Easy Peasy Chicken Pot Pie

Mention comfort food and chicken pot pie immediately comes to my mind. When it comes to homemade chicken pot pie I grew up on biscuit topped chicken pot pie, which happens to not be my favorite, so it was quite a few years before I decided to make my own. I love a flaky buttery pie crust outside to surround the vegetables, tender chicken and creamy filling. I can never decide which part I like better though, the crust or the filling. It's okay to like them equally though isn't it? I am a firm believer that I should make most everything from scratch atleast once. Notice, I said most everything. I came up with Easy Peasy Chicken Pot Pie totally off the cuff one day a couple years back and it was so good and so easy peasy, pun intended that I just haven't seen the need to mess with a good thing. If my Big, Bad Dad aka Mr. Picky Eater, who happens to be a huge chicken pot pie fan likes my easy peasy version enough to request it I must be doing something right. Easy Peasy Chicken Pot Pie 1 package deep-dish pie crust (2 crusts) 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup 1 can mixed vegetables 1/2 cup milk 2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed Preheat oven as instructed on pie crust package. In a medium bowl, mix together soup, mixed vegetables, milk, and chicken. Stir until combined. Pour into pie crust. Place second crust on top. Pinch edges together. Cut several slits in center of crust. Bake as directed for double crust pie, or until crust is golden brown. *You may find that you need more or even a little less milk - some brands of mixed vegetables seem to have more liquid than others. Just make sure your filling is pouring consistency but not runny. I highly recommend placing the pie on a baking sheet before baking to avoid having the ingredients bubble over into the oven. Talk about a mess!

Culinarily Obsessed Pizza Kitchen Open For Business

Everybody loves pizza right? Seriously, I don't think I know a single person who doesn't admit they love pizza. Even the picky eaters I know enjoy cheese pizza at the very least. Me? I can't say I enjoy cheese pizza, but I love it pretty much any other way. Top it with every meat you can think of, I'm in. Just pepperoni? I'm not shy to grab the first slice. You're offering up a supreme? Yum-o! I'm a Carolina girl through and through so I know nothing of that whole NY vs Chicago thing, but give me a slice of each and I'll gladly do a taste test. My most favoritest kind though is hands down barbeque chicken pizza. I can't be sure but I think the famed California Pizza Kitchen may be to credit for the delicious creation. That's definitely where I tried and fell in love with the stuff. But since I live not so close to a CPK and the only one remotely local is in the mall, which everyone knows is a dangerous place for a woman, I figured it best to star making my own. I haven't tried my version next to the CPK version of barbeque chicken pizza, but from my mouth-watering memories my version tastes pretty darn close. The best part? Besides that I'm saving money and potentially serious credit card debt, my Barbeque Chicken Pizza is easy peasy. Somehow even with my serious cookbook addiction I didn't know that California Pizza Kitchen had their own cookbook, but turns out they do. You can preview excerpts of the book on Amazon, so if you love pizza go check out what mouthwatering recipes you can make at home from The CPK Cookbook. And it turns out they've got a new cookbook geared toward family cooking due out in August called California Pizza Kitchen Family Cookbook The ingredients Going in the oven! Can we dig in already? BBQ Chicken Pizza 1 pre-made pizza dough (I suggest Pillsbury in with the refrigerated canned biscuits) 1/4 c bottled barbeque sauce (more or less to suit your taste) 1/2 of small thinly sliced onion pre-cooked chicken, cut into bite size chunks 1-1 1/2 c shredded italian blend or pizza cheese Preheat oven according to dough directions. Grease or spray pan with non-stick spray. Flatten dough into pan, pinching up slight edges. Spread barbeque sauce evenly onto dough using just enough for a thin layer, be careful not to go all the way to edge of dough. Spread chicken pieces evenly over sauced dough, top with cheese. Scatter onion over cheese. Bake according to dough package instructions. Allow to cool slightly before serving. Ok, did I just use two Rachael Rayisms in one post? And I'm not even a fan! That should tell you how much I love this pizza.

Summertime and the living is easy

Summer is a time for easy living and carefree fun. It's also hot as heck, here anyway. I love summer not only for the beautiful, yet sweltering weather but for the amazingly fresh and delicious fruits and vegetables. In my family we're no longer blessed with the bounty of fresh homegrown vegetables: yellow crookneck squash, cucumbers, juicy red tomatoes, new potatoes, butterbeans and string beans as our greenthumb gardner, my beloved Pop, passed away several winters ago. Summers are still beautiful and my favorite season, but they just aren't the same anymore. There is no more going to visit Nana and Pop, finding Pop hidden deep in his garden picking pans full of fresh veggies while Nana is inside canning tomatoes and beans or whipping up something fresh and delicious for dinner. I will always have the vivid memories of those summers to cherish for the rest of my life, along with a delicious recipe passed down by Nana for her Summer Chicken Bake. I remember it like it was yesterday, I think it was probably my eighth birthday dinner. We strayed from the norm of grilling burgers and she created this amazing dish for the first time. I've loved it ever since, and each summer look forward to making it myself. Preparing this recipe along with the others I've learned from Nana helps me feel like she's still here with us, and reminds me that a part of her will always live on, not just in my memories, but in the wonderful and beautiful parts of her that I see in myself. Preparing the Summer Chicken Bake is super easy, with the hardest part being the wait for it to cook. Patience is a virtue that I do not have, I admit it. My measurements are a rough guess, and can be easily changed to suit your taste and the number of mouths you are feeding. Summer Chicken Bake 1 lb skinless chicken breast 1 large yellow onion 1 lb yellow squash 2-3 medium size baking potatoes (or equivalent amount in weight of new/red potatoes) salt and pepper to taste 1/4 - 1/2 stick butter Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice vegetables into equal thickness slices. Starting with potatoes, layer vegetables and chicken in casserole dish. Season with salt and pepper. Cube butter into small pieces and scatter over top of chicken and vegetables. Cover with tinfoil and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, until vegetables are cooked and tender. Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes. *Can also be cooked on the grill by layering vegetables and one piece of chicken on large piece of tinfoil. Then season with salt and pepper and top with small pat of butter. Wrap foil to form a pouch. Place in middle of grill, and cover. Unfortunately I am not the grill master of the family and have not prepared this recipe on the grill myself, so I have no idea what the cooking time on the grill is. Sorry!

Whole Lotta Enchiladas!

If you would have showed up at our house the other night, you would have thought we were enchilada crazy. I've been wanting to make chicken enchiladas for a while, but as is often the case with me, for one reason or another I just never got around to it. Well, enough was finally enough. I was tired of just craving them, I was ready to actually make and eat them. So I found a recipe on allrecipes.com, which seems to be my goto site when I'm craving something & don't have a recipe handy. While I was there I thought I'd look around for a recipe for something sorta easy & mexican-ish I could make for dessert. And what did I find?? Yup, you guessed it - a recipe for dessert enchiladas, Apple Enchiladas to be exact. I took a short cut with the chicken for the Chicken Enchiladas. Harris Teeter has whole roasted chickens for $3.99 each every Sunday, so I figured that would be a good deal, save me lots of time considering I would have no chicken to clean, cook and then cool before actually starting my enchiladas. Overall, I thought they were really tasty & will probably use this recipe again. As I was making the filling, I found that it definitely didn't need the water that the recipe calls for. I used Velvetta, as I didn't have enough cheddar & it tasted fine, but that could possibly explain why I needed to omit the water. If you wanted to add some black or pinto beans to the filling, or maybe even some rice, that would probably be good. We had some leftover spanish rice from the night before, so I heated that up & served it on the side. Pretty tasty! The Apple Enchiladas were super easy & made a nice ending our mexican feast. It wasn't a to die for recipe, but it will possibly make a repeat appearance, sometime when we decide to do another mexican night. Chicken Enchiladas 4 cooked chicken breasts or 1 whole roasted chicken 1 onion, chopped 1/2 pint sour cream 8 oz Velvetta, cubed 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon salt (optional) 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce 1 tablespoon chili powder 1/3 cup chopped green bell pepper 8 (10 inch) flour tortillas 1 (12 ounce) jar taco sauce 3/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Cube chicken & place in a medium skillet. Add the onion, sour cream, Velvetta, oregano and ground black pepper. Heat until cheese melts. Stir in salt, tomato sauce, chili powder, and green pepper. Roll even amounts of the mixture in the tortillas. Arrange in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Cover with taco sauce and 3/4 cup Cheddar cheese. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven 20 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before serving. Apple Enchiladas 1 (21 ounce) can apple pie filling 6 (8 inch) flour tortillas 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/3 cup margarine 1/2 cup white sugar 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup water Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spoon fruit evenly onto all tortillas, sprinkle with cinnamon. Roll up tortillas and place seam side down on lightly greased 8x8 baking pan. Bring margarine, sugars and water to a boil in a medium sauce pan. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring constantly for 3 minutes. Pour sauce evenly over tortillas; sprinkle with extra cinnamon on top if desired. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes. Makes 6 large tortillas; may be cut in half to serve 12. *As side note, I apologize to everyone for having to endure the horrible, awful photos that accompany this post. As I may have mentioned before, my camera is trying to punish me by dying it seems. If anyone is knowledgable about low to moderately priced digital cameras, shoot me an email. I would appreciate any help or suggestions anyone may have as I shop for a new one!