You guessed it....more chicken!

I promise this blog will contain more than just chicken recipes. As a reformed vegetarian, I have been slow to incorporate more than chicken and fish in our diet. But I'm trying, I really am! I still don't eat red meat, but I know how to cook it. You must know how to cook it when you live with a meat and potatoes man! Anyway, here's my latest creation. I had only 20 minutes to cook, so this is what I came up with:

Chicken Marsala

4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1/4 teaspoon salt object

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper object

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup presliced mushrooms object

1/2 cup Marsala wine

1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Place chicken between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound each piece to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Sprinkle both sides of chicken evenly with salt and pepper. Place flour in a shallow dish. Dredge chicken in flour, turning to coat; shake off excess flour. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 3 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm. Add mushrooms, wine, broth, and juice to pan; reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until mixture is reduced to 2/3 cup. Return chicken to pan, turning to coat well. Cover and cook 5 minutes or until chicken is done. Sprinkle with parsley.

Nutritional Information (Cooking Light magazine)
CALORIES 241(21% from fat); FAT 5.6g (sat 1g,mono 3g,poly 0.9g); PROTEIN 40.7g; CHOLESTEROL 99mg; CALCIUM 26mg; SODIUM 308mg; FIBER 0.5g; IRON 1.8mg; CARBOHYDRATE 4.9g

Chicken done Chinese!

Teriyaki Chicken and Fried Rice

Long time, no blog update! Jeff and I debated whether or not to buy a new computer on Black Friday. Ultimately, we decided we didn't really need a laptop, even though ours seemed to be having some minor issues, so we passed on BF sales and stayed in bed. Next day, what do you know, the computer breaks! All of my recipes, pictures, favorite websites, work documents, LOST! We are working on recovering everything, but in the meantime, I haven't had a method to publish my creations, and for that I apologize. =)

I've been making this particular recipe for years, with some variation over time. This concoction seemed to be Jeff's favorite! I added a side of fried brown rice to complete the meal.

Sauce
1 cup soy sauce
1tablespoon grated ginger
1/2 pound green onion, chopped (I omitted)
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon sesame seed
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon garlic clove, crushed
1 teaspoon white wine

1 teaspoon oil

In a bowl combine grated ginger root, finely chopped green onions, honey, sesame seed, brown sugar, sesame oil, crushed garlic cloves, and oil. Mix well; let stand for 30 minutes. When cooking, you may want to add cornstarch to thicken. Wait until just prior to plating as mixture will thicken somewhat as it cooks.

Chicken

I pan fried the chicken for several minutes on each side until browned. I then added the sauce and cooked for an additional 4-5 minutes, or until mixture thickens. Again, for additional thickening, add cornstarch.

Fried Brown Rice

This was just ok. I prefer to use season packets for fried rice and always have in the past, so when I tried it without the standard seasonings, Jeff wasn't as satisfied with the outcome, nor was I!

1/4 cup olive oil (I only used 2 tbs. to save the calories!)
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped (I used 1/2 an onion because Jeff isn't a huge onion fan)
1 clove large garlic, crushed
1 lime, juiced
2 cups cooked brown rice
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

mixed vegis (corn, carrots, green beans, etc)

Heat oil in wok or skillet. Add onions and garlic. Saute until just golden. Add desired amount of mixed vegis. Add lime juice. Increase heat to high. Add rice. Stir frequently to coat rice with oil. Cook until rice is golden. Add parsley.

Here Goes Nothin'

My very first post. My husband was pleasantly surprised with my first attempt at a blogworthy meal. I promised him I wouldn't compromise his health and would continue to use low fat ingredients if he swore not to mock my post-meal picture taking. It was a deal. Here were the results.

The meal: Garlic, cheesy baked chicken from allrecipes, with a healthy twist. Side items were green beans and reduced fat cheesey garlic biscuits (compliments of MrsPresley). Pretty good for someone who doesn't care for cheese, huh?! We finished off with low fat butterscotch blondies with a low fat caramel sauce. The blondies were good, not great. I wouldn't recommend them without the caramel sauce. The meal was FANTASTIC, if I do say so myself! ;)

Garlic Cheddar Chicken (Allrecipes.com with Marissa Modifications)

2 tbsp butter1 clove garlic, minced
3 tbsp dry bread crumbs

1/8 tsp dried parsley

1/8 tsp dried oregano

1/8 tsp ground black pepper

1/8 tsp salt2 tbsp freshly grated Reduced Fat Parmesan cheese

6 tbsp shredded Fat Free Cheddar cheese

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat, and cook the garlic until tender, about 5 minutes.In a shallow bowl, mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, Cheddar cheese, parsley, oregano, pepper, and salt.Dip each chicken breast in the garlic butter to coat, then press into the bread crumb mixture. Arrange the coated chicken breasts in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Drizzle with any remaining butter and top with any remaining bread crumb mixture.Bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.

Cheesy Biscuits (from MrsPresley with Marissa Modifications)

2 cups Bisquick mix
1/2 cup shredded Fat Free cheddar cheese
2/3 cup skim milk
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon parsley
1/4 cup fat free Promise Margarnie- melted

Preheat oven to 450 F. Combine first 3 ingredients until moist. Drop onto greased cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes, or until golden. While the biscuits are baking, mix melted butter, parsley and garlic. Pour over hot biscuits and serve.