Sunday: Easy Jambalaya

Quick and Easy Jambalaya

1 box Jambalaya mix, like Zatarain's or Tony Chachere's
1/2 pound cook chicken breast, shredded or cubed  OR 1 can of chicken
8 oz fully cooked sausage, cut into 1" circles
1 can diced tomatoes, drained well


Basically, you're going to follow the directions on the box but add in the sausage, chicken, and tomatoes before heating.

Tips and Variations

• Use chicken, sausage, diced ham, shrimp...the list is endless.  Make any combo you like.  You need about 1 pound of meat and/or seafood...and it should be precooked.   (and shrimp or crawfish should be peeled)
• Try different kinds of tomatoes.  Chili-ready tomatoes add heat and Diced tomatoes with green pepper, celery, and onion adds veggies that go with Jambalaya .
• Try 99% fat free turkey sausage  and a low sodium jambalaya mix to make a healthier version
• Substitute chicken broth for water for a more home cooked flavor.  Even substitute half of the water adds a ton of flavor.  Use low sodium, 99% fat free chicken broth for a healthier way to get full flavor.

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This meal only takes about 30 minutes and only costs about $5!  YAY!

Plus, you should have about half of the precooked sausage left over to use in a recipe later in the week, like Red Beans and Rice or sausage on hoagies.

Happy Eating!

Chicken and Green Bean Casserole

Chicken and Green Bean Casserole
1 - 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast or tenderloins
2 cans cut green beans, well drained OR 18 oz frozen green beans, thawed
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup OR 1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
3/4 cup milk
Black pepper, to taste
1 and 1/3 cup french fried onions
Garlic and seasonings, to taste

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Most people have had Green Bean Casserole during the holiday season.  I'm here to insist that this is a four season food!

C'mon, people, it's a cheap and easy comfort food!!  Why hide it away for just Christmas and Thanksgiving?

Okay, so Baked Chicken is easy and Green Bean Casserole is easy.  Combining these great foods, super easy!

The Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.  In a lightly greased (sprayed with Pam, lined with foil, whatever you do to keep things from sticken) 9x13 baking dish, place your chicken.  Season to taste.

Combine soup, milk and pepper in a bowl; stir until blended. Stir in beans and 1/2 to 2/3 cups of French Fried Onions.

Pour soup combination over chicken.  Top with remaining French Fried Onions. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.  Let sit for about 5 minutes before eating.

Variations and Tips

• Check out the French's site for more Green Bean Casserole ideas!
• Use cooked chicken that's been shredded, cubed, or cut into strips instead of chicken breasts.
• Try adding 1/3 cup of sour cream to the soup mixture.  Yummy.
• If using Campbell's Healthy Request Soups to cut down on fat, calories, and MSG, use less milk.  Healthy Request soups are usually "soupier" than their original counterparts.

Got your own Green Bean Casserole dinner idea? Share it!

Easy Baked Chicken with Gravy

Baked Chicken with Gravy
1 - 1.5 lbs of Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or strips
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
3/4 cup milk or water
Garlic salt (or Garlic powder), to taste
salt and pepper, to taste

In a bowl, mix soup, milk (or water), and seasonings. Place chicken in a lightly greased (or buttered) baking dish. Pour soup mix over chicken. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 - 45 minutes (up to 1 hour), or until chicken is fully cooked.

Serve over rice or mashed potatoes.

Variations

• Brown Gravy is a yummy addition. Mix in a packet of Brown Gravy with your Cream of Mushroom Soup to change it up.
  
• Mushroom Gravy could also be used instead of cream of mushroom soup.
• Hate mushrooms? Try cream of chicken soup! Be really crazy and try Cheese Soup or Cream Spinach!
  
• Many soups have MSG. Look for a soup that doesn't include this ingredient, like Cambpell's Healthy Request soups.
  
• Pan fry or quick grill the chicken first to brown the outside. The chicken will cook fully in the oven.
• Throw in a bag of colorful fresh vegetables from the beginning (or frozen vegetables when 20 minutes are left) to add a greater healthy twist to this meal.
• Class it up! Mix 1 pkg Onion Soup mix and 1 small container of soup cream into the Cream of Mushroom Soup. Use chicken broth instead of milk. Quick fry Chicken in a little cooking sherry (or butter and chicken broth) with Basil and Parsley, in addition to the other seasonings. Outside of chicken should be browned. If inside of chicken is not cooked through, it will finish cooking in oven. Put chicken in a buttered casserole dish, cover with soup mixture. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes to 1 hour. Serve with (or over) Wild Rice.
  

This meal really takes you about 3 minutes to prepare, especially if you are using box mashed potatoes or minute rice. Serve with steamed broccoli or carrots...or add salad to bring some crunch and color.

This meal gives you amazingly moist, seasoned chicken. I cannot explain how happy I was to try this recipe.

Got your own quick baked chicken dinners? Share your comments and recipes below.

Fast and Easy Chicken Rotel

Chicken Rotel
6-12 oz pasta, cooked
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
1 can Rotel Tomatoes
1 - 1.5 lbs cooked chicken, in bite sized pieces
8 oz Velveeta, cubed

Mix all ingredients. Heat until all Velveeta is melted and mixture is creamy and heated through.

Variations

• 
  
  Buy Tyson trimmed and ready boneless, skinless chicken strips for a quick cooking chicken. I throw them in a pan with salt, pepper, and garlic. Then cover with Chicken Broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer. Cover and let simmer 5-10 minutes. Then cut into bite size pieces. This method works for any boneless, skinless chicken but the time will vary based on the size of your chicken
• 
  
  Use your left over chicken from last night OR boil a whole chicken, covered, for about 40 minutes instead of the method above.
• 
  
  Don't like Chicken? This recipe is good without it.
• 
  
  Boil your noodles in chicken broth instead of water for that homemade, took all day flavor.
• 
  
  Rotel Tomatoes too spicy? Leave 'em out! Don't use any tomatoes...or try a different flavor. Italian tomatoes are different and yummy in this.
• 
  
  Cream of Mushroom Soup can be used instead of Cream of Chicken Soup. Healthy Choice soups are "soupier" than regular soups.
• Want to really blow people's minds? Cook the chicken and pasta, then pour everything into a casserole dish and bake at 350 until bubbly (about 20 minutes). They'll think you boiled the chicken for 40 minutes, too. Heck, if your baking a casserole, you probably did boil the whole chicken.
  

Easy Chicken and Dumplings

(Beyond Easy) Easy Chicken and Dumplings
1 - 2 cans Chicken Broth  OR 1 can Chicken Broth, 1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup
1 can cooked chicken
1 can biscuits
1 - 2 Tablespoons butter
Pepper

Bring chicken broth to a boil. While waiting, open and drain chicken. Open canned biscuits and cut each biscuit into quarters or strips. Add butter, biscuit pieces, and chicken to broth. Pepper to taste. Boil for 10 - 15 minutes. Dumplings will be ready when biscuits are "done" on the inside (they will look bread-y).


The starch from the "dumplings" will make the broth thick.

Edit:
To keep the chicken from sticking and burning to the bottom of your pot, put in the biscuits first and then put the can of chicken on top. The chicken will hold the biscuits down and will eat up from the cooking biscuits.

Also, covering speeds up the process. And, do not touch the pot once it's covered. I used to have to stir several times as this cooked, to keep the chicken from sticking, but then I found the gem of advice above that I have passed on to you guys.

Variations

• Hate canned chicken? Reminds you of tuna? Use your left over chicken from last night or boil up some boneless, skinless chicken breast/strips in about 15 minutes and then cut into chunks. OR boil a whole chicken, covered, for about 40 minutes.
  
• Use cream of chicken soup and 3/4 c water instead of chicken broth for really thick dumplings. Some people even just use milk and flour for the sauce.
  
• No biscuits? No problem. Use a box of lasagna. No noodles? Use 1 package of tortillas. Just cut the tortillas into strips and drop into the boiling chicken broth. Once their soft, they are ready to eat.
• For a SUPER fast dumplings, heat your favorite soup to boiling and drop in quartered biscuits; cover and let simmer/boil for about 10 minutes. Vegetable soup with Chicken lends itself to this. For me, though, this is not really Chicken and Dumplings....but it is good eats.
  

I really like this recipe because it's really easy and really fast. This is another one of those comfort foods. I always use plenty of pepper for flavor and serve with green beans or peas and carrots.

Have your own Chicken and dumplings recipe? Are your dumplings more noodle than dumpling? Do you know a quick and easy "handmade" dumpling recipe? Leave some comments.