Creamy Sausage Tortellini Soup

I am a huge fan of two types of soups 1- The kind that you make in the slow cooker and 2- The kind that you can throw together quickly and simmer for less than 20 minutes.  This one falls into the second category.  When I made this the other night, I had to eat it and rush out the door to a meeting so I didn't get to hear everyone's comments and feedback.  I enjoyed the soup a lot, but I wasn't sure what my mother-in-law, father-in-law, and husband were going to think.  Well, 3 days later my father-in-law was still talking about how much he enjoyed it and was wondering when I was going to make it again.  He generally likes everything that I make.  He is by FAR the most critical member of the family.  If you likes something he lets me know and if he doesn't like something he also lets me know:)  I appreciate his feed back and I have learned to take his critiques as encouragement  so I appreciate his opinion.  Although sometimes he tries to get way to technical and we all laugh at him and keep eating.  

Ingredients:

• About 2 Cups of Baby Spinach
• 3 14 oz cans of Chicken Broth
• 1 lb of Mild Italian Sausage
• 1 can of Italian Seasoned Diced Tomatoes
• 4 oz Cream Cheese (not fat free, it won't melt) at room temperature and cut into cubes
• 1 small package of Frozen Tortellini

Serves 6

Cook, crumble 1 lb of bulk mild Italian Sausage.  Drain off excess grease.  In a large pot combine chicken broth, tomatoes (undrained), and cooked sausage.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to med and add cream cheese.  Stir to combine and melt.  When cream cheese is melted throughout, add in spinach and tortellini.  Cook for about 15-20 minutes or until tortellini is cooked.

If you want this soup to be spicier, add a pinch of red pepper flakes and/or use HOT Italian Sausage.  

Follow the Magical Moms on Facebook and Pinterest for weekly menu ideas, crafts, and Disney Magic.  

Sweet Garlic Chicken Legs

Sometimes when I don't know what to make for dinner I look into my freezer and pick something out at random.  I knew I had to figure out something to do with the chicken legs that took out to thaw and I knew it had to go with the green beans that I had put in the slow cooker.  At about 4:30, I decided on this.  The sauce was great and the chicken was super moist.  This recipe is made with very basic ingredients that can be found in almost anyone's pantry.  I had chicken legs on hand, but feel free to use thighs or whatever you have!    

Ingredients:

• 6 Chicken Legs
• 1/3 Cup of Honey
• 1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Ketchup
• Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Minced Garlic

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a glass baking dish with foil (for easy clean up).  Place chicken legs in dish and sprinkle with pepper.  In a small bowl combine the remaining ingredients and whisk them together.  Pour mixture over chicken and bake for about 35 minutes.

 Remove chicken from oven and flip it over (so the other side can get a chance in the yummy sauce).  Raise the oven temp to 425 and bake for additional 10-15 minutes or until sauce is bubbly and begins to caramelize.

I served with Fried Noodles and Fresh Green Beans I made in the slow cooker.  

Follow the Magical Moms on Facebook and Pinterest for weekly menu ideas, crafts, and Disney Magic.  

Winner Winner Crock Pot Chicken Dinner

I am such a nice wife, I even make dinner when I am not going to be home!  Ok not all the time, but this time I did.  There are not any pictures of the dinner when it's done, because I wasn't home to take them.  I am sure that I could have asked Nathan to take them he always wants to take pictures of his lunch (weird kid...who takes pictures of their food).  I threw this dinner together with stuff I had in the fridge/pantry and from what I hear it turned out pretty darn good.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Onion
• 1 lb of Fresh Green Beans
• 1/2 Cup Chicken Broth
• 1 teaspoon Minced Garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon Dried Rosemary
• 1/4 teaspoon Thyme
• 3/4 + 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 1/4 + 1/8 teaspoon Black Pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon Paprika
• 4 Russet Potatoes Cut into 1/2 inch thick slices
• 6-7 Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs

Serves 4-5

Layer onion in the bottom of the crock pot.

Place sliced potatoes on top of onions.

Place green beans on top of potatoes

Mix together garlic, rosemary, thyme, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and chicken broth.  Pour over veggies.  Season chicken with paprika and remaining salt and pepper.  Place chicken on top of green beans.  Cover and cook on low for about 6 hours or until chicken is cooked thoroughly and veggies are tender.

BBQ Rub for Slow Cooker Chicken

 

Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 3/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
• 3/4 teaspoon Salt
• 3/4 teaspoon Onion Powder
• 1 Tablespoon Paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon Chili Powder
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground Mustard
• A Couple Dashes of Cayenne Pepper
• 4-5 lb Whole Chicken

Combine all ingredients, except chicken, in a small bowl.  Mix spices together to make it easier to evenly distribute them.  Clean and rinse inside of chicken.  Pat dry with a paper towel.  Cover with spice mixture and you can even put some inside the chicken.  Place chicken in slow cooker.  Add about a cup of water to the bottom of the slow cooker.

Cook on HIGH for about 4 hours or low for about 6 hours or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.

I served with Fried Noodles and Steamed Broccoli.

I can get two meals out of this chicken, I will use the leftovers to make BBQ Chicken Wraps

Barbacoa Soft Tacos

A few weeks ago I made Sherrie's Chipotle Barbacoa Bowls with Cilantro Brown Rice (gluten free) and they were GREAT!  The only problem was that it made a TON!  I ate it for lunch the next day and it was just as good so I decided to freeze some of the remaining leftovers.  I like to keep a few things in the freezer that are ready to go because our evenings are often full of activities.

Ingredients:

• Romaine Lettuce chopped 
• Easiest Corn Salsa you will ever make(click for recipe)
• 6 Flour Tortillas
• Sour Cream
• A little over a Cup of grated Queso Blanco
• Cilantro Rice  ( I actually used a boil-in-bag of Basmati)
• Chipotle Barbacoa (from an earlier recipe)

Since I made the Barbacoa a few weeks ago and froze some of it, the most time consuming thing about this recipe was boiling the water to cook the corn for the salsa.  I simply heated the leftover Barbacoa in a skillet and served in tortillas with our favorite toppings.  

**I took the Barbacoa out of the freezer in the morning and placed it in the fridge to thaw.  It was ready to go at dinner time.