Chicken & Dumpling Casserole

Don’t you just love chicken and dumplings? I do. I enjoy them in almost any form. Homemade, store bought or restaurant dumplings....bring it! I’ll eat it in any form or fashion. Like this casserole. Now the “dumplings” are really a dumpling unless you consider the dough in this to be one BIG dumpling...but the taste is the same. And this is SO simple! As I was throwing this together I realized that I didn’t have any cream of chicken soup so I made my own and it was awesome. Normally I don’t do that...I just go the easy route which is opening a can but don’t be shy about making your own. Anyway....very good casserole right here. Easy to make and easy to eat!

Chicken & Dumpling Casserole

1 rotisserie chicken ~ shredded (about 3 cups chicken)

4 tablespoons butter

1 cup milk

1 cup flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

2 cups chicken broth

1 10-ounce can cream of chicken soup

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the butter into pats and add to a 9x13 inch baking pan. Place the pan in the oven and allow butter to melt for about 5 - 10 minutes, watching carefully so it doesn’t burn.

Scatter shredded chicken over the butter in the pan.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt and pepper with a whisk.

Add the milk and whisk until smooth.

Pour milk/flour mixture over the chicken. Do not stir.

In a medium bowl, combine the chicken broth and the cream of chicken soup until smooth.

Pour over the broth mixture over the chicken mixture in the pan. Do not stir.

Bake uncovered for 40 - 45 minutes until lightly golden brown on top.

Allow to sit for about 5 -10 minutes before serving.

Slow Cooker Luau Chicken

I love a fruit/meat combo meal. Do you? There’s a little Mexican food place near us that serves super good “tropical tacos”. They put a fruit relish on top instead of salsa...yum! Now this isn’t Mexican food and it’s not really Asian. I’m not sure what it is but it has pineapple in it so it’s some kind of island-y dish. I do know it’s really good and insanely easy, though.

Slow Cooker Luau Chicken

 

4 chicken breasts ~ cut into bite sized cubes

1 18-ounce bottle of barbecue sauce

1 8-ounce can of crushed pineapple ~ undrained

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

 

Place cut up chicken in your slow cooker.

 

In a medium bowl, stir together the bbq sauce, pineapple, brown sugar and soy sauce.

 

Pour over the chicken and stir to combine.

 

Cook on high 3-4 hours or on low 4-6 hours.

 

Serve over rice.

The cast of characters.

Cut the chicken into bite sized 

chunks and place in your slow cooker.

Combine the bbq sauce, pineapple, 

soy sauce and brown sugar.

Pour over the chicken and 

stir to combine. Cook!

Serve over cooked rice!

Cream Cheese Chicken Chimis

Chimichangas are delicious, right? They’re always on the menu when IY Guy and I head to Arizona to visit family. We eat Mexican food almost every day...sometimes more than once! I have my favorites, no doubt, but I always love me a good chimi! So when I found myself with some cooked chicken I made these! Super good, super easy and satisfied our Mexican food craving for another day!

Cream Cheese Chicken Chimis

3 cups cooked, shredded chicken

6 ounces cream cheese ~ room temp

1/2 cup salsa

1/4 cup sour cream

1 4-ounce (or 7 ounce depending on your heat level tolerance) diced green chilies

1 1/2 cups grated cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

6 - 8 large flour tortillas

Oil for frying

In a large skillet, pour enough oil to come up half way. Turn to medium heat.

In a medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, sour cream, salsa, green chilies, salt and pepper.

Add the cheese and stir.

Toss in the chicken and combine.

Divide chicken mixture between the tortillas. Place chicken mixture in the middle and fold in the sides of the tortilla then up from the bottom all the way to the top.

Gently place chimis into the hot oil and fry until golden brown on all sides, turning as needed.

As chimis are done frying, drain on a paper towel and place on a plate. Keep chimis in a warm oven until they’re all fried.

Serve with sour cream, guac, salsa and extra cheese. Warmed enchilada sauce is also the bomb!

Chicken Frito Southwest Casserole

Want a little crunch in your casserole? Then try this! I mean, really....can you go anywhere but UP with Frito's? They are one of IT Guy’s favorite snacks so using them in a main dish was an excellent idea! Super good! And using a rotisserie chicken makes this incredibly easy but of course you can cook a couple of chicken breasts and get the same result. A seriously good casserole, right here!

Chicken Frito Southwest Casserole 

 

3 cups cooked, chopped chicken (I used a small rotisserie chicken)

1 10-ounce can cream of chicken soup

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup milk

1 4-ounce can diced green chilies (I used a 7-ounce can)

1 taco seasoning packet

3 cups grated cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

1 9-ounce bag Original Frito's Corn chips

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9x13 inch pan with cooking spray.

 

Scatter half of the Frito's in the bottom of the prepared pan.

 

In a large bowl, combine the soup, milk, sour cream, green chilies, taco mix and salt and pepper.

 

Spoon half of the cream mixture onto the Frito's.

 

Sprinkle with half of the cheese.

 

Repeat with the remaining ingredients.

 

Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

 

Remove foil and bake another 15 minutes.

Our ingredients!

Mix together the taco seasoning, 

sour cream, green chilies, soup, 

milk and salt and pepper.

Add the diced chicken and stir.

Put a layer of Fritos in the bottom 

of the bag. (I used half the bag) 

Then add about half of the creamy mixture and some cheese. Repeat.

Bake to perfection!

Yummy! (I'll let you in on a little secret....the edges are the best part!)

Creamy Ranch Crock Pot Chicken & Veggies

Who would have thought that all this thrown in a crock pot would taste so good? And easy? Oh yeah! You can use just about any of your favorite vegetables in this dish, canned or frozen or fresh. Double it if you’re feeding a crowd but we had about 6 servings of this made with the recipe below so it doesn’t make a ton which is good for me. Since we eat everything I make and there are just the two of us, leftovers of the same thing for a more than a couple of days gets real old, real fast. Anyway...for a tasty dish with hardly any effort, make THIS.

Creamy Ranch Crock Pot Chicken & Veggies

2 tablespoons butter ~ melted

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts ~ cut into bite-sized pieces

3 cups veggies ~ corn, carrots, green beans, celery, etc. (Any of your favorites that equal 3 cups.)

3 - 4 small red potatoes ~ cut into large bite-sized chunks

1 medium onion ~ diced

1 10-ounce can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup milk

1 1-ounce packet dry Ranch Dressing mix

6 slices of bacon ~ cooked crisp and crumbled

Salt and pepper, to taste

Add melted butter to the crock pot.

Then add the potatoes, veggies and onions. Add salt and pepper and toss to coat.

Add diced chicken.

In a medium bowl, combine the soup, sour cream, milk and ranch dressing.

Pour over the chicken.

Turn crock pot to high and cook 4 - 5 hours, stirring a couple of times throughout the cooking process.

Sprinkle crumbled bacon on top then serve!

Here we go!

Add the melted butter to the crock 

pot then add the potatoes, veggies 

and onion. Salt and pepper to taste 

then stir to combine.

Add the diced chicken on top.

Then the creamy mixture. Soup, sour cream, milk and ranch dressing mix.

Let it cook on high for 4 - 6 hours, 

giving it a couple of stirs during cooking.

Add some cooked crumbled 

bacon on top and serve!

Amish Chicken

An easy dinner is one thing we all love, right? Well this dish really couldn’t get much easier. Plus it makes its own sauce while it’s baking so all you need is some rice or pasta to go along with it. I’m not sure where the name of this recipe came from but if it is from the Amish, then those people know what they’re doing because this is good! The chicken is crispy and the sauce is flavorful and you can use any chicken pieces you want. I used thighs. Seriously guys, super yummy!

Amish Chicken

4 - 6 chicken thighs ~ skin on

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup chicken stock

1 cup flour

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

2 teaspoons paprika

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9x11 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Stir together the chicken stock and heavy cream.

In a shallow bowl or pie plate, combine the flour and seasonings until mixed.

Dredge the chicken in the flour mixture and place in the prepared pan.

Pour the broth/cream mixture over the chicken and allow to bake for 1 - 1 1/2 hours or until skin is golden brown.

Serve over noodles or rice.

Okay...let's cook the easiest dinner ever!

Combine the flour and the seasonings.

Then dredge the chicken in the flour. Don't be stingy here...really coat it on!

Next mix together the chicken 

broth and the cream and pour 

it over the chicken.

Then bake! Now don't let the amount 

of fat scare you. You will have plenty 

of sauce in this dish...probably too much. A little bit goes a long way because it's 

so full of flavor.

Yum!

Chicken Taquitos

My daughter sent me this recipe after she’d made it and watched her family devour them. It’s always so nice to find a new recipe that your kids will eat because let’s face...some kids are just picky eaters. But I can see why they loved them so much. Super good and even leftover they’re great after they are heated in the oven for a little while. We’ll be making these again!

Chicken Taquitos

 

24 corn tortillas

Oil for frying

3 chicken breasts ~ cooked and shredded

1/2 cup salsa

1/3 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese

6 ounces cream cheese ~ room temperature

1 1/2 cups baby spinach ~ chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Add enough oil to a large skillet to come up almost half way. heat over medium heat.

 

In a medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, salsa, and sour cream.

 

Add the chopped spinach, grated cheese along with some salt and pepper then add the shredded chicken and stir.

 

Divide mixture between the corn tortillas.

 

Roll tortillas then place taquitos into the hot oil, seam side down and fry until golden brown on both sides.

 

Drain on paper towels and keep in a warm oven until all taquitos are cooked.

 

Serve with extra salsa and sour cream.

The line up!

Mix together the cream cheese, 

sour cream and salsa.

Add the grated cheese, spinach 

and salt and pepper.

Stir in the cooked, shredded chicken.

Divide the mixture between the tortillas.

Fry 'em up!

Add some extra salsa and 

sour cream for extra goodness!

Chicken Spinach Tortellini Bake

I’m pretty sure there’s nothing as good as pasta and cheese. In just about any combination. This little casserole is so yummy and so easy! Plus...with a pregnant daughter who can’t hardly stand to get in the kitchen and cook anything, a casserole that normally would go into a 9x13 inch pan, gets split into two 9x9 inch pans so I can give one to her. IT Guy and I certainly don’t need all that food so it works all the way around. I had this dish thrown together in less than 30 minutes and it only baked for a few minutes then dinner was done!

Chicken Spinach Tortellini Bake

2 cups cooked, diced chicken

2 cups chopped, fresh spinach

1 12-ounce package cheese tortellini ~ cooked and drained (reserve about 1 cup pasta water)

1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

1 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 cloves garlic ~ minced

3 tablespoons flour

6 strips bacon ~ diced

2 cups milk

Salt and pepper to taste

2 teaspoons lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

In a large skillet, cook diced bacon until crispy. Remove to a plate to drain. Reserve drippings.

Saute the garlic in the bacon drippings for about 1 minute.

Add the flour and whisk for a minute or so.

Pour in the milk and cook and stir until smooth.

Stir in the salt, pepper and lemon juice. Turn off heat.

Add 3/4 cups of both cheeses and stir until cheeses melt then stir in the chopped spinach.

Gently stir in the diced, cooked chicken and the cooked tortellini.

Add a little bit of the reserved pasta water to thin out the mixture, if needed.

Pour mixture into the prepared pan and sprinkle with remaining cheeses.

Cover with foil and bake for 20 - 30 minutes or until hot.

How about we make a casserole?

Dice the bacon then fry it up crisp. Remove it from the pan when done.

Add the garlic into the bacon 

drippings and cook for a minute or so.

Now add the flour and cook 

and stir until smooth.

Add the milk.

And the lemon juice, salt and 

pepper and cook until thickened.

Add 3/4 cup of each of the cheeses. 

Stir until melted.

Stir in the chopped spinach.

Next stir in the cooked tortellini 

and the cooked, diced chicken.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan(s) then sprinkle with remaining cheeses.

Bake and serve!

Green Chile Chicken Lasagna

Talk about an easy dish! Using a rotisserie chicken and oven ready lasagna sheets, this recipe just can’t get much more simple. And the yummy factor is at the TOP of the scale. Of course we loved it because...hellooooo???? green chilies....but seriously, this is SO good. I based this off of my sour cream enchilada recipe that I’ve been making for 40+ years so I knew I couldn’t lose. We flew through this in no time flat!

Green Chile Chicken Lasagna

3 cups cooked diced chicken (I used a rotisserie chicken)

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 cup sour cream

2 4-ounce can chopped green chilies

1/2 cup chicken broth

4 - 5 cups grated cheddar cheese

1 cup (or less, depending on your taste) sliced green onion

1 9-ounce package oven ready lasagna noodles (I used Barilla brand)

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine the 2 cans of soup, sour cream, green chilies, chicken broth and salt and pepper.

Stir in the cooked, diced chicken.

Start layering the ingredients beginning with the noodles.

• noodles
• sauce
• some cheese
• some onion

Repeat 3 times ending with some cheese and onion on top.

Cover with foil and bake 30 - 45 minutes until heated through.

Allow to stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Karen's Chicken Salad

A few weeks ago I helped to host a bridal shower for the daughter of a good friend. The hostesses decided to have a salad bar for the guests. We had all kinds of yummy salad and some homemade bread and muffins. You guys know how girls enjoy salads. Well...this was a hit! We had a cucumber/tomato salad, potato salad, 7 Layer Salad, a fruit salad, pasta salad, and this chicken salad. So yum, you guys! If you’re not a fan of mayo...which I am...you might like this because it’s made with cream cheese. And guess what? I’m a fan of that, too! This salad is delicious as sandwiches, on toast, with crackers, in pita bread...you name it...it’s yummy!

Karen’s Chicken Salad

3 chicken breasts ~ seasoned with salt and pepper, cooked, diced (reserve a little liquid)

1 cup diced celery

1 cup almond slices ~ toasted

1 cup red grapes ~ cut into fourths

1 8-ounce package cream cheese ~ softened

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

Salt and pepper to taste

Combine cream cheese, garlic powder, onion powder and salt and pepper in large bowl. Add a little (a few tablespoons) of the liquid from the chicken to thin out the cream cheese. Mix to combine.

Stir in the cooked diced chicken, grapes, celery.

Add the almonds and toss gently to mix.

Serve as sandwiches, on crackers or in baked phyllo cups.

Okay...here we go!

Combine cream cheese, garlic 

powder, onion powder and salt 

and pepper in large bowl.

Add some of the liquid from the 

cooked chicken. I just poured off 

the juices from the pan. If you're 

boiling your chicken, add some 

liquid from the pot.

Next mix in the diced, cooked 

chicken, the celery and grapes.

Gently fold in the toasted almonds.

Serve it up...anyway you choose!