0054. Stuffed chicken

My husband hates chicken. Hates. I hate pork. He won't eat a meal without meat. So that leaves us with few options when it comes to dinner. However, there are times when I make chicken anyway because it's delicious and healthy and... well, cheap. As a mother and wife who's in charge of the bookkeeping, I'm definitely okay with cheap. Especially when it's so tasty.

This recipe is one that he actually loves when I make There's two variations that I use - one with spinach and one with jalapeno. He loves spicy food, so when I make the jalapeno version, I make some less spicy versions for Monkey and myself on a different pan.

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

4 ounces cream cheese 

½ cup packed fresh baby spinach, chopped

2 scallions, thinly sliced

3 cloves (1 tablespoon) fresh garlic, minced

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon basil

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

OPTIONAL: bacon, cooked, cooled, and crumbled

1. Place a rack near the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place a piece of parchment paper or a silicone mat in a baking sheet and set aside. If you don't have those, then lightly grease the baking sheet with Pam spray (I use the olive oil version).
2. Butterfly the chicken breast and using a meat mallet or rolling pin, flatten each chicken breast to about a ½ inch. Combine cream cheese, spinach, scallions, garlic, salt, pepper, oregano, basil, Parmesan cheese and the optional bacon. Spread a quarter of the mixture onto each chicken breast; carefully roll up the chicken and secure with toothpicks. Place chicken on the prepared baking sheet.
3. Bake 40-45 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center and the outside is golden brown. Serve warm.

VARIATION: Skip the spinach and use thin slivers of jalapeno. If you're sensitive to heat, make sure you get all the seeds and membrane out before you mix it. But make sure to use the bacon because jalapeno and bacon is the most amazing combination of flavors ever. SO GOOD.

I like to serve this dish with scalloped potatoes and asparagus. The scalloped potatoes don't exactly equal healthy dish, but it's delicious and my favorite way to have potatoes. Noms.

0053. Rigatoni with Sausage and Beans

Cook Time:

20 minutes

Prep Time:

5 minutes

Servings:

4

Wait Time:

In Chef Review

Ready Time:

25m

Rating:

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• 1 (pound) Italian sausage links, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 (26.0 ounce jar) pasta sauce
• 1 (15.0 ounce can) cannellini or white kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/8 (teaspoon) dried rosemary leaves, crushed
• 1 (pound) dried rigatoni or ziti pasta, cooked and drained

1. Brown sausage in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat; drain. Stir in pasta sauce, beans and rosemary.
2. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes or until sausage is done.
3. Meantime, prepare pasta as per directions on package. Serve sausage sauce over hot pasta.

0052. Green Beans with Toasted Almonds

Back when I was in school for the Navy, I had a friend named Wen who loved to cook. I mean loved to cook. She was constantly whipping something amazing up and bringing it to us to grub on during class. She invited us all over to her place for dinner one night, and she made green beans with almonds. It was the first time I ever had it, and my mind was BLOWN.

Wen passed away about a year after that dinner party, and I never got the chance to ask her for her recipe. This tastes like the green beans she made for us, and every time I make it I can't help but remember her grin when she set the plate down in front of us.

Green Beans with Toasted Almonds
Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

Prep Time:10 min
Inactive Prep Time: -- Cook Time:5 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed
1 tablespoon (1 turn around the pan) extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
Salt
Toasted slivered or sliced almonds, for garnish


Directions
Cook green beans 5 minutes in 1-inch boiling water, covered. Drain beans and return pan to heat.

Add oil and butter pat to the pan. Toss beans in oil and melted butter. Season beans with a little salt and transfer to a serving plate.

Garnish green beans with toasted slivered or sliced almonds.

0051. homemade biscuits

I'm a Southern girl at heart, and I desperately love me some biscuits. Put some gravy on them and I'm in heaven. Unfortunately, my diet isn't super happy about them, so they're a special treat at my house. Paula Deen's recipe is delish.

Servings: about 3 dozen biscuits
Cook Time: 12 min
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients Add to grocery list

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons butter, cubed
3/4 cup milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together. Cut butter into mixture until it begins to look like cornmeal.

Make a well with flour mixture and slowly add milk into the middle. Knead dough with your fingers and add milk when necessary. Roll out dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to desired thickness. Cut with small biscuit cutter.

Butter bottom of skillet and place biscuits in pan. Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Tools You May Need

Mixing bowls
Skillet

0050. garlic mashed potatoes

2 pounds Russet Burbank or Yukon Gold potatoes, after peeling
6 medium cloves of garlic
1/4 pound unsalted butter (1 stick), cut into 1/2" chunks
6 pinches of salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper (fresher is better)
2 tablespoons of your favorite fresh herbs

1) We want to begin by de-fanging the garlic of its sulfury pungence and convert it to sweetness by cooking it. Peel the garlic cloves, remove the woody root, and cut them in half. Bring a non-reactive saucepan with a quart of water to a boil and add a pinch of salt and the garlic. Boil the garlic for about 15 minutes. You need lots of water to remove all the pungence of the garlic.

2) While the garlic is cooking, get another pot of water boiling. Don't use the garlic water for the potatoes! Make sure you have enough water to submerge the potatoes about an inch below the surface. Add two pinches of salt. Wash the potatoes and cut them into thumb-sized chunks. Try to get the chunks about the same size so they all finish cookin about the same time. When the water is boiling, add the potatoes and boil them until a fork pierces them with only a little resistance, about 15 minutes, depending on how large the chunks are. Don't overcook the potatoes so that the exterior is mushy and they fall apart when you pierce them. Chef Lucas warns that "overcooked potatoes tend to soak up water and can become runny."

3) Drain the garlic, drop them in the serving bowl, add the butter, three pinches of salt, black pepper, and herbs, and mash everything into a paste with a fork.

4) Drain the potatoes thoroughly. I like mine with some chunks, more smashed than mashed, so I just dump them into the bowl and use an old-fashioned wire masher. If you like yours smooth, use a potato ricer (it looks like a giant garlic press). Squeeze them through the holes into the bowl and mix with a large spoon. Before serving, taste them and add more salt and pepper if you wish.

Optional. Here's where you can add cheese, meat, or cream. I recommend you do the recipe as is the first time, and then riff on it the second time if you wish.

5) Holding mashed potatoes. Getting all the parts of a meal ready at once is the trickiest part of cooking, so if the rest of the meal isn't ready when the spuds are, you can keep them warm in a slow cooker or heat them in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes just before serving.

Recipe originally found at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/craig-goldwyn/thanksgiving-garlic-mashed-potatoes-recipes_b_787416.html

0049. salisbury steak

I tend to double this recipe because PK loves it as much as he does. 

Ingredients

• 2 2 pds ground chuck
• 2 (tablespoon) 2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 (tablespoon) 1 tablespoon horseradish
• 2 (teaspoon) 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/4 (teaspoon) 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 (teaspoon) 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 8.0 (ounce) 1 (8 oz) pk sliced baby bella mushrooms
• 2 (tablespoon) 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 (can) 1 can French onion soup
• 1 (can) 1 can Beef consomme

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine ground chuck, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, garlic, salt, and pepper. Form mixture into 6 (5 inch patties). Heat skillet over medium heat. Add patties in batches and cook 5-6 mins per side, or until brown. Remove patties and set aside. Reserve 2 tablespoons drippings in skillet. Add mushrooms and cook for 1-2 mins or until tender. Add flour and cook stirring constantly for 2 mins. Stir in soup and consomme. Return patties to pan; bring to a simmer, uncovered for 30-40 mins. Serve immediately
2. makes 6 servings

Nutrition Information

This nutrition information is an estimate only. We use software to calculate the nutritional analysis from the individual ingredients in each recipe. While we do our best to ensure accuracy, we make no representation or warranty regarding the information, and there can be no assurance that any of the information contained therein has not been, or will not be changed or altered.

amount per serving

Calories

771

Total Fat

38g

Saturated Fat

7g

Cholesterol

144mg

Sodium

1366mg

Carbohydrate

56g

Dietary Fiber

3g

Sugars

6g

Protein

50g

Vitamin A

0%

Vitamin C

19%

Calcium

6%

Iron

36%

Potassium

832mg

0048. Crockpot Beef Stew with Olives, Garlic, Capers, and Tomatoes

I recently started a mammography class that only meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the evening. PK isn't a huge fan of cooking (especially since he doesn't get home until late most of the time) so I've started using my crockpot a lot more. I found this recipe on FoodOnTheTable.com and have fallen completely in love.

PK was in a car accident on Monday (he's okay) but he took my car to work yesterday and I had to take care of getting a rental car lined up. Well, I ran out of time to do the prep. I didn't brown the meat before I tossed it in the crockpot, nor did I allow the beef stock to reduce. I also eyeballed most of the ingredients. I know I put way more than 2 tsp of capers, more than a cup of Kalamata olives, less than a cup of garlic (that was more like 1.5 tbsp). I didn't have Greek oregano so I used regular. Pretty sure I put an entire can of tomato paste in.  But it was delicious. PK had 2 bowls. Monkey wasn't a huge fan because of the olives, but we gave her some leftover spaghetti and she was a happy camper.

I didn't have time to make rice (which seems like it'd be the best bet to cover with this concoction), so I heated up some leftover mashed potatoes and it worked out brilliantly. Next time I'll try the rice, but there will definitely be a next time on this one. DELISH!!

Crockpot Beef Stew with Olives, Garlic, Capers, and Tomatoes

Ingredients

• 2 2-3 lb. beef chuck roast, cut into pieces about 1 inch (I used 2 1/2 cups beef cubes)
• 1 1-2 tbsp olive oil (for browning beef)
• 1 can reduced-sodium beef broth (or use 1 1/2 cups homemade beef stock)
• 1 cup garlic cloves, peeled and cut into lengthwise slivers
• 1 cup Kalamata olives, cut in half lengthwise
• 2 tsp capers, rinsed
• 3 3 bay leaves
• 1 tsp. dried Greek oregano
• 1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes with juice
• 1 small can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
• 2 tsp tomato paste
• 3 tsp red wine vinegar
• fresh ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. (I used a small 2 1/2 Quart Crockpot for this recipe. You could also cook it on top of the stove in a heavy dutch oven type pan over very low heat.)
2. In heavy frying pan, heat 1 T oil over medium-high heat and brown half of beef cubes, turning several times so it's well browned on all sides. Put beef in crockpot and brown the rest of beef, adding more oil if needed. Put second batch of browned beef cubes in crockpot. Add beef broth to frying pan, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and simmer until beef broth is reduced to 3/4 cup. Add reduced broth to crockpot.
3. While beef is browning, sliver garlic and cut olives. Add garlic and olives to crockpot along with rinsed capers, bay leaves, oregano, canned tomatoes and juice, tomato sauce, red wine vinegar, and pepper.
4. Cook on high for 2 hours, then taste for seasoning and add tomato paste if desired. Cook another 1-2 hours, until meat is tender and flavors are well blended. (This could also be cooked on low for 6-8 hours.) Serve hot.