Slow Cooker Nacho Chicken Soup

I just received this new cookbook, Soup's On as a belated Christmas gift (thanks Mom).  I have tried this soup and thought it was very delicious.  I doubled the recipe and used only half of the green chiles.  I didn't have sour cream on hand, so I threw in 8 oz. of cream cheese!

Slow Cooker Nacho Chicken Soup

1½ lbs. boneless chicken breasts or thighs
2 (14 oz.) cans chicken broth 
2 (7 oz.) cans diced green chiles
(substitute 1 can with jalapeños)
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
1 can corn, drained
1 cup sour cream 
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
2 cups crushed nacho-flavored chips (Nacho Doritos)


1. Place about a 1/2 pound of boneless chicken breast or thighs, in the pot. 
2. Add broth, chiles, a package of taco seasoning, and cream of chicken soup.
3. Cook on high 3-4 hours, or on low 6-8 hours. 
4. About a half hour before serving, use a large slotted spoon to remove the chicken from the pot and place in a medium-size bowl to cool slightly.
5. While it's cooling, stir sour cream, cilantro, crushed tortilla chips, cheddar, beans and corn into the soup.
6. With two large forks, shred the chicken. Return the chicken into the pot and stir well before serving. 
6. Let each guest customize their bowl with options such as chopped cilantro, sliced olives, chopped tomatoes or salsa, chopped red or green peppers, diced avocadoes or guacamole, tortilla chips, grated cheese, shredded lettuce, and hot sauce.

- "Soup's On!" by Valerie Phillips

Crazy Good Brownies

As requested by Tami...
These are delicious brownies! Taken from the Bountiful 5th Ward Neighborhood Cookbook...

1 C brown sugar
1 C sugar
1 C oil
2 tsp. vanilla
4 eggs

1 tsp. salt
8 T. cocoa
1 1/2 C flour
1 C shopped, toasted pecans (we haven't ever added the pecans... but I'm sure it is yummy!(

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix sugars, oil, vanilla and eggs. Add salt, cocoa, flour and nuts. Prepare a cake pan, grease and flour and then pour batter into it. Bake for ~40-45 minutes (printed recipe said 25 minutes but they were too runny but maybe that is because we didn't add nuts?). Just check and take note how long - we bake them in a 9X13 pan and it took 45 minutes.

ENJOY!

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Watch out...these are addicting and will disappear fast!  They are super yummy and an instant hit anywhere you take them.

1 cup butter (2 sticks) room temperature
2/3 cup peanut butter (crunchy or creamy – I like crunchy)
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2  2/3 cup flour
2 teaspoons soda
1 teaspoon salt
48 miniature Reese’s peanut butter cups, unwrapped

Cream butter, peanut butter, sugar, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla together until smooth. Combine flour, soda and salt and add to butter mixture.

Form dough into 1-inch balls and place in mini muffin pan (leave in balls; do not press down.)

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.  Just cook until they start to brown, and then take them out.   Immediately press a miniature peanut butter cup into the cookie until top is even with the top of the cookie.  Let cookies cool in pan for at least 10 minutes before transferring.

(Or if you have a favorite peanut butter cookie recipe, use that instead of the above.)  

This recipe is from The Sister's Cafe website.  HERE is the direct link for the recipe.

Lemon Chicken Romano

Looking for something to make with those lemons mom gave you from Arizona?   I made this the other night and it was delicious!

Ingredients

• 2 (8 oz) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed, halved horizontally*, and pounded to 1/2-inch thick
• 2 oz shredded Whole Milk Mozzarella cheese (1/2 cup)
• 2 oz shredded Provolone cheese (1/2 cup)
• 1 large egg
• 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
• 1 1/2 oz finely shredded Romano cheese (1/2 cup)
• 1 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano
• Zest of 1 lemon (2 tsp)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 1/2 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 1/2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Lemon slices or wedges for serving (you can just use the one that was zested)

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle each side of the chicken cutlet lightly with salt (about 1/16 tsp per each side), let stand at room temperature 20 minutes. Combine Mozzarella and Provolone cheese in a bowl, set aside.
• In a shallow dish, whisk together flour and egg until smooth. In a separate shallow dish, toss together Panko bread crumbs, Romano cheese, oregano, lemon zest, garlic powder and 1/4 tsp pepper. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Working with 1 chicken cutlet at a time, dredge chicken in egg mixture coating both sides and allowing excess to run off, then immediately transfer to Romano mixture and coat both sides with mixture, while pressing gently to allow crumbs to adhere. Transfer chicken to a plate and repeat process with remaining chicken cutlets. Pour 2 1/2 Tbsp olive oil and vegetable oil into a 10-inch non-stick skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, add 2 coated chicken cutlets and fry without moving them until bottom is crispy and golden brown, about 2 minutes, then using metal tongs rotate to opposite side and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes longer. Transfer fried chicken to a large plate lined with paper towels to drain. Repeat process with remaining 2 pieces of chicken.
• Place cutlets on rimmed baking sheet, sprinkle tops with Mozzaralle cheese mixture and transfer to preheated oven to bake until internal temperature registers 165 degrees on an instant read thermometor, about 12 minutes (you can broil during the last 1 - 2 minutes if desired). Remove from oven and garnish with lemon slices or wedges, serve warm. Squeeze fresh lemon juice from lemon slices over chicken just before enjoying.
• *freeze chicken breasts for 15 minutes to help slice easier, then lye breast flat and trim into two pieces through the thickness of the breast.
• The recipe came from Cooking Classy website.  You can find the link HERE.