Slow Cooker Chicken & Wild Rice Soup with Quick Drop Biscuits

I'm not a winter person. I was born and raised in Utah where it's cold and snowy (I know, there are worse places). So I was ecstatic when I met and married someone who, although he was from Utah also, didn't like the cold or the snow either (or sports!!). Yay for me!
But I do admit I do like some cold weather things- sweaters, fires, and soup. I LOVE soup. This recipe for Chicken & Wild Rice soup comes from a family cookbook my cute sister-in-law put together for us a couple of years ago. I love slow cooker recipes that don't require any pre-cooking. I used some leftover cooked chicken breast from the other night, but I have also used store-bought rotisserie chicken. The soup comes together in no time and is loved by my family (especially my kids). Paired with Cooking Light's Drop Biscuits, this meal makes me feel like it's winter (even though it was sunny and 67 today). :)

Slow Cooker Chicken & Wild Rice Soup
adapted from Shauna Williams
Ingredients
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 (4.3-ounce) package Long Grain & Wild Rice (Rice A Roni)
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced cooked chicken breast
3 cups water


Combine soup, rice, vegetables and chicken in a slow cooker. Add 2 cups of water. Mix well. Cook on high for 3 1/2 hours. Stir in remaining cup of water and cook another 1/2 hour. Serve.


Drop Biscuits
adapted from Cooking Light
Ingredients
2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cold butter, cut in pieces
1 cup skim milk
Cooking spray


Preheat over to 450 degrees F. Spray a standard muffin tin with cooking spray.
In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Cut in butter pieces until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Ad milk, stirring only until moist. Spoon into muffin tins. Bake 12 minutes, until golden.

Chicken Parmigiana

My mom has the Everyday Food Great Food Fast cookbook. As I was thumbing through it, I found this recipe. I like Chicken Parmigiana, but my husband doesn't like what he calls "big hunks of chicken" so I haven't made it. Since he's out of town, I thought I'd try it out. 

The recipe is easy and pretty quick. I thought we had mozzarella, but we didn't so I had to cut up string cheese sticks. Haha. We served it with tomato sauce and angel hair pasta. The chicken was moist and flavorful- I loved the crunchy coating.

Chicken Parmigiana

Ingredients

Serves 4.

• 8 chicken breast cutlets, or 4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, split horizontally into 8 cutlets (1 1/2 pounds total)
• 1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 cups spaghetti sauce, homemade or purchased
• 8 slices (1/4-inch-thick) mozzarella cheese, preferably fresh (6 ounces)

Directions

1. Preheat broiler with rack set 4 inches away from the heat source. Combine the breadcrumbs and the Parmesan cheese in a shallow dish. Place the egg in a second shallow dish. Season chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Dip chicken in egg, turning to coat. Transfer to breadcrumb mixture, turning to coat; set aside.
2. Pour spaghetti sauce into a 10-by-15-inch baking dish, or a rimmed baking sheet. In a large nonstick skillet, heat half of the oil over medium heat. Add half of the chicken, and cook until golden, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined baking sheet to drain, then place in prepared baking dish. Repeat with remaining oil and chicken.
3. Top each piece of chicken with a slice of mozzarella. Broil until sauce is hot, and mozzarella is melted and lightly browned in spots, 5 to 8 minutes. 

Chicken Croissants

After having our third monkey, several people were kind enough to bring us dinner. One dinner in particular was a huge hit at our house. I asked the preparer for the recipe. Once I got it, my husband asked me to make it that night and several times since. These are refrigerated crescent rolls filled with a chicken mixture, rolled in Ritz crackers and baked until golden. Served with a quick cream of chicken soup sauce, these are easy to make for a crowd.
Chicken Croissants

Filling

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked, cooled and shredded

3 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

3 T butter, room temperature

2 tubes refrigerated crescent rolls

2 T butter, melted

2 c crushed Ritz crackers (or similar)

Combine chicken, cream cheese and butter in a large bowl. Put 1 TBSP of mixture in crescent roll, roll up, dip in melted butter and roll in Ritz crackers. Place on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake at 350° for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Sauce

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 cup milk

Mix sauce ingredients in a sauce pan over medium heat until hot and pour over croissants.Serve immediately.

(sorry the pictures aren't great)

Quick Chicken Noodle Soup

The ultimate comfort food, chicken noodle soup is something I've missed the past couple years. Small children, in our family, are not fans of soup. But recently, our oldest daughter has taken to eating soup, and our younger daughter likes to do the same things as her sister. Voila! Soup eaters!
I found this recipe in a recent issue of Cooking Light. I made it a little differently, but it still came together easily and quickly and was really flavorful. I substituted boneless chicken breast for the rotisserie chicken and didn't use pre-chopped veggies. This is a great quick recipe for an old favorite!
Quick Chicken Noodle Soup
adapted from Cooking Light

• 2 cups water
• 3/4 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 1 large, or 2 small)
  
• 1 (32-ounce) carton fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 medium carrot, chopped
• 6 ounces macaroni pasta (or whatever pasta you want)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1. Combine 2 cups water and chicken breast in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer on medium until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove chicken and shred, reserving liquid.

2. Add broth to liquid and keep over low heat.

3. Meanwhile, heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion, celery, salt, pepper, and carrot; sauté 3 minutes or until almost tender, stirring frequently. Add hot broth mixture and pasta; bring to a boil. Cook 7 minutes or until pasta is almost al dente. Stir in chicken; cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated. Stir in parsley.

Soy Glazed Chicken Skewers

If you're female, you've probably been through (or are going through) a phase where you eat a lot of chicken. Come on, admit it- you know chicken breasts are low in fat and calories and provide a lot of protein- the perfect "diet" food, right? Honestly, when I was single, I used to just bake chicken breasts and eat them for dinner. Every. Single. Night.
It's versatile so you can put anything on it and pair it with anything and pretty much have a good meal. But you also know that chicken breasts are not super flavorful or moist. I started cooking with boneless chicken thighs as a way to get my husband to be more agreeable to eating chicken (why is chicken not a "guy" food??). The thighs are brown meat, so not low in fat, but SO much more moist and flavorful. This recipe for grilled chicken skewers is quick and tasty. I only used red bell peppers, but you could put any skewer-friendly vegetable on there (zucchini, squash, onions) and it would be fabulous. My kids and husband loved it, saying it had "restaurant flavor," a compliment from my husband to be sure since there's nothing he loves more than eating out!
Soy-Glazed Chicken Skewers
serves 4
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 T toasted sesame seed oil
1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken thighs, cut in 1/4 inch strips
1 red bell pepper, cut in 1 inch chunks
2 T sesame seeds, toasted
2 cups hot rice

Soak wooden skewers in water for 10 minutes.
Combine first three ingredients in a large bowl or resealable plastic bag. Add chicken and let sit 15 minutes. Remove chicken, reserving marinade. Pour marinade in a small pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook until reduced to about 1/4 cup, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, thread chicken and bell peppers on 8 wooden skewers. Cook on a grill sprayed with cooking spray for 4 minutes on each side, or until done, brushing with reserved marinade. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. Serve immediately over hot rice.

Crunchy Buttermilk Coconut Chicken Fingers

This quick and easy recipe from Cooking Light was a hit especially with my husband. Our one year old liked them, but our 3 year old didn't like the texture of the coconut. They're flavorful and crispy and come together in about 20 minutes! The curry flavor is pronounced, so you can even cut back a little on it to increase the subtlety.
Crunchy Buttermilk Coconut Chicken Fingers
Cooking Light, April 2008
Serves 4
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 1/2 cups fat-free buttermilk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 large egg white
3/4 cup crushed cornflakes
3/4 cup flaked sweetened coconut, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
Cut the chicken into 1/2-in strips. Combine chicken and buttermilk in a shallow dish. Cover and chill 1 hour. Drain chicken, discarding liquid. Combine chicken and flour in a medium bowl, tossing to coat.
Preheat over to 475 degrees F. Place baking sheet in oven.
Combine egg and egg white in a small bowl. Combine crushed cornflakes and next 5 ingredients in a shallow dish.
Working with one chicken strip at a time, dip into egg mixture, dredge in cornflake mixture. Repeat with remaining chicken. Arrange chicken in a single layer on preheated baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Lightly coat chicken with cooking spray. Bake for 6 minutes or until done. Serve immediately.

BBQ Chicken Sandwiches & Fries

If you're looking for the easiest dinner EVER, this is it. The recipe for the chicken sandwiches is from the same random cookbook that brought me these. Throw some chicken in a slow cooker with sauce and you're done! Pair it with some oven fries with fry sauce and even the kids will eat it. Side note: I've heard that fry sauce isn't widely known outside the Rocky Mtn area. Is that true? Have people outside this region really been depraved of the ketchup/mayo combo that makes fries even yummier?
Shredded BBQ Chicken Sandwiches
adapted from the Ivory cookbook
serves 4

2 lbs frozen boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 16 oz. bottle BBQ sauce
Hamburger buns
Tomatoes
Pickes
Onions

Place frozen chicken breasts in slow cooker with BBQ sauce. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 3-4 hours. Shread meat with forks. Serve on buns with desired condiments.

Oven Fries

2 medium russet potatoes, scrubbed
Cooking spray
Garlic salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and coat generously with cooking spray. Cut potatoes in half; cut each half lengthwise and crosswise so you have a steak-fry shape. Place potatoes on foil and season to taste, tossing to coat evenly. Spray the top of the potatoes with cooking spray. Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden and tender, turning once.

Chicken (Curry) Pot Pie

Ok, so it's not quite fall yet here in CA, but it's close enough. So I decided to make chicken pot pie, one of my favorite comfort food dishes.

Tender vegetables and chicken in a smooth, creamy sauce, topped with a flaky, cripy crust... the perfect round-up to a cool(ish) Fall day. I added a tiny bit of curry powder to the sauce for a slightly different flavor, just enough to taste it in the background without overpowering the lightness of the dish. I also used frozen peas and corn because that's what my kids will eat, but you can use whatever veggies you like.

Chicken (Curry) Pot PIe

Pastry Topper (from BHG.com)
¾ cup sliced celery
½ cup chopped carrot
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon curry powder
1-1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup milk
2-1/2 cups chopped, cooked chicken
½ cup loose-pack frozen peas
½ cup frozen corn

Directions
1. Prepare Pastry Topper; set aside.

2. In a large saucepan cook celery, and carrot in oil over medium-high heat until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, and curry powder. Add broth and milk all at once. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Stir in chicken, peas, and corn. Pour into a 13” x 9” baking dish.

3. Place pastry over chicken mixture in dish. Turn edges of pastry under and cut slits in the top to allow steam to escape.

4. Bake, uncovered, in a 400 degree F oven for 25 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Pastry Topper: In a medium bowl stir together 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in 1/3 cup shortening until dough pieces are pea-size. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon cold water over part of the mixture; gently toss with a fork. Push moistened dough to side of bowl. Sprinkle an additional 3 to 4 tablespoons cold water over remaining flour mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with a fork until all dough is moistened. Form into a ball. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 13x9-inch rectangle.