Spicy Southwest Chicken Soup

Spicy Southwest Chicken Soup

3 cups chopped cooked chicken (more or less)
1 large carton chicken broth
1 large can dark red kidney beans
15-oz can petite diced tomatoes
7-oz can Salsa Verde
1 tbsp cilantro
2 tsp chipotle chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
2 splashed hot sauce
1 pkg fajita seasoning
1 tbsp lime juice
12-oz bag frozen Birdseye Southwestern Corn

Combine the first 11 ingredients in a large pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 20 minutes. Add the corn and cook until thoroughly hot. Serve with a sprinkle of shredded cheddar, sour cream and spicy tortilla chips.

Yum! Great meal on a rainy night!

Succotash and Fried Apples

Succotash

3 slices bacon, diced

1 small onion, diced

14 oz pkg frozen Fordhook lima beans

1/2 cup water

12 oz pkg frozen Birdseye Southwest Style Corn

Salt & Pepper to taste

Cooke the bacon in a large skillet until nearly crisp. Add the onions and cook until tender. Add the lima beans and water and simmer until beans are done and water has evaporated. Add the corn and season to taste. Cook until thoroughly heated.

Fried Apples

3 tbsp butter

4 apples, peeled, cored and sliced

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp cinnamon

3 tbsp sugar

Melt the butter in a heavy skillet. Add the apples, salt, lemon juice, cinnamon and sugar and cook until apples are tender and starting to brown a bit, stirring often.

We had the Succotash and Fried Apples with Broiled Smoked Sausage tonight and it was good! The apples and the sausage were awesome together, but I personally didn't care for the Southwestern style corn in my Succotash. John loved it though, and swore it was the best I've ever made - but what does he know?

Guinness Braised Sirloin

Guinness Braised Sirloin

Sirloin steaks, 1-inch thick
Garlic Salt & Pepper to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, sliced
1 tsp sage
3 splashes Hot Sauce
1 bottle Guinness
Water

Season the steaks with garlic salt and pepper and brown them well in the olive oil in a heavy skillet. Add the onion, sage, hot sauce, Guinness and enough water to cover the meat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer gently for an hour or until the meat is very tender and the liquid has mostly evaporated.

Good and easy with Cheesy Mashed Potatoes and Corn.

Crunchy Rice Casserole

Crunchy Rice Casserole


1 pound ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 teaspoon mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups cooked long-grain rice
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 cups coarsley crushed cornflakes
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

In a skillet, cook beef, onion and green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add the ketchup, mustard and salt; mix well. Transfer to a greased 2-qt. baking. Top with rice. In a bowl, combine the cheese, soup, milk and Worcestershire sauce. Pour over rice. Combine cornflakes and butter; sprinkle over the top. Bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees F for 35 minutes or until heated through.

This got 4.5 stars (out of 5) at allrecipes.com....personally, I'd only give it a 3. Just barely.

Pork and Pintos and Mexican Cornbread

Pork and Pintos

1 lb dried pinto beans
1 tsp baking soda
Water
5 or 6 Country Style Pork Ribs
2 tbsp Bacon grease
Salt to taste
Smokehouse Pepper to taste
1 tsp chipotle chili powder
1 large onion, chopped
32-oz carton beef broth
1 tsp garlic powder with parsley
1 handful chopped sun-dried tomatoes
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp cumin
1 heaping tbsp chopped pickled jalapenos

Wash the beans and place them in a Dutch oven. Cover with water and add the baking soda. Bring to a boil for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand a few hours. Drain and the beans and set aside.

Season the pork ribs with salt, smokehouse pepper and chipotle powder and brown well in the bacon grease in the Dutch Oven. Add the chopped onion and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the beans, garlic-parsley powder, tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, jalapenos and beef broth. Stir in enough water to cover the beans by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce to low and simmer until beans are completely cooked, 2 or 3 hours.


Absolute Mexican Cornbread

1 cup butter, melted
1 cup white sugar
4 eggs
1 (15-oz) can cream-style corn
1 heaping tbsp minced pickled jalapeno
1 cup shredded cheddar-jack cheese
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 300-degrees F. Lightly grease a 9x13" pan. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time. Blend in cream corn, jalapenos and cheese. Add flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Stir until smooth. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at 300^ for 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted into center of the pan comes out clean.


OMG, this is the best cornbread I've ever eaten! Sweet and crusty with a very moist, dense crumb. Awesome!! The original recipe is on allrecipes.com...the only thing I did different was to substitute jalapenos for the chopped green chiles. The beans are mine...they're good too, but the cornbread was definitely the best thing on my plate tonight!

Ramen Chicken Noodle Soup

Ramen Chicken Noodle Soup
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt & Pepper
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp celery seed
Water
6 packages Top Ramen Chicken Soup
1 tbsp crystallized ginger
1 tsp Five Spice Powder
3 packets Duck Sauce (leftover from Chinese Takeout!)
1 packet Hot Mustard Sauce
10-oz pkg frozen mixed vegetables

Lightly season the chicken with salt and pepper, cover with water in a large pot. Add the poultry seasoning, celery seed and dry mustard, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 30-40 minutes or until chicken is completely cooked. Remove chicken and let it cool while you drain the cooking liquid to remove those funky looking things that happen when you boil chicken. What IS that anyway?

Return the clear cooking liquid to the pan and add enough water to make 10 cups of liquid total. Chop the chicken into bite-sized pieces and put them back in the pot. Add the ginger, Five Spice Powder, Duck Sauce, Hot Mustard and all the seasoning packets from the Ramen soup packets. Stir in the frozen vegetables and bring to a boil. Add the noodles (break them into smaller pieces if you prefer) and cook 1 to 2 minutes until noodles are just cooked. Do not overcook them! Serve immediately.

This soup is delicious! John loves anything with Ramen noodles and he raved about this recipe.

Italian Shredded Beef on Soft Onion Rolls with Horseradish Ranch Sauce

Italian Crockpot Beef
3-5 lb. rump roast
1 packet Good Seasons Italian dressing mix
1 packet Au Jus gravy mix
2 tsp. Italian Seasoning
1 cup water
1/3 cup sliced pepperoncini peppers

Place the beef in a crockpot. Combine the remaining ingredients and pour over the meat. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or until very tender. Shred and serve on rolls or hamburger buns.

Soft Onion Sandwich Rolls
3/4 cup lukewarm milk
5 tbsp lukewarm water
3 tbsp butter, softened
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp onion powder
3 tbsp dried minced onion
1/4 cup instant potato flakes
3 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp yeast
1 egg white
1 tbsp water
1/4 cup dried minced onion
1 tbsp poppy seeds

Place the first 10 ingredients in bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select Douch cycle and press Start. Whent he cycle has completed, remove the dough from the machine, knead lightly on a floured surface and cut into 6 equal pieces. Form each into a smooth ball and flatten slightly into a 4-inch circle. Place on a lightly sprayed baking sheet, cover loosely with a clean towel and let rise until doubles, about 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350-degrees F. Whisk together the egg white and water in a cup and brush over the tops of the risen rolls. Sprinkle with dried onion and poppy sedds. Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely, then slice in half horizontally before using.


Horseradish Ranch Sauce
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tbsp horseradish
1 tsp minced roasted garlic
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp Smokehouse black pepper
1/8 tsp dried dill weed
1/4 tsp onion powder
1 tbsp Braswell's Vidalia Onion Steak Sauce
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp hot sauce
1 tbsp Ranch dressing mix

Combine all ingredients until smooth and chill for at least 20 minutes before serving.

Loved the beef! The Onion Rolls were a little too sweet, but very good, so I will cut back on the sugar next time I make them. The sauce was good, but I would have been perfectly happy with plain old Barbecue Sauce on my sandwich. We had our sandwiches with shredded lettuce, sliced tomato, thinly sliced red onion, crisp bacon strips and Swiss Cheese slices.