Ranch Chicken Crock Pot

I honestly don't remember where this recipe came from. I wish I did - or that I would have taken better notes, as I should have. But, alas! there is no note as to the origins of this recipe. If you are the composer of this delicious goodness, please know that I would love to give you credit for it if only I could remember who you are!
My lack of bad record keeping aside, this recipe is a favorite. My husband and I love it and we recently made it when we had company over and our company loved it too! They all asked for the recipe and since I've been meaning to get back into the habit of sharing recipes here, I decided this would be where I would start again. This is an easy-peasy recipe. You pretty much can't go wrong with it. I hope you enjoy!

Ranch Chicken Crock Pot

4-6 chicken breasts

½ cup water

1 packet dry ranch dressing mix

1 (8oz) container cream cheese, softened (1/3 reduced fat works just as well as regular)

2 cans cream of chicken soup

Optional:

Mozzarella Cheese

Breadcrumbs

Directions:

Pour water into crock pot. Add chicken; sprinkle with ranch dressing mix. Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or until chicken is cooked through. When chicken is completely cooked, take it out and shred it. Do not discard juices from crock pot.

Mix cream cheese and cream of chicken soup together so they are well mixed. Add cream cheese mixture to juices in the crock pot and heat through. Add shredded chicken.

Serving suggestions:

1) Mix completed chicken mixture with some cooked pasta and place in a casserole dish. Cover with mozzarella cheese and breadcrumbs. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until warm through and cheese is bubbly.

This photo is with the pasta. I don't have any photos of the chicken mixture served over rice {as per suggestion number 2}. But I'm sure you can figure it out!

2) Leaving chicken mixture in crock pot, sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and allow to melt. Serve over rice. {This one is my favorite, though the first one is also good.}

Menu Plan Monday ~ 03/15/10

Check out Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie to find other great menu ideas!

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This week ended up being a little better - we actually enjoyed a few meals at home! That was really nice. I was kinda lazy last week - mostly I blame it on pregnancy. :D Some days by the time it gets around to fixing dinner I'm too tired and don't want to cook so I don't. *sigh* Somehow I have to combat that late afternoon tiredness so I don't get into a bad habit ...
Anyway, here is the planned menu coarse this week. We'll see how this goes . . . it's going to be a busy week!


Monday: Italian Pasta with tomato and basil

Tuesday: Mexican Chicken Skillet

Wednesday: Spaghetti

Thursday: Carnitas Soft Tacos

Friday: Leftover Smorgasbord

Saturday: Muffins and Eggs

Sunday: BLT Salad

Other goodies I plan to make this week:
Lemon Bread
Cupcakes {for baby shower on Saturday}
Some other kind of bread . . .
Freezer-to-Skillet Cheeseburger Pasta

Menu Plan Monday ~ 03/08/10

Check out Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie to find other great menu ideas!

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Last week was an adventure, I tell you! I did well at making the meals on my menu {for the most part} but hubby is working like crazy this month so every meal I took in to him at his job and ate with him there at work. It's nice that I can take him dinner & eat with him when he has to work late but . . . it's a job getting everything fixed, packed up, taken out to the car {all while being careful with hot foods and trying not to spill on the seat}, taken to his work, set up at work, eat, and then clean everything up at work, then take the leftovers home and clean up the mess still at home. It was a lot of work! Since he will be busy again like that this week, I tried to think up meals that I can make and take without a lot of packing effort and hopefully not have to worry about spilling over while I'm driving. I guess we'll see what happens!

Monday: Mulligan

Tuesday: Swiss Potato Pacake

Wednesday: Ham and Cheese Calzones

Thursday: Leftover Smorgasbord

Friday: Smothered Chicken and Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Saturday: Chicken Corn Chowder

Sunday: Carnitas Soft Tacos

Other goodies I plan to make this week:
Granola

Menu Plan Monday ~ 03/01/10

Check out Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie to find other great menu ideas!

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I feel a little like I'm just copying and pasting from past menus ... I promise we really do use our menus. Some weeks are easier than others and sometimes everything just doesn't work out ... and we end up not having everything on the menu. I planned my monthly menu today and discovered that of the 20 meal ideas I planned last month, we only used 10! *sigh* Oh, well. I guess that just means fewer meals to plan and buy for this month.

Monday: Bean and Spinach Burritos with Avocado Relish

Tuesday: Now that’s a baked potato

Wednesday: Cheesy Stuffed Shells

Thursday: Leftover Smorgasbord

Friday: Stroganoff

Saturday: Carnitas Soft Tacos

Sunday: Bow-tie Chicken Caesar Salad

Other goodies I plan to make this week:
Granola
Bread

"Brazilian" Rice

Sorry, no picture for this one. Rice is a pretty boring thing to photograph - and to look at. This particular rice doesn't look any different than your ordinary plain rice, but it sure does taste better! We pretty much always make our rice this way - I can't even stand plain rice anymore. The word Brazilian has quotations because I don't really know exactly how authentic it is and I don't want to be misleading. However, since I have friends, a father and a hubsand who have all been to Brazil and eaten their rice, and they say this rice is pretty dang close to what they make there, Brazilian Rice is it's name. Now, if you're one of those people afraid to cook rice in a pot and not in a rice cooker, never fear! I'll teach ya how to do it!

"Brazilian" Rice
1 cup dry white rice
1/8-1/4 cup finely chopped onion {or you can use about 1 Tbsp of dried minced onion or 1-1/2 tsp. of onion powder if desired}
1-2 cloves finely minced garlic {you can also use approx. 1 tsp of garlic powder}
1-1/2 Tbsp. Canola or Vegetable Oil
1/3 tsp salt
2 1/4 cups water

Put the oil in a small saucepan and heat until the oil is hot. Add the onion and saute for a minute or two, or until onion is almost soft. Add the garlic {the reason you add the garlic after is because it will burn if left in the hot oil too long} and continue to saute, about until you can smell the garlic. Add the dry rice and continue cooking, stirring continuously, until you notice the rice is beginning to brown. Be careful not to let the rice burn - it doesn't need to be too browned, just slightly. Pour in the water and add the salt. Stir just a bit to be sure nothing is still sticking to the bottom and then cover the pan. You don't need to stir it anymore. Turn down the temperature to a medium/low and let cook for about 10 minutes. The temperature is important - don't have it on too high or the water will cook out too fast the rice will be crunchy. After 10 minutes, check the rice to see if there is any water still in the pan. If there is, allow it to cook for a few more minutes. The rice should be done about the same time all the water is cooked out. {If you cook it too long the rice will be dry - and start to scorch on the bottom of the pan.} Now you have some yummy, flavorful rice!

Note: the garlic and onion measurements are a little vague because everyone's tastes are different. If you don't like as much onion, don't put as much in; the same for the garlic. I tend to like more garlic so I add more of that. The minced onion and the powdered onion and garlic have stronger flavors than the whole veggies/spices so you don't need as much. If you use the powdered or minced product, just add it to the oil, cook it for a few seconds and then add the rice {if you let them cook alone too long they will burn}. Continue with the directions above.

Crock Pot Sunday Chicken

This is a recipe my old roommate used to make for us {we all took turns cooking for each other - less to cook and spend that way!} and we always loved it! It never disappoints - not only is it really yummy but it is so easy to make! Perfect those Sundays {or any other day for that matter} when you just want dinner ready when you come home without going to a lot of effort. Enjoy!

Crock Pot Sunday Chicken
Amy Barrus

2-3 chicken breasts, cubed
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 pkg. dry onion soup mix
1 small can mushrooms
1-2 cups sour cream or 8oz cream cheese

Directions:
Put all ingredients except sour cream in crock pot. Stir. Cook on high 3 hours, stirring once. Add sour cream; cook for 1 more hour. Serve over rice.

Swedish Pancakes

My grandmother is from Sweden and this is one of the most famed recipes she makes from there. We all love it - I could eat them waay too often! It's one of the few foods I don't really tire of having. These pancakes are really similar to crepes, but they are still different. They aren't quite as thin as crepes and I tend to like the flavor of these better {yes, I have had both}. Perhaps I'm biased, but who can tell? ;) Regardless, I don't think you'll be sorry if you make these!

Swedish Pancakes
Helga Hardy
Makes approx. enough for about 3 people if served with something else {hubby and I can eat the whole batch if we don't have anything else with it}

3 eggs
1 (+1/8-1/4) cup milk
1Tbsp. sugar
Sprinkle of salt
1-1/2 cups flour
½ cube of butter

Directions:
Melt butter in frying pan you will use to make the pancakes. Mix all other ingredients together. Add the melted butter to the mixture {batter should be thin but not too thin - if you're familiar with the consistency of crepe batter, it won't be that thin, but it should be thinner than a typical pancake batter}. Pour small amount of batter into pan and spread so thin {I do this by rotating the pan around in a circle - you'll be able to tell if the batter is thin enough if it spreads itself out}. It should look about like this:

Let cook until browned on one side. Flip over.
Serve with powdered or white sugar, any pancake or sandwich topping you prefer, fresh or canned fruit or any other desired ingredient {my grandmother tells me these are really good with veggies but I have yet to try it - I really love the powdered sugar on mine, which, yes, is more like a dessert but I don't care too much about that ... if you can't tell from the photo!}.

Tip: If you wrap the pancakes in a towel they will stay warm while you finish cooking all the pancakes. Simply place one half of a towel on the plate you will use to the put the pancakes and then cover with the other half {my mom started doing this because she couldn't make them fast enough to keep up with how quickly we'd eat them so she started wrapping them in a towel and making everyone wait until she was all finished cooking them - a pretty good idea on her part}.

Menu Plan Monday ~ 02/22/10

Check out Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie to find other great menu ideas!

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Here's a story: I hate shopping. I really do. It makes me cranky and unhappy and impatient. Especially grocery shopping. I get so irritated that something I have to buy to maintain my life costs so much money. So last week I kept putting off the little bit of shopping I had to do {really, all I had to buy was some produce and dairy stuff ... how hard can that be???} so I didn't go shopping until Saturday. Biggest mistake of the week! There were people everywhere. We could barely walk around the isles {is that how you spell that word in this context??} and I kept running into people. That just made me even crankier. But I've learned my lesson: don't go shopping on Saturday!
Whew! Anywho, here's the menu for this week:

Monday: Bean and Spinach Burritos with Avocado Relish

Tuesday: Now that’s a baked potato

Wednesday: Garlic Chicken Pasta with Spinach

Thursday: Leftover Smorgasbord

Friday: Out of Town

Saturday: Out of Town

Sunday: Italian Pasta with tomato and Basil

Other goodies I plan to make this week:
Granola

Chocolate Chip Cookies _ 1

This is a pretty basic chocolate chip cookie recipe I got from my mom - but it's a good one. The cookies have a really yummy flavor and they cook up nice and soft, just the way a cookie should be. I like 'em!

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Diane Hardy Makes: 5 dozen cookies

1 cup butter or margarine
½ cup sugar
½ cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1-2 cups chips {I've used all flavors of chips as well as M&M's and they turn out great!}
½ cup nuts {optional}

Directions:
Cream together first 7 ingredients. Mix in remaining ingredients. Drop by tsp. full 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375oF for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned {if you notice your cookies are starting to spread too thin while they are baking - I hate it when that happens! - try adding a bit more flour to the dough so it stays thicker}.

Fun Variation:
Instead of putting in choclate chips or some other such "normal addition", try putting miniature marshmallows and then baking them up. You gotta use a lot of marshmallows or it really doesn't make a difference. It's a really fun twist to the normal cookie - and kids love it {I really loved the way they turned out}!

Brownies in a Cloud

WARNING: The richness of these brownies has earned them the name "sinful" among my family for good reasons. Be aware of sudden addictions and disappearing acts when these brownies are made, as well as prepared for more compliments than you dare count.

If you are not a marshmallow fan, these may not be for you. But for everyone else, prepare to be amazed! Even I will eat these and that's saying a lot since I don't like chocolate. The recipe for the brownie is wonderful: perfectly moist but not too cake-y; the marshmallows add that something special that every brownie should have {every brownie should have something special, right?}; and the frosting is the very best frosting ever! I use it all the time because I just love how delicious is turns out each time I make it. Go knock yourself out!

Brownies in a Cloud
Karlene Cobbley

Brownies:
2 cubes softened butter
2 cups sugar
1/3 cup cocoa
4 eggs
1½ cups flour
2 tsp. Vanilla
1 cup nuts {optional - I've never added these and it's a decision I have never regretted}

Directions:
Combine butter, sugar and cocoa; blend till smooth. Add eggs one at a time; mix well. Add flour slowly, beat until smooth, and then add vanilla. Pour in a greased 9x13 pan. Bake @ 350o for 30 minutes.

Clouds:
While brownies are still hot {before taking them out of the oven}, cover with miniature marshmallows {don't be shy about that covering bit either - go ahead and dump bunches of marshmallows on there} and bake until they are light brown or melted {about 3 minutes}. Let cool completely.

Frosting:
Combine all together and beat until smooth

2 cups powdered sugar
1½ - 2 Tbsp Cocoa
½ cube soft butter
¼ cup milk