Monday, April 19, 2010

Simple Italian Chicken & Linguini by T.Krupa

Saute (on low) chicken breast in bite size in chopped cilantro, basil, garlic, olive oil and cooking white wine. Serve over linguini with a squirt of fresh lemon juice and top with Parmesan cheese. Red pepper flakes optional.

Chicken Stroganoff {Slow Cooker} by S.Hutchison

Ingredients

* 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
* 1/8 cup margarine
* 1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix
* 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
* 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup

Directions

1. Put chicken, margarine and dressing mix in slow cooker; mix together and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours.
2. Add cream cheese and soup, mix together and cook on high for another 1/2 hour or until heated through and warm.

Gluten Free Banana Bread by B.Walker


Our family is super picky about bread, so if my sister says this is good - it must be good!

4 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup agave( this is a great all natural sweetener) also good with honey if you don't have agave.
2 eggs
3 ripe banana
1-3/4 cups Pamela's Baking & Pancake Mix
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup organic dark chocolate chip (OPTIONAL- I dont like it, but some do)

Beat together butter, agave, eggs and banana. Add remaining ingredients and mix together. Pour into a large greased loaf pan. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 1 hour, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. If cooking mini loafs cook for only 30-35 min.

Trader Joes Co-Op Spring 2010

A few great finds so far this spring...

*Pomegranate Green Tea {make sure it's chilled) - refreshing!
*Fish Nuggets - sounds sketchy, but the kids (and papa!) LOVE them...and less waste since they're so little. Serve w/ sweet potato fries.
*TJ's lemon curd served with biscuits or scones. Yum!
*Tarte aux Champignons (frozen mushroom tarte/pizza) serve w/ fresh greens & vinaigrette & their divine shaved Parmesan.
*Fat-Free refried beans (great alternative for kids who don't like spice) & a quick bean & cheese burrito

Don't buy!
*Regular {frozen} brown rice that is microwaveable-soggy & gross. Pay the extra $1 and buy the organic brown jasmine.
*Frozen potato melody - all different colored potatoes - strange spices, horrible texture.

Wine Tasting:
1. Liberte, Cabernet {not to be confused with "Liberty"-also very good but pricier}. This is a terrific bottle for $10 - you'll be shocked at it's fullness & the beauty of the label!
2. TJ Reserve Label (boat on label) - 1996 - Cabernet, excellent! $10
3. TJ Petite Reserve (aloha flower on label), Pinot Noir - $5.99 - great buy. good wine. Do *not* by another red under this label though, they're terrible.
4. Darian, Rioja Spanish Wine - light, $5.99. A decent table wine, probably better for a tinto de verano (1/2 wine, 1/2 squirt/sprite over ice) or sangria.

Happy Spring 2010!

It's been awhile since I've blogged. We kicked off the year in Madrid and started school two days later. Life has been super busy and I'm so happy to be back in the kitchen trying new recipes.

My new favorite book this year is "Everyday Food" from the kitchens of Martha Stewart Living - Quick, Simple (most are less than 5 ingredients!) and Healthy meals. You can grab a copy at Costco or I'm sure you can find the recipes online. I'll be posting new ones each month that are tried, true & divine.

Here is the blog, if you'd like to follow it. http://everydayfoodblog.marthastewart.com/

My favorite recipe from last week was "Braised Chicken with Mushrooms and Oven-Baked Polenta". The kids loved it too! I'll post the recipe soon.

*Please* keeps those suggestions coming to my email!

Hope you're having a great 2010 and I promise not to be gone so long next time!

Cin, Cin {pronouced "chin, chin" meaning "cheers!" in Spain}.

Braised Chicken w/ Mushrooms & Oven Baked Polenta

Serves 4

Ingredients
* 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 ounces each)
* Coarse salt and ground pepper
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 pound white mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced 1/2-inch-thick
* 4 garlic cloves, halved
* 1/2 cup dry white wine (optional)
* 1 3/4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
* 1 Trader Joe's polenta. I sliced it 1" think and served them round. {Follow instructions...can be baked while chicken is cooking.}

Directions

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over high. Add chicken, and cook until light golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate; set aside.
2. Add remaining tablespoon oil to skillet. Add mushrooms and garlic, and season with salt. Cover; and cook over medium heat until mushrooms release their juices, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove lid. Cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are golden, 4 to 5 minutes.
3. Add wine, and cook, stirring, until evaporated, about 1 minute. Add broth and parsley, cook over medium-high heat until mushrooms are tender and liquid is reduced, 8 to 10 minutes.
4. Return chicken to skillet. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until chicken is cooked through, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve chicken topped with mushrooms, and drizzled with cooking liquid. Garnish with chopped parsley.

*NEW* G-Free Label

In honor of my sister who has Crohn's and is now living a "G-free" {Gluten-free} lifestyle, I am creating a new label called "G-free". If you know anyone with IBD or Celiac, this is your go-to label for recipes. Maybe you've been there...hosting a dinner party and they say "oh, and I'm gluten-free"...before you panic, try here.

Here are a few great blogs out there to get you started:
http://glutenfreegirl.blogspot.com/
http://www.domestifluff.com/

...and a few friendly restaurant reminders of yummy G-free food:
1. Urban Solace (good for the G-free and "Regular" chowers)
2. Z-Pizza (quick pizza + salads)

Hey, you might even notice you feel better after avoiding Gluten for awhile. Try it, it can't hurt and you'll only feel better.

Southern Chicken Crunch by J.Robinson

This is my friend's "go-to" recipe. I haven't tried it yet, but seems easy and she says it's "yummy!"

3-4 chicken breasts - cubed and sautéed with salt and pepper

1 can cream of chicken {I think cream of mushroom tastes better}

1 cup sour cream

2 T mayo

2 T milk

1 small bag sliced almonds

1 can sliced water chestnuts

2 cans fried onions

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients except one can of onions and bake at 350* for 30 minutes. Top with can of onions and bake an extra 5-10 minutes or until onions brown (you could always turn on the broiler if you are in a hurry).

Cake Balls

By no means are these fat-free...but c'mon how *cute* are they AND *so* yummy. Janelle rolled these in 3 different colors of WHITE chocolate for Easter (pastel pink, yellow & green) and used a yellow cake base. SOOOO good!

She found the recipe from bakerella.com (an adorable! and tasty web blog...warning: you will salivate and run to the grocery store.)

Red Velvet Cake Balls
1 box red velvet cake mix (cook as directed on box for 13 X 9 cake)
1 can cream cheese frosting (16 oz.)
1 package chocolate bark (regular or white chocolate)
wax paper

1. After cake is cooked and cooled completely, crumble into large bowl.
2. Mix thoroughly with 1 can cream cheese frosting. (It may be easier to use fingers to mix together, but be warned it will get messy.)
3. Roll mixture into quarter size balls and lay on cookie sheet. (Should make 45-50. You can get even more if you use a mini ice cream scooper, but I like to hand roll them.)
4. Chill for several hours. (You can speed this up by putting in the freezer.)
5. Melt chocolate in microwave per directions on package.
6. Roll balls in chocolate and lay on wax paper until firm. (Use a spoon to dip and roll in chocolate and then tap off extra.)

I also only melt a few pieces of chocolate bark at a time because it starts to cool and thicken. It’s easier to work with when it’s hot.

Confetti Cookies by J. McGuckin

If I ever post anything by J.McGuckin, be assured it's yummy! She is a fabulous cook & baker!

She brought these cookies to our Easter Bunny Tea Party (along w/ the Cakeballs, I'll post in a minute)...both a HUGE hit. One dad talked about them for a week!

1 cake mix (I used funfetti for easter but usually do with lemon cake mix)

1 egg

1 stick butter melted

1 cup rice krispes

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes (super easy)