Swiss Chicken with Mushrooms in White Wine Sauce

Here is a simple but elegant dish to prepare for your holiday guests.  It is an adaptation of a recipe that I found several years ago.  It takes no time to put together and tastes delicious.  I hope you will try this!


Ingredients:
4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 T. butter, melted (plus more for the casserole dish)
salt and pepper
6 oz. (about 8 slices) Swiss cheese
8 oz. sliced mushrooms (I used baby portobellos)
½ c. white wine
10 3/4 oz. can condensed cream of chicken soup
Juice from ½ lemon
1 c. herb-flavored stuffing mix, crushed
2 T. chopped parsley

Preheat oven to 350º

Butter a shallow casserole dish.  Add chicken; salt and pepper to taste.

Layer mushroom slices evenly over chicken breasts.

Top with slices of swiss cheese.

In a separate bowl, combine soup, wine, salt and pepper, and lemon juice.  Pour evenly over chicken breasts.

Sprinkle top with stuffing mix.  Pour melted butter evenly over the stuffing layer.  Top with fresh chopped parsley.

Bake for 45 minutes or until chicken is done.

Serve with your favorite side dish.

Chocolate Creme de Menthe* Squares

This week, Swedish Chef has chosen a bar cookie that would be excellent to serve or take to a holiday party.  This recipe is easy and festive looking.  The combination of chocolate and mint is a big hit.  I hope you will try this for your next holiday gathering!

FIRST LAYER:
Mix the following ingredients in the order given:
4 eggs, well beaten
½ c. butter, melted
1 c. granulated sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 c. flour
½ t. salt
16oz. Hershey's syrup

Add each ingredient and mix well.

Pour mixture into a greased 9x13 baking pan.

Bake at 350º for 30 minutes.

MINT LAYER:
2 c. confectioners sugar
½ c. softened butter
2 t. Creme de Menthe*
*If you prefer not to use Creme de Menthe, substitute ½ t. pure mint extract and 2 drops of green food coloring*

Mix well and spread over cooled first layer.

GLAZE:
6 oz. Nestlé Toll House chocolate chips
6 T. butter

Melt ingredients over low heat (or in microwave oven) and spread over mint layer.

Allow to cool completely.  Cut into 1½-2 inch squares.

No Peek! Chicken

Here is a simple, but delicious recipe for your holiday entertaining.  If you like easy and delicious, this recipe is one that you must try.

Ingredients:
1 box long-grain wild rice (I use Uncle Ben's, including the seasoning packet)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 (soup) can cold water
1 t. chopped parsley
1 dash curry powder
1 packet Lipton onion soup mix
6-8 pieces chicken (I use 9 boneless, skinless chicken thighs)

Lightly grease a 9x13 pan.

Mix the first six ingredients in a bowl and pour into pan.

Place chicken pieces on top of soup mixture.

Sprinkle dry onion soup mix over top.

Seal with aluminum foil.  Bake at 350º for 2½ hours.

DON'T PEEK!

This recipe serves 4 people.

Border Dip

Well, I don't think that the Pilgrims brought this to the first Thanksgiving.  But, that doesn't mean that you can't take this delicious appetizer to someone's house for Thanksgiving dinner.  It's easy to make and not spicy, so everybody will be able to enjoy it.  I hope you try it.

1½ lb. ground beef
1 can tomato soup
1 packet taco seasoning
8 oz. sour cream
1 c. grated cheddar cheese
1 medium onion

Brown ground beef with chopped onion; drain well.  Add soup and taco seasoning; mix well and place in a 10" glass pie plate.  Top with sour cream, cover with foil and bake at 350º for 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and top with cheese.  Bake uncovered an additional 10 minutes.  Serve with plain tortilla chips.

Swedish Chef's Stuffed Mushroom Appetizer

I promised you a week ago that I would be submitting more appetizers as the holidays are fast approaching.  This week, I am featuring sausage stuffed mushrooms.  These are perfect for serving your guests over the holidays.  The red wine and the hot pepper flakes truly make this appetizer exceptional.  I hope you will try it and let me know what you think.

Ingredients:
15-20 mushrooms (baby portabellas were used for this demonstration)
½ lb. pork sausage
½ c. shredded cheddar cheese
2 T. olive oil
¼ c. crushed cracker crumbs (about 14 Ritz crackers)
½ c. minced bell pepper (green, red, orange or yellow)
2 T. dry red wine*
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tsp. onion powder or dry minced onion
1 T. fresh garlic, minced or 1 tsp. dry garlic, minced
¼ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

 

With a damp towel, clean each mushroom.  Remove stems and set aside.

In a skillet, add olive oil and sausage.  Sauté until sausage is browned.  Try to break up the sausage with a spatula, so that it is a finer texture.  With a slotted spoon, remove sausage and drain onto a paper towel.  Remove all but 2 T. of the meat drippings.

Dice the mushroom stems and add into the hot drippings, over medium heat.  Sauté until tender, stirring often.

Add 2-4 T. red wine and stir to deglaze the pan.

Remove skillet from heat, add drained sausage.  Add salt and pepper, to taste, then garlic, onion, bell pepper, cracker crumbs, and ½ c. shredded cheddar cheese.  *If mixture is too dry, add additional red wine (approximately ¼ c.) over low heat, to bring the mixture together.  Remove from pan and allow to cool.  The mixture should be thick.

Generously stuff each mushroom with mixture and top with a small amount of shredded cheddar cheese.  Place in a lightly-greased baking dish.

Preheat oven to 350º and bake for 15 minutes, or until cheese on top has melted.

This can be prepared ahead of time, and kept refrigerated until ready to bake.