Creamy Italian Chicken over Rice--Cynthia Card

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 pkg. dry Italian salad dressing mix
1/4 c. water or chicken broth
1 can cream soup (chicken, mushroom, or celery)
1 c. sour cream or 1 pkg. cream cheese
cooked rice or noodles

Place chicken into a slow-cooker. Add Italian seasoning and liquid. Cook 4-5 hours on high, or 6-8 hours on low.

Mix cream soup and sour cream (or cream cheese) together. Add to cooked chicken. Break chicken up into bite size pieces and serve over cooked rice or noodles.

Optional add ins: chopped onion, bell pepper, or celery. Cook with chicken.

Swiss Steak--Cindy Roper

2lbs. beef round steak
1/4 cp. flour
1 can mushroom soup
1 pkg. dry brown gravy mix
1/2 cup water
Cut steak into 4 serving pieces. Salt and pepper each piece. Dredge in flour. Place in crock pot. Mix soup, dry brown gravy mix and water in bowl. Pour over steak. Cover and cook on Low 8-10 hours or on High 4-5 hours.

Serve over hot mashed potatoes.

Comforting Chicken--Amanda Blazzard

I clipped this recipe from a cooking magazine years ago. I threw it together for lunch today and am still lickin' my fingers...it was tasty! Of coarse I can't leave a recipe alone so to this I added about a teaspoon of Herbs de Provence to season it and add a little more flavor. I served cornbread muffins along side and it made a great stick-to-your ribs kinda meal for a snowy spring day.....oh and I used my Dutch Oven.

1 medium onion, sliced an separated into rings (I used a scallion)

1/2 c. butter (I substituted olive oil for about 1/3 of the butter to bring up the smoking point and health benefits....cuz that's a LOT of butter! We're talkin' Paula Deen style!)

1 broiler/fryer chicken 3-4 lbs., cut up (I just had chicken leg quarters on hand)

4 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered

4 medium carrots, quartered (I used 5, but wished I'd have even used a couple more)

1 c. whipping cream

1 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

In a large skillet or Dutch oven, saute onion in butter until tender. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. In the same pan, brown chicken pieces on all sides. Return onion to pan; add potatoes and carrots. (This is where I threw in the Herbs de Provence.) Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Stir in cream, parsley, salt and pepper. Reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes or until slightly thickened. Yield: 4 servings

Roasted Asparagus with Spring Onions and Sun-Dried Tomatoes--Jill Beer (Diane Atkinson's daughter)

Saturday, at Ora's 80th birthday party, I was chatting with her grandaughter (also my dear friend) Jill. She shared this exciting new recipe that I am dying to try! Let me know what you all think.
Servings: 4
Start to finish time: 25 minutes

1 1/2 pounds asparagus, bottoms trimmed
2 bunches scallions, ends trimmed (or as I know them- green onions)
2 tablespoons oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, plus 1-2 T of oil from the jar
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 450 F. In a large bowl, toss the asparagus and scallions with the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes. Transfer to a baking sheet and arrange in an even layer. Season with salt and pepper.
Roast for 7 minutes. Stir the vegetables add the sun-dried tomatoes

Savory Garlic Scalloped Potatoes--Amanda Blazzard

This is a great go-to recipe when I need something fast that tastes like I spent hours. So easy and so delicious! It is the perfect side dish. This recipe came from Shauna Bradley in the Woodland Ward.

1 1/2 lbs. potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced (I use reds with the skins on too)
1 envelope- Lipton Savory with Garlic Soup mix
1 c. Cream
1/2 c. water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange potatoes in lightly greased 2 quart baking dish. Combine the remaining ingredients and pour over potatoes. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes or until potatoes are tender. If desired, garnish with chopped fresh parsley.

Cafe Rio Chicken and Cilantro-Lime Vinagrette

This is a favorite crockpot recipe at our house...I know that it has been submitted to different church functions by both Vicki Atkinson and Destry Howard. Yum! Thanks ladies!

1 small bottle Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing (8 oz.)
1 Tbsp. Chili Powder
1 Tbsp. Cumin
3 cloves minced garlic
5 lbs. chicken (boneless, skinless)

Cook all ingredients in crockpot for 7 hours on low. Shred meat and cook one additional hour.

* This meat is our favorite in quesadillias, chicken tacos, enchiladas, salads....the sky is the limit.

I'm including the recipe for the Cilantro-Lime Vinagrette to go along with the meat.

Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette....(I'm not sure where the "vinaigrette" part comes into play in this recipe because there is no vinegar. Can it be a viniagrette anyway? We'll just go with it...it sound great anyway.

1 buttermilk ranch packet
2 tomatillos
1/2 bunch cilantro
1 clove garlic
1 lime, juiced
1 jalapeno, seeded

Mix ranch packet according to the directions. Chop tomatillos, cilantro, and jalapeno in food processor. Add garlic and lime juice. Blend well.

Creamy Black Bean Salsa Chicken--Amanda Blazzard

I found this recipe in a little cookbook titled something like "101 Things to Do With a Crockpot." My girls love this recipe.

2 to 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 c. chicken broth
1 c. salsa
1 can (15 oz.) corn, drained
1 can (15 oz.) black beans, drained
1 pkg. taco seasoning
½ c. sour cream
1 c. grated cheddar cheese

Place chicken in greased 3 ½ to 5 qt. slow cooker. Pour broth, salsa, corn, beans, and taco seasoning over chicken. Cover and cook on low heat 6-8 hours or on high heat 3-4 hours. Remove chicken with slotted spoon and place on serving dish. Stir sour cream and cheese into sauce in slow cooker, then pour over chicken. Makes 3-5 servings.

*I like to shred my chicken and add it back to the sauce and serve it in tortillas with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, ect.

French Dips--Amanda Blazzard

My mom and I tried this recipe years ago from one of her cookbooks. (I think it was her Better Homes & Garden's Red Check one)...It became an instant family favorite. We served it many times at our ranch brandings and at the fair when we showed our steers. It is a great one to make ahead and just reheat the meat in a little of the Au jus.

1 (3lb.) Boneless Rump Roast or Top round Roast, trim off fat
2 c. water
½ c. light soy sauce
1 t. dry rosemary
1 t. dry thyme
1 t. garlic powder
1 bay leaf
3 whole peppercorns

Place roast in corckpot. Add above ingredients on high 5-6 hours. Remove meat. Strain broth for dipping au jus and shred the meat.

Serve in a toasted, hard-roll bun and au jus on the side. I like to melt a cheese (provolone, pepper jack, or Swiss) on the sandwich. Also good with sautéed onions, peppers, and mushrooms.

Black Beans With Rice--Colette Gines

1 lb Black Beans, dry
1 Medium green pepper coarsely chopped
1 Medium red pepper coarsely chopped
1 ½ C Onion, Chopped
1 Tbsp Vegetable oil
2 Bay Leaves
1-2 cloves Garlic, minced
½ tsp Salt

1 Tbsp Vinegar (or lemon juice)

Cilantro, chopped
Lime wedges

Pick through beans and remove bad ones. Soak beans overnight in cold water, drain and rinse. Place beans, green and red pepper, onion, oil, bay leaves, garlic and salt in crock pot. Fill crock pot with water so water covers the beans by 3-4 inches. Cook 4-6 hours on high or 3-4 hours on low until beans are very tender. (times may vary depending on the age of your crock pot). Remove and mash about 1/3 of the beans and return them to the crock pot.

When ready to serve, remove bay leaves and stir in vinegar or lemon juice. Garnish with cilantro and lime wedges.

Serve with cooked rice.