The good news is, the ingredients were things I basically keep on hand. Sugar. Garlic Powder. Chili Powder. Vinegar. Mustard. Ketchup. I like when recipes can be made from the pantry staples that I keep on hand. (I also like stocking my pantry so I can make most things, but that’s another post). The other good news is that the recipe came out pretty tasty.

The not-as-good news was that it ended up tasting mostly like bottled barbecue sauce. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t good, but it’s probably more trouble than it’s worth if you’ve already got barbecue sauce on hand. Unless we’re out of our regular sauce or something, I don’t think I’ll be making this again.

The recipe called for bone-in chicken thighs, but I stuck with our standard boneless, skinless chicken breasts and everything turned out fine.

P.S. The tasty looking side dish you see with the chicken was an awesome two-corn polenta. Check back for that recipe tomorrow!

Barbecue Chicken with Mustard Glaze
Adapted from Cooking Light magazine, July 2009

Ingredients

• 2  tablespoons  dark brown sugar
• 2  teaspoons  garlic powder
• 2  teaspoons  chili powder
• 1  teaspoon  smoked paprika
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  cup  ketchup
• 1  tablespoon  dark brown sugar
• 1  tablespoon  sherry or red wine vinegar
• 1  tablespoon  Dijon mustard
• 4  boneless skinless chicken breasts
• Cooking spray

1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Combine ketchup and next 3 ingredients (through mustard) in a small bowl; stir with a whisk.

2. Heat a large grill pan over medium-high heat. Rub spice mixture evenly over chicken thighs. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add chicken to pan; cook 5-7 minutes. Turn chicken over. Brush with half of ketchup mixture; cook 5-7 minutes. Turn chicken over. Brush with remaining ketchup mixture; cook 2 minutes or until a thermometer registers 165°.

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One nice thing though: I ground the chicken breasts myself to make these burgers, which saved a little bit of money since we buy chicken breasts in bulk  and ground chicken can be a little bit on the expensive side. Yay for another chance to use the food grinder attachment for our stand mixer!

Cheese-Stuffed Chicken Burgers
Adapted from Weight Watchers Comfort Classics

• 3/4 cup shredded 2% sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 1 pound ground chicken breast
• 1/3 cup dried seasoned bread crumbs
• salt and pepper
• 4 light multigrain English muffins, split & toasted
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 4 lettuce leaves
• 4 tomato slices
• pickle slices

1. Mix the cheese and mustard together in a small dish. Stir the chicken, bread crumbs, and salt & pepper together in a medium bowl until just blended. Shape into 4 balls. With your index finger, make a deep indentation in each ball. Fill each indentation with 3 tablespoons of the cheese mixture. Fold the chicken mixture around the cheese to seal; shape each one into a patty.

2. Spray a nonstick grill pan with nonstick spray, and place over medium heat. (Could also be done on a George Foreman Grill, if you’re into that sort of thing). Place the burgers in the pan and cook until a thermometer inserted into the side of each burger (without touching the cheese) registers 165 degrees. It should take about 6-7 minutes on each side.

3. Serve the burgers in the english muffins topped with ketchup, lettuce, tomato, and pickles.

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Crispy Oven-Fried Chicken with Sage Gravy

• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons four
• 2 egg whites, beaten
• 1 1/3 cup cornflake crumbs
• Bone-in, skin-on chicken, about 2 pounds worth (use the pieces you like)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (would increase next time)
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/4  cup fat-free buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon fresh sage, finely chopped
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a rimmed cookie sheet with foil.  Place a wire rack in the pan, spray the rack lightly with nonstick spray.

2. Place 1/2 cup flour in a shallow dish. Put the egg whites in another shallow dish. Place the cornflake crumbs in a third dish.

3. Place the chicken in a large bowl. Sprinkle with salt and cayenne. Add the buttermilk and turn to coat. Dip the chicken, one piece at a time, into the flour, then the egg whites, then the cornflake crumbs. Place the chicken on the rack. Spray the top of the chicken lightly with nonstick spray. Bake until golden brown and cooked through, about 45 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, to make the gravy, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium high heat. Whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons flour and cook, whisking frequently, for about a minute. Gradually whisk in the chicken broth. Continue whisking and cooking, until the gravy comes to a boil and thickens, about 2 minutes. Stir in the sage and pepper. Serve the gravy with the cooked chicken.

310 calories, 11 grams of fat, and 1 fiber, for about 2 pieces of chicken.

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First, it uses boneless skinless chicken thighs. If you’ve ever tried to eat healthy, you probably found yourself eating a lot of boneless skinless chicken breasts. You hear all the time that white meat is healthier than dark meat, that the skin is terrible for you, etc. And while that’s technically true, even dark meat poultry can be a healthy choice. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are the embodiment of that. They have a bit more fat than the breast meat, it’s true–but they’ll also bring a lot more flavor to your dish, and tend to be a bit more moist than boneless skinless chicken breasts. And they’re just as convenient! If you prefer thighs and legs when you order your chicken from a fast food place, you’ll probably be much happier with boneless skinless chicken thighs than with breasts.

Second, it takes advantage of the broiler, a feature of my oven that I severely neglect. We live in the city, on the 16th floor, which makes grilling a fairly complicated option. Enter: the broiler. Basically anything you can grill you can cook under your broiler. It doesn’t take the place of the taste of real charcoal grilling, but if you’re using a gas grill, you probably wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.

Spicy Honey-Brushed Chicken Thighs
Adapted from Cooking Light, March 2007

• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
• Cooking spray
• 6 tablespoons honey
• 2 teaspoons cider vinegar

Preheat broiler.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl. Add chicken to bowl; toss to coat. Place chicken on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Broil chicken 5 minutes on each side.

Combine honey and vinegar in a small bowl, stirring well. Remove chicken from oven; brush 1/4 cup honey mixture on chicken. Broil 1 minute. Remove chicken from oven and turn over. Brush chicken with remaining honey mixture. Broil 1 additional minute or until chicken is done.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 chicken thighs) CALORIES 321 FAT 11g FIBER 0.6g

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Rather than the typical simple fare, I tried for something a little fancier. We sat at the table, for one. Opened a bottle of wine, and had this pasta dish and garlic bread. Finally, topped it all off with Coconut Cake, which you’ll be hearing more about tomorrow. All in all, I think David was happy with his birthday dinner. It did make me wish that we’d do that kind of thing more often.

Pasta was an easy choice when planning a dinner for David, but I wanted to try something new, AND pick something he’d especially like, which is how I ended up with Chicken Cacciatore. Veggies (mostly peppers and onions) and tomato sauce and pasta–I knew he would be a fan. The sauce was made with balsamic and red wine, both of which David loves. It was a natural choice.

Chicken Cacciatore

Ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 4 breast halves)
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 medium green pepper, chopped
• 1 medium yellow pepper, chopped
• 3 medium garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 cups red wine
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 29 oz canned stewed tomatoes, Italian-style
• 2 tsp dried Italian seasoning (Ours is the Little Italy NYC-Style, from the Spice House)
• 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, snipped
• 1 13.5 oz box whole wheat spaghetti

Directions:

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Lightly coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Add olive oil and heat. Add chicken breasts and cook over medium heat until browned and juices run clear, about 5 minutes on each side.

Add onions, pepper and garlic to skillet. Cook until vegetables are softened, about 2 minutes.

Stir in wine, balsamic vinegar, tomatoes and Italian seasoning. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve over cooked pasta.

Note: I thought this was good, and I’m sure we’ll make it again. I did add a tiny bit of sugar at the end, to balance out some of the acidity in the sauce. David and I liked this because we really like balsamic, but if you aren’t a fan, I wouldn’t recommend this recipe. Also, I skipped the mushrooms for David, but I think they’d be very tasty in this dish.

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All of that is the long way of leading up to this: When I told her I was making Chicken & Dumplings, for the first time, she struggled a little bit. “What’s a dumpling?” she asked. It’s a good question, if you’ve never had them before. I told her it was like a cross between a noodle and a biscuit, which is the best explanation I can come up with. Especially when made like this recipe.

I grew up eating Chicken and Dumplings, the way my grandma makes them (which is the same as the way my dad makes them, and now, the way I make them). They’re tasty, homey, and a great rainy-day or cold-weather food. A classic comfort food. I’m sure I’ll make them for the blog sometime. The only drawback is that they can be a little cumbersome to make. You have to make the pasta by hand, roll it out, and then cook them with the chicken and the sauce. They’re totally worth the work, but it’s not really a weeknight kind of dinner, which had me looking for something a little simpler.

I’d heard that you could make chicken and dumplings with Bisquick or the like, and this was my attempt at that kind of chicken & dumplings. The results were decent, but I’m not going to lie–this wasn’t anything like the real thing. The dumplings were good, but more doughy than I’m used to. And this particular recipe resulted in something closer to a soup or stew than the Chicken and Dumplings I’m used to. It reminded me a lot of my own Chicken Pot Pie filling.

It was okay, and quick and easy, but next time, I’ll put in the effort for the real thing.

Quick and Easy Chicken & Dumplings

• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 cup frozen green peas and carrots
• 1 cup cut-up cooked chicken
• 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup Bisquick mix or other baking mix
• 1/3 cup milk
• paprika

1. Heat milk, peas and carrots, chicken, and soup to boiling in a 3 quart sauce pan, stirring frequently.

2. stir bisquick mix and 1/3 cup of milk until soft dough forms. Drop the dough by spoonful on top of chicken mixture. Sprinkle with paprika.

3. Cook uncovered over low heat for 10 minutes. Cover and cook 10 minutes longer.

1 1/2	cups milk
1	cup frozen green peas and carrots
1	cup cut-up cooked chicken
1	can (10 3/4 ounces) condensed creamy chicken mushroom soup
1	cup Original Bisquick® mix
1/3	cup milk
	Paprika, if desired

Serve with…
Sour Cream-Cranberry Bars
Total Time: 1 hour 57 min

1.	Heat 1 1/2 cups milk, the peas and carrots, chicken and soup to boiling in 3-quart saucepan, stirring frequently.
2.	Stir Bisquick mix and 1/3 cup milk until soft dough forms. Drop dough by 8 spoonfuls onto chicken mixture (do not drop directly into liquid). Sprinkle with paprika.
3.	Cook uncovered over low heat 10 minutes. Cover and cook 10 minutes longer.

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But if you get over that, it was surprisingly good. I like plenty of recipes that start with a can of cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup, but at the end of the day, they tend to taste like recipes that started with a can of soup. This one was different.

The sauce was creamy and delicious, brightened by the flavors of fresh basil and sun-dried tomatoes. I served it with a garlic-basil fettuccine, but regular egg noodles would be fine, I’m sure. Also, I used cream of chicken soup, but technically, the recipe called for cream of mushroom. Use what you like.

Chicken with Sun-Dried Tomatoes

3 tablespoon olive oil
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast half (about 1 pound)
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup thinly-sliced sun-dried tomatoes
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves
4 cups cooked pasta (I used a Basil-Garlic flavored fettuccine)
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Thinly-sliced fresh basil leaves

1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the chicken and cook for 10 minutes or until it’s well browned on both sides.  Remove the chicken from the skillet.

2. Heat the remaining oil in the skillet over medium heat.  Add the shallot and cook and stir for 2 minutes. Stir the soup, water, tomatoes, vinegar and chopped basil in the skillet.

3. Return the chicken to the skillet and heat to a boil.  Reduce the heat to low.  Cook for 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.  Serve the chicken and sauce over the noodles.  Sprinkle with the cheese and sliced basil, if desired.

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Our slow cooker standbys are Beef Stroganoff, Pepper Steak, and Pot Roast. These items all lend themselves to crock pot cooking, in large part because you can take a less expensive cut of meat and make it tender and delicious, just by giving it all day to cook. Pork chops work well enough. Chicken is the one thing I haven’t been able to make in a slow cooker. In the past, I’ve tried a number of recipes with boneless skinless chicken breasts in the crock pot, but I haven’t been happy with the texture of the chicken. It always got too soft. This recipe was different, though.

Using the whole chicken maintained the right texture, and it really couldn’t have been easier. You could season this any way that you choose–I used a chicken spice rub that my friend Jeff bought me for my birthday, but more traditional lemon & herbs, lemon pepper, or paprika would work just as well. Salt, pepper & garlic would be delicious. This chicken tastes like the rotisserie chickens that you would pick up at the grocery store, but it’s more fresh, healthier,  and only a fraction of the cost.

Crockpot Rotisserie Chicken

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That is why the idea of a Chicken Tamale Casserole appealed to me.

It was good, but not great. The good news is, I know what went “wrong” and have some solid ideas of how to fix it. I definitely plan to try this one again sometime.

Chicken Tamale Casserole
Serves 8 – From Cooking Light

1 cup (4 ounces) preshredded 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese, divided
1/3 cup fat-free milk
1/4 cup egg substitute
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
1 (8.5-ounce) box corn muffin mix (such as Martha White)
1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
Cooking spray
1 (10-ounce) can red enchilada sauce (such as Old El Paso)
2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Combine 1/4 cup cheese and next 7 ingredients (through chiles) in a large bowl, stirring just until moist. Pour mixture into a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

3. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until set. Pierce entire surface liberally with a fork; pour enchilada sauce over top. Top with chicken; sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. Cut into 8 pieces; top each serving with 1 tablespoon sour cream.

Note (Or what I would change for next time): First of all, I used Jiffy cornbread mix, which is usually pretty satisfying, as far as corn bread mixes go, but for this recipe, a little too sweet. A less-sweet southern style cornbread mix would have worked better. This recipe came from Cooking Light magazine, but if I wasn’t as concerned about the health aspects of the dish, I probably would have used more cheese. Even trying to keep it light, using reduced fat cheese (there are lots of great 2% blends these days!) would’ve kept the nutritionals the same for a bit more cheese. I think it would’ve made a difference. Finally, I should mention that a handful of crushed corn chips sprinkled over the top was delicious. That one was Cara’s idea.

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Gruyere, Arugula, and Prosciutto-Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Caramelized Shallot Sauce

For the Chicken:

• 6  (4-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 6  (1/2-ounce) slices prosciutto
• 6  (1/2-ounce) slices Gruyère cheese
• 1 1/2  cups  trimmed arugula
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  black pepper
• 3  tablespoons  all-purpose flour
• 1  tablespoon  olive oil
  

For the Sauce:

• 1  cup  thinly sliced shallots
• 2  teaspoons  tomato paste
• 2  cups  dry white wine
• 2 1/4  cups  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  water
• 1  teaspoon  cornstarch

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