Simple Chicken and Noodles

Happy Fall Y'all!

It's finally starting to cool off a little around here.  Woohoo!  Man, I love Fall.  It makes me want to visit pumpkin patches and bake bread while wearing a sweater.  It's just awesome.

If you're busy doing Fall-y type stuff all day, you'll need a simple recipe to cook for supper.  Here's a good one:

SIMPLE CHICKEN AND NOODLES

2 chicken breasts, cut into small chunks
1 onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped (or 10 baby carrots)
4 cups chicken broth
12 oz egg noodles (or broken spaghetti, or elbow macaroni)
salt/pepper
a little oil (2-3 TBS)
1 TBS butter


Season the chicken with salt and pepper.

In a large pot with a tight-fitting lid, heat a little oil over medium-high heat.  Brown the chicken.  You don't need to cook it all the way through here.  It will finish cooking later on.

Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.  Add the onion, celery and carrots.  Saute until softened.  To speed this process up you can add a little water then cover.  Let the veggies steam for a few minutes then stir.  Repeat until softened.  Season with salt and pepper.

Return the chicken to the pot.  Add broth.  Bring to a boil.

Add the butter then add the noodles.

Stir well and press the noodles down as best you can.

Put the lid on, reduce the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so.

It's done when the broth is absorbed and the noodles are tender.


Garnish with a little parsley.

This is a simple dish that's comforting and filling.  Plus it makes a little chicken go a long way.  Great way to use up a few chicken breasts.  The family gave it the thumbs up.  Give it a try and see how you like it.

WOW Sour Cream Noodles

This recipe has a terrible name.  It literally means With Or Without sour cream noodles.  I named it that because you can serve it with or without sour cream.  My daughter and I love sour cream.  My husband and Pickiest Eater Ever Son, not so much.  I know the name is quite literal, but I couldn't come up with anything better.  I guess I was having a creative deficit day.  Anyway, my family made fun of me when I told them the name (we love to rib each other).  We all had such a laugh that I just couldn't change it.  That was years ago and we still laugh about the name.

It may have a bad name, but it's a good recipe.  It's quick, easy and yummy.  What more could you want in a weeknight meal?

WOW SOUR CREAM NOODLES

1 lb ground beef (or ground turkey)
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
1 lb pasta (rotini, penne, ziti, etc)
sour cream
sliced green onions to garnish, optional


Put a large pot of water on to boil.  That way it will be ready when you need to cook the pasta.

In a large skillet or pot, brown the ground beef.  Drain off the grease.  

In a bowl, mix together diced tomatoes (with juice) and dry onion soup mix.  I zip this in the blender because my picky boys don't like chunks of tomatoes, but it's not necessary.  Once mixed, pour into browned ground beef.

Bring to a boil and then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook pasta to al dente (that just means that it's not mushy, it still has some bite to it).  Drain the pasta, then stir it into the beef mixture.

I used Tri-color Rotini pasta.  But, I have made this with Penne, Ziti, Shells, etc.  Use what you have.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream or without.  If you like, garnish with sliced green onions or chopped fresh parsley.

This is a family favorite because it's hearty and filling.  I like it because it's cheap to make, easy and quick.  A perfect weeknight meal with a not-so-perfect name.

Beef and Noodles

This is an old-fashioned Sunday supper.  If you're short on time, this one's not for you.  But, if you've got a few hours, this is a delicious, easy, hearty supper that screams comfort.

I found the recipe in a cook book from the 80s.  It caught my eye because the ingredients are simple things I always have on hand.  I changed it up a little bit.  It called for frozen noodles, which I didn't have, so I substituted dried.  I also used Italian seasoning instead of the marjoram it listed.  Plus a few other changes.  The result was a winner.  The family loved it so much there were no leftovers!  My Pickiest Eater Ever Son actually asked me to make it again soon.  Score!

BEEF AND NOODLES

1 lb chuck roast
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 TBS oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups beef broth
1 cup water
1 TBS Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 cups egg noodles
2 TBS fresh parsley, chopped

Cut the roast into small cubes.

Coat the cubes of beef with the flour.

In a large pot with a tight-fitting lid, brown half of the beef in the oil over medium high heat.

Remove it from the pot and set aside.  Brown the remaining beef, then add the onion and garlic.  Cook for a few minutes.

Drain off any excess grease.  Return all beef to pot.  Stir in broth, water, Worcestershire sauce, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.

Bring to a boil.  Then, reduce heat to a simmer.  Put the lid on and simmer for 1 1/2 hours or until beef is tender.

Then, stir in the noodles.

Bring to a boil.  Then, reduce heat and cook uncovered for 20-30 minutes or until noodles are tender.  Stir it occasionally.

Finally, garnish with fresh parsley.



This recipe takes some time but very little effort.  The end result is worth the wait.  Comforting and delicious!  A new family favorite!