Fourth and Goal

Football pre-season is upon us my lovelies and that means fall is on the way.  When I watch football I am constantly snacking and I don't necessarily like eating all of the typical snack foods.  Today in the kitchen we will be poaching  some boneless skinless chicken breasts and turning them into  4 tasty chicken recipes for two for your snacking pleasure.  So let's head into the kitchen and score with four quarters of  awesome chicken yum!

This is all make ahead stuff so I usually make the chicken and other bits and pieces when I have my Saturday afternoon free.

First we are going to start by poaching 4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts.  We want to season our breasts well since we are poaching the meat, so let's start with my favorite poultry seasoning:

2 teaspoons dried parsley

1 teaspoon rubbed sage

1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed

1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram

2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix all together in a ziplock bag. 

Place 4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts in a pot that's just about large enough to fit them in one layer Divide up our poultry seasoning over the tops of the chicken. 

Add water so that it completely covers the chicken a half inch to an inch.

After bringing the liquid to a boil, reduce heat to a bare simmer so that only an occasional bubble breaks the surface. At this point, partly cover the pot, cook for about 10 minutes, then turn off the heat, leaving the chicken to finish cooking in the hot water for 10-15 more minutes.

Remove chicken, and reserve liquid for our 1st quarter dish.

Now let go through our play book and plan our strategy:

1st Quarter Cream of Chicken and Rice Soup

Take all of our leftover seasoned juice from poaching our chicken and shred in 1 chicken breast, 2 cups of milk and 2 tablespoons of Sour Cream.  Stir well until sour cream is mixed in then place in a covered bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.   You will also need 1 cup of cooked rice (I usually have some rice around in my fridge since it is one of my favorite side dishes but if you don't have any sitting around you can just cook some and put that in the fridge also)

When ready to serve: Microwave, uncovered, on HIGH 5 min. until hot, stirring halfway through cooking.  Place 1/2 cup of rice in 2 smaller bowls and serve soup over rice stir well to heat rice. (Note: you can also re-heat the rice but usually the soup does a fine job of this when added).

2nd Quarter Chicken Salad Snacks

I have an awesome recipe for chicken salad that I discovered years ago using craisins which makes a slightly sweet and savory chicken salad that goes great on crackers (I love to use Ritz Crackers for this).  Shred 1 chicken breast and add 1 cup of real mayonnaise, 1/2 cup of craisins, 1/4 cup finely chopped red onions, 1 stalk of celery sliced thin, 1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper.  Mix all well, cover bowl and refrigerate.

Serve by placing about a teaspoon each on Ritz Crackers

 

3rd Quarter BBQ Chicken  Super Sandwich

Shred 1 Chicken breast in 3/4 cup of your favorite bbq sauce and add some chopped red onion (about 1/4 cup I like lots so I add a little more)  4 slices of precooked bacon chopped.  Place all in a microwavable covered bowl and refrigerate.  You will also need a couple of slices of Cheddar Cheese and a couple of Kaiser Rolls.

When ready to serve: Microwave, uncovered, on HIGH 4 min. or until hot, stirring halfway through cooking.  Place on kaiser rolls with a slice of cheddar cheese.

4th quarter Frank's® Redhot® Buffalo Chicken Dip  

4 oz.(1/2  pkg.) cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup ranch salad dressing

1/4 cup FRANK'S® REDHOT® Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce

1/4 cup shredded mozzarella

1 shredded chicken breast

In microwave-safe dish place cream cheese and stir until smooth.

MIX in salad dressing, Frank's RedHot Sauce and cheese. Stir in chicken.  Cover Bowl and place in refrigerator.  (I like to serve this on Ritz Crackers also)

When ready to serve: Microwave, uncovered, on HIGH 5 min. or until hot, stirring halfway through cooking.. Serve on Ritz Crackers or any other chips you prefer..this is also really yummy on celery stalks.

So there we are my lovelies, the perfect game plan for watching your favorite team!  

Touchdown!