Cheesy Bacon and Ranch Chicken Pasta

Cheesy Bacon and Ranch Chicken Pasta

4 ounces pasta (I used gluten free penne)
8 ounces of bacon
1/2 Tablespoon olive oil
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 3/4-1" chunks
2 Tablespoons flour
1/2 T dry ranch mix
1-1/2 cups milk
4 ounces Velveeta or 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions.  Drain and keep a lid on pot until sauce is ready.

Meanwhile, cook bacon in large skillet until crisp.  Drain on paper towel, reserving 1 Tablespoon of the bacon grease in the pan.

Add chicken and cook until no longer pink.  (My chicken was a little frozen so it gave way to juices and didn't brown as nice as it would otherwise.)

 Sprinkle flour onto chicken and stir to coat.

Add milk, stirring as you go to keep lumps from forming.  I really like my flat whisk for this job!

Cook until thick and bubbly.

Stir in ranch seasoning.   Use more than 1/2 Tablespoon if you like.  

Add in cheese and bacon, stirring until cheese is melted. Stir in drained pasta and serve.

Grilled Chicken with Creamy Sun Dried Tomato and Basil Sauce

Grilled Chicken with Creamy Sun Dried Tomato and Basil Sauce 

1-1/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts
olive oil
salt/pepper

2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons diced shallots
2 Tablespoons flour
1/4 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes 
1/4 cup fresh basil, thinly sliced or 1 teaspoon basil paste (I used Gourmet Garden brand)
1-1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup half and half

4 ounces angel hair pasta (other pasta would work too)

Prep your shallots and sun dried tomatoes.  I started off with julienned sun dried tomatoes and chopped from there. If you are slicing fresh basil, prep it too.  I used the basil paste since that is what I had on hand at the time.

 Measure your half and half and chicken broth.

Drizzle the olive oil in pan, add shallots and saute for just a moment or two so as not to burn the shalllots. 

 Add the flour, cooking for a moment.

Add chicken broth and half and half mixture a little bit at a time.  Whisk along the way so as not to have lumps. When it has thickened stir in your tomatoes and basil.  Place a lid on top so it doesn't skin over while you cook the pasta and chicken.

Trim chicken breasts. I cut them so they are flatter and then cut off the tip so it cooks more evenly and doesn't dry out on the end. I chop up the extras for a meal on another night.

Place chicken in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Stir to coat. Grill chicken until no longer pink inside.

Cook pasta.  Angel hair cooks in 4-6 minutes so make sure you start them a little bit after your chicken. 

If timing is not your thing you can cook your chicken ahead and chunk it up, setting aside until your sauce and pasta are done.  Then throw it all in one big pot, stir, and serve family style! This is most likely how I will do mine next time.

Sausage and Kale Soup

Sausage and Kale Soup

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/2 cup onions, chopped (or diced)

8 ounce package pre-cooked chicken sausage (I used al fresco) 

1 large sweet potato, peeled and chopped

1 bay leaf

6 cups chicken broth

1 can Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed

2-4 cups chopped kale

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon salt (to taste)

ground pepper 

Heat oil in large pot over medium heat.  Add onions and saute until soft.  While they are cooking slice your sausage into chunks.  Add to pot and cook for another minute or so. 

 Add broth to pot.

 Chop up sweet potatoes.

 Add those to the pot.  Simmer for 8-10 minutes or until soft to your liking.

While potatoes are cooking finely chop your kale.  Be sure to remove the vein as it is very tough. 

When potatoes are soft add in the kale, beans and seasonings.  Simmer for 5 minutes or until everything is heated through. 

 Discard bayleaf before serving.

Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party #51

Welcome to Foodie Friends Friday 

Chicken Recipe Party!!

Last week's recipes that received the MOST CLICKS.  I was honored to have my Strawberry Pie, chosen as one of them!

Please take a moment to read through the rules before getting started, Thank You!

*By linking up you agree that you read these rules and all photos/recipes are original and belong to you. You agree to allow Foodie Friends Friday and any of it's affiliated websites or publications (Social Girls Media, LLC) to use photos, links, and recipes for reprint and/or republishing and distribution without monetary compensation to you. If photos & recipes are used, proper link backs to you will be included.

Adding Links back to Foodie Friends Friday and our Button is our only form of advertising to bring in more people to see YOUR recipes.

Please remember to do this. It benefits you! To thank you, we will continue to feature those with links throughout the year on various outlets.

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.foodiefriendsfridaydailydish.com/" title="Foodie Friends Friday" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj628/busyvegetarianmom/FFFDDButtonNEW150Darker_zpse238f637.jpg" alt="Foodie Friends Friday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

An InLinkz Link-up

Thank you to everyone for making last week's Foodie Friends Friday Fruit Party a huge success. Did you see all the recipes that caught OUR attention last week? Check out the Host Favorites on the Daily Dish for links to all the recipes.

An InLinkz Link-up

Honey Mustard Parmesan Baked Chicken

Honey Mustard Parmesan Baked Chicken

3 Tablespoons homemade mustard
1-1/2 Tablespoons honey

3/4 cup dry bread crumbs

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

olive oil or melted butter

Slice chicken breast halves into nice strips

or leave whole. (I slice off the back to make it even and take off the tip so it bakes more evenly.)

Dip in honey and mustard mixture.

Then in Parmesan and bread crumb mixture.  (I used my homemade goat Parm which was shredded)

Lay on greased cookie sheet.  Mist/drizzle with a little olive oil spray or drizzle with melted butter. Bake tenders at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  If you do whole pieces then bake for 25-30 minutes.

Mollie's Tender Chicken

Mollie's Tender Chicken 

(originally known as Parmesan Chicken but renamed by my niece)

1 cup plain breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons white flour

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup milk

6-8 chicken breast strips (1/2 inch thick)

Oil for frying

Mix breadcrumbs, flour and Parmesan cheese together.  Put milk into a dish deep enough for dipping the chicken pieces.  Dip chicken in breadcrumb mixture, then in the milk and then back into the breading mixture.  Press the chicken pieces with your hands at this point to flatten them a little.

Heat oil in a frying pan and heat to a medium high temperature.  Place chicken pieces into the pan and lower temperature to medium.  Fry pieces until chicken is done and pieces are a crispy golden color.

Baked Chicken Tenders

Baked Chicken Tenders 

1/2 cup dry bread crumbs

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley or a heaping 1/2 Tablespoon of dry

salt and pepper, optional

1/4 cup milk

6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

olive oil or melted butter

(Additional ingredients for Garlic Lover's Version)

1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

1 to 2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Slice chicken breast halves into nice strips or leave whole.

Dip in milk.

Then in mixture of bread crumbs, Parmesan, parsley, and salt/pepper. For a thicker crust you could dip in dry, then wet, then back in dry.

Lay on greased cookie sheet.  Mist/drizzle with a little olive oil spray or drizzle with melted butter.
(If you are doing the garlic lovers version mix melted butter, garlic, and lemon to drizzle over instead.)

Bake tenders at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  If you do whole halves then bake for 25-30 minutes.

Enjoy on a salad or dipped in your favorite dipping sauce (like Honey BBQ ) Great cold for school lunches.

Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie

This recipe makes a deep dish pot pie.

 3 cups chicken broth
3 chicken breasts, shredded
1-1/2 cups cooked vegetables (celery, onion, carrots)
using this method is best but you could use a purchased rotisserie chicken, broth, and saute your own veggies

2 to 2-1/2 Tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup  instant potato flakes
1 cup frozen peas
2 pie crusts
1 egg , beaten

Rinse vegetables off.  This will remove all the funny bits they get from the crockpot.

Chop into chunks.

Add chicken broth (except about 1-2 T)  and chicken to a large skillet or Dutch oven. Heat to boiling. Add veggies.

Make cornstarch slurry with cornstarch and reserved 2 T chicken broth.

While stirring add cornstarch slurry.  Continue to stir to incorporate.

Add instant potatoes and stir to mix.

Your chicken filling should be thick enough you can run your spatula across the bottom and the liquid doesn't pool back to the middle.  Add more instant potatoes if needed. Season as needed here with salt and pepper.

Add frozen peas.

Put one crust in the bottom of the pie dish.  I use the Pampered Chef stoneware deep dish pie and love it.  My crust on the bottom is brown and flakey everytime! Add filling.

Place other crust on top and crimp together with bottom crust.  Poke any design into the top you want. I did it to release steam from the filling.  Not sure if it needed it or not but sure looks nice!

Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes, then brush on egg wash, return to oven for another 10 minutes. 

Let set for 5-10 minutes before digging in.