Creamy Bacon-Wrapped Chicken

Everything is better with bacon.  Unfortunately, its cost almost always exceeds my $2 per pound limit for meat.  So when I find it on sale, I buy a lot of it and freeze it.  Last week Safeway (Vons or Pavillions for you Southern California people) had bacon on sale for $1.99 per pound.  I bought two pounds one day (that was the limit) and got a rain check for two more another day.  They also had boneless skinless chicken breasts on sale for $1.88 per pound.  Not the best price for chicken breasts, but good enough.

A few years ago I found a version of the following recipe in my mom’s recipe file.  I don’t know where she got it, but it sounded amazing.  It originally called for a can of cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup.  I never use canned cream soups—I can use items I keep on hand to make a healthier, cheaper alternative.  I also changed the cooking method.  The original recipe said to bake it in the oven; I now make it in my slow cooker.

You can alter the fat-content of this recipe depending on what kind of sour cream and milk you use.  I use regular sour cream and fat-free milk.  Though I like it served with noodles, I usually serve it with brown rice for the fiber.

Creamy Bacon-Wrapped Chicken

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Salt

Pepper

6 slices bacon

1 lb. sour cream

2-4 Tbsp. flour

1½ Tbsp. chicken bouillon

½ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

½ c. milk

Rice or noodles, cooked

Fry bacon until pale and limp.  Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper.  Roll each breast, wrap with a slice of bacon, and secure with a toothpick. 

After it is cooked--pale

Before it is cooked--red

When serving, be sure to remove
all toothpicks or warn everyone

Place in slow cooker.  In a small medium bowl, stir flour into sour cream; less for thinner sauce, more for thicker sauce.  Add chicken bouillon, salt, pepper, and milk.  Pour over chicken. 

Cook on high 4-5 hours or low 6-7.  Cooking time will vary depending on size of breasts and variations in slow cookers; check for doneness using a thermometer.  Serve over rice or noodles.  Yield:  6 servings.  Total cost:  about $8.50, $1.42/serving.

To make this in the oven, assemble in a casserole, cover, and bake at 275° for 3 hours.

BLT Wraps with...Clearance Meat???

We all know that stores clearance items they're trying to get rid of, but did you know that grocery stores clearance meat? While "clearance meat" doesn't sound all that appealing, there's nothing wrong with it; and it is a great way to get meat at a bargain price. It's simply meat that has a sell-by date that is within the next couple of days. The main thing to keep in mind is to either use it or freeze it right away. Most grocery stores mark their meat on clearance on Friday afternoons, so the best time to shop for it is Friday evening or Saturday morning. Many grocery stores have a designated area in the meat section for their clearance meats.

A couple Saturdays ago, I was at the grocery store to get a few items, so I headed over to the clearance meat section. I was excited to find chicken leg quarters on clearance for 50% off, making them only 65 cents per pound. I grabbed a pack of five leg quarters for my husband to BBQ. A couple days later, he BBQ'd three of the leg quarters and I stuck two in the freezer. We ate two of the BBQ'd ones that night, and I used the third to make BLT wraps the next night.


Bacon is a special treat in our house. There are two reasons I don't purchase bacon on a regular basis: 1) it's usually out of our price range, and 2) it's not healthy. When I can find bacon on clearance or on sale for under $2 per pound, I will sometimes buy it. A couple months ago, I found it for $1.68 per pound, so I bought 3 lbs. and froze it in usable-sized portions. I used a portion of that bacon for these.

BLT Wraps
Bacon, cooked and crumbled
Chicken, cooked, diced, and seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic powder
Romaine lettuce, shredded
Tomatoes, chopped
Grated Parmesan
Caesar salad dressing
Tortillas, warmed

Layer ingredients on tortillas, filling mostly with lettuce. Wrap the tortillas like a burrito, and serve immediately. I also put a little avocado on mine, since I found a great sale last week!


Even though these contain chicken and bacon, they can be made at little cost, because they contain mostly lettuce.