Spicy Chilli Sauce Chicken Fingers and "Whit" Dip

Last night Cameron, Whit, Kyle, and I made some Spicy Chilli Sauce Chicken Fingers, roasted vegetables, sweet potatoes fries, and Whitney's spinach dip, aka "Whit" dip, for the Cowboys game!

Spicy Chilli Sauce Chicken Fingers

I made this with the Hot Asian Chilli Sauce... It was very hot! Thankfully Kyle, Whit, and Cameron all like spicy food, and we had ranch to help with the heat. But I would recommend a more mild chilli sauce.

Ingredients:

• 20 chicken strips, thighs, or 4-6 chicken breasts
• 12 oz Chilli Sauce (I used the Asian Spicy Chilli Sauce (green cap))... But I would recommend a mild Chilli Sauce, unless you like a lot of heat!
• 1/3 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 10 cloves garlic, minced
• 5 tsp dried basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• Ranch and/or Blue Cheese Dressing for dipping

Directions:

In a bowl or plastic bag, combine chilli sauce, broth, oil, garlic, basil, salt, and pepper. Mix well and reserve about 1/4 cup for basting.

Add chicken and marinate for at least 2 hours, or over night.

Either preheat a grill and grill the chicken until white in the middle. Or preheat an oven to 400 degrees and cook for 20 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink!

Enjoy with some ranch and/ or blue cheese dressing!

"Whit" Dip
This is Whit's take on Spinach Dip, it might not be very healthy, but it is delicous! Great to munch on during the Cowboys game! (I like it best with Wheat Thins!)

Ingredients:

• 8 oz sour cream
• 1 cup of mayo
• 2 cups Parmasen
• 2 cups Colby Jack cheese, more for topping
• 10 oz frozen spinach, thawed (or fresh, whilted)

Directions:

Combine in a bowl sour cream, mayo, parm, and colby jack cheese. Then add spinach and transfer to a baking pan.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Top with more colby jack cheese and bake for 15 minutes!

Enjoy!

GUMBO!

A couple of weekends ago,  I went home for my sister's volleyball regional tournament... Which they won! So I stayed the weekend and my parents and grandparents got together to watch the Baylor vs. KU game, Sic em bears, (not OU vs Texas) and I made gumbo with sausage and chicken. (I changed the ingredients and spiciness based on my families preferences).

Chicken, Sausage, and Shrimp Gumbo

I didn't add the shrimp because my grandmother is allergic, and I didn't add okra because I forgot to buy it (which my mother said was a sin against cajun food). So let me know how this recipe turns out with those added!

My family loved this gumbo and all went back for seconds! It's very hearty and is great during half time of a football game!

Tip: to save on time, I bought precooked sausage and chicken, I just didn't think it was worth all the extra work!

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbl olive oil  (only is cooking chicken and sausage)
• 1 cup skinless, boneless chicken - chopped (I bought a de-boned a full rotisserie chicken (Sam's has the best))
• 1/2 pound pork sausage links, thinly sliced (I used a spicy sausage- precooked)
• 1 cup olive oil
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 Tbl minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
• 5 cups chicken broth
• 1 can or bottle beer (I used Miller Lite)
• 6 stalks celery, diced
• 4 roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 sweet onion, sliced or diced
• 1 cup okra, sliced (you can use frozen and thaw, or fresh)
• 1 (10 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers, with liquid (Rotel is great)
• 2 Tbl chopped fresh red chile peppers or any kind of pepper you prefer
• 1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
• 1/4 cup Cajun seasoning (I used half Old Bay and half Tony Chachere's spicy seasonings, and it was still very spicy!)
• 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

Directions:

If cooking raw chicken and sausage: Heat oil over medium heat in a med-large skillet, add chicken until no longer pink. Add sausage and cook together until evenly brown. Drain and set aside.

In a large saucepan, add the oil and flour and make your roux. Stir continuously or the roux will burn. Stir until brown and bubbly. (A roux, is used to thicken soups, sauces, etc its equal parts flour and fat (butter, oil, etc)). You want to roux to get brown and dark. Add in garlic and cooking for an additional minute.

Gradually add in the chicken stock and beer into the roux. Stirring frequently, bring to a boil. Add in celery, okra, onion, tomatoes, rotel tomatoes with chiles, parsley, and your choice of cajun seasoning. Turn down the heat, cover, and simmer for 40 minutes. Stir frequently.

Mix in the chicken, sausage, and shrimp and stir frequently for about 20 minutes. You can turn the gumbo on low for a while to keep it warm before you serve it.

This will serve about 10-12 people. And the total time is about 2 hours. It helps a lot to chop all the ingredients before hand.

Serve with white rice and crusty bread or cornbread for dipping. Enjoy!

Tips: I would not make this cornbread with the gumbo, just a plain cornbread is better. There is so much going on in the gumbo and the cornbread, that the cornbread takes away. I think buying the pre-packaged cornbread (ex: Jiffy or Marie Callender's) are both delicious and time saving!

 Here's our yummy breads!

BBQ Chicken, Veggies, and Apple Crisp!

Tonight, Whit, Kyle, Cameron, and I all cooked out at our house! Cameron and I went to Central Market and found this delicious sweet barbecue sauce... and the rest followed!

Menu:
BBQ Chicken
Grilled Veggies
Whit's Potato Casserole
Apple Crisp for dessert

For the BBQ chicken all you need is a good barbecue sauce and chicken. Marinate the chicken in the BBQ sauce (season with salt and pepper, or a grilling seasoning) for about 2-4 hours (and as long as overnight). Then grill! Have more BBQ sauce on hand for serving!

I love grilled veggies! Tonight we grilled red pepper, jalapenos, squash, and red onions. All you need is a little evoo and salt and pepper. Make sure you try to cut the veggies to the same thickness so they cook the same!

Whit's potato casserole I'll need to cook again for the recipe. Its delicious and super easy though, stay posted!

Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

• 5 apples (about 5 cups), peels, cored, and sliced
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 11/2 tsp all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/8 cup water
• 1 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

After you peel, core, and slice the apples (use Granny or another cooking apple), layer them in a baking pan, add the sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and water. Mix well and evenly.

For the topping, combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and butter, mix together and sprinkle evenly on top of the apple mixture, back for 45 minutes.

Serve with ice cream!

Chicken Cauliflower Gratin

I've always really liked the idea of using cauliflower in place of mashed potatoes. I found this recipe today and thought I would try it out. It was originally made as a side dish. But I added chicken to make it into a main dish, you could also add pasta.

This is a really creamy sauce, but without the butter! I really liked substituting the cauliflower for potatoes and will do that more in the future. If you're not a vegetable person, or are cooking for someone who doesn't like vegetables, you can hardly tell the difference! Cauliflower, when cooked, has a consistency that is really similar to mashed potatoes, so its the perfect healthy replacement.

This recipe is delicious how it is originally, but would be great with these additions:

• Adding peas and carrots
• Pasta- another take on the main dish (if you make it without the chicken, it's a great vegetarian dish)
• Taking out the chicken- to make it a side (great with steak)
• Adding minced garlic
• Add broccoli

Chicken Cauliflower Gratin

Ingredients:

• 4 cups 1-inch cauliflower florets (about 1/2 large head) (I used frozen)
• 1 1/2 cups nonfat milk, divided into 1 1/4 and 1/4 cups
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs, I used crumbed crackers
• 3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
• 1/2 tsp evoo
• 2 Tbl all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbl chopped fresh chives
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1/4 tsp black pepper (you can use white too, but I like the extra kick)
• Chicken, cooked and shredded (I had some left over from a rotisserie chicken)

Directions:

Position rack in upper rack of the oven and preheat your broiler.

In a large ovenproof skillet, over medium-high heat, bring cauliflower, 1 1/4 cups milk and salt to a boil.

Reduce heat, cover and simmer until the cauliflower is tender, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup cheese and oil in a small bowl.

Whisk flour and the remaining 1/4 cup milk in another small bowl until smooth.

Stir the mixture into the pan and cook, stirring, until thickened, about 1 minute. Add chicken.

Stir in the remaining 1/2 cup cheese, chives, mustard and pepper.

(I didn't have an oven proof skillet, so I transferred the gratin to a casserole dish to put in the oven)
Sprinkle with the breadcrumb mixture. Broil until the top is crispy and beginning to brown, 1 to 2 minutes.
Serves 4

We served the chicken gratin with fruit, tomato basil salad, and rolls. Everyone loved the meal, and went back for seconds and thirds! It's really creamy and cheesy, but still good for you!

Chicken Stuffed with Pimiento Cheese

Sunday night, Cameron, Ford, and I went to the Ongena's with Josh and KB to cook dinner. The only people I was missing were my sister and parents!

We made chicken stuffed with pimiento cheese served over rice and roasted vegetables. The roasted vegetable I had previously made in January.

There are two different versions to this meal. Since I know some people like to have healthy options, while others enjoy the regular versions (Nanni). Both are good, and you can use any kind of version of Pimiento cheese.

Ford and Cameron were my sous chefs, while Mr. and Mrs. Ongena provided the kitchen as well as the music. And Josh and Kb were the observers/eaters/cobbler bringers.

Ingredients:

• For Homemade Pimiento:
• 1/2 cup shredded Gouda cheese, preferably smoked
• 2 Tbl chopped scallion
• 1 Tbl sliced pimientos, chopped 
• OR, 12 oz premade pimiento cheese (less healthy but still delicious) If you are making more than 7 chicken breast buy two.
• 1 tsp paprika, divided
• 4 small boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1 1/4-1 1/2 pounds total), trimmed and tenders removed
• 1/2 tsp salt, divided
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper, divided
• 1 Tbl extra virgin olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°F.

If you are making homemade pimiento cheese:
Combine Gouda, scallion, pimientos and 1/2 teaspoon paprika in a small bowl.

Cut a horizontal slit along the thin, long edge of each chicken breast, nearly through to the opposite side, and open like a book. Sprinkle the breasts with 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Divide the cheese filling among the breasts, placing it in the center of each. Close the breast over the filling, pressing the edges firmly together to seal. Sprinkle the breasts with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon paprika, 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper.

Heat oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned on one side, about 2 minutes. Turn the chicken over and transfer the skillet to the oven. Bake until the chicken is no longer pink in the center and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 165°F, about 30 minutes. Cameron had a great idea and topped all of the chicken breats with pimiento cheese.

Kung Pao Chicken

Last night I made Healthy Kung Pao Chicken for my dad and sister. I am a huge fan of Chinese food... and breakfast, and sushi, and Italian... Ok, I love pretty much every kind of food. But I do love Chinese food, and if you ask my roommates, I very frequently crave it.

In general, Chinese food is pretty unhealthy, so this version is really delicious, makes 4 servings, and is only 350 calories per serving! I served it as is, but you can serve it over rice!

 Ingredients:

• 3 Tbl soy sauce
• 1 Tbl  fresh ginger, peeled and grated
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 lb chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks, boneless, skinless
• 3 tsp vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, cut into thin strips
• 2 small green bell peppers, cut into thin strips
• 2/3 cup (unsalted) roasted peanuts, produce

Directions:

In a small bowl, with a fork, combine soy sauce, ginger, sugar, cornstarch, crushed red pepper, garlic and water. Transfer 2 Tbsp. of the sauce to a medium bowl; add chicken and toss to coat. Marinate at room temperature for 10 minutes.

In a nonstick skillet, warm 2 tsp. oil over medium-high heat until very hot. Add the chicken and cook until meat loses its pink color throughout, about 5 to 10 minutes. Remove to a plate.

Add remaining 1 tsp. oil to the same skillet and heat until hot. Add onion and bell peppers, and stir-fry about 5 to 10 minutes, until peppers start to soften. (Add 1 to 2 Tbsp. water if skillet is dry.)

Pour remaining stir-fry sauce over vegetables and boil 1 minute. Return chicken to skillet along with peanuts and heat through. Serve over rice, if you like.

Chicken with Spinach and Pine Nut Pesto

I just got back from Spring Break! I spent the week with Cameron and my roomies in sunny Cozumel. Sooo now that I'm back, I'm back to cooking.

Tonight Ryan is taking the G-MAT so Annie, Lis, and I are going to welcome her home and celebrate her finally finishing! We decorated the house with streamers, balloons, and even a pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey game. We got her cupcakes and champagne and I'm excited for her to get back so we can celebrate!

I cooked dinner tonight. A really good chicken with a spinach and pine nut pesto... I learned from this recipe that a food processor is key!

Chicken with Spinach and Pine Nut Pesto

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless chicken breasts
• 2 cups lightly packed baby spinach leaves (about 2 ounces)
• 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 to 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
• 1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Garlic Salt (optional)
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions:

Heat a grill pan on medium high heat. Lightly oil the grill pan. Sprinkle the chicken with salt, pepper, and garlic salt. Grill the chicken until cooked through, about 5 minutes per side.

For a pan seared chicken, heat a skillet on medium-high and light oil the pan. Sear chicken until there is no pink showing. 

This is where I had my first road block. I decided to cook the thickest chicken breast I've ever seen. I should have butterflied the chicken, because it was so thick and would cook more evenly, but I didn't... So I ended up having to cut the chicken into little pieces so I wouldn't die from salmonella. 

 Combine the spinach, pine nuts, lemon juice, and lemon peel in a processor. Lightly pulse. With the machine running, gradually add 1/3 cup of the oil, blending until the mixture is creamy. Add salt and pulse. Put half of the pesto into ice cube trays and store in the freezer for future use.

Transfer the rest of the spinach mixture to a medium bowl. Stir in the Parmesan. Season the pesto with salt and pepper, to taste.

Making the pesto was where I hit my second, third, and fourth road blocks. The first was that I did not have a food processor, so I thought I would improvise and everything would be the same. So I pulled out my Magic Bullet and poured all the ingredients for the pesto in...

But only the bottom part was pureed, and as hard as I tried, I could not get the rest to blend together. My second idea was to add it to a blender. Sooo I pulled out our blender with little to no change. After that my last idea was to whip the pesto with my hand mixer. 

This method worked better than all of my other ideas, but most of the pines nuts stayed whole. The next time I make this... I will have a food processor. 

Even though The pesto wasn't pureed, it was still delicious!

Spread the pesto over each piece of chicken and serve.

Chicken Piccata and Roasted Vegetables

Now that I'm back at school, and not working, I have a little more time on my hands... So Deboard, Ryan, and I have decided to make dinner every week together.

Deboard fittingly named it "Wonderful" Wednesday ;). Probably because I cook for her, but who knows.

SAE sing starts tonight, so I won't have time to cook tonight, but I do have time to put down the recipes for the dinner we made. Chicken Piccata and Roasted Vegetables.

This was my first time to make both of the recipes... And it was Ryan's and my first time to butterfly a chicken! It's really not that difficult, the point of butterfling a chicken is because the chicken breast usually has uneven thickness. So you butterfly it so that the chicken will cook evenly.

You start at the thickest part and cut it horizontally, holding the knife parallel to the cutting board. Cut it almost in half and then open it like a book, then you pat it out so that the whole chicken has the same consistent thickness.

Chicken Piccata:

Ingredients:

• 4 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, butterflied (if you don't have that many chicken breasts you can butterfly them and then cut them in half... We were just extra hungry!)
  
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• All-purpose flour, for dredging
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1/4 cup brined capers, rinsed
• 1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.

In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter with 3 tablespoons olive oil. When the butter and oil start to sizzle, add 2 pieces of chicken and cook for 3 minutes.

When the chicken is browned, flip and cook other side for 3 minutes. Remove and transfer to plate. Melt 2 more tablespoons butter and add another 2 tablespoons olive oil.

When the butter and oil start to sizzle, add the other 2 pieces of chicken and brown both sides in same manner. Remove pan from heat and add chicken to the plate.

Into the pan add the lemon juice, stock and capers. Return to stove and bring to boil, scraping up brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Check for seasoning.

Return all the chicken to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove chicken to platter. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter to sauce and whisk vigorously. Pour sauce over chicken and garnish with parsley.

Roasted Vegetables:

For Christmas Cameron's parents got me Cooking School Italian, and the first thing I tried out from the book is the side dish of our dinner! And as a side note, I could not have made the chicken without Ryan... And the veggies would never have been cut as perfectly without Deboard! (As seen below!)

My favorite part of this dish was the eggplant, it was so good roasted and the balsamic/oil dressing on top was great. Although the recipe called for a few shavings of Parmesan... We used A LOT more, I don't think you can ever have too much cheese!

Ingredients:

• 1 Onion
• 1 Eggplant
• 1 Red Bell Pepper, seeded
• 1 Orange Bell Pepper, seeded
• 1 Large Zucchini (Although Ghetto HEB in Waco only had small ones, so we used 2)
• 2-4 Garlic Cloves (We used all four, and maybe even five)
• 6 Tbl EVOO
• 1 Tbl Balsamic Vinegar
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 Tbl shredded fresh basil, to garnish
• Parmesan cheese shavings (and lots of it!)
  

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut all the vegetables into even-size wedges, put into a roasting pan, and scatter over the garlic cloves. Pour over 2 Tbl of the olive oil and toss the vegetables until well coated with the oil. (although we used a little more than this, just eyeball it, and make sure that all the vegetables are evenly covered). Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to the preheated oven and cook for 40 minutes, or until tender, adding more olive oil if needed.

Meanwhile, put the vinegar, EVOO, and salt and pepper to taste into a screw-top jar and shake until blended.

When the vegetables are cooked, remove from the oven, arrange on a serving dish, and pour over the dressing. Sprinkle with the basil and serve warm or at room temperature with Parmesan cheese shavings.