Italian Chicken Soup

1 1/4 lbs. raw chicken tenderloin, cut into chunks
32 oz. chicken broth
1 medium onion, diced small
2 bell peppers, diced small
2 stalks celery, diced
2 jalapenos, seeded and diced
1/2 cup diced carrot
1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes (with basil, garlic, and oregano)
1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
1 cup heavy cream
8 oz. Penne pasta
Grated Parmesan cheese (for topping)

Add all ingredients (except cream, pasta, and cheese) to slow cooker. Cook on low 6 to 8 hours.

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Stir cream and pasta into hot soup.

Serve topped with Parmesan.

Jalepeno Lime Chicken Wings

6 lbs. chicken wings
6 jalapeno peppers (seeded and chopped into chunks)
1/2 c. coconut oil
1/4 c. coconut aminos or soy sauce
1/4 tsp. minced garlic
3 tsp. ground cumin
juice of 6 limes

Put the following ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth: jalapenos, coconut oil, soy sauce, garlic, cumin, lime juice.

Distribute the chicken wings between two gallon freezer bags and pour half the marinade over the chicken into each bag. Seal and shake to coat the chicken. Let marinate overnight in the refrigerator, turning once to redistribute marinade.

Preheat oven to 400.

Line a cookie sheet with foil and place a wire cooling rack or baking rack on the cookie sheet.

Place the wings on the rack and bake 30 minutes.

Remove from the oven, turn the wings over.

Increase the oven temp to 425. Return wings to oven and bake an additional 30 minutes or until well browned and cooked through.

Slow Cooker Fiesta Chicken

1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

¼ c. flour

2 cans (14.5 oz each) of diced tomatoes (I used one plain can and one can of Rotel)

1 cup drained whole kernel corn (or 1 c. frozen, thawed corn)

1 cup drained pinto beans (or black or kidney beans)

1 onion (sliced)

1 pkg. McCormick Slow Cookers Fiesta Chicken seasoning mix (Or any Mexican/Taco seasoning packet you prefer)

In crock pot, place sliced raw onion on bottom of crock pot.

Salt and pepper chicken breasts, then dredge in flour and brown in skillet in vegetable oil.

Place chicken on top of onion.

Mix together corn, beans (drained), diced tomatoes (undrained), and seasoning packet. Pour over chicken.

Cook 8 hours on LOW or 4 hours on HIGH.

Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred with two forks. Return chicken to sauce in crock pot and mix well. Serve over rice or in tortillas with toppings of your choice (shredded cheese, shredded lettuce, sour cream, chopped green onions, olives ect.)

Makes 8 servings

WW Points Plus: 6

Sweet Hawaiian Chicken

1 20 oz can pineapple chunks in 100% pineapple juice
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup reduced soy sauce
about 2 pounds chicken breast tenderloins

1 small sweet onion, chopped into 1 inch pieces

1 bell pepper (any color you like), chopped into 1 inch pieces

Black pepper

Salt

Crushed red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spay 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray. Place chicken tenders in pan and sprinkle with salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes.

Sprinkle onion and pepper over chicken.

In medium saucepan, combine pineapple chunks and juice, brown sugar, and soy sauce. Bring to a boil. Spoon mixture over chicken and vegetables.

Bake uncovered 40 minutes.

Serve with rice.

Mexican Flavored Pulled Chicken

1 cup tomato sauce

1/4 cup canned chopped green chilies, mild or hot (or more to taste)

1/2 cup minced yellow onion

3 Tbsp red wine vinegar

2 Tbsp brown sugar

2 Tbsp taco seasoning

1 Tbsp tomato paste

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 Tbsp chili powder

2 tsp dry mustard

1 tsp minced garlic

2 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts sprinkled with salt and pepper

Stir tomato sauce, chilies, onion, vinegar, sugar, taco seasoning, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, dry mustard, and garlic in a bowl. Spray a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray. Place chicken breasts in pan. Pour sauce over meat, turning breasts to coat. Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake in pre-heated 350 degree oven for one hour or until chicken is cooked through. Shred chicken with two forks and spoon some of the remaining sauce from pan over meat.

ALTERNATIVE COOKING METHOD:   Stir tomato sauce, chilies, onion, vinegar, sugar, taco seasoning, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, dry mustard, and garlic in a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker. Tuck chicken breasts into sauce, turning to coat.  Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours, or until meat can be easily shredded with a fork. Do so with two forks, stirring shredded meat into sauce.

Serving size: about 1 cup

Makes approximately 10 servings
WW PointsPlus^® value | 6 per serving

Serve over rice, topped with cheese or in tortillas taco style with peppers, onions, and cheese. Also good as a quesadilla filling or serve any way you like.

This is a modified version of a weight watcher recipe.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

1 lb. cooked chicken breast, shredded (see below for my preferred cooking method)

1 tsp. salt (or more to taste)

½ tsp. black pepper

1 large onion, finely chopped

1 c. carrot, finely chopped

½ c. celery, thinly sliced

½ tsp. minced garlic

3 fresh parsley sprigs

3 fresh thyme sprigs

1 fresh rosemary sprig

2-3 fresh bay leaves

½ c. white wine

8 cups unsalted chicken stock (I prefer Kitchen Basics brand)

2 c. uncooked medium egg noodles

To cook chicken breast: I get thin sliced chicken breast or chicken breast tenderloins, sprinkle them with salt and pepper, and place them in a 9 x 13 casserole pan sprayed with cooking spray. Pour chicken stock over chicken (just enough to cover the meat). Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Transfer from pan to plate and allow to cool. Then shred meat. Save stock from casserole pan (include this stock with the 8 cups of stock used in the soup).

In a skillet sprayed with cooking spray, cook onion, carrot, and celery until soft. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Lower heat and add wine, stirring to deglaze pan.

Place herb sprigs and bay leaves on cheesecloth. Gather edges and tie securely with kitchen string to make a sachet.

In large saucepan or Dutch oven, pour in stock. Add chicken, salt, pepper, vegetable and wine mixture from skillet, and herb sachet. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Remove and discard herb sachet.

Return soup to a boil. Add noodles and cook about 8 minutes or until noodles are soft.

Ladle into bowls and serve.

Mexican Chicken Casserole

1 lb. cooked and shredded skinless chicken breast

1 can chicken broth

1 can Rotel

1 can Cream of mushroom soup

1 can Cream of chicken soup

1 lg. onion, chopped

1 bell pepper, chopped

1 Tbsp. chili powder

1 c. cubed Velveeta

1 pkg. tortilla chips

1 c. grated cheese (Mexican blend)

Dash of salt

Dash of black pepper

In skillet sprayed with cooking spray, cook onion and bell pepper until soft and lightly browned. In a large saucepan, combine chicken, Rotel, soups, cooked vegetables, and spices. Bring to a boil. Boil 10 minutes. Lower heat and add Velveeta cheese, stir until cheese is completely melted. Remove saucepan from heat. Layer ingredients in a  9 x 13 casserole dish sprayed with cooking spray in the following order: chips (enough to completely cover bottom of pan, break into smaller pieces if needed), chicken and soup mixture, chips (again, enough to cover), chicken and soup mixture. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top. Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.