Mushroom & Bacon Stuffed Chicken

What's better than stuffing a chicken full of anything your heart desires and baking it? The answer is: eating it!

On a no/low carb diet, chicken rollups are the key to success! Easy to make, quick to bake, and a dieters dream! We make these in our house quite often with various ingredients rolled inside: gouda and spinach, blue cheese and bacon, and... this one...

Mushroom and Bacon Stuffed Chicken Breasts. This was by far my favorite of all of the stuffed chickens we've made. I scoped out about 10 recipes and took what I loved from all of them (plus what was available in our fridge without running to the store) and came up with a pretty tasty dish!

Ingredients:

* 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
* 1 packaged sliced mushrooms
* 3 pieces super thick cut bacon
* 1 small tomato (or 7 grape tomatoes from my tomato plant!)
* Parsley
* Oregano
* Basil
* salt and pepper
* 1 egg
* 1 1/2 cups panko
* 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
* Gouda, swiss, mozzerella, blue cheese- whatever you want to use
* Worchestire sauce
* 2 tablespoons butter
* olive oil

To Make:

* Preheat oven to 375.
* Sautee 1/2 pack of the mushrooms in butter. season with salt and pepper
* cook bacon in skillet until crispy. once cooked, transfer to paper towel to drain grease
* Chop cooked mushrooms and cripsy bacon- place together in a bowl
* Dice tomato and add to mushrooms and bacon
* Add 1 teaspoon each of parsley, oregano, and basil to mixture
* Add 1 dash of worchestire sauce to mixture

* Flatten chicken breasts with meat mallet until 1/4th in. thick
* Add mushroom mixture and cheese to one side of chicken, roll, secure with toothpick

* In small bowl, beat egg
* In medium bowl, mix panko and parmesan cheese together
* Dip each stuffed chicken breast into egg wash, then cover generously in panko mixture
* Head olive oil in skillet- brown each chicken breast in oil so panko crisps and browns

* Place chicken breasts on tinfoil covered baking sheet. Bake in oven for around 25 minutes- or more depending on how thick your chicken is. Mine took about 30 minutes.

Fresh Corn and Chicken Chowder

I'll give my hubs some credit here: he made this meal. I was out for the night, and he still cooked what we had planned- so proud! I ate it the next day for lunch, and the leftover chowder was just as good as I imagined it being the night before.

Recipe from Better Homes & Gardens 30 Minute Dinners magazine

Ingredients:

* 12 oz skinless, boneless chicken breasts
* 4 ears of corn
* 1 32oz container chicken broth
* 1 small green pepper, chopped. (I added some sauteed red pepper on top of mine)
* 1 1/4 cups instant mashed potato flakes
* 1 cup milk
salt and pepper
crushed red pepper (optional, for heat)

To Make:

* In a dutch oven, combine chicken, corn, and chicken broth. Bring to boil, then reduce heat. Cover with lid and simmer for 10-12 minutes. When cooked through, transfer chicken and corn to cutting board.
* add half of the pepper to the broth mixture in the dutch oven. Stir in potato flakes and milk. Shred chicken and return to dutch oven. Cut kernals off cobs of corn and add to dutch oven. Season with salt and pepper
* Serve in bowls and sprinkle remaining pepper- this is where I used the sauteed red pepper

Creamy Herbed Chicken & Pasta

Slow cookers are my best friend. Granted, I am home all day, doing nothing, so its not like they help me out in the 'I have no time to cook' department. I'm just lazy. I spend all day just playing with the boys, waiting for the hubs to come home. It just mostly happens that around the time I would usually start cooking dinner, both boys need to be fed/bathed/paid attention to so its always difficult to prepare food with them crying and running between my legs in the kitchen. Again, slow cookers are my best friend.

This recipe is altered a bit. I found a recipe for creamy herbed chicken in my Taste of Home Slow Cooker magazine I picked up while waiting in the checkout line at Walmart. I couldn't find the specific packet of seasoning that was called for in the original recipe, so after about 20 minutes of looking and 30 curse words later, I gave up hope and went in search of the next item on my list. Turns out, in the dressing aisle, Kraft has pasta seasoning packages! Not exactly what the recipe called for, but I'm going to say it was a very successful substitute!

Ingredients:

* 1 lb chicken breast (I use the packages of 3)
* 1 can cream of chicken soup
* 1 cup milk
* 1 teaspoon dried thyme
* 1 teaspoon parsley flakes
* 1 package garlic and herb pasta seasoning (Knorr brand used in original recipe)
       My substitute: Kraft Parmesan Seasoning Packet in Rosemary and Garlic
* Salt and Pepper
* Pasta of your choice

To Make:

* Spray slow cooker with non-stick spray
* In a medium bowl, combine soup, milk, thyme, parsley, and herb seasoning packet. Whisk together until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste
* Add chicken breasts to slow cooker. Pour soup mixture over chicken
* Cook on LOW for 4-5 hours or until chicken is cooked
* Cook pasta according to package directions

I also added a little flour mixed with cold water to the liquid after pulling the chicken out of the slow cooker to thicken up the sauce so it could be poured over the noodles. I used fettucini noodles, but since it was a parmesan based seasoning package, it could very well have worked over some cheese tortelloni or something like that... delicious!

Chicken Cordon Bleu & Creamy Parmesan Sauce

 Need a way to jazz up your chicken? Baked chicken roll-ups. Or at least, that's what I call them.
Pound out a chicken breast so its nice and flat, add some tasty ingredients on top of it, roll it up, secure with a toothpick, and bake at 350 for 20-30 mins or until chicken is cooked. Done.

I've made similar dishes (see Cooper Chicken- stuffed with cheese and spinach). I've also done this dish with blue cheese and bacon in the middle- equally as tasty.

This time, we made them with ham and swiss cheese, a traditional chicken cordon bleu. Growing up, we always had these and they were breaded- but since the low-carb diet forbids breadcrumbs (damn you, diet), we went with a simple salt and pepper seasoned chicken breast. I flattened the chicken breasts, added slices of ham and swiss cheese, rolled them up, and baked them.

The recipe for the parmesan cheese sauce is what truly needs to be shared with you guys. It was soooo amazing.

Parmesan Cream Sauce
Adapted from Laura's Recipe Collection at Laurasrecipecollection.com

Ingredients:
 * 1 tablespoon butter
 * 1-2 cloves garlic chopped
 * 1/2 to 3/4 cups half and half (I used heavy whipping cream since half and half was not diet friendly)
 * 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch (I used a small pinch of flour since I was out of cornstarch)
 * Original Recipe calls for a splash of white wine... I used chicken stock to make it Alex friendly
 * Salt and Pepper
 * 1/3 cup shredded parmesan

To Make:
 * Melt butter in pan and saute garlic for a few minutes
 * Add splash of wine (or chicken stock) and simmer for a few more minutes
 * Whisk together cream and flour in bowl. Pour into pan with garlic, stir, and cook down until thick and creamy
 * Add the cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook until melted and smooth.
 * Serve over chicken/veggies/whatever immediately!
If sauce gets too thick- add another splash of chicken stock and give it a quick stir!

Turkey Rub

Since the Proti household is going low-carb (and I mean seriously low carb- less than 20 a day), I have been desperately searching for ways to jazz up our proteins! I have been googling 'dry rubs' for chickens, turkey, steaks, pork, fish, etc.

Short story even shorter: I found an amazing rub for poultry and we used it on some turkey legs the first night of our low-carb-a-thon. I plan to use it for next Thanksgiving! Give it a shot!

Custer's Old Fashion Turkey Rub
   Recipe from Lee Custer. Found on About.com's Barbecues and Grilling site

(note: this is enough for a 20 lb turkey... we cut it in half and had extra to spare for 3 turkey legs)

Mix together:
    

1 tablespoon garlic powder

2 teaspoons seasoned salt

1 teaspoons poultry seasoning

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon basil

If you need a recipe for poultry seasoning (like we did), use this:

    Also found on About.com

   (makes 1 cup)

3 tablespoons dried rosemary

3 tablespoons dried oregano

3 tablespoons dried sage

2 tablespoons dried ginger

2 tablespoons dried marjoram

2 tablespoons dried thyme

1 tablespoon black pepper

Game Day Buffalo Dip

Yes.

I'm un-American.

I hate football season. Like, seriously, I hate it.

I hate the way my husband's mood is dictated by how well his teams do that week. I hate the fact that it's all anyone ever wants to do on the weekends, so there's no hope of doing anything else whatsoever. I hate that I have to sit there, surround by a room full of people, and I'm the only one who doesn't really care if the ref made a bad call or if they are 3rd and goal.

The only thing I can tolerate during this ridiculous time of year, is the food. The tailgating food (hot dogs, hamburgers, cold beer, nachos), the football party food (chips, dips, things rolled in pastry dough), and the excuse to eat as much of it as you like (because you're nervous your team may not make that field goal, and no one will judge you for stress eating).

On Saturday, we went to our friends house to watch their former collegiate education establishment play their big game. We dressed Alex in the appropriate colors so we were allowed in the door, and took our seats in front of the TV- but not before we ate tasty steaks, bacon-wrapped jalapenos, cookies, and my contribution: buffalo dip!

Yes, it looks a bit unappetizing, but I can promise you...
its the hit of any party!

I originally got this recipe from a spouse in our class back in Columbus, but I've adjusted it a bit to fit my husbands need for more 'kick' and my undying love for blue cheese :) Thanks, Meredith for the original!

Ingredients:

* 8 oz cream cheese, softened
* 16 oz sour cream
* 1 cup blue cheese dressing
* 1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce (I use upwards of a cup to appease Chris' need for heat)
* 1 container blue cheese crumbles
* 2.5 cups cooked chicken. I bake mine in the oven (350 for 30 mins), then shred it.

To Do:

* Combine cream cheese, sour cream, blue cheese dressing (I add a few dabbles more because I love me some blue cheese), and buffalo sauce. Mix well. Stir in chicken and blue cheese crumbles. Pour into casserole dish and put into 350 degree oven (covered) until its hot and starts to bubble. This usually takes about half an hour.

* Serve while hot with chips, crackers, and veggies. And don't worry if you're not a huge blue cheese fan- I was told that no one even knew there was blue cheese in the dip- all they tasted was deliciousness :)


Now... make this dip next Saturday, Sunday, Monday, etc and go root for the home team/underdog/your team/ team with the best tushies in those tight pants/whatever!

And I'm Back! With Gumbo!

Ladies-

   I pride myself on giving you simple, easy dishes to complete when you're in a bind or just don't feel like putting in a lot of effort into meals. My recipes never include a lot of ingredients, never take more than an hour, and the results are always tasty- plus you can probably pull most of them off with the ingredients you have in your pantry already!

  This recipe is not one of those recipes. This recipe is for the day when your significant other says "Don't worry babe, I'll make dinner one night this week!" Wait? Your man doesn't say that either? Hmmmm... ok well this recipe is for when you say "Honey, if you don't make me dinner this weekend, you are going to have to take me to the Opera (Ballet, Shoe Shopping, Decoration Shopping, Furniture Shopping, Chick Flick, etc)!" Use whatever venue or activity puts the Fear of God into your man- each one is a little different- and feel free to get creative!

   This recipe is my husbands. He hand-picked it out of a cookbook his father gave us and its his favorite thing to make (and might I say, he knocks it out of the park every single time!) This recipe comes from Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen cookbook. We were lucky enough to eat at his restaurant, K Paul's, when we were in NOLA in May- and I'd recommend it to anyone! Make sure you save your husband plenty of time- he will need it to prepare this gourmet masterpiece- it always takes Chris 1.5-2 hours of loving labor to complete it (leave time for the inevitable kitchen mishaps that are sure to happen by letting him loose in the kitchen all by himself!)

Here it is: Chicken and Andouille Smoked Sausage Gumbo by

Chef Paul Prudhomme

as cooked by Chris Protos!

Photo by Kyle Byrd

Ingredients:
* 1 (2-3 lb) chicken, cut up (we use chicken breasts)
* Salt
* Garlic powder
* Ground red pepper (preferably Cayenne)

* 1 cup finely chopped onions
* 1 cup finely chopped green bell peppers
* 3/4 cup finely chopped celery
* 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper (again, preferably Cayenne)
* Vegetable oil for deep frying
* 7 cups basic chicken stock
* 1/2 lb andouille sausage or any other good pur smoked pork sausage (kielbasa)
* 1 teaspoon minced garlic
* Enough rice to accommodate the number of people you are feeding - boxed stuff is fine. This gumbo recipe makes about 6 main-dish portions.

To Marinate Chicken:
* Remove excess fat
* Rub a generous amount of salt, garlic powder, and red better on both sides of each piece, covering evenly
* Let stand at room temperature for minutes

To Create Chicken Breading:
* Medium size bowl, combine onions, bell peppers, celery- set aside
* Combine flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/2 teaspoon red pepper in a plastic bag.
* Add the chicken pieces and shake until chicken is well coated
* Reserve 1/2 cup of the flour
* In a large heavy skillet, heat 1/ 1/2 inches of oil until very hot. Fry the chicken until crust is brown on both sides and meat is cooked (about 5-8 mins per side). Drain on paper towels
* Pour the hot oil into a measuring cup, leaving as many of the browned particles as possible in the pan
* Return 1/2 cup of hot oil into the pan

To Create the Roux
* Plan pan over high heat with oil. Gradually whisk in 1/2 cup reserved flour.
* Cook, whisking constantly, until the roux is dark red-brown to black, no more than 5 minutes.
* Remove from heat and add veggies, stirring constantly
* Return pan to low heat and cook until veggies are soft, about 5 minutes

To Create the Gumbo
* Place the stock into a 5 1/2 quart saucepan or large dutch oven, bring to boil.
* Add the roux mixture to the boiling stock, stirring until it dissolves.
* Reduce heat to a simmer and stir in sausage and minced garlic.
* Simmer uncovered for about 45 minutes, stirring often towards the end of cooking time. (Be sure to start your rice during this time as well!)
* While the gumbo is simmering, dice the chicken and stir the chicken in
* Adjust the seasoning with salt or pepper if needed and serve immediately over rice

This recipe does pack a little punch- add more cayenne if you want it super spicey! We like it to where we just break a small sweat! It is worth every minute of cooking time- I promise :)  So now that you are feeling adventurous- go! Go- tell your husband he's cooking this weekend :)

Stuffed Chicken Breast

The next three recipes are from a dinner party we threw at my house a week or so ago (maybe it was longer, who knows... time flies when you're doing nothing). We had a delicious stuffed chicken breast, a beautiful cream corned side dish, and topped it all off with a strawberry cupcake.

Here is the recipe for the chicken Mindy made:

Panko Crusted Chicken Stuffed with Ricotta, Spinach, Tomatoes, and Basil
Recipe from For The Love of Cooking.net  (amazing blog)

Ingredients:
* 1 cup low fat ricotta cheese
* Small handful baby spinach, chopped
* Small handful grape tomatoes, diced (remove seeds if possible)
* 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated
* 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* Sea salt and black pepper, to taste
* Dash of oregano
* 2 Chicken breasts
* Italian seasoned panko crumbs
* 2 tablespoons olive oil

To Do:
* Preheat over to 400 degrees
* Combine ricotta, spinach, tomatoes, parmesan cheese, basil, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix until thoroughly combined
* Rinse the chicken breasts, then cut along horizontal slit in the center of the chicken breast- butterflying them. Fill the cavity of the chicken with the ricotta mixture. Season each side of chicken with salt and pepper.
* Carefully dip the chicken in the panko crumbs until both sides are evenly covered. Close the slits with toothpicks.
* Heat the olive oil in an oven proof skillet on the stove over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, place the chicken in the skillet and cook until chicken is golden brown. Flip the chicken over and repeat.
* Cook in the oven for 20 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through- it took ours a little longer than expected.
* Let chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving

Super Simple Chicken Enchiladas

Need something quick, fast, and in-a-hurry for dinner, but you don't have a lot of time and only the bare essentials? Welcome to my world, pretty much every night. As I may have mentioned before, we fly under the radar here in the Protos house when it comes to fancy-pants ingredients. If the Commissary on base doesn't have it, there's no way in firey hell you will catch me running all the way to town to get it- I'll make due with what I have, thank you! And let me tell you, the Commissary lacks in many departments here.

This tasty mexican dish comes from mi madre (ha, I speak spanish), and only has four ingredients- jackpot! They are quick, simple, and deliciousio (ha, I did it again). Tortillas. Chicken. Sauce. Cheese. Done. I guess if you are feeling really rebellious you can add a fifth ingredient: diced jalapenos! But be careful, don't get too ahead of yourself... five ingredients may just be too many for some to handle (aka me on a bad day)!

Ingredients:

* 8 Flour tortillas
* 1 lb Chicken
* 2 cans Enchilada Sauce- pick whatever heat level you'd like- I used medium
* 8 oz bag Mexican Blend shredded cheese
* Can of diced jalapeno, or chop up one of your own

To Do:

* Cook chicken. I boil mine to make it super tender and easy to shred. You can also throw it in the crockpot or bake it in the oven. Once cooked, shred chicken.

* Mix shredded chicken, one can enchilada sauce, jalapenos, and half the shredded cheese in a large bowl.
* Fill tortillas and roll them tightly. You may need to trim the ends in order to fit them into a casserole dish.
* In casserole dish, lightly coat the bottom of the dish with some enchilada sauce. Place the wrapped tortillas in casserole dish- snuggle them in there nice and tight so they don't come unrolled!
* Top tortillas with remaining enchilada sauce and more shredded cheese.
* Place in oven, uncovered, at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until cheese is nice and bubbly.

Guest Blogger: Kristin Basiaga

Kristin (Shake) Basiaga (& Bake)

I do love Shake & Bake, but I promise this recipe is just as delicious, in as many steps! Well, almost...

I have always been fairly independent. My parents got divorced when I was a freshman in high school, and while I lived with my dad, his thought of a delicious dinner was Hamburger Helper (not knocking it, I still love it every once in awhile!) However, I have always loved cooking and have loved experimenting with foooooooods. I love easy recipes, and I even love the ones that take a bit more time (and love, the ever special ingredient).

This recipe actually came about by my wonderful Plus 1. I bought a crock pot recently and I swear it has changed my life. How awesome to throw stuff in and let it cook all day?! Whoever invented the crock pot needs to win an award or something. Scott and I were craving some nachos, and Mr. Handsome Pants said, "Why don't you put some chicken and salsa in the crock pot for nachos?'' or something along those lines. And here is how our chicken nachos were started...

The beautiful thing about this recipe is you can alter it however you want!

My ingredients (all two of them...) are listed below, however I have also listed a bunch of suggestions that you can add based on your own preferences!

* 2 skinless chicken breasts (about 1 lb or so... I dunno... I usually just guess...)
* 1 can of salsa of your choice
* All your favorite taco/nacho toppings

Other Suggestions:
* 1 package of taco seasoning (add at the beginning if you want more of a 'nacho' taste)
* 1 can diced tomatoes, not drained (add at the beginning)
* 1 can pinto beans (add at the beginning)
* 1 can corn, drained (add at the beginning)
* 1 can green chilies (add at the beginning)
* 1/2 cup chopped onion (add at the beginning)
* 1 package cream cheese (add towards the end to melt, and use instead of shredded cheese)

To begin this delicious meal, get your crock pot out of the closest. Set on a sturdy countertop near an outlet. Plug in. Ok, you all know how to do these things, I am just testing you. Literally just put the chicken breasts and salsa (and any other ingredients you may desire) in the crock pot and turn on LOW for 7-8 hours or 3-4 hours on HIGH. After the chicken is cooked, it will shred very easily. All of the liquid from the salsa and other ingredients that you have added will keep the chicken moist.

After the chicken is shredded, you are almost there!

Now you will want to get your plate ready... put a layer of tortilla chips. I like to add a layer of refried beans in between the chicken and chips. Then, add cheese, olives, avocado, and whatever else your pretty face desires! Delish!

Save the Day Buffalo Chicken

This isn't really a recipe persay- just a survival guide in case you ever have a day like, well, most of my days.
One of those days may look like but is not limited to:

* Washing machine breaks in the middle of 6 loads
* Son learns to pull himself up and subsequently pulls things off bookshelf
* Cat claws up door frame and you have no touch-up paint
* Husband decides to go out and play instead of helping
* Feeling like you got hit by a train, bus, sportscar, T-38, whatever
* On 3 hours of sleep because son has two new teeth coming in
* Kicked washing machine; may have broken toes
* Hearing you may have to move entire house by youself while husband is being tortured in a POW camp
* Son pulls cats hair, gets scratched, now both are cat and son are fussing
* Xbox refuses to work so your only break to watch some 30 Rock is now non-existent
* Knowing friends are at waterpark and you are stuck here with all this
* Husband comes home, plays Xbox (how in the hell did he get that to work anyways?!)
* Son won't take nap
* You need a snack, but have no food and no energy to go to store
* Make popcorn, it burns. Whole house stinks.
* Slam possibly broken toes into homemade babygate consisting of chair and ottoman
* Husband asks whats for dinner. Crap.

Ladies, ladies, ladies (and the occassional gentleman) it is ok to use flavored boxed rice! It is ok to use store-bought marinades instead of making them from scratch! It is ok to throw it all together on a day you just don't feel like working hard. You deserve a good meal on days like these, on days when you can't fathom taking another step or dealing with another fiasco. You might not have the stresses I do (aka the thought of husband having to spend 3 hours in a tiny box 'buried underground'- have fun honey) but you work hard, so don't stress yourself by spending more time in the kitchen than you have to. Can I get an 'amen'?!?! That's right, sista. Amen.


Dinner tonight- done in 20 minutes
Notice the hot and steaminess of it.


Take thawed chicken breasts, place in large ziplock bag. Dump marinade into bag. I used some KC Masterpiece Hot Buffalo sauce we were given by Sara and Vince (thanks guys- it was delicious!). Save some sauce to brush onto chicken later. Let chicken marinade at least 30 minutes in fridge. During this time, kick your feet up, pour yourself a glass of wine, and make your lazy husband get up and start the grill.

Start rice. No directions here- just follow the box. We chose a Rice-a-Roni Creamy 4 Cheese. It took 15 minutes on the stovetop- same amount of time it took the chicken to cook on the grill and for me to slice up some fresh zucchini and summer squash and sautee them with butter, salt, and pepper. Be sure to brush the chicken with some more of the sauce to add some extra flavor at the end of grilling. Crumble some blue cheese over the top and melt it to offset the spice of the buffalo sauce if you need to.

Next step: Enjoy your dinner. And then make husband do the dishes.... its only fair :)

Cooper Chicken

The real name of this dish is Smoked Gouda Stuffed Chicken Wrapped in Bacon. I call it Cooper Chicken. I've found that in the AF lifestyle, you make friends quickly. You just have to. You are only with these incredible people for a short amount of time, so the bond is strong and almost instantaneous. One such bond I formed is will Molly Cooper. I will admit, our bond could be considered 'forced', as Chris' best friend from the get-go was her husband Austin, but I now consider her a sister. For the last year we have gone on countless double dates (Molly and I on one date, the guys on the other). Austin has even opened the door for Chris once on our way to dinner! As with all military couples, their time to leave Columbus came, and their newest adventure to Florida was about to begin. They spent their last night on base, much to our honor, at our house. I knew I needed to pull out all the stops for their 'last meal', and make sure it was as memorable as our friendship. Ok, so a piece of chicken can't be as memorable as lifelong friends, but it was a step up from burgers on the grill and it tasted pretty good!

Smoked Gouda Chicken Wrapped in Bacon (freecookingrecipes.net)

Ingredients:

* 4 boneless chicken breasts
* 3 tablespoons butter
* Salt
* 1/2 teaspoon pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/2 teaspoon paprika
* 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
* 1/2 cup smoked gouda (Shame on me, I used swiss cheese. My defense: commissary didn't have it, and I refuse to drive 15 minutes into town for cheese)
* 4 slices bacon
* Fresh spinach (not in the original recipe, but I love me some spinach)

To Do:

* Flatten each chicken breast to 1/4th in thick using meat mallet.
* Combine pepper, garlic powder, paprika, cayenne.
* Rub both sides of each chicken breast with the seasoning. (do not skimp on this seasoning- it makes the dish) Sprinkle with salt
* Place small square of cheese and a few leaves of spinach (take stems off) on the narrow end of the chicken breast, and roll tightly. Wrap strip of bacon around chicken. * Melt butter in skillet
* Brown the chicken in the skillet, turning it, until bacon begins to crisp.
* Place chicken breasts on a foiled baking sheet, bake in oven 350F for 20 minutes.

Fantastic Father's Day Feast

I cannot sing my husband's praises enough. He's a loyal husband, an extremely talented pilot, and his relaxed demeanor brings a sense of calm to our home. Above all else, he is an incredible father. I'll admit I used to worry when I was pregnant: what would he be like with our son? The answer to that: perfect. He loves our son with a passion I've never seen anyone have, and both my boys light up when they see each other. As a wife and mother, it doesn't get any better than that. Because he is such a special man, he deserved a special dinner- one that required a little more time. Yes, my mission statement for this blog is based on not having to spend hours in the kitchen, but this meal will be worth every minute of it. The actual cooking doesn't take long, there is just prep work that needs to be done earlier in the day. If you can get the prep work done before noon, you can rest, relax, watch your husband play xbox (like I did), for the rest of the day!



Ranch Chicken Wings
drizzled with honey hotsauce
Homemade Hearty Coleslaw
Baked Sweet Potato Fries

*Helpful Hint: Get your chicken wings (thawed if you use the frozen ones) in the marinade, and get your coleslaw made earlier in the day! Each need 3 hours in the fridge!

__________

Ranch Chicken Wings (Food Network Magazine- June 2010)

Ingredients:

* 2 lbs chicken wings
* 3  1-oz packets ranch dressing mix (I used 4 since 4 come in a box)
* 1 1/2 cups flour
* Freshly ground pepper
* 3 large eggs
* Vegetable oil, for frying

To Do:

* Toss the wings in 1 packet of ranch dressing in bag. Refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours. (I used two packets of the dressing to make sure they got a good cover.
* Mix flour, 1 teaspoon pepper, 1 packet ranch dressing mix in a large bowl. In another bowl, beat eggs, 2 tablespoons of water, and the last ranch dressing packet.
* Dredge the wings a few at a time in the seasoned flour, dip them in the egg, and then back in the flour. (I did most of my wings in this double dredge. The coating turned out super thick after frying. My last batch, I just went from marinade, straight to the egg, then to the flour, and in my opinion they turned out much better.)
* Heat oil in pan over medium heat until deep fryer thermometer registers 350F. Fry the wings until crisp and golden brown, 5-6 minutes per side. Place cooked wings on paper towel to drain excess oil.

__________

Honey Hot Sauce (Food Network Magazine-June 2010)

Easiest, tastiest wing sauce... ever!

* Combine equal parts honey and hot sauce. (I used 1/4 cup of each). Done.
* You can add more honey to make it sweeter (what I did), or more hot sauce to kick it up a notch (what Chris did).

_________

Sweet Potato Fries (Paula Deen)

*this recipe makes a gigantic batch of fries, but sure to cut it down based on how many potatoes you use*

Ingredients:

* 1 cup salt
* 1/4 cup black pepper
* 1/4 cup onion powder
* 1/2 teaspoon paprika
* Olive oil for tossing
* 5 sweet potatoes- peeled and cut

To Do:

* Pre-heat oven to 450F
* Combine salt, pepper, onion powder, and paprika
* Toss cut potatoes in just enough oil to cover
* Sprinkle potatoes with the seasoning mixture
* Lay potatoes on a foiled baking sheet in a single layer
* Bake for 20 minutes, flipping occassionally.
 (my fries weren't quite a crispy as Chris and I like, so we threw them down into the fryer after making the wings for a minute)

__________

Hearty Coleslaw (Family Circle Magazine)

(Again, this recipe makes a large quantity. Feel free to cut it down. I only used 1/2 a head of cabbage and we have a ton of leftovers. Delicious, delicious leftovers!)

Ingredients:

* 2 1/2 lbs green cabbage, shredded (about 10 cups) (I only used 1/2 head)
* 2 large carrots, shredded (I used 3)
* 1 1/2 cups reduced-fat mayo
* 1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
* 1/2 cup buttermilk
* 1/4 cup dijon mustard
* 1/4 cup sugar
* 1 tablespoon celery seed (I omitted this because I didn't have any)
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon pepper

To Do:

*  Shred cabbage and carrots. (I have absolutely no knife skills, or the patience to make the veggies super thin, so mine turned out big and chunky, and it was so good!) Mix the veggies in a large bowl.
* In medium bowl, combine mayo, sour cream, buttermilk, mustard, sugar, celery seed, salt, and pepper.
* Pour dressing over veggies and mix well.

* Cover and put in fridge for at least 3 hours

.: Dinner at the Bradleys :.

Tonight, we had a last minute dinner party at Chase and Mindy's. I had this chicken dish by Food Network Magazine (June 2010), and this casserole featured in Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook planned for Chris and I, but it was easily duplicated to accommodate a larger group! The peppers between the two dishes tie it together, and the smells coming from the oven alone will make it worth your while! Enjoy :)



Honey-Lime Roast Chicken

 Ingredients:
* 1 small bunch fresh thyme (our store didn't have any so I used a few dashes of the dried stuff)
* Juice of 2 limes (I used 3 for extra flavor)
* 4 cloves of garlic, smashed
* 3 jalapeno peppers, halved, seeded, and thinly sliced
* 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
* 2 tablespoons honey (add more if you want to dial down the heat of the jalapeno)
* Kosher salt (I used the regular stuff)
* 3 half chickens (I used a package of chicken legs)
* 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

To do:
* Strip thyme leaves off the stems, combine with the lime juice, garlic, jalapenos, olive oil, honey, and 1 teaspoon salt. I threw this into a large bag with the chicken breasts. It says to leave it at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour. I threw it into the fridge for 5 hours until it was time to cook.
* Throw into the oven at 425F, skin-side up, on a foil-lined baking sheet. Pour the marinade on top, and add the pieces of butter on top and sprinkle with salt (I added ground pepper too)
* Roast the chicken, until the skin is amber. I left mine in for about half an hour, but if you use the half chickens, you'll need to go for at least 45 minutes. Thigh meat should register 160F with a meat thermometer.
* Serve on platter with drizzled pan juices and perfectly cooked jalapeno strips (which are yummy on their own, according to Mindy, who ate most of them!)

Remember: Jalapeno soaked fingers do not feel good in your eye- wash your hands after handling- trust me!

Creamed Corn Casserole

Ingredients:
* Nonstick cooking spray
* 2 16-oz bags of frozen whole kernel corn. (I used one 8 oz bag yellow corn, and one 8 oz bag sweet white corn)
* 2 cups chopped red and/or green sweet peppers (I used both)
* 1 cup chopped onion
* 1 tablespoon butter or margarine
* 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
* 1 can condensed cream of celery soup
* 1 8-oz tub cream cheese spread with chive and onion flavoring or garden vegetable flavoring. (I used 4-oz of both- it was a great combo)
* 1/4 cup milk

To do:
* Coat 2-quart casserole dish with cooking spray. Place corn in colander and run it through water to thaw.
* In saucepan, melt butter and add chopped onion and peppers. Cook until tender. Add corn and black pepper. (See picture above)
* In large bowl, combine the soup, cream cheese spread, and milk. Once combined well, add corn mixture. Transfer to the prepared casserole dish.
* Bake, covered, at 375F for 50-60 minutes until it is bubbly and heated through. (I let it sit and let the sauce thicken for about 5 minutes afterwards)