Cacciatore-Style Chicken Bake

Tonight's meal again came from the Fall issue 2006 of the Kraft Food and Family magazine. It turned out great and I thought that maybe next time I make it I'll make pasta to put it on. I love the recipes that are done all in one pan. It didn't take long to make either. The only difference I made was that I added cheese before putting the stuffing on top. I give this recipe a 5!

1-2/3 cups hot water
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1-1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 small each: red and green pepper, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 jar (14 oz.) spaghetti sauce

PREHEAT oven to 425°F. Add hot water to stuffing mix; stir just until moistened. Set aside.

PLACE chicken, peppers and onions in 13x9-inch baking dish; mix lightly. Pour spaghetti sauce over chicken mixture; top with prepared stuffing.

BAKE 30 min. or until chicken is cooked through.

Ham and Cheese Stuff' n Puff

Well despite the dumb name that tonight's dish has, it was actually pretty good. It of course comes from the Fall 2006 issue of the Kraft Food and Family magazine (I haven't used all the recipes yet!) and this one was no different than the last....fabulous! It was also easier to make too. The only thing I changed was the ham...I don't buy boiled ham...lunch meat is just about the same and I do buy that so that's what I used chicken breast lunch meat. It was just fine. Just realize it takes an hour to bake so save enough time for it. I give this recipe a 5!

5 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped broccoli, thawed, drained
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken
9 oz. (1-1/2 [6-oz.] pkg.) OSCAR MAYER Smoked Ham, chopped
1 cup KRAFT Shredded Cheddar Cheese, divided

PREHEAT oven to 375°F. Beat eggs, milk and sour cream in large bowl with wire whisk until well blended. Add broccoli, dry stuffing mix, ham and 1/2 cup of the cheese; mix lightly.

POUR mixture into 2-qt. baking dish or 9-inch pie plate; cover loosely with foil.

BAKE 1 hour. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake 5 min. or until cheese is melted and mixture is cooked through.

Farmhouse Chicken Dinner

Ever since I got the new Kraft Food and Family magazine, Fall 2006 issue, I have been using it nonstop (that was 2 days ago). Tonight's meal was fabulous. It was so good that I was glad I made the full 4 servings so that there were left overs. I mean, so good that when I was close to finishing my serving, I was wishing that I wasn't so full so I could eat more. I didn't though...that would have been piggish (is that a word?). As for the chicken itself, I hardly ever buy meat with the bone still in so I just used boneless chicken breasts and I didn't have brown rice so white rice works just as well. Anyway, you have to try this recipe and tell me if you thought it was as good as I did. I definitely give this recipe a 5!

1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. pepper
4 small bone-in chicken breast halves (1-1/2 lb.), skin removed
1/4 cup KRAFT LIGHT DONE RIGHT! Zesty Italian Reduced Fat Dressing
2 cups baby carrots
1 medium onion, cut into wedges
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth, divided
2 cups MINUTE Brown Rice, uncooked
4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA
Neufchatel Cheese, 1/3 Less Fat than Cream Cheese, cubed
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

MIX flour and pepper in shallow dish. Add chicken; turn to evenly coat both sides with flour mixture. Shake off excess flour mixture. Heat dressing in large nonstick skillet on medium heat. Add chicken, meat-side down; cook 5 to 6 min. or until golden brown. Turn chicken over; add carrots, onions and 1 cup of the broth. Cover. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 20 min. or until carrots are tender and chicken is cooked through (180°F).

MEANWHILE, cook rice as directed on package. Spoon onto serving platter. Use slotted spoon to remove chicken and vegetables from skillet; place over rice. Cover to keep warm.

ADD Neufchatel cheese and remaining broth to skillet; increase heat to high. Cook until cheese is melted and sauce is well blended, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 3 to 5 min. or until sauce is slightly thickened, stirring occasionally. Spoon over chicken and vegetables; sprinkle with parsley.

Blushing Apples

Now here's an interesting recipe I found in the Kraft Food and Family magazine, the new fall issue 2006. I sounded interesting and looked good so I made it. It only has 5 ingredients and basically tastes like apple pie without the crust. It turned out pretty good. I didn't have Granny Smith, McIntosh or Golden Delicious apples so I just used the Red Delicious ones I had in the fridge. They were a little bigger than a "medium apple" so they needed to simmer a little longer than called for. I also served it with French Vanilla flavored Cool Whip, it added a nice touch. I give this recipe a 4.

2 pkg. (4-serving size each) JELL-O Brand Cranberry Flavor Gelatin
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 qt. (4 cups) water
4 medium apples, such as Granny Smith, McIntosh or Golden Delicious
1/2 cup thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

COMBINE dry gelatin mix and cinnamon in 3- to 4-qt. saucepan. Add water. Bring to boil on medium-high heat, stirring frequently until gelatin is completely dissolved.

PEEL and core apples. Add to gelatin mixture in saucepan; partially cover saucepan with lid. Return to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 10 to 15 min. or just until apples are tender, gently turning apples every 5 min. Remove apples from liquid; reserve liquid for another use (see Tip below) or discard.

SERVE apples warm. Or, cool and store in tightly covered container in refrigerator at least 1 hour or overnight. Serve each apple topped with 2 Tbsp. of the whipped topping. Garnish with fresh mint, if desired.

TIP: After draining the cooked apples, pour the cooking liquid evenly into eight dessert dishes. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or until set for a refreshing JELL-O snack!

Carmelized Garlic Chicken

This recipe comes from the Pillsbury website. This was one of the easiest recipes to make and it turned out great. It only uses 4 ingredients and tasted great! Too bad I didn't make a ton for Tim to have seconds...he ate the rest of the side dishes instead. This makes 4 servings but I only made it for 2 so you can scale it anyway you want. I give this recipe a 5!

Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 teaspoons brown sugar
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

Directions

1 . Heat oven to 500°F. Line shallow roasting pan with foil; spray foil with nonstick cooking spray.

2 . Heat oil in small nonstick skillet over medium-low heat until hot. Add garlic; cook 1 to 2 minutes or until garlic begins to soften, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in brown sugar until well mixed.

3 . Place chicken breast halves in sprayed foil-lined pan. Spread garlic mixture evenly over chicken.

4 . Bake at 500°F. for 10 to 15 minutes or until chicken is fork-tender and juices run clear.

Cheesy Green Chile Twists

I've been on vacation and therefore haven't been cooking and tonight I didn't make dinner either. I thought I was going to be making dinner but Tim's brother stopped by with his family and they wanted to go out to eat (I'm not complaining) but I had already started part of the dinner so I had to make it anyway....and here it is. It comes from the Rhodes Rolls recipes that I get in my email from time to time. They turned out really well even though we only "tasted" them since we were going out to eat....I guess we'll eat them tomorrow. The only problem I had was rolling them out in the 18X12 rectangles they wanted...who knows what size the rectangles I rolled out were so I didn't end up making 12 twists but more like 8 and then I cut them in half because they were so big after they baked. But really...they tasted really good. Any recipe that has green chiles is "usually" good. I give this recipe a 4.5

Ingredients

24 Rhodes™ Dinner Rolls, thawed and risen
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 cans diced green chilies, drained
grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Combine 12 rolls together and roll into an 18x12-inch rectangle. Repeat with remaining 12 rolls. Brush both dough rectangles with butter. Combine cheese and green chilies and sprinkle over one dough rectangle. Top with remaining dough rectangle, butter side down. Cut into twelve 1 1/2-inch strips. Twist each strip several times. Place at least one inch apart on large sprayed baking sheets. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and let rise 30 minutes. Bake at 350°F 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned.