Creamy White Chicken Chili

I liked this recipe because it was slightly different than most of the white chicken chili recipes I've had before. It is so yummy!

Ingredients:
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon oil
2 cans (15 1/2 ounces each) Great Northern Beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) chicken broth
2 cans (4 ounces each) chopped green chilies (if you like less kick, add just one can)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup 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 cream. Garnish with fresh cilantro, if desired. Serve immediately. This is especially good served with tortilla chips. Makes about 6 servings.

Cheesy Broccoli and Potato Soup

Last night our cooking club's theme was 'Soup'. My favorite soup of the night was this Cheesy Broccoli and Potato Soup, from my friend, Gina. Broccoli in soup doesn't exactly make my boat float, but this soup does it well. Very, very well.

Perfect hearty soup for a cold day (and it's cold here in the east!).

1 cup diced onion

2 Tbls butter

3 chicken bouillon cubes

1 cup diced celery

3 1/2 cups water

4-5 medium potatoes, peeled and diced into bite-sized pieces

3-4 sliced carrots

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1/2 head broccoli, chopped

1 lb Velveeta cheese, cubed

Fresh parsley (a hand full), chopped

Saute onion, celery, and butter. Add water, bouillon cubes, potatoes, carrots, parsley, and broccoli. Cook 15-20 minutes over med-high heat with lid on to steam vegetables.

Add cheese and chicken soup.

Stir and cook on low heat until warm.

White Bean Chicken Chili

This soup is easy, yummy, and good for the soul (maybe, I don't know).

2-3 chicken breasts , cooked and shredded
4 cans white beans
1/2 chopped onion
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 small can diced green chilies
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano leaves
2 cans chicken broth
1 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded cheese

Saute onion and garlic and mix with chicken. Add with the rest of ingredients into a crock pot except, add sour cream and cheese for the last 45 minutes. Garnish with cilantro, cheese, avocado, and sour cream.

(I usually make this stove top instead of crock pot for faster meal).

Tomato Florentine Soup

2 tsp. olive oil
3 clove garlic
2- 14 oz. cans chicken broth
8 oz. of cheese tortellinis
1- 14 oz. can chopped tomatoes in juice
1/2- 10 oz. bag fresh spinach, stemmed and washed or packaged of frozen
6 basil leaves, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 c. parmesan cheese

Heat the olive oil in a large sauce pan. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, without browning-about 30 seconds. Stir in chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add tortellini and cook just until tortellini are tender, reduce heat. Add tomatoes, with juice, spinach and basil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Simmer just until spinach is tender. Remove from heat. Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

***

This is a very fresh tasting soup. It is an ideal summer soup, as in light and not heavy. Yummy.

Tortellini Soup

1 lb. mild Italian sausage (I use ground turkey sausage, available in 1 lb. pkgs. from Wal-Mart)
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 c. water
2 (13 1/2 oz.) cans beef broth
1/2 c. apple juice (or just more broth)
3 carrots, sliced
1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 c. sliced zucchini (optional)
4 T. dried parsley (or fresh chopped)
8 oz. frozen or refrigerated tortellini

Fresh grated Parmesan for garnish

Brown sausage. Drain and add onion and garlic, cook until tender. Add water, broth, juice, carrots, tomatoes, basil, oregano. zucchini, parsley. Simmer 30 min. Add tortellini last 5-10 min and cook until tender, but not soggy. Garnish with Parmesan

I just tried this recipe for the first time last night and it had delicious flavor.

Crockpot Mexican Chicken

This dish won People's Choice in 6th Ward's Chili Cook-off last year. It's not really chili, but I took it so that I had something WW friendly to eat. It's a CORE recipe and for FLEX people, 1 cup is only 3 pts.

Crockpot Mexican Chicken

3 cans corn niblets
3-4 chicken breasts
3 cans black beans (drained)
1 jar chunky salsa
taco seasoning

spray crockpot with pam
put corn in bottom of pot.
place chick (fresh or frozen) on top.
sprinkly taco seasoning on top of that
pour in jar of salsa
Pour beans on top of that
Cook on low about 5 hours. After about 4 hours, shred the chicken with a fork (should be tender enough to just shred apart by stirring - or sometimes I'll take out the chicken, shred it up and place it back in the crockpot).

Serve it up and eat! You can put sour cream or cheese or whatever on top. I love to add some tortilla chips for some crunch.

Clam Chowder

I got this recipe years ago from my awesome mother in law. It is delicious! Thick and rich and yummy. Perfect for a cool night. (Don't mind that it's almost summer...just save it for later ;)

2 6 ounce cans minced clams
1 cup onion, finely chopped
1 cup celery, finely chopped
2 cups potatoes, chopped
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup flour
1 quart Half & Half
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar

Drain juice from clams and pour over vegetables in a medium saucepan. Add enough water to barely cover the vegetables. Cover and simmer until potatoes are tender--about 15 minutes. In the meantime, melt butter and add the flour. Stir until smooth to make a roux. Add cream and cook, stirring constantly until smooth and thick. Pour cream mixture over vegetables, add clams and heat through. Season with salt, sugar. Add pepper to taste.