Roma Pasta

Ingredients
Whole wheat spaghetti
Oven-dried tomatoes
Artichoke hearts
Chicken

Directions
Defrost chicken and sauce. Heat sauce up slowly. Take chicken out of marinade, discard marinade. Saute chicken in a pan (no need to oil or butter the pan first) over medium high heat until browned on both sides and cooked through. Keep whole or cut into big chunks and add to sauce. Meanwhile, cook spaghetti noodles according to directions. Combine noodles, sauce and chicken, and eat.

Slow-Cooker Bacon-Ranch Chicken and Pasta

        Ingredients:

1  lb chicken breasts - I used at least 1.5 lbs.

6  slices bacon, cooked and diced - I used 3 

2 to 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1  package (1 oz) ranch dressing and seasoning mix

1  can (10.75 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup

1  cup sour cream

1/2  teaspoon pepper

1/2  cup water

8 oz. spaghetti, cooked - I used 14 0z. penne

Directions:

1. Spray 4-quart slow cooker with cooking spray; place chicken breasts in cooker.

2.  In medium bowl, mix remaining ingredients except spaghetti. Pour over top of chicken.

3.  Cover; cook on Low heat setting 6 hours or on High heat setting 3 to 4 hours.

4.  When about 15 minutes are left, cook and drain spaghetti as directed on package.

5.  Just before serving, shred chicken with 2 forks, and toss creamy chicken mixture with cooked spaghetti.

Frozen Mamas:

Thaw the chicken mixture, put in crockpot and follow direction 3-5 above.  Feel free to spray the crockpot first, but you might not have to.  I gave more pasta than the recipe called for, so you may use it stretch out the meal or use about half the bag according to the recipe.

Adapted from Bettycrocker.com/recipes

Lemon Tortellini

Ingredients

1 lb. fresh or frozen cheese tortellini

1 cup frozen peas

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

1 bunch flat-leaf spinach (about six cups)

1 medium beefsteak tomato, coarsely chopped

1 grilled chicken breast

1 lemon's worth of finely grated lemon zest and juice

Salt and pepper

Directions

Cook the tortellini according to the package directions, adding the peas during the last minute of cooking. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, until golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the spinach and tomato and cook, tossing occasionally, until the spinach is wilted and the tomato begins to soften, 4 to 5 minutes more. Add the tortellini, peas, lemon zest and juice, salt and pepper to taste, and toss to combine.

Frozen Mamas directions

Defrost the bag with all of the ingredients but keep the tortellini bag frozen. Chop chicken up into bite size pieces and microwave until heated through. Follow directions above, adding the chicken, plus salt and pepper, in the last step.

Adobo Chicken

Ingredients

• Chicken breasts or thighs, cut up
• 8 cloves Garlic, Peeled And Smashed
• ½ cups Soy Sauce (If Using Kikkoman, Use Low-sodium Soy Sauce)
• ½ cups Vinegar
• ½ cups Water
• 1 Tablespoon Packed Brown Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Sweet Chili Sauce (or An Additional Tablespoon Of Brown Sugar)
• 1 teaspoon Black Peppercorns, Half Left Whole, Half Slightly Cracked
• 2 whole Bay Leaves

Directions

Add the chicken with all of the ingredients in the pot it will be cooked in. Let the chicken marinate for at least 20 minutes, and up to overnight.

When ready to cook, put the pot on the stovetop and bring to a boil over medium heat. (Start rice around this time as well). Once boiling, lower the heat slightly and cook, covered, for about 15 minutes. Remove the cover. Flip the chicken pieces and continue to simmer, uncovered, to reduce the sauce, lowering the heat if necessary. If the sauce is too thick or too salty, add 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of water. After about 8 minutes, flip the chicken again. Taste the sauce again and add more water if needed. Don’t worry if you accidentally add too much water—the simmering will take care of that.

Continue to simmer until chicken is fully cooked and has released its oils into the sauce, and the sauce has thickened slightly and taken on a rich, dark brown color.

Serve over rice. To cook rice, put rice in saucepan and add 2 cups water, 1 teaspoon olive oil and a pinch of salt. Place saucepan uncovered over high flame and bring to a boil. Stir occasionally. Let water reduce slightly and then lower the flame, place lid on the saucepan and simmer for 20 minutes. Do not remove cover while cooking. Fluff with fork and serve.

Frozen Mamas Directions

Defrost chicken and sauce. Follow directions above.

Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients:
1 cup diced sweet onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
1Tbsp. canola oil or EVO
2 cups chopped fresh baby spinach
2 (4.5 oz.) cans chopped green chilies, drained
3 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 (8 oz.) package of cream cheese, cubed and softened
2 cups (8 oz.) shredded pepper jack cheese
Optional:  1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
8 (8-inch) soft taco-size flour tortillas
Cooking spray

Filling steps:
1.  Saute onion and garlic in hot oil in a large skillet over medium heat - 5 minutes or until tender.
2.  Add spinach and green chilies - saute 1 to 2 minutes or until spinach is wilted. 
3.  Stir in chicken and next 3 ingredients, and cook, stirring constantly - 5 minutes or until cheeses melted.
4.  Cool filling and place in Ziploc bag to freeze.

Serving day:
1.  Completely thaw filling bag.
2.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3.  Spoon about 3/4 cup chicken filling down center of each tortilla.
4.  Roll up tortilla and place rolled tortillas - seam sides down in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish.
5.  Lightly coat tortillas with cooking spray.
6.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown.

Bacon Ranch Chicken

Ingredients:

3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tbl. real bacon bits
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 pkg. ranch dressing mix
1 can fat-free, low sodium cream of chicken soup
1 cup low-fat sour cream

egg noodles

Directions:

Combine bacon, garlic, ranch mix, soup and sour cream.  Pour over chicken in crock pot.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours.  Shred chicken and serve over cooked noodles or add cooked egg noodles to the crockpot and stir.


Frozen Mamas:
Put chicken and mix in the crock pot.  Follow the cooking instructions above.

Adapted from crockadoodledo.blogspot.com

Blackened Chicken Burgers with Corn and Black Bean Salad

Ingredients
4 chicken breasts
Spice mix
6 hamburger buns
Trader Joe's corn salsa
Can of black beans
Handful of cilantro
1 avocado
Juice of one lime

Directions
Defrost the chicken and corn/black bean salad for just a day.

Set up broiler and use a broiler pan. (Don't forget to put the broiler pan into another pan so your chicken doesn't drip all over your oven. Speaking from experience.) Place slightly frozen chicken on the broiler pan and sprinkle 1/2 of the spice mix generously over one side of the chicken.

Broil for 15 –30 minutes depending on how frozen or defrosted your chicken is. I recommend setting the oven rack one below the top rack so the chicken doesn't burn too much. It's supposed to be blackened, but no need to go overboard. Take it out, turn the breasts over and use the rest of your spice mix. Return to the oven for another 15 minutes or so. Cut them in half to see if they're cooked and white. If so, cut all of the chicken breasts in half, then depending on thickness, slice them in half horizontally as well.

While the chicken is cooking, heat up the corn and black bean salad in the microwave to room temperature. Toast the buns. Add cheese, tomatoes, lettuce or whatever toppings you want on your chicken burger. Pile on the chicken slices.

The corn and black bean salad can be eaten on its own, as a salsa with chips or as a topping on the chicken burgers.

I got the chicken recipe from here (comes with pictures): http://tastykitchen.com/blog/2010/08/a-tasty-recipe-lazy-chicken/

Crispy Sriracha chicken

1/4 cup Yoplait Greek plain yogurt
2 tablespoons olive oil
juice of 1 lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons sriracha hot sauce
2 teaspoons minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste
4 to 6 (about 1 3/4 lbs) boneless, skinless chicken breasts


1 In a large bowl, combine Greek yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice, fresh rosemary, sriracha, minced garlic and salt and pepper to taste.
2 Place chicken breasts in a large resealable plastic bag and pour marinade mixture over them. Seal bag and toss carefully to coat chicken.
3 Place bag in refrigerator and let sit 2-4 hours to marinate.
4 When chicken is fully marinated, heat oven to 375 degrees F. Place chicken in an oven and broiler-safe baking dish and pour extra marinade over the top.
5 Bake chicken until cooked through, about 40-45 minutes. Heat broiler to HIGH and cook chicken until crispy and golden brown, about 5-7 minutes.

Frozen mamas... Thaw, bake at 375 for 40-45 min, then broil in high 5-7 min until crispy. Serve with rice.

Chicken Pot Pie

Originally posted Sept 2011
http://frozenmamas.blogspot.com/2011/09/chickem-pot-pie.html

Cream cheese chicken

Sorry the bag was not labeled!

Dump thawed ziplock bag into crockpot and cook on low 4-6 hours. Serve with noodles or cooked potatoes, or rice.

Chicken
1can cream of mushroom soup
1 envelop of Italian dressing mix
1 tub cream cheese and chives
1/3 cup water

Mix together and cook on low in crockpot or 1 hour at 350 in the oven.

Thai Chicken (Crockpot)

Ingredients:
8 skinless chicken thighs
1 cup salsa
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. lime juice
2 tsp. grated ginger

Directions:
Place all the ingredients in a ziploc bag. Seal and freeze. To cook, empty into a slow cooker (while frozen), cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Serve over steamed rice, with chopped peanuts on top.

Frozen Mamas:
Do not defrost. Empty into a slow cooker, cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Serve over steamed rice, with chopped peanuts on top. 

To cook rice, put rice in saucepan and add 3 cups of water, 1 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil and a pinch of salt. Place saucepan uncovered over high flame and bring to a boil. Stir occasionally. Let water reduce slightly and then lower the flame, place lid on the saucepan and simmer for 20 minutes. Do not remove cover while cooking. Fluff with fork and serve.

Man-Pleasing Chicken

Preheat oven to 425ºF.  

Mix together 1/2 cup of Dijon mustard, 1/4 cup of maple syrup (not pancake syrup), and 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar. 


Put chicken tenderloins or breasts in oven-proof baking dish. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Pour maple mustard mixture over them, turning the chicken in the mixture so they are fully coated.

Bake in oven until a meat thermometer reads 165ºF.  Approx. 25-30 for tenderloins.  Baste the tops of the chicken with more sauce half way through baking. Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving. Spoon extra sauce over chicken, and sprinkle fresh rosemary on top.


Frozen Mamas:
Thaw chicken and sauce.  Follow above instructions 

Chicken/Salsa Dip

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts (I used 3 from a Costco pack because some are so large!)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, drained
1 jar any salsa
8oz. Cream cheese

Directions:

Add the first four ingredients to a crockpot and cook on low for 8-10 hours.  A half hour before serving add the cream cheese.  Stir mixture and shred chicken before serving with chips, rice, or as a filling in tortillas.

Frozen Mamas:

Put bag one in crockpot, cook on low for 8-10 hours.  Add bag two (cream cheese) a half hour before serving.  Stir mixture and shred chicken before serving with provided chips, as a filling for tortillas or over rice.

Recipe from Karen Nicholson

Honey Chicken Kabobs

Hi ladies, I've been meaning to post this for since July!    Ingredients: 1/4 cup vegetable oil 1/3 cup honey 1/3 cup soy sauce 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1 inch cubes 2 cloves garlic 5 small onions, cut into 2 inch pieces 2 red bell peppers, cut into 2 inch pieces skewers   Directions:

 

1.	In a large bowl, whisk together oil, honey, soy sauce, and pepper. Before adding chicken, reserve a small amount of marinade to brush onto kabobs while cooking. Place the chicken, garlic, onions and peppers in the bowl, and marinate in the refrigerator at least 2 hours (the longer the better).
2.	Preheat the grill for high heat.
3.	Drain marinade from the chicken and vegetables, and discard marinade. Thread chicken and vegetables alternately onto the skewers.
4.	Lightly oil the grill grate. Place the skewers on the grill. Cook for 12 to 15 minutes, until chicken juices run clear. Turn and brush with reserved marinade frequently. Frozen Mamas: Just thaw and grill!

from Allrecipes.com

Grilled Chicken and Vegetables

4

small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)

1

cup Vinaigrette Dressing, divided

1

cup corn

1

red pepper, cut into chunks

1

cup cut-up fresh asparagus spears

Directions

Defrost chicken and vegetables. HEAT grill to medium-high heat. Discard marinade. Use disposable aluminum foil pan for the vegetables.PLACE chicken and pan of vegetables on grill grate. Grill 20 min. or until chicken is done (165ºF) and vegetables are crisp-tender, turning chicken over after 10 min. and stirring vegetables occasionally.

Moroccan Chicken and Couscous

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 8 chicken thighs (about 2 pounds), skinned
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 1/4 cups shallots, peeled and quartered
• 1 1/4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth, divided
• 12 whole pitted dates, chopped
• Box of couscous
• 
  
• Frozen Mamas Preparation
• 
  
  In bag 1/3 you have the chicken thighs, the dates and onions, and the flour/spice mixture. 2/3 is the can of chicken stock and 3/3 is the box of couscous. It really helps if you have a dish that you can use on the stovetop and in the oven because you'll be going back and forth.
  
  
  Defrost everything. Chop the chicken thighs into hefty chunks. Put the flour/spice mixture in a bowl, add the chicken and flip it around to get the chicken well-coated with the spices. Save any extra spice mixture.
  
  
  Preheat oven to 375°.
  
  
  Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large oven-proof pot or skillet over medium-high heat. You will need to provide your own oil. Add chicken; cook 3 minutes on one side. Turn chicken; remove skillet from heat. Add leftover spice mixture, onions, dates and 1/4 cup of the chicken stock. Put it in the oven to bake for 25 minutes or until chicken is done.
  
  
  1. Remove the dish from the oven and then remove the chicken from the skillet, set aside. Place skillet over medium-high heat on the stovetop; stir in the rest of the chicken stock. Cook for a couple of minutes until it reduces and thickens slightly. Return chicken to pan. Cover; remove pan from heat.
  2. To prepare couscous, follow directions on box. Usually takes around 7 to 8 minutes.
     
     
     Serve chicken and sauce over the couscous.

Peanut chicken

1/2 c peanut butter
2 T soy sauce
2 T honey
Cayenne pepper

Thaw zip lock completely, squish around to cover chicken. Bake at 350 for 45-60 min.

Cranberry chicken

Chicken breasts
8oz Catalina dressing
1pkg dry onion soup mix
1can cranberries

Mix together in zip lock. Thaw and bake coveted for 1 to 1.5 hours, until chicken is done. I have done this in the crockpot but on low for 6-8 hrs. It dries out easily if cooked to long. Good with stuffing, rice or potatoes.

Chicken Marsala

Ingredients:
8 tbs butter
4 tbs oil
2 cups mushrooms(sliced)
1 cup Marsala wine
1 cup chicken broth
2 cloves garlic
4 chicken breasts, cut in half, about 3 pounds.
Garlic pepper, to taste
1 box of angel hair pasta (I used spaghetti)

Assembly:
Mix butter, oil, garlic and mushrooms in the bottom of a sauce pan. Cook until mushrooms are browned. Add the remaining ingredients, minus the chicken, into the pan and cook until boiled. Because of the wine, be sure to boil for at least 10 minutes to cook out alcohol taste.

In a deep baking dish spray bottom of pan with cooking spray. Place half pieces of chicken breasts in pan. Sprinkle with garlic pepper. Pour sauce over chicken.

From frozen:
Thaw in the refrigerator overnight. In a deep baking dish spray bottom of pan with cooking spray. Cut chicken in half and place in pan. Pour sauce over chicken. Cook at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes. Check thickest portion of chicken to be sure it is done. Prepare pasta as directed. Serve chicken and sauce over the pasta.

Brown Sugar Chicken

Ingredients:

4-5 chicken breasts

1 cup brown sugar

1 tsp. black pepper

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 Tbl. soy sauce

2/3 cup white wine vinegar

1/4 cup lemon-lime soda

Put the chicken in the crock pot and cover with the brown sugar, pepper, garlic, and soy sauce. Add the vinegar, and pour in the soda. Watch for bubbles. Cover and cook on low for 6-9 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours. The chicken is done when it it cooked through and has reached the desired tenderness. The longer you cook it on low, the more tender your chicken will be. Serve over rice.

Frozen Mamas:

Defrost chicken and sugar mixture. Put in crock pot and add the vinegar and soda. Cook as directed above.

From the book Make it Fast, Cook it Slow by Stephanie O'Dea