I don't know when or how it happened, but I think it's time to admit that the concept of soup has grown on me. I used to claim that I wasn't a big fan of soup, but at some point I decided it wasn't so bad. The right recipes are not only tasty, they're also easy to make. I love a good one-pot meal as much as the next busy working mom, so there's something wonderful about throwing a bunch of ingredients together in one pot and having it turn into a delicious dinner.

Take this Chick-Fil-A Chicken Tortilla Soup. Katie's blog is a staple for me, so when I saw this recipe I immediately printed it off despite not really reading the directions. I decided to make it for Halloween dinner and figured I would need to chop up the chicken, saute it, etc. NOPE! You literally put everything into the pot, bring to a boil, simmer, shred the chicken and serve. What?! Yup!



And the result was positively sensational. There's a mild heat from the Rotel and a silky creaminess from the flour and the half-and-half. I served plain ol' cheese quesadillas on the side and we all enjoyed dipping them into the soup. Such a great, simple weeknight meal that's chock-full of flavor. Thanks for an awesome recipe, Katie!

Restaurant Knockoff: Chick-Fil-A Chicken Tortilla Soup
As seen on So Tasty, So Yummy

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can great northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 (10 ounce) can Rotel tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can creamed corn
1 cup frozen corn
2 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup half and half

In a large Dutch oven, combine the chicken through the oregano. Stir to combine. Whisk together the flour and water to make a slurry, then stir it into the soup. Bring the pot to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 30 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the soup. Shred with two forks, then return the chicken to the pot and stir in the half-and-half.

MAKE IT IN A SLOW COOKER: Add all the ingredients (except the half-and-half) as outlined above to a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. Stir in the half and half 20 minutes before you're ready to serve.

I don't always crave Chick-Fil-A, but when I do, it's Sunday.

I know there's plenty of you out there who feel me on that one. Anyway, even though there's a Chick-Fil-A all of 5 minutes from our house, we never seem to go there. But that's not to say we don't all love a good fried chicken sandwich. I printed out this recipe for a Copycat Chick-Fil-A Sandwich ages ago, but for some reason I hadn't gotten around to actually making it.



Disclaimer for any current or former CFA employees: yes, this recipe contains pickle juice and yes, I'm fully aware that there's no pickle juice in an authentic CFA sandwich. Don't worry, my friend Chelsea (a former manager at CFA) gave me the run-down:

"Here's how we made the sandwiches: filet the raw chicken breasts, making sure they're a uniform thickness. Submerge completely in a milk wash (buttermilk/egg/water) and then coat thoroughly in seasoned flour, shaking off the excess. The flour mix comes in prepackaged bags and has paprika, onion powder, salt, pepper (I don't know exact quantities). I assume there was MSG or other ingredients as well, and most likely sugar. Deep fry in peanut oil in a pressure cooker for a couple minutes until golden brown. Place on a bun that's run through a toaster with "butter oil" on it, add two dill pickle chips, and serve."

Chelsea's theory for why these at-home recipes include pickle juice is due to the pickles sitting on the bread and the bread and chicken absorbing the flavor. I'm not sure two pickle chips is going to impart that much flavor, so my theory is that pickle juice adds that awesome tang but it also keeps the chicken moist, almost like brining. I don't know about most home cooks, but I'm not deep-frying in a pressure cooker. I shallow-fried the chicken for these sandwiches in less than an inch of oil. Frying in a pressure cooker is going to help the chicken retain moisture. The pickle juice helps replicate that for the home cook.

After doing some research online, it looks like the folks over at Serious Eats have come the closest to the real recipe. Hats off to them! As for me, I absolutely love marinating chicken in pickle juice. It's the secret to my homemade chicken nuggets and I highly recommend it, even if it isn't truly authentic.

Speaking of pickle juice, for years I threw all that delicious brine away once we'd eaten the pickles. Not anymore! At any given moment you'll find at least two jars of pickle juice in my fridge. I use it for nuggets, and now I'll use it for these sandwiches. I also put it in my potato salad in the summer.

One last thing - while the restaurant only serves two pickle slices with their sandwich, since you're making it at home you can do whatever you want. We all love pickles so I put at least 6 or 8 on our sandwiches. Rebel!

Restaurant Knockoff: Chick-Fil-A Sandwich
Slightly adapted from Hilah Cooking

4 small boneless chicken breasts*
1 cup pickle juice
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups flour
3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried basil
vegetable, canola or peanut oil for frying
4 hamburger buns, buttered and toasted
Pickle slices, for serving

Place the chicken breasts, one at a time, in a plastic food storage bag. Pound to an even 1/2 inch thickness. Place all the chicken in a plastic food storage bag and marinate in the pickle juice for 4 hours.

Beat the egg and milk together in a bowl. Combine the flour, sugar and spices in a plastic food storage bag. Remove the chicken from the pickle juice and place in the bag with the flour. Seal the bag and toss to coat the chicken. Dip each piece of chicken in the egg mixture to coat on both sides, then put it back in the bag with the flour. Once all the chicken went through the egg wash, seal the flour bag again and toss to coat.

Heat about 1/2 an inch of oil in a deep skillet until smoking. Add the chicken and cook for 5-6 minutes per side, or until golden brown and cooked through. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Serve on the toasted buns mayo and pickle slices.

*If your chicken breasts are huge (like so many seem to be these days) only use two large breasts instead of four. Cut them in half width-wise and then pound them thin.

There's a place near my house called Jules Thin Crust. It's a cross between pizza and a flatbread, loaded with all sorts of delicious toppings made with fresh, organic ingredients. We love going there in the warm months when we can grab a few slices and sit on their outdoor patio.



I finally got around to harvesting my rosemary recently and decided to try to recreate one of our favorites from Jules - the Veggie #3: sliced roasted organic potatoes, sour cream, parmesan, rosemary, scallions, mozzarella. I have to say, my homemade version was spot on. So, so good. We inhaled it and it even reheated well the next day for lunch.

Roasted Potato and Rosemary Pizza
Inspired by Jules Thin Crust

3-4 medium Yukon gold potatoes, scrubbed clean
olive oil
4-6 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves finely minced
garlic salt
1 lb. pizza dough
flour, for dusting as you roll out the dough
grated pecorino cheese
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
sour cream
half-and-half or milk
scallions, finely chopped (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Slice the potatoes about 1/4-inch thick. Drizzle a large baking sheet with about 1 tablespoon olive oil. Arrange the potato slices on the baking sheet. Drizzle with more oil, about half the rosemary and a good sprinkling of garlic salt. Place the baking sheet in the oven and cook for 20 minutes.

Once the potatoes are done, remove from the oven and set aside until you're ready to top the pizza. Place a pizza stone on the middle rack of your oven and increase the oven temperature to 500 degrees.

Sprinkle a square of parchment paper the size of your pizza stone with flour and roll the dough into a 14-inch round. Top with some grated Pecorino cheese and then the mozzarella. Arrange the potato slices on top of the cheese, then sprinkle with the remaining rosemary and some more garlic salt.

Transfer the parchment paper to the preheated baking stone and bake for 10-12 minutes or until bubbling and golden brown.

While the pizza is cooking, put some sour cream into a squeeze bottle and thin it with half-and-half or milk. When the pizza is done cooking, remove it from the oven and drizzle with the sour cream sauce. Top with freshly chopped scallions, if desired.

I'm not much of a soup person, but when Stephanie posted this recipe for Creamy Tomato Basil Soup {Panera knockoff} I was intrigued. I enjoy a good bowl of tomato soup with grilled cheese every now and then and the recipe seemed really simple and straightforward.


As luck would have it, I had this on the menu the night the temps dipped to -30 degrees. As anyone in the northeast (heck, even the southeast has been seeing record low temps lately) can attest, it's C-O-L-D out there. This soup was hearty and delicious, perfect for a frigid night.

We only had one complaint and that was with the chunks of tomato. We wanted a rich, creamy soup and the chunks of tomato just didn't fit. I modified the recipe below to puree the diced tomatoes before adding them to the pot. You could also puree the soup once it's done cooking, using a blender or an immersion blender.

Creamy Tomato Basil Soup {Panera knockoff}
Slightly modified from Stephanie Cooks

1 14oz can diced tomatoes
1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon crushed garlic
2 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons butter
1 cup heavy cream
15-20 basil leaves, minced

Place the diced tomatoes and their juice in a food processor and pulse to coarsely chop. Add the processed tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, garlic and chicken broth to a large Dutch oven. Bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes, stirring often.

Reduce the heat to low and stir in the sugar and butter. Continue stirring until the butter is completely melted and well combined.

Very slowly pour in the heavy cream while stirring constantly. You need to do this slowly to get the thick, creamy texture.

Stir in the basil and let simmer on low for about 20 minutes.