Last night was going to be just another boring dinner night in my house. I had some chicken and some potatoes and was planning on doing nothing special with them. Then I thought maybe I could make a pan sauce to eat with the chicken. Then from there things started to snowball and I ended up with a pretty tasty dish. I didn’t measure anything, but here’s a general recipe so that you too can enjoy this tasty dish.

• Chicken: I went with boneless skinless chicken thighs that I had broiled in my oven.
• Cream cheese: I used an entire 8oz block
• Rotel: One can. It can be hot or mild or regular. Depends on how hot you like your food.
• Onion: I used one small yellow onion, diced.
• Garlic: I minced one large clove
• Corn: one can, drained
• Thinning liquid: Milk, chicken broth, wine… your choice. I used milk because it’s what I had.

Now at the last minute I converted this into a pasta dish, but it didn’t start out that way. It just looked like it was begging for me to add pasta, so I did.

I started by putting a little olive oil and butter into a large non stick skillet. Then I added the onion and garlic and sauteed for a few minutes. Then I dumped in the entire can of Rotel. I didn’t drain any of the liquid out first. I let this simmer for a few more minutes and then I got out my potato masher and squished the tomatoes until it was less chunky and more saucy. I did this because I don’t like tomatoes. I just like what tomatoes have to offer. Then I started adding in the cream cheese, a pinch at a time. Then I added the corn. Keep stirring until all of the cream cheese is melted. Then you’ll need your thinning liquid. Just start pouring in your wine or broth or milk until you’ve thinned the mixture to your liking. So of course this means sampling along the way. Adding salt and pepper to taste. From there I added my chicken to the pan. I added whole pieces, but you could chop or even shred. Or just plate your chicken and pour the sauce over it. Obviously I boiled up some spaghetti and added it to the mix. I still made the crash hot potatoes that I originally planned to make, and my husband added a few to his bowl.

What I might do different next time? Add in some of that Philadelphia cooking creme they have now instead of plain cream cheese. It’s thinner and pre-seasoned. You could easily cut the cream cheese in the recipe by half and still have a delicious dish.

So now I just have to figure out what to call this dish.