Mexican Chicken Casserole

Casseroles are a great way to stretch a meal into a couple of days. I won't be around tomorrow night to cook supper, so I made this casserole tonight so my man won't be without supper tomorrow. The original recipe calls for 2 cans of the diced green chiles, but I accidentally grabbed a can of diced green chiles and a can of diced jalapenos. It was spicier that I prefer, but I knew Aubrey would be happy about the spicy addition. All in all, I think this was a good recipe. The flavors are rich, and it makes you feel like you're eating a thousand calories. But the good news is that you're not.

Ingredients:
1 cup fat free, less sodium chicken broth
2 (4.5-ounce) cans chopped green chiles, divided
1 3/4 pounds skinned, boned chicken breasts
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup evaporated skim milk
1 cup (4-ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1/4 cup (2-ounces) light cream cheese
1 (10-ounce) can enchilada sauce
12 (6-inch) corn tortillas
Cooking spray
1/2 cup (2-ounces) shredded reduced fat extra sharp cheddar cheese
1 ounce tortilla chips, crushed (about 6 chips)

Directions:
Combine broth and 1 can of chiles in a large skillet; bring to a boil. Add chicken; reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until chicken is done, turning chicken once. Remove chicken from cooking liquid, reserving cooking liquid; cool chicken. Shred meat with two forks, and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350-degrees.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 can of chiles and onion; saute 3 minutes or until soft. Add reserved cooking liquid, milk, Monterey Jack, cream cheese, and enchilada sauce; stir well. Stir in shredded chicken; cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Place 4 tortillas in the bottom of a 2-quart casserole coated with cooking spray. Spoon 2 cups chicken mixture over tortillas. Repeat layers twice, ending with chicken mixture. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and chips. Bake at 350-degrees for 30 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Nutritional Info (per serving): 369 calories; 11.4g fat; 2.4mg iron; 79mg cholesterol; 360mg calcium; 31.3g carbohydrate; 479mg sodium; 35.6g protein; 3g fiber

Source: Cooking Light

Grilled Chicken & Pineapple Quesadillas

I'm always on a search for something new to cook. Of course, I have my staple recipes, but I always welcome a new recipe to try.
Many people like the addition of pineapple to savory dishes such as chicken or ham, but I've never really liked the combination. However, my man does, so I chopped up a pineapple to add to his quesadilla. I left them out on mine, but I had some fresh pineapple the next morning to go on top of my Greek yogurt.


The chicken was absolutely amazing on it's own, and I think that's going to be my go-to recipe for BBQ chicken.

Ingredients:
8 flour tortillas
Butter or Margarine
2 cups grilled pineapple, sliced
3 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper, to taste
Cajun spice, to taste (I used "Slap ya Mama" brand)
3 cups Monterey Jack cheese, grated
1 whole jalapeno, seeded & sliced
Cilantro
3 Tablespoons barbecue sauce

Directions:
Grill pineapple: Cut wedges, stick on skewers, and grill over low heat. Cut into slices.

Pound chicken between 2 pieces of plastic wrap with a mallet to flatten into a uniform thickness. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and Cajun spice. Drizzle olive oil on a grill pan and grill on both sides until done, brushing with barbecue sauce. Set aside and slice into very thin slices.

Warm griddle over medium heat and melt butter in the pan. Slightly warm and toast tortillas on both sides, then remove from griddle and set aside.

To assemble, sprinkle four browned tortillas with grated Monterey Jack. Arrange chicken slices evenly over the surface. Add pineapple slices and jalapeno slices, and sprinkle with cilantro. If desired, drizzle extra barbecue sauce over the top. Add second browned tortilla on top of each one. You will have four complete quesadillas at this point.

Add to oven to warm, or back to skillet to warm, until cheese is melted. Cut each quesadilla into wedges.

Source: Pioneer Woman

Prosciutto, Fontina, and Fig Panini

My grandfather and Aubrey's grandmother each gave us a jar of fig preserves this summer. We've been enjoying the preserves on toast, but I wanted to try something different.
Cooking Light's website had this panini recipe, which was perfect since I'd just bought a grill pan with panini press. Aubrey and I were really pleased with the combination of flavors. The fig preserves and fontina cheese really work well together. Before this, I'd never tasted fontina cheese. To me it tastes like a mix between Swiss cheese and sharp white cheddar.

I whisked together olive oil and balsamic vinegar and added a little of the fig preserves for a good vinaigrette dressing to top a baby arugula salad.

Ingredients:
8 slices Italian bread
4 ounces very thinly sliced prosciutto
1 1/4 cups (4-ounces) fontina cheese, shredded
1/2 cup baby arugula leaves
1/4 cup fig preserves
Olive oil-flavored cooking spray

Directions:
Preheat panini grill.
Top each of 4 bread slices evenly with prosciutto, fontina cheese, and arugula. Spread 1 tablespoon fig preserves evenly over 1 side of each of remaining 4 bread slices. Coat outsides of sandwiches with cooking spray. Place sandwiches on panini grill; cook 3 to 4 minutes or until golden and cheese is melted. Cut panini in half before serving, if desired.

Nutritional Info: 345 calories; 13g fat; 2mg iron; 50mg cholesterol; 202mg calcium; 37.1g carbohydrates; 951mg sodium; 18.2g protein; 1.4g fiber

Source: adapted from Cooking Light

Hot Chicken and Chips Retro

Aubrey and I were blown away by this casserole. I was just trying to find a recipe to cook that was healthy and quick since this was a busy week. I was even pretty skeptical about making this because Aubrey isn't a big fan of casseroles.
I had some chicken in the freezer that I thawed out, and Aubrey grilled it on the Big Green Egg. He had it ready when I got home. The only thing left I had to do is mix the other ingredients together and bake for 13 minutes.
I felt like a wife from the 1950's making this dish because this is one of those retro meals that was really popular during that time.


There was a flavor that stood out more than any other when I took my first bite. It took me another bite to figure out that the mystery flavor was actually the red pepper. I'm not sure why they tasted so different in this casserole, but it sure was a nice change.

If you choose to make this casserole ahead, leave the chips off until it's time to bake. Otherwise they will become soggy.

Ingredients:
4 cups chopped roasted skinless, boneless chicken breast (about 4 breasts)
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 (8-ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained and chopped
1/2 cup low-fat mayonnaise
1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Cooking spray
3/4 cup (3-ounces) shredded Swiss cheese
3/4 cup crushed baked potato chips (about 2 ounces)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400-degrees.
Combine chicken and next 4 ingredients (through water chestnuts) in a large bowl; stir well. Combine low-fat mayonnaise and next 5 ingredients (through black pepper) in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add mayonnaise mixture to chicken mixture; stir well to combine. Spoon chicken mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray, and sprinkle with cheese. Top cheese evenly with chips. Bake for 13 minutes or until filling is bubbly and chips are golden.
Yield: 6 servings

Nutritional Info (per serving): 321 calories; 10.9g fat; 11.4g iron; 96mg cholesterol; 175mg calcium; 20.4g carbs; 606mg sodium; 34.3g protein; 2.6g fiber

Source: Cooking Light

Tex-Mex Taco Salad

Taco salad is one of my favorite foods of all times. There are so many different textures and flavors packed into each bite, and it's pretty much irresistible to me.
The only down side to taco salad from restaurants is the calories, but I found this recipe that gives all the flavors (plus more), and it's made with fresh ingredients and lean meat.
I can honestly say that this is one of my favorite meals to this day. I'm craving it now as I type.

This recipe serves 2, but they are hefty portions. My man and I couldn't even finish it last night. We had enough left over for him to have lunch the next day.
You can certainly add more ingredients to your liking. I added a little bit of Cajun spice to the meat mixture and threw in a few slices of fresh avocado on top of my salad. I also put some corn chips in the mix for texture.
Be creative!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup prepared salsa
2 Tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream
1/2 teaspoon canola oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 ounces lean ground beef or turkey (I used turkey)
1 large plum tomato diced
1/2 cup canned kidney beans, rinsed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon salt, or to taste
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
4 cups shredded romaine lettuce
1/4 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Directions:
Combine salsa and sour cream in a large bowl.

Heat oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, until softened, 1 to 2 minutes. Add beef (or turkey) and cook, stirring often, until cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Add tomato, beans, cumin, chili powder and salt; cook, stirring until the tomato begins to break down, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in cilantro and 2 tablespoons of the salsa mixture.

Add lettuce to the remaining salsa mixture and toss to coat. Divide the lettuce between 2 plates, top with the cooked meat and sprinkle with cheese.
Makes 2 servings.

Nutritional Info (per serving): 343 calories; 13g fat; 81mg cholesterol; 26g carbs; 32g protein; 8g fiber; 851mg sodium; 737mg potassium

Tips: Refrigerate leftover beans for up to 3 days. Toss with a green salad or into soup for extra protein; mash with garlic powder and chopped fresh herbs for a quick dip.

Source: Eating Well

Guacamole

Last week my man and I visited Kiawah Island, SC for a much needed vacation. We try to go on a vacation once a year to get away from the busyness of our jobs. My sweet cousin let us stay in her gorgeous vacation home, and she even rented bikes for us to ride around the island. Everybody rides bikes around Kiawah, and mine even had a basket on the front.
Aubrey and I cooked almost every night since we had a gourmet kitchen and a grocery store that didn't lack anything down the street. Another cousin of mine was there with her family, and they invited us to eat with them one night. Her husband made the most amazing guacamole that I've ever had, and we duplicated it the next night.

 

Ingredients:
2 small tomatoes, chopped
1/2 small yellow onion, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
3 small jalapenos, seeded and chopped
Salt, to taste
3 avocados
Juice from one lime

Directions:
Take the seed out of the avocados and scoop out the "meat." Mash in a large bowl and mix in the other ingredients. Serve immediately.

Source: Joe Cece