David and I got married last summer, and everyone threw us a couples’ shower last spring. The day was beautiful, and everyone had a good time. Not surprisingly, a huge portion of  the gifts were for the kitchen, and we still use them all the time. Even the Chop ‘N Scoops.

The shower was centered around the fact that Dave and I like to cook. One game involved having people identify different fresh herb plants, and another stocked our spice cabinet by having people bring the spice that represented them the most and then make their case (the winner was my good friend Becky from high school—for as long as I’ve known her, she’s been obsessed with the color orange, and for the spice game, she brought a jar of dried orange peel. Case closed!).

The other really cool thing that the bridesmaids did was to collect recipes from everybody and compile them into a cookbook. We look through it often, and I finally got the chance to try one last week: Chicken Enchiladas.

I wouldn’t call this dish authentic. It’s not meant to be. But between you and me, I’ve made more authentic enchiladas, and I’ve eaten authentic enchiladas, and I’m pretty sure I liked these the best. I liked them with chicken, but I bet they’d be just as good with ground beef, shredded beef, or even chorizo.

Double Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

• 1 lb cooked chicken breasts, cut into cubes
• 16 ounce jar of salsa con queso
• 16 ounce container sour cream (I used reduced fat; I usually do)
• 2 1/2 cups shredded cheese, divided (I used Tillamook medium cheddar, but sharp cheddar or jack, or even a combination, would be good), divided.
• 1 small can enchilada sauce, mild
• 3 Tablespoons taco seasoning
• 10-12 small corn tortillas

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat a 9×13 casserole dish with cooking spray. Cover the bottom of the dish with a thin, even layer of enchilada sauce.
2. In a large bowl, combine salsa con queso,  sour cream, and 1 & 1/2 cups shredded cheese. Add chicken and taco seasoning, and stir to combine.
3. Fill each tortilla with a 1/4 cup of the chicken & cheese mixture, roll up, and place seam-side down in prepared baking dish. Repeat, until the dish is full of tortillas. You should have at least 1 cup of the chicken/cheese mixture leftover.
4. Pour a layer of enchilada sauce over the tortillas in the baking dish. Carefully spread with the remaining chicken/cheese mixture. Sprinkle with remaining cup of shredded cheese and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until heated all the way through. Let rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Note: I prefer the corningware dish for this casserole, instead of something like Pyrex, because the corningware doesn’t stick very much and is easier to clean. It’s also a little deeper.

I like the top layer of cheese to get crunchy at the edges, but if you don’t, just cover this with foil. Even though there’s sour cream in this dish, we used extra sour cream when we ate it. I enjoyed scooping up these enchiladas with thick, crunchy tortilla chips.

I make this chicken & couscous dish every so often. It’s actually very nearly the recipe on the back of the package of Near East Herbed Chicken couscous. There are a few reasons I like this dish: First, it’s very easy to make. Second, it’s very tasty, with bright, fresh flavors. Third, it’s  healthy (very little oil is used, and one chicken breast with a serving of couscous is less than 350 calories, combined).

I’ve been making this for awhile–it’s actually one of my dad’s favorites out of all the dishes I make.

Lemon-Rosemary Chicken with Herbed Couscous

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon fresh or dried rosemary, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons white wine
• 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon lemon juice, divided
• 1 package Near East herbed chicken couscous

1. Bring 1 & 3/4 cups of water to a boil in a small saucepan. When the water comes to a boil, add the couscous, spice sack, 1/2 teaspoon of rosemary, and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and cover. Set aside.

2. Pound chicken breasts to 1/4 inch thickness. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and rosemary. Dredge in dried bread crumbs. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken breasts and cook, turning once, until the chicken is browned on all sides and heated through (about 9-11 minutes).

3. Mix white wine and lemon juice together in a small bowl. When chicken is cooked through, carefully add the wine/lemon mixture to the pan. Cook for 1-2 more minutes until liquid is gone.

4. Fluff couscous with a fork and serve with chicken.

Our first wedding or engagement gift of any kind was a panini press that David’s mom picked up for us. It’s cast-iron/enamel, similar to this one. We actually use it quite a bit. Often, our panini are just glorified grilled cheeses (and there’s nothing wrong with that!) but last time, I created something a little more special.

Chicken & Bacon Panini with Sun-Dried Tomato Aioli

For each sandwiches:

• Two slices of good quality bread (We like this sourdough)
• 1 tablespoon of whole grain mustard
• 1 tablespoon sun-dried tomato aioli (recipe follows)
• 2 ounces thinly sliced deli or leftover chicken breast
• 2 slices crispy bacon
• 1 ounce fontina cheese, thinly sliced
• 1 ounce sharp cheddar cheese, thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons of olive oil

1. Preheat a panini pan and press over medium high heat.

2. Spread one slice of bread with the aioli. Top with fontina cheese, followed by chicken, bacon, and cheddar cheese, in that order. Spread the remaining slice of bread with mustard to complete the sandwich. .

3. Brush the outside of the sandwich (both slices of bread) with extra virgin olive oil.

4. Place in panini pan and top with press. The sandwich is done when the bread is crisp all around and the cheese is melted all the way through. Slice in half and serve immediately.

Sun-Dried Tomato Aioli
Makes enough for 4 sandwiches

• 1/4 cup of mayonaise
• 1/4 cup of sun-dried tomatoes (oil packed), drained
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Turn on your food processor and drop garlic cloves into the bowl through the feeding tube to chop. When the garlic has been minced, scrape down the sides andadd the other ingredients. Pulse until combined, about 10 times.

This Chicken Cordon Bleu (Chicken breast, stuffed with ham and cheese) recipe lightens the traditional fried version by using part-skim mozzarella in place of the fattier swiss cheese and by baking instead of frying. The prosciutto brings a lot more flavor to the dish than the deli ham that most recipes call for. We were happy with the results.

Chicken Cordon Bleu
Adapted from Cooking Light magazine

A Chicken & 40 Cloves is a classic dish, and it should be, because it’s delicious. Like so many other classic dishes, Alton Brown is our source for the ultimate Chicken & 40 Cloves, intially. We’ve had it several times before, but this time I tried it with a twist, using Cornish Game Hens in place of the normal chicken. It was definitely a success. The cornish game hens made the meal seem a little fancier than our average dinner around here, but if you prefer, you can make this dish with any skin-on, bone-in chicken. We’ve used a whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces before, and we’ve also used this method on a couple of split chicken breasts. In a pinch, we’ve even used boneless skinless chicken breasts (which isn’t quite as good, but is passable).

I served this chicken with parmesan risotto and lots of crusty bread to soak up the tasty garlic oil, spread with soft, sweet cloves of roasted garlic. The garlic bread might be the best part!

“Baby” Chicken & 40 Cloves (Cornish Game Hens)
Adapted from Alton Brown’s A Chicken & 40 Cloves

• 3 cornish game hens, cleaned and patted dry
• 1 cup olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon
• 40 cloves of fresh garlic, peeled, but kept whole
• salt & freshly cracked pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large, oven-safe skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil over medium high heat, just until the surface starts to shimmer.

Sprinkle salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning over the breast side of the cornish game hens and then place breast side down in the skillet. Heat for 4-5 minutes or until the skin begins to brown. Flip each hen over.

Add all 40 cloves of garlic to the pan, around the cornish hens, and pour the remaining cup of olive oil over the whole skillet. Bake for 1 hour, until chicken is cooked through and garlic is soft and  spreadable.

Note: I know a cup of oil sounds crazy, but it’s delicious garlic oil that goes deliciously on bread, or can be drizzled over vegetables or mashed potatoes. And don’t waste that garlic. Get yourself a crusty loaf of french or italian bread, slice it, lightly toast it, then brush each slice with some of your garlic oil. Spread one or two cloves of the roasted garlic, then sprinkle with just a smidge of parmesan cheese. Roasted garlic has such a sweet, mellow flavor compared to the garlic you’re probably used to. You don’t know what you’re missing.

I actually smash the leftover garlic into a paste and save it for other dishes. I’ve added leftovers from this batch to pasta salad, mashed potatoes, and sun-dried tomato aioli. I wonder what I’ll do with the rest?

For the past few seasons, I’ve watched The Biggest Loser pretty regularly. Sure, there’s nothing realistic about the conditions, and yes, they fall into the reality show trap of drama, drama, drama. But despite all of that, it’s still really inspiring what the contestants are able to accomplish in just a few weeks on the ranch.

I picked up The Biggest Loser Cookbook a while back, and finally got around to trying one of the recipes last week when I made their Pecan Crusted Chicken.

As the book said, the breading contains enough pecans to be satisfying, but not enough to make the crust unhealthy. This recipe was pretty simple, though I made a few changes to up the flavor a little bit. The recipe below is my take on this tasty dish.

Pecan-Crusted Chicken
Adapted from The Biggest Loser Cookbook

• 1 large egg white
• 4 tablespoons minced toasted pecans
• 1/4 cup dried bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• fresh cracked black pepper
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon honey

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a nonstick baking sheet with cooking spray, or cover with parchment paper. In a small shallow bowl, beat the egg white, honey, and mustard with a fork.

In another small bowl, combine the toasted pecans, bread crumbs, parsley, salt, and pepper. Spread on a sheet of wax paper. Dip each chicken breast into the egg white/mustard mixture to coat. Place the smooth side of the breast on the nut mixture; press to adhere. Place the breast, nut side up, on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the other chicken breasts and place on the baking sheet, so that the pieces are not touching.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until no longer pink. Let stand 5 minutes.

Note: If you’ve never toasted pecans, it’s pretty simple to do. You can either spread them in a single layer on a non-stick baking sheet and bake on the top rack of a 350 degree oven for 2-4 minutes until lightly browned. You can also toast pecans or other nuts in a small skillet over medium heat. Keep an eye on them, because they can burn quickly. Your nose will know when they’re done though–toasted pecans smell delicious!

I found this dish on The Knot website when I was still buried in wedding planning last summer, but it sounded promising, so I bookmarked it. We’ve made it twice now. The first time, as listed below. The second time, I used a whole package of noodles, which lightened it quite a bit by spreading the creamy cheese sauce out over a greater number of servings. Anyway, it’s great as written, but easily made healthier, which is a nice feature in a recipe.

Chicken Noodles Romanoff
From the cookbook Most Loved Casseroles by Jean Paré

• 5 cups medium egg noodles
• 2 cups chopped cooked chicken
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup 2% cottage cheese
• 1 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 tablespoon onion flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions:

Cook noodles in boiling salted water in large uncovered saucepan or Dutch oven for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender but firm. Drain. Return to same saucepan.

Add next 9 ingredients. Stir. Transfer to greased 3 quart casserole.

Sprinkle with second amount of Cheddar cheese. Bake, uncovered, in 350°F oven for 30 to 40 minutes until heated through.

Note: You don’t have to use leftover chicken. If you need to make the chicken from scratch: Start with 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (4 – 6 ounces each). Place in a large frying pan with 1 cup water or chicken broth. Simmer, covered, for 12 to 14 minutes until no longer pink inside. Drain. Chop. Makes about 2 cups of cooked chicken.

I substituted low fat cheese and low fat sour cream to make this dish a little bit healthier, and the taste didn’t suffer at all. It’s really a nice comfort food style casserole; like macaroni & cheese, but with a lighter taste and texture.

Another soup? I know, right?

Truth be told, David had to have a tooth pulled, and that had me seeking out soft things for him to eat. There’s not much softer than soup!

This chicken & dumpling soup was a tasty, quick meal. Using store-bought chicken stock gave this dish a long-cooked taste, even though it was finished in about half an hour. Fresh herbs really upped the flavor profile from what you’d normally expect in a quick soup. All in all, I was pleased.

Herbed Chicken & Dumpling Soup
Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine

• Cooking spray
• 8  ounces  skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 3/4  cup  (1/4-inch) diagonally cut celery
• 1/2  cup  (1/4-inch) diagonally cut carrot
• 1/2  cup  chopped onion
• 1/8  teaspoon  dried thyme
• 3  parsley sprigs
• 1  bay leaf
• 3  cups chicken stock
• 2.25  ounces  all-purpose flour (about 1/2 cup)
• 1  tablespoon  chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4  teaspoon  baking powder
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  cup  1% low-fat milk

Chicken Parmesan doesn’t need much explanation. You all know what I’m talking about. Crunchy chicken breast, tomato sauce, cheese. Usually with pasta. This recipe is a little different from how I usually make Chicken Parmesan–adapted from the Pesto Stuffed Chicken Breasts that I’d made earlier in the week. I topped these chicken breasts with provolone cheese for a change from the more mild mozzarella.

If you’ve never tried gnocchi before, they’re Italian potato dumplings–like little nuggets of pasta. I like the ones stocked by Trader Joe’s, but you can usually find them in the pasta aisle of your regular grocery store.

Chicken Parmesan with Tomato Basil Gnocchi
Adapted from EatingWell Magazine

• 4 slices provolone or mozzarella cheese
• 1 jar of spaghetti sauce, divided
• 3 tablespoons basil pesto (store-bought or homemade)
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (1-1 1/4 pounds total)
• 1 egg white
• 1/4 cup plain dry breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning blend
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 package gnocchi (Italian potato dumplings)
• 1 ounce grated Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.

2. Lightly beat egg white with a fork in a medium bowl. Place both kinds of breadcrumbs in a shallow glass dish. Stir in Italian seasoning and garlic powder. Dip each chicken breast in the egg white, then dredge in the breadcrumbs. (Discard leftovers.)

3. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts; cook until browned on one side, about 2 minutes. Place the chicken, browned-side up, on the prepared baking sheet. Top each chicken breast with 3 Tablespoons of spaghetti sauce and one slice of cheese. Bake until the chicken is no longer pink in the center or until an instant-read thermometer registers 170°F, about 20 minutes.

4. While the chicken bakes, boil gnocchi according to package directions. Drain. In a medium sauce pan, stir cooked gnocchi, remaining spaghetti sauce, and pesto together and heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Serve with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, alongside chicken.

I’m always on the lookout for healthy recipes that don’t look like healthy recipes. Partly because I’m not generally a fan of HEALTHY healthy food. Partly because I don’t care for very many vegetables. Partly because I like cooking too much to give up all the tasty things I love to make. Partly because if I want to eat healthy, I’ve got to find a way to make sure my “test kitchen” wants to eat it also.

This recipe sounded promising from the start. Cream cheese? Pesto? Crunchy chicken breast? Sounds amazing, doesn’t it? Hardly sounds healthy at all, really. Except that the cheese is low-fat cream cheese, the pesto is made with heart-healthy olive oil, the breading is egg whites and super-crunchy panko and the chicken is briefly pan-fried before being finished in the oven–giving it all the crunch of a fattening fried chicken breast, with much less oil.

Cheesy Pesto Stuffed Chicken Breasts
Adapted from EatingWell Magazine

• 2 tablespoons reduced-fat cream cheese (neufchâtel cheese)
• 1 tablespoon basil pesto (store-bought or homemade)
• Freshly ground pepper to taste
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (1-1 1/4 pounds total)
• 1 egg white
• 1/4 cup plain dry breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning blend
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.

2. Combine cream cheese, pesto and pepper in a small bowl with a fork.

3. Cut a horizontal slit along the thin, long edge of a chicken breast half, nearly through to the opposite side. Open up each breast and place one-fourth of the filling in the center. Close the breast over the filling, pressing the edges firmly together to seal. Repeat with the remaining chicken breasts and filling.

4. Lightly beat egg white with a fork in a medium bowl. Place both kinds of breadcrumbs in a shallow glass dish. Stir in italian seasoning and garlic powder. Hold each chicken breast half together and dip in the egg white, then dredge in the breadcrumbs. (Discard leftovers.)

5. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts; cook until browned on one side, about 2 minutes. Place the chicken, browned-side up, on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until the chicken is no longer pink in the center or until an instant-read thermometer registers 170°F, about 20 minutes.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per chicken breast: 233 calories; 7 g fat; 71 mg cholesterol; 11 g carbohydrate; 30 g protein; 1 g fiber; 231 mg sodium.

Note: This is one of the most decadent healthy recipes I’ve come across in a long time. If you’ve never used neufchâtel cheese you’ll be pleasantly surprised; it’s like cream cheese, but has 1/3 less fat than traditional cream cheese, without any of the aftertaste or texture problems of “low fat,” “reduced fat,” or “fat free” cream cheese. Look for the “1/3 less fat than cream cheese” in the product name, and you’ll know you’re buying the right one. I did use a small container of storebought pesto, only because my basil crop wasn’t quite ripe for picking. I served this with Pesto Mashed Potatoes, which is code for leftover mashed potatoes with pesto in them (about 1 Tbsp of pesto for every cup of mashed potatoes). The whole dinner was delicious.