Herbed Cheese and Chicken Rolls

My husband doesn’t work on Wednesdays. Lucky’s, a local grocery store, has double coupons on Wednesdays. Last Wednesday, Lucky’s double coupon meant that chicken breasts were on sale for 99¢ per pound.  My husband came home with enough chicken to open our own restaurant. So, as many of my recipes have, this one started from a sale. I am lucky (pun intended) because this was a stroke of genius. So very good.

You can use different herbs or add more or less, depending upon your taste. I like everything amped up a bit and almost always use more herbs than a recipe calls for.  However, thyme can be powerful, so be careful.

This will make you melt!

Servings: 4-6

Time:  Prep: 20 minutes   Cooking:  40-45 minutes

Hardware:  A cutting board and knife, measuring spoons and cups, a small mixing bowl, a mixer, a rubber spatula, 9“x 13” glass baking dish, mallet and plastic wrap (optional), a thermometer

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ 1b boneless skinless chicken breast
• 6 ounces softened creamed cheese
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme (1 teaspoon dried)
• 2 tablespoons fresh chives (1 teaspoon dried)
• 2 cloves garlic
• ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon sour cream
• Salt & pepper
• 1 ½ cups Ranch salad dressing (you can make your own)
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives for garnish
• Cooking spray

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400˚. Spray the dish with cooking spray and set aside.
2. Mince the herbs and garlic. Use the mixer to combine them with the cream cheese, Parmesan and sour cream. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper. Set aside.
3. Cut the breast so that you create wide, flat pieces. You may make them even flatter by sandwiching them between two pieces of plastic wrap and pounding them with the mallet. I have found that if you have a sharp enough knife and cut carefully, this isn’t necessary.
4. Generously salt and pepper both sides of the chicken pieces. Start from a short end and place 2-3 tablespoons of the filling on a chicken piece. Tightly roll up and place the chicken roll into the prepared dish, seam side down. Repeat until all the chicken has been used. If you have any leftover stuffing set it aside, but DO NOT EAT IT.  It has been cross contaminated and must be cooked to be safe.
5. Bake the chicken for 20 minutes. Remove it from the oven and cover each roll in Ranch dressing. If you had any leftover stuffing put it in a little heap in the corner of the dish.
6. Return the chicken to the oven and bake for 20-25 more minutes or until the chicken is 160˚.
7. To serve, mix everything left in the dish together and spoon over the roll ups and sprinkle them with chopped fresh chives and black pepper.

Herbed Cheese and Chicken Rolls

Tuna Melt

I worked at a sandwich shop for 7 years when I was much younger. One of my favorite sandwiches was the Tuna Melt. We didn’t stir any of the usual suspects into our tuna. So each person could have exactly what she wanted. You can tailor your sandwiches to your guests, too. 

These sandwiches are big.  I usually cut them in half. These are part of a fast, easy summer dinner.

Servings: 3-6

Time:  Prep: 10 minutes   Cooking:  10 minutes

Hardware:  A cutting board and knife, measuring spoons and cups, a bowl, a large skillet, tongs, rubber spatula, foil, a sheet pan

Ingredients:

• 6 pieces of bacon (optional)
• ¾ cup albacore white tuna (1- 6.4-ounce pouch)
• ⅓ cup mayonnaise
• 6-1 ounces slices Swiss cheese
• ½ cup each chopped pickles, onions, and tomatoes
• Salt & Pepper
• 3 hoagie rolls

 

Tuna Melt

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350˚ and cover the sheet pan in foil. Set aside.
2. Cook the bacon until it is crispy. Cut each bacon piece in half. Set aside.
3. Mix the mayonnaise and tuna with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Cut the rolls length-wise, but make sure to not cut all the way through.  Fill each roll with ⅓ of the tuna mixture. Top with the ½ the pickles, onions and tomatoes. Then top each sandwich with 2 slices of cheese and 4 bacon halves. Place the sandwiches on the foil covered pan and bake for 5-8 minutes or until the cheese melts. Top with the other half of the veggies. Salt & pepper. Serve hot.

The Best Macaroni Salad Ever!

I made this for potluck a few weeks ago. When I got home, I realized that someone had kept the leftovers. One of the people at the party texted me to ask if the recipe was on the blog. It was not. Then some friends invited us over to go swimming. Not wanting to arrive empty handed, I made more of this because I still had the ingredients on hand. I accidentally forgot the leftovers. My friend texted me that they had eaten all of it and did I have the recipe?

This has been kitchen tested by quite a few people and everyone says, “Yummy!” So, here by popular demand, is the recipe for The Best Macaroni Salad Ever!

Servings: 12- ½ cup servings (seriously, who eats that little?)

Time:  Prep: 10 minutes, Cook: 9 minutes, Chill: 2 hours

Hardware:  measuring spoons and cups, a cutting board and knives, a mixing bowl, a pot, a colander, a large storage container

Ingredients

• 8 ounces uncooked elbow macaroni
• 2 cups + ½ cup olive oil based mayo
• 1½ cups + ½ cup sour cream
• 1 cup crumbled bacon pieces (you can cook 16 slices of bacon or buy the REAL bacon crumbles which are usually found with salad dressing and croutons)
• 4 eggs
• 4 green onions (½ cup)
• 1-7 ounce jar sliced pimentos, drained
• ⅓ cup dill pickle relish
• ½ cup finely chopped black olives (just buy them in a jar)
• Salt & pepper

The Best Macaroni Salad EVER!

1.   Cook the macaroni according to package directions.  Rinse in cold water and drain.
2. Boil the eggs. You can cook the eggs and the macaroni together to save time.
3. While the macaroni and eggs are cooking slice the green onions as thinly as possible. Use both the white and green parts.
4. Roughly chop the eggs.
5. Mix everything except the ½ cup of mayo and sour cream. Reserve them for later. Taste and adjust the salt.
6. Refrigerate the salad for at least 2 hours, but preferably overnight.
7. Mix in the reserved dressing and a few grinds of black pepper just before serving. 
8. Pasta is thirsty and will soak up most of the dressing.  The reserved stuff will ensure that your salad is creamy.

You might also enjoy Mactastic Macaroni Salad