Oven-Roasted Sea Bass with Spiralized Veggie Stir-Fry

Today, I feel like posting something pretty. Oh, I know those Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes were gorgeous in their own way 😉 But this dish is beautiful in it's own way! I mean, who doesn't love colorful food? That little saying "Eat the rainbow" comes to mind for me. I love eating the rainbow! And that's kind of what I was aiming for with this dish...

Kung Pao Chicken Zoodles

I'm joining the zoodle craze.

Sure, February doesn't seem like the right time of year to start, um, zoodling, but it cannot be helped. I was catching up on reading the blogs I follow last month, in the evening and after a couple of glasses of wine. One of my favorite bloggers, Lindsay from Pinch of Yum, featured a recipe using spiralized veggies and that was all she wrote. I've had a spiralizer on my Amazon wishlist for months, but something clicked.  I had to have it. I wanted spiralized bell peppers, and cabbage, and most importantly, zoodles. The wine clearly muddled my thinking, and before I knew it, I'd already clicked "purchase" on Amazon.

Does this happen to anyone else late in the evening when they have a nice wine haze going on? I swear. Luckily, the contraption was only $30. It could have been worse :-)

Plus, the zoodles! Ohhhhhh, the zoodles...

Spicy Sesame Beef Rice Bowls

What, what? It's January, and I've already posted as many Asian-style recipes this month as I did all of last year? (That would be 2!)

I told you guys I was going to get more Asian dishes on the table, and what do you know? Another for the books! You are going to love these rice bowls. There is soooooo much delicious flavor, and guess what? A ton of veggies! I have to ask myself, what's not to like about these bowls? Crisp red and yellow peppers, tender spinach, flavorful marinated sirloin, plus crunchy wanton strips, sesame seeds, and plenty of dressing? 

Sign me up! 

Shrimp Pad Thai

It's the first recipe post of 2016! Yahoo!

You guys. Do you know how many Asian recipes I posted last year? 

This is embarrassing...

It was 2. Yep, you read that right. A Ginger-Soy Glazed Mahi Mahi in January of last year and a Shrimp and Broccoli Lo Mein in March. This is just crazy to me. When I was first learning to cook, Asian was my mainstay. But last year was a bonafide melee of Mexican and Italian. That just has to change. 

Broccoli and Red Pepper Chicken Stir-fry

Happy Tuesday! 

I usually try to post on Mondays, however, yesterday was a tad cray-cray. I felt like I was going from the moment I woke up. I basically woke up, shotgunned 3 coffees, watered the garden, fed the birds, gathered all the house laundry to start, cleaned out the fridge, ran the dishwasher, headed out to the grocery store, and then the feed store. Came home, mowed the lawn, finished the laundry, took a shower, and...

Collapsed.

Shrimp and Broccoli Lo Mein

Oh, hello Monday. 

I can't believe we are at the start of another week. I can't believe it's the end of March already. 2015 is, in my opinion, flying by. I'm behind on my reading, my running, you name it, I'm behind on it. Between the avalanches of snow we've received in our area, the inexplicable customer service nightmare that was getting a new transmission for my car, and this unpleasant tweak to my back, I've never gotten back to my routine post-holidays. And by routine, I mean normal, consistent exercise. For the mind, as well as the body. Now that I know the vacuum is at least a trigger for my back injury, I'll be avoiding that this month. I'm hoping April will be all about getting back to normal. 

General Tso's Chicken

Happy Day-After Thanksgiving!

Did you all have a great holiday? Eat lots of turkey? Watch lots of football? Spend a lot of time with family? Our family accomplished all of the above. There was a ton of food. No one went away from our dinner hungry, I'm 100% certain of that. 

The hubby and I have more family time on tap today, and in fact, another dinner tonight. Thanksgiving food is some of my favorite, so no complaints here! It's one of the only times every year I get to eat stuffing. I almost could be satisfied on Thanksgiving just having a giant bowl of mashed potatoes, stuffing, and gravy. Almost. Because there's always turkey, rolls, spaghetti salad, and pies galore to eat. Not to mention deviled eggs, stuffed mushrooms, and chips with dip. Yes, Thanksgiving is grand. 

With all that said, you might be tired of the "extravaganza" that food bloggers turn Thanksgiving into. If so, this recipe is for you!

When I saw this recipe over at Rasa Malaysia, I knew I had to try it. It'd been awhile since I'd made Chinese food, I was needing a fix. Plus, that picture she took! It makes the dish look drool-worthy. I had to have it. 

And have it, we did. This recipe is a winner, times a million! The chicken is perfectly crunchy and delicious when coated with such a savory, glazed sauce. I had to make a couple of substitutions due to availability of ingredients (I really did run all over town looking for dried chiles!), but everything worked out really well. Because I couldn't find dried chiles, I substituted red chile paste, and I don't think the dish was lacking in any heat from doing that. My rice wine is a combination of rice vinegar and dry white wine. You would think sake wouldn't be such a speciality item. 

I take that back. Here's what happened with the sake, and pretty much anytime I need to buy alcohol. The hubby and I live in a dry county. Say what?? It's not 1920! I bet a lot of you thought those didn't even exist anymore, I know I didn't before I came back here to visit for the first time. Luckily, Portsmouth, OH is wet and we are a 15 minute drive from there. But what if I don't feel like going into Portsmouth and I need some sort of alcohol? All of the other shopping centers near me don't sell any kind of alcohol. I'm serious! You can't even find red wine vinegar (yes, apparently an alcohol item!) at some of these stores. Another rule you have to deal with? You can't buy any hard alcohol or wine on Sundays, and I'm not just talking about the liquor store. I almost threw a hissy fit one Sunday three years ago when a cashier wouldn't let me buy cooking sherry. So, with conditions like these, I guess it shouldn't surprise me that no around here carries sake and that I was unable to find any after a complete tour of my surrounding counties. 

Have no fear, a combination of rice vinegar and white wine worked fabulously!

Well, I've talked to you all too much today already. I have to get off my duff, and go have breakfast with family. I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving, and has relaxing weekend. Most of you probably will, unless you're out Black Friday shopping right now. If so, good luck and may the odds be ever in your favor :)

Happy Friday!

Ingredients (serves 4):

Chicken-

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp dry white wine

1 tbsp rice vinegar

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

1/3 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup canola oil

Sauce-

3 tbsp soy sauce

2 1/2 tbsp sugar

1 1/2 tbsp dry white wine

1 1/2 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tsp hoisin sauce

1/4 cup water

1 tsp cornstarch

1 tbsp canola oil

1-2 tbsp red chile paste

3 slices of fresh ginger, minced

2 garlic cloves

1 bunch scallions, cut into 1-inch pieces

hot cooked rice

Directions:

1. Make the chicken- In a small bowl, combine soy sauce through rice vinegar. Whisk to mix. Add chicken to bowl. Allow to marinate for 15 minutes. Heat oil over medium-high heat. Remove chicken from marinade, and completely coat with cornstarch. Fry chicken in hot oil until browned and crispy. Remove from oil with a slotted spoon, and place on paper towel covered plate to drain. Set aside. 

2. Make the sauce- Combine soy sauce through cornstarch in a small bowl. Whisk to throughly combine. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. When hot, add chile paste. Sauté for 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until fragrant. Add ginger, garlic, and scallions, and sauté for another minute. Add the soy sauce mixture to the skillet, and cook until thick (about 2-3 minutes). Add chicken to pan, and toss to coat.

3. Place hot rice in a bowl, and top with chicken mixture. Serve immediately!

Printable Recipe

Recipe adapted from Rasa Malaysia.

If you liked this recipe, you may enjoy these-

Grilled Chicken Chow Mein

Spicy Szechuan Chicken

Garlic Shrimp with Coconut Milk, Tomatoes, and Cilantro

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party, Treasure Box Tuesday, Snickerdoodle Sunday

Grilled Chicken Chow Mein

It appears I'm having one of those days. Scratch that, I'm having one of those weeks. The ones where absolutely everything goes wrong. This month has already felt weird, mainly because the hubby worked almost the entire month. He only had 2 days off in June! Crazy. 

It all started on Monday. I think I already shared that it was HOT. And that the mower died and I couldn't get it going again? Well, I got it going again on Tuesday. For some reason, I had a crazy allergy attack after finishing the lawn on Tuesday and walked around the remainder of the day with itchy, red, tearing eyes. Not fun. Luckily, my eyes seemed fine when I woke up yesterday. Plus my aunt, who works for an optometrist, brought me special allergy eye drops :) Little did I know what the rest of the day awaited when I woke up with clear eyes though...

I knew it was going to be one of those days as soon as I opened the windows in the morning. 2 of my bird feeders had been knocked down. It seems we have some opossums or raccoons getting into the feeders at night. I zip-tied one of them to the tree, and as for the other, I think I'm going to have to zip tie that one too. It was knocked down again this morning. Anyhoo, as I was walking back to the house yesterday morning, I walked by the compost tumbler. It smelled like sewage. One of the worst smells in the world. One of those smells that is so bad, it seems to burn your nose hairs and you walk around smelling it all day. I opened it up, and sure enough, super wet. Which means it went anaerobic, and I'd have to spend some time shredding newspaper to put in there. One more thing to do, I thought as I looked to my garden. 

To my dismay, 2 of my tomato plants looked like they were dying. Turns out this first time gardener might not have a natural green thumb. So I did some research, and took the only steps that I could see fit. Bigger pots and better potting soil were purchased. I transplanted the tomatoes into the new bigger pots, cut off the stems that looked like they were dying, and sprayed the plants down with a homemade anti-fungal spray made out of baking soda, vegetable oil, water, and castile soap. This is my last ditch effort to save these maters', so I hope it takes. It could be my imagination, but I think they looked better this morning. Time will tell. 

I'd been planning on making cookies yesterday afternoon, but after running around all day looking for pots, transplanting plants, and working on the compost, the day was lost. I'm really going to try to bake cookies today, but it might not be in the cards. I've got a mid-day doctors appointment in Ashland, plus I need to pick up a couple of things while I'm in town. Cookies might have to wait till tomorrow.

Now that I've lamented my yard problems, lets talk about this pasta dish! Holy moly, was it good! I'm a big fan of Asian food, chow mein/lo mein being at the top of my list. I make it a lot. I rarely make it the same twice, too. That might have to change. One of my girlfriends and I had picked up some beautiful bounties while at the farmer's market last weekend. A whole head of cabbage, a bundle of carrots, and a bundle of green onions, all from the farmer's market, went into the chow mein. Vegetables, it did not lack. And it was all soooooo good. I normally would sear my chicken on the stove before chopping it up for a stir fry but hey, it's summer. Why not grill it? I love the flavor the grill gives meat. Plus, the chicken rested the entire time I cooked. I chopped it up, and threw it in at the last second, ensuring it didn't cook one more second. Easy peasy. I love summer grilling :)

Chow mein does not last long in my house. Not only did both the hubby and I eat fairly large portions, but I ate a pretty serious helping the next day for lunch. Annnnnd- it was gone. Just like that. And I was sad. Seriously, I could eat this everyday. Every. Day.

Oh, by the way, as I was picking up my bird feeder again this morning, I walked by the compost again. 4 buckets of newspaper shred must have done the trick, because the smell was reduced by at least 90%. Much, much better.

Here's to a better day! :)

Happy Thursday everyone!

Ingredients (serves 4):

1 chicken breast

olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder

8 oz whole wheat spaghetti

1 tbsp peanut oil

1 small head cabbage, thinly sliced

2-3 medium sized carrots, shredded or julienned

1 bunch green onions (thinly slice the green parts, and then slice the rest of the onion into 1-inch long sections)

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1 tbsp ground ginger

1 tbsp fish sauce

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tbsp garlic, minced

1/4- 1/2 tsp chile oil

3 tsp cornstarch

garnish: sesame seeds (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat gas grill to high.

2. Prepare chicken: Brush a little olive oil all over the chicken. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

3. Turn upper and lower burners to low, turn middle burner to medium. Put chicken breast on the grill, and cook for 4 minutes. Turn the chicken, then grill for another 4 minutes. Flip the chicken, grill for 2 minutes, and then flip the chicken one last time. Cook for 2 minutes, and then remove from heat. Allow to rest while preparing the rest of the recipe.

4. Prepare spaghetti according to package directions. Set aside. 

5. Heat peanut oil in a large skillet over high heat. When hot, add cabbage, carrot, and thicker parts of green onion (reserve the thinly sliced green parts). Saute 5-7 minutes or until all vegetables have softened. 

6. In a small bowl, thoroughly whisk the soy sauce through the cornstarch. When combined, add sauce and noodles to the skillet. Toss to combine.

7. Roughly chop the chicken breast, and add chicken to the skillet. Add the thinly sliced onion tops. Toss to combine, and remove from heat. Divide chow mein among plates, and top with sesame seeds. Serve immediately. 

Printable Recipe

If you enjoyed this recipe, you may enjoy these:

Spicy Thai Peanut Salad with Chicken

Beef with Broccoli Stir Fry

Spicy Szechuan Chicken

Helpful Links:

Why Does My Compost Smell Bad?

Common Mistakes Growing Tomatoes in Containers

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Treasure Box Tuesdays

Beef with Broccoli Stir Fry

I decided to give everyone a break from the Southwestern chicken recipes, and do a complete 180. Asian! Steak! Stir fry, oh my!

I have a confession that I'm not even a little bit ashamed over. This dish was made using a New York strip steak. That's right. Now, before you start chasing me off with pitchforks, you can listen to my reasoning. A couple of months ago, on a Costco trip, I bought a 5-pack of New York's. I vacuumed-packed (2) packs of 2 and sealed 1 on its own. I planned on using that individual steak for exactly a dish like this, an Asian stir fry. Granted, the hubby's eyes about bugged out of his head when I told him we were using a steak for a stir fry, but after one bite, he pretty much shut up :)

That being said, you would by no means be forced to use such a nice cut for this dish. Sirloin, flank, or skirt steak would work beautifully in this dish.

Another note on this dish- I grilled my steak. I did! I wanted tender slices of beef that would not be in any danger of being overcooked. Mission accomplished! I had the hubby grill the steak, and then I let it rest while I prepared the rest of the dish. I sliced the steak at the last second, and threw it in the pan at the very end, as I was removing the dish from heat. The steak was still warm, it didn't need to be cooked anymore. The only thing it needed was a dip in the sauce, and it was G2G. That's online speak for "Good to Go!" You are not required to grill your steak. If you decide to forgo that technique (you know, because it's March, it's cold outside, and you aren't crazy like me), I would brown the beef on the stove after softening the onions in the recipe.

Just in case you were all wondering, the hubby ate 2 plates of this. Yep, you know it's good. The hubby only has seconds on a handful of dishes. I get the most satisfaction out of dishes that warrant a return to the pan by the hubs. But really, it's hard to go wrong with men and steak.

Now for some exciting news! Last week's Sticky Sweet Baked Chicken is a weekly feature over on The Country Cook's Weekend Potluck. I've been participating in the Weekend Potluck for a couple of months now, trying to network and grow my blog. I just about died when I got an email that I was being featured. You can bet I'll be walking on air this weekend :) Head on over to the Potluck, and check it out!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ingredients (serves 3-4)-

1 New York strip steak, trimmed

olive oil, salt, pepper

1 head broccoli, cut into florets

1 tbsp peanut oil

1 large onion, thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp fish sauce

1 tbsp chile paste with garlic

1 tbsp sesame oil

2 tsp rice vinegar

2 tsp cornstarch

hot cooked rice or noodles (for serving)

garnish- sliced green onions and sesame seeds

Directions-

1. Preheat gas grill on high. Oil and/or clean the grates.

2. Prepare the steak- brush trimmed steak with olive oil, season to taste with salt and pepper. Place steak on pre-heated grill, and close lid. Cook for 3 minutes, then flip to the other side. Cook for another 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat, and allow to rest for 10-15 minutes. Thinly slice and keep warm. Set aside.

3. Prep the broccoli- steam the broccoli. Steam in a covered pan over boiling water for 3-5 minutes, or until broccoli reaches desired texture. I steamed mine for 3 1/2 minutes, because I like my broccoli with crunch. Set broccoli aside. 

3. Heat peanut oil over medium-high heat. When hot, add onion. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes or until onions start to soften. Add garlic to pan, cook for 30 seconds. Add broccoli to the pan, stir-fry for 1 minute.

4. In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce through the cornstarch. When the cornstarch is fully dissolved in the mixture, add mixture to the pan. Cook over heat for 1-2 minutes or until sauce begins to thicken. Add steak to the pan, toss to combine, and remove from heat.

5. Serve stir fry over rice or noodles. Garnish with sliced green onions or sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Cunning Ladies' Friday Party

Spicy Szechuan Chicken

Time to get my Chinese food fix on!

I know I've mentioned this before, but the lack of restaurant choices in my area really irks me. I know I signed up for this when I left Portland, but you really don't understand your choices until you are living them. When we left Oregon I thought, "Yes, I'll be living in the country and I won't have access to Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, fresh fish, specialty food items, and endless possibilities of restaurants. That's ok, I have Amazon!".  Well, Amazon does not provide you everything, including restaurant choices. In Portland, you can find a restaurant for anything. I don't say that lightly, it's just true. What if you want Argentinian tacos with crispy menudo? You can find that. What about a raw vegan experience? You can find several of those. You want Chinese food? You can literally find hundreds of thousands of Chinese restaurants, each more delectable than the last.

I really must add, if you are looking for a doughnut in the shape of a man's genitals, you too can find that in Portland. Just saying'...

It does make me sad that I can't take care of a Chinese food hankering at my leisure. Tradeoffs, I tell you. And if you want to get right down to it (minus the lack of access to fresh, unique foodstuff), the benefits of living in the boonies far outweigh the cons for me.

That being said, I think this dish knocks Chinese food right out of the park. You know me and veggies, so this stir fry is mostly veggies. I only added one chopped chicken breast for a smidge of protein. You really don't miss the meat though, between the leafy boo choy, crunchy peanuts, and the spicy, lip-smacking sauce. I made sure there was plenty of sauce in this stir fry, there must always be enough sauce for me to mix with my rice. Another pro? This makes great leftovers. I highly recommend giving this recipe a whirl.

Chopsticks optional :)

Ingredients:

2 tsp canola oil

1 chicken breast

salt and pepper

1 tbsp peanut oil

1 onion (cut into slices, then cut slices in half)

1 red bell pepper, chopped

3 baby bok choy (separate leaves from stem. Thinly slice leafy portions. Roughly chop bok choy stems. Keep leafy portions and stems separate.)

1 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup + 1 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp chile paste with garlic

1 tbsp cornstarch

1 tbsp garlic, minced

hot, cooked rice

garnish- chopped peanuts (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat canola oil over medium-high heat. While heating, season chicken breast with salt and pepper. Cut chicken into bit-sized pieces. When pan is hot, add chicken. Sauté 4-5 minutes, or until chicken is browned and cooked through. Remove chicken from pan, keep warm. Wipe pan out.

2. Heat peanut oil over medium-high heat in same pan. Add onions, red pepper, and bok choy stems. Sauté 4-5 minutes, or until vegetables have begun to soften.

3. In a small bowl, combine chicken broth through garlic. Whisk to combine. Add sauce mixture to pan. Cook 2-3 minutes, or until sauce begins to thicken.

4. Add chicken and bok choy leaves to pan. Cook 1 minute, or until chicken is heated and bok choy leaves have wilted. Spoon over hot cooked rice, sprinkle with chopped peanuts. Serve immediately.

Linked to: Weekend Potluck

Sweet Chile Thai Dressing

Sometimes I can get a little bored with cooking. I feel like I've tasted everything there is to taste. In my head, I know this is beyond false. There are lots of things I've never tried. I think what's going on is I use the same flavor profiles over and over. Olive oil, garlic, crushed red pepper, basil, etc. I really need to branch out more.

The point is that last night I tried something different. It was (not to brag here) awesome. It was this Thai Crunch Chicken Salad, adapted from a Smells Like Home recipe. I was actually going to blog about it today, but none of the pictures I took last night turned out. They were not appetizing photos. The hubby took the leftovers for lunch today, so I had no second chances either. However, the hubby loved it so much he informed me that he has added this to his list of favorites. High praise from the hubby! So have no fear, I'll be making this salad again and taking much better pictures.

I (unselfishly) offered the hubby the leftovers to take to work for lunch, while I myself woke up today wishing I had those leftovers. Drooling, even. No such luck on leftovers, but if I could have had Scotty beam me over to the hubby's work so I could steal the tupperware... Let's just say the hubby would not have had a lunch today.

This dressing is very versatile. You could use it on a regular salad, to toss vegetables in, as a sauce on meat, or in a stir fry. I used some today for a brown rice lunch bowl. My only advice is that if you are using this as a stir fry sauce, add 1-2 tsp of cornstarch to the dressing before you put it in the pan. It gets a little thin when heated.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sweet chile sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp lime juice

Directions:

1. Combine sweet chile sauce through lime juice in a bowl. Vigorously whisk ingredients together until smooth.
2. Serve!

Recipe adapted from Smells Like Home.

Top 10 List: Pasta

It's been a busy week. Doctor's appointments, vet appointments, the hubby had a couple of days off. There's just been no time to blog! Plus, we just got the Internet back after 24 hours without ANY. Gotta love livin' in the country :)

Thanks to Pinterest, I've been seeing a lot of pasta. Pasta makes my world go round. I could eat pasta morning, noon, and night. I love the texture, the way it tastes, its easy versatility, and the fact that almost anything could go with pasta. To that effect, here are my top 10 favorite pasta dishes. Tried and tested. Craved constantly. Delicious.

In no particular order:

Beef and Broccoli Lo Mein

1. Beef and Broccoli Lo Mein- Need I say more? I love Asian food, and this recipe tops the list. I frequently sub the beef for chicken, shrimp, or pork. The sauce is fantastic, and goes with almost any protein.

Bacon Mac

2. I love homemade macaroni and cheese. This is ironic, because when I was a child, I wouldn't touch homemade mac and cheese. I was a blue-box-of-Kraft kind of girl. My taste has pretty much flip-flopped, and now I turn up my nose at the boxed kind. What I like most about this recipe is the flavor that the small amount of bacon lends to the dish. I also love the peas thrown in for some extra color and veg.

Fettucine with Olive Oil and Red Pepper

3. This is one of the simplest recipes you'll find, but it's packed full of flavor. This is my go-to side dish for Chicken Parmigiana.

Gemelli with Broccoli, Bacon, and Chickpeas

4. Another crazy easy dish! Olive oil and pasta were made for each other. I actually prefer an olive oil based sauce, to a cream based sauce.

Shrimp Florentine

5. Umm, I'm sensing a theme here, and it's olive oil and pasta! Shrimp, spinach, and lemon are soooo good together.

Pad Thai

6. Pad thai is such a unique dish, and I love every aspect of it. Crunchy bean sprouts. Bits of fried egg. Salty peanuts. That sauce that is distinctly Pad Thai. Guarantee I will be making this soon, now that I've been thinking about it.

Spaghetti Carbonara

7. Well, I think I've made it crystal clear that I also love the combination of bacon and pasta. This is one of my hubby's favorites, and a go-to, fast, and easy recipe in our house.

Orecchiette with Roasted Peppers, Tomatoes, and Arugula

8. This is a perfect summer dish for when tomatoes, peppers, and arugula are at their peak of freshness. If you've never had orecchiette pasta before, I highly recommend it. The texture is amazing.

Chicken and Mushrooms in Garlic White Wine Sauce

9. Referred to as Chicken Stroganoff in our house, this recipe is tried and true. It's almost impossible to mess it up, and looks downright fancy. It also comes together in a snap.

Ravioli with Roasted Zucchini

10. What would a pasta list be like without some sort of cheese-filled pasta? Not a very good one, in my opinion :) You can make fresh raviolis if you like, or use a pre-made ravioli from the grocery store for a quicker meal.

Man, I'm wishing pasta was on the menu tonight :) 

Have a great weekend everyone!

My Favorite Chicken Dishes

I got my Cooking Light in the mail this week, and very eagerly dived in. Per usual. As I get closer and closer to moving into my new house and my new kitchen, the more and more I think about food. I can't wait to bake my first batch of cookies in the house, and frost my first cupcakes. To roast my first chicken, and to simmer my first batch of chicken broth all night. To sit down at our dining room table in our new dining nook in the bright Kentucky sunshine, and enjoy dinner with the hubby. We haven't had room in a house for our dining room table since we lived in our first apartment together, which we moved out of a couple days before we got married. The excitement is getting harder and harder to keep a handle on.

There was a big feature on chicken in Cooking Light this month. This, of course, got me thinking about my favorite chicken dishes. I love chicken. As far as proteins go, boneless skinless chicken breast is very healthy. It can also be incredibly tender, versatile, and packed with flavor. I actually had a hard time picking out my favorites, as my mind wandered off on this particular tangent. There are a couple of dishes that stand slightly taller than all the rest :) In no particular order (because I just tried to put them in order, and that didn't work so well):

5. Chicken Parmesan

www.skinnytaste.com

Ah, chicken parm. How can you not like a chicken breast breaded, seared, and then baked with sauce and cheese? This is one of my favorite dishes to make in the winter. It feels a bit heavy for summer, but this is serious comfort food when the weather is 30 degrees and the ground is covered in snow.

4. Chicken Lo Mein

www.ifood.tv.com

Simply because I love noodles. And soy sauce. And vegetables. Oh, but how I love those Asian noodles. Lo mein is my favorite Asian dish, and gets heavy rotation in my kitchen. I love this dish with shrimp, but chicken makes a much more affordable dinner.

3. Chicken Soft Tacos

www.nourishingmeals.com

I would probably eat anything that came in soft taco form. In my opinion, there is hardly anything not made perfect with a tortilla, cheese, and some salsa. I make tons of different tacos, but my hands-down-favorite and go-to is chicken. Argh, now I want salsa!

2. Chicken and Dumplings

www.myrecipes.com

Again, you can't go wrong with this down-home, Southern classic. I personally like an updated version with celery, carrots, and peas, rather than the standard chicken, broth/gravy, and dumplings. I especially like to sprinkle parsley on mine. There's something about those fresh colors that makes my mouth water.

1. Chicken Souvlaki with Tzatiki Sauce

www.myrecipes.com

Well, I think my choices are certainly diverse! I cover a good portion of the planet with my faves. Chicken Souvlaki is soooo healthy, but you would never know it by how good it tastes. Chicken is marinated in olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and salt for a good couple of hours before tossing it on the grill. The best part is the Tzatiki dipping sauce, also extremely healthy. I make mine from Greek yogurt, shredded cucumber, garlic, lemon juice, and salt. Combined with the chicken, this combination is a flavor explosion. Maybe this is my favorite chicken dish :)

Awww, now I'm hungry!

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Kung Pao Shrimp Rice Bowls

The cleaning out of the freezer continues...

Tuesday's nights dinner used a couple of items from the freezer. I used some frozen shrimp and then threw in a bag of frozen broccoli for good measure. The meal ended up being quite tasty. It's always easy to come up with good results with a stir fry. Really, it's just sautéing the veggies to your desired tenderness, and adding a flavorful sauce. It all comes down to science :)

The recipe I used didn't call for broccoli but I added some for more veggies. I also doubled the sauce, because well, we like sauce! I always feel with Cooking Light recipes that the sauce is never enough.

The results? Completely edible :)

Some freshies. Minced garlic, roughly chopped peanuts, chopped red pepper, and chopped celery. I love all the crunch in this dish.

Some ingredients for a flavorful sauce. I actually left out the salt. I figured there was enough saltiness from the soy sauce. I was right. Chile garlic sauce, rice vinegar, sherry, soy sauce, and homemade chicken broth.

Whisked into a pretty, shiny sauce.

I like to coat the shrimp with cornstarch, salt, and pepper, and then sear them for a very short amount of time. They are finished in this short cooking time, so I remove them from the pan and add them back at the very end of the dish.

I add all the veggies, the chopped peanuts, and the garlic next. Stir fry for a couple of minutes, until the veggies are tender.

Add in the broth mixture, and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until it begins to thicken up. At this point, I turn off the heat and add the shrimp. Toss to combine. Serve over hot cooked rice, drizzling pan sauce over the rice for maximum flavor.

Ingredients:
1 lb large shrimp
2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tbsp soy sauce
3 tsp sherry
2 tsp rice vinegar
1/2-1 tsp chile garlic sauce
2 tbsp peanut oil, divided
1 1/2 cups celery, chopped
1 cup red pepper, chopped
1 (12 oz) bag of frozen broccoli, defrosted
1/4 cup peanuts, roughly chopped
1 tbsp garlic, minced
hot cooked rice

Directions:
1. In a large Ziploc bag, combine shrimp, cornstarch, salt, and pepper. Shake to coat. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, combine chicken broth through chile garlic sauce. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
3. Heat 1 tbsp peanut oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. When hot, add shrimp. Sear 30 seconds-1 minute on each side, remove from pan. When shrimp are cooked, set aside.
4. Heat remaining tbsp peanut oil in pan. Add celery through garlic to the pan. Stir fry for 4-5 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Add broth mixture to the pan, cook for 2-3 minutes or until broth mixture begins to thicken. Remove pan from heat, and stir in the shrimp. Serve immediately over hot cooked rice.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light