Non-fried chicken panini w/ Tzatziki sauce and veggies w/ a lime dressing

This dish EXPLODES with flavor and is very healthy!

I started out by taking 2 chicken breasts and pounding them flat. About 1/2-1/4" thick. Season with salt and pepper and place in a large freezer bag along with 3 tablespoons of greek yogart.

In a separate bowl generously pour a mixture of 1/2 panko and 1/2 cornflakes breading...

Dredge the chicken breast in the breading mixture and place on a baking sheet.

I like to place a cooling rack on top of the baking sheet and then place the chicken. This allows for the chicken to get crispy all over, no soggy bottom!

Place in a 350 degree oven for about 30 min. or until the chicken is 160 degrees.

While that is cooking it is time to make the veggies and the sauces.

For the veggies.... I took 1 lb. of fresh green beans(ends trimmed) and placed in a bowling pot of water for 5 min.

Take out of the water with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Then take 1 head of corn, cut off the cob and place in the boiling water for 2 min. and set aside.

Then dice up a red bell pepper, 1/2 a tub of mushrooms,  and 1/2 sweet onion and place in a hot skillet for about 5 min. or until the onions start to become opaque.

For the Vegetable medley dressing....

1/4 cup of fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon honey
2 teaspoons of lime zest
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 cup of olive or grapeseed oil
salt and pepper

Mix well and place over the vegetables while in the skillet.

For the Tzatziki sauce(this is the sauce that I put in pita sandwiches)....

I took 1 tub of greek yogurt
1/2 a cucumber that I de-seeded, peeled and grated
1 tablespoon of dill
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon of salt and pepper
2 tablespoons of minced garlic

Mix well. And this sauce has only 36 calories per serving(there are 4 servings)!!!!!

Now it is time to take out your chicken from the oven. Let it rest for 5 min. and then thinly slice.
Take your pita bread and place a spoonful of your Tzatziki sauce, some fresh spinach, sun-dried tomatoes(not in oil) and your chicken slices.

Add your vegetable medley to the plate and you have a healthy meal!!! I also served with a side of sweet potato fries.

And that's it! It seems like a lot, but if you make the sauces ahead of time, you can have this meal done in about 35 min.!

waaalllllaaaahhhh! Happy eating y'all!

Mustard-pretzel crusted chicken

In my household we eat a LOT of chicken breast! So, it is always a challenge to invent new ways of cooking it. Who wants the same ol' food everyday? Not me!

I started out with 2 chicken breasts, 1/4 cup of brown mustard, 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar, a dash of water, a dash of oil, season salt and pepper. Marinate for 20 min- 2 hours.

While that is marinating I took 1/2 bag of honey mustard pretzels, placed in a ziploc bag and crushed with a mallet.

Once your chicken breasts are marinated, just coat with the pretzels. No need for egg wash or anything! Place on a baking sheet(I also like to place the chicken on a cooling rack over the baking sheet so the chicken is crispy all around), and put in a 400 degree oven for 20-25 min. (or until a thermometer reads 165 degrees).

And waaaalllllaaaaahhhhh! Easy, delicious and very quick!
Happy eating y'all!

Baked chicken pasta w/Emeril Lagasse's roasted garlic pasta sauce!

For Emeril's sauce

1 large onion, chopped
3 tablespoons of Extra-Virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon dried basil leaves
2 (28 ounce) cans whole Italian plum tomatoes, with their juices
3 whole heads roasted garlic, cloves removed from peels

In a large pot saute the onion in the olive oil over med.-high heat until soft and lightly golden, 4-6 min. Add the minced garlic and cook, stirring for 1 min. Add the tomato paste, salt, balsamic vinegar, hot sauce, crushed red pepper, Italian seasoning, and basil, cook for 1 min. Add the tomatoes, crushing with a fork in the pan(also add the juices). Stir to combine well and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to slow simmer and cook for 20 min. stirring occasionally.
Add the roasted garlic cloves and stir to combine. Continue to simmer for 30-45 min. or until the flavors have come together.
To roast the garlic I place the whole head of garlic in foil and drizzle with oil. (do each head separately). I then place in a 350 degree oven for 20-25 min. Let cool and then just squeeze the garlic out of the casing into the sauce.

Once I got the sauce going I marinated (2) cut up chicken breast in balsamic vinegar and Italian seasoning (about 30 min). I then cooked on a skillet until done (about 8 min.) and in a separate pot I boiled some penne pasta. I then took an oven safe dish and placed the pasta on the bottom and then the chicken.

I then topped with the sauce and some freshly chopped basil.

Top with your favorite shredded cheese and place in the oven on high broil until the cheese bubbles and browns.
And waaalllllaaaaahhhhhh! Happy eating y'all!

chicken with pepperoni-marinara sauce

I took 2 chicken breasts, placed them in a large Ziploc bag and pounded them with a mallet until flat.

I then marinated with this chipotle chicken season pkg.(only ½ of the pkg.) 1/8^th of a cup of water and 1 tsp. of oil. I let this mixture marinade for 30 min.- to an hour.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a separate Ziploc bag take panko bread crumbs as well as the special k and mix together. I poured ½ of each bread crumb in but I poured it very sparingly. Then I took each chicken breast and cut into half to make (4) pieces of chicken. Take each piece individually and shake in the bread crumb mixture(kinda like shake and bake). Then place each piece on a cooling rack over a baking sheet. This allows the chicken to get really crispy! Almost like a fried chicken! Then place in the oven for 15-20 min. (or until the chicken feels just like your forehead when you poke it with your finger…This means that it is done, but still juicy)!

While the chicken is cooking, take some pepperoni(I used about  4 slices per serving. So, 16 slices and place on a hot pan with ¼ diced red onion. Cook until the onion is a bit opaque and add 1/3 jar of marinara sauce and simmer.

Once the chicken is done, pour the marinara over it, top with shredded mozzarella cheese and top with one fresh basil leaf.

Place in the oven with the broiler on high for 3-5 min. or until the cheese bubbles and waaalllaaahhh!!! Such a great dish(One of my favorites)! Happy eating y’all!

Greek Chicken

I marinated 2 chicken breasts in light Caesar dressing(I used the brand Ken's), sprinkled with salt, pepper, oregano, and paprika. Let sit for 30 min.

I then took one large skillet and one cast iron skillet and placed on the oven. I will cook the spinach mixture in the skillet and the chicken in the cast iron skillet.

For the spinach..

I took 2 tablespoons of grape seed oil(or you could use olive oil) and added to the pan. I then added 1/2 diced onion and 3/4 bag of baby spinach. Once the spinach has withered a bit, I added 2 sliced of pre-cooked bacon(sliced), and two teaspoons of diced sun-dried tomatoes(If they are packed in oil, run them under hot water to get the oil off)., and 1 tablespoon of minced garlic. Continue to cook for 3-4 more min. and set the mixture aside.

For the chicken:

In the cast Iron skillet I added enough grape seed oil just to coat the pan and seared the chicken breast on each side for 4 min. All you want is to brown both sides.

Then set aside.

in a baking dish, add the chicken and top with the spinach mixture.

Then top with a little Feta cheese

In the same iron skillet I cooked the chicken in I added 2 palm fulls of panko bread crumbs(about 1/3 cup) and 1 tablespoon of minced garlic. Let cook for about 3 min. and then place that mixture over the Greek chicken.

Cook in a pre-heated oven of 425 degrees for 20 min. or until juices run clear.

Take out and serve with my "is it mashed potatoes or Cauliflower" recipe posted on 1/29/11

Happy eating Y'all!

Non-fried chicken and green beans w/bacon and potatoes!

I made this dinner from a complete nod from Paula Deen and her son Bobby. I made my own twists to the recipes but... I really followed the main ingredients.

For the green beans and potatoes....

this is a real easy recipe and pretty healthy. I bought about a pound to a pound and a half of fresh green beans. Snap off the ends and then again in half and toss in the pot(after rinsing) Dice up 1/2 of a sweet, yellow onion, about 4 pre-cooked bacon slices(the pre cooked is so much easier BUT you can throw in 2 slices of uncooked bacon(i used turkey bacon this time). It will have more grease in it but the flavor is really good) and cut 3-5 red potatoes into quarters. Throw all of that in there with a can of chicken stock.cover and cook on med. heat until all is tender. About 20-30 min. Add a pinch of salt and pepper for flavor and then a palm full (about 1 tablespoon) of dried oregano or dried Italian seasoning (you can get that Italian seasoning at walmart for .50 right now)!

For the non fried chicken.

I took 8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs. I seasoned them to my liking. In a separate bowl I mixed1/4 cup of fat free miracle whip, the zest and juice of 1/2 lemon, 1 egg white and hot sauce as desired(optional).then I took a bowl of Kellogg's brand corn flake crumbs mixed with panko bread crumbs. Dredged the chicken in the wet mixture than into the bread crumbs. I placed the thighs on a cooling rack over a baking sheet and baked on 375 degrees for 40-45 min.

Serve with honey Mustard or Ranch and waaaalllaaahhhh.. yummy, healthy meal! Thank you Deen Family!