Creamy Chicken Manicotti

This is a family favorite, but I don't make it too often, coz it's not the best for you lol! This was something my mom used to make when I was a teen, and it has always been a favorite of mine. It has manicotti in the title, but we have always used jumbo shells. Much easier than stuffing manicotti.

About 15 jumbo pasta shells
1/2 cup sour cream (I use reduced fat)
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) creamy chicken mushroom soup, undiluted
2 cups chopped cooked chicken (I bake 2 chicken breasts, and dice them, small pieces, when they've cooled)
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 tbsp butter or margarine (I use light stick butter)
1 can (4 oz) sliced mushrooms, DO NOT DRAIN!
1 cup (4 oz) shredded sharp cheddar (can use reduced fat, but it doesn't melt quite as well)

Cook shells according to package directions, omitting salt; drain and set aside. In the meantime, combine the soup and sour cream; mix well. Put half the soup mixture in a separate bowl, and add in the cooked chopped chicken; mix well. Set aside remaining soup mixture. Stuff shells with the chicken mixture; place in a greased 13x9 baking dish. Melt butter in large skillet, add onion and saute' until tender but not browned. Add mushrooms WITH the juices in the can. Stir in the reserved soup mixture and mix well. Spoon over the stuffed shells. Bake uncovered at 350 for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese and bake another 5 minutes or til cheese is melted.
I like to serve with warm buttered bread to soak up all the sauce!

Chicken Fajita Tostadas

It's been awhile since I have made this, but was looking through my recipes and I think I might have to make it soon!! It's really tasty!

Ingredients
2 med. onions, thinly sliced
2 bell peppers (ribs and seeds removed), thinly sliced
1 box (10 oz) frozen corn
1 cup prepared fresh salsa
2 tbsp olive oil
coarse salt and ground pepper
2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
4 corn tortillas (6 inch)
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar

Preheat oven to 450. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. On foil, combine onions, peppers, corn, 1/4 cup salsa, and 1 tbsp oil; season with salt and pepper. Roast, tossing occasionally, til veggies are tender and lightly browned, about 15-20 minutes. Add chicken; stir to combine, and continue to roast til warmed through, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a serving bowl, discarding foil. Arrange tortillas on sheet.Brush with oil and top with cheese. Bake til edges are golden and cheese is melted, 5-8 minutes. Dividing evenly, top tortillas with chicken-veg mix and remaining 3/4 cup salsa.

Chicken Tamale Casserole

Ingredients
1 cup (4 ounces) preshredded 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese, divided
1/3 cup fat-free milk
1/4 cup egg substitute
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
1 (8.5-ounce) box corn muffin mix (such as Martha White)
1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
Cooking spray
1 (10-ounce) can red enchilada sauce (such as Old El Paso)
2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Combine 1/4 cup cheese and next 7 ingredients (through chiles) in a large bowl, stirring just until moist. Pour mixture into a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
3. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until set. Pierce entire surface liberally with a fork; pour enchilada sauce over top. Top with chicken; sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. Cut into 8 pieces; top each serving with 1 tablespoon sour cream.

WW Chicken or Turkey Tettrazini

10 oz uncooked vermicelli
2 tsp veg oil
1 lb turkey breast cutlets or chicken breasts
3/4 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt, divided
1/4 tsp pepper, divided
2 tbsp dry sherry or white wine
2 (8 oz each) pkg sliced mushrooms
3/4 c frozen peas, thawed
3/4 c FF milk
2/3 c FF sour cream
1/3 c grated parm
1 can RF cream of mushroom
cooking spray
1/3 c dry breadcrumbs
2 tbsp melted butter
sauteed celery and onion

Preheat oven to 450. Cook pasta according to pkg directions. Drain. Heat a little butter or oil in a skillet, saute a little bit of onion and celery (the recipe is weird, it doesn't specify an amount, nor does it have the oil or butter needed for this step listed in the ingredients. I just use 2-3 stalks of celery and about 1/2 an onion, diced). Put celery and onion in a bowl and set aside. Heat oil on med-hi. Sprinkle turkey with 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp pepper. Cook in oil til done, remove from pan. Add1/4 tsp onion powder, sherry, and mushrooms to pan. Cover and cook til tender, about 4 minutes. Combine peas, milk, sour cream, cheese, and soup in large bowl. Chop turkey (or chicken). Add 1/4 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp pepper, pasta, turkey, celery and onion, and mushroom mixture to soup mixture, tossing gently to combine. Spoon into greased 13x9 baking dish. Combine butter and breadcrumbs; sprinkle on top. Bake at 450 for 12 minutes or til bubbly and hot.

Fall Apart Crockpot Chicken

This is from Hillbilly Housewife. Sounds a little weird, but it seems that some of the weirdest combinations make the most delicious food. We had it over rice, and it was tasty.

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 stick butter
1 pkg. dry Italian salad dressing mix

Cook on low in crock pot for 3-4 hours. Shred chicken. Then add:
1 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2-1 can of water (measure in the soup can)
Heat through; about an hour. Serve over noodles, rice, whatever you like.

Stove Top One Dish Chicken

This is in the oven right now for dinner tonight. There are 2 methods, either in the oven or on the stove top, I'm going for in the oven tonight, but have made it both ways. Gonna have a can of wax beans and salad with it, with homemade Greek/vinaigrette dressing (recipe to follow in new post).

Stove Top One Dish Chicken
1 1/2 cups hot water
1/2 stick melted butter
1 pkg chicken flavored Stove Top
6 small bnls sknls chicken breast halves (1 1/2 lbs... I just use whatever pack of about 1 1/2 pounds I have on hand in the freezer, there are never 6 pieces in the packs I buy, but most are big enough that I slice them lengthwise in half to make thinner pieces)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/3 cup sour cream (I use reduced fat)

Mix hot water, butter, and stuffing mix. Cook chicken in nonstick skillet on med-hi 5 minutes each sideor til browned. Mix soup and sour cream; pour over chicken. Top with stuffing; cover. Cook on low 10 minutes or til chicken is done.
Oven method: Heat oven to 375. Prepare stuffing as directed. Place chicken in 13x9 baking dish. Mix soup and sour cream; pour over chicken. Top with stufing. Bake 35 minutes or til chicken is done.

WW Rosemary-Feta Chicken with Cherry Tomato-Olive Sauce

This was one of the very first weight watchers recipes I tried. I absolutely love this recipe. It is definitely one of my all time favorites. I can't even describe how good this is. Just make it. Trust me.

1 (1.5 oz) slice hearty white bread (I just use a slice or 2 or 3, depending on the size of the slices, of whatever white bread I have on hand. )
1/4 cup (2 oz.) crumbled feta (I've used reduced fat with success)
1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (I'm pretty sure I've always used dried rosemary)
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper, divided
1/4 tsp salt
4 (6 oz.) boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1 tsp olive oil
cooking spray
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
1/3 cup minced shallots (about 3 large)
1/3 cup fat free reduced sodium chicken broth
1 pint grape tomatoes (called cherry tomato-olive sauce, but calls for grape tomatoes in the recipe. Whatever)
Rosemary sprigs, optional

Preheat oven to 375F. Place bread in food processor; pulse 10 times or til coarse crumbs measure 1/2 cup. Combine breadcrumbs, cheese, and rosemary in small bowl. Toss well; set aside. Sprinkle 1/4 tsp pepper and salt evenly over chicken. Heat oil in nostick skillet coated with cooking spray over med-high heat. Add chicken, cook 3-4 minutes on each side or til browned (it will continue cooking in the oven so don't cook it all the way through). Place chicken in an 11x7 baking dish; top evenly with breadcrumb mixture, pressing down slightly. Sprinkle olives, shallots, and tomatoes around the chicken, then pour the chicken broth around the chicken (not on top of the breadcrumbs). Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 tsp pepper. Bake at 375F for 27 minutes or til chicken is done and breadcrumbs start to brown. Garnish with rosemary sprigs, if desired. Yield: 4 servings

WW Chicken Piccata

Yes, another Weight Watchers recipe. I made this just the other night. I hadn't made it in quite some time, and GI Joe requested it, it's one of his favorites. The kids don't like the sauce, but that's ok, more for us! And I actually double the sauce ingredients, it's really yummy and we like to have enough to go over egg noodles with the chicken.

4 (6 oz.) boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tbsp olive oil, divided
1 tbsp minced shallots (I double this)
1/4 cup fat free reduced sodium chicken broth (I double this)
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice (I double this)
1 tbsp capers (I double this)
2 tsp chopped fresh parsley, divided (I double this)

Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2 inch thickness with meat mallet or rolling pin. Sprinkle chicken evenly with salt and pepper; dredge in flour. Heat 1 1/2 tsp olive oilin large nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Add half of chicken; cook about 3 minutes each side or til done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm. Repeat with remaining olive oil and chicken, removing chicken when done. Add shallots to pan; saute' 1 minute or til tender. Add broth, lemon juice, and capers. Increase heat to high and cook 1 minute. Stir in 1 teaspoon parsley (I probably use a tablespoon or more). Spoon sauce evenly over chicken (we spoon it on ourselves on our plates, like I said the kids don't like it so I don't need the sauce on all of the chicken). Sprinkle with remaining teaspoon parsley. Yield: 4 servings.

Nanny's Chicken Casserole

I'm gonna share something that is near and dear to my heart. This is one of my great-grandmother's (I called her Nanny) recipes. For those that don't know me that well, my Nanny was very special to me. My mom was a teen mom, and we lived with my great-grandparents (along with my mom's brother) up until I was about 13, and at that time my mom and I just moved across the street to live with her boyfriend/fiance/now common-law husband or whatever, but anyways....so growing up, there was always super yummy southern granny food on the table. A lot of these she never wrote down, so many have been lost as she got older and has since passed away (though I was very lucky to have her in my lfe until I was about 28). So the handful of her recipes that I have are very important to me, it's like preserving a special part of my past. This is by far my most favorite thing she ever made, next to her apple pie turnovers.
1 chicken (boiled and deboned. You can either boil it whole, adding enough water just to cover, or cut it in pieces and add enough water to cover. Either way, reserve the cooking liquid coz you can use it for the chicken broth that the recipe also calls for instead of canned)
1 1/2 cups chicken broth (you can use canned or just strain the chicken cooking liquid coz hey, that's chicken broth!)
1 bag herb Pepperidge Farm dressing
1 can cream of chicken
1 can cream of mushroom
1 stick butter

When chicken is done, remove from pot, reserving liquid if desired, and set aside to cool slightly. When cool enough to handle, remove from bones (discard skin and bones or save them to boil up to make even more chicken broth) and shred into large but fairly bite sized pieces. Melt butter; pour over dressing in large bowl and let sit about 10 minutes. Layer dressing, chicken, 1 can soup, and 3/4 cup broth (if using the broth from the cooked chicken, be sure to strain through a fine strainer to remove any bits and pieces); repeat layers and sprinkle with remaining dressing on top. Bake at 350 F for 35 minutes.