Baked Honey Sesame Chicken

This chicken recipe is so good it became an instant hit! I found it at therecipecritic.com and only made one modification (sucanat for brown sugar). Yum!

Baked Honey Sesame Chicken

4 chicken breasts
1 c. cornstarch
3 eggs
salt and pepper
1/4 c. canola oil

Sauce:
1/2 c. honey
3/4 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. ketchup
1/4 c. sucanat (or raw sugar)

1/2 c. rice wine vinegar
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 Tb. cornstarch
sesame seeds for garnish (omitted this time, but I want to use them next time)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Cut chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces and season with salt and pepper.

In separate bowls, place cornstarch and slightly beaten eggs. Dip chicken into cornstarch then coat in egg mixture. Can also put chicken pieces in gallon size bag and shake to coat.

Heat canola oil in large skillet over medium-high heat and cook chicken until browned. Place chicken in 9 x 13 greased baking dish.

In medium sized mixing bowl, combine honey, soy sauce, ketchup, sucanat, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, minced garlic, and 1 Tb. cornstarch. Pour over chicken and bake for 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Stir chicken every 15 minutes to coat with sauce.

Chicken Wild Rice Soup

This recipe (which I barely modified) came from my cousin, Brandi. I don't know where she got it, but it's absolutely delectable! Everyone but my pickiest eater LOVED it, and my 2 year-old kept wanting more. I perfectly understood how he felt... :)

Chicken Wild Rice Soup

1/2 c. butter
1 chopped onion
1/2 c. chopped celery
1/2 c. cubed carrots
1/2 lb. diced mushrooms (we had to omit these for the kids' sake, but I would love to use them)
1/2 c. bell pepper, chopped or cut in strips
3/4 c. whole wheat flour
6 c. chicken broth
2 c. cooked wild rice (brown rice would probably work great too)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. curry powder
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
1/2 tsp. mustard powder
1/2 tsp. dried/fresh parsley
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 c. slivered almonds
3 Tb. dry sherry (or a non-alcoholic substitute--I used some white wine vinegar with a little raw sugar)
2 c. half-and-half (or whipping cream)

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in onion, celery, and carrots and saute for 5 minutes.

Add mushrooms and bell pepper, saute for 2 more minutes.

Add flour and stir well.

Gradually pour in chicken broth, stirring constantly, until all has been added. Bring just to boil, reduce heat to low and let simmer.

Add rice, chicken, salt, curry, mustard, parsley, pepper, almonds, and sherry. Simmer for 1-2 hours. (I just let it cook as long as it took me to prepare the rest of dinner and set the table, etc, which was about an hour.)

Pour in half-and half 15-20 minutes before serving and allow to heat thoroughly without boiling.

Note: Stir frequently because everything sticks to the bottom of the pan!

Honey-Glazed Chicken Stir Fry with Cashews

I made this the other night for the first time in way too long and everyone loved it! It really hit the spot: just the right amount of tangy and sweet, and so satisfying. Note to vegetarians: I think it would also be delicious without the chicken.

(Found in my Better Homes & Gardens cookbook, p. 428. My modifications: substituting brown rice for white, and adding cashews.)

Another note: If you like your stir fry extra saucy, as I do, double the sauce portion of the recipe.

12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breasts
2 Tb. honey
2 Tb. vinegar
2 Tb. orange juice
4 tsp. soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp. cornstarch
2 Tb. cooking oil
4 c. cut-up vegetables, such as broccoli, sweet pepper, onion and/or mushrooms
2 c. hot cooked brown rice
salted cashew halves

Cut chicken into bite-size chunks; set aside.

For sauce, in small bowl stir together honey, vinegar, orange juice, soy sauce, and cornstarch; set aside.

Pour oil into wok or large skillet. (If necessary, add more oil during cooking.) Heat over medium-high heat. Add vegetables to wok; cook and stir for 3 to 4 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Remove vegetable from wok.

Add chicken; cook and stir for 3 to 4 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Push chicken from center of wok. Stir sauce; add to center of wok. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.

Return cooked vegetable to wok. Cook and stir about 1 minute or until heated through. Serve over brown rice. Sprinkle cashews over top, if desired. (We love it this way!)

Stuffed Green Peppers

This Family Favorite recipe was created from a combination of my mom's recipe and others that I tried and liked, changing the process so that the filling is mostly cooked on the stove top and then finished up quickly in the oven (which is easier and faster for me and is a more sure way of making sure the mixture is completely cooked). 

My oldest kids still haven't learned to like green peppers, but one of them will at least eat a little of the pepper part, and both will eat the filling, which I make extra of. Ironically, the youngest eats it all.

Note: This would be an easy recipe to turn vegetarian, if desired, by omitting the ground beef and substituting vegetables, or just using the rice mixture.

STUFFED GREEN PEPPERS

Bring 3 c. water to boil for rice. Once boiling, pour in 1 1/2 c. brown rice, replace lid lightly (allow for steam to escape). Add a bit more water, as needed, toward end of cooking.

Cook 1 lb. hamburger in skillet with 1 onion, diced.

Cut 5 green bell peppers in half and de-vein. Parboil in salted water for 5 minutes. Remove pepper halves from pot with tongs and place in 9x12" baking dish.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

When hamburger and rice are fully cooked, pour both into a large mixing bowl and add the following:

1 tsp. salt (or more, if needed)
pepper, to taste
1 beaten egg
1/2 c. milk

Mix with spoon until well combined.

Spoon mixture into pepper halves until very full. Pour any extra into pan in between peppers. Sprinkle grated cheddar cheese generously over all.

Place dish in oven and bake for 30+ minutes at 350 until heated through (and egg is completely cooked) and cheese is melted and slightly browned.

At any stage during baking or afterward, can also add sauce from below recipe or 1 can of tomato sauce (or ketchup, if desired--ketchup can sometimes do wonders with getting kids to eat stuff).

SAUCE (mix in small saucepan while heating gradually):

1 can tomato sauce
1 Tb. honey
dash of Tabasco sauce
1/2 Tb. Worcestershire sauce
3 Tb. flour

Stir until well mixed, then heat until bubbly and thickened (a few minutes). Spoon over peppers.

Ham Fried Rice

I first posted this recipe almost three years ago and re-post it now as a family favorite (and with a much-improved picture). My kids love this dish and I love that I can include so many vegetables in it, without them complaining.  It's also another of those delicious, wonderfully versatile recipes that's great on a small budget because you can use whatever you have. And if that doesn't include meat, it's still yummy.

Ham (or Shrimp) Fried Rice

4 c. cooked brown rice
2 large eggs
1 Tb. sesame oil (or canola, but sesame is best)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. canola oil
1 tsp. fresh garlic, minced
2 c. or less diced ham or 3/4 lb. pre-cooked shrimp (I like it diced)
1 c. fresh bean sprouts or other vegetable
1/2 c. frozen peas or other vegetable
1/2 c. green onion, sliced (or other type of onion--which should be cooked with garlic at beginning)
soy sauce, to taste

• Prepare rice.

• Beat eggs with sesame (or other) oil and salt and set aside. (Note, I've tried a couple different oils and sesame oil is far and away the best kind to use for this recipe. It's an investment to buy a bottle, but since so little is used each time, the bottle lasts quite a while.)

• Heat large fry pan or wok over high heat. Add canola oil and garlic (and white onion, if using) and stir-fry 10 seconds.

• Add ham or shrimp (or other meat) and cook 5 min. or until warmed through.

• Add rice and stir-fry 5 min.

• Make a well in center of rice and pour in egg mixture. Cook without stirring for 1 min. Stir eggs into rice mixture.

• Add bean sprouts, peas, and green onions, and stir-fry 5 minutes.

• Drizzle soy sauce over top and stir in until tastes like you want. Serve.

Chicken (or Vegetable) Divan--Without Canned Soup!

I was introduced to Chicken Divan a few years ago when a friend of ours made it for us. It was so much better than the chicken, broccoli, rice casserole I'd grown up with that I couldn't believe it.

Since then, I've tried other recipes and played around with things and finally have a Chicken Divan recipe--that doesn't use canned soup--that we really like. My latest inspiration came from this blog, which includes beautiful, step-by-step instructions. Since it's summer and we constantly have lots of squash to use, I added some to this recipe and it was delicious and added substance and color. (For vegetarians, I also believe this recipe would be good as Vegetable Divan, with the elimination of the chicken.)


Chicken Divan

4 c. cooked brown rice
3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped into bite size pieces
2 c. broccoli, cooked and diced
1-2 c. squash, diced
1 onion, diced
About 4 Tb. butter
1/3 c. whole wheat flour
2 c. milk
Salt/Pepper
1 - 2 tablespoons curry powder
1/2 c. mayo
1/2 c. or more of shredded cheddar

While rice, chicken, and broccoli cook (all in separate pans), heat up some oil (preferably extra virgin olive oil) in a large skillet and saute onions and squash until just softened. When broccoli is finished cooking, combine it with cooked onions and squash.

In medium saucepan, melt butter and when melted add flour. Continue to stir and cook flour for 5 - 10 minutes over medium or medium-low heat. When it starts to smell toasty, it's done. If it's too thick, add some of the milk to keep mixture from burning and to facilitate stirring.

Add all milk and stir until mixture starts to thicken again. Add salt/pepper. Add cooked vegetables and chicken. Stir until combined. If too thick, add more milk. Add curry. Taste and add more seasonings, as desired.

Remove from heat. Stir in mayo.

Pour into 9 x 12 square baking dish. Sprinkle cheese over top.

Bake for about 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted and has a touch of color, and the casserole is bubbling.

Serve over the warm rice.

Risotto Revisited

Over two years ago I posted this recipe of mine, which is a family favorite. The other day while browsing the internet for butternut squash recipe ideas, I got the idea to just cook the butternut squash, cube it, and add it to this yummy recipe. It was wonderful! Not only does the squash add that delectable butternut flavor, which complements the risotto perfectly, the addition of this veggie, makes the recipe more healthful.

Katrina's Risotto

Half butternut squash, baked and cubed
4 to 5 c. chicken broth
4 Tb. butter
1/2 medium onion (or more), diced and sauteed in the butter (or, in a pinch, use 2 Tb. minced onion--but it's not nearly as good)
1 1/2 c. brown rice

2/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese--or use Mozzarella and Parmesan

Heat broth until boiling. Add rice. Cook until tender (35-45 minutes).

When rice is ready, add sauteed onion and cubed squash.
Add cheese. Stir and serve.

Island Franks

The original version of this recipe, long loved by many members of my family, includes hot dogs. As those aren't the healthiest items to be eating, we have recently discovered that the recipe can be modified to include more vegetables and other types of meat--or none at all. However we've made it, as long as it includes lots of sauce, it's delicious!

Island Franks
(Topping for Rice)

1 9-oz can (1 c.) pineapple tidbits
1/2 lb. meat of choice, cooked and cut into bite-sized pieces (optional)
2 Tb. butter
1/2 c. sliced onion
1 green pepper, cut in strips
Other vegetables*, if desired

Sauce:

1 can broth (or equivalent amount of homemade bone broth)
1 Tb. cornstarch
1/2 Tb. honey
dash of salt
2 Tb. vinegar
1 Tb. soy sauce

Drain one can pineapple tidbits, reserving juice.

In skillet, melt butter. Add sliced onion and green pepper. Cover and cook over low heat 5 min.

Mix cornstarch with reserved pineapple juice until cornstarch is dissolved and not lumpy (this is easy to do as long as the juice is not yet heated).  Add honey, salt, vinegar, and soy sauce. Add can of broth. Cook and stir until mixture thickens. Add pineapple. Add meat, if desired. Heat thoroughly.

Serve over hot brown rice.

*So far we have tried chopped cabbage and broccoli--but really, whatever you have on hand that needs using--and increased the sauce amount, as needed. Yum! 

Beef Stroganoff Without Canned Soup

If you like sour cream, this is a delicious recipe for beef stroganoff that I found on SimplyRecipes.com. I was searching for a recipe that didn't use canned soup (you know my problem with MSG) so I didn't have to create my own recipe. I made a couple of modifications to this, and it was very tasty.

Beef Stroganoff

Note 1: You can substitute the sour cream and lemon juice for a cup of full-fat plain yogurt (room temperature). Do not allow to boil.

Note 2: This recipe can be modified to be made with a crock pot instead, just be sure to leave out the sour cream till just before serving.

butter
1 lb. ground chuck (or ground beef)
salt and pepper
1 yellow onion, chopped (about 1 c.)
8 ounces sliced cremini mushrooms (can substitute button mushrooms), sliced
1/3 c. dry sherry*, dry white wine, or water
1/2 c. chopped parsley, loosely packed
1 1/4 c. sour cream (room temperature)
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. paprika or more to taste
8 ounces cooked egg noodles (or cooked brown rice or boiled potatoes)

Start cooking pasta (or rice or potatoes).

If using ground beef, cook in a separate pan until lightly browned, adding onion, salt, and pepper during last few minutes of cook time. Skip to #3.

1. If using ground chuck, heat a large sauté pan on medium high heat. Melt 1 tsp. butter in pan and swirl it around. Sprinkle bottom of pan generously with salt. Working in batches as not to crowd the meat (crowding it will make it hard to brown), break up ground beef and add it to pan. Sprinkle meat with salt. Do not stir meat, as stirring will prevent browning. Once meat is well-browned on one side (a couple minutes, depending on how hot the pan), use tongs or fork or metal spatula to flip to other side. Once that side is browned too, use slotted spoon to remove from pan and set aside. Continue to brown meat in batches, adding a teaspoon of butter to the pan with each batch if needed, and salting pan and meat, until it is all browned. Remove meat from pan. Drain excess fat from pan.

2. Lower heat to medium. Add onions to pan. If you are working with very lean meat, you may not have any residual fat in the pan. If this is the case, you'll want to add in a tablespoon of olive oil or butter to pan. Cook  onions, scraping up the meat drippings, until soft, about 5 minutes. Remove onions from the pan (add to meat).

3.  Add 1 Tb. of butter to pan with beef, increase heat to medium high. Add sliced mushrooms. Sauté until nicely browned (about 4 minutes). 

4. Add sherry (or alcohol substitution) to pan to deglaze it, scraping up any browned bits. Let sherry reduce by at least a half, then lower heat to low.

5. Remove pan from heat. Mix in sour cream and paprika until smooth. Return pan to very low heat, and do not let sour cream boil (or it may curdle). You may add a few tablespoons of water to mixture to thin it out a bit at any time. Stir in lemon juice and about 1/4-1/2 tsp. of salt (to taste). Stir in meat and onions. Stir in chopped parsley. Add more salt, pepper, and/or paprika to taste.


* I found this great site for alcohol substitutions and calculated the amount based on these instructions: For 1/2 cup sherry use 1/4 cup vinegar + 1 tablespoon sugar + 1/4 c. water OR 1 tablespoon vinegar, plus chicken stock or water to make 1/2 cup. One of these combinations definitely beats just plain water!

Healthier Alternatives

Tomorrow night I will be giving a short presentation at my church on nutrition. My topic is healthier alternatives--which is much of what this whole blog is about. It was a bit difficult to condense everything I thought of to discuss, but I managed to fit onto one page what I felt were the most important things to cover (it doesn't fit quite the same here). I include it below for those who are new to my blog or those who may appreciate a refresher, complete with links to places where I talked about them (or found the information) in more detail.

COOKING WITH HEALTHIER (AND USUALLY CHEAPER) ALTERNATIVES

• Try to do most of your shopping around the perimeter of the store (or better yet, produce as much of your own food as you can). (See Michael Pollan's book In Defense of Food.)
• Cook from scratch - Get as close to possible to the natural source. Ex: Kroger’s All Natural sour cream has only cream, milk, and enzymes. Use butter instead of margarine. Even make your own spice mixes and cook desserts from scratch too.
• When you do buy prepackaged/prepared foods, check ingredients: The fewer the ingredients the better--and if you don’t know what some of them are, it’s probably better to opt for something else. (Again, see Michael Pollan.)
• Avoid MSG (monosodium glutamate). It’s added to many bottled sauces, salad dressings, canned soups, premade spice mixes, bullion, prepackaged foods, and even some sausages (not to mention many restaurant foods).
• Eat more vegetables. Try planning some dinners more around vegetable (and bean) dishes than meat dishes. This can also be cheaper.
• Limit or cut out white flour and refined grains. Bake with whole wheat flour and whole grains, including whole grain pastas and brown rice. Whole wheat flour is best ground fresh, since wheat begins losing its nutritional value (particularly its protein content) 72 hours after it is milled. You can also save a lot of money by grinding your own.
• Add more beans to your diet (preferably cooked from scratch). Ex: Substitute hummus for your vegetable or chip dip. If you do use canned beans, be sure to rinse off the sodium. Beans are super nutritious and very inexpensive. (Tips on how to get rid of much of the gas when cooking dried beans.)
• Refined sugar: Cut it down or out! Examples:

- Use healthier substitutes like honey, fruit juices, or raw sugar.

- Drink 100% juice instead of punch or soda.

- Replace fruit snacks with dried fruit.

- Instead of pancake syrup, use honey. Buy items such as peanut butter and

applesauce without sugar.

- Conscientiously check for corn syrup on labels and limit intake (there’s even some

new ketchup without it!)

Spanish Rice

This is a family recipe that we enjoy. The original recipe calls for 1 1/2 lbs. hamburger, but if I use meat I only use 1 lb. It's also good with ground turkey instead, or as listed here, substitute the meat for beans.

Spanish Rice

3 c. cooked rice
1 1/2 c. cooked pinto beans
1 large chopped onion
2 cans tomato sauce
1/2 c. ketchup
prepared mustard to taste
garlic salt to taste
1 Tb. Worcestershire sauce
plenty of cheese

Mix all ingredients in pot, sprinkle cheese over top, cover, and heat until warm and cheese melted.

Rice Pilaf with Veggies

Rice Pilaf with Veggies

Mix the below ingredients and enjoy! If you don't have all the vegetables listed, just improvise with what you have.

1 1/2 c. brown rice, cooked
1 large onion, chopped
1 c. sliced fresh mushrooms
1/2 c. sliced celery
2 cloves garlic, minced
chicken broth or bone broth to cook rice in
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 c. corn
2 carrots, sliced
1 tsp. dried basil
Additional spices, as desired.

Katrina's Risotto

Katrina's Risotto

4 to 5 c. chicken broth
4 Tb. butter
2 Tb. minced onion (sauteed onion is very good!)
1 1/2 c. brown rice
vegetables as desired
2/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese--or substitute bottled Parmesan and grated Mozzarella

Heat broth until boiling. Add butter.
Add rice and sauteed onion.
Put lid on pot and cook 15 min.
Add cooked vegetables (or add raw veggies earlier to cook with rice)
Add cheese. Stir and serve.

Tortilla Soup

Tortilla Soup
(Serves 6)
This is one of our favorites!

Heaping 1/2 c. dry black beans
2 c. chicken broth
1 c. rice (for brown rice, you'll have to use 2.5 c. broth)
1 (14.5-oz) can diced tomatoes (or--even better--fresh frozen or home canned)
1 c. cubed, cooked chicken or turkey--optional (I don't even add this most of the time)
1 c. frozen whole kernel corn

Toppings: sour cream, shredded cheese, green or red salsa (if desired), tortilla chips

Rinse, sort, boil, rinse, and cook beans.
Cook rice in chicken broth in large pot. Add cooked beans, tomatoes, (chicken), and corn. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer 15 min or so and add more water and seasonings as needed. Serve with toppings.

Tip: Because the rice soaks up so much liquid even after it's cooked, this "soup" often ends up so thick we forgo the spoons and just scoop it up with the tortilla chips!