Broccoli Wild Rice Soup

1 package (6 ounces) Uncle Ben's Chicken and Wild Rice mix
5 Cups water
1 package (10 ounces) frozen broccoli, thawed and chopped (I use any steamer bag kind)
1 medium carrot, chopped
2 Tsp dried, minced onion
1 1/2 Cups milk
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, cubed

In a large saucepan, combine rice, contents of seasoning packet, chopped carrot and water; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring once.  Stir in the broccoli and onion.  cover and simmer for 5 minutes.  Stir in soup, milk and cream cheese.  Cook and stir until cheese is melted. (A wire whisk works well for breaking up the cheese hunks).  Yield: 10 1-cup servings.  Goes great with Copy Cat Beer Bread.

While searching for a picture to go along with this recipe, I discovered that I had been making this recipe without the milk.  I used to wonder why it was so thick and now I know.

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Creamy-Chicken-Enchiladas-3

Lemon Chicken with Pasta

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Lemon-Chicken-with-Pasta

Creamy Celery Beef Stroganoff

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Creamy-Celery-Beef-Stroganoff

Tastefully Simple Copycat Beer Bread

3 Cups self-rising Flour*
1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
12 ounces Beer
2 Tablespoons melted butter

*for each cup of self-rising flour, measure 1-1/2 tsp Baking Powder and 1/4 tsp Salt. Add all-purpose flour to equal 1 Cup.  Repeat for each cup.

1.  Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Mix first 3 ingredients together-stirring just until moistened.  Batter will be lumpy.
3. Pour into greased bread loaf pan.
4. Pour melted butter over the top of the bread.
5. Bake at 350 F for about 1 hour.

Cuts easier when cooled.  Great with soups!

Orange Scones

Orange Scones
Yields 16 scones


1 3/4 cup flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup white sugar
Zest of 1 orange *
Pinch of salt
5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice **
1/4 cup sour cream

To brush on:
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, sugar, orange zest, and salt. Add the butter using a pastry tool (or your hands) and mix until the mixture is crumbly with pea-sized chunks. Stir in the orange juice and sour cream until just blended. Do not overmix or it will result in tough scones.

Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead gently 10-12 times or until dough is no longer sticky. Divide in  half; gently pat or roll each portion into an 7-in. circle. Beat egg and milk together and brush on each scone.
Cut each circle into eight wedges. (I use my pizza wheel).  Separate wedges and place on a
parchment-lined  baking sheet.  Let scones rest for 10 minutes before baking.

Bake at 400° for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool until room temperature before glazing.

Orange Glaze
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon orange juice
In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar and orange juice until smooth. If too thick, add more orange juice until it is smooth. Spoon over scones.

*if you use Cuties or Clementine oranges, use the zest of 2 of them.  I found out that the peel comes off  the orange when zesting them and it was very hard to do.  If you don't know what zest is, just rub the orange on the fine cut side of a cheese grater.  It leaves behind a fine mess of orange stuff.

**I did not want to use freshly squeezed orange juice so I just used the OJ from the fridge.  I decided to use the Simply Orange brand with Pineapple  for both the scone and the glaze and they turned  out great!  Enjoy!

Sweet Poppy Seed Bread

3 C. Flour
2 1/4 C Sugar (that's right)
4 1/2 tsp Poppy Seeds
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
3 Eggs
1 1/2 C. Milk
1 C. Oil
1 1/2 tsp Vanilla
1 tsp Almond Extract

Almond Glaze:
1 C Powdered Sugar
1/3 C Orange Juice
1/2 tsp Almond Extract
1/2 tsp Vanilla

Combine milk, oil, eggs and extracts.  Add dry ingredients.  Mix until moistened.  Grease 2 loaf pans.  Bake 350 for  about 1 1/4 hours.  May need to cover edges with foil last 15 minutes to prevent overbrowning. 

Cool for 10 minutes.  Pour glaze on top of loaves and remove from pans.