Stuffed Chicken Parmesan

I wanted to make chicken parmesan for dinner, but didn't have shredded mozzarella. :( I had string cheese in the refrigerator and decided to improvise. I had boneless, skinless chicken thighs, but you could also use chicken breasts if you choose to. I would just use a whole string cheese instead of cutting them in half if you do use chicken breasts, since they are larger. I also used my homemade marinara (that's also posted on here), but you can use any tomato sauce you like to serve this with! :)

Stuffed Chicken Parmesan

6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (rolled out and flattened using a meat tenderizer. I also trimmed any excess fat that was on the thighs)

Breading:
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup Italian style seasoned bread crumbs
1 cup Parmesan/Romano cheese
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dried oregano

3 eggs, beaten
3 string cheese sticks

In one bowl, beat the three eggs. set aside. In a separate bowl, combine flour, panko, bread crumbs, parmesan, garlic powder, salt and oregano.

Take the string cheese out of the plastic and cut in half

Lay one chunk of cheese on chicken thigh, roll it up and secure with toothpicks.  Be sure to secure the ends, too! Otherwise, there will be cheese goo leakage.

Dip the stuffed chicken into the egg mixture and then into the bread crumb/parmesan mixture. Place on a baking sheet.

Bake at 385 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until cooked through. Mine cooked 35 minutes and were perfectly cooked!

Serve on top of any marinara you choose!

My Homemade Pickles

I love pickles! I've always wanted to try making my own, but was afraid it would be too difficult or too time consuming. They are really easy to make! Everytime I make them now, I have to pass them out to friends because they are a favorite! Even to some friends who have never liked pickles, but LOVE mine! Lol...

My Homemade Pickles

2 large english cucumbers, sliced to your desired thickness

1/4 red onion thinly sliced                                                                                                                               2 cups red wine vinegar

2 cups water

4 cloves of garlic(I leave them whole, but you can also slice them if you prefer

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 cup kosher salt

1 tsp mustard seeds

3/4 tsp coriander seeds

1/2 tsp celery seeds

1/2 tsp whole black peppercorns 

1 jalapeno pepper, split in half (take the veins and seeds out if you don't like a lot of spice)

In a saucepan, combine everything except the cucumbers and red onions. Bring mixture to a boil and simmer about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir and pour over sliced cucumbers and sliced onions. I put mine into mason jars and pour the liquid over evenly. Seal the jars and let cool. Once they are cooled, you can eat them!

Bacon Wrapped Tri-Tip with Teriyaki Glaze

I don't even know what to say about this...other than it was mouth watering. I made this a long time ago and just found the recipe written down in one of my notebooks and could not believe I hadn't posted it. It was one of those meals you don't forget!

Bacon Wrapped Tri-Tip with Teriyaki Glaze

1 tri tip (whatever size you like, really)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 pound bacon

For the glaze:
1 stick butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp soy sauce (you can use gluten free)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 green onions, diced
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp sesame seeds

Trim the excess fat off the tri tip. Salt and pepper the meat
Wrap the bacon around the tri tip and secure with a toothpick. Continue until the tri tip is completely wrapped. You may use all the bacon, you may not. It depends on how big your tri tip is.
Place the tri tip on a roasting rack in a roasting pan. This will ensure that the heat completely circulates and the meat cooks evenly.
Place on indirect heat in the bbq.  We have a gas grill and turned both outside burners on and left the middle two off.  The bbq stayed at 350 degrees. You can also put it in the oven at 350 if you don't want to use the bbq.

For the glaze:
Melt butter. Add the garlic and let it cook for just a minute or two over medium heat. Don't let the butter burn! Add the soy sauce and then the remaining ingredients and simmer on medium heat until it reduces a little. Maybe about 5-7 minutes.

After the tri tip has been cooking about 40 minutes, take 1/3 of the glaze and brush it over the tri tip. Use the glaze again about 50 minutes into the cooking. Remove the tri tip after 60 minutes. Your meat should be medium rare. You want the internal temperature to reach 130-140 degrees. You can cook it longer if you like your meat more well done. Use the last 1/3 of the glaze to sprinkle over the sliced meat before serving.

Breakfast Pasta

So, I'm not a big breakfast person...that being said.... I wanted to find a way to make breakfast not feel so much like breakfast. I swear, this meal is so delicious.....you may think it's weird to have eggs on top of pasta, but trust me.....it's off the hook amazing!

Breakfast Pasta

1 lb gluten free pasta
8 eggs
1/2 shallot (about 1 tbsp diced)
2 cloves garlic (diced) 
2 handfuls fresh spinach
1/2 pound bacon (cut into 1"pieces)
1/2-3/4 cup parmesan cheese

Cook Pasta as directed. Reserve about 1/2 cup of the pasta water and set aside before you drain the pasta. You can cook the pasta ahead of time, too. I used leftover pasta when I made this the first time and it worked perfectly!
In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until crisp. Remove the bacon and place on paper towels. Drain the grease from the pan, but leave about 1 tbsp to saute the other ingredients.
Turn the heat down to medium. Add the shallot and the garlic to the saucepan with the bacon grease. Cook about 3-4 minutes. Make sure you don't burn them... If they start to brown too much, turn the pan down.
Add the spinach. Once the spinach has wilted completely, add the tomatoes.
Cook another few minutes until the tomatoes have softened.
Add the cooked pasta to the sauce pan and toss with the garlic, shallots, spinach and tomatoes. Pour in the reserved pasta water and the parmesan cheese. Toss to coat all the pasta.

Fry two eggs per serving and place them on top of the pasta. This made four servings.
Sprinkle with fresh basil before serving, too!

Chicken with Zucchini and Mushrooms

We don't eat out a lot, but the kids really love Panda Express. One of the things that they always want from there is the chicken with zucchini and mushrooms.  I wanted to see if I could make something like it and I have to say, it came out delicious! Try it and let me know what you think! :)

Chicken with Zucchini and Mushrooms

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (cubed)

1 tbsp cornstarch

2 tbsp vegetable oil

3 tsp sesame oil

6 cloves garlic, chopped

1/3 white onion, diced

4 zucchini, cut into 1"chunks. ( I cut them in half lengthwise, then sliced into pieces)

1 lb white mushrooms (quartered)

2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 cup hoisin sauce

3 tbsp soy sauce 

1 tsp salt

Sprinkle chicken with cornstarch and toss to evenly coat chicken.

Add 1 tbsp vegetable oil to a preheated skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken into the sauce pan and drizzle with sesame oil. Cook about 5 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Remove from the heat.

While the chicken is cooking, in another pre heated skillet, add 1 tbsp vegetable oil and 2 tsp sesame oil. Add the garlic and onion and cook until the onions are transluscent. About 3 minutes. Add the zucchini and mushrooms. You want the zucchini to be cooked, but not mushy. Mine cooked about 8 minutes.

While the vegetables are cooking, in a separate bowl, combine ginger, hoisin, soy sauce and salt.

Pour over the veggie mixture. Add the chicken and combine. 

Serve with cooked white rice.

Easy Gluten Free Enchilada Sauce

If you've ever wanted to make your own enchilada sauce, but thought it involved re-hydrating chiles and breaking out the food processor....think again!! This sauce is delicious and super easy to make! I apologize for the lack of pictures, but it was a busy night around here and I didn't have my phone on me to take any. It looks like enchilada sauce...lol....

Easy Gluten Free Enchilada Sauce

2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp gluten free flour
3 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp mexican oregano
1 can chicken broth (about 1 3/4 cup)

In a small bowl, combine chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, cumin and oregano. Set aside.
Add vegetable oil to a saucepan over medium high heat. Stir in flour and use a whisk to continually stir for about a minute or a minute and a half. 
Stir in seasoning mixture and combine. Add chicken broth about half a cup at a time. Continue to use the whisk to make the mixture smooth.  Simmer about 5 minutes. You can use it immediately in enchiladas or put it into a mason jar and store in the refrigerator. It's soo good!

Roasted Poblano Cream Sauce (Gluten Free)

I made this sauce yesterday and served it over enchiladas...it was delicious! It can be used as a sauce for tacos or tostadas....I think the possibilities are endless! It tasted great with carne asada, but would be good with pork or chicken, too!

 Roasted Poblano Cream Sauce

2 or 3 Poblano chiles

4 garlic cloves, chopped

1 small onion, diced

1 diced jalapeno (stem and seeds removed)

1/2 cup (about a handful) fresh cilantro

3 tbsp butter

1 tsp cumin

3/4-1 cup heavy cream (or half and half)

3 tbsp gluten free flour

1 1/2 cup chicken broth

Roast chiles under the broiler (on high) until they are blackened and charred on all sides. Remove them from the broiler and place in a ziploc bag or in a bowl covered tightly with saran wrap. Let them cool. When they are cooled, remove their peels, any seeds, the stem...and chop.

In a sauce pan, add butter. Saute the diced onion, garlic and diced jalapeno about 2 minutes. Add cumin, salt and pepper and continue to simmer about 5 more minutes. Add chopped poblano. Sprinkle with the gluten free flour and continue to saute another 2-3 minutes. Add chicken broth and simmer until thickened.

Transfer mixture to a food processor or blender. Add cilantro and puree. Put this mixture back into the saucepan and bring to a slight simmer. Add cream or half and half and simmer 

until thickened.

 

My Braciole

A friend of mine wanted me to make this so I could share the recipe with him....I'd never tried to make it and I have to say......first time was a charm! It was delicious....tender meat and delicious sauce....It seemed a bit intimidating at first, but it really wasn't that hard. I was extremely pleased with how it came out!

My Braciole

2 lbs round steak (I got mine at smart and final..there were 5 steaks in the package. You could slice your own, but it was much easier this way)
salt and pepper

Filling:
3/4 cup Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs
2 tbsp milk
2 large cloves of garlic
2 tbsp toasted pine nuts(I heated a small cast iron skillet to high, added the pine nuts and removed from heat. They toasted quickly, so make sure you watch them!)
1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh oregano, finely chopped
3/4 cup parmesan cheese

3 oz prosciutto
1 slice provolone cheese for each roll (I used 5 slices)

Sauce:
3/4 white onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, diced/2 cloves garlic diced= 6 cloves total
1 cup red wine
2-28oz cans whole tomatoes
10 basil leaves, finely chopped
1 sprig fresh oregano, finely chopped
2 tbsp butter

For the filling:  Combine bread crumbs and milk. Add garlic, pine nuts, parmesan cheese and chopped herbs.

Flatten steaks with tenderizer until they are about 1/4 inch thick.Salt and Pepper the steaks. Add one layer prosciutto, then one layer of provolone cheese. Then add about 1/2 cup of the bread crumb mixture. Roll and secure with twine. If it looks like the ends may come apart, secure them shut with toothpicks.

In a skillet that's been preheated to a medium high heat, add the rolls and sear on all sides.
Remove from pan.

Discard the oil from the pan and add 2 tbsp fresh oil. Don't wash the pan, you want those brown bits from the steaks. Just drain out the old oil and add 2 tbsp new oil.

Add diced onion and 4 cloves of garlic. Saute about 4 minutes. Add 1 cup of wine and simmer for 4 more minutes.  Add tomatoes. (I squished them into the pan with my hands so I could remove any hard cores from the tomatoes. You can use a fork once it's in the pan, too, if you'd rather not squish the tomatoes. I think it's easier to just use your hands.) Add the remaining 2 cloves of minced garlic and bring to a simmer.

Place the meat rolls into the sauce and simmer 3-3 1/2 hours. I only simmered mine for 2 hours because everyone in the house was starving and it smelled so good in the house that they couldn't wait. I think the meat was tender, but it could've been more tender if it was allowed to simmer another hour or so.

Slice and Serve with a sprinkle of fresh parmesan on top. Also, you can serve with a side of pasta with butter and parmesan cheese. YUMMY!!

Italian Eggs

I've been getting tired of the same ol' thing for breakfast, so I thought I'd try something new....this came out delicious!

Italian Eggs

For the Sauce:

3 diced garlic cloves/2 diced garlic cloves- 5 total

1/2 diced shallot (about 1 tablespoon)

8 oz diced tomatoes 

1 tbsp fresh thyme 

1 tbsp fresh basil (+more for sprinkling on top after it's baked)

1 tbsp fresh oregano

1 tsp salt

You can also use a jarred marinara sauce if you don't have the time to make your own.

4 large eggs

1/4 cup shredded parmesan

1/4 cup shredded mozzarella

1/4 cup shredded manchego cheese (optional)

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

In a cast iron skillet or a skillet that you can safely transfer to the oven, Saute 3 garlic cloves and the shallot in about 1 tbsp olive oil about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and the herbs and bring to a simmer. Add the other 2 diced garlic cloves and simmer another 5-7 minutes. Salt to taste. (I used Pomi tomatoes and they are sweeter, so I needed the salt. You may not even need to add the salt. Just use your judgement.)

Crack the eggs into the sauce so they're evenly spaced. Transfer to the preheated oven and cook for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, add the cheese and place back into the oven for 5 more minutes or until the eggs are fully cooked.  10 minutes was the perfect amount of time to have set whites and a runny yolk when I made this. 

When you take it out, sprinkle with more fresh basil and serve with toasted sourdough slices....yum!

Chile Verde

A friend of mine gave me a Dutch oven for Christmas. I was dying to try it out! Had a pork loin in the frige and thought I would search the cabinets to see what I could come up with. This is what happened. It was delicious and fairly easy to make!

Chile Verde

2 lb pork loin

6 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 red onion, diced

1 1/2 cups chicken stock (I used homemade, but I'm sure chicken broth would be just as good)

2-4oz cans mild diced green chiles

2-4oz cans hot diced green chiles

1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/2 tsp oregano

For the dredge:

1 cup flour

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

Sour cream

Tortillas

Cilantro

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. 

Cut pork into 1" cubes. Dredge them in the flour mixture and brown in a single layer in a Dutch oven (or any pot you can transfer into the oven.) this may take several rounds. You don't want to over crowd the meat while you are browning it.

While the meat is browning, dice the onion and the garlic. 

Remove the meat and set aside. In the same pot you browned the meat in, sauté the garlic and onion until the onions are translucent. Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Making sure to scrape all the yummy good stuff from the bottom of the pot. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer again. Cover and transfer the pot into the oven. Cook for 3 hours. 

Add salt to taste and black pepper, if you like. 

Serve with warm tortillas, sour cream and cilantro.

I originally started with larger pieces of meat, but decided that 1"cubes would work better.....

Only 3 of the cans showed up in the picture...and I diced the whole green chiles up. I would recommend just buying the diced green chiles.

My Monte Cristo

These sandwiches came out so good...the mixture of salty and sweet was perfect!

My Monte Cristo

Maple Aioli
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp dijon mustard

For each sandwich:
4 slices of turkey
1 strip of bacon (cut in half)
1 slice gouda cheese
1 slice muenster
 Sliced bread (the thicker the better) I used an italian sliced bread, but you can use any thick sliced bread that you prefer.

2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
2 tsp dijon mustard
1/8 tsp cinnamon

 For the aioli:
Mix the mayo, syrup, brown sugar and dijon mustard and set aside.
 

Mix 2 eggs, 1/4 cup milk, 2 tsp dijon mustard and 1/8 tsp cinnamon in a small casserole dish.

Make the sandwiches.....Start by spreading a layer of the maple aioli, then the bacon, turkey, ham and cheeses. when the sandwich is assembled, dip both sides in the egg mixture and put into a hot cast iron skillet. Cover and flip after 2-4 minutes....until browned and the cheese is melted.

Traditionally, these are served with strawberry preserves. I had a homemade Spicy Pear jam that I used.

Best French Dip Sandwich!

The french dip is always my "go to"sandwich when we go out for lunch. There's always a ton of meat, a ton of bread and the au jus that gives it the flavor. I decided I would make my own and was NOT DISAPPOINTED! I used sliced roast beef and ingredients that are readily available in the grocery store and it takes practically no time at all!

Best French Dip Sandwich

2-8oz pkgs sliced roast beef
6 French bread rolls
6 slices provolone cheese
1-8oz pkg sliced mushrooms
2 shallots
1 tbsp butter+ more for buttering bread
1 can beef consomme
1/4 cup cooking sherry
1 tbsp olive oil

 In a small skillet, over medium heat, add olive oil. Add one diced shallot and cook about 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and butter. Cook about 10 minutes until the mushrooms are soft.

While the mushrooms are cooking, in a separate saucepan, saute one shallot in a little olive oil for 5-7 minutes. Add the beef consomme. Bring to a simmer and then add the cooking sherry.

On each french roll, layer 3 slices of roast beef, some of the mushrooms and top with provolone cheese. Butter the top part of the roll with butter. Put the sandwiches under the broiler....open...for about 3 minutes or until the bread is toasty and the butter is melted.

Serve with the au jus. YUM!

This one had an extra half slice of cheese....which doesn't hurt..lol