Recipe Review: Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

Mmmm. Doesn't the name just sound like it's going to be a good recipe? I'm pretty sure this is another recipe I found via a picture on Pinterest. You can really build up an appetite browsing there.

 A couple of weeks ago * long while back I roasted 2 whole chickens a day or so before the Super Bowl. I knew I would need some for the Wonton 'Quitos but wasn't really sure how much I'd get out of one so I did two. I'm still kinda new to roasting chicken to use in recipes and figuring just how much you get out of one. I used to just buy a rotisserie chicken but haven't done that in probably two years. So anyway, I had two cooked whole chickens, took the meat off the bones and put one into a freezer bag for later. Now it's later! I figured if I was going to spend the time roasting one chicken why not do two? It's nice to have cooked chicken just waiting for me in the freezer. Plus, it saved me from buying another chicken this week.

First off let me say the marinade smells amazing! I did alter the rest of the recipe a little to make it more Weight Watchers friendly and ran it through the Recipe Builder. I just couldn't bring myself to use a cup of heavy cream in the recipe and that's not something I ever have on hand, so I thought I would try using some fat-free evaporated milk (I apparently "stocked up" during the holidays and have a few cans to use) and flour to thicken it a bit.

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas
adapted from Six Sisters Stuff
Serves: 8
WWP+: 7

 Ingredients:
6 Tbsp honey  
5 Tbsp fresh lime juice  
1 Tbsp chili powder  
1/2 tsp garlic powder  

2 cups chopped cooked skinless, boneless chicken breasts, shredded  
8 items Mission® Carb balance whole wheat tortillas - fajita size  
2 cups Weight Watchers reduced fat Mexican style blend shredded cheese  
1 cups fat-free evaporated milk  
2 Tbsp white whole wheat flour  
2 cups canned enchilada sauce, green  

Whisk the first four ingredients and toss with shredded chicken in a resealable bag. Let it marinate for at least a 1/2 hour or up to 6 hrs.

Pour about 1/2 cup enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 baking pan. Fill the tortillas with chicken and shredded cheese, saving any marinade that wasn't absorbed. Set aside about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas.

Put tortillas in 9x13 pan as you go. Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the evaporated milk and heat gently. Add flour and any leftover marinade and cook a couple of minutes until it thickens slightly. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake at 350° degrees for 30 minutes until brown and crispy on top.


*and if you're wondering just how long ago I made these enchiladas I finally found the photo in a folder from mid-February! Better to post late than never!

Menu Plan Monday #43 - March 12

Started to put together a menu plan last week but didn't get back to it, and since I'm running behind I'm not going to link this one up with the other Menu Planners - but I will share a picture I took in London! I took this the first night we were there (after we'd had a little nap!). Imagine stepping out of the subway station and looking up to this!

It's only Wednesday and we've already had a change to the plan, but that's okay. At least I have a plan. This week is pretty busy, and I just now changed out tonight's dinner idea for two reasons. 1. When I made the menu plan I thought we would be here for dinner. Then we were supposed to be in Anchorage tonight, then that plan changed and now we will be here. 2. I didn't thaw yesterday was I was supposed to for tonight, so I moved the Meatloaf muffins to Sunday and now I feel like I'm coming down with a cold so I want soup. Just found a yummy sounding recipe for Chicken Pot Pie Soup and luckily I have everything on hand.

Monday: Boca Chik'n Parm w/spaghetti - the "spaghetti noodles" I used were actually the tofu shiritaki noodles and they were really good. Not to mention they are 0 PointsPlus for 1 serving!

Tusday: Crockpot pulled pork

Wednesday: Chicken Pot Pie Soup - another recipe I'm trying from Skinnytaste. She has the BEST recipes!

Thursday: dinner out in Anchorage. Was supposed to be Wednesday so I'm moving Salmon Thursday to Friday.

Friday: Salmon Sweet Potato Cakes

Saturday: Chicken Rollatini - this was so good last time I just have to make it again!

Sunday: Meatloaf Muffins - I'm excited to make these again. They are really tasty and they make enough for leftovers or to put in the freezer for another night.




Here's another crazy London photo taken near Camden Lock. It's a whole store of mannequin legs modeling tights. I love it!

 

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!

Menu Plan Monday #35

Trying to plan this week's dinner menu around my first ever pantry challenge with myself. I'd like to eat from the pantry and freezer as much as possible (with the exception of Wed.). Breakfasts and lunches are whatever we have on hand.


Monday: Sweet & Sticky Sesame Chicken from Hungry Girl and egg drop soup from the pantry. New to me recipe. Haven't tried before but her's usually work out pretty well and I just happen to have everything except the scallions on hand.

Tuesday: Slow Cooker Flank Steak taco salad with black bean & corn salad (recipes to follow whenever I remember!) :) I ♥ the slow cooker for those days when I'm not going to be home to make dinner. Again, everything on hand except a jar of salsa for the black bean salad.

Wednesday: Lasagna for a crowd based on Easy Lasagna II from Allrecipes, rosemary parm bread knots, green salad, and angel food cake with strawberries and whipped cream - it's my mom's birthday and we're having her over along with my niece and her 1 mo. old baby & bf, my nephew and his wife & 3 kids, my other niece and her bf, and the 2 of us. Yep a crowd.

Thursday: Salmon Thursday! Found a recipe I want to try (review to come) Potato Crusted Salmon!

Friday: we almost always eat out on Friday

Saturday: I like to use Saturday to pull something quick from the freezer that we've had leftover from another dinner.

Sunday:  Veggie Pizza from the freezer

This menu is linked to hundreds of other great menu plans at Org Junkie.

01/23/2012 Recap of last week:
Dave really liked the sesame chicken. I thought it was okay. I'll probably make it again.

The flank steak in the crockpot was really good. I put down a base of sliced onions, the flank steak, and then topped it with part of a can diced tomatoes. When I got home I pulled it all out with a slotted spoon and shredded the meat. We had it as shredded beef taco salad. I totally forgot to make the black bean & corn salad.

The lasagna turned out great. Those bread knots . . . mmmm. . . drool.

Didn't use the salmon recipe I had in mind. Modified another recipe that's been awaiting my review/post. Fingers crossed that happens soon.

Friday we did eat out. Saturday we had frozen pizza. Sunday. . . oh yeah, we had my niece and her b/f over for dinner. Made halibut breaded in the parm crusted chicken recipe, and those blueberry bars that everyone loves.

Menu Plan Monday #34

Short and sweet. I never used to plan meals, even when I worked out of the house, but now if I don't it throws everything off. I just need reminders to thaw the meat for the next day.


Monday: Porcupine Meatballs - it's a classic. Meatballs simmered in tomatoey sauce. Serve over extra rice.

Tuesday: Gina's Chicken & Mushrooms in Garlic Wine Sauce - recipe review later in the week

Wednesday: Pork Tenderloin with balsamic reduction

Thursday: Salmon Thursday!

Friday: out

Saturday: leftovers or something from the freezer.

Sunday: TBD -Sunday is the Golden Globes. It's the only awards show I really enjoy watching. We may be eating leftovers that evening too. Depends on how crazy the weekend is otherwise.

My menu plan is linked to hundreds of others at Menu Plan Monday or OrgJunkie.

Menu Plan Monday #33

New year and an attempt to get back on track with all sorts of things. Today starts with making a menu plan and a grocery list. Maybe later in the week I'll post a couple of recipes. Oh and it's super freezing cold here (-12°F!) so I'm mostly thinking comfort foods, but lightened up a bit.

Monday: Turkey shepherds pie

Tuesday: Salmon Sweet Potato Cakes

Wednesday: Chicken Lettuce Wraps and Thai noodle salad

Thursday: the return of "Salmon Thursday"

Friday: out

Saturday: Stuffed Peppers

Sunday: leftovers or pizza

Hope you all are off to a wonderful start to the new year. Any big plans or resolutions?

This menu is linked to Menu Plan Monday at Orgjunkie.com

Menu Plan Monday #27 - A Mini Menu Plan

No, it's not as exciting as it sounds. It's not a menu of all mini-items, but wouldn't that be fun! Maybe sometime in the future we'll have themed menu plans. This week's mini plan is just 3 days worth of dinners because we're leaving for vacation on Thursday and will just be eating out the rest of the week. YAY! for vacation!! We do have some fresh veggies and things that I would like to use up before we go, so this is what I came up with.

Monday: BBQ pork sandwiches with coleslaw and corn on the cob

Tuesday: Grilled chicken using this marinade from Allrecipes, along with fresh green beans. We may have artichokes this evening too.

Wednesday: Veggie (and whatever else) Fried Rice. Yes, fried rice is a good way to use up what's left in the fridge, and what we don't eat can go in the freezer for later. Leftover fried rice would be great stuffed into peppers or tomatoes, or even zucchini.



I'm hoping to get another post or two completed before we go, but...we'll see.

This menu is linked to Menu Plan Monday on OrgJunkie. Check out tons of other great menu plans there!

Recipe Review: Sesame Chicken

I had planned to make some sort of chicken for dinner (but failed to plan what recipe), wanted something a little different, and remembered this recipe for Sesame Chicken from Melissa d'Arabian from Food Network. I did make a couple of substitutions.

Sesame Chicken
original recipe Melissa d'Arabian

3 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, nearly thawed
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons orange marmalade
1 tablespoon sweet rice cooking wine (aji mirin), or white wine
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup flour
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
3 tablespoons butter, melted - omitted. subbed with evoo spray - not PAM.
Rice, for serving

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.

Cut the chicken breasts into 1-inch cubes (easiest when not completely thawed). In a medium bowl, mix together the soy sauce, orange marmalade, wine, and crushed red pepper flakes. Toss in the chicken cubes and marinate for at least 10 minutes and up to 8 hours in the refrigerator.

In another bowl or plastic bag, mix together the flour and sesame seeds. Drain the chicken cubes and blot any excess liquid, and then toss in the flour to coat lightly. Spread the chicken cubes on the prepared baking sheet and drizzle with the melted butter. Bake until the chicken is crispy but not dry, about 20 minutes, turning the cubes halfway through. Serve with rice.

My substitutions were a sesame ginger seasoning mix my mother-in-law picked up for me, and pineapple ice cream topping. I had to work with what I could find on short notice.

The verdict: The chicken was tasty. Next time I will probably make a reduction using additional preserves/ice cream topping and soy sauce and then toss the chicken with the sauce after it is baked.

Perfectly Cooked Chicken

 How do we find these things anyway, through a blog of a friend, of a friend, of a friend...you know. So, I can't really tell you how or why I found someones blog with a link to the kitchn blog where I found this terrific information on making perfectly moist cooked chicken! Like they say in the instructions, you have to trust without peeking that the chicken will come out perfectly - and it did! I'm so impressed. I've never gotten chicken exactly right (usually for overcooking "just to be safe") until this time.

Before I started cooking the chicken I caramelized some onions in the oven. Once the onions were done I prepped the chicken and put some asparagus in the toaster oven to roast away while the chicken basically cooked itself. During the last 10 minutes (still no peeking!) of the chicken cooking, I started sauteing some sliced mushrooms in a separate pan, added a little flour then added chicken stock and Parisien Bonnes Herbs (which thanks to Lyndsey's recommendation I had in the pantry from our last trip out of AK when we stopped at Penzey's Spices). Once the sauce thickened I added in the already cooked caramelized onions.

The picture didn't turn out that great - but the food was fantastic and the chicken was perfectly cooked through and moist! Try it, you'll see!

Recipe Review: Chicken Lettuce Wraps

So last night I made the Chicken Lettuce Wraps from Taste of Home. Of course I always have a few adjustments to the recipe so the flavors suit our taste. The list of ingredients looks a bit long, but other than having to buy the specific lettuce for the wraps these are items I usually have on-hand for Asian-type cooking.

I couldn't think of what to serve with them, so we had some mashed sweet potato and a quick 5-cup salad.

The wraps turned out really tasty and I will definitely be making them again. Sorry for the poor photo - I was so starving and ready to eat that I just snapped a quick cell phone photo.





Chicken Lettuce Wraps
adapted from Taste of Home

Ingredients:
1-1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1 tablespoon plus 1-1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil, divided
3/4 cup chopped fresh mushrooms
1 can (8 ounces) water chestnuts, drained and diced (yep, they would have been better if I had read "diced")
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium teriyaki sauce ( I used Yoshida's)
1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (omitted)
1-1/2 cups shredded carrots
1/2 cup julienned green onions
12 Bibb or Boston lettuce leaves
1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted

In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook chicken
in 1 tablespoon oil for 3 minutes; drain. Add the mushrooms, water
chestnuts and ginger; cook 4-6 minutes longer or until chicken is no
longer pink. Drain and set aside.
 
In a small bowl, whisk the vinegar, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, garlic
powder, red pepper flakes and remaining oil. Stir in the carrots,
onions and chicken mixture. (I actually heated this in the pan I had cooked the chicken in and then stirred it all together - including the slivered almonds)

Spoon onto lettuce leaves; sprinkle with almonds. If desired, fold sides of lettuce over filling and roll up.

Yield: 6 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 2 wraps equals 230 calories, 9 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 63 mg cholesterol, 278 mg sodium, 12 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 26 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 very lean meat, 2 vegetable, 1 fat.

Menu Plan Monday #2

For some reason I'm having trouble coming up with the menu for this week. Probably because it's starting to feel like fall outside and I want warm comfort food. I usually enjoy trying new recipes, and this week is no exception, I've found a couple that are new to me, and some where I'm going to wing-it and see how it turns out.

Monday: Snacking Tofu (from TinySkillet) & soba noodle stir fry (simple - soba noodles & whatever veggies I have on-hand to add to stir fry)

Tuesday: Beef Stroganoff Stew - this one I'm putting together based on a yummy stew we had at a local restaurant last winter. I had completely forgotten about it until this morning. If it turns out I'll post my recipe later in the week.

Wednesday: State Fair food - planning to go to the Fair this evening and enjoy some of the great food they have there.

Thursday: Almond Crusted Chicken & fettuccine alfredo & stuffed zucchini

Friday: TBD - we usually eat out on Friday night

Saturday: 5Fix Fresh Pea Ravioli & herb crusted salmon

Sunday: Leftovers

This post is linked to Menu Plan Monday at Organizing Junkie. Check out the hundreds of other menus posted.

Recipe Review: Baked Almond Parm Encrusted Chicken

I came across this recipe a couple of days ago while desperately searching for another one (no idea what the original search was for at this point, but I was doing some serious digging when I found this one). This recipe is originally by Amanda over at Lunchbox Limbo. It sounded so good to me and I had everything on hand, so this became my hubby's birthday dinner. I was going to sub pecans for the almonds, but he reminded me he doesn't like pecans. Good grief, who doesn't like pecans?! I used to sit at the kitchen table with my grandpa in Texas and clean the just collected pecans for what seemed like hours. So yummy, and when you're cleaning them you just HAVE to have one, or two, or . . . too many to count. Seriously, I love pecans and just tasting one takes me back there. But as I said, I did not use pecans in this recipe, but I might next time. Shhhh, don't tell.

Baked Almond Parmesan Encrusted Chicken
Adapted from: Lunchbox Limbo

1 1/2 cups almonds, chopped in food processor until fine
3/4 cup grated parmasean cheese
Panko
Italian Seasoning
1 egg, beaten
B.S. Chicken breast


Mix together chopped almonds, parm, panko & Italian seasoning. Pour part of almond parm mixture into a shallow dish. Put beaten egg in another shallow dish. Dip chicken in egg and then in almond mixture.  Keep the other almond mixture separate so you can use it again later (uncontaminated by the raw chicken). I keep mine in the freezer for later.


At this point you can bake in a preheated oven in a dish that has been sprayed with oil, or cook in a pan in a tsp. of olive oil (what I did).

My review: We both really liked this dish, and I'll definitely make it again. If I had been thinking I would have made a pan sauce once the chicken was cooked, but instead I made a simple gravy on the side and served it with steamed new potatoes from the local farmers market and some frozen green beans.

The Plated Bento

The other day I was in a hurry for lunch, but wanted to have a sort-of bento too, so I threw this together in my bento box. No, there's no way I could have gotten either lid on there, but it was nice to have it all in it's own little box, even if it was on a plate. The plate was more for balancing issues since we were eating in front of the tv (bad I know).

Inside the sandwich thin is chicken salad I made from leftover roasted chicken, a little mayo, grapes & apples, then there's a babybel cheese, fresh watermelon & pineapple, and macaroni salad from the deli.