Chicken Corn Chowder

I've been craving soup in a breadbowl lately.  So the other day I made a bunch of breadbowls from Rhodes dough in preparation to make soup sometime this week.  I found what looked to be a really good Chicken Corn Chowder recipe at http://www.melskitchencafe.com/ ...so I tried it last night and it was a lot better than I though it would be.  Not that I doubted the recipe, just my skills as a cook.  There was a little bit of prep...just getting the stuff cut up...but I did that all while Bryan cooked the chicken on the grill for me.  Also, I didn't let it simmer for quite long enough...so after it's all mixed toghter...let it simmer for at least 20 or so minutes so everything blends together.  It was still yummy though without simmering!!  Really nice flavor!

Here you go...

2 TBS EVOO
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped (I omitted this cause we didn't have one and it was fine!)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 jalapeno, finely chopped, seeds and membrane removed (only adds flavor, no heat whatsoever)
1/4 c. thinly sliced or cooked chopped ham (I just chopped up some lunchmeat we had)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans (14 oz) chicken broth (I just headed up 28 oz. of water and added boullion cubes)
3 TBS flour
1 1/2 c. frozen corn (I acutally used like 2 cups cause that is what my steampack had in it and Daron didn't  want to waste it)
2 large chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
4 oz. softened cream cheese (almost melted so it doesn't get lumpy when you add it to the milk)
1 c. milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Saute celery, pepper, onions, jalapeno in olive oil in a large pot until tender.  Add the garlic and ham and cook for a few more minutes.  Whisk the flour into the broth in a sperate bowl then add to soup.  Stir in the corn and chicken.  Bring to a low boil and reduce heat.  Whisk together cream cheese and milk in a bowl until smooth, then add into the soup as well as the salt, pepper and cheese.  Simmer on low until ready to serve.

Like I said, there was some prep to this soup...but it was REALLY GOOD, especially in the bread bowl!!

Cheddar Biscuits

I found a recipe for Red Lobsters cheddar biscuits, and while I've never actually had one, they sounded REALLY GOOD... so me and Hannah make some to go with Sunday dinner yesterday, and let me tell you, these will become a staple in our house I think.  They were SO GOOD!  This recipe made quite a few...so I wouldn't double it or anything unless you are cooking for a huge crowd!

Biscuits
5 cups Bisquick
3 oz. finely shredded cheddar cheese (we may of used more than 3 oz.)
11 oz. cold water.

Spread
1/2 c. melted butter
1 tsp. garlic powder ( ours turned out overly garlicy...so I would lessen the amount probably by half)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 ts.p onion powder
1/8 tsp. dried parsley

Add the Bisquick and cheese to the cold water and mix till firm. Use a small scoop and scoop onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and cook at 375 for 10-12 minutes.

While they are cooking mix together the spread and spread over biscuits after they are cooked.

Check out this blog

You can click on the picture above and it will take you to Jamie's blog. I was introduced to her blog several months ago and I absolutely love it. Her recipes are easy (and printable) and the ingredients they call for are usually things you have at home already. Also, she is one funny lady. Her blogs crack me up! I have tried several of her recipes and have not had any of them fail. I've tried her won tons, easy breadsticks, cinnomon rolls, lasagna casserole (just last night), pizza rolls, french bread, stuffed french toast (there's others but I can't think of them off the top of my head), and several of her desserts.

Enchilada Soup

Ingredients:

1 Can Enchilida Sauce (red)

1 small can of chilis (mild)

1 can of cream of chicken

2 2/3 C. milk

1 can of chunked chicken (or you can use cooked chicken breasts)

1 can of Fiesta Nacho Cheese Sauce

You can just heat this on the stove or stick it in a crock pot.

You can fry up tortilla strips to put on top of the soup (or just serve with Tortilla Chips). Also, we like to garnish with sour cream and grated cheese.

It's a quick and easy meal because all you really have to do is open up some cans! :) I usually keep these ingredients on hand and it tends to be one of my "go to" meals when I don't know what I want to make.

Crock pot Italian Chicken

This is a great meal for Sunday. You can put it in your crock pot and have it ready when you get home. I think of it more as an alfredo than Italian, but either way, it's good.

6 chicken breast halves
8 oz cream cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 envelope Good Seasons Italian dressing (dry)

Place chicken breasts in crock pot. Mix cream cheese, soup, and dressing together and pour over chicken. Cook on low all day (or on high for 4-5 hours). Stir before serving over rice or spaghetti noodles.

Oatmeal Bread

This is my FAVORITE bread!! SO good!!

2 cups boiled water
1 cup oats
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp salt
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp yeast
5 cups flour

Pour boiled water over oats, flour, sugar, butter, and salt. Mix and let cool until luke warm. Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup warm water. Add to oat mixture (make sure oat mixture isn't too hot or it will kill the yeast) add flour and knead until it's smooth and elastic like. Put in a greased bowl and let it rise until double. Punch down and rise until double again. Break into 2-4 balls and put in greased loaf pans. Let raise until rounded. Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes (or until done, check center to make sure it's done).

Parmesan Bread Sticks

SUPER yummy bread sticks to go with any italian meal!

2 cups flour
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 env yeast (about 1 TBSP)
1 1/2 cup hot water
1 1/2- 2 cups flour
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup butter
1 Tbsp. garlic salt
1 cup shredded Parmesan
parsley

mix flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Add hot water. Add flour. Dough should be sticky. Mix in the 1/4 cup oil. Let rise 'til double. Melt 1/2 cup butter in a 9x13 baking dish. Roll out dough in a large rectangle (about 15"x20" and 1/4" thick). Use a pizza cutter to cut dough into strips about 1 1/2 " wide. Fold strips in half and twist. As you set the twisted strips in the baking dish, roll it in the melted butter to coat. When all strips are laid in the dish, top with garlic salt and shredded Parmesan. Sprinkle with a few flakes of parsley. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes.

French Bread

This is my go to white bread recipe. I use it for pizza crust, bread bowls, and french bread. It's super easy if you have a kitchen-aid.

1/2 cup warm water
3 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp yeast
1 Tbsp salt
5 Tbsp oil
2 cup hot water
6 cups flour

Dissolve salt, yeast, and sugar in the 1/2 cup of warm water. Add 3 cups of the flour and the oil and hot water. Mix then add the remaining 3 cups of flour. Knead and let it rest for 10 minutes. Repeat that 5 times (knead and rest for 10 minutes. Sometimes when I'm in a hurry I only let it rest for about 3 minutes, but still do it 5 times. The bread will still turn out, but it will be more dense).

Form into 3 or 4 bread loaves (or bread bowls) and let it rise for about 20 minutes. Slash the top with a serrated knife (/// for loaves and in an X for bowls). Bake at 375 for 15 minutes (note: If you make your loaves bigger, the might take longer to bake.) I usually freeze this bread, then when I need a loaf of bread, I just pull it out, let it thaw then stick it in to over to warm up before we eat.

Cinnamon Bundt Cake with Cinnamon Whipped Cream

This is a great recipe for a brunch, or dessert. It's super yummy and all the ingredients are things that you always have on hand (well, I do, except the whipping cream). Enjoy!

Cake~
1 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
8 oz sour cream
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda

Cream the first 6 ingredients together. Then add the last two. Pour half of the batter into a greased bundt pan.

Mix:
3 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Pour over the batter that's in the pan (you can do more cinnamon and sugar if you want, because this is the yummy part). Top with remaning batter. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.

Whipped Cream~
2 cups whipping cream
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla

Whip until stiff. Serve cake warm with whipped cream on top. (It's also good cold with whipped cream on top. That's what I had for breakfast today, since I had some left over from yesterday).