Chicken Lime Avocado Tortilla Soup

Oh my heavens!

This is absolutely DELICIOUS!!!

Ingredients:
8 cloves garlic, thinly sliced (I used minced garlic)
4 fresh jalapeno peppers, sliced (or diced green chiles to cut the spice down)
8 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into thin strips (rotisserie chicken works, too)
1 quart chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 tomato, seeded and diced
salt and pepper to taste
1 avocado - peeled, pitted and diced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro


Directions:
1.In a large saucepan over medium heat, put all ingredients together and simmer for 20 minutes until hot.

2.Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle with tortilla strips to serve.

My notes: I bought the lime tortilla chips to go with this and it's awesome. The 1st time I made this, I made the mistake of not using fresh lime juice and I couldn't really taste the lime. Very disappointing! I highly recommend squeezing fresh limes in it and also on top before you serve it. :) It makes all the difference in the world. I also sprinkle cilantro on top, too. I love love LOVE all things avocado so I used TWO last time and it was amazing! I also snuck in some carrots just because I could. :) Could be served with or without long grain rice.

This recipe is adapted from HERE! I just simplified it to our tastes.

Linking up: 33 shades of green, Blessed with Grace, Dr. Laura , Real Sustenance, Designs by Gollum

Easy Pumpkin Muffins

or maybe I should re-name this recipe "3 ingredient pumpkin muffins"...it really can't get easier than this!

Ingredients:
1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

*note: I also added a small box of raisins and sub'd all those spices for pumpkin spice*

Directions:
1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 12 cup muffin pan or line with paper liners.
2.In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves until smooth. Spoon equal amounts of batter into the prepared muffin cups.
3.Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean.

No eggs and no oil--no, that's not a typo either! Trust me, they come out perfect! They are dense and pretty much just melt in your mouth.

Next time, I will try a spice cake mix and I'll use golden raisins. We all really loved the raisins in them so I'm glad I threw them in!

Original recipe is found HERE!

Cherry Limeade

Cherry Limeade Recipe

1 can frozen limeade concentrate

1 bottle Sprite

1 jar of maraschino cherries

1 lime

Put in the limeade and then add the sprite. Pour in the juice from the cherries. Then add the cherries and sliced up lime for looks and taste.

My notes: I doubled this recipe for my daughter's birthday tea party. Some even said it was better than Sonic's!

I found the recipe HERE

Photo credit: Nick Bumgardner

Linking up: A Southern Fairytale & Mom's Crazy Cooking, Designs by Gollum

Crock pot Chicken & Dumplings

Crock pot Chicken & Dumplings --very easy!!!

Doesn't this look delicious? This lovely Fall-like weather has inspired me to post one of my family's FAVORITE dishes.

Ingredients:

2 or 3 boneless chicken breasts or 6 boneless chicken tenderloins, frozen OR thawed (it doesn't matter)
1 chopped onion
can of cream of chicken
can of cream of celery
a few shakes of poultry seasoning
a few shakes of thyme
a can of refrigerated biscuits

(fill soup cans with water or add a can of chicken broth)

Add everything to crock pot except for biscuits. Cook on high for 5-6 hours. When you have an hour left, tear up the biscuits and push them down into the mixture. They'll cook but still be a little gooey like dumplings.
My notes: The original recipe called for 2 cans of biscuits but I just use one and cut them up into tiny pieces. This way I feel like I'm getting more dumplings without the extra calories. :)

I use fat-free soups, so besides the biscuits, it's really not that bad for you. Also, I sometimes only let the biscuits cook for 20-30 min --b/c we are in such a hurry to eat. I know it says to cook for 5-6 hours on high but obviously that doesn't work for me (full-time working momma)! So, I cook it on low all day long then crank it up to high when I put the biscuits in. I usually forgo the seasoning and just do a few shakes of Italian seasoning and add a little chicken broth. You really can't screw it up. No matter how I make it, it always taste the same lol.

The kids gobble this one up and they frequently request this one, too! Speaking of the kids, this is one of those recipes I can sneak vegetables in without hearing any complaining. I typically add carrots and mushrooms. YUM!

I would give credit to where I found this awesome recipe but, honestly, I've been making this for so many years that I have no idea where the recipe came from. I've also tweaked it so many times to our liking, I'm not sure how similar it is to the original anyways. :)

Linking up to Tasty Tuesdays and Dr. Laura's Tasty Tuesdays. Blessed with Grace, Balancing Beauty & Bedlam and A Stroll Thru Life, Fudge Ripple, These Creative Juices, All the Small Stuff

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

I recently made this for a friend and she requested the recipe. I figured that I might as well post it here! I'm kicking myself for not taking a picture of the finished cake because it's so pretty. :)

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

Ingredients:
1 pkg dark chocolate cake mix
1 pkg instant chocolate pudding mix
1 16 oz sour cream
3 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preaheat oven to 350. Grease a bundt pan. Mix together ingredients and pour in pan. Bake for one hour and then cool. Top with powdered sugar!

Gotta give credit where it's due: I found the recipe HERE.

Cafe Rio Chicken

This chicken is perfect for either tacos, burritos or nachos which means leftovers are awesome because you can have burritos one night and nachos the next! :) I love it when that happens!!!

My friend, Meghan, gave me this awesome recipe. I could not get over how EASY it was and anyone who knows me well, knows that when the crock pot is involved then I am ALL OVER IT!

Cafe Rio Chicken Recipe:

Ingredients:
1 small bottle Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing (I use fat free and works great!)
1 T chili powder
1 T cumin
3 cloves garlic—minced
5 lbs chicken breast

and whatever toppings you like for tacos/burritos/nachos!

Cook all together in a crock pot for 4 hours, shred meat and cook 1 additional hour.

*I cook mine on low for 8-10 hours and the meat just falls apart! No manual shredding involved. :)

My family loves fresh cilantro so I top it with that and sharp shredded cheddar cheese. I usually get corn taco size tortillas or whole wheat burrito size tortillas. Sometimes I will serve it with a side of rice or beans but most of the time just the tacos/burritos are enough to fill everyone up.

Credit: Recipe came from here.

Meghan also makes the rice but added this note: I usually do 3 cups water to 2 cups rice because when you add all the additional liquid from the blender it equals about a cup. I also use a full small onion and a bouillon cube, and I add juice from 1 lime to the blended stuff too. I've never tried the salad dressing recipe, but it sounds good too!

Heath Bar Apple Dip Recipe

This is my go-to recipe when I need something quick and easy in a pinch!

Ingredients:
8oz block cream cheese, softened (I used the whipped b/c it's softer)
1/2 c sugar
3/4 c brown sugar
1 t vanilla
1/2 bag Heath Bar bits
Apple wedges

Directions:
Cream together cream cheese, sugars and vanilla
Stir heath bar bits in with spoon (i added some caramel, too!)
Serve with apples
(cut apples into pineapple juice to keep from turning brown)
Enjoy!

Be prepared to have the recipe on-hand because it is a crowd pleaser and goes quick!!!

Linking up to: 33 shades of green