Chili Chicken Enchiladas

I've noticed this Chicken Enchilada recipe all over the internet and it really is delicious!  It's even good left-over and I'm usually not really fond of those but this recipe just seems to get better as it's left over!

I tweaked my recipe just a bit since I didn't have some of the ingredients I needed.

Ingredients:

3 cups chopped, cooked chicken

jar of salsa

packet of chili seasoning

1 can of chili beans

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Flour taco shells - the soft ones

Combine the following three ingredients & pour over Enchiladas:

can of cream of chicken soup

1 cup of sour cream

3/4 cup of milk

1) I started with about 3 cups of cooked, chopped chicken breasts

2) Add a jar of salsa

3) Add a packet of Chili Seasoning ( the original recipe calls for taco seasoning but I didn't have any)

4) Add about a cup of shredded cheddar cheese

5) Add chili beans

6) place spoon full of mixture in taco shells and roll them up, placing seam side down in baking dish

7) Combine can of cream of chicken soup, 1 cup of sour cream and 3/4 cup of milk.  Stir together and pour over Enchiladas.

8) Top with shredded cheddar cheese

9) bake at 350 degrees for about 35-40 minutes

Southern Sweet Tea

Sweet Tea.. it seems simple enough.  Make your tea, add some sugar and there you have it... sweet tea. I've always had my standard "go to recipe" when it comes to sweet tea.  However, I'm fairly open minded when it comes to re-thinking how to make a recipe I've done the same way for years.

I came across this recipe and it quickly became one of my FAVORITE sweet tea recipes!

1)  Start with the tea of your choice and put it in a boiler of water on the stove top. (I use 6-7 cups of water and 3-4 pint size tea bags).  Cook on high until the tea comes to a gentle boil then reduce heat.... Don't allow the mixture to come to a rolling boil because you don't want your tea bag to burst!

2) Add 1 cup of sugar and 2/3  cup of brown sugar and gently boil until the sugar has completely melted then remove from heat.

3) Remove tea bags and pour mixture into a 1 gallon pitcher and continue filling with water until the pitcher is full.

If this recipe is too sweet for your tastes start by cutting back on the amount of brown sugar.... If you find it's not sweet enough to suit your tastes add a full cup of brown sugar... but, above all  ENJOY!

Country Biscuits with Cream of Chicken Gravy

I started this recipe by making the biscuits using the following ingredients:

2 cups of self-rising flour
1/3 cup of Crisco Shortening ( I like the butter flavor)
3/4 cup of buttermilk or milk

Start by preheating your oven to 500 degrees.  Use a pastry blender or fork to blend the Crisco into the self-rising flour.  Continue blending until the Crisco has been cut into the flower enough that you notice little "peas" of dough.

Add the buttermilk and stir using a fork until the dough leaves the sides of the bowl.










Prepare a floured surface for your dough. I made a circle with the flour and lightly dusted the center.

I added the dough mixture to the center of my "flour circle."

Slide your hand into the dough-ball scooping up the excess flour as you go and begin kneading the dough mixture.  Knead about 2-3 times but DON'T over knead it.












When you finish kneading, roll out till the dough is approximately 1/2 inch thick.  Use a biscuit cutter to cut out your biscuits and place in a greased baking dish.

Lightly grease the tops of the biscuits with melted butter or vegetable oil.  Bake for approximately 10min. or until the tops of the biscuits are golden brown in color.  They should look similar to the ones below.

Once your biscuits are done combine 1/2 can of cream of chicken soup with approximately 1 cup of milk (more or less depending on how thick you like your gravy) and heat over the stovetop or in the microwave.

Pour the gravy over the biscuits.

Bacon Cheddar Ranch Potatoes!

Every once in a while you come across a recipe that's DELICIOUS!  This just happens to be one of those recipes!

It's easy, delicious and even the kids love it!

Ingredients:
3lbs. chopped red potatoes
3/4 cup of Ranch salad dressing
1/2 cup of Sour Cream
1 pkg. of shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup of bacon bits + 1/4 cup more for garnish
2 tsp of chili powder
salt & pepper to taste

1)   Start by chopping your red potatoes into small pieces.

2)  Mix the Ranch dressing, sour cream, shredded cheese, bacon bits and chili powder.  If you notice the mixture tends to be "too thick" or "too dry" add more Ranch dressing.... or, if you're counting calories add some 2%milk.... Just make sure you use enough Ranch dressing to flavor the potatoes.  

3)  Add the chopped potatoes to the mixture and stir to coat evenly.  Pour the mixture into a 9x13 pan that has been generously greased.

4)  Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 1hour.  After baking, remove from oven and top with remaining shredded cheddar cheese, bacon bits, and Oregano.

Roll Tide Burlap Centerpiece!

I recently decided I would use some burlap to make a centerpiece for my favorite football team!  To start with yo will need :

1) Wire coat hanger

2) Burlap - approximately 6-7 yards 

3) Decorative ribbon of your choice (since I'm a bama fan I chose colors of "crimson" and then something that resembled the "houndstooth" look), I was unable to find the actual houndstooth ribbon/fabric so I opted for the ribbon in the picture.

How To Make The Centerpiece:

1)  Use a pair of pliers (wire cutters) to cut the top off of a wire coat hanger.  Using your wire coat hanger "thread" the burlap onto the wire coat hanger.  Don't worry about getting it perfect!

2)  Continue weaving the burlap onto the wire coat hanger until it is as "full" looking as you prefer.  I tend to prefer a really "full" looking centerpiece so I used quite a bit of the burlap.

3)  Once you have finished weaving the burlap onto the wire coat hanger, use some pliers and "twist" the two wire ends together in a circular motion in order to fasten the ends together.

4)  Select any type of decorative ribbon to "tie into" the burlap centerpiece along with a candle that matches.  Because of the burlap centerpiece MAKE SURE you are aware that if you choose a candle not in a glass candle holder.... there is a huge possibility you will need to make/create a centerpiece that works for you!

Bread Crumbs

Make your own bread crumbs!  It's one of the easiest things to do in the kitchen and you can use bread crumbs as a panko bread crust, to thicken soups and sauces or even add to meatloafs or meatballs to absorb some of the grease.

You will need to start with your bread (mine was hamburger buns) and place them on a baking sheet.  

 Bake at 300 degrees for approximately 20-30 minutes OR until they are golden brown colored like the ones in the picture.  Allow them to cool completely and if you notice some of the buns aren't quite "dry enough" ... (in my case the top half of a hamburger bun because it is so much thicker) place them back in the oven to continue baking until they are completely dry and can be blended in a blender.

I then used my blender to break the hamburger buns up and blend them into breadcrumbs.

.... And that's it!  From here I placed them in a Ziploc freezer safe bag and froze them for future use.  Since I am always using breadcrumbs I plan to make them myself (from this point forward) just using whatever bread pieces I have!

Twine Candle Votive

It seems with Fall quickly approaching I am interested in ANYthing that even remotely resembles Fall or the Thanksgiving season.  Sooo... I have begun crafting with Fall items such as twine, burlap and cranberry/apple scented candles.  My dollar store twine candle votive is the most recent "Fall craft."

I think it has a "rustic" feel that looks great with the other Fall decorations.

You will need to start with gathering your supplies.  Mine included a candle votive, candle holder and some twine along with a hot glue gun.  I started hot glueing the first strand onto the candle holder and wrapped the twine down and around towards the bottom.  There are a couple of things you might find useful to know:

1) I did NOT hot glue the twine the ENTIRE way around the votive.  I used a little hot glue "here and there" and continued wrapping around until I noticed the twine was beginning to slip and could use a little something to hold it in place.

2)  It is important to know that with this particular votive, once you reach the widest point of the votive it begins to narrow and this is where the twine is more likely to slide downward.  You will need to use a little more adhesive (I used a hot glue gun).. in order to make sure the twine doesn't slip and the wrapping is even and continuous.

Then you add your candle and enjoy your craft!  I also happen to think an orange colored candle would be gorgeous for November and maybe even a black one for Halloween!  At any rate,   Happy Crafting!!