Chicken, Lettuce, and Avocado...Now, what's for dinner?

I took a quick inventory of what was in the kitchen and knew I needed to continue to include all of this lettuce somehow...I found a very ripe avocado, some frozen chicken and (of course) lettuce. What to do? What to do? Clearly, I needed some inspiration...came across this recipe from SteakNPotatoesKindaGurl.

It was delicious, but we grilled our chicken (and bacon...more about that in a bit) and I did a Creole rub for the chicken. The chicken ended up being too dry. Next time, I think I am going to soak it in a marinade....so this will be a recipe I "redo" in the coming weeks.

So, yes, we grilled our bacon!!!!!  It was amazingly delicious!!! I didn't think any improvement was needed from our weekend morning bacon, but now that we made it on the grill...I might have my husband fire up the grill every weekend from now on. All I did was put the pieces of bacon on a piece of aluminum foil and my husband put it on the top shelf. Cooked 2 1/2 minutes on each side. It was a new type of crispy.

This picture doesn't do the bacon ANY justice.

(All of the pictures for this post were taken with my camera phone...apologies for the fuzzy pictures)

So, the recipe that I followed is below. I already am thinking of some changes based on my own preferred taste. It was a very easy recipe and still quite yummy.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Avocado Bacon Dressing

Avocado Bacon Dressing
1 ripe avocado (mashed)
approximately 1/4 t. cajun seasoning (I used a bit more)

1 1/2 t. lemon juice

1/2 t. hot sauce

1/4 t. Worcestershire sauce

3 pieces of bacon (crumbled)

salt/pepper to taste

Grill the chicken (We grilled at 450 degrees for 3 minutes on each side)

Lay the chicken on romaine lettuce leaves.

Top with the Avocado Bacon dressing.

Picture was taken with my camera phone...and terrible planning with the background. Ah well.

My husband actually ate it as a wrap. I cut everything up and made it into a salad. A few bites in we both topped it with our homemade salsa. 

All in all...it was delicious. And, the grilled bacon...I still cannot say enough. YUM!

Another "fake" fried chicken...WHAT?!?!

My husband LOVES fried chicken. But, neither one of us want to look as though we have consumed a lot of fried chicken. We work hard at the gym and we don't want all of those sweaty minutes to go to waste. So, I found a recipe that used buttermilk to coat the chicken and instead of using buttermilk I used greek yogurt. The results were mighty, mighty tasty...if I do say so myself.

Faux Fried Chicken
Marinade Ingredients
1 c. plain greek yogurt
1 T. mustard
2 cloves minced garlic
salt and pepper

Whisk the above ingredients together and top chicken with it. Marinade for 2-3 hours.

Resealable Bag Ingredients ("It's Shake N Bake and I helped!" ~couldn't help but add this in!)
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 1/2 t. paprika
1 t. baking powder
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Remove chicken from marinade. Shake off excess marinade. Put chicken into bag and shake.

Cover baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place wire racks on baking sheet. Coat the wire racks with nonstick spray. Place chicken on wire racks.

Bake for 40 minutes. (half way through baking, flip chicken)

Summer Pasta Salad

This is a very versatile meal or side dish. It can be served hot or cold. The ingredients can be changed based on your own taste buds. All in all....it is the go to dish.

Summer Pasta Salad
Ingredients
4 c. spinach
5 oz. whole wheat/veggie pasta
1/3 c. roasted red pepper (sliced)
2 T. balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 extra virgin olive oil (divided)
2 c. sliced cherry tomatoes
2 T. mozzarella cheese
(optional: cooked chicken cubes)

Step by Step Directions
1. Drizzle half of the extra virgin olive oil in a pan on medium heat. Add the roasted red peppers. After a few minutes, add in the spinach. Cook the pasta according to package directions.

I love Trader Joe's!

2. Once the spinach wilts down, add in the chicken and the balsamic vinegar and the remaining extra virgin olive oil.

3. Drain the pasta. Pour the chicken and veggies over the pasta. Mix together.

4. Add in the sliced tomatoes. Top with mozzarella cheese.

Super Simple, Super Delicious Chicken

This recipe was one that surprised me. I didn't expect something to be so delicious after being so simple! Even the most kitchen challenged will be able to make this one. We cooked the chicken on the grill, but you can definitely make this on the stove top or even bake it. But, any way you make it, it is a MUST do! (now, originally, I found this recipe on Pinterest, but I cannot find it after quite the search, so a BIG shoutout to whoever deserves "props" for this one!)

What We Had for Dinner:

Simply Delicious Chicken
Ingredients
1 t. sea salt
1/2 t. pepper
1 t. sweet paprika
1 T. sugar
1 t. garlic salt
1 t. onion salt
1 t. parsley
2 T. unsalted butter
juice from a lemon
chicken breasts (thawed)

Step by Step Directions
1. In a resealable bag, combine the dry ingredients together.
2. If you are using the grill, melt the butter in the microwave and then pour into the resealable bag. Combine with the dry ingredients.
3. Flatten your chicken. I put the chicken between two paper towels on a cutting board and pound the chicken out with a meat mallet.
4. Put the chicken into the resealable bag. Add the lemon juice. Mix.

5. Once the grill is heated, grill for 6 minutes on one side and 4 on the other.

Stove Top Variation:
Melt the butter in a pan on medium-high heat. Coat the bottom of the pan and then add the chicken. Cover the chicken between flipping. Flip the meat once.

Chicken and Fettuccine in Tomato "Cream" Sauce

I have a confession...I have made it a habit to shy away from any recipe that uses cream cheese or heavy cream unless it is some I HAVE TO try. I don't know what it is about cream...maybe the thought of using cream gives me an instant flashback to the Devil Wears Prada when Nigel says to Andy: "Corn chowder? That's an interesting choice. You do know that cellulite is one of the main ingredients in corn chowder." Since that movie moment, I try to stay away from anything that has a ton of empty calories when I'm cooking...

So now, I have a new love! I use Greek yogurt as a replacement to cream cheese and heavy cream!!! WOO HOO! Now, I cannot say this will serve as a true replacement to everything...but I will try it first to say the least.

Today's recipe is one that I have used this replacement. I already know that when I tried this recipe, I used too much "starchy" water, because my fettuccine noodles immediately sucked up too much of the sauce...so, I will have to watch next time I attempt this one. That being said, this recipe is FULL of flavor! And, of course it uses two of my kitchen loves...garlic and red pepper flakes! Serve this with garlic bread and it is a garlic lovers meal!

Chicken and Fettuccine with Tomato "Cream" Sauce
(adapted from Cooking Light, August 2012)
Ingredients
fresh chicken breasts (2-4 pieces), diced
8 oz. uncooked fettuccine noodles
1 T. extra virgin olive oil
4 T. chopped garlic
1 (28oz) can whole peeled tomatoes, drained and crushed (low sodium!)
3 oz. plain greek yogurt
1/2 t. red pepper flakes (or more)
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1/2 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded
salt and pepper

Step by Step Directions
1. Cook chicken breasts in either water or chicken stock (for extra flavor), set aside.
2. Cook pasta in 4 quarts of salty water according to box directions. Drain. Keep about 1/2 c. starchy water aside.
3. Heat a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add extra virgin olive oil to pan. Coat the pan. Add garlic. Cook for a few minutes then stir in tomatoes. Cook for 3 minutes. Add in starchy water and bring to a boil.  Add in the chicken.

4. Add in greek yogurt and stir until smooth. Add in red pepper flakes and basil. Pour over noodles. Toss to coat. Add in cheese. Toss again.

A quick tidbit about Chicken Stock

Don't forget to save the chicken stock that is left behind after you Crock Pot a Whole Chicken! Remember to freeze it!!! This was a great find the other night when I didn't want to go to the store after being on vacation and we didn't want to order out. One peek into the freezer and I found a frozen chicken breast and homemade chicken stock!!! I thawed the stock and used it to cook the chicken!!! DELICIOUS! Best part?!?! The chicken stock was 3 months old, but still delicious!!! 

(sorry no picture from this experience...we were too hungry! This is an old picture!) 

Easy Chicken Nuggets

We just came back from a quick trip to Florida and we are about to embark on another quick trip to South Carolina, so there was no way I was going to go to the grocery store...nor did I want to go out to eat...so I scoured the freezer in hopes that I would find something easy and HEALTHY to whip up!

Frozen chicken breasts, frozen veggies and rice! PERFECT-O!

This is a take on my mom's chicken nugget recipe...I couldn't tell you how she makes it exactly...but, this is a spinoff.  It's important to flour the chicken, then to coat it in an egg wash and then cover in a bread crumb mixture. Now, I used to dip each piece of chicken in each and this ended up making a HUGE mess. This time, I made a GIGANTIC change that eliminated the mess and honestly, I think the chicken came out the best it ever has!

Easy Chicken Nuggets
Ingredients
chicken breast (I only used 1 for 2 of us)
1 c. flour (whole wheat works too)
1 egg white
3/4 c. Italian bread crumbs
1 t. minced garlic
1 t. tomato and garlic seasoning (really add in whatever spices you enjoy to the bread crumbs)
salt and pepper
1 or 2 resealable bags
1/4 c. water


Step By Step
1. Cut the chicken breasts into pieces. Dip into the flour. (Spray a pan with non stick spray and turn the pan on med-low...cover)
2. Put the chicken into the resealable bag. Pour in the egg white. Make sure the egg white covers the chicken. You can either keep this bag and pour the bread crumbs, garlic and seasonings in or use another bag. (depends on how much egg white is left over in the bag). Either way, make sure you shake the bag around so the chicken is covered).

3. Put the chicken in the pan and cover. Cook for a few minutes. Uncover, pour the water into the pan and then turn the chicken. Cook until the chicken is no longer pink. 

All in all, this recipe can come together and cook within 20 minutes. We paired it with steamed veggies and 7 minute rice. One of my favs!

Chicken and Shrimp Tortilla Soup

It is Sunday afternoon....more specifically it is St. Patrick's Day...and where are we? We are home. We have finally found that we are in that "weird stage"...married...no kids...no longer in our 20's....AND all of our friends have kids...therefore...we would just be those weird old people trying to relive their 20's if we were to go out and celebrate the holiday...kinda depressing for us...the past 3 St. Patty Day's were the best days because they were spent at the Philadelphia Phillies Spring Training game...and that, my friends, is a GREAT time. So, sorry to vent, but it was on my mind...guess we are going to have to succumb to peer pressure soon and be like everyone else our age...oh how I don't want to grow up...

Anyway, felt like making another Crock Pot dish and wondered if I could do shrimp in the Crock Pot...so, I threw this stuff together...it is very easy...and it is nice for these cloudy (hopefully) last days of Winter...

Chicken and Shrimp Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
2 chicken breasts (fresh or frozen), cubed
2-3 cups chicken stock
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can corn (drained)
1 red pepper, sliced
1 small onion, diced
1/2 jalapeno (seeded or unseeded)
3 t. chili powder
1 t. coriander powder (or fresh cilantro)
a few splashed of Tabasco or Frank's Red Hot
salt/pepper
1 lb. frozen shrimp
cheddar jack cheese
crushed tortilla chips

Step by Step Directions
1. Turn the crock pot to low and add the chicken, chicken stock, tomatoes, corn, pepper, onion, jalapeno, chili powder, cilantro and the Tabasco sauce. Stir. Cook on low for 3 hours.
2. Add the frozen shrimp. Continue to cook on low for 30-45 minutes.
3. Top with cheese and chips. Serve.

The "Melt in Your Mouth" Pinterest Chicken recipe

I needed a quick recipe the other night and I did a quick Pinterest search to find something quick and simple. I had seen this recipe on many other boards. People repinned this particular recipe...A LOT! The thing that I didn't really like was the cup of mayo it used! Holy cow! That, to me, is a lot of mayo. So, I figured I would swap the mayo for some Greek yogurt.

If you are interested in the original recipe, you can find it here: food.com

But, if you are interested in a slightly more healthy version, you can continue to read on. Now, I will say, I didn't really think this recipe lived up to the name. It was good, but it wasn't earth shaking...however, Ryan thought it was excellent. I might try it again, it was very simple...a little bit messy...but it doesn't top my list. (Side note: the original recipe says to bake for 45 minutes at 375...that is WAY too long...I think that is why my chicken looks burnt...next time baking for a MUCH shorter time)

My take on Melt In Your Mouth Chicken
Ingredients
1/2 c. Parmesan or Italian shredded cheese
1 c. plain Greek yogurt
1 t. garlic salt
1 t. onion salt
1 t. Italian seasoning (I used pasta seasoning)
1 t. pepper
2 chicken breasts (not frozen)

Step by Step
1. Mix the dry ingredients. yogurt and cheese together. Put into a resealable bag.

2. Cover the chicken with the mixture. (I did this ahead of time and let the chicken "marinade" for a few hours in the refrigerator)

3. Spray baking sheet with PAM. Place the chicken on sheet.

4. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Baked for WAY TOO LONG!

Spicy Healthy Hot Wings at HOME!

The Super Bowl is almost here! Time to invite friends and family over for your Super Bowl party...whether you watch it for the game or the commercials, one thing is for sure...you MUST have wings to make your party complete!

Now, I LOVE wings. But, I DON'T love how I feel after I eat them. They are a bit too much to handle when the majority of the time I eat very well. So, I wanted to come up with a recipe that would just as tasty as any hot wing we had ever had, but without all of the extra fat and calories. So, I didn't bread them or fry them. I did pull out the crock pot...

One thing I will suggest if you are going to try this recipe, make sure you have baking sheets that have raised edges otherwise, when you broil the wings, the juice will make an awful mess of your oven. (ours is self cleaning right now!)

Spicy Healthy Hot Wings
Ingredients
12 full wings (frozen or fresh)
1 t. red pepper flakes
4 garlic cloves
1/2 t. onion salt
1/2c. light beer
23 fl. oz. Frank's Red Hot Sauce

Step by Step Directions
Mix all of the dry ingredients in with the beer and half of the Frank's Red Hot. Place the wings into the crock pot. Pour the remaining Frank's over the wings.

If frozen, cook on low for 7 hours. If fresh, cook on high for 2-3 hours.

Be VERY careful after cooking the wings. They are VERY tender and will fall apart.
**I cooked the wings overnight and then refrigerated the wings all day.**

Carefully, place the wings on a greased (I used PAM) baking sheet.
Set the broiler to high, bake for 7-8 minutes.

Serve with blue cheese and celery!

Cheesy Cilantro Chicken Roll-Ups

This recipe turned out better than I thought it would. I guess I should back up and say why...well, when I made this recipe I was sick. Sick as in...I couldn't smell anything and I couldn't taste any flavors...so I wasn't sure what it was going to turn out to be. That being said, when all was said and done, it was spicy enough that even I (as sick as I was) could taste it and thought it was delicious. Only thing I had trouble with was figuring out how long to bake this chicken...it was a lot of pulling out of the oven and checking...I think I have it down, but it was a concern for me while trying this one out....

Cheesey Cilantro Chicken Roll-Ups
Ingredients
*2 fresh chicken breasts
*1 c. cilantro leaves
*1/2 c. - 3/4 c. mexican cheese blend
*1/4 c. flour
*1 T. chili powder
*1 t. coriander powder
*salt and pepper
*salsa and/or sour cream (for topping)

Step by Step Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Flatten the chicken breasts out until they are about 1/2 inch thick.

2. Coat the chicken in flour, chili powder and coriander. (I shook the chicken in a bag)

3. Lay the chicken out on a plate and cover with cilantro and cheese. Top with salt and pepper.

4. Roll the chicken and secure with each with a toothpick. (I had metal "sticks" my Mom gave me to use with turkey)

5. Place in a greased pan. Do not cover. Bake for 30-35 minutes.
Top with salsa and/or sour cream to serve.

In case you want more heat, you could always add in some hot sauce or red pepper flakes....just saying!

Easy Empanadas

Basically, this is a turnover. A super simple turnover...depending on what you want inside of it. Using a refrigerated pie crust, you can cut the time of having to make your own dough. I have made this with a variety of "fillings." I have used a beef filling (with mexican flavorings) for the same amount of time as the recipe below. What I like about this recipe, is you can make it what you want.

Honestly, I had forgotten about this easy recipe until I was making this week's menu. I realized I hadn't made empanadas for awhile, and I thought I would try this filling instead of using beef....not exactly a "Latin-American" recipe....but nonetheless a yummy recipe...and this MAY be better than the beef recipe I have used...

Buffalo Chicken Empanadas

Makes 2 empanadas

Ingredients

*1 refrigerated pie crust (divided in half)
* Buffalo Chicken Recipe chicken (crock pot chicken)
*diced red, green pepper (1/4 c.-1/2 c.)
*diced onion (1/4 c.-1/2c.)
*cilantro (1 T.)
*shredded mexican cheese (1/2 c.)
*salt and pepper
*chili powder
Optional: salsa and/or sour cream for topping

Step by Step

1. Follow the steps for the Buffalo Chicken Crock Pot recipe.
2. Heat the oven to 450 degrees.
3. In a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, cook the onion and peppers. Once the onions are soft, add in the cilantro. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Combine the peppers, onions and cilantro with the chicken.

5. Spray a baking sheet with PAM. Unroll pie crust.
6. Cut in half. Spoon chicken mixture over one side of each half.

7. Top with cheese (or wait and top with cheese after baking)

8. Fold over filling and pinch the side. Vent the top a few times by stabbing with top with a fork.

9. Top with chili powder (if desired)
10. Bake for 10-15 minutes.

Top with sour cream, cheese, and or salsa. YUM!