Inspired Creamy Chicken, Spinach, and Mushroom Soup

I have adapted this recipe's ingredients, but see this link to find original!  

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil 
• 1 1/3 cups chopped yellow onion (1 medium) (Food processor; see notes.)
• 1 1/3 cups diced carrots (about 3 medium)  (Food processor; see notes.)
• 6 - 8 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced (I used baby bella.) (Food processor; see notes.)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced (Food processor; see notes.)
• 4 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 lb. bonless skinless chicken breasts, pounded evenly to about 1/2-inch thickness (I used one rotisserie chicken, shredded.  See original recipe to follow instructions on cooking chicken.)
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup flour
• 2 1/2 cups milk
• 9 oz. refrigerated three cheese tortellini
• 4 oz. fresh spinach (4 cups) (Food processor; see notes.)
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• finely shredded parmesan cheese, for serving

Directions:

• To make this soup kid-friendly, I didn't want my soup to have large "chunks" of veggies, so I roughly chopped the onion, carrots, and mushrooms and then pulsed a few GOOD times in the food processor.  These can be combined, as they will cook together at the same time!  After processing those three ingredients, separately pulse the three cloves of garlic.  Remove garlic, then process spinach for last step of soup.  Now you can begin!
• 1. Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots, and mushrooms and saute 3 minutes, then add garlic and saute 1 minute longer. Add in chicken broth, oregano, and thyme, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.
• 2. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Gradually add flour and cook, whisking constantly for 1 minute. While whisking vigorously, slowly pour in milk. Season with salt and pepper, and bring mixture just to a light boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and set aside.
• 3. Add tortellini to veggie/broth mixture, cover pot with lid and allow to boil over medium heat about 7 minutes (or time directed on package), adding in (roughly food processed) spinach during last 1 minute. Stir in shredded rotisserie chicken, white sauce, and cream. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve warm with parmesan cheese.

*Adapted from www.cookingclassy.com

Mint Oreo Layer Dessert

Ingredients:

1. 1 (15 oz) package Oreo Mint Crème Cookies
2. 1/2 c. butter, melted
3. 2 (3.9 oz.) packages Instant Chocolate Pudding
4. 3 1/4 cup cold milk
5. 2 (8 oz.) containers Cool Whip
6. 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
7. 1 cup powdered sugar
8. Green food coloring, optional

Directions:

1. Place the Oreo cookies in a food processor and pulse until crushed. (You could also put the cookies in a ziplock bag and crush them with a rolling pin.) Reserve 1/2 cup of the crushed Oreo crumbs for topping.
2. Pour remaining crumbs into a 9x13'' baking dish. Drizzle the melted butter over the Oreo crumbs and gently toss with a spoon. Press the mixture firmly into the pan to form a crust.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the chocolate pudding mixes and milk. Refrigerate.
4. In another bowl, blend together the cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Fold in one container of Cool Whip. Add one drop of green food coloring, if desired.
5. Gently spread this mixture evenly over the Oreo crust. Pour chocolate pudding over the cream cheese mixture and smooth into an even layer.
6. Dollop small spoonfuls of the remaining Cool Whip over the top of the pudding and gently smooth it into an even layer. Sprinkle reserved Oreo crumbs on top.
7. Refrigerate until ready to serve. (Sometimes I even put it in the freezer, then remove it about 20-30 minutes before I serve it.)

*www.tastesbetterfromscratch.com