Sweet and Sour Chicken

Ingredients

3 tablespoons of olive oil, divided
4 small or 3 large boneless/skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1 red bell pepper, peeled, seeded and sliced
6 scallions, cleaned and sliced into large pieces (whites and greens)
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 bottle Russian or Catalina salad dressing
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup corn starch mixed with 1/2 cup water
1 can tid-bit pineapple
Salt & Pepper to taste


In a large skillet, cook chicken in 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium high heat until cooked through (about 6 minutes) stirring occasionally. Remove chicken to a foil covered plate.

Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to the pan and add scallions and bell pepper and saute for 3 minutes on med high heat. Lower heat to med and add chicken stock salad dressing, soy sauce, vinegar, and starch mixture and stir until thickened (about 3 minutes) add salt & pepper and stir in chicken and pineapple.

Serve over rice!

Bolognese Sauce with Thick Pasta

Adapted from Rachael Ray's Recipe...I made a few changes. She doesn't mind :)

Rachael says to Double this recipe and freeze the other half for a quick meal when you need it.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 pound bacon, diced small
2 pounds ground lean hamburger
1 onion, diced
1 carrot, shredded
2 celery stalks, diced
2 garlic cloves, grated or minced
Salt & Pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
2 bay leaves
1/2 tablespoon thyme
1/4 cup tomato paste
5 cups beef stock
1 pound of thick pasta like papperadelle (I found this at Trader Joe's)
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped for topping

Preparation

In a large pot heat olive oil over med-high heat, then add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until brown 4-5 minutes. Remove from pan and reserve.

Add the hamburger to the pan the bacon was cooked in and brown well, about 10 minutes. Add the onions, carrots, celery, garlic and cook, stirring until soft, 4-5 minutes.

Add salt, pepper, allspice, bay leaves and thyme and cook, stirring for 30 seconds. Add the reserved bacon back into the pan and stir in the tomato paste. Cook 3-4 minutes to caramelize. Add in 2 cups of the beef stock and scrape the tasty stuff off the bottom of the pan (wooden spoon). Cook until half of the liquid is evaporated, about 2-3 minutes.

Add the rest of the beef stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to med-low and simmer until the sauce is thickened. About 1 and 1/2 to 2 hours stirring occasionally to keep sauce from sticking to the bottom of the pan. This could be put in a crock pot at this stage and cook on low for 5 hours.

Cook pasta according to package, drain, reserving one cup of pasta water, and add back to pan along with reserved pasta water and 1 cup of Parmesan cheese. Add 1/2 the sauce (reserving the other half to pour over top) and toss well to coat.

Serve the pasta on shallow dishes. top with additional sauce and sprinkle with chopped parsley and cheese.

Rachael used red wine for two cups of the beef stock. She also put in a cup of heavy cream to the sauce at the end but I decided to keep the calories lower by not adding the cream. The alcohol in the wine cooks off and does leave a great flavor but I like to use non-alcoholic wine.

BBQ Chicken/Pork/Beef

In a crock pot sprayed with spray vegetable oil, place 4-6 chicken breasts (frozen okay) and cover with a bottle of BBQ sauce of your choice. Cook on low for 8 hours and shred with 2 forks when done. Serve with Kaiser Rolls!

Can be used with Pork Tenderloin or Beef Brisket also!

Chile Verde

1 pork tenderloin
1 jar green salsa

Spray crock pot with spray oil.
Place Pork Tenderloin on the bottom of crock pot.
Pour green salsa over the top.
Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours.

Serve with tortillas and all the fixings!

(You can substitute red salsa for a yummy change!)

Hula Joes

Ingredients

1 Tbs EVOO-extra virgin olive oil
1/4 pound smoked bacon, diced
1 1/2 pounds ground pork
1 sweet onion such as Maui or Vidalia, finely chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped or grated (tip...I buy a jar of peeled garlic at Wal*Mart or Winco)
3 tbs brown sugar
3 tbs red wine vinegar
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1 cup tomato sauce
1 cup fresh or canned pinapple, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
8 Kaiser rolls (or 6 if you like more Joe on your bun)

Preheat broiler.

Place a large skillit over medium-high heat with one turn of EVOO, about 1 tbs. Cook bacon in pan until crispy, 3-4 minutes, and remove it to a small bowl.

Return the pan with the bacon fat back over the heat, add the ground pork and cook until golden brown and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Add the onion and garlic to the pan and cook until tender, about 5-6 minutes.

While the pork and onions are cooking, in a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, red wine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and tomato sauce. Pour in the skillet with the pork and onion, cook about a minute, then stir in pinapple. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

While filling is cooking, split open the rolls and toast them under the broiler. Be careful not to burn them!

To serve, place bun bottom on a plate with a scoop of Hula Joe mixture and a sprinkling of cheddar cheese, top with bun cap!

Thanks to Rachel Ray for this family favorite!!!

Serve with sweet potato fries! (cut sweet potatos into french fry slices, place on baking sheet and drizzle EVOO over and sprinkle with cajun seasoning. Bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees)

Caprese-Stuffed Meatballs with Tomato-Pesto Sauce

Ingredients

* 5 to 6 slices of bread, torn up
* 3/4 cup milk (eyeball it)
* 1 pound ground sirloin
* 1 pound ground veal (I use all Ground Sirloin)
* 4 cloves garlic, grated or finely chopped
* A small handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
* 1/2 to 3/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
* 1 teaspoon allspice
* 1 egg
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 4 cherry tomatoes, any stems removed
* 4 bocconcini (mini mozzarella balls), look for ones that are about the size of a cherry tomato. If they are bigger, cut them in half
* 2 tablespoons EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus additional for drizzling, divided
* 1 28-ounce cans San Marzano plum tomatoes
* 1/2 cup homemade or store-bought basil pesto (eyeball it)
* Zest of 1 lemon, if using store-bought pesto
* A loaf of crusty bread

Yields: 4 servings
Preparation

Preheat oven to 425ºF.

Place the torn bread in a small bowl with the milk (make sure all the bread is submerged) and reserve.

In a large bowl, combine the ground meats, garlic, parsley, grated Parmigiano, allspice, egg, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Squeeze out the excess milk from the soaking bread (it should be loose and in small pieces) and add it to the meat mixture. Mix everything with your hands to combine.

Divide the meatball mixture in half, and score each half into eight sections with the back of your hand. Take one of the portions of the meatball mix and slightly flatten it out in your hand. Place a cherry tomato in the center and evenly wrap the meat around the tomato, completely encasing it in the meat.

Transfer the stuffed meatball to a baking sheet, using one half of the baking sheet for the tomato ones and the other for the bocconcini ones so you can keep track of which is stuffed with what. Repeat the processes until the rest of the tomatoes and bocconcini have all been rolled in a portion of the meatball mixture. Drizzle the stuffed meatballs with some EVOO, transfer to the oven and roast 15-18 minutes, until golden brown and firm to the touch.

While the meatballs are cooking, place a saucepot over medium-high heat with 2 turns of the pan of EVOO, about 2 tablespoons. Add the canned tomatoes and break them up with a potato masher or the back of a wooden spoon. Add a little salt and pepper, bring up to a bubble and simmer while the meatballs are cooking.

Once the meatballs are ready, remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the pesto. If you are using store-bought pesto, add in the lemon zest. Transfer all of the sauce into a serving dish and nestle all of the meatballs into the sauce, keeping the cherry tomato-stuffed ones on one side and the bocconcini-stuffed ones on the other. Serve with some sliced crusty bread alongside.

Copyright MMVIII KWP STUDIOS INC. All rights reserved.
132 E. 43rd St., P.O. Box 543 New York, NY 10017, 917.332.3100

This is one of our favorites!!!

Tangerine Dream Chicken with Curry-Carrot Couscous

Rachael's Daytime Talk Show
Ingredients

* 2 tablespoons EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
* 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
* Salt and pepper
* Juice of 4 tangerines or 6 Clementine’s, zest of 1
* 2 tablespoons brown sugar
* 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced
* 1 cinnamon stick
* 1 teaspoon hot sauce
* 2 cups chicken stock, divided
* 1 cup shredded carrots
* 4 scallions, thinly sliced on the bias
* 1 tablespoon curry powder
* 1/2 tablespoon turmeric
* 1 1/2 cups couscous

Yields: 4 servings
Preparation

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with 1 turn of the pan of EVOO. Season chicken with salt and pepper, and cook in the hot pan until brown on both sides and cooked through, about 12 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm.


Add citrus juice and zest, brown sugar, sliced ginger, cinnamon stick, hot sauce and 1/2 cup chicken stock to skillet and simmer until syrupy, 5-6 minutes.


While the sauce cooks, heat 1 tablespoon EVOO in a saucepot over medium heat and sauté carrots and scallions for 3-4 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups stock, bring to a boil then stir in curry, turmeric and couscous. Cover the pot and turn heat off. Let couscous stand 5 minutes, fluff with fork.
Step

To serve, slice chicken breasts on a bias and fan them out on a bed of couscous. Drizzle tangerine sauce over everything.

This one rocked!!!

Copyright MMVIII KWP STUDIOS INC. All rights reserved.
132 E. 43rd St., P.O. Box 543 New York, NY