Slow Cooker Cilantro Lime Chicken

I think this will be a go to meal for when the kids are here.  Served on tortillas with lettuce, tomatoes, olives and sour cream, it will be yummy, I am sure.

1 16oz. jar salsa
1 package dry taco seasoning mix
1 lime, juiced
3 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
3lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts


Place the salsa, taco seasoning, lime juice and cilantro into a slow cooker and stir to combine.  Add the chicken breasts, and stir to coat with the salsa mixture.  Cover the cooker, set to high and cook until the chicken is very tender, about 4 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours.  Shred chicken with 2 forks to serve.

Italian Sausage Soup

This soup is on the docket; maybe for next week.  I found this recipe a couple of months ago and then proceed to misplace it.  I think my mother in law will enjoy it as well.  I also think the kids will eat this soup; maybe with regular pasta instead of the spinach.  We'll see.

1 1/2lb. sweet Italian sausage
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 small onions, chopped
2 16oz. cans whole peeled tomatoes
1 1/4 C. dry red wine
5 C. beef broth
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
2 zucchini, sliced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
3 tbsp. chopped fresh parlsey
1lb. package spinach fettucine pasta
salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, cook sausage over medium heat until brown.  Remove with a slotted spoon, and drain on paper towels.  Drain fat from pan, reserving 3 tbsp.

Cook garlic and onion in reserved fat for 2 to 3 minutes.  Stir in tomatoes, wine, broth, basil and oregano.  Transfer to a slow cooker and stir in sausage, zucchini, bell pepper and parsley.

Cover, and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours.

Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil.  Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente, about 7 minutes.  Drain water and add pasta to the slow cooker.  Simmer for a few minutes and season with salt and pepper before serving.

Creamy Italian Slow Cooker Chicken

This looks good, not really WW friendly but I bet it would be good over pasta.  I could make it a little friendlier in the WW world by using lowfat cream cheese and low fat and low sodium cream of chicken soup.

4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 tbsp. butter melted
1 4oz. package cream cheese, cubed
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 pkg. dry Italian salad dressing mix
1/2 C. dry sherry

Rinse chicken and pat dry with paper towels.  Place chicken breasts in a slow cooker and drizzle melted butter all over chicken breasts; lifting them up to allow the butter to flow underneath the chicken.  Cover the cooker, set to high and cook until tender, 4 to 5 hours.  With a metal spatula, chop up the chicken into bite sized pieces in the slow cooker.

Place the cream cheese, cream of chicken soup, Italian dressing mix, and sherry into a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally until the cream cheese has melted and the sauce is well combined.  Pour the sauce over the chicken in the slow cooker; cover and cook on high until the flavors have blended and the sauce is bubbling; about 30 minutes.

Happy Roast Chicken

This recipe is written for the oven but I have done some chicken "roasting" in the crock pot.  I just place the whole chicken on tin foil that is balled up in the bottom of the crock pot.  The chicken doesn't get as brown as it would in the oven but it tastes like roasted chicken.  Try it!

1/2 C. dry white wine
2 lemons, cut in half
6 large cloves garlic
1 whole chicken (approx. 4lbs.)
1 1/2 tsp. cold butter
2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Pour the wine into a 10 inch cast iron skillet, set aside.

Place the lemon halves and garlic cloves into the cavity of the chicken.  Slide half of the butter underneath the skin of each breast.  Rub the chicken all over with Dijon mustard, then season to taste with salt and pepper.  Place into cast iron skillet.

Bake the chicken in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue baking until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 1 hour more..  An instant read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees.  Remove the chicken from the oven, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 15 minutes before slicing.

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

Here is a new spin on tortilla soup from the Penzeys catalog.  The recipe calls for green enchilada sauce but I may do red sauce because I like it better.

1 boneless skinless chicken breast
2 15oz. cans peeled tomatoes with green chiles
1 28oz. can enchilada sauce
2 C. frozen corn
2 15oz. cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 C. chicken broth
1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 1/2 tsp. Mexican oregano
3 corn tortillas roughly chopped or torn into 1 inch pieces
2 tbsp. fresh cilantro
1-2 tbsp. lime juice

Place everything except the cilantro and lime juice in the slow cooker.  Cook on high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours in the slow cooker.  Remove the chicken and shred with two forks; return to the crock pot with the cilantro and lime juice.  Taste and add extra seasonings if needed.  Serve with optional garnishes such as diced avocado, lime wedges, sour cream, shredded cheese and toasted tortilla chips.

Corn Chowder

I adapted this recipe from a recipe I found on allrecipes.com.  The original did not have a measurement for the bacon, added chicken broth and water, did not include carrots and used canned corn.  Here is the way I made it today.

• 1/2lb. bacon, diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 32oz. cartons chicken broth
• 2 large potatoes, peeled and diced
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 16oz. frozen corn
• 1 cup milk, divided
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• Chopped fresh parsley

• In a 3-qt. saucepan, cook bacon until crisp; remove to paper towel to drain. Saute onion in drippings until tender.  Drain.  Add broth, carrots and potatoes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Add salt and pepper; mix well. Add corn and 3/4 cup of milk.  Using a stick blender, blend until smooth Combine flour and remaining milk until smooth; add to soup. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Garnish with bacon and parsley if desired. 

Just a note, I put the bacon into the soup before blending.  The flavor is terrific!  Next time I will probably add shredded chicken.

Tomato Basil Soup

I found another meat free soup for Lent!  It's funny because so many of my meat free soups are so good that I eat them outside of Lent as well.  I just wish the fresh basil I get for this soup was coming from the herb garden on the deck...in a few months.

1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 C. onion
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3/4 C. chopped fresh basil
1 28oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes undrained
1/2 C. low fat cream cheese
2 C. low fat milk
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper

Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium high heat. Add onion; saute 3 minutes.  Stir in garlic; cook for 1 minute.  Add basil and tomatoes; bring to a boil.  Stir in cheese until melted.  Place mixture in blender ( I will most likely use my stick blender) and blend until smooth.  Return to pan; stir in milk, salt and pepper.  Return to medium high heat; cook 2 minutes.

Pepper Chicken Piccata

I found this recipe on allrecipes.com and I plan to maybe hold off until the peppers, herbs, and onions are garden fresh.  Can you tell I am getting the itch for Spring.  You would think it has been a harsh Winter with the way I have started pining for Spring in the last week or so.  I cannot complain about the Winter at all but I am ready for Spring!  Bring it on...I'll make the chicken!

3 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 red peppers, seeded and diced
2 large sweet onions, peeled and cut into wedges
1 1/2lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1 lemon, juiced
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet, heat oil.  Saute red bell peppers and onions until they begin to soften.  Remove from skillet with a slotted spoon and set aside.  Add cubed chicken to skillet and brown lightly.  Add garlic and cayenne.  Reduce heat slightly and saute, covered for 1 to 2 minutes until garlic is golden brown.

Using a wooden spoon, add lemon juice, stirring to break up particles on bottom of skillet.  Add butter, stirring and blending well into the sauce.  Return bell pepper and onion to skillet.  Stir all together and add parsley.  Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup

This is a throw everything in the crock pot recipe and walk away.  I am putting it on the short list of recipes to make soon.  This actually sounds like it would be more of a stew than a soup but we'll see what happens.  For ease of eating at work, I will probably omit the cheese, sour cream and chips.  If I am doing this for a dinner, I will include them.

1 onion, chopped
1 16oz. can chili beans
1 15oz. can black beans
1 15oz. can whole kernel corn
1 8oz. can tomato sauce
1 12oz. can or bottle beer
2 10oz. cans diced tomatoes with green chiles, undrained
1 pkg. taco seasoning
3 whole boneless skinless chicken breasts
shredded Cheddar cheese
sour cream
crushed tortilla chips

Place the onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, beer and diced tomatoes into a slow cooker.  Add taco seasoning and stir to blend.  Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients.  Set the slow cooker to low, cover and cook for 5 hours.

Remove chicken breasts from the soup and allow to cool long enough to be handled.  Shred the chicken and stir it back into the soup and continue cooking for 2 hours.  Serve topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream and crushed tortilla chips, if desired.

Toffee Bread Pudding

This was the dessert in our cooking class after we made the short ribs, lobster brie fondue and pancetta smashed potatoes.  You know, because we hadn't ingest enough calories yet.  This turned out really good.  The bread pudding at Dorado is still the best but ours was tasty!

4 C. whole milk
1 C. heavy whipping cream
1 loaf French bread, crust removed and the bread diced (about 6 C. diced bread)
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1 C. toffee pieces smashed with a meat mallet
5 eggs
4 egg yolks
1 C. sugar
Pinch fine sea salt
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Boil a teakettle full of water.

Heat milk and cream in pot over medium flame.  Turn off when film forms and tiny bubbles appear.

Put bread in large bowl.  Toss with butter to lightly coat.  Put a third of the bread in a ceramic baking dish.  Sprinkle with half of the toffee, add another third of the bread, the rest of the toffee and then the rest of the bread.

Put eggs, yolks, sugar, salt, and vanilla in a large bowl.  Temper in milk (pour slowly), whisking constantly.  Pour liquid over bread to cover.  Press bread down with hands to let bread absorb custard.  Put baking dish in a larger roasting pan.  Gently pour the boiling water halfway up the outside of the ceramic baker to create a water bath.  Bake until custard is set but slightly quivering, approximately 35 to 40 minutes.

Remove baking dish from roasting pan.  Cool slightly and serve warm.

Pancetta and Chive Smashed Potatoes

We made this at at cooking class at Flavour Cooking School.  Chris will maintain that they would be better without the brussels sprouts.  I didn't mind the sprouts; Chris was pretty offended by them.  I think the sprouts kept me from eating the whole bowl by myself.

3lbs. Yukon gold potatoes
1-2 tbsp. sea salt
8oz. diced pancetta
2 tbsp. butter
2 small shallots, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2lb. brussels sprouts
1/4 C. white wine
2 tbsp. whole grain mustard
1/2-1 C. heavy whipping cream at room temperature
4-6 tbsp. unsalted butter at room temperature
1/4 C. minced fresh chives
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Peel potatoes and cut into 1 inch chunks.  Place in a large pot and cover with cold water.  Add salt and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until knife tender.  Drain potatoes thoroughly and return to pot.

Add pancetta to a cold large cast iron pan.  Heat over medium flame and saute until crispy, about 8-10 minutes.  Remove pancetta from pan and drain.  Remove all but 2 tbsp. of fat from the pan.

Add butter to saute pan and stir until melted.  Add shallots and garlic to pan.  Saute until aromatic, about 2 minutes.

Rinse brussels sprouts with cold water.  Pull off any limp outer leaves.  Trim tough ends off bottom of sprouts.  Cut in half lengthwise.  Thinly slice brussels sprouts into 1/2 inch threads.  Add brussels spouts and stir to coat in fat.  Saute until partially softened, about 3-5 minutes.

Add wine and deglaze the pan.

Stir in mustard to coat brussels sprouts.  Saute until bright green and al dente about 2-3 minutes more.  Do not overcook or they will be bitter and limp.  If you are Chris, you have skipped the last 3 steps and are moving on.

Add pancetta and brussels sprouts to hot potatoes.  Add cream, butter and chives.  Mash lightly until crushed but still chunky.  Add more cream and butter as desired.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Serve immediately.

Brie and Lobster Fondue

Chris and I made this at a cooking class recently.  I wish I could eat more lobster.  I like it but it does not like me.  This fondue was AMAZING.  We had bread and broccoli for dipping and I don't normally eat broccoli.  This fondue made broccoli edible!

2 tbsp. unsalted butter
4 shallots, peeled and diced small
2 tbsp. flour
1 C. chicken stock
2 C. brie cheese, rind removed and diced
1/2 C. heavy whipping cream
8oz. cooked lobster meat, chopped
1-2 tbsp. lemon juice
Dash tabasco sauce
1/2-1 tsp. smoky paprika
1 tbsp. minced fresh Italian parsley

Melt butter in medium pot.  Saute shallots until softened but not browned, about 3 minutes.

Sprinkle in flour to make a roux.  Cook, whisking for 2 minutes.

Add stock slowly, whisking after each addition.  Simmer until mixture thickens, about 3-4 minutes.

Add brie and cream and cook until cheese melts.  Add remaining ingredients and heat through.  Transfer to oil fondue pot.

Cheesy Bake Tortellini

I got this recipe from the package with my Giada De Laurentiis bakeware.  My mouth is watering looking over the recipe card.  This is something that will be great when I have my herbs growing on the deck.

4 C. marinara sauce
2/3 C. mascarpone cheese
1/2 C. chopped fresh Italian parsley
4 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
2lb. purchased cheese tortellini
4oz. thinly sliced smoked mozzarella cheese
1/2 C. freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly oil oblong pan.  Whisk sauce, mascarpone cheese, parsley, and thyme in a large bowl to blend.

Cook tortellini in a large pot of boiling water according to package directions; drain.  Combine tortellini and sauce..  Pour into prepared pan.

Top with smoked mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.  Cover and bake until the sauce bubbles and the cheese on top melt, about 40 minutes.

Corned Beef and Cabbage with Horseradish Sauce

I love corned beef.  I love horseradish.  The two together should be a little slice of heaven...OK how about a big hunk of heaven with some yummy sauce on top.  I may practice this once or twice with St. Paddy's Day approaching
1-3lb. corned beef brisket
16 C. cold water
2 bay leaves
2 tsp. black peppercorns
4 whole allspice berries
2 whole cloves garlic
3 carrots, peeled and cut into large wedges
2 onions, peeled and quartered
1/2 large head cabbage, cut into 8 thick wedges
8 small new potatoes, halved
Freshly ground black pepper

For the horseradish sauce
3/4 C. mayonnaise
3/4 C. sour cream
1/4 C. plus 2 tbsp. jarred horseradish
1/2 tsp. lemon zest
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees.

Place the corned beef in a colander set in the sink and rinse well under cold running water.

Place the beef in a large covered roaster.  Add the water, bay leaves, peppercorns, allspice, cloves, carrots, and onions.  Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and skim any scum that rises to the top.  Cover and transfer pan to the oven and braise until very tender, about 4 hours.

While the corned beef is braising, prepare the horseradish sauce.  In a small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, sour cream, horseradish and zest.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate the sauce for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Transfer the corned beef to a cutting board and cover tightly with foil to keep warm.

Add the cabbage and potatoes to the cooking liquid and bring to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cabbage to a large platter.  Slice the corned beef across the grain of the meat into thin slices.  Lay the slices over the cabbage and surround it with the potatoes, carrots and onions.

Ladle some of the hot cooking liquid over the corned beef and serve with horseradish sauce.

You Can't Always Make What You Want...

Sorry Mick, Keith and gang...I need to borrow your song title for this post.  You're going to get two recipes for the price of one here.  What I wanted to make is listed first.  It's a recipe we did one night at Flavour Cooking School in Forest Park.  The second recipe is what I made by adapting the first recipe to what I had in the house.  Both were amazing.

1-2 tbsp. grapeseed oil
1-2 beef short ribs per person
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 large onion, diced small
2 medium carrots, diced small
2 celery stalks, diced small
1/2 C. dry white wine
12 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 tbsp. herbs de Provence
2 tbsp. flour
4-6 C. beef stock
1 28oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1/2 C. Mediterranean black olives, pitted
3 tbsp. roughly chopped fresh parsley

Heat large Dutch oven over medium high heat till hot.  Add oil and swirl to coat.  Season ribs with salt and pepper.  Sear ribs until brown crust forms; 3-5 minutes per side.  Do not over crowd the pan.  Remove meat from the pan.  Pour off all but 2 tbsp. fat from pot.

Add onion, carrots and celery to pot.  Saute until caramelized, 5-7 minutes.  Add wine and deglaze the pan.  Cook until liquid is completely absorbed.  Add garlic, herbs and flour.  Stir to coat vegetables.  Saute 2 minutes to cook off flour taste.

Add 1 C. beef stock slowly, whisking constantly.  Liquid will thicken because of the flour.  Add beef back to pot.

Add tomatoes and bay leaf to pot and then just enough stock to reach 3/4 of the way up the meat.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and cover.  Braise stove top or in a 300 degree oven until meat is tender and falling off the bone, approximately 2-2 1/2 hours.  Remove meat and bay leaf from pan, discard bay leaf.  Reduce liquid until it reaches a sauce consistency.  Add olives and heat through.  Serve sauce with meat and garnish with parsley.


So last Sunday I was looking at the recipe above.  I new I didn't have short ribs but I did have giant bone in pork chops.  Chris doesn't like olives but we both like onions and peppers.  I wasn't going to be home to braise it on the stove top but I have my trusty crock pot.  Here is what I made.

6 large bone in pork chops
salt, fresh cracked black pepper and garlic powder to taste
2 tbsp. grapeseed oil

In a large Dutch oven over high heat add grapeseed oil and swirl to coat the pot.  When the pan is screaming hot, add the pork chops one at a time and brown on both sides.  While the meat is browning, chop a large onion, and slice 3 red peppers.  Lay the peppers in the bottom of the crock pot and add the meat as it comes out of the Dutch oven.

Deglaze the pan after the chops are browned with some red wine.  Add some crushed garlic (3-4 cloves), the wine and brown bits from the pan, a 28oz. can of crushed tomatoes, a carton of beef broth and the onion.  Cook on low for 7 hours until meat is falling off the bones.

I served this with some pasta and garlic bread.

Minestrone Soup

I found this in a recent Better Homes and Gardens.  I'll be looking for some meat free soup for Lent.  This will work for sure.  You could probably switch out garbanzos and use cannelini beans if you want.  I will also probably triple this recipe so I can share it with my mother in law---it makes a pretty small batch.

1 28oz. can diced tomatoes with Italian herbs
1 14 to 15oz. can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed.
1 C. low sodium vegetable or chicken broth
1 medium sweet yellow pepper, chopped
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 C. dry rigatoni or penne pasta
2 to 3 C. baby spinach
Shaved Parmesan cheese to taste

In a Dutch oven, combine the tomatoes, 2 C. water, beans, broth, sweet pepper, seasoning and pasta.  Bring to boiling over high heat.  Reduce heat to medium.  Cook, covered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, just until pasta is barely tender.

Stir in spinach.  Ladle into individual bowls.  Top with Parmesan cheese.

Raspberry Almond Coffeecake

This recipe made the blog because I love raspberries and I love almonds.  Sometimes life is simple.

1 C. fresh raspberries
3 tbsp. brown sugar
1/3 C. sugar
1 C. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt
1 egg
1/2 C. sour cream
3 tbsp. butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 C. sliced almonds

Icing
1/4 C. confectioner's sugar
1 1/2 tsp. 2% milk
1/4 tsp. vanilla

In a bowl, combine raspberries and brown sugar; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  In a small, bowl, whisk the egg, sour cream, butter and vanilla.  Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.

Spoon have of the batter into a greased and floured 8-inch round baking pan.  Top with raspberry mixture.  Spoon the remaining batter over raspberries; sprinkle with almonds.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.  Cool 10 minutes before removing from  pan to a wire rack.  In a small bowl, combine icing ingredients.  Drizzle over coffee cake and serve warm.

Puppy Chow

This is a fan favorite at the Super Bowl party we go to.  I personally think it is something that you could eat all 9 cups mindlessly while watching a football game you don't care about!  Oh wait, you didn't hear that from me.  It  is good though, and pretty easy to make.


1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
9 cups Crispix cereal (any flavor)
3 cups powdered sugar


1. Combine peanut butter, butter and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl.

2. Microwave for one minute then stir to blend all ingredients thoroughly. Add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Stir well.

3. Place the 9 cups of Crispix cereal in a very large bowl.
4. Pour the peanut butter-chocolate mixture over the cereal and toss evenly, making sure all the cereal gets a good covering.
5. Place the powdered sugar in a large zip-lock type plastic bag.
6. Add the peanut butter-chocolate cereal mixture to the bag, leaving enough room for the puppy chow to be shaken (you may have to divide the mixture into smaller batches, coating one batch at a time).
7. Shake the bag vigorously to evenly coat each piece of the puppy chow with powdered sugar.
8. Once the mixture is fully coated, place in a large serving bowl.
9. Coat any additional pieces by shaking the mixture in the powdered sugar filled bag.  Add powdered sugar to the bag as needed until all the mixture is coated.

Rigatoni 2 Ways

OK, I made this last week for dinner with the family for January birthdays and was asked for the recipe today. I didn't have a recipe, I just kind of made it out of my head.  I used my homemade meatball recipe found in this blog.  Normally, my meatballs are slightly smaller than the tennis ball.  But for the rigatoni I made them  about the size of large gumballs.

I also took mild Italian sausage from the Poot, sliced it into chunks again about the size of large gumballs and put them in a baking dish with marinara sauce and cooked them in the oven at 300 degrees for about 3 hours.

I did all of this the week before the party and froze the meatballs and the sausage mixture.

The day of the party I made 3lbs of rigatoni according to package directions.  I also put together some crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes and tomato sauce in two Dutch ovens; one for the meatballs and one for the sausage.  I added some sugar to cut the acid, some Italian seasoning, some basil, garlic powder and onion powder.  Simmer until the noodles are ready to work with.

Once the pasta was cooked and drained I pulled out 3 baking dishes.  I then layered, sauce, pasta, meat and then shredded cheese until the pan was filled.  I made one pan with just meatballs, one with just sausage and one mixed.  Kraft has an Italian blend of shredded cheese which is what I used and I thought it gave it nice flavor.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes until bubbly and cheese is starting to brown.

Warm Goat Cheese in Marinara

We have gone to a local restaurant called Cucina Paradiso many times and they have an appetizer that pairs goat cheese, pesto and marinara over crostini.  This is close.  The goat cheese makes this dish.

Freeze one 4oz. log goat cheese for 15 minutes.  Unwrap and cut into 1/2 inch slices.  Combine 1 C. marinara and 2 tbsp. minced fresh basil in a small shallow baking dish.  Top with goat cheese slices; sprinkle with cracked black pepper to taste.  Bake, uncovered at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes until heated through.  Serve warm with toasted baguette slices.

Red Beans and Rice Soup

OK, I have a recipe from a friend for chicken and wild rice soup which I had a taste for recently.  When I went to the pantry, I didn't have all of the ingredients so I improvised and this is what I came up with.  It's in the crock pot now and I just did a taste test and it wasn't too bad.

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
3 carrots, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can cream of chicken soup (I used lowfat and low sodium)
1 can tomato soup
1 pkg. Zatarains red beans and rice with seasonings
1 1/2 cartons chicken broth
2 soup cans water
Kosher salt to taste
Cajun seasoning to taste

Place chicken in the crock pot and the rest of the ingredients on top.  Cook on low 4-5 hours or on high for 2-3 hours.  Remove chicken and shred.  Put shredded chicken back in the crock pot and warm through.