Spring Green Chicken Salad

Chicken salad sandwiches are one of my favorite lunches of all time.  I find them especially delicious served on a croissant, with a nice glass of sweet tea or lemonade.  A few weeks ago, while visiting my parents, Bradley and I had the opportunity to go out for lunch one day.  We visited one of my parents' favorite restaurants, and I ordered the soup/salad bar, which was amazing!  Not only did they have garden salad on the bar, but there were pasta salads, fruit/yogurt/granola, vegetable mixes, and a delicious chicken salad.  The chicken salad had green apples in it, something I hadn't seen before, and the taste and texture of the apples were wonderful.  So, of course, I had to figure out a way to copy it.  I call it 'Spring Green Chicken Salad' because the apples and celery are green, giving it a springy look.  And, if you serve it on a bed of romaine, as I did, you have more of that spring green.

Spring Green Chicken Salad


1/2 leftover cooked {grilled, broiled or roasted works fine} chicken breast
1/2 green apple, chopped
1 stalk celery, diced
2-3 tablespoons mayonnaise {more or less to taste}
salt and pepper to taste

Chop chicken into bite size pieces.  In a small bowl combine all ingredients.  Serve chilled on a bed of romaine lettuce or atop your favorite bread.

*You can easily adjust the portions to make a larger salad; I was the only adult in the house at lunch time this day, so only needed one portion.  Ignore the slightly browned apples in my photo, too; the 4 children I had that day required some extra attention while I was making my own lunch :) *

Chicken Parmigiana

This dish is absolutely wonderful, and it would make a fantastic Valentine's Day dinner for you and your sweetie, or for your kids.  If you're celebrating alone, that's okay too!  {I had my own days of those times, mostly babysitting for other people to go out to dinner}.  The great thing about this is that you can make lots of the sauce, and freeze it, and only make as many chicken breasts as you need for that meal.  When you want another meal of it, just thaw the sauce, and whip up some more chicken.  Easy!

And, I will give a disclaimer here that I used a bottle of Ragu sauce for this {gasp!}.  I know, the 'Scratch Lady', as someone has termed me, using a bottled sauce??  Well, we recently joined Costco, and the first time I made a big purchase I didn't see crushed tomatoes anywhere, which is what I normally use to make spaghetti sauce.  So, I opted for the 3-pack of Ragu.  I add my own seasonings when I make it, so it doesn't go straight from the jar to the table, but none of us like it as well as the homemade kind.  On my second trip to Costco I discovered a very large can of crushed tomatoes for only $3!  That would make at least 3 batches of the sauce I normally make, so now that my Ragu is all gone, I'll be buying a large can of those tomatoes :)

This recipe comes from Pioneer Woman, but I changed it a bit, so my version is below.   If you want the step-by-step pictures, she has some great ones, which is why I didn't take any.  Ha!

Chicken Parmigiana


1/2 cup oil
2 tablespoons margarine {or butter}
4 chicken breasts, pounded to 1/4-inch thickness
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
salt and pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
4 minced garlic cloves
3/4 cup cream sherry
1 jar Ragu pasta sauce (48 oz)
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Mix flour, salt and pepper in a wide-mouthed dish.  Coat each side of the chicken breasts in this mixture.  Heat oil and butter in large skillet.  Add chicken, and cook on both sides, until golden and crispy, about 2-3 minutes per side.  Remove chicken from skillet.

Using same skillet, add onion and garlic and saute for 2 minutes.  Add cream sherry, stir and cook until sherry cooks down to about half.  Pour in pasta sauce, stirring to combine and then add sugar.  Cook for about 30 minutes.  Toward the end of the cooking time, add parsley.

Place each chicken breast in the sauce and top generously with the cheese.  Turn heat to low, cover, and cook until the cheese is melted and chicken is heated through.  Serve over your favorite cooked pasta noodles {I used angel hair pasta}.

source:  slightly adapted from Pioneer Woman

General Tso's Chicken, a Recipe for Chinese New Year

*Updated January 20, 2012, with a recipe for Fried Rice (below)*

Monday, January 23, 2012, is Chinese New Year, otherwise known as the Spring Festival in China.  It is a major holiday in China, and so in honor of that celebration, I thought I would share with you a Chinese recipe.  We don't always have Chinese food on this holiday, but I do always remember it because my family lived in China for a few years, when I was in college, and I always loved hearing their stories of how they celebrated! {Read this post, by my sister, if you want to hear one such story}.

Our favorite Chinese dish {I guess I should say, American Chinese dish, because most Chinese food we eat here in America is nothing like the food you eat in China} is General Tso's Chicken.  You find it on just about every menu, usually with a hot pepper icon next to it.  There's just enough of a spicy kick to add some interest, and the sauce and crunchy chicken make it oh, so delicious!

This recipe turned out a bit different from what I'm accustomed to in a restaurant, but it was good just the same, and apparently more healthy.

General Tso's Chicken
Printable Version


1/4 cup cornstarch
1 pound snow peas
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon ground ginger
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 eggs
salt and pepper
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

In a mixing bowl, mix together 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1/2 cup cold water until smooth. Add garlic, ginger, soy sauce, snow peas, red pepper flakes, and brown sugar, and stir until combined.  Set aside.

In another bowl, whisk eggs, remaining cornstarch, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  Add chicken and toss to coat.

Heat oil in a large skillet.  Add the chicken pieces, shaking off excess egg mixture before placing in skillet.  Cook, turning occasionally, until golden, about 6-8 minutes.  Set aside.

Add snow pea mixture to same skillet, cover and cook until sauce has thickened, about 5-10 minutes.  Return chicken to skillet; toss to coat.  Serve with rice {or fried rice, if you're brave!}

 source: slightly adapted from Martha Stewart


Fried Rice

4 tablespoons oil (I use vegetable oil)

4 cups cooked rice

1/4 cup chopped scallions (optional, or sometimes I use diced onion)

1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

2 eggs, slightly beaten

Heat the oil in a large skillet (it does not need to be a wok), add rice, scallions, soy sauce, and pepper.  Cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, for 6 minutes.  Add the eggs and stir briskly so they cook and break into small bits throughout the rice.  As soon as the egg is set, remove and serve. 

(I sometimes also add about 1/2 cup cooked peas, 1/2 cup cooked diced carrots at the beginning with the rice mixture.  You can also add cooked chicken, shrimp, or pork to make the fried rice a meal all on its own).

source: The Fannie Farmer Cookbook

Day 23: Swiss Cheese Chicken

It's hard to believe the month of October will be over in a little more than a week!  We all know what that means: the holidays are coming fast!  When I walked into Home Depot the other day, the greeter somewhat apologized for the empty space where riding lawn mowers had previously been displayed.  In the same breath, she said, "But come back next week and we'll have all of our Christmas trees on display." What!??  Guess I shouldn't be surprised, but it surprised me.

Since the holidays are coming, that means more entertaining for many of us (yay!).  Have you started putting together a list of possible menus for dinner guests?  This recipe would be a great one to serve as it can easily be doubled, tripled, or more, and it bakes for one hour, which means you can put it in the oven and forget about it while you prepare the other elements of your meal.  My only suggestion would be to double the sauce, because if you serve it over rice (as I did), there isn't enough sauce to spoon over the rice.  Other than that it's delicious!

Swiss Cheese Chicken
Printable Version

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
6 slices of swiss cheese
1 can cream mushroom soup
1 (5-oz) can evaporated milk
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
coarsely crushed croutons

Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan.  Place chicken breasts in pan.  Cover each with one slice of swiss cheese.

In a small bowl combine soup and milk; pour over chicken.

Pour melted margarine/butter over all.

Sprinkle croutons over top.

Bake at 350F for one hour.  Serve with rice.

source: Heritage Cookbook

Blueberry Chicken Salad with Sage Butter Biscuits

This chicken salad came about as some other of my recipes do, simply because I'm trying to use what I have on hand, instead of going to the store and spending more money.  Does anyone else do this?  We were going to small group and everyone was supposed to bring an appetizer.  My mind was drawing a blank, though, so a friend inspired me by suggesting chicken salad in cream puffs (which, by the way, would be awesome--I just didn't want to spend the time to make the cream puffs, but someone really should tackle this!), which made me decide on chicken salad.

I found a great recipe tucked away in my collection that I had saved from a Better Homes & Gardens magazine in 2008.  I altered the chicken salad recipe a bit, but kept the original biscuit recipe.  There weren't any sandwiches left after our dinner, so I guess you could say that everyone liked them.

Chicken salad recipes are wonderful, but everyone has a different opinion on the proportions of dressing to chicken and other ingredients.  The recipe below is what I used, so you may need to adjust it to fit your own chicken salad preference.

These would be great for a shower, luncheon, or just make the chicken salad and serve it on a bed of lettuce. Hope you all enjoy!

Blueberry Chicken Salad:
2 cooked chicken breasts, cut into small cubes
1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons sour cream
Blueberries
Craisins
Slivered Almonds
chopped fresh chives
salt and pepper to taste

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine chicken, mayonnaise and sour cream.  Gently stir in as many blueberries, craisins, almonds and chives as you desire.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Chill for at least an hour before using.  Spoon onto Sage Butter Biscuits (recipe below).

recipe adapted from Better Homes &Gardens, April, 2008

Sage Butter Biscuits:
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cup chilled, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Preheat oven to 425F.  In a small bowl, whisk together milk and egg until blended; set aside.  Blend flour, baking powder, salt, sage and pepper with a pastry knife, or in a food processor.  Add cold butter and pulse or quickly blend with pastry knife until mixture resembles coarse meal.  Do not overmix.  Add milk mixture and process just until moist clumps begin to form.  Transfer dough to a floured surface.

Knead dough until it holds together (this part was tricky for me because my dough was super moist.  I probably added about 1/2 cup of flour to the dough by the time I was done kneading it) about 6 turns.  Roll out dough to 1/2-inch thickness.  Using a floured biscuit cutter, or the rim of a small drinking glass, cut out biscuits.  Reroll scraps and cut remaining biscuits.  Transfer to a large nonstick or lightly greased baking sheet.

Bake until golden brown, 10-12 minutes.  Slice in half and spoon in Blueberry Chicken Salad.

recipe slightly adapted from Better Homes & Gardens, April, 2008


Linking to: Strictly Homemade Tuesday at Strictly Homemade

and

Chicken Breasts with Tomato, Basil, and Roasted-Corn Relish

Our garden is doing beautifully and I love the fact that I can walk outside, pick something from the garden, and bring it in to eat it for dinner.  I was able to use tomatoes and basil from our garden for this dish.  This is an easy one to make, but it looks like it took a long time--a perfect combination in my opinion!  And to top it off, it's quite healthy.

Recipe:
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 ears fresh corn
3 medium tomatoes
1 green onion stem
12 basil leaves, approximately
4 large skinless boneless chicken breasts
flour
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

For the Relish:
Preheat oven to 375F.  Brush rimmed baking sheet with 1 teaspoon oil.  Using a sharp knife, cut off the kernels from the corn into a small bowl.

Toss corn with 2 teaspoons oil and place on baking sheet.  Roast until corn begins to brown, stirring occasionally, about 18 minutes.

While the corn is roasting, dice the tomatoes.

Then, slice the green onion.

Next, slice the basil into thin strips.

Mix the roasted corn with tomatoes, green onion, basil and 2 tablespoons olive oil; season with salt and pepper.   Set aside.

For Chicken:
Flatten the chicken breasts out as well as you can (you can do this with a meat mallet, by putting the chicken between two pieces of saran wrap, but it works just as well if you simply stretch it with your fingers) until they are about 1/2-inch thick.  Pat chicken dry.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then coat with flour.

Melt butter and oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat.  Add chicken and saute' until cooked through, about 5 minutes per side.

Transfer to plates, top with relish and serve.

Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit, 2005