chicken | CourtLynn Street

Peanut Chicken Soba Sauté

May 31, 2012 Courtney No comments

Made this tonight, and even though I desperately need to post a life update more than a recipe for a meal, this one needs celebrating. It was AWESOME. ’nuff said.

Peanut chicken, greens, and soba sauté.

Sauce
2 T rice vinegar
2 T smooth peanut butter (I used our homemade that’s a little sweet because of the honey I add)
2 T tamari soy sauce
1/4 cup water
2 teas arrowroot powder (could use cornstarch, but I don’t cook with that anymore, use your judgment…1 teas?)
Mix the sauce ingredients and set aside.

Rest of Ingredients
2 T peanut oil, sesame oil or unflavored coconut oil
4 cups broccoli florets (or more!)
1 red bell pepper sliced or chopped, your preference.
4-5 cups of kale (or other green such as chard or spinach)
3 cloves of garlic minced
3 green onions diced
2 cups of cooked, diced chicken (I used leftover rotisserie chicken)

Preparation

Heat over medium high heat the oil in large sauté pan or wok. Add chopped broccoli and cook for 2 minutes. Add chopped bell pepper and sauté another 2-3 minutes. Add garlic and green onions to the center of the pan and stir, cooking until fragrant 30 seconds or so. Add kale and a splash of water, cover and steam for a 2 more minutes, uncover and let water evaporate then toss in diced chicken and sauce over everything and stir in and only cook until the chicken is heated through.

Serve over cooked soba noodles or brown rice if you prefer.

Note: This does not make a saucy stir fry, so you may want to toss your noodles in some oil and soy sauce, or cook your rice in a little extra water or broth if you prefer it saucier.

In reflection, this is great because it’s not sweet, and doesn’t have an overly powerful peanut flavor. I hope you enjoy this as much as my kids, the engineer and I did!

Cheers!

Hearty Chicken and Rosemary Stew

April 11, 2012 Courtney 2 Comments

It may be April here in California but it’s still rainy and cold frequently. This stew is the perfect spring comfort food. Not heavy with dairy, but sturdy enough to feed the hungriest teenager. (mental note for ten years from now!) Enjoy this with healthy, homemade drop biscuits and a salad. Challenge yourself to see how many vegetables you can eat in one meal! Using homemade chicken broth is amazing in this recipe, and I don’t recommend skimping on the white wine. It really does add a wonderful depth to the stew that is missing if you leave it out. (Ask me how I know?!) I always have fresh rosemary from my garden, so I’ve never tried using dried, but if you substitute it, remember that dried herbs are more potent, so use less. Enjoy!

Prep 20 min

Cook 1.5- 2 hrs

Yield 8 servings

1 pound of Yukon gold potatoes

1 large onion

3 carrots

8 oz mushrooms

2 lbs of boneless skinless chicken thighs (don’t use breasts, will dry out)

1 T fresh Rosemary

3-4 Garlic cloves

1 1/2 teas real salt

1/2 teas pepper

15 ounces chicken broth/stock

1/2 cup (4 oz) chardonnay or other white wine. (If you don’t have this you can add more broth, but your flavor will not be as deep)

1/4 cup (2 oz) tomato paste

2 T Cornstarch or 1 T arrowroot powder

Zest of one lemon and 1/2 cup chopped parsley for garnish

Coarsely chop all veggies as well as slice or cube the meat and trim fat. Toss in a large covered baking dish. Add herbs, salt, garlic and pepper and toss with meat and veggies. Whisk cornstarch or arrowroot powder with broth, tomato paste and wine together and pour over top of other ingredients. Mix well, cover and bake for 45 minutes. Stir and bake for another 45 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Zest lemon and chop parsley and sprinkle on top and let cool.

Stay tuned for a crockpot version of this. Not that cooking something for 1.5 hours makes it more difficult, but setting this at noon to eat around 6 is often times an easier task for a stay and home mom!

Moo Shu Chicken (A long awaited post for some of you!)

February 07, 2012 Courtney No comments

Sorry ladies, here is the famous Moo Shu Chicken recipe. I have to say that while it was very good, I'm not a huge mushroom fan. So I can't say it's my favorite. But for some of you, it'll be the best! This recipe comes from America's Test Kitchen chicken cookbook that I borrowed form the library. Without further adieu…

Serves 4

(Shredded carrots, bean sprouts, or thinly sliced bamboo shoots can be stirred inthe the pan with the cabbage.)

1/3 C chicken broth preferably lower sodium or homemade.

6 T Hoisin sauce

2 T soy sauce

2 teas non-GMO cornstarch (organic)

2 T coconut oil (or vegetable oil)

8 oz shiitake mushrooms stemmed, wiped clean and sliced thin

3 garlic cloves minced or pressed through a garlic press

1 T grated fresh ginger

2 Cups shredded or thinly sliced cooked chicken

12 oz cabbage washed, cored and shredded (about 4 cups)

5 green onions sliced thin

8 (6") flour tortillas or mandarin pancakes

Mix the broth, 2 Tablespoons of Hoisin sauce, soy sauce and cornstarch together in a small bowl and set aside.
Heat 1 T oil in a 12 inch non-stick skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add the mushrooms and cook until lightly browned, 4 minutes.
Clear the center of the pan and add the remaining 1 T oil, the garlic and ginger. Cook, mashing the mixture slightly until it's fragrant. About 30 seconds. Stir in the chicken, cabbage, and green onions and cook until the cabbage begins to wilt, about one minute.
Whisk the sauce to recombine and add it to the pan, bringing to a simmer. Cook until the sauce thickens and the mixture is hot 1-2 minutes.
Meanwhile warm the tortillas and serve tortillas with the chicken and the 4 remaining tablespoons of Hoisin Sauce.

Enjoy!

Monterey Jack Stuffed Chicken

October 14, 2011 Courtney No comments

This is a great freezer meal. What makes it really nice is that you wrap them individually, so if you make a whole bunch, you can serve the who neighborhood with a quick drop in the oven, or you can make one for yourself for lunch or for just you and the kids when the husband is working late. But you certainly don't have to freeze it, you can eat it today too!!

Ingredients:

6 boneless chicken breasts
10 oz. Monterey jack cheese with jalapenos, not shredded
4 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup salsa or taco sauce, not chunky
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups panko breadcrumbs
2 teaspoon chili powder
2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Serving Day:
1/4 cup butter
sliced avocado, salsa, or sour cream

Cooking Day:
Cut Monterey jack cheese into 6 equal pieces. Cut a horizontal slit or pocket into the side of each chicken breast-don’t cut all the way through. Place one piece of cheese in the pocket of each chicken breast. To secure the cheese in the pocket, use 2-3 wooden toothpicks if needed.

In a shallow pan or pie plate, mix together eggs, salsa, and salt. In a separate pan, combine the panko breadcrumbs, chili powder, cumin, garlic salt, and oregano. Dip each chicken breast in the egg mixture to coat, then dip the breast in the panko crumb mixture. Place coated breasts in a shallow baking dish. Freeze for 1 hour, then carefully wrap each chicken breast in plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag. Freeze them in a large freezer bag.

Serving Day:
Carefully unwrap chicken breasts. Place 1/4 cup butter in a 9×13 baking dish and put in over while it is preheating to 375. As soon as the butter is melted, remove the pan from the oven. Place chicken in dish, turning to coat with butter. Bake uncovered about 35-40 minutes, or just until done. Serve immediately.

The instructions are for freezing prior to serving. You can certainly make and eat the same day, just disregard the freezing instructions!

Tasty Tuesday

September 27, 2011 Courtney 2 Comments

So going along with the theme of Menu Mondays, I'm going to be posting a recipe every Tuesday. This weeks recipe is from allrecipes.com but I made some major changes to it last night with our dinner.

Recipe: Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup

1 small onion chopped

2 Tablespoons EVOO

1 Tablespoon butter

4 cloves Garlic chopped or pressed

4 T flour (any desired flour will do fine)

3 Cups Chicken stock (Home made is best)

3 Cups whole milk (Sub in 1 cup half N half or cream if you only have low fat)

Herbs: Parsley, Thyme and Bay leaf. (2 bay, 1 teas of thyme and 2 T parsley)

I used dried herbs, wrapped in cheesecloth and tied off tightly. Fresh herbs would be great too. If you don't have cheesecloth, just add herbs, but remember to fish out the bay leaf at the end of cooking.

One Cup of homemade cream of X soup. Recipe follows at end. DO NOT USE CANNED SOUP, simply skip this ingredient, your soup will be fine, just less tasty and watery)

2 Cups cooked and chopped chicken

2 cups cooked brown/white/wild rice. Whatever your preference

In a large dutch oven, saute onion in oil and butter, adding garlic at the end just before moving to the next step. Stir in flour and cook until it's browning. If it's really dry, add another T of butter. pour stock and milk into pan. Bring to a boil and then add the herb packet and the cup of cream of X soup. (I used chicken) Simmer for 15 minutes. Add chicken and rice and bring to a boil again and simmer on low for 10-15 minutes or until you can't stand the lovely aroma and need to eat. Taste before serving and season with salt and pepper to taste if needed. Serve hot with crusty herb bread and a side of veggies. (This is not the healthiest soup considering it's vegetable-less, so serve it with something green. We had Haricot Verts with butter and cheese.)

CREAM OF X SOUP:

This recipe is originally from the 30-Day Gourmet Freezer Cooking book, modified slightly for real food. It makes the equivalent of 4 cans of soup, so I always plan enough casseroles to use it up within a week. It freezes well inside a casserole but can separate if you freeze it alone, according to the authors. UPDATE: More than a few folks say they freeze the cream of soup just fine, so I’m going to go for it next time!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup butter
3/4 c. whole wheat flour (can add more if you like a really thick base)
4 cups milk
2 cups homemade chicken stock (preferably condensed for added flavor)
Optional: Chopped onions

Method:

Melt butter over low heat. If using onions for extra flavor, saute in butter until limp. Add flour and whisk together until smooth. Cook 1 minute. Do not let it brown! Gradually add milk and chicken stock, stirring constantly. Remove from heat when sauce has thickened. This may take up to 15-20 minutes.

Options:

Cream of celery: Saute a stalk or two of chopped celery with the butter before adding flour.

Cream of mushroom: Saute chopped fresh mushrooms in butter.

Cream of broccoli: Add chopped steamed broccoli to the soup after it thickens.

Cheesy sauce: Add shredded cheese (sharp cheddar gives the most flavor) after removing from heat. Stir to melt.