Today's Kitchen Experiment

A friend told me about this recipe.  She made it a while back and enjoyed it so I decided today to experiment with it for tonight's diner.  I used a single Smart Chicken breast.  They're always so large that one is plenty for the two of us.

The original recipe says to put chicken breasts in the bottom of the crock pot then top it with the dry stuffing mix.  Add a can of Cream of Chicken soup mixed with sour cream on top of the dry stuffing and cook 4 hours.

Stuffing mixes are a great time saver but lack the flavor and texture of real homemade dressing.  I sauteed sliced celery and diced onions to add to the mix. I also added some chicken bouillon for more flavor.  Then I decided I better write down the changes I made to the recipe in the event we like it well enough to make it again.


CROCKPOT CHICKEN AND DRESSING

1 large boneless chicken breast
1 package Best Choice Cornbread Stuffing Mix
1 2/3 cups boiling water ********
¼ cup butter
celery
onion
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 tsp. chicken bouillon powder
½ cup sour cream
½ soup can full of milk

Set crock pot on high.

Saute diced onions and sliced celery in a small amount of oil until tender.

Add vegetables to stuffing mix along with boiling water, butter, bouillon powder, sour cream and ½ can Cream of Chicken soup.

Place chicken breast in crock pot and cover with stuffing mixture.

Cook on high until chicken is fully cooked.

Stir together remaining soup and the milk to make sauce to pour over the stuffing mixture when ready to serve.

*****reduce the amount of water so that the stuffing won't be too moist ****

Giving Comfort Cards

Giving Comfort is a charitable organization that provides comfort kits, cards and support for cancer patients.  Since OWH is shutting down after next month, I decided to switch gears and make cards for Giving Comfort.

I'm finding it extremely difficult to find sentiments suitable for cancer patients.   Google search, Pinterest and going back through the photos of cards I've made in the past didn't yield many.  One of the best is a stamp from Papertrey Ink.

Chicken Tetrazzini for Two

Every time I decide to make chicken tetrazzini I have to go search for a recipe.  It's a dish that I really like but don't make often because I'm not too sure that DH even likes it. 

I jokingly said that I've been playing the home version of Iron Chef.  Rather than being given a mix match of ingredients to concoct a meal, I'm going through the cabinets, refrigerator and freezer, taking stock of what's on hand and making a meal.

Tonight I found a large can of chicken and that inspired the tetrazzini.  There was also a portion of a can of cream of mushroom soup in the freezer that needed to be used, and a jar of pimentos I'd had on hand for a while as well as a half box of spaghetti. There was a small portion of Velveeta cheese and some Parmesan that I'd grated and had left over from another meal last week.  So, it was just a matter of tossing it all together!

Chicken Tetrazzini for Two


1/4 box Ronzoni spaghetti
1 can cooked chicken --  I used chunk white meat
1/2 can cream of mushroom soup
1 jar pimentos, drained
dried parsley
1/2 cup small cubes of Velveeta
3/4 cup good quality grated Parmesan cheese

Cook spaghetti according to package directions and drain, reserving 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the pasta water.  I add the water drained from the canned chicken to the pot.  It adds a lot of chicken flavor to the pasta.

In a nonstick pan, heat the soup, reserved pasta water, cheeses, pimentos, parsley, and chicken.  Add cooked pasta and serve.

Bird On Wreath Card

This card was based on one seen on a Stampin' Up demonstrator's blog.  She made the wreath using jute cord formed into a circle.  My version uses circles cut from kraft paper using my Cameo and MTC software.

The bird and branches were done with the Bird Builder punch, the sentiment was printed on my PC and then mounted with the Word Window and Modern Label punches.

The background was scored using Martha Stewart's scorboard.  It's a 4 x 5 1/4" rectangle scored at 1/2", 1 1/2", 2 1/2" and 3 1/2".

Cream Cheese Chicken Taquitos

Okieladybug posted this recipe idea on Facebook.  I like chicken.  I really like Mexican food.  I had all the ingredients on hand.  I had to try it.

The chicken breasts I used were frozen but they cooked just fine in under 4 hours.  The easiest way to shred the chicken once it's cooked is to put it into bowl and shred it using your mixer.  I have a Kitchenaid and I used the beater, not the dough hook.  It was shredded in about 20 seconds.

I used flour tortillas since I had them and they needed to be used and I did brush them with olive oil before baking. 

Cream Cheese Chicken Taquitos

    2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
    1 teaspoon chili powder
    1 teaspoon garlic powder
    1 teaspoon cumin
    salt + pepper
    8 ounces cream cheese
    ⅓ cup water
    1 to 1 ½ cups shredded colby or Mexican blend cheese
    12 6 inch corn or flour tortillas
    optional: cilantro, salsa, sour cream, or other toppings as desired

Instructions

Mix chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt and pepper to taste, cream cheese, and water in a medium mixing bowl. Pour half of the mixture into your crock pot, place chicken in crock pot and pour remaining mixture over the chicken.

Cover and cook on low 8 hours or high for 4 hours.

Minutes before serving, remove chicken from crock pot, shred with two forks, and return to slow cooker. Give it a stir. Cook about 15 minutes longer.

Preheat oven to 400. Here is a great trick to keep your corn tortilla from falling apart. Place 1 corn tortilla on a skillet, put about ⅛ cup cheese on the corn tortilla. Warm the tortilla until the cheese melts, remove tortilla from pan. Melting the cheese on the corn tortilla will keep it from falling apart in the next step.

Place about ¼ cup of the chicken mixture onto the middle of each corn tortilla that has the melted cheese on it or a flour tortilla.  Top with 1-2 tablespoons shredded cheese. Roll tightly and place in a single layer on a greased baking sheet. If using corn tortilla brushing some olive oil over them will help with browning and crisping.

 Bake 10 minutes, until tortillas are slightly browned and shredded cheese is melted. Serve with desired toppings and sauces.

You can see the entire recipe and instructions on Made from Pinterest.