Hungry-Girl Nacho-rific Chicken!

Judging from the fact that I've posted most of the recent posts about food, I would almost say that I am the only one cooking, BUT I KNOW THAT'S NOT TRUE!

COUSINS, have you fallen of the face of the earth????  I want to see what you're making!

Here's what I made last night:

You can find a link to the recipe HERE!

Or, here's an image of the recipe directly from the site!

Chicken Pesto Pizza

This is more of a dinner idea than a recipe I suppose...but yummy none-the-less!

Top your favorite pizza crust (or cheat by buying one like I did) with:

Pesto (Costco--or should I say Kirkland--makes really good Pesto sauce)

Cheese

Parmesan Cheese

Tomatoes

Chicken (cooked in a little olive oil with garlic salt and pepper)

and Black Beans

or add whatever else you want! I think black olives would also be a good addition! 

Mandarin Chicken--Panda Express Knock-Off!

I tried this recipe...and YUM! I should have taken pictures...didn't...oh well.

Mandarin Chicken (Panda Express Style) Sauce

2/3 C. sugar
1/4 C. soy sauce
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp vegetable oil
1 tsp minced fresh garlic (I never use "fresh" garlic. I always use the pre-minced garlic in the jar from the store)
1/2 tsp minced fresh ginger
1/4 C water
4 tsp arrowroot

Combine sugar, soy sauce, lemon juice, oil, garlic, and ginger in a saucepan.  Combine water with arrowroot ina small bowl and stir until dissolved. The arrowroot will serve as a thickener (much like corn starch--in fact I'm sure you could thicken this recipe with some corn starch instead--just be aware that corn starch seems to thicken better than arrowroot and you would probably not need 4 tsp of corn starch).

Add the arrowroot/water combo to the saucepan and cook on high.  Bring mixture to a boil while stirring often. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes or until sauce thickens.


Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Salt

Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and garlic salt (not too much!). Grill in a frying pan with some non-stick cooking spray OR cook them like I did...on the GRILL! YUMMY! Chicken should be browned in spots.

When the chicken is cooked thoroughly, chop into bite size pieces.

Serve the chicken over white rice (I'm a cheater and used Minute Rice).  Drizzle with Mandarin Sauce.


ENJOY!

Chicken Parmigiana

I may be the only person on the planet who's never made this before and boy have I been depriving me and my family of a very delicious meal!  When Shara said she had requested it for her birthday dinner I added it to my 2 week menu and finally did it last night (although this is not her exact recipe).  I didn't get any pictures before we devoured it, but just picture something yummy!

Chicken Parmigiana
4-6 Chicken Breasts
Parmesan Cheese
Mozzarella Cheese
Bread Crumbs (I added Italian seasoning to them)
Pasta

Sauce (this is actually our recipe for pizza sauce, but it worked great for this too)
2 T. olive oil
5 garlic cloves minced
1 28oz. can crushed tomatoes
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. oregano

Saute garlic in olive oil and add remaining ingredients and heat until thick and bubbly.

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Combine the bread crumbs and some of the Parmesan cheese in a bowl.  Cover each side of the chicken breasts with mixture.  Place in baking dish.  Cook for 30 minutes.  Remove and pour sauce over top.  Sprinkle the Mozzarella Cheese and the rest of the Parmesan cheese over top.  Place back in oven and cook for the remaining 20 minutes or until chicken reaches 165 degrees.

Serve over your choice of pasta.

SO GOOD!

Lemony Skillet Chicken

This recipe was called "Lemony Skillet Chicken" but every time I read the title I thought of this:



He he.

Lemony Skillet Chicken

1 T. olive oil
2 T. butter, divided
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 T. all-purpose flour
2/3 C. chicken broth (I used my powdered chicken buillion 2/3 tsp. and 2/3 C water)
3 T. lemon juice
1/2 t. salt
1 t. dried chives

Heat oil and one tablespoon butter in a skillet over medium heat. Coat chicken in flour and add to skillet. Saute for about 6 minutes on each side, turning once, until chicken juices run clear. Remove chicken from skillet; keep warm. Add broth, lemon juice, salt, and chives to skillet and bring to a boil. Remove from heat; stir in remaining butter. Return chicken to skillet and spoon sauce over chicken, turning to coat. Serves 4.

We ate this over rice, but it seemed like it needed a little more sauce. I haven't tried making more sauce and the proportions yet. So, if you figure it out before I do, let me know!



Oh...and I got this out of my Gooseberry Patch Fast Fix Meals cookbook.

It really didn't take that long to make. In fact, it probably took less time than saying Lemony Snicket Likes Lemony Skillet Chicken 10 times fast.

Apricot Chicken

I know many of you have Apricot Chicken recipes that you love.

I love this one. It takes less than 30 minutes to make, and when I get home from work that is the type of recipe I need. I got this out of the Taste of Home: Simple & Delicious Cookbook I got for my wedding. Enjoy!

Apricot Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp. butter
1 can (15 oz) apricot halves
3 tsp. cornstarch
1/4 C. apricot preserves
2 TBSP white wine vinegar
4 green onions chopped (optional: Jereld doesn't like green onions...so we don't buy them at my house)

Hot cooked rice (optional)

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, cook chicken in butter over medium heat for turning occassionally until cooked through and the juices run clear. Remove and keep warm.

Drain apricots, reserving juice. Cut apricots into 1/2 in. slices; set aside. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and reserved juice until smooth. Stir in preserves and vinegar until combined; pour into skillet. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Add apricots and chicken; heat through. Sprinkle with onions (if you want). Serve with rice if desired.


YUMMY!

Enjoy the picture:

Spanish Rice (Aunt Jeanie style) and Baked Chicken Taquitos

The chicken taquitos come from My Kitchen Cafe. They are yummy. I've made them twice now. My kids love them and they are even good as leftovers. But as a side note, use a good brand of tortillas or they will crumble as you are rolling them. My mom and I started making them once with Great Value brand and she ended up making a quick run for Mi Casa's.

This Spanish Rice has always been a favorite of mine. My mom got the recipe from Aunt Jeanie a long time ago and now I make it occassionally, too. It's yummy.

The salsa is Jen's Award Winning Salsa. The guacamole is my mom's yummy yummy treat.

Aunt Jeanie’s Spanish Rice

In a 10 inch skillet cook 8 slices of bacon until crisp. Cook 1 onion (1 C.), chopped fine and ¼ C. bell pepper until tender, not brown, in drippings.
Add:
1 lb. crushed tomatoes

1 ½ c. water
¾ C. uncooked long grain rice

½ C. salsa
1 tsp. salt

½ tsp. worchestershire sauce
dash pepper

Cover and simmer 35 to 40 minutes.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

I had my first bite of Chicken Cordon Bleu about a month ago, and I liked it. I never dared tasted it because it has the word 'bleu' in it..which I figured meant bleu cheese! I never knew all that was in it was ham and cheese rolled up in a chicken breast!! I set out to make my own and came up with this recipe. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Ingredients

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 6 slices Swiss cheese
• 4 slices cooked ham
• 1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat a 7x11 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Pound chicken breasts to 1/4 inch thickness.
3. Sprinkle each piece of chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Place 1 cheese slice and 1 ham slice on top of each breast. Roll up each breast, and secure with a toothpick. Place in baking dish, and sprinkle chicken evenly with bread crumbs.
4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink. Remove from oven, and place 1/2 cheese slice on top of each breast. Return to oven for 3 to 5 minutes, or until cheese has melted. Remove toothpicks, and serve immediately.

I also made this sauce to go on top..
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup sour cream
Mix together in a saucepan until warm.

I served the chicken over some rice and had steamed veggies on the side. We loved it!

Roast Chicken

I made this a little while ago and I was seriously impressed with myself!! It looked so pretty and tasted delicious. It really is quite easy to do. Katie called and asked me for the recipe tonight, so I thought I would post it on here.

Roast Chicken

1 (3.5-4) pound whole chicken
1 small yellow onion
1 lemon thinly sliced
1/2 cup celery leaves
Salt & Pepper
Softened Butter
1 small onion chopped
1 carrot chopped (I would definitely do more)

Wash chicken in hot water and dry thoroughly. Season cavity with salt and pepper and stuff with onion, lemon and celery leaves (I put celery in there as well). Rub chicken with softened butter and season all over with salt and pepper.

Roast for 15 minutes at 425, reduce heat to 350 and baste chicken and roast for another 15 minutes. Add chopped onions and carrots to pan, baste them and chicken again. Continue roasting for 45 minutes plus an addition 7 minutes per pound.

I made gravy out of the drippings the chicken made. It was super yummy.

Chicken Enchilada Soup

I was talking to Shara and we were both making soup for supper. She was making Chicken Noodle and I was making this. She told me to post it so here it is!

CHICKEN ENCHILADA SOUP - (Aunt Jeanie's)

2 cans chicken broth

1 -8 oz. cream cheese

2 c. cooked diced chicken

2 - Lg. cans (28 oz.) Las Palmas Green Enchilada Sauce (mild or medium)-(I would use mild if I could find it.)

3 c. 1/2 & 1/2

1 can corn - drained

1 1/2 c. uncooked rice (can use minute rice also)

Simmer altogether until rice is tender

Chicken Tikka Masala

The other day I was looking at a flyer from Trader Joe's that had come in the mail and saw a frozen dish called Chicken Tikka Masala that sounded really good. I decided to do a search on All Recipes, once again, and found a recipe for it that had 800 reviews and received 4 1/2 stars, so I figured it should be good. It was! Pioneer Woman has a recipe for it as well -- when I told Jen I had made this, she knew she had seen it somewhere on the food blogs, and sure enough she had.

What I learned from Wikipedia: The origin of this dish is disputed, but is mostly thought to have been created in England as an attempt to create a South Asian dish that would appeal to the British palate. It is served in many restaurants in England and has been voted the favorite dish in these restaurants.

Here's the recipe (one more thing, I didn't grill my chicken. I fried it in a pan)

Chicken Tikka Masala

• 1 cup yogurt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
• 4 long skewers
• 
  
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 3 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. In a large bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and 4 teaspoons salt. Stir in chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Preheat a grill for high heat.
3. Lightly oil the grill grate. Thread chicken onto skewers, and discard marinade. Grill until juices run clear, about 5 minutes on each side.
4. Melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and jalapeno for 1 minute. Season with 2 teaspoons cumin, paprika, and 3 teaspoons salt. Stir in tomato sauce and cream. Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Add grilled chicken, and simmer for 10 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, and garnish with fresh cilantro.

Chicken 'N' Dumplings

I got this recipe from a cookbook I got for my birthday~and these were really good!

4 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup sliced celery

1/2 cup sliced carrots

1 bay leaf

1 1/2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes, divided

2 cups biscuit/baking mix

1/4 teasponn dried thyme

2/3 cup milk

3 cups cubed cooked chicken breast

In a dutch oven, kettle, or saucepan, combine the broth, celery, carrots, bay leaf and 1 tsp. parsley; bring to a boil.

For dumplings, combine the biscuit mix and thyme in a bowl; stir in milk and remaining parsley just until moistened. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto boinling broth. Cook, uncovered, for 10 minuts; cover and cook 10 minutes longer. Add chicken; heat through. Discard the bay leaf. Spoon over dumplings. 4 servings.

Creamy Crockpot Chicken and Broccoli Over Rice

Here's a recipe I found on Picky Palate last year sometime. I have made it quite a few times because the kids all eat it, and because it is so easy to make.

Creamy Crockpot Chicken and Broccoli Over Rice

3-4 boneless chicken breasts
1 14oz can cream of chicken soup
1 14 oz can cheddar soup
1 14 oz can chicken broth
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon Cajun seasoning
¼ teaspoon garlic salt seasoning
1 Cup sour cream
6 Cups broccoli florets, lightly steamed, just fork tender
1 Cup shredded cheddar cheese (I usually skip this part)

1. Place soups, chicken broth, salt, Cajun and garlic seasoning into a crockpot over low heat. Whisk until smooth. Place chicken in, pressing to the bottom. Cover lid and cook on low for 6 hours or on high for 3 hours.

2. When chicken is cooked, use 2 forks to shred into bite size pieces. Stir in sour cream and broccoli.

3. Serve over steamed rice and sprinkle with cheese.

Random Things

Here are some random things I have tried and loved this past week:

Sisters' Cafe Sweet Pork salad-so good! Shara was right, the sweet pork was delicious-I happen to like my sweet pork not as sweet as most, I cut the sugar in half-it was still PLENTY sweet! I made the whole meal and it was fabulous! Steve especially liked the rice. He said he doesn't usually like Spanish Rice, but this one was really good! I will definently make it again and again anytime I make Mexican food.

Here's the rice recipe:

Cilantro Lime Rice
3 c water
3 c Minute rice
4 cubes chicken bouillon
4 tsp garlic, minced
1 Tb canola oil
2 Tb fresh lime juice
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1/2 onion
1 can green chilies

Blend cilantro, onion, and chilies in food processor. Bring water to boil and add all ingredients, simmer covered for 30 minutes or until rice is cooked. *I hate Minute Rice and never buy it - you can substitute regular rice, just adjust the water to rice ratio accordingly.

I also tried Honey-Lime Chicken Enchiladas from Sister's Cafe. They were yummy, too. The chicken was sweet, and the sauce just right to with it. They were easy to make, too.

(Sorry, no picture)

Next, I tried Lace Cookies with Milk Chocolate Drizzle from Stephanie's Kitchen. These were so good. Hard to stop snitching in to. They were a hit around my house! (We ate them before I got a picture, Sorry!)

Chinese Feast-Orange Chicken, Fried Rice, Sweet and Sour Sauce, Egg Rolls

While Marsha was here visiting for her kid's Spring Break, we visited many countries: Mexico (tostadas), Brazil (Feijoada-which was delicious, Thanks, Marsh!!!), Italy (Calzones), and China. We didn't plan this, but it happened anyway.

This Chinese feast turned out so good. We used the eggroll recipe that Marsha already posted. But here are the other recipes we used, and they came from Blog Chef.

Sweet and Sour Sauce-

½ cup vinegar

1/3 cup sugar

½ teaspoon salt

¼ cup orange juice

¼ cup pineapple juice

¼ cup ketchup

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Make sweet and sour sauce by mixing vinegar, sugar, salt, orange juice, pineapple juice, and ketchup. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Mix 2 Tablespoons of cornstarch in 1/8 cup of juice and stir in until thickened.

Orange Chicken

Ingredients:

Chicken-2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1-1/2” cubes)

1 ½ cups all purpose flour

1 eggs (beaten)

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

Oil (for frying)

Orange Sauce-

1 ½ cups water

2 tablespoons orange juice

¼ cup lemon juice

1/3 cup rice vinegar

2 ½ tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon orange zest (grated)

1 cup packed brown sugar

½ teaspoon ginger root (minced)

½ teaspoon garlic (minced)

2 tablespoons green onion (chopped)

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (we left this out)

3 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons water

Step 1: Combine flour, salt, and pepper. Dip chicken in egg mixture and shake in flour mixture to coat. Deep fry chicken in batches at 375 degrees in a deep fryer (or use a wok) until completely cooked.

Step 2: Meanwhile, in a large saucepan combine 1 ½ cups water, lemon juice, orange juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce. Blend well over medium heat for a few minutes. Stir in brown sugar, orange zest, ginger garlic, and onion. Bring to a boil.

Step 3: Combine 3 tablespoons of cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water and mix thoroughly. Slowly stir cornstarch mixture into sauce until it thickens. Pour sauce over breaded chicken, and if desired add red pepper flakes and garnish with green onions.

Fried Rice

Ingredients:

5 cups cooked leftover white rice (that’s at least 1 day old)

1 medium onion (diced)

6 cloves garlic (minced)

2 eggs (beaten)

1 cup frozen peas and carrots (thawed)

½ tablespoon tumeric

Soy sauce (to serve)

2 tablespoons oil (for frying)

Step 1: Add a little bit of oil or cooking spray to a heated fry pan. Add beaten eggs and scramble until fully cooked. Remove from heat and set aside.

Step 2: Heat a wok and add oil. Add garlic, onion, and peas and carrots. Stir fry until vegetables have reached your desired tenderness. Add rice and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add turmeric and eggs. Mix well.

Step 3: Serve with soy sauce. (We found we loved it with soy sauce. It was so good after we sprinkled it on.)

Easy Parmesan Chicken

I didn't see this posted yet so if it has... ignore it!

I made this for dinner last night with minor adjustment and we really liked it.

4-8 chicken breasted, halved
1/4 c. melted butter
12-30 Ritz cracker (I didn't have any crackers so I improvised and used bread crumbs from the pantry... and both Jed and I liked it better. You decide!)
1/2 c. Fresh grated Parmesan cheese (I used a bit more)
1 TB. dried parsley

Melt butter in baking pan. Crush 3 crackers for every piece of chicken in a large zip lock bag. (Or in our case... dump some bread crumbs). Add Parmesan cheese, parsley & some salt and pepper. Roll each piece of chicken in melted butter from pan than shake in the bag. Place in baking pan and cook for 1 hour at 350.

Lemon Cream Pasta with Chicken

Lemon Cream Pasta with Chicken (from allrecipes.com)

3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 lemon, quartered
2 teaspoons garlic powder, divided
1 teaspoon ground black pepper, divided
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 (8 ounce) package rotelle pasta
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place chicken in a lightly greased baking dish. Squeeze lemon over both sides of the chicken breasts and season both sides using 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder and 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Bake for 40 minutes, or until juices run clear and chicken is no longer pink inside.
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, season the chicken broth with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil and add lemon juice and pasta. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until all liquid is absorbed, about 25 minutes.
Cut cooked chicken into bite-sized pieces and stir into cooked pasta, along with the cream and lemon zest. Cook, stirring, over low heat for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Stir thoroughly before serving.

This was really yummy. I would probably double the recipe for a family bigger than ours! I made Jennifer's flat bread to go with it and it turned out great!

Dinner Ideas

Jen, Amy, and I have all tried this Bourbon Chicken. It is good! Only thing we did different was add cornstarch to the sauce to thicken it a little.

Jen tried this Slow Cooker Italian Beef and said it was great.

Chicken and White Bean Stew

This was good! I saw it here.
The only thing I did different was add an extra can of beans.

Chicken and White Bean Stew

4 slices bacon, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 pound red potatoes, cut into cubes
One 32-ounce container (4 cups) chicken broth
1 whole rotisserie chicken
Two (or three) 15.5-ounce cans small white beans, rinsed
5 ounces arugula (5 cups).....I used fresh baby spinach instead
Salt and pepper

Directions:
In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium heat until cooked but not crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the potatoes and chicken broth and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, pull the meat off the rotisserie chicken; discard the skin and bones. Add the chicken and white beans to the stew and cook until heated through. Just before serving, stir in the arugula (I did spinach) and season to taste with salt and pepper.

PW Chicken Spaghetti

Here is a recipe that I've made a couple of times that we really like. It comes from the Pioneer Woman.

Ingredients:

2 c. cooked chicken

2 can cream of mushroom soup

2 c grated sharp cheddar cheese (I don't think i used sharp)

1/4 c. finely diced green pepper

1/2 c. finely diced onion

1-4 oz jar diced pimento drained

3 cups dry spaghetti, broken into 2 inch peices

2 cups reserved chicken broth from pot that you cooked chicken in

1 teaspoon Lawry's season salt

1/8 - 1/4 tsp. ceyenne pepper

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 additional cup cheddar cheese for top

Cook 1 cut up fryer and pick out enough meat to make two cups (I just cooked chicken breast or thighs). Cook spaghetti in same chicken broth until al dente. Do not overcook. When spaghetti is cooked, combine with remaining ingredients except additional cup of cheese.

Place mixture in casserole dish and top with remaining cheese. She says you store this for up to 6 months in the freezer (I don't have room in mine!) or cover and store in refrigerator for 2 days or bake immediately and 350 for 45 minutes or until bubbly. If cheese starts to get too done you can cover with tinfoil.

Sorry, my pictures are never very good, I always forget to take them until it is half gone and this was actually the second day!