Autumn Chicken

This was our dinner on Halloween night. Perfect for chilly autumn evenings!

You will need:

about 6 chicken thighs

2 sliced apples apples (called for macintosh but I used fuji)

1 cup apple juice

1 t cinnamon

2 T lemon juice

1/2 onion sliced

Directions:

In the bottom of the slow cooker, pour in the apple juice followed by the chicken. Place onions around the edges. Mix together apples with lemon juice and cinnamon, then place on top of the cihcken. Cook on low for about 8 hours. Serve over rice.

A New Fave

Chicken Adobo: our new favorite.

http://lookwhaticooked.blogspot.com/2011/02/chicken-adobo.html

Polenta spaghetti casserole

This was one of my own creations. I bought polenta intending to make Polenta Tamale Pie:
http://lookwhaticooked.blogspot.com/2010/05/polenta-tamale-pie.html
But I bought basil and garlic flavored polenta instead of plain, so I made up a different recipe instead:

You will need:
1 2-lb roll of polenta
1 lb spaghetti
1 jar spaghetti sauce (meat sauce would give it extra protein, or non-meat would make this a vegetarian option)
2 cups shredded cheddar

Directions
Break pasta into 2 inch pieces, then cook until al dente, mix with pasta sauce in large bowl. Grease glass baking pan and pour pasta into it. Slice polenta into squares and layer on top, then sprinkle cheese. Bake covered at 350 for about 45 min.

Potato Soup

Crock pot Potato Chowder
8 cups diced potatoes

1/3 cup onion, chopped

6 chicken bouillon cubes

6 cups water1

10 ¾ ounce can of condensed cream of chicken soup

8 ounce package of cream cheese

½ lb bacon, cooked and crumbled

Dried parsley or sliced green onions for garnish – optional

Combine potatoes, onion, water, bouillon, and chicken soup in the crock pot.Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or until potatoes are tender. Add cream cheese to crock pot and blend.Top with bacon and parsley or onions before serving.

Chicken enchilada soup

Chicken Enchilada Soup
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained1
14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes (I used the kind with sweet onion in it)
1 10-ounce package frozen whole kernel corn
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped yellow, green, or red bell pepper (I used red, which is my favorite pepper)
1 10-ounce can enchilada sauce (I used mild)
1 10.75-ounce can condensed cream of chicken soup1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup shredded Pepper jack cheese (4 ounces)
2 chicken breasts

In a 3 1/2 to 5 quart slow cooker, combine drained beans, tomatoes, corn, onion, and bell pepper. Place 2 chicken breasts on top of mixture. In a large bowl, whisk together enchilada sauce and soup. Gradually whisk in milk until smooth. Pour sauce mixture over ingredients in cooker.Cover; cook on low heat for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours. Remove chicken and cut or shred into bite sized pieces. Add chicken back into soup. Top with pepper jack cheese and serve. Can also be topped with avocado, sour cream, or crushed tortilla chips. Note: if the soup is too thick for you, just add a little more milk after it’s all cooked.

Chicken Tetrazzini

There are two ways to make this meal: cassserole style or pasta-bowl style.

Ingredients for either recipe:
1-2 chicken breasts cooked and cubed
1 lb spaghetti, broken into 2 inch pieces and cooked until aldente for casserole or fully for pasta-style.
1 jar pimentos
1 can mushrooms
1 can cream of chicken or mushroom
3/4 can of water
*Breadcrumbs: for casserole style only
*Extra can of cream of mushroom and extra 1/2 can of water for casserole style


For pasta-style tetrazzini:

Heat the soup, water, cheese, parsley, pimentos, spaghetti and chicken in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat until the mixture is hot and bubbling, stirring occasionally.


For casserole style:

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl including extra soup and water. Spoon into large casserole dish and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Bake at 350 covered for for about 30 min.

Cheddar Garlic Chicken

Ingredients:
6 to 8 chicken thighs, skinned
3/4 cup plain or seasoned bread crumbs
4 tablespoons margarine or butter
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
garlic powder
2-4 oz cheddar cheese, diced thinly or grated

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Melt butter in the microwave and season with garlic powder, how much you like
In a bowl, mix breadcrumbs and cheeses.
Dip chicken pieces in margarine mixture, then coat with breadcrumb mixture.
Place in a baking dish (if any garlic margarine mixture is left, pour over the chicken).
Place in the oven and bake chicken for approximately 45 min.

Ice cream pie

If I reminiscence back to dinner at my Grandparent's house, it always brings up lasagna, followed by ice cream pie.  It is such a simple recipe that I am surprised every time I have it just how tasty it it.  Plus, as a bonus, you make it the day before you serve it, so it is all ready to go when you need it.

Nut choppers:

ICE CREAM PIE:

1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
3 cups corn flakes
1 cup coconut flakes
1 quart vanilla ice cream, slightly softened

Add melted butter to brown sugar in a large bowl.  Add corn flake, coconut and pecans and mix well.

Pack about 3/4 of the mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a 10" pie plate.

Spoon in the ice cream.

Sprinkle remaining crumbies on the top, pressing into the ice cream. 

Cover and keep in the fridge several hours, or overnight.

Creamy chicken tortilla soup

You will need:

1 cup salsa
2 cans Cream of Chicken Soup
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 cups frozen whole kernel corn
1 can (about 15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 soup can water
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 corn tortillas (6-inch), cut into strips
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (about 4 ounces)
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Stir the salsa, soup, chicken, corn, beans, water and cumin in a 4-quart slow cooker.
Cover and cook on LOW for 4 to 5 hours or until the chicken is cooked through.
Stir the tortillas, cheese and cilantro into the cooker. Cover and cook for 15 minutes. Serve with additional cheese, if desired.

Porcupine meatballs

You will need:

1 1/2 lb ground beef (raw)

1/2 cup rice (raw)

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 T minced onion

1 can tomato soup

1 can water

Directions:

Combine meat, rice, salt, pepper, and onion in a bowl. Shape into meatballs. Mix soup and water together and pour over meatballs in a baking dish. Cover and bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Optional: add a can of diced tomatoes to the sauce. Kids like this one with ketchup on top!

Fish Taco Bake

This one is delicious! It's like fish tacos but baked in the oven. You could even adjust the recipe and make them into enchiladas instead!

You will need:

1-2 lbs halibut or cod

4 T olive oil

1/2 t garlic powder

1 package corn tortillas

12 oz salsa

2 cups grated cheddar

1/3 cup flour

1 3/4 cup chicken broth

1/2 cup heavy cream

black pepper

Puree salsa in a blender and set aside. Cook fish in a large skillet with 2 T olive oil. Remove fish and set aside. Add the other 2 T of olive oil to the skillet. Add the flour and stir into a roux. Slowly add broth and stir until thickened. Reduce heat to low and add cream and salsa. In a baking dish, layer: sauce, tortillas, fish and repeat. Top with cheese and bake at 375 for approx 45 min.

Pumpkin bread revisited

Marla posted a yummy recipe for pumpkin bread 2 autumns ago.  It is my go-to pumpkin bread recipe now.  Or at least several times a year after I've bought the 3 pack of jumbo cans from Costco.  It is really tasty, but something about the cup of oil in each recipe makes it seems extra not-so-healthy.  So today I made two batches; one using half oil and half applesauce, and the other subbing all the oil out for applesauce.  Both batches turned out great, so I think I'll go with all applesauce from now on.  There is a link above for the original post, and I'll copy it again below.

Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil (substitute some or all with applesauce)
2/3 cup water
3 cups white sugar
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Grease and flour two bread pans. In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended.

Pour into the prepared pans.

Bake for about 60 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

My first slow cooker dessert: peanut butter brownies

I have finally found the answer to all of life's problems: dessert in the slow cooker! For years I meticulously planned meals when friends came over, but never got far enough in the planning to actually make a dessert. Usually after dinner I'd send "Anton and the guys" up to Safeway to pick up something for dessert! But then it occured to me to put something in the crock pot before I even make dinner and by dessert time it's ready to go. Why didn't I think of this years ago? :)

The Ingredients:
--5 T butter
--1/2 cup granulated sugar
--2 eggs
--1 t vanilla
--1/2 cup flour
--1 cup natural peanut butter
--1/4 t baking powder
--1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
--1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix well. Press into bottom of the crock pot and cook on HIGH for approx 2.5 hours, using a chop stick to prop open the lid. Brownies are done when edges start to darken. Keep in mind these will not be the same as brownies baked in an oven, but they were still really good. Serve warm with ice cream!

Mr. Mobley's Stir Fry

Start with some garlic, sesame oil, and a large skillet. Fry up some chicken, then add whatever chopped veggies you have in the house. I used carrots, broccoli, red bell pepper, and snap peas. After chicken is cooked and veggies are slightly soft, pour in an ample amount of the most delicious sauce ever, Mr. Mobley's tahini sauce and simmer for 15 min.

So far I've only found it where it's made, Whidbey Island. Originally I thought you could only get it at the farmers' market but Anton's parently recently found it at the Coupeville grocery store. I've never tried other brands of tahini sauce, but there might be another good one out there.