Cream Cheese Chicken Chili

I definitely love a recipe that I can throw into a crock pot and not worry about, especially one that I can throw frozen chicken breasts into!! This was a thick and hearty chicken chili that we all enjoyed...

Cream Cheese Chicken Chili
(recipe found on pinterest)

2 chicken breasts, still frozen
1 can rotel tomates
1 can corn, undrained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 package ranch dressing mix
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 (8 ounces) cream cheese

Place all ingredients in crock pot and cook on low 8-10 hours. Stir all together and serve!

Cake Batter Cheesecake Bars

I made these bars for a party that we were headed out to and I was all set to take a picture this time and I just couldn't do it... They turned out this odd shade of purple and they were not the prettiest things that I have ever laid eyes on. I didn't got for the optional food coloring, which I should have and I did stir in the sprinkles, which I think caused the odd purple color. So, when it says to stir, make sure you stir, don't just throw the mixer on low in the lazy fashion that I did! :) But let me tell you - Oh - My - Gosh!! These things were fabulous!! I'm usually a chocolate kind of girl, but these knocked my socks off... Super rich and delicious! Definitely making these again - and STIRRING the next time!!

Cake Batter Cheesecake Bars
(recipe found on pinterest via teenagetaste.com)


1 3/4 cups nilla wafers
6 tablespoons butter, melted
16 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
1/2 cup yellow cake mix
2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sprinkles
5 drops blue food coloring (optional)
3 drops green food coloring (optional)


Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9" square baking pan, then line with parchment paper; set aside. Stir together cookie crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar and melted butter. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake until the crust is just brown around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, beat cream cheese with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the remaining sugar and beat for an additional couple of minutes, until smooth. Add the eggs and yolk, milk, vanilla, salt and beat again until completely combined and smooth. Finally, stir in the cake mix and sprinkles until smooth. Pour the filling over the crust. Set the pan in a larger pan (a 9×13-inch works for this), and add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the baking pan. Bake until just set, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the baking pan from the water bath, and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool for 30 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight. Cut into bars. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Oven Fried Chicken Drumsticks

I love fried chicken, but hate the mess of frying anything. All that grease and nastiness all over my stove and everything that is remotely close to it. Yuck! So, I have tried a lot of "oven" fried chicken recipes and while they have been good, this one really lives up to the crunchiness that it promises. It was super yummy too!

Oven Fried Chicken Drumsticks
(recipe found in Taste of Home)

1 cup fat free plain greek yogurt
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 chicken drumsticks, skin removed
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
olive oil flavored cooking spray

In a large resealable plastic bag, combine yogurt, mustard and garlic. Add chicken; seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. Preheat oven to 425. In another plastic bag, mix flour, paprika, balking powder, salt and pepper. Remove chicken from marinade and add, one piece at a time, to flour mixture; close bag and shake to coat. Place on a wire rack over a baking sheet; spritz with cooking spray. Bake 40-45 minutes or until a thermometer reads 180.

Kansas City Style Ribs

These took a little bit of work, but the hubs loves ribs and I thought that I would give them a go. They were a hit!! Super tasty and falling off the bone. Just what ribs are supposed to do! So, grab some napkins and try these out...

Kansas City Style Ribs
(Recipe found in Taste of Home)

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons each garlic powder, onion powder and smoked paprika
1 1/4 teaspoons each ground cumin, ground pepper and cayenne pepper
12 bone in country style pork ribs (about 7 pounds)

Sauce:
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 cup tomato sauce
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup molasses
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

In a small bowl, mix brown sugar and seasonings; sprinkle over ribs. Refrigerate, covered, at least 1 hour. For suace, in a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir 5-6 minutes or until tender. Stir in remaining ingredients; bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Wrap ribs in a large piece of heavy duty foil; seal edges of foil. Grill, covered, over indirect medium heat 1 1/4 to 1 3/4 hours or until the ribs are tender. Carefully remove ribs from foil. Place ribs over direct medium heat; baste with some of the sauce. Grill, covered, 8-10 minutes or until browned, turning and basting occasionally with remaining sauce.

Brown Sugar Baked Peaches

This recipe looked so good that both my sister in law and I pinned it and brought along the ingredients when we went on our week long camping vacation! Although I beat her to making it, my nephew did an awesome job assembling the baked peaches and we all tremendously enjoyed them! I mean, look at how hard he is concentrating!!

Brown Sugar Baked Peaches
(recipe found on pinterest via recipesweet.net)

1 fresh peach
1 tsp. unsalted butter, divided
2 to 4 tsp. brown sugar, divided
Sprinkling of ground cinnamon, to taste

Cut peach in half and place on baking pan. Top with butter, then brown sugar, and finish with cinnamon. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.

Peach Ice Cream

Every year we get a couple of boxes of peaches from our local fire department and I love to find new ways to use them, other then just scarfing them down plain! This year (and I think last, even if I didn't get a chance to blog about it), I busted out my ice cream maker and churned up some peach ice cream. It was soooo good, nice and creamy and pretty easy to make! The kids definitely enjoyed it and although I prefer chocolate, I thought it was a good pick.

Peach Ice Cream
(recipe found in Ben and Jerry's)

2 cups finely chopped ripe peaches, peeled if you prefer (I left my peels on)
1 1/4 cups sugar
juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 large eggs
2 cups heavy or whipping cream
1 cup milk

Combine the peaches, 1/2 cup sugar and lemon juice in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours, stirring the mixture every 30 minutes. Remove peaches from refrigerator and drain the juice into another bowl. Return the peaches to the refrigerator. Whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes. Whisk in the remaining 3/4 cup sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute more. Pour in the cream and milk and whisk to blend. Add the peach juice and blend. Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze following the instructions. After the ice cream stiffens (about 2 minutes before it is done), add the peaches and continue freezing until the ice cream is ready.

Pork Chops in the Crock Pot

This was a super easy ways to serve up pork chops and was delicious. My meat was falling off the bone tender, so no picture of what it looked like! Definitely good to eat, even if it didn't look pretty! :)

Pork Chops in the Crock Pot
(recipe found in A.C.C.C.)

onion
5 pounds pork chops
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons vinegar
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
sesame seeds, to taste

Slice onions into bottom of crockpot. Mix together all ingredients except meat and onions to create a sauce. Dip the meat into the sauce; layer in the crockpot. Pour remaining sauce on top of meat. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Sprinkle with sesame seeds when ready to serve.