sweet and tangy chicken

1 tablespoon butter

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 1 pound)

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Condensed Tomato Soup

1/4 cup water

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon vinegar

4 cups hot cooked regular long-grain white rice

• Heat the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 10 minutes or until well browned on both sides.
  
• Stir the soup, water, brown sugar and vinegar in the skillet and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Serve the chicken and sauce with the rice.
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Cheesy Rice Fritters

Scored this recipe from my friend Rachel. One word...... YUM!

Here's what you need:

1 cup arborio rice

3 slices bacon, chopped

1 cup shredded mozzarella

1 cup grated parmesan

1 large egg, lightly beaten

salt & pepper

1/2 seasoned breadcrumbs (i used italian panko)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (this is a Rachel Ray recipe, after all)

1 10 ounce bag spinach, coarsely chopped

1 pinch crushed red pepper (i used 3 pinches)

Here's what you do:

Bring 2 1/2 cups water and rice to boil. Lower heat and simmer until rice is cooked but still firm and all water has evaporated (about 20 minutes). Transfer to a large bowl and let cool slightly.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook bacon until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, add bacon to the rice, reserving the bacon fat in skillet. Stir in parmesan, mozzarella, and egg into rice mixture; season with salt and pepper.

Divide rice mixture into 12 mounds. Flatten the mounds into 3 inch patties on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle both sides with breadcrumbs.

Add olive oil to skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add patties and cook until crisp (about 5 min). Drain on paper towels. Sauté spinach over high heat for 2 minutes or until wilted. Season with crushed red pepper and top with fritters.

This meal can be made for under 8 bucks! You gotta love that!

Smothered Pork Chops

Smothered Pork Chops

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 3/4 cups Swanson® Beef Stock

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Vegetable cooking spray

6 bone-in pork chops, 1/2-inch thick (about 1 1/2 pounds)

1 medium onion, sliced (about 1 cup)

Stir the cornstarch, stock and black pepper in a small bowl until the mixture is smooth.

Spray a 10-inch skillet with the cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat for 1 minute.

Add the pork and cook until it's well browned on both sides. Remove the pork from the skillet.

Remove the skillet from the heat.

Spray the skillet with the cooking spray and heat over medium heat for 1 minute.

Add the onion and cook until it's tender-crisp.

Stir in the cornstarch mixture.

Cook and stir until the mixture boils and thickens.

Return the pork to the skillet.

Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the pork is cooked through.

source campbell's

cheddar potato soup

stay warm with this hearty soup. once again, i can't recall which magazine it came from. it has been in MY recipe book for years now. i offer you two time saving tips for this recipe.

#1- i use a hand blender right in the pot to avoid transfering small batches of soup into the blender.

#2- i have used canned potatoes to save time and it still came out AWESOME!

Enjoy!

Cheddar Potato Soup

1/3 cup onion, chopped

1/3 cup celery, chopped

2 T butter

4 cups potatoes, diced & peeled

3 cups chicken broth

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

2 cups milk

¼ t pepper

Dash paprika

*Sauté onion & celery in butter until tender. Add potatoes and broth; bring to boil. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer 10-15 min or until potatoes are tender. Puree small batches in blender until smooth. Return to pan. Stir in cheese, milk, and paprika. Simmer until cheese is melted. Serve with croutons.

Serves 8

Corn Casserole

This recipe is a holiday favorite in my house. I scored the recipe from my friend Cindy who is a fantastic cook. Super simple.... NOT low fat (but who cares?).... and really YUMMY!

Corn Casserole

1 can creamed corn

1 can regular corn, drained

1 stick butter, melted

1 cup sour cream

2 eggs

1 box jiffy corn muffin mix

2 T sugar

* Mix all ingredients together and bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

meat loaf with bacon

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 large celery stalk, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, chopped with seeds
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce or ketchup
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• 2 pounds meat-loaf mix (1 pound lean ground beef, 1/2 pound ground pork, 1/2 pound ground veal or lamb)
• 4 strips thick-sliced bacon

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350° F. In a medium skillet, over medium heat, heat the oil with the onion, celery, garlic, and jalapeño and cook until the vegetables are tender but not browned, about 10 minutes. Add the salt, cumin, and nutmeg. Remove from heat. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, then blend in the milk, tomato sauce, and bread crumbs. Add the meat and cooked vegetables and stir or work with your hands to combine. Pat into a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Cut the bacon strips in half and lay over the loaf, tucking the ends in.
2. Bake 1 hour and 15 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the meat loaf registers 150° F. Remove from oven and pour off the fat. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Italian Chicken and Vegetable Soup

We are still freezing our butts off here in sunny Florida. We have had record lows for days now and the frigid climate seems to plan to stay for the weekend. Bring on the soup! I scored this recipe on Food Network. It's from Paula Deen, so it must be DEE-lish! I LOVE you Paula!

I plan to chef up this soup tomorrow. Tonight is sushi night with our friends. No, I do not cook every night of the week.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces (about 1 3/4 pounds)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 cup sliced carrots (about 3 small)
• 2 1/2 cups sliced zucchini (about 2 medium)
• 2 (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano
• 2 (14.5-ounce) cans chicken broth
• Grated Parmesan, optional

Directions

In a large Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add onion and carrot, and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in zucchini, diced tomatoes, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Top each serving with grated Parmesan, if desired.

the search is over.

So I have been searching for a new dining room table. After all, I need a great place to sit these delicious recipes once they are prepared.

The one I have now... is a simple round 4 top that has left me yearning for something BIGGER and of course, BETTER!

What do I want??? Something nice (but not TOO nice). Wyatt likes paint, glue, glitter, etc..... I want this table to be arts & crafts central. I want a bench on one side and chairs on the other....

EUREKA! I found it!

Now... I just have to sell daddy on the idea. hmmmm?

Wish me luck!