Chicken Enchiladas - my way

Long before my Homemade Gourmet days, I tried and tried to invent my own version of my favorite local Mexican restaurant's enchiladas. Not so much the chicken, shredding chicken is easy -- as Ragu says "it's all in the sauce". Once I started my Homemade Gourmet business and began familiarizing myself with the recipe cards that came with our Pantry Staple Seasonings (think large quantity - great value) - I found a crock pot recipe for Chicken Enchiladas. Boy, was I ever excited!!

Well, I have to say that there will never, ever be another purchase of canned enchiladas sauce here in my home. Keep following and I am gong to share my secret... It's easy and so delicious and the whole Cole family give it 2 thumbs up! Here's how you make it:

Chicken Enchiladas - EASY!

4 to 6 boneless chicken breast
1 can - 29 oz. plain tomato sauce (no seasonings)
6 or 7 Tablespoons of HG Enchilada Soup mix
Flour Tortillas
Mild or Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Options: Sour Cream, fried onion, can of refried beans

Combine the HG Enchilada Soup seasoning with the plain tomato sauce right in your crock pot.
Add the chicken. I kind of roll the chicken around in the sauce so that it's coated and will stay real moist. Here's the fun part - Cover your crock pot, put on high for 3 or 4 hours, walk away, don't look back, go read a book, give yourself a pedi - whatever! In 2 hours everyone will be asking - wow, what's for dinner?

Final steps and Serving suggestions:

Remove chicken from the crockpot and place on a large plate or platter. Shred the chicken with 2 forks, it should just fall apart.
[Create your Enchiladas] Take a Tortilla and in the middle section, add a good quantity of shredded chicken, top with some enchilada sauce from the crock pot add grated cheddar cheese (and fried onion or refried beans, optional).
Roll it up, place filled tortilla seam side down in a lightly greased 9x13 pan. Continue until all the tortillas are used up and your enchiladas are lined up nicely and snugly next to each other. Top your row of Enchiladas with as much remaining sauce as you like - add more cheese and in about 10 minutes when the cheese is bubbly - Dinner is served!

For the kids (mine!) - they get the "make your own" wrap variety where they add the flavored shredded chicken, cheese lettuce and sour cream. They don't like their Enchiladas too saucy.

SAVE any leftover sauce. It freezes well. Next time you need a quick meal and have left over ground beef or chicken combine with the sauce and make a quick wrap.

Cole family rating: 5 stars ***** (5 out of 5)

Creamy Tortilla Chicken with White Rice

This is so easy, it seems silly to even consider it a part of the recipe ... but here goes. I figured this out after making the freezer entrée the first time and had a bunch of sauce leftover in the baking dish. My version of Rice-A-Roni. I never said I was a gourmet chef!

My family enjoys the Creamy Tortilla Chicken baked in the oven. While the chicken is cooking, I make regular white rice. When the chicken is done, I remove the chicken from the baking dish and set it aside. I mix the rice into the remaining sauce in the baking dish and have an instantly coordinating side dish, flavored with the tortilla sauce. ENJOY!

SUBMITTED BY: L. Sweet and family

Creamy Tortilla Chicken

2 lbs skinless boneless chicken strips
1 10 oz. can cream of chicken
1 10 ounce can water
7 tablespoons Homemade Gourmet® Tortilla Soup Seasoning

Directions
1. In a bowl, mix together all ingredients but chicken, spray slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray. 2. Add chicken to mix and pour into slow cooker. 3. Cook on low approximately 4 hours.
(If you use chicken breasts for this recipe, increase cooking time to 6-8 hours on low or 4-6 hours on high.Make this a 4 meals in 4 minutes™ meal! Combine all ingredients into a gallon sized ziptop freezer bag, SMOOSH and label. Store in freezer until you are ready to cook.

BAKE: If you choose to bake this meal, pour combined ingredients into a large baking dish; cover and cook at 350 degrees for 30 minutes (longer if you use breasts) or until meat juices run clear.

** This recipe is also available on Homemade Gourmet's website under the Recipe Database: Key to the Kitchen. There you can find complete nutritional information for this recipe AND you can resize the recipe for more or Less servings depending on how many happy faces you need to feed! **

Tuscan Chicken and White Beans (CROCKPOT)

Here's a great CrockPot recipe that uses HG's Garlic Basil Seasoning. It's easy to prepare and very healthy too! See NOTE at the bottom for Freezer Meal tips. Serves 4-6.

Tuscan Chicken and Beans

1 vidalia onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 large carrot, sliced

1 celery stalk, large slices

4-6 bonless chicken breast (whole or cut into chunks)

one 6 oz. jar roasted red peppers, diced

1 can Canellini beans, drained

2 Tablespoons Homemade Gourmet Garlic Basil Seasoning

salt/pepper

1 cup water

12 oz. can of tomato sauce (unseasoned)

In crock, layer all chopped items, then add chicken, red peppers, beans. Mix GB seasoning into the tomato sauce add 1/2 cup water. Add the combined mixture to the crockpot. Add salt and pepper as needed. Cover and cook on low 4-5 hours.

SERVE over your favorite pasta with a side of french bread or toast.

NOTE: If you are starting this in the morning for a dinner time meal, leave the celery and carrots in large slices. They will be cooked and firm when you are ready to eat. Also, leave the bonless chicken whole if you plan to leave it in the crock all day. For a quicker version, chop the veggies smaller and cube the chicken and cook on crock pott high setting for less time.

FREEZER MEAL idea: This recipe could easily be a freezer meal. Mix the sauce, HG Garlic Basil seasoning and water, pour into gallon size freezer bag over 4-6 whole chicken breast, remove air from the bag, zipit and freeze flat.

On cooking day, add the layers of veggies on the bottom of the crockpot, add the frozen prepared/preped chicken in frozen state, add the beans and red peppers add a bit of water (1/4 cup) and cook all day! Dinner will smell delic when you walk in the door.

Cole family rating: 3 stars ***