Wild Rice Soup

 Ingredients:

6 cups vegetable broth 

6 ounce box Uncle Ben's wild rice

8 ounces sliced mushrooms 

4 cloves (or 4 teaspoons) of minced garlic

2 diced carrots

1 diced sweet potato

1 diced sweet onion 

Optional - cooked diced chicken to taste

1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut milk

Directions:

Put everything in a large pot, except the milk.  Let simmer for about 35 minutes.  Add milk and heat through.  Enjoy!

Kielbasa Campfire Potato Soup

 Kielbasa: Campfire Sausage And Potato Soup

Ingredients:

1 can kidney beans

1 can great northern beans 

1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 quart vegetable broth

1 package turkey kielbasa

2 large baking potato, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1 onion, diced

1 teaspoon sugar

2 teaspoon oregano

2 teaspoon ground cumin

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients in large pot.  Simmer until potatoes are tender.  Can also put in slow cooker for 4-6 hours on high.

Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili

8 servings

Ingredients:

• ▢2 2 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
• ▢222 large onion, diced
• ▢888 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• ▢44 tablespoons chili powder
• ▢11 teaspoon ground cumin
• ▢1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢88 cups vegetable stock
• ▢2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• ▢1 28 ounce ounce can crushed tomatoes
• ▢1 cup dried quinoa - rinsed
• 1 bag frozen corn

Directions:

Add all ingredients into large pot and simmer for about 45 minutes-1 hour.

Pesto Pasta

 Ingredients:

½ cup toasted pine nuts OR shelled salted pistachio nuts

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 small garlic clove

¼ teaspoon sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

2 cups fresh spinach leaves

A few fresh basil leaves

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup vegetable broth - add more as needed to make a smooth sauce

¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese or nutritional yeast 

Put all ingredients into a food processor and grind on high until smooth.  Add more or less of the spinach or vegetable broth or cheese to get the consistency you like.  It should make about a cup of sauce.  I cook one and a half 12 ounce boxes of whole wheat pasta and double the recipe and it seems a good amount to cover the pasta well.  (Plus Ashley always takes out one bowlful of plain pasta before I add the sauce.)

Creamy Vegetable Soup

 Ingredients:

3 medium sweet potatoes peeled and diced 

3 zucchini chopped

2 cups chopped broccoli florets

1 large onion chopped

1/4 cup butter of choice

2 cartons of vegetable broth (about 8 cups)

2 large potatoes - peeled and shredded 

2 teaspoons of salt

1 teaspoons cumin

1 teaspoons black pepper

1/2 teaspoon celery seeds

2 cups of either heavy cream, plant based cream, half and half or whole milk

Directions:

Put everything in a slow cooker and stir except the cream/milk.  Cook on low 8-10 hours or on high 4-5 hours.  Add cream/milk and cook for another hour.  Remove some of the soup - 2-4 cups (depending on preference) and blend in a blender until smooth and then pour back in and stir and serve.

Oven Fried Chicken

OVEN FRIED CHICKEN
8 boneless skinless thighs 2 tbs paprika 2 cups flour 2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp garlic powder 1/4 cup butter or marg. Combine all ingredients except chicken and butter. Put butter in 9x13 inch oven baking dish and melt.Coat chicken with dry mixture and place in pan with melted butter. Cook at 425°F for 20 min. Remove from oven and turn chicken over. Cook for an additional 20 min at 425°F.

Chicken Quesadillas

2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut up into 1 inch cubes
onion, diced
green pepper, diced
cayenne pepper, to taste
salt, to taste


flour tortillas
sour cream
cheese
tomato
green onions

Basically, I brown/cook the chicken with the cayenne pepper and salt until it is cooked through and add in the onion and green pepper and allow those to cook stirring frequently.  I use shortening to coat one side of the tortillas (i use the smaller size one's) then I put them in a pan add the chicken filling and cheese and fold the tortilla into a half moon shape allowing the bottom to brown slightly and melting the cheese flip it over and do the same on that side.  I even prop up the tortilla to get the back of it browned as well.  Add your favorite toppings (IE; shredded lettuce, sour cream, chopped green onions, tomato, etc) and ENJOY!

Crock Pot Ranch Chicken

Crock Pot Ranch Chicken
Ingredients:
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I usually use less)
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 envelope ranch dressing mix
½ cup water
½ cup sour cream
2 tbsp ranch dressing
2 tbsp flour
Spray crock pot with non-stick cooking spray. Place chicken breasts in crock pot. In a small bowl, combine soup, ranch dressing mix, and water; pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low 8 hours or high 4 hours. Remove chicken from crock pot. Stir in sour cream, ranch dressing, and flour; replace chicken. Cover and cook on high 20 mins.

This is really good with mashed potatoes since the sauce can be used as a sort of gravy!  So easy and very tasty! :)

Beef Burritos

1 lb. ground beef
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1 yellow onion, chopped
1/2 bell pepper, finely chopped
12 oz. can refried beans
3 C. shredded cheddar cheese, divided into 2 cups and 1 cup
1 dz. burrito size flour tortillas

8 oz. sour cream
8 oz. salsa
2 C. shredded lettuce
1 large diced tomato

In a large skillet brown the ground beef with salt and pepper. When ground beef is crumbling, add the chopped onion and bell pepper. Cook for an additional 3 minutes, and add the refried beans to the skillet. Mix the beans and meat together and let cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 cups of shredded cheese to the bean and meat mixture. Fill each tortilla with 1/2 cup of the mixture and add cheese to each. Garnish with remaining cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and sour cream.

Vanilla Pancakes

1 1/2 cups flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup vanilla yogurt - regular or fat free
3/4 cup water
3 eggs
3 tablespoons butter (optional)
Cut up strawberries for top of pancakes (optional)
Directions


Mix together all of the dry ingredients in one bowel.
In separate bowel mix together the wet ingredients.
Mix together until combined, but don't overmix or the battery will be too thin and runny.
Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to pour the batter evenly onto your griddle.
Cook the pancakes on griddle at around 350 degrees, cook each side until golden brown, around 1-2 minutes each side. Serve with cut up fresh strawberries if desired.

Quick Slow Cooker Turkey Chili

This is a VERY easy and VERY delicious quick chili recipe.  I got it on allrecipes.com but tweaked it a bit according to other reviewers comments and to what I liked.  We had it tonight again and it is really yummy!  :)  It makes about 4-6 servings.   You can also prepare the turkey meat and onion the night before and throw it together in 10 minutes for a nice Sunday crockpot dish.  I also have never used the red pepper flakes because we like chili more mild.

1 pound ground turkey
1 (10.75 ounce) can tomato soup
1 can diced tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can great northern beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1/2 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes - optional if you like hot spice because it has plenty without this
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 tablespoon ground cumin
1 pinch ground black pepper
1 pinch ground allspice
1 tablespoon sugar

1. Place turkey and onion in a skillet, and cook until evenly brown; drain.

    2.  Coat the inside of a slow cooker with cooking spray, and mix in turkey, tomato soup, kidney beans, corn, white beans, tomatoes, and black beans. Season with chili powder, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, cumin, black pepper, allspice and sugar.  Stir to blend.

    3.  Cover, and cook 8 hours on Low or 4 hours on High.

This will also work to throw into a large pot on the stove and cook for 30 minutes or so on simmering if you forget to do the crockpot. 

Swiss Chicken Casserolle

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (thawed)

8 slices swiss cheese

1 can cream of chicken soup

about 1/2 can of milk

2 cups stuffing mix (i use pepperidge farm herb seasoning or corn bread seasoning)

3-4 Tbsp butter, melted

put chicken in big pot full of water boil for 10 minutes (you can either add an onion or onion salt to help season it well)

place chicken pieces in 8x8 baking dish, cover with two slices of cheese per chicken piece, spread can of cream chicken soup on top and pour 1/2 can milk on top. in separate bowl combine stuffing and melted butter then pour ontop of the chicken. cover and bake at 350 for 45 minutes to an hour.

Chicken Enchilada's

3-4 chicken boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cubed or shredded

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

(1) 16oz container of sour cream

1 pkg green onions, chopped

1 can green chilies

1-2cups shredded cheese (to taste)

1 pkg flour tortillas

Mix together all filling ingredients and spoon about two or three tablespoons into each tortilla and roll up then place in 9x13 baking dish. Once all the tortillas are filled use remaining filling (should be about 1/3 of it) to cover the rolled tortillas. Bake at 350 (covered with alumnium foil)for about an hour or until bubbling. (remove cover for last 10-15mins of baking)