Creamy Cheesy Chicken

I went looking for a new recipe tonight.  Found this one on my friend's pinterest board.  This will definitely be added to the chicken rotation.  I doubled the recipe, using 2 teaspoons of dried minced onion and a package of boneless chicken tenders (one and a half to one and three quarters pounds).  (I copied the recipe as is, including the blogger's notes).

Ingredients
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used boneless skinless strips)
4 oz softened cream cheese
2 tablespoons softened butter
2 tablespoons whole cream
1 tablespoon minced onion (I omitted this simply because I didn't have any)
1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 cup of shredded cheese (I used cheddar and I used more than 1/2 a cup)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375. Lightly grease a 9x9 inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and place your chicken in without overlapping.
2. Mix the cream cheese, butter, cream, onion, and spices and spread the mixture evenly over the chicken.
3. Spread the cheese on top and bake for about 45 minutes or until chicken is done. Let it rest and cool a bit after taking it from the oven.

Chicken Florentine Casserole

Time for another cooking creme recipe.  As usual, the prep time was longer than indicated.  And I hate spinach - I can never get it to defrost for me!  I also sprinkled some extra mozzarella on top with the bacon.  The spinach makes you forget how much cheese you're eating!  Overall, very tasty and a recipe I'll make again.


1 tsp. oil
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tub (10 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Italian Cheese and Herb Cooking Creme
3/4 cup milk
2 cups cooked farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained
1 cup KRAFT Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese
4 slices OSCAR MAYER Bacon, cooked, crumbled

HEAT oven to 375ºF.

HEAT oil in large skillet on medium heat. Add chicken and garlic; cook and stir 6 to 7 min. or until chicken is done. Stir in all remaining ingredients except bacon.

SPOON into 1-1/2 qt. casserole sprayed with cooking spray; cover.

BAKE 25 min. or until heated through, uncovering and sprinkling with bacon after 15 min.

Creamy Chicken Pesto & Bowtie Pasta

I enjoy the simplicity of the Philly Cooking Cremes and thought it was time to try another one. I absolutely adore the Santa Fe flavor and the enchiladas and although this wasn't as good as that (I *really* love those enchiladas!) this was pretty tasty and fairly simple to throw together. The pesto flavor wasn't overly strong either, in my opinion anyway, if that's an issue for anybody.

Ingredients:

1lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1cup frozen peas
1/3cup red pepper strips
1tub (10 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Creamy Pesto Cooking Creme
2cups hot cooked farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
1/2cup KRAFT Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Directions:

COOK and stir chicken in large nonstick skillet on medium heat 5 to 7 min. or until done. Add peas and peppers; cook 2 to 3 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally.

ADD cooking creme; cook and stir 2 min.

STIR in pasta; top with mozzarella.

Chicken with Creamy Dijon Herb Sauce

I cut this recipe out of the coupons from a French's ad.  It was quick, easy, and delicious!  (I'll take a photo next time -- my camera battery was dead for weeks and I never remembered to charge it until I was ready to take a picture of my dinner!  And by then, it was too late.)

Chicken with Creamy Dijon Herb Sauce

1/2 cup chicken broth
6 Tbsp dijon mustard (a little less would be fine too)
1/3 cup cream cheese spread, softened
1 Tbsp minced herbs (parsley, basil or chives -- I used all three)
1 Tbsp oil
4 boneless chicken breasts
1 tsp minced garlic

Mix broth, mustard, cream cheese and herbs until well blended.  Set aside.

Cook chicken in hot oil in nonstick skillet until browned on both sides, about 15 minutes.

Stir in mustard sauce and garlic.  Simmer over medium heat 3 to 5 minutes until sauce thickens slightly and flavors are blended.

Easy Tomato Basil Pizza

When this recipe says EASY, boy do they mean it!

This is a quick and tasty meal for a busy weeknight.  Or just for something delicious for dinner.  I've become a huge fan of Philly Cooking Creme!  The couple of $1.50 off coupons I've been getting lately sure have helped!

This recipe comes on the top of the Italian Cheese and Herb Cooking Creme container, or you can find it on the Kraft Foods website.

Easy Tomoato Basil Pizza

1 ready-to-use baked pizza crust (12 inch)

1/2 cup PHILADELPHIA Italian Cheese and Herb Cooking Creme
1 tomato, thinly sliced
8 fresh basil leaves, torn
1/2 cup KRAFT Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Directions:

Heat oven to 425ºF.

Spread pizza crust with cooking creme; top with remaining ingredients.

Place crust directly on middle oven rack.

Bake 10 to 12 min. or until cheese is melted.

Creamy Chicken & Broccoli Casserole

This is from the Philly Cooking Creme page. The flavor was tasty, but another time I'd add some pasta into it, or serve it over rice. Also, some of my chicken looked decidedly uncooked at 25 minutes, so I gave it extra time. The picture is the official picture from the website. Also, I used chicken tenders to simplify the cutting into bite size pieces (and it was a better price!).


Prep Time 10 mins
Total Time 45 mins
6 servings, about 1 cup each


Ingredients

1-1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1 pkg. (14 oz.)frozen broccoli florets, thawed, drained
1-1/2 cups KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
1 tub (10 oz.)PHILADELPHIA Savory Garlic Cooking Creme
1/2 cup milk
24 RITZ Crackers, crushed (about 1 cup)
1 Tbsp. butter, melted

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400ºF.
2. Combine first 5 ingredients in 13x9-inch baking dish; cover.
3. Bake 25 min. Meanwhile, mix cracker crumbs and butter.
4. Stir chicken mixture; top with crumbs. Bake, uncovered, 10 min. or until topping is golden brown.

Kraft Kitchen Tips

* Serving SuggestionServe with a mixed green salad and your favorite fresh fruit.
* SubstituteSubstitute 1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen green beans for the frozen broccoli.

Pet Pill Pockets

For about the last 3 years I've spent at least one day a week at Homeward Bound Golden Retriever Rescue and Sanctuary. This rescue helps 200-300 golden retrievers, flat coat retrievers and their bonded friends find medical care and furever homes every year. We adopted Loki from Homeward Bound when she was just three months old. Isn't she cute?

Anyway, I'm on the evening feeding crew where we dole out food, water and medicine to 20-45 dogs every day, twice a day. We're kind of like lunch ladies for dogs. As you can imagine we go through a lot of pill pockets. Cases and cases in fact! So when I read an email newsletter article from Dr. Jon from Pet Place about homemade pill pockets, I knew I had to try them.

Homemade Liverwurst Pill Pockets
Ingredients:

3/4 cup plain shredded wheat cereal

3 ounces Liverwurst (room temperature)

2 ounces cream cheese (room temperature)

Instructions:

Place shredded wheat in a bag and crush by using a rolling pin

Mix liverwurst and cream cheese together until smooth

Mix with shredded wheat

Roll into small balls (the size of gum drops)

Store in the refrigerator in a re-sealable plastic bag or container

Treats will last about 7 to 10 days

When it's time for your dog to take his medicine, simply take a "dough" ball and hide the pill in the center. Then offer it to your dog like a treat.

I emailed the owners/operators of the rescue and got the OK to use the dogs as pill pocket guinea pigs. So the night before my scheduled volunteer shift, I made up a triple batch of homemade pill pockets. Loki was already in bed for the night but the aroma of liverwurst lured our lazy cat all the way from an upstairs bedroom. I have a feeling these puppies will work for kitties, too. They were super easy to make as I wore gloves to keep my hands clean. I rolled them out onto a parchment-paper covered cookie sheet then stored them in the fridge for the night.

One of the sad realities of dog rescue is that more often than not, we take in dogs that have been used for breeding and not used to being around people. Golden retrievers are often called "velcro dogs" because of their close bonds with people. But dogs used by irresponsible breeders come to us shy, scared, and often hungry. They stay at the ranch long enough to get some TLC, a clean bill of health and enough social skills to find their furever home. Consider Rescue, it's the compassionate choice.

Anyway, one of these breeder rescue dogs was one of our first customers of the night. When my volunteer partner Bev (whom we refer to as OUR Dog Whisperer) called out for a stinky, yummy treat to lure out our beautiful but scared breeder dog, I grabbed a homemade pill pocket and handed it to her. The dog instantly picked up the scent and started to peek her nose out of her kennel. Three homemade pill pockets later and Pearl, our breeder dog, was happily walking on a leash. SUCCESS!

We used the pill pockets throughout the rest of the feeding and left the rest for the other feeding crews. When I went back the next week, there was a note waiting for me requesting more homemade pill pockets. Not only did they work great for pills, the other feeders found they worked miracles in helping teach shy and scared dogs that these people were worth trusting, if just to get another tasty liverwurst treat.

Sounds to me like a keeper. Just like Loki...my own golden retriever who's now grown up. She's looking forward to helping me make my next batch of pill pockets. She gives them four paws up.

Easy Chicken Enchiladas with Santa Fe Philly Cooking Creme

We tried this easy recipe this week and it was fantastic!  Very different flavor from other enchilada recipes.  It was very creamy. 

The recipe comes from the package of Santa Fe flavor Philadelphia Cooking Creme.

Easy Chicken Enchiladas

1 small onion, chopped
2 tsp oil
3 cups shredded chicken breast, cooked
1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes, drained
1 10oz tub Santa Fe flavor Philadelphia Cooking Creme
1/2 cup Mexican style shredded cheese (I used another 1/2 cup on top)
8 6-inch flour tortillas

Heat oven to 350.

Cook and stir onions in hot oil in a large skillet over medium heat for 4-5 minutes.  Stir in chicken, tomatoes, 3/4 cup of the cooking creme and 1/2 cup shredded cheese.

Spoon about 1/3 cup chicken mixture into each tortilla and roll up.  Place seam side down in greased 9x13 baking dish.  Spread remaining cooking creme over top of enchiladas.  Cover with foil.

Bake 15-20 minutes or until heated through.  Remove foil, top with another 1/2 cup of the cheese, and heat 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted.