Chicken Enchilada Soup

Let me introduce you to my new favorite soup. I got the recipe from Dr. Ben Whiting, DDS, aka my brother-in-law, who got it from someone at his office. It is really good and a little spicy if you're into that sort of thing. We love it.

1 1/2 pounds shredded, cooked chicken
2 (28 oz.) cans Macayo's green enchilada sauce
1 can chicken broth
8 oz. cream cheese
1 can Mexicorn (Green Giant)
1 cup instant rice (I used regular rice)
2 cups half and half

*Cook chicken, shred and set aside. You could also use canned chicken. Heat chicken broth in large saucepan. Add cream cheese and stir until smooth. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer until rice is tender. Add shredded cheese and tortilla chips on top.
**This recipe makes a ton of soup, but it saves well in the fridge.

Pizza

I got this pizza crust recipe from Nie Nie's recipe blog. It was easy and tasted great! The crust had the perfect crunch and chew in all the right places.

Crust:

2 3/4 cups wheat flour
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1 packet yeast
1 cup warm water
1/4 tsp. sugar

Dissolve yeast and sugar in cup of warm water. Let sit for 7 minutes. Mix with flour, oil and salt. Place dough in oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in warm place for one hour. Cut dough in half and roll out. Grease pan with a little olive oil. Heat oven to 475. Bake crust for 10 min. Then, top with sauce (I used spaghetti sauce), mozzarella cheese and preferred toppings or whatever else you like. Bake for 10 more minutes or until done.

CREAMY RICE PUDDING

Rach, sorry it took me so long to do this post! I'm repenting.

1 c. uncooked rice (long grain, or round sticky rice)
1 c. unsweetened coconut milk
1 c. water

Bring to boil in sauce pan, reduce heat, cover and simmer until rice is done about 20 minutes. All liquid should be absorbed. Set aside.
**NOTE: You do not have to use coconut milk but it gives the rice a very unique, tasty flavor. For those of you coconut haters, it doesn’t make the pudding taste like coconut. If omitting coconut milk, substitute for another cup of water.

Pudding:

3 T. cornstarch
1 c. sugar
¼ t. salt
2 ¼ c. half and half
1 c. milk
2 beaten eggs
2 T. butter
2 t. vanilla

Mix, cornstarch, sugar and salt in a 3 quart, heavy saucepan. Add half and half and milk and cook over medium heat until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and pour small amount of hot mixture into eggs while stirring constantly to prevent eggs from cooking. This is called “tempering” the eggs. Pour egg mixture back into pan and cook another 2 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent lumps. Remove from heat and add butter and vanilla.

Stir rice into pudding mixture. You may not want to add all the rice. If you want more pudding in the mixture, add it to your liking. Cover and refrigerate. Can be spooned into individual bowls. Cover the top of the pudding with plastic wrap to prevent “skin” from forming while it cools.

Tomatillo Soup

Ok so I know all you Arizonians are already BBQ-ing, but for anyone else who reads this blog, here is some "winter food". This is one of my favorites soups of all time. It has a kind of a different flavor but I am telling you it is to die for.
Tomatilla Soup

Saute in big pot approx 10-15 min:
1/2 large onion
2 garlic cloves
1 lbs Tomatillos (about 5)
1 Tablespoons Cumin

Add & Simmer:
3 Chicken Breast cooked & shredded
1 49 1/2oz Chicken Broth cans
1 16oz Fresh Salsa from deli
1 29oz cans Yellow Hominy (drained)
1 29oz cans White Hominy (drained)
Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with:
Blue or White tortilla chips
Avocado
White Rice
Grated Cheese
Sour cream
Limes
And anything else that sounds good!


*I replaced one can of the hominy for frozen corn and loved it.

Chicken Marinade

I found this marinade recipe in my "Favorites" cookbook. It is so easy and so tasty!!

1 - 2lbs. chicken breasts
1 cup 7up
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 tsp. garlic powder

Mix and pour over chicken in plastic bag or container. Marinate 12 to 24 hours in fridge. Discard marinade and grill chicken.

Easy Eclair Dessert

I got this recipe from my friend, Sharon Lindblom, when we were in Beehives together. We made it for New Beginnings and it was a hit. I am all about desserts that look like they were hard to make but were actually super easy. This one is a winner for sure.

1 box Graham crackers (3 sleeves)
2 small boxes instant vanilla pudding
1 tub cool whip (or whipped cream)
chocolate frosting

*Grease a 9X13 pan with butter. Put a single layer or crackers on the bottom. Make pudding as directed and fold in cool whip. I made whipped cream instead (cool whip issues) and just guesstimated on the amount to fold into pudding. Spread half of pudding mixture over crackers. Put another layer of crackers. Spread the rest of pudding mixture. Top with one final layer of crackers. Frost the top with chocolate frosting. You can use a container of frosting from the store, but if you're a frosting snob like I am, just make your own. I used the recipe on the Hershey's cocoa can and it was really good.
*Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight before serving.

Fresh and Easy

Oh, how I love Fresh and Easy!! I could go on and on about that store. But I won't. I love cornbread and am always out to find a good recipe for it or a yummy store bought mix. Well, I think I found my favorite one. It's the Fresh and Easy cornbread mix. It's got just the right amount of sweetness. The hubby loves it too. Give it a try sometime!

Sweet cooked carrots

6 carrots, chopped at an angle
3 leeks or 1 onion, chopped
2 T. water
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp. salt
1 T. brown sugar

*Melt together last five ingredients and pour over carrots and leeks or onions. Cover carrots (in saucepan) with foil and lid, and cook for 25 minutes on medium.
*Nat made these a couple of Sundays ago for dinner and they were so yummy. Even if you're not a big cooked carrot fan, you will like these. Thanks for the recipe Nat!

Holiday Salad

Here's another fun salad recipe. I made this several times over the holidays and everyone loved it!!

1 bag spinach leaves

1 bag romaine lettuce

1 1/2 apples diced

2 avocados diced

1/2 cup sliced almonds

Put in bowl and toss together.

Dressing:

1/3 cup sugar

2 Tbs. sesame seeds

1 Tbs. poppy seeds

1 1/2 tsp. minced onion

1/4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup oil

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

Mix well and pour over dressing. I only used half of the dressing and saved the other half for later. Store in refrigerator for up to a week.

White bean chicken soup

I got this recipe from two reliable sources. Brett's mom and my sister Nat. The two recipes varied a tiny bit but I took what I had from each one and it turned out really yummy. Don't you just love a good soup on a cold (using the term loosely) night?

2 Tbs. olive oil
1 medium white onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
1 package frozen white corn
2 cans Great Northern or white beans, undrained
1 can diced green chilies
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. oregano
3 cups chicken broth
2 Tbs. lime juice

*Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until tender. Add to the rest of the ingredients in a big pot on stove. Bring to a boil, then turn heat down and simmer for 20-30 mintues. Serve with sour cream, shredded cheese, tortilla chips.

Caramel Popcorn

3-4 bags of microwave popcorn
1 cup light Karo syrup
1 cube butter
2 2/3 cups brown sugar
1 can condensed milk

*Pop popcorn. On the stove, melt butter, Karo, and brown sugar. Bring to a boil. Add condensed milk and bring back to a boil. Boil until it reaches "soft ball stage." (I have no idea what that means, so I just boiled it for a couple of minutes). Pour over popcorn and mix well.

Gooey Chocolate Cake

1 packaged chocolate cake mix
1 jar caramel topping
1 can condensed milk
whipping cream
toffee bits

*Make cake in 9X13 according to directions on box. When hot out of the oven, poke holes in cake using the end of a wooden spoon. Pour caramel and condensed milk over cake. Put in refrigerator until ready to serve and then frost with whipped cream (made with desired amount sugar and vanilla) and toffee bits.