Chicken 'n Dumplin's-- CrockPot Style

If it's chicken smothered in a gravy-esque sauce, The Mr. can't get enough.  Throw in some doughy/carby goodness, and he'll call it his favorite.

Recently I compiled a recipe book for a friend's Christmas present, and gave it to The Mr. to peruse.  "Where's the Chicken 'n Dumplin's recipe?" he asked.

"The one for the CrockPot?" I replied.

"Yeah, that one.  It's probably my favorite thing that you make."

Beat.

.... I cannot tell you the last time I made this meal, but it apparently left quite an impression.  Had I known that it was held in such high regard, I probably would have made it sometime in the last year!...

This is a great basic recipe because it only has a few ingredients. The bonus? It's another one of those throw-it-in-the-pot-and-leave-it-alone kind of recipes-- and you all know how much I love those :)

Source:  www.allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts (And yes, I just threw them in still frozen.  Have I told you lately how much I love my CrockPot?)

2 cans of Cream of Chicken soup

2 T. butter

1 onion, diced

Water (enough to cover contents of the pot)

2 10-oz. cans of refrigerated biscuit dough

Directions:

1.  Combine chicken, soup, onion, butter, and water in CrockPot. 

2.  Cook on HIGH for 4 hours.  

3.  Tear apart pieces of the biscuit dough and add to the mix.  Use a spoon to submerge pieces (This will help the dough to absorb the flavors).

4.  Continue cooking on HIGH for 60-90 minutes.

Verdict: Keeper (with some revision)
While The Mr. is crazy about this meal, I'm still not ga-ga over it.  I'd like to add more herbs and seasonings to see how it goes, maybe some poultry seasoning and pepper.  I'll definitely make it again, though. 

CrockPot Chicken Stroganoff

It's fall.


Okay, so maybe the calendar still considers this to be summer, but once we can sleep with the windows open and snuggle under the covers, I'm ready for football, beautiful trees, and comfort food!

...like I need an excuse for comfort food...


(To clarify, I reserve the title of "comfort food" for dishes that meet the following requirements):


1. It involves some kind of meat in some kind of thick sauce. Gravy qualifies as a sauce.


2. It involves a starch of some kind. Potatoes, noodles, rice, etc.


3. It cooks while I get to watch football :)

Since this recipe looked to satisfy all those requirements, I went ahead and tried it. 

Source: Modified from allrecipes.com




Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts

1/2 c. water

1 (.6 oz) packet of Italian salad dressing mix

8 oz. mushrooms, sliced

8 oz. fat-free cream cheese

1 (10.75 oz) can fat-free cream of chicken soup

Directions: 

Place chicken, water, salad dressing mix, and mushrooms in a CrockPot.  Cook on LOW for 5-6 hours.

Combine cream of chicken and cream cheese.  Add to the CrockPot and cook on HIGH for 30 minutes.

"Chunk" the chicken in the CrockPot into smaller pieces.  Mix well, and serve over egg noodles or rice.

Verdict: Keeper!

This has officially been added to the recipe box! :)

Gravy

What I have learned:

1) Making gravy is a piece of cake.

2) Making it more photogenic is a bit more of a challenge!

Since I was making Beef Stew, and remembered that I always end up wishing I had some gravy for it, I decided to take the plunge and make some gravy from the drippings contained in the CrockPot.  Gravy hasn't been something I have tackled recently, since my first (and last, till now) attempt was a little hair-raising. 

(Let's just put it this way... it involved Thanksgiving dinner at my house, my first time hosting, and my Mother-in-Law and my Mom in the kitchen with me both trying to show me how they make gravy.  And no, they weren't the same methods.  I felt like either method I chose, I was going to hurt someone's feelings.  Oy.) 

I want to curl up into the fetal position just remembering that moment.  

But anyway, I'm a big girl now, and I dove into making it on my own using what I remembered of that Thanksgiving near-meltdown. 

Source:  My Mom

Pretty much, you need 3 things to make any kind of gravy...

Drippings from the meat (I started with about 2 c.)-- I used a turkey baster to get the drippings out of the CrockPot and into a measuring cup.  Ideally, I'd use one of those nifty fat-separating cups with a spout, but that will have to wait till I get one!) 

Milk-- I started off with about 1/2 c. 

Flour-- I think I used about 1-2 T.

And just for good measure, I also ended up adding about 1 tsp. (maybe more) of beef-flavored soup base.  If I were working with chicken or turkey drippings, I'd use a chicken flavored soup base. 

Directions:

1.  In a saucepan, heat the drippings on medium heat. 

Here's the part that my Mom swears by... and I think I'll end up swearing by it, too...  

2.  In a Tupperware shaker, combine the milk and flour.  Shake well till flour is mixed thoroughly with the milk. 

3.  Stirring constantly with a whisk, add the milk mixture to the drippings. 

4.  Add soup base.

5.  Continue stirring for several minutes.  Gravy will thicken. 

Verdict:

Keeper!  The Mr. said that his Mom, a gravy expert, would love it.  That's good enough for me! :)

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

The Mr. and I have friends who live in St. Louis, and we try to make the trek from Cincinnati at least once a year.  Our usual excuse to visit is centered around the annual Mardi Gras Parade-- The Mr.'s favorite reason.  My favorite excuse to visit (other than simply hanging out and laughing my a$$ off, because that's what we do when we're together) involves a restaurant called Syberg's.

It's a non-descript kind of joint.  It lures you in with the facade that it's just another bar and grill.  You hear rumors that they are famous for their wings.  "Sure," you think to yourself.  "Every place says that they are famous for their wings."  You sit down with your group of friends, order some beers, some appetizers, and maybe even some of the "world-famous wings."  They put the food on the table, you grab a wing and begin to grub, just as you have done hundreds of times before...

Then it hits you. 

A change comes over you, and you're suddenly feeling the sensation of losing all self-control.  You've eaten all of your wings, but are thirsting for more.  You nonchalantly scoop the sauce from your plate for one last hit.  You start eye-balling the ones your neighbor has yet to consume, seriously considering if you can sneak one away undetected.  And once you come to the realization that it's all over, you settle back into your chair-- thinking about all those other times you thought you enjoyed buffalo wings-- but now knowing that you will never be satisfied with any other wing sauce but Syberg's Wing Sauce. 

This happened to me, and if you are lucky enough to live in the St. Louis area, you get to scratch that itch anytime you want.  (And I'm jealous!) But if you live out of town, and try this sauce, be prepared to order bottles of the stuff and have it shipped to your house, because you will be hooked!

So naturally, when we could not visit this year for the annual festivities, I was heart-broken.  Yeah, I missed seeing my friends, but I REALLY missed Syberg's. :)  Luckily, I was able to con another friend into bringing home a couple of bottles of crack, (er, I mean... sauce....).  Having such a heavenly wing sauce at my disposal, I decided it was time to try buffalo chicken pizza for the first time.

Source:  This is a Clark original, but inspired by the buffalo chicken pizza I experienced at Syberg's.


Ingredients:

1 pre-made pizza crust

1-2 c. cooked chicken, shredded

1 c. buffalo sauce, divided

1/2 c. red onion, chopped

1/2 c. celery, chopped

1-2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

Ranch and/or bleu cheese crumbles, to taste

Note:  For those of you who keep track-- I'm aware that I actually used measurements in this recipe.  Shocked?  You should be :)  But I figured if it turned out well, I'd want to know what I did so I could do it again.  Thus, the measured amounts.


Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

2.  Spread 1/2 c. buffalo sauce onto the pizza crust.

3.  In a medium bowl, combine chicken and 1/2 c. buffalo sauce.  Mix till chicken is thoroughly coated.  Spread chicken mixture evenly upon the pizza crust.  

4.  Add a layer of either ranch dressing, crumbled bleu cheese, or both.  (In our house, we did a "half and half" style with these toppings, since I love bleu cheese but The Mr. does not! )

5.  Top with mozzarella, red onion, and celery. 

6.  Place in preheated oven, and bake for 10-15 minutes (or till desired doneness).

Verdict:  Keeper!

Next time, I may use less chicken, and place more of the red onion on top of the cheese so it can crisp a little more.  But all in all, I was proud!  After all, it's not every day that I throw ingredients together without a recipe to follow...  

Salsa Chicken

Once while I was browsing other cooking blogs, I came across this recipe from Courtney over at Ice Cream &Wine.  In case you've never visited, she's all about simple pleasures in cooking.  This Salsa Chicken is a perfect example of said simplicity. 

As soon as I read it it, I thought to myself, "Now this is my kind of CrockPot recipe!" Know why? Because it's one of those recipes where you just throw it all in the crock and let it do it's thing. If CrockPot cooking is supposed to make my life easier, I don't want to have to do a lot of prep.  And that's exactly what this recipe is-- no prep.  I didn't even thaw the chicken breasts!   

Source:  Courtney, at Ice Cream & Wine

Ingredients: 

4 frozen chicken breasts

1 15 oz. can of black beans

1 12 oz. bag of frozen corn-- she listed this as 1 1/2 cups of frozen corn, but again, I don't like to measure.  So I just used the whole bag.

1 16 oz. jar of salsa-- I used a "sweet garden salsa" this time.

Directions:

Place the frozen chicken breasts in the CrockPot.

Rinse and drain black beans, then add them over top of the chicken.

Add corn atop the beans

Add salsa atop the corn.

Cook on LOW 7-8 hours or HIGH 3-4 hours (Today was a rush, so I did 4 hours on HIGH)

During the last hour, shred the chicken with some forks and mix well.  It'll look something like this:

Serve with tortillas and rice. 

Garnish with sour cream, scallions, or whatever else your heart desires.

Verdict:  KEEPER! 

This will be a new staple in our household.  It was so easy to make, relatively healthy, and it made plenty for leftovers.  And you can trust me... these leftovers won't go bad in the fridge :)

Chicken Noodle Soup

So now that I had all this homemade stock at my disposal, I figured it was time to make chicken noodle soup.  Since The Mr. was still recovering from oral surgery, what a better way to help him feel better than a warm bowl of the universal elixir. 


After searching around, this recipe from Elly over at "ellysaysopa.com" sounded the most appealling and looked exactly as I hoped it would.  And by the way, if you haven't had the pleasure of browsing her blog, you need to make a point of it.  If the photography alone isn't enough to pull you in, I don't know what is!  She has fantastic advice and information; moreover, most of her dishes having intriguing and/or healthy ingredients (of which I am still learning to identify and pronounce! :)) Honesly, reading her recipes makes me want to be Greek.  But enough of my gushing, and on to the real reason you're here:  chicken noodle soup.


Quite simply, this soup will be a staple in our household forever.  That's right.  For-ev-er.  I never knew how good soup could be; but now that I have crossed over to the other side, I will never enjoy soup from a can quite as much as I used to.


Source:   based entirely on Elly's Chicken Noodle Soup (with very minor adjustments)


Ingredients:


2T. butter
1 onion, diced
4-5 carrots, sliced
4-5 celery stalks, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
12 c. chicken broth-- if you're feeling adventurous and want to make your own, click here to see how I did it the first time
4 c. cooked chicken
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. marjoram
1 tsp. thyme
1 T. dried parsley
2 cubes of chicken bouillon
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
2 c. uncooked egg noodles


Directions:


Melt the butter in a large dutch oven.  Add onions and cook for several minutes over medium-high heat.  Add celery and carrots, cook for another couple of minutes.  Add garlic.  Stir and saute for one or two more minutes.


It looks like this when I cook it:

Then, add chicken, broth, bay leaf, marjoram, thyme, parsley, and pepper.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Simmer lightly for 30 minutes. 


Add noodles and simmer till cooked (about 8-11 minutes)


Verdict:  Awesome.  It's the only chicken noodle soup I'll ever make!

... and it's so photogenic! :)  

Homemade Chicken Stock

I did it.

Ever since being bitten by the food bug, I have been wondering how difficult it would be to make my own stock.  Or broth.  Whatever you want to call it, I wanted to make it.  I wanted to make it so bad that I started saving my veggie scraps in a freezer bag.  Celery tops and ends, carrot peels, carrot ends, the green stems of green onions and leeks, green pepper ends-- just about anything was fair game to be saved in the Veggie Scrap Bag.  I even forced myself to save the carcass of a roast chicken in a freezer bag, too.  "This is what good cooks do," I told myself.  "This will help us save a ton of money when I go to make a soup again," I continued.   

But I was scared.

Looking back, hearing (er, I mean, seeing) myself say those words sounds ridiculous.  Literally, it was as easy as throwing a bunch of saved-up kitchen scraps, adding water, and boiling the b'jesus out of it for several hours.  Researching the various methods of making your own stock led me to believe that it would not only be time-consuming, but "involved."   I read articles that mentioned unfamiliar items like "cheesecloth," and shuddered.  I'm such a sissy when it comes to trying something new!  My Mom would attribute this anxiety to my life-long affliction of perfectionism-on-the-first-try syndrome.  She's probably right. 

But yesterday, I decided enough was enough.  The Mr. was having oral surgery-- and post-surgical care included a liquid diet for the rest of the day after being released.  This was the push I needed to venture into unknown cooking land.  I couldn't, in good conscience, just warm up a can of chicken broth for him to eat when I had been learning so much about homemade stock. 

So without further ado, I did it.   It was time-consuming, but it wasn't even a little-bit tricky or involved.  I have no formal recipe to share-- more like a list of ingredients; vague, coresponding amounts; and the steps I took.  But I have to tell you (like all the others told me), there's really not a whole lot to it.  If I can do it using scraps and absolutely no experience, ANYONE can do it. 

Ingredients:

• the carcass of a roasted chicken--Using a piece of advice from my Step-Mom, I broke the bones of the chicken carcass in half. Doing this exposes the marrow, which is where all the good stuff hides.
• a Veggie Scrap Bag-- this is a gallon-sized plastic zipper bag, and it was full
• 6 quarts of cold water
• Salt (maybe 1 tsp?)
• Pepper (maybe 1/2 tsp?)
• Dried herbs-- several shakes of each, enough to cover the top of the water.
• Parsley
• Sage
• Thyme
• 3-4 chicken bouillon cubes

Directions:

First, I thawed my Veggie Scrap Bag and chicken bones.

Next, I broke up the bones a little bit from the chicken scraps. 

Then I tossed the bones, veggie scraps, water, salt, pepper, herbs, and bouillon into a big stock pot (mine is a 10-quart stock pot, and there was plenty of room).

Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Simmer this way (uncovered) for at least 2 hours.  As you check on it, remove any fats/foamy gunk that forms on the top by skimming with a spoon.  Some recipes will tell you to simmer for up to 24 hours.  I don't have that kind of patience, and as I was impatiently waiting for my own stock, I noticed after 2 hours it started to taste more like a stock and less like herb-flavored water.

Here was the hardest part, and probably the part that has the most variety when reading other recipes--after you have simmered to satisfaction,  you have to strain it:

• To do this, I placed my large collander into my Dutch oven.  In the beginning, I ladled out the bigger chunks into the collander, and eventually poured the stock through the collander. I drained it and threw away the scraps. 

• Then, to get some of the smaller scraps/particles, I poured the stock through a wire-mesh strainer and back into the stock pot.

 

• At this point, I felt victorious.  Because not only did it SMELL like stock, but it TASTED like it, too!  I loved it and I poured a bowl of it for The Mr.

 
He wasn't much for talking-- what with the surgery and all-- but all I heard from the living room was the scrape of spoon against bowl.   That was enough for me. 

Orange Chicken

After my last failed attempt to make something with a Chinese flavor, it took awhile before I could muster the courage to try a new chicken recipe.  There hasn't been a whole lot of cooking going on since that incident-- partly due to the diaster Sesame Chicken that went so wrong, and partly due to just being too busy to plan and cook meals during the week.  And I just plain old didn't want to feel like a failure again, so I quietly sulked in my mind-- relying on the fare of a local bar and grill to ease my suffering.

So when this dish came to my inbox from allrecipes.com, I figured it was time to dust myself off, and try again.  I was skeptical-- mainly because of the dry onion soup mix in the list of ingredients.   Don't get me wrong; I love salt.  But it seems that every time I cook something using this ingredient, the saltiness is all I taste in the final product.  I decided not to let my fears get in the way of trying something new. 

(As it turns out, I should have listened to my instincts... the culinary gods were sending me messages, but I refused to read them... much like the measurements on the individual packets.... :-) )

Ingredients: 

1 c. orange juice
1 T. soy sauce
1 packet (1 ounce) dry onion soup mix -- And tonight I learned that my packets are 2 oz.... not 1 oz.  So don't be like me, and pay attention to the amount within each packet.  
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. sugar
chopped green onions
a couple shakes of ground ginger
4-5 chicken thighs 

Directions:

Combine all ingredients (except chicken) in a bowl and mix together. 

Add juice mixture to chicken and marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Bake chicken and mixture uncovered for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.  Baste the chicken every 30 minutes.

*Here is where I panicked, after realizing that my dry onion soup mix was twice as much as I originally thought it to be.  I added a cup of water to the dish while it was cooking to try and dilute the mixture a bit.

Garnish with some reserved chopped green onions and serve over rice.

Verdict:  Eh.
I may try this again.  It certainly wasn't the disaster that the Sesame Chicken proved to be, and that much is a relief.  If I try this again, I will make sure to only use 1/2 of the dry onion soup mix, because I think I diluted the flavor too much when I added the water during my mid-cooking panic.  The green onions definitely added a nice flavor, so I will keep that.  However, neither The Mr. nor myself are very big on chicken thighs, I may try this with chicken breasts instead.   

Chicken in Honey Sauce (a.k.a. Sesame Chicken)

Today I was home from work and decided to make something in the CrockPot.  For Christmas, my mom gave me 2 different cookbooks: one that focuses on Campbell's soup products and one that is a Rival CrockPot cookbook.  Flipping through the pages of the Rival book led me to a recipe titled "Chicken in Honey Sauce," and I picked it because I had all the ingredients waiting for me in the kitchen.

Much to my disappointment, this dish didn't taste half as good as it smelled while it was cooking during the day.  In fact, the longer it cooked, the less-appetizing it smelled--which leads me to believe that IF I cook it again, I'll have to cut the cooking time WAY down. The recipe called to set the CrockPot on LOW for 6-8 hours, and I cooked mine for 8 hours (I used frozen chicken breasts, so I wanted to make sure they were cooked through).  The outcome of this particular trial-run was gross.  Something in the sauce (maybe the honey?) tasted burnt, and infused that same taste throughout the chicken.  

It was bad enough to throw away two plates that were more than half-full.  ::::hangs head in shame:::: Luckily, The Mr. was willing to go out and forage for dinner at a local pizza joint. 

If you plan to try this recipe, pay careful attention to the cooking time.  Perhaps my CrockPot cooks hotter than others, or maybe I just need to cook it for less time.  Either way, trust your nose-- when it smells the best is probably when you should go ahead and serve the meal.


--adapted from the Rival CrockPot Simple 1-2-3 Slow Cooker Recipes

Note: The following recipe is 1/2 of what was listed in the cookbook.

Ingredients:

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 c. honey

1/2 c. soy sauce

1/4 c. ketchup

2 T. oil

1 clove garlic, minced

Sesame Seeds (to garnish)

Directions:

1.  Place chicken breasts in the slow cooker. (I used frozen chicken breasts for the first time in this recipe).

2.  In a bowl, combine honey, soy sauce, ketchup, oil, garlic, salt and pepper.  Pour mixture over chicken breasts. 

3.  Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or HIGH 3-4 hours.

4.  Garnish with sesame seeds befre serving.  Serve with rice.

Verdict: Disappointed, but may try again... someday.

I need time to let my broken heart heal from this travesty before I try to make this one again.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

This little ditty may be turning into one of those dishes that I'll always have to bring to parties.  I've only made it a couple of times; but each time I do, someone always asks me to send them the recipe. 


Actually, I was doing just that when I realized I hadn't blogged this recipe yet-- which is why I don't have a photo yet.  Next time I make it (which will be soon... another party is approaching... ) I will add a photo.   Till then, you'll have to use your imagination-- but trust me, it's good enough to make "sight-unseen." :)


Source: My Mommy :)

Ingredients:


2 10-oz cans of cooked chicken, drained


1/2 c. (or more, if you prefer) of red pepper/buffalo sauce (I used Frank's Buffalo Sauce)


2 8-oz. pkgs. cream cheese, softened and cubed


1 cup of either ranch dressing, bleu cheese dressing , or a combination of both (I used all ranch in the last batch)


2 c. shredded cheddar cheese


Directions:


1. Combine all ingredients into a CrockPot.  Warm for 30 minutes, stirring periodically.

2. Serve warm with celery sticks, Fritos, or Tostitos. Enjoy!



Verdict: It's addicting!!

Jambalaya

Some friends of ours live in St. Louis.  Every year, a group of us from Cincinnati make the trek to visit them for the second-largest Mardi Gras Parade in the nation.  Being a teacher, it's hard to make arrangements to call off of work in the middle of the school year; so more often than not, we can't attend.  But this year, it just so happens that I have a 4-day weekend built into the school calendar the same weekend as the annual Mardi Gras festivities.  

And whenever I think of Mardi Gras, I think of jambalaya. 

Let me be clear about something-- I am an absolute WIMP when it comes to spice! So when I found a recipe that only used 1/8 tsp. of cayenne pepper, I figured this would be a safe start. 

And it is.  The combination of meats, rice, and veggies in this dish are delicious.  It's a lot of prep work, which is why I classify it under "Sunday Meals" (when else do you have the time to do all that chopping??) But in the end you have a one-pot meal that will feed you for a couple of meals that tastes great.  What more could a girl ask for?

Modified from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

2 T. olive oil

1/2 onion, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced (I used the prepared minced garlic I keep in the fridge)

2 carrots, sliced

1 stalk celery, sliced

3-4 chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 lb. smoked sausage, sliced

1 can of diced tomatoes

32-oz. carton of chicken broth (Next time, I will cut this in half. The end result was too wet.)

2 c. long grain, uncooked white rice

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/8 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

1/2 lb. uncooked shrimp

Directions:

In a large pot (I used my cast-iron Dutch oven), heat oil over medium-high heat.  Add green pepper, onion, carrots, celery and garlic and saute till onions are soft.

Add chicken to mixture and brown. 

Add broth and bring to a boil.

Once boiling, add rice, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes, stir, and add shrimp.  Cover and cook for 10 more minutes.

Verdict:

Definitely a keeper... but I need to cut the broth down to 2 cups.  Also, I may try to add more seasoning (either more cayenne, or some Cajun blend seasoning).

Roast Chicken with Rosemary

This recipe makes me happy in so many ways.   First off, it's delicious.  Second, it makes the whole house smell fantastic.  Third, when it comes out of the oven, for a brief moment I feel like a real cook! :) 

It looks like a picture-- well, at least it looks better in real life than it does in my crummy photo. No matter how many times I make it, it always makes me proud (and my husband happy!)

Adapted from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

1 whole ("fryer") chicken

1 onion, quartered

Fresh Rosemary (several sprigs, chopped)

Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper, and Poultry Seasoning, to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Rinse and pat dry a whole chicken.  Make sure nothing is in the cavity. Place bird in a shallow baking dish or roasting pan.

Stuff cavity with onion and rosemary

Drizzle a little bit of olive oil on chicken, rub all over (a little bit goes a LONG way!)

Season with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. 

Roast chicken for 20 minutes per pound or till juices run clear (use a meat thermometer to be exact)

Remove from oven and let stand for 5-10 minutes.