Slow Cooker Creamy Italian Chicken!

This is absolutely one of the easiest yet most delicious recipes you will ever try!   My son has decided it's in his top 10 favorites!   Either he was just really hungry for some home cooking on the night I served it or it's amazing!   This is very tasty and a real family pleaser!

 Here is all you need:

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

black pepper

seasoned salt

1 pkg. dry Italian dressing mix

2  (10.25 oz,) cans cream of chicken soup

1  (8 oz. pkg.) cream cheese (softened)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided

1 cup water

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

6-7 slices of bacon cooked crisp

Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of a large slow cooker you have sprayed with nonstick spray. You can even use frozen chicken if that is what you have or use fresh chicken.  Sprinkle with a little black pepper and seasoned salt to taste. 

Go light on the seasoned salt because of the sodium in the soup.   Sprinkle with the dry Italian dressing mix.   You can used something like Good Seasons or I just used a Kroger brand and it was really good.

In a separate bowl, mix the soups and cream cheese and pour over the chicken.  Sprinkle the top with half of the Parmesan cheese.  Pour the one cup water around the edges of the slow cooker.  

Place the top on and set to cook for 8 - 10 hours on low or 4 -6 on high.   All slow cookers cook at different temps so go by your experience with yours.  If it's older, it might take the longer cooking time.   The newer ones will be fine with the lower cooking time.  

When it's done, break the chicken into large pieces and stir the gravy to blend well.  If you want it with a little more gravy, add a cup of milk and heat through.   Right before serving sprinkle with the rest of the Parmesan cheese, the shredded mozzarella cheese and bacon.  

Serve over pasta, rice or with mashed potatoes!    This is also good served over a baked potato.


 I served by placing penne pasta on a large pasta plate and then spooning the chicken and sauce over it and finished it with the shredded mozarrella cheese and bacon!  

 It was wonderful!  Add a salad and garlic bread and dinner is complete!  Hope you enjoy this!!! 



Slow Cooker Pork Chops with Potatoes & Carrots!

This "Slow Cooker Pork Chops with Potatoes & Carrots" is just good ole down home comfort food and it could not be any easier.  The pork chops turn out fork tender and it makes a really yummy gravy to cover them in.   I love this type of recipe for busy days when I just don't have a lot of time to cook.  I used boneless pork loin chops in this cut fairly thick, about 1/2 inch.  I think that works best, but if you only have bone in they work also, just be sure to let everyone know they have bones in them and if they cook out during the slow cooking be sure to remove them.


 Here is what you will need:

5-6 boneless pork loin chops

2 tbs. oil

seasoned salt

black pepper

1 bag baby carrots (could use 4-5 large carrots, peeled and sliced)

5 -6 large potatoes, peeled and quartered

2 medium sweet onions, peeled and sliced and separated into rings

1 pkg dry onion soup mix

2 cans cream of mushroom soup (could substitute cream of chicken or cream of celery soup)

I like to brown the pork chops before assembling the ingredients in the slow cooker.  I use my Ninja slow cooker for this, because it  can be used on a stove top setting to brown and then switch to a slow cooker settting.  It's my favorite slow cooker because of this feature.  If you are going to invest in a new slow cooker, I suggest it highly.    You can also brown the pork chops in the oil in a skillet on the stove top.  You can also skip this step all together and they still turn out great.  I just like the flavor when they are browned a little.   Sprinkle both sides with seasoned salt and pepper.  

Spray your slow cooker with nonstick spray.  Place the baby carrots on the bottom.  Next lay the potatoes over the carrots.  Place the onion rings on top of the potatoes.  Sprinkle the vegetables with a little seasoned salt and black pepper.   Go easy on the salt though, because the soups contain sodium.

Lay the chops on top of the vegetables in a single layer.  Sprinkle the dry onion soup over all.  End by spreading the canned soup evenly over the top.  Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or on high 4-5 hours, depending on your slow cooker.

This turns out so delicious!  I served it with white beans, cornbread and of course sweet tea!  Hope you try it!  

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Sweet Tea and Cornbread

Chopped Steak with Brown Gravy!

"Chopped Steak with Brown Gravy" is good ole southern comfort food.  This is so good served with mashed potatoes or even with rice or egg noodles.  The gravy in this recipe is to die for.  Even if you usually have problems making gravy, this one turns out great every time. 

 Here is what you will need:

1  1/2 lbs. ground chuck

1 egg

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, divided

1/2 cup flour

3 Tbs. butter

1 (10 oz.) can French Onion Soup

1 pkg. au jus mix

3 cups water

2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

In a mixing bowl, mix the ground chuck with the egg, salt, black pepper, garlic powder and tsp. Worcestershire sauce.  Don't over mix the meat.  Leave the mixture a little loose, but enough to pat it out.  Shape into 5-6 oval patties.  Make them sort of thin, because as they cook they get thicker. 

Place the flour in a shallow dish.  Dredge each patty in the flour coating all sides. Reserve the flour you have left over.  We will use it to thicken the gravy.  Melt the butter in a large skillet.  When the butter is sizzling, place the patties in the butter and fry on each side 4-5 minutes.  Remove to a plate.

Sprinkle 3 Tbs. of the flour you reserved in the pan drippings. Scrap the brown bits from the pan and cook the flour for a minute or until it is smooth and bubbly. Add the can of French Onion soup to the pan and stir.  Dissolve the Au Jus mix in 3 cups of cold water.  Slowly add it to the pan.  If you don't dissolve it in the water before adding to the pan, it will clump on you. Add the other teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce to the gravy.  Bring the mixture up to a boil and when it starts to thicken, turn it back down to simmer. 

If you aren't familiar with the au jus mix, this is what you need.  This Kroger brand is every bit as good as the more expensive name brands.

Place the chopped steaks back in the gravy and cover.  Simmer for 30-40 more minutes. The gravy will thicken and get so flavorful as it simmers. 

This is a real family pleaser!

 



Smothered Pork Chops!

In our family we do love our pork chops and I am always trying different recipes for them.   This recipe for "Smothered Pork Chops" is a favorite!  It is down home, comfort food at it's best. It's not a difficult recipe to make, but I will warn it's not a quick one either.   It takes some time to properly cook the pork chops and gravy!   Here is what you will need for these pork chops:

6 boneless pork chops (1/2 inch thickness is about right)

1 tsp. Cajun seasoning (I use Tony Chachere's)

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup flour

1/4 cup olive or vegetable oil

2 Tbs. butter

1 medium sweet onion, sliced and separated in rings

2 cups chicken broth

1  1/2 cups buttermilk

In a shallow pan, like a pie plate, combine the flour, Cajun seasoning, black pepper, and salt.  Rinse the chops with water.  This makes the flour stick better.   Dredge each chop in the flour and shake the extra off. 

Place the oil in a deep skillet that has a lid over medium high heat.  Add the chops and brown well on both sides.   Make sure your oil is hot when you add the chops or the breading will not stay on.  Once they are all browned, remove them to a plate.

Add the butter to the oil left in the skillet and loosen any bits that might be stuck to the skillet.  Add the onion rings when the butter has melted.  If your family is a bit onion phobic, like mine, you can diced the onion instead of using the rings and it will be more palatable to them.  Saute the onions just a minute or two. 

Add two heaping tablespoons of the leftover flour you used to dredge the chops in, to the skillet.  Cook for just a minute.   Whisk in the chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil.  When it starts to thicken, lower the heat to simmer and whisk in the buttermilk.  I think the buttermilk is a big key to the flavor or this recipe, so I would advise using it, but if you don't have buttermilk you could use half and half or milk.   Add the pork chops back to the pan, cover and cook on low heat for about 1 hour.  The pork chops should be fork tender and the gravy nice and thickened!

These are good served with mashed potatoes or rice!