Ranch Chicken Enchiladas

Ranch Chicken Enchiladas

I've been meaning to share this recipe with all of you-- a few of you have already experienced these enchiladas (ahem, Whitney and Jordan) when your little miracles were born. I've adopted this meal to all my new mothers, since these are so frequent these days I thought I needed a standard meal to throw together with no thought. Everyone I've made this meal for has asked for the recipe so here it is! If you like Mexican or Spicy food this dinner will be added to your weekly menu. 

Ingredients:

3-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

8 oz. sour cream

8 oz. Dry Ranch salad dressing (don't use the salad dressing in the bottle but the dry packet)

10-12 flour tortillas

1/2 jar of salsa

2 cups shredded mexican cheese

Directions:

Poach your chicken breasts until cooked through. Set aside to cool a bit. While chicken is cooling, mix up the sauce. In a large mixing bowl, combine half of the sour cream and half of the Ranch dressing. In a small bowl, combine the rest of the sour cream and Ranch dressing. Stir both until well combined. Shred or chop (I like to use my food processor here) the cooked chicken and add to the large mixing bowl. Mix well with sauce.

Preheat the oven to 375°. Grease a 9 x 13″ pan. Take one tortilla and top with a little less than 1 tbsp. of the sauce from the small bowl. Spread over the tortilla in an even layer. Add some of the chicken mixture to the center of the tortilla. Top with salsa to taste. Sprinkle with shredded cheese, to taste. Roll up tortilla and place, seam side down, in the prepared baking dish. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes (30 for a crispier tortilla). Allow to cool a few minutes before serving.

Enjoy and you can thank me later!

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Chicken noodle soup is such a classic so when my hubs came down with a serious sinus infection a few weekends ago I decided to treat him to a home remedy! This recipe is full of flavor and way too easy to make. It calls for chicken broth and chicken stock so I was able to add my stock from poaching my chicken breast and store bought broth for the remainder. You better believe it did the trick, Paul was on his feet a few days later!

Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

For the stock:

1 tbsp. vegetable or canola oil

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 cup chopped onion (or a bag of frozen veggies, which is what I used)

½ cup chopped carrot

½ cup chopped celery

1 qt. water

2 qt. low-sodium chicken broth

2 bay leaves

2 tsp. salt

 

For the soup:

3 tbsp. cornstarch

¼ cup cold water

1 cup pasta

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery to the pot. Cook for 5-10 minutes, until the veggies thaw and become soft, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Boil water, broth, bay leaves, salt and chicken breasts. Then add shredded chicken, salt and pepper to taste and remaining broth. Cover and cook for 20 minutes. Remove the lid, increase the heat to high and bring the mixture to a boil. Continue to cook the stock for 10 minutes, adjusting the heat to maintain a gentle boil. In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch and water; whisk together until smooth. Stir the mixture into the stock and bring to a gentle boil. Add the pasta and continue to cook until the noodles are tneder, about 5 minutes.
 

Ranch Chicken Cheese Ball with Pecans

I've been to so many baby showers and bridal teas that serve these same old cheese balls with a bunch of veggies I don't prefer to be in them. I was looking for something basic and came up with this recipe. Let me warn all you onion, pimiento, mayo lovers this recipe may be too easy for you! I turned out it had the perfect amount of kick (thanks to the ranch powder I used-GOSH, I love this stuff). And ONLY 4 ingredients that you probably have on hand. I suggest making this cheese ball for your next event!

1 poached chicken breast, shredded

1 (1/2 ounce) package ranch dressing mix

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup pecans, chopped

Directions:

 Combine chicken, salad dressing mix and cream cheese in a mixing bowl, beat at medium speed with an electric mixer just until blended. Shape into a bowl and roll in pecans. Cover and chill. Serve with crackers.

 

Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo

Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo

This was not my first time making alfredo sauce at home but it was MUCH better than the first time. Paul is actually the one who loves alfredo and I enjoy cooking what he enjoys eating (even though he may not need it since he has high cholesterol--but it's better than eating out, right?). I however can rarely justify the dreaded CALORIES. 

Grilled Chicken

1-2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper

For the alfredo sauce:

3 tbsp. butter

2 tbsp. flour (for roux)

2 cloves garlic, smashed

1½ cups heavy cream

1½ cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Bring a large pot of water to boil for cooking the pasta. While you are waiting, cook the chicken breasts. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Season both sides of the chicken breast halves with salt and pepper. Add to the skillet and cook until brown on one side, 3-5 minutes. Then flip and cook until browned on the other side and cooked through, an additional 3-5 minutes. Remove to a plate and let rest for a few minutes. Cut into small strips.

To make the sauce, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Then add flour to create a roux. Next, add the garlic and cream, and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Mix in the Parmesan cheese and stir until completely melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Source: sauce adapted from Annie's-Eats