Super Simple Chicken

Last night, grilled chicken was on the menu, but when I stepped outside to grill, I found that my grill was out of order.
I was in a hurry, and so I threw this recipe together - just winging it with ingredients I had on hand.

I was surprised when my oldest daughter, followed by my second exclaimed how good this was! They both immediately asked me to post it here for posterity's sake (theirs). My husband got home a little later and he too really loved it. He and one of my kids took leftovers of this meal for their lunches today.

My jaw is still on the ground because it was so simple. I served it with roasted potatoes, and chimichurri sauce. 
Here's the recipe - for posterity's sake.

6-8 skinless, frozen chicken breasts
1 c. water
1/2 yellow onion - sliced
4 mushrooms, sliced
1/2 c. chopped red bell pepper
3 garlic cloves, chopped

Place chicken in cast iron pan over medium high heat.
Spread onions, mushrooms, peppers, and garlic over the top of the chicken.  Add 1/2-1 c. water, and cover with a lid (I use my pizza stone as a lid).
Cook for approximately 20 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink in the middle.
Check halfway through to make sure water hasn't boiled away. If it has, add more water.

Serve with roasted potatoes and chimichurri sauce - serve everything with chimichurri sauce :)

Copycat PF Chang's General Tso Chicken

I made this copycat PF Chang's General Tso Chicken for dinner last night and it got RAVE reviews - "Better than a restaurant, mom" kind of reviews. My pickiest eater had three servings - she stocks up on the stuff she likes, and picks at the stuff she doesn't, so that in itself is a recommendation on it's own.

Sauce:

4 Tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 cup cold water

3 minced garlic cloves

3 Tablespoons grated fresh ginger - strings and all

1.5 cups white sugar

2 Tablespoons molasses
3 Tablespoons sweet soy sauce (thick, and found at Asian stores)

4 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup chicken broth

1 teaspoon onion powder

Mix Sauce together, cover, and set aside in the fridge.

Chicken:

3-4 cups diced chicken breasts (no skin or bone, raw)

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1.5 cups oil for frying

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

3-4 red chili peppers - optional (there are many varieties - whatever is on hand)

Place flour, pepper, salt and pepper flakes in large ziplock bag.  Add chicken, seal, and shake until coated. 

Heat oil in wok, and place coated chicken pieces into hot oil.  Cook for 2-3 minutes, frying until cooked through, and as they begin to turn golden brown. Remove from oil, and drain on paper towel.  Repeat until all chicken pieces are cooked.  

Drain all but 1 Tablespoon of oil from wok (chicken debris is ok), and add chili peppers.  Heat for a few minutes, so that their skin can soften, and release the pepper oils.  Remove sauce from refrigerator, and slowly add to wok, stirring constantly, until it boils and thickens and combines.  

Remove from heat, and add chicken - stirring to coat. 

Serve over hot rice

Serves 8

Chicken pasta carbonara over kale

I'm in love.
Really.  I discovered kale a few weeks ago.
I made a kale smoothie, and after my normal 10 mile bike ride, I was feeling so good, I biked another 10.  All because of kale.
I was trying to find something my kids would like tonight and was looking around the Pioneer Woman blog, and saw her recipe for kale.  I hadn't tried it her way (with lots of garlic in the frying pan), and I LOVED it.
The following is a combination of a couple of her recipes, with a few twists of my own.  Yum.  I'll be making this one a lot.

12 ounces, weight Bowtie Pasta (farfalle)
4 Tablespoons Butter
4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, chopped
 Salt And Pepper, to taste
5 cloves Garlic, Minced
3/4 cups Low sodium Chicken Broth
1/2 cup Half-and-half
3 Tablespoons Heavy Cream
 Low Sodium Chicken Broth, As Needed For Thinning
3/4 cups Parmesan Shavings Or Grated Parmesan
1 t. nutmeg
3-5 strips cooked Bacon
Olive oil
3 cups kale

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

Salt and pepper both sides of the chicken breasts. Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts and cook until deep golden brown on both sides and done in the middle. Remove from the skillet, and set aside.

Add additional 2 tablespoons of butter to the skillet, followed by 2 minced garlic cloves. Stir the garlic around the pan to avoid burning, and cook for 1 minute. Pour in broth, then let it bubble up and reduce for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Add half-and-half, cream, and extra salt and pepper and nutmeg, whisking constantly until it's all combined. Allow liquid to heat up and thicken for a few minutes. If it gets too thick, you may thin it with a little chicken broth.

When the sauce looks good, remove it from the heat. Add Parmesan to the pan, then throw the hot pasta right on top of it. Toss it a bit. Add the chicken and continue tossing until it's all combined. Again, if it gets too gloppy, splash in a little broth (you may return the pan to low heat if it needs it.)

Meanwhile, In another pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and add remaining 3 minced garlic cloves. Stir until fragrant, then add kale.  Move kale around pan until cooked - this should only take a couple of minutes.  Salt to taste. 

Place kale on plate, and chicken and pasta directly on top of kale.  Crumble bacon over pasta and serve immediately!

Chicken and Basil Alfredo

One of my kids has recently developed a fascination with basil. She also loves chicken alfredo, so when I saw this recipe, it was a must try.

I have to admit that at first glance I was fairly dubious of this recipe. Traditionally, I've never made an alfredo sauce using cream cheese - that just seems like cheating, and doesn't give the same results. I was pleasantly surprised though with this recipe, and appreciated the time saved by not making the uber rich, more time intensive traditional sauce.

 

4 1/2 c. (12 oz.) short shape pasta
1 T. butter
1 lb. chicken, cut into chunks
1/2 t. garlic salt (or fresh garlic)
1 c. milk
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, coarsely cubed
2 t. dried basil leaves
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions: drain. In a skillet, melt butter, sprinkle chicken with garlic salt, (or add fresh garlic to butter), and cook chicken until no longer pink.

Add milk and heat until it boils. Stir in cream cheese and basil.

Reduce heat and continue stirring until cream cheese has melted.
Remove from heat, add Parmesan cheese.

Toss with hot pasta and serve immediately.

Chicken or steak fajitas

This is a simple, quick entree.

1 T. olive oil
2-3 c. thinly sliced chicken or steak
1 1/2 c. thinly sliced bell peppers
1 1/2 c. thinly sliced onions

Seasoning:
1 T. chili powder
1 T. cumin
1 t. garlic powder or fresh garlic
1 t. seasoned salt
1/2 t. ground black pepper
1-2 T. key lime juice

Heat oil in large skillet. Add chicken/steak, and then seasoning mixture, stirring often. Just before the meat is completely cooked, add 1 1/2 c. bell peppers - sliced into thin strips, and 1 1/2 c. onions - sliced into thin strips. Continue to cook for a few minutes until vegetables become almost translucent.

Serve on hot tortillas.