Garlic Herb Chicken and Asparagus

April 29, 2023April 29, 2023 FloraD

I noticed that there’s a lot of fresh asparagus at the grocery story so I decided to share a recipe to take advantage of that. I know you’ll love this recipe (assuming you like chicken and asparagus!). This recipe from Creme de la Crumb is super easy because it doesn’t involve a lot of prep work. I was skeptical before making it for the first time. It uses dried herbs and I’ve always thought fresh herbs are best. Ignore that piece of advice for this recipe and carry on.

Gather your ingredients. Mince some garlic. Measure out your herbs of dried basil, oregano, and thyme (or use a short cut: Italian seasonings!) Don’t forget some onion powder. Trim the asparagus so the woody stems are gone. I usually trim an inch or so. I have no idea if I’m being wasteful or not, but it seems to work.

Season your chicken thighs with salt and pepper. You can also use chicken breasts, but I prefer thighs because they are cheaper and more flavorful. If you do use chicken breasts, pound them until they are an even 1/2 inch thickness.

Melt butter in a large pan. I like using a cast iron skillet, but any skillet or pan will do. After melting the butter, throw in your garlic and seasonings. Cook it for a minute or so. You want to smell the garlic.

Lower the heat and add the chicken. Cook it until it’s almost cooked through. Move the chicken over and throw in some more butter. Sorry, but this dish is not low-fat. But it is low carb. Switch diets depending on what you follow.

Add the asparagus sprinkled with some salt and pepper. Cook it until tender (and not a second more!) and chicken is cooked through.

And that is it. You can serve it with your favorite carb or as is. It’s fresh and delicious. The herbs create a crust on the chicken that is out of this world. They also coat the asparagus. Did I mention how easy it is to make?

Garlic Herb Chicken and Asparagus

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Servings 4

Ingredients

4 boneless. skinless chicken thighs
salt and pepper
1 pound asparagus ends trimmed
3 tablespoons butter divided
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Instructions

Season chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in garlic and herbs. Cook another minute until the garlic is fragrant.
Reduce heat to medium, add chicken to pan, and cook for 6 minutes, then flip and cook another 5 minutes. Chicken should be nearly, but not completely cooked through.
Scoot the chicken over to the side and add remaining 1 tablespoon butter to the empty portion of the pan. After the butter is melted, add asparagus. Season asparagus with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook, rotating throughout, for 6 minutes until tender and chicken is completely cooked through.
Serve immediately garnished with freshly cracked black pepper.

Notes

In place of the dried basil, oregano, and thyme, use 1 1/2 teaspoons of dried Italian seasoning.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

February 5, 2023February 5, 2023 FloraD

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I don’t know about you, but when it’s cold and rainy (or snowy, depending on where you are), I want soup. Today I’m sharing with you one of my favorite soups, Chicken Tortilla Soup. There are a lot of recipes out there, but this is my latest favorite. It comes from a Pinch of Yum. My version is a little different, but feel free to go with the original.

First, cut up the chicken thighs into bite sized pieces, season it with salt and pepper, sear it in a pot with some heated olive oil, and set aside. The recipe doesn’t call for this, but I think it’s important. It ensures the chicken is cooked through plus that searing adds color and flavor. You can skip this and throw it in raw if you like. But let me warn you. The original recipes calls you to throw the thighs in whole, remove them, and then chop it up after cooked. Can I say what a mess this makes? My way is better. You’re welcome.

Next, saute your onions, jalapeno, and seasonings. I don’t have Mexican oregano so I used your standard oregano. Also, if you’re not into spicy foods, you’ll still be fine with this recipe. It passed the spicy test in my family and that’s a very low bar. Don’t be scared of that jalapeno. It’s really not as spicy as you think. Cumin and chili powder are mild too. They just add flavor instead of burning your tongue.

When you’re done, it should look like this:

Add the tomatoes, broth, and (cooked or not) chicken, and some salt. Bring to a boil and then simmer it for a bit, about 10-15 minutes. Add the beans and more broth if you like a soupier soup, like me. Once it’s hot, scoop it into bowls and top with all the goodies you’d usually would with tacos plus some tortilla chips. Ta-da! Dinner!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

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Servings 4

Ingredients

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into bite-sized pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion diced
4 cloves garlic diced or minced
1 jalapeno minced
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons chili powder
pinch Mexican or regular oregano
28 ounces canned crushed tomatoes
4 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 can pinto beans drained and rinsed
tortilla chips for topping
cilantro, cotija, source cream for topping, optional

Instructions

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a Dutch oven or soup pot. Sear chicken and then set aside.
In the same pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add onion, garlic, jalapeno, and seasonings. Saute for about 7 minutes or until very soft and fragrant.
Add crushed tomatoes, broth, cooked chicken, and salt. Bring to a oil and then simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Add beans. Mix together and serve hot topped with tortilla chips. Add other toppings as needed.

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Tuscan Tortellini Soup

October 9, 2022October 9, 2022 FloraD

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Fall is here! In northern California, the trees are still covered in green leaves and the temperature is in the 80s, but officially it’s fall. Halloween is just around the corner. Pumpkin-spiced <fill in the blank> is everywhere. I’m loving the candy at the grocery store. It’s one of my favorite times of year. And it’s soup weather. Then again, it’s soup weather year round to me!

This recipe is REALLY easy to make, but it feels like you’ve been working on it for hours. It’s especially tasty to those who love tortellini, like my family. It comes from delish, but I’ve added a few changes.

Time to prep! Chop up an onion. Slice up some cooked chicken sausages. You can really use any type of sausage you want so feel free to experiment. Mince a couple garlic cloves. Open a few cans: crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, and white beans. Having canned beans instead of dried makes this soup cook quickly. Measure out the red pepper flakes. Open packages of tortellini and spinach (see, you’ll get your veggies too!).

In a Dutch oven or large pot, heat some olive oil and start cooking! First, the onions. Then the sausage.

Add your garlic next and don’t let it burn. Stir in the tomatoes, broth, and red pepper flakes. Throw in some salt and pepper to your heart’s content. Are you seeing how easy this is?

Boil it and then throw in the tortellini.

Turn the heat down to medium-low and cook for about 5 minutes. The original recipe said 18-20 minutes, but that’s crazy. Your tortellini will be mush by then.

Add the beans and spinach and cook until the spinach is just wilted.

Scoop into bowls and sprinkle some Parmesan cheese on top. That’s it. Seriously.

I don’t think it can get any easier than that and it takes so much better than anything from a can. Serve with slices of warm bread and pretend you’ve worked all afternoon on dinner. The only downsize is that it doesn’t make very good leftovers so if you can’t finish it all (what?!), scoop out the tortellini and save in a separate container. Add it back in when you heat it up again. But never mind that. It’s so delicious you’ll not have any leftovers.

Tuscan Tortellini Soup

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Servings 4

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion chopped
12 ounces cooked chicken sausage links sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
2 cloves garlic minced
28 ounces canned crushed tomatoes
4 cups chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
9 ounce refrigerated cheese tortellini
15 ounce canned white beans drained
5 ounces baby spinach
freshly shredded Parmesan cheese for serving

Instructions

In a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat, heat oil. Add onion and cook, stirring, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add chicken sausage and cook until golden, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute more. Stir in crushed tomatoes, broth, and red pepper flakes, and season generously with salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil and add tortellini. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until tortellini is cooked, about 5 minutes.
Stir in white beans and spinach and cook until spinach has wilted, 2 minutes more.
Serve with Parmesan cheese.

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Lemon Chicken Fettuccine

February 6, 2022February 6, 2022 FloraD

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One of my neighbors dropped off a million lemons for me. Now what do I do with them? I made a few loaves of Copycat Starbucks Lemon Loaf, which was amazing by the way. I was tempted to make Lemon Bars, but I seriously need to lay off the sugar. Instead, I searched high and low for the perfect lemon dinner recipe. I found something delicious, but made it my own. The original, Lemon Spaghetti, turned into Lemon Chicken Fettuccine!

This is probably controversial, but we eat meat. Like at every dinner meal. I want to implement Meatless Mondays, but it’s been shot down so many times I’ve given up. I once tried to sneak in a meatless meal by serving cheese tortellini in red sauce and was scowled at. Where’s the meat?! Fine, fine. Therefore, I knew this dish had to have some sort of meat so I chose chicken thighs. It was also pointed out to me that spaghetti is the wrong pasta shape for this dish. Fine, fine, suddenly I was using fettuccine instead. See what I have to do around here?

The recipe serves six very hungry eaters (or eight ideal portions) so I split the recipe in half. First chop chicken into bite-sized pieces. Season with salt and pepper. You can leave the chicken thighs whole and chop then after, but chopping them ahead of time reduces the cooking time. You just need to be careful not to overcook the chicken. Fortunately, chicken thighs are forgiving, unlike chicken breasts, so you should be fine. Cook up the chicken in a little olive oil. You can easily use rotisserie chicken instead. While this is going on, boil a large pot of salted water and cook your pasta. If you’re into multitasking, whisk up your sauce at the same time: oil, Parmesan cheese, and lemon juice.

Drain the pasta, but be sure to save about 1/4 cup of pasta water. Toss your lemon sauce and pasta water, about 1/4 cup at a time, into the hot, cooked pasta. Season again with more salt and pepper. Throw in your chicken and stir.

Serve in bowls and garnish with more cheese and some chopped basil. You’re done!

It’s cheesy. It’s lemony. It’s meaty.

Because this is a quick dish to make, it’s perfect for the weeknight when you’re in a hurry to put dinner on the table. It also makes great leftovers so feel free to double it. Definitely a make again.

Lemon Chicken Fettuccine

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Servings 4

Ingredients

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound fettuccine
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice about 1-2 lemons
chopped fresh basil

Instructions

Chop chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a skillet with olive oil. Cook chicken for about 4 minutes on medium heat. Stir and then cook for another 4 minutes until cooked through. Set aside.
Boil a large pot of salted water. Add pasta and cook al dente, according to the package.
In a small bowl, whisk oil, cheese, and lemon juice until blended.
Drain the pasta, reserving 1/4 cup of pasta water. Toss the pasta with the lemon sauce and reserved pasta water, adding 1/4 cup at a time. Season with salt and pepper. Add chicken and stir. Garnish with more cheese and chopped basil.

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Spicy Thai Red Curry Chicken Casserole

November 7, 2021November 7, 2021 FloraD

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I continued my search for casseroles that are easy and delicious. I wanted something with a little Asian influence so when I came across Spicy Thai Red Curry Chicken Casserole from the Food Network, I was pleased. It looked easy to make and promising enough. Alas, this casserole became my nemesis. The first two attempts were complete failures, but I was determined to get it right. The third time was a charm and I’m here to give you my version of this dish. It’s really simple once you figure out that you need to layer, not “evenly scatter” the ingredients, add enough liquid, and cook it long enough. I have no idea how the original could ever work.

Gather your ingredients: rice, veggies, chicken., light coconut milk, broth, red curry paste, fish sauce, brown sugar, lime, peanuts, and cilantro. I stuck to the same ingredients that were in the recipe. Nothing to change there.

In a casserole pan, add a layer of rice. The original recipe wants you to mix the rice with the veggies and chicken, but this was a bad idea and caused failures to attempts #1 and #2. Who likes crunchy rice? Not me. You need the rice completely submerged in the liquid so it’ll cook.

Next, slice up your peppers and onions. Cut the broccoli florets into bite-sized pieces. Layer over your rice. Do not mix it!

Slice your chicken. I like to slice the chicken last to avoid cross contamination with the veggies. It probably doesn’t matter in this case because we’re cooking the veggies, but it’s a habit I like to practice.

Layer your chicken over the veggies. Do not mix it! (Note my general theme.)

Looks good. Now you need your liquid that will cook the rice. In my first attempt, I used the amounts listed in the recipe. It turned out not to be enough liquid so after 50 minutes, I kept adding cups of water every 10 minutes while I tried to wash the rice off the veggies and chicken to get the rice to cook. After 80 minutes, it was edible enough to eat, but I was extremely disappointed. I hate when dinner is late and we were all very hangry at this point.

In my second attempt, I used more broth, but because I followed the recipe and mixed the ingredients, once again I was smushing the rice down after it had been cooking for 50 minutes to get the rice to cook properly. I almost had crunchy rice on my hands, but I managed to rescue it.

Still frustrated but confident that my third attempt would work, I mixed the wet ingredients and poured it over the casserole. I checked that the rice was fully submerged. It was. I was good to go! I popped it in the oven and prayed to the cooking gods that all would go well. Meanwhile, I chopped up some salted peanuts and fresh cilantro for a garnish. I had plenty of time while the casserole cooked so I sneaked in a couple of episodes of HGTV while making the boy’s lunch.

I checked on the casserole after 45 minutes. Not ready so I continued to babysit it, checking the rice every five minutes. After 60 minutes, it was done! I cautiously took a bite of rice. Delicious. I could taste the spice of the curry paste, the saltiness of the fish sauce, the sweetness of the brown sugar, and the acidity of the lime. The flavors were perfect and so were the veggies, cooked yet still firm. Adding the peanuts added an extra crunch and reminded me of pad Thai.

With my changes, I completely recommend this casserole. Did I mention not to mix the rice?

Spicy Thai Red Curry Chicken Casserole

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Servings 8

Ingredients

nonstick cooking spray
1 1/2 cups jasmine rice
2 cups small broccoli florets
1 medium red pepper sliced
1/2 medium yellow onion sliced
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs sliced
salt and pepper
14 ounces canned light coconut milk
2 cups chicken broth
1-2 tablespoons red curry paste
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons brown sugar
juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup chopped salted peanuts
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch pan with cooking spray.
Add a layer of rice to the bottom of the pan. Evenly scatter a layer of broccoli, red pepper, and onion. Top with chicken slices. Season with salt and pepper.
In a bowl, whisk together the coconut milk, broth, curry paste, fish sauce, brown sugar, and lime juice. Pour the mixture over the ingredients in the pan, making sure the lquid covers the rice. Bake until the rice is cooked and most of the liquid is absorbed, 60 minutes. Sprinkle with the chopped peanuts and cilantro before serving.

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Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup

October 24, 2021November 13, 2021 FloraD

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The rain is really coming down today, which in many ways is good for drought-ridden Northern California. The trees are whipping, water is pounding on the windows, and the sky is dark. The house is shaking a bit, which I’m not a big fan of. I really hope we don’t lose power because we’ll all go out of our minds. I know this is nothing compared to the snow storms of the East, but when it rains here, people freak out like it’s the apocalypse or something. What’s that wet stuff falling from the sky?! Everyone, run for your lives!

My point? It’s definitely soup weather.

Today’s recipe is from Delish, Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup. It’s so amazing that you definitely need to make this now. It’s even easier than last week’s Beef and Cannellini Bean Minestrone. I made a few changes according to my preferences, but otherwise, it’s pretty much perfect.

Prep your ingredients. Cube chicken thighs into bite sized pieces. Juice and zest a lemon. Mince up a garlic clove. Chop up an onion. Slice a few carrots and celery stalks. Grab the chicken stock from the pantry. And please, when a recipe says stock, use stock, not broth. Broth and stock are not the same. You need the stock to provide that intense flavor as if you’ve been simmering this soup for hours. Don’t forget to cook a cup of rice and slice up a few green onions.

Heat some olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven and throw you chicken in. Be sure to season it with salt and pepper, and throw in the lemon zest. The recipe calls for half the zest now and then use the rest for a garnish, but I think it’s better to use it all now for that distinct lemony flavor. I don’t want some half-ass lemon flavored soup. Pardon my French.

Cook the chicken until it’s no longer pink, about 5 minutes.

Taste it to make sure it has enough salt and pepper, and add more if necessary. Next, add your garlic and veggies. I went for sliced veggies instead of diced because I like my veggies to be in larger pieces. It’s really up to you.

Cook all that until the veggies are slightly soft, about 7 minutes. Next, throw in your stock, lemon juice, cooked rice, and some of the green onions. Save the rest for garnish. The recipe calls for 1 cup of cooked rice, but I added 2 cups. It makes for a more substantial soup.

Bring it to a boil and then let this simmer away for about 5 minutes. You won’t have time to do much else so don’t wander off. When it’s ready, ladle it into some bowls and garnish with the rest of the green onions.

And that’s it. I told you it was easy. There’s hardly any clean up because it was all made in a single pot. It’s lemony goodness with a touch of garlic. The soup is full of delicious chunks of chicken and veggies, and just the right amount of rice so you won’t go hungry an hour later. Comfort food at its best. Next time, I’m going to experiment with dill, which would complement the lemon nicely. Enjoy!

Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup

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Servings 4

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound chicken thighs cut into bite-sized pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon zested and juiced
1 clove garlic minced
1 yellow onion diced
2 carrots sliced
2 celery stalks sliced
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups cooked white rice
4 green onions sliced

Instructions

In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat oil. Add chicken to pot. Season with salt, pepper, and add the lemon zest. Cook chicken on all sides, 5 minutes. Add garlic, onion, carrots, celery. Season with salt. Cook until softened, about 7 minutes.
Add chicken stock, lemon juice, cooked rice, and half of the green onions, reserving the rest for garnish. Bring to a boil and then simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Garnish with the rest of the green onions and serve.

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Cheesy Southwestern Chicken Casserole

August 22, 2021August 22, 2021 FloraD

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Where do I begin? Recently, one particular boy says I never make casseroles. He’s right, but I was surprised because casseroles are sort of old school. Then again, there’s nothing wrong with that. I started searching for an easy casserole recipe when I stumbled on this one from the Kitchn. Easy it is, but it wasn’t exactly what I expected. This casserole is more of a stew that I ended up serving over rice, not something the original recipe suggests to do. In the end, I think that I’ll need to make a real casserole another day. In the meantime, you’ll enjoy this meal because it’s really easy to prepare, makes plenty of leftovers, and tastes even better the next day.

I changed a few things. I cooked my own chicken thighs and chopped them up rather than buy a rotisserie chicken to shred. I also dumped everything into the casserole pan rather than use a bowl. Saves you from washing yet another item.

Season your chicken thighs with salt and pepper, and cook it up in a heated skillet for about 6 minutes each side. Set it aside and let it cool before you chop it up into bite-sized pieces. You don’t want to burn your hands. In the meantime, dump chopped onion, black beans, canned corn, diced tomatoes, and green chiles in your casserole pan. Throw in a bunch of seasonings: chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, cumin, and salt. Chop up your cooled chicken and add it to the pan.

Mix it all up and pour a cup of chicken broth over it. Pop it in the oven for 40 minutes until it’s thickened. Yeah, right. This is where the recipe went south. It NEVER thickened. Not even a bit. I suppose the idea was for the liquid to condense, but that didn’t happen. Once I realized this, I quickly made some rice. You can get these quick rice packages that cook in 2 minutes in the microwave. It’s not instant rice! You’re just heating up fully cooked rice. I always have a few on hand for times like these.

While zapping your rice in the microwave, sprinkle a ton of shredded cheese and stick it back in the oven for 5 minutes (not the 10 minutes the recipe states). Let it cool for 15 minutes. Maybe now it’ll thicken? Nope. I think it’s so you don’t burn your tongue.

Serve it over rice garnished with green onions and cilantro.

Not what I expected and frankly, I was disappointed. This wasn’t a casserole at all. It’s a stew! It tasted good, but not fantastic. Whatever. I wasn’t going to let it go to waste so I covered the pan with foil and stuck it in the fridge for another day.

The next day we had salmon for dinner, but the day after that, I pulled out the “casserole” and exclaimed that it was leftovers night. And guess what? It tasted amazing. The flavors infused into something quite special, almost like enchiladas. Not sure if it’s a make again for us, but I think you’ll enjoy it.

Cheesy Southwestern Chicken Casserole

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Servings 8

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
kosher salt and pepper
1/2 large white onion diced
14.5 ounces canned black beans drained and rinsed
14.5 ounces canned corn kernels drained
15 ounces diced tomatoes
4 ounces diced green chiles
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro
2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
cooked rice

Instructions

Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 425F.
In a skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Cook in the skillet for about 6 minutes on each side, until it's browned and cooked through. Set aside to cool.
In a 9×13-inch baking dish add white onion, black beans, corn kernels, diced tomatoes and their juices, and diced green chiles (do not drain). Next add chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, ground cumin, and kosher salt.
Chop cooled chicken into bite-sized pieces and add to the baking dish. Stir to combine. Pour in chicken broth.
Bake until the mixture is heated through, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, thinly slice scallions and coarsely chop fresh cilantro.
Sprinkle the casserole with 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese and bake until melted, about 5 minutes. Let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with the scallions and cilantro before serving. Serve over rice.

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Chicken Stir Fry Noodles

May 2, 2021November 13, 2021 FloraD

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Noodles are a big hit around here so I’ve been looking for quick and easy noodle bowls. I came across this recipe from eatwell101 that I thought I would try. They claimed you can pull this dish together in 15 minutes. Right. First off, I have to say that this meal was absolutely delicious, but in no way or form does it take 15 minutes to make. Boiling the water and cooking the noodles alone takes more than 15 minutes so I have no idea how they think 15 minutes is enough time. Ok, enough of my complaining. At least it’s super simple to make. Read on. I was up for the challenge, just to prove them wrong.

I got the water started for the noodles. I didn’t time it, but boiling water easily took 7-10 minutes. Cooking the noodles took 12 minutes. How is this a 15 minute meal? Ok, again, I’ll quit my whining.

The original recipe uses chicken breasts, which are leaner, but I typically use thighs. Cheaper and better tasting. Cut them into chunks and pan fry them until barely brown.

Because I was determined to make this in 15 minutes, while the chicken was cooking, I quickly minced a few garlic cloves, shredded a carrot, and chopped up some broccoli. I should have julienned the carrots, but no time for that nonsense!

Once the chicken was half done, I threw in the garlic and carrots. Yikes! I need to make the sauce! I quickly mixed together ginger (which I had to grate…seriously people?), brown sugar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, black pepper, and the kitchen sink. Maybe I should have made the sauce first, but I was following the order of the ingredients. Yes, yes, I should have read the directions first, but I was in a hurry!

During the last 2 minutes of boiling your noodles, throw your chopped up broccoli into the boiling pot of water and let it cook. Drain, and add the pasta and broccoli to the skillet with the chicken. Pour the sauce over and then stir it together until everything’s well mixed.

Whew. It’s done. For such a simple dish, I was exhausted as if I had just completed round 1 of Chopped. Again, how did they make this in 15 minutes?! But I have to say using spaghetti made the dish easy. The sauce was a perfect blend of salty/spicy/sweet. It could have used more broccoli, but I stole a few to dip in ranch. My bad. Best of all, the boys loved it. It’s a make again. Just plan on taking 30 minutes and try to be more zen about it than I was.

Chicken Stir Fry Noodles

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Servings 4

Ingredients

8 ounces spaghetti noodles
1 pound skinless boneless chicken thighs cut into chunks
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 garlic cloves finely minced
1 medium carrot julienned or shredded
3 cups broccoli florets
fresh chopped green onions for garnish

Sauce

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
fresh cracked black pepper to taste

Instructions

In a large pot with boiling salted water, cook the spaghetti according to package directions. Add the broccoli florets the last 2 minutes of cooking and let them cook with pasta until tender. Drain the noodles and broccoli, and set aside.
While the pasta is cooking, whisk together the ginger, brown sugar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, red pepper, and black pepper in a small bowl.
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add olive oil to a medium-sized skillet and cook chicken in an even layer over medium heat, turning from time to time for 2 or 3 minutes, until slightly golden. Stir in the garlic, and carrots, and cook for a minute more, until cooked through but not overdone.
Transfer the cooked spaghetti and broccoli to the skillet, and pour the sauce on top and toss until fully incorporated. Reheat for a couple of minutes and serve the chicken stir fry noodles, garnished with green onions.

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Sheet Pan Chicken Meatballs and Charred Broccoli

October 25, 2020October 25, 2020 FloraD

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I used to be suspicious of sheet pan meals. There’s no way everything can be done at the same time! Now that I’ve tried a few sheet pan recipes with great success (check these out), I think my fear is over. I made this one from BA and it turned out to be another win-win. Be brave with me.

First, you make the sauce. Mix up all the ingredients. Pretty simple. Set some aside to glaze your meatballs (your reserved glazing sauce). Simmer the rest to reduce it down. Set aside (your reduced glazing sauce). You pour this over the meatballs at the end. The reserved stuff will brush the meatballs before you pop them into the oven.

Sheet Pan Chicken Meatballs and Charred Broccoli

Next, prep your broccoli and put them on the a sheet pan lined with foil. BTW, I love broccoli. I eat it practically every day and I’m still not sick of it. Well, maybe it’s because I’m dipping it in ranch, but let’s not speak of that. The point is that I know a lot of you hate it and you can continue being haters. Just leave it off the sheet pan. Or maybe try some cauliflower, carrots, or potatoes, but I honestly don’t know about the cooking times. You might need to pull the veggies off before or after the meatballs are done.

Next make your meatballs. These meatballs are a bit healthier because you use ground chicken. Ground turkey or beef would work well too, but you might have to adjust the cooking times on the beef.

After I mixed all the ingredients together, I found that the meatballs were really wet. If I made these again, I’d probably use half the water and then slowly add more until the consistency was to my liking. When you are done making 12 1.5-diamater meatballs, put them on the baking sheet with the broccoli. Hmmm…I made 13. Close enough.

Brush with reserved glazing sauce. Be sure to save some for later. Don’t use the reduced glazing sauce. I know. This is complicated, but delicious.

Bake everything until the meatballs are done, for about 15 minutes.

Remove it from the oven, set your oven to broil, brush the rest of your reserved glazing sauce, and broil until the broccoli is charred. Not burnt! Charred is not another word for burnt! Read this.

Pull it out of the oven and serve it over rice. Now drizzle the reduced glazing sauce and nosh. It’s pretty amazing. You’re welcome.

Sheet Pan Chicken Meatballs and Charred Broccoli

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Servings 4

Ingredients

Sauce

2/3 cup ketchup
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons rice cooking wine or water
2 tablespoons honey
4 teaspoons soy sauce
1 1/2 inches ginger peeled and grated
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Broccoli and Meatballs

1 1/2 pounds broccoli
2 tablespoons vegetable oil divided
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt divided
crushed red pepper flakes optional
1 pound ground chicken
1 large egg beaten
4 green onions thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves peeled and grated
2 inches ginger peeled and grated
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
cooked rice
seasme seeds optional

Instructions

Mix ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, wine or water, honey, soy sauce, ginger, and pepper in a small saucepan. Measure out 1/4 cup mixture into a small bowl. This is your reserved glazing sauce. Set aside for glazing meatballs later. Bring remaining mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally and reducing heat if needed, until sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Transfer sauce to a small bowl. This is your reserved glazing sauce.
Place a rack in upper third of oven; preheat to 450F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Trim broccoli stems and remove from the crown. Peel off the tough outer skin, if needed. Slice crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces. Cut florets into 2-inch pieces. Toss on prepared baking sheet with 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and a few pinches of red pepper flakes (optional). Push to the edges of baking sheet to create a space for meatballs. Brush space with the remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil.
Mix chicken, egg, scallions, garlic, ginger, panko, sesame oil, pepper, remaining 1 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 cup water in a medium bowl. Gradually add more water (up to another 1/8 cup) until the meat mixture is your preferred consistency.
Using wet hands, form into twelve 1 1/2 inch-diameter meatballs. Arrange on baking sheet. Brush with some of the reserved glazing mixture. Bake until meatballs are cooked through, 14–18 minutes. Remove from oven.
Heat broiler. Brush meatballs with remaining reserved glazing mixture. Broil until broccoli is charred and meatballs are browned in spots, about 5 minutes.
Spoon meatballs and broccoli over rice in bowl. Drizzle with reduced glazing sauce and sprinkle with sesame seeds (optional).

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Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

October 24, 2020October 25, 2020 FloraD

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One reason why I think Indian food is so special is because it often requires you to cook your seasonings before using them. This brings out an intense flavor not found in many other dishes. With that said, I decided to try Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala from the kitchn. It’s a wonderful creamy dish with tomatoes and cooked spices that is perfect over rice. And it’s hardly Indian at all. I looked it up and learned that it’s a popular British dish with South Asian roots. Well, this is awkward. This is sort of like saying chimichanga is Mexican food.

While I go research authentic Indian recipes, let’s enjoy this one because I promise that even picky eaters won’t turn this down.

Gather your ingredients and measure them out. Chop up your onion. Mince that garlic. Grate the ginger.

You probably don’t have all these spices in your cupboard. You might be wondering where to get them or when you’ll use them again. I’m happy to say that you should be able to find all of these in your grocery’s spice section. You will not have to go to a specialty store. I recommend getting the smallest containers possible, even if it costs more by weight, because spices lose their taste and potency over time. You really don’t need a tall container of cumin unless you use it a lot.

I changed the recipe order because I didn’t want to dirty up a pan so instead of using a separate pan, I used the saute setting on my slow cooker. Heat oil and then saute your onion for about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and spices, and cook for about 1 minute. When you can smell the spices is just long enough. Add tomato paste and cook for another minute. You want to see that the tomato paste is a little darker than before. Add the diced tomatoes and the rest of the salt. Bring it to a simmer, but to be honest, there was nothing really to simmer. Add the chicken, yogurt, and a teaspoon of salt in your slow cooker and mix it all up.

I cooked this on low for 8 hours. When it was done, I stirred in the cream and served it. The recipe suggests cooking it for another 30 minutes for a thicker sauce, but I found the sauce consistency to be perfect.

Serve over rice and garnish with cilantro. Everyone liked it. The boy did pick out the tomatoes and refused the cilantro (green foods are bad), but they gave this dish two thumbs up. I just like how easy and tasty it is.

Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

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Servings 6

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup whole-milk (not Greek) plain yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt divided
1 large yellow onion diced
3 cloves garlic minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 tablespoons tomato paste
15 ounces canned diced tomatoes drained
3/4 cup heavy cream
chopped cilantro for garnish
cooked rice for serving

Instructions

In a slow cooker, heat the oil using the saute setting. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, coriander, garam masala, cumin, and turmeric and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and cook until darkened in color, about 1 minute. Add the drained tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and bring to a simmer, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
Place the chicken, yogurt, and 1 teaspoon of the salt in the slow cooker. Stir to combine.
Cover and cook on the High setting for 4 hours or Low setting for 8 hours. Stir in the cream. If you prefer a thicker sauce, leave the slow cooker uncovered and cook on the High setting for 30 minutes. Taste and season with salt as needed. Serve garnished with cilantro and serve over rice.