Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

This soup is a fall and winter staple at our house. I stock up on the Uncle Ben's when it's on sale and, if I'm lucky, sometimes there is a coupon too!

To cook the chicken breast, I put the chicken in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil; cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

2 tablespoons olive oil
8 oz. sliced fresh mushrooms
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups cooked chicken, diced
1 6 oz. pkg. Uncle Ben's Original Long Grain and Wild Rice
2 14.5 oz. cans low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup heavy cream or half & half

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and onions and saute until mushrooms are golden and onion is tender.

Stir in the chicken, rice mix and seasoning packet and broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes until rice is tender.

Stir in cream or half and half and heat through.

If you want to freeze this soup to enjoy at a later date, remember to freeze before adding the cream or half & half.

Serves 4-6

Chicken Marbella

This easy chicken recipe is elegant enough for guests, simple enough for any day. I especially like that it's a make-ahead meal. Just take it out of the refrigerator and pop it in the oven at the end of the day.

1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/8 cup dried oregano
1 cup dried plums, cut into quarters
1/2 cup green Spanish olives (with pimento), crushed slightly
3 garlic cloves, minced and then flattened with the side of a knife
salt and pepper to taste
6 chicken breasts (cut in half)
6 bay leaves

Mix all ingredients (except chicken) in a 9" x 13" pan. Place chicken in pan, scooping mixture on top and around chicken. Marinate, refrigerated, overnight.

Set oven to 350 degrees. Pour 1/2 cup orange juice over chicken. Sprinkle approximately 1/4 cup brown sugar over chicken. Cook for 1 hour or until brown. Remove bay leaves before serving.

This dish is great served with mashed potatoes. Enjoy!

For more great make-ahead recipes, visit The Ultimate Recipe Swap @ Life as Mom.

The Dirt Cheap Green Thumb: 400 Thrifty Tips for Saving Money, Time & Resources as You Garden

Thanks to the very kind people at Storey Publishing, I am able to review an advance copy of a wonderful new book, "The Dirt Cheap Green Thumb" by Rhonda Massingham Hart.

So many people are beginning to garden with the hope of reducing their food budget. However, one trip to a local garden center and you may begin to wonder how gardening could ever be more economical than a trip to the grocery store. Do not despair, pick up a copy of "The Dirt Cheap Green Thumb: 400 Thrifty Tips for Saving Money, Time & Resources as you Garden".

I have always loved books written in a "tip" format. It's so easy to page through the book and pick up all sorts of great ideas. That was how I made my first trip through the book, page by page, stopping whenever I saw the helpful "Dirt Cheap" tip box. So many great ideas!

My second time through, I read every word. This easy-to-read book gives down-to-earth, common sense gardening advice. Tips include advice on watering, gardening chores, plant selection, gardening tools (what you need, and what you don't), plant propogation, soil and composting, pest and disease control, and preserving your harvest.

Learn how to make cheap or free seed-starting kits using things you already have around the house. Make really cheap pots using recycled newspapers. An inexpensive version of drip irigation can be made by burying containers such as a plastic milk jug, or learn how to water your plants with a rain barrel and a cheap gravity-flow irrigation system. These are some truly low-cost solutions to gardening needs.

This is a book you will refer to again and again. You will certainly save many times the price of this book by implementing the dirt-cheap tips. The Dirt-Cheap Green Thumb: 400 Thrifty Tips for Saving Money, Time, and Resources as You Garden is now available for pre-order on Amazon. I highly recommend it.

For more frugal ideas, visit Frugal Friday.