Stuffed Chicken Breast

Posted on January 30, 2011 by admin

Though chicken can seem boring at times, it’s versatility can make it wonderful. Chicken goes with so many different types of cuisines and flavors. It’s just about putting a bit of effort into changing it up from time to time. The supermarket had thin sliced chicken breasts on sale, so I bought some to stuff; they’re not worth the price difference otherwise. I’ve never actually made stuffed chicken breasts before but enjoyed them many times. My husband ended up coming home just in time to make these too! Wonderful thing about stuffed chicken breast is how versatile they can be: you can make all different kinds of stuffings — all types of vegetables or like this one, sausage and vegetable stuffings. It doesn’t take as long as one might expect too.

Sausage, Mushroom, Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breast

8 pieces of thin sliced chicken breast or 3-4 pieces of regular breast, sliced lengthwise

1/2 med onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 Italian sweet sausage links, removed from casing (slice lengthwise and separate)

8 Crimini mushrooms, diced

1/3 package frozen organic spinach (thawed) or

4 oz. fresh spinach, steamed and chopped (squeeze out excess water)

Handful or two of shredded flavorful cheese (we used Quattro Formaggio from TJ’s— Asiago, Fontina, Parmesan, and Provolone)

Salt and pepper (check before salting as it might not need any)

2 Tbsp melted clarified butter for oven roasting

Tbsp olive oil for sautéing

Optional breaded coating:

Panko or regular breadcrumbs

3 Tbsp flour

1 egg

Preheat oven to 350F. Sauté onions with olive oil and when nearly clear, add garlic and sausage. Using a flat wooden spatula, break up the sausage as it’s cooking. Once it’s brown add mushrooms and continue to sauté until mushrooms are tender. Add spinach and mix well. Pour into a metal bowl and chill (in a pile of snow if you have as much as we do!) for a few minutes. Mix in the cheese and check for seasoning. Put Tbsp of stuffing mixture on chicken breast and roll. (Optional bread crumb topping would be done now. First dip piece in flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs.) Put clarified butter in bottom of pan so chicken doesn’t stick and pour a little over each roll. Pop in oven for 20 minutes and serve with your favorite sides. We served it with harvest grains, broccoli and snow peas.

My sons all loved this dinner, although my middle son complained about mushrooms being in it before he’d even tried it. He ate the entire dinner anyway. The boys ended up eating the chicken like sushi rolls with their fingers (no grandparents around to disapprove).

Bonus: I had leftover stuffing mixture that I turned into a layer of lasagna the next night.

Snowed In!

Posted on January 18, 2011 by admin

This past week my kids have had a 6 days in a row without school (only 2 were actually snow days) and they’d just returned from the winter holiday break and had a snow day the week before. In the morning I will find out if it will be 7 days in a row. Luckily the inability to get to school has also turned our town into winter wonderland and without having to travel, the kids have had a blast sledding, making snow forts and just playing in the more than 2 feet of snow. If they stay inside too long they drive me and themselves crazy. Snow is such a great draw to play outside; it’s much more fun than rain!

When the first big snowfall of the year was falling I made a simple, quick yet delicious and nutritious meal using leftover roast chicken. We had chicken quesadillas, broccoli and cauliflower, brown and red rice, black beans and peas. Since the rice was left over from a previous meal it took only 10 minutes to cook/assemble the whole dinner.

I used pre-shredded cheese (Cheddar, pepper Jack and Muenster), chicken and chopped cilantro in the tortilla. My husband showed me how the Mexican cooks he works with cook their quesadillas by putting the filling inside one half then folding the tortilla over it. I think it’s easier to flip. Once they’ve browned nicely and the cheese is melted you can cut into pieces and serve. I didn’t have any avocados for guacamole (and wasn’t going out in the snow) but did have some jarred salsa. I only had to heat the peas and beans (added oregano, 1/4 tsp chili powder, some chopped cilantro and garlic powder) and reheat the other veggies and rice.

The kids loved it and it was so little effort.

Funny thing about peas…My middle son said he had to “turn the plate around for the peas express” so it was easier to scoop up. My youngest said when he saw the plate, “I don’t want any. I don’t like them!” I just reminded him that peas are in snow peas and sugar snaps, which he loves, so he tried some. Minutes later when he’d finished all the peas on his plate, “Can I have some more?”

Quick, Quick, Quick — Part II

Posted on January 4, 2011 by admin

Continued from Quick, Quick, Quick

More recipes/ideas for quick meals:

Chicken breast: unlike the dark thigh meat, chicken breast takes only minutes to cook. It is so versatile and can be added to liquids to poach or sautéed (browned) or baked in the oven. I also don’t know many kids who don’t like chicken. Again, just adding a few herbs or spices to the chicken can create a flavorful and quick meal. Just a pinch of paprika and cumin over the cut breast and sautéed in olive oil for just minutes and served over potatoes, noodles or rice. Add a 1/4 cup of cream and you’ve got a wonderful sauce as well. Panko bread crumbs or my homemade bread crumbs with herbs (thyme, oregano, basil, rosemary, sage) coating pieces of chicken breast then baked make a wonderful alternative to chicken nuggets.

Pasta: always on hand in our pantry is a variety of pastas for different meals. There’s nothing wrong with keeping some jarred tomato sauces in there too. I often have Trader Joe’s Organic Tomato Basil sauce in my pantry (it’s healthy and cheap at just over $2 for 25 oz). It’s easy enough to create quick and healthy meals with pasta this way. Pasta is great for sides or for the main course and a wonderful way to incorporate vegetables, especially for those kids who are more resistant to eating them on their own. Just chop veggies, (broccoli, zucchini, squash, beans, spinach, mushrooms, peppers, carrots, kale— all are great in pasta), add to olive oil and minced garlic, some protein (chicken, shrimp, beans, tofu), season with herbs, salt and pepper and lastly add to the pasta and you’ve got a great dish that most kids will love. Ideal way to use up small amounts of vegetables and meats/seafood.

Vegetables: whether the main focus or the side, incorporating many into your children’s diet is ideal. Kids need around 9 servings of fruits and veggies a day. Think of that as 9 fistfuls (the size being that of the recipient). If you need a quick side dish frozen peas are super fast— microwave on high for about 2 minutes, stirring half way. Add a touch of butter to help make it more palatable. Spinach can also be cooked in microwave, steamed for few minutes over boiling water or just throw in sauté pan with Tbsp water, dash of sea salt and cover. Cook for few minutes (until wilted) and drain any excess water, add butter. Broccoli can be boiled/steamed for a several minutes. Just put in cold water when it’s done (soft yet still got some crispness/color). Again add a pat of butter. Butter helps many kids eat their vegetables by providing umami the savoriness they/we like. Fat (butter) is also helpful to absorb many vegetables’ nutrients. Hope this gives you all some ideas to help getting kids to eat healthily. I wish everyone the best for this New Year! I hope more kids will eat well and thrive.

You can always contact me if you have recipe questions or requsts!

Quick, Quick, Quick

Posted on January 2, 2011 by admin

I am often challenged to prepare a meal quickly and healthily for my kids. That’s because I am not the best meal planner, unlike some who write down their upcoming meals on their calendars and buy the ingredients at the beginning of the week. I do try to buy things that I will use together in many ways and figure it which way on the day. This way of shopping is sort of like picking out clothes that are mix and match instead buying a complete outfit. And even if I do plan out some meals in advance, every so often a day goes awry and can lead to what-to-cook-for-dinner-panic. Especially when our day has gotten busier than expected and dinner should have been on the table not still in the fridge/pantry. So, here are a couple of suggestions for those kind of days: what to cook when you only have a few minutes to cook. (I’ve got it listed by protein as most in U.S. consider that the focus— I can touch on that another time.) These are separate ideas and recipes not all for one night.

Fish: I use several types as go-to meals. Most fish is quick, easy, delicious and nutritious. I mostly steer clear of the bigger fish (tuna, swordfish) especially for the kids because of mercury. I also won’t buy many farm-raised because of antibiotics, PCBs and other harmful chemicals. Here is a good resource for what to buy.

It is winter here so I don’t grill as often. I will instead pan fry (in a little canola or safflower oil) some firm, thin fish like tilapia; pan roast (start on the stove, finish in the oven) thicker fish like salmon and snapper; and roast or braise other really thin or flaky fish like sole, cod (a little lemon, butter and white wine make a great combination for those). Serve the fish with rice, potatoes, and several vegetables and/or salad.

One suggestion is firm white fish (tilapia, catfish), lightly coated with Eastern spices and a little dried lemongrass, pan fried in canola oil for a few minutes on each side. I use Penzy’s Singapore Spice blend which combines curry flavors with citrus.

Chickpeas (Garbanzo beans): my staple for either all-vegetarian or partial-vegetarian dishes. I often use chickpeas to stretch the meat in a recipe. I put them in chili, Moroccan dishes and curries. I usually buy canned ones since they’re ready to use in a moment. Cumin, cinnamon, turmeric, paprika, garlic and ginger are all wonderful with chickpeas (in any combination). Throw in some tomatoes, kale and potatoes and you’ve got a complete meal.

To be continued….

Merry, Merry, Happy, Happy

Posted on December 24, 2010 by admin

I am recovering from knee surgery so won’t be posting much for a few more days.

I did actually make the boys and I a wonderful chicken, mushroom and zucchini dish last night which was very similar to the one posted here. My middle son now loves zucchini (yippee!— he “hated” it only months ago) and my youngest loves mushrooms so it’s a win-win dinner. It only took me 20 minutes from start to finish (chopping and all), so it’s great for a quick and nutritious meal and easy while using crutches! I served this one over brown rice (cheated here— frozen TJ’s Organic brown rice takes only 3 minutes in microwave).

Enjoy the holidays with your loved ones. May the New Year be full of peace, happiness and health.

Forgot to buy cream… now what am I making?

Posted on November 18, 2010 by admin

Sometimes my dinners aren’t what was originally planned. The other night I was going to make the chicken and mushrooms in cream sauce that my kids all love, but while I was browning the chicken I remembered I’d used the last of the cream to make scones the day before. So, mid cooking I needed to change course. I had brown rice in my rice cooker. I had the mushrooms all cut. I’d pulled out a zucchini… so what direction should I go? I went Asian style stir-fry. I added sesame oil, fish sauce and soy sauce to the chicken once browned and set that aside. I cut up a small broccoli crown, remaining half a head of cabbage, and the kid’s carrot sticks left over from their snacks. My husband came home from work and helped by chopping garlic, grating fresh ginger and thawing/shelling edamame (soybeans). Boy, at the speed of light he can mince that garlic into tiny pieces— I couldn’t even imagine doing. I threw in some frozen red, yellow and green peppers. And voila, a delicious meal that was not what we planned, but was so healthy and delicious.

You can do this with whatever vegetables you have on hand that seem to go together. I purchased the Cascadian Farms organic frozen peppers and edamame because they are handy and also great in stir-fries. Not every vegetable freezes well, but some are fine and they actually retain their nutritional value plus you won’t worry about unwanted additives (the linings from cans or pesticides) this way.

Chicken, Mushroom, Vegetable Stir Fry

5-6 boneless chicken thighs (or 2 breasts), cut into 2 inch pieces

3 Tbsp tamari soy sauce

1 Tbsp fish sauce

2 tsp sesame oil

1 quart shiitake mushrooms, sliced

1/2 quart white mushrooms, sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp fresh ginger grated

1-2 carrots, chopped

1 small broccoli crown, cut into small pieces

1 organic zucchini, cut in half lengthwise then sliced

1/4-1/2 small cabbage head, chopped

handful organic edamame, shelled

handful organic peppers (multicolored), sliced

canola, sunflower or peanut oil

Brown chicken in 2 tsp oil over med-high heat. Add soy, fish sauce and sesame oil. Set aside. Add another 2 tsp oil and sauté mushrooms. Add garlic and ginger, stirring well for two minutes then add broccoli and carrots. Keep stirring for another two minutes then add zucchini, peppers, cabbage, edamame, chicken in soy mixture. Stir occasionally until vegetables are tender. Check seasoning and add more soy or sesame as needed.

Serve over brown rice or rice noodles.

My kids all loved this and ate their entire meal without fuss. Ok, well, my middle son saw it and said he wasn’t going to eat it and didn’t want it before my eldest and younger sons told him that it was delicious. It was. I was the lucky one who ate the leftovers (it was enough to feed all five of us with one remaining bowl for next day’s lunch). My middle son was the first one of the kids to finish.

It didn’t matter that it wasn’t what I planned. It was healthy, tasty, easy and the kids ate it.

When you do have time

Posted on September 30, 2010 by admin

The weather has turned, the leaves are changing color and falling. Sundays are often our days that my husband or I make a more elaborate or time consuming meal in the cooler months as the summers are picnics at the town green or back yard barbecues. Though we often go to church in the morning and cub scouts on some Sunday afternoons, there isn’t the same daily rush. There’s no school, no work (well, unfortunately not lately for my husband), no homework, usually no client meetings, just violin practice. This is one of my favorite fall/winter dinners: a whole roasted chicken with root vegetables. It takes quite some time to prep— peeling, cutting, chopping, but really the final result is heaven at home. The boys love it but might not eat each and every vegetable. They seem to like more and more the more often we have it.

Roast Chicken with Root Vegetables

One whole chicken
10-12 baby potatoes either whole or cut in half (depending on size), leave skin on
5 carrots, peeled and cut into 2-3 inch chunks
5 parsnips, peeled and cut into 2-3 inch chunks
5 small purple topped turnips, peeled and cut in half (I couldn’t get any, but usually use them)
2-3 sweet potatoes, quartered, leave skin on
handful of whole garlic cloves, peeled
half large onion sliced
handful of pearl onions or shallots
1 Tbsp fresh chopped thyme (strip from stems first)
Olive oil
salt and pepper
2-3 celery stalks with leaves

Preheat oven to 425F. Rinse and pat dry chicken. In large bowl coat chicken with olive oil, salt and pepper and half the chopped thyme. Stuff cavity with celery and onion ends, trim to fit. Place onion slices in the center of a roasting pan in a single layer. Place chicken on top. In bowl take several groups of vegetables and coat with olive oil, remaining thyme, salt and pepper. Place around chicken.

Roast for 20 minutes then reduce heat to 350F. Roast for at least and hour. (If the vegetables are crowding the chicken you can roast some on a separate cookie sheet on the rack beneath the chicken. It’s also nice to separate the vegetables from chicken pan about 20 minutes before done, so they get slightly crispy. So they roast evenly, I like to turn vegetables every 20 minutes or so, but that’s optional— once is good. ) It’s done when temperature of thigh is 165F. If it just under it should be ok as it will cook a little more when you take it out to rest. When chicken is ready, place on cutting board for 10 minutes to rest before carving. I don’t make a gravy or sauce since I find it’s so tasty on it’s own it’s unnecessary. Stuffing the cavity will help breast retain juiciness.

This is a win-win dish for the whole family. Comforting home cooked meal on a chilly evening. Savor the time you have with the kids. One good thing— though it takes some time to prepare and more time to cook, it’s easy to clean up and you have some time while it’s in the oven to play.

Another quick, last minute meal

Posted on September 23, 2010 by admin

I have way too many tomatoes right now so I keep using them in recipes. One confession to make: sometimes I end up throwing them into the compost. It’s not my preferred method of using them, but I just have too many for me to get to. So, today after putting in some time at the farm where we get our CSA I learnt that you can freeze tomatoes to use in sauce (ok, I just have never done it, nor thought that it would be that great) but I decided to go the other route— canning. I have bought some mason jars and other supplies. I remember making jam as a kid and preserving it, so if I could do it then, I’ll try it now.

In the meantime (I just bought the stuff today, give me a day or two), I made some salsa on one day and pizza with the tomatoes as base another. I also used some cherry tomatoes in a killer I-have-no-idea-what-I’m-making-for-dinner-now-because-I spent-too-much-time-chatting-on-the-playground-oh-yea-I-can-make-THIS-pasta. (I was going to make chicken gumbo, but that keeps getting pushed back due to time). I used to throw together these great chicken and pasta dishes that are like my version of stir-fry…whatever vegetables I have in stock that actually go together will go into the dish with chicken, garlic, basil and tomatoes. I try to make it with mushrooms, because they’re perfect here, but I had none.

I used a bit of kale, corn, broccoli, onions, zucchini, orange bell pepper, and carrots. Fussili pasta is perfect, but ziti or farfale will go nicely too. It takes 10 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook (using chicken breast)— if you don’t have to interrupt for looking over kids’ homework or refereeing a squabble.

Chicken and Vegetable Pasta with Garlic and Tomatoes

Approx 1 pound chicken breast (or thighs), deboned, skinned and cut into 1-2 inch pieces (thighs take longer to cook)
2 cloves garlic
1/2 med onion or 2 shallots
10-15 cherry tomatoes, quartered or 2 large tomatoes, diced
handful of fresh basil, chopped
Tbsp fresh chopped parsley
cup chicken or vegetable stock
1/4-1/3 cup white wine
2 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
choice of fresh vegetables, chopped (spinach, beans, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, peppers, carrots, corn, kale, chard, snow or snap peas, asparagus and/or mushrooms)

Put pasta on to cook according to instructions. While that’s cooking: sauté onions then garlic in pan. Add chicken and lightly brown on all sides, careful not to burn garlic. Add wine and stock. Cook for few minutes and add vegetables that take longest first (kale, carrots, peppers) then others (mushrooms, zucchini, broccoli, corn). While stirring, cook another couple of minutes then add herbs and tomatoes, salt and pepper. Mix gently and cook for 2 minutes until tomatoes are warm but not disintegrated. Toss pasta so well coated with sauce and veggies. Serve.

This is always a winner with my kids. Not everyone will like every vegetable each time, but it hardly ever elicits a protest because there’s pasta. It’s great to get rid of left over vegetables and perfect for lunch the following day. And, it uses up some of those tomatoes.

The tomatoes give it a fresh sweetness that goes so nicely with garlic, basil and pasta. You can also substitute shrimp for the chicken.

Mis en place

Posted on September 6, 2010 by admin

Mis en place is a term in cooking which means everything in its place— before you cook. This is one thing that I’ve picked up from my husband. I used to be a bit rash in my cooking and not have everything prepared before I began to cook but that can be tricky especially when cooking with ingredients that need to be added in quick succession.

I needed to use up the remaining chicken thighs that I’d used in the previous night’s dinner and I also had some eggplant I wanted to use. I found a Mark Bittman recipe that I thought sounded delicious. It was a vegetarian dish but you can add meat to it. I added the chicken; lamb would be perfect too. It is something that can’t just be thrown together without prior prep, but it’s worth it! You will need to have all the spices mixed, the ginger, garlic, veggies and chicken chopped prior to cooking. It takes about an hour.

Mark Bittman’s Curried Coconut Eggplant with Potatoes (and Chicken)

I cut the recipe in half because I only had one eggplant. I also added one small zucchini. It was enough for the 4 of us plus there were leftovers for 2. This is the original recipe:

2 med to lg eggplants
salt
neutral oil (I used sunflower)
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cayenne (adjust for kids)
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp minced fresh ginger (I kept this measurement)
2 tsp sliced garlic
3 large tomatoes, cored, peeled, seeded and chopped (I used 1 lg & 1 sm)
3 lg potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes (I used 3 med & one small)
1 1/2 cups coconut milk (you might need to add more depending on consistency)
freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
minced fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

Prep the eggplant first by peeling, cubing and salting. While draining mix the spices, (I ground the coriander seeds with a mortar and pestle.) Then mince the ginger, slice the garlic, and peel and cut them the potatoes. Mix all the spices together then prepare the tomatoes. (To peel slice an X into the bottom, dunk into boiling water for around 20 seconds then put into ice bath. Skin will come right off). Put oil and mustard seeds into a pan over medium heat and cover for about 3 minutes when they began to pop. Add rest of spices, ginger and garlic and cook, stirring often until the ginger and garlic are soft. Next add tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, chicken and coconut milk. Reduce heat, cover and cook for 15 minutes, stirring every so often. Add chicken and cook for another 15 minutes. (While that was simmering I put the rice on so it would be ready at same time.) Add zucchini (optional) and if necessary some more coconut milk, salt and pepper then continue cooking for about 15 minutes (uncovered). Once time is up, stir in the lime juice and serve over rice.

You can also cook the rice in coconut milk (half water, half coconut milk) if you’d like.

My sons loved it! I loved it! My eldest liked it so much that he finished his brother’s after he’d devoured all of his! It was a bit spicy for my middle son but he ate it with a mix of pleasure and pain and lots of water. I hadn’t adjusted the cayenne but noted it for the future.

Chicken, Andouille and White Bean Stew

Posted on September 4, 2010 by admin

Wish I had more time— to write among other things! I tried writing this post last night near midnight after I had just finished filling out paperwork for my 6 year-old’s new school. One thing I loathe when they get back to school is all the papers that come home— flyers and notices. Last year all three were in the same school and I’d get everything in triplicate. Now a different school along with the original, different schedules (not even on the same holiday schedule which will be tricky!), different lunch programs (it’s tough navigating that without dealing with two different providers) and I’m sure more papers coming home. It takes up so much time— time to fill out, time to sort, time to throw away.

I was too tired to write last night and then today, when I finally got the chance, I got consumed by news of the earthquake in New Zealand where I have many loved ones. I am putting off laundry yet again to write… for those wondering how I find the time!

Last night I created a new recipe based upon a Southern or Creole-style dish. I would have loved to have made gumbo but didn’t have any okra or filé so it wouldn’t have been authentic. (Funny I got introduced to and fell in love with gumbo while working in Wellington, NZ) And I didn’t want to overdo it with spices for my kids by serving red rice… so I went with plain white rice.

I used organic free range boneless chicken thighs that I cut into smaller pieces. This is a great way to stretch out your budget and reduce your cooking time. I used chicken Andouille sausage which I like because it means less “meat” in our diet but you can use the more traditional made from pork. Most of my vegetables and herbs were from our CSA and the organic white beans were canned. It was a pleasant moment when I sat down to eat and watch the children dig in with such gusto. My middle son asked if it was “chili” I replied that it was “chicken and sausage chili”. They all loved it but my 6 year-old said it was a little spicy for him— that was mostly the Andouille. I think it took me about 20 minutes of prep and active cooking and another 10-15 of simmering. So, at least I found the time to do this.

Chicken, Andouille and White Bean Stew

3-4 chicken thighs, skinned and boned, cut into 2 inch pieces
2 Andouille sausage links, sliced into 1/2 inch pieces
1 can Cannellini (white kidney) beans
3-4 tomatoes, peeled (or one can) and crushed
1 med onion, diced
1 lg or 2 sm celery stalk, diced
1 sweet green pepper, diced
1 sweet red pepper, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp chili powder
1 cup chicken stock
1 Tbsp basil, chopped
1 Tbsp parsley, chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Brown chicken and set aside. Heat olive oil in pan and sauté onions and celery until clear. Add garlic and peppers and cook until soft. Add paprika and chili powder stirring for one minute. Add tomatoes, chicken stock, chicken, sausage, beans and herbs. Cook for another 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Cover and reduce heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Serve over rice.

As I mentioned, it was delicious and the boys gave it thumbs up but with a bit of extra milk and water drinking to counter the heat. I ate some leftovers for lunch today— even better which is often the case with tomato-based foods.

My Kids Really Eat This

getting kids to eat well in the real world

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