Chicken Crepe "Casserole"

So, if you know my mom, you know that she hates ANYTHING that tastes of wine. She made these crepes one time when I was young and thought they were disgusting. It was hilarious to see her face when she tasted them. I didn't think they were bad, which is funny, considering that I, like my mom, do NOT like the taste of wine. This one is for Meghan, so enjoy, girl!

Chicken Crepe "Casserole"

1/2 C black olives, sliced

5 T butter

5 T flour

1 C heavy cream

1 C chicken broth

3/4 C dry white wine

1 C Swiss cheese, shredded

1/2 tsp Worcestershire

2 T parsley

salt and pepper to taste

2 C cooked chicken, diced

2 avocados, sliced

Crepes:

2 eggs, beaten

2/3 C milk

1/2 C flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 T butter, melted

To prepare crepes, mix all crepe ingredients in a blender. Heat a crepe pan, or 6" nonstick skillet over medium high and pour about 3 T (half a 1/3 C measuring cup) of the batter into the heated pan, turning pan to coat the bottom evenly. Cook until batter is set, then gently turn the crepe with a fork or spatula to lightly brown the other side. remove from pan and stack crepes as you cook them. Makes 8

To prepare chicken mixture, melt butter in saucepan and mix in the flour. Slowly add cream, broth and wine. Cook until it boils and thickens. Blend in 3/4 C cheese, Worcestershire, parsley, salt and pepper. Mix 1 C of the sauce with olives and chicken.

Preheat oven to 375. Place a small amount of chicken and olive mixture in each crepe; roll up and place in a baking dish. Place avocado slices over the crepes and cover with remaining sauce and cheese. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes. Broil for 1 minute to brown.

Chocolate Oatmeal Caramel Bars

I have to admit, I'm a sucker for almost anything that says 'caramel' or 'peanut butter'. Although this one is just the caramel, it blends some of my most favorite baking flavors - chocolate, oats and caramel. I made them tonight for a meeting I have tomorrow afternoon. You have to make sure to continually stir the milk mixture so it doesn't burn, but other than that, it's a piece of cake! The recipe calls for Dutch process cocoa powder, which has a deeper chocolate flavor than regular cocoa powder, but either will work. Yummy and comforting. Happy cooking!

Chocolate Oatmeal Caramel Bars

1 1/4 C old fashioned oats

1 C flour

1/2 C plus 2 T brown sugar, divided

2 T unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder

3/4 C butter, melted

1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk

1/3 C butter

1/2 C chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350. In a bowl, mix together oats, flour, 1/2 C brown sugar and cocoa powder. Mix together thoroughly and then mix in 3/4 C melted butter. Stir to combine. Reserve 1 C oat crumb mixture, and press the remaining into an ungreased 8x8 pan. Bake for 15 minutes to set the crust.

In a medium saucepan, combine sweetened condensed milk, butter and reserved 2 T brown sugar. Cook and stir on medium heat until thickened and pale in color, about 10 minutes.

Cool milk mixture slightly until thickened; spread evenly over baked crust. Let stand 5 minutes or until set. Mix chopped pecans into reserved crust mixture and sprinkle over caramel layer. Press lightly into caramel.

Bake 20-22 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Cut into bars.

Black Bean and Chicken Enchiladas

Holy cow! It's been way too long since my last post. Kara asked if I have an enchilada recipe that I use and would share here. Of course! Enchiladas are one of my "go to" recipes, since I usually use canned things and leftover chicken. Oh, and the kids love them!

Black Bean and Chicken Enchiladas

2 C cooked, diced chicken

1 C sour cream

1 can cream of chicken soup (or cream of onion, garlic, etc.)

1 can diced green chiles

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese (or whatever you like or have on hand)

1/2 tsp garlic

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 can enchilada sauce (15 oz size)

1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese (for the top)

8-10 flour tortillas

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, mix together chicken, sour cream, soup, chiles, black beans, 1 1/2 C cheese, garlic, cumin and onion powder. Lightly grease a 9x13 pan. Take 1/2 cup of the enchilada mixture and spread it on the bottom of the greased pan. It will NOT cover the bottom of the pan, which is okay.

Take a tortilla, place 1 T enchilada sauce in the tortilla, followed by about 1/4-1/3 C enchilada mixture. It's not an exact science, so just eyeball it. Roll up your tortilla and place it seam side down in the pan. Continue with all the remaining tortillas to fill the pan. Place any leftover enchilada mixture on the TOP of the assembled enchiladas. Top with remaining enchilada sauce.

Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes, until heated through. Remove foil and top with remaining 1/2 C cheese. Bake until cheese melts. Remove and enjoy!

I also do this a lot in a "lasagna" style, layering torn tortillas, filling and then sauce, repeating and stopping with tortilla then just sauce and cheese. That's my cheater's way. : )

Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup

Okay, so Mom and Dad came over for lunch today, and I had every intention of making chowder. It's kind of an old stand by. While looking for my chowder recipe, I stumbled on this Wild Rice and Mushroom one. It was so very good! Of course, I made some changes to the original recipe, which I thought made it spectacular! LOL. Enjoy!

Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup

1 T vegetable oil

1 onion, halved and thinly sliced

6 C beef broth

2/3 C wild rice, rinsed and drained

1 1/2 C milk

1/2 C heavy cream

1/4 C flour

1/2 tsp dried thyme, crushed

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 C fresh mushrooms, sliced thinly

In large soup pot, cook the onion in oil until lightly browned. Remove onion from pot and set aside. Place wild rice and beef broth in the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes, or until rice is soft.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine milk, cream, flour, thyme and pepper. Whisk to combine well. After rice is soft, add milk mixture, sliced mushrooms and onions to the rice mixture. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Makes about 7 cups of soup. YUM!