Parmesan Chicken & Broccoli

In the heart of winter, who doesn't love a rich, creamy delicious casserole?!

The other week it was Steve's turn to pick our weekly recipes and he came across a perfect winter casserole dish from the Better Homes & Gardens: every meal easy cookbook - 'Parmesan Chicken & Broccoli'.

Here are all of the ingredients that we used for the recipe:

• 1 cup rice (we used instant rice and used 2 cups)
• 1/2 cup sliced green onions (4)
• 12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into strips
• 3/4 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning, crushed
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 1 16 ounce jar reduced far Alfredo sauce
• 3 cups frozen broccoli (we used fresh)
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 diced cooked ham (we chose to not use the ham)
• 1 2 ounce jar diced pimientos, drained (we chose not to use the pimientos)
• Ground black pepper
  

And here is how we brought it all together:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Cook rice according to package directions; remove from heat and stir in half the green onion. Divide rice mixture among four 12 ounce individual au gratin dishes or casseroles (we chose to just use one medium casserole dish); set aside.
2. In a large skillet, cook the chicken strips, Italian seasoning, and garlic in hot oil over medium heat for 4 to 6 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink. Remove from heat. Stir in Alfredo sauce, broccoli, cheese, ham and pimientos (if using). Season to taste with ground black pepper. Spoon chicken mixture over the rice. Bake, covered for 15 minutes. Uncover and bake for 15 minutes or more until heated through. Then add the remaining green onion to the top.

The recipe is intended to make 4 servings; however, for us it made about 6 servings because we used the medium casserole dish and used more rice.
This was a very easy and tasty dish to try - we have added it to our list of 'must try again recipes' and will be adding in more vegetables next time too!

Give this one a try when you need a good warm wintery meal, but need something other than beef and potatoes!

Bon appetite & enjoy!

Cranberry Pound Cake

 

My Dad LOVES cranberries!

So naturally when he came across a Cranberry Pound Cake recipe in his monthly Downhome magazine he passed it along to me and asked me to make it 'when I had some time' aka make this now!

The first time that I made this recipe was around Christmas time, as a 'surprise' for my Dad on Christmas Day. The recipe was very easy to follow and left everyone who was able to enjoy it with smiling faces (the best part of any creation is seeing people enjoy it!). However, the one thing that the recipe did not inform me of is that it could actually make enough batter to fill two bread pans - something I had a learn the hard way (I stepped away from the oven as it was baking and the loaf began to overflow into the bottom of my oven..).

The second time that I made this recipe was in February just after Valentines Day (soon after I had another call from my Dad informing me that he and his friend enjoyed it so much that they wanted more 'when I had some time' aka make this now!). This time I tried to see just how much the loaf would rise on its own - this lead me to make two loaves that were slightly uneven. Next time I will simply just split the batter in half and make good medium size loaves.

If you know someone who really enjoys cranberries in baked goods then I urge you to try this recipe - it is simple to make and delicious to eat!

Bon appetite & enjoy!

Chicken Burgers with Sundried Tomato Aioli & Sweet Potato Fries

 

We are trying to not let the winter weather get us down! So every now and again we will opt for recipes that we would typically make in the summer months (on the BBQ!).

To make this dinner we used two different recipes (one for the burgers, one for the fries) but both were from the 'Cook This Not That' cookbook series (... of course they are...).

The ingredients that you will need for the chicken burger recipe are:

2 tbsp olive oil mayonnaise
2 tbsp chopped sun dried tomatoes
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lb lean ground chicken
4 whole wheat or potato buns or English muffins, split
2 cups arugula, baby spinach or mixed greens

And here is how you bring the burgers all together:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sun dried tomatoes, lemon juice, garlic and rosemary. Season with a pinch of salt and black pepper. Set the aioli aside.
2. Preheat a grill, grill pan or cast iron skillet. Combine the ground chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and mix gently. Without overworking the meat, form into four patties until the chicken just comes together.
3. When the grill or skillet is hot (if using a skillet, add a touch of oil), add the burgers. Cook on the first side for 5-6 minutes, until a nice crust develops. Flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes, until the burgers are firm but ever so  slightly yielding to the touch and cooked through. Remove the burgers. While the grill or pan is hot, toast the buns.
4. Layer the bottom buns with the arugula, top each with a burger, then slather the aioli over the top of each. Crown with the bun tops and serve.

This recipe was OK but the burgers needed to be made juicier. If I make these again I will add in some of the aioli to the burger mixture. I will also add a peppery cheddar cheese to help add some more flavour. And perhaps even a few sesame seeds on the top to finish it all off.

To make the sweet potato fries Steve was finally able to use his french fry cutter that was in his stocking at Christmas - thanks Santa!

After having lots of fun cutting the sweet potatoes with his new gadget, Steve spread out the fries on a baking sheet, drizzled them with oil, added salt and pepper to taste and then they went in the oven for 25 minutes at 350F. These sweet potato fries were great!

If you give the chicken burger recipe a try please let me know and let me know if you change anything to make it better!

The Chicken Burger with Sun Dried Tomato recipe was from the 'Cook This Not That: Easy & Awesome 350 Calorie Meals'. The Sweet Potato Fries recipe was adapted from the 'Cook This Not That: Easy & Awesome 350 Calorie Meals' cookbook.

Bon appetite & enjoy!

Sesame Noodles with Chicken & Peanuts

 

Keeping with the theme of cooking recipes from our 'Cook This Not That: Easy & Awesome 350 Calorie Meals' cookbook, this recipe for 'Sesame Noodles with Chicken and Peanuts' is also from that cookbook (I think that you can tell how much we like these books!).

Here are the ingredients that the cookbook suggests you use:

6 ounces whole wheat fettuccine
2 tsp toasted sesame oil, plus more for noodles (I am a big fan of sesame oil!)
Juice of 1 lime
2 tbsp warm water
1 1/2 tbsp chunky peanut butter
1 1/2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 tsp chili sauce, such as sriracha (we used sriracha)
2 cups shredded chicken
1 red or yellow bell pepper, sliced
2 cups sugar snap peas
1 cup cooked and shelled edamame (optional - we didn't use it)
Chopped peanuts, sesame seeds, or chopped scallions (optional)

And here is how you bring it all together:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the pasta according to package instructions. Drain the pasta and toss in a large bowl with a bit of sesame oil and rice wine vinegar to keep the noodles from sticking.
2. Combine the lime juice, water, peanut butter, soy sauce, chili sauce, and sesame oil in a microwave-safe mixing bowl. Microwave for 45 seconds, then stir to create a uniform sauce.
3. Add the sauce to the noodles and toss to mix. Site in the chicken, bell peppers, sugar snap peas, and edamame (if using). Top individual servings with peanuts, sesame seeds, and scallions if you like.

I loved this recipe! It was a fun way to add peanut butter to a simple recipe and to have a new flavour! And I was very impressed to see how well the sesame oil and rice wine vinegar kept the noodles from sticking together - I will definitely use that tip in lots of my noodle dishes from now on.

Give this recipe a try the next time you are looking for a way to kick up your basic noodles.

Bon appetite & enjoy!

Beef with Broccoli

 

One of our go-to quick weeknight recipes is always beef and broccoli, and usually we would just use a store bought sauce for the dish. However, in our 'Cook This Not That: Skinny Comfort Foods' cookbook we noticed that they had a recipe which includes making your own sauce for beef and broccoli, so naturally we wanted to give it a try to see if it would be better than what we could buy in the store.

Here are the ingredients that the cookbook suggests that you use:

3 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
3 tbsp oyster sauce (this was our first time using oyster sauce in our own cooking!)
2 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine, sherry, or dry white wine (we used sherry)
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp toasted sesame oil (we love this oil!)
1 tsp cornstarch
1 lb flank steak, thinly sliced
1/2 tbsp canola or peanut oil (we used canola oil)
1 lb broccoli, broken into bite size pieces
1 red or yellow bell pepper, cored and sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 cup low-sodium beef stock

And here is how the cookbook suggests that you bring it all together:

1. Combine the soy sauce, oyster sauce, Shaoxing (sherry), brown sugar, sesame oil and cornstarch in a large mixing bowl. Whisk to combine the liquid with the cornstarch. Mix in the beef and let marinate for 30 minutes.
2. Heat the oil in a wok over medium heat. Add the broccoli, bell pepper, garlic and ginger and stir-fry, using a spatula to keep the vegetables moving, for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables have softened. Add the beef and its marinade and continue cooking, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes, until the beef is browned and nearly cooked through. Add the stock and cook for another 2 minutes, until the sauce thickens and clings to the beef and vegetables. Serve over steamed brown rice, if you like.

This recipe was OK but it the sauce (the key element of this recipe) did not meet our expectations (which were to exceed the sauces we could buy in the grocery store). So we will probably continue to buy our beef and broccoli sauces from the grocery store - unless we want to expand off of this recipe and see what other creations we can come up from.

If you try this recipe please let us know your thoughts!

Bon appetite & enjoy!

Garlic-Rosemary Roast Beef & Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

 

I love having a hearty roast beef dinner on a Sunday night! But because Steve and I are so busy (and we like to try so many new recipes) it is actually rare for us to make a roast beef dinner on a Sunday night. However, when we do make it we like to make it with garlic - so it was very fitting that we found garlic infused recipes in our 'Cook This Not That' cookbooks!

Here are the ingredients you will need for the Garlic-Rosemary Roast Beef:

3lb rump roast
8 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tbsp chopped, fresh, rosemary
Salt and pepper to taste

And here is how you need to bring the roast all together:

1.  Remove the roast from the fridge at least 30 minutes before cooking.
2. Preheat oven to 250 deg F. Use a small paring knife to make small incisions into the roast and gently insert garlic clove halves all over. Rub the roast with the olive oil and season all over with rosemary, salt and pepper. Place on a rack on a baking sheet and place on the middle rack of the oven.
3. Roast for 90 minutes. Turn up heat to 475 deg F and roast for another 15 minutes, until a deep brown crust had developed and a thermometer in the thickest part of the meat reads 140 deg F.

Here are the ingredients that you will need for the Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes:

1 1/2 lbs Yukon gold potatoes
1 cup low fat milk
1 tbsp butter
6 cloves roasted garlic
Salt and pepper to taste

And here is how you will bring the mashed potatoes all together:

1.  Place potatoes in a large pot of salted water and bring too boil. Cook until a knife inserted into the flesh meets no resistance, about 25 minutes. Drain.
2. While the potatoes boil combine milk, butter and garlic in small saucepan and heat until butter is melted. Keep warm.
3. Mash potatoes into a rough purée. Slowly add hot milk mixture to the potatoes using a wooden spoon to beat continuously. Season with salt and pepper.

Overall the combination of these two recipes were great (especially if you like garlic!). I am sure that we will be using these recipes and elements of these recipes for many years to come!

The Garlic-Rosemary Roast Beef is from the 'Cook This Not That: Skinny Comfort Foods' cookbook.
The Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes are from the 'Cook This Not That: Easy & Awesome 350-Calorie Meals' cookbook.

Bon appetite & enjoy!

Classic Risotto with Authentic Italian Flavours - Chef Michael Smith

Until recently, neither Steve nor I had never made our own risotto. It was not until we went to the Halifax Club for their Piemonte Wine Dinner that I had a risotto so good I wanted to learn to make it at home - so that I could eat it whenever I wanted.

I am also a big fan of Chef Michael Smith's recipes and his cooking shows - so when I was looking for a great risotto recipe for me to try - his recipes were the first place that I looked. I wanted to start with a simple risotto recipe, so I was delighted to see a classic Italian risotto recipe on his Food Network webpage.

Here are the ingredients that Chef Michael Smith suggests you use for his Classic Risotto with Authentic Italian Flavours:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups Arborio rice
1 cup Italian white wine
8 cups real chicken broth, simmering hot
1 cup good quality Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, shredded
1 tablespoon (or so) of butter
a few sprigs of fresh thyme or any fresh herb, minced

 And here is how Chef Michael Smith suggests you bring it all together: 

1. Lightly simmer the chicken broth in one pot as you make the risotto in another pot.
2. Splash the oil into a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, then toss in the onions and garlic and sauté quickly until golden and fragrant, a few minutes. Add the rice and continue to cook and stir over medium high heat, coating the grains evenly with the oil, until the rice grains give off a toasty aroma and transform from pure white to almost entirely opaque.
3. Splash in the white wine and stir frequently as the rice quickly absorbs the liquid. Reduce your heat to low. Start adding the hot chicken stock in several additions, stirring frequently after each one and allowing the rice to absorb the broth. Continue to cook and stir the risotto until the rice is just tender or al dente (soft with an ever so slight bite to the center) and creamy. The Arborio rice will gradually release its starch and thicken the extra liquid into creaminess. Creamy is important if you’re going for authenticity! This will take about 20 minutes from when you start adding the liquid.
4. To finish stir in the Parmesan, butter and minced fresh thyme. Spoon into dishes piping hot and share.

This recipe was easy to follow (he has a great ability of fully explaining each step in the process) and the final product was delicious! This recipe is going straight to the top of dishes that I want to make again!

Definitely give this one a try!

Bon appetite & enjoy!

Kung Pao Chicken

We all know that sometimes chicken can be a little bit.... boring! So we like to find all kinds of ways to spice it up - sometimes literally! As you will remember, we love the 'Cook This Not That' cookbooks and for Christmas Steve received two new books from this series. Many of the recent recipes we have posted to our blog were from the 'Cook This Not That: Easy & Awesome 350 Calorie Meals'; however, this recipe for 'Kung Pao Chicken' is from the 'Cook This Not That: Skinny Comfort Foods' cookbook.

This recipe definitely delivered on its ability to add some flavour and spice to the chicken, but I would not agree that this dish is a comfort food - a little too spicy for my liking!

Here are the ingredients that you will need for this recipe:

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, diced (we used chicken breasts because they were on sale)
1/4 cup rice wine or sherry (we used sherry)
1/4 cup low sodium chicken stock
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp sriracha or other Asian chili sauce (we used sriracha)
1 tbsp peanut or canola oil (we used canola oil)
4 dried red chilies or 1 tsp red pepper flakes (we used the red pepper flakes)
4 scallions, chopped, white and green parts separated
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp mined, fresh ginger
1 large zucchini, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup roasted peanuts

And here is how we brought it all together:

1. Combine the chicken, rice wine, stock, soy sauce, balsamic, sugar, cornstarch, and sriracha in a large bowl. Cover and marinate for 30 minutes, or up to 2 hours in the fridge.
2. Heat the oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add the chilies, scallion white parts, garlic, and ginger and stir-fry for 30 seconds, until fragrant but not browned. Add the zucchini and bell pepper and continue cooking, using a metal spatula to keep the ingredients in near-constant motion, for about 3 minutes, until the vegetables are lightly browned.
3. Remove the chicken from the marinate and add to the wok, stir-frying for about 3 minutes, until lightly browned on the outside. Add the marinade and peanuts and cook for 3 minutes longer, until the liquid comes to a boil and begins to thicken and cling to the chicken an vegetables. Stir in the scallion greens and serve over a small scoop of steamed brown rice, if you like.

As I mentioned above, this recipe was a little too spicy for me, so if we do decide to make it again we will make sure to cut back on the red pepper flakes!

Give this recipe a try and let me know what you think about it!

Bon appetite & enjoy!

Margarita Chicken

Over the past few months we have been trying out recipes that have black beans in them - Steve really likes black beans and they are a nice way to add in another texture to a lot of dishes. In our new 'Cook This Not That: Easy & Awesome 350 Calorie Meals' cookbook there was a recipe for Margarita Chicken (which included black beans) so naturally we wanted to give it a try.

Here are the ingredients that you'll need for this recipe:

1/2 can black beans (14-16 oz) drained
1/4 tsp cumin
Juice of 1 lime
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tbsp canola oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup prepared salsa
1 cup pepper jack cheese
Chopped cilantro

Here is how we brought it all together:

1. Preheat oven to 450 deg F. Combine black beans and cumin on a saucepan and heat all the way through. Squeeze in the lime juice and season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and warm before serving.
2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper and sear in a hot pan for 3-4 minutes on the first side, until a nice crust develops, then flip. Cook for another 3-4 minutes,then spoon the salsa over the meat, top with cheese and place in oven. Bake until the chicken is cooked through and the cheese is fully melted, no more than 5 minutes. Divide the beans among all of the plates and top with chicken and garnish with cilantro.

This dish was OK but was not something that I would be jumping at to try again. Given that most of the flavour is coming from the salsa you really need to make sure that you are using a salsa that has a full flavour to it.

If you try this recipe please let me know how it worked out for you and if there were any substitutions that you made.

Bon appetite & enjoy!