Category — Chicken

Today’s recipe is born of fridge-cleanup and a need for speed.  All the ingredients can be purchased at Trader Joe’s, but feel free to sub your favorites.  Although the sauce for the spinach is “creamy,” it’s healthful because it’s made with Fage 0% Greek yogurt.  Make sure that your mixture isn’t still simmering when you stir in the yogurt, though, because the yogurt will curdle.  This is super-speedy – ready in about 20 minutes, and could easily be scaled up to serve more people.

TJ’s Lemon Chicken With Creamy Spinach Sauce

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

Cut chicken into strips. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add chicken, stirring to warm it through. Add the garlic and sauté for 2 minutes. Add red pepper flakes and a sprinkle of salt and pepper and stir. Add spinach and toss with tongs until it’s just beginning to wilt. Remove pan from heat and cover to wilt spinach completely, approximately 1 minute more. Remove the lid, stir in yogurt and lemon juice. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Serve spinach sauce over pasta.

Serves 2 to 3.

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What do you eat when you eat alone?  Do you pick and nibble and eat at the counter or in front of the t.v.?  Or do you make yourself a full-on meal?  Although we all need an occasional junk-food feast, I advocate eating a real meal, even if you’re by yourself.  Chances are, you’ll feel more satisfied and that you’ll eat better if you do.

Although we’re a family of 3, I make a lot of meals just for me.  D. travels a lot, and L. won’t eat anything interesting or reasonable (most of the time), so I’m stuck eating makeshift suppers or else biting the bullet and cooking a meal for myself.  In the wintertime, I do big batches and eat them during  the week, but now that the weather’s getting nicer, I want lighter, fresher fare. 

Last night’s dinner was so fast, and so tasty, I had to share it.  I had everything in the pantry or the freezer, and in fewer than 30 minutes I’d whipped up a lovely, healthful meal for myself (along with leftover noodles and plain chicken plus an apple for L.).  The Lemon-Tarragon chicken has a sunny taste and cooks up super-fast thanks to pounding it out.  The salad is fruity and bright as well – and can you say “antioxidant blast?”  Spinach, beets, oranges, walnuts . . . this’ll set you up right.  Better than that bag o’ Doritos you were thinking about,  for sure.

Lemon-Tarragon Chicken (adapted from Cooking Light)

Place the chicken breast in a heavy-duty Ziploc bag, or between 2 pieces of plastic wrap and pound to ¼-inch thickness with a meat mallet or a heavy skillet.  Sprinkle the chicken with salt.

Combine the olive oil, lemon juice and tarragon in a small bowl and whisk to combine. 

Coat a small skillet with cooking spray, and place over medium heat.  Once hot, add the chicken and cook for approximately 3 minutes on one side.  Turn the breast over, and cook for another 3 minutes on the other side, or until no longer pink.  Drizzle the lemon-tarragon mixture over the chicken and turn to coat in the pan.  Serve.

Serves 1.

Spinach Salad with Beets & Oranges (adapted from Cooking Light)

Peel the orange, segment, and cut each segment into 4 pieces.

Place the spinach in a salad bowl.  Arrange the beets and orange pieces over the spinach. 

Combine the oil, vinegar and pepper in a small bowl and pour over the salad. Top with walnuts.  Serve.

Serves 1.

If you’re cooking for 1+, I’m sure the recipes as written would be terrific.

What’re your favorite solo meals?  Share them in the comments!

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Today’s recipe saved my you-know-what last week.  On Thursday, we chaperoned 16 Brownie Girl Scouts through the rainy woods of an Audubon Sanctuary until dusk.  I arrived home at dinnertime with a very damp, very tired bubba who was bordering on hypoglycemia.  Luckily, I had the foresight to take some chicken breasts out of the freezer, and because I’m sorta nuts, I had all these ingredients in my pantry/freezer . . . at noon I dumped it all in the Crockpot (the chicken breasts weren’t even fully thawed).  When we arrived home at 5:45 p.m., you could smell the warm, home-cooked spicy goodness when we opened the door.    

This is from a site called Gina’s WW Recipes, which, for all you Weight Watchers devotees, is a great resource.  Gina’s got lots of good recipes, and you can even search her recipes by points value.  Even if you’re not a WW devotee, if you’re interested in healthful recipes, she’s got a lot of inspiration for you. 

D. ate this over rice, which was great.  I spooned it over shredded romaine lettuce, which was also very good.  It’s delicious stuffed into a whole-wheat tortilla (I had that for lunch the next day), with or without cheese (I abstained, mostly because I was thinkin’ of making a cheesy dinner that night).  Any way you eat it, it’s a great dump-n-go slow-cooker meal to have in your arsenal.

Slow Cooker Southwestern Chicken (adapted from Gina’s WW Recipes)

Combine all the ingredients except the chicken breasts and salt & pepper in the slow cooker. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and lay them on top. Cover and cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. Approximately one half-hour before serving, remove the chicken breasts and shred them. Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker, stirring to combine. Taste the mixture and add additional salt & pepper to taste. 

Serves 8.

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Last night’s recipe was a winner.  Less of a salad and more of a happy mix-up, the tangy mango chutney dressing and pinch of cayenne turn every-night chicken and potatoes into something a lot more memorable.  This’ll take you about 45 minutes from counter to table if you roast your potatoes, but if you need to shorten it up, see my directions for steaming the potatoes following the recipe.  Two thumbs up from D. on this one!

Roasted Potato Salad With Chicken & Chutney (adapted from Better Homes and Gardens)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Scrub the potatoes and quarter them.  Combine the potatoes and 2 T. of the oil in a baking dish.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss to coat.  Roast, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes or until potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, rub the chicken with 1 T. of the oil, and sprinkle with salt, pepper and curry powder to taste.  Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat.  Once the pan is hot, add the chicken and cook until no longer pink, about 10 minutes each side.  Remove from heat, let rest 5 minutes.  Cut into bite-sized chunks.

Meanwhile, make the dressing.  Measure the chutney, cutting up any large pieces (kitchen shears work well for this).  In a small bowl combine the chutney, 1 T. olive oil, the cayenne pepper, lemon juice and 1 t. curry powder. 

Place the spinach in a large bowl.  Add the hot potatoes and chicken to the spinach and toss gently to wilt the spinach.  Stir in the chutney dressing (you may not want to use all of it – use some and add more to taste).  Sprinkle with pine nuts and serve.

Serves 4.

If you wanted to short-cut the potatoes, I think this would be just as good if you quartered the potatoes and steamed them for 20 minutes or so over hot water.  For richer flavor, you could toss them with a little olive oil after steaming, and definitely don’t skip the salt and pepper.

By the way, are you buying conventional (i.e., non-organic) potatoes?  You might want to spring for organic.  A potato get its nutrients through its skin, so it’s like a little sponge for any toxic chemicals that come down the food and water pipeline – and there are lots.  Taters are treated with fungicides during the growing season, then sprayed with herbicides to kill off the fibrous vines before harvesting. After they’re dug up, the potatoes are treated yet again to prevent them from sprouting.  That’s a lot of crud for you and yours to ingest . . . and since organic potatoes are only slightly more expensive than conventional, why take the risk?

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You’ll remember that I’ve made a foray into the world of wheat berries before, without success.  I’m not one to give up, so I took a second try last night, and it was a success.  Wheat berries are something we should like – they’re whole, unprocessed wheat kernels – you can’t get any more “whole grain” than that.  They’re high in fiber, protein and iron, and they’ve got a chewy texture and a nutty taste.  This recipe, adapted from Better Homes and Gardens, makes enough for 4 servings . . . which if you’re us, means that you can have it for lunch the next day.

Wheat Berry Salad (adapted from Better Homes and Gardens)

Combine the water and the wheat berries in a medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.  Cover and cook until tender, about 1 hour.  Drain and let cool. (Note, this can be done ahead of time and the cooked berries can be stored in the fridge ‘til you’re ready to assemble the salad).

Meanwhile, toast the walnuts in a dry skillet, cool and chop.

In a large bowl, combine the wheat berries, toasted walnuts, celery, dried cherries, scallion, olive oil and 5 t. vinegar.  Season with salt and pepper.  This salad keeps up to 5 days in the fridge.

Cumin-Dusted Chicken (adapted from Better Homes and Gardens)

Rub the chicken with the olive oil, then sprinkle salt, pepper and cumin.  Spray a large skillet (cast iron will give you a nice crust) with cooking spray and heat over medium heat.  Once pan is hot, add the chicken and cook until no longer pink, about 10 minutes each side.  Remove from heat, let rest 5 minutes.  Slice.  The chicken will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge.

To Serve

Place 1 c. spinach leaves on each of 4 plates.  Sprinkle each mound of spinach with 1 t. of the vinegar.  Mound ¾ c. of the wheat berry salad on top of each serving and top that with slices of the chicken. 

Serves 4.

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We are in that strange nether-place called March here in the Boston area.  It’s still quite chilly, but not thatcold.  It snows, but it doesn’t really stick.  And yet if you head into a store, it’s all about SPRING!  Bright colors, light fabrics, flowers, strappy shoes . . . really, it just serves to irritate me.  I want nothing more to be there, but, sigh.  I have to wait.  Just like every other year.

When it comes to food, I also feel in-between this time of year.  I’m all set with heavy comfort food.  I’ve got my sights set on fresh, light, leafy veggies and grilled meats.  Huge salads and big cold drinks.  Hell, I’d even settle for asparagus.  But even that’s a little premature.  So right now I’m doing in-between food.  Lightened up, but not all the way. 

This chicken, pilaf and salad combo will help tide you over ’til the really good stuff comes.  Like NO snow whatsoever.  Like birds chirping in the morning and dewy grass and patio parties.  Hang on with me, we’ll get there!

Honey Mustard Chicken

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Place the chicken breasts on a large plate and sprinkle them with salt and pepper.  Mix the remaining ingredients in a bowl, and spread on both sides of the chicken (some will come off on the plate, that’s OK).  Let sit for 15 minute to marinate.  Transfer the breasts to a large oven-safe baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Smear any leftover honey-mustard sauce over the top of the breasts.  Bake for 30 minutes, or until the breasts are no longer pink.

Serves 4.

Barley Pilaf (adapted from the Food Network)

Bring the broth to a boil in a medium saucepan.  Add the barley, 1 t. oil, and salt. Bring back to a boil, adjust the heat to a simmer, cover and cook until tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the lemon juice, honey, salt, and pepper in a small bowl, then gradually whisk in the oil.

Drain any excess liquid from the barley and transfer to a large bowl.  Toss with the remaining salad ingredients and the dressing.  Taste for seasoning and adjust as necessary.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves 4.

Fruity Spinach Salad

Divide the spinach amongst 4 salad plates or bowls.  Divide the oranges among the plates. In a small bowl, whisk the oil and vinegar and add salt and pepper to taste.  Dress the salads immediately before serving.

Serves 4.

*Fig vinegar is my new love.  I found mine at Whole Foods, and it is fruity, tangy, and delicious on salads.  Tomorrow I’ll share with you the salad I’ve been eating over and over again since I found this stuff!

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I LOVE pizza.  It incorporates some of my favorite food groups:  starch, fat, salt . . . . but I will confess to you that I don’t make pizza at home very often.  One of my big issues with at-home pizza prep is the crust.  I’m a control-freak and I like my own crust the best, but it’s time-consuming.  I cannot stand Boboli and the like – too bready and tasteless.  So when my friend M. started raving about Iggy’s pizza shells, I sat up and took notice.  For those of you not familiar with Iggy’s, it’s a Cambridge, Mass. company that makes fantastic breads.  These pizza shells are sold in a 1.1 lb. package with 2 shells – plenty of palatte for pizzas for a family of 4.  They’re thin and fresh and they cook up crispy on the bottom, with just the right amount of doughyness left behind.  It is, hands-down, the best pre-made crust I’ve ever had.  I will definitely buy it again.

So between the Iggy’s shell and this post on Macheesmo, I was fired up to make my own pizza.  These measures below are approximate – you can tweak them to your liking.  The result is a hearty, flavorful, inventive pie that had D. making those happy snuffling noises he’s so famous for . . . they’re the signal that he’s tucked into something really delicious.

Greek Chicken Pizza

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Put the lemon juice and olive oil in a medium-sized bowl and whisk to combine.  Add a bit of salt and pepper, and place the chicken in the bowl to marinate for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the spinach in a covered, microwave-safe bowl and cook for 1 minute.  Stir and cook 30 seconds more, if needed, until the spinach is wilted.  Uncover and let sit to cool slightly, and then squeeze all of the moisture out of the spinach. Chop it coarsely and set aside.

Get all your other ingredients ready.  Meanwhile, remove the chicken from the marinade (discard remaining marinade) and place it in a large skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook for approximately 3 minutes per side, or until no longer pink in the middle.  Remove from the pan and cut the chicken into ½-inch chunks.

Put your crust on a cookie sheet (line it with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray for easy cleanup and pizza lift-off).  Spread some olive oil in a thin layer over the pizza crust.  Sprinkle the mozzarella evenly over the crust.   Continue with the spinach, onion, chicken and feta. Sprinkle the dill over the top, and add a sprinkle of salt (go easy, the feta’s salty) and a few grinds of pepper.

Put it in the oven and bake until the top is lightly browned, approximately 25-35 minutes.

Makes a light meal for 4.  Serve with a tossed salad with a lemon/olive oil vinaigrette.

8 Great Ideas For Pizza Toppings

1. Layer smoked salmon, fresh dill, rinsed capers and red onion atop ricotta cheese and drizzle with extra virgin olive
2. Top tomato sauce with mozzarella, bits of freshly cooked, thick-cut bacon and red onion
3. Barbecue sauce topped with chicken and crumbled bleu cheese, garnished after baking with baby arugula dressed in a bit of extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4. Top bottled peanut satay sauce with grilled chicken, grated mozzarella, slivered green onions, shredded carrots and chopped cilantro, and a little more mozzarella on top
5. Naked crust topped with red onions, grated mozzarella cheese, black beans, corn-off-the-cob, grilled chicken, chopped cilantro and more mozzarella. After baking, top with salsa, sour cream and guacamole.
6. Prepared pesto sauce topped with grated Parmesan, artichoke hearts and grated fontina cheese
7. Sauce-free crust layered with havarti cheese, topped with par-cooked asparagus and wafer-thin slices of proscuitto.
8. The sky’s the limit!

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Did you think I forgot about you?  Never!  It’s just that it’s School Vacation Week, so I’m preoccupied with life right now, not blogging.  I am cooking this week, though, and have some tasty new recipes on the way – including this tasty braise we had last night.

Now, I’m a fan of cabbage, but I understand it’s not something that everyone looks forward to.  But folks, it’s so so so good for you – and I think that this might be a good recipe to try if you’re ambivalent – the braising here makes the cabbage very mild and tender, and the apples help create a sweet, yet savory and hearty dish.  The red cabbage called for here makes a really pretty presentation – brilliantly reddish-purple.  And although the cabbage has to cook for a while, it’s a stir-once-in-a-while thing, so you can put it on the stove and do other things while you prepare dinner. 

You can choose to steam some potatoes to use as a base for the braise, or else it’s good on its own, perhaps accompanied by some good bread.  Or, if you’re like me and have overindulged on Chinese New Year and Valentine’s vittles, you can eat it straight-up, ‘cause it’s delicious that way, too.

Braised Cabbage With Apples & Chicken Sausage

If you’re serving this over potatoes, clean them and cut them into uniformly-sized pieces and sprinkle them with some salt and pepper.  Place the potatoes in a steaming basket set in a large saucepan, and steam until fork-tender.  Meanwhile, heat the oil over medium heat in a large, lidded skillet or Dutch oven, and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until almost tender, about three minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of the balsamic vinegar and cook, stirring, until the mixture is golden, about three minutes, then add the apples and stir for two to three minutes.

Add the cabbage to the pot. Toss to coat thoroughly, then add the allspice, another 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, and salt to taste. Toss together. Cover the pot, and cook over low heat for 45 minutes, stirring from time to time. Add the sausage, stirring to combine.  Cook for 15 more minutes, until sausage is heated through.  Add freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust salt, and add another tablespoon or two of balsamic vinegar as desired.

Serve over potatoes, if desired.

Serves 4.

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