Asian Glazed Chicken

I tried a new recipe the other night and it was good.  (I love it when that happens) I had to go out and buy a bottle of hoisin sauce but other than that the ingredients were all things at had at home.

Asian Glazed Chicken:
(adapted from Cooking Light)

1 teaspoon ground ginger
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon lower-sodium soy sauce
8 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)

Preheat your grill or skillet to medium-high heat.

Combine the ginger, hoisin sauce, olive oil, and soy sauce in a medium bowl and stir well to combine. Add the chicken, toss to coat, and let the chicken marinate for at least 5 minutes.

Place chicken on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 4 minutes on each side or until done.  Remove from the grill and serve.

Broiled Chicken Wings

I love chicken wings.  Mr. T is responsible for that.  When we were younger we frequented many All You Can Eat wing nights, which are a staple of any college town.

I've been trying to learn how to make decent wings at home for a while.  I'm not going to fry wings at home so I was on a quest to find another option.  I saw this recipe on Skinnytaste's website and decided to give it a try for our New Year's Eve celebration this year.  

They turned out really well!!  These aren't fried wings and won't taste like fried wings but they do get crisp in the oven and the flavor is amazing.  I will be making these again.

Broiled Chicken Wings:
(Skinnytaste)

3 pounds chicken wings
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoon Frank’s hot sauce
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoon oregano
4 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon chili powder
salt and fresh pepper


In a large bowl combine the chicken, 2 tablespoons hot sauce, vinegar, oregano, paprika, garlic powder, chili powder, salt and pepper. Mix well and let marinate for 30 minutes.


Place wings on a broiler rack and broil on low, about 8 inches from the flame for about 10-12 minutes on each side. Be careful not to burn the wings and continue to turn the wings in order to get all of the sides crisp.  Make sure the chicken cooked before removing the wings from the oven.


While chicken cooks, heat the remaining hot sauce until warm. Toss the hot sauce with the chicken and arrange on a platter. Serve with celery and carrot strips and blue cheese or ranch dressing for dipping.

Jalapeno Popper Chicken

I love jalapeno poppers.  There is just something about the pepper and the cheese that is amazing.  This recipe came from Skinnytaste, which is an amazing source for healthier recipes.

I made some changes to this recipe like not rolling the chicken up.  It's hard and I can never get my filling to stay inside... so I gave up.

Also, forgive my pictures.  I need a new camera like no one's business. (Santa, are you paying attention?!)

Jalapeno Popper Chicken:
(adapted from Skinnytaste)

Ingredients:
2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
3 jalapeños, seeds removed and chopped
3 oz reduced fat cream cheese, softened
4 oz reduced fat shredded cheddar jack
8 thin sliced skinless chicken breast cutlets
1/2 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs
Juice of 1 lime
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

Directions:

Wash and dry chicken cutlets, season with salt and pepper.  Preheat oven to 450°. Lightly spray a baking dish with non-stick spray.

In a medium bowl mix together the cream cheese, cheddar, jalapeños, and bacon.

Lay chicken cutlets on a working surface and spread 2 tbsp of cream cheese mixture on each cutlet.  Place the breadcrumbs in one bowl and the olive oil, lime juice, salt and pepper in a separate bowl.

Dip chicken in lime-oil mixture and then in breadcrumbs.  Cover both sides of the chicken with the bread crumbs and bake 22-25 minutes.

Lightened Up Arroz Con Pollo

I'm going outside of our typical spanish/mexican meal routine today. I have a bad relationship with Southern style chicken and rice.  We at a lot of it as a child and I have trouble eating it now.  I do love chicken and yellow rice though.

I saw this recipe pop up on Skinnytaste the other day and decided that it was time to try a new spin on chicken and rice.  It was an easy one pot meal and the leftovers were even better.  Mr. T even went back for seconds.

I was surprised with how many vegetables went into the dish and even though this is a very flavorful dish it's not spicy so I think it would be a favorite with kids at the dinner table.

Lightened Up Arroz Con Pollo:
(adapted from Skinnytaste- 8ppt+)

Ingredients:

8 skinless chicken thighs
1 tablespoon vinegar
2 teaspoon sazon
1/2 teaspoon chipotle in adobo
1/2 garlic powder
3 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 onion
1/4 cup cilantro
3 cloves garlic
5 scallions
1/2 a bell pepper
1 tomato, diced
2 1/2 cups enriched long grain rice
4 cups water
1 chicken bouillon cube
salt to taste

Directions:

Season chicken with vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon sazon, adobo and garlic powder and let it sit 10 minutes. Heat a large deep heavy skillet on medium, add 2 teaspoon oil when hot. Add chicken and brown 5 minutes on each side. Remove and set aside.

Place onion, cilantro, garlic, scallions and pepper in mini food processor. Add remaining teaspoon of olive oil to the skillet and sauté onion mixture on medium-low until soft, about 3 minutes. Add tomato, cook another minute. Add rice, mix well and cook another minute. Add water, bouillon (be sure it dissolves well) and remaining sazon, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Taste for salt, should taste salty enough to suit your taste, add more as needed.

Add chicken and nestle into rice, bring to a boil. Simmer on medium-low until most of the water evaporates and you see the liquid bubbling at the top of the rice line, then reduce heat to low heat and cover. Make sure the lid has a good seal, no steam should escape (You could place a piece of tin foil or paper towel in between the lid and the pot if steam escapes).

Cook 20 minutes without opening the lid. Shut heat off and let it sit with the lid on an additional 10 minutes (don't peak!!!) Fluff with a fork and eat!

 

Chicken enchiladas with Chili-Yogurt Sauce

It's Mexican night!  It's our favorite night of the week.  This is another Pinterest recipe find.  (I'm so glad that website was invented)

I made some changes to the original recipe to cut a couple of calories and use what I had at home.  The Greek yogurt worked really well in this.  I really didn't feel like I was missing out  

Chicken enchiladas with Chili-Yogurt Sauce:

(inspired from Joyful Momma's Kitchen)

10 soft taco shells (I used whole wheat)
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 jalapeno, diced
1 small onion, diced (or 1/2 a large onion)
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
2 tablespoons hot sauce
3 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. flour
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup greek yogurt
1 (4 oz) can diced green chillies
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika


To make the shredded chicken:


Place a package of chicken breasts in a crock pot.  Add 1 teaspoon cumin, paprika, chili powder, and garlic power.  Cover with water and cook on low for 8+ hours.  Remove chicken from water and shred with a fork or tongs.


To make enchilidas:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x13 pan with non stick spray.  Mix the shredded chicken, corn, diced jalapeno, onion, hot sauce, and 1 cup of shredded cheese.  Fill and roll up in tortillas and place in pan, seam side down.

(I had some extra chicken/corn mixture so I just plopped it on top)

















In a sauce pan melt the butter and stir in the flour. Cook about 1 minute, until a light golden brown color.  Add the chicken broth and whisk until smooth.  Heat over medium heat until thick and bubbly, stirring occasionally. 

Add the Greek yogurt, chilies, and spices.  Keep stirring until everything has come together and is warm.  Do not let the mixture come to a boil, it will cause the dairy to curdle. 

Pour over enchiladas and top with remaining cheese.

Bake 22 min and then under high broil for 3 min to brown the cheese.

Buffalo Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I love chicken and my husband loves buffalo anything.  I found this recipe on the skinny taste blog and thought that it might be a great change from the tacos I make all the time.  Better yet they are only 3 points per serving, without the ranch dressing.

Buffalo Chicken Lettuce Wraps:
(Skinnytaste)

Ingredients:

24 oz boneless skinless chicken breast
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves
16 oz fat free low sodium chicken broth
2/3 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce
6 large lettuce leaves, Bibb or Iceberg
4 carrots, cut into matchsticks
1 teaspoon ranch or blue cheese dressing per wrap
 
Directions:

Season the chicken breast with the onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika.  Combine the chicken, onions, celery stalk, garlic and broth in a crock pot.  If there isn't enough broth to cover the chicken add some water.  Cover and cook on high 4 hours or low for 8-ish.

Remove the chicken from pot, reserve 1/2 cup broth and discard the rest. Shred the chicken and return it to the slow cooker with the broth and hot sauce.  Set on high for an additional 30 minutes. Makes 3 cups chicken.

To prepare lettuce cups, place 1/2 cup buffalo chicken in each leaf, top with carrots and dressing of your choice.

Lighter Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

I have a soft spot for pasta with alfredo sauce on it.  It's so good.  Pasta dishes are great ways to get vegetable into people too.

This is a lighter pasta dish but it was delicious.  The broccoli was tasty and the alfredo sauce got soaked up in all of the little nooks of it and the pasta.  This also makes a great lunch the next day.

Broccoli Chicken Alfredo:

Ingredients:

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, grilled and cut into chunks (about 2 cups)

2 cups roasted broccoli florets

8 ounces whole wheat pasta, I used rotini
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons minced garlic

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup fat-free, low sodium chicken broth

1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt

1/4 cup skim milk

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 pinch ground nutmeg

3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

In a pot of boiling, salted water, cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until the garlic is golden, 1 to 2 minutes.

Whisk in the flour until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the chicken broth, Greek yogurt, milk, pepper and nutmeg. Bring to a low boil, stirring constantly. Lower the heat and simmer, stirring gently, until the mixture thickens, about 3 minutes. Stir in 3/4 cup Parmesan.

Add cooked chicken and broccoli to sauce mixture, followed by the cooked pasta. Toss to combine and serve with more Parmesan, if desired.

Mexican Chicken Bites

I made this meal the other night when I was trying to figure out what to do with some left over black beans and yellow rice.  It was super easy to make and something really basic.  It's one of those things that can change depending on the spices you decide to use.

Mexican Chicken Bites:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil.

Cut the chicken into bite size cubes.  Season with cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.  Toss to make sure that the seasonings are covering all parts of the chicken.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet.  Once hot add the chicken and start to brown, add the onions and cook together.  Once the chicken has cooked through serve.

Yogurt Smothered Chicken

My Aunt Becky makes a chicken dish for dinner that she and my mom love.  I decided to take some inspiration from her and make my own version.  She uses mayonnaise but I opted for Greek Yogurt (my new best friend).

I felt like this needed to cook a decent amount of time for what it was so make sure you check it before you dig in.  The yogurt gave the chicken a nice tangy flavor and the onions added some crunch to the meal.  Mr. T wasn't the biggest fan but I really enjoyed it.

Also, in case anyone was wondering, those purple things on the plate are actually roasted purple carrots.  They were really good.

Yogurt Smothered Chicken:
(Inspired from my Aunt Becky)

2-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (depending on how many people you're serving)
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 cup Greek yogurt
2/3 cup French's French Fried Onions
1 tablespoon garlic and her seasoning (I used Mrs. Dash)
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375.

Brush each chicken breast with dijon mustard and season with salt, pepper, and the garlic seasoning.  Place in the pan you're going to use to bake in and cover the chicken with Greek yogurt.  Top with the onions and bake for 30-45 minutes, or until cooked through.  The onions should be a little golden.

Roasted Chicken Salad

Chicken salad is a great weekend meal.  It doesn't use a ton of oven heat and since it needs to sit in the fridge for the flavors to come together it's the perfect thing to make when it's hot outside.

Roasted Chicken Salad:

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon season salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt

1 carrot, shredded or chopped
1-2 stalks of celery, chopped into small pieces
1/3 cup dried cranberries


Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Season the chicken breast with salt, pepper, paprika, and garlic powder.  Drizzle a little olive oil over the chicken and roast until cooked through, about 20 minutes.


When the chicken is cooked allow it to cool then cube it.  Mix the cooled chicken with the Greek yogurt, carrot, celery, dried cranberries, and salt and pepper to taste.

Buffalo Chicken Fingers

My favorite meal to make on Sunday nights is a large salad with chicken and buffalo yogurt salad dressing.  I found this recipe for buffalo chicken fingers on the Weight Watchers website and decided that they would fit perfectly.  I was right, they were really good and I didn't feel like I was eating something "diet".

Buffalo Chicken Fingers:
(Weight Watchers- 4 strips, 5 ppt+)

1 spray(s) cooking spray  
1 1/4 pound(s) uncooked boneless skinless chicken breast(s), cut into 16 strips total (or 1 1/4 lbs boneless, skinless tenderloins)  
1/2 tsp table salt  
1/2 tsp paprika  
1 tsp minced garlic  
2 Tbsp fat-free margarine  
4 tsp hot pepper sauce, I used Frank's  
 
Instructions:

Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat.

Place chicken on a plate and sprinkle with salt and paprika. Add chicken to skillet and cook, turning occasionally until lightly browned and cooked through, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic; reduce heat to low, stir and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Remove skillet from heat; stir in margarine and hot sauce until margarine melts.

Chicken Ropa Vieja

I was so happy to find this recipe the other day.  I had to work late and needed to figure out something to do for supper that night.  My plan was to use this chicken in tacos but I forgot to buy shells.  It didn't really matter because the chicken was really good and super moist.

(It also works really well for leftovers)

Chicken Ropa Vieja:
(Skinnytaste- 5pp+, 4 servings)

Ingredients:
3 (22.5 oz) chicken breast halves
1 small onion, quartered
1 tomato, quartered
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 small green bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 small red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup tomato sauce
Reserved broth
1 tsp cumin
Garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Place chicken, onion, tomato, carrot, and 2 cloves of garlic into crock pot. Add water to cover, and set to high for 4 hours until the chicken is tender. If cooking on the stove, cook on medium-low, and simmer until the chicken is tender, 30 to 40 minutes. Place the chicken into a bowl and shred it into strips using a fork; set aside. Reserve the liquid.

In a large deep skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic, onions, green peppers, and red peppers. Cook about 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in chicken, tomato sauce, white wine, and about 3/4 cup of the reserved broth to create a nice sauce. Season with cumin, garlic powder salt, and pepper. Cover and simmer on low for about 10 minutes more adding more broth and seasoning if needed.

Sesame Chicken Tenders

This is another new recipe that i'm trying out. I'm always looking for new ways to eat chicken.  I was really happy with how crispy these were and how easy they were to make.

There is a really big taste of sesame in these.  I know how obvious that sounds but for me it went from 0 to 60 within a couple of bites.  Next go around I might leave out the sesame oil and just stick with the sesame seeds but test it out for your self and decide how much sesame taste you love.

Sesame Encrusted Baked Chicken Tenders:
(skinny taste- 5pp+, 4 1/2 servings)

Ingredients:
18 oz chicken tenderloins
salt and pepper to taste
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons low sodium soy sauce
6 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
1/2 teaspoon course salt
4 tablespoons panko bread crumbs
olive oil spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick oil spray.

Combine the sesame oil and soy sauce in a bowl, and the sesame seeds, salt and panko in another.

Place chicken in the bowl with the oil and soy sauce, then into the sesame seed mixture to coat well. Place on the baking sheet; lightly spray the top of the chicken with oil spray and bake 8 - 10 minutes. Turn over and cook another 4 - 5 minutes longer or until cooked through.

Asian Glazed Chicken

This is another great recipe from Skinny Taste.  It's that time of the year and everyone is trying to lose weight, myself included.  There's no time like the present to start so that's what I'm doing.

This recipe was seriously good.  Mr. T asked me to put it on the menu rotation.  I didn't use drumsticks because we didn't have them.

Asian Glazed Drumsticks:
(Skinny Taste- 5pp+, 4 servings)

8 medium chicken breasts
Olive oil spray
1 cup water
1 tbsp Sriracha hot sauce (more or less to taste)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 teaspoons agave nectar
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon ginger, grated
2 tablespoons chives or scallions, chopped
1 teaspoon sesame seeds

In a heavy large saucepan, brown chicken on high for 3-4 minutes with a little spray oil. Add water, balsamic, soy sauce, agave, garlic, ginger, hot sauce and cook on high until liquid comes to a boil.
Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered for about 20 minutes.

Remove cover and bring heat to high, allowing sauce to reduce down, about 8-10 minutes, until it becomes a thick glaze, turning chicken occasionally. (Keep an eye on glaze, you don't want it to burn when it start becoming thick) Transfer chicken to a platter and pour glaze on top. Top with chives and sesame seeds and serve.

Chicken Rollatini with Spinach alla Parmigiana

I'm trying new recipes!  Yay for me. 

This is a recipe from Gina's Skinny Taste blog.  I didn't wrap my chicken because I didn't get any chicken cutlets this week.  I just cut into a regular chicken breast and stuffed it with the spinach.  It probably made a difference as far as the points are concerned so take that into account when shopping/making this. 


















Chicken Rollatini with Spinach alla Parmigiana:
(Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes)

Servings: 8
Points: 4 pts • Points+: 5 pts

8 thin chicken cutlets, 3 oz each
1/2 cup whole wheat Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided
6 tablespoons egg whites or egg beaters
5 oz frozen spinach, squeezed dry of any liquid
6 tbsp part skim ricotta cheese
6 oz part skim mozzarella
Olive oil non-stick spray
1 cup pomodoro sauce or your favorite marinara sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Wash and dry cutlets, season with salt and pepper.  Preheat oven to 450°. Lightly spray a baking dish with non-stick spray.

Combine breadcrumbs and 2 tbsp grated cheese in one bowl and 1/4 cup egg beaters or egg whites in another.

Shred or finely chop 1.5 oz of mozzarella cheese and combine with remaining grated cheese, spinach (make sure you squeeze it dry), 2 tbsp egg beaters, and ricotta cheese.

Lay chicken cutlets down on a working surface and spread 2 tbsp of spinach-cheese mixture on each cutlet. Loosely roll each one and keep seam side down.

Dip chicken in egg mixture, then in breadcrumbs and place seam side down in a baking dish (no toothpicks needed). Repeat with the remaining chicken. When finished, lightly spray with olive oil.

Bake 25 minutes. Remove from oven, top with sauce then cheese.

Bake until cheese is melted and bubbling, about 3 more minutes. Serve with additional sauce on the side and grated cheese.

Mexican Chicken Soup

It's been cold and rainy here which makes me want soup.  Mr. T and I have both been sick so I decided to make something easy.  Thank you Mr. Crock-Pot inventor!  This was really easy and I think it turned out pretty well.

Mexican Chicken Soup:

3-4 large boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 can of diced tomatoes with green chilies
1 can of reduced sodium black beans
8 oz frozen corn (about half a bag)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 can fat free chicken broth
1 white onion, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper 
1 tablespoon Mrs. Dash Chipotle

Combine everything in the crock pot.  Cook on low for 10 hours or high for 6 hours.  About 30 minutes before serving take the chicken breast out and chop into bite size pieces.  Add back into the crock pot and let cook for an additional 30 minutes.


Garnish with some additional fresh cilantro.

Sweet Thai Chili Chicken

I invented this recipe!  Well, it's based off a basic breaded chicken... but I chose the flavor combinations.

Sweet Thai Chili Chicken:

2-4 Boneless-skinless chicken breast
2-3 tablespoons egg whites (or 2 egg whites)
2 tablespoons Sweet Thai Chili sauce
1/3 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
1/3 cup panko bread crumbs
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt
pepper

In one bowl/dish combine the egg whites, chili sauce, salt, and pepper.  In a second bowl combine both bread crumbs, more salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

Dip each chicken breast into the egg mixture, then into the breadcrumb mixture, making sure that the chicken is covered with breadcrumbs.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until cooked through.

Chicken with Mushrooms

I've been trying new recipes recently and this is one of the recent winners.  Mr. T and I both really enjoyed this meal. 

Chicken and Mushrooms:
(skinny taste)

8 chicken tenderloins, 16 oz total
2 teaspoon butter
2 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoon flour
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
12 oz sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup white wine
1/3 cup fat free chicken broth
salt and fresh pepper to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley


Preheat oven to 200°. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Lightly dredge in flour.

Heat a large skillet on medium heat; when hot add 1 tsp butter and 1 tsp olive oil. Add chicken to the skillet and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes on each side, or until chicken is no longer pink. Set aside in a warm oven.

Add additional oil and butter to the skillet, then garlic and cook a few seconds; add mushrooms, salt and pepper stirring occasionally until golden, about 5 minutes.

















Add wine, chicken broth, parsley; stir the pan with a wooden spoon breaking up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook a few more minutes or until the liquid reduces by half. Top the chicken with the mushroom sauce and serve.

Chicken Fried Rice

I love fried rice. I've made it at home a few times but it always involved a packet of stuff from the grocery store, which was probably 99% salt.  I found this recipe on Annie's blog.  She has a lot of great recipes and ideas.  

I changed this one up a little bit based on food we had at home and the fact that Mr. T is not a fan of eggs.  I went with chicken breast, a whole cup of veggies, and dropped down to 2 eggs.  Annie's original recipe is linked below so you can see the original.

Chicken Fried Rice

(adapted from Annie's Eats)

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil, divided
2 eggs, beaten
2 stalks green onions, minced
4 cups leftover brown rice
1 cup frozen peas and carrots, defrosted
1 tablespoon soy sauce
Few drops sesame oil

Directions:
In  a medium mixing bowl, combine the chicken, salt, pepper and cornstarch, and toss well to coat the shrimp.  Let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.  Heat a large skillet or wok over high heat.  When a drop of water immediately sizzles and evaporates, the pan is hot enough to add 1 tablespoon of the oil.  Swirl to coat the pan well.

Add the chicken to the hot pan and quickly spread them out so that they are in a single layer, and all touching the pan surface.  (You may need to do this in two batches to ensure even cooking.)  Let it cook for one minute, then flip and cook for an additional minute, so that the chicken is about 80% cooked through.  Remove to a plate and set aside.

Lower the heat on the pan to medium.  Add the eggs to the pan and stir quickly, to break up and scramble the eggs.  When the eggs are almost cooked through but still slightly runny in the middle, remove from the pan to the same plate as the chicken.

Use paper towels to wipe the pan clean and return the pan to high heat.  Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil, swirling to coat.  Once the oil is very hot, add the green onions to the pan and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds.  Add the rice to the pan and mix well to combine with the green onions.  Spread the rice out evenly over the pan and let cook without stirring, until you hear the rice grains sizzle, about 1 to 2 minutes.  Toss the rice a bit with your spatula, and again spread it out over the cooking surface.

Drizzle the soy sauce all over the rice, and toss again.  Add the peas and carrots, the cooked chicken and eggs, and the sesame oil to the pan.  Toss to combine all the ingredients well with the rice.  Let everything heat back up again until the rice grains are sizzling again.  Add additional soy sauce to taste, if needed.  Serve.

Crispy Chicken Sandwich

I love chicken, who doesn't?  This was another recipe that I found in one of the many magazines on my book shelf.  I was amazed with just how crispy this chicken stayed.  I ended up just eating the chicken breast with a side salad, but Mr. T ate his as a sandwich.

Crispy Chicken Sandwich:
(adapted from Clean Eating Magazine- March 2011)


1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper
4 egg whites
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 cup whole-wheat panko bread crumbs
1/3 cup whole-wheat flour
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 whole-grain sandwich buns
Lettuce
Tomato

Whisk together egg whites, dijon mustard, and salt and pepper.  In a shallow pan add the bread crumbs.  In another pan add the flour.

Dredge each piece of chicken in the flour, shaking off the excess, then in the egg, and finally in the bread crumbs, gently pressing the bread crumbs into the chicken.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook the chicken for 3 to 4 minutes on each side until golden brown and fully cooked.