Chicken Fried Rice

This came out great! I used brown rice instead of white rice and I am not sure what I think about it. I am a white rice kind of person so the brown rice gave it sort of a different taste, but it was still really yummy!

Chicken Fried Rice

3 Chicken Breasts, uncooked and cubed
6 Cups of Cooked and Chilled Rice (Brown or White)
4 Eggs, beaten and scrambled
16oz Bag of Frozen Peas/Carrots
1 Tablespoon Oyster Sauce
1 Tablespoon Sesame Oil
1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons Butter
3 Cloves Garlic, Minced
Green Onions, chopped (as many as you want)
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Pepper
Salt

Cube chicken up and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder to taste, along with 1 tablespoon of Oyster Sauce (you can find this in the international section of the grocery store).

On medium heat, heat up 2 tablespoons of butter with 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, then add 3 cloves of minced garlic along with the chicken. Cooked until no longer pink. In a separate skillet, scramble 4 eggs. Add the 4 scrambled eggs and 16 oz bag of frozen veggies to the chicken and toss. Toss for a few minutes until veggies are thawed out.

Mix in 6 cups of rice (must be cold). Add 1/4 cup of soy sauce and stir fry until light golden brown. Stir in chopped green onions and sprinkle in black pepper to taste.

MY NOTES - I used brown rice with my recipe. I also used canned peas and carrots because I did not have any frozen ones on hand! I also used 1 tablespoon of minced garlic out of the jar instead of garlic cloves. Enjoy!

Bacon Wrapped Chicken

This is a must try recipe that my families LOVES. I have cooked many new things before but this is the first recipe my husband actually told me more than once that he likes it. He also said he knows I will be cooking this again haha.

Bacon Wrapped Chicken

3 Chicken Breasts
Bacon, 10 - 12 pieces
2/3 cup of brown sugar, tightly packed
2 tablespoons of Chili Powder

Pre-heat oven to 350. Cut chicken breasts into 10 - 12 pieces. Wrap each piece with 1 piece of bacon. Mix brown sugar and chili powder together. Dredge each bacon wrapped piece of chicken in the brown sugar/chili powder mixture. Place chicken pieces on broiler grate sprayed with non-stick spray over broiler pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes and then broil for 3-5 minutes to make bacon crispy.

Best Chicken Teriyaki! (Not Crock Pot)

Chicken Teriyaki

3 Chicken Breasts, cut up
1 tbsp. baking powder
Oil for frying
3/4 c. sugar
Dash of garlic salt
Dash of pepper
1 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
3/4 c. soy sauce
Dash of ginger

Place flour, baking powder, salt in large brown paper bag. Shake pieces of chicken in bag. Brown in hot skillet with 5 to 6 tablespoons of oil. In saucepan, stir sugar, spices, soy sauce and bring almost to boiling but do not boil. Dip all browned chicken pieces in sauce and let stand 4 to 5 minutes. Place in 13 x 9 inch pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes.

Enchilada Casserole

Enchilada Casserole

1 pound ground beef or turkey
2 clove garlic, finely chopped (I use minced garlic, 2 tablespoons)
1 3/4 cups (16-ounce jar) Salsa
1 3/4 cups (1-pound can) Refried Beans
1 1/4 cups (10-ounce can) Enchilada Sauce
10 (6-inch) corn tortillas, sliced in half, divided
2 cups (8 ounces) Shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese
Green Onion (optional)

COOK beef and garlic in large skillet until beef is browned; drain. Stir in salsa, beans, and enchilada sauce. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cook, stirring frequently, for 5 to 6 minutes.

LAYER half of corn tortillas on bottom of greased 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Cover with half of meat sauce; sprinkle with 1 cup cheese. Repeat layers. Bake, covered, for 20 minutes. Remove cover; bake for additional 5 minutes or until bubbly and cheese is melted. Sprinkle with green onions before serving.

Portobello Mushrooms and Spinach with Chicken over Pasta

Another dish my mom makes!

Portobello Mushrooms and Spinach with Chicken over Bow Tie Pasta

3 Chicken Breasts, diced
1 Package Bow Tie pasta
1 Red Pepper, chopped
5 Scallions, chopped
2 Large Portobello Mushrooms, chopped
1 Large bag of Baby Spinach
Sun Dried Tomatoes
Thyme, 1/2 bunch, chopped
Olive Oil

Cook Pasta as directed, set aside.
Coat bottom of the pan with olive oil and saute chicken over medium heat til cooked through. Add chopped mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, chopped red pepper, chopped scallions and 1/2 bunch of chopped thyme. Saute for 5 minutes and add spinach by the handful until wilted. Salt and Pepper to taste, serve over Bow Tie pasta.

Chicken Enchiladas

Here is the recipe for the Chicken Enchiladas my mom makes!

Chicken Enchiladas

3 Boneless Chicken Breasts, cubed
8 Flour Tortillas
3 Large cans of Old El Paso Enchilada Sauce
1 Bag of Mexican Cheese, Shredded
Lettuce, Shredded
Scallions, chopped
1 Tomato, chopped

Pre-heat oven at 350 degrees.
Brown chicken on skillet on Medium heat, til cooked through. Add small amount of enchilada sauce and mix in. Scoop chicken mixture onto tortilla, add small amount of shredded cheese and then roll up. Repeat for all 8 tortillas. Coat bottom of baking dish with Enchilada sauce and place tortillas in pan. Pour remaining Enchilada sauce over tortillas and then sprinkle on shredded cheese, scallions, tomatoes and lettuce. Bake in oven for 40 minutes.

Baked Potato Pizza

I have been craving baked potato pizza every night. A local restaurant serves a small one as an appetizer but at $6, that could get pretty expensive!

Baked Potato Pizza

Pillsbury Thin Crust Pizza Dough
3 medium potatoes, baked and cooled
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dry Italian Seasoning
1/2 cup Sour Cream
1/2 cup Ranch Dressing
3 Green Onions, chopped
1 1/2 cups Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded

Prepare crust according to package directions. Press dough into a lightly greased 14-in. pizza pan; build up edges slightly. Before adding toppings, bake at 400 degrees F for 5-6 minutes or until crust is firm and begins to brown. Adding - Pillsbury pizza crust rolls out in a rectangle, we shaped it into a circle to fit the pizza pan.

Cut potatoes into 1/2-in. cubes. In a bowl, combine butter, garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Add potatoes and toss. Mix Sour Cream and Ranch, spread over crust; top with potato mixture, bacon, onions and cheeses. Bake at 400 degrees F for 10 - 15 minutes or until cheese is lightly browned. Let stand for 5 minutes before cutting.

My notes - After putting the potatoes over the sour cream/ranch mixture, I sprinkled some bacon bits and onion over the potato before laying on the cheese. Then I put on a good amount of mozzarella, some cheddar, and then a good amount of bacon bits along with the rest of the onion. Then the rest of the cheese went on. You can use as much or as little as you like when it comes to the bacon bits, its all to taste! Next time I am going to try adding some broccoli and see how that turns out!

TuTu Making

I have been so slacking in the blogging department! I haven't been all that motivated and now that Willow is moving around, forget about it.

In attempt to get things moving again I have gotten back into is tutu making! Well, I haven't really gotten back into yet, but i did make a tutu last night for Dakota, to wear to her ballet class. I am really proud of the way it come out!

Bacon Wrapped Pork Chops

So being on this low-carb diet has really made me open my mind a bit to cooking. I can look what I have in the house and start putting together ingredients for a dish I have never had before. I am amazed by this since I have always been a horrible cook. Atleast I thought I was horrible, until I got brave and decided to actually try to cook. And even after many failures, I still kept trying, which is why I think I have become a decent cook!

That brings me to the next recipe to share, one that is SO EASY yet so delicious, you have to try it!

Bacon Wrapped Pork Chops

What You Need

4 Pork Chops, 1 inch

8 Slices of Bacon

Seasoning of Choice (I used Adobo and Thyme)

Salt

Pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Take a 9 x 13 baking dish

and lightly spray it with cooking spray or coat with butter. Take each pork chop and wrap it with bacon. Each peice should use two peices of bacon. Place into the baking dish and top with salt and pepper to taste. Then use your favorite seasoning to your liking. Place in the oven for 30 minutes, then broil for about 5 minutes to make the bacon brown and crispy.

You can actually make as many pork chops as you like and use whatever thickness you like. If you use thinner chops then you may only need once peice of bacon. I just so happened to use 4 chops at 1 inch thickness so I needed 2 peices of bacon to cover the whole chop.

I actually made these for lunch and made a nice salad to go with it, topped with zesty italian dressing (picture above). If your tiredof dry pork chops, your going to love this recipe. They turn out juicy and flavorful! I am thinking about trying this with chicken!!

Chicken Teriyaki Crock Pot Recipe

I have owned a crock pot forever but never really used it. Now I have this sudden urge to make everything in it. I am seriously obsessed! I surf the internet all morning look for something I could make in my crock pot using what I have in the house.

So the other morning, after craving Chicken Teriyaki, I realized I did not have any Teriyaki sauce! So I decided to make my own! I read threw some recipes and put together my own... so here it is!


Chicken Teriyaki with Home-Made Teriyaki Sauce (Slow Cooker Recipe)

Chicken
1 1/2 - 2lbs chicken breast, cubed (or you can cut the breasts in halves)

Sauce
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 cups water
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
10 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup cold water (keep seperate from the other water)

For the Sauce: Mix all the ingredients together in a sauce pot except for the 1/2 cup of cold water and the 4 tablespoons of cornstarch. Start to heat up and stir occasionally.

In a seperate container, mix the cold water and the cornstarch until the constarch is completely disolved.

Add the cornstarch mixture to the rest of the ingredients in the sauce pan. Stir until desired thickness. If you over-thicken, just add water until desired consistancy!


For the Crock Pot: After cutting up the chicken into 1 inch by 1 inch cubes, or in halves, which ever you prefere, place into the crock pot. Pour Teriyaki Sauce into the crock pot and mix the chicken around until complete covered. Cook on High for 4 hours or Low for 7-8 hours.

This is so yummy! The picture above is what I created that evening, I chose a side of broccoli (I actually cooked it in some of the terriyaki sauce in the crockpot once the chicken was done), and a cup of rice.

A warning though, if you put any left over sauce in the fridge, it gets gooey and clumpy. I don't know if you are able to re-heat it to make it smooth again but I am wondering if maybe using flour instead of the cornstarch would change that? If anyone experiments with it, let me know!

Parsley and Garlic Chicken Recipe

I am yet again on a cooking rampage, trying new things, cooking food in a whole new way. With Nathan and I being on a new diet, I have to cook alot more than I am used to. The days of heating up a frozen pizza in the mirowave or throwing a hot pocket in there are OVER!

Here is a Recipe I want to share!! I found it on Linda's Low Carb Menus & Recipes. It orginally includes Carbalose flour but I omitted it due to not having any. And it was so delicious, there really is no need for it! This is also so quick and easy, it takes about 25 minutes from preparation to finish.

Chicken Breasts with Garlic and Parsley

3 boneless chicken breasts, cubed

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

2 tablespoons butter

Cut chicken into cubes, toss with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Cook the chicken 3 1/2 minutes, turning occasionally. Add the garlic, parsley and butter. Sauté 1 minute and stir to coat the chicken with the pan sauce.

The picture shown is my final product! I made a small salad, with just lettuce and cucumber and drizzled a light cesar dressing on top. It was delicious!

If anyone tries this recipe, I'd love some comments on how you liked it and what kind of changes you may have made to it.