Creamy Chicken Hash

For those us who gave up canned cream of chicken soup but still wish we had a natural, delicious alternative. Creamy Chicken Hash comes to the rescue.  It's a main dish not a soup; Creamy Chicken Hash is loaded with leftover roasted chicken, chopped and baked into a creamy, lightly textured, custard sauce.  It's a simple recipe to bring together in under 30 minutes.  I served it with Duchess Potatoes; the oven was already hot and I baked them together.  Dinner was ready in no time.

HERE'S ALL IT TAKES

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon yellow onion, minced
• 2 1/2 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup cream or whole milk
• 2 to 3 cups roasted chicken, chopped
• salt and pepper
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 to 2 tablespoons Sherry (optional)
• 1/2 cup grated cheese

Preheat oven to Low Broil.

Heat butter; add onion and cook over low heat until soft but not browned.

Add flour and stir until blended; slowly add stock and stir over low heat until thick and smooth; add cream and chicken; season to taste.

Slowly add a little hot cream sauce to the beaten eggs (to temper the eggs); add tempered eggs to remaining chicken mixture, stirring constantly.  Add sherry.

Turn into buttered shallow casserole dish or deep-dish pie plate; sprinkle with grated cheese.

Heat under broiler until brown and bubbly, 10 to 15 minutes.  Keep watch over it.  Makes 6 servings.

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I apologize for not having a photo.  I didn't have good light at dinner time, so I thought would save back some to photograph tomorrow.  My family at it all.

Curried Carrot and Apple Soup

It sounds unusual and it's different from our normal soups, but Curried Carrot and Apple Soup is quite delicious.  After you know what to expect.

The First Bowl
Because it looks so much like butternut squash, it took six bites or spoonfuls before my brain accepted that I was eating carrots.  Once past the visual sensory, I tasted it with a picky eater's discriminating tongue.  Curry, salt and pepper are the only spices and that's enough. The aroma of curry and carrots go together well.  In all my time I would have never put them together, if I had not come across this recipe.  The texture is smooth, but not creamy.  My mouth wanted to chew but there was not enough there.  My husband thought shredded chicken would be good in this soup to satisfy the desire to chew.  I thought I would make sure all the carrots were cooked tender next time.  Then there's a slightly sweet note of the apple that shows up for just a moment before the curry makes it spicy finish.  My dear friend and taste tester, Kim, didn't pick up on the apple at all and enjoyed the soup all together.  The dollop of sour cream helps fill the mouth and mellow the heat of the curry.  I wouldn't serve this soup without it.  The original recipe from Soups; Includes Delicious Recipes for Appetizers and Salads called for plain yogurt, but I didn't have any on hand.

Two Days Later
The spices and texture are better after a night or two in the frig!  Maybe it was because I knew what to expect, I don't know.  I truly enjoyed this soup the second time around.  Enough to add it to SDR!  I don't waste my time photographing and writing undesirable recipes, there's no point.  The soup kept it's distinct flavors but joined together in savory sweet mouthfuls.  I had no hesitations now to share it with you.  As for being kid approved, my son has never cared for carrots and this soup didn't change his opinion.  My pickiest eater couldn't handle the spicy curry.  So there you have my full report.

Now, HERE'S ALL IT TAKES

• 2 teaspoons oil
• 1 tablespoon korma curry powder
• 1 1/4 pound carrots, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 large cooking apple, chopped
• 3 cups chicken stock
• salt and fresh ground pepper
• natural yogurt or sour cream to garnish

Heat the oil in a large soup pot or dutch-oven and gently cook the curry powder for 2-3 minutes.

Add the chopped carrots, onion and cooking apple, stir well until coated with the curry powder then cover the pan.  Cook over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally, until the vegetables are softened.  Spoon the vegetable mixture into a food processor or blender, add half the stock and process until smooth.

Return the mixture to the pan and pour in the remaining stock.  Bring soup to a boil, then taste and adjust the seasoning.  Serve with a dollop of yogurt or sour cream in each bowl.

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Soups; Includes Delicious Recipes for Appetizers and Salads

Creamy Butternut Squash Soup

Creamy, silky smooth and bursting with soul satisfying flavors, this simple butternut squash soup recipe will be your next favorite soup.  I guarantee!

From a new inspiring cookbook, Soups; Includes Delicious Recipes for Appetizers and Salads, I picked up this book for Christmas. "Wow!" This book is loaded with incredible meals. FULL of recipes from different cuisines.  There's no chance of us falling into the same old routine.
I haven't noticed any labor intensive recipes. For folks that enjoy taking the time to create fresh soups, there's nothing hard or laborious here. The book offers inspiration for combining flavors that might be out of the norm, but the results really hit the spot. Plenty of family friendly recipes as well as recipes for folks looking for a new twist.
My favorite part of this book, besides the recipes themselves, is the formatting. Step-by-step color photos and easy to read/follow instructions for every recipe. There's no guessing as to whether we're doing it right.
Yep, this one is a keeper for years to come.  You can be sure to see recipes from this book here on SDR.

HERE'S ALL IT TAKES TO MAKE Creamy Butternut Squash Soup
Serves 4

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
• 5 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup potatoes, cubed
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1 1/2 tablespoon fresh chopped chives
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

In a dutch-oven or large soup pot over medium heat, melt the butter, add the onions and cook for 5 minutes, until onions have softened.

Add the squash, chicken stock, potatoes and paprika.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low, cover the pan and simmer gently for 25 to 35 minutes, until all the vegetables are soft.

Using either a drink blender or an immersion stick blender, process until smooth.  Return soup to the pan and stir in the cream.  Season with salt and pepper.  Reheat gently.  Stir in chopped chives or allow folks to add them to their  own bowls.

COOK'S NOTES:
I used russet potatoes in this soup, but the recipe would work with a less starchy spud like a red potato.

I was shy on chicken stock and ended up using 3 cups chicken stocks with 2 cups water.  The soup still had a lot of flavor despite my shortage.  Just for the sake of making it a budget friendly recipe, I would prepare it that way again.

I just happen to have had whipping cream on hand, so I used it.  In future, I could use half-n-half or fresh whole milk and the recipe would still come out creamy and satisfying.

WARNING
YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO CONSUME JUST ONE BOWL.  You'll have two. Also, I recommend skipping the bowl and spoon and pour this soup into a latte cup or coffee mug and just slurp it down.

It's a perfect soup to take to work; heat and eat at your desk. Not that I advocate you working through your lunch break, but let's be truthful.  We all have days when it's necessary.  Take this soup with you on those days and at least you'll have a happy tummy while you knock out your to-do list.

Support SDR and grab your copy of this book from Amazon.

Soups; Includes Delicious Recipes for Appetizers and Salads

This recipe is for friends and readers of SDR who asked for more soup recipes. Thank you.
Peter from Kalafagas, Greek Food & Beyond
Suzanne
Sarah B.
Heather S.
Cara A. from The Picky Apple
Theresa K.
Bob S.
Deby
Betty P.
Debbie F.
Mark B., Boscoe the Cookie Doctor
Cindy R.
Gregory P.
Barry W.
Claudene
Stacie H.

Campers Casserole

Campers Casserole is simple to bring together and I could totally imagine it being cooked in a dutch-oven over a campfire.  Since I was home, I used my trusty casserole dish.  You may want to salt & pepper this dish to your taste.  My husband and son enjoyed this dinner with ketchup on top.  It was very filling and I enjoyed trying this new recipe.  But I'll be honest, it needed an extra spice, maybe oregano or cumin or maybe a green bell pepper?

HERE'S ALL IT TAKES

• 1 pound extra lean ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 1/2 cups cooked rice
• 1 can (14oz) or 2 cups kidney beans or pinto, drained and rinsed
• 1 bigger can (28oz) diced tomatoes, pureed or use tomato sauce
• 1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

HEAT OVEN 350ºF.

In a large pan or dutch oven over medium heat, brown the beef, onion and garlic.  Season with chili powder.  Stir in cooked rice then transfer mix to a greased 13-inch by 9-inch casserole dish.

Add one layer of beans then pour on pureed tomatoes. Bake, covered, for 40 minutes.  Uncover, sprinkle with cheese.  Return to oven and bake, uncovered for 10 minutes or so, until cheese is melted.  Serves 4 to 6 campers.

Simple Sausage & Bean Stew

A NEW WINNER WITH THE FAMILY, Sausage and Bean Stew got raving reviews!

Family demands it to be in our monthly rotations of family favorites. Use your favorite sausage for this stew, spicy or mild, either will work. Since I have young ones, I went with a mild pork sausage.

HERE'S ALL THERE'S TO IT

• 1 pound sausage, cut in 1/2-inch slices
• 1 tablespoon oil or bacon dripping
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes
• 1 can (14 oz) or 2 cups kidney or pinto beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 can (14 oz) or 2 cups garbanzo beans, drained & rinsed
• 1/2 cup salsa, medium or mild, you decide
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano

In large pot or dutch-oven, brown sausage in oil over medium heat. You may have to cook half the amount at one time.  The less crowded the faster the meat will brown.  Remove the meat from the pan and set aside on a plate. Drain fat, leaving a tablespoons worth to soften the onion and garlic over medium low heat for 7 to 10 minutes.

Return sausage to pan.  Add rest of ingredients, cover and simmer for 40 to 50 minutes, stir occasionally.  Cornbread makes a great side to this stew.

Serves 4 to 6 folks.

Per serving:  Protein - 27 g, Fat - 26 g, Carbohydrates - 44 g, Calories - 511, Dietary Fiber - 12 g.

Lean Beef and Vegetable Casserole

I introduced this layered casserole to my family last night. It was a simple casserole recipe to bring together. And I liked that it called for everyday pantry items.  Once out of the oven, the aroma of beef, tomatoes and potato reminded us of meatloaf.  We all had the natural urge to squeeze a little ketchup over our plates.  My 9-year old son and husband went back for seconds, if that means anything to you.

HERE'S ALL IT TAKES

• 2 cups or 2 medium potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 cups or 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 pound lean ground beef  (85/15)
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 normal size red bell pepper, sliced
• 2 cups or 1 can (19oz) kidney beans or pinto, drained & rinsed
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 can (19oz) diced tomatoes

HEAT OVEN to 350ºF

In a greased 13 x 9 x 2-inch casserole dish, arrange the potatoes on the bottom of the dish.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Layer the celery followed by a layer of uncooked ground beef.  Sprinkle with Worcestershire sauce.

Add onions, red pepper and beans in separate layers.  Sprinkle the thyme and oregano.  Top with the tomatoes.  Cover and cook for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.  Serves 6.

FOR MY DIABETIC FRIENDS
Per Serving:

• Protein 21g
• Fat 16g
• Carbohydrates 36g
• Calories 367
• Dietary Fiber 8g

COOK'S NOTES:

• I would like to try this again with a small of can of tomato sauce or a little ketchup poured over the meat layer.  I kept wanting this to be a vegetable loaded meatloaf.
• 2 medium potatoes was not enough potato for my taste.  Next time, 4 medium or 2 large potatoes should make a creamy foundation.
• I didn't actually measure out the Worcestershire sauce.  I dashed it over all the beef to my taste.  I could have been more generous with it.
• The original recipe called for green bell pepper, but I was very glad that I had used a sweet red bell pepper.  Green bell peppers talk back long after dinner.
• It took the full 1 1/2 hours to fully cook the potatoes.  Even though I sliced them au gratin thin, they needed the full time to get tender.

Quick & Simple Chicken and Spinach Pizza

As some of you already know, Friday night is movie and a pizza night for my family. It's one of our favorite nights we spend as a family. The kiddos always want their ham with extra cheese, while Chaz and I like to change it up a bit each week. This week's chicken and spinach pizza recipe is our new favorite combination!

HERE'S ALL YOU NEED

Pizza Ingredients

• 1 package Mama's Gourmet Pizza Crust
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup seasoned tomato sauce
• 1/3 package (10oz) frozen whole leaf spinach, thawed and squeezed dryL
• 2 cooked chicken breasts, sliced
• 2-3 green onions, chopped
• 10 grape tomatoes, halved
• 2 oz. Romano cheese, thinly sliced
• 1 cup Mozzarella cheese, grated
• salt and pepper

Salad for two

• 1 container of organic baby lettuce
• 6-8 grape tomatoes
• 1 small carrot, sliced
• 1 green onion, chopped
• a few slices Roman cheese
• 1-2 tablespoons Briannas New American Dressing (creamy balsamic vinaigrette)

Preheat oven with pizza stone to 425ºF degrees.

Go ahead, wash and prep individual salads, then set aside.

To build the pizza:

1. Drizzle 2-3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil on crust, lightly coat all the crust evenly with fingers, then sprinkle with pepper.
2. Spread around tomato sauce, don't feel like you have to coat the whole crust, just here and there.
3. Layer on spinach, chicken, tomatoes, onions. Sprinkle on salt and pepper, being sure to hit the spinach and tomatoes with salt.
4. Lay on slices of Romano on chicken, and spread Mozzarella all over.
5. Bake on pizza stone 7-9 minutes. Allow to cool a couple of minutes before serving.

ENJOY THIS ON YOUR NEXT PIZZA NIGHT!

Also, be sure to try the Ham and Spinach Pizza recipe.

Sloppy Chicken Enchiladas

Today has been crazy!  The kids and I have been driving all over East Texas.  As soon as we arrived home at 4:05pm, I remembered Max had karate from 5:15 to 6:00pm and my husband is due home by 6:15pm. Yikes! There goes prepping dinner at my usual time.

My plan to have chicken enchiladas didn't look possible.  The recipe called for precooked chicken and I was out.  The chicken breasts I had on hand were frozen.  How was I going to pull this one off?

HERE'S WHAT I HAD TO WORK WITH

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

HERE'S WHAT I DID

Preheated oven to 350F degrees.  I gently defrosted frozen chicken breasts in microwave, enough to cut up easily.  Then I heated a nonstick pan, misted with olive oil.  Cut up breasts in half dollar size pieces and added to pan.  Covered it with chopped onion, added 1/2 cup of water, seasoned with salt and pepper then covered with lid.  Cooked the chicken on med. high heat for 15 minutes, until fully cooked.

While I waited on the chicken, I mixed cream of chicken soup, sour cream and chili powder in a large bowl.  Grabbed my pizza cutter to cut up tortillas into triangle shaped bite size pieces.  Misted my 13x9x2 casserole dish with nonstick spray.  When the chicken finally finished, I emptied the pan (broth & all) into my large soup mix bowl and stirred.  I tossed in the tortillas and stirred them around until they were well covered with the soup mix.  Then, I emptied the bowl into the casserole dish, spread it out evenly then covered it all with the cheese.

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

Put in the oven for 25 minutes, uncovered.  Set the oven to turn off in 25 minutes.

Dinner was ready when we all arrived home!

McKeever Tribe Chili

This is a fast chili recipe that tastes like it's been stewing all afternoon.

• 1/2 pound lean ground beef
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon dried Mexican Oregano

• 1 (6 ounce) can of tomato paste
• 2 3/4 to 3 cups water
• 4 to 5 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons New Mexico chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1 (26 ounce) can Ranch Style Beans

• shredded cheddar or jalapeno jack cheese
• your favorite corn chips or crackers

Using a large cooking pot over medium heat, brown beef. When beef is almost cooked, add onion and oregano then cook until meat is browned.

Add tomato paste & one cup of water, stir until smooth. Add remaining water, garlic, chili powder, cumin, salt & pepper, then stir until well blended. Stir in Ranch Style beans and bring to a simmer.  Cover with lid, lower heat, and simmer for 25 minutes.

Serve with cheese and chips or crackers.