Blackened Chicken Alfredo

I planned our weeknight meals this past weekend and chicken w/ pasta in Alfredo Sauce was on the list. But when it came time to make it, I was craving something a little different. I've had "blackened" chicken before, but never knew what it took to make it.

I found a bunch of recipes online, but took my measurements and ideas from this recipe. I used 1 tsp of almost everything but paprika. Then I covered my chicken breast in it. The whole thing. On one breast of chicken. TOO. MUCH. FLAVOR.

It was tasty, but way too much seasoning for the amount of chicken I had. I suggest using enough chicken for 3-4 servings (at least 2 chicken breasts) and don't feel like you need to use up all the seasoning!

Blackened Chicken Seasoning

~ingredients~
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground pepper (white or black)
1/2 tsp cayenne or chili powder (or more if you like spicier. we don't)
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried or fresh thyme, chopped fine
1 tsp dried oregano
2-3 chicken breasts

~instructions~

1. Combine seasoning ingredients.
2. Pound out chicken breasts, coat with seasoning mixture.
3. Melt about 1 T butter over medium/low heat, add chicken breasts, cooking 1-2 minutes on each side. Finish off in the oven (5-10 minutes in 350 preheated oven) or keep cooking on the stove (that's what I did), until juices run clear. 

Roasted Chicken + Veggies

I posted on my weekend update that we had homemade chicken soup on Friday. What was great about this soup is that it was so easy since it was leftover chicken that I had roasted two days earlier.

I found the recipe from FoodNetwork and I loved everything listed on the ingredients list. I used split bone-in chicken breasts, garlic + butter + rosemary + oil rubbed over the salted/peppered chicken. Carrots, onions and celery were added plus a splash of white cooking wine, lemon juice and water. Baked for about 40 minutes on 400 degrees. We ended up eating one half for dinner that night and the rest I shredded up for the soup. It was delicious!

I love when you can get two meals (or more - I had even more leftover chicken soup on Saturday!) from one night of cooking!

basic basil risotto

It saddens me a little that one of my favorite dishes - risotto - is not one that my husband and I share. Though he is a big fan of pasta and likes rice when it's in a creamy and flavorful sauce, he does not seem to be a fan of risotto.

So, that won't stop me. When I make risotto, I make him other sides (pierogies, sweet potatoes...) or I'll make risotto on days I know or schedules don't allow for dinner together.

I've tried several risotto dishes - basic risotto, lemon + rosemary risotto (my favorite), sunshine risotto (with sun-dried tomatoes) and now this basic basil risotto.

This recipe is straight from the book I bought several years ago. Only one change was made - I didn't have green beans so I used peas. The book is by Clive Tring, and though I've not seen it in stores since I purchased it several years ago, it looks like you can get it, and several other risotto books by Tring, on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Basic Basil Risotto

~ingredients~
5 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp butter
1 small onion, chopped
10 fresh basil leaves, chopped or shredded (plus extra whole leaves for garnish)
4 tomatoes, seeded and diced
4 oz green beans, cut into 1 inch lengths and cooked (or 3/4 cup peas, fresh or frozen)
generous 1 3/8 cups risotto rice
2 tbsp pine nuts
3/4 cup Parmesan or Grana Padano cheese
S+P

~instructions~

1. Bring stock to boil in a pan, reduce heat and keep simmering gently over low heat.
2. Heat the oil with 2 T of the butter over medium heat until butter is melted. Stir in the onion, 3/4 of the basil, the chopped tomatoes and beans and cook gently for 2-3 minutes for the flavors to blend.
3. Reduce heat, add rice and mix to coat in oil and butter. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until the grains are translucent.
4. Gradually add the hot stock, ladleful at a time. Stir constantly and add more liquid as the rice absorbs each addition. Increase the heat to medium so the liquid bubbles. Cook about 20 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and rice is creamy. Season with S+P to tasted. 
5. While the risotto is cooking, toast the pine nuts until they brown.
6. Add the remaining butter to the risotto and fold in the remaining basil. Add the Parmesan cheese and pine nuts. Garnish with the whole basil leaves.

cauliflower, spinach and chicken gratin

i bought the ingredients for this dish a week ago and only just got around to making it now. holy. this was so good.

i took shortcuts with pre-made alfredo sauce, but you could go big and make your own.

chicken, cauliflower and spinach mixed with alfredo sauce, mozzarella cheese and bread crumbs. yum.

i made a "half batch" but used all the alfredo sauce and lots of cheese (of course). it ended up making about three servings, and i'm excited to have leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

recipe adapted from Wegman's Cauliflower, Spinach and Chicken Gratin.

i cooked my chicken, added the cauliflower, sauce, cheese, 1/2 the bread crumbs and spinach all to the same skillet. this cut down on my cooking time compared to the original recipe - 20 minutes and 15 instead of 40 and 15, so i really liked doing it that way.

i suggest you try this - so good! josh enjoyed it as well, so this will definitely go back on our dinner plan. i could also see adding some pasta to this if you want to make the meal go even farther.

chicken enchiladas

for Cinco de Mayo i thought it'd be fun to have some Mexican themed food, so i hopped over to Annie's Eats and made this chicken enchilada recipe.

i followed the recipe pretty strictly other than halving it, using way less chili powder and cumin (we're not big on super spicy), used more tomato sauce and did not use cilantro (don't like it). so...pretty much didn't really follow it...

 

meet my friends - from back to front - Monterey Jack and Sharp Vermont White Cheddar. yeah, i didn't half that part of the recipe...(also, can we talk about how much better pics come out when in natural light?? ugh)

delicious goodness. oh, i also used way more chicken than i needed...so i ended up with a lot more enchi's than originally planned. luckily my sis and her hubs were willing to eat the remaining three as i knew i wouldn't get a chance!

i should have taken a picture of Josh's plate, where i only sprinkled some fresh cut tomatoes on the top. it looked a lot prettier than my delicious slop.

this recipe was super good and i will definitely make it again - probably for the SKANK's because they are much bigger fans of Mexican food than my American-style-food-lovin hubby.

basic boule bread

my aunt bought me this book for Christmas last year and i finally had the courage to try a recipe this week.

if you don't know anything about it - the basic idea is:

1. make wet dough recipe. let rise for 2 hours.
2. after first rise, you can put it in the fridge for up to 14 days or bake some bread!
3. when you're ready, pull off about a grapefruit size piece, pull it into the appropriate shape (based on what you're making), let rest for 40 min, then bake for 30.
4. the point being - you can have fresh baked bread every day, without needing the 2+ hours of rising time that is usually required.

the idea of a "wet" bread dough kind of scared me. what if i did it wrong? i'd have crappy bread for weeks, not just a few days.

so, i tried it. the process was way easy. i did the basic recipe which called for 6 1/2 cups of flour. only problem was when i reached 4 cups...i couldn't remember if i had just DONE 4 cups...or if i was on 4 cups. so, i ended up adding more flour in the end (bout 3/4 cup), and i think i was on the LESS flour side as my dough was SO WET i could barely pick it up.

anyway, i ended up making two loaves b/c my container where i mixed the dough was OVERFLOWING after less than 2 hours.

my bread came out so crispy crunchy on the outside and warm and soft on the inside. probably the best bread i've ever baked. it was more like baguette-size, but it still was delicious!

also - best thing for bread is having cornmeal, a pizza peel and a pizza/baking stone. adding water (in a broiler pan, or in my case - a shallow baking dish) as well will all combine to give you crusty bread and soft insides. yum!

more on the book here: artisanbreadinfive.com

lasagna casserole

tortiglioni. this pasta is so fun.

 

but for some reason when you google it, you find this pasta. 

 i don't really understand why pasta with the same name is SO different...

maybe only Wegman's brand tortiglioni is curly?

 pasta, ricotta cheese + Parmesan gooey goodness.

topped with meat sauce with lots-o-garlic + onions, and of course more cheese.

bake for about 15 min on whatever is convenient (i had bread cooking at 450 so i did that for 10 min, then switched to 350)

deliciousness.

recipe adapted from Rachael Ray's Lasagna Casserole. [my changes: i didn't have any carrots and used tomato sauce instead of diced tomatoes]. this is by far the best "lasagna casserole" i have made. i've done the RR recipe several times before and it's been good - but i think the use of SAUCE instead of diced tomatoes really kicked it up. also, i just love this pasta :) probably my favorite. what's your favorite pasta?

lemon blueberry muffins

i feel that a work meeting "first thing" in the morning is the perfect opportunity to bring in a yummy treat to share. also, "first thing" in our office - that could mean 815, that could mean 1015, you never know...but i mean, that has nothing to do with this post.

i really wanted to bring in a blueberry crumble-coffee-crunch type cake, but although The Pioneer Woman's Blueberry Crumb Cake looks absolutely divine, i was saddened that there wasn't any lemon in it, and thought that should be saved for another day. the combination of lemon and blueberry to me - is - amazing.

i had bookmarked Joy Ever After's Lemon Blueberry Muffins when she posted last year and had yet to try them - so here we are.

i didn't have the correct amount of yogurt, so i added a little milk to help it out. i also used honey-greek yogurt instead of plain. the muffins turned out good, but unfortunately were more dense than i would have liked. definitely use the yogurt amount specified in the recipe. next time i think i would add more lemon zest and some lemon juice - for me it just wasn't enough!

apple crunch salad

my current favorite salad. rediscovered my love for this on our Versteel trip last week with the Fat & Sassy Salad from Fat & Sassy's cafe. their salad was a delectable combination of tart granny smith apples, crumbled bleu cheese, candied pecans, grilled chicken and their house vinaigrette.

salad from Fat & Sassy

my version has chopped pecans, macintosh apples (they are my favorite), reduced fat crumbled bleu cheese and sweetened dried cranberries. i don't even think this salad NEEDS dressing, it's that good, but i used a little apple cider vinegar, olive oil and either sugar or brown sugar for some added sweetness.

yummy lunch meat-free version!

delicious! healthy! and lent-friendly if that's your thing! i've also made this sandwich style with chopped chicken, a little honey greek yogurt and light mayonnaise in a pita.

herb-savor

aren't these the coolest? herb-savor from prepara.com. the herb-savor has a little water well that keeps the herbs slightly submerged. these big ones go for $29.95 each and keep herbs fresh for up to 3 weeks. also, you can keep asparagus in them to keep longer!

these little ones are great too! set of three for $29.95. i think the mini set of three would be perfect for us!

i love having fresh herbs - and though freezing is a great way to keep fresh herbs usable for longer periods of time, there is nothing like FRESH herbs in your dishes. i love these. i wish i would have seen this before my bday...

there is a bunch of other awesome stuff on their website. check it out!!

for example...i also love these veggie-savors! set of three for $19.99. i have a garlic container, which is awesome, and had an onion one...but don't know where it is now and it made everything around it smell. these lock in orders and the larger one collapses for easy storage.

calzones

josh and i are big pizza fans, i mean, who isn't. i know it's not quite a "healthy" option, but for these calzones, i did opt out of pepperoni slices for veggies (peppers and onions). i've been using the same basic pizza dough recipe now for stromboli twice, pizza + bread sticks once and now calzones. i found the recipe here; it's Emeril's dough recipe, and i love it! this time i used rapid rise yeast so i didn't have to wait almost two hours for rising time (which i did last Friday, and it just seemed to take FOREVER to double).

i came across a few issues when i made this...like, i um, ran out of regular flour. luckily i had some wheat flour, so i substituted that, and it turned out fine. i also have a tendency to over-stuff my stromboli, so i didn't put much filling in these calzones...and it was definitely not enough. i also think my dough could have rested longer and i could have made it thinner when i rolled it out. despite these issues, the calzones were still tasty.

recipe:
~bread dough~
1 package yeast, .25 oz
1 c water (about 110 degrees)
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 T olive oil, plus more for bowl
2 1/2 - 3 c all-purpose flour, plus more if necessary
cornmeal - for pizza stone/pizza peel, if you have one (we don't boooo)
egg wash (beaten egg + 1 T water)
Parmesan cheese, Italian seasonings and garlic powder
sauce for dipping

~fillings~
anything you want! we used pepperoni, mozzarella/provolone pizza cheese combo, peppers and onions.

~instructions~

1. combine yeast, sugar and water in large bowl, or bowl for electric mixer. let sit till foamy, about 5 minutes. i've read this isn't necessary for rapid rise yeast, but i do it anyway. i've also found heating your bowl a little helps with the yeast, or at least so it isn't freezing cold from sitting in your 60 degree kitchen all day.
2. add salt, olive oil and 1/2 the flour, stir to combine.
3. add remaining flour, dough will be slightly sticky. knead 5-7 minutes, adding more flour if necessary. dough should not be sticky by this point.
4. transfer to lightly oiled bowl, turn once to coat. let sit till doubled in size, about an hour. if you're using rapid rise yeast like me, you only need to let it sit for about 10 minutes.
5. preheat oven to 475. 
6. form dough into four balls for calzones. cover w/ damp towel and let rest for 15 minutes. after this resting period, i froze two balls of dough wrapped in plastic and in a freezer bag for future use.
7. use this time to prepare your filling, chop veggies, etc.
8. form dough into two circles, about 8" in diameter. add filling of choice to center of one side of circle, fold over and crimp with fingers or fork to seal. brush egg wash over top of calzone, top with a sprinkling of garlic, parm and Italian seasonings, if desired. 
9. cut slit in calzone to allow steam to escape and bake for 8-10 minutes. serve w/ sauce.

chargrilled chicken + risotto

risotto has been a favorite dish of mine ever since i've tried it. i haven't had it or made it in quite a while, but finally, after weeks of having all my ingredients i made my recipe. i've been dying to make this recipe ever since i bought this book on risotto for $5.00 on clearance at a kitchen gadgets store. 

the recipe is chargrilled chicken + risotto. in my attempt at healthier dishes for two people, i made a few alterations and small additions to this fairly basic recipe, and it turned out AMAZING. the recipe called for white wine, which i did not have, so i substituted white cooking wine. i also added a few chopped sun-dried tomatoes, more chicken stock (+ a little water) than called for and less cheese. i'm telling you - i was sampling this as i was making it, before the cheese went in - and thought it was so good i almost didn't put in the parm. but then i did. and holy. it made it amazing. 

 

i'm trying to work on "healthier" meals for two people, with no leftovers.  i usually eat leftovers for lunch, but in an attempt to lower my weight i've found i can't afford the calories at lunch that usually are okay at dinner. the end result of this recipe is a for about two people, so that's what the ingredients below will get you. i had a few leftovers, but only because i didn't eat as much as i probably could, as i'm really attempting to monitor portion control for myself in meals. risotto isn't the healthiest of meals, but it's better than a side of Velveeta mac and cheese or a loaded baked potato.

recipe:

~marinade for chicken~

juice and zest of 1/2 a lemon

1-2 T olive oil

4-5 sprigs of thyme, leaves removed and chopped (i buy fresh then freeze. it's a great way to have fresh herbs whenever)

1 clove garlic (i had minced, so about 1-2 tsp)

S + P

~risotto ingredients~

1-2 T olive oil

2 T butter, separated

1/2 small onion, chopped fine

3 sun-dried tomatoes in oil, chopped fine (if you can measure them in quantities, and they don't have to be in oil)

generous 3/4 cup arborio rice

1/3 c white wine (or white cooking wine)

2 1/2 - 3 c chicken stock

2-3 T Parmesan cheese

S + P, to taste

~instructions~

1. season chicken w/ S + P. mix together marinade ingredients and rub into chicken. let sit 4-6 hours (i had about 2 1/2 hours, which i think was plenty). cook chicken about 10-15 min per side, till juices run clear. let sit 5 min before slicing.
2. heat chicken stock, keep simmering while cooking risotto.
3. heat oil and 1 T butter in pan. add onion, cook to soften, do not brown. add sun-dried tomatoes, cook till warm. this is where i seasoned with S + P
4. add arborio rice, cook till translucent, about 2-3 minutes. 
5. add white wine / white cooking wine. cook till reduced.
6. add chicken stock, a ladleful at a time, waiting until absorbed before adding more. cooking takes about 20-30 minutes. 
7. once rice is finished absorbing, remove from heat. add remaining butter and cheese, to taste, and more S + P if desired.
8. serve chicken atop risotto.

delish!

valentine's day foods

like i posted last week, i made dinner for Josh and i for valentine's day. i made my famous homemade lasagna (ok, it's not famous, but my mom likes it!) and some ooey gooey delicious brownies thanks to Robin's recipe at Big Red Kitchen.

excuse my pictures, i seem to be losing talent in the photography area :( i better start taking more pics! actually, i should have photographed the cut brownies and used my fancy flash (as i got it a year ago on v-day!). but, alas, i did not. so here you are.

i've only made lasagna two times, but i've used the same basic recipe for each. my sauce is based off of my Gramma's sauce (her parents were both 100% Italian and she was famous in the family for her sauce and meatballs) and some other recipes i've found online. i like to make a meat sauce for lasagna and i've used ground turkey both times. i definitely like it, though i'll have to try ground beef next time to see which i prefer. i also used fresh basil and parsley this time, which was really great in the sauce. i don't like buying a bunch of fresh herbs for one dish, so i usually use the flakes, but i figured the occasion was special enough for it :). also, this time i used a big can of tomoato puree, a big can of crushed tomatoes and some chicken stock and water (last time i used a small can of each and some tomato paste. DEF like the puree & crushed cans better). i follow Gramma's tradition and added about a tablespoon of sugar and a bag of (i used 1/4 bag) Italian blend cheeses (that's right - right to the sauce). i let the whole thing simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour; not like you have to, but i definitely had the time.

the "brownies" were an awesome ending to the meal, with lots of gooey caramel and soft chocolate chips. the batter was a little dry (um, i lost some of the liquid in the microwave when it was melting...), and this caused them to crumble a lot after they were baked. when i make them again, i'll make sure to moisten the batter a little more.

we had a great valentine's day together, hanging around, eating and playing mario kart. we exchanged cards, didn't really do gifts (we each bought something at best buy last month and we called that our vday present! plus, i cooked, so that was part of my gift to him as well).

hope you all had a great valentine's day and a great week. i'm SO glad it's friday. i've been exhausted all week! tomorrow i get to meet up with my bridesmaids and they'll be trying on and purchasing their dresses for the wedding!! yay!!

we have growth!

last week you may have read about Kristen and i's gardening experience. there isn't too much going on outside as it has been fairly icky weather in Erie (50s, 60s, rainy...not much sun). a few days ago we decided it would be best to bring in the herbs that we planted...and they are sprouting up nicely!

at the moment, i can't identify what any of these herbs are, and i don't remember how i planted them...or where i planted what...so...i do know that i planted chives on one of the little side parts, but those aren't coming up too fast. anyway, i'm excited! seeing things grow is pretty awesome. can't wait to use these in cooking!

St Patty's Day - Celebrating with Food

Roomie and i celebrated St. Patty's Day by making potato soup [is that even irish??] and green & white chocolate chip cookies. i then proceeded to get a pain in my side and fall asleep at 730.

anyway, the soup turned out really good. we meant to follow a recipe...but...then changed our minds and did our own thing.

we started with sauteing onion in butter. after they browned a bit, we added chopped celery. after this cooked a bit, we added flour to make the roue. then we added milk. i'm not sure how much.



we cut 5 potatoes [1 large, 4 smaller] into chunks and boiled. when they were almost done, we threw the carrots in with them.



here's the soup after adding the milk. after it got to a boil and the potatoes were mostly tender, we strained the potatoes and carrots and added them to the pot. we put the top on and let cook for probably ten minutes, with occasional stirring. we also added parsley, salt & pepper at this time.




the cookies!



the sauce definitely thickened up, and it tasted awesome. we topped with shredded cheddar.



Kristen also made a Reuben. i did not eat this.

anyway, that's it for the soup. i'm excited to have leftovers for lunch!!


also, i have to get my license renewed...i was planning on doing this today, but of course i don't want to now. i have until March 28th and no Saturdays besides March 28th to get this done. the DMV in Erie is 30 minutes from my work [2 minutes from my parents house]. i'm going to have to take an extra long lunch at some point or just go the 28th...