves, makes the task easier to handle and easier to clean up.  I wouldn't make these cookies without them.

Do not attempt to flatten the dough balls.  They will flatten beautifully on their own and make that wonderful cracked look.

And finally, just like the recipe reads, bake until almost set.  They're perfect when they still look a little wet in the center.  These cookies firm up as they cool down.  Over baking them, even just a couple of minutes, will make them crumble quicker later on.

Alright, that's it.  Totally fun to make alone, or with your kids. Their always a crowd pleaser anytime of the year.

Homecooked Burgers and Happy Meals

Even if you don't own an outdoor grill, don't let it stop you from having a good burger. I made up a great tasting batch of burgers using a grill pan and a heavy cast iron skillet. The burger shown above had a chunk of goat cheese in the center...ooh baby was it GOOD!

HERE'S ALL YOU NEED TO DO

• 1 pound of lean ground beef
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
• goat cheese for filling
• cheddar or American cheese slices
• a small bag of frozen crinkle fries

Preheat oven according to the directions on the crinkle fries bag.
Heat up a large grill pan, sprayed with high heat non-stick spray, on medium high.

In a medium bowl, mix the seasonings, not the goat cheese, into the ground beef, then shape into large thin patties. I've learned to make the patties an inch larger than the diameter of the bun. The patties always shrink up to just the right size.

Place patties on hot grill pan then reduce heat to medium or medium low. You'll get some smoke & popping at first so stand back. To get good even cooking and grill marks, set a cast iron skillet on top of the patties and cooked for 4 to 6 minutes on each side.

While you're waiting for that second side to cook, start baking the crinkle fries. Finished patties can be put in a small roasting pan, covered with foil and kept hot in the oven until it's time to eat.

For the grown ups, put a large spoonful of goat cheese in the center of a patty, and give it a sprinkle of fresh ground red pepper flakes then top it with another patty. Press the edges together so the cheese doesn't ooze out while cooking.

With the cheese filled patties, cook them on medium low heat and cover with the cast iron skillet turned upside down over them. Make sense? Use the skillet like a lid cover and not a pressing tool.

After cooking them for 5 minutes on each side, press down on the patty with a spatula to make sure the juices run clear. I don't know about you, but we like our burgers fully cooked around my house.

The fries should be finished by now, so take them out and set aside. On the kid's patties, lay on a cheese slice to start melting while the bread was toasting.

Toasted whole wheat sandwich bread slices work just fine in place of burger buns.  Set out your favorite condiments, pickles and such and you're ready to eat!

My kids love this simple home cooked happy meal. Come to think of it, I've NEVER had to bribe them with a toy to make them eat it all.
Hmm, that's interesting. Good food doesn't need a toy.

Creamy Spinach and Ravioli

This simple recipe was a BIG HIT with my 8 year old son! My 5 year old daughter loved it too, only without the spinach.

This recipe is very close to the Creamy Penne Pasta and Chicken dinner, except I was completely out of garlic and chicken broth. I improvised with yellow onion and vegetable broth cubes. As for the spinach, I quickly cooked it up with thinly sliced onions while I waited for the pasta water to boil. I had the creamy sauce finished before the pasta was tender. When I prep all my ingredients before cooking (give or take 15 minutes), this meal is cooked in 10 minutes. That's including the heat-n-eat garlic bread on the side.

THIS IS ALL IT TAKES

• 1 (10 oz.) bag of frozen spinach, thawed
• 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons oil
• salt & pepper
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons flour
• 1 vegetable broth cube
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup lite sour cream
• 1 family size package of fresh, ready to cook, four cheese ravioli
• 1 loaf of frozen heat and eat garlic bread
• shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven according to directions on garlic bread package.

Prep the garlic bread loaf on the cookie sheet. Prep spinach and onions, measure out the butter, flour, water and sour cream. Mince up the broth cube so it will dissolve better. Fill a large pot with hot water for cooking the pasta and set on high heat. Use a medium sauce pan for making the cream sauce and a small fry pan to saute the onions and spinach.

Start by adding 3 tablespoons of oil to the fry pan and heating it over medium to medium high heat. Add all BUT a 1/4 cup of onions and cook until softened. Add spinach, stir together and cook until heated through. Cover with a lid and remove from heat.

Next comes the cream sauce. Is the pasta water boiling yet? Yes? Good. Add the ravioli to the boiling water and pop the garlic loaf in the oven and set timer for 9 minutes. Lower the heat to medium on the pasta, and give the raviolis a gentle stir occasionally to keep them from sticking together.

Fully melt the butter in the saucepan over medium heat. Add the 1/ 4 cup sliced onions and cook until softened. Add the flour. Stirring continuously, cook the flour up to two minutes. Stir in the minced broth cube and 2 cups of water, until sauce is smooth and thickens a bit, 2-3 minutes. Turn off heat, gently whisk in sour cream until fully melted. Remove saucepan completely from electric burner.

If everyone in your family loves spinach then add it to the cream sauce now. Otherwise, when the ravioli is cooked and drained, pour the cream sauce over the pasta and allow to set. The sauce will thicken up and stick to the pasta...yummm. Top with shredded Parmesan cheese.

Oh and don't forget about the garlic bread in the oven!

Sloppy Chicken Enchiladas

This dish has been a family favorite for years.  The kids never grow tired of Sloppy Chicken Enchiladas.  You can make it as spicy or mild as your family can handle.
HERE'S HOW EASY IT IS

• 1 1/2 pounds of frozen skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 can (10 oz) cream of chicken soup
• 1/2 cup light sour cream
• 1 can (4 oz) green chilies
• 1/3 can roasted garlic tomatoes, drained
• 6 flour tortillas
• 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Heat oven to 350F degrees.

Gently defrost frozen chicken breasts in microwave, enough to cut up easily. In medium pan with 2 tablespoons of oil over medium to medium high heat, add cut up breasts in half dollar size pieces, onions, water, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper, cover with lid. Cook the chicken for 15 minutes, until fully cooked.

In a large bowl, mix cream of chicken soup and sour cream. Use a pizza cutter to cut up tortillas into bite size pieces. Misted a 13×9x2 casserole dish with nonstick spray. When the chicken is finally cooked, empty the chicken mixture (broth & all) into the large soup mix bowl and stir. Toss in the tortillas and stir them around until they are well coated with the soup mix. Then, transfer the sloppy enchiladas to the casserole dish, spread it out evenly then top it with the cheese. Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes.

KID FRIENDLY TIP
Top only half of the casserole with green chilies and tomatoes.

Bean & Meat Burritos

This is what I'm serving my family tonight.  Mmmmm, I can't wait to chow down!

HERE'S ALL I NEED TO DO

• 3-4 cups cooked ground beef
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 can green chilies, optional
• 1 package of 10-12 flour tortillas (fajitas/soft taco size)
• 1 large can ranch style beans
• 3/4- 1 cup water
• 2 cups grated cheddar/jack cheese

Preheat oven to 350^oF.

Reheat cooked meat, chili powder, cumin and water in medium pan over medium heat.  Remove from heat and add green chilies.

Drain ranch beans and RESERVE red sauce. Mash beans until you get a refried bean texture, you can add a little water to loosen beans. Fill one tortilla with meat, beans, & cheese. Fold and lay in greased casserole dish.

After dish is full, mix remaining beans to reserved red sauce, plus 1/2 cup water then pour over burritos. Add any leftover meat mixture and cheese for topping.

Cover with foil and bake at 350^oF for 30-40 minutes. Can be prepared earlier that day and left in refrigerator until ready to cook.

Serve with salsa, sour cream, and tortilla chips.

Kid Friendly Tip
Leave out the green chilies in the meat mixture, or leave out the meat mixture all together. Fill half the casserole dish with bean and cheese filled burritos. Be sure to mark the bean filled side of the dish by toping it only with cheese, do not top with meat mixture.

Creamy Penne Pasta and Chicken

This creamy penne pasta and chicken was a HUGE HIT with the family, particularly my picky daughter.  After two bites, my son asked if there was enough for leftovers.  That should count for extra points, right?

The picture above shows the adult dinner; topped with sliced grape tomatoes and sprinkled with red pepper flakes.  Naturally, I left them off the kiddo's plates.  The cream sauce is flavored with onion slices and minced garlic cooked in butter.  It's mild and flavorful.  Instead of using milk, sour cream was the dairy of choice.  This ingredient alone had us ALL going back for a second serving.

It took longer to cook the penne than to make the sauce.  The roasted chicken was already cooked from the other day of cooking ahead.  I highly recommend making a habit of roasting chicken ahead of time.  You will save yourself SO much time and it opens up opportunities to try other recipes or just relax more.

HERE'S ALL YOU NEED TO DO

• 2 1/2 cups penne pasta, cooked as directed

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1/3 cup onion, sliced
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons flour
• 1 (15 oz.) can chicken broth
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 2 roasted chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
• red pepper flakes, optional
• grape tomatoes, sliced, optional

While the penne is cooking, melt butter in a medium sauce pan.  Cook garlic and onions with 1/4 teaspoon salt, over medium heat, until onions have softened.  Add flour and cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Stir in broth, stirring frequently until sauce comes to simmer.  Remove from heat.

PLEASE STAND BY FOR A KID FRIENDLY TIP
If you have one on hand, use an immersion blender to puree onions into sauce for a smoother texture.  Or, carefully move sauce to a blender with the lid secured, and pulse the sauce until smooth.  Move sauce back to pan and stir in sour cream until it has melted.  The kiddos will never know about the onions and garlic.

If you don't have to worry about kids, then simply stir in the sour cream until it has melted.  Be sure the pasta is well drained, then move to a large serving bowl.  Top pasta with chicken pieces.  Pour sauce over hot pasta, tossing well to get all that creamy sauce inside the pasta.  Allow to stand a few minutes before serving, so sauce can thicken. Garnish individual plates with grape tomatoes and red pepper flakes.

Mom’s Munchables

I've stopped my kids from begging me for Lunchables packs!

I know it has to be the bright colors and exciting images that draws kids to ask for these over priced, visually unappetizing food items at the grocery store.  The only real taste they have is in the juice drink and the candy bar.  Max will ask me about every other time we pass them in the grocery store, if he can have one.  On two rare occasions, I said yes.  I watched him eat half of it.  It was hardly a "lunch", more like a snack.

Today, I made lunch more festive and turned their ham sandwiches into party appetizers.  When I called them in to lunch, I announced they were having Mom's Munchables.  They loved it!  Max said, "these are a whole lot cooler than the ones at the store!"

Thank you, my work is done here.

HERE'S HOW I MADE LUNCH SPECIAL

• Ritz Wheat crackers
• honey ham lunch meat
• cheddar slices
• cream cheese

Put 2 heaping tablespoons of cream cheese into the corner of a freezer bag, soften in the microwave at 70% power for 30 seconds.  Top the crackers with cheese and meat.  Snip off a very small corner of the bag and pipe the cream cheese over the top.

FOR THE OLDER KID (ME)

I sliced a few garlic stuffed olives and added pastrami to vary my toppings. It was gooood!

Simple Vanilla Pancakes

After making Awesome French Toast, I was curious how vanilla would taste in my pancake batter.  My kids thought I made flat cupcakes for breakfast, and of course, they ate every bite!  Notice that this is not a sweet batter, I skipped the sugar, knowing that there would be maple syrup added later.

Personally, I've been craving raspberry jam on my pancakes. It's a yummy change and I can carry my breakfast around while I get the kids ready for school. (I went overboard on the jam for this picture, but you don't really mind. Do you?)

HERE'S WHAT YOU'LL NEED

• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup Better N'Eggs Plus or 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons oil or applesauce
• 3/4 cup milk

Heat griddle set to medium heat.  Mix the dry ingredients together and add in all wet ingredients.  Beat until batter is smooth.   If you have Oven Fried Bacon on hand, this is the time to warm it up in the microwave.

By this time, the griddle should be hot enough to pour the batter.  If the griddle is too hot, simply remove it from the heat for a minute or two and turn down the burner just a bit.

Pour out enough batter to make 4 inch cakes.  When the tops become bubbly, it's time to flip'em.  The second side will cook faster than the first, so DON'T WALK AWAY, cook until golden brown.  Serve up hot with maple syrup drizzled on top and two slices of bacon on the side.  

WHAT TO DO WITH LEFTOVER PANCAKES

If you have extra pancakes, store cooled pancakes in an airtight container.  They can be left out on the counter for the day or refrigerated for 2 to 3 days.  Reheat pancakes in the toaster on medium heat.  Leftover pancakes make delicious peanut butter and banana sandwiches.  Use the pancakes as a substitute for bread slices and let the kids create their own breakfast sandwiches.

Check this link for Free Local grocery store coupons and save money on this recipe!

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

This is an easy chicken pot pie recipe that anyone can bake.

Homemade chicken pot pie is a favorite comfort dish for my whole family.  This particular recipe came from my Memaw, she was a comfort food queen!  (Man, I miss her cookin'.) You will want to plan a whole morning or afternoon in the kitchen, but it's all worth it in the end. In the past, I've broken up the work into two days of short tasks, when I didn't have a whole afternoon to dedicate.

Usually, I bake this recipe in a 13x9x2 dish or slightly larger pan.  It makes quite a bit, which is awesome for leftovers.  If you have a family of 4 to 6, don't bother freezing the leftovers.  It will all vanish in a couple of days.

This time, I purchased aluminum mini loaf pans and baked individual pot pie servings.  The recipe filled 8 mini pans.  I planned only to have a top crust, to lower the calories and leave more room for vegetables.  These pies turned out beautifully, and I was able to share them with a dear friend.

START WITH CHICKEN & BROTH

• 4 chicken breasts
• 2 onions, quartered
• 2 stalks celery, cut into large pieces
• 1 teaspoon dried basil, thyme, oregano, sage
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 bay leaf

Place all the ingredients in a large stock pot and cover with water.  Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour.  Remove chicken from broth, reserve all the broth.  When chicken is cool enough, remove skin and bones, then shred in large bite size pieces.  (Chicken bites will get smaller after stirring them in later.)

PREPARE THE FILLING & CRUST

• 3 cups potato, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
• 1-2 cups sliced carrots
• 1 1/2 cups frozen peas
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 stick of butter
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 1/2 cup Land o'Lakes No Fat Half-n-Half
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 packages of refrigerated Pillsbury Pie Crusts

Cook celery, carrots and potatoes in butter until crisp tender.  Add flour and stir until smooth, cooking for 1 minute.  Gradually add reserved broth and half & half while cooking over medium heat, until sauce thickens and bubbly.  Stir in shredded chicken, frozen peas, salt, pepper.  If sauce looks too thick, keep adding broth.  It's good to keep the sauce on the slightly soupy side, because it will keep thickening as it bakes.

Now, you're ready to assemble the pie(s).  If you want a bottom crust, then use one package (both dough rolls) to line the bottom of casserole pan.  Fill with chicken mixture and cover using second package of pie crusts. Use scraps to decorate top, if you feel fancy.   Be sure to pierce the dough where needed.  Bake at 400F degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

When I assembled the individual mini pans, I used one package of pie crusts and only covered the top. (As shown in photos.)

Check for Free Local grocery store coupons and save money on this recipe!

Camp Burritos, the Original Recipe

Camp Burritos were created on a family camping trip, some 8 years ago.  The burritos are hardy, filling and AWESOME any day of week!

Camp Burritos are the first meal I serve all my new friends, with and without kids.  It's a winner with everyone no matter what their food preferences happen to be.  The dish looks like the cook slaved away preparing the meal, but it takes hardly any time to roll together these bad boys and pop them in the oven.

Every body loves this hardy Tex-Mex dish! It's so filling, I don't bother serving anything else with it but tortilla chips. It makes a great leftover meal and can be made ahead of time.

HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 package taco seasoning
• 2 tablespoon water
• 1 can chopped green chilies
• 1 package of 10-12 flour tortillas (fajitas/soft taco size)
• 1 can ranch style beans - mashed
• 2 cups grated cheddar/jack cheese
• 1 can MILD red enchilada sauce (Old El Paso)

Preheat oven to 350^oF.
Brown meat and drain off any grease. Mix taco seasoning and water to beef and cook until water has evaporated. Remove from heat and add green chilies. Mash beans until you get a refried bean texture. Fill one tortilla with meat, beans, & cheese. Fold and lay in greased casserole dish. After dish is full, pour red enchilada sauce over burritos. Add any leftover meat mixture and cheese for topping. Cover with foil.

Bake at 350^oF for 30-40 minutes. Can be prepared earlier that day and left in refrigerator until ready to cook. Serve with your favorite salsa, sour cream, and tortilla chips.

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