Smothered Chicken

This is a very good meal that does take a bit of effort to put together, but is really worth it. It's a bit heavy on the dairy, but oh-so-good. There are 3 parts to the recipe, so I'll try my best to get everything in the right order. Make sure to read through the entire recipe and portion out everything before starting.

Ingredients:

Chicken:
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
10 slices mozzarella cheese
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp seasoned salt
1 tsp pepper

Creamed Spinach:
1 large bag spinach leaves
4 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp onion, minced
2 tbsp olive oil

Sauteed Mushrooms:
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup white wine
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat Oven to 350
2. Mix the garlic powder, seasoned salt, and pepper together and coat the chicken.
3. Bake the chicken for 16 minutes

4. While the chicken is baking, heat the 2 tbsp of oil for the creamed spinach in a large pan over medium-high heat.
5. When the oil is hot, add the onions and saute for 2-3 minutes
6. When the onions are sauteed, add the spinach and garlic and cook until cooked through. The spinach will reduce to a small amount.
7. When cooked through, add the cream cheese and shredded Parmesan cheese and stir until melted.
8. Set aside the the creamed spinach.

9. In a fresh skillet, melt the butter and oil.
10. Add the mushrooms and cook until browned all over.
11. Add the white wine to deglaze the pan.
12. Add in the garlic, salt, and pepper.
13. Cook until most of the wine is cooked off.

14. At this time, the chicken should be done baking.
15. Remove the chicken from the oven and turn over in the pan.
16. Add the creamed spinach to the top of the chicken breasts.
17. Add the sauteed mushrooms on top of the creamed spinach.
18. Place 2 pieces of the mozzarella cheese on top of each breast.
19. Cook another 12-14 minutes or until the cheese is browned and the chicken is done.

That's it.  A lot of steps, but it was very yummy. We ended up using the broiler to get the cheese a bit browner at the end, but you may not need to.

This recipe was from a blog called: baconbuttercheesegarlic

Pork with Camembert Sauce

Pretty simple dish with a very good sauce.

Ingredients:
1 pound boneless pork loin
2 oz Camembert Cheese
1 tbsp butter
3 tbsp dry white wine
1 tbsp chopped fresh sage
1/3 cup sour cream
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
Pepper - to taste

Directions:
1. Cut the pork loin into 3 portions about 3/4" thick.
2. Put the pork in a zip lock bag and pound to about 1/2 thick with tenderizing hammer.
3. Cut the rind off of the Camembert cheese and cut into 1/2" chunks.
4. Spray a big heavy skillet with nonstick spray and put over medium-high heat.
5. When the skillet is hot, melt the butter in the skillet and coat the insides.
6. Fry the pork a golden brown, being careful not to overcook them.
7. Set the pork loin aside and cover with tin-foil to keep warm.
8. Add wine to the skillet and stir around with a spatula to get up all the bits of pork.
9. As the wine reduces, add the sage and stir again.
10. Turn down the heat to medium-low and add in the Camembert, stiring as it melts.
11. After it is fully melted, add in the sour cream and dijon mustard and heat through w/out simmering again.
12. Pepper to taste and serve immediately spooned over the pork loin.

This recipe is from Dana Carpenders Every Calorie Counts Cookbook

Butter-Browned Almonds

Just a simple recipe to get some wonderful Butter-Browned Almonds for topping veggies. Goes great on asparagus, Brussels sprouts, and spinach.

Ingredients:
1/2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup almonds, sliced or slivered
1/4 tsp seasoning salt

Directions:
1. Place all ingredients into a small pan and heat over medium heat, stirring frequently until the almonds are golden brown. Takes about 8 minutes.
2. Immediately after they are done, remove from the pan so they don't continue to cook and put in a bowl for serving.

This recipe is from the Extreme LC Meals on the Go cookbook.

Eye Round Steaks with Onion-Cream Gravy

We usually buy some eye of round steaks as they are fairly cheap and I have never found a great way to use them. Here's a new recipe I found in a Steak Cookbook. Very simple, yet very good.

Ingredients:
4 eye of round steaks (about 5 oz each)
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
1 medium onion, large diced
1 sprig fresh oregano or 1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp white pepper (I used Szechuan roasted pepper and salt blend)
pinch of cayenne, to taste
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
pinch of salt, to taste
1 tbsp fresh parsley leaves, minced (Optional)

Directions:
1. Pat steaks dry and coat with oil.
2. Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium-low heat.
3. Cook onion until soft (about 4 minutes), then add oregano and wine, raise to medium heat and simmer until wine is nearly gone(4-5 minutes).
4. Add cream and bring to a boil. Simmer for 1 minute, then stir in vinegar, pepper, cayenne, and mustard.
5. Transfer mixture to blender (or magic bullet) and process for 30 seconds, then pour into saucepan and season with more salt and cayenne if desired. Set Aside
6. Heat large skillet over medium-high heat. Add steaks after it is hot and cook until seared and crusted (about 2 minutes) Turn steaks and season wtih salt if desired. Cook 2 more minutes (for medium-rare).
7. Transfer steaks to cutting board to let them rest while re-heating the sauce.
8. Divide sauce among 4 plates and top with either the whole steaks or cut the steaks into 1/2 " thick slices.
9. Top with parsley if desired.

This recipe is from the Steak Lover's Cookbook by William Rice. A very good book that talks through different cuts of meat and the best way to prepare them.

Parmesan Chicken Breasts

I'm going through a new cookbook (another of Dana Carpenders) which are all 15 minute recipes. Here's a nice quick idea with very few ingredients, yet it was very yummy.

Ingredients:
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese (the cheap stuff in the green can)
4 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp pepper
2 eggs
2 oz heavy whipping cream
4 tbsp butter

Directions:
1. Flatten the chicken breasts to about 1/4" thick and cut into about 6 portions.
2. Combine cheese with oregano, garlic powder, paprika, and pepper and put on a plate.
3. Combine the eggs and heavy whipping cream and mix well in a bowl.
4. Melt the butter in a heavy skillet over medium-low heat.
5. Dip the chicken in the egg wash, fully coat the chicken with the cheese mixture, then saute for 3-5 minutes per side in the butter.

If you like, you can also make a simple gravy to pour over the top. Making sure the burner is on low, pour some heavy whipping cream into the pan used for sauteing the chicken breasts and stir together with the butter, leftover cheese crumbles, and bits of chicken in the pan. Makes a very tasty gravy.

This recipe was from Dana Carpenders 15 Minute LC Recipe books.

Grilled Chicken Leg Quarters and Sauteed Zucchini and Onions

What do you do when you don't feel like prepping anything? Weber to the rescue. Here's a couple very simple ideas that combine for a very yummy meal.

Grilled Chicken Leg Quarters

Ingredients:
Chicken Leg Quarters
Olive Oil
Homemade Seasoned Salt (Recipe)

Directions:
1. Preheat the grill to about 350
2. Brush the chicken leg quarters with the olive oil.
3. Sprinkle on the seasoned salt.
4. Turn off 1/2 the burners (or move the charcoal to one side) and put the chicken on the side that is on/heating for about 3-5 minutes per side. Enough to crisp up the outside a bit.
5. Move the chicken to the side that is turned off/not heating for about 20 minutes per side.
6. Cook until the chicken is about 165-170 degrees and the juices are running clear.

Sauteed Zucchini and Onions

Ingredients:
Zucchini
Onions
Butter

Directions:
1. Slice up the Zucchini and Onions.
2. Put the Zucchini and Onions in a pan with the butter.
3. Saute until they are nice and golden brown.

It's easy to make up the Sauteed Zucchini and Onions while the chicken is grilling.

Pork Chops and Gorgonzola Butter

Wow. This is a very simple recipe, but the Gorgonzola butter is some of the best butter I have ever had. It would go amazing on any kind of pork, beef, or lamb steak or chop. Just some great flavor.

This recipe is based on one in Gillespie's 501 Recipe book, but is quite different. I used pork chops instead of veal, broiled instead of baked, and Gorgonzola instead of Roquefort cheese. I also changed the ratios up a bit. I'm putting what I used instead of what's in the book.

Ingredients:
8 oz butter (melted)
4 oz Gorgonzola cheese crumbled
1 clove garlic, crushed
Few dashes of Hot Sauce (Tabasco Habanero is what we used)
1/2 bunch parsley, leaves only
8 (4 oz) boneless pork chops
Olive Oil
Seasonings to taste on the pork chops

Butter Directions:
1. Blanch the parsley leaves in boiling water for 5 seconds. Then let refresh in cold water. Dry and then chop coarsely. (I don't know what this step does, but I did it. If anyone can explain, that would be great).
2. Melt butter a bit so it is super soft and and put in the garlic, few drops of the hot sauce (to taste), and 2 oz of the Gorgonzola.
3. Blend until smooth.
4. Mix in the parsley and the rest of the Gorgonzola.
5. I used my blender to re-mix everything. That made the parsley much smaller and the butter a bit smoother, but you don't need to do that, you can just mix by hand.
6. Put in the refrigerator to cool and harden.


Pork Chop Directions:
1. Brush the pork chops with oil on both sides.
2. Season both sides with your choice of seasoning. (My favorite blend is black pepper, garlic powder, seasoned salt, and blackened seasoning. It makes a wonderful combination).
3. Broil on high for about 5-7 minutes per side.
4. Take out the pork chops and let rest for a few minutes.


Serving:
1. Take the pork chops and serve on a plate.
2. Take the Gorgonzola butter and slice off some for each pork chop.
3. Enjoy!!!!

Tarragon Chicken

Tonight was Tarragon Chicken. A fantastically simple, yet wonderfully tasty dish. Half way through the meal all the forks were on the table and it was finger lickin' good. Throw in some green beans topped with bacon and cooked in bacon grease and you have a wonderful meal.

Ingredients:
1 cut-up broiler-fryer
2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp dried tarragon
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup dry white wine

Directions:
1. Melt butter in BIG frying pan over your biggest burner.
2. Brown the chicken so that all sides are brown but do not cook through or it will be dry.
3. Pour off the fat (if you want to. I didn't and although the chicken was not crispy, it was soooo good).
4. Scatter tarragon on the chicken, crushing some to release flavor, salt and pepper as desired, add the clove of garlic (crushed) and the wine.
5. Cover skillet, turn to low, and simmer for 30 minutes. Rotate and flip the chicken every 10 minutes and spoon some of the liquid onto the chicken when you rotate it.
6. Enjoy!!!!

From Dana Carpender 500 LC Recipes Cookbook