Chicken/Turkey and pasta with peanut sauce

6 ounces fettuccine or linguine                 
2 cups fresh pea pods                                                       
1 cup turkey or chicken strips                                              
1 cup pineapple chunks                                                      
1 red pepper sliced                                                         
1/4 cup chicken broth                                                       
2 T creamy peanut butter                                                  
1 T soy sauce                                                             
1 T lime or lemon juice                                                   
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper                                                 
1 clove of garlic minced                                                    


Pre cook turkey or chicken any way you want. I just boiled mine.                                                                           Cook pasta according to package directions.                                                                                                            Place pea pods, chicken and red pepper in a large colander.  Pour hot cooking liquid from pasta over pea pods etc, in colander, drain.               
Return pasta mixture to hot pan.  Add pineapple.                                                                                                       For sauce, in a small saucepan stir chicken broth into peanut butter.                                                                             Heat and stir with a whisk until peanut butter melts.  Stir in soy sauce, lime juice, red pepper, and garlic; heat through. Add sauce to pasta mixture.  Gently stir to coat pasta with sauce.                                                    




Kody got this recipe from a co-worker. It was oh-so-delicious! I quadrupled the sauce because I used a little more pasta then what it called for. However, go easy on the crushed red pepper flakes as it adds a lot of spicy hot. I made the mistake of adding too much. Also, we didn't add the pineapple because neither of us really like 'warmed pineapple'. 

sweet chicken bacon wraps

found on foodnetwork.com

made these for the super bowl yesterday. They were a huge hit. Who doesn't love bacon?! 

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless, chicken breasts (about 4 breasts) 
• 1 (1-pound) package sliced bacon
• 2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons chili powder

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut chicken breasts into 1-inch cubes. Cut each bacon slice into thirds. Wrap each chicken cube with bacon and secure with a wooden pick. Stir together brown sugar and chili powder. Dredge wrapped chicken in mixture. Coat a rack and broiler pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place chicken wrap on rack in broiler pan. Bake 350 for 30 to 35 minutes or until bacon is crisp.

I used 6 chicken breasts and the brown sugar/chili powder mixture was plenty. Also, it seemed to take a lot longer to cook in my oven (maybe 45 minutes?) not sure if it was because I put so many on the pan or if my oven was being lame-o. Just make sure the chicken is cooked all the way through before serving them. obviously. 

Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce

This is my favorite recipe right now. Delicious. Easy. Low carb (well, except for the part where you pour it over rice...)

Adapted from the ever-handy mykitchencafe.blogspot.com:

3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 teaspoons curry powder (yellow)
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1/4 t chili powder
1 medium red onion, cut julienne
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 T olive oil
1 14-oz can coconut milk (I use "light" when I care about calories)
1 T dried basil
1 t fresh grated/chopped ginger

Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Place in medium bowl. Stir together curry, salt, pepper and chili powder. Sprinkle over chicken, tossing to coat evenly. Cover and chill for 3o min to an hour.

In a large nonstick frying pan, stir onion, basil, and garlic in hot oil over medium high heat for 3-4 minutes, until onion is translucent. Add chicken and cook for 5-6 minutes until no longer pink.

Add coconut milk. Cook and stir until bubbly. Stir in ginger. Cook and stir another minute or so. Serve over hot rice.

Super Simple Chicken Tacos

I found this uber simple recipe in the REAL SIMPLE magazine. :0)

Purchase a Rotissiere Chicken and shred the chicken from the bones and skin.
Place shredded chicken in a frying/sauce pan and add about 2 cups of salsa. Heat through.
You can use soft shell (Kodison favorite) or hard shell (which I prefer).
Garnish the taco with slices of avocado, sour cream, cilantro, monterey jack cheese, and several squeezes of lime. Lime is the key and adds the perfect flavor so I prefer not to skimp on the lime. :0) Plus, who doesn't love the flavor of lime. Mmm...

Chicken Pot Pie

I was asking around for some yummy recipes and one of my co-workers sent me this link. I'll be honest, I was a bit skeptical at first but we tried it out last night and OH BOY was it DELICIOUS!!! The only thing I would do different next time {besides maybe shake up the variety of veggies} is put them into individual, small dishes. Try it out!

easy chicken recipes

I've been trying to be frugal and only cook with stuff I have on hand so I've needed some easy chicken recipes since they have been having a killer chicken sale here at the local Harris Teeter (yes that is the name of the grocery store here in NC--welcome to the South!) Anyway, here are two I did last week courtesy of My Kitchen Cafe. Both were very easy and quite delicious.

Foil packet dinner with chicken
(This one was soooo easy and quick!)

Foil Packet Chicken with Snow Peas and Carrots
*Makes 4-6 foil packets, depending on how small you make each one*

18-24 baby carrots
2 cups sugar snap peas
1 (1-inch) piece of fresh gingerroot, peeled and grated (I grated mine on my microplane)
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped or pressed through a garlic press
Salt and pepper
4 small chicken breasts ( about 1 ½ pounds), trimmed (with large, thick chicken breasts, I cut them in half by butterflying them and cutting all the way through to make two thinner cuts of chicken - this helps the chicken cook quicker and helps your chicken to go further)
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Cut 4 pieces of aluminum foil (heavy duty) about 12 inches square (if you don't have heavy-duty aluminum foil, use two pieces of regular aluminum foil for each packet). In a small bowl, combine garlic and ginger (I used my fingers to gently mash them together).

Arrange the carrots and peas on the aluminum foil. Sprinkle with the ginger/garlic mixture (this doesn't sprinkle like salt and pepper so don't worry if you get a clump here and there - the flavors will absorb while baking), and salt and pepper to taste. Brush the chicken on both sides with the hoisin sauce. Top each portion of vegetables with a piece of chicken. Salt lightly.

Bring opposite sides of the foil up to meet over the chicken. Fold the edges together in a ¼-inch fold, and then fold over 3 more times. Fold the open edges at either end of the packet together in a ¼-inch fold, and then fold over twice again to seal.

Put the foil packets on a baking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes. Transfer the contents of each packet to a dinner plate and serve.


Easy Chicken Tacos

Easy Chicken Tacos
Printable Version


If I had to do this one over I would do my tortillas a-la Uncle Jeff, white corn tortillas, butter, cheese in the middle, etc... The flour tortilla with this underwhelmed me but I thought the meat was extremely tasty.

*Serves 6

3 tablespoons butter
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (you can find these in the Mexican Foods aisle at most grocery stores)
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
Salt and pepper
12 (6-inch) flour tortillas

Melt the butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and chipotle and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the orange juice, Worcestershire sauce and 1/2 cup chopped cilantro and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the chicken and simmer, covered, over medium-low heat for 12-13 minutes, flipping the chicken halfway through cooking. When the chicken is done cooking, transfer to a plate and tent with foil.

Increase the heat to medium-high and cook the mixture left in the skillet until the liquid is reduced to about 1/4 cup, about 5 minutes. Off the heat, whisk in the yellow mustard. Using 2 forks, shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces and return to the skillet. Add the remaining cilantro to the skillet and toss until well combined. Season with salt and pepper. Serve warm with tortillas topped with lettuce, cheese, tomato, sour cream and avocado.

**To warm the tortillas, wrap them in foil and heat in a 350-degree oven for 15 minutes.

GARLIC CHICKEN FARFALLE

I made this for Lacy and Dave when I went down a few weeks ago. I hadn't ever made it before but I have to say I found it to be really delicious. I found it one day whilst blog surfing, I wish I could remember where so I could give them credit. One note on the bacon. If you cook it on a cookie cooling rack it drains off most of the grease.

16 oz. Farfalle pasta
1 c. heavy whipping cream
3-4 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)
2 to 3 cloves garlic, crushed OR garlic salt (I do a spoonful of crushed garlic)
1 Tbsp. pepper*
1/2 c. butter
1 lb. bacon, crumpled**
1/2 c. shredded Parmesan cheese
1 (12 oz) Lawry’s mesquite marinade with lime juice

*Seems like a lot of pepper, but it has a wonderful flavor when everything mixes together. If you're apprehensive, do less pepper. You can always add more.

**We like to cook our bacon in the oven (400 degrees, convection). Way less messy. And it's crispy every time. Time varies, so you just have to watch it. I think it's usually around 30 minutes. Allow to cool and then crumple (I totally wear disposable gloves for this part - surprise, surprise).

[ directions ]

Crock pot chicken and bottle of marinade on low for 6 hours. Pull marinated chicken out of the juices, allow to cool a little bit, and shred (I pull it apart). Set this aside. About a half-hour before serving, boil the pasta. In a small saucepan, melt butter, add garlic, whipping cream, pepper, parmesan cheese, and crumpled bacon. Whisk together on low heat for 3-4 minutes. In a large bowl, pour over cooked, drained pasta, add chicken and stir through. Sprinkle a little bit more shredded parmesan cheese on top.

curry chicken

2 cloves of minced garlic
1 white onion
2 T sugar
1 can coconut milk
1/8 c (yellow) curry powder (more or less, depending on your taste for it)
4 large chicken breasts, cubed
3 large potatoes, peeled and cubed
cashews or peanuts (optional)

In a large saucepan, sautee garlic and onion in butter. Add coconut milk + 3/4 can of water, sugar, and curry powder. When sauce is blended, add potatoes and chicken. Cook for 20 min. or until potatoes are soft and chicken is cooked through. Add nuts for last 5 min or so.

Serve over rice.

Tomato Chicken Fettuccine

This is a great crockpot recipe I gleaned from a friend:

3 chicken breasts (frozen works fine)
2 cans stewed tomatoes
1 bunch green onions, chopped
oregano
basil
2 cloves garlic, minced

Cook in crockpot on low for 5-8 hours
During the last hour, combine and add:

1 pint whipping cream
3 eggs
1-2 c. Parmesan cheese

Serve over fettuccine noodles

Four Corners Chicken and Pasta

A BYU Skyroom Restaurant recipe and one we used in RS at last years VT conference.

Serves 4 (so will need to adjust proportions accordingly)

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
8 oz. dry penne pasta
1 yellow onion, sliced
1 large tomato, diced
1 small bunch cilantro

Southwestern Pasta Sauce

5 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup flour
2 1/1 cup half and half cream
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 ounces processed Swiss cheese slices
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1 Tablespoon canned chipotle peppers, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

Grill chicken and slice into thin strips. Cook and drain pasta. Slowly cook onion in a little oil until onion is a rich brown.
Prepare the sauce: Melt butter; add flour. Stir until well combined. Add half and half, salt, and pepper. Stir with a whisk and continue cooking over medium low heat until sauce is thickened and bubbly. Add cheese and stir until blended. Add sour cream and mix well. Add chipotle peppers (chipotle peppers are hot; add more or less to taste) and chopped cilantro.

Pour four cups of the pasta sauce into a heated saute pan. Add pasta and chicken; toss to coat.

After mixture is heated through, pour into a serving bowl. Garnish with chopped tomatoes, caramelized onions, and cilantro.

Cheesy Chicken Rolls

Ingredients:

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast (4)
Mushrooms (6 or 7 large)
Green onion (4)
Sour cream (approx 1 1/2 Cup)
Mozarella Cheese (approx 3/4 cup)



Directions:

Place chicken breast between two pieces of saran wrap. Pound flat (approx 1"). Set aside. Cut up mushrooms and green onion. Combine all ingredients into a bowl


Place a spoonful of mixture in the middle of chicken. Roll and place seam side down onto a 9x12 baking dish. Once all chicken has been placed put remaining mixture on top

Bake at 350 degrees for between 1 hour and 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Sunday Dinner at our house

We all met after Sacrament meeting for Sunday dinner. Only it was a special dinner as we were marking the occasion. Cate was blessed today. I baked these little cookies and placed them on each plate. See what I wrote.


Blessed. That one word seemed appropriate but confusing for some. Ld announced he was going to say the blessing and Janny piped up: "Oh, I thought the word Blessed meant the food was already prayed over".

Great idea, janny. I will take up writing on our food blessed or not blessed from now on.

Anyway, I made these Brown Sugar Cookies to celebrate. The original recipe is one from the Friend, only it was called Rainbow Cookies. We used it in YW as I recall to make temple cut out cookies back in the day. I like this recipe as it is sturdy enough to cut out, uses real butter and turns a golden color, which is important if you want the frosting contrasted. Plus, sometimes I get tired of just regular Sugar Cookies.

Here’s the recipe.

Note: Be sure to roll out the cookies directly on the back of the cookie sheets and bake them without transferring them. (Provided of course that you have a quality cookie sheet) You’ll get a cleaner shape than if you pick them up. I’ve done it this way for as long as I can remember.

Kitchen Krafts,” Friend, Apr 1984, 23
1 cup soft butter or margarine

3/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups flour 

1/2 teaspoon soda

1/2 teaspoon salt 

Cream together butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla.
Stir flour, soda, and salt together, then add to creamed mixture. Mix well.
Roll out, cut in shapes.
Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 375° F for about 7 minutes.


The rest of the menu

I let Kenz pick out the menu as it was really her day (well Cate’s too). She choose her fav Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas (original recipe from Aunt Kathleen) along with Broccoli, Green Salad, Homemade Rolls, Strawberries and Cantaloupe, and Key Lime Pie.

Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

1 chicken boiled and deboned

Mix chicken with:
1 can cream of chicken soup, pint of sour cream, I small onion diced, diced chilis.

Fry about 1 ½ dozen tortillas. Fill with meat, roll. Cover with grated cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 min. Serves 6-8.


Meghan and Kody licking their chops in anticipation : )

Lion House Dinner Rolls

2 tablespoons dry yeast (2 packets)
2 cups warm water (110-115 degrees)
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter
2 ½ teaspoons salt
2/3 cup nonfat dry milk
5 to 6 cups flour
1 egg

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, combine yeast and water. Let stand 5 minutes. Add sugar, shortening, salt, dry milk, 2 cups flour, and egg. Beat together until very smooth. Add 2 more cups flour, one at a time, and beat until smooth.

Add about one more cup flour, ½ cup at a time (in your mixer if it will take it, or by hand), until it is well mixed in. Turn dough onto a lightly floured board and knead until it is smooth and satiny. Gather dough into a ball. Scrape bowl clean and grease it with shortening/butter. Return dough to bowl and grease surface lightly. Let rise away from drafts in a warm (not hot) place until about triple in bulk. (In a cool oven with a pan of hot water on a rack under it is a good place.)

Use last of the flour as needed on the board for rolling and shaping the dough. (Don’t use it all unless you need it.) Let dough rest on board for 10 minutes so it will be easier to manage if you roll it. Cut or mold into desired shapes. Place on greased baking sheets. Brush surface of rolls with melted butter. Let rise in warm place until ready for oven (about 1 ½ hours). Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes, or until browned. Makes about 5 dozen rolls.

Note: The entire mixing process may be done by hand. It takes through beating and kneading to develop the gluten in the dough. Soft dough makes lighter, more tender rolls. This small version of the Lion House recipe makes a soft dough, but on that can be handled. Any soft dough can be managed more easily if it is refrigerated overnight before rolling and shaping. Always add flour gradually, and keep dough as soft as you can handle it.

Honey-Glazed Chicken Stir-Fry

Honey-Glazed Chicken Stir-Fry

Start to Finish: 25 Min. Makes: 4 Servings

• 12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thighs
• 2 T honey
• 2 T vinegar
• 2 T Orange Juice
• 4 t soy sauce
• 1 1/2 t Corn Starch
• 2 T cooking oil
• 4 C cut up veggies (ie. broccoli, sweet pepper, onion, and or/ mushrooms)
• 2 C Hot cooked rice

1. Cut chicken into bite sized strips, set aside. For sauce, in a small bowl stir together honey, vinegar, OJ, Soy, and corn starch, set aside.
2. Pour oil into wok or large skillet. Heat over med. heat. Add veggies to wok; cook and stir for 3-4 min. or until veggies are crisp-tender. Remove veggies from wok. Add chicken, cook and stir for 3-4 min or until chicken is no longer pink. Push chicken from the center of the wok. Stir sauce, add to center of wok. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.
3. Return veggies and stir about 1 min. or until heated. Serve over rice!!

That is it! So simply and yummy. Okay just in case you don't use the same abbreviations.

T = Table spoons

t = teaspoons

C = cups

OJ = orange juice

Try it and let me know how you like it. Feel free to share easy recipe's with me too. Just so you know I don't eat pork, lamb, sausage, veil, ferret, pigeon, etc. I stick with Chicken and beef.

Sunday Dinner at my house

I meant to post a pic of the tetrazzini before we all chowed down on it but I got distracted, besides everyone was hungry. I will do better next time, with the pic taking I mean.

The menu:

• Chicken Tetrazinni
• Rigatoni (ordinarily I don’t fix two main courses but did so for B.Gomer as he doesn’t like mushrooms and the Tetrazinni had some in it. I know, I know, I spoil my chillun’s)
• Green Salad
• Three Bean Salad
• French Bread
• Mango Juice (with little frozen juice cups that I freeze in my muffin tins)
• Pineapple Cake I sorta made up (white cake, with whipped cream and ½ cup sour cream with little bit of powdered sugar and a can of pineapple)
• Strawberry Ice Cream (storebought, it wasn’t that good, and I forgot Megs doesn’t like Strawberry Ice Cream)


Verdict: I thought the Tetrazinni quite good, although the comment ‘we used to call this Tuna Noodle Casserole when I was growing up’ was quite unappreciated and belays an unsophisticated food palette. Really, ld, there’s a discernable difference. Hmmph!

At any rate here are the recipes. I am always looking for make ahead stuff because Sundays are busy at our house and I’m always flustered. If dinner isn’t mostly prepared before church, it ain’t happenin’.

Chicken Tetrazzini

Serves 8-10

9 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons olive oil
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (but I used leftover roasted chicken)
2 ¼ teaspoons salt
1 ¼ teaspoons pepper
1 pound white mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, chopped ( I put onion in my food processor as some fam members won’t eat it if the chunks are too big)
5 cloves garlic, minced (I have a big jar of Costco’s minced garlic that I keep in my fridge, It’s the only way to go)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves (I used 1 tsp. dried)
½ cup dry white wine (obviously, I didn’t use this, used broth instead)
1/3 cup flour
4 cups whole milk, at room temp
1 cup heavy whipping cream, at room temp ( I know, I know, you’ll wear this on your hips)
1 cup chicken broth
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
12 ounces linguine or penne
¾ cup frozen peas (I put in about a cup and a half, as I really like peas)
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley leaves (I used dried)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup dried Italian style breadcrumbs (I used chopped up croutons that I mashed up with a 15 pound dumbbell as I ran out of breadcrumbs)

Preheat oven to 450 (yeah, that hot). Spread 1 tablespoon butter over 13 by 9 baking dish. Melt 1 tablespoon each of butter and oil in frying pan over medium high heat. Sprinkle the chicken with ½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Add the chicken to the pan and cook until just cooked through, about 4 min. Transfer chicken to a plate to cool a bit. Coarsely shred the chicken into bite-size pieces and into a large bowl.

Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon each of butter and oil to the same pan. Add the mushrooms and sauté over med high heat until the mushrooms became pale golden, about 12 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, and thyme, and sauté until onion is clear. Add the wine (or whatever you are substituting with) and simmer until it evaporates, about 2 min. Transfer the mushroom mixture to the bowl with the chidken.

Melt 3 more tablespoons butter in the same pan over medium-low heat. Add the flour and whisk for 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk, cream, broth, nutmeg, remaining 1 3/4 teaspoons salt, and remaining 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Increase heat to high. Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer, uncovered, until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 10 minutes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine or penne and cook until it is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 9 minutes. Drain. Add the linguine, sauce, peas, and parsley to the chicken mixture. Toss until the sauce coats the pasta and the mixture is well blended. Transfer the pasta mixture to the prepared baking dish. (Can assemble ahead to this point).

Stir the cheese and breadcrumbs in a small bowl to blend. Sprinkle the cheese mixture over the pasta. Dot with the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter. Bake, uncovered, until golden brown on top and the sauce bubbles, about 25 minutes.

________________________________

Baked Rigatoni

Serves 8-10

1 pound dry ziti pasta or rigatoni
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound lean ground beef
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 (26 ounces each) jars spaghetti sauce (such as Classico or Barilla)
6 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
1 1/2 cups sour cream
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.
Add pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes; drain.

In a large skillet, brown onion, garlic and ground beef over
medium heat. Season with salt and pepper. Add spaghetti sauce, and simmer about 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350.

Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish. Layer as follows: 1/2 of the
ziti, all the Provolone cheese and sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture,
remaining ziti or rigatoni, mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce mixture.
Top with grated Parmesan cheese. Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until cheeses are melted.