So, this is going to be a favorite, for sure. Anything with cumin in it, is great. Anything with cilantro, is wonderful. Anything with both, is ridiculously insanely good. Trust me.
Prep Time: 45 minutes Servings: 8
1 lb. chicken breast $4.00
42 oz. Chicken Broth $2.50
1 can of corn $.70
1 can of black beans $.70
1 can of diced tomatoes $.70
1 bunch of cilantro $.90
1 small white onion $.75
salt and pepper $.10
1 tbsp. Cumin $.50
2 tsp. Taco Seasoning $.50
EVOO $.25
Bay leaves $.40
two cloves of garlic $.25
Total Cost: $12.20 Cost per serving $1.53
I bake my chicken, seasoned with salt and pepper at 350F for 30 minutes. Like I have stated before, baking chicken all at once, will save you time. That is why we had Chicken salad yesterday, and now soup with chicken in it today. Think EASY! Dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces when finished. Drain the "water" out of the corn, black beans, and tomatoes, and rinse in a strainer. Dice the onion and garlic and sautee in a a stock pot with the EVOO. Add salt and pepper. Once onions soften, drop in beans and corn. Sautee one minute. Add the broth, tomatoes, chicken, cumin, bay leaves and taco seasoning. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes. Right before serving, finely chop the cilantro and add that to the soup. You want it to wilt slightly in the soup. Salt and pepper to taste, and if you are like me, you may want to add more cumin. I love the stuff. For a little extra joy, you can add tortilla chips before serving, or fresh slices of avocado. So good!!!!
Showing posts with label chicken. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chicken. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Bleu Cheese Chicken Salad
This is one of the simplest and best chicken salad recipes I have ever made. Paulette's served this at lunch, and we couldn't make the stuff fast enough. Here we go.
Prep time: 40 minutes Servings 8
1 lb. of chicken $4.00
1 stalk of celery $2.00
1/2 bunch of red grapes $2.00
6oz. Bleu Cheese $4.00
Walnuts (pieces are cheaper and okay to use) $2.00
2-3 Tablespoons of Mayonnaise $.30
salt and pepper $.10
OPTIONAL:
A cap full of white vinegar $.10
A few dashes of Tabasco $.10
Total Cost $14.40 Cost per serving $1.80
Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Bake the chicken at 350F for 30 minutes. Once finished, dice the chicken. Chop the celery. Slice the grapes in half. Crumble the bleu cheese. And combine all ingredients together. Start with just a tablespoon of mayo, and add more to get the consistency you prefer. I have found some folks (like me) LOVE mayonnaise, and some people don't. The vinegar and tabasco bring out the flavors a little bit. These are optional, but I think they make a big difference.
Prep time: 40 minutes Servings 8
1 lb. of chicken $4.00
1 stalk of celery $2.00
1/2 bunch of red grapes $2.00
6oz. Bleu Cheese $4.00
Walnuts (pieces are cheaper and okay to use) $2.00
2-3 Tablespoons of Mayonnaise $.30
salt and pepper $.10
OPTIONAL:
A cap full of white vinegar $.10
A few dashes of Tabasco $.10
Total Cost $14.40 Cost per serving $1.80
Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Bake the chicken at 350F for 30 minutes. Once finished, dice the chicken. Chop the celery. Slice the grapes in half. Crumble the bleu cheese. And combine all ingredients together. Start with just a tablespoon of mayo, and add more to get the consistency you prefer. I have found some folks (like me) LOVE mayonnaise, and some people don't. The vinegar and tabasco bring out the flavors a little bit. These are optional, but I think they make a big difference.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Chicken and White Bean Chili
This one you may laugh at me a little. I stumbled across this recipe as I was on the seasonings aisle, and I saw this packet of seasoning that caught my eye. It was seasoning for Chicken and White Bean Chili. So I took it home, tried it, and loved it. It is extremely healthy. The recipe on the package tells you to cook your chicken breasts in oil. I prefer to bake mine in the oven. SO here we go.
Prep Time: 35 minutes Servings: 4
1 lb. Chicken Breasts $4.00
One can of Great Northern Beans or Navy Beans $1.00
McCormick's White Bean Chili Seasoning package $1.50
Total: $6.50 Cost per serving $1.63
This recipe would also go well with some sauteed red peppers for a little more interesting meal, but it is not necessary.
Bake your chicken in the oven for 30 minutes at 350F. For this dish, I simply season my chicken with salt and pepper. Remove from the oven and dice the chicken. Place in a pot with the beans (do not strain), the seasoning, and water, and bring to a boil. Once it is heated, it is ready to eat. This is about as easy as it gets.
Prep Time: 35 minutes Servings: 4
1 lb. Chicken Breasts $4.00
One can of Great Northern Beans or Navy Beans $1.00
McCormick's White Bean Chili Seasoning package $1.50
Total: $6.50 Cost per serving $1.63
This recipe would also go well with some sauteed red peppers for a little more interesting meal, but it is not necessary.
Bake your chicken in the oven for 30 minutes at 350F. For this dish, I simply season my chicken with salt and pepper. Remove from the oven and dice the chicken. Place in a pot with the beans (do not strain), the seasoning, and water, and bring to a boil. Once it is heated, it is ready to eat. This is about as easy as it gets.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Chicken Quesadillas with Homemade Guacamole
Tonight we are having Chicken Quesadillas. I know it's October, and that doesn't really spell Mexican food, but with homemade guacamole, it is hard to resist these healthy, little items. And you will find out that Mexican food is one style of food that you will be hard-pressed to do cheaper at home than you can dine out. And if you have a place as good as La Guadalapana near you, as we do here in Memphis, then I would minimize your Mexican cooking to only specific dishes. I find quesadaillas something I prefer to do at home.
Cook Time 30 minutes
1 lb. of chicken breasts $4.00
2 Avocados $2.50
1 Tomato $.45
1 white onion $.30
1 bunch of cilantro $.80
2 limes $.66
1 clove of garlic $.05
salt and pepper $.10
Ground Cumin $.50
4 oz. shredded cheddar cheese $1.50
4 Whole wheat or Flour Tortillas $1.50
Total: $12.36 or $3.09 a serving
Chicken Quesadillas:
Season your chicken with salt and pepper and cumin. Bake in the oven at 350 F for 30 minutes. If you want to save time and you know you will be using chicken in a lot of dishes in the week to come, bake all of your chicken at once. I will bake off five to six breasts, all with different seasonings depending on what I am using them for, and then slice them and refrigerate them until I need them. Once your breasts are finished baking, slice them into thin slivers for use in the quesadillas. You want them pretty thin so they fit inside the tortilla.
Dice a tomato.
Heat a pan over the stove top until it gets very hot. Make sure the pan is very clean and very dry. No oil. Place a tortilla in the pan and quickly fill with chicken, shredded cheese and diced tomatoes. Fold the quesadilla closed, and watch it closely. The tortilla will brown on the bottom in maybe three minutes. Adjust the heat if you need to. Once the underside is brown, flip the quesadilla and brown on the other side. The quesadilla is done when the cheese melts. Remove from the pan, and slice into 4 sections. Serve with homemade guacamole.
Homemade Guacamole:
This is much easier to prepare with a food processor. The base for any good salsa or guacamole is simple. This recipe will make enough for two or three batches of guacamole or salsa.
One bunch of cilantro
Juice from 2 limes
1 white onion chopped fine
1 garlic clove
Plenty of salt
Pepper
(optional) half or a whole jalapeno (depending on how hot you like it. Fresh jalapenos are HOT. They aren't like those jarred deals. Be careful handling fresh jalapenos as the oil from them stays on your fingers even after you wash them.
You must chop all of this very fine. If you run it through a food processor, slice it till it looks almost like pesto. Very fine. Add salt to bring out all the flavors. Salt and lime juice make an amazing flavor!
This is the base for my salsa and guacamole. From here to make salsa add three or four tomatoes and more salt. Chop the tomatoes to whatever consistency you prefer. If you like chunky salsa, leave them larger. If you like thin salsa, chop them up really well. And remember, if you don't get a strong kick of flavors, add more salt. Most fresh vegetables don't have much sodium, so you will have to add it to bring out the flavors. And don't worry, it is very hard to over-salt salsa and guacamole.
To make guacamole, add one tomato to the base and two avocados. Once again, mix, mash and chop to desired consistency.
This will be the freshest, best-tasting salsa and guacamole you have ever tasted. You will never buy another store brand ever again. And look at the ingredient list and compare it to what you might buy at the store. There is nothing in your salsa and guacamole that you cannot pronounce.
Cook Time 30 minutes
1 lb. of chicken breasts $4.00
2 Avocados $2.50
1 Tomato $.45
1 white onion $.30
1 bunch of cilantro $.80
2 limes $.66
1 clove of garlic $.05
salt and pepper $.10
Ground Cumin $.50
4 oz. shredded cheddar cheese $1.50
4 Whole wheat or Flour Tortillas $1.50
Total: $12.36 or $3.09 a serving
Chicken Quesadillas:
Season your chicken with salt and pepper and cumin. Bake in the oven at 350 F for 30 minutes. If you want to save time and you know you will be using chicken in a lot of dishes in the week to come, bake all of your chicken at once. I will bake off five to six breasts, all with different seasonings depending on what I am using them for, and then slice them and refrigerate them until I need them. Once your breasts are finished baking, slice them into thin slivers for use in the quesadillas. You want them pretty thin so they fit inside the tortilla.
Dice a tomato.
Heat a pan over the stove top until it gets very hot. Make sure the pan is very clean and very dry. No oil. Place a tortilla in the pan and quickly fill with chicken, shredded cheese and diced tomatoes. Fold the quesadilla closed, and watch it closely. The tortilla will brown on the bottom in maybe three minutes. Adjust the heat if you need to. Once the underside is brown, flip the quesadilla and brown on the other side. The quesadilla is done when the cheese melts. Remove from the pan, and slice into 4 sections. Serve with homemade guacamole.
Homemade Guacamole:
This is much easier to prepare with a food processor. The base for any good salsa or guacamole is simple. This recipe will make enough for two or three batches of guacamole or salsa.
One bunch of cilantro
Juice from 2 limes
1 white onion chopped fine
1 garlic clove
Plenty of salt
Pepper
(optional) half or a whole jalapeno (depending on how hot you like it. Fresh jalapenos are HOT. They aren't like those jarred deals. Be careful handling fresh jalapenos as the oil from them stays on your fingers even after you wash them.
You must chop all of this very fine. If you run it through a food processor, slice it till it looks almost like pesto. Very fine. Add salt to bring out all the flavors. Salt and lime juice make an amazing flavor!
This is the base for my salsa and guacamole. From here to make salsa add three or four tomatoes and more salt. Chop the tomatoes to whatever consistency you prefer. If you like chunky salsa, leave them larger. If you like thin salsa, chop them up really well. And remember, if you don't get a strong kick of flavors, add more salt. Most fresh vegetables don't have much sodium, so you will have to add it to bring out the flavors. And don't worry, it is very hard to over-salt salsa and guacamole.
To make guacamole, add one tomato to the base and two avocados. Once again, mix, mash and chop to desired consistency.
This will be the freshest, best-tasting salsa and guacamole you have ever tasted. You will never buy another store brand ever again. And look at the ingredient list and compare it to what you might buy at the store. There is nothing in your salsa and guacamole that you cannot pronounce.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Chicken Noodle Soup
It has been raining all day here in Memphis. And the temperature is dropping. The weather outside is so bad that not a single one of my four dogs has asked to go outside all day. Not even since I woke up. Their bladders must be about to explode, but when I open the backdoor and coax them out, they just stare at me.
It's days like this that remind me of Chicken Noodle Soup. Because it's cold and rainy, not because of dog bladders. And that's what I have made for dinner tonight. Chicken Noodle is so easy, but people have stashed it away in some 1950's-Good-Housekeeping-Campbell's-Condensed-World War II-rationing-style mindset, that they forgot how good the original article can be. And easy! And cheap! Not cheaper than the Campbell's condensed stuff, but better tasting, and better for you for sure.
So here you go:
6 servings in thirty minutes
1 lb. of Chicken Breasts $4
2 large carrots $.70
1 bunch of celery $1.25
1 white onion $.60
2 garlic cloves $.05
Thyme $.10
Bay Leaf $.05
2 Tbsp. Olive oil $.50
Salt and Pepper $.10
32 oz. of Chicken Broth $1.75
8 ounces of egg noodles $1.00
Total Cost: $10.10 per serving $1.69
Bake the chicken for 30 minutes at 350 F after coating it with EVOO, thyme, and s&p. While baking the chicken, chop the celery, onion, carrot (peel it first of course) and garlic clove and drop it in a large stock pot with the EVOO which should be hot. Sautee the mixture without browning it. Maybe 6 minutes over medium heat, or until the vegetables soften, but aren't mush. Add the thyme, bay leaf and chicken broth, and bring to boil. Once to a boil, you can drop the heat to a LOW simmer. Once the chicken is finished baking, cut it into cubes and drop into the soup. If you are ready for service, turn up the heat on the soup, and drop in the egg noodles. These will be tender and ready in 4-5 minutes. And there you have it. HOMEMADE. Like you wish your mom had made!
And here is a tip! If you are planning on keeping some for leftovers for the next day, don't put all the egg noodles in at once. Scoop out your left overs and place them in a container to hold in the fridge. And when you heat that the next day, add your egg noodles then. The reason being is the egg noodles will continue to soak up all the broth in the soup while being kept in the fridge, and you will have something that resembles Chicken & Dumplings. Your egg noodles aren't reconstituted like Campbell's are. And that's a good thing!
It's days like this that remind me of Chicken Noodle Soup. Because it's cold and rainy, not because of dog bladders. And that's what I have made for dinner tonight. Chicken Noodle is so easy, but people have stashed it away in some 1950's-Good-Housekeeping-Campbell's-Condensed-World War II-rationing-style mindset, that they forgot how good the original article can be. And easy! And cheap! Not cheaper than the Campbell's condensed stuff, but better tasting, and better for you for sure.
So here you go:
6 servings in thirty minutes
1 lb. of Chicken Breasts $4
2 large carrots $.70
1 bunch of celery $1.25
1 white onion $.60
2 garlic cloves $.05
Thyme $.10
Bay Leaf $.05
2 Tbsp. Olive oil $.50
Salt and Pepper $.10
32 oz. of Chicken Broth $1.75
8 ounces of egg noodles $1.00
Total Cost: $10.10 per serving $1.69
Bake the chicken for 30 minutes at 350 F after coating it with EVOO, thyme, and s&p. While baking the chicken, chop the celery, onion, carrot (peel it first of course) and garlic clove and drop it in a large stock pot with the EVOO which should be hot. Sautee the mixture without browning it. Maybe 6 minutes over medium heat, or until the vegetables soften, but aren't mush. Add the thyme, bay leaf and chicken broth, and bring to boil. Once to a boil, you can drop the heat to a LOW simmer. Once the chicken is finished baking, cut it into cubes and drop into the soup. If you are ready for service, turn up the heat on the soup, and drop in the egg noodles. These will be tender and ready in 4-5 minutes. And there you have it. HOMEMADE. Like you wish your mom had made!
And here is a tip! If you are planning on keeping some for leftovers for the next day, don't put all the egg noodles in at once. Scoop out your left overs and place them in a container to hold in the fridge. And when you heat that the next day, add your egg noodles then. The reason being is the egg noodles will continue to soak up all the broth in the soup while being kept in the fridge, and you will have something that resembles Chicken & Dumplings. Your egg noodles aren't reconstituted like Campbell's are. And that's a good thing!
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