Sweet & Sour Chicken

Sorry this food didn't pose very well for the camera, but I thought a bad picture was better than no picture. I wanted to post this recipe because it's super easy and also because if you take out the chicken, pineapple and bell pepper, it's your regular run of the mill sweet and sour sauce served in chinese restaurants, so you could make it for dipping wontons or eggrolls too.

1 3/4 Cups Water, divided
3/4 Cup Sugar
1/2 Cup Distilled White Vinegar
1/4 Cup Cornstarch
1 (8 oz.) Can Pineapple Tidbits. drained (juice reserved)
Yellow (1 drop) & Red (2 drops) Food Coloring
4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, cooked and cut into bite size pieces

1 Bell Pepper, cut into bite size pieces

1. In a saucepan, combine 1 1/2 cups water, sugar, vinegar, reserved pineapple juice and food coloring. Heat to boiling, then turn off heat.

2. Combine cornstarch and 1/4 cup water, slowly stir into saucepan. Continue stirring until mixture thickens.

3. Add cooked chicken pieces, bell pepper and pineapple. Heat until warmed through.

Serve over rice or chow mein noodles.

Easy Enchiladas

Don't be afraid to make enchiladas, they are so easy!! Don't be afraid of using enchilada sauce, either. If you don't use it, then you're really just making burritos. You can make it as spicy (or not spicy) as you want. My kids eat this just fine. You can change this recipe up however you want or to fit what ingredients you have. Here's the basic recipe.

Enchilada
Corn Tortillas
1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
Shredded Chicken, Shredded Beef or Beans
Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Sauce
1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
2 Tablespoons Flour
2-3 Tablespoons Chili Powder
1 (8 oz.) Can Tomato Sauce
1 1/2 Cups Water
1/4 Teaspoon Cumin
1/4 Teaspoon Garlic Powder (or 1 garlic clove, minced)
1/4 teaspoon Onion Salt

1. Heat oil for sauce in a skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Stir in flour and chili powder, reduce heat to medium, and cook until lightly brown, stirring constantly to prevent burning flour.
3. Gradually stir in tomato sauce, water, cumin, garlic powder, and onion salt into the flour and chili powder until smooth, and continue cooking over medium heat approximately 10 minutes, or until thickened slightly. Season to taste with salt.
4. Spoon some of the enchilada sauce into a baking dish.
5. Heat oil for enchiladas in a separate skillet over medium-high heat.
6. Using tongs, place one corn tortilla in the oil for 30 seconds, flip to the other side for 30 seconds, then remove. You don't want it to get crispy.
7. Dip the oil-covered tortillas into the sauce in the skillet and cover both sides.
8. Sprinkle desired meat or beans onto tortilla, then sprinkle with cheddar cheese.
9. Roll up and place seam-side down into the baking dish (on top of the sauce).
10. Repeat steps 6-9 until you have as many enchiladas as you want.
11. Spoon more sauce over the top of all of them.
12. Sprinkle with cheese.
13. Put all of them under the broiler until cheese is melted.

Delicioso! Serve with mexican rice and refried beans.

For a couple variations on the enchiladas, you could add chopped scallions, chopped green chili's and/or bits of cream cheese into the filling.

Sausage Gravy Pasta

When I was in AZ visiting my brother's family recently, my sister-in-law made a really good pasta. She told me what was in it and I realized it had the same ingredients as my sausage gravy I use for biscuits and gravy. I decided to experiment with the leftovers and it really worked out great! I'm not very good at using leftovers, but this is one of the best. Your family will have no idea they're eating the same thing for dinner that they had for breakfast! Here's a link to my Biscuits & Gravy recipe so you can make that for breakfast.

I also decided to try something I haven't tried before. I took pictures throughout the process so you can see how easy it really is. Also, I'm not including a recipe here, just the method...

Start by boiling a pot of water and cooking your pasta according to package direction. I used penne with the lines in it, but you really could use whatever type of pasta you want.
In a soup pot or deep skillet, put in your leftover sausage gravy. It doesn't really matter how much there is, just add all of it. If there isn't very much, the small amount of sausage you have will still flavor all of the sauce. If you have a lot, that just more meat for your pasta!
Sprinkle the gravy with 1-2 tablespoons flour and add about 1 Cup chicken stock or broth.
Stir the liquid into the gravy. It will start out thin and gradually thicken as it's heated. If it gets too thick, you can add more chicken stock or even a little starchy water from the pasta pot.
Once it's thickened and your pasta is done, add the pasta to the sauce pot.
And stir together.
Then add a bunch of dark greens. You could use spinach, kale, arugula...any dark green that holds up to cooking.
Stir it all together until the greens are wilted. Put it on a plate and sprinkle with parmesean cheese.
Ta Da!

Chili's Asian Lettuce Wraps

I love these lettuce wraps. They are so good! I always ordered them at Chili's, until recently they discontinued making them. That was a sad day for me. Fortunately, someone gave me this recipe, which is the exact Chili's recipe. It's pretty involved, so you really could cut out some steps (like the way it is served), but I wanted to put the entire recipe here in case you feel so inclined to make them exactly as they are supposed to be.

Chicken:
1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil
4 Chicken Breast Fillets
4 Green Onions
1/2 Cup Water Chestnuts, minced
1/4 Cup Sliced Almonds
1 Head Butter Lettuce

Stir Fry Sauce:
1/4 Cup Water
1 teaspoon Arrowroot (or Cornstarch)
1/3 Cup Soy Sauce
1/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
1/4 Cup White Vinegar
1 Tablespoon Dried Chives
1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil
2 teaspoons Sesame Seeds
1 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
1 teaspoon Chili Oil
1 teaspoon Creamy Peanut Butter

STIR FRY SAUCE:
1. Combine the water and arrowroot in a small bowl and stir until arrowroot is dissolved.
2. Add this solution to the remaining ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 to 6 minutes or until thick.

CHICKEN:
1. Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the chicken breast until done (3-5 minutes per side), turning every couple of minutes.
2. Remove the cooked chicken breast to a cutting board and slice it into strips with a sharp knife. Keep the pan hot.
3. Load the chicken back into the same pan over medium/high heat, and add the water chestnuts. Heat for 1 minute.
3. Add 5 tablespoons of stir fry sauce to the chicken and heat for 2 minutes, stirring often. Sauce should be bubbling.
4. Add the sliced green onions and stir.

TO SERVE:
Prepare each serving plate with a bed of bean threads (optional)-(see directions below).
Spoon one-fourth of the chicken onto the bean threads.
Sprinkle the chicken with about a tablespoon of sliced almonds.
Add three leaves of butter lettuce to the plate, along with a garnish of shredded carrots.
Repeat for the remaining servings. Serve with sesame-ginger dipping sauce and peanut dipping sauce on the side (see other recipes).

Bean threads can be found in the Asian food section of your supermarket. Before using as a garnish, the threads must be flash-fried in a skillet in 2 inches of hot vegetable oil. When the threads float to the top, remove them to a towel to drain.

Easy & Delicious Chicken

This is a really easy meal, especially when you don't have a lot of time, because it cooks in the crockpot. It's sort of like a chicken stroganoff. I always take this to neighbors when I make dinner for them. Everyone loves it.

6 Chicken Breasts
1 (8 oz.) Bottle Italian Salad Dressing
1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup
1 Cup Chicken Broth
1 (8 oz.) Package Cream Cheese
1/2 Teaspoon Basil, dried
1/2 Teaspoon Thyme, dried
Salt & Pepper, to taste
1 Package Bowtie Pasta

1. In a slow cooker, combine the chicken and italian dressing. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
2. When chicken is tender, drain most (not all) of the dressing and discard. Shred the chicken and return to slow cooker.
3. In a medium bowl combine the soup, broth, cream cheese, basil, thyme, salt and pepper.
4. Mix well and pour mixture over the chicken in the slow cooker.
5. Cook on low for 1 hour and serve over bowtie pasta (or any kind you like).

Iron Chef Part I

On Monday at work, we had a manager's retreat and did Iron Chef. It was so fun. My team was in charge of salad and dessert and the other team was in charge of the main dish and beverage. Our secret ingredient was fruit. The team that cooked at my house came up with this. And here I go with the method again, rather than the recipe.

Mix Mayonnaise with curry powder to taste. Cut up rotisserie chicken and mix with mayonnaise mixture. Serve over a bed of greens and top with coconut, toasted almonds and an assortment of tropical fruits. We used mango, pineapple and grapes (and just a couple strawberries for color). The salad would've been fine for a main dish in itself. It was delicious.