Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup

1 tbs. butter

1/2 c. chopped onion

2 large carrots

2 stalks celery

1 tbs. dried chives

1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper

1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning

1 tsp. Mrs. Dash Italian Seasoning

1/4 c. flour

6 c. chicken broth

1 1/2c. evaporated skim milk

1/2 pre-roasted chicken from the deli

3/4 c. basmati or white rice

2 tbs. beef gravy thickener blended with a small amount of water

the night before....

Microwave butter in a small cup for 5 seconds.

Dice onion, peel and cut carrots and slice celery. Place in the inside pot of slow cooker. Pour the melted butter over top and stir to coat. Stir in spices and flour.

Gradually add chicken brother stirring constantly to avoid lumping. Add canned milk.

Remove meat from 1/2 a roasted chicken. Cut into bite size chunks and add to slow cooker. Stir, cover and stor in fridge overnight.

in the morning...

Return center pot with cover to the outer liner of slow cooker and set on low heat.

when you arrive home...

Toss in rice and stir well. Set timer for 20 minutes.

If the sauce needs a little thickening, combine a small amount of powdered gravy thickener blended with water and stir in.

Serve with buns.

Notes: This recipe is from Cooking for the Rushed The Healthy Family. I made this recipe all in one day for dinner one night. It is a very tasty and filling recipe. I've made this recipe a couple of times and will definitely make it again.

Review: The Spice Depot

I must admit I'm not a big spice person, I go through phases with spices and what I like. I went through my garlic powder, onion powder and seasoning salt phase about five years ago, now I'm more about experimenting with different spices to get different and more exotic flavours. I've been stuck in the Italian seasoning rut for awhile now so these new blends come as a nice surprise to my palate.

The first night I tried the Salad seasoning in some roasted veggies that I made. I make them quite often actually and the blend added a very nice and flavorful addition but I probably didn't add enough of it. Because the next time it was used my husband added it to some scrambled eggs and there was a definite and delightful zing to the eggs. I can't wait to have it again.

The very night I got the spices I got some pork ribs to try. I love ribs but I find them hard to prepare because I never know what to put on them or how to make a rub or sauce. So after I had boiled the heck out of them I coated them with butter and then put the Smoky Rib blend on them. I tried them when they first came out of the oven and they were a little bland but after they had sat for about 15 minutes and we were sitting down to eat at the table I was pleasantly surprise by the wonderful smoky flavor that burst in my mouth. Even the kids enjoyed them and they are hard to please.

Spicy chicken was also used another night on a roast chicken. I just sprinkled it on the skin and roasted like I normally do. Doing it this way doesn't usually get any flavor in the meat and it just goes in the gravy but I again was surprised because the flavor went through the skin and into the meat. I was a very nice touch to an ordinary meal.

I'll admit I have more experimenting to do with the blends and I will keep on trying because I really enjoyed them and will definitely be looking for new flavors to try in the grocery store. A nice touch to these blends is that each one comes with it's own built in grinder and just a few turns gives each meal a wonderful taste and presentation.

Honey Whole Wheat Bread

12 servings
1 bread
13 min 10 min prep

1 cup water, plus
1 tablespoon water
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup honey
1 1/2 cups white flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon shortening
1 1/2 teaspoons shortening
1 tablespoon dry milk
1 teaspoon fast rising yeast
Select whole wheat or basic/white setting, and medium crust.
Remove baked bread from machine and cool on wire rack.

Dark Chocolate Zucchini Cake

2 1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. cocoa

2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

3/4 c. soft butter

2 c. sugar

3 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 tsp. grated orange rind

2 c. coard grated zucchini

1/2 c. milk

Combine first 6 ingredients in bowl; set aside. Combine butter and suagar in bowl. Beat until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating to mix well. Stir in vanilla, orange rind and zucchini. Alternately add dry ingredients and milk to butter mixture; mix well between each addition. Pour batter into greased and floured tube pan or bundt pan. Bake 50 to 60 minutes at 350°F. Cool 5 minutes on rake. Remove from pan, cool completely. Dust with icing sugar.

Notes: This recipe does call for 1 cup of nuts which I omit because of allergies. This recipe is awesome and turns out so nice. It has a little bit of a crunchy crust and then once I stored it for a bit it was so moist and good. It's a wonderfully nice chocolate cake.

Happy Anniversary, Happy Anniversary!!!

Yesterday was my BBF's wedding anniversary, 4 years I think. I made this but haven't given it to her and her hubby yet. I was going to tell her to pick it up on her way home from work but she wasn't in when I was in there, wasn't done at that time anyway because I was going to finish after the kids were in bed. But I ended up in bed pretty early last night anyway.

It was my first try at the basket weave but I think it looks alright. So H, you'll have to pick it up later on your way home, I'll keep it in the fridge until then. Love you, hope you had a wonderful night!

Pork Chops with Peaches

I've made this recipe twice now and I really liked it a lot. Seen here with some fresh green beans from the garden.

Pork Chops with Peaches

4 pork chops
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. ginger
1 large onion, sliced
1 cup water
2 tbs. soya sauce
1/4 c. cider vinegar
1 tbs. cornstarch, dissolved in cold water
2 fresh peaches, peeled & sliced

Brown pork chops in hot pan. Sprinkle sugar and ginger over chops, top with onion slices and cover with water, soya sauce and vinegar. Cover tightly and simmer for 35 minutes, turning chops once. Thicken sauce with cornstarch mixture, add peaches and heat until warm.

Serves 4.

This is from my The Complete Harrowsmith Cookbook. It was really very good, I bought a bunch of peaches and was trying to find ways to use them up. It was tastey and I did have a lot of sauce left over but I only cooked 3 chops.