Chicken Roll Ups with Gravy

This recipe has become a show stopper around our house when guests come over. It doesn't seem like much, but this little baby packs a BIG punch! Somehow, with just a few simple ingredients, these roll ups are loaded with TONS of flavor and has the perfect texture. I cannot tell you how many times that I have been asked for this recipe. Kids and adults alike absolutely love these roll ups.

The basic concept of these roll ups can be upheld, while the filling can easily be manipulated. Try adding different cheeses, meats, vegetables, etc... to get your perfect combination of ingredients. If you come up with a good one, send me an email or leave me a comment with your adjustments. I would love to try your versions as well.

Ingredients for the Roll Ups
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2 Tbsp sour cream or plain greek yogurt
4 cups chicken, cubed
1/2 cup celery, chopped
1/2 cup carrots, chopped
1/2 cup onion, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste
4 Tbsp butter, melted
2/3 cup bread crumbs (or Panko, crushed croutons, etc...)
2 cans PILLSBURY refrigerated crescent roll dough (if you don't use Pillsbury, they fall apart super easily)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place a piece of parchment paper on your baking pan.
2. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken in 1 Tbsp butter or olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. During the last 2 minutes of the chicken cooking, add the celery, carrots, and onion.
3. Combine chicken and vegetables (including juices in the pan), cream cheese, sour cream or plain greek yogurt. Salt and pepper to taste.
4. Place the triangles of crescent dough on a smooth surface. Press with your fingers to make the triangle as big as you can without it tearing or becoming too thin. Put 1/4 cup of the chicken cream cheese mixture on the crescent rolls. Roll the dough around filling and seal all the edges. Softly squish the ball in between your hands to pack everything in nice and tight.
5. Dip balls in melted butter. Cover with bread crumbs. Place on the parchment paper pan.
6. Cook at 325 degrees for 30 minutes.

Ingredients for the Gravy
1 can cream of chicken soup (or my homemade recipe)
1/4 cup sour cream or greek yogurt (to make it slightly healthier)
Milk to thin out the gravy if you do not like your gravy thick

Directions for the Gravy and Assembly
1. Combine the cream of chicken soup and sour cream or greek yogurt on a stove over medium heat (I used the same pan that I used to cook the chicken in).
2. Place rice on a plate. Top with roll ups and gravy.

Chicken Curry Recipe

Is anyone watching Big Brother this summer? It is my favorite summer show! You have to make quite the commitment if you are going to watch it because it is on THREE times a week. But considering most summer shows aren't that great anyway, we like having something to watch together a few days a week. It is really starting to heat up now that almost all of the players who planned on laying low have already been evicted, AKA LOTS OF DRAMA. Anyways, I don't want to spoil too much of the show in case you decide to watch it, but we LOVE it!

In other news, our family went to the Little League World Series this weekend in South Williamsport, PA. I honestly hate baseball. Growing up, I was forced to go to not one, not two, but three brothers worth of games every week in rainy Seattle. Talk about brutal! Since, I have never really enjoyed watching games. But this was actually a very cool experience. And the entire thing was FREE! Free parking, free transportation from the parking lots, free admission, free samples of Kellogg's Frosted Flakes, free gifts and coupons from DICK'S Sporting Goods, free pins as a souvenir, free activities for the kids, etc... Tony the Tiger even made an appearance.

DICK's Sporting Goods even had a fun photo booth with a realistic looking field in the background. They had jerseys and hats from every team still in the tournament that the kids could wear in the photo. Needless to say, people LOVED this free activity.

If you have an opportunity to attend the Little League World Series or live anywhere near South Williamsport, PA, I definitely recommend checking it out. It was a great an inexpensive family outing.

Onto more important things, like this recipe. I decided to try something totally out of the ordinary from what I normally make. My husband is not a very adventurous eater but has mentioned in the past that he likes curry. I decided to give this recipe a shot because it looked simple, delicious, and I had all the ingredients on hand. I am not sure what "authentic" curry dishes taste like but this one was unbelievably tasty! My husband was a little nervous when he sat down at the table and saw what I made for dinner. Although, with just one bite, my husband began raving about how great he thought this dish was. He even said he might have the rest as leftovers tomorrow. What?? (If you know my husband he NEVER eats leftovers). I guess this dish was pretty successful in our house. 

This dish is LOADED with flavor, yet something that even kids will enjoy. Take a step on the wild side (sort of) and give this recipe a shot!

Ingredients
1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, but into 1/4 inch strips
Salt and pepper
2 1/2 teaspoons curry powder, divided
3 Tbsp vegetable oil, divided
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced (I only used 2 because my husband doesn't like garlic)
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger (I skipped this because I did not have any but I am sure it would be a great addition)
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth, best quality such as Swanson
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 cup frozen peas
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 cup plain low fat (2%) or whole milk Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

Directions
1. Sprinkle the chicken evenly with 3/4 teaspoons salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 1 teaspoon curry powder. Heat 1 1/2 Tablespoons of oil in a 12-inch skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add the chicken in a single layer and cook for 2-4 minutes on each side, until brown on the outside but still pink on the inside. Transfer the partially cooked chicken to a clean bowl and set aside.
2. Add the remaining 1 1/2 Tablespoons oil to the skillet and set heat to medium. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, ginger, and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder and cook until fragrant, about one minute.
3. Meanwhile, whisk the chicken broth and cornstarch together to dissolve the cornstarch, then add to the skillet along with the sugar and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and cook until the sauce is nicely thickened, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the peas and partially cooked chicken to the skillet, turn the heat down to low and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 more minutes.
5. Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the yogurt and cilantro, and season with salt, pepper, and sugar to taste. Serve with rice.

Adapted from: Once Upon a Chef

Crock Pot Beef and Broccoli

Sorry I did not blog for a week again. I was at my sisters enjoying her new pool. Can you say AMAZING?! Her yard is so dreamy!

And here is a SUPER cute picture of Cash enjoying his baby boat. This kid is HILARIOUS!

Anyways, we made this one night while I was there and it was AMAZING! Super easy and super tasty. Never pay for take out again because this is better (and you know what is actually going into it) ... way better! It made a TON of sauce. But really, who doesn't love sauce. Next time though, I would probably half the sauce recipe (the recipe below is the whole sauce recipe).

Ingredients
1 pound boneless beef chuck roast, sliced into thin strips
1 cup beef consumme
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons cooled sauce from the crock pot after being cooked
Fresh broccoli florets (as many as desired)
Hot cooked rice

Directions
1. Place beef in a crock pot.
2. In a small bowl, combine consomme, soy sauce, brown sugar, oil, and garlic. Pour over beef. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
3. In a cup, stir cornstarch and sauce form the crock pot until smooth. Add to crock pot. Stir well to combine. (If your sauce is not thickening, try bringing your sauce to a boil on the stovetop with the corn starch mixture. Boil until your desired consistency is reached).
4. Add broccoli to the crock pot. Stir to combine.
5. Cover and cook an additional 30 minutes on high (the sauce has to boil for it to thicken).
6. Serve over hot cooked rice.

Ham and Broccoli Casserole

I am FINALLY back :)! I had one of the best vacations of my life! It was so great to see my grandparents and mom/Alex. I also got to spend some QT with my sister, my husband's sister and her family,  and some of my grandpa's relatives as well. It is always so nice to be around family!

Anyways, when I was visiting my grandparents, we went to his sister's house in Arizona. She made a casserole and Jell-O dessert ... SO Mormon lol. This casserole dish was SO good! You can get any kid to eat broccoli with it. Even baby Cash was eating the broccoli :).

Ingredients
1 8 ounce jar cheese whiz
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup onion, chopped
4 tablespoons butter
2-10 oz packages frozen broccoli (partially cooked in the microwave and drained)
4 cups cooked ham, cubed
2 cups minute rice, uncooked
1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Directions
1. Saute onion in 4 tablespoons butter. Stir in cheese whiz.
2. Add rice, broccoli, and ham.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the milk and chicken soup. Add it to the cheese qhiz mixture.
4. Bake in a 9x13 at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Spanish Chicken and Chorizo Paella

There is not many things that I enjoy more than watching Food Network while I work out. Whenever I go to the gym (we have our own treadmill in our house so going to the gym is rare), people always make fun of me for watching Food Network while I run. Today, I saw Paula Deen (seriously LOVE her) make this dish. I knew that I had to give it a try as soon as I saw it. I guess tonight was the night. The whole dish took about an hour from start to finish but it was definitely worth it. It was creamy, hearty, filling, and just down right great. I only dirtied one pan ... love that! And a lot of the time was just letting the dish cook. This dish was so good! I am so full but I am already thinking about eating the leftovers tomorrow!

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil

1 or 2 boneless skinless chicken breast, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Paprika or ground red pepper to taste

1 large onion, diced

1 large green bell pepper, diced

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes

4 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 pound Spanish style chorizo links, cut into bite size pieces

2 cups short-grain rice (I used Arborio which can be found at Walmart)

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen green peans

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a very large shallow skillet or very large pot. Season the chicken all over with salt, pepper, and paprika (or ground red pepper). Cook the chicken until browned all over. Transfer to a plate with tongs (the chicken will finish cooking later).

2. Lower the heat to medium and saute the onion and bell pepper until softened. 

3. Stir in the diced tomatoes, chicken broth, and chorizo.

4. Bring the liquid to a boil and stir in the rice (the rice should be completely covered with liquid). Add the browned chicken pieces. Cook without stirring for 20 minutes.

5. When the liquid has all been absorbed, pour the peas over the top of the pot. Turn off the heat and cover the pot with a kitchen towel. Let stand for 5 minutes and serve.

Turkey Pot Pie Over Rice

Sorry I have not posted anything in so long. I just recently moved and it has been crazy packing, unpacking, finding a house, etc... Not to mention we were living with my husband's sister and she made dinner for us EVERY night so I haven't been cooking or baking much! The food she made was INCREDIBLE; once she sends me the recipes, I will blog about all of them! Needless to say I am almost settled in and thought that I would post a few recent recipes.

I had some leftover turkey and decided to do a spin on a chicken pot pie. This was delicious! If you don't have any turkey, just use cooked chicken. You really cannot go wrong with this recipe! It makes great leftovers too!

Ingredients
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup butter
4 cups chicken broth
1/3 - 2/3 cup onion, chopped
2 cups cooked turkey, chopped into bite sized pieces
1-2 cups frozen vegetables (depending on hearty you want it)
Salt and pepper to taste
Rice, cooked

Directions
1. Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk together. Cook until it begins to brown (about 2-4 minutes).
2. Slowly add the chicken broth, whisking the entire time to ensure that there are no lumps. Bring to a boil and cook just below your desired thickness (about 15-20 minutes).

3. Add the onion, turkey, and frozen vegetables. Cook for about 5-10 minutes (so the flavors can meld together) and to your desired thickness.

4. Serve over cooked rice.