Category: PROTEINS

CROCK POT BROWN SUGAR CHICKEN

Crock pot Brown Sugar Chicken adapted from A Year of Slow Cooking
12 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, or 6 boneless, skinless breast halves
1 cup brown sugar (it’s okay. you can brush your teeth after.)
1/4 cup lemon-lime soda (stay with me…)
2/3 cup vinegar (I used white wine, but think regular white would be fine)
3 cloves smashed and chopped garlic
2 T soy sauce (La Choy and Tamari wheat free are GF)
1 tsp ground black pepper

Directions:  Plop the chicken into your croc kpot. Cover with the brown sugar, pepper, chopped garlic, and soy sauce. Add the vinegar, and pour in the soda. It will bubble!

Cover and cook on low for 6-9 hours, or on high for 4-5. The chicken is done when it is cooked through and has reached desired consistency. The longer you cook it, the more tender it will be.

Serve over a bowl of white rice with a ladle full of the broth.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Put the chicken down in the crock pot and add all of the other ingredients on top.

Here’s what you’ll end up with:

Our Thoughts:
This dish was really good.  It was sweet and the chicken was fall-apart tender.  I, personally, could have used just a touch of spicy . . . maybe some type of oriental-type pepper.  I ladled all of the sauce out of the bottom of the crockpot and put it in a separate bowl so everyone get put it all over their rice.

I served this with rice and one of Scott’s very favorite dishes-EVER.   Cheesy Cauliflower

Chicken Noodle Soup


2-4 packages of Ramen Soup mix
Boneless chicken
Bag of frozen vegetables
Water or Chicken Broth

I use this recipe to clean out the fridge…
Using leftover chicken, vegetables, rice, whatever looks good to add…


Simmer on stove…


Happy Eating…

Fire Day Friday: Grilled Steak Fajitas

I had a friend in college that met her husband in a fajita line.  Silly as it may sound, it’s true.  We went to this “Around the World” party at one of the fraternities and they had this fajita line.  That’s right…a line that forms and when you reached the end (or the beginning, however you want to look at it) you were handed a fairly well prepared fajita and a shot of tequila.  While my friend stood in line, patiently awaiting her turn to receive her fajitas (and shots), the guy standing behind her asked if she knew what time it was.  That was it.  Seriously, they started talking, found out that they were both psych majors…next thing I know it’s a year later and I’m at their wedding reception talking to them about …go on, you know I’m gonna say it…FAJITAS!!

Ok, ok…so that might not have been the greatest story ever told, but it felt like the appropriate time to tell it since we’re talking fajitas today!  I love fajitas, and used to make them all the time…isn’t it funny how you can have a favorite dish that you make over and over and over and than one day something else takes it place and that one goes away for awhile and than one day you’re thinking about something simple and fast to throw together after a long day at work and all of a sudden it hits you:  FAJITAS!!  I LOVE it when that happens!

So the other day, it hit me… why not throw together some simple, yet flavorful fajitas…a perfect post for Fire Day Friday!!  I’m sure everyone has a good fajita recipe, and there is nothing unusually different about this one, but it’s simple, it’s delicious, and it’s a perfect meal to throw together during crazy week nights!  You could use chicken in place of the steak…though I would marinate the chicken in something like lime and tequila…but that can be totally up to you!

Grilled Steak Fajitas
Ingredients:
1/4 cup beer (I used Bud Light)
3 Tablespoons Country Bob’s Honey Habanero Sauce
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 lb. flank or skirt steak
1 red bell pepper, stem and seeds removed
1 yellow bell pepper, stem and seeds removed
1/2 sweet onion, sliced into rounds
flour tortillas

Directions:
In a small bowl, mix together the beer, honey chipotle sauce, Worcestershire, garlic, salt, and pepper.  Place the steak in a resealable plastic bag and pour the marinade over it.  Let the meat marinate for 4-6 hours in the refrigerator.

Preheat grill to 400 degrees.  Place the steak directly over the fire and grill for 4-5 minutes per side.  Remove from grill and allow to rest for 5 minutes, then slice into thin strips.

While the steak is resting, put the peppers and onion on the grill for 5 minutes or just until the veggies start to soften.  Remove from grill and slice into thin strips.  Place thin stips of beef and veggies on the flour tortillas; top with salsa, guacamole, or sour cream if desired.  Enjoy!

  

Cheeseburger Soup

CHEESEBURGER SOUP adapted from Recipes from Dawn’s Daily Life
1/2 pound ground beef
3/4 cup of chopped onion
3/4 cup of shredded carrots
3/4 cup diced celery
1 teaspoon dried basil
4 tablespoons butter, divided
3 cups chicken broth
4 cups diced, peeled potatoes (1-3/4lbs)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups (8oz) processed cheese (Velveeta)
1-1/2 cups milk
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup sour cream

Directions:  In a 3-quart saucepan, brown beef; drain and set aside. In the same saucepan, saute onions, carrots, celery, basil and parsley in 1 tablespoon butter until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Add broth, potatoes and beef; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
Meanwhile in a small skillet, melt remaining butter. Add flour, cook and stir for 3-5 minutes or until bubbly. Add to soup; bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Add cheese, milk, salt and pepper; cook and stir until cheese melts. Remove from heat; blend in sour cream.

Modifications:
-I used 93/7 lean ground beef
-I used whole wheat flour
-I used light sour cream

Brown the ground beef.  Once browned, pull it out of the pan and set it aside.
Peel and dice the potatoes, dice the celery, shred the carrots, and dice an onion.
Throw the veggies in the same pan that the beef cooked in along with 1 Tbsp of butter.  Cook until tender (about 8-10 minutes).
Add the chicken broth and potatoes.  Put the ground beef back into the pot.  Cook on high until boiling, cover, and reduce.  Cook until potatoes are soft.

While the potatoes are cooking, melt the rest of the butter in a separte pan.  Add the flour.

Add the flour into the soup pot and stir well.
Add the milk.
Add the Velveeta and stir until melted.
Once the cheese melts, pull the soup off of the stove and add the sour cream.  Stir until the sour cream is mixed well.
Here’s what you’ll end up with:
I’m not sure it tastes like a cheeseburger but it does taste fantastic! 

Simple Saturday: Sweet and Spicy Chicken

Hello my foodie friends and welcome to Simple Saturday!

When I read Jenn’s post yesterday here at Our Krazy Kitchen featuring Sweet and Sticky Grilled Chicken it reminded me of an appetizer I made way back in 2009 that my kids just loved – Sweet and Spicy Bacon Wrapped Chicken Bites.

I found myself suddenly craving a sweet and spicy chicken dish!

I had some chicken cutlets in the fridge ready to go for last night but had no idea what I was going to make. I don’t have access to a grill at the moment and didn’t want to make appetizer portions for the chicken bites – and didn’t have enough bacon to wrap all the chicken bites anyway. I decided to wing it and come up with something similar. It’s more of a simple process than a recipe.
.
I washed and salted the cutlets, dredged them in a combo of brown sugar and a Cajun seasoning blend – lots of Cajun seasonings! I placed the cutlets in a baking dish, topped with crumbled  bacon (I used the precooked packaged kind), baked for 25 minutes at 350 and served with steamed broccoli and rolls.
It was a nice dinner, I love all the flavors of this chicken dish together, but to be honest there are a couple things I would change about this next time – I would cook the chicken on a rack instead of in a baking dish and instead of just coating the chicken in the brown sugar and Cajun seasoning I would top it with a heaping helping for more flavor – and  I know this would be even better on the grill!

Join me over at Seaside Simplicity for more quick and easy recipes.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Fire Day Friday: Sweet & Sticky Grilled Chicken

 

I’m sure that most of you have had this happen:  you find a recipe that you really want to try, so you print it out or bookmark it or whatever you do to save it, and than put it away with all the other recipes you want to try.  One day, you are scouring through those said recipes and all of a sudden, the one (you know the one…. the one you wanted to try so bad so long ago) is right there in your hand and you know this time you aren’t letting it go! 

That is this recipe for me.  I saw the original recipe for this on Comfort of Cooking.  If you have not seen Georgia’s site, I suggest heading over there as soon as you are done here (no, don’t go now…finish mine first, than go see hers…..thank you!!)…not only are her recipes fantastic but her pictures will leave your mouth watering!!

Anyway, this chicken turned out perfectly…it lived up to it’s name…it was sweet, it was sticky….it was FANTASTIC! 

Sweet and Sticky Grilled Chicken
Adapted from Comfort of Cooking
Printable Recipe 
Ingredients:
1/3 cup red wine (I used Chianti)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon Wondra (you can use cornstarch)
2 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1 clove of garlic, minced
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Directions:
Bring wine, brown sugar, Wondra, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic to a boil in a saucepan.   Reduce heat and stir occasionally, until sauce becomes thicker. (it should not take long)  Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.  Reserve 2 tablespoons of the sauce and set aside.

Place the chicken in a shallow dish or Ziploc bag and pour the remaining sauce mixture over the chicken, making sure to coat all sides.  Let marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Preheat grill to 400 degrees.  Remove the chicken from the dish or bag; discard the marinade.  Place the chicken directly on grill grates that have been rubbed down with oil.  Grill for 8-10 minutes per side, making sure to brush with the reserved sauce mixture, or until the chicken is cooked through, 165 degrees.  Enjoy!

 

CHICKEN COUNTRY CASSOULET

CHICKEN COUNTRY CASSOULET
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 pound thick-cut bacon, diced
1 pound fat sausages of choice, cut into bite sized pieces
3 tablespoons butter
1 large Vidalia onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 carrots, sliced
1/2 pound snap peas, washed and deveined
1/4 cup fresh minced parsley
1 14-ounce can petit diced tomatoes, basil, garlic & oregano
1 tablespoon Classico sun-dried tomato puree
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme or 1 tablespoon dried
2 +/- cups chicken stock
2 cups seasoned bread crumbs**
salt and ground black pepper

  •  Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
  • Brown the bacon until browned and crumbly in Dutch oven casserole dish.  Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
  • Add chicken and sausages and brown on all sides. Remove from fat and set aside. 
  • Add the onions and garlic and cook 3-4 minutes until softened. 
  • Add the carrots, snap peas and parsley, sauteing 3-4 more minutes.
  • Add tomatoes, tomato puree, spices and salt and pepper to taste.
  • Add meat back in.
  • Add enough of the stock to just cover the meat and veggies, you don’t want things swimming around too much.  You can always add more stock during the cooking if needed. 
  • Cover dish and cook 1 hour.
  • Add more stock if necessary. Spread crumbs over the top and cook uncovered for 40 more minutes or until browned. 

**Try adding other vegetables such as broccoli or white beans for variety.   I used crushed Ritz crackers today and they worked reallllllllllllllly well as a substitute!

BAKED WHITE FISH

2 teaspoons peanut oil    
1 small bunch green onions, sliced thin
1 teaspoon paprika
2 small kiwis, cleaned and sliced thin
2-4 white fish, cleaned and scaled, 2 pounds each
salt & pepper to taste   
3 tablespoons white wine    
3 tablespoons CHAMPAGNE DRESSING (or substitute fish or chicken stock)  
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 lemon, sliced

  • This will work with other whole lean fish and cuts or ‘roasts’ of halibut or pink salmon.
  • Adjust the cooking time according to the thickness and density of the fish.
  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  • Spray baking dish well with PURE.
  • Rinse the fish well inside and out, pat dry, season lightly with salt, pepper and paprika and lay side by side in a shallow baking dish.
  • Layer lemon slices loosely over fish and season again.
  • Pour  the stock, dressing and ending with the butter over each filet.
  • Make a loose tent of foil over the tail of the fish and place in the oven.
  • Bake, rotating the pan once halfway through the cooking time, until a skewer easily enters the thickest part of the fish, 25 to 30 minutes.
  • Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.

    CHICKEN STROGANOFF

    CHICKEN STROGANOFF
    2-3 slices bacon, diced
    2 large chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
    1 bunch green onions, sliced thin
    1/4 teaspoon sea salt
    1/4 teaspoon white pepper
    1/4 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
    2 cloves garlic, minced
    3/4 cup chicken broth
    1/3+ cup sour cream
    1 tablespoon flour
    egg noodles

    • In a large skillet brown bacon.  Remove from pan and drain on paper towels.
    • Add onions and garlic, saute for a few minutes.
    • Add Chicken pieces.
    • Saute’ 5-6 minutes, stirring frequently.
    • Add spices and blend well.
    • Add chicken broth and bring JUST to a boil.
    • Reduce heat, cover and simmer 10 minutes JUST until liquid is absorbed.  Boil your noodles at this point.
    • In a small bowl whisk together the sour cream and flour.
    • Add sour cream mixture to chicken mixture along with the bacon pieces. Blend well and stir constantly for 2-3 minutes until heated through.  Sauce will become creamier and thicken at this time.
    • Serve over hot noodles.
    To make this meal quicker for a weeknight you can use rotisserie chicken and save time.

      CHICKEN COUNTRY CASSOULET

      CHICKEN COUNTRY CASSOULET
      3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
      1/2 pound thick-cut bacon, diced
      1 pound fat sausages of choice, cut into bite sized pieces
      3 tablespoons butter
      1 large Vidalia onion, diced
      4 garlic cloves, minced
      4 carrots, sliced
      1/2 pound snap peas, washed and deveined
      1/4 cup fresh minced parsley
      1 14-ounce can petit diced tomatoes, basil, garlic & oregano
      1 tablespoon Classico sun-dried tomato puree
      1/2 teaspoon dried sage
      1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
      2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme or 1 tablespoon dried
      2 +/- cups chicken stock
      2 cups seasoned bread crumbs**
      salt and ground black pepper

      •  Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
      • Brown the bacon until browned and crumbly in Dutch oven casserole dish.  Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
      • Add chicken and sausages and brown on all sides. Remove from fat and set aside. 
      • Add the onions and garlic and cook 3-4 minutes until softened. 
      • Add the carrots, snap peas and parsley, sauteing 3-4 more minutes.
      • Add tomatoes, tomato puree, spices and salt and pepper to taste.
      • Add meat back in.
      • Add enough of the stock to just cover the meat and veggies, you don’t want things swimming around too much.  You can always add more stock during the cooking if needed. 
      • Cover dish and cook 1 hour.
      • Add more stock if necessary. Spread crumbs over the top and cook uncovered for 40 more minutes or until browned. 

      **Try adding other vegetables such as broccoli or white beans for variety.   I used crushed Ritz crackers today and they worked reallllllllllllllly well as a substitute!

      IT’S TASTE & CREATE TIME – SLOPPY JOES

      The whole purpose of Taste and Create was, and has been, and continues to be to create a community of bloggers who test each others’ recipes and share links. The participants of the event are paired together and try a new recipe from one another’s blog.  This month my partner is Debbi from Debbie Does Dinner Healthy.  Hubby requested Sloppy Joe’s for football food so I decided to try Debbi’s recipe and compare it to my beef version to see if hubby noticed a difference.
      Debbi’s Hearty Sloppy Joes
      Adapted from The Life and Loves of Grumpy’s Honeybunch
      3 pounds ground turkey
      2 teaspoon each salt and pepper
      1 cup carrots, finely diced
      1 cup celery, finely diced
      1 cup zucchini, finely diced
      1 cup red pepper, finely diced (about 1 medium)
      2 cups onion, finely diced
      4 cloves of garlic, minced
      1 – 15 ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
      3 tablespoon tomato paste
      2/3 cup ketchup
      3 tablespoon dijon mustard
      1/4 cup worcestershire sauce
      2/3 cup brown sugar, not packed
      1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

      In a large pan, cook ground turkey.  When ground turkey is about half way done, add the veggie and saute along with the ground turkey.  Cook until ground turkey is done.  Drain if necessary. Season with salt and pepper as they cook.  Add the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and allow to simmer for about 10 – 15 minutes.  Serve with buns or 100 calorie Arnold Select sandwich thins. 

      Divide into 2 containers for 2 meals.  Freeze one for another quick and easy meal.  When ready to eat, thaw completely and either warm on stovetop, slow cooker or in microwave.   6 huge servings per container. 

      Total calories = 3062 calories for whole batch
      12 servings = 255 calories without bun per serving**

      While Debbi’s recipe tasted great yo me, hubby said he could tell the difference (what is it with guys and their beef?)  Next time I’ll try half turkey, half beef and see if he notices a difference.

      Here’s my beef recipe:


      These are always a crowd pleaser.
      HOMEMADE SLOPPY JOES
      1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
      1 1/2 pound beef
      1 medium onion, finely chopped
      1 teaspoon minced garlic, jar
      salt and pepper to taste
      1/3 cup brown sugar
      2 teaspoon Montreal steak seasoning
      1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
      1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
      1 teaspoon liquid smoke
      2 tablespoons sun-dried tomato pesto
      1 15 ounce can tomato sauce
      1 teaspoon Better than Bouillon beef base

      • Heat olive oil and add ground beef.
      • Generously salt and pepper.
      • Brown beef, onion and garlic. Drain.
      • Add brown sugar, red wine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, steak seasoning and beef base. Cook for 5 minutes.
      • Add tomato paste and tomato sauce.
      • Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes.
      • Serve on fresh baked buns.

      Teriyaki BBQ Beef or Chicken with Broccoli Noodle Bowls

      Last week we had an amazing Chinese-inspired dish at our house so I thought I would try another Chinese dish this week.  This is the epitome of being a home cook in that I just used what I had and I improvised.

      Teriyaki BBQ Beef or Chicken with Broccoli Noodle Bowls adapted from Rachel Ray
      For the BBQ Sauce
      1/2 cup beef or chicken stock
      1 cup ketchup
      1/2 cup teriyaki sauce or low sodium teriyaki sauce
      1/3 cup honey or agave syrup
      3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
      1/2 palmful coarse black pepper
      1 1-inch piece of ginger root, peeled
      For the steak or chicken, veggies and spaghetti:
      1 cup frozen shelled edamame
      3/4 pound flank steak or boneless, skinless chicken breasts
      1 bundle broccolini or 1 small head broccoli
      Salt
      1 pound whole wheat or whole grain spaghetti
      2 tablespoons vegetable oil or peanut oil
      4 scallions, very thinly sliced on an angle
      Directions:  Place the ingredients for the barbecue sauce in a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes to thicken and concentrate the flavor a little. Remove the ginger root.
      Place a large pot of water on the stove to boil.  Pour a cup of edamame from the freezer into a bowl to defrost. Add the meat to the freezer to firm up, about 15 minutes.
      Trim the broccolini or broccoli and cut into 2-inch pieces. Add salt to the boiling water and cook the broccolini or broccoli to tender-crisp, 5 minutes. Remove the broccolini with a spider or slotted spoon and drain well. Drop the pasta into the water and cook to al dente.
      Remove the meat from the freezer and slice it very thinly on an angle, against the grain if you’re using beef.
      Heat the oil, a turn of the pan, in a large skillet or wok over high heat until smoking. Add the meat and stir fry until brown. Add the edamame and broccolini or broccoli and pour in the sauce. Drain the pasta and toss into the skillet to combine.
      Serve in bowls topped with scallions.
      Modifications:
      -I just used a bag of stir-fry veggies instead of cutting up broccoli/edamame.
      Here is what you’ll need:
      Put all of the “wet” ingredients into a saucepan.  Let it come to a boil and then turned down to a simmer.  Put some water on to boil for the pasta.
      Chop up 3 cloves of garlic.
      Cut about a 1 inch piece of ginger root, peel it, and throw it in with the wet ingredients.
      Throw the garlic and ginger root in.  Add the pasta to the boiling water.

      Thinly slice beef, on the grain.

      Cut up some scallions or green onions.

      After about 20 minutes, pull the ginger root out of the sauce.

      Put the canola oil in a wok or pan and get hot.  Add the beef until brown.
      Add the vegetables.
      Add the sauce.
      Drain the spaghetti and then add to the pan.
      Here’s what you’ll end up with:
      Another successful dish!  The honey really adds to the teriyaki sauce and we actually loved the diversity of the frozen stir-fry vegetables rather than just broccoli and edamame. Â