Cabbie’s Cooking

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

Put four or five boneless chicken tenderloins in a saucepan. Cover with water, add a chopped onion and some grated carrots. Season with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Bring to a boil. When chicken is cooked, remove it from the pan and cool. Once it is cool, dice the chicken and add it back to the pot. Add a handful of egg noodles and cook until the noodles are done. You can add a little yellow food coloring to make it look nicer, you can also add some chicken stock if you need more volume, and you can add a little flour or corn starch to thicken it. Yum!  Simple and quick.

Okay, I have a new recipe for you.  I made this for dinner last night, and it was delicious!  It made two pans worth - one for last night (with enough extra for lunch today), and a pan for another evening soon.  I love having frozen meals that I can pop from the freezer to the oven for a good dinner on a busy evening.

Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas

2 cups chicken (cooked, deboned, diced.  I just bought a package of chicken - already cooked and diced)

1 can black beans (drain and rinse)

1 can whole kernel corn (drain)

1 can mild tomatoes and jalopenos  (Rotel)

2 cans enchilada sauce

several cups shredded cheese (I used a Mexican blend)

8 flour tortillas

Prepare a baking pan by spraying it with Pam.  Preheat the over to 350. 

Mix the chicken, beans, corn, Rotel and 2 cups shredded cheese together in a bowl.  Take a tortillas and spoon some of the mixture in the middle and fold in the sides.  Place the enchilada folded-side down in the pan.  Prepare all the tortillas the same way.

Pour the enchilada sauce on top of the tortillas.  Then sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese on top.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 35 minutes.  Take the foil off the top for the last few minutes.

You can add sour cream or whatever topping you like.  We ate them with nothing extra and a tossed salad on the side, and it was an absolutely scrumptious meal.

Besides being delicious, the best thing about this meal is how easy it is.  I got home around 5:15 - and by 6:00 we were eating dinner.  Just dump the ingredients in the bowl, mix, fill the tortillas and bake for awhile.  Couldn’t be easier.

Yesterday, RT and I flew to Georgia to visit my mother for awhile.  Out of our seven siblings (of which I’m the median one) - five were there.  My sister-in-law, Vicki, made a HUGE pot of chicken and dumplings.  I love chicken and dumplings.  It’s the ultimate comfort food, and it’s really good for you.  Here’s an easy recipe for homemade chicken and dumplings.

You’ll need:

1 can refrigerated biscuit dough  (If you really like dumplings, you can use 2 cans.  It just depends on how much you’re making.  There’s no hard and fast rule here.  Vicki made such a huge pot of chicken and dumplings, she probably used five or more cans!)

chicken (a package or two of boneless chicken or a whole chicken.  I usually make sure there’s some dark meat in the mix because it adds so much more flavor)

chicken stock (one or two cans of chicken broth)

salt, pepper, poultry seasoning

1 onion

2 carrots

2 stalks celery

1 cup plain flour

Place the chicken in a large pot and cover with water.  Add the chopped onion, grated carrot and finely chopped celery to the water.  (If you happen to have bell peppers - green, yellow, or red - you can chop some of that finely to add color and flavor).  Season to taste with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Simmer until the chicken is well cooked.  Remove the chicken from the pot and let the chicken cool.  Leave the vegetables in the pot with the liquid.  Once the chicken is cool, remove the meat from the bone and cut or tear into bite size pieces.  Set the chicken aside.

Place the flour in a small bowl.  Open the can of biscuits and cut/break each biscuit into about 8 pieces.  Put the pieces into the flour and coat well.  The flour is what thickens the liquid.  So use it generously.

Bring the reserved liquid to a boil.  Add additional chicken stock, if desired.  It depends on how much chicken and dumplings you are making.  Sometimes I add a drop or two of yellow food coloring to make it “prettier.”

Once it is at a rolling boil, drop the biscuit pieces into the liquid one at a time.  Stir gently to keep them from sticking to the bottom.  Make sure each biscuit piece is well coated with flour before dropping it into the liquid.  After it has simmered for awhile, add the chicken back to the liquid, and it’s ready to serve.  Prepare a salad or vegetable, and you’ve got a perfect meal. 

I tried a new recipe for dinner tonight. I usually make adjustments to any recipe to reflect my own tastes, and this recipe is no exception. It tasted very good!

Chicken Cobbler

6 T. butter, divided
5 cups cubed bread (I used a few slices of sourdough bread that I cubed - other breads would be good, too)
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 T. chopped parsley
2 medium onions, chopped
1 cup buttermilk (you can substitute regular milk OR wine, depending on your taste)
1 (10.5 oz.) can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup drained/chopped roasted red peppers
2 1/2 cups chopped/cooked chicken (I used canned chicken)

(1) Melt 4 T. butter and toss lightly with rolls, cheese and parsley. Set aside.
(2) Saute onions in 2 T. butter until golden brown.
(3) Stir in the buttermilk.
(4) Add the soup, peppers and chicken.
(5) Heat in the saucepan until bubbly.
(6) Pour into a 9-inch square baking dish.
(7) Top with the bread mixture.
(8) Bake at 375 for about 20 - 30 minutes until browned.

The title of this recipe has been cleaned up a little as you can imagine.   This recipe came from my daughter, Stinkeroo, but I’ve seen versions of it all over the place.  The alcohol cooks off, but it leaves the chicken super moist.  I’ve made this chicken several times, and it’s true - it’s deliciously juicy and tender.  Stinkeroo knows people who cook several and then freeze a couple for quick meals later.  It’s that good.

Chicken With a Beer Up Its Booty

1 whole chicken

1 tsp. Liquid Smoke

1 tsp. What’s-This-Here Sauce

1 can cheapest beer you can find (pour half of it out - or drink it)

salt, pepper, Emeril’s essence, a litle bit of every spice in your cabinet (within reason!)

Poke holes in the chicken - a lot.  Season the outside of the chicken with the salt/pepper and Emeril’s Essence.  Place the giblets in the beer can.  Then add the liquid smoke, What’s-This-Here Sauce, salt, pepper and other spices to the can of beer.  The combination is not real important.  Set the chicken on the can of beer and place it on the preheated grill.  It looks like the chicken is sitting on the beer can.  You can set this on a cookie sheet to make it a little more steady so it won’t tip over on the grill.  Cook on low for one hour and fifteen minutes.  DO NOT OPEN THE GRILL LID DURING THIS TIME.  That is important or it messes up the way it cooks.  When done discard the can - and enjoy the delicious chicken.