Chicken Pot Pie

This is another yummy adaptation from a Snow family recipe. I make my own pie crust, so I included that recipe, but the recipe called for frozen pie crust which I'm sure is yummy as well. The problem with a frozen pie crust is twofold: 1) it costs money. I'm not paying $3 or $4 for something I can make myself pretty quickly with flour and shortening. 2) you have to buy it ahead of time. That requires forethought. Hee hee. Anyway, here it is!

Filling:
1/3 c. butter
1/3 c. flour
1/3 c. onion
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 can chicken broth
2/3 c. milk
Shredded chicken (She means the cannery stuff, but I cook and cube mine)
Peas and carrots (this means frozen ones. I used garden carrots and broccoli with frozen peas in mine. If you use fresh veggies, make sure you cook them a bit before you put them in or they will be just a little crunchy.)
2 frozen pie crusts (or use the recipe at the end of this post)

Melt butter. Add flour, onion, salt, and pepper. Remove from heat when it's a paste. Add chicken broth and milk. Return to heat and boil for 1 minute. Add chicken and veggies. Form pie crust. Pour mixture in crust. Put other crust on top. Pinch edges and bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes.

*sidenote* you probably already know this, but if you'll put a little layer of tinfoil over the edges of the crust until the last 5 minutes of baking, the crust edges won't fry.

2-crust pie:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup plus 2 T shortening
4 to 6 T cold water

In a medium bowl, mix flour and salt. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender or kitchen knives until particles are the size of small peas. (*sidenote* I finally bought a cheap little pastry blender at Wal-Mart for around $4. It changed my life.) Sprinkle with cold water, 1 T at a time until all the flour is moistened and pastry almost leaves the side of the bowl. Divide dough in half and shape into flattened rounds between wax paper. Refrigerate for 45 minutes until dough is firm but pliable. Then roll out and form your pie crusts. If it's too hard to roll, just let it sit on the counter until it softens up some.

*another sidenote* this one is good to make ahead of time and pop it in the fridge until you're ready to cook. We do it on Sundays sometimes so we can just stuff it in the oven when we get home from church.

Angel Chicken

I just realized I've had too long of a break in recipes. We've tried a lot of new ones and I should be sharing. This one's from the Snow family cook book. Sorry for the no-photo, but this one was good and we'll be doing it again, so never fear. I'll snap a shot next time.

3 to 4 chicken breasts, cut up, skinned, and deboned
1 can cream of mushroom soup (I used cream of chicken. Dave has an unreasonable hatred for mushrooms)
1 (8 oz.) cream cheese
1 can mushrooms (left these out too... sigh.)
1 c. chicken broth
1 pkg Good Seasons Italian dressing (dry)
2 T butter
Cooked noodles (she recommends fettucini noodles. I used spaghetti ends. Kids loved them.)

Place all ingredients (other than cooked noodles) into crock pot and cook for 3 to 5 hours. Stir well before serving and serve over hot noodles. Yum.

*note* I wanted my sauce a little thicker, so about 20 mins before dinner, I whisked in a little cornstarch dissolved in water and let the crockpot cook it a little more. Worked like a charm.

Cinnamon Rolls

This is the easiest recipe for cinnamon rolls in the world and they stay soft for days. Yum.

2 1/2 cups warm water
2 packets yeast
1 yellow cake mix
4 - 4 1/2 cups flour

Combine yeast and water and allow yeast to activate. Mix in yellow cake mix. Stir in flour, 1 cup at a time, until sticky dough forms. Don't add too much flour or they will be dry. Allow dough to raise about 1 hour or until double in size. Grease your counter top (I just use cooking spray) and roll dough out into large rectangle. Sprinkle with the following:

1 pkg dry non-instant butterscotch pudding
Combined: 1/4 c butter, 2 tsp cinnamon, and 1/2 c brown sugar

Roll beginning from wide end and pinch seam shut. I usually cut my cinnamon rolls fat and use just a length of string to do it. Knives just squish them.;) Cover and allow to raise while oven is heating. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 mins. I take them out before they're brown, but the roll bounces back after you touch it. Here's my frosting recipe:

1 cube butter
1 8 oz. pkg cream cheese
2 T milk (depending on desired thickness)
2 tsp vanilla
1 lb powdered sugar

Beat butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and milk together until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar to desired consistency.

Delicious Brownies

My sister Sara gave me this recipe. The brownies are from a really old cookbook she has and the frosting is from the back of the Hershey's cocoa box. They are fantastic. I always think homemade brownies are either too cake-like or too greasy, but these are just as good as a mix if not better.

Melt two sticks of butter and stir in 10 Tbs of cocoa. Add 2 cups sugar and mix well. Add 4 eggs, 1 1/2 cups flour, and a dash of salt and mix together. Spread in 9 x 13 pan and bake at 350 for 25 minutes. (I have a gas stove and had to do 30 mins.) Cool completely before cutting.

Frosting:
Melt 1 stick butter and add 2/3 cup cocoa. Alternately add 3 cups powdered sugar, 1/3 cup milk, and 2 tsp vanilla until spreading consistency. This turns out pretty fudge-like.

*tip* I'm sure I've posted this before, but line your pan with tinfoil and spray the foil. This way you can lift the brownies out after they're cool and it makes them infinitely easier to cut.

Jana's Chocolate Chip Cookies

I challenge anyone to find a better chocolate chip cookie recipe than this one. I've searched far and wide and this one is the clear favorite. It came from a student of Dave's and we thank her for it every time we use it. Not literally, just in our thoughts. I usually use the large milk chocolate chips, but the picture shows them with mini M&M's, which were fun as well.

2 cups + 2 Tbs flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 Tbs butter, melted and cooled until just warm
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
2tsp vanilla
chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine butter with sugar, eggs, and vanilla, and stir until mixed well. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add flour mixture to butter mixture and stir. Add chocolate chips and drop onto cookie sheets (I line them with parchment paper -- worth the investment, if you ask me) and bake 15-18 minutes. Half way through the baking time, rotate your trays top to bottom, back to front for even baking. I take them out before they brown on the edges and let them sit on the pan for 2 or 3 minutes before putting them on the cooling rack because I like them soft and chewy.

Taco Soup

I love this recipe, especially on a cold day. We like to sprinkle with cheese and stir in a little sour cream. It's best when scooped with Fritos.;)

Use a big crock pot because it makes it easier to stir. You can also prepare 2 cups of dry beans yourself if you choose. This stuff freezes really excellently.

2 cloves garlic, minced
Onion to taste, minced
1-1 1/2 lb ground burger (I use turkey and it's delish)
2 8 oz cans tomato sauce
2 15 oz cans diced tomatoes (I use the ones with green chiles 'cuz I like a little pep)
4 15 oz cans beans, any combo, drained but not rinsed (I usually use black, light red kidney,
chick peas, and pinto)
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1 packet taco seasoning
1 packet ranch dressing mix

Brown onion and garlic in skillet with a little olive oil. Then add burger and cook, smashing it into the size of pieces you want to eat.;) Combine all ingredients in crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hrs. Easy peezy, rice and cheesy... or soup and cheesy.

S'mores Bars

This delicious recipe comes from my sister-in-law, who got it from allrecipes.com, I think. The recipe calls for 5 Hershey's bars, but I use a bag of milk chocolate chips because that's what I usually have on hand. Enjoy!

1/2 C butter, softened
3/4 C sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/3 C flour
3/4 C crushed graham crackers (about 4 full-sized ones)
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 bag milk chocolate chips
3 C mini marshmallows

Heat oven to 350. Grease an 8 x 8 pan. (They are easier to cut if you line your pan with foil and then spray it. You can pick them right out of the pan and set them on a cutting board so the corners and edges are easier to cut.) Beat butter and sugar together. Then add the egg and vanilla and mix well. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt. Slowly add this to the butter mixture until combined and crumbly. Press 1/2 of the dough into the pan. (I usually do about 2/3 of the dough in the pan, as I like more cookie underneath.;) Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips and marshmallows over the top. Crumble remaining dough over marshmallows and bake for 10-15 more minutes, or until the marshmallows are golden brown. So very very yummy.