cheesy chicken and rice

okay, i'll be honest. this doesn't look all that appetizing in the making. i'm debating just taking the pictures off altogether and giving you the recipe. because this is so delicious that you need the recipe. but if you start making it and think "this looks disgusting" you might stop making it. so let's get your disgust overwith here on the blog, and then you can enjoy it without worrying about it later. let's get started. you'll need one or two chicken breasts, cream of chicken soup, cheddar cheese soup, and a crock pot. that's it, folks.
toss in your chicken,

then mix your soups together,and pour on top.
cook on low all day or high 4-5 hours.
about an hour before we eat i like to add some broccoli, but that's just me. i love cheesy broccoli.
serve over rice.

one of my favorite and easiest dinners ever.

cheesy chicken and rice

two chicken breasts
one can cream of chicken soup
one can cheddar cheese soup
broccoli (optional)

lay the chicken breasts in the crock pot, then pour the combined soups on top. cook all day on low or 4-5 hours on high. add broccoli if desired an hour before eating; serve over rice.

breakfast burritos

you can stop at easily 15 places in albuquerque and get a really great breakfast burrito on a saturday morning. not so in utah, i've found. but sometimes i just gotta have one, so i make my own. super easy, super delish, for breakfast OR dinner. let's get started. you'll need hashbrowns, breakfast meat, eggs, grated cheese, green chile or salsa, and flour tortillas. let's start with hasbhrowns. make some oreida from the package or make your own. i like to do my own. just peel a potato and grate with a cheese grater. use plenty of butter, salt and pepper. melt the butter in the pan first, then add the potatoes. leave them--don't stir!--for a few minutes (4-5) to let them brown and get crispy, them flip them over for a few more.

next, brown some sausage. i just used half a package of the tubular kind for our small family, but if you love sausage, go for the whole thing! you can even do links if you want, just slice them like you would a hot dog for a little kid when they're done. bacon also works in these. so really, just get some of your favorite breakfast meat and cook it next.
browning...
there. this is removed to a paper towel to drain while the eggs cook. sorry about the dark picture, that's about status quo for my kitchen: dark.

next you need scrambled eggs. i like to use my greasy sausage pan for this. break 4 eggs, combine with milk and salt and pepper. stir, then pour into a medium-high pan. stir, scramble, knock yourself out.
mmmm. eggs.
if you've got the real thing, get out some green chile. if not, open a can of hatch. it's the next best thing.
now, assemble. warm up some flour tortillas in the microwave for about 10-15 seconds. add potatoes, eggs, meat, grated cheese, green chile (or salsa works too). don't overdo it, or you won't be able to close the tortilla...kinda like i did here.
now wrap it up, and inhale.
yum.

emily's breakfast burritos

hashbrowns, cooked
breakfast meat, cooked (sausage or bacon)
scrambled eggs
grated cheddar cheese
green chile or salsa
flour tortillas

combine hashbrowns, scrambled eggs, cooked sausage or bacon, grated cheese, and salsa or green chile. wrap in a flour tortilla and enjoy--and make sure you eat over a plate and have plenty of napkins on hand!

another bonus: assemble your hasbhrowns in bulk, then wrap them individually in foil and freeze. then you have a quick and handy breakfast when you're in a hurry!

sara's fresh peach cobbler

this is a recipe my sister sara got from our mom, but my mom has no recollection of this, so i'm calling it sara's. it's so good. i woke up saturday morning thinking about it and had to have it. so let's get started. you'll need 5-6 fresh peaches, 2/3 cup sugar, a tablespoon of cornstarch, 1/4 cup of water, a white cake mix, and a stick of butter.

peel your peaches.
then slice across the middle, all the way around the peach.
grab both ends and twist, then remove the stone.
slice the peaches, and peel the red stuff out of the middle.
then add 2/3 cup sugar, 1 tbsp. cornstarch, and 1/4 cup of water.
cook and stir until the mixture is thick and bubbly.
now pour your cake mix into a separate bowl and add your stick of (melted) butter.
then cut the butter into the cake mix with a knife. don't mix, just cut while you spin the bowl until the butter is mixed and the mixture is crumbly.

like so!
now pour your peaches into a square pan,
and add the cake mix on top. spread it around, then toss it into the oven at 400* for 20-25 minutes or until the cake mix is browned.
like this. mmmmboy.
normally i would serve this with vanilla ice cream but i forgot to buy it, so this is fresh whipped cream (which was delicious, by the way).
enjoy!

sara's fresh peach cobbler

2/3 cups sugar
1 tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 cup of water
4 cups of fresh peaches, peeled and sliced (5-6 peaches)

combine together and cook over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. pour into 9x9 pan. in a separate bowl, add a white cake mix, one stick of butter (melted), and cut in with a knife until crumbly. sprinkle cake mixture over fruit. bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes or until topping is brown. serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

strawberry heaven

i don't know if my mom made this up or found the recipe somewhere, but it's really good and REALLY easy. all you need is a small box of strawberry jell-o, a small box of instant vanilla pudding, some strawberries, and a small thing of cool whip. oh, and a graham cracker pie crust. or two. this recipe actually makes two pies, i forgot.


start by washing and slicing your strawberries.
put your package of jell-o in a bowl and dissolve with 3/4 cup of boiling water. stir for 2 minutes or until completely dissolved. then add 3/4 cup cold water and put in the fridge.

put your pudding in a bowl
and make according to package directions, only mix with just 1 1/2 (one and a half)) cups of milk.
whisk it really good, so it's not lumpy!
mmmm. there.
now mix your cool whip into your pudding until completely blended.
next, pour in your jell-o. this gets splashy, so wear an apron.
and mix.
pour your strawberries into your mixture, or else layer them in the bottom of your pie crust beforehand to make a more even placement of strawberries.
and mix gently.
this is really yummy. go ahead and take a taste.
now pour your mixture into your pie crust,
until it reaches the edges.
cover, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. once it's set you can decorate with additional cool whip and strawberries, or else just slice it and go for it people. it's good.

ellen's strawberry pie (a.k.a. strawberry heaven)

1 small pkg. strawberry jell-o
1 small pkg. instant vanilla pudding
1 small tub of cool whip
1 pkg. strawberries, cut into slices
2 graham cracker crusts

wash and slice strawberries. mix the jell-o with 3/4 cup of boiling water. once dissolved, pour in 3/4 cup cold water and refrigerate. make pudding according to package directions but only add 1 1/2 cups milk instead of 2. add in your cool whip and mix well with a hand mixer. add your jell-o next, mixing until completely combined. layer strawberries in the bottom of your crust or add directly to your jell-o mixture, then pour into crust. refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving. slice; devour.

mai thornhill's eggrolls

mai thornhill was one of my mom's friends when i was growing up in albuquerque. my mom cut her hair, and mai reciprocated with passing on this most holy of all dishes, egg rolls. they are TO DIE FOR. one of my favorites, but so much work, so they rarely get made--generally only for special occassions. the special occassion here was my college roommate coming to visit. this was her favorite thing i made when we lived together, so i thought i'd help relive old times by making them again. i usually make this with mom's fried rice, so i'm going to double a few things in this recipe that i use for both, so i don't have to do everything twice. i'll make a note when i do that, so you can either put it back to half and just make the egg rolls, or have the handy instructions there for making egg rolls and fried rice together.

let's get started. you'll need 4-6 chicken breasts, bones and skin on. 2 bunches of green onions (1 for rolls, one for rice), 1/2 an onion (1/4 for rolls, 1/4 for rice), a small cabbage, 2 carrots, a handful of bean sprouts (not pictured), 4 eggs (2 for rolls, 2 for rice), and 2 packages of egg roll wrappers.

lay your chicken bone-side-down on a foil-lined cookie sheet. cook them at 375* for 45 minutes.
while that's cooking, get chopping. chop up 2 bunches of green onions (1/2 to rice, 1/2 to egg rolls).

...and toss into a large mixing bowl. really large. like the huge tupperware bowl that your grandma had. huge. bowl. can't say it enough.
and dice 1/2 an onion (1/4 to rice, 1/4 to egg rolls).

cut your small-ish cabbage in half.

then cut it into strips, and add to your veggie bowl.
mix up 4 eggs (or 2 if you're just doing the egg rolls and not the rice) with a tablespoon of milk and a dash of salt and pepper.
pour into a hot, buttered frying pan, and let sit.
save your egg-y bowl. you'll need those egg remnants later.when the edges of your egg have cooked, lift the sides with a spatula, and tilt the pan so the runniness on top runs to the sides and gets cooked.


once all the runniness is no longer runny, flip it over and cook the other side. (this side was a little too done, probably had the heat up too high.)

now cut it in half. if you're making fried rice and used four eggs, dice one half first and save for later, then dice the other half and put it in your veggie bowl.

like this.

after your chicken is cooked and cool enough to handle, remove the skin, then peel the chicken off the bones.

shred it into your vegetable bowl, like this:

add in a handful of bean sprouts

then lots of salt and pepper.

peel your carrots,

then grate with the large side of your cheese grater.

and add those to your veggie bowl too.

there. perfect.

now this is the fun part. wash your hands really well, then start mixing. with your hands. that's right, i said it. with your hands. the saltiness feels so good, it's like a natural exfoliant, i swear. mix it all together really well. don't forget the onions way down at the bottom.

there. eggroll perfection.

now grab your egg rolls wrappers and take them out of the package. turn them diagonally.

grab a small handful and set in the middle of the wrapper.

start by folding the corner closest to you towards the middle.

then grab the right corner and fold it into the center, and do the same with the left corner.
make sure all your fixin's are still inside and roll the whole thing towards the last corner, farthest from you. get a little bit of your leftover egg (remember from way back when, when you were cooking eggs and saved the remnants in the bowl?) on your finger, and put it on the corner.


then seal the corner to the rest of the roll.

and repeat. and repeat again. and again. and again. and again about 40,243 more times.

woks are really good for this part, but i don't have one. i used to have a deep fryer that worked okay as well but it got so...fryer-y that i had to throw it away when we moved here. so i just used a deep roasting pan. fill it up with lots (and i mean LOTS) of oil. as in, at least half of one of those gigantic crisco containers. the huge food storage ones. heat the oil to 375* if you have a wok. if not, just occassionally throw leftover egg roll wrapper corners in. if it sinks to the bottom, the oil's not hot enough. if it starts to sizzle and turn brown, you're golden.

toss a few of those babies in and cook until golden brown. you may have to use tongs to make sure all the sides get cooked and brown. squeeze with tongs to get the excess oil out, then set on a cookie sheet lined with paper towels to drain.

like so.

oh my gosh, i think i just died and went to heaven. these are so good people. so good. (that's dave's man hand in the picture, not mine, fyi.)
serve with mom's fried rice and la choy's sweet & sour sauce. delish.

p.s. it makes a lot. like a LOT. so freeze them in ziplocs and eat for weeks. warm up in the microwave, then broil for a minute to keep them crispy.

mai thornhill's eggrolls

4-6 chicken breasts, bones and skin on
2 bunches of green onions (1 for rolls, one for rice)
1/2 an onion (1/4 for rolls, 1/4 for rice)
a small green head of cabbage
2 carrots
a handful of bean sprouts
4 eggs (2 for rolls, 2 for rice)
2 packages of egg roll wrappers.
lots of oil

place chicken, bones down, on a foil-lined cookie sheet. cook at 375* for 45 minutes. meanwhile, chop your green onions, and onion and place in a large mixing bowl. cut the cabbage in half and slice into thin strips; add to bowl with onions. peel and grate 2 carrots, and add to mixture. add a handful of bean sprouts, 2 cooked eggs, and salt & pepper. peel skin off of cooked chicken, remove from bones, and shred into vegetable mixture. mix well. place a handful of mixture on an egg roll wrapper. fold bottom side up, sides in to the middle, and roll to the far corner. seal with a small amount of raw egg on the final corner. deep fry in hot oil until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes. drain on paper towels and serve with mom's fried rice.