thai chicken salad

oh my goodness, look what i found in my blog posts drafts from ~2 years ago, thai chicken salad.  i recall it was pretty tasty after all.  might have to go with the pictures to discern just how this salad came together... maybe just follow the pics like an ikea direction packet :)

ingredients:

• ~2 cups grilled chicken, cubed
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1 cup grape tomatoes
• 1 mango, diced
• handful of fresh basil, torn
• handful of fresh mint, torn
• bibb lettuce
• 1 package of ramen noodles, prepared according to directions
• dressing, i'm guessing:... 1 T soy sauce, 1 T teriyaki sauce, ~2 T evoo or veg oil, juice of 1/2 lime, 1 tsp sesame seeds, salt & pepper, drizzle of sesame oil, squirt of sriracha sauce, little bit a brown suga... season to taste 

preparation:

toss together and enjoy... the dressing can be doubled and used to marinate the chicken prior to grilling.

tacos tacos

of every shape & kind... who doesn't love a good taco?

we recently enjoyed some unusual varieties at a neighborhood spot called good to go tacos (previously at the green spot, and soon to be featured on the food network)... i think mine had Israeli pearl couscous, spinach & a nice mushroom cream, while td went with an egg scramble/chorizo/honey combo... i think it was called the hangover or the honeybear... they all have cute names. anyway, good to go offers all kinds of organic & healthy ingredients, plus funky varieties like the chicken & waffle hotlanta taco. here's yelp info: http://m.yelp.com/biz/good-2-go-taco-dallas

so that got us thinking, we like tacos. let's make our own tacos. pictured below is a spicy chicken, black beans & feta taco made with fridge odds & ends... *not nearly as creative as good to go's, but a new spin on leftovers. and a good start... that's the beauty of a taco, endless potential :)

Crock Pot Oldie: Salsa Chicken

I really need to crack out the crock pot more often - millions of moms can't be wrong, right? 

This morning I looked at our plans for a busy day and thought ugh, what to make for dinner... I pulled out 4 frozen chicken breasts and thawed them (mostly) while adding a giant red onion, about 10 cloves of garlic (thanks to my large Costco bag), 2 cans of black beans and ~32 oz salsa (also thanks to our standard 66oz Costco salsa jar... Troy loves that stuff) into our crock pot and the house already smells amazing.

Dozens of online recipes for salsa chicken recommend corn, but we happen to be out, and/or taco seasoning, but then again, lots of reviews swear by just chicken & salsa.  So, here's to hoping it really is yummy.  We'll let ya know in 8-10 hours :)

Here's a pic so far, about 5 mins into cooking the recommended 8-10 hours on low:

INGREDIENTS / PREPARATION:

*Google for yourself and pick which recipe suits your on-hand ingredients.

. . . We'll check back with the finished result tonight . . .

*and here it is*

 

I shredded the chicken about 30 mins before serving and slid it back into the salsa sauce  to soak up the juices - it shredded beautifully, soooo tender.  I also happened to add a can of stewed tomatoes, for funsies.

I'd say try serving this with sliced avocado, jack cheese, sour cream, tortillas, in a taco shell or over brown rice.  We enjoyed ours over a bowl of healthy & nutty quinoa.  The leftovers could be a great base for chicken tortilla soup.  What a way to spread out 4 chicken breasts, too... this made tons of food.

My verdict?  I thought this was very easy, affordable and one less thing to think about at 6pm when emory needs to eat/get a bath, etc.  I will be breaking out the crock pot again soon :)

Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Now that I sit down and look at this picture, I'm not sure it looks all that appetizing, but these were actually pretty tasty!  We stuff chicken breasts with all kinds of things pretty often though, so this post is more about an easy idea than the exact recipe.  Since this was a while ago, I'm ad-libbing it here anyway :)

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken breasts
• 2 cups fresh spinach
• 1/2 cup feta
• 1/4 sun dried tomatoes
• olive oil, salt & pepper
• optional, Italian bread crumbs 
• optional, bacon :)

Preparation:

Pre-heat oven to 375.  Chop spinach and sun dried tomatoes and combine with feta in a bowl.  Butterfly chicken breasts, being careful not to cut all the way through.  (If you do, no biggie, it will still taste good.) Spoon spinach/tomato/feta mixture into the chicken pockets.  *Optional, wrap the chicken breasts in bacon.  Drizzle olive oil and rub all over chicken.  Season well with salt & pepper.  *Optional, sprinkle Italian bread crumbs atop for some fun crunch.  Place in a baking dish and cover.  Cook for ~45 mins or until the chicken is completely cooked through.

Try stuffing with roasted red peppers, olives, sauteed onion, garlic, ham, swiss, apples, more bacon... the options are endless.

Tequila Lime Chicken

I have a hard time posting recipes when I don't really use them - that is to say, I'm sure the use of actual recipes would make our end results taste much better, as opposed to my fly by the seat of my pants approach - but life is busy, I don't always have a recipe in front of me, and I'm much more inclined to utilize a proven method of cooking rather than get too bogged down by an exact recipe (perhaps this is why I'm not a great baker)... *but then again, as the old saying goes, 'learn a recipe and enjoy a good dish, learn a method and eat well forever.' :)

Anyhoo, a few weeks ago we enjoyed some tequila lime chicken and (once again), I'm not sure how to post the recipe since I threw a bunch of ingredients in a bowl and marinated chicken in a baggie for ~45 mins before grilling. (thankfully marinades are pretty forgiving, I think!)

If you would like to see what's out there on the web regarding real legit tequila lime marinade recipes, feel free to click here. Otherwise, here's the jist of what I did... I'm sure it could be improved, so if you have ideas, I'd love to hear :)

Ingredients:

• ~3/4 cup of fresh lime juice
  
• zest from 1 lime
• ~1/2 cup tequila
• splash of orange juice
• diced pickled banana peppers + splash of juice from jar (b/c we had them and the juice is tangy/acidic... perfect for marinades) *try pickle juice, too - amazing!
  
• 1T minced jalapeno
  
• dash of cayenne pepper (however much you like)
  
• dash of cumin
• handful of torn cilantro
  
• ~1tsp of kosher salt
• ~1tsp of pepper (again however much you like)
• 4 chicken breasts
  

Preparation:

Whisk ingredients together and pour over 4 chicken breasts. Marinate in a food storage bag or bowl for ~45 minutes. Grill at medium high heat until chicken is done. Let chicken rest, slice and serve with grilled onions, refried black beans, tomatoes, cilantro, avocado, cheese, sour cream, guac, tortillas, or whatever your heart desires :)

Parsley Dipping Sauce & Marinade

I sort of cringe when people take a recipe and alter it like I did here and then recommend it... oh well, it turned out pretty tasty and I would recommend it :) I have tons of parsley these days and saw a yummy parsley marinade & dipping sauce for beef & pineapple pops. Fresh & easy, I used the marinade on chicken and will definitely try it as it was intended with beef & pineapple soon. Check out Giada's video demo.

loads of parsley... hmm, what to do with all this.

here's the marinade working its magic

after our first bite, yum, yes I think I'll post this :)

Paige's Picks

My dear friend Paige is such a creative cook and she recently sent me links and a couple pics to some of her favorite recipes (thanks Paige!!) - just adding them here is making my mouth water... try them out & let us know what you think! :)

Eggs Florentine

Raspberry Filled Crepes

Black Bean Chili
(*As pictured above... Paige says she makes this once a week & tops with cilantro, cheddar & sour cream. Yum.)

Cheddar Dill Cornbread
(a perfect compliment to the aforementioned chili)

Chicken Souvlaki with Grilled Pita

Slow-Cooked Scrambled Eggs

Buttermilk Cheddar Biscuits

Eggplant Gratin

*And, a few of Paige's own!

Taco Soup

Taco Soup

• 1 lb. lean, grass fed ground beef
• 1 onion, diced
• 1- 16oz can of Rotel
• 3- 16oz cans of black beans
• 1-16oz can of corn, undrained
• 1-4 1/2 oz can of green chiles
• 1-15 oz can tomato sauce
• 1 1/2 cups of water
• 1 pkg of taco seasoning
• 1 pkg of dry Ranch dressing mix

Cook beef and onion until tender and drain. Combine beef mixture with all other ingredients in stock pot. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 15 mins. Makes 3 1/2 quarts.

Thin Mint Sugar Cookies

Thin Mint Sugar Cookies

Cut a roll of sugar cookie dough (store bought) into 1/4" slices. Place a Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookie or Keebler Grasshopper if Thin Mints aren't available and sandwich between two slices of sugar cookie dough. (Make a Thin Mint sandwich, basically.) Baste the top of the "sandwiches" with a little egg wash and top with chopped pecans. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Sinfully delicious!

A recipe from a Baylor Women's Alumni Party:

Praline Coffee

• 3 cups of hot brewed coffee
• 3/4 cup of half & half
• 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
• 2 T butter
• 3/4 cup maple syrup
• dollop of whipped cream

Heat coffee, half & half, brown sugar and butter over medium heat, stirring constantly until thoroughly heated (do not boil). Remove from heat and serve with whipped cream, if desired.

*Paige, you're awesome for sharing your favorite recipes with me - keep them coming & happy eating!

Chicken Soup for the Soul

It's been raining and raining & raining here in Dallas lately, so I've tried to make us tasty foods that will warm us up inside. This chicken soup was really yummy - thanks to tips from Emeril Lagasse :) Try it out if you're looking for something to savor and soothe you inside & out. We also enjoyed Alton Brown's sweet rosemary cornbread pudding with our soup.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs chicken tenders (you could use a 1/2 whole chicken or breasts)
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 1 tecate beer
• 2 cups water
  
• 1 medium yellow onions, diced
• 3/4 cup carrots, diced
  
• 3/4 cup celery, diced
• 6-8 button mushrooms, sliced
  
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 6 parsley stems
  
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 1/2 cups Barilla Ditalini pasta
  
• 3 T butter (or more/to taste)
  
• 2 1/4 tsp salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 2 T chopped fresh parsley
• 2 T olive oil
  

Preparation:

Sauté onion, carrots, celery, mushrooms in 2 T olive oil for a couple of minutes until tender. Add chicken stock, beer, water fresh thyme, parsley, bay leaf, salt & pepper and chicken tenders. Simmer and cover until chicken is slowly cooked. Remove chicken and using 2 forks, gently pull apart and shred. Return chicken to stock mixture and add Ditalini pasta. Cook until tender, add butter and additional seasoning to taste. Remove bay leaf and parsley stems, add freshly chopped parsley. Enjoy.

Sweet Corn Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

• 1/2 onion, diced fine
• 1 T unsalted butter
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• 1 (15 oz) can creamed style sweet corn
• 1cup heavy cream
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal, whole grain, stone ground
• 1/2 shredded Parmesan
  
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• fresh ground black pepper
• 2 cups cubed french bread

Preparation:

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Sweat onions with butter and herbs in an oven safe skillet until translucent. Combine corn, cream, eggs, baking powder, cornmeal, Parmesan, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Add cubed bread and fold to combine. Pour batter into skillet, right on top of the onion mixture. Bake 50 minutes or until set. Cool slightly before serving.

Shower Power

With our busy schedules these days, cooking has been a luxury, much less actually blogging about cooking :) but here are a few easy yummies from a recent baby shower my sweet girls & I hosted for our dear friend Sarah. We didn't get pics of each dish below, but you can kind of see them in the group shot above. Yay for baby showers & easy entertaining! (The recipes below were scaled to serve ~20 lightly-lunching ladies, feel free to scale back if you don't need to feed that many.)

Chicken Caesar Salad

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• (balsamic, extra virgin olive oil, garlic salt, kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper, dash of red pepper flakes, 2T dried rosemary for chicken marinade)
  
• 3 romaine hearts
  
• 1 cup shredded parmesan
• 3/4 bottle of Newman's Own Caesar Dressing (I know, shame, it's bottled, but my favorite!)
• 3 lemons, sliced thinly
  

Preparation:

Marinade the chicken in a shallow dish with your preference of seasoning, (I use balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic salt, kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper, dash of red pepper flakes, 2T dried rosemary for mine), then grill on indoor grill pan and slice for salad. Chop the romaine hearts and slice the lemons. Toss romaine, parmesan, lemons and sliced chicken in a large bowl with Newman's Own Caesar dressing. Voila! :)

Farm Egg Frittata

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of diced yellow bell pepper
• 1/2 cup of diced orange bell pepper
• 1 minced clove of garlic
• 1 cup of thinly sliced red onion
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 cup chopped grape tomatoes
  
• ~10 spears of asparagus cut on the bias to 1/4" pieces
• 1/2 cup crumbled bacon (optional)
  
• 9 eggs
• 2 sheet of pre-frozen puff pastry dough for the crust
• 12" baking/quiche dish
  
• salt & pepper
• red pepper flakes
• extra virgin olive oil
  

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 350°. Pull the puff pastry dough out of the freezer and let it thaw under a damp towel to keep it moist. Sauté the veggies in a little olive oil just until soft, seasoning with a few red pepper flakes, salt & pepper. Remove them from the heat and put to the side in a small bowl. Add crumbled bacon to the mixture. Roll out the puff pastry dough and press into a 12" baking dish, laying 1 sheet of dough on top of the other at a 90 degree angle, like an "x". Crack 9 eggs into a bowl and season well. Combine the cooled veggies with the egg mixture and pour into the baking dish. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes or until done! (I did the veggie mixture the night before, as well as cracked the eggs into a double-lined plastic baggie for quick assembly before the shower.) *Here's a similar version.

Creamy Dill Pasta

Ingredients:

• 2 lb box of large corkscrew pasta (like Barilla's Cellentani)
• 6 cups heavy whipping cream
• lots of fresh dill (~2 .66oz clear boxes from the herb section of your grocery store)
• salt & pepper and garlic salt to taste
  

Preparation:

I love this pasta because it's rich & creamy and so simple to make. Reduce cream in a saucepan at a low simmer and season well with salt & pepper and garlic salt. The goal is to thicken the cream sauce, but the thickness is up to you, I'd say you want it tight enough to cling to the corkscrew pasta, about 40-50 mins+ on a low simmer, stirring gently all the time. Meanwhile, boil the corkscrew pasta in salted water until al dente. De-stem and chop fresh dill. Toss the pasta, dill & cream sauce together and season to taste.

This pasta can be served warm or room temp (and is even tasty out of the fridge cold.) *You could certainly cut this recipe in half! Although make sure you have enough cream & dill since they're what gives the pasta flavor.

Granola Parfaits

Ingredients:

• * I used Emeril Lagasse's Whole Lotta Nuts granola recipe, or you can purchase 'homemade' granola from the bulk section of your grocery store.
• 2 27oz large containers of organic creamy vanilla yogurt
• drizzle of orange blossom honey to fold into yogurt
  
• assorted fresh berries (blackberries, strawberries, blueberries, peaches)
• We assembled 20 6oz parfaits.
  

Preparation:

Prepare the granola or purchase store bought. Fold honey into vanilla yogurt and assemble parfaits: granola, yogurt, fruit, and repeat! These are yummy immediately, and even nice as a yogurt "muesli" if you refrigerate leftovers.

*A big thanks to Catherine for bringing fresh goodies up from her farm near Austin! Other dishes not listed above were tomatoes, feta & basil, toasted croissants with honey butter & blackberry jam, a delicious cucumber dill salad, lemon poppyseed muffins and chocolate & vanilla petit fours.

Breaded Chicken, Spinach & Pepper Salad

So that pepper kick we've been on lately - the next night we had the same pepper combo with breaded chicken & spinach as a salad. Similar flavors, but why not since we liked the fish the night before & it was easy :)

Ingredients:

• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 poblano pepper, sliced
• 2 chicken breasts, pounded thinly
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1 egg for breading
• 4 cups spinach
• olive oil
• lemon juice & olive oil as a light vinaigrette
• salt & pepper for seasoning

Preparation:

I pounded out the chicken thinly and breaded the breasts in egg & panko (with seasoning: salt, pepper, garlic salt, whatever you'd like). I sauteed the veggies in olive oil until soft and moved them to the side of the pan and quickly sauteed the chicken, a couple minutes on each side over medium/high. Then, I sliced the chicken and assembled the salad (tossed the spinach in lemon juice & olive oil as a light vinaigrette) with peppers & onions on top. Nothing fancy, but fresh & fast :)

Super Suppers

I just had the most quixotic encounter with the wacky chef at lakewood's super suppers. I had no idea this place even existed until we got a free coupon in the mail :) so I stopped by after work and picked up a fabulous King Ranch Chicken dish that's bubbling in my oven as I blog this - yay. Check it out - they're a national concept, so chances are there's one near you, too :)

40 Clove Chicken & Sauteed Spaghetti Squash

Here's a yummy version of 40 Clove Chicken from the Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten, and Herbed Spaghetti Squash with garlic, grape tomatoes & parmesean. We're 2 weeks away from our new house & kitchen, so more to come once we unpack. :)

Grilled Lemon Dijon Chicken

This chicken turned out nicely - tender & juicy, very flavorful, a true winner in our house. And what's even better, I used a leftover chicken breast the next day for my summer chop salad (recipe to come).

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken breasts
• 1/3 cup of fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 1 Tbs of Dijon mustard
• 2 Tbs of chopped red bell pepper
• 2 cloves of minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

Preparation:

Preheat the grill to medium. Combine the marinade ingredients and reserve 1/4 cup for basting. Marinate the chicken in the remaining marinade for 20 minutes. Place chicken breasts on the grill for 5 mins, baste with marinade and grill for ~3 more mins. Turn the chicken over and grill for 3 more mins, baste with extra marinade. Chicken is done when juices run clear or an internal thermometer reads 170 degrees. Save the leftovers for my summer chop salad :)

Chicken Chili

My friend Laura made this for us on a recent trip to her house in Virginia. It's delicious and a real crowd pleaser!

Ingredients:

• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 1 jalapeno
• 4 oz can chopped green chilies (drained)
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/8 tsp Cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 2/3 cups white kidney beans
• 2 chicken breasts (cooked)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 cup shredded Monterrey Jack cheese

Preparation:

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil. Add jalapenos, chilies and spices. Stir in chicken broth, beans and chicken. Boil, then cover and simmer 25 minutes. Stir in cilantro and cheese. Serve. Makes 4 one cup servings.

Chicken and Cashews in Lettuce Cups

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
• Pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 1 bunch scallions, trimmed and sliced
• 1 8-oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained
• 1/4 cup roasted unsalted cashews
• 1 small head Boston or Bibb lettuce, leaves separated.

Preparation:

Combine the soy sauce and honey in a small bowl; set aside. heat the oil in a large skillet over medium0high heat.
Season the Chicken with 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to brown, about 3 minutes.
Lower heat to medium and stir in the garlic and ginger. Ad the scallions and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the water chestnuts and half the soy sauce mixture and continue to cook until the chicken is cooked through, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and sprinkle with the cashews.
Divide the lettuce leaves among individual places and spoon the chicken over the top. Serve with the remaining soy sauce mixture for drizzling.

Substitution: In place of chicken, try steak, pork or shrimp.
Source: Real Simple, May 2008

Mmm, Jen's BBQ

I tried Jen's aforementioned bbq sauce this week and we loved it! I changed it up just a bit -- first, I sautéed garlic & red onions together, just until soft, then I added the saucy ingredients in Jen's recipe, plus a couple cans of tomatoes, some worchestire sauce, and a little liquid smoke... I slow-cooked 4 chicken breasts in my le creuset dutch oven and shredded them over baked potatoes, and served with a spinach salad. We love the sauce! *Thanks for the delicious recipe, Jen!