My Go To Meals

Howdy all,

We have a few go to meals, some which I do in the crock pot in the morning when I know I have a busy day ahead.

Creamy Chicken--You can just bake this for an hour or put it in the crock pot and cook all day. I take chicken breasts and 1-2 cans of Cream or Chicken or Mushroom (whatever I have) and throw them in the crock pot with a can full of water, sprinkle with salt, pepper, maybe some powdered Italian dressing mix, and let it cook. About 20 minutes before you are ready to eat, throw in a half a block of cream cheese or a whole block if you have many chicken breasts and 2 cans of soup. At this point I take my tongs and break up the chicken, it is so tender it just comes apart easy and then stir up the mixture with cream cheese and cook for about 20 more minutes. Once it is all ready, I either pour it over rice or mashed potatoes and open a can or corn or carrots or something for the side, or a salad. Its really creamy and yummy and so easy. If you do it in the oven, just cook it for 45-60 minutes and add the cream cheese with 20 minutes left.

We also do nachos a lot for go to meals, you can do them vegetarian and just open a can of black beans or whatever kind of bean you have (refried is great too), sprinkle them on tortilla chips that are spread out on a cookie sheet, top with your favorite toppings, we do cheese, sauteed onions, sometimes add chicken or beef, then pop them in a 325 oven for a few minutes until it is all melty and yum.

Another favorite of mine is Monterrey Chicken found here http://recipestop.blogspot.com/2008/07/monterrey-chicken.html
I like this because I can make twice as much as I need and then take a leftover breast and shred it for Barbecue Chicken Pizza the next day or add in some Frank's Red Sauce after you shred it and make a really yum Buffalo BBQ Chicken and serve it on a green salad with ranch, or a sandwich/wrap for a great little kick.

I agree on the omelets comment made before, they are cheap and easy and fast!

I also keep tomato soup and cheese on hand for tomato soup and drilled cheese sandwiches.

I also love to make chicken salad. I keep some cans of cooked chicken on the shelf from Sam's. They are quite good and great for quick meals. I can take a can or two of chicken and drain it, then add a can of chopped pineapple, 1/2-3/4 cup of Mayo (lite is okay), salt, and pepper and sometimes a little lemon juice. Throw that on some bread and its a great sandwich.

Another crock pot one is for soup. I take a couple of chicken breasts, about 6 cups of water, and a cup or so of dried Great White Northern Beans. I put them all in the crock pot with a medium sized can of chopped green chilis. Add spices, like cumin, Mrs. Dash, etc and just cook on high all day. There is no need to pre-soak the beans, just sort them, rinse them and put them in the crock pot. This make an easy and tasty White Bean Chicken Chili. I serve it with a dollup of sour cream and tortilla chips and shredded cheese.

Hope that helps!

Heather