Stupid Simple Chicken Quesadillas

Another Pinterest find.  I would not know how to cook without Pinterest.  We'd all be eating the same meals over and over.  I do love a physical cookbook though.  The original recipe can be found over at Six Sisters' Stuff right here.

This recipe really is stupid simple to make.  You need just a handful of ingredients to get started.

What you'll need:
-- 3 to 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used 3, made 6 quesadillas and still had chicken left over)
-- a can of Rotel tomatoes and green chilies, undrained (the can I used was 10-ish ounces)
-- a package of cream cheese
-- a couple of tablespoons of butter, melted
-- tortillas
-- shredded cheese of your choice, we used Monterrey jack
-- toppings/salsa/dip of your choice

Simple to make too:
-- Spray your slow cooker with non-stick spray or, if like me you don't have any, smear some Crisco on the bottom and around the sides.

-- Put the chicken in, add the undrained can of Rotel, and then cream cheese.  I chose to slice up my cream cheese.  Put the lid on and set your slow cooker to low for 6-8 hours.

Do not be alarmed if you come back in a few hours and your cream cheese still looks exactly the same.  'Cause it will, but it's ok.  The next step will fix that.

-- Once the chicken is done, shred it and put it back in the slow cooker.  Mix all those ingredients together and let sit for a bit so the chicken will absorb some of the juices.  It's still going to be a little watery so use a slotted spoon to put chicken in tortillas.

-- Take tortillas and spread cheese on them.

-- Put a spoonful or two of the chicken mix on one side of the tortilla.  At this point, you can add any little do-dads you would like.  We ate ours "original" for this first attempt, but my husband and I both agreed that next time we will definitely add some jalapenos or banana peppers.

-- Fold tortilla in half and brush with butter before placing in a pre-heated skillet.

--  Cook for a few minutes on both sides until the cheese is melted and TADA! All done.  Wait a few minutes for them to cool then cut them in half and serve with salsa, sour cream, or whatever your heart desires!

Chicken Salad Sammies

The original recipe that I had every intention of using included grapes, celery, and both dry and liquid ranch dressing.  Mine does not.  See here's what happened...

I forgot the grapes.  I don't like celery.  And...  I thought we had ranch dressing in the fridge because that's a staple that should always be in your fridge, right?  Plus a couple of weeks ago, I'd used a half an envelope of dry ranch dressing mix in another recipe.  As I was getting all the ingredients ready, I realized that we, in fact, did not have any ranch dressing.  No liquid in the fridge.  No half a dry mix packet.

D'oh.

So what do you do when you don't have half of the ingredients?  Just make up your own recipe.  I will tell you that I didn't measure many of these ingredients.  The measurements that I'm showing are guesstimates.  As will most recipes, it's just a guideline.

Ingredients:

1 12.5 oz can of chicken breast
1 tablespoon of Good Seasons Italian dressing mix
1 teaspoon of dry dill weed
1/2 cup of mayonnaise (or salad dressing if that's what you prefer!)
1/2 cup of sliced almonds
Sandwich rolls

What I did:

Drain chicken, place in bowl. Using a fork, break up the larger pieces of chicken to make mixing easier.  Add all ingredients and mix!  Put some of the mixture on a roll.  Done!

I bought some yummy Kaiser rolls in the bakery at Wal-Mart.  I knew we weren't going to eat them for a couple of days so I placed them in the freezer.  Taking them out that morning to thaw.  I also warmed them for a few seconds in the microwave before putting the chicken salad on them.  They were really yummy, but I'd still like to try the original recipe as well!

Recipe adapted from Mom's Chicken Salad Sandwiches.

Hawaiian BBQ Chicken

The crazy cold weather is no secret to most of the nation.  We are experiencing colder weather than we have had in 20 years here in Kentucky.  I didn't take all this frigid cold into consideration when I made up the meal plan for this week.  Instead I just focused on what nights we would be out late for ball games.  That meant that Monday and Tuesday would be slow cooker nights.

Kind of ironic that on a day when the high temperature was only forecast to be 4F (with a wind chill of -20F), that I had planned to cook HAWAIIAN BBQ CHICKEN.

All day I'm looking out the frosty windows.  And smelling some Hawaiian cooking BBQ chicken in my kitchen.  

It smelled DELICIOUS! 

From original site(found through Pinterest, of course!)--

Ingredients:

4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

a bottle of Hawaiian style BBQ sauce

a can of pineapple chunks

rice

Make:  Place the chicken in crock, then cover with sauce and pineapples.  Cook on low 4-6 hours.  Shred chicken in the crock and serve over rice.

What I did:  I already had some drumsticks in the freezer so I used them to save a little money.  The original recipe site uses BBQ sauce purchased from Target (Archer Farms Hawaiian style BBQ sauce).  For me, going to Target requires driving 35 miles out of my way so I checked at the place I was at (Wal-Mart).  No Hawaiian style sauce.  Dilemma.  I chose honey BBQ sauce and added in the 100% juice from the pineapple chunks!  I also opted to cook mine in a 9 x 13 baking dish simply because the added warmth from the oven was welcome in this cold!

I'm not usually a fan of sweet entrees.  I like my meat savory.  But this chicken?  It's so yummy!  We served ours with whole grain rotini.  Mainly because my husband turns his nose up at any kind of rice other than saffron.  I think it would be great no matter what it's served with!

Another Pinterest WIN!

More and more often I find myself going to Pinterest to find recipes.  I mean, is there anything better than Pinterest right now?  Seriously.  Need a recipe?  Pinterest.  Need to know how to clean something? Pinterest.  Need to know anything?  Pinterest.  It's freakin' amazing.

I had a few packages of chicken breast in the big freezer that really needed to be used.  I happened upon this pin for Baked Chicken Bacon Ranch Taquitos.  Listen it has bacon and ranch in the title.  SOLD!

My not-so-glamorous photo.... 

The photo on the actual blog for the recipe is much more amazing and yes, I am jealous.  Thank goodness I don't really care what it looks like as long as it tastes good.  AND they tasted great!

Only 8 ingredients:

• 1 pkg of cream cheese (8 oz., softened)
• 4 cups of cooked, shredded chicken
• 12 slices of cooked, crumbled bacon (or more... it's bacon!)
• 2 cups of shredded Monterey Jack cheese (or if you are lazy like me and don't want to shred your own cheese... use the blended already shredded cheddar and jack.)
• 3-4 tablespoons of chopped green onion
• 1 pkg of ranch dressing mix (1 oz.)
• 20 flour tortillas (6-inch)
• salt

Cook your chicken however you see fit.  I cooked mine ( I used about 3 boneless, skinless breasts.) overnight in a slow cooker so it was nice and tender and ready for shredding the next day.  

• Pre-heat the oven to 425F.  
• Mix together all ingredients except for tortillas and salt. (Start with about half the dressing mix packet then taste and add more if desired.)
• Spoon a couple of tablespoons of mixture onto tortilla, roll up, and place seam side down on greased, covered with aluminum foil baking sheet.  Once they are all filled, rolled, and placed...
• Lightly brush top with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.
• Place in oven and cook for 10-15 mins or until the edges and tops are golden.

Let them cool for a few minutes then serve with dip of your choice!  Yum!  You can find the original post and recipe right here.  This was great quick meal for after the basketball game last week and we had NO leftovers! 

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Last night was the easiest dinner I've cooked in some time.  Just a few ingredients, only 30 minutes of cooking time.  Yay!  I even took some crappy pictures to share with you!  

BBQ Chicken Pizza

What you'll need:

• 1 store purchased pizza crust
• 1 jar BBQ sauce
• 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1 red onion
• Shredded cheddar cheese
• Shredded mozzarella cheese
• Can/jar or fresh mushrooms
• Cilantro
• Olive oil

1.  In a large skillet, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil then add chicken.  Cook thoroughly.  Once cooked, shred chicken with a fork or cut into bite size pieces.

2. While the chicken is cooking, dice red onion, drain and rinse mushrooms, and chop cilantro.  

3.  Pour some BBQ sauce on the crust, then throw on some chicken.  Add your toppings of choice and top with cheese.

4. Place in a pre-heated 400F oven for 15 minutes.  

5. Enjoy!

Mother's Day Roast Chicken

{source}

Jim's Lemon & Rosemary Roast Chicken with Country Vegetables
via Chicken Recipes Please
Print it here!

One whole free-range chicken, 3 lbs.
1-½ lbs. finger potatoes
About 24 pearl onions
10 or more garlic cloves
20-24 asparagus spears
6-8 sprigs fresh rosemary
3 lemons, cut into quarters
½ cup olive oil
½ stick butter
½ teaspoon dried oregano
A sprinkling of sea salt
A sprinkling of black pepper


Stuff the chicken with as many of the quarter pieces of lemon as possible. Also, place inside the chicken, 4 to 6 of the pearl onions, 2 to 4 of the garlic cloves, and a sprig of fresh rosemary.


Place the chicken in a large roasting pan containing 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and a half-cup of water.


Melt the butter and stir it into the remaining olive oil. Brush some of the butter and oil mixture on the chicken. Squeeze two of the lemon quarters over the chicken. Sprinkle the oregano, sea salt, and black pepper onto the chicken. Place the two lemon skins (from the squeezed lemons) on top of the chicken; then arrange 4 rosemary springs over the chicken. Around the chicken, arrange any of the remaining lemon quarters (not squeezed).


Bake in a 325ºF oven for 45 minutes. Two or three times during the cooking process, brush more of the butter and olive oil mixture onto the chicken.


After the 45 minutes roasting time has elapsed, add the finger potatoes, the remaining onions and garlic, and the remaining rosemary sprigs to the pan, arranged evenly around the chicken.


Bake for an additional 45 minutes to an hour. Again, brush the chicken, and the potatoes, with more of the butter and oil mixture, two or three times during the remainder of the cooking time.
When the chicken is almost done (170ºF as measured on a reliable meat thermometer), coat the asparagus with some of the butter and oil mixture and then arrange the asparagus around the chicken.


Cook for another 6 to 8 minutes. Do not overcook the asparagus!


Remove the pan from the oven, place the chicken on a cutting board, tent the chicken with foil, and let it rest for about 5 minutes prior to carving.


Serve the chicken with the finger potatoes, onions, garlic cloves, and asparagus for a complete meal.

Jim recommends using free range chicken because it has that country flavor and juiciness that adds to the dish. However, finding free range chicken in your area may not be feasible. I know it's not that easy to find in my area.

Thai Basil Chicken

{source}

Doesn't this chicken dish look yummy?

Thai Basil Chicken
Via No Recipes

What you need:
1 Tbs vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic minced
1-5 chilies minced with seeds
1/2 small onion sliced
1/2 lbs ground chicken thigh meat
1 Tbs fish sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
pinch of white pepper
3 sprigs of Thai basil, stems removed

How to fix:
Heat a wok or a cast iron skillet over medium high heat until very hot. Add the oil, garlic and chilies and stir fry until until the garlic is very fragrant. Add the onions and continue stir frying until the onions have wilted. Add the ground chicken and fry until the chicken is cooked. Season with the fish sauce, sugar and white pepper. If your pan was hot enough you should not have any liquid at the bottom of the pan, but if you do, continue cooking until the liquid is gone. Add the basil and toss a couple of time until the leaves are wilted and bright green.

Print it!

Buffalo Chicken Bites

via Pennies on a Platter

Image source

Printable version

• 3 cups shredded cooked chicken (About 1 store-bought rotisserie chicken, skin discarded)
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup hot sauce (or more to your taste)
• 3 1/2 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1 3/4 cups sharp or medium shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup sliced green onions
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten
• 3 – 4 cups Corn Flakes cereal, crushed

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, mix the chicken, cream cheese and hot sauce until combined. Stir in the cheddar cheese and green onions.

Using a small cookie or ice cream scoop, spoon out the chicken mixture and roll into about 1 1/2 inch balls. Place on a plate or separate baking sheet (not lined) until ready to dip.

In three separate bowls, set out the flour, eggs and Corn Flakes. Dip each chicken ball first into the flour, then the egg and ending with the Corn Flakes. Place on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Serve warm with ranch or blue cheese dressing.