Cranberry Chicken

I made this last night and LOVED it.  It was so easy and so tasty!

6 Skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 1/2 (1 ounce) packages dry onion soup-mix
1 (16 ounce) can cranberry sauce
1 cup French or Russian salad dressing

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place the chicken breasts in a baking pan.  In a small bowl, combine the onion soup mix, cranberry sauce, and dressing.  Stir until well blended.  Pour sauce mixture over the chicken breasts. Cover with foil and bake for 60-75 minutes or until top is bubbly and slightly browned.

*For a more flavorful dish, let chicken marinate in the sauce for several hours.

I came home from work yesterday and threw this together.  I didn't really thaw my chicken before putting it in the dish and pouring the mixture over it.  I let it marinate for about 40 minutes while I went jogging and then I came home and threw it in the oven.  I served it with brown rice.  My husband and I both loved it, it was so tender and juicy.  And, super easy to throw together after a really long day.

Easy-Peasy Tuna Casserole

This is the meal you fix when you need to feel like you're being the domestic housewife ("Look, I'm cooking!") but don't actually want to do REAL cooking. Its not the most amazing tuna casserole I've ever turned out, but its definitely the fastest and it doesn't taste like circa 1987 Cafeteria fare. So I'm keeping the recipe to pull out now and again.

Easy-Peasy Tuna Casserole
(BARELY adapted from Allrecipes.com)
1 box of Macaroni & Cheese dinner
1 can of tuna, drained
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup of milk
3 heaping tablespoons of breadcrumbs
1/8 c. butter

Make the macaroni & cheese according to package directions (i.e. boil, drain, add milk, butter and cheesy powder). Add the tuna, soup and 1/2 cup of milk. Pour it all into a greased 2-quart baking dish. Melt the butter and mix with the bread crumbs. Sprinkle on top of the casserole. Bake for approximately 20-minutes in a 350 degree oven. 

Serve with steamed veggies and a green salad. Ooooh...so "fancy."

Jello Poke Cake

This is a super fun, tasty, and EASY dessert.  And you can use ANY flavor of Jello you'd like.  I favor a raspberry or strawberry--and its especially good when mixed with a lemon cake mix!

Jello Poke Cake
1 box of white cake mix (or lemon!)
Oil, eggs & water for making the cake
1 small box of Jello, any flavor
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup cold water
Cool whip for topping

Bake the cake according to package directions in a 9x13 pan.  Let it cool completely--about one hour.

Pierce the cake all over--the more the better!--with a fork. You want LOTS of holes!

In a small bowl, combine the jello and boiling water. Stir until smooth.  Add the cold water and mix well. Pour the jello mixture evenly over the top of the cake slowly--letting it sink into the cake. Run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen it, and then put the cake into the refrigerator. Chill at least two hours.  Frost it with whipped cream and serve! Be sure to refrigerate any leftovers. 

Microwave Cinnamon Biscuits

2 cans refrigerator biscuits
melted butter
cinnamon sugar

Dip each biscuit in butter and then coat with cinnamon sugar. Place in a circle in a microwave safe dish. Cook on Cook Level 7 for 7-9 minutes or until the tops spring back when lightly pressed with finger. Turn the dish a quarter of a turn halfway through cooking time. Stand for two minutes then invert onto a plate.

Mm Potatoes and Ham

This was super yummy AND easy!

Ingredients:
3 lbs of potatoes (I used 6 smallish potatoes)
1 c. onion
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1 c. cooked ham
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup of water
Salt, pepper, garlic to taste

Slice the washed, peeled potatoes into thin slices and put them in the slow cooker. In a bowl, mix the cheese, onion and ham together. Then add it to the potatoes and mix it all around! In that same bowl, mix the mushroom soup, water, and salt/pepper/garlic. Evenly pour the soup-water over the potatoes. Cook in the slow cooker for 4 hours!

Serve with some lovely salad and french bread and you will have a delightful day!

Crockpot Split Pea Soup

I have no explanation for my love of this soup.  Split pea soup LOOKS horrible.  But the taste is somehow ridiculously addicting and I can't seem to get enough. And this is super easy to make.  I encourage you to try it before soup season leaves us completely!


Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup
(Adapted from Allrecipes.com)
16 oz. dried split peas
2 c. diced fully cooked ham
1 c. diced carrots
1 medium onion diced
1 1/2 c. diced peeled potatoes
A hearty sprinkling of garlic powder
1/2 tsp. salt (I use a bit more)
1/4 tsp. pepper 
5 1/2 - 6 cups boiling water
3 tsp. chicken broth granules

Layer the first 8 ingredients in your slow cooker.  Pour the boiling water over the top and sprinkle in your chicken broth flavoring.  DO NOT STIR.  Set the slow cooker on high for 4 1/2 -5 hours (I think you could also do 8 hours on low). After the veggies are all soft  & the peas turned to a green goop, stir it all up!

Serve with a bread of your choice.  And a big glass of milk.

Enchilada Casserole

On Sunday all the sibs were tasked with bringing enchiladas to the monthly FHE at Mom&Dad's.  I dislike the slow rolling of individual enchiladas so I brought an enchilada casserole that proved to be quite a hit. And so...I share it here.

Beef (?) Enchilada Casserole
(Found at this link)

1 pound ground beef (or turkey)
1 can (10 ounce size) enchilada sauce
1 cup salsa
6 flour tortillas (10-inch size)
2 cups fresh or canned whole kernel corn 
4 cups shredded cheddar cheese (we eyeballed this for sure)

Brown the ground beef/turkey; drain. Stir in enchilada sauce and salsa; set aside.

Place two tortillas, overlapping as necessary, in the bottom of greased 13x9x2 pan or baking dish. Cover with 1/3 of the meat mixture; top with 1 cup corn; sprinkle with enough cheese to lightly cover the layer. Repeat layers once, then top w/remaining tortillas, meat and cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.