Gram's Chicken Pot Pie Updated

I'm not sure when we had this but anything with puff pastry is worth having... of course.

1lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
2-3 tbsp of Zesty Italian dressing (Kraft)
2 c frozen mixed veggies (you can see mine had corn, carrots, peas, and grean beans)
1 10.75oz can of condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 c milk
4oz Velveeta, chopped
1 sheet of defrosted puff pastry (1/2 of a 17.3oz package)
1 egg, beaten

Heat oven to 400 F.  In a large skillet over medium heat cook chicken in dressing until no longer pink.  Stir in vegetables and soup.  Cook additional 1-2 minutes.  Pour into a sprayed 2 1/2 quart baking dish.  Add milk and velveeta, stirring carefully.  Top with puff pastry, tucking edges inside, and brush with beaten egg.  Bake 30 mins or until golden brown.  Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Chicken and Noodle Casserole

I admit-I have been a major slacker on the blog lately but I have been cooking... not earth shattering meals but I have been cooking... and digging out of my real life episode of Hoarders-Babies R Us style.  Now that we have [most of] the baby's things away from our [ginormous] shower, I can get back to my normal routine.  This was yesterday's Sunday's dinner.

1 10.75oz can of condensed cream of potato soup
1 10.75oz can of condensed cream of chicken soup
1 c milk
2 c frozen mixed veggie (mine included corn, carrots, peas, green beans, and lima beans)
1 lb cooked, cubed chicken
3 c broad wheat egg noodles, cooked and drained
1/2 c shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp sage
10 Basil leaves, coarsely torn
1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese
15 wheat Ritz crackers, crushed
1 tsp garlic powder

Preheat oven to 400F.  Combine soups, milk, veggies, chicken, noodles, parmesan cheese, pepper, sage, and basil leaves.  Pour into a sprayed 2 1/2 quart baking dish.  Top with cheddar cheese.  Bake 25 minutes uncovered.  In a small bowl, combine Ritz crackers and garlic powder.  Evenly sprinkle on top of casserole and bake additional 5 minutes.  If desired, place under broiler on HIGH for 30-45 secs until top starts to brown.  Be sure not to burn as garlic powder will taste bitter.

Chili Pasta Skillet

I cannot believe I made dinner on a Friday night... such a thing is a sin in this house but I had off from work and knew we planned on going out to eat on Saturday night so I figured I'd use my wonderful homemaker skills and cook up a meal for the husband.  He said he liked it but added that he hates diced tomato chunks unless they are the petite ones and that is not the can I used... oops.  Hearn referred to this as a Heart Attack in a Skillet because of the melted cheese layer.  A quick easy meal.

1 lb lean ground beef

1/2 onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 15.5oz can of red kidney beans, drained and washed

1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 c tomato sauce

1/2 c water

1/2 c uncooked elbow macaroni

1 4oz can of diced green chiles, drained

2 tbsp chili powder
1/4 tsp Cayene pepper
1/2 c of shredded Monterey Jack cheese

In a large skillet, cook ground beef, onion, and garlic.  Drain off excess fat.  Add kidney beans, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, uncooked macaroni, chiles, chili powder, and Cayene pepper.  Bring to boil for 2-3 minutes.  Reduce heat to low and cover.  Continue to cook for 30 minutes or until macaroni have cooked.  Remove from heat and sprinkle with shredded cheese.  Cover and let sit until cheese has melted.  Serve.

Skillet Lasagna

I've said before that I have a zillion boxes of pasta and half of those zillion are lasagna noodles.  Hence, why I tried this recipe.  Eric loved the addition of the chopped red peppers to the dish and when he went back for his third helping, I told him it was supposed to feed 6 to 8... he laughed.

1 lb hot Italian sausage
1/2 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 sweet red pepper, chopped
1 tbsp EVOO
1 1/2 jars of pasta sauce (total 36oz of sauce)
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
6 lasagna noodles, cooked
3 c shredded mozzarella cheese
3/4 c shredded parmesan cheese

Heat EVOO in a 10 inch deep skillet over medium high heat.  Add peppers, onions, and garlic.  Cook 3-4 minutes.  Add hot sausage and continue to cook until sausage is cooked through.  Drain fat and combine with pasta sauce in a bowl.  Turn heat to medium.  Spray skillet with non stick spray and add 1c of meat sauce.  Layer three noodles on top, cutting if needed.  Top with 1 1/2 c mozzarella cheese, 1/4 c of parmesan cheese, and half of the remaining sauce.  Top with three noddles, rest of sauce, and finish with cheeses.  Cover.  Heat over medium heat for 5 minutes and reduce heat to low.  Continue to cook for 30 minutes or until top cheeses melt.

Mexican Tinga

We ate left over Chili that I made on Sunday throughout the week as well as some quick easy meals so I figured it was time to cook again.  All of the ingredients in this dish I typically like but there was something about it (smell mainly) that made me not very hungry (pregnancy hormones?!) although Eric is downstairs chomping away despite the fact that he "wasn't hungry at all."  I also didn't have the tostada shells that seemed to be pictured in the recipe so we settled for tortilla chips.

1 tbsp of EVOO
1 small onion, sliced into rings
1 15oz can of petite diced tomatoes
1 chile pepper canned in adobo sauce and 1-2tsp of adobo sauce
2 garlic cloves
1 lb of shredded cooked chicken
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp fresh chopped cilantro
tortilla chips, shredded cheese, and sour cream as garnishes

Heat EVOO in a pan to medium heat.  Add onions rings and cook until softened and translucent about 5 minutes.  In a blender or food processor, process tomatoes, chile pepper, and garlic cloves to a paste.  Pour into onions and add chicken.   Add salt, pepper, and cilantro.  Cover and turn heat to low simmer.  Simmer for 30 minutes.  Serve with chips, sour cream, and cheese

Morning Mix Up... for dinner

This was our dinner last night... but I hit the hay at 8pm and therefore, blogging was not happening... I feel so old.  For some reason, I had acquired 36 eggs in my frig and since there is not too much baking in my future, I figured breakfast was the way to go :)  Despite being a "Serves 4" recipe, we polished this off sans toast or bagels.

2 c frozen hash browns
1/2 lb fully cooked ham, chopped (I used ham steak so there were chunks of ham)
4 oz sliced pepperoni, diced into quarters
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsp vegetable oil
6 eggs
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese

In a large non stick skillet, heat vegetable oil over medium heat and add meats, garlic, and hash browns.  Cook for 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender.  In a small bowl, combine eggs and seasonings.  Add to pan, cook, stirring occasionally until the eggs are cooked through.  Remove from heat and stir in cheese.  Serve with toast or bagels for a meal for 4.

Minestrone Plus

I know... it's the summer---who eats soup in the summer?!  I do.  I hate eating very heavy food in the summer.  I hate the heat-it does a number on my appetite so my day to day diet typically consists of fruit, salads, and sometimes soups.  I liked this one a lot.  I actually made it Tuesday but hadn't gotten the chance to blog it.  I also have been eating the left overs since Tuesday (bonus points).  It was super easy, minimal mess (triple bonus points) and I got to use my crock pot for the first time in a while.  It reminds me of another one of my favorite recipes, Italian Sub Stoup (which I love love LOVE) and that also gives this huge bonus points... although the Italian Sub Stoup was waaayyy more awesome than this.  I also made Winter Minestrone, which was pretty tasty as well.  Both of those were adapted Rachael Ray recipes... this came from a Better Homes and Garden slow cooker cookbook.  Enjoy... I did :)

1 lb lean ground beef
1/4 onion, finely chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 19-oz cans of preferred minestrone soup (I use Progresso High Fiber Minestrone)
1 14.5-oz diced can tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano
2 c vegetable broth or stock
handful of basil leaves, coarsely chopped
1 medium potato, diced into bite size pieces
1/4 c finely shredded parmesan cheese
kosher salt, black pepper


In a large skillet cook meat, onion, and garlic until meat is browned and onion/garlic are tender.  Drain fat.  In a 3 1/2-4 quart slow cooker combine meat mixture, minestrone soup, diced tomatoes, vegetable broth, potato, and basil leaves.  Stir well.  Season with salt and pepper.

Cover and cook on low heat for 7 to 8 hours or on high heat for 3 to 4 hours.  Sprinkle each serving with parmesan cheese and service with slice of garlic toast.