Crockpot Salsa Chicken

It is amazing how only four ingredients could produce such wonderful flavor! Just add all ingredients to crockpot and you're done!

Ingredients:

- 4, 4 oz. boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 of a 1.25 oz package of Taco seasoning
- 1 cup salsa
- 1 can Campbell's Heart Healthy Cream of Mushroom Soup

Add chicken to the crockpot and layer on the rest of the ingredients. Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours (depending on how hot your crockpot gets). Stir occasionally. Serve over rice, if desired, and enjoy! If you'd like a printer-friendly version of this recipe, Click Here.

"You don't have to be great to start; 

but you have to start to be great." - Zig Ziglar

Bacon Pierogi Bake

Bacon and cheesy pierogies? Say no more! This beautiful bright dish gives you all the flavors your taste buds long for. This recipe is definitely a keeper!

Ingredients:

- 1, 16 oz. package frozen potato and onion pierogies
- 4 slices of bacon (I used Oscar Mayer Center Cut)
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1, 8 oz. package 1/3-less fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 1 cup reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese
- 3 Tbs. green onions, chopped
- 1 plum (Roma) tomato, seeded and chopped

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Arrange the frozen pierogies in a baking dish sprayed with Pam cooking spray. Set aside. Cook bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove to a plate and let cool. Once cooled, crumble into pieces and set aside. Using the same skillet, add garlic and cook for one minute. Add cream cheese, chicken broth, salt, and pepper and stir/whisk until all the cream cheese has melted and you have produced a creamy sauce. Pour the cream cheese mixture over the pierogies and place pierogies in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove and sprinkle on the cheddar cheese. Return to oven for another 5 minutes. Remove and top with bacon, tomatoes, and green onions. Enjoy! If you'd like a printer-friendly version of this recipe, Click Here.

"I am not a glutton. I am an explorer of food." - Erma Bombeck

Gluten-Free No-Bake Peanut Butter Balls

It's this simple: throw together these easy ingredients, roll them into balls, pop them in the refrigerator, and pull one (or three) out anytime you need to satisfy your sweet tooth. I have three left. Trying to save them for tomorrow, but it's pretty difficult!

Ingredients:

- 1/2 cup Skippy Whipped Creamy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup Hershey's milk chocolate chips
- 3 Tbs honey
- 1/4 cup coconut flour

Mix all ingredients together. Roll into 1-inch balls. (If batter is too soft, put it in the refrigerator for a little bit). Store in refrigerator and enjoy anytime you need a dessert fix.  Enjoy! If you'd like a printer-friendly version of this recipe, Click Here.

"You can't buy happiness, but you can buy dessert." - Anonymous

Gluten-Free Coconut Cream Cheese Squares

This recipe, made with coconut flour, is a very satisfying dessert, especially with caramel sundae syrup on top. I, personally, liked this dessert better the day after I made it. I kept it in the fridge overnight, pulled it out this morning, poured myself a cup of coffee and thoroughly enjoyed these little goodies. And as always, the chocolate chips I added to the recipe makes these scrumptious coconut cream cheese squares even more divine.

Ingredients:

- 1, 8 oz. package of 1/3-less fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened

- 1 stick of butter (I used Imperial)

- 4 eggs

- 1/2 cup Splenda, sugar substitute

- 1 cup coconut flour

- 2 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

- 1/4 cup Hershey's milk chocolate chips

- Fat-Free Smucker's Caramel Sundae Syrup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray Pam baking spray in an 11-inch by 7-inch baking dish. Beat butter and cream cheese in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time. Beat well. Add Splenda gradually and continue mixing. Add coconut flour, vanilla, and chocolate chips; and mix until well blended.

Pour batter into the baking dish and bake for 25 or 30 minutes. Let cool and slice into squares. Add 1/4 tsp. to 1/2 tsp. of caramel on top of each piece, pour yourself a cup of coffee, and enjoy! If you'd like a printer-friendly version of this recipe, Click Here.

"Bacon and alcohol can have gluten? 

Dang, there goes my weekend." - Anonymous

Steamed Littleneck Clams with Kielbasa and Basil

These fresh clams were so affordable, I couldn't resist buying them. With dinner preparations underway, I needed to first read up on how to clean fresh clams so there would be no sandy "grit" as we enjoyed them. I found this link for easy-to-follow steps on "How to quickly clean littleneck clams."  Once they are cleaned, it takes hardly any time at all to prepare them. Quick, easy, and delicious! Just how you want a dinner to be!

Ingredients:

Note: This is a single-serving recipe or a two-person appetizer. You can double or triple the recipe, depending on how many you are feeding.

- 12, fresh, Littleneck Clams (make sure their shells are not open when you purchase. If they are, give them a tap. If they do not close, discard. Clams must remain alive until cooked.)

- 1 green onion, chopped

- 2 cloves of garlic, minced

- 2 oz. turkey kielbasa, chopped

- 2 Tbs. butter

- 1/2 cup whole kernel corn

- 1/2 tsp. pepper

- 1/4 tsp. creole seasoning

- fresh basil

After washing clams, place one to two inches of water in a large saucepan. Bring to boil over medium-high heat and place clams in boiling water. Reduce heat, cover, and let clams steam for about three to four minutes. Open lid and make sure all clams have opened. If some have not, cover and let steam another minute or two. If some clams still have not opened, discard those. Once clams have opened, remove, one at a time, to a bowl; and reserve the clam water/stock. 

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add butter, onions, and garlic. Saute' until garlic is a light golden brown, stirring frequently. Add kielbasa, pepper, and creole seasoning. Stir for one minute and add the corn and the reserved clam water. Let that cook for one and a half to two minutes. Remove from heat and pour mixture over clams and enjoy! If you'd like a printer-friendly version of this recipe, Click Here.

"A recipe has no soul. You, as the cook, 

must bring soul to the recipe." - Thomas Keller