Tag Archives: chicken

Zucchini and Chicken Alfredo

Posted on by

GUESS WHAT I GOT!?!?!?! A veggie spiralizer! My friend had a pampered chef party the other week and I saw that they have a spiralizer! Now… I’m mildly obsessed with all things Pampered Chef. It’s a problem… but I FORCED my friend to have a party, just so she could partially benefit from my obsession and need to order this spiralizer. So, because she’s a good friend, she hosted a party and I got it! YAY!

I’ve made this dish 2 times. Once by using the largest side of my cheese grader, and once by using my spiralizer. I did like both, but my favorite version was with the spiralizer. It was just FUN! It made the zucchini the size and texture of noodles. You can make a still delicious version with your cheese grater though if you don’t want to/don’t have the spiralizer.

My husband and daughter thought this was a WINNER!!! My sweet son couldn’t try it because it’s chock full of cheese and dairy… but I’m sure if he could, he would’ve loved it! Who doesn’t love alfredo?! And if you’re gonna splurge, you may as well splurge with veggies so you don’t feel QUITE as guilty!!

My recipe is adapted from this one: Zucchini Alfredo

1474297335689.jpg

INGREDIENTS:

  • 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
  • 4 chicken tenderloins sauteed in a skillet with olive oil, salt and pepper for about 4-5 min. per side (from frozen) and then set aside to rest.
  • 2 large zucchini (or 3 medium to small), spiralized* OR shredded with the LARGE side of a cheese grater
  • 1 tsp minced garlic
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (or gluten free flour alternative for a thickener)
  • 1 1/2 cups half and half OR 2% milk (at the least amount of fat. The cheese won’t bind with the milk to make the creamy sauce if you use skim or rice milk)
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/4 fresh black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp dried italian seasoning
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (I prefer “Shredded” parmesan cheese over grated. I had run out… but the taset is WAY better, creamier and cheesier)
  • Kosher salt to taste
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

 

DIRECTIONS:

  1. As mentioned above, sautee chicken (Unless you’re using leftover rotisserie chicken) and set aside on a cutting board. Let rest BEFORE you cut up.
  2. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Sautee onions until translucent. Add zucchini and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and heated through, about 3-5 minutes; set aside.
  3. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in the saucepan. Add garlic, whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
  4. Gradually whisk in cream, italian seasoning and oregano. Cook, whisking constantly, until incorporated, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in Parmesan until slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes. If the mixture is too thick, add more milk as needed; season with salt and pepper, to taste. (I am pretty generous with the black pepper. I think it makes the alfredo pretty and delicious.)
  5. Stir in zucchini  and the now chopped chicken tenderloins, and gently toss to combine.
  6. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley and a bit more shredded parmesan cheese, if desired.

1474297167820.jpg

And SERIOUSLY enjoy! You’ll be glad you made this one!!!

1474297232112.jpg

And now, for the song of the day:

I can’t help singing to this song every time I hear it!!!

Advertisement

Baked – Potato Nachos

Posted on by

A couple of weeks ago my brother was over and I was trying to think of something easy and filling to make. I know both him AND my hubby LOVE potatoes and bacon. Then again, there are few that DON’T love that combination. Am I right?! So I cut up a few potatoes and just kept adding stuff I had in my fridge to the pan and VOILA! DINNER!

You want to know something weird though? My kids don’t love potatoes. The only type of potatoes they like are french fries. It’s a no to mashed potatoes, tater tots, hash browns, etc. Aren’t they weird. Who doesn’t love potatoes in all shapes, sizes and forms? MY CHILDREN. It’s like I don’t know who they are! They have some serious training to undergo. We’ve gotta work on them. Hopefully by Thanksgiving their MAJOR problem and pickiness of potatoes will be transformed. I will let you know. 🙂

So…. here is the HIT OF THE NIGHT with the adults. The kids had sandwiches. So THERE.

1473791121850.jpg

Ingredients:

  1. 6-10 slices of precooked bacon (I used black label hormel pre-cooked. You can also “pre-cook your own in the oven and then freeze what you don’t use and pull out as needed! Great trick for bacon cravings!!)
  2. 4-5 Yukon gold potatoes scrubbed and diced into bite size pieces (You can also buy the “pre chopped” homestyle fries from the frozen section of the grocery store for an easy option.
  3. 4 chicken tenderloins cooked (I sauteed with 1 TB olive oil, salt and pepper) and diced. You can also use leftover rotisserie chicken. That would be EASY and TASTY!
  4. 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  5. 2-3 TB olive oil
  6. 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  7. 2 sweet mini red bell peppers diced
  8. 2 tsp chili powder
  9. 1 tsp garlic powder
  10. 1/2 tsp cumin
  11. 1 avocado (for topping)
  12. Greek yogurt (for topping)
  13. Salsa (also for topping)
  14. 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar or Mexican blend shredded cheeses
  15. 3 green onions, sliced thin
  16. OPTIONAL: sprinkle with red chili flakes

 

 

Directions:

Bacon: Microwave the pre-cooked bacon on a plate with paper towel as directed on packaging. You can also cook raw bacon in the oven as directed. I just go for easy and quick bacon on nights like this!

Potatoes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Scrub and diced the potatoes into bite size pieces. ( like the peel to still be on the potatoes. You can peel if you’d like to). Drizzle the potatoes with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, cumin, garlic powder, and chili powder on the pan and stir around a bit. Spread the potatoes out in a single layer and bake for 20 minutes, stir well and bake an additional 15 – 20 minutes or until soft. Stir again and if needed bake another 10-15 min.

(If you need to saute chicken because you do not have leftover rotisserie chicken, do it NOW while potatoes are baking. Then set aside and rest once cooked. Dice right before you put onto the potatoes.)

Chop the bacon into small pieces. Remove the potatoes from the oven, stir again and sprinkle generously with shredded cheese, peppers, chicken, and chopped bacon. Return the tray to the oven and bake an additional 2-3 minutes, until the cheese has melted. Top with sliced green onions, avocado and greek yogurt (or sour cream) just before serving. Enjoy!

1473790932174.jpg

And now, for the song of the day:

Chicken Teriyaki with Pineapple!

Posted on by

After we found out about the plethora of allergies my son had, one of the very first sauces I learned to make from scratch was teriyaki. I had been craving it, but didn’t know how it was made, and didn’t trust oils and different things at restaurants to keep any cross contamination of allergens getting into the sauce or food. So… I pulled up some recipes and made teriyaki sauce! SO easy!! I couldn’t believe that I had all of the ingredients just in my house! Now, if you don’t cook often, you may not… but the ingredients last for a long time, so if you like teriyaki… run out and get these ingredients and MAKE some!! It’s so delicious!

wp-1463745697201.jpg

Ingredients
  1. 6 boneless skinless chicken tenderloins
  2. 1 zucchini, sliced and quartered
  3. 4 mini sweet bell peppers, any color, sliced thin
  4. 1/2 to 3/4 of a can of pineapple (or fresh!, whichever kind you like best)
  5. 1/2 small yellow sweet onion sliced
  6. 2 carrots diced
  7. 1 cup frozen broccoli cut into smaller pieces
  8. 1 1/2 cups cooked rice (1/2 cup uncooked… cook as per directions)
  9. salt and pepper to taste

For the Teriyaki Sauce

  1. ½ cup soy sauce
  2. 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
  3. 1 Tbsp sesame oil
  4. ¼ cup light brown sugar
  5. 1 Tbsp honey
  6. 1 tsp fresh ginger (I buy it like this)
  7. 1 tsp minced garlic (I buy my garlic like this)
  8. 2 tsp cornstarch+ 1 tsp water, mixed together

 

wp-1463745701638.jpg

Directions:

Start off by making the teriyaki sauce by adding all of the sauce ingredients to a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and boil for about 1 minute. The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of the spoon.

Cook your rice. I just put water and rice into my rice cooker and hit a button. Either way, start it now.

Prepare your skillet and heat it to medium and coat with 1 TB olive oil. Salt and pepper both sides of your chicken. Add 1/4 cup of the teriyaki sauce to the chicken in the skillet to help cook. Brown both sides of your chicken, remove and dice into bite sized pieces and then add the diced chicken back to the skillet.

While your chicken is browning, chop your zucchini and carrots and slice your onions and peppers. Put 1/4 cup more of the teriyaki sauce into the skillet with the chicken and then add the carrots and onions. Cook until the carrots start to soften, and then add the broccoli, peppers and zucchini and the rest of the teriyaki sauce.

To serve, add rice to each bowl. Top with grilled veggies, pineapple and chicken. ENJOY!

wp-1463745691959.jpg

And now, for the song of the day:

Just because I love Adele and carpool karaoke! 🙂

 

Chop, Dump and Sautee…

Posted on by

I like the kind of dishes that you can make over and over again without a lot of effort or thought. The kinds that you can make with different ingredients, but it’s the same idea. This meal is like that. I’ve made it lots of different ways, but it’s the same main idea… like hash.Days like yesterday where it RAINS ALL DAY, the kids are restless and trying to break everything in your house, just to keep their hands preoccupied (seriously, me finding my little boy every few minutes, with his hands busy doing something he SHOULD NOT) and it takes everything in me to just MAKE DINNER. That was last night. But… I made dinner! I grabbed a bunch of ingredients out of my fridge, chopped them up, dumped them all in the skillet, added some seasonings, and SERVED. That’s it. Done. And Delicious. There’s a few ways to do it too, depending on what meats and ingredients you have! I’ll give you the alternatives in the ingredients list. Get creative with it!

wp-1463745706424.jpg

Ingredients

  • 4-6 chicken tenderloins chopped (You can also use kielbasa, or leftover rotisserie chicken)
  • 2 large carrots diced (you can also use frozen, even mixed veggies if you want!)
  • 1-2 small to medium zucchini cut however you’d like
  • 4 small red potatoes diced (I partially peel them)OR you can use sweet potatoes
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 TB butter
  • 1/4 cup white wine for deglazing pan and helping to soften carrots and potatoes (can use chicken broth instead!)
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon herbs de provence (or Italian seasoning… herbs de provence recipe)
  • 1/2 small yellow onion diced
  • 1/2 tsp minced garlic (or use garlic powder)
  • You can garnish with Parmesan cheese, parsley, dried pepper flakes, basil, whatever!!

 

wp-1463745714943.jpg

 

Instructions

Chicken:
    1. Preheat skillet with the olive oil
    2. Add onions, carrots and potatoes
    3. Then add chicken, sprinkle with sea salt and pepper to taste and herbs de provence (or seasonings of your choice!).
    4. After everything has browned (turn chicken over when browned on 1 side) add the white wine (or chicken broth) and butter.
    5. Cook for 8-10 minutes uncovered, stirring occasionally.
    6. Add the chopped zucchini towards the end so it’s not too mushy.
    7. Transfer to a plate and garnish and EAT!

 

wp-1463745710014.jpg

 

And now, for the song of the day:

 

Low Carb Chicken Nacho Bake

Posted on by

wp-1454463007513.jpg

It’s January… we are all still working on our New Year’s Resolutions I’m sure. I am continuing mine! The hubby and I are planning an anniversary cruise in the fall, and I do NOT want to be embarrassed when I put on that bathing suit. So… toning up, working out, and CLEAN eating is to be had! A lot of gluten free, low carb (except weekends), less eating out etc etc etc. You know the drill.

This recipe… mmmmmm!!!!!!!!!! DE-LISH! It’s filling, and takes care of that craving for nachos, and junk food… while being filling and full of protein and good fats! It’s a little bit on the “cheat” side with the bacon… but don’t skip it! It adds that perfect flavor!

wp-1454463014812.jpg

INGREDIENTS
  • 3 frozen chicken breasts (I used Trader Joes… my FAVORITE!)
  • 1½ cups cheddar cheese
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • OPTIONAL red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 1/2 half small onion diced
  • 1 TB olive oil
  • 1 TB butter (for extra flavor, but NOT necessary)
  • 1 large jalapeno,
  • 3/4 cup frozen corn
  • 1 avocado
  • 1 small zucchini
  • 1/2 cup of your favorite salsa
  • 3 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled

wp-1454463034724.jpg

INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Preparation: Heat oven to 425 degrees
  2. If you haven’t, microwave/cook your bacon and cut/crumble into pieces
  3. Combine and mix together salt, pepper, paprika, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin and cayenne pepper in a bowl. Sprinkle and rub spice mixture over chicken pieces. Drizzle on olive oil on top of seasoned chicken and rub pieces together to evenly distribute oil. Melt the TB of butter in a large OVEN SAFE skillet on medium/medium high. Once melted, BROWN the chicken on both sides to really get those spices into the chicken. (DON’T cook through, just cook until brown on both sides… 2-3 minutes per side)
  4. Remove the chicken from the pan and turn off the stove top. Cut the chicken into bite size (about 1″x 1″) pieces and return to the pan.
  5. Add the rest of the ingredients (BUT NOT THE AVOCADO!! That’s put on after it comes out of the oven!!) on top of the chicken in the skillet and place into the oven. Make sure that the salsa is poured over everything in the skillet to give it a bit of liquid to cook in. (MAKE SURE YOUR PAN IS OVEN SAFE!! You can also bake it in a baking sheet… I just didn’t want to dirty 2 dishes.)
  6. Bake at 425 degrees F for 10-15 minutes or until hot, bubbly and delicious smelling (and the chicken pieces are cooked through).
  7. Remove from oven sprinkle avocado over top and serve immediately.
    *Optional: Serve with sour cream and chips!

And that’s it!!!

ENJOY!

 

And now, again, instead of a quote, I’m going to share ANOTHER of my new favorite songs to sing and dance to in my kitchen… also by Jordan Feliz:

Balsamic Chicken Caprese Style

Posted on by

Sigh… Pinterest and it’s endless scroll… it wastes so much of my time! I meal plan on pinterest. I also do some searches on foodnetwork.com etc… but mainly on pinterest. It sends me to GREAT blogs and websites, etc for amazing and creative recipes. I then, revamp the recipe and make it my own. The problem is, there are sometimes random cool things as “ads” mixed in with the recipes. I then like them because they are tailored to my liking. 1 hour later, I’m supposed to have my planning and shopping lists done and I’m over in humor laughing at memes with Ryan Gosling in them! Now, I know what you are thinking… “why wouldn’t you be?!”. Right? But… I do have to get things done… 🙂

So… I made this recipe the other night and the chicken turned out PERFECTLY! I used red peppers instead of tomatoes… so it’s caprese STYLE… but you can definitely use tomatoes if you aren’t weird like me…

wpid-1441995392121.jpg

4-5 servings
INGREDIENTS
  • 2 lbs chicken tenderloins
  • salt and pepper
  • 3 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 tsp minced garlic
  • 1 cup low sodium-chicken organic FF broth
  • 2-3 TB balsamic vinegar
  • 5 Tbsp. Dark Brown Sugar
  • sliced sweet red mini pepper
  • sliced fresh mozzarella
  • fresh basil
  • 1/2 cup fresh basil pesto

wpid-1441995582877.jpg

INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Salt and pepper both sides of all of your chicken tenderloins and set aside.
  2. Heat oil in saucepan on medium-high. Brown chicken on both sides. Reduce heat to medium-low and add your minced garlic.
  3. Cook until garlic is tender, being careful not to burn it. Add your low sodium chicken broth, balsamic vinegar and brown sugar. Turn heat up to medium-high and simmer for 10-12 minutes, spooning the broth mixture over the chicken every once in a while to make sure the chicken stays moist and soaks in the mixture.
  4. Preheat broiler. Make sure your skillet is OVEN SAFE! Take your slices of mozzarella and cover each slice of chicken with a slice of mozzarella.
  5. Broil until cheese is slightly melted. Place a sprig of fresh basil on top of the mozzarella and then add a red pepper slice (or tomato) on top. Drizzle with any remaining sauce and about a TB of pesto! YUM!!!!!!

wpid-1441995484834.jpg

This is sweet with a bit of tang and a WHOLE LOTTA freshness from that basil pesto. You’ll enjoy every bite!

And now, for the quote of the day:

Quick Leftover Rice – Chicken Fried Rice

Posted on by

So, I’m sitting on my back screened-in porch, watching my kids play in the sprinklers, and watching our little “home-made” terrarium filled with tadpoles…. while I food-blog. Honestly? Pretty good day! We collected tadpoles for a home-school science project to document the frog’s life-cycle. It has been so much fun! We’ve only had them almost a week, but they’ve already grown! Watching my kids want to check on them as SOON as they wake up has been really fun. It’s also been pretty cool for me! The funniest was when we went to catch them, and my daughter decided that she wanted to hold a tadpole. I said, if you can catch one, and not squish it, you can hold one. So, she sets out determined to catch one. I give her a couple of tips and she catches one! She holds out her hand SQUEALING at the top of lungs at me “I GOT ONE, I GOT ONE, I GOT ONE”, with her little hand shaking violently over the rocky ground. Out of pure thought for the poor tadpole, I told her to quickly put the tadpole back into the puddle before she drops it out of excitement onto the ground! She, luckily, properly followed instructions and the tadpole lived to see another day… at least, if a bird didn’t find that puddle later that day… 😉 My daughter doesn’t have to know that though. 🙂 I will honestly try my very best to always remember that high-pitched squeal, her excited face, and her shaking hand with that slimy little tadpole in it! Brings a smile to my face just thinking about it! So Much Fun!

So… later that night, after ALL OF THAT EXCITEMENT and trying to haul WAY to much water from the tadpole’s “home” back to our house… I did not have a lot of energy to cook dinner. BUT, I did have leftover rice from the other nights dinner. And you know what is perfect for leftover white rice? (Especially leftover from chinese takeout). Fried Rice!!!!!! This recipe is quick, easy and delicious!!!

wpid-1441995756190.jpg

3-4 Servings… depending on how hungry you are!

Ingredients:

3-4 cups of leftover rice (or just cooked…)
1/2 cup of leftover chicken cut into 1/2 to 1″ cubes (rotisserie works GREAT!) or cook up a couple of chicken tenderloins and slice
1 cup frozen mixed veggies (I used the peas, carrots, corn and beans mix)
1/4 of a yellow sweet onion sliced and chopped fine
1 TB olive oil
1/2 tsp minced garlic
2 eggs
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
3 TB coconut or soy aminos (or soy sauce) (or more, depending on your preference)
2 green onions

 

wpid-1441995693297.jpg

 

Directions:

  1. If you do not have leftover rice, go ahead and start to prepare it in your rice cooker or stove top pan now.
  2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat.
  3. Add onion, garlic, and frozen vegetables into the heated oil. Stir fry until tender.
  4. Add the rice and chicken and stir until incorporated. Add the sesame oil and stir again.
  5. Bring all of the rice to the side and crack your 2 eggs  into the pan (as you see above) and scramble the eggs. Once cooked, stir and incorporate throughout the rest of the rice dish.
  6. Add soy sauce to pan. Stir in soy sauce and remove from heat.
  7. Garnish with some sliced green onion and ENJOY!

 

wpid-1441995811191.jpg

 

And now, for the quote of the day:

Leftovers Skillet MishMash Meal

Posted on by

One thing that I have found since I have started this food blog, is that every time I go to a restaurant… I become very… weird about food. I like, want to dissect it. I want to know the ingredients to see if I can re-create it. I want to see if I can figure out what spices they use… if I could make it better! Any other food blogger out there experience this? What happens after that, is that you go BACK after you’ve re-made the dish… and you like YOURS better. That’s what happens when you re-make a dish to suite your specific likes. I’ll have to do this with a dish soon and post it. I love restaurant make-over dishes, OR copy cats!!!!

By the end of the week do you have a fridge and freezer of very little vegetables, a couple pieces of chicken that didn’t quite get eaten and half of a jar of spaghetti sauce? Do you ever wonder WHAT DO I DO WITH THEM??? Well… you do THIS!

wpid-1441995201920.jpg

Depending on how many leftovers you have: mine served 4 people

Ingredients

1 TB olive oil
1 TB butter (optional)
1/2 cup low sodium FF organic chicken broth (or water)
1 zucchini sliced and halved
2 chicken tenderloins cooked and chopped into bite size pieces
1/2 onion chopped
3 yukon gold potatoes – washed, sliced and cut into bite size pieces
3 carrots peeled and washed and chopped
1/4 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
1 TB shredded parmesan cheese
1/2 jar (or more if you have it) of Vodka Sauce (or any leftover spaghetti sauce)
1 large handful of organic spinach

wpid-1441995094928.jpg

Directions:

Thaw and chop your chicken from previous meals. You can even use whatever leftover rotisserie chicken or turkey that you have! Heat the 1 TB olive oil in a large skillet. Add the onions and carrots. Sautee until the onions become translucent. Add the diced potatoes and the chicken broth (or water). Stir around and add the lid and let simmer until the potatoes become soft (test with a fork). Remove the lid and add the zucchini, chicken, butter, and spaghettis cause. Stir until well incorporated and has started to simmer again. Let this simmer until the zucchini is cooked to your liking. I like mine still a bit crunchy, but some like their’s almost to mush… Up to you! Then, right before you serve, add the spinach and the parmesan, toss and SERVE!

This was SOO good, so easy, and really great to empty out my fridge of the last few items of things right before I went grocery shopping. Then you don’t have a mixture of old with new!

wpid-1441995281848.jpg

And now, for the quote of the day:

Lettuce Wraps- with Chicken, Avocado and Bacon!

Posted on by

So, I was in a little accident a couple of weeks ago (thankfully NOONE was hurt!), and my car was totaled. Pretty sure it was because I had an older van that wasn’t worth a lot… so when it came to repairing it, the parts just cost way more than the van was worth. Oh well! So… we are blessed to have an awesome insurance company and ended up being able to shop for a “new” to us van! I will tell you one thing though, shopping for a vehicle is hysterical with children. They are VERY opinionated. We went and saw this one van and the moment we got into it, my daughter said, LOUDLY, “Mom, I do NOT like this van at ALL. It stinks and is dirty”. Lol! Well, I don’t think the car salesman was surprised when we didn’t come back to purchase said vehicle. Ha! The one we DID end up purchasing, she kept whispering to me “can we keep it mommy? REALLY, can we keep it?”. I took that as a good sign! 🙂  Kids are just too funny! My son, 3, just kept climbing all over everything and pushing all of the buttons. Hopefully he didn’t cause issues in the vehicles that we did NOT buy!

So… having that done, BACK TO COOKING!

I made these a couple weeks back… and they are DELISH!

wpid-1440613938966.jpg

Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Bacon and Avocado!

Ingredients:

  • 3 chicken tenders or one chicken breast; seasoned, cooked and diced
  • 1/2 pint of grape tomatoes, diced
  • 1/2 avocado, diced
  • 4 slices bacon, cooked and diced
  • 4 iceberg or romaine lettuce leaves
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • Shredded Cheese
  • Diced sweet mini peppers – about 2

Creamy Avocado Dressing

  • 1/2 Avocado diced
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 3 Tb vinegar (I used flavored vinegar) like rice or white balsamic
  • 2 TB honey
  • dash of hot sauce
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 TB olive oil

If this dressing is too thick, just add more of whichever liquid you prefer. You can also add some lemon juice.

wpid-1440614048102.jpg

Directions:

Prepare the creamy dressing in a blender or, like me, in my Nutri-Bullet. Set aside for topping lettuce wraps.

To prepare the lettuce wraps, divide the diced chicken among the four lettuce leaves, then top with avocado, tomatoes, bacon, shredded cheese, diced peppers and creamy avocado dressing.

To eat, simply pick up the wrap, tuck in all sides and ENJOY!

wpid-1440613985524.jpg

And now, for the quote of the day from a Carrie Underwood song:

As bad as it was as bad as it hurt I thank God i didn't get what I thought that I deserved sometimes life leads you down a different road when you're holding onto someone that you gotta let go someday you'll see the reason why sometimes yeah sometimes there's good in goodbye

Chicken Tacos… All “Thai’d” Up!!!

Posted on by

In my hiatus from this blog, I HAVE been cooking. I usually take 1-2 days per week where I do not do a lot of cooking… we eat leftovers, or eat at a Chipotle or Zoe’s or something… or MOES! 🙂 But… I definitely have been cooking. I have so many pictures of meals that I have made over the past couple of months, I’m trying to organize them and figure out which recipe that I wrote down, the pictures correspond to. Oops! It’s been a bit overwhelming around here lately, but in a definitely good way! I’m BACK though! I may take a hiatus here and there, but I will always return to share some new, fun, FRESH and whole ingredient recipes!!

So, I found a great Thai Chicken taco recipe, but they used a lot of peanut butter and peanuts in the recipe. I personally do not use either in my home… so this is my “re-vamped” peanut-free version. And… it’s DELICIOUS!!!! It has SO much flavor… seriously… BURSTING.

wpid-1440613569473.jpg

Chicken Tacos – Thai’d Up

Serving Size – 3-4

Ingredients:
For Marinade:
1/2 cup orange juice – I juice some clementines I had in my fridge that worked PERFECTLY
1/4 cup Liquid Aminos OR Soy Sauce (low sodium)
2 tablespoons local honey
1 tablespoons grated FRESH ginger
1/2 lime, juiced
1/8 tsp cayenne powder
s&p to taste or preference

For Dipping Sauce:
2 tablespoon Sunflower Seed Butter (Or any nut butter of your choice)
2 tablespoon liquid aminos (as referenced above… you can also use soy sauce)
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons honey
1/8 tsp cayenne powder

For Thai’d Tacos:
4 large organic carrots, julienned
2 sweet mini red peppers, deseeded and sliced  thin
1 head of cabbage, pull 6-10 whole leaves, thinly slice or shred rest
5-6 chicken tenderloins
2 TB coconut oil
1 tsp minced garlic
salt and pepper
Cilantro, limes wedges, sriracha sauce for topping

wpid-1440613493892.jpg

Directions:
For marinade, combine all marinade ingredients in a large bowl, whisk, and add chicken tenderloins.  Cover and marinate as long as you can. I marinated for 30 minutes because I was a bit more rushed. You can even marinate overnight for even better results!! If needed, just marinate while you chop and julienne all of the veggies.

When ready to cook, heat the coconut oil in medium to large size skillet. Combine all ingredients for dipping sauce in a bowl and mix well.  Refrigerate sauce until ready to serve.  Remove chicken from marinade and cut into 1 inch cubes. Put chicken into the heated oil, along with the remaining marinade. Cook chicken until no longer pink (8-10 minutes) and when the chicken is about done, toss in the julienne carrots and the peppers and slightly toss until they are heated, but not soft. Assemble your Thai tacos with chicken, red pepper slices, shredded cabbage, dipping sauce, cilantro,and any other condiments of your choosing.  Enjoy!
wpid-1440613650072.jpg
And now, for the quote of the day: