Szechuan Chicken Ramen Stir-Fry

Ingredients

sauce 

- 2 teaspoons honey

- miso sauce concentrate 

- 2 tablespoons soy sauce 

- 5 table spoons red wine vinegar 

- 2 tablespoons Szechuan paste

main

- 4 1/2 oz ramen noodles 

- 10 oz chicken 

finish and serve 

- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds 

- 4 oz red cabbage and shredded carrot mix

- 4 oz Bok Choy and napa cabbage

2 taaspoons sriracha

Directions 

- wash and dry produce 

- in a small bowl combine honey, miso sauce concentrate, soy sauce, Szechuan paste, half of the red wine vinegar, 2 cups water, and 1/4 teaspoon sugar. (for 4 serving add all the vinegar, 3 3/4 cups water, and 1/2 teaspoon sugar.)

-break noodles in half 

- prep chicken into small pieces 

- cook noodles 

- heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium- high heat. add chicken in a single layer and cook, undisturbed, until just starting to brown. 1-2 minutes.

- stir in noodles and sauce mixture.

- increase heat to high. cook, stirring constantly, until chicken is cooked through,  noodles are tender and sauce has thickened. 6-8 minuets.

- remove pan from heat: add red garbage and carrot mix and bok choy and Napa cabbage to pan with chicken and noodles. stir until veggies are slightly wilted and coated in sauce.

- taste and season with salt and pepper 

- top with sesame seeds and sriracha.  

Honey Garlic Chicken

Stumbled across making this one day when we were tired of "the usual" and had limited ingredients to make dinner. Typical though, amIright? Anyway, I found a few ideas online, but this is the hybrid version that I have been making recently. Enjoy! 

Ingredients:

-Oil for pan searing (I use Avocado Oil these days, it has a high temperature tolerance, so my oil doesn't burn.)

-1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1" cubes

-Salt/ Pepper

-1 lb russet potatoes, scrubbed and cut in 1" cubes (about 4 medium potatoes)

-Carrots, peeled and sliced thick

Glaze

-1/4 cup honey

-1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

-3 cloves garlic, minced

-Pinch of red pepper flakes

Optional for serving

-Rice

-Chow mein noodles

-Coconut

-Slivered almonds

-Cashews

-Sliced green onions

Instructions

1) Heat oil in a large skillet over med-high heat

2) Whisk together ingredients for glaze until well combined, then set aside

3) Add chicken and lightly season (easy on the salt, because we're using soy sauce in the recipe), cook until chicken is browned then remove and set aside.

4)  Add potatoes and carrots to same skillet and saute several minutes until mostly soft

5) Add chicken back in to skillet, mixing in glaze. Reduce heat and let simmer for several minutes until potatoes and carrots are soft and ready to eat.

6) Serve over rice. Top with desired toppings. 

Beef n Broccoli

I love making Beef and Broccoli at home. It's such an easy asian dish to make at home, and a good way to fill my kids with some broccoli:) Every time I make it, I have to look this recipe back up so I figured I should probably just add it here to the blog. Then I'll always be able to find it! 

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced
• 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
• vegetable oil, for frying 
• 1 lb flank steak **I used a grilling steak I had in the freezer. A flank is a cheaper cut, but I just used what I had on hand. 
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2-3 large crowns broccoli, cut in bite size florets

Directions:

1. Make the sauce by heating 2 tsp of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over med/low heat.
   Don't get the oil too hot.
2. Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches.
3. ** I didn't happen to have fresh garlic or ginger on me, so I added powdered, and started at this step.
   Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens.
4. Remove it from the heat.
5. Slice the steak against the grain into 1/4" thick bite-size slices (Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty five degree angle to the top of the steak so that you get wider cuts).
6. Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides of each piece of beef.
7. Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.
8. As the beef sits, heat up oil in a wok (you may also use a skillet for this step).
9. Heat the oil over medium heat until it's nice and hot, but not smoking.
10. Add the beef to the oil and sauté for for a few minutes, or until the beef is browned on both sides. 
11. Stir the meat around a little so that it cooks evenly. 
12. Remove excess oil if any. 
    
    
    Add the sauce mixture. Let simmer for one minute. 
13. Add broccoli. Cover to help broccoli steam cook. 
    
    
    When broccoli is bright green and tender, remove from stove, serve over rice. 
    
    
    
    
    

Cheesy Stuffed Shells

This recipe was actually shared with me by Aubrey Horner, and our family loved it. Liked it so much that it has since entered our rotation of meals, and better yet, I make a large batch of it, then package the supplies together and freeze for a fast meal during the week.

Ingredients:

1 16oz container of low fat cottage cheese
1 10oz pkg. frozen chopped spinach (for our family we omit the spinach)
1 c. mozzarella cheese
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
20 jumbo pasta shells, cooked, drained
1 26oz jar of spaghetti sauce
1 large tomato chopped

Directions:

Heat oven to 400. Mix cottage cheese, spinach, 1/2 c. mozzarella, Parmesan, and Italian seasoning, spoon into shells. Mix sauce and tomatoes spoon 1/2 into 9x13 dish. Add filled shells, top with remaining sauce. Cover and bake 25 min. Top with remaining cheese and bake uncovered for 2 min.

Chicken Breasts in Garlic Sauce

I found this recipe on iVillage, and thought it was not only simple, only used one dish, and tasted pretty good. it paired perfectly with the Crash Hot Potatoes. Ingredients:

15 garlic cloves, unpeeled (didn't have any, so I used dehydrated minced garlic, seemed fine)
1 TBsp butter
1 cup apple juice
1 TBsp EVOO
4 chicken breasts, with skin and bone (I used boneless/skinless, but I think I'll try bone-in next time. Plus, bone-in is usually cheaper and I never have good recipes to use it with.)
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 TBsp chopped thyme (I used dehydrated and decreased amount)


Directions:

-Preheat the oven to 350 degress. Parcook the unpeeled garlic cloves in boiling salt water for 4 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold, running water and peel. Set aside. (I skipped this, since I didn't use fresh)

-Heat the oil and butter in a shallow flameproof casserole over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, skin side down, and cook for about 4 minutes, or until the skin is deep golden brown. Turn over, add the apple juice, garlic cloves, and bay leaf, then bring to a simmer. Cover and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until chicken shows no sign of pink when pierced with a knife.

-Using slotted spoon, transfer chicken and half of garlic cloves to a deep platter and keep warm. SKim fat form the cooking juices, then bring to a boil over high heat. Cook, crushing the garlic into the sauce with a spoon about 5 minutes, or until thickened.

-Add the cream and cook for 1 minute longer. Season with salt and pepper. Return the chicken to the casserole and baste. Sprinkle with the thyme and serve immediately.

The only thing I will do different next time is let the sauce cook down longer, I would have liked it thicker.

Terriyaki Baked Chicken

Okay, here's the deal with this recipe, I really liked it the first nite we had it, I followed the recipe, and it DID NOT look like this picture. I thought however that it would be fabulous done as kabobs... they were only like 2.5 stars out of 4; maybe someone could help me on this: the second time I made these, nothing was different except the method of cooking, they turned out WAY too salty, all the sauce was rediculously too salty, so it wasn't really a hit. But they looked beautiful! Although the bake method was nice to have it ready ahead of time, and a lot fewer dishes.


Ingredients:

1 (3 lb.) fryer, cut up
1 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. ginger
1 clove garlic, crushed
Butter, melted
1 can chunk pineapple (1 1/2 cups)
1 med. onion, sliced
1 sm. green pepper, sliced

Directions:

Combine soy sauce, sugar, ginger and garlic in large bowl. Stir until sugar dissolves. Add chicken and marinate 3 to 4 hours. Remove chicken and season with pepper. Brush with melted butter. Place in shallow baking pan and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees (covered). Remove from oven and turn chicken. Add pineapple (with the juice), green pepper and onion slices. Continue baking for 30 to 40 minutes until chicken is done. Cover until the last 15 minutes, then uncover for browning. Serve with rice and pour juice over all. I used the left over juice and reduced it in a sauce pan, then added a teeny bit of cornstarch to make a sauce, it was pretty good!

Instead of white rice, I actually served this the first time with this Lime Rice recipe, and then second time with this Coconut Rice recipe (shown below).

Regular ol' Chicken Strips

I got this recipe from PWCooks, I had chicken dethawed, but no idea what to do with it. These were fairly quick and super yummy, and once again, the kids loved them. I would imagine you could bake them instead of frying if you wanted a healthier option...

Ingredients
1 package Chicken Breasts, Cut Into Strips (sometimes Called "tenders" Or "strips")
Buttermilk
1-½ cup Flour
2 teaspoons (to 3 Teaspoons) Lawry's Seasoning Salt (I made my own, here)
Vegetable Oil

Instructions
Start by rinsing and drying your chicken strips. Next, in a bowl submerge the chicken strips in buttermilk for 15 to 20 minutes (or longer if you’d like).

In another bowl combine about 1 ½ cups flour and 2 to 3 teaspoons of Lawry’s Seasoning Salt (or other seasonings if you prefer). Mix this together well. Next, add about ¼ to ½ cup of buttermilk into the flour mixture and stir lightly with a fork as you add it.

Heat about 1 inch of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-low to medium heat.
Remove a few of the buttermilk-soaked strips and place them in the flour mixture, turning them over to coat them thoroughly. Place them on a plate. Continue coating chicken strips until they are all ready to cook.

When the oil is sufficiently heated, begin cooking the strips a few at a time. Cook them for about a minute and a half or so on each side. When golden and crispy, remove them to a paper towel-lined plate.

Serve with your favorite dipping sauce. Yum!

Kellogg's Double-Coated

Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 8

Ingredients
7 cups Kellogg's Corn Flakes® (crushed to 1 3/4 cups)
1 egg
1 cup fat-free milk
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 pounds chicken pieces, (without or with skin) rinsed and dried
3 tablespoons margarine or butter, melted

Directions
1. Place KELLOGG'S CORN FLAKES cereal in shallow dish or pan. Set aside.

2. In medium mixing bowl, beat egg and milk slightly. Add flour, salt and pepper. Mix until smooth. Dip chicken in batter. Coat with cereal. Place in single layer, in shallow baking pan coated with cooking spray or foil lined. Drizzle with margarine.

3. Bake at 350° F about 1 hour or until chicken is tender, no longer pink and juices run clear. Do not cover pan or turn chicken while baking. Serve hot.

Bourbon Chicken

I got this recipe from My Kitchen Cafe sometime ago. It is easy, fast, and super yummy!

Ingredients:
2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces
cornstarch (for dusting chicken- optional)
4 Tb oil

Sauce:
1 garlic clove (minced)
1 tsp ginger (ground ginger or you can use fresh)
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4C apple juice
1/3C light brown sugar
2 Tb ketchup
1 Tb apple cider vinegar
1/2C water
1/3C soy sauce

Dust chicken lightly with cornstarch. Heat oil in frying pan or wok and lightly brown chicken pieces. Drain on paper towels and set aside.

In a bowl combine all the sauce ingredients. Pour into wok and bring to a boil. Add chicken back into the pan, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Done!

Dough Boys

Yep, that's what they are called, or at least in my house they are! We grew up eating these mainly for breakfast and they are truly delicious!

Ingredients:
frozen roll or bread dough, or your favorite dough recipe
oil for frying
syrup, or your choice of toppings
Directions:
I often make my own dough recipe to use for this, just let it rise the first time, then punch it down, split it up into smaller sizes, a portion about the size of a fist will make one dough-boy. I also sometimes buy frozen dough, and when I do that I set the frozen loaf or rolls out the nite before, in a bowl, covered loosely with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise over nite.
After portioning out the dough, just stretch it into a disc shape, just smaller than the pan you are going to fry in. You can use a rolling pin to get it flatter and more even. Sometimes if you get them thinner they pop up and then are a bit more like sopapillas. I usually opt for the hand pressed look. You can use a pizza cutter and cut into smaller pieces if serving for breakfast or a snack, etc.
Then, just serve with syrup or honey or powdered sugar or chocolate syrup for dessert, it's up to you.
You can also use these same fry breads for Navajo Tacos, just replace the sweet toppings with refried beans, hamburger, lettuce, tomato, etc. Heck, I bet you could even have tacos for dinner, then if there are left overs, have 'em for breakfast the next morning. Ooh, sometimes if there are actually leftovers, I'll pop them into the toaster to reheat them, helps them keep some of their crisp. Yum!

Chicken Pillows

Ingredients:
2 pkg. Crescent Rolls
2 C. Cooked Chicken (If David is home to start the grill then I grill it. If not, then I just boil it. I usually use about 3 chicken breasts. I also just cut the cooked chicken into small pieces but you could shred it too. )
1 (8 oz) pkg. Cream Cheese (easier if it is at room temp)
1 T. Chopped Onion
1/4 C. Melted Butter
Bread Crumbs (I use Italian but any works)

Instructions:
1. Mix: Cooked chicken, cream cheese, and onion in a bowl. (I usually wash my hands and mix it)
2. Place one rounded spoonful of meat mixture on wide end of crescent roll wedge. Pull dough around mixture toward the point while pulling the small end wider. Tuck ends and pinch dough together to make sure that the mixture is covered.
3. Dip the "pillow" in melted butter and roll in bread crumbs.
4. Bake 20-25 min @ 400

Sauce:
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 C. sour cream (or milk)
1/2 C. shredded cheese

Heat mixture together and serve over pillows

***for re-heating it tastes better if you can warm them up again in the oven....but the microwave works too!

Mom's New Beef Stew

I got this from The Biggest Loser Cookbook, so you know it's healthy! I love the sweet potatoes instead of regular ones too. We are having it tonight (no that doesn't mean I'm adding a picture), and the kitchen smells great.

1 Tb whole grain oat flour (I use wheat flour)
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp salt
pinch of black ground pepper

1 lb. top round steak, cut into 1" cubes
2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
8 oz button mushrooms, halved (or other small mushrooms sliced)
1 onion, chopped
1 TB minced garlic
1 tsp dried thyme
2 cans (14 oz each) lower sodium, fat free beef broth
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 lb sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" cubes


In medium resealable bag combine flour, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Add the beef and shake the bag until all the cubes are coated. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

Set a large non-stick pot over med-high heat until water will sizzle. Add the oil. Add the beef cubes from the bag and brown (about 1 min per side). Reduce the heat to medium. Add the mushrooms, onion, garlic, and thyme. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 min or until the onion is tender.

Add broth and carrots. Bring to boil, then reduce to simmer. Cover and cook for 45 minutes.

Add the potatoes. Cook for another 45 minutes.



And for everyone watching their diets I'll share the health info. This makes 9 servings of 1 cup each.

Fat 3g
Protein 13 g
Carbohydrates 13g

Creamy Tomato Tortellini

I found this recipe online somewhere, and my family loves it! Quick and easy.

1 pkg (13 oz-ish) fresh or frozen cheese tortellini
2 cups frozen broccoli florets
1 can (14-1/2 oz) Italian-style diced tomatoes
4 oz. cream cheese, cubed
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta as directed on package, adding broccoli to the boiling water for the last 3-4 min of the pasta cooking time.
Meanwhile, cook tomatoes in large skillet on medium heat 5 min. Add cream cheese and seasoning; cook 4-5 min. or until cream cheese is completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring frequently.
Drain past mixture. Add to tomato mixture in skillet; mix lightly. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
*Substitute your favorite frozen vegetable blend for the broccoli.