Souper Simple Chicken Noodle Soup

I LOVE chicken noodle soup.  If I’m being totally honest, nothing makes me happier than a can of Campell’s Chicken Noodle.  And maybe some Ritz crackers on the side.  When we were up north for the holidays, I got to sample some of Mr. Spouse’s Aunt’s chicken soup {sorry that was all 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon}.  Y’all…that chicken noodle soup was to.die.for.  I helped myself to about 3 or 4 bowls and probably could’ve had more, but I didn’t want to look like a lush.  So…I pulled Aunt Linda over to the side and was all, “I’ve GOT to have that recipe!!!!”  And she was all, “Seriously?!”…because that’s what good cooks do.  They act like it’s the easiest dang thing they’ve ever made and then go super nonchalant on you.  Anywho…I was pretty amazed to hear how simple it really was to make.  The only thing I didn’t like about it was the lack of measurements that accompany this recipe.  I’m one of those cooks that likes to be precise with measurements when it comes to cooking something that I’ve never made before.  I’m NO Paula Deen and I can’t eyeball a danged thing to save my life.  HOWEVER, this was pretty simple and I think I got pretty close to Aunt Linda’s version...and Mr. Spouse ate the whole danged pot {and he’s really not one to spare me any feelings in the kitchen.}

 

SOUPER SIMPLE CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cooked & shredded

1 pkg. linguine noodles

16 oz. chicken broth

2-3 cubes chicken bouillon

Chicken seasoning, to taste

Onion powder, to taste

Garlic powder, to taste

Salt & pepper, to taste

 

Cook noodles according to package directions.  Boil chicken, drain, & shred.

Now season your chicken all shades of delicious.  I seasoned mine with chicken seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt & pepper.  I can’t begin to tell you how much I used of each, but I think I would’ve used less garlic powder.  Really, it’s all just a matter of taste!  Mix it up pretty good and ad it to the noodles.

Now listen carefully…I drained a little more than half the water from my boiled noodles and kept the rest.  I like my chicken soup to be full of chicken flavor, so I added a 16 oz. box of chicken broth.  I added a little salt and pepper for taste and let it simmer for a bit.  I did a little taste test and decided it needed some more chicken “oomph”, so I added some bouillon…about 2 cubes.  I let it simmer for a little longer…came back for another taste test…and Y.U.M!!!!  Ready to eat!!!!

Now tell me that wasn’t simple?!  There’s nothing better than chicken noodle soup on a cold winter day and I can’t wait to get back in the kitchen and make another batch!  Hopefully this time Mr. Spouse won’t hog it all :)

A Little Sweet, A Little Salty

Here’s a little treat for my sweet & salty friends.  You know who I’m talkin’ about…those cute little people who like M&M’s in your popcorn…salt on your watermelon…pretzels covered in chocolate.  Hi…we should SO be friends.  I LOVE sweet & salty snacks and this little number is NO exception!  This is, by far, one of my FAVORITE sweet & salty snacks!!  I first had these at my Grandma’s right before my little itty was born a couple of years ago.  I finally remembered to ask her for the recipe and when I made them they seriously lasted a total of 4 hours in the house.  I think that’s just because neither I nor Mr. Spouse wanted to be the person to eat the last one.  These are SO dang good!!!!

 

NUTTY CRACKER DELIGHTS

Appx. 42 Club Crackers

I stick {1/2 cup} butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup slivered almonds

 

Cover a baking sheet in foil and place crackers in a single layer on top. 

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter.  Add sugar and bring to a boil, stirring constantly {be sure to stir CONSTANTLY!!!}  Boil for 2 minutes.  It’ll get all bubbly and fluffy and that’s a good thing!!  Perfect consistency!! 

Remove from heat and add vanilla.  Mix well.  Pour mixture evenly over crackers.  I used my spoon and spread it around to make sure all the crackers were pretty evenly coated. 

Sprinkle with almonds.  I know the recipe calls for a cup, but I’m pretty sure we used the whole bag.  I LOVE the texture!

Bake at 350 for about 10-12 minutes or until browned.  Immediately remove from pan.  You may need to cut between the crackers.  Cool on wire racks.  Chances are, they won’t have time enough to cool because you’ll be shoveling them into your mouth WAY too fast ;)

I should also mention that if you love toffee, you’ll LOVE this recipe.  This is pretty much toffee on a cracker.  A little sweet & salty heaven.  You.will. LOVE!

A New Christmas Eve Tradition

Since we spent Christmas Eve by ourselves this year, I decided to make a meal that I knew we’d be eating as “our” Christmas Eve meal for years to come.  One of Mr. Spouse’s favorite meals is pot roast and I typically only cook that on Easter.  The last pot roast I made was a little dry and not so flavorful, so when I found this recipe…boasted how flavor filled it was…I knew I had to give it a shot.  And let’s be real…how wrong can you really go with pot roast?!  Mr. Spouse was beside himself and said this was definitely something I need to make A LOT more!  YAY!  I guess this is one Christmas Eve tradition we’ll be happy to repeat year after year!

FLAVORFUL POT ROAST

2 boneless beef chuck roasts {2 1/2 lbs. each.  We only used 1}

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 pkg. ranch salad dressing mix

1 pkg. Italian salad dressing mix

1 pkg. brown gravy mix

1/2 cup water

Optional

Carrots

Potatoes

Onion

In a large bowl, mix together soup, dressing mixes, gravy mix, and water until thoroughly blended & set aside.  Add chuck roasts to crock pot and pour the dressing/soup mix on top.  Set on low and cook for 7-8 hours.

Since we only used 1 chuck roast, I added 1 large onion {cut into big chunks} and baby carrots halfway through cook time.  I don’t like the veggies to be too smushy and halfway through cooking is perfect! 

I definitely won’t wait ‘til Christmas to cook this again!!!  It’s just TOO good!  The meat was seriously falling apart with every poke of my fork.  SO dang tender!!  And the recipe wasn’t lying.  It was flavorful as all get out!  If you’re a fan of pot roast, you MUST try this variation.  AMAZING!!!!  A Christmas Eve tradition we can’t wait to continue!!!

Christmas is Cheesy

SO hope that didn’t offend any of my Christmas lovin’ friends :)  Of course, you know I don’t really feel that way!  I LOVE all the Christmas fun & festivities!  I’m especially a fan of Christmas Even dinner :)  For the last 6 years, I’ve celebrated with Mr. Spouse’s family up north and every Christmas Eve we dine on a huge buffet of the most delicious appetizers and finger foods.  Well, this year we spent Christmas Eve all by ourselves and I refused to order take-out {even though that’s what I REALLY wanted to do :)}  Instead I decided to whip up a meal I knew we’d be happy to say, “We eat that EVERY Christmas Eve!!”  This is one of Mr. Spouse’s FAVORITE dishes.  I still think his mom is the master at making these, but I gotta say that my recreation wasn’t too far off.  I’ll put it this way…Mr. Spouse licked his plate clean and then went back for more :) 

RITA’S CHEESY MASHED POTATOES

4-5 large potatoes

1 {8 oz.} pkg. cream cheese, softened

1 pkg. Lipton Onion Soup & Dip Mix {Recipe Secrets}

1 1/2-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Milk, to taste

Peel potatoes and boil.  Remove when potatoes are super soft and ready to be mashed.  I like to cut my potatoes up in small chunks so they cook faster when they’re boiling.  Transfer to a large bowl, mash, and add cream cheese & onion soup mix.

Mix with blender until well blended.  The consistency will be pretty thick.  If that’s how you like your potatoes, stop there!  We like ‘em a little smoother, so I added some milk and mixed.  Then I added a little more and mixed again.  When they were finally a consistency that made me happy, I stopped :)

Transfer potatoes to a 2qt. baking dish and add cheese.  Mix until well blended and cook on 350 for 25-30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

Like I said, this is one of Mr. Spouses favorite dishes. I usually make these for him on his birthday because he likes ‘em so dang much.  I LOVE potatoes and this variation makes my potato lovin’ heart swell. 

A Tacky Party with YUMMY Food!

It’s been a BUSY holiday season so I haven’t been around much to post anything yummy.  In all honesty, I haven’t really cooked in like, 3 weeks!!! {SO very nice :)} However, we hosted our 4th annual Ugly Sweater Party and I cooked for the whole dang thing.  It was a full day & a half in the kitchen, but oh so worth it!!  Here’s the menu with links to the recipes…just incase you wanna try somethin’ out for yourself ;) {OH…we added to the tackiness this year by naming the food…Mr. Spouse named them ALL.}

Dips

Christmas Queso  {Double Meat Queso}

Donner’s Dip  {Michele’s Mason Dixon Dip}

 

Finger Foods

Reindeer Roll-Ups   {Tortilla Roll-Ups}

Santa’s Balls  {Daddy’s Spiced Up Sausage Balls}

Dasher’s Droppings ~ Stuffed Mushrooms {new recipe…SO delish!!!!!}

Elf Wieners ~ Little Smokies in jelly & chili sauce

Blitzen Bites ~ {Triscuit Confetti Crackers}

 

Entrees

Prancer’s Pasta Salad

Mrs. C’s Chicken Salad Sandwiches {premade from Kroger’s…SO good!}

Tinsel Taco Soup

 

Desserts

Ho, Ho, HOmeade Oreos

Kringle’s Krispies {Rice Krispie Treats}

St. Nick’s Sopapilla Cheesecake Bites

Spice Up Your Holidays

Every holiday season, Mr. Spouse and I throw an Ugly Sweater Party.  Pretty much our favorite event of the year :)  We cook all the food and we like to have a big variety of munchies.  We typically like to try at least one new recipe and this year we decided on stuffed mushrooms.  I’ve always wanted to try ‘em out and when I found this recipe, I knew this was the PERFECT occasion…and they were such a HIT!!!!

 

SPICY STUFFED MUSHROOMS

1/2 lb. HOT pork sausage {I used Jimmy Dean}

24 large fresh mushrooms {I used the brown mushrooms}

1/2 cup green onions, chopped

1/4 cup garlic, minced

1/4 cup butter

1 cup PANKO bread crumbs

1 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded & divided

 

Cook sausage and drain.  Meanwhile remove stems from mushrooms and finely chop.  Set caps aside.

In a large skillet, saute the stems, garlic, & onions in butter for about 4-5 minutes or until tender. 

Stir in sausage, bread crumbs, and 1/2 cup cheese.

Now, spoon about 2 tbsp. of the mixture into each mushroom cap.  Place on foil lined baking sheet and sprinkle the tops of the mushrooms with the other half of the shredded jack cheese.

Bake at 350 for 22-25 minutes or until brown and tender.

Okay…so these look REALLY brown :)  Y’all…take my word for it…they were SO dang good!!!  I seriously didn’t think they’d be this easy…and I always thought that if they were too easy to make, then they wouldn’t be any good.  But clearly, I was WRONG!!!  Serve this at your next party and get all your friends talkin’ about you…in a good way, of course :)

CSN Giveaway Winner

Right in time for holiday shopping!  Thanks to everyone who stopped by CSN Stores to take a look around at all their goodies.  Now onto the lucky winner of the $55 CSN Stores gift card…

I will contact you with details!  If I don’t hear back from the winner within 48 hours, a new winner will be chosen at random.  Thanks for playing!!