Papri-what?

Chicken Paprikash

2 green bell peppers, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 T. flour
3 cups of sour cream
1 stick of butter or margarine
2 T. garlic, minced
1 whole chicken
1 large can of whole tomatoes (32 oz)
1 package of spiral noodles, cooked
salt, pepper, paprika

Boil entire chicken until it's cooked through. Remove all meat and discard carcass. Saute garlic, bell peppers and onions in butter. Add flour to thicken. Add tomatoes with juice, breaking up with spoon. Add sour cream, salt, pepper and about a tablespoon of paprika. Stir until combined and add noodles. Serve hot!

It's said Chicken...Pop-Ree-Kosh. It's another recipe from mum, and my favorite go-to for a crowd pleaser that isn't your basic spaghetti or chili. Everyone tends to love it - hello sour cream and butter - and it's easy on the wallet as well. If you want to make it easier, grab a rotisserie chicken or even just grill up some chicken breasts. Get canned diced tomatoes instead of whole. They also sell chopped onions and green bell peppers in your freezer section, so at some point this entire dish becomes dump into pot, stir, cook, eat.

Out of respect for mum, I'm going to give you the recipe as it should be...and then tell you how I might make it easier now. I have come to appreciate very much the long handed method of cooking certain dishes, but when applicable, the fast method is just easier, you might lose some pride, but it's on the table and still fabulous.

This dish doesn't really have a side dish to it, we throw a little bread and salad on the table and call it an evening. But it does highlight one of my mom's favorite qualities about a dish - the one pot use. I am a big pot user - okay Clintonites, calm it down - I love dishes that require a little bit of a stove challenge. This is relatively easy if you do the footwork (or the easy route!) on the chicken and noodles and set it aside and then make the sauce.

This dish reminds me of the coming of fall, it's fabulously warm and rich. Don't expect to eat tons of it, and honestly, it's not a great leftover item. The sour cream and butter tend to separate. It's not terrible, but don't expect the same product to come out. It's sorta like heated up boxed macaroni and cheese the next day - not the same. Okay, so it's rare that I want to save that stuff, but every now and again....