chicken cordon bleu casserole

i made this recipe over a week ago and just have been super lazy/busy and haven't gotten it up. and of course, i forgot to take a picture. i really liked this recipe and wade loved it and ella ate it for lunch like two days in a row.

Topping:
4 slices white sandwich bread, torn into quarters (I used a long forgotten bread bowl tucked in the back of the freezer – thawed it in the microwave before using)
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:
3 pounds russet potatoes (about 4-5 medium), peeled and sliced 1/8-inch thick
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
3 medium garlic cloves, finely minced
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup heavy cream or milk
6 ounces Swiss cheese, shredded, about 2 cups
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard (I only had spicy brown mustard, which was alright, but you could definitely taste the spicy brown taste)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of excess fat and sliced thinly
9 ounces deli ham, chopped
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves

For the topping, process the bread and butter in a food processor until coarsely ground. Set aside.

(I actually had an old bread bowl in my freezer too and I just pulled it into pieces and poured the butter on it. However, I don't know if it was because my bread bowl was too old or what, but the bread just was soggy. Next time I think I would just do bread crumbs on top of the casserole.)

For the filling, preheat the oven to 400 degrees, making sure the oven rack is in the middle. Place the potatoes, 6 cups water and 1 teaspoon salt in a large pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until the potatoes are partially cooked, about 2 minutes (don’t overcook because they will continue to cook in the oven!). Carefully drain potatoes, or remove them with a slotted spoon, and transfer them to a bowl. Set aside.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, thyme, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook until the onions are softened, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, stirring constantly, about 1 minute. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until golden, about 1 minute (this helps cook out the flour taste in the roux). Slowly whisk in the chicken broth and the cream or milk. Bring the mixture to a simmer, whisking often, until slightly thickened (if using milk instead of cream, you may have to cook longer for it to thicken up a bit). Off the heat, whisk in the Swiss cheese, Dijon, and cayenne pepper until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and set aside until ready to use.

Toss the potatoes with half of the sauce and spread into the bottom of a lightly greased 9X13-inch baking pan. Layer alternating pieces of the chicken and ham over the potatoes, overlapping as needed. This is not a scientific procedure, just make sure that the chicken is in a single layer (not on top of each other) so that it cooks thoroughly. Pour the remaining sauce evenly over the chicken and sprinkle with the bread crumb topping. Bake until the chicken is cooked through and the casserole is bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes (add about 5-7 additional minutes onto the baking time if baking it after it has chilled in the refrigerator for more than a couple of hours). Cool for 10 minutes before serving.'

Source: My Kitchen Cafe

zucchini crescent pie

i got this recipe from my friend nancy's blog a couple of years ago and have made it lots of times. my kids don't love it, but i figure the more i make it the more they'll eventually like it too. but i like it and that's what's important. i made it last week and actually doubled the recipe and made one for a friend.

1 pkg (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls
2 medium zucchini, sliced and quartered
1/2 c chopped onion
1/4 c butter, cubed
2 t. minced fresh parsley
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. pepper
1/4 t. dried basil
1/4 t. dried oregano
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 c (8 oz) shredded part skim mozzarella cheese
3/4 c. cubed fully cooked ham
1 medium Roma tomato, thinly sliced

Separate crescent roll dough into eight triangles; place in a greased 9 inch pie plate with points toward the center. Press onto the bottom and up the sides to form a crust; seal seams and perforations. Bake at 375 for 5-8 minutes or until lightly browned. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute zucchini and onion in butter until tender; stir in seasonings. Spoon into crust. Combine eggs, cheese and ham; pour over zucchini mixture. Top with tomato slices. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 5 minutes before cutting.

Since Wade doesn't love tomatoes, I usually only put the tomatoes on part of the pie.

Recipe tips: I usually bake the crust alone closer to 5 minutes because it will continue to brown when put back in the oven. Also, saute zucchini and onion until butter is pretty well absorbed. Spoon into the crust as pouring it in may cause to much liquid.

BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches

This was easy. And DEEEE-licious.

Ingredients:

3 lb. boneless pork shoulder (I used 1.5 lb pork tenderloin, tasted great)
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Kosher salt
Black pepper
Smoked paprika or liquid smoke
BBQ Sauce (for any locals, I used the Bear Pit BBQ sauce)

About 12 high-quality rolls
Coleslaw (I am not a fan of coleslaw, so I omitted, but if you are a fan, there is a recipe link on Our Best Bites)
Thick-cut dill pickle slices

Directions:

Sprinkle roast with seasonings and place in your slow cooker. Add about 1/2 inch of water and cook on low for 8-10 hours.
When the roast has cooked, drain liquid and then return to the slow cooker and shred. Pour enough sauce over the meat so it's well-incorporated but not soupy. Return the lid to the crockpot and heat through.
When ready to serve, slice rolls and add meat. Top with coleslaw and a few slices of dill pickle.

Source: Our Best Bites

Meatballs with Cream Sauce

so I still prefer my crockpot meatball recipe, but this one was also good, and fairly easy. and you likely have most of these ingredients on hand.

MEATBALLS:

1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup milk
2 T. ketchup
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup quick oats
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley (I used dry, tasted fine)
1 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
3 T. flour

CREAM SAUCE:
2 T. butter
3 1/2 T. flour
1/4 t. dried thyme
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
14 oz. can chicken broth (If you want your sauce thicker, cut down the chicken broth to 1 cup)
2/3 cup milk
2 T. minced fresh parsley

In a bowl, combine all of the meatball ingredients EXCEPT the beef and flour. Add beef and mix well. Shape into balls. Roll in flour, shaking off excess. Place 1 inch apart on cookie sheet and bake, uncovered, at 400 for 10 minutes. Turn meatballs, bake 8-10 minutes longer or until no longer pink. Meanwhile, for the sauce, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour, thyme, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually add broth and milk; bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes, until slightly thickened. If using the full can of chicken broth, the sauce doesn’t thicken overly much, but it is delicious that way. If you want it slightly thicker, cut down the chicken broth to 1 cup. Drain meatballs on paper towels; transfer to a serving dish. Top with sauce and parsley. Serve over rice or egg noodles.

Source: My Kitchen Cafe

salsa chicken

this is just another variation for chicken tacos. but it is possibly the easiest thing to make, ever. and good.

ingredients:

chicken - 2-3 chicken breasts

salsa

black beans (rinsed and drained)

corn (I use frozen, but I am sure canned would suffice)

directions:

you can actually just make this with salsa only, but I like to add beans and corn. put chicken in crock pot. Cover with salsa (I usually add whole jar). Add black beans and corn (about 1 cup each). Cook on low 6-8 hours or high 3-5. Shred. Enjoy in soft tacos with your pick of fixings.

Cream of Tomato and Artichoke Soup

we went to lunch at old grist mill on saturday afternoon and wade got their creamy tomato soup. it was really good. he had drew taste it and drew said it tasted like spaghetti sauce and even ella liked it. so i said i would try to find a recipe for creamy tomato soup. i found this one from just cook already. i found several others from allrecipes.com but thought wade would like this one since it also had artichokes in it. that said, he didn't love this one. i think he didn't like the artichokes. and ella didn't like this as much as the one from the grist mill. but still, it was pretty good and real easy. i think i'll try and find another one to try as well.

2 cans chopped tomatoes

2 cups half and half (they have fat-free)

1 cup artichoke hearts (marinated and packed in oil. drain, but do not rinse)

2 cloves of garlic (2 tsp. chopped garlic)

1 tsp. onion

1 tsp. terragon (i didn't have terragon)

2 tsp. dill weed

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup water

in food processor (or blender) add tomatoes (juice included), artichokes, and blend until smooth. saute the garlic and onion in a small amount of olive oil and butter. add the blended tomato mixture to the sauteed garlic and onions. pour 1 cup of water into the blender and rinse and add to the pot of tomato mixture. add cream and simmer 20 minutes. add terragon, dill weed, salt and pepper. serve with sour cream on top.

i also served with grilled cheese sandwiches.

Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps

These were easy and delicious. And it make A LOT.

ingredients:

1 cup cooked rice (I did brown rice in my rice cooker)

1 cup cooked, shredded chicken (I cooked 2 chicken breasts in the crockpot earlier in the day)

1 can black beans, rinsed & drained

1 green onion, finely sliced (white & green parts)

1/2 red or green pepper, diced

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

juice of 1 lime

1/2 Tbs chili powder

1 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. garlic salt

2 cups shredded cheese

sour cream (optional)

6 burrito sized tortillas (If you have the costco ones, those would be great, I used the burrito sized truly homemade tortillas from trader joes, which were also great)

directions:

Mix cooked rice with chili powder, cumin and garlic salt. Add remaining ingredients except cheese and sour cream.

Spray tortilla with cooking spray or spread with butter, and lay on skillet/pan. Sprinkle with cheese, leaving 1/2 inch border around edges. let cheese melt slightly and add sour cream dotted along center, then add mixture down center of tortilla (I didn't add as much as was shown in original recipe, but feel free to make as fat as you want). Roll tortilla, leaving edges open, and place seam side down. Heat about 2-3 minutes per side, or until golden brown and crisp.

from My Kitchen Cafe