quick and easy meals

Santa Fe Chicken and Rice

School is back in session here in North Carolina and we have survived the first week! Woohoo! After a couple months off for summer break we are getting back on track with our school days schedule. We are back to the after school bus schedule, homework and cross country practice. The evenings get a little crazy sometimes especially on those nights when my oldest son’s cross country practice runs late. Don’t they know I need to get dinner on the table? To combat the craziness of our weekday schedule I try to have a variety of easy dinners on my meal plan for during the week. One of our new favorites is Santa Fe Chicken and Rice.

Santa Fe Chicken and Rice | Country Girl Gourmet

I discovered Santa Fe Chicken and Rice thanks to Allrecipes and this month’s sponsor activity with Swanson Chicken Broth for Allrecipes Allstars. After trying their unsalted chicken broth and having success making their Parmesan Garlic Cauliflower Mash I decided to try some more of the Swanson recipes on Allrecipes.com and I am happy that I did! Santa Fe Chicken Breast and Rice is an easy to make, family favorite that is made in one pan! I love complete meals that I can make in one pan. That means fewer dishes and that means more time to do other things. Talk about a win-win!

Santa Fe Chicken and Rice | Country Girl Gourmet

The entire meal took around 30 minutes to make and my family inhaled it! I did double the recipe since we are a family of 6 but there were no leftovers because my kids and husbands all went back for seconds. It has been added to our meal planning meal list rotation. It the perfect for those busy weekdays meals! Plus, clean up is a cinch since you only have to worry about cleaning one pot not a handful. What are you waiting for try it today!

What are some of your favorite quick and easy, one pot meals?

Santa Fe Chicken and Rice
 
Author:
 
Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
  • 1¼ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
  • 1¾ cups Swanson® Chicken Broth or Swanson® Chicken Stock or Swanson® Unsalted Chicken Stock
  • 1 cup Pace® Picante Sauce
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 (15 ounce) can low-sodium black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup frozen whole kernel corn
  • ½ cup shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese (or your favorite cheese - I chose cheddar jack)
Instructions
  1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 10 minutes or until well browned on both sides. Remove the chicken from the skillet.
  2. Reduce the heat to medium. Heat the remaining oil in the skillet. Add the rice and cook and stir until it's golden. Stir in the broth, picante sauce and cumin and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 15 minutes.
  3. Stir in the beans and corn. Return the chicken to the skillet. Top the chicken with the cheese. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the rice is tender.

Recipe from Allrecipes.com

Santa Fe Chicken and Rice | Country Girl Gourmet

I am an Allrecipes Allstar Brand Ambassador (a voluntary position) and I’m not compensated for my work with Allrecipes.com. Products received from advertiser are only used for experienced-based reviews on Country Girl Gourmet. The reviews, content and opinions expressed in this blog are purely the sole opinions of Country Girl Gourmet.

 

Super Easy Pasta Salad

It is summertime and one thing that means is simple meals and there is nothing better than salad. I try to keep either salad ingredients if not some sort of salad in my fridge at all times. Pasta salads are a quick go to and are great for light filling meals. My Super Easy Pasta Salad definitely fits the bill. It has a great balance of pasta, meat, veggies and cheese. How can you go wrong when there is cheese involved?

My Super Easy Pasta Salad is an extremely easy to make pasta salad. I cannot even begin to tell you how many times I have made it over the years. It is always a huge hit at potlucks and i’m always asked for the recipe.  When I tell people the recipe they are always shocked at how easy and good this recipe is. Sure, you could make your own dressing but this recipe uses store bought for the easy factor.

Make it for yourself and see how good it is!

Super Easy Pasta Salad

Ingredients

  • 2 13oz bags frozen tortelenni (cooked per package directions)
  • 16oz diced ham
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 1 small red onion, diced
  • 1 cup tomatoes (diced roma’s or halved grape tomatoes)
  • 6oz baby spinach
  • 16oz whole milk mozzarella, diced
  • 2.25oz can sliced black olives
  • 14oz bottle Zesty Italian salad dressing (I typically use Kraft)
  • Shredded Parmesan cheese to garnish

Directions

  1. Combine all ingredients except salad dressing.
  2. Add enough dressing to coat. Somedays I use the whole bottle, others almost the whole bottle.
  3. Garnish with shredded Parmesan.

 

Super easy pasta salad | Country Girl Gourmet