Shirataki Noodles with Peanut sauce

I read about these 'miracle' noodles that were 20 calories in comparison to 120 calories for 'normal' noodles per serving except...they are made from tofu. However I still really liked them and so did Alex however I do NOT recommend using these noodles for non-Asian meals. The trick to feeding someone tofu noodles is to not tell them they are tofu noodles till about 15 mins into dinner :)

5 tbsp peanut butter

1/2 cup chicken stock
3 tbsp rice vinegar
5 cloves crushed garlic
4 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp Sriracha sauce (any hot sauce to you like)
3 tsp ground ginger
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup broccoli
2 chicken breasts
1/2 cup green onions.
2 8-oz packets shiritaki noodles

You can find these noodles at whole foods in the tofu refrigerated section they are sort of pricey but worth it every once in a while. They must stay refrigerated until you are ready to use them.

So they sort of smell, but I swear if you do this they won't ...Open Shirataki Noodles. Drain, rinse and boil for 3 minutes, don’t get it on your hands. Boiling gets rid of the stench.

Once boiled drain the water and add to your chopped green onions in a mixing bowl.

Since I made this there are a few things I would adjust so my directions may not match my pictures exactly but trust me its  better this way. I would combine all 'sauce' ingredients (everything but noodles/veggies) to a microwave safe bowl/mixing cup.... Microwave for about 45 seconds, stir it up, and repeat if necessary to get a nice smooth peanut sauce.

Add about 3/4 of the sauce mixture to your veggies in a saucepan (big enough to add in your noodles later.)

I added everything in separately but I think making the sauce first is better

Meanwhile you will need to bake your chicken with some peanut sauce you can do this however you like, I used my deep covered baker. Take your raw chicken... (that is one breast butterflied) I recommend making two full breasts for meat eaters. Add your peanut sauce to cover...

I popped it in the  microwave for about 11 mins in the baker, you could also just bake in the oven, stove top however you want. 

Dunzo with the chicken, meanwhile add in your noodles/green onion mixture to your veggies after they have sauteed in the sauce for about 5 mins... Give it a toss for about 2 min, then serve with a side of chicken. You could also cut up the chicken and serve it mixed with the veggies.

Hot & Cold, Sweet & Spicy

I was craving Chinese food sans the MSG and I have had a cold the past few days so I really wanted something to clear up my sinus congestion, so I knew I needed something spicy.

For the Hot & Spicy

1 Chicken breast
1 onion
4 carrots
2 cups green beans (ends cut off)
3 cups broccoli (I thawed frozen broccoli)
1/2 bag shelled edamame (frozen veggie section)
Stir fry or Teryiaki sauce
Sriracha sauce (hot sauce)

For the Sweet & Cold

Sobu buckwheat noodles (used them in this post)

Dressing ingredients:
Rice vinegar
1/4 tsp Ground or fresh ginger
2 tsp Sugar
Soy Sauce
Vegetable oil
1 clove garlic-crushed

First you want to get together your 'cold' part of the meal. Boil your buckwheat noodles according to the directions, typically 5-7 minutes, Strain in a colander  and pour cold water over the pasta in the colander to cool it down, set aside while you make the dressing.  One of my first pampered chef products was a gift from our close family friend Carrie. I would always tell her how much I loved her dressings and apparently this contraption held all her dressing secrets in one place :)  I was in love. As a housewarming present she got this for me. There is an Asian dressing on there that is better than any Asian dressing I've bought/tried etc.  Anyway..... Per the directions on the container I made the dressing...

There are very few actual measurements written on the container so I have a hard time translating the liquids in the recipe if you don't have one of these bad boys. I highly recommend one, the Caesar dressing is the bomb.com which I'll be making Friday night!

Measure

Mix



Pour

 Add the noodles to your serving dish, then Pour the dressing over the noodles, Mix well. And place in the fridge.




Once this is in the fridge I was onto the stir-fry.







Chop up you veggies however you like.

I really wanted crinkle carrots so I brought out the mandolin.

Shelled Edamame:

Once all the veggies are in the pan, Top with your Stir fry and sriracha sauce and cook and medium high for about 7mins.

Once the veggies are semi-cooked add in your diced chicken breast

Cook the chicken till it is fully cooked, about 12 mins on medium high heat.  Once the stir fry is done your noodles should be chillin out in the fridge. Serve noodles with stir fry on top. I also added some dressing to lettuce for a side asian salad as well.

Chicken Salad Melt

I really started this with two large cans of Premium white chunk chicken, some celery and some greek yogurt, the basics for a chicken salad, right? Well  I started mixing and playing and this turned out really refreshing!

Ingredients

2 Large cans Premium white meat chicken
2 celery stalks
1 zuchinni
1 cup olives
1 cup Spinach
about 2 cups non-fat Greek Yogurt, use your judgement.
2 tbsp Parmesean cheese
2 tbsp basil pesto
Salt & Pepper ( I did cayenne too)
handlful of Grape tomatoes
1 clove garlic crushed
3 tbsp olive oil
4 slicees of bread (I used sandwich thins)



Drain the chicken the dump it into your mixing bowl, add in your olives.

Chop it all up.

Dice your zuchinni and celery and add it in. Mix the ingredients up. Add in your greek yogurt, basil pesto, salt and pepper. After you mix it up do a taste test and add some more salt and pepper if needed. Cut up your tomatoes and gently 'fold' them in. You don't want to be a psycho mixer with these bc then they will look old and mushy. Place the salad in the fridge.


Preheat your oven to 450

Lightly olive oil your bread, crush the clove of garlic over the bread, spread.

 Sprinkle about 1/2 tbsp cheese on each slice.

Top with spinach a tad olive oil & salt/pepper.

Pop in the oven for about 2-5 mins.

Bring them out and top generously with your chicken salad.

Mom's Chicken Marsala

This is one of my favorite meals my mom would make growing up, makes sense considering it was full of red wine :)  

What you'll need

2 Chicken Breasts

1 cup flour

1 clove crushed garlic

3-4 cups favorite red wine (I used Shiraz)

lotsss of mushrooms

1 box thin spaghetti

Parmesan cheese

Olive oil

Salt and Pepper

Marsala wine is known for its sweet taste, personally I like this dish with the same red wine I would drink in a glass so I went with the Shiraz. This is a meal that is definitely for a red wine lover...

Get your water boiling for your pasta, in another pan start cooking your mushrooms, remember, no oil, no salt, no nothing, just a pan and mushrooms. Let the mushrooms sweat out the water for about 15 mins on medium high heat stirring often. Drain the mushrooms and set them aside.  

Slice the 2 chicken breasts in half making it into 4 thin chicken breasts and cover the chicken breasts with flour.  Put the chicken breasts into a heated pan (medium high, closer to high) with olive oil, I like to lightly salt and pepper the chicken at this point too. Cook them for about 3-5 mins on each side, you will want to cook them about 75% through, you will cook them completely through with the wine.  

Once the chicken looks mostly cooked, remove from pan and add in your red wine and crushed garlic. Let wine reduce for about 5-10 mins, this lightens the tart taste of the wine and just gets really good.  Add your chicken and mushrooms back in and simmer for about 15 mins. Flip over the chicken and stir the pan often.

Drain your pasta, add olive oil, salt and pepper and Parmesan cheese to taste.

Generously pour the red wine sauce over the pasta and serve the chicken and mushrooms all over it.

Dinner and Drinks in one plate :)

Balsamic Glazed Drumsticks

This is a great meal to prepare ahead of time and just pop in the oven for 35 mins and you're set.  I never know what to do with drumsticks, they seem so complicated. I adapted this recipe from one of Giada's on the food network and  it was delicious. Its also a  nice dish to show off at a dinner party and seem really fancy when you're not.

Marinade
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 honey or Agave Nectar (I used Agave Nectar its a vegan form of honey)
1/4 sugar (brown if you have it)
1/4 Soy sauce
3 cloves crushed garlic
Pepper to taste.
3 "sprigs" of Rosemary


10 drumsticks
grape tomatos (optional, but look how pretty it is)

Mix all your marinade ingredients except the rosemary in a bowl making sure to whisky thoroughly considering the agave and sugar tend to sink to the bottom.   In my measurements above I already reduced the sugar for the marinade but be sure to taste and change up the ingredients to your liking.

Meanwhile take your raw drumsticks and pull the skin back. If you leave the skin on the look will be more appealing, it will look like a super glazed drumstick however unless you're going to eat the skin most of the taste is left on the skin, gross. Basically, pull the skin back....which is what I did, and look still pretty...

Now add your chicken to your marinade, trying to cover all of the drumsticks and add in the rosemary. Seal (I used the same tupperware I used to mix the marinade, you could use a large Ziploc bag if you prefer) and place in the fridge for 2 hours. Because mine was in tupperware after about an hour I rearranged my chicken to ensure all of the drumsticks got the proper amount of love from the marinade.

Preheat the oven to 450, prepare your roasting pan by laying down aluminum foil, and add in your drumsticks and if you have grape tomatoes go ahead and add them in between the drumsticks. pour the remainder of your marinde over the chicken.  Cook for about 30-35 mins, when you think they are complete, take out the largest drumstick, cut into the center, if its cooked, all of the drumsticks should be good to go.

I would serve this with couscous or some wild rice but because I was being lazy and in a 'leftover' mode
with my Greek salsa from my nachos  I added the salsa to a bed of spinach, and quickly sauteed some mushrooms with soy sauce, pepper and a little agave as a side. PS the tomatoes are the bomb.com

Buffalo Chicken Lasagna

Yes, it is football season and that mean buffalo EVERYTHING....My obsession has leaked over to my friend  Karen who made these delish buffalo sliders. This is a nice meal to get your Buffalo wing fix while having a hearty meal..

I love this lasagna especially cooking it in the crockpot!

1 Box Whole Wheat lasagna noodles

7 oz skim ricotta cheese (I had to) 

1 cup Greek Yogurt (non-fat) 

1 packet ranch dressing mix or crumbled blue cheese (w/ oregano, basil & garlic powder added to the yogurt/ricotta mixture...) 

1/2 cup Red hot Buffalo Sauce (the plain.. this one has about 4-5 ingredients)

2 precooked chicken breasts shredded

2 bell peppers

1 jar tomato pasta sauce

or  

homemade tomato sauce

• 2 cans crushed tomatoes
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tbsp Basil 
• Pinch of Salt and pepper to taste 
• 3 cloves crushed garlic
• Simmer and stir frequently for 15 mins. and more seasoning to taste 

There are two ways to make this, the old school boil the pasta, layer your oven safe baking dish with the lasagna ingredients the bake in the oven at 350 for about 30-45 mins or crockpot it...  

I love crockpotting lasagna especially when making it for a small group..All of the flavors really cook into the pasta once you crockpot lasagna you'll never go back... 

 Crock Pot directions:  

1. Combine your sauce (jarred or homemade) with the red hot and shredded chicken in a bowl. Set aside 

2. Mix together your Greek yogurt, ricotta cheese and Ranch Packet or your greek yogurt, ricotta cheese blue cheese crumbles and oregano etc. (They are both really good options its just a matter of what is lying around.) 

3.Cut up the bell peppers and set aside. 

4. Assemble.....Spoon a little sauce on the bottom of the crock pot, lay down your UNCOOKED lasagna noodles (trust me.) The hardest part about this recipe (and its not even hard) is getting the lasagna noodle to fit in the crock pot. I typically have one long noodle in the middle and the side ones are noodles broken in half, fit however it works for you. The key to crockpot lasagna is that the noodle must be sandwiched between sauce. Layer: Sauce, noodles, sauce, ricotta cheese mixture, bell peppers, sauce, noodles, sauce and so on...repeat.. once you are done, take less than  a 1/4 cup of water and pour over lasagna.  For the top layer I place more sauce, bell peppers and  I like to plop spoonfuls of the cheese/yogurt mixture to give the finishing effect of slices of fresh mozerella!

This is a picture of the finished product mid-serving....

I typically have 4 noodle layers, so it becomes a thick lasagna. Depending on what kind of crock-pot you have cook on your low setting for about 3 hours, checking on the lasagna( I have Warm, Low & High, I cook on Low for 3 hours or warm for 6) 

About two and half hours in stick a knife in the middle of the lasagna and if goes through smoothly and there is no dry noodle cracking sound you are good to go. Turn off the crock-pot take off the lid and let this sit for about 30 mins. Do not skip or else you'll have a  sloppy lasagna.

Ps Soon I will make a mexican lasagna and show the layering in the crockpot...I am new to this recording every step while cooking, sorry!