Recipes

Week 6: Chicken Parm and Honey-Baked Chicken

So I kind of cheated this past week. I made two things I’ve made before, but in my defense, I hadn’t made them in a very long time.

Anyway, these are delicious. The Parm is probably not authentic, and since I’m from New Jersey I should care, I guess, but I’m too tired for that crap. Eat it. It’s good.

The honey-baked chicken is my mom’s recipe. When I was a kid, I had no idea it had curry in it. (Come on, Past Me, get it together.)

Chicken Parm

One recipe Crockpot Pasta Sauce, with or without leftover meatballs
2-3 chicken breasts, butterflied or cut thinly
Breadcrumbs of choice (Progresso Italian worked well)
Olive oil
Parmesan cheese, grated
Mozzarella cheese, shredded
Provolone, if you’re feeling zesty

Spoon a little sauce in a Pyrex baking pan. Dredge the chicken in breadcrumbs and Parmesan, and brown in olive oil in a big pan. Drain on paper towels and place in baking pan.

Spoon more sauce over chicken, sprinkle with mozzarella, and top with slices of provolone. Cover with foil, taking care not to touch the cheese. Bake at 350°F for 20-30 minutes, depending on how thick you cut the chicken. Remove foil and let cheese brown. Serve with pasta and more sauce.

Honey-baked Chicken

6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
4T butter
1/2C honey
1/4C mustard (brown, spicy, yellow; pretty much whatever you have)
1t curry powder
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375°F. Melt butter in a baking dish (I used a Pyrex pie pan). Stir in honey, mustard, and curry powder. It’ll be a really pretty color. Add chicken, coating each piece in sauce. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Serve with brown rice. Lick your plate.

Breakfast Coconut Rice

I finished a bowl of this not even five minutes ago and I needed to tell you about it. This is a super easy rice cooker breakfast (I know, that’s weird). Make it if you love coconut, rice pudding, or delicious things.

It’s also vegan if you use a non-animal sweetener!

Breakfast Coconut Rice

Adapted from Coconut Lover’s Cookbook by Bruce Fife

One rice cooker cup of brown rice (it’s really around 3/4C)
Water up to the 2 line of your cooker
1/2C shredded coconut
2T raisins
2T honey (or vegan sweetener)
1/4t ground cardamom
1t ground cinnamon
1/4t salt
1T chia seeds
1t vanilla extract
1T coconut oil
Coconut milk (I used canned full fat)
Slivered almonds

Combine rice, water, coconut, raisins, honey, cardamom, cinnamon, salt, chia seeds, vanilla, and coconut oil in rice cooker. Set on cook. (I have an Aroma Simply Stainless.) When done, scoop some into a bowl and pour coconut milk over. Add almonds. This makes about two servings.

You could also make this in a pot on the stove; just make the rice as usual, but with the raisins, etc. added in. I am awful at making stovetop rice so the rice cooker is my best friend.

Week 5: Thai Chicken Curry & 3-Packet Pot Roast

Both of these are from, you guessed it, Make It Fast, Cook It Slow, by Stephanie O’Dea. The Thai curry needed a lot more salt and spice than called for, so I changed that here.

I’d make both of these again, particularly the pot roast. Holy crap, that was good.

Thai Chicken Curry

1 (14oz.) can coconut milk
3T soy sauce
1T brown sugar
3T Thai green curry paste
1T fish sauce
Grated ginger, to taste
3 garlic cloves, minced
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 onion, chopped
2 green bell peppers, seeded and chopped
1/2 eggplant, chopped
10 mushrooms, chopped
1-2 jalapeños, seeded and chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste

Combine sauce ingredients (through garlic) in crockpot. Taste and add more curry paste if you think it needs it. Add chicken pieces, turning to coat. Add veggies on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, if you want. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Serve with lime wedges and cilantro on cooked rice.

3-Packet Pot Roast

Note: normally I wouldn’t even call this a recipe, but it was so good that I had to share.

1 (3-4lb.) chuck roast, trimmed
1 packet salad dressing mix (I used Good Seasons Balsamic Vinaigrette mix)
1 packet Italian salad dressing mix (again, Good Seasons to the rescue)
1 packet McCormick Grill Mates Peppercorn & Garlic (note: I couldn’t find this for the life of me, so I used 2T of McCormick Grill Mates Roasted Garlic & Herb that comes in a little bottle)
3C water

Place roast in crockpot. Combine seasonings and sprinkle on all sides of meat. Add 1C water. It won’t look like enough and you’ll think, “Well, shit, this isn’t right,” but stop that self-doubt and trust me. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

A half hour before you want to eat, add 2C warm water to the crock and raise temperature to high. The meat only needs 1C of water to cook, but you will die of sodium poisoning if you try to eat it like that. Adding two more cups of water makes a super tasty gravy that was perfectly salty.

Serve over mashed potatoes.

Week 4: Coq au Vin & Bean and Sausage Stew

It was a week of cooking success! Both of these recipes were total winners that get better the next day as leftovers.

Coq au Vin

Adapted from Make It Fast, Cook It Slow, by Stephanie O’Dea

6 slices cooked and crumbled bacon
6-8 chicken thighs (I used boneless and skinless and put them in frozen)
8oz. sliced mushrooms
3 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 parsnip, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1t salt
1/2t black pepper
1/2C chicken broth
1.5C red wine (I used Cabernet and my husband drank the rest. Choose wine you want to drink.)
2 fresh thyme sprigs

Put bacon in crockpot. Place chicken and veggies on top. Add rest of ingredients. Cook on low for 8 hours. Serve with rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes.

Bean and Sausage Stew

Adapted from mycupisfull.com

Note: I chopped the vegetables and sausage the night before and stowed it in the fridge. This cut down on day-of prep time considerably.

15oz. kidney beans, drained
15oz. black beans, drained
29oz. petite diced tomatoes
28 ounces crushed tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 russet potato, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 parsnip, diced
4 sausages, sliced (I used chorizo)
1C water
1t Worcestershire sauce

Put all this in the crockpot.

1T black pepper
2t salt
2t chili powder
1t garlic powder
½t cayenne

Mix all this together and sprinkle into crockpot. Mix. Cook on low 8-10 hours. This is awesome with cheese on top.

Week 3: Chicken Burrito Bowls and Laziness

I cooked on Tuesday last week and it lasted us… well, I’m having it for lunch tomorrow. Some recipes are like that. This is one of them. It’s a recipe I posted last summer, but I tweaked it a little and now it’s even better.

Chicken Burrito Bowls

Adapted from myself

For chicken filling

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I put mine in the crockpot frozen)
1 15oz. can black beans
1 15oz. can diced tomatoes
1T olive oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
2 Anaheim chiles, seeded and diced (wear gloves!)
1T taco seasoning (I use this recipe)
Salt and pepper to taste
1C frozen corn

For burrito bowl

Hot cooked rice
Shredded Mexican cheese
Chopped avocado
Sour cream
Hot sauce

Place the chicken breast in the crockpot. Dump in the black beans (with liquid) and tomatoes. Heat olive oil in a small nonstick pan over medium heat. Sauté red pepper until slightly soft and add to crockpot. Add Anaheim chiles to pan and cook until they have a bit of color. Add to crockpot.

Sprinkle taco seasoning, salt, and pepper over everything in crockpot and kind of poke it with a spoon so it gets mixed into the peppers, tomatoes, and beans. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Thirty minutes before serving, add frozen corn and cover again.

Shred chicken with two forks and serve over rice with burrito fixings.

Week 2: Chicken Lazone, U.S. Senate Bean Soup

Comfort food, ahoy! This week was all about feeling comfy and cozy. I’m almost in my third trimester and I need all the comfy I can get.

On a side note, today Mr. Something and I have been married for two years! I’m not cooking tonight; the modern second anniversary gift is china, so we’re getting Chinese food.

Chicken Lazone

Adapted from Plain Chicken

1/2t salt
1 1/2t chili powder
1 1/2t onion powder
2t garlic powder
1/4t cayenne pepper
2 lb chicken tenders
1/4C butter, divided
2C heavy cream

Combine salt, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper. Combine with chicken in a bowl and mix.

In a large pan, melt 2T butter over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken tenders until done, about 8 minutes.

Pour the cream and remaining butter into the skillet. Lower heat and simmer until the sauce thickens, about 5-7 minutes. Serve chicken and sauce over angel hair pasta.

Verdict: HOLY CRAP. Eat this. Add mushrooms.

U.S. Senate Bean Soup

Adapted from senate.gov

1lb dried navy beans
four quarts cold water
1 smoked ham hock
1 onion, chopped
1T butter
salt and pepper to taste

Sort through beans. Place in pot, add 2 quarts water and soak overnight. Drain and rinse. Put beans, ham hock, and 2 quarts water into medium pot. Cover and bring to a boil. Uncover, reduce to medium low, and simmer until bean skins are tender, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, melt butter and sauté onion, 3-5 minutes.

Reduce bean heat to low and add onions. Cook 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Retrieve ham hock, let cool, and chop up meat. Discard bone and fat. Return meat to pot. Use an immersion blender (or a potato masher) to squish up some of the beans. Add salt and pepper.

Verdict: This was honestly 10,000 times better the next day. Next time I think I’ll make it in advance.

Week 1: Mediterranean Chicken & Sloppy Joes

2016 is off to a delicious start. I’ve made some tasty things and have many more meals already planned. I have six cookbooks out of the library right now. I have a problem.

For my first week of new recipes, I decided to make two crockpot creations, both from Stephanie O’Dea’s book, Make It Fast, Cook It Slow.

Mediterranean Chicken

Adapted from Make It Fast, Cook It Slow

4 frozen chicken breasts
16oz. frozen artichoke hearts (that was a bag and a third for me)
1C green olives, sliced in half
1 (14.5oz) can diced tomatoes
Crumbled feta

Place chicken breasts in crockpot. Plop artichoke hearts, olives, and tomatoes over them. Cook on low for 8 hours. Serve with rice and sprinkle with feta.

Verdict: I added the feta when we had leftovers and it was perfect. This is delicious.

Sloppy Joes

From Make It Fast, Cook It Slow

1lb. lean ground beef
1 recipe Sloppy Joe Mix
1 (6oz.) can tomato paste
1C warm water

Sloppy Joe Mix

1T dried onion flakes
1T paprika
2T brown sugar
1t cumin
1t salt
1t cornstarch
1/2t garlic powder
1/4t dry mustard
1/4t celery seed
1/4t black pepper

Combine all ingredients in crockpot and stir well. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. Serve on buns.

Verdict: I cooked this a little too long (closer to 7.5 hours) but it was still great. Next time I plan to double the recipe.

Sleep, You Elusive Jerk (and Overnight Oats)

Oh, sleep. I miss you. You haven’t been easy to come by for two years or so, and now you’re even more difficult to find. My nose is constantly clogged, a delightful symptom of pregnancy, and I have never peed more in my life.
(I know you have good intentions, friends and readers, but please spare your “Just you wait!” and “You think you’re tired now!” comments. Guys, I know. But you can’t store sleep away in a jar for later, so I’d really like to get it while the getting is good. And being pregnant is really tiring because there is a person living inside me stealing all of my nutrients and fluids.)

So. In addition to being super tired, I am super hungry. All. The. Damn. Time. (Nutrient stealer.) I’ve tried many things to stave off hunger and keep me filled up, but I think I just found my favorite thing. I even bought some cute pint Ball jars expressly for this recipe. I make my own fun.

Overnight Oats for One

3/4C old-fashioned oats (not quick oats!)
1/2C coconut milk (the kind in a carton; or any kind of milk)
1/4C plain yogurt
a glug of real maple syrup
a teeny splash of almond or vanilla extract
a pinch of salt
a small handful of dried cranberries
pinches of cinnamon, ground ginger, allspice, cloves, nutmeg

Mix all ingredients in a pint jar. Leave in fridge overnight. In the morning, add fresh berries, sliced banana, diced apple, etc.

Snow! (and Zesty Cranberry Sauce)

We got a foot and a half of snow last night. Our Alaskan Malamute is delighted. I’m happy because lots of snow means a day for baking, cooking, and sewing! And reading. And lots of tea.

One thing I’m cooking up today is cranberry sauce for next Thursday. (Thanksgiving is next Thursday, by the way. What?!) I make cranberry sauce from scratch every year because it is insanely easy and tastes a million times better than canned nonsense.

Zesty Cranberry Sauce

1 bag of cranberries (I use Ocean Spray), rinsed and picked over
1C white sugar
1C water
1t fresh grated ginger (keep your ginger in the freezer and use a microplane)
zest of half a lemon

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan. Cover and bring to a boil. You’ll hear the berries start to explode; turn down the heat to low and cook 10 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Uncover, stir, and continue cooking until sauce coats a spoon and sticks there.

If you like your sauce smooth, strain it. If you like it chunky (yes), leave it alone. Either way, let the sauce cool completely and then transfer it to a zip-top bag or covered container and refrigerate before use. I freeze mine until the day before I need it, then thaw it in the fridge.

Suggestion from my friend!

“Try replacing the ginger with a couple of diced chipotles. Use the ones packed in adobo, and scrape the excess off with your finger. Spice and smoke go very well with the bitter and sweet.”

Vision (and Naked Burritos)

I’ve had glasses for almost 28 years. I turn 30 in two weeks. I cannot comprehend only needing glasses sometimes or losing a pair. It’s pretty impossible to lose glasses when you only take them off to sleep and shower.

I wore my glasses on my wedding day, to the consternation of a few people who told me to get contacts because it would look better in the photos. Well. My husband wore his glasses at our wedding and no one thought that was weird.

I’m getting new frames today and I’m nervous about it. I can’t see myself without my glasses so I basically only exist when I have them on. They are a huge part of my identity. I hope I like what I see when I put on my new face.

Pretend this is a segue because it’s before 9am and you should be nice to me. Naked burritos! I threw these together the other day when I couldn’t get out to the store and needed to make something relatively good. They turned out wonderfully and are now on our regular rotation.

Naked Burritos