"Cream of Soup"

I found this recipe on Pinterst and used it for the first time in my Crock Pot Italian Chicken. It worked AND it was delicious! I can't wait to try it out in other recipes I have that call for a "cream of something" soup.

Cream of Soup
Ingredients:
2 c non-fat dried milk
3/4 c cornstarch
1/4 c bullion (I used chicken...if you have cubes, you'll have to crush them)
3 T minced onions, dried
2 t Italian seasoning
1 t pepper
*For the equivalent of 1 can of cream of something soup you will need to mix 1/3 c mix with 1 1/4 c water.
*Makes 9, 10.5 oz cans

If you wanted to add mushrooms or bits of chicken you could. It worked just as well with just the mix in this recipe since it already has chicken in it! This actually turns out to be much cheaper than by the can and is gluten free! J and I aren't SUPER health freaks but we do try to make wise choices in the areas we can. Soups can be full of things I can't even pronounce. This soup eliminates some of that from our diet. I love being able to control what's in my food!!!

Crock-pot Italian Chicken

And I quote J, "This is my new favorite." This meal was packed full of flavor and is certainly a fix it and forget it. The chicken can go in thawed or frozen! Those are the best kind as I often forget to lay things out.

Crock-pot Italian Chicken

Ingredients:
2-4 boneless/skinless chicken breast (I used 2)
8 oz. cream cheese (let soften...I used a little less than 8 oz. because it's all I had handy)
1 can cream of chicken soup (I used my homemade mix that I'll post next!)
1 package Italian dressing powder mix
Instant rice (I cooked 2 cups and have left overs)

Directions:
1. Soften cream cheese
2. Mix soup mix/water and Italian powder in crock pot
3. Add cream cheese and chicken
4. Cook on low 4-6 hours
5. Cook rice in microwave when ready to serve
6. Shred chicken - It easily shred in the crock pot - serve over rice

I will say it isn't one of those dishes that presents as well as it tastes! It looks just like some chicken and rice, but as stated before it is chock full o' flavor!

Cake Batter Blondies

There are two blondie recipes I'm attempting. I attempted the Cake Batter Blondie the other night when J's family came over for dessert. It was a hit! Super easy since it comes from a box of cake mix too. I served it warm with vanilla ice cream on top.

Cake Batter Blondies
Ingredients:
1 box yellow cake mix
1/4 c vegetable oil
1 egg
1/2 c milk (stir in slowly)
1/4 c sprinkles

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350
Combine first 4 ingredients in a bowl
Add milk slowly - you want the batter to remain as dense as possible so they are more "blondie" than cake
Mix the sprinkles in last
Spread into an 8x8 baking dish or pan
Bake 25-30 minutes

Jalapeno Stuffed Chicken

I made this for supper tonight and it turned out rather tasty. I was afraid it would turn out to have too much heat to it, but alas it was perfect. It was very flavorful. The recipe will easily fill 4 chicken breasts. I only used 2 and had a good portion of the cream cheese mix left over.

Jalapeno Stuffed Chicken
Ingredients:
2 slices bacon, cooked/crumbled (I used turkey bacon)
2 jalapenos, chopped (seeds removed for less kick)
6 oz cream cheese, softened
4 oz shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 c breadcrumbs
2 T lime juice
1 T olive oil
4 chicken breasts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450
Line a baking dish or pan with foil and spray
Combine cream cheese, shredded cheese, onion, jalapenos, and bacon
Mix olive oil and lime juice (I also added a dash of salt and pepper)
Flatten chicken
Fill chicken with 2 T of the mix, roll, and hold shut with toothpick
Dip chicken in olive oil mix
Dip in breadcrumbs
Place in dish and bake for 25-30 minutes

Blueberry Yum Yum

Once again, summers are for desserts that include blueberries and lemon! This dessert was delicious. I do believe the crust was my favorite part of the whole thing. I suppose you could use other pie fillings as well. I think cherry and strawberry would both work nicely with this recipe.

Blueberry YumYum
1st layer
Ingredients:
1/2 c butter (1 stick margarine)
1/2 c brown sugar, packed
1 c self-rising flour (however I used my gluten free flour)
1 c pecans, chopped fine
Directions:
Preheat over to 350
Mix all ingredients until crumbly
Press in bottom of 9x13 baking dish
Bake 15-20 minutes

2nd layer
Ingredients:
8 oz cream cheese
8 oz cool whip
2 c powdered sugar
Directions:
Mix ingredients together until smooth
Spread over completely cooled crust (I put it in the freezer to speed up the cooling process)

3rd layer
Ingredients:
21 oz blueberry pie filling
Whipped topping, optional (I did not use the topping)
Directions:
Spread over cream cheese layer
Cover and refrigerate several hours before serving.

From Scratch Banana Pudding

We were attending a get together with some friends and I was in charge of dessert. I always try to do something different and I'm allergic to cinnamon and J is allergic to chocolate. So....our dessert options are usually pretty limited. I'm researching and expanding out dessert menu though! A friend asked if I had a banana pudding recipe because she loves it. Well...I had one in my cookbook, but I had never made it. I stepped out of my comfort zone and it turned out pretty tasty. It was a little sweeter than I anticipated but everyone seemed to enjoy it. I actually made two new desserts that evening and will post the other recipe later.

From Scratch Banana Pudding
Ingredients for pudding:
2/3 c sugar
1/4 c all-purpose flour
1/4 t salt
2 c milk
2 eggs, separated (whites for meringue)
1 t vanilla
3 bananas
vanilla wafers
Ingredients for meringue:
2 egg whites
1/4 c sugar

Directions for pudding:
-In a sauce pan combine sugar, flour, and salt. Mix in milk, egg yolks, and vanilla. Bring to a rolling boil and cook until thick. (Mine never came to a rolling boil, it just got thick)
-Line a baking dish with vanilla wafers and pour pudding over wafers, then top with sliced bananas. Continue to layer wafers, pudding, and bananas until pan is full.
-Cover with meringue
Directions for meringue:
-Preheat oven to 425
-Beat egg whites until stiff, then slowly add sugar
-Done when it forms a peak when you remove beaters
-Spread over pudding and bake until golden brown on top

Kitchen Tip

The other week I was at my parents and my dad was making tea. J is a big tea drinker and it's always a bummer when it's so freshly made that it's still warm. Well...I don't know why this never crossed my mind, but my dad  put a little bit of water in and then was filling a large glass full of ice and putting it in the pitcher and stirring it until it melted and then adding more! Voila! When he was done stirring and the ice was melted down, the tea was cold! I then carried the practice over to when I was making some pink lemonade the other day. It did not need near as much ice since there was nothing hot involved. Sheer genius. I love little things that make life simpler.