Quick and Easy Garlic Balsamic Chicken

Super quick and easy (but yummy!) chicken... it tastes a little like Chicken Marsala and is absolutely delicious!!!!

Here is the original recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chicken-breasts-with-balsamic-vinegar-and-garlic/Detail.aspx I read all the reviews and simplified it accordingly!

• Ingredients:
• 
  
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3/4 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 tablespoon butter

Directions:

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Rinse the mushrooms and pat dry. Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat and saute the chicken until it is nicely browned on one side (about 3 minutes).
2. Add the garlic. Turn the chicken breasts and scatter the mushrooms over them. Continue frying, shaking the skillet and stirring the mushrooms. Cook for about 3 minutes, then add the vinegar, broth, bay leaf and thyme. Cover tightly and simmer over medium low heat for 10 minutes, turning occasionally.
3. Transfer the chicken to a warm serving platter and cover with foil. Set aside. Continue simmering the sauce, uncovered, over medium high heat for about 7 minutes. Swirl in the butter or margarine and discard the bay leaf. Pour this mushroom sauce mixture over the chicken and serve.

Spinach & Ricotta Stuffed Chicken

I love this. It taste completely decadent, but is not a calorie suicide like most Italian meals. I saw multiple recipes online, but it was very easy to adapt to a healthier version. Please excuse my lack of exact measurements...it is really up to your preference. You just need:

Chicken Breast
Frozen Spinach (defrosted)
Fat Free or Low Fat Ricotta Cheese
Italian Seasoning
1 Garlic Clove
Marinara Sauce

Just cut your chicken breast in half to butterfly it. In a separate bowl make your filling by combining the spinach, ricotta, Italian seasoning, and minced garlic clove. As I said before, the amounts are pretty much up to your taste.
Put your filling on top of one side of the butterflied breast, then place the other half back on top (I am sure you could just pound it down as well then fold, this was just easier to me).
Drizzle a little EVOO on top to keep it from burning, and then bake on 350 for about 25 minutes.
When it is still really hot, cover with the marinara sauce and let it sit for a few minutes to cool and settle.

Gary and I shared 1 chicken breast and it was satisfying because of the filling.

Pasta with Italian Sausage and Greens

So I have no clever name for this dish, but it is delicious and oh-so-nutritious. I got the recipe from a friend's blog, and made some adjustments to it to better fit my taste. Anytime Gary and I make pasta we try to overload it with veggies. Well, on a mission to fix a long standing Vitamin K deficiency I have had before I have to start getting shots (ouch!), we are on a leafy-green diet overhaul. Hence the spinach shakes for breakfast....
You can use any kind of greens you want, I used these just because I like them. I really did not measure the greens, I just put in as much as I could b/c I like to sneak them in.
Kale is an incredibly leafy green I have never used before, but it is so incredibly nutrient and Vitamin K rich I decided to try it tonight.

12 oz. penne pasta (I used the Ronzoni Healthy Harvest Whole Wheat)
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 lb. sweet Italian turkey sausage- casings removed
1 pint grape tomatoes
1 large onion, thinly sliced, rings roughly separated
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
kosher salt, to taste
Kale (I used a whole "bunch")
Spinach (a few cups)
freshly ground pepper


Boil large pot of water and cook pasta to al dente while preparing the sauce. When pasta finishes cooking, reserve two cups of the pasta water before draining.


Heat garlic and olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and brown, breaking it up into crumbles with a wooden spoon. Add onion slices and saute until transparent, a little over five minutes. Add tomatoes, red pepper and a pinch of salt. Saute for about five minutes then stir to break up the tomatoes a bit. Add half the greens and stir to wilt it.

Drain the pasta and add it to the pan with the sausage sauce. Raise the heat to high and stir to combine pasta with the juices. Add half the reserved water and stir well. Add the remaining greens one handful at a time until all is wilted and incorporated into the dish. Add the remaining reserved water and cheese, stir well to combine the cheese into the sauce.

I put a bit of Parmesan on top when it was done. This was yummy, healthy, and very easy!

Sunday Splurge... On Hand Alfredo

So... in just 2 weeks, you should already be sensing a pattern... When we splurge on a calorie-rich meal, it tends to involve lots of cheesy, creamy sauces and wine....

I hadn't actually planned on a splurge this weekend, but when I asked my uber-stressed out hubby what he wanted for dinner, he requested pasta and Alfredo sauce... so I figured why not? The problem was, I did not have cream cheese or heavy cream (my two usual bases for Alfredo recipes) on hand, so I began a search for a recipe that didn't call for either. I ended up discovering a fabulous new sauce recipe that is destined to become a new favorite (I like it better than last week's, so that ought to tell you something!) The best part is, I made the whole thing with ingredients that I almost always have on hand in my fridge.

4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup shredded Italian cheeses (Mozzarella, Romano, etc.)
1/2 cup Parmesano Reggiano cheese (or plain Parmesan)
3 tablespoons fresh or 1-2 tablespoons dried parsley
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup white wine
salt and pepper

Melt butter and add flour. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly to cook flour. Add cream and broth all at once and blend well. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until cheese has melted and sauce is smooth.

Pour over pasta (with chicken, shrimp, or pancetta if desired).

Additional cheese can be added to the topping, if desired. Bake in oven until cheese is golden brown.

Taco Chili

Since this is the first open-windows day of the year, I am celebrating with some yummy (and healthy!) chili. I got this recipe from weight watchers and have been meaning to back it up for some time now, so this is great.

Ingredients:

• 1lb 97% fat free ground turkey
• 1 chopped onion
• 2-3 garlic cloves
• 1 1/2 cups celery (not too finely chopped)
• 1 15oz can tomato sauce
• 1 small can diced green chilies
• 1 or 2 15oz cans of stewed tomatoes
• 4 16oz cans beans (mix or match pinto, black, kidney etc)
• 1 packet ranch dressing mix
• 1 Packet taco seasoning
  
• 2 teaspoons cumin (or more)
• 16oz bag frozen corn
• 1/2 cup water (optional- I usually don't need it after the canned tomatoes and beans)

Cooking Instructions:

Brown the turkey, add onions, garlic, and celery halfway through. One by one add the remaining ingredients. DON'T DRAIN ANYTHING. Heat through, simmer for a while if you like.

Fiesta Rice

You can have this as a side, or I like to add cheese and chicken and make it a bowl meal!

Yield

8 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen whole-kernel corn, thawed
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup chopped green onions
• 1 1/2 cups uncooked brown rice
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Dash of salt
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with chiles, undrained
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Preparation

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add corn to pan; cook 10 minutes or until corn starts to brown, stirring occasionally. Remove from pan. Set aside.

Melt butter in pan. Add onions; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in rice, cumin, and garlic; cook 1 minute. Add chicken broth, black pepper, salt, and diced tomatoes to pan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in reserved corn and beans. Cover and let stand 10 minutes. Stir in cilantro and juice.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 226 (16% from fat)

Fat: 3.9g (sat 1.3g,mono 1.7g,poly 0.7g)

Protein: 6.6g

Carbohydrate: 43.5g

Fiber: 4.9g

Fabulous Fajitas... No Grill Required!

(Pics courtesy of Recipe Zaar... I am not used to this whole blogging thing yet and forgot to take my own!!!!

Okay... so this was actually a mis-read of thel recipe on my part (oops!) in which I originally thought the whole recipe was meant to be made stove-top... Turns out the meat is actually meant to be grilled, but by the time I realized that, I had all the ingredients prepared and was in no mood (or state of dress) to hike out to the cabana grill that is currently our only option grill-wise. Sooo... I tried it all stove-top and was pleasantly surprised!

Here is the recipe (from Recipe Zaar): http://www.recipezaar.com/Chilis-Fajitas-8595

The only modification I made was stir-frying the meat on the stove in the same pan as the veggies. It turned out great!!! Hubby said they were better than the pre-marinated stuff we used to buy to grill! To complete the whole Chili's illusion, I went by their "To Go" counter this morning and picked up chips and salsa (waaaay more than you could ever eat at one meal!) for $3.00!

Chili's Fajitas Recipe #8595

Serve on flour tortillas with cheese, guacamole, sour cream, tomatoes, and lettuce.

SERVES 4

For the marinade

• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1/3 cup water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Meat

• 1 lb top sirloin steak or boneless skinless chicken breast

Vegetable sauce

• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon lime juice
• 1 dash salt
• 1 dash black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Vegetables

• 1 large Spanish onion, sliced thin
• 1/2 green pepper, sliced thin
• 1/2 red pepper, sliced thin
• 1/2 yellow pepper, sliced thin

1. Combine the lime juice, water, oil, garlic, soy sauce, salt, liquid smoke, cayenne pepper, black pepper and either the sirloin OR the chicken in a Tupperware container, cover, and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight.
2. Discard leftover marinade.
3. Grill meat over medium flame 4-5 minutes on each side.
4. Cut meat into thin strips.
5. Set aside and keep warm.
6. Combine the 2 Tbls. water, soy sauce, lime juice, salt, pepper and olive oil.
7. set aside.
8. cook onion and peppers in oil until brown.
9. remove from heat.
10. pour reserved mixture over onions and peppers.
11. combine meat, onions, and peppers.

The Recipe That Started It All... Veggie Lover's Chicken Soup

Believe it or not, our joint obsession over this simple little soup recipe is what prompted the entire concept of this blog... Cassie made the soup first with her own modifications... I tried it the next night making a few changes of my own... then Cassie made it AGAIN a different way... then I added more ingrediants into my leftovers... Basically, this one simple recipe has fed us for a week and sparked our collective cooking creativity...

Here is the original: http://family.go.com/food/recipe-ew-504823-vegetable-lover-s-chicken-soup-t/

But here is our (highly superior!) revision:

Yield: 6 bowls of soup (Cassie makes less at a time, so 1/2 the recipe if you choose! I like to have the leftovers to take to lunch at work)

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (enough to coat the bottom of your pot - you may need more if your veggies start to dry out or stick)

8 ounces chicken tenders , cut into bite-size chunks

2 cups finely diced veggies (I use zucchini, carrots, and celery; Cassie has also tried artichokes and broccoli... whatever you have/like seems to work just fine! If you use spinach, make sure not to add it until the end...)

1 large shallot , finely chopped (or 2-3 little ones)

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning blend

1/8 teaspoon salt (or garlic salt)

1 can italian style diced tomatos

32 ounces reduced-sodium chicken broth

1/2 cup dry white wine

4 tablespoons orzo or other tiny pasta, such as farfelline, or 4 tablespoons rice

Directions
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Add veggies, shallot, garlic, Italian seasoning and salt and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are softened. Add tomatoes, broth, wine and orzo (or other pasta or rice); increase heat to high and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the pasta/rice is tender, about 8 minutes, or according to package directions. Stir in spinach (if using), the cooked chicken and any accumulated juices from the chicken; cook, stirring, until the chicken is heated through, about 2 minutes.

This is great to eat off of for a few days and it supposed to freeze well too (haven't tried that yet!) Enjoy!

-Lauren