Aunt Karen's Santa Fe Chicken

This meal has been a favorite in the Crosby household ever since the institution was established in December 2004. My Aunt Karen gave me this recipe at my bridal shower, and in all honesty, I don't even look at the recipe card anymore. It is one of those recipes where precise measurements are not needed. As long as you are using good quality ingredients in a modest amount, you'll be good to go. Not to mention, I guarantee you have these ingredients in your house already. If you don't they're pretty cheap to get.


4 potatoes, peeled and diced
Lawry's Seasoning Salt (optional)
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 lb of chicken, thawed and diced
16 oz. of salsa ("heat" is up to your discretion; take advantage of Publix's B1G1)
15 oz. of canned kernel corn
shredded cheese

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. (You could also just mic the diced potatoes for about 10 minutes. That's the way my Aunt Karen instructed me to do it. She is a working woman with 3 girls and is very busy.)
2. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Then spread out the potatoes into a single layer and give 'em a healthy coat of seasoning. I like to use Lawry's Seasoning Salt. You could also use garlic salt. Or you could use the always dependable salt and pepper.
3. Place potatoes in oven for 30-35, or until just golden and easily forked.
4. About 15 minutes before the potatoes are done, heat olive oil in large skillet.
5. Coat skillet with olive oil and toss in chicken.
6. Once chicken is cooked through, add salsa and corn. I usually only use one jar of salsa. However, if you like your food very saucey/wet, add more.
7. Once all of these elements are evenly heated, add finished potatoes.
8. This is your chance to add any other seasoning or elements you desire before serving.
9. The very last thing I do once I have dished out the servings is add shredded cheese on top. If you can live without the extra calories, omit the cheese.

If you want it to be a truly well rounded meal, add a healthy sized salad. Enjoy!

Homemade Nutter Butters

I found these yummy cookies here and made them for Seminary Kick-off. I renamed them homemade Nutter Butters and they were yummy! I doubled the recipe and it made about 3-4 dozen sandwich cookies. It's a fun one for the kids to help with because it doesn't matter if the filling gets spread perfectly or not! Don't be shy when spreading the filling... it makes plenty! Also, it helps to chill the dough a little.

INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup quick cooking oats
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
2 1/2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, cream together 1/2 cup butter or margarine, 1/2 cup peanut butter, white sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Add egg and beat well.
In another bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Stir. Add oatmeal and stir.
Drop by rounded teaspoons onto greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, or until cookies are a light brown.
To Make Filling: Cream 3 tablespoons butter or margarine with the confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter, and the cream. Spread filling onto half of the cooled cookies, then top with the other half to form sandwiches.

Chipotle Chicken, Black Bean and Corn Mini Quesadillas

I've been a mood for Chipotle flavored things... I found this great little recipe on one of my favorite recipe blogs, The Picky Palate .
The picture is of the ones I made for a Baby shower. (I made them with 4 inch corn tortillas that I found at my Fresh & Easy Grocery Store and I kind of rolled them up like little taquitos) They were a big hit! Let me know if you try them, or if you try any of the other recipes on her site. The Monkey Bread looks good!
Here's the recipe, with my comments in paranthesis!

Chipotle Chicken, Black Bean and Corn Mini Quesadillas

3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
30 (3 inch) round flour tortillas, cut with round cookie or biscuit cutter (I liked the 4 inch corn tortillas)
2 Cups diced cooked chicken (I just boiled chicken breasts and then shredded them)
2-3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce from can (We don't like it too spicy, so I only added one! This wasn't as hard to find as I thought it would be... maybe because I'd never heard of it)
1/4 Cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped (I totally forgot to buy this, but they still tasted fabulous!)
1 fresh corn on the cob, kernels removed (I used a cup of Trader Joe's frozen corn)
1 Cup drained black beans
2 Cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 Cups light sour cream (I only used a cup of sour cream)
2-3 Tablespoons adobo sauce from the can of chipotle peppers

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place tortillas onto a baking rack placed over a baking sheet. Brush tops of each tortilla with oil and bake for 5-7 minutes or until slightly golden brown. Remove and set aside.

2. Heat 2 Tablespoons olive oil into large skillet over medium heat. Add cooked chicken, chipotle peppers, cilantro, corn and beans until heated through, about 5 minutes.

3. Sprinkle a thin layer of cheese over each bottom tortilla. Spoon a heaping Tablespoon of chicken mixture over cheese layer then sprinkle with a pinch more cheese. Lightly press a tortilla round over top. Repeat this process until chicken and tortillas are used up. Bake for 7-9 minutes or until cheese is melted. Combine sour cream and chipotle in a small bowl. Serve with a cilantro leaf garnished plate and top with chipotle sour cream if desired.

Thai Panang Curry

1 clove of garlic
1lb of pork, chicken or shrimp
1 can coconut milk
1 med onion
1 red pepper, sliced
1/2 frozen peas
1 - 2 Tbsp of peanut butter
1 - 2 Tbsp of fish sauce
1 lime
1 cup of vegetable or chicken broth (can be used to extend no. of servings
1 - 2 tsp. of red curry paste
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 - 2 Tbsp of peanut or vegetable oil
cilatro

Brown meat and set aside. Chop garlic into very small pieces and brown. Add chuncks of onion next and cook until almost translucent. Add sliced pepper and curry paste and stir. Add coconut milk and bring to a slow boil while stirring. Add meat and broth, peanut butter and brown sugar and stir. Add frozens peas, dash of fish sauce and lime juice and stir. Garnish with Cilantro or fresh Thai basil. Serve over Jasmine or Basmati rice.

He wrote this down kind of quickly, but I tried it and made my own adjustments and loved it. It was very soothing, like a twist on good ole chicken and rice. Kind of sweet...yummy yummy.

Creamy Rice Pudding

I had leftover rice after dinner tonight, so I found this rice pudding online at Allrecipes.com. It doesn't require baking and is absolutely delicious!!! (and easy!)

Creamy Rice Pudding SUBMITTED BY: Erica G.
"This is my mom's recipe for Rice Pudding. It's the best I've ever tasted and it gets rave reviews from everyone I serve it to. Sprinkle with nutmeg or cinnamon, if desired. For creamier pudding, use short or medium grain rice."

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cup COOKED white rice
2 cups milk, divided
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
2/3 cup raisins
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract


DIRECTIONS

In a saucepan, combine 1 1/2 cups cooked rice, 1 1/2 cups milk, sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat until thick and creamy, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/2 cup milk, beaten egg and raisins. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in butter and vanilla. Serve warm. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg.

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Creamy-Chicken-and-Wild-Rice-Soup/Detail.aspx

my sister found this recipe a while back and has been raving about it, this past week I was at her house and she made it for me and it was possibly the best soup I've had ever. Def. top five. We ate it with Tuscan Panne (?) bread which went perfectly. She added carrots, celery that she boiled a little before putting them in and sauteed portabello mushrooms. She also cut some of the cream and replaced it with milk. Nummy Nummy!

Strawberry Cake

Another easy one. It's so good, I get requests from the kids teachers whenever they are in need of cupcakes. :)

1 White Cake Mix, plus ingredients listed on box
1 single serving strawberry yogurt (I like the fruit on the bottom one)

Mix cake mix according to box directions, blending in the yogurt last.
Bake according to box directions. You HAVE to have it with this frosting:

Cream Cheese Cool Whip Frosting
1 small box vanilla pudding
1 (8 oz) block cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
8-12 ounces Cool Whip

Blend all ingredients together, blending the Cool Whip in last. I use the most Cool Whip to make the frosting go farther, especially when I make cupcakes. I use a pastry bag with a large icing tip to swirl it up, just like the ones in the store that mom's spend a fortune on ---okay I've bought them too in a pinch! :)
Anyway, top off your frosted cake with some of those sugar sweetened frozen sliced strawberries. Yum!
Oh, I use this frosting for other stuff too. It's the best for Fruit Pizza!

Banana Cake

If you have bananas you need to use and you're tired of banana bread, try this.

1 White Cake Mix plus the ingredients listed on the box
2-3 ripe bananas (I like bananas, so I use 3)

Mash bananas, set aside. In a separate bowl mix up the cake mix according to the directions on the box. Stir in bananas. Bake according to box directions (9x13, cupcakes, etc). Frost with Cream Cheese Frosting. You can use canned frosting or here's a homemade one:

Cream Cheese Frosting
1 box powdered sugar
1 stick butter/margarine
1 (8-oz) block cream cheese
Cream all together til smooth.

I know someone who has done this recipe with a chocolate cake mix. I've never tried it but it sounds good.

Chess Bars

1 stick margarine (softened)
1 box yellow cake mix (or be creative and try your favorite cake mix, yellow is the one we like best)
1 egg
Stir and pat into a 13x9 inch pan
1 (8 oz.) cream cheese (softened)
1 box Powdered sugar
2 eggs
Mix until smooth. Spread over bottom layer and bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Cool and then chill.

Taco Soup

1 pound lean ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1 package of ranch dressing mix
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can black beans
1 (15 ounce) can stewed tomatoes

Tortilla Chips/Fritos
Sour Cream
Cheese

In large pot brown ground beef and onion. Drain off excess fat. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to boil and then reduce to simmer for 20-30 minutes. Top with chips, sour cream, and cheese.

Award Winning Chili

Here is a recipe from my sister's mother in law from Texas. I've tweaked it to adapt to my taste. It just won first place in a Chili cook off. Let me know how you like it!

3 cans of Red Kidney beans (dark or light...doesn't matter....drained)
1 can of S&W "Chili Makins" (Found at Stater Bros in the chili can aisle)
2 cans Mexican style diced tomatoes (not drained)
1 big can of tomato sauce (I use 1 jar of Ragu Spaghetti sauce)
2 bell peppers (chopped)
1 small white onion (finely diced)
2 tsp Lawry's seasoned pepper (comes in a blue spice container)
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp Lawry's Seasoned salt
1 tbsp butter
2 cans of Kirkland roast beef (drained)

Saute the onion, pepper, and butter. Mix all ingredients together in a crock pot. Cook for eight hours on low. (If you're a vegetarian, it tastes just as good in my opinion without the meat.)

(The next time I make it, I'll post a picture)

Chocolate Morsel Pie

My daughter brought home this yummy pie that she learned to make at Activity Days! It was so good and the recipe looks really easy. She is excited to make it for us for Family Home Evening treat! It's kind of like Pecan Pie, only with Chocolate...

Mix in a bowl:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup melted butter
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Fold in:
1 cup chopped pecans (they were pretty big pieces, not finely chopped)
1 cup chocolate chips

Pour into an uncooked pie shell and bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes.

Southwest Burritos

Here's a recipe I learned in a food storage class:

flour tortillas

1 can diced tomatoes with green chilis
1 can diced potatoes, drained
1 can black beans, rinsed, drained
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 can kidney beans, rinsed, drained

Mix the contents of the cans in a skillet over medium-high heat until heated through. Serve in tortillas.

I actually diced half an onion, browned it in the skillet and then added the contents of the cans. I added some cumin and sprinkled pepper. You could add chili pepper too. I added some chopped bell pepper for color. You could serve this with sour cream or salsa... whatever you like. It's great rolled in tortillas or scooped up with big crunchy corn chips. Feeds a small army. Pretty good!

Green Drink Smoothie

Green Drink Smoothie (Jennifer Porter's request :)
The ingredients are approximate-- you can't mess this one up. Apple or orange juice also works if you're low on Pineapple juice. I rarely measure, I just throw it in and it always tastes great. More spinach and it will be a little bitter. More banana and/or pineapple and it will be sweeter.

1 Cup or more Fresh Spinach
1 or 2 Ripe Bananas
1 Cup or more canned Pineapple
1 cup or more pineapple juice (I just drain it from the can)
1 cup or more ice

Blend until smooth and bright green!! Kids love it!

Chicken Parmesan Quesadillas

breaded chicken tenders, cooked and cut into chunks
spagetti sauce or your preference
mozarella cheese
tortilla shells
butter

Butter one shell, place in pan. Put chicken, sauce and cheese then top with another shell and butter it. Flip cook until cheese is melted. Yummy, found this recently on some product box and we tried it last night.

Yummy Chocolate Chip Cookies

picture by Lillie
Kodi's Chocolate Chip Cookies
Cream Well:
1 lb. butter
2 c. brown sugar
1 ½ c. white sugar
Add:
3 eggs
2 T vanilla
Cream for 4 minutes
Add:
6 c. flour
1 ½ t. salt
1 ½ T. soda
Blend mixture slowly and thoroughly
Add: 2 c. chocolate chips
Bake at 375 for 8 to 10 minutes.
These are amazing, probably the best choc. chip cookie ever. I love them frozen too. Next time I'm going to add more chocolate chips and use unsalted butter.

Lia Pizzas

1 lb. bulk sausage
1 jar of alfredo sauce
2 cups mozarella cheese, shredded or desired amount
two small loaves french bread
can mushrooms (optional)

Brown and drain sauusage and mushrooms. Mix with alfredo sauce. Divide and put on top of slices of french bread, sprinkle with mozarella cheese. Bake at 350 for 20 min or until cheese is melted. Enjoy with salad. Fattening but fantastic only serve occasinally :). I'll post a pic next time I make it.

Had some good recipes

to share so I'm launching this blog site....I was thinking it would be things that not necessarily the norm, new stuff ya know, but a new twist on an oldie or just a good oldie is great too....look forward to your recipes!!!! Send me emails if you want to invite others..Thanks!