Creamy White Chili

This recipe is from my sister-in-law, Emmy Lou. We ate the soup so fast, I didn't have time to get a picture. Everyone loved it!

Ingredients:
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. Vegetable oil
2 cans (15 each) great northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 1/2 oz.) chicken broth (I made my own with water and chicken bouillon)
2 cans (4 oz. each) chopped green chilies
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 cup (8 oz) sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream

Directions:
In a large saucepan, saute chicken, onion and garlic powder in oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add beans, broth, chilies, and seasonings. Bring to a boil, reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream and whipping cream. Serve immediately.

Notes: This recipe served our family of 6 perfectly, but if you want leftovers or to offer seconds, make sure to double the recipe. I think I will do that next time so we can have it for lunch/dinner the next day.

I did not have rolls on hand, so I served it with tortilla chips. It would also be pretty to sprinkle Monterey Jack cheese and some cilantro on the top if you want to impress people!

Best Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am sooo sad that I can't remember where I found this recipe to give credit to a truly deserving person. However, this recipe is worth sharing. I have tasted a number of nasty gluten free cookies. These are amazing!

Ingredients:
1 cup butter (softened)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/4 cup rice flour**
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. xanthan gum**
1 tsp. salt
12 oz. choc. chips (or other variety)

First, place vanilla, eggs, and butter (softened) in mixing bowl.
Then add your dry ingredients one at a time, mixing in between each one: sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, xanthan gum, salt......and then the flour. (You can mix them in a separate bowl and then add to the wet mixture.....but to be honest, I hate dirty-ing an extra bowl.

Moving on. Mix the dry ingredients in really well. You will have a dough form, just like regular cookies. But it will feel a lot more sticky. That's okay. Don't add extra flour.

Then add your favorite cookie ingredient. Like I mentioned above, these are my favorites: Chocolate Chip, White Chocolate/Macadamia Nut, and Andes Mints.

Place little balls of dough on large cookie sheet. Oh, I don't know.....regular cookie dough ball size. 1 inch? 1.5 inch? Bake in preheated 350 degree (F) oven and bake for 8-10 minutes. Do not overbake. The cookies tend to dry out and aren't as forgiving as regular gluten-full cookies. Allow to cool on a wire rack (or paper towels on the counter).

**Tip: I always pull them out right before they look done. You don't want to completely brown them. I always pull them out when the centers still look slightly dough-y. (The ones shown below are even cooked a smidgen more than I usually do. They usually come out a bit paler.) Once they cool, they will be a little chewy in the center. And unforgettable. Mmmmmmm...

Sweet Chili Tortilla Soup

I ate this soup all day -- literally -- with LOTS of tortilla strips on top of each bowl! I should've felt sick after eating a gallon of soup, but I didn't. It was fabulous. The kids did not care for it though. Must've been the thin texture from blending it. Thanks so much to The Sisters Cafe for making my day soup-filled!

Sweet Chili Tortilla Soup
Submitted by Amy ~ The Sisters Cafe

1 dried ancho chili
1/2 cup boiling water
2 T. olive oil
3 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (or breasts, or equivalent amount of rotisserie chicken)
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 large onion, chopped (about 2 cups)
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/2 inch coins (or equivalent baby carrots)
2 stalks celery, cut into 1/2-inch slices
3 garlic cloves, peeled and quartered
2 t. ground cumin
6 cups chicken broth (or stock)
3 cans (14.5 oz each) chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves (I probably use a little more)
10 corn tortillas, for frying

For garnish use any of the following:
Sliced avocado
Crumbled queso fresco, or shredded Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
Sour cream
Salsa
Lime wedges
Cilantro

1. Place chili in a small, heatproof bowl; pour boiling water over and let soak 30 minutes. Drain; remove stem and seeds. Slice into 1/2 inch strips and set aside.
2. In a large soup pan, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add chicken; season with salt and pepper. Brown on both sides, about 10 minutes total. Add onion, carrots, and celery. Continue to cook about 8 minutes, stirring often. Add garlic and cumin and cook an additional 2 minutes. Add broth, reserved chili, tomatoes, and cilantro and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer about 15 minutes. With your hands, tear 3 tortillas into 2-inch strips and add to the soup. Continue to simmer about 15 minutes.
3. With a slotted spoon, remove chicken to a cutting board; take soup off heat. With a immersion blender, puree soup until smooth (I just use my regular blender and it works fine or you can puree the soup in small batches in a food processor fitter with knife blade). Return to pan. With two forks, shred chicken; return to soup. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Slice remaining tortillas with a pizza cutter into 1/4-inch strips. In a small saucepan, heat 1.5 inch canola oil until very hot. Fry tortilla strips until crisp, about 1 minute. With a slotted spoon, remove strips to a paper-towel-lined plate and season with salt. Serve soup in bowls topped with tortilla strips and any or all of the optional garnishes.

Copycat Olive Garden Pasta E Fagioli in a Crockpot

Copycat Olive Garden Pasta E Fagioli in a Crockpot

Easy as pie and DELICIOUS!!
Note: I had to use 2 regular size crockpots to fit everything in. I put all the ingredients in a giant bowl, stirred together, and then dumped 1/2 in 1 crock and the other half in another. It made enough to take dinner to another family!

Ingredients
2 lbs ground beef
1 onions, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
2 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (16 ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained
1 (16 ounce) cans white kidney beans, drained
3 (10 ounce) cans beef stock
3 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons pepper
5 teaspoons parsley
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce (optional)
1 (20 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce
8 ounces pasta

Directions
Brown beef in a skillet.
Drain fat from beef and add to crock pot with everything except pasta.
Cook on low 7-8 hours or high 4-5 hours.
During last 30 min on high or 1 hour on low, add pasta.

Pizza Roll-Ups

adapted from Let's Dish

Ingredients

Pizza Dough (you can make your favorite pizza dough recipe or cheat like I did and go to your nearest grocer's bakery and ask for uncooked french bread. Roll out 1 loaf of dough into a rectangle, and follow directions below. I used 2 loaves of bread dough for this recipe. I got 12 pizza rolls out of each loaf, so a total of 24 rolls). Served this as a meal with garden salads. It would also make a great appetizer!

1 teaspoon garlic salt
2 teaspoons basil
1 cup sliced pepperoni, chopped
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (I didn't have this on hand and they were still delicious!)

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Divide pizza dough in half. Roll each half into a rectangle, about 1/4 inch thick and 12 inches long. Sprinkle each half with equal amounts of garlic salt, basil, cheeses and pepperoni. Starting at a short end, roll dough up tightly to form a log. (Just like you are making cinnamon rolls). Slice into 1-inch pieces. Each rectangle should give you about 12 rolls. Place rolls on lightly greased baking sheets. I brushed my rolls at this point with a little melted butter. It made them very soft and delicious, but the tops looked pale. I will continue making them this way though, as the taste was fabulous. Bake for 10 minutes or until browned on top. It took 12 minutes in my oven. Serve with warm marinara sauce for dipping. (I used Ragu).

Heath Bar Cupcakes

Ingredients
Chocolate Cake Mix
Heath Bars (crushed)

Frosting
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 pound confectioners sugar
1/2 cup caramel topping, plus more for drizzling
1 teaspoon salt

Directions
Mix and bake cake mix according to directions. Let cool.

To make the frosting, cream the butter in the bowl of an electric or stand mixer. Add the vanilla, salt and caramel syrup and mix to combine well. Add the sugar, a cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Frost cooled cupcakes. Garnish with crushed heath bars. Makes 24 cupcakes.

Creamy Ham and Potato Soup

Perfect for fall! I doubled the recipe, for everything except the white sauce, so it would be healthier. It was thinner than the original recipe, but the entire family licked the pot clean. I'm sure it is even better made with the original recipe below. Found on: The Girl Who Ate Everything

Creamy Ham and Potato Soup
3 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
1/3 cup diced celery
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup carrot, diced (optional)
1 cup diced cooked ham (buy a ham steak in the deli section)
3 1/4 chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon ground white or black pepper, or to taste
5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk

Note: I added some carrots that I had and Becky said she adds a can of corn too which would be good.

Directions:
1.Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, carrot, ham and chicken broth in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the salt and pepper.

2.In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour with a fork, and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in milk so that lumps don't form and until all of the milk has been added. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thick, 4 to 5 minutes.

3.Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through.

4. Top with cheddar cheese, chives, and bacon if desired. Serve immediately.

5. Makes 6 servings

Source: adapted from Allrecipes