Slow Cooker Chicken Potato Pie

Read free excerpts of Susan Mallery books at www.susanmallery.com! (Plus, you’ll find more free recipes there, too.)
Here we go again! ONLY HIS was released yesterday, which gets my emotions all in a tangle. It’s very much like Christmas morning. After you’ve spent months on a handmade gift, you wonder whether your loved one will treasure it. Anticipation and excitement mingle with nervousness as you watch your loved one’s face, interpreting every nuance of expression. Does he love it?
The difference is, of course, that I can’t see readers’ expressions to interpret their reaction to ONLY HIS. I have to rely on the sales numbers for the first week to tell me the story. If readers love Fool’s Gold as much as I do, and if they’ve been eager to get their hands on Nevada Hendrix’s story, I’ll know it because they’ll rush out to buy the book this week. But until I know, all I can do is try not to fret too much. Comfort food helps.
I was in the mood for chicken pot pie, but I wasn’t in the mood to spend all day in the kitchen. So I came up with this recipe for Slow Cooker Chicken Potato Pie. It took less than ten minutes to put together, and then I turned on the slow cooker and forgot about it until dinnertime. And it was good!

Recipe: Slow Cooker Chicken Potato Pie

1 lb. uncooked chicken, cubed
1 family-sized can (26 oz) cream of chicken soup
½ C white wine or milk
1 can corn, drained
1 16-oz bag of frozen peas and carrots
1 small onion, chopped
4 oz mushrooms, chopped
1 t dried basil
1 t dried thyme
½ t sage
½ t pepper
3 red potatoes, sliced thin
Put all of the ingredients except the potatoes into the slow cooker. Mix well. Layer the potato slices on top of the chicken mixture. Cook on low heat for 6 hours.

Dana Marton's Stovetop Chicken Casserole

My friend Dana Marton is the author of fabulous romances filled with international intrigue. Her heroes are powerful, dangerous men with hearts of gold and a desire to serve and protect their country, their family... and the women with whom they fall in love.I recently had the pleasure of reading the first two books of Dana's latest ebook trilogy, Agents Under Fire, starting with GUARDIAN AGENT and continuing with AVENGING AGENT. If you love romantic suspense, you must check out these books!

Amazon: GUARDIAN AGENT, AVENGING AGENT
Barnes and Noble: GUARDIAN AGENT, AVENGING AGENT

When she's not writing, Dana uses her creativity in other ways... such as creating this delicious Stovetop Chicken Casserole. Mmmmmm! It looks as creamy and delicious as the heroes in her books. And now here's Dana Marton...

Recipe: Stove Top Chicken Casserole

(As they say, necessity is the mother of invention. I came up with this stove stop recipe when my husband broke my casserole dish, and found that I can make something very similar in less time than it would take in the oven. Which leaves extra time for reading!)

4 chicken breasts chopped into cubes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 package of your favorite noodles (I used wide egg noodles)
1 can of Cream of Broccoli soup
1 cup of milk
1 package of frozen broccoli
Grated parmesan cheese

Take a large non-stick skillet, add olive oil and chicken. Salt, then cook over medium heat. When the chicken is almost done, add frozen broccoli, soup and milk, and stir well. Cover with lid. While that cooks, prepare and drain noodles. When both the meat and the broccoli are ready, stir in hot noodles. Cook for 5 more minutes without the lid. Serve sprinkled with parmesan cheese.

Anyhow… that’s what someone watching me would see while I cooked this. Now here is how it goes in my head. Yes, writers’ brains are that weird.

Love is a Complex Dish

(a story of romance and danger)

“Help!” she cried, despair burning through her.

And he was there, once again, to save her.

“Agent Broccoli,” she sighed his name with relief, even as the dancing flames surrounded them. Did this mean that he’d forgiven her?

He cut the ropes that bound her and dragged her out of the smoke-filled Parmesan Pantry, the cheese store that had been in her family for three generations. Then he dragged her into his arms. “I’ll always be there for you.” His seductive voice whispered into her ear. “And not just because you’re a hot chick. I love you.” His olive color eyes darkened as he kissed her.

But, as the last time, a new wave of attack interrupted. He pushed her protectively behind him to face their evil enemy.

He charged at Wide Noodle, fury pushing him forward, his masculine lips twisted into a growl.

Lord, she loved those lips, his wild, full head of hair, those wide shoulders… She loved everything about him.

“I love you!” she called after him, admitting it at last. She was done pushing him away.

He fought with renewed strength, ignoring his injuries, until Noodle lay limp at his feet, begging for mercy.
His reinforcements were arriving by then, and carted the villain off to the Skillet County Jail.

Then it was just the two of them, and she threw himself into his arms, where they finished that kiss at last. Love really was the salt of life, she thought, dazed by the emotions that swirled through her. She knew now that what she had with him was worth fighting for. She was never going to run from love again.

Hope you enjoy both the dish and the story!
Author, Dana Marton
www.danamarton.com

Renee Ryan's Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake

I'd like to welcome Renee Ryan to the blog, whose next book from Love Inspired Historical, COURTING THE ENEMY, is an inspirational romance set during World War II. Visit Renee online at ReneeRyan.com

Three Random Questions for Renee Ryan

1. Tell us about something fun you did over the summer.
I had the pleasure of moving my daughter out of her dorm and into her very first apartment. Okay, I know that doesn’t sound like a lot of fun, but I was able to reconnect with her after her first year of college. I hadn’t realized I would miss her as much as I did. We had a great time rushing around town, getting lost (on my part) and eating lots of frozen yogurt. I even enjoyed buying all the necessary items for her new apartment, especially the things for her kitchen. Who knew there were so many different sized pans?

2. What do you remember about the first date you ever went on?
We were both way under dressed. It was a semi-formal event for one of the high school clubs. We were naïve sophomores and thought semi-formal meant jeans without holes in them. At least we were both equally embarrassed when we walked into the room. I guess that helped the first-date jitters, or at least put the tension on the situation rather than each other. I dated that boy for months after that, forever in teenage years. :)

3. COURTING THE ENEMY is a World War II historical romance. Share an interesting fact that you learned while researching this time period.
One of the best things about writing COURTING THE ENEMY was that I was able to set it in the United States just a few miles from where I grew up as a child. The story is focused on a Nazi plot to bring the war to American soil. The Nazi’s actually did land a group of saboteurs off the coast of Florida, walking distance from my home. Thankfully, the attempt failed. Because my father is a WWII vet and lived close to where this real-life event occurred I was able to research the area with him by my side. A blessing all around.

Recipe: Renee Ryan's Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake

2 cans of cherry pie filling (21 ounces each)
1 box of chocolate cake mix
2 sticks of butter, sliced into 12 pieces each
2.25 ounce bag of chopped pecans
1/8 cup white sugar
This recipe is so easy and so delicious
Preheat the oven to 350.
In a 9 x 13 cake pan:
Dump the 2 cans of cherry pie filling into the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle the box of chocolate cake mix evenly on top of that. Distribute the butter slices on top of the cake mix. Spread the pecans evenly over the butter and cake mix. Finally, sprinkle the sugar over all.

Bake in the oven for 30-45 minutes and serve warm.

Many variations: 2 cans peach pie filling and yellow cake mix, walnuts. Or 2 cans peach pie filling, white cake mix, pecans or other nuts (or no nuts)... use your imagination!

This is also delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Marinated Steak and Mushroom Fajitas

You can print this recipe – and lots of others – from www.susanmallery.com/recipes.php!

You may have heard that I have a new book out this week. In ONLY YOURS, the second of the Hendrix triplets of Fool’s Gold finds love. (ONLY MINE came out a month ago, and ONLY HIS will be out on September 27.) What you may not know about me is that I am always, always very nervous whenever a new book is released.

You’d think that after more than 100 books being published, I’d be more Zen about the whole process, but you’d be wrong. In fact, I’m probably more nervous now than I was in the early days because the expectations are higher. ONLY MINE hit #10 on the New York Times list. Will ONLY YOURS do as well or better? This month, a lot of big name authors released books on the same day as me, which makes me even more nervous. I know that readers have a limited entertainment budget. Will they choose ONLY YOURS as the book to entertain them this week?

Whenever I’m nervous or stressed, I turn to comfort food which, for me, is any food that’s really delicious. (I don’t want to waste calories on something that’s just okay.) These Marinated Steak and Mushroom Fajitas were very delicious and very comforting… but I’m still nervous.

Recipe: Marinated Steak and Mushroom Fajitas

2 lb steak, raw
8 oz mushrooms, sliced thick
½ small onion, sliced thick
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
2 T olive oil
4 oz Pepper Jack cheese, shredded
Flour tortillas

Marinade:
1 ½ C red wine
½ C soy sauce
2 T red wine vinegar
4 cloves garlic, minced
¼ C onion, juiced (or minced very small, if you don’t have an onion press)

Lay the steak flat in a glass or ceramic dish. Combine the marinade ingredients and pour over the steak. Marinate for 2-6 hours, flipping the steaks occasionally.

Grill the steaks whole for four minutes per side, then allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing. If you’re not in the mood for fajitas, you can eat the steaks on their own. This marinade is easy and truly yummy.
While the steaks are grilling, sauté the mushrooms and onions in olive oil. After ten minutes, add the bell peppers.

Warm the tortillas and assemble the fajitas with a generous helping of each ingredient. Eat while reading ONLY YOURS. Comforting, no?