Chicken tortilla soup (crock pot)

3-4 frozen chicken breasts
1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1-1/2 cups salsa (I use pace picante)
8 oz block cream cheese

Place chicken, beans, corn and salsa in crock pot. Cook on high 4-5 hours. Shred chicken. Add cream cheese 30 minutes before serving. Stir well. Top with crumbled tortilla chips.

Submitted by: Brooklyn Peterson

Honey Lime Chicken Enchilada’s

Ingredients:

Marinade -

6 tablespoons honey

5 tablespoons lime juice (1 large lime)

1 tablespoons chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 pound chicken, cooked and shredded

8-10 flour tortillas (I used whole wheat tortillas)

1 pound monterey jack cheese, shredded

16 ounces green enchilada sauce

1 cup heavy cream

Directions:

1. Whisk the first four ingredients and toss with shredded chicken in a Zip-loc bag.

2. Let it marinate for at least a 1/2 hour, but preferably a half day or so.

3. Pour about 1/2 cup enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9X13 baking pan.

4. Fill the tortillas with chicken, saving marinade, and shredded cheese, saving about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas.

5. Put tortillas in 9x13 pan as you go.

6. Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the cream and leftover marinade (if there is any).

7. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas.

8. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

9. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until brown and crispy on top.

Submitted by: Nicole Harman

Beach Street Chicken

1 lb. linguini Noodles (or Fettuccini or I like it with Thin Spaghetti)

1-2 T. olive oil

Zest from one lemon

Juice from one lemon

¼ c. chopped fresh parsley

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Parmesan cheese

Marinade:

½ c. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, whole

2 T. Cajun seasoning (I would cut in half if you have little ones; this was too much for my younger kids)

2 T. lemon juice

2 T. minced parsley

1 T. brown sugar (or more if you like it a little sweeter-I think I added about 2 T.)

2 T. soy sauce

2 chicken breasts, sliced. (OR 16 extra large shrimp)

Combine the marinade ingredients in a Ziploc bag. Slice thawed chicken (or shrimp). Pat dry and toss in marinade to coat. Refrigerate 1-12 hours. Cook marinated chicken with the marinade sauce in a large sauté pan on medium heat until chicken is cooked. If using shrimp, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Bake for 7-10 minutes. Be sure not to overcook shrimp.

Cook Noodles according to directions then drain.  While the noodles are cooking combine the lemon juice, zest, olive oil and parsley together in a large bowl.  Add noodles and then toss together.  Once tossed, pour the cooked chicken and sauce over the noodles and toss well to combine.  Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. 

Submitted by: Nicole Harman 

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

( I usually cut this recipe in half)
8 cups chicken broth
4 cups water
4 cooked, boneless chicken breast halves, shredded (can use more chicken than this)
2 (4.5 ounce) packages quick cooking long grain and wild rice with seasoning packet (such as Rice-a Roni)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground pepper
1 1/2 c. flour
1 c. butter
4 cups heavy cream (I often just use half and half)

In a large pot over medium heat, combine broth, water, and chicken. Bring just to boiling, then stir in rice, reserving seasoning packet. Cover and reduce heat to low.

In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, and flour. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in contents of seasoning packet until mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low, then stir in flour mixture by tablespoons to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Cook until thickened (5 minutes).

Stir cream mixture into broth and rice. Cook over medium heat until heated through, at least 10-15 minutes.

Submitted by: Nicole Harman

Herb Crusted Salmon or Chicken Salad

Pasta Salad
1 tomato diced
1 can artichoke hearts chopped
1 small can sliced olives
1 box of penne pasta cooked, drained and rinsed (I think bow tie would be good as well)
Romaine Lettuce chopped (I used a couple of hand full’s of spinach)
4-5 mushrooms diced (I used baby bella's)
* Toss all ingredients and put them over the romaine lettuce and drizzle with balsamic dressing. (I just tossed everything together in a big bowl.)

Herb Crusting for Salmon or Chicken ( I just put everything in a Ziploc and then I made one bag for the salmon and one for the chicken)

1/2 tsp. basil, thyme, oregano, rosemary and pepper
2 Tbsp flour
1/4 tsp. salt

*Bake Salmon at 400 degrees in 9x9 baking dish for 25 minutes.

*I used chicken tenders and I cooked the chicken on the stove but you could also start it on the stove to get a nice brown crust and then finish it in the oven. *

Submitted by: Nicole Harman

Easy Chicken Parmesan Bake

Here's what you'll need to make 6 portions:

2 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic, crushed
hot red pepper flakes, to taste
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used tenderloins)
2 1/2 cups marinara sauce
1/4 cup chopped basil
8 oz mozzarella, shredded
4 oz Parmesan, grated
1 (5-oz) package garlic croutons

Spread the olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes evenly on the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Place the chicken breasts in the dish, and evenly space so they cook uniformly.  Cover chicken evenly with the marinara sauce and chopped basil.  Top with half the mozzarella, and half the Parmesan. Pour over the croutons and spread evenly. Top with the remaining cheese.  Bake for 35-40 minutes at 350 degrees, or until top is browned and the chicken is cooked through.  Let rest for 5 minutes before serving. Serve with sauce, and juices, spooned from the bottom of the casserole (on it's own or over noodles).  Enjoy!