Chicken Tenders Lyon

I must admit I was skeptical about this chicken dish when I saw Chef Jacques Pepin include ketchup in the sauce. I trust this man, though, with his amazing ability to create wonderful flavor palettes, so I gave it a try.

Well... this gem has become a family favorite, and I have made it my own by using white meat chicken instead of the thighs Chef uses in the video. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 6 chicken tenders, trimmed if needed
• 1 tbsp avocado oil
• Salt & pepper
• 5 cloves garlic - smashed and then minced
• 4 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 4 tbsp water
• 4 tbsp ketchup
• Dash of sriracha sauce
• 1/2 cup Muffuletta (olive salad)
• Chives or scallions for garnish (optional)

Preparation:

Trim any ligament ends from tenders and lay them side by side on a plate. Add S & P to both sides.

Heat a frying pan with avocado oil and brown tenders on both sides. Once chicken is well browned, cover and steam rest of the way on low for 4-5 minutes.

Remove chicken from pan and place on warmed serving dish with a cover. Add garlic to the pan and sautee on medium heat 30-60 sec. Add the vinegar and reduce on high heat to remove acidity. Taste… Add water, ketchup and sriracha and stir until well blended. Stir in the Muffuletta. Once warm, pour sauce evenly over tenders, add garnish and serve.

Here is Chef Pepin's original video: Chicken Lyon

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Chef Jacques Pepin: "Use what's in your refrigerator..."

I first heard Chef Pepin utter the line when I watched a video of him making a cod dish with assorted ingredients I never thought would work. Radishes with cod? What was he thinking!? LOL I recreated that dish and then named it Wondra Codfish as that recipe was also my introduction to Wondra Flour.

Use whatever is in your refrigerator... The line came to mind Monday night after a long weekend that left me with multiple started items in my fridge. I smiled as I thought of Chef Pepin and just started grabbing things.

The dish that ended up on the dinner table was bright, fresh and distinctly flavorful while incorporating minimal seasonings. I was so pleased with how diabetic-friendly the dish was that I decided to add it here. Enjoy!

Every dish needs a name, right? I call this one.... Fridge Whatever :-)

Ingredients:

• 4 oz chickpea pasta (1/2 box) - Banza brand preferred
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic - smash minced
• 1-2 tomatoes - cut up
• 1/4 orange bell pepper - diced
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 6-8 oz leftover meat - this version features loin of pork
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• salt & pepper to taste

Preparation:

Cook the pasta and peas and set aside. Pasta should be slightly under so it holds up in the skillet later on. Heat the olive oil and saute the garlic over medium heat. Add pasta and fry until lightly browned. Add peppers, peas & onion powder... toss until heated through. Fold in meat and then tomatoes. Season with salt & pepper... done.

Serves 2 with no leftovers

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Mediterranean Chicken Bowl

Adapted from a recipe found on happydiabetic.com

This lovely creation is yet another way to use my Homemade Chicken Breast Cold Cuts or, for a different texture, my Versatile Shredded Chicken Breast . Either way this meal is bound to delight everyone around the table. Enjoy!

• Ingredients:
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 large white button mushrooms - sliced
• half each red and yellow bell pepper - sliced to 1.5" long sticks
• 1 average tomato diced
• ½ red onion sliced or diced - your call
• 1/3 cup vegetable stock
• 4-5 oz of cut up asparagus - 1.5" pieces
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tbsp fresh garlic
• 8 ounce skinless precooked chicken - sliced or shredded
• 14 black olives - pitted and cut in half lengthwise
• 15 oz can cannellini beans - drained
• fresh ground black pepper to taste - 4-5 twists 
• sea/kosher salt to taste
• 1 fresh lime - quartered for table serve

Preparation:

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, bell peppers, onions and asparagus and sauté for 5 minutes.

Add the cooked chicken and fresh garlic.

Lower heat, add vegetable stock, oregano, rosemary, and basil. Carefully fold in the diced tomatoes, beans and olives.  

Simmer for about 5 minutes with an occasional toss. Cook over low heat until chicken is nice and hot. Season with fresh ground black pepper and some sea/kosher salt to taste and add a generous squeeze of lime.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Chicken & Mushroom Madeira - Signature Collection

You know how much I love the ease of a one pot meal. Well, this one may seem really simple but it packs a whole boatload of flavor! Chicken and mushrooms with wine... How can you go wrong? 😊 

Ingredients:

• ~2 lbs boneless chicken breasts, cut into stew size chunks
• ~2-3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion cut up, like bite-size
• 16 oz baby portobello mushrooms, halved or quartered depending on size
• 1 bunch scallions - 4-6 stalks - cut in 3/8 - 1/2" sections
• 1 cup Madeira wine
• 2 10.5 oz cans unsalted condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 1 tsp table salt for dish
• fresh ground black pepper to taste – I do 6 twists on my pepper mill
• chicken broth, white wine or more Madeira for thinning if needed
• 1 tbsp salt for brine
• 1 lemon

Preparation:

First... prep the chicken: Trim the breasts of fat and junk. Lay breast flat, cut in half lengthwise and then cut halves into stew size chunks. Mix 4 cups water with 1 tbsp regular salt and fresh squeezed juice from 1 lemon. Add chicken to brine, stir a little so chicken pieces are in brine on all sides. Refrigerate and let sit for 1-2 hours. Rinse chicken to remove any salt residue and pat dry.

In large skillet or Dutch oven heat one tbsp of olive oil, sear chicken pieces and set aside.

Cut up onions, mushrooms and scallions and lightly saute in same Dutch oven with another 1-2 tbsp olive oil.

Add Madeira, blend and bring to a simmer. Add cream of mushroom and again bring to a simmer and blend.

Season with 1+ tsp table salt fresh ground black pepper to taste. Add chicken back into the pot and simmer for about 60 minutes.

Serve over Banza chickpea pasta, egg noodles or pearl barley with a green veggie side.

Blessed be… and happy cooking!

Cauliflower Mushroom Skillet with Meat

Adapted from a recipe on Kitchenra.com

I was introduced to this tasty dish as a light vegetarian meal or side dish. I took it a step further as you'll see here, turning it into a full protein entree by adding either ground beef or chicken. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground white meat chicken or beef/venison

• 1 medium-sized cauliflower, cut into small florets

• 3 tbsp olive oil - divided

• 1 small onion - finely chopped

• 3 cloves garlic - minced

• 8 oz mushrooms - your choice - sliced

• 1 tsp dried thyme

• 1 tsp dried rosemary

• salt and pepper to taste (Don't be shy on the salt)

• 1/3 cup chicken or beef broth depending on your protein

• fresh parsley - chopped for garnish (optional)

Preparation:

Steam or blanch the cauliflower florets for 3-4 minutes, or until they are slightly tender. Drain and set aside.

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet and fry meat until cooked through. Set meat aside for later.

In the same skillet, add the remaining olive oil and heat over medium heat.

Add the chopped onion and minced garlic to the skillet. Sauté for 2-3 minutes until the onions become translucent and fragrant. Add the sliced mushrooms to the skillet and continue to cook for 5-7 minutes, or until they release their moisture and start to brown.

Season the mushrooms with dried thyme, dried rosemary, salt, and pepper. Stir well to distribute the herbs evenly. Pour in your broth of choice to deglaze the skillet, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. 

Finally, add the meat and cauliflower florets to the skillet and gently toss everything together. Cook for an additional 5-7 minutes, allowing the cauliflower to absorb the flavors.  

Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt and pepper if needed. Garnish servings with fresh parsley, if desired.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Chicken Gruyere

 This dish was born in the safety of my kitchen after a day of some disturbing news.

Many folks eat when they're depressed... I cook.

Anyway... I was in the mood for some chicken and remembered I still had some of the Gruyere/Swiss Cheese blend in the fridge. My window sill scallions were in need of a trim, so I played with the flavors in my head and came up with something that instantly won our hearts and will be repeated.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb thin sliced chicken breast
• Lemon pepper blend of your choice
• Flour for dredging
• 2 tbsp avocado oil
• Scallions cut in small pieces
• 1 cup or more Gruyere/Swiss cheese blend

Preparation:

Season chicken on both sides with lemon pepper and dredge in flour.

Heat the avocado oil and sear the chicken both sides and then steam for a couple minutes to cook through.

Push the pieces together and coat with scallions and cheese.

Lower the heat and cover pan to melt the cheese.

Serve with some barley and a vegetable of your choice.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Unstuffed Eggroll

 Adapted from a recipe found on the ADA's Diabetic Food Hub

Original source: The Diabetes Cookbook. Recipe Credit: Lara Rondinelli Hamilton, RD, LDN, CDE and Jennifer Bucko Lamplough. Photo Credit: Mittera.

This quick and easy recipe features the familiar flavors of a Chinese takeout eggroll, but without the added grease from deep frying. This is a great low-carb entree on its own, or serve over a grain, like barley or quinoa, or over cauliflower rice.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb lean ground pork or chicken breast
• 1/2 tsp black pepper (divided use)
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp olive oil - divided
• 1 clove garlic - minced
• 1  16 oz bag packaged coleslaw mix
• 2 tbsp lower sodium soy sauce
• 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 3 green onions/scallions - sliced to 1/4” pieces on an angle for appearance

Preparation:

Season pork/chicken with 1/4 teaspoon pepper and the garlic powder. Sauté meat in a large skillet over medium-high heat using 1 tbsp oil until completely cooked. Drain fat if needed. Remove meat from pan and set aside.

Heat remaining olive oil in pan and add garlic; sauté 30 seconds. Add coleslaw, soy sauce, ginger, hoisin sauce and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook 6 minutes, stirring frequently. Add meat back to pan and top with green onions. Blend and heat 1–2 minutes.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Sloppy Janes

Full credit for these delicious beauties goes to the ADA's Diabetic Food Hub.

Sloppy Joes get a makeover with lean ground turkey instead of beef, plus plenty of zing from garlic, onions, peppers, tomatoes and hot sauce.

Make them... Enjoy them... No guilt involved!

Ingredients:

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1 medium onion - diced
• 1 medium red bell pepper - seeded and diced
• 1 clove garlic - minced
• 1 lb lean ground turkey or ground chicken breast (better for heart patients)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tbsp Dijon Mustard
• 1 tbsp hot sauce - use your favorite
• 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
• 1 tbsp honey or 2 packets artificial sweetener
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 8 whole wheat hamburger buns

 Preparation:

Add cooking spray to a nonstick sauté pan over medium-high heat.

Add onion, red bell pepper and garlic. Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add ground meat of choice and sauté 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently until meat is just cooked through.

Add tomato paste, Dijon mustard, hot sauce, tomatoes, honey and ground black pepper. Bring to a simmer for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Toast the hamburger buns. Fill each bun with 1/2 cup of the  mixture to make 8 sandwiches. Optional: top each sandwich with lettuce, red onion, or pickles for crunch.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Red Bean Casserole with Chicken

Credit goes to the American Diabetes Association’s Diabetes Comfort Food Cookbook

The secret to this casserole is in the orange zest. It provides a clean, fresh taste to this one-pot casserole. The dish is somewhat like a cassoulet, but because it contains no red meat, it’s so much better for you. The red beans provide more of the protein with the added bonus of a good fiber.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken breast – no skin, cubed to 1” pieces and brined for an hour
• 4 cloves garlic – smash minced
• ½ tsp dried thyme
• kosher salt to taste
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1.5 tbsp olive oil - divided
• 1 lge onion – chopped
• 2 med carrots – peeled and julienned
• 1 cup canned whole tomatoes – coarsely chopped, with their juice
• ¼ cup dry white wine – use real wine… the stuff labeled cooking wine has too much salt
• 2 15 oz cans red kidney beans – drained and rinsed - about 3 cups
• 1 tsp fresh orange zest
• 4 tbsp plain breadcrumbs or Panko

Preparation:

Brine the chicken in a standard salt brine for about an hour. Rinse to remove excess salt, then toss the chicken with the garlic, thyme, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.

In a Dutch oven or large skillet with cover, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and saute for 4-5 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate and set aside.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Add the onion and carrots to the pan and saute for about 6-7 minutes until onions are soft. Add the tomatoes with juice, wine, beans and orange zest. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and add chicken back to the pan. Cover, transfer pot to the oven, and bake for 20 minutes.

Combine ½ tbsp olive oil and the breadcrumbs. Uncover the pot and sprinkle the breadcrumbs on top of the casserole. Bake for another 10 minutes uncovered until the crumbs are browned.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!