Baked Chicken in a Hurry

On baseball night, I try and make something quick that can be eaten before and after the game-depending on the needs of my family. Tonight, I had just enough time to throw some chicken in the oven, braise some carrots and asparagus, and make some boiled parsley potatoes which was a standard side dish in my home growing up.

Chicken


Preheat the oven to 400. Toss some good quality boneless skinless chicken breasts (I like the organic chicken breasts from Costco and they can be easily frozen) with some extra virgin olive oil, paprika, and salt and pepper. Bake in the oven until cooked through. Check one of them by cutting it in half, if necessary.

Braised Carrots and Asparagus


In a deep saucepan on medium-high heat, add chicken or vegetable stock (about a cup or so) with peeled and cut up carrots (don't use the ones already peeled-they don't have a strange flavor and just don't taste as good). When carrots are fairly soft after about 10 minutes, add the asparagus and cover the saucepan with a lid or aluminum foil and let the asparagus steam. Make sure they are cooked but not mushy. Salt and pepper to taste.

Boiled Parsley Potatoes


Cut up a bunch of red potatoes and add to a pot of boiling water. Drain the water and add a handful of parsley and a tablespoon or two of Smart Balance butter (or a butter that you prefer). Salt and pepper to taste.



This meal seriously took no more than 30 minutes with very little chopping. As the oven was preheating and the chicken was baking, the carrots and asparagus and potatoes were prepared.

I always have carrots (which are very low in cost), potatoes, and chicken(in the freezer) on hand in my kitchen. We are all very busy working, taking care of family, and trying to fit in a run into our schedule. Healthy dinners do not have to be that time consuming nor complicated.  Not only was this meal healthy, it was also incredibly quick and easy.

Pumpkin Poblano Chili

It seems that there are a million and one ways to make chili. For at least a few decades, I've been hooked on my mom's "Chili Non Carne" recipe, whom she stole from a neighbor back when we lived in Virginia. It will always be a favorite of mine.

However, lately I've been intrigued by this "pumpkin" chili concept. Last week, it seemed like it was everywhere- on Facebook, friends telling me about it, and my favorite blogs featuring it. After reviewing all of the methods, particularly my BFF Ami's version, I came up with my own.

I thought it was delicious and an excellent post-race recovery meal after running Nashville 50 mile race the day before. A pot of meat, veggies, and beans will no doubt help push the muscle fatigue out of the body. Unfortunately, Grant wanted me to pick out anything green in his bowl. Then, he reached for a can of Hormel turkey chili and said that he would prefer this. Wow, that was a slap in the face but he's only 10 and hopefully he will be less picky as he gets older....hopefully.

• 3 cans of cannelini beans (rinsed and drained)
• 4 cans of petite diced tomatoes
• 1 can pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
• 1 large vidalia (sweet) onion, chopped
• 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 small can of green chilis, drained and chopped
• 3 poblano peppers (**roasted in the oven for 15 minutes on 400, roughly chopped)
• 1 tbs of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbs of cumin
• 3 tbs of chili powder
• 2 cups of low sodium vegetable or chicken stock (add more if needed)
• 2 packages of fat free ground turkey breast
• salt and pepper to taste
• green onion, chopped, optional
• monterey jack cheese, shredded, optional
• low fat or fat free sour cream, optional
• tortilla chips, optional

In an extra large pot, cook ground turkey on medium-high heat with olive oil and break it up as you are cooking it. Add freshly ground pepper. Once cooked through, remove from the heat and place in a bowl.

In the same pot, saute onion, garlic, green and yellow pepper for about 5 minutes on low-medium heat. Add some more olive oil if necessary. Add chili powder, bay leaf, and cumin and mix through. Continue to cook for 5 more minutes. Then, add beans, tomatoes, green chilis, pumpkin puree, stock, and add back the ground turkey. Mix thoroughly and bring up to high heat. Once it starts to boil, bring it back down to low heat. Allow to cook for about an hour. Salt and pepper to taste.

**While the pot of chili is simmering, slice in half the poblano peppers, removing the seeds, and place flat on a cookie sheet with a little it of olive oil. Roast in the oven for 15 minutes on 400 degrees. Remove from the heat and when cooler, roughly chop them and add them to the pot.

Garnish the chili with sour cream, cheese, and green onions. Serve with tortilla chips for dipping. 

Quick Ravioli Casserole

Before leaving town to run Nashville 50 Mile Race, I needed to use up some produce. Because of the tomato kick I've been on lately and buying an overabundance of them, I knew tomatoes needed to be included in the casserole.

I always buy spinach when I'm at the grocery store no matter what I plan on cooking for the week. It can be used in so many dishes, raw, or cooked by itself. Not to mention spinach has so many health benefits such as being a good source of niacin and zinc, very good source of fiber, protein, vitamin A, C, E, and K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, potassium, copper, and Manganese. One of the most perfect veggies, in my opinion.

• 1 1/2 cups of low sodium chicken stock or vegetable stock
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 large red bell pepper, sliced
• 3 to 4 cups of fresh spinach leaves )or one bag
• 1 cup of panko crumbs
• 3 tbs of pecorino romano cheese or parmesan cheese, grated
• either grape/cherry tomatoes or 6 medium tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp of oregano
• 1 tsp of balsamic vinegar
• about 20-25 frozen cheese ravioli (eyeball this)
• salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 tbs of extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Saute garlic and red peppers in an extra large deep skillet on low-medium heat until red peppers soft. Be careful to not burn the garlic and you may want to add the garlic after the red pepper to avoid burning. Add the tomatoes and continue to saute for at least 5 minutes.  Add spinach leaves, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Add balsamic vinegar. Once the spinach leaves wilt, add the stock. 

In a large casserole dish, add the frozen cheese ravioli. Yes, it's okay to add it frozen. Pour the mixture over the ravioli and top with panko crumbs and cheese.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until nice and bubbly. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving. 

The tomatoes burst nicely when cooked.

Almost ready to pour over the ravioli

Serve with a side salad and some crusty bread

Note: Photos are still not very good. I'm getting educated in photography so these will be gradually getting better and better.  Just like improving as a runner,  progress takes time.

 

Beth's Shrimp "Not So" Po Boy

I'm on this serious tomato kick lately and it's not even tomato season. All my foodie friends are baking and cooking with pumpkin for Fall and I'm stuck on the tomatoes. I found some grape tomatoes from Costco yesterday and I was eating them all afternoon from the container. They were just so sweet.

Tomatoes are great sources of potassium and several vitamins such as folic acid, vitamin A, C, and E. Tomatoes are also an excellent inflammation-fighting food in addition to helping lowering the risk of several types of cancer due to the high concentration of lycopene. Most of your lycopene, which the body does not produce on it's own, will come from the tomatoes that you eat. So, tomato up!

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees

• 3-4 cups of grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
• 3 tbs of extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 medium sweet onion, sliced
• 1 half tbs of dried basil
• a dash of balsamic vinegar
• 5 garlic cloves, minced and divided
• thick crusty bread of your choice (I used foccacia that I bought from the Atlanta Bread Co)
• fresh baby spinach leaves
• swiss cheese
• 1 lb of large shrimp, deveined, peeled and tails removed (I used Black Tiger Prawns)
• the juice of one lemon
• a pinch of red pepper flakes
• salt and pepper to taste

Marinate shrimp in 1 tbs of extra virgin olive oil, red pepper flakes, lemon juice and 2 minced garlic cloves, for 30 minutes to an hour. 

To a roasting pan, add tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, 3 minced garlic cloves, 2 tbs of extra virgin olive oil, and onion. Toss and place in the oven for 20 minutes or until tomatoes are soft and appear pleasantly roasted. Toss once while roasting. Remove from the oven.

Use grill pan to grill shrimp. Do not overcook the shrimp. Grill on one side for a minute or so, flip, and quickly remove from the pan and place on a plate until ready to use for the sandwiches.

On a cookie sheet, slice bread and place in the oven for about 5 minutes. Remove. Begin assembling the sandwiches. Shrimp and roasted tomatoes on one side. Spinach leaves and swiss cheese on the other side. Remove from the oven after about 5 minutes and serve.

Roasted Tomatoes and Ricotta Pasta

Tomatoes Roasting in 450 degrees

Beautiful roasted tomatoes

Chopped Broccoli

Added half and half on simmer

Was planning on just heating up some frozen homemade sauce to add to ravioli but spotted the broccoli and homegrown green and red tomatoes that I needed to use. My mother-n-law, Ann, gave me her last batch of tomatoes and indicated that some of them may not turn red. I waited and waited and only saw a few turn red so decided to use them up. So, improv night it is.

• 6-7 tomatoes, quartered (use any tomatoes of choice-heirloom and orange would be fun)
• 2 large bunches of broccoli, most of the stems removed
• 2-3 garlic cloves, finely minced
• a dash of balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tsp of dried basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 box of corkscrew pasta (or your short pasta of choice)
• 1 small container of ricotta cheese, part-skim or low fat
• 2 tbs of butter (I use Smart Balance)
• 3 tbs of Extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 1/2 cup of half and half (don't use fat-free half and half)
• a dash of red pepper flakes (to taste)
• 1/4 cup of dry white wine
• 1/2 cup of fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
• pecorino romano cheese

Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees and start a large pot of water to a boil.  Add tomatoes, garlic, salt and pepper, dried basil, 2 tbs of olive oil, and a dash of balsamic vinegar to a roasting pan and place in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Watch carefully and toss to make sure they don't stick to the pan.

Meanwhile, broccoli. Once water is to a boil, add pasta. After 3-4 minutes, add broccoli to the pot with the pasta.

To a very large deep skillet, add butter and 1 tbs of oil on medium heat. Add the roasted tomatoes, wine, and half and half milk. Lower the heat down and let simmer. Once pasta is al dente, add the pasta, broccoli, and ricotta cheese to the skillet. If the tomato mixture is a little dry, add some pasta water.  Toss, add salt and pepper to taste, and cover with the heat on low for about 5 minutes.

Serve with grated pecorino romano cheese and fresh parsley

Feel free to add a piece of grilled chicken on the side if you need more protein. Serve with a mixed green salad.

Black Bean Tostadas with Poblano Salsa

I was going to make Trent Rosenbloom's Chilis Rellenos recipe but realized that I was missing an ingredient and just too lazy to run out to the grocery store. So, I decided to use two of the poblano peppers and make a salsa. The black beans are my mom's recipe that I've been making for years. Grant has loved black beans since he was a one year old so I always know that I will please him with tostadas.

Poblano Salsa

• 2 poblano peppers  finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• a half a bunch of green onions/chives, chopped
• 3 tomatoes, chopped
• handful of cilantro, chopped
• the juice of one lime, chopped
• 1 cup of frozen corn kernels or fresh corn if it's in season
• 1 tbs of organic raw blue agave syrup**
• salt to taste
• 1 jalepeno (remove seeds), finely chopped

Toss and refrigerate for one hour. I added two avocados on top but this was just something I did at the last minute. I could have made guacamole but just wasn't in the mood to. I also served the salsa on a bed of shredded iceberg lettuce.

**the sweetness of the agave syrup helps balance out the bitterness of the poblanos.


Mom's Black Bean recipe

• 3 cans of black beans, drained (or use dried beans and follow the package instructions)
• 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced
• 1 vidalia (sweet) onion, minced
• 1 tsp of oregano
• 3 tbs of cumin

Saute onion and garlic on medium heat on the stove until soft. Add oregano and cumin and saute for 2 minutes. Add beans and cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes. Bring down to low/simmer

Black beans are packed with both protein and fiber. I will be the first to admit, however, that I do not eat black beans the night before a race because of the high amount of fiber.

Tostadas


Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Place large round crispy tortillas (found at any supermarket) on a cookie sheet. Add beans and cheese on top. Chopped up cooked chicken can also be added.

These beans are great as leftovers. You can use them as dip with tortilla chips as a snack, wrapped in a flour tortilla with cheese and microwaved for a quick burrito, or make a quesadilla with either corn or flour tortillas (whole wheat tortillas work well too).

Feel free to add a dollop of sour cream, verde sauce, or hot sauce. Pepper jack cheese will add some extra heat as well.

Chicken and its Many Uses

Rosemary Chicken, braised brussel sprouts and carrots, and low fat mashed potatoes

I consider myself to be a flexitarian. I eat chicken, turkey and all fish. I stay away from pork and beef. My reasons for staying away from pork and beef are two-fold: 1) I don't like the taste of pork and beef and never have, 2) Beef and pork, in general, are not great for you. I see nothing wrong with having it in moderation, because if you love it, you shouldn't deprive yourself. If someone told me that I couldn't have delicious desserts anymore, that would be a serious problem-and I can guarantee you that I wouldn't listen.

Skinless, boneless chicken is versatile to cook with, great for leftovers, and good for you. It's packed with protein, very low in fat as compared with other meats, a good source of niacin, B-6, B-12, vitamin D, iron,and zinc which are all essential to maintain a healthy body. For those of us who would like to slow down the aging process, trance mineral selenium is an anti-aging component found in chicken as well.

One of the many ways that I like my chicken is marinated and then grilled, either outdoor grill or a grill pan. I usually grill 6 chicken breasts. As a family of three, we will eat two and a half to three chicken breasts for dinner. The rest will be for leftovers. Oh, how I love leftovers.

I had a lot of rosemary from my herb garden that I needed to use so this is what I did:

Marinade

• the juice of two lemons
• a large handful of finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 2 tbs of olive oil
• 2 tbs of smoked paprika (if you can't find smoked, sweet is okay)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3 cloves of minced garlic

Whisk ingredients together and toss with 6 breasts of chicken in a large ziplock bag or plastic container for 3 hours to overnight.

Grill at least twice as much chicken as you will need in one meal. You can use the leftover chicken for so many more uses in the next few days. This will save time, money, and guarantee you that you won't be calling for take-out or heading to the nearest fast food restaurant.



These are some of my favorite ways to use leftover chicken:

1. thinly sliced chicken on top of a big salad with all my favorites
2. chopped up and stuffed in a whole wheat pita pocket with some lettuce, tomato and Dijon mustard (perfect for work)
3. thrown in the food processor and make a quick chicken salad for sammies or on top a salad
4. chopped up and use for soft tacos, burritos, enchiladas, or quesadillas (Grant loves chicken quesadillas)
5. chopped up and used in a chicken pot pie
6. add to a soup
7. heated up and added to a pasta dish

What are your favorite ways to use leftover chicken?