It feels like Fall!

Ok...it feels like it's not 100 degrees outside. According to my fancy schmancy thermostat it's 79 degrees out there. I would guess it's a little warmer than that, BUT it's GORGEOUS! Blue skies, steady breeze and it's definitely 70something in the shade!

Cooler temps make me want to cook. Who knew anything would really cause me to WANT to cook. I don't want to over do it or anything, so tonight we are having the infamous Crock pot Italian Chicken. Yeah, crock pot - i'm not really sure dumping stuff in a pot and plugging it in qualifies as cooking...but at least I was motivated enough to start thinking about making dinner before 7pm. It's a good thing right? Like I said..don't want to over do it for the first day that actually FEELS somewhat fall-like here in the Sunshine State.


It's quick and easy - here we go!


If you're lazy (like me), put one of those liner bags in your crock. Why do dishes if you don't have to? Now dig out the following...

1. 8 ounce brick of cream cheese (you can use the 1/3 fat or the fat free kind if you want)
2. 1 packet of Good Season's Italian Dressing mix (the dry stuff)
3. 1 can of condensed cream of something or other soup (the recipe calls for cream of chicken, I use whatever I have on hand - tonight, it's cream of mushroom)
4. 2 - 4 chicken breasts

Let the cream cheese soften up a bit, mix it with the soup and the Italian dressing mix. You can do this in the crock or in a bowl - we don't really care :-) If you're a food safety Nazi, make sure your chicken is thawed or fresh. If you're lazy (like me) and like to live on the edge (haven't gotten sick yet) just throw the frozen chicken in the crock. Either way, spoon the cream cheese mixture on top. Cover it, and cook it. Low all day, high for 4 hours. Obviously you'll want to make sure your chicken is cooked. When you go the lazy route (frozen chicken) I tend to check on the chicken after a couple of hours and cut it up. Smaller pieces to cook - if you cook it all day, you can shred it (pull it) before you serve it. Yummo!








When the chicken is done, cook up some rice or egg noodles, plate up your choice and top with the yummy, creamy, Italian chicken concoction.

If'n you want to get all fancy for guests, you can add mushrooms and maybe add a little roasted asparagus on the side. 

Crockpot 101

Since a friend of mine just bought her first crockpot I thought I would share a recipe / tip that was shared with me. I use it almost every single week. It's healthy, it's easy, it's a major time saver, and it saves money as well. What could be better?!

If you're lazy in the kitchen, like me, the first thing you want to do is line your crockpot with one of those fabulous Crockpot Liner bags. I hate washing a crockpot. I think it stems from "back in the day" when they didn't have a removable crock. 

Take a bag of frozen, boneless, skinless chicken breasts and put them in the crockpot (I use half a bag from the warehouse club since there are just 2 of us). Add a carton of chicken stock (not broth). I buy the low sodium kind. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook on low 8-10 hours. In an hour or two your house will smell yummy.

If you want the breasts to stay whole, you might want to check them at 8 hours and remove them if they're done. At 10 hours, they will fall apart for sure when you try to take them out!

Now that your chicken is cooked, shred one breast and add it back to the chicken stock. Add a can of carrots (or slice and cook fresh ones if you like, add some celery and onions too while you're at it).  Add cooked noodles. I use No Yolks Dumplings. Voila - really, really, REALLY good homemade chicken noodle soup. This makes 5-6 good sized bowls of soup - plenty for hubby and I for dinner and a couple of lunches. 

Doesn't it look yummy? This was the last time I made the soup - and I boiled the noodles right in it when I was reheating!

Some days I just dump the bag of stock and shredded chicken / carrots into a large pitcher and stick it in the fridge to make the next day or later in the week. When I'm ready to make it, I pour it in a pot and bring it to a boil and just add the noodles and let them cook in the soup! No need for the extra step. It also freezes well - just skip the carrots and noodles to freeze it, add them later when you're ready to cook it!

As for the rest of that chicken - I store mine in a gallon Zip-Loc bag or one of those Zip-Loc containers in the fridge. During the week my fabulous husband will pull out a piece or two and make dinner with it. Basically, the chicken just needs to be reheated.

Heat up 2-4 pieces in a skillet with 8oz of cream cheese (we use fat free), a packet of Italian or ranch dressing mix and a can of condensed cream of mushroom soup, throw a bag of Steamers type veggies in the microwave and boil up some noodles to spoon it over - dinner is served in under 30 minutes. 

Aside from that, I have a zillion and one (exactly 1 zillion and 1 - I counted) chicken recipes that I have found online. I'll post more later - hubby has his own "recipe" book of the ones he has printed out and makes regularly. They're very good and easy to make (trust me, he is NOT into cooking...so they gotta be easy!) 

On that note - he just stuck his head in my office to say "Dinner is ready - we're eating on the deck tonight". What girl wouldn't want to hear that?