Asian Grilled Chicken Thighs

1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

3 tbsp Hoisin sauce

1/2 tsp celery salt

2 tsp Schezuan seasoning blend (found in Asian food aisle, I use the store brand)

1 tsp Mrs. Dash

3 tbsp peanut oil OR 2 tbsp sesame oil

Combine everything and marinate for at least 4 hours.

Preheat grill on high. Place chicken on it and turn it down to medium high. Grill for 7-9 minutes on each side.

Rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Super Easy Inside Out Chicken Cordon Bleu

1 package (8 pieces) breaded chicken cutlets (I used frozen Perdue ones)
8oz. deli ham sliced and cut into thin strips
8oz. swiss cheese, shredded
1 bunch Green onion, chopped
Honey mustard

Cook chicken cutlets according to package directions. Once chicken is done, sprinkle ham evenly over cutlets, cover with cheese. Bake for another 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve sprinkled with green onion and honey mustard on the side.

Hawaiian Slow Cooker Chicken

6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 bottle Hawaiian barbecue sauce (from Target, Archer Farms brand)
1 small onion, chopped small
1 small green pepper chopped into 1inch pieces
1/2 cup baby carrots
1 can pineapple chunks

Add everything to slow cooker. I put the chicken in frozen. Cook on high about 3 hours. Shred chicken with 2 forks.

Serve with brown rice.

1 1/2 cups brown rice
3 cups water
1 tablespoon minced onion flakes
3 tablespoons soy sauce

Bring water to boil with onion and soy sauce. Add rice. Cook on low about 45-60 minutes until liquid is absorbed.

Freezer Cooking: Tikka Masala in the Slow Cooker

In a 1 quart freezer bag, place:
12oz. boneless skinless chicken breast, in 1 inch pieces
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

In a gallon freezer bag, place:
1 large can diced tomatoes, with chiles
1 small can tomato paste
1 tsp ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium onion, diced
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp red curry paste
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder

Freeze bags for up to 3 months.

When you're ready to cook-
Remove bags from freezer. Place frozen contents in crock pot. Cook on high for 4 hours.

After 4 hours, add 1 1/4 cups brown rice or pearl barley and 2 cups very hot water to crock pot. Stir to mix in the grains. Cook on high for 2-3 more hours until grain is cooked.

Before serving, stir in 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp salt, & 1 cup half & half (or milk).

Serve with salad or carrot sticks and a piece of pita (naan) or crusty bread.

Serves 6

Buffalo Mac & Cheese

3 cups milk
3 cups whole grain pasta
1 heaping cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1 small red pepper, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
1 1/2 cups cooked chicken
4 tablespoons Frank's hot sauce (use more or less)
1 tablespoon butter (optional)
Blue cheese crumbles (optional)
Bring milk, pasta, and red pepper to a simmer on medium/medium low heat. Stirring often, cook pasta in milk until al dente- about 10-15 minutes. Keep the heat low because you don't want to scorch the milk or cause it foam and boil over.


In a separate bowl, combine chicken, hot sauce and butter (optional). 
Remove pan from heat, stir in cheeses and yogurt. Return to warm burner and combine. Fold in chicken mixture and green pepper. 

Top with blue cheese crumbles if you'd like. Serve immediately. 

Serves 4 generous dinner portions.

Thanksgiving Dinner- Wheat & Corn Bread Stuffing

 1- 1 1/2 lb. loaf whole wheat bread, cut into 1" cubes
1- 1 lb. loaf corn bread, cut into 1" cubes
1 large onion, chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped small
3 tbsp. butter
salt, pepper to taste
1 tbsp sage
1 tbsp parsley
1/2 cup chardonnay
7-10 cups stock

Cut bread the day before and leave out on the counter overnight to dry out.

The day of-
Add onion, celery, and butter to pan.  Season with salt & pepper. Saute until onion is translucent. Add herbs and wine. Reduce liquid by half.

Add bread and onion mixture to a large bowl. Add 6 cups stock. Fold mixture together.

Add mixture to 13x9 baking dish, pressing it in with the back of a spoon.

Let rest for 15 minutes. Check moisture level by feeling a bread cube. If it falls apart, it moist enough. If it's still a little hard in the middle, pour 1 cup stock over mixture in pan & check again after a few minutes. Repeat until mixture is very moist.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 1hour-1 hour 15 minutes.

Thanksgiving Dinner- Turkey Brine & Roasting

Brining takes place the day before you'll be preparing the turkey.

Brines a 10-15lb turkey.

1 gallon water

1 medium onion, roughly chopped, peel still in tact

1 end of a celery bunch (the part you'd throw out), rinsed

4 cloves garlic sliced in 1/2, peel still on

1 tbsp whole peppercorns

1 tbsp whole coriander

4 dried bay leaves

1 cup sea salt

1/2 cup raw sugar

3/4 cup apple cider vinegar

(Thaw your turkey prior to brining.)

In the morning before you are going to brine-

Add everything to a large stock pot. Bring to a boil on medium/high heat, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar. Once boiling, turn the heat off, remove from the burner and let it come to room temperature in the pot. 

The evening before you're going to cook the turkey, prep a small cooler. 

I use this one by cleaning the inside well. Add the cooled brine, 1 gallon or water, and 12 cups ice cubes. 

Unwrap your thawed turkey, remove giblets and neck (save those to MAKE STOCK!), & rinse.

Place turkey, breast end first, into brine. Weigh it down with a plastic container filled with water, heavy lid, etc. Put the lid on the cooler and leave it alone overnight. (Minimum brining time is 8 hours-Max amount is 24 hours)

Before you're going to bake the turkey, remove the turkey from the cooler, rinse it well, and place it onto the the pan/rack you'll be baking on. Then, dry the turkey by patting it with paper towels. Discard the brine. 

Bake at your preference. 

I use this method to bake turkeys- Rub dried turkey with a little oil. Fill cavity with one roughly chopped onion, one quartered apple, 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, and 6 smashed cloves garlic. Tie up the legs together with string. Tuck the wings back behind the body (like it's laying with it's arms behiind it's head). Roast turkey in lowest part of the oven at 500 degrees for 30 minutes. Then, place a triangle of buttered foil over the breast (white meat)- leaving the dark meat exposed. Put a probe thermometer into the breast and return the turkey to the oven. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. When thermometer has reached 130 degrees, remove the tent and check for even browning. If it's not browned nicely over the breasts, leave the tent off. If it's evenly browned, stick it back on until it's finished. Roast until the white meat has reached 161 degrees (about 15 minutes a lb.) Rest, covered with foil or a large metal mixing bowl for 15-30 minutes before carving.

Chicken Noodle Soup

This recipes almost fills up my 8 qt stock pot. The egg noodles are sturdy and hold up to freezing. Just thaw & reheat. Better than the canned stuff!

1 large softball size onion, chopped
1/2 bunch of celery, chopped- including the greens at the top!
1 lb. carrots, sliced
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp (or more) parsley
1 tsp garlic (fresh or powder)
1/2 gallon of chicken stock
3 boneless chicken breasts (about 8oz.-1lb.)
Water to fill pot
Salt & Pepper to taste

Saute onions, celery, & carrots in butter over medium until they have some caramel color and the onions start to turn translucent- about 5-8 minutes.
Add parsley & garlic.

Add stock and chicken breasts. Bring to a boil. Poach chicken breasts about 20 minutes. Remove chicken from pot to a cutting board or plate. Let cool until you can handle it, then use two forks to shred chicken into bite size pieces.

Add chicken back to the stock pot. Fill the pot the rest of the way with water (or more stock if you think it needs the extra flavor).

Simmer on low while you prepare noodles.

2 cups flour
4 eggs
1 tsp salt

Using your bread machine (can be done in a big mixing bowl by hand, too), add flour, eggs, & salt to the bowl with paddle attached. Set machine to "dough" setting. Run for 10 minutes. You may need to add a little more flour or a 1/2 tsp of water at a time until the dough is a smooth, slightly sticky ball. 10 minutes total ensures that the dough is mixed and kneaded the proper amount of time. After time is up, stop machine, and rest dough for 10 more minutes.

Using pasta machine, roll sheets of dough out to thickest setting. Take each sheet, roll it up, and slice 1/2" spirals. Unroll the spirals into long noodles.

Heat soup to a boil. Add pasta to the soup, breaking noodles into smaller lengths if desired. Pasta will be finished cooking in 5 minutes.  Serve immediately or portion for freezing once slightly cooled.

White Chicken Chili

One of the two chilis I made for our Chili Cook-Off party. Makes one very full slow cooker (about a 5qt. size)

1 1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped green pepper
48oz jar of Great Northern Beans (like this)
1 can drained diced tomatoes
2 small cans chopped green chilies
1 cup frozen corn
3-5 cups chicken stock
2 cans (or about 2 cups) cream soup (any flavor)
1 8oz. pkg cream cheese, cubed
1 cup milk
3 cups shredded cooked chicken
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. parsley
2 tsp. Mrs. Dash

Add everything but the chicken stock into the slow cooker. Gently mix. Add chicken stock until it's your desired consistency. Cook on high, stirring often for 3 hours or on low for 6.

Serve with cornbread and toppings for the chili- sour cream, shredded cheese, chives or green onions.

Freezes well.

Smoky Feta Chicken Burgers

These are so yummy! I love re-purposing ingredients, and using the Pampered Chef dipping seasoning gives these burgers a real depth of flavor. These are also low-fat & low-calorie.

1lb. ground chicken
Drizzle of EVOO
1/2 cup crumbled feta
1 Tbsp. Pamper Chef Spinach & Red Pepper Oil Dipping Seasoning
1 tsp. garlic powder
Salt & Pepper to taste
3 tsp. worcestershire sauce
3 green onions (scallions), sliced thin

Combine all ingredients by gently mixing with hands. Divide into 4 equal portions and form patties.

Heat skillet to medium-high with a little EVOO in the pan. Cook burgers approximately 6 minutes on each side or until internal temp is around 160 degrees. Flip them only once so you get a nice caramelization on each side.  The residual cooking should bring the temp up to 165 degrees which means they are cooked through (essential when cooking poultry).

Serve on a whole wheat bun dressed with caesar dressing & a handful of spring mix salad.

Chicken & Noodles

This thick stew has slightly chewy, dumpling-like egg noodles. Warm, filling, and comforting!

Chicken & gravy:
6-8 cups chicken stock
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 cup white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups carrots, sliced
salt
pepper
fresh or dried parsley, rosemary, & thyme to taste

Noodles:
2 cups flour
1 egg
about a 1/2-1cup warm water
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder

For noodles: 

Combine flour, egg, baking powder, & salt. Add water slowly until a slightly sticky but firm dough forms. It should combine into a ball, with little dough/flour left on the sides of the bowl. Let dough rest while you prepare the chicken & gravy. 

Bring stock to a boil in a large pot. Add veggies and seasoning. Poach chicken breasts in simmering stock for about 20mins. Remove chicken & shred with two forks, pulling it apart into bite size pieces. Place chicken back into stock.

Roll out noodle dough with ample flour to about 1/4 inch thick. Use a pizza or pastry cutter to slice the noodles into strips about 1/2 inch wide and 2-3 inches long. Sprinkle more flour on top of the sliced noodles. Gently pick up noodles and toss them together with ample flour. They will slightly lose their shape, but should be coated in flour and easily able to separate from each other.

Place the noodles very gently into simmering stock. Place lid on pot for 3 mins. Remove lid and gently stir.

Combine 1/4 cup flour with a little cold water. Stir to dissolve flour. Add to simmering pot and stir. This will thicken the gravy.

Check for seasoning. Add as desired.

Serve steaming hot.

Vegetarian option: Use vegetable stock, omit chicken, & add double the veggies.

Can be frozen. Thaw & reheat on stovetop. Add a little water as gravy will thicken substantially.

Roast Chicken & a TON of Chicken Stock: Part 2- The Stock

This pretty gal is gonna make us a ton of chicken stock, therefore making many many dishes to follow much much more flavorful. 

I use chicken or vegetable stock (I'll show you how I make that as soon as I run out of chicken stock)for all kinds of things in my kitchen. 

Most often I use it in this:

Always as a base in my homemade soups

To cook pasta and plain or spanish rice 

To make pilaf 

 To thin sauces

To make gravy

Pretty much any savory cooking that you'd add water to, I use stock instead. 

Alright, this takes a while but it's SO worth it, I promise. 

You'll need:

all the cooked bits, juices, veggies, etc. left from your roast chicken

the neck and offal

2 -3 onions- not peeled, quartered

1/2lb baby carrots

1/2 bunch of celery stalks leaves included, broken into medium pieces 

8 cloves garlic- not peeled, smashed a bit
parsley stems from one whole bunch and some of the leaves
black pepper
white pepper
paprika
onion powder- I know this is a bit redundant, but to me, it's a totally different flavor that fresh onion
oregano
basil
Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute or Classic Mrs. Dash
generous amount of salt
35-40 cups of warm water (this is an estimate)


Mix everything but the seasonings and water in a large bowl. 


Divide into the pots you plan to use to make your stock. Or just use a BIG stock pot. I don't have a huge stock pot, so I use my 3 largest pots seen here:

This is not an exact measurement kind of thing. You want about 2-3inches of stuff in the bottom of each of your pots. Just be sure to divide the chicken bones and bits evenly between the bowls. 


Now, fill your pots with warm water, about an inch from the top of the pot. 


Season with your dry seasonings. Be very generous. For my large pot, I start with 1tbsp of onion, oregano, basil, 21 seasoning, and salt and 2tsp of the peppers and paprika. You are building flavor here and we want it to be delicious! Plus, my method involves stretching this chicken for as much flavor as I can get out of it. We need to help it out with a ton of veggies, seasoning, and to be honest, quite a bit of salt. 

Bring to a boil. Reduce to a nice simmer. 


Once the veggies are soft, give the broth a taste. Season it up a little more.


Simmer until the celery and parsley have turned that horrible, I mean MARVELOUS!, green-grey color. You want to cook this stuff to death. We are, after all, trying to suck every bit of flavor out of this stuff, right?


Turn off the burners, cover, and let it steep for about 20-30 minutes. It will stay HOT HOT HOT for a while. 


Strain the bits out and put the stock into 2 big bowls. This is what my garbage bowl of boiled stock bits looked like after I had strained everything. Yuck!

We need to cool the stock off as quickly as possible, so fill 2 large plastic freezer bags with ice, seal, and place one in each of the bowls. When the ice is melted, take the bags out and put the bowls in the fridge. 

Chill the stock until the fat has risen to the top and hardened up. Remove it from the top with a slotted spoon or your fingers. Save the fat if you'd like to make matzo ball soup or add some extra umph to your dumplings (that's what I'm going to do). By the way, the chicken fat is sometimes called schmaltz, but it's debatable if this method actually creates schmaltz.You can decide. I call it schmaltz. It sounds fancier than chicken fat.  


Divide the stock into freezer bags. I do it in 2 cup serving sizes. It's makes less waste for me that way. 


I realize that this is not as much a recipe as it's a "method."
If you're confused, or if I ever miss something in the steps, just ask me to help. 

Roast Chicken & a TON of Chicken Stock: Part 1- The Chicken

We had roast chicken for dinner. I make it when I need chicken stock. It turned out well. The lemon added a touch of flavor that made it extra delicious. 

The two of us get 3-4 meals out of one roast chicken, plus 30+ cups of stock. This makes several very affordable dinners along with stock that will last me a few months in the freezer. 

For the roast chicken:

1 5lb-ish whole chicken rinsed and patted dry- save the neck and offal for the stock 

5-6 red skin potatoes- medium size- cut in half or quarters

1/2lb of baby carrots

1 large onion peeled and wedged

1 lemon

1/2 bunch celery stalks leaves included

4-6 whole cloves garlic- peeled

fresh parsley

salt

pepper
Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute of Classic Mrs. Dash

olive oil

I use my large stoneware bowl from Pampered Chef to bake this in. They don't make it anymore. This would work the same way though-without the lid. Or a roasting pan that the chicken fits comfortably in.  

Lay the carrots, onions, celery, & garlic in the bottom of the pan. Salt & pepper them. They will act as your roasting rack. They will end up swimming in a delicious puddle of roasted chicken drippings. That makes for a GREAT chicken stock!

Place the bird on top of the veggies breast side up. Tuck the wing tips under the bird. I don't truss the bird. I give it such a comfy and moist environment to bake in that I've never had a problem of uneven cooking or a dry bird. 

Season the chicken liberally with 21 seasoning, salt & pepper. 

Arrange the potatoes around the bird. Season those too. 

Squeeze half of the lemon on the chicken and potatoes. Then, stuff that half of the lemon into the chicken. Add in a small bunch of parsley too. 

Slice the other lemon half into thin slices and arrange them around the potatoes and the chicken. You can even put them on the chicken if you'd like to decorate it a little. 

Drizzle the whole thing with a little olive oil. 

Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 1 1/2-2 hours. Whole chickens don't need to be covered when roasting. The chicken should be 170 degrees when you remove it from the oven. Test the temp in several areas. The chicken will continue cooking about 5 more degrees once it's out of the oven. You want to end up with a 175 to 180 degree chicken. 

Rest on a cookie sheet along side the potatoes and carrots. Cover for 15 minutes. Leave the rest of the stuff in the pan, you'll be using it in your stock. 

Carve chicken and serve with potatoes, and carrots. 

Once dinner is over and the leftover chicken has cooled off, remove every bit of meat from it. Save the skin, bones, and other bits in a bowl. Use the leftover meat in a salad, pot pie, or just re-heat and serve with some yummy side dishes. 

So as not to make this the longest blog post EVER, I will show you how to make the stock tomorrow.