Chicken Nuggets

Every kid loves chicken nuggets, but not every parent loves buying them from the store when they're really just chicken with crumbs on them.  These are cheaper than the store kind, and tastier too.

Ingredients

• 3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Cut chicken breasts into 1 1/2-inch sized pieces. In a medium bowl, mix together the bread crumbs, cheese, salt, thyme and basil. Mix well. Put melted butter in a bowl or dish for dipping.
3. Dip chicken pieces into the melted butter first, then coat with the breadcrumb mixture. Place the well-coated chicken pieces on a lightly greased cookie sheet in a single layer, and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Chicken Milano

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped ( i used regular, just put in more)
• 1 cup chicken broth, divided
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 pound chicken
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 or 4 tablespoons chopped fresh basil (hard to measure when its fresh)
• 8 ounces dry fettuccini pasta (i used spaghetti)
• mushrooms, peppers, onion (optional, good to saute)

Directions

1. In a large saucepan over low heat, melt butter; add garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and 3/4 cup of the chicken broth; increase to medium heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes or until the tomatoes are tender. Add the cream and bring to a boil; stirring. Simmer over medium heat until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
2. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. In a large skillet over medium heat, warm oil and saute chicken. Press on chicken occasionally with a slotted spatula. Cook for about 4 minutes per side or until the meat feels springy and is no longer pink inside. Transfer to a board; cover and keep warm. Discard the fat from the skillet.
3. In the same skillet, over medium heat, bring 1/4 cup chicken broth to a boil; stirring the pan juices. Reduce slightly and add to the cream sauce; stir in basil and adjust seasonings to taste.
4. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add fettuccine and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain, transfer to a bowl and toss with 3 to 4 tablespoons of the sauce.
5. Cut each chicken breast into 2 to 3 diagonal slices. Reheat the sauce gently if needed. Transfer the pasta to serving plates; top with chicken and coat with the cream sauce; devour messily

pictures with the new camera, and a spicy tomato chicken soup

i took these pictures with the camera dad gave me.  thanks dad!

the mustard monster. complete with spices

the two front burners died, so i took them out and covered them in foil

this is the spicy stuff. yum  :)

Apartment Hunting!

 and one night for dinner, i decided i needed to use some canned tomatoes. thats how this meal started

a few tasty ingredients to give it some zip. the dijon and ketchup go well together 

creole seasoning is amazing if you like spicy and salty foods

spicy ground pepper and basil pesto

Well seasoned grub

i think this has chicken in it too

mmm

this shot makes me hungry. i can see the johnnys garlic in the top left...yum

pandora. a great way to find good music, and nice when cooking as well  :)

My frisbee golf discs! The beast and valkrie are new, and mom and krista gave me the blue, red, and middle white disc

frolf!

deliciousness--johnnys garlic, basil, the spicy stuff, alfredo cheese, montreal chicken

Pesto Chicken Florentine -- skinny style

yum

Servings: 4ready in: 1 hour

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 or 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 chopped pepper
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into strips
• 3 cups fresh spinach leaves
• 1 package Alfredo sauce* 
• 3 tablespoons pesto
• 8 oz dry pasta
• 1 tablespoon grated Romano cheese
• chicken seasoning and/or tenderizer

*If you don't have an alredo sauce, here's a recipe for an easy and tasty one  http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Alfredo-Sauce-2/Detail.aspx

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic, saute for 1 minute; then add chicken, onion, and pepper--cook for 7 to 8 minutes on each side. When chicken is close to being cooked through (no longer pink inside), add spinach and saute all together for 3 to 4 minutes.
2. In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente. Rinse under cold water and drain.
3. Meanwhile, prepare Alfredo sauce according to package directions. When finished, stir in 2 tablespoons pesto
4. Add chicken/spinach mixture to pasta, then stir in pesto/Alfredo sauce. Mix well, top with cheese and serve.

thank you allrecipes

 http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pesto-Chicken-Florentine/Detail.aspx

Awesome Enchiladas

Green onions and olives worked nicely with these enchiladas.

 These enchiladas are seriously amazing.  They take a little while to make, but if you have the time it's definitely worth it in the end.  I made these for Becca's birthday dinner, and they turned out great!
Servings:  8
Total Prep Time:  2 hours

 

 

 

Ingredients

• 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast meat
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1 1/4 cups sour cream
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper
• 1 tablespoon butter (might take more)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 or 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• sliced mushrooms
• 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies
• 1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 1 cup water
• 2 teaspoons lime or lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
•  flour tortillas (i bet corn would work too)
• 3 cups cheese, shredded (cheddar, mozarrella, or other kinds will work)
• 1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce--I used double this
• 1 can sliced black olives
• chicken seasonings and meat tenderizer (my favorite)

1. Place the chicken in a large pot, add salt and water, and cover (if your meat was frozen, add tenderizer and chicken seasonings). Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer until the chicken pieces are no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Shred chicken by placing two forks back to back and pulling meat apart. Set the shredded chicken aside. Meanwhile, combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and chili powder in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, then turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.
2. Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion, garlic, mushrooms and bell pepper; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the shredded chicken, chopped green chilies, taco seasoning, half of the bunch of chopped green onion, and water. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the lime/lemon juice, onion powder, and garlic powder; simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
3. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Stir 1 cup of the soup mixture into the skillet with the chicken mixture. Spread the remaining soup mixture on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
4. Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture. Sprinkle Cheddar cheese over the chicken filling before folding the tortillas, reserving half of the shredded cheese for topping the enchiladas. Fold tortillas over the filling and place seam-side down in the prepared pan.



Yay, cheese!

5. Pour enchilada sauce evenly over the enchiladas. Cover with the remaining cheese. Sprinkle the reserved chopped green onions and the sliced olives on top of the cheese. Bake in the preheated oven until filling is heated through and the cheese is melted and bubbling. 

Bon apetite!












 Here's some allrecipes links that gave me some good ideas for these.  I wish i'd had some spicy peppers to saute though!  :)
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Angelas-Awesome-Enchiladas/Detail.aspx

chicken spaghetti

So i made chicken spaghetti.  It was awesome, hopefully i can remember everything that went into it haha
Serves 4 to 5
Prep time: 1.5 hours (on the mustard beast, having lids also will speed up cooking )

Add caption

Ingredients:
sliced bacon
dry spaghetti, or similar pasta
canned tomatoes
1 cream of celery soup (chicken, mushroom, or tomato will also probably work as well)
3/4 cup sliced mushrooms
one chopped onion
chopped red and green bell peppers
3 cups of chicken, chopped or shredded
cheese!! use a couple different kinds (mozzarella, parmesan, cheddar, colby jack, etc)
cooking wine (if your 'cream of'' soups are old and dry like mine was haha)
milk
cream cheese
4 cloves garlic, chopped
basil
montreal chicken seasoning
lemon pepper
red pepper
cumin--just a pinch
parsley flakes
garlic powder

• large skillet with lid
• pot for spaghetti
• large glass baking dish

Preheat oven to 400 F.
Boil salted water and add spaghetti.  Cook al dente, and strain.
Spray skillet with oil. Cook the chicken and bacon with: chopped onions, bell peppers, garlic,  mushrooms, etc.  Season chicken with lemon pepper and montreal chicken seasoning.
When the chicken is cooked well add canned tomatoes.  Stir in basil, garlic powder, red pepper, and cumin. If your chicken is still dry, add cooking wine. Cover, and allow to come to a boil.  (If your tomatoes come with as much juice as mine did, boil without a lid).  Simmer until sauce begins to thicken, and the red pepper has released its flavor.
In a bowl, mix 'cream of soup' with cream cheese.  Stir in milk if your soup is a little dry.
Add the soup mixture to the skillet and stir lightly.
When it is all heated through, add with spaghetti noodles into glass baking dish. Toss with a fork, and add cheese in layers on the top.
Cook in oven until cheese is melted.
This was pretty tasty stuff