My stalkers/readers are AWESOME. You want to cook like a Reva aficionado? Here you go! The recipes are separated in three categories: Crock Pot Cookin’, I Feel Like Chicken Tonight, and Soup-er Summer. Click on, and THANK YOU stalker buddies!!
Crock Pot cookin’
Heidi: I have several really, really easy and impossible to screw up recipes. I love crockpots because they don’t heat up the house, dinner is made early in the day, and the house smells so yummy all day long!
Salsa chicken
Put frozen chicken breasts (2-3) in crock pot with a jar of salsa at lunch time. Heat on high. Shred chicken (just use two forks and pull chicken apart…it practically shreds itself) at dinner time. Serve on soft taco shells with cheese and whatever else you like. If you want, right before you eat them, fold the stuffed shell in half, and fry in a frying pan for just a minute to give the shell a little crisp texture. So easy. So yummy.
Hot Chicken Salad
Throw 2-3 frozen chicken breasts in the crockpot at lunchtime with one can of undiluted cream of chicken soup, one can of undiluted cream of celery soup, and some sliced mushrooms. Shred the chicken at supper time, and serve on rolls. YUM.
Eden says I am a crock pot girl in the summer.
You can do the following with chicken or pork shoulder/ribs:
1. Meat + BBQ sauce + chopped onion + 2 cloves garlic + 3-4 hours on high. Serve on buns or your favorite toast.
2. Meat + 3, 4oz cans of mild green chili, + chopped onion + 2-3 cloves garlic + 1/2 C cilantro (if you like it), 1 chopped green bell pepper + 1 can black beans 3-4 hours on high. Serve on tortillas, or rice or taco shells, w/ cheese and your favortie Mexican topings.
I Feel Like Chicken Tonight
From the Great Gabby:
CITRUS-GARLIC ROASTED CHICKEN (Serves 4–6)
4 large bone-in, skin on chicken breasts, about 3 pounds
4 large whole chicken thighs, about 2 pounds
1/2 navel orange, zested, plus the juice of 1 whole orange
2 limes, 1 zested, both juiced
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
Freshly cracked black pepper
1. Put the chicken in a large nonmetalic bowl. Put the orange and lime zests in a small bowl and add the fruit juices. Whisk in the olive oil, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and a generous grind of black pepper. Pour the marinade over the chicken and toss until well coated. Marinate for 20 to 30 minutes but no longer than 45 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Put a rack on a rimmed baking sheet. With tongs, remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and arrange them on the rack leaving space between each piece. Drizzle a small spoonful of the marinade over the top of each chicken piece; season well with salt and pepper, to taste. Roast until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear when meat is pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes to an hour.
Transfer the chicken to a serving platter. Cool slightly before serving or let stand until room temperature before refrigerating for later use.
GRILLED CHICKEN SALAD (an awesome make-ahead idea!!)
Thaw boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs. Marinate in ¼ cup soy sauce mixed with ½ tsp. ground ginger and 1 tsp. honey. Let sit in refrigerator for at least 30 min. Grill the chicken until done. Cut on diagonal on serve on a bed of cut lettuce. You can add any vegetables or fruit that you like and any dressing that you prefer. I usually grill a lot of chicken at one time and freeze what I don’t use. The next time I want to use grilled chicken for a salad or to eat with barbecue sauce it is ready to take out of the freezer, warm in microwave and eat a quick meal.
TORTILLA PIE WITH CHICKEN (Serves 4)
12 corn tortillas (6-inch), toasted
2 cups cooked, shredded dark-meat chicken
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chiles
1 1/2 cups Green or Red Salsa
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (6 ounces)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In an 8-inch square baking dish, layer 4 tortillas, 1 cup chicken, cup chiles, 1/2 cup salsa, 1/3 cup sour cream, and 1/2 cup cheese; repeat once. Top with remaining tortillas, salsa, sour cream, and cheese. Bake until top is browned and bubbling, 30 to 40 minutes.
Eden has a simple plan that can also work for the oven or crockpot:
1 pkg Italian salad dressing mix + zest and juice of 1 lemon +2-3 Tbls olive oil. Combine this marinade in a ziplock back with your chicken overnight. Cook in the oven at 350 for 30 mins or in a crock pot for 3-4 hours on high. Serve with whatever you like.
I love love love this simple meal idea from Erin: So, it’s a million degrees here in good ol’ AZ (you know this, I know) and so I try not to heat up the house with extraneous cooking. This recipe works well to accomplish this goal and it makes so much that you have super yummy leftovers for a couple days. I give you:
A Lovely Summer Meal: Arizona Style
Ranch Pasta Salad
1 lb. spiral pasta
Ranch Dressing
Chicken
Cheese (I like extra sharp cheddar, but you can use whatever floats your boat)
Various vegetables of your choosing
Boil Pasta
Cook (I boil it) the chicken and cut it up into small pieces
Let both of these cool completely
Cut up your cheese into very small bite size chunks.
Cut up your vegetables into small-ish bite size chunks. I use:
Tomatoes
Carrots
Cucumbers
Green Peppers
I remove the gel and seeds from my tomatoes to keep the salad from getting too sloppy, but you don’t have to.
Add cheese, vegetables and cooled chicken to the pasta. Pour ranch dressing over all and toss. I use just enough dressing to coat the pasta, but my husband always adds more, so do what you like.
I usually eat this with some good bread (additional carbs make me happy). Refrigerate the leftovers and have for lunch. Or breakfast. Whatever. (We also leave the chicken out of this and offer it as a ‘side’ at picnics/potlucks on a regular basis)
From dear Happily Ever After: For my favorite summer standby (yes, there’s a little baking…):
1 bag of greens — any kind you like, though I think for this salad arugula works really well.
1 lb chicken breast, without bone
Italian dressing
Parmesan cheese (it’s best if you get a block and grate it, though I suppose you could go with a powder in a pinch)
Garlic Bread (Yup, I’ll do just about anything to have this, too;)
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350. Remove any veins/extra fat from the chicken.
2. Put the chicken in a baking dish (pyrex square dish works well… I just broke mine so will be improvising until I replace it — you can use pretty much anything that’s oven safe and fits all the chicken).
3. Pour a bunch of Italian dressing over it - you don’t have to cover the chicken entirely, but you want to get a decent amount in, as the chicken will absorb the flavor during the baking.
4. Back for 45 minutes (check it periodically, as soon as the top is all white, take the dish out of the oven, flip the chicken, spoon some of the baking juices over the top and stick it back in the oven.
5. Remove when chicken is white all the way through. Cut chicken into strips
6. Spread greens on plates, top with chicken strips and shredded cheese. If desired, use baking juices to add extra flavor to salad and gently wilt the greens (if you’d rather not have the fatty stuff, or if you hate wilted greens, just use the Italian dressing).
7. Serve with Garlic Bread.
It’s very simple to make (you literally can’t screw it up — I promise! I’ve forgotten the chicken and it’s been fine b/c of all the dressing it’s cooking in!). Everyone I’ve served it to has raved about it… and I really don’t have to do much. Plus, since it’s basically a salad, it’s nice and light for summer.
You can serve while the chicken is hot, or you can prepare it ahead of time and serve it cold if you prefer (I think the chicken tastes slightly better when warm) — just don’t combine the ingredients until you’re ready to serve.
And in true Jane fashion, she keeps it simple and straight to the point:
My go-to for most of the year is Rice or Pasta-Roni, chicken which can be cooked a multitude of ways, some in the oven or not, and a veggie. Tarzan like peas so we eat those often.
Soup-er Summer!
These are just a few ideas from Chelsea’s ward cookbook she e.mailed me - if you want a copy, drop me a line and I’ll send them off. SO AWESOME.
SANTA FE SOUP
Brown 1lb. hamburger with ½ cup chopped onion in a Dutch oven. Pour in the following – do not drain: 1 can Pinto Beans, 1 can Mexi-Corn, 1 can mild Ro-Tel Tomatoes. Cut 1 lb. Velveeta in small cubes and stir in. Heat until cheese is melted and soup is warm. Put Fritos or tortilla chips in bowl and pour soup over.
TACO SOUP
- 1 can (10 ¾ oz) Tomato Bisque (or Tomato) Soup ¼ cup chunky salsa
- Grated cheese Crushed tortilla chips
- Sour cream
Mix can of soup with can of water, stir in salsa, heat. Pour into bowls and top with chips, cheese and sour cream.
CREAMY TOMATO BASIL SOUP
- 4 tomatoes, diced
- 4 cups tomato juice
- 14 fresh basil leaves
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ c. chicken broth or 1 chicken bouillon cube
- salt and pepper to taste
Place tomatoes and juice in a stock pot over medium heat. Simmer for 30 minutes. Puree the tomato mixture along with the basil leaves, and return the puree to the stock pot.
Place the pot over medium heat, and stir in the heavy cream chicken broth. Season with salt and pepper. Heat, stirring until heated through. I like to serve by topping with a little sour cream and shredded parmesan cheese. Serves 4.
Smittyclone advocates a chili approach:
Chili is super easy. I brown some ground chicken (or beef, if the hubby is away), throw it in a pot with stewed tomatoes, black beans, hot chili beans, and some onions. Spice it up with some chili powder, salt, and red pepper flakes if you want some heat. Then you just heat it up for 10-15 minutes on the stove. And the bonus is that it makes the house smell GREAT.
And then Gabby takes it one step further:
Chili and Cheese Bread
Serves 6+
Ingredients
1 c. mayo
2 sticks of butter, softened
2 c. Monterrey jack cheese
1 can (4 oz.) green chilies
2-3 French bread loaves
Directions
Mix everything together (except bread).
Spread mixture on cut loaves.
Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes (once cheese starts to brown),
You can also add cut-up chicken, to make a meal.
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