Warm up on a cool winter night with this Chicken Pot Pie recipe. We’ve made an easier twist on this classic dish so you can throw it together in no time.

Easy Chicken Pot Pies

Serves: 3-4
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

1 Food Club refrigerated Pie Crust
Cooking Spray
Kosher salt
2 Tbsps. flour
1 tsp. sage
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
8 oz. Ukrop’s All-Natural chicken tenders, cut into bite-size chunks
1 ¼ cups water
1 ½ cups frozen soup vegetables
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 can 99% fat free cream of chicken soup

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Using the top of the bowl you plan to serve the dish in as a guide, cut three to four circles out of refrigerated piecrust. Discard scraps. Place dough circles on a baking sheet that’s been sprayed with nonstick spray. Lightly spray tops of dough with nonstick spray and sprinkle with Kosher salt. Pierce top of each round with a fork. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden on top.  

Combine flour, sage, salt and pepper in a plastic bag. Add chicken and shake to coat. Heat a large skilled over medium-high heat. Coat with nonstick spray, then add chicken mixture. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in water, scraping bottom of pan to loosen browned bits. Stir in soup vegetables, mushrooms and soup. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook for 10 minutes. Divide mixture between bowls and top each with 1 pie crust round.

These Scary Spiders are a spooky-looking treat that kids will love assembling. Here’s how to make them:

Materials:
1 container Chocolate Cake Donut Holes from Ukrop’s Bakery
1 tub Ukrop’s Chocolate Buttercream Icing
1 bag m&m’s (we used brightly colored m&m's found in our Halloween candy section)
About 12 black licorice pieces, cut into thin strips
White icing, in a tube

Cut donut holes in half widthwise. Spread Buttercream icing on tops and bottom halves. Carefully place 8 licorice strips in icing on bottom half of donut hole, 4 on each side, to resemble spider legs. Replace top donut-hole half and press gently to seal. Place two blobs of white icing on top of spider where eyes would go and affix green m&m’s. Top with two tiny dots of white icing for pupils. Yield: about 20 spiders.

English muffin mini pizzas make healthy, filling after-school snacks.

On the hunt for healthy, yet yummy, snack ideas for your child’s lunchbox or for after school?  Favorite kid snack foods are often filled with empty calories, fat and sugar. Pick up the ingredients for some of these options on your next trip to Ukrop’s:

- Low-fat dairy products, such as Organic Valley milk boxes, are packed with vitamins and minerals like bone-building calcium and vitamin D.  Pair a milk box with a serving of Barbara’s Snackamils or graham crackers for a satisfying snack.

- Pop popcorn!  Did you know that popcorn is loaded with antioxidants, fiber and is a whole grain too?  Pop your own kernels or look for 94 percent fat free microwave popcorn. Three cups of popcorn has about 5 grams of tummy-filling fiber.  Try it plain, or top it with Parmesan cheese, Old Bay seasoning, or I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter spray.

- Keep pre-sliced vegetables, like cucumbers, carrots, pepper strips, broccoli and cherry tomatoes in the fridge for a quick and easy snack.  Add reduced-fat ranch dressing or hummus on the side.  This is a great way to help increase veggie servings during the day! If you’re feeling lazy, check out the pre-cut vegetables in Ukrop’s produce department.

- Whole grain crackers, like Triscuits Thin Crisps, served with a part-skim cheese stick supply B vitamins, calcium, protein and fiber.

- Top apple slices with peanut butter and raisins. Serve it to your children as a sweeter take on the traditional celery-based “ants on a log.”

- Build a yogurt parfait. Let your kids pick out their own healthy toppings.  Tasty toppers include low-fat granola or whole-grain cereal, chopped nuts, dried or fresh fruit, or even coconut.

- Make a mini pizza! Layer a whole-grain English muffin (such as Thomas 100% whole wheat English muffin) with 2 percent shredded cheese, turkey pepperoni, tomato sauce and veggies. Bake at 350° F for 5-10 minutes.

- Build your own snack mixes: Choose your favorite whole-grain cereal, dried fruit, nuts and small crackers or pretzels. Stir everything together in a large bowl and enjoy!

Have a nutrition question? Call the Ukrop’s Nutrition Hotline at (804) 340-3005 to speak with a registered dietitian. Individualized nutrition counseling appointments are also available.

Apple Smiles are a kid favorite.

Crisp Virginia apples are in our produce department now. Choose from Virginia-grown Ginger Golds (a mild apple similar to a Golden Delicious with a tart finish that resists browning longer than most varieties) and Galas with more varieties arriving soon.

Use our fresh, seasonal apples to make some delicious, kid-friendly apple snacks!

Apple Pizzas
This recipe is great to make with kids, but the sweet-savory flavors are sure to please any age group. Serve them as a snack, or bring them to a brunch for a unique treat!

Serves: 10, as a snack | Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

1 package (10) refrigerated biscuits
3 apples, sliced thin
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
½ cup brown sugar
2 Tbsps. flour
½ tsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. butter or margarine

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using your hands, press each biscuit until it’s flat. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (if you make this recipe with children, use a permanent marker to write the name of each child near the pizza they made). Sprinkle about 1 Tbsp. of grated cheese on each biscuit. Place 4-5 apple slices on top of each biscuit. In a small bowl, stir flour, sugar and cinnamon together. Put 1 spoonful of mixture on each biscuit. Top with a tiny pad of butter or margarine. Bake for 15 minutes or until biscuits are fluffy and browned on edges.

Sweet-savory Apple Pizzas are great for brunch.

Apple Smiles
These treats are a great way to get kids active in the kitchen.

Yield: About 8 Smiles

Ingredients:
1 red delicious apple
1 jar creamy peanut butter
About 40 mini marshmallows

Core and slice apple into about 16 thin slices. Spread peanut butter on one side of each slice. Give 2 slices to each child and let them place about 5 mini marshmallows in between slices and sandwich them together in the shape of two lips with teeth.

Gooey, crunchy Loaded Apple Sandwiches make a great after-school snack.

Along with the recipes above, this is another of our favorite kid-friendly apple snacks.

Loaded Apple Sandwiches
Yield: 4-6 sandwiches
Ingredients:
2 apples
1 jar peanut butter, chunky or creamy
1 banana
1 cup granola

Core apple and slice into rings (each apple should yield between 4 and 6 good-size rings). Spread 1 side of each apple with peanut butter. Slice the banana into ½-inch-thick slices. Place 4-5 banana slices on top of the peanut butter on half of the apple rings. Sprinkle granola on the other half. Carefully place 1 apple half with granola on top of 1 apple half with bananas.