Creamy Chicken and Noodles

This was such an easy meal to make but had great flavor. I love meals that remind me of family dinners from growing up! My kids gobbled this up. It would have been delicious served over some mashed potatoes, but we ate it with some bread and butter because it was already so creamy. This is to serve my large family of 6 with some leftovers, so halve it if you need.

12 oz wide egg noodles
8 cups chicken stock
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded or diced
10 oz bag frozen peas and carrots
1 cup cream or milk
1/2 cup water
4 tbsp flour

Place noodles in large pot. Add stock and olive oil; stir. Add peas and carrots. Cover and heat over medium heat until noodles are soft, 10-15 minutes. Add the chicken and stir in cream/milk.

Mix water and flour so there are no lumps. Add gradually to the noodle mixture, stirring constantly. Heat to boiling and simmer for 5 minutes.

(This could also be frozen after it is cooked -- let cool and put into large freezer bag. Freeze flat, then thaw and reheat on stovetop.)

Honey Sriracha Chicken Thighs

When I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it. My family loves food with Asian flavors. Although we like spicy and the recipe as is was fine, my 8-yr old daughter thought hers was a little too spicy once the glaze was on it so halve the sriracha sauce if you want to cut it back a bit. When it's done, feel free to serve either chopped cilantro or green onion on top for some extra flavor.

2-3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs (8-10)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
2 tbsp sriracha sauce
1.5 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp corn starch

Put chicken into large ziploc bag. Add all the ingredients except corn starch to a bowl. Stir to combine. Add the corn starch and whisk until dissolved. Pour half the marinade into the bag with the chicken and save the other half. Refrigerate chicken for at least 30 minutes (or if freezing, you can freeze both the chicken and extra marinade at this point).

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Add chicken and its marinade into a 9x13 baking dish (thaw if frozen first), keeping it all single level. Bake for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

While chicken is baking, add reserved marinade to a small saucepan. Bring it to a simmer over medium heat while stirring. It will thicken to a glaze. When chicken is finished baking, spread the glaze over each piece of chicken.

Southwestern Pork Chili

This would be delicious with ground pork, beef, turkey, or chicken... or even some cooked, shredded pork. A nice change from traditional chili, it was delicious with some shredded cheese, tortilla chip crumbles, and sour cream on top. Or serve with some cornbread. :)

1 lb lean ground pork
1 onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and diced
1 red pepper, chopped
14.5 oz can tomato sauce
15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 cup chicken broth
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Add all the ingredients to your crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

If you want to freeze, put all the ingredients in a gallon freezer bag with the pork last. When ready to cook, thaw and add contents to crockpot.

White Beans with Tomato and Sausage

This was a quick recipe to make for dinner on a busy night. It was delicious served with some crusty bread.

1 tbsp olive oil
4 links pre-cooked chicken sausage (I used three-cheese Italian), sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
28-oz can crushed tomatoes
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
pinch red pepper flakes
freshly cracked black pepper
2-15 oz cans Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
4 oz frozen chopped spinach
salt to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add sausage and cook until starts to brown. Add onions and garlic to the pot and saute until onions are soft and transparent. Add crushed tomatoes, basil, oregano, pepper flakes, and lots of black pepper. Stir to combine. Add beans to the pot along with the spinach (no need to thaw). Stir and let everything heat thoroughly, about ten minutes. Add in salt to taste.

Alfredo Sauce

Super rich and creamy... Easy to make... This is a family fave.

1 stick of butter
1 cup heavy cream
salt and freshly ground pepper
2 cups grated parmesan

In a saucepan melt the butter. Add the cream and season with salt and pepper. Once warmed through, add the parmesan and stir until melted.

Serve over pasta or use as dipping sauce for breadsticks.

Creamy Chicken Tetrazzini

This was a favorite of my almost 2-yr old. She had three helpings! You do have to do a little cooking, but then the crockpot takes care of the rest.

3 cups chicken broth
1 lb cooked, chopped chicken
1 lb spaghetti
1 med onion, chopped
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/2 lb mushrooms, chopped
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp paprika
1/2 cup dry sherry
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup parmesan

Cook pasta according to package directions, leaving al dente. Drain and put in bottom of crockpot. In a large pan over medium heat, saute onions and mushrooms in 1/4 cup butter. Add other 1/4 cup butter and dust with 1/2 cup flour to create a roux. Gradually stir in chicken, chicken broth, sherry, paprika, and heavy cream. Simmer for 10 minutes to thicken. Pour chicken mixture over pasta and top with parmesan cheese. Cook in crockpot for 3-4 hours on low.

Santa Fe Grilled Chicken

This chicken is delicious to use for fajitas or just eat on its own. The marinade was also good on steak, which we used for fajitas.

4 boneless chicken breasts, ~2 lbs
1 cup water
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp white vinegar
1.5 tsp chipotle chili powder
1 tsp liquid smoke
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp black pepper

Combine the chicken with all the marinade ingredients into a gallon ziploc bag. Marinate for at least two hours (this also freezes well). Remove the chicken and grill on an indoor or outdoor grill until no longer pink in the center. If using for fajitas, let rest then slice thinly.

Farmer's Pork Chops

Just simple home cooking but delicious! My 22-month old dug in! I used a large 10x15 casserole dish -- if using an 9x13, I'd halve the recipe and only use 5-6 pork chops. I also added some cajun/creole seasoning to my white sauce for a little spice.

6 medium potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1 small onion, thinly sliced in half rings
salt and pepper
1 cup flour
9 center cut pork chops, 1/2" thick
2 tbsp vegetable oil

White Sauce;
1 stick butter
1/2 cup flour
2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp black pepper
4 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350. In large casserole dish, layer half the potatoes and half the onion. Season with salt and pepper. Repeat with other half of potatoes and onions and season.

Prepare the white sauce by melting the butter in a large saucepan. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper. Let cook for about a minute. Add the milk slowly, while whisking to blend the flour mixture. Bring to a boil and stir frequently until thickened. Pour sauce over the potatoes and bake for 15 minutes.

While potatoes are cooking, season pork chops with salt and pepper. Dredge in a little flour and lightly brown each side in vegetable oil. Place them over the potatoes, arranging so they all fit. Bake for 35-40 minutes.

Spinach & Provolone Chicken Pinwheels

These were so easy to make and SO good! A little cheese oozes out and browns up, yum. The garlic butter sauce is delicious over top -- I made rice to go along with it, and topped it with the sauce as well. This would be easy to freeze too, either by placing in a foil pan or flash freezing the pinwheels and putting in a ziploc after.

6 thin cut chicken breasts (I used 3 large breasts, slicing them thinly into thirds while on their side)
salt and pepper
6 slices provolone cheese, cut in half
1-1/2 cups fresh baby spinach
1/2 stick butter
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley

Lay the chicken flat and season with salt and pepper. Place two half-slices of provolone onto each chicken. Top with about 1/4 cup spinach. Roll up chicken and secure with toothpick.

Bake in 350 oven for 20 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

Make garlic butter sauce by melting butter over low heat in a saucepan. Add the garlic and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add parsley and remove from heat. Top cooked chicken with the sauce before serving.

Un-Stuffed Cabbage

I love stuffed cabbage but it can be time consuming to prepare. This was super easy and everything cooks in one pot!

2 lbs ground beef
salt and pepper
1 onion, chopped
1 cup rice, uncooked
1/2 head cabbage, roughly chopped
8-oz can tomato sauce
2 cups water
14-oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup shredded cheese (I used colby jack)

Season and brown ground beef and onions. Drain off grease. Add rice, cabbage, tomato sauce, water, and diced tomatoes. Stir. Let it it come to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer for 20-30 minutes. Once cooked, top with cheese and cover with lid to melt.