Scrumptious Sunday

On our way back from PA last week we arrived back home right around dinnertime.  Only one problem, our fridge and cupboards were just a little bare.  Fortunately on the way home we swung into the market and grabbed a picky chicken, aka rotisserie.  It made for a quick meal with some frozen veggies and 90 second rice, but what to do with over half a chicken we had left?  My husband loves corn chowder so it was an easy choice to make chicken corn chowder.  I'd made the recipe once before and it was a hit with the boys.  Plus, I didn't have to cook the chicken for it which made it much easier and quicker to cook!  Here's the recipe!

Chicken Corn Chowder

1 tablespoon butter
6 green onions
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper (I use a wee bit more, but we love pepper!)
2 (10 ounce) packages frozen corn kernnels, thawed
1 (14 ounce) can fat-free, less sodium chicken broth
2 cups fat-free milk
1/2 cup (2 oz) preschredded cheese (I forgot to add this last time, whoops!)

Melt butter in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat.  Remove green tops from green onions.  Chop green onion tops and set aside.  Thinly slice white portion of each onion.  Add sliced onions to pan; saute two minutes.  Add flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly with a whisk.  Stir in chicken, salt, pepper, one package of corn and broth; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, simmer five minutes.





While mixture simmers, combine the remaining corn and milk in a blender; process until smooth.  Make sure you have thawed the corn or it will remain lumpy and not get the correct texture. Trust me, I know! ;)  The outcome is a chunkier chowder vs. a creamier chowder.

Add mixture to pan; simmer two minute or until heated through.  Ladle two cups chowder each into four soup bowls.  Sprinkle green onions on top.  Top each serving with two tablespoons cheese. 









394 calories, less if you leave off the cheese, for dinner!  Pair it with a yummy salad and maybe some crescent rolls and you're good to go!

Best Wedding Gift Ever!

Still, almost four years later, one of the best wedding gifts I received is our crock pot.  I never knew I would love this small appliance so much!  But with a busy schedule, working full time, sports practice, etc. I quickly came to love my crock pot probably a little too much!

The best thing about it, is that you can get dinner ready before work or practice and come back hours later with a piping hot, yummy meal on hand.    With football practice started back up again for the season I am now officially the queen of the crock pot!  I try to steer clear of it the majority of the time when Cody doesn't have sports because I get too used to making all of my quick, easy recipes and it gets redundant, but I rejoice each football season in the ease of meal preparation!



Where do I find these delicious recipes you may ask?  One of my favorite places is the Fix It and Forget It Lightly cookbook.  Last night I made Zucchini-Vegetable Pot.  Scrumdiddlyumptious!   It's a family favorite.  All my boys love it and besides a little chopping, it's quick and easy! Here's my take on this recipe:

1.  Brown 1 lb of ground turkey in a nonstick skillet.
2.  Chop up the following and place them in the crock pot:

• 2 zucchini
• 2 ribs celery
• 1 green bell pepper
• 2 large tomatoes
• 1 onion

3.  Top with 1/4 c. rice and turkey.
4.  Spinkle the following seasonings on top:

• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic salt
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

5.  Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours.
6.  We add tobasco sauce to ours for a nice little kick!  (It tastes delicious without as well if you or your kids are not into spicy foods.)

So, if you have a slow cooker, pull it out and try this recipe today!  If you don't, you might want to run out and buy one!  And remember, if you're going to a wedding or shower, this just might be the most beloved gift the bride could get.  She may not realize it straight away, but she will sooner or later!