Tangy Orange Chicken with Coconut Rice

I just figured out how to make a link on my blog all by myself! I am still new to all of this and get super proud of myself when I do something that seems to me to be pretty computer savvy.  Anyway, if you have a toddler, I highly recommend these chicken nuggets.  My son loves them and I don't feel like I'm feeding him all of the weird chemicals that go into regular chicken nuggets. I have only seen them at Whole Foods and they are pretty pricey but i think they are worth it.  If you want to try them out, now would be a great time! They are on sale for $3.19 a box and there is also a $1 off coupon. Look to the right of the page for the deal and the link to the coupon!

 On a trip to the Pig yesterday, I saw that ground round was on sale so I got a medium sized package.  Burgers are definitely reserved for the weekends at our house so I will probably make these for watching the Alabama game.  Avocados were also a really great price so I picked up 2. they are hard as rocks but are now in a paper bag on top of my fridge getting ripe so they can be turned into a topping for my California Green Chili Burgers.  Burgers don't really require a recipe but I'll throw it up next week if anyone is interested!

I believe that I mentioned that I bought some chicken thighs last week at Piggly Wiggly when they were on sale.  I came up with this recipe recently and it went over well at our house so last night I made it for the 3rd time.  I got 2.5 lbs of chicken thighs which is enough for us to have for dinner again tonight. Serving it over coconut rice is optional although I think that it should be served over some kind of rice! I use brown rice when I cook during the week but the coconut milk really turns boring brown rice into something special!

Tangy Orange Chicken with Coconut Rice -As you can see this recipe doesn't require many ingredients and although it cooks for over an hour, the prep time is really fast.

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 pounds skinless chicken thighs 
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 medium/large onion cut in half and thinly sliced (i used red but it doesn't matter)
• 1 large garlic clove minced
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1/2 cup orange marmalade
• 1/3 cup rice vinegar (balsamic vinegar or white vinegar optional)
• 3/4 cup chicken stock



Browning the chicken




• 1/2 cup orange marmalade (i have been using publix low sugar orange marmalade) 

In a small bowl, mix together the marmalade, vinegar and stock and set aside. Heat the oil in a large deep skillet over medium high heat.  Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper.  Add the chicken to the hot oil to brown approximately 5 minutes. Work in batches if all of the chicken won't fit in the pan.  When chicken is brown on one side, remove from the pan and add the onions cooking until soft 3-5 minutes.  Add the garlic, cook an additional minute.  Add the flour and stir for one minute.  Add the broth mixture while scrapping up the bottom of the pan with your spoon.  When the mixture returns to a simmer, add the chicken back into the pan submerging it in the sauce.  Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 1.5 hours.  If you don't have a lid for your pan just use a large plate or cookie sheet etc.  Serve over rice. Serves 4-6

sauce before chicken is added back

finished product

 Coconut Rice- serves 4
1.5 cups rice
2 cups light coconut milk
1 cup water

bring rice, milk, and water to a boil. cover and reduce heat to low/medium low. cook for 20 minutes. don't peek or stir after you have covered it!

Slow cooker Beef Brisket

This is a recipe from the Williams Sonoma Slow Cooker Cookbook that I modified slightly.  I was nervous about the results but it turned out great! Brisket isn't something that I grew up eating and really didn't know much about it but in this recipe the brisket came out super tender and the sauce was DELICIOUS!  I made some plain mashed potatoes (a little butter, milk, salt and pepper) and served the brisket and sauce over them. Because there aren't a whole lot of veggies in this recipe, we had a spinach salad on the side.

Barbecue Style Beef Brisket- The original recipe calls for the brisket to be browned in the pan first before the onions.  I did this with ours last night but I think that this step could be skipped. The brisket may not come out as pretty but I don't believe skipping this step will change the outcome.  It's up to you!  Notice that you have to saute some ingredients in a separate pan before adding them to your slow cooker. I do mine in a dutch oven because my slow cooker is tiny and have the modified cooking temps and times for a dutch oven if you need them.

• 1 cup beef broth
• 2 Tbsp cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1- 14 oz can diced tomatoes with juice
• 1 Tbsp veg. or canola oil
• 1 onions, thinly sliced
• 1 garlic cloves, minced
•  1/2 tsp. allspice
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper 
• 1.5 to 2 lb. beef brisket, trimmed of excess fat

Brisket after 4 hours of cooking

finished product

 In a small bowl, combine the broth, sugar, vinegar and tomatoes and set aside. Generously salt and pepper both side of brisket. In a medium saucepan or skillet heat oil over medium/medium high heat. Add the onions, and sauté until the onions begin to turn translucent, 2 to 3 minutes. Add garlic and saute one minute. Stir in allspice and flour and cook an additional minute.  Pour in the reserved broth mixture, stir and bring to a simmer. Place brisket in slow cooker and cover with sauce. Cover and cook on the high-heat setting for 3 to 4 hours or the low-heat setting for 6 to 8 hours. Turn off slow cooker and let meat rest in the sauce for one hour. The meat should be very tender when pierced with a fork. Transfer the brisket to a cutting board.   Slice the meat across the grain. Spoon the sauce over the meat and serve over mashed potatoes. Serves 4.

ALDI

Since it's friday and I'm not cooking for a day or 2, I wanted to say a few words about ALDI.  I am not ashamed to say that I think ALDI is great. Not for everything but for a LOT. There's no need to worry about coupons because everything is as cheap or cheaper than if you had a coupon. This saves time and money because you know that you are getting the VERY best price of any store. Don't get me wrong,  I love Publix for the free balloons and fun grocery carts for the kids and the awesome customer service but you are paying for it in the cost of the groceries.  I still go to Publix once a week for their Buy One Get One Free sales and for produce that ALDI doesn't offer but I also go to ALDI every week for my staples.  If you've never been, I think that you'd be surprised and impressed by their selection. It is definitely a different shopping experience but once you understand how it works, it's a really great way to shop! I will say that i've never bought any fresh meat there so I can't speak to it's quality but here are some of the items that I get at ALDI and the prices in case you are interested.

Romaine Hearts- $1.99 (a dollar cheaper than any other store)
Rotel- $.59 ($0.75 cheaper)
Cream of Chicken Soup $0.69 (at least $0.50 cheaper)
Tater Tots $1.89 per bag
String Cheese $3.69 ($2.00 cheaper than Walmart Brand!)
Fresh Baby Spinach $1.69 a bag ($1 cheaper)
Crystal Light $1.69 for 6- 2 quart pouches (publix brand is $2.50)
Crumbled Feta $1.99 ($1 to $2 cheaper depending on the store)

*some of my other favorite things to get there are fresh guacamole (same thing as Wholly Guacamole), milk, eggs, canned biscuits/cinnamon rolls, any kind of cheese from sliced provolone to Dill Havarti, mushrooms, avocado, baby carrots, cereal, whole wheat pasta, frozen peas, otter pops, Gogurt, fig newtons, yogurt raisins, sugar, flour, cooking spray, olive oil, vinegar, foil, plastic wrap, canned diced tomatoes, canned or dried beans, tortillas, kettle potato chips, fresh salsa, tortilla chips. you get the picture!

In case you are interested, Monday or Tuesday's recipe will be a slow cooker BBQ Beef Brisket and later in the week Sweet, Salty, Sour Chicken Thighs with Coconut Brown Rice.  The skinless bone-in chicken thighs are a good price at Piggly Wiggly right now. Have a good weekend!

Meatballs and Marinara

You may wonder why I would make my own marinara sauce when it is soooo cheap to buy.  The thing is that I have champagne tastes on a beer budget. I really don't love the popular, mass marketed sauces and it's not in our budget to spend $7 on one of those fancy jars of  "gourmet" tomato sauce for a typical week night meal. I have only recently started making my own sauce and found it to be much tastier than jarred sauce and it really isn't that hard to make. Plus, I can hide an extra veggie in it! I do have to warn you that making it yourself won't save you any money.  So if you are perfectly happy with the stuff at the store, I would just stick with that!

 Healthy Homemade Marinara Sauce- this makes a double batch so take half and freeze it for another day!

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cups chopped carrot
• 1 cup diced onion
•  2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 cans (28 ounces each) crushed tomatoes with basil
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 and 1/4 tsp coarse salt and 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

to prepare the sauce, heat the oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for an additional 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomatoes. Bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 20 minutes. Stir in the salt, pepper, and sugar. Use an immersion blender to puree or let the sauce cool a little before pureeing in a blender. Keep warm over low heat. To eliminate the pureeing step, leave out the carrots and onion and proceed with the rest of the recipe.

sauteed carrots

Blending the sauce after it has simmered

The same reasoning applies to Turkey meatballs. I think that the frozen kind are tough and rubbery and probably highly processed.  I also like making my own because my son loves them and I feel like they are a healthy alternative in a world of processed nuggets and mystery meats for toddlers. Even if you don't feel like spending time on the sauce, I think that homemade meatballs are worth the effort! We serve the sauce and meatballs over whole wheat pasta which makes for a darn healthy dinner!

Turkey Meat Balls-they look prettier if they are browned in a pan first and then baked but to save time and dishes, I just bake them in the oven.

• 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan-Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving (optional)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (or 1 Tbsp dried Italian herbs)
• 1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 1/4 lbs ground turkey
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

My little kitchen helper fresh from the tub

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, stir together the breadcrumbs, Parmesan, parsley, and garlic  until combined. Add the milk, and stir until incorporated. Add the turkey, egg, salt, and pepper, and mix with your hands until well combined. Form mixture into 2-inch balls. Place on a foil lined baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.  Bake for 25-30 minutes until the centers are no longer pink.

Tuscan White Bean Soup

Tuscan White Bean Soup- I have to admit that I ripped this recipe off from Giada. However, her version was a little fancier than the recipe that I am sharing.  For instance, I substituted onion for shallot and left out a sage leaf because I'm not a huge fan of sage (the herb, not the person!) and I wasn't going to go spend $3 on sage when the recipe only called for one leaf.  Anyway, this is the 3rd time that i've made this soup.  Cannellini beans are super creamy and make for a very velvety soup. This soup doesn't take any time to make and doesn't require a lot of ingredients.  Giada's recipe served the soup with toasted ciabatta bread but we are having it tonight as a main course along with grilled ham and cheese sandwiches on sourdough bread.

•  2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup onion chopped
• 2 (15-ounce) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 4 cloves garlic, cut in 1/2
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 

Place a medium, heavy soup pot over medium heat. Add the butter, olive oil, and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the beans and stir to combine. Add the stock and bring the mixture to a simmer. Add the garlic and simmer until the garlic is softened, about 10 minutes. Pour the soup into a large bowl. If you have an immersion blender, puree the soup directly in its pot.  If not, carefully ladle 1/3 to 1/2 of the soup into a blender and puree until smooth. Be careful to hold the top of the blender tightly, as hot liquids expand when they are blended. Pour the blended soup back into the soup pan. Puree the remaining soup. Once all the soup is blended and back in the soup pan, add the cream and the pepper Keep warm, covered, over very low heat.
Tomorrow's recipe will be Homemade Marinara Sauce.  All you will need is 1 large can of  whole tomatoes, 1 onion and a couple of carrots!

Mondays

Things aren't exactly going as planned today. I'ts not been an awful day, just harder than usual. Wade just doesn't want to go along with my plans and Savannah decided to cut her nap very, very, short. Anyway, I just wanted to get the word out that there is a coupon at Piggly Wiggly on top of the deli case for $1 off when you buy a half pound or more of Sara Lee deli meat. They already have the best deals on deli meat and if you add the coupon, you are saving $3 or $4 over what Publix charges.  The coupons are first come first serve so I grabbed a bunch. i think that they expire in November but this will save me a lot because i'm buying about 1.5 lbs of lunch meat every week!

My food plans have also changed. I did a slow cooker recipe last night that was so good that now there's not enough for leftovers for tonight!  I have had to rethink the menu a little bit for this week but here's what I'm planning so far...Tonight I am going to make a Tuscan White Bean Soup that we will have with grilled ham and cheese sandwiches.  I'm hitting costco tomorrow to get some ground turkey and later in the week we will have Spaghetti and Turkey Meatballs.  I make the meatballs and also the marinara sauce but you could just as easily open up a jar of pasta sauce to save yourself some time.  After looking through my slow cooker cookbook, a BBQ Brisket recipe jumped out at me and then i saw that it was on sale at Publix.  I usually don't spend this much money on a cut of meat bound for the slow cooker but the picture just looked too yummy. i'll probably save the brisket for football watching this weekend. 

Stay tuned for the soup recipe and pics tomorrow and the other 3 recipes later in the week!

crispy baked chicken fingers and green pea pesto sauce

Tonight's menu is chicken fingers served with whole wheat pasta with green pea pesto sauce!  This is my first time with the chicken fingers but I make this pesto at least once a month to top a homemade pizza or pasta side dish! Green peas aren't my favorite and i don't like them all mounded up on the side of a plate but I know that they are good for you so I found a way to hide them in a pasta sauce! Trust me, the basil and garlic completely hide the fact that you are eating a green veggie. I always keep a bag of petite green peas in my freezer just for this recipe. Publix recently had a BOGO on frozen organic green peas so I stocked up!


My next post will come early next week and will feature a slow cook recipe for pork tenderloin which are on sale at the Pig until tomorrow.

Panko Crusted Chicken Fingers-these guys are baked  and are so good! Remember that chicken tenders are on sale at Piggly Wiggly through saturday. I got a package of 13 fingers for a little over $4.  This recipe should be enough to have extra for kids or to cut up over a salad for lunch.  Use whatever type of mayo that you like.  I use the olive oil kind and in this capacity, it really isn't adding but about 10 calories per finger. The great thing is mayo adds a little extra flavor and enables the breadcrumbs to stick nicely to the chicken without the mess of using eggs, flour and milk! Wade liked his with ketchup but Reg and I dipped ours in Ken's light honey mustard.

2 cups panko breadcrumbs
 3 tbsp. canola oil
 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
3 tbsp. mayonnaise
Cooking spray
2 lbs. chicken tenders

Preheat the oven to 475˚ F.  In a large skillet, toss the panko with the oil.  Toast over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 8-10 minutes.  Transfer the toasted crumbs to a shallow dish or pie plate. Spray a wire rack lightly with cooking spray and place over a rimmed baking sheet.
 Mix the mustard and mayonnaise together along with a half tsp of salt. Using the back of a spoon or a basting brush, lightly coat both sides of the chicken then coat each piece in the toasted breadcrumbs before placing on the wire rack.
 Lay the coated pieces on the prepared wire rack and repeat with the remaining chicken.
Spray the tops of the chicken pieces lightly with the cooking spray.  Bake until the chicken is cooked through, 12-15 minutes.  Serve warm.

Green Pea Pesto Sauce-this is much thicker than your normal pesto because there's not a lot of oil in it. you can add more if you prefer but if you toss it with hot pasta it should melt and coat the pasta nicely.

1 cup loosely packed basil
1 cup green peas thawed according to package directions
1 garlic clove (or 2 if they are really small)
1/3 cup shredded or grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional if you like spicy) 
1 box pasta (I am using whole wheat rotini)  

Throw the basil, peas, garlic, and Parmesan in a food processor and blend. Scrape down the sides to make sure that all the garlic gets chopped up.  Add in the salt and olive oil and blend again. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and immediately return the pasta to the hot pan over low heat while it's still wet. Add in the pesto and stir over the low heat until the sauce melts and the pasta begins to absorb the pesto about 5 minutes. Serve!

P.S. we actually had this last night for dinner and Reg said that it was like candy. That tells you how much he likes this pesto!

Turkey Meatloaf with Stewed Green Bean and Potatoes

This week on sale at Piggly Wiggly are chicken tenders and pork tenderloin. I bought 2 of the pork because they are just so easy to throw on the grill and there's always leftovers.  Also on sale are snap beans which are my favorite kind of beans and also new potatoes. It turns out that one of my very favorite veggie recipes is stewed green beans and potatoes. it's very easy so i'll include it here. tonight i am going to make up a mess of the beans and potatoes and throw a pork tenderloin on the grill. We have ceasar salad and left over consume rice to complete the meal. Tomorrow I hope to have a recipe up for the chicken tenders and in the week to come, i will include a slow cook recipe for the other pork tenderloin along with side suggestions for both!

In the mean time, I just finished up a turkey meat loaf for last night and i will include that recipe along with the green bean/potato recipe. I ALWAYS have ground turkey in the freezer. So don't be surprised if at least one recipe a week is made from ground turkey. i buy my turkey at costco. It is Butterball brand and comes  4-1.25 lb packages that comes out to about $2.25 per pound which is by far the best deal that i've seen for lean (93/7) ground turkey.

Turkey Meat Loaf- this is a pretty healthy recipe and a great way to hide veggies that you have sitting in the fridge, just omit the red pepper and substitute a half cup of whatever you have on hand. i have thrown in green pepper before and another time grated carrot just to make it extra healthy. No one will ever know! Another super healthy aspect is that whole oats replace breadcrumbs which makes the meatloaf extra high in fiber! I keep a big container of oats in the pantry only for this recipe because we have it at least once a month and makes enough for 2 nights! This meatloaf cost me about $4 to make and most everything can be found in your pantry!

• 1 cup whole oats
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 medium onion, peeled and diced
• 1.25 pounds ground turkey breast
• 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper (optional)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a small bowl, stir together the oats and milk.  Finely chop the  onion. In a large bowl combine the turkey, oat mixture, chopped onion, bell pepper, eggs, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, salt and a few grinds of pepper. Mix just until well combined.
Transfer the mixture to a 9 by 13-inch baking dish and shape into a loaf about 4 inches wide and 2 1/2 inches high. Pour the tomato sauce over the meatloaf . Bake for about 1 hour. 
Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 to15 minutes before slicing.

Stewed Green Beans with Potatoes-If you aren't a big fan of green beans you may want to try this because they come out smothered in potatoes, tomatoes, and garlic. Everything for this recipe I got at the pig except for the olive oil. This will make enough for more than 2 nights and cost me exactly $5.

• 1 pound green beans, trimmed and snapped in half
• 1.5 lbs (approximately) small red potatoes quartered or cut into same size pieces
• 4 large garlic cloves, minced
• 3 TBL extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 (28-ounces) diced tomatoes
• 1 cup water

Cook green beans, potatoes, and garlic in oil with 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper in a 5-quart heavy pot over medium-high heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until vegetables begin to soften and stick to bottom of pot, about 10 minutes.

Add in diced tomatoes. Add water and simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Mash a few potatoes into sauce and season with salt and pepper.