Family Favorites

Asian-Inspired Chicken Wrap Recipe

I came up with this recipe one night when I was really craving my favorite Chinese take-out but we didn’t have the money for restaurant-quality Asian meals. I love House of Tsang peanut sauce because it’s got a real spicy kick to it. It’s also great on salads! To mellow it out for my kids I mix it with a little mayo and spread only a little bit on their wrap.

Ingredients:
4 10-inch flour tortillas
Bottled Asian-flavored peanut sauce
2 cups frozen, pre-cooked sliced chicken breast strips
4 leaves Romaine lettuce, sliced
½ cup cooked black beans (or use a can of black beans and save the leftovers for another meal)
1 carrot, peeled and sliced julienne
¼ red cabbage, sliced thin

To make each chicken wrap, spread peanut sauce down the center of the tortilla. Layer with ¼ of the lettuce, carrots, and cabbage. Then place a few chicken breast strips on top, sprinkle some beans over that. Roll it all up like a burrito and enjoy!

Chipotle Lime Chicken Recipe

This is a super easy and citrus-y dinner. This chipotle lime chicken recipe is quick to throw together on a busy night. Just pair with some steamed veggies and instant rice and you’re good to go!

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts*
2 limes, halved
2 Tbsp. Olive oil
Ground chipotle chile, about 2 tsp. **
Salt and Pepper to taste

Place chicken in a bag. Squeeze the juice from the limes into the bag of chicken, seal, and allow it to marinate in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.

During this time you could trim some veggies and get them ready to steam or start a pot of white rice.
Remove the chicken from the bag and sprinkle with chipotle chile, salt, and pepper.

Heat olive oil in a large fry pan and add chicken. Cook for about 6 minutes on each side or until internal temperature reaches 165.

Bon apetit!

*If you pound the chicken to an even thickness, it cooks more evenly (and faster!)

** The chipotle chile I use, by McCormick, is medium-to-mild heat. Sprinkled lightly over the chicken, it gives flavor with very little heat. My 10-year-old and toddler twins didn’t even notice the spice.

Teriyaki Chicken Dinner

This is a great, easy teriyaki chicken dinner that is good and good for you! I usually prefer to serve brown rice, but white rice is my go-to carb for quick dinners. This meal will be on the table in 30 minutes!

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
½ cup low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds
2 tsp. sesame seed oil
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. crushed ginger
Long grain white rice
Fresh broccoli crowns

Place the soy sauce, sesame seeds, sesame seed oil, ginger, and brown sugar in a ziplock bag and mix well. Add the chicken, seal the bag, and put it in the fridge to marinate until you’re ready for it.

Meanwhile, cook the rice according to package directions and chop and trim the broccoli. Cover a baking pan with aluminum foil. Place the chicken on the aluminum foil and, while the rice is cooking, place the chicken in the oven under the broiler. Broil for about 10 minutes (depending on thickness of the breasts), turning it over after 5 minutes. During the chicken cooking time, steam the broccoli using a sauce pan with a steamer basket insert. The chicken is done when it is 165° when tested with a meat thermometer.

And that’s it! I hope you enjoy your teriyaki chicken dinner!

Southwest Skillet Chicken Recipe

I like the southwest flavors you get when you combine tomatoes, chiles, corn, and cumin. This recipe has all of that, and it is pretty easy to prepare!

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. olive oil
½ C. diced onion
3 cloves minced garlic
2 Lbs. chicken tenders
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes with green chiles with the juice
1 (14.5 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 C. frozen corn, thawed
1 tsp. cumin
Diced avocado (optional)
Chopped cilantro (optional)
Directions:
Heat oil in a large nonstick pan. Add onion and garlic and sauté for 3-5 minutes.
Add chicken to the pan with the onions and garlic, and cook for 5-7 minutes on each side. If the chicken doesn’t all fit in the pan, you may have to cook it in 2 batches.

Add the diced tomatoes, black beans, and corn. Sprinkle with cumin and mix the ingredients well. Cook together for 2-3 minutes, or until heated through.

To serve, top with cilantro and/or avocado!

Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken Recipe

This is a quick and easy chicken dinner for those busy weeknights. It has great, sweet flavor from the brown sugar and is very kid-friendly!

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tsp. onion powder
Salt and pepper
2 Tbsp butter
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 tbsp brown sugar
1/3 C. chicken stock
2 Tbsp. Sherry
½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450.

Season the chicken with onion powder, salt and pepper.

Heat a large fry pan over medium heat. Melt the butter in the pan and sauté the garlic in butter. Add the chicken breasts and sear on both sides.

Removing the chicken from heat, sprinkle it with a pinch of crushed red pepper.

Add the chicken stock and sherry to the pan and scrape up any brown bits. Stir in the brown sugar.

Place chicken in a prepared baking dish and cover with the sugar mixture. Bake for 15 minutes or until juices run clear and internal temperature reads 165.

That’s it! Yum!

Apple Spice Coffee Cake Recipe

Did you know that October is National Apple Month? It makes sense~there are so many ripe apples just falling off of the trees in our town that I haven’t had to buy any! My coworkers are bringing them in to work and just giving them away! So, in honor of National Apple Month (and because I love apple-spice recipes), here is my first EVER “treat” recipe to be shared on my blog. That’s right, this is NOT a crock pot or quick weeknight meal. I’m totally stepping out of my comfort zone here. But not to worry, my coworkers were the ~~unlucky victims~~ happy helpers in testing this out at last week’s potluck and they liked it. I made it a bit speedier for the busy mom by using applesauce instead of fresh apples. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

¼ cup unsalted butter, softened

½ cup sugar

2 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup applesauce

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

For Crumbled Topping:

½ cup light brown sugar

½ cup flour

½ tsp. cinnamon

4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened

Preheat the oven to 350 and grease a 9×13 baking dish. Cream together ¼ unsalted butter and ½ cup sugar. Beat in eggs. Stir in sour cream, then vanilla, then applesauce. In a separate bowl, sift together 2 cups flour, 1 tsp. cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Add to wet ingredients. Pour into the prepared baking dish.

For the crumbled topping, mix all ingredients together until crumbly. Sprinkle over the cake.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Homemade Pesto Recipe

I’ve always been afraid to make my own pesto. I love the store brand pesto so much, I was sure I couldn’t top their stuff! I finally mustered up the courage and gave it a go anyway. It turned out pretty close to store-brand taste, and I got to snack on the ingredients as I was ~~cooking~~ food processing!

Ingredients:

2 C. fresh basil

1/4 C. pine nuts

1/2 C. olive oil

1/2 tsp. salt (or more to taste)

1 cube (1″x1″) of Romano cheese, broken into crumbles

1/2 tsp. sugar

homemade basil pesto recipe

Put everything into a food processor and blend until smooth. That’s it!

Quick Chicken Fajitas Recipe

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp. fajita seasoning mix
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
2 green bell peppers, cut into thin strips
½ white onion, sliced
2 limes, cut into wedges
8-inch tortillas

Sides (optional):
Shredded, Mexican-blend cheese
Sour cream
Extra lime wedges
Avocado or guacamole
Rice
Refried beans

chicken recipe fajitas

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the chicken and cook for 5 minutes.
Add the bell peppers, onion, and fajita seasoning mix to the skillet. Squeeze the lime over the meat and vegetables. Cook, uncovered and stirring continuously, for another 5-7 minutes or until vegetables are soft and chicken is no longer pink in the middle.
Serve with tortillas and your choice of sides.

Easy, right? Is this how you make your fajitas?

Chicken and Pasta

This semi-crispy chicken recipe turned out very yummy, and worked well paired with some green beans, pasta and alfredo sauce. It was another one of my “quick dinner” chicken recipes, so I though you might like to try it as well.

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup bread crumbs
4 Tbsp. olive oil
uncooked penne pasta
10 oz. jar refrigerated Alfredo sauce (or try my homemade version!)
1 lb. green beans, trimmed

Pound chicken with a meat mallet for faster and more even cooking.
Coat chicken with a thin layer of mustard and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle breadcrumbs on both sides of chicken pieces.

Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a skillet and cook chicken for about 4 minutes on each side or until internal temperature reads 170°. Remove from heat and tent with foil.

Insert a steamer basket into a saucepan and add about 1 inch of water. Bring to a boil and add green beans. Cook, covered, about 5 minutes or until crisp-tender.

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and stir in alfredo sauce.

That’s it! It’s easy, although be warned-it uses a lot of dishes. This was a fave for all of us, so let me know what you think!

Barbecue Chicken Pizza Recipe

Often on Friday nights we have homemade pizza instead of going out. It satisfies my need for restaurant-style food since we can’t go out to dinner with our twins~it’s pretty miserable. I got sick of the same old pepperoni or sausage pizza recipes I’m always making, so decided to mix it up and do a BBQ pizza. It was AWESOME! I also tried out a new pre-made pizza dough, which I recommend.

Homemade pizza barbecue chicken recipe

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 pound chicken breast tenders, cut into about 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
2 Tbsp. chopped red onion
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 Tbsp. snipped fresh cilantro
1 box Jiffy pizza crust mix
1 cup hot water
Heat the oil in a skillet. Add the chopped chicken and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, make the dough according to package directions. Allow it to rest, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes.

Drain the liquids from the skillet and add 1 Tbsp. of the barbecue sauce. Cook and stir for an additional 4-5 minutes. Coat a pizza pan (I just use a rectangular baking pan) with nonstick spray and press the dough out flat into the pan.*
Spread the remaining barbecue sauce over the pizza dough and top with cheese, chicken, onions and cilantro.
Barbecue Chicken Pizza Recipe Homemade Bake in 450° oven for 12-15 minutes, or until dough is golden-brown.
*I was skeptical that the Jiffy pizza crust would be enough pizza dough for a pizza large enough to feed our family. It spread out thin enough, but not too thin, and turned out great. This is my new favorite pizza dough! I don’t have time to make dough from scratch, and the refrigerated or frozen ones are too sticky and hard to manage.

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