Cheesy Chicken Quesadillas

Ingredients

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 – 10 oz. can of Campbell’s Cheddar Cheese Soup

2 tbsp Cheez Whiz

1/4 cup chunky salsa

1/4 cup of water

2 tbsp onion powder

2 tbsp garlic powder

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp red cayenne pepper

4 burrito sized tortillas

cooking spray

Directions

Dice the chicken into 1/2″x1/2″ cubes. Spray a large deep skillet with cooking spray place over medium high heat. Add chicken and coat with spices. Stir chicken occasionally to avoid burning.

While chicken is cooking, mix soup and salsa in a small bowl. Once chicken is no longer pink, add water and soup mix to skillet. Stir until water and soup are thoroughly incorporated. Turn the heat down to medium. Cook for 10 minutes until bubbling and steaming.

In a small skillet over low heat, place a tortilla. Spoon a quarter the chicken and soup mixture onto half of the tortilla. Fold the tortilla over and heat thoroughly (about 1 minute). Repeat for the remaining tortillas.

Serve immediately.

Chicken Casserole

Ingredients

3 to 4 boneless skinless chicken breast

2 cups instant stuffing mix

1 – 10 oz. can of garlic cream of mushroom soup

1 – 8 oz. container of sour cream

4 oz. mozzarella cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Fill a large stock pot 3/4 of the way with water, add chicken and poach just until chicken turns white. Remove chicken from water. While chicken is poaching preparing stuffing according to packaging instructions. Set aside.

Dice chicken into 1-inch cubes. In a 9″x13″ baking dish mix soup and sour cream together. Add chicken and mix to coat. Top chicken with prepared stuffing.

Cover dish with tin foil and bake in oven for 20-25 minutes. Remove foil top dish with cheese and bake uncovered for another 10 minutes or until cheese is golden brown and bubbling.

Serve immediately.

BLT Chicken Wraps

Ingredients:

1 package of thick cut bacon

1 bag of pre-washed spring mix salad

8 slices of deli style chicken

1 tomato

4 tortilla wraps

Mayonnaise

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Fry bacon in skillet until cooked through. Spread a teaspoon of mayo on one half of each tortilla. Place spring mix, tomato and two slices of chicken on the same half of the tortilla. Top with bacon. Salt and pepper to taste. Roll the tortillas length wise.

Potato With Green Apples and Brie Soup

Ingredients

1 cup chopped yellow onion
1/4 cup sliced leeks (whites only)
4 large Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled and quartered, plus 1 Granny Smith apple, cored and sliced thinly, for garnish
2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
3 cups fat-free evaporated milk
6 small potatoes, peeled and sliced
4 ounces brie cheese, cut into small cubes

Directions

Spray a soup pot with cooking spray. Add the onion, leeks and quartered apples. Saute over medium heat until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the chicken broth, bay leaf, salt and thyme. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes. Remove the bay leaf. Turn off heat and set the mixture aside.

While the broth mixture is cooking, combine the evaporated milk and potatoes in a separate saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir frequently. Pour the potato mixture into the soup pot. Stir to mix evenly.

In a blender or food processor, puree the soup in batches until smooth, adding the pieces of brie cheese while pureeing. Return the pureed batch to the soup pot and heat until warmed through. Ladle into individual bowls and garnish with thin slices of apple. Serve immediately.

Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Ingredients:

4 tbsp. of bacon bits

1 (10 oz.) package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed & drained

1 (14 oz.) can quartered marinated artichoke hearts, drained

1 (5 oz.) container garlic-herb flavored cheese spread

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 (8 oz.) container of sour cream

1/2 cup of mayonnaise

Directions:

Preheat over to 400 degrees F. Mix spinach, artichoke hearts, garlic-herb cheese, parmesan cheese, sour cream, mayo and bacon into a medium bowl and until thoroughly incorporated. Scoop mixture into a 7 x 11 baking dish. Bake in over for 20 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Serve immediately with tortilla chips, bread and/or crackers.

Homemade Mac n Cheese

3lbs macaroni (bow ties work best)

8 oz. Fontina Cheese

1lb American Cheese

8 oz. Monterey Jack Cheese

12 oz. White Cheddar Cheese

16 oz. Whole Milk

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

1 tsp. nutmeg

½ cup breadcumbs

2 tbsp. butter (cold)

2 tsp. cornstarch

Preheat oven to 425° F.

Shred all cheeses. You may have to cube the American Cheese. Mix all cheeses together with cornstarch.

In a large pot, heat milk until steaming, being sure to stir frequently to prevent burning. Stir in mustard and nutmeg. Slowly add small amounts of cheese to milk, stirring in figure 8, to avoid cheese from balling. Continue until all the cheese is melted into the milk.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to boil. Add macaroni. Boil for 3 minutes. Drain. DO NOT RINSE!

Add macaroni to cheese sauce. Pour into large casserole dish.

In a clean bowl, work butter into breadcrumbs until mixture is coarse. Top macaroni with breadcrumbs.

Bake the dish for 25 minutes or until top is golden brown and bubbling. Serve immediately.

**Bacon and/or peas can be added for something extra.

White Bean and Spinach Pizza

1 pizza crust
1 can (15 oz.) of cannellini beans (drained & rinsed)
1 cup spinach
1/2 cup of your choice of cheese
4 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup of sun dried tomatoes
Olive Oil
Italian Seasoning
Crushed Red Pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. In food processor, blend beans and garlic until smooth paste, adding a small amount of olive oil if dry.
3. Spread the bean paste on the pizza crust.
4. Top bean paste with cheese, spinach and sun dried tomatoes.
5. Sprinkle Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper on pizza to taste.
6. Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes or until crust is golden brown and cheese is bubbling

Chicken Sausage and Goat Cheese Pizza

Ingredients

1 pre-made thin pizza crust (I used Pilsbury)

2 cooked chicken sausages, sliced

1 cup whole milk mozzarella cheese, shredded

4 oz of goat cheese, crumbled

1/4 cup of tomato sauce

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 shallot, sliced thin

1/2 cup of baby spinach, roughly chopped

Directions

1. Preheat grill to 350-400 degrees.

2. Roll out pizza dough on non-stick aluminum foil.

3. Spread tomato sauce thinly on pizza dough.

4. Top with goat cheese crumbles, sausage, spinach, garlic, shallots and mozzarella cheese.

5. Place aluminum foil with pizza on hot grill. Shut lid and cook for 15-20 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and crust is golden brown.

6. Slice into six to eight squares and serve immediately.

This pizza was so easy to make and a huge hit! It was great to cook it on the grill since it was hot outside and didn’t heat up my house.

Creamy Gouda and Mushroom Soup

This soup is fantastic! I was drooling as soon as I came across the recipe on Mary Ellen’s Cooking Creation Blog. It’s definitely a meal by itself and a whole pot (which probably will give you 6 large servings) only cost me $17 for all of the ingredients. And now that the weather is getting colder this is the perfect thing to warm you from the inside out.

Ingredients

• 1/4 lb. bacon, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 lb. mushrooms (your choice)
• a few sprigs of fresh thyme or a good pinch of dried
• 1/4 cup dry sherry or white wine
• 1 bay leaf
• 3-4 cups yukon gold potatoes, cubed
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1.5 cups light cream
• 2 oz. smoked gouda, shredded

Directions

• In a stockpot or dutch oven, cook the bacon until it has rendered its fat. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• In the bacon fat, cook the diced onion over low heat for about 2 minutes before adding the mushrooms. Add a little salt and pepper and continue cooking over low or medium-low heat until the mushrooms have released their moisture, about 10-15 minutes.
• Increase the heat and add the sherry or wine. Cook until almost all of the alcohol has cooked off.
• Add the potatoes and the garlic, stirring to combine. Add the bay leaf and broth. Bring to a light boil and simmer until potatoes are tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Remove the bay leaf. Put as much or as little of the mixture as you want into a food processor and pulse it. This isn’t necessary but it creates both texture and thickness to the soup.
• Return the pureed soup to the dutch oven. Add the light cream and gouda. Simmer until the soup has heated through and the cheese has melted.
• Garnish bowls with diced bacons and more cheese, if desired.

Smokey Steak and Mushroom Gouda Risotto

I am absolutely infatuated with Gouda cheese recently. I just realized how versatile it is. Inspired by the recent Mushroom and Gouda soup I made, I adapted the recipe for my and Tim’s favorite side dish…risotto. Tim came up with the rub for the steaks and I have to say…it was fabulous! Not overpowering…just the right amount of seasoning.

Smokey Steak

Ingredients

2 – 1 inch strip steaks

2 tbsp McCormick’s Montreal Seasoning

2 tsp chili powder

Directions

Heat grill to medium high heat. While grill is heating, season both sides of steaks with seasoning and chili powder. Place steaks on hot grill and do not move. After about 7 minutes, turn each steak 90 degrees. (This will make those beautiful grill marks.) Cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Flip steaks over and repeat for other side. Use a meat thermometer to make sure the inside is at least 160°F (medium).

Mushroom Gouda Risotto

Ingredients

2 cups risotto

32 oz. chicken broth

3/4 cup of white wine (use whatever you drink)

5 oz. smoked gouda, shredded

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 small yellow onion, diced

3 gloves, minced

16 oz. sliced baby portobello mushrooms

Directions

Place a large stock pot or dutch oven over medium high heat. Add olive oil and onion to pot, cook onion 5-7 minutes or just until onion turns golden brown. Add garlic and mushrooms and stir to coat with oil. Cook the mushrooms until they release most of their moisture, about 7-10 minutes. Add risotto and toast, 3-5 minutes. Pour the wine in; this will help deglaze the pan, make sure you scrape up any bits that are stuck to the bottom. Continue to stir the risotto. Once most of the wine is absorbed, add 2/3 cup to 1 cup of broth. Reduce heat to medium. Continue to stir the risotto, approximately every 2 minutes. Once the broth is absorbed (usually about 5-7 minutes), add another 2/3 cup. Repeat until all of the broth is used and the risotto is creamy and tender. (About 25-30 minutes.) Slowly stir in the gouda. (Stir is figure 8′s, it will prevent the cheese from balling up.) Once all of the cheese is incorporated add salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

(Pardon the dark picture, it was taken with the hubby’s cell phone.)

Home Style Pot Roast

Pot roast as a whole is very easy to make, you can customize it as much as you want. I was going to make some bacon with this but just didn’t feel like cutting up the bacon, frying it and dealing with the unused portion of the package…maybe when I’m a little more motivated I’ll revisit the bacon idea. For now, here is my home style pot roast recipe (just like mom made it, had she been a decent cook). (I kid!! Well sorta.)

Ingredients

1 – 2lb beef roast (I prefer top round)

2 – 14 oz. cans of beef broth or stock

2lbs Yukon Gold Potatoes or Red Skinned Golden Potatoes, cut into quarters

1lb baby carrots

1 large yellow onion, sliced

2 envelopes of Lipton Onion Soup Mix

Salt

Pepper

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions

In a large stock pot or dutch oven, add enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pot (about 2 tbsp). Add the onions and place the pot over medium high heat. Caramelize the onions (about ten minutes).

Meanwhile, liberally season the roast with salt and pepper. Once the onions have begun to caramelized add the roast to the pot, seasoned side down. Be sure to season the other side. Brown the roast on both sides (about 5-7 minutes per side).

Once the roast is browned add the beef broth and soup mix, be sure to stir well to incorporate the ingredients. Then add the potatoes.

Bring the pot to a vigorous boil and then add the carrots.

Reduce the heat to low to medium low, cover the pot and let simmer for an hour to an hour and a half. Check the internal temperature of the roast with a meat thermometer, you’re shooting for 145-160°F. Remove roast and veggies and let rest on a large platter for 10 minutes before slicing.

This is optional but I love a thick pan gravy, especially when I have warm crusty bread to soak it up with.

While the meat is resting, bring the liquid in the pot to a boil, skim off any fat that has foamed to the top. While the liquid is boiling, mix 4 tbsp cornstarch or flour with 2 tbsp warm water. After about ten minute the liquid in the pot should reduce. Add the cornstarch mixture to the liquid in the pot. Stir and continue to heat for an additional 2 minutes. The gravy will thicken slightly. If you’d like a thicker gravy, repeat the cornstarch and water mixture until you’ve achieved your desired consistency. Pour over meat and veggies.

Cold Tortellini Salad

There are hundreds of variations to this recipe. Don’t believe me? Type it into Google and see what you find. I barely follow recipes as it is so I just made up my own for this. This was incredibly easy to make, is packed full of veggies and was the perfect dinner on a hot summer evening.

Ingredients

1.5 to 2 lbs of frozen cheese tortellini

1 orange bell pepper

5 to 6 stalks of asparagus

1/3 of a head of broccoli

5 oz of sharp provolone

5 oz of fresh mozzarella

4 oz. Italian salad dressing (I make my own with Good Seasonings)

Olive oil (optional)

Directions

Fill a large pot 2/3 of the way full with water, salt and bring to a boil. Once boiling add the frozen tortellini and cook according to directions on package (usually 3-5 minutes). Drain the tortellini. Lightly coat the tortellini with olive oil to keep them from sticking together (optional). Place in a bowl and let cool entirely. (I stuck them in the refrigerator and they were completely cool in under an hour.)

(Tim is a good sport and an excellent sous chef.)

Chop 1 inch off the bottom of the asparagus and then cut in half. Steam the asparagus for approximately 5 minutes or until bright green. Let cool entirely. (Again I just stuck them in the refrigerator.)

Chop peppers and broccoli and set aside.

Slice the mozzarella and then quarter.

In a large serving bowl mix tortellini, asparagus, peppers, broccoli and mozzarella. Add salad dressing and mix until all ingredients are coated.

I cubed the sharp provolone and threw it in with the rest of the ingredients, Tim said the flavor was too strong for him in the chunks of cheese and suggested that I make smaller chunks next time. You could do that or you could get a potato peeler and shave the cheese. If you decide to shave the cheese save this step until you’re ready to serve.

Let the pasta and veggies with salad dressing sit in the refrigerator for at least two hours. Serve cold. We also had bread and butter with the salad.

Grilled Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers

These were so friggin tasty and such a hit with three guys just back from deployment! So much of a hit that I never got a chance to take a picture of the finished product. These bad boys were being eaten straight of the grill. Wash them down with a cold beer and enjoy!

Ingredients

12 medium sized jalapenos, sliced in half lengthwise and seeds removed

1 package of thick cut bacon

10 oz cream cheese (approximately)

Directions

Stuff each pepper half with cream cheese.

Wrap each pepper with half a piece of bacon.

Refrigerator for 30 minutes or until ready to cook.

Heat grill to medium heat. Spray top rack with non-stick spray or brush with vegetable oil. Place a piece of aluminum foil (with the sides folded up) underneath the rack. (This will catch the grease from the bacon.) Grill peppers until bacon is cooked.

Serve immediately.

Cheese Nip Chicken

I can’t take the credit for this recipe. I found it on Mary Ellen’s Cooking Creations Blog yesterday while trying to figure out what I wanted to do with some chicken we had thawing. The picture of the bright orange chicken she had post was what actually caught my eye first. I was hesitant to make baked chicken because it seems like it always comes out dry but I think Mary Ellen hit the oven sweet spot by raising the temperature from the old standby of 350 to 400 degrees. It’s a higher heat that seals in the juices and crisps up the coating much better. I relied on my trustworthy meat thermometer to tell me when the chicken was done and it was hands down the best piece of baked chicken I’ve ever hand. Juicy on the inside and a crispy, tasty crust on the outside.

Ingredients

3-4 boneless chicken breasts

Laughing Cow cheese (we used the low fat original variation)

Cheese Nips

Garlic powder

Onion powder

Paprika

Ground mustard

Salt

Pepper

2 Eggs

Flour to dredge

Canola oil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly spray a large baking dish with canola oil.

Fill a large zip lock bag about a quarter of the way with Cheese Nips. Crush into fine crumbs (I used a rolling pin). Set up a coating station in this order: flour, egg, Cheese Nips.

Cut a pocket into the side of each chicken breast. Spread one wedge of Laughing Cow cheese into each pocket. Dredge each piece of chicken into flour, dip in egg, repeat, then coat in Cheese Nips. (You’ll be so happy you double dipped in the flour and egg.) Place in dish.

Bake uncovered for approximately 30-45 minutes (depending on how large your chicken is) (for best results use a meat thermometer).

We had steamed green beans and a brown rice with this chicken. You’ll notice how I have no pictures of the chicken because we ate before giving it a second though.

Enjoy!

Welcome!

Some of you may know me from my original blog Also Known As...the Wife. I had started posting some of my recipes on that blog but I felt they weren't getting the true attention they deserved. So I started My Bitchin' Kitchen. I hope to inspire you to be a bit more confident in the kitchen and try a few new things.

Happy cooking and happy eating!