my own chicken pot pie

I have made this pie since I was first married...changed the recipe many times to make it fit to all of our likings...

haha I used to boil a whole chicken and tear the meat off the bone...so much of a time saver when I started using boneless skinless breasts...

everyone I have ever served this to, always loves it...I once served it to a minister and his wife and he said that for a church fundraiser, they would sell homemade chicken pies and mine was the best he ever had...

for the past year or so, I make double portions of pie and I then offer one pie to the first friend to text me...I always have takers...haha...so tonight I had offered it to Cj's teacher...I feel for her as her kitchen has been torn up since July so no homecooked dinner for her and I wanted to treat her...

here is what I do...

I either boil or roast 5-6 chicken breasts and then dice into small pieces (I hate to bite into a huge chunk)...

ok here is where I sometimes make it easier also...
the all ready Pillsbury pie crusts in the refrigerated section are wonderful...I like to make my own crusts but these are so good and so easy...

so I line 2 baking pans (like 9x11) with the crusts...then I fill the bottom with the diced up chicken...I then add 3 (for 2 large pans of pie) bags of frozen peas and carrots on top of the chicken...I let it sit while I make the sauce...

for the sauce:
I make a roux of 16 tablespoons of butter, 16 tablespoons of Wondra flour (I think it makes it so much easier for lumps) and once cooked down I added 4 cans of evaporated milk and a 48 oz container of chicken broth, and enough seasonings to your taste and stirred repeatedly till thickened and then poured over the chicken and vegetables...
here is a small warning...when putting the crust on the bottom, make enough of a lip to curl over the top crust...(I have not always remembered to do this)...
I then add the top crust, put some steam slits on top and bake at 375 or 400 for about 35-40 minutes...

so so so yummy...you will love it

Sunday night yummy chicken and wild rice casserole

my absolute favorite...hands down...ever...

to give credit, I got this recipe from Southern Plate...

4 chicken breasts, coooked and cubed...
add to 2 tall cans of cream of chicken soup
32 ounces of sour cream
2 packages of frozen peas
some almonds

once put into 2 large baking pans (I make this much as everyone loves it so much) (it is also great as leftovers...) (little boy will do anything for this)...ha

I sprinkle 2 sleeves of crushed ritz crackers on top and drizzle with some melted butter...

bake at 375 for about 30 minutes and you have the best darned casserole ever...so yummy...I always make this about once a month or more if I can...

Saturday night my version of taco casserole

I would have thought that Zoie and Samantha really were glad when they moved from the little house behind us into their own apartment...but, more and more they are asking to spend the night here...they really are out a little too far from us and their schools, etc. and so I think it is very beneficial to stay here where it is easier to come and go where they need to...

so they came to stay Friday night and I told Zoie that she could pick what I cooked or she could pick a restaurant of her choice...

this recipe was what she chose...

before I was even married, I would help out my fellow nurse friends and babysit for them...they would leave me dinner out to prepare for their kids and this one box dinner I fell in love with and the kids I watched loved it also...

so, it was a taco casserole and everything was included in the box except the ground meat...imagine our surprise when it disappeared and we couldn't find it anywhere...

so, I decided to try to make it my own and now my own family loves this version...

I brown approx 3 pounds of ground beef (I like it meaty) and then add it to one large can of tomato sauce (I think 32 oz) and 1 envelope of taco seasonings...I add one bag of frozen corn, 1 can of sliced black olives, a good amount of crushed (not too finely) tortilla chips and just a handful of shredded cheese...

put in baking pan, add some cheese to the top...bake 350 for about 30 minutes and you are done...

one of Zoie's and Tim's favorite dinners

weekend breakfast casserole

weekend breakfast casserole

this is definitely a keeper, everyone really liked it and I made extras for the little kids for tomorrow...

I followed recipe exactly but next time would add a ton of seasonings...

really made it a breakfast and made pancakes to go with it...

back to my quest for the perfect breakfast casserole...so far I am liking my own the best, this one is a close second...

swedish meatballs, buttered noodles and green beans

there is nothing special to my recipe...I use the Mc Cormick's seasoning mix for these meatballs and have used it for 40+ years...no reason to mess with what is good...everyone in the family loves these, we even make them for Christmas Eve...

lots of happy people for dinner tonight...

baked club pinwheels for dinner

http://www.plainchicken.com/2010/08/baked-club-pinwheels.html
these were very good and easy to prepare...I liked the ones I made without roast beef...ham turkey and bacon ones were so good...

paired with tator tots and raw veggies...

orange glazed chicken, rice and asian snap peas with homemade egg rolls

http://www.foodiecrush.com/asian-glazed-orange-chicken/

this went together fairly easy and everyone loved it...I added a little more orange juice and zest to it...

paired with a very dressed own fried rice...I fried the rice with some soy sauce, seasonings and some scrambled egg and peas...was very good...not sure why I have never made rice like this previously...I had leftovers the next day for lunch...
I hardly ever shop at Vons since they are a little more expensive, but they had some nice looking snap peas in an Asian sauce and man, were they good...I went today and got some more just to have in the freezer for another time...

also made egg rolls...mixed up packaged cole slaw mix with some seasonings and some Jimmy Dean sausage crumbles and wrapped them up in the egg roll wrappers and fried them...so delicious...

definitely will make this again...

tastes just like a good restaurant's orange chicken with not as much work...