Monday, November 29, 2010

French Bread Pizza

loaf of French bread
your favorite pizza sauce
mozzarella cheese
your favorite pizza toppings- pepperoni, pineapples, ham, olives, sausage, peppers, etc.

1. Cut the French bread loaf in half lengthwise.
2. Spread desired amount of pizza sauce on bread. Top with cheese and toppings.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, until cheese is melted and it has reached desired crispiness.

* We made these when I was child and they still taste just as good as an adult! They are so easy and so yummy! It's the perfect recipe to make after a busy and stressful day. It's also good when you rub a garlic clove over the bread and sprinkle it with Italian seasoning & parmesan cheese right before baking. We like to serve this pizza with a delicious green salad.

Photo from Two Peas and Their Pod

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Wingers Sticky Finger Salad

4 chicken breasts, cut into strips
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup bread crumbs
2 heads romaine lettuce, chopped
2 tomatoes
croutons
cheddar cheese, grated
ranch dressing
craisins
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/3 cup Frank's Hot Sauce(Original)
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Dip chicken breasts into the sour cream and then into bread crumbs. Place on a sprayed/greased sheet pan. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until the chicken is cooked and crispy.

While the chicken is baking, prepare salad and make the dressing. To make the dressing, combine the 2 1/2 cups brown sugar, 1/3 cup Franks Hot Sauce, and 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar in a pot. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. Let boil for one minute, but no longer! If you boil too long it will turn hard.

When the chicken is done dip into sticky sauce and place on a plate. To serve, place sliced strips on top of salad with any additional toppings (cheese, croutons, tomatoes, craisins, etc.) and drench in ranch dressing. Save the additional sticky dressing as an extra topping for the salad...it adds a little more tang!

* WOW! This salad was incredible! We really could not get enough of it. It tasted exactly like we had gotten it from the restaurant. The sauce and chicken was to die for! We drizzled extra sauce on the salad before eating it for some extra amazing flavor. I could eat this everyday for a week. This recipe will definitely be repeated in our house!

Recipe from Sisters Stuff
Photo from Ptit Chef

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

Alfredo Sauce (recipe below)
2-3 cooked chicken breasts, diced
1-2 cups fresh chopped broccoli, cooked and hot
fettuccine, cooked according to package directions. (You can substitute another pasta if needed.)

Cook chicken in method desired. I boiled mine on the stove. Add chicken and broccoli to Alfredo sauce and heat through. Serve over hot, cooked fettuccine.

Alfredo Sauce:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2 cups heavy cream
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon (1 clove) minced garlic
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add minced garlic with the butter. Add cream, garlic powder, and pepper. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 to 12 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Trust me, it will thicken. When sauce has reached desired consistency, stir in Parmesan cheese. Use for Chicken Broccoli Alfredo, or just serve as is over fettuccine. Serves 4-6.

* The alfredo sauce had a lighter taste to it than I am used to but we really loved it! My husband is not normally a big pasta eater but he went to town on this dish! It didn't leave us feeling like we had eaten a heavy dish either. We sprinkled our pasta with a little extra parmesan cheese. So yummy!

Recipe from The Girl Who Ate Everything
Photo from Heartland Fields

Monday, November 22, 2010

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

1/3 C (3 oz) cream cheese
1/4 C green salsa
1T fresh lime juice
1/2 t cumin
1 t chili powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/4 t granulated garlic or garlic powder
3 T chopped cilantro
2 T sliced green onions
2 C shredded cooked chicken
1 C grated pepperjack cheese (I used a Fiesta blend cheese because it's what I had on hand)
about 16 small corn or flour tortillas
kosher salt
cooking spray

Heat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and granulated garlic. Stir to combine and then add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese and combine well. You can prepare up to this step ahead of time. Just keep the mixture in the fridge.

The corn tortillas are harder to roll without cracking. For the corn tortillas: work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them between damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 seconds will do it. If you find yours are cracking when you roll them or come unrolled right away, just try heating them longer and try the paper towel thing.

Place 2-3 T of chicken mixture on the lower third of a tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges. Roll it up as tight as you can.

Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or an oil mister and sprinkle some kosher salt on top.

Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown. Makes around 16 taquitos.

Dip in salsa, sour cream, guacamole, or Tomatillo Dressing.

* These were amazing! We were so excited to try this recipe and it definitely did not disappoint! They were so filling but we didn't want to stop eating them! We used corn tortillas and really liked them but had to work fast so they didn't start to crack. I used light cream cheese and they still tasted great. We dipped them in hot sauce, sour cream, and guacamole and served them with a green salad for a healthy and very satisfying meal!

Recipe & photo from The Girl Who Ate Everything

Friday, November 19, 2010

Creamy Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

2-3 cups shredded chicken
1-1/2 cups salsa
2 cups shredded Colby and Monterrey jack cheese
1 14 oz can of Old El Paso Enchilada Sauce (This is the best brand for this)
about 8 tortillas
1 cup sour cream
1/2 can of cream of chicken

In a bowl combine the cooked shredded chicken with salsa and 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 cups of the shredded cheese. Just depends how cheesy you want the middle to be.

Next dip a tortilla into the enchilada sauce, making sure every last inch of it is covered and place it in a 9x13 pan. Place desired amount (about 1/8) of the chicken mixture onto the middle of the tortilla, and roll it up. Scoot the tortilla all the way over to the edge of the pan. Repeat for remaining enchiladas. Your filling should spread to about 8 tortillas and your pan should be completely filled.

For the creamy topping, in a separate bowl, mix 1 cup sour cream with 1/2 a can of cream of chicken. The mixture tastes best when it is predominately the sour cream, so it should look more white than yellow.

Spread creamy topping over all the enchiladas.

Top with the remaining cheese ( about 1/2 to 3/4 cup cheese).

Bake at 350 F for 40 minutes.

* These were so delicious! We loved the simple ingredients and simple flavors. I used enchilada size flour tortillas and this dish was extremely filling, even for my husband. I used medium salsa and medium enchilada sauce and we were so in love with the extra kick. The creamy topping is to die for. This may not be our all time favorite enchiladas, but they are a close second and will be made again soon in our house. I served it with rice on the side and it was plenty!

Recipe & photo from Chef In Training

Friday, November 5, 2010

Orange Honey Grilled Chicken Tenders

1 to 1-1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 Tablespoons butter softened
2 Tablespoons finely chopped scallions
2 Tablespoons fresh orange juice
2 Tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves
1 Tablespoon honey
1-2 Tablespoons grated orange zest, from ~1/2 an orange

Cut each chicken breast into 3 length wise strips. (You can use chicken tenders.) Thread 3 strips accordion style, on each of 4-6 long metal or wooden skewers. If using wood skewers, soak them for at least 20 minutes in cold water before using to prevent scorching on the grill. To make the basting sauce: In a small bowl, stir together the butter, scallions, orange juice, cilantro, honey, and orange zest. Brush about half of the sauce on the chicken, covering each strip well. Set aside to marinate for about 15 minutes. If you have to let the chicken marinate longer refrigerate. Prepare grill to medium hot. Grill chicken about 15 minutes, turning several times, until the chicken is cooked through but still moist. Baste several times with the remaining basting sauce. Stop basting 5 minutes before the chicken is done. Remove the chicken from the grill and serve immediately. (Do not serve any of the basting sauce with the chicken.)

* I'm not going to lie, I was highly disappointed with this recipe. It sounded so delicious and I was so excited about the flavor combinations but it lacked some major flavor. I was hoping for a bit of a stronger orange flavor but you could only very lightly taste the cilantro and onions. I will not make this recipe the same way again but I would love to try and switch it up a bit and see if I can't make it more to our liking because I love the idea! I served it with our Green Puffy Salad" to compliment the flavors I was hoping would be in the chicken.

Recipe & photo from The Sisters Cafe

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Scalloped Chicken & Potatoes

1 box scalloped potatoes (including seasoning packet)
6 chicken tenders
3 cups water

Put potatoes in greased slow cooker first, followed by seasoning packet and chicken. Pour water over all. Cover and cook on low heat 4-5 hours.

* I don't think a recipe could get any more simple than this one! I used southwestern flavored scalloped potatoes and we loved the flavor! The chicken was so moist and tender that it fell apart with one small poke of your fork. The potatoes were extremely soft and delicious. I sprinkled it with a little bit of salt and pepper and it was so yummy. My husband really enjoyed dipping his bites in a little bit of barbecue sauce. Either way, this recipe was a winner!

Recipe & photo from Sisters' Stuff