Shicken. February 26, 2008

Skillet Chicken Pasta

-1 (9 oz) package fresh linguine (I used dry thin spaghetti)
-1 lb. chicken breast tenders (boneless skinless chicken breasts were cheaper, so I used them cut into tenders)
-1/4 tsp. seasoning salt
-1/8 tsp. black pepper
-1 Tbs. butter
-1 c. presliced mushrooms (I added another small handful in because J loves mushrooms)
-1/2 c. sliced onion
-1/2 c. dry sherry (I don’t tend to have sherry around…which is a crime, really…so I used red cooking wine)
-1 c. fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
-1/2 c. (4 oz) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain.

2. While pasta cooks, sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken, mushrooms, and onion; saute 7 minutes or until chicken is done. Remove from pan; keep warm.

3. Add sherry to pan; scraping to loosen browned bits. Stir in broth and cheese; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer until cheese melts (about 3 minutes), stirring constantly. Return chicken mixture to pan, and cook until thoroughly heated. Serve over pasta.

Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition Factses (if made exactly to original recipe specifications without my changes): Calories:500 (19% from fat); Fat:10.4g (sat 5.7g, mono 2.7g, poly0.6g); Protein: 41.3g; Carbses: 53.3g; Fiber: 3.3g; Cholesterol: 90 mg; Iron: 4.2 mg; Sodium: 555 mg; Calcium: 69 mg
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Quite good-J really liked it and was happy to see that I reserved some for his lunch. I never got the cheese to “melt”, but at one point the pieces were pretty small and I whisked the mixture to get a smoother texture. The original recipe says “Cream cheese makes the sauce velvety.”

My “high school sweetheart” frequently referred to “the deed” as “porking”. February 20, 2008

Honey-Dijon Pork Tenderloin

-2 pork tenderloins (1 lb each)
-2/3 c. honey
-1/2 c. Dijon mustard
-1-2 tsps. chili powder (less if you like sweeter, more if you like spicy, which I do!)
-1/4 tsp. salt
-fresh ground black pepper

1. Place pork tenderloins in a large resealable plastic bag or shallow glass container (I used my lasagna pan). In a bowl, whisk the honey, Dijon mustard, chili powder and salt to combine; set aside 2/3 cup. Pour remaining marinade over pork; turn to coat. Seal or cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably a few extra, turning occasionally.

2. Drain and discard marinade and sprinkle the freshly ground black pepper over the tenderloins. Grill pork, covered, over indirect medium heat for 8-9 minutes on each side or until meat juices run clear and a meat thermometer reads 160-170 F. (I grilled mine at 350 F on the George Foreman for 6-7 minutes on each side, then sliced into about 1″ slices and grilled those flat)

3. In a saucepan, warm the reserved sauce; serve with the pork.

Makes 6 servings. 

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The sauce was yummy and really made the tenderloin something special. The chili powder didn’t overpower the honey mustard-ness at all, like I had feared-it just added a tiny kick. I promise one day I’ll get a real grill.

What can I say, he’s a cheesy guy. February 19, 2008

Cheddar Baked Potato Slices

-1 can (10.75 oz) Cream of Mushroom Soup (recipe says Campbell’s, I say whatever brand you like-I used reduced sodium)
-1/2 tsp. paprika
-1/2 tsp. ground pepper
-4 medium baking potatoes, cut into 1/4″ slices (about 4 cups)
-1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

1. In a small bowl, combine soup, paprika, and pepper (I whisked together until smoothish).
2. In greased 2-qt oblong baking dish, arrange potatoes in overlapping rows. Sprinkle with cheese (I put just a little bit extra on there…we love cheese); spoon soup mixture over cheese.
3. Cover with foil; bake at 400 F for 45 minutes. Uncover; bake 10 more minutes or until potatoes are fork tender.
Makes 6 servings.
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J LOVED this recipe. He likes when I cook and likes what I cook but it isn’t often that he’ll make the effort to say “____ was really great.” He absolutely loved it. Normally I abhor recipes like this (you know, the ones with Cream of Blah soup as the selling point), unless it’s my mom’s tuna casserole (it’s tuna-y and cream of soup-y and maybe a little trashy but it’s soooo good), but I needed a low-maintenance side dish so I could focus on the Honey-Dijon tenderloin. I made mine in a Pyrex pie plate so the potatoes were layered a little deeper than they would have been in an oblong baking dish like the recipe calls for, so it took a few extra minutes of cookification.

It ain’t cool bein’ no jive turkey so close to Thanksgiving or “and the pickles…” February 18, 2008

Grilled Turkey Burgers with Sweet Pickles

-1/2 c. fresh breadcrumbs
-3 Tbsp. mayonnaise
-2 Tbsp. chopped fresh chives (I seriously NEVER use chives, especially if I’m already buying green onions aka “scallions” for something else. Just use the green onion tops.)
-2 scallions, finely chopped
-4 fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced (basil around here lately has been looking like crap-I omitted it)
-1 Tbsp. Worcestshire sauce
-2 to 3 tsp. red pepper sauce (for Christmas my mom got me some kickass “Day of the Dead” habanero hot sauce, so I used that)
-1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
-1.5 lbs. ground turkey
-12 sweet pickle slices
-1 tomato, cut into 4 slices
-4 whole-wheat hamburger buns, lightly toasted (oops-forgot the buns! Multi-grain bread stood in for this)
-Mustard and mayonnaise, for serving

1. In a large bowl, combine breadcrumbs, mayonnaise, chives, scallions, basil, Worcestshire sauce, red pepper sauce, salt, and ground pepper. Add turkey and mix lightly with hands, just until blended. Shape mixture into 4 patties, each about 1″ thick.
2. Meanwhile, build a charcoal fire or preheat a gas grill (I used my George Foreman grill, which worked divinely). Place patties on cooking grate over direct heat. Cook over medium heat 5 to 6 minutes; turn patties with a spatula and continue grilling, 5 to 6 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the side of each burger registers 165F.
3. Layer 3 pickle slices and 1 tomato slice on the bottom of each bun. Top each with a burger and the other half of the bun. Serve with mustard and mayonnaise.

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Oh my god these were good! Seriously, I’m hungry again just thinking about them. In my George Foreman grill book it says to cook this for 6 minutes total but I cooked them just under 6 minutes for each side. I toasted each bread slice lightly and spread a very thin layer of mayo on each side.  The naked burger patty™ leftover I had in my bento for lunch the next day was equally delicious. Perfection!

Sweet! The Exorcist in my kitchen! February 17, 2008

Double Pea Soup

-1 Tbsp. olive oil
-1.5 c. diced onion
-1 c. each diced celery and carrot
-1 Tbsp. finely chopped garlic
-1 Tbsp. chopped fresh thyme leaves
-1 bay leaf
-1 (1 lb)bag dried split green peas, sorted & rinsed
-7 c. low sodium chicken broth
-2 smoked ham hocks (1.5 lbs. total)
-1/4 c. dry sherry (optional)
-1/2 tsp. each salt and ground black pepper
-1/5 c. frozen green peas
-2 Tbsp. chopped mint, plus sprigs for garnish
-Seasoned croutons and sour cream (optional)

1. Heat oil in a 5 or 6 quart Dutch oven over medium heat; add onion, celery, carrot, garlic, thyme, and bay leaf. Cook, 2 minutes, stirring. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and cook 10 minutes. Stir in split peas and cook 1 minute.

2. Add broth and ham hocks; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaf. Stir in sherry, if using, and salt and pepper. Remove from heat. Remove ham hocks; cover soup.

3. When hocks are cool enough to handle, remove skin, then cut lean meat from bones and finely shred (you will have about 1/2 c. ham). Stir ham and frozen peas into soup; heat over low heat until peas are hot; add mint. Ladle into bowls. Top each serving with croutons and a dollop of sour cream (if using), and a mint sprig.
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I have bad memories of split pea soup as a child. I hated it. I don’t know why, but all I can remember is sitting at the table waiting for it to dissappear. Was it the color? Or the combination of ham smell but pea look?
I wanted to see if I could make new memories with this delicious-sounding recipe (from Family Circle I believe…might be Real Simple?). One problem: the only store I was able to go to had no mint, no ham hocks. I really should have substituted ham or something for the hocks but wasn’t thinking clearly when doing my shopping (J was getting cranky and his little sister was-gasp-not totally excited about being dragged along to our long-ass shopping trip; leaving me to be the one trying not to rip out my hair).
Surprise-the pea soup is still that horrible horrible color! No ham smell though-although I think I really missed out on taste intended of this recipe, as it turned out “pretty good”-not great. I was pretty amazed -J didn’t complain about a lack of meat in the recipe. Perhaps the combo of the 2 peas gave it enough thickness and depth to help him forget.
I’m debating on saving this recipe and trying it again when I’m able to get ham hocks…the color still bothers the hell out of me.

I <3 sausage. February 16, 2008

Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya

-2 Tbs. butter
-3/4 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into 1″ cubes
-1/2 lb. turkey smoked sausage sliced into 1/2″ pieces
-1 c. chopped onions (divided in half)
-1 c. chopped celery (divided in half)
-1 c. chopped green pepper (divided in half)
-1 Tbs. minced garlic (J and I both love garlic, so I put in a little more)
-1 (14.5 oz) can whole tomatoes coarsely chopped-do not drain
-2 3/4 c. fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
-1 c. uncooked parboiled rice (I didn’t use parboiled rice…to my knowledge-just some Texmati)
-1/2 c. uncooked brown rice
-1/4 tsp. coarsely ground pepper
-1 tsp. dried thyme leaves
-1/4 tsp. rubbed sage
-1/2 tsp. white pepper (I opted for just adding more black pepper)

   Melt butter in large skillet. Add chicken and sausage. Cook over medium-high heat until meat begins to brown. Add 1/2 c. each of onions, celery and bell peppers.
   Cook 5 to 8 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring frequently. Stir in garlic, tomatoes, remaining 1/2 c. each of raw vegetables and remaining ingredients.
   Spray a 9×13″ baking dish with nonstick spray coating; spoon jambalaya into prepared dish. Bake uncovered at 350 F for 1 hours. Makes 10 to 12 servings. (HAH-maybe

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 J LOVED this recipe-I will be keeping this one. I used my dutch oven thinger for the first bit as my skillet’s too small and I used my lasagna pan to bake it in. I stirred the jambalaya a few times while it was cooking because the rice settled to the bottom.

Yum cupcakes. February 13, 2008

On Sunday, I made cupcakes (some for a test dozen to a local coffee shop and some to send to work with my dear husband). The recipes I used, Cookies-n-cream and Vanilla Vanilla, came from http://nataliecakes.wordpress.com/ , quite possibly one of the most awesome blogs ever.

And I’m making some more cookies-n-cream ones tonight for J’s boss (she’s giving them to her hubby for Valentine’s day).

I think he likes it! February 6, 2008

Baked Ravioli

-1 (24 oz) jar marinara or spaghetti sauce (I used marinara because I had it)
-1 (25 oz)bag frozen ravioli, cheese or mushroom (I had difficulty finding this so I used 2 9 oz pkgs of freshish/refrigerated cheese ravioli)
-1 (15 oz)container ricotta cheese
-1 c. sliced pepperoni
-Italian sausage, to taste (to taste? I had one lonely one in my freezer so I threw it in)
-Vegetables, to taste (kind of vague…I used half a chopped onion)
-1 (16 oz) package mozzarella cheese (I had about 3/4 of this…I added tofurella for the rest)
-Sprinkle of Italian seasoning
-Sprinkle of garlic powder
-Sprinkle of ground pepper
-Fresh shredded Parmesan cheese, to taste (cheese…to taste? If I had taken this literally, I would have used a couple handfuls, but instead I used a nice sprinkling for each layer)

   Preheat oven to 350 F. In baking or casserole dish, make single layers of ingredients. Start with a thick spread of marinara, add a single layer of ravioli, then teaspoon-size dollops of ricotta, followed by a generous layer of pepperoni or sausage and vegetables (or in my case, pepperoni, sausage, and vegetables), if using. Cover with a couple handfulls of mozzarella cheese.
   Season with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, pepper and a dusting of Parmesan cheese. Repeat the layers as desired or until you run out of ingredients, ending with cheese on top. Don’t skimp on the cheeses or meat. If in doubt, add more sauce.
   Cover with foil, bake 1 - 1.5 hours or until bubbly and hot in the middle.
   Uncover and brown top if desired (I did this).

Makes 12 servings.

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J really liked this. He’s a fan of anything with more meat than necessary (he’s even sent me meat-related text messages). I thought it was quite tasty and saved some for the next day’s lunch. It resembled an odd lasagna-possible due in part to being baked in the lasagna pan?

Mimi has some explaining to do. February 4, 2008

Mimi’s Spaghetti Casserole

-Thin spaghetti (ring measure one inch), cooked until almost done
-1/3 Sun-Dried Tomatoes (this is a recipe from a package of GREAT LAKES, so it specifies their brand), chopped
-2 eggs
-1/4 c. chopped green pepper
-1/4 c. chopped onion
-1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
-2.5 c. milk
-2 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
-Paprika

 Preparation: In a 2-quart greased casserole, break the eggs and beat with a fork. Add all ingredients except milk and paprika. Mix together gently and stir in milk. Sprinkle paprika on top. Bake at 325 degrees for one hour or until set in the middle.

Notes (from the original recipe): Serve this casserole as an entree, or as a side instead of potatoes. Leftovers reheat quickly and easily in microwave ovens, but they are also excellent served cold on hot summer days.

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I made this the other night after our Homeowners Association Meeting. Blech! I expected so much better out of something with that much cheddar in it! This was bland and blah. J said it tasted like breakfast food (even with the spaghetti?).

Surprise-me stir-frying. February 1, 2008

 

Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry
-2 Tbs. brown sauce
-1/2 c. reduced-sodium beef broth
-2 Tbs. red wine vinegar
-1 Tbs. cornstarch
-1 Tbs. reduced-sodium soy sauce
-2 tsp. grated fresh ginger
-1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
-1/2 lb. boneless beef sirloin well trimmed of all fat (or ask the butcher to do this for you)
-1 Tbs. vegetable oil
-1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1 carrot, cut into julienne strips
-1 c. sliced zucchini
-2 c. broccoli florets
-1/2 red pepper, thinly sliced
-Hot cooked brown rice

1. Combine brown sauce, beef broth, red wine vinegar, cornstarch, soy sauce, ginger and red pepper flakes; set aside.
2. Slice beef sirloin into 2/5″ strips. Spray a large skillet with nonstick cooking spray. Heat skillet over medium-high to high heat. Add beef and cook, stirring frequently, until browned. Drain and set beef aside.
3. Heat oil in skillet. Add onion and garlic, stirring frequently, 2 minutes. Add carrots and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add remaining vegetables and cook, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Return meat to skillet and allow to heat through.
4. Push contents of skillet to outer edges of pan. Stir broth mixture well, then pour in center of skillet. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens. Stir well to coat meat and vegetables evenly. Serve over hot, cooked brown rice.
Makes 4 servings.

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As a substitute for  ”brown sauce”, I used 1 Tbs. Oyster-flavored sauce and 1 Tsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce. My carrot was small so I used 2. I had some dried red peppers-I used an entire pepper instead of just half.