White Chicken Chili Soup

So, the other day on facebook, a friend commented on a friend of her's pin on pinterest (the beauty of social media!), a white chicken chili recipe.  I've never had white chicken chili and truthfully, had been a bit leery of it.  But this recipe seemed easy and with two cups of shredded cheese and a cup of sour cream I figured it must taste pretty good.  I'm so glad I tried it, another tasty recipe to add to the collection!  Since I'm lazy, I used two 10 oz cans of chicken.  Also, I opted for the Mexican blend cheese.  I brought it to a low boil and then reduced the heat to let the soup simmer for the 30 minutes.

4 cups chicken broth
4 15.5 oz. cans Great Northern Beans drained and rinsed
2 cups shredded chicken
1 small can diced green chilies
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 cup sour cream
2 cups shredded cheese Monterrey Jack or Mexican Blend

In a large pot, add broth, beans, chicken, green chilis, cumin, garlic powder, oregano and pepper. Simmer on low-medium heat for 20-30 minutes, or until it is heated through.
Right before serving, stir in sour cream and cheese until it is all blended and melted.

Orange Julius

I have fond memories of when trips to the local shopping mall included a stop at the Orange Julius place.  This recipe was found in the Taste of Home Low-Fat Country Cooking cookbook.  I'm not sure it's exactly like the way they used to make it, but it's close and it's tasty.

1 can (6 oz) frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 cup skim milk
1 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
10-12 ice cubes

In a blender, combine orange juice concentrate, milk, water, sugar, and vanilla.  Cover and blend until smooth.  With blender running, add ice cubes, one at a time, through the opening in the lid.  Blend until smooth.  Serve immediately.  Yield: 5 servings

Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta

This isn't very good for you.  But OH is it worth it!

Lately I've been tweaking recipes, either because I don't have exactly what the recipe calls for or I want to jazz it up a bit.  Here is what I did instead:

• I never buy garlic salt, so I used minced garlic.  I think it was a little less than 1/2 tsp.
• I've never even heard of onion salt!  I chopped up 2 green onions from the garden instead.
• I use penne all the time.  I thought gemelli would be more fun!
• When I read this recipe I was surprised it didn't have any mustard in it.  So I added about 2 Tbsp of dijon.  I think the sauce would have tasted flat without it, so I highly recommend adding it.
• Next time I think I'd also add some thyme to it.

This recipe appeared in the September/October issue of Taste of Home.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta

3 cups uncooked penne pasta
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened and cubed
1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese, divided
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic dalt
1/4 tsp pepper
3 cups sliced cooked chicken breast
3/4 cup crumbled cooked bacon
3/4 cup cubed fully cooked ham
3 Tbsp dry bread crumbs

My additions:
2 Tbsp dijon mustard
1/2 to 1 tsp thyme
chopped green onions

Preheat oven to 350.  Cook pasta according to directions for al dente.  Drain.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat cream and cream cheese over medium heat until smooth, stirring occasionally.  Stir in one cup of cheese, onion powder, garlic salt and pepper until blended.

In a bowl, combine chicken, bacon, ham, and pasta.  Add sauce.  Toss to coat.  Transfer to a greased 13x9 baking dish.  Sprinkle with remaining cheese and top with bread crumbs.  Bake, uncovered 18-22 minutes or until heated through.