Feature Recipe

Taste of Home: Lone Star Chicken Enchiladas



Avanell Hewitt of North Richland Hills, Texas won 3rd place for this recipe in the Taste of Home cooking contest for October. If you're looking for something quick and easy that has the taste of cooking for hours, this is for you. If you would like to see more recipes like this along with cooking and health tips, fun things to do with your kids in the kitchen and more information on how to enter your recipe, go to TasteofHome.com.

Ingredients

• 3 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
• 1 can (10 ounces) diced tomatoes with mild green chilies, drained
• 3/4 cup salsa verde
• 1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies
• 1 can (2-1/4 ounces) sliced ripe olives, drained
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 12 corn tortillas (6 inches), warmed
• 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded pepper Jack cheese

Directions

• In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients. In a shallow bowl, combine cream and salt.
• Dip both sides of each tortilla in cream mixture; top with 1/4 cup chicken mixture. Roll up and place seam side down in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Pour remaining cream mixture over top; sprinkle with cheese. Cover and freeze for up to 6 months.
• To use frozen casserole: Thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Cover and bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until heated through. Yield: 6 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 2 enchiladas equals 897 calories, 65 g fat (37 g saturated fat), 270 mg cholesterol, 1,437 mg sodium, 36 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 45 g protein.

   Avanell says to start with deli-roasted chicken and this family-friendly casserole will be ready in no time and for a milder version, use Monterey Jack cheese in place of pepper Jack.  Be sure to take your kids/grandkids into the kitchen with you. Children love to be creative and it's a great way to spend some quality family time.   Check back again soon for another great Family/Feature recipe -  VA

Betty Crocker Molasses Cookie

Molasses Cookie Mix by Betty Crocker

What’s the best and best tasting way to give a product a genuine, from the heart review? Bake ‘em up and offer ‘em up to The Oakland Press newsroom!
Betty Crocker recently sent me one of their new products here at the paper – a molasses cookie mix. I’m always looking for an excuse to bake, yet get it out of the house quickly. No one enjoys a great homemade treat like the crew at the OP, so I decided to take the mix home, bake them and bring them in for the gang.

As people came in to my office, I offered them a cookie or two and then asked everyone to give me a sentence or so of what they thought about the cookies. Some even rated them from 1-5 with 5 being awesome!
They say that timing is everything. I would have to agree when it comes to the impeccable timing of Kelly Dolan of Coyne Public Relations. Hardly a morsel of a cookie was left when her call came in asking what I thought of the product. My first thought, when I was told that “Betty Crocker” was on the phone, was that it was a staffer being a jokester. I quickly realized that the person on the phone was indeed a very nice woman calling about the cookies! All I could think was “how did she know we just devoured all those molasses cookies! Hidden camera? Nope, obviously Betty Crocker got it right with not only the cookies but with Kelly Dolan. She has a nose for their products and impeccable timing.

Now read what the Oakland Press staffers had to say about Betty Crocker’s Molasses cookies:

I would rate the cookies a 4.5. They were much more moist and tender than most molasses cookies I've tasted, that tend to be tough because of the high sugar content. The only thing that would have bumped them up from a 4.5 to a 5 would be a more buttery taste, a tad more creamy. But the actual molasses taste and consistency were excellent!
____Julie Jacobson Hines

 Slap yo' granny good! 5.5 stars

_____Valerie West

The cookies were baked perfectly, just the right size with nice texture. The flavor was not very natural though. I liked them and give them a 3. 

____Kathy Blake

I give them a 4.5 but if they were a little more "man size" they'd get a 5!!!

_____Vaughn Gurganian

They were definitely a 5! They were so soft and spiced perfectly!

_____Katie Bontinen

Vicki, I would give them a 3 because of the quality and the softness of the cookie. I couldn't give them a 5 because if I were to choose a cookie mix for my family, I probably wouldn't pick molasses cookie mix — unless it was on sale and it was for really little kids who haven't already garnered a tastes for chocolate chip or peanut butter cookies, which are our family's all-time favorites. All my daughter's six kids learned how to make them by the time they were four or five (with her help of course). As teenagers, it seems like every time I visit, one or the other is always making a batch of chocolate chip cookies.

_____Diana Dillaber

The cookies were tasty, soft and chewy and filled with molasses goodness.

­­­­

_____Stephen Frye

I think they were awesome and rate them a 5. They were really soft and tasted just right. Sometimes they (molasses cookies) taste like all molasses but these did not. Thanks

_____Mary Cook

I have to say the Molasses cookies are incredibly epic. They were the perfect start to my Labor Day weekend. Great Job Vicki :)

_____Chris Laine

I like them -- not too sweet, and much softer and milder than those store-bought Ginger Snap cookies. I bet they would be great dunked in milk! I'd give them a 4.

_____Ann Zaniewski

 They were not too sweet which is how I like them. They had a nice consistency and great flavor.

_____Walt Arsenault_____Not on staff, but how could I leave the house filled with the warm molasses aroma of fresh baked cookies and no samples!

This is a very easy cookie to make. The mix has basically all the ingredients right in the bag. Add an egg, butter, water and bake!

Come back next week when the Oakland Press gang gives me their thoughts on another new product by Betty Crocker. One of my all time favorites, got even better!

Thanks everyone! Until next time. VA

Today's Gadget:: Reacher Grabber tool

Reacher Grabber Tool

If you've ever been in a situation where just the thought of bending over makes your back scream out in pain, you need to pick up this handy gadget.

Whether your situation is permanent or temporary, having one of these around your home can give you a lending hand.

It's a pretty simple looking tool, the featherweight style is 26-inches long with  a claw-shaped, slip resistant grip.

It also has a clip attached to the top for storing if using from a wheelchair.

A second model is available at 32-inches long and gives you the added length you need when picking up from an upright position.

Due to my husbands back injury, you'll always find one or two of these around our home. Use it in the home for picking up items off the floor or for those hard to reach cupboard items. Take it outside to help in picking up yard items, branches or anything that keeps you from bending over.

The 24-inch model sells for $25.99 and the 32-inch model goes for $2.99 more and can be ordered online at Amazon. 

There is also variations of this tool available, your local CVS, carries a PikStick which will also serve all the functions of the Reacher Grabber Tool and can be easily picked up locally at CVS for $23.99.

So if you need a little assistance around your home - check out one of these reacher tools.

Hope today's gadget review helped you out. If you have one of these tools and would like to share how you use it, feel free to leave your comments.

If you have a favorite gadget around your home that you just wouldn't want to be without - send it to me. I will review it and post it here on my blog and on Twitter @OCKidsKorner.com. VA....