Poppy Seed Chicken

When my mom died several years ago, a church member brought this casserole for our dinner. I had never heard of it before; from the number of recipes for this on the web it seems to me that everyone has tried this. Yummy for dinner or to give to a sick friend!  Enjoy!


1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken
2 (10 3/4 ounce) cans cream of chicken soup
16 ounces sour cream
60 Ritz crackers, crushed (I used 1/3 less crackers )
1 tablespoon poppy seed
1/2 cup butter, melted (I used 6 T instead)
Directions:

1 Preheat oven to 350°F.
2 Place chicken in a pan and cover with water and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until tender and no longer pink(about 10 minutes). Once cool enough cut into bite size pieces(I use my electric knife).
3 Mix two cans of soup with sour cream in a 13X9 inch rectangular pan. Sprinkle the chicken over the soup mixture.
4 Place Ritz crackers in a plastic bag and gently crush them. Add poppy seeds and shake to combine and then pour melted butter over the crackers and shake again. Sprinkle cracker mixture over the chicken.
5 Bake for 30-40 minutes until it begins to bubble around edges and the crackers are golden brown.



Enjoy!

Homemade Salad Dressings

I love the taste of homemade salad dressings! Easy, fast and lots cheaper than bottled plus they taste heavenly! And you probably have the makings of many varieties right in your fridge or pantry. Plus did I say they taste So Much BETTER???

BASIC RECIPE
1 portion sour - lemon juice, lime juice, apple cider vinegar, balsamic, champagne vinegar, etc
1 portion sweet - honey, jams like raspberry or blackberry, agave, molasses, etc
2 portions oil - EVOO,  vegetable oil, etc

Add whatever you like in fresh herbs, spices, like basil, parsley
Add minced or sliced garlic if you like
Add any type of mustard if you like
Add a little salt and or pepper
Shake well. Can refrigerate for a couple of weeks. Let come to room temp before serving or run the bottle under hot water to de-solidify the olive oil.

MY FAVORITES
Honey LimeVinaigrette
    Lime juice, honey, EVOO
    I add a small clove minced garlic, t spicy mustard or Dijon, 2 t lime zest, a pinch of salt

Balsamic
   Balsamic vinegar, honey, EVOO
    Add minced garlic, chopped basil, mustard , S&P

He is a recipe for Ranch Dressing I found online. I plan to make this with low fat mayo, buttermilk or low fat sour cream to dip my ever present celery and carrot sticks as I am trying to take off the 4 lbs I gained last month with all the birthday celebrations, Easter, and wedding reception out of town!

Homemade Ranch Dressing

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Prep time

5 mins

Total time

5 mins

Makes about 1 cup.

Author: Jennifer Hill

Serves: 8

Ingredients

• ⅓ cup mayonnaise
• ½ cup sour cream, plain yogurt or buttermilk
• 1 large clove garlic (or two small), minced
• 1 tbsp minced fresh dill (or ½ tsp dried)
• 1 tbsp minced fresh parsley (or ½ tsp dried)
• ½ tsp salt
• freshly cracked pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Whisk all ingredients together and store in a glass jar or other sealed container in the fridge for up to 1 week. (I figured 22 cal per T if made with buttermilk and low fat Hallmans mayo.)

Dessert Tonight WW Lemonade Cake

Great cake! Only problem is that there is too much left over. Must give cake away!

Ingredients:

Cake:

1 1/3 cups granulated sugar

6 tablespoons butter, softened

1 tablespoon grated lemon rind

3 tablespoons thawed lemonade concentrate

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 large egg whites

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/4 cups fat-free buttermilk

Cooking spray

Frosting:

2 tablespoons butter, softened

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

2 teaspoons thawed lemonade concentrate

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

8 ounces 1/3-less-fat cream cheese

3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare cake, place first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 5 minutes). Add eggs and egg whites, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda; stir well with a whisk. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat well after each addition.

Pour batter into 2 (9-inch) round cake pans coated with cooking spray; sharply tap pans once on counter to remove air bubbles. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.

To prepare frosting, place 2 tablespoons butter and the next 4 ingredients (2 tablespoons butter through cream cheese) in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until fluffy. Add powdered sugar, and beat at low speed just until blended (do not overbeat). Chill 1 hour.

Place 1 cake layer on a plate; spread with 1/2 cup frosting. Top with remaining cake layer. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake. Store cake loosely covered in the refrigerator.

Makes 16 Servings (1 Slice Per Serving

Nutritional Info Per Serving: Calories: 322; Fat: 9.9g; Protein: 5g; Carbs: 54.1g;
Fiber: 0.5g; Cholesterol: 53mg; Sodium: 293mg

Quinoa Salad

QUINOA SALAD

I basically used this recipe but made a few changes. I deleted the tofu altogether, used chicken broth and added some fresh parsley and cilantro because I did not have enough fresh basil. I added avocado just before serving.  I also halved the recipe which still made about 6 cups.

Ingredients

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• 1 1/2 cups uncooked quinoa
• 3 cups organic vegetable broth (such as Swanson Certified Organic)
• 1 (14-ounce) package reduced-fat firm tofu, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided $
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt, divided
• 1 cup chopped fresh basil
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice $
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon sugar $
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind $
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen baby lima beans
• 4 cups chopped tomato (about 3 medium) $
• 1/2 cup sliced green onions $
• 1/2 cup chopped carrot $
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

Preparation

1. Combine quinoa and vegetable broth in a saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until broth is absorbed and quinoa is tender. Remove from heat.
2. Place tofu on several layers of paper towels; cover with additional paper towels. Let stand 5 minutes. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add tofu; sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Sauté tofu 9 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from heat; cool completely.
3. Combine remaining 2 tablespoons oil, remaining 1 teaspoon salt, basil, and next 6 ingredients (through garlic) in a large bowl; stir with a whisk until blended. Stir in quinoa.
4. Cook lima beans according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Cool completely. Add the lima beans, tofu, chopped tomato, green onions, chopped carrot, and black beans to quinoa mixture; stir gently to combine. Store, covered, in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Maureen Callahan, Cooking Light 
MARCH 2006

Tonight's Entree chicken in Mustard Cream Sauce

Entree Tonight
Sauteed Chicken in Mustard-Cream Sauce

This classic French combination of ingredients also makes an excellent sauce for fish, such as seared salmon and trout.
SOURCE
Everyday Food, May/June 2003

INGREDIENTS

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, (6 ounces each)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup dry white wine, or chicken broth
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon dried tarragon (or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh)

DIRECTIONS

1. STEP 1Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken; saute until cooked through, 10 to 12 minutes, turning once. Transfer to a plate; keep warm.
2. STEP 2Pour wine into hot skillet; cook, stirring, until reduced by half, about 1 minute. Whisk in cream, mustard, and tarragon. Cook, whisking, until thickened, about 2 minutes.
3. STEP 3Pour any accumulated chicken juices from plate into sauce. Right before serving, drizzle cream sauce over chicken.

Dinner Tonight, 7 Up Biscuits

Dinner tonight... Our good friends from Shreveport, the Days,  will be in town this weekend and I am trying some new recipes on them tonight. This one is from Pinterest and you can easily find it online.  Must be VERY good  by the number of times this recipe is on the Internet. 

Easy 7-Up Biscuits
Ingredients:

2 Cups Bisquick
1/2 Cup Sour Cream
1/2 cup 7-UP
1/4 cup melted butter

Directions:
Cut Sour Cream into biscuit mix then add 7-up. It makes a very soft dough. Sprinkle additional biscuit mix on board or table and pat dough out. - Don't knead the dough - just pat it out.  Melt 1/4 cup butter in a 9 inch square pan. Cut 9 biscuits into circles. Place cut biscuits in pan and bake at 450 degrees for about 12 minutes or until golden brown. Keep on eye on them the last minutes of cooking.

When you are hungry for dessert in a hurry and trying to stay one a diet...

Reposting from Salad in a Jar Blog

Apples in a Bag

JANUARY 29, 2011

Apples in a Bag

339K+

Homemade “Apple Bueno”

Then I remembered a tip I recently picked up from my new co-worker, Christa (an answered prayer in the flesh, incidentally). She told me about microwaving a sliced apple to use as a quick addition to oatmeal or ice cream. It sounded like the perfect topping for cinnamon chips similar to the Apple Buenos we used to enjoy at Taco Bueno on Sunday nights after church.  I tried it and was instantly smitten. I predict you’ll feel the same.

6 reasons why you should try Apples in a Bag:

1. Near-instant gratification–cooks in two minutes.
2. Mix and nuke in a disposable plastic bag for quick clean-up.  I use Ziplock freezer bags approved for the microwave. If that makes you nervous or uncomfortable, see this article….or make it in a covered microwave-safe glass bowl or cook it on top of the stove in a regular pan. (When you’re the cook, you get to do it how you want. I  won’t try to change your mind if you won’t try to change mine. Thank-you very much.)
3. It’s versatile. Substitute pears for apples or change up the spices.
4. After making it one time, you won’t need a recipe–it’s that easy.
5. Because it only makes one serving (unless you use a huge apple), there are no leftovers to call your name.
6. The perfect snack/dessert when you must have a sweet but the pantry is empty.  Low in calories. See nutritionals below.

Apples in a Bag

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Author: Paula Rhodes

Recipe type: Dessert, Snack

Ingredients

• 1 small apple (Golden Delicious or Granny Smith are my favorite)
• 1 packet of sweetener (Splenda is my favorite), or a spoonful of sugar
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon water
• Small handful of raisins, optional

Instructions

1. Peel or don’t peel apple, core and slice or dice. Place in freezer-quality plastic zippered bag along with remaining ingredients. Seal bag and shake well to mix ingredients.
2. Reopen bag just a touch to vent. Microwave on High for 2 minutes– longer if you use a big apple.
3. Carefully (it will be HOT and steamy) open bag and pour over plain or cinnamon-sugar pita chips, flour tortilla chips, oatmeal or ice cream.

Notes

(Nutritionals based on no raisins, unpeeled apples and artificial sweetener)

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 1 Calories: 59 Fat: .2 g Carbohydrates: 16.7 g Sugar: 11.0 g Sodium: 2 mgFiber: 2.9 g Protein: .3 Cholesterol: 0 mg

Related Posts:

Swedish Apple Pie
6-Minute Strawberry-Balsamic Sauce
Microwave Banana Pudding

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