Skillet Arroz con Pollo

I know I'm VERY behind in posting... it's embarassing, really. But I'll just post and hope you'll all forgive me :)
 
Skillet Arroz con Pollo is a great summer dish that comes in at 373 calories for a 1-1/2 cup serving. This smelled amazing while it was cooking. I love when the aroma while you're cooking makes you so excited eat dinner. All in all, I'd make it again... and may even do so this week :)

RECIPE: (from Taste of Home Comfort Food diet Cookbook)
Yield: 4 servings
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium sweet red pepper, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 garlic clove, minced
2 t olive oil
1 c uncooked long grain rice
1 can (14-1/2 oz) reduced sodium chicken broth
1/4 c sherry or water
1/2 t grated lemon peel
1/4 t salt
2 c cubed cooked chicken breast
1 c frozen peas, thawed
1/4 c sliced ripe olives, drained (we hate olives, so I didn't use any)
2 T minced fresh cilantro

1. In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, saute the onion, red pepper and garlic in oil for 1 minute. Add the rice; cook and stir for 4-5 minutes or until lightly browned.

2. Stir in the broth, sherry, lemon peel, salt and cayenne. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.

3. Stir in the chicken, peas and olives. Cover and simmer about 3-6 minutes longer or until rice is tender and chicken is heated through. Sprinkle with cilantro.

Alice Chicken

Despite the name, I didn't come up with this. My MIL sent me an email one day with a link to this recipe. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Alice-Chicken/Detail.asp

Have you ever used the broiler in your oven? I hadn't until this recipe, and if I had read all the way through the recipe before buying all the stuff to try it, I would probably still have no broiler experience :)

This recipe takes bacon, cheese, mushrooms and honey mustard dressing. When I was frying the bacon for the recipe, my husband walked through the kitchen looked around and said, "Whatever this is, I want some!" Can't beat the smell of frying bacon, I guess! And when he did have some, he LOVED it. We all did. Here it is served with asparagus sauteed with garlic... yum.

NEXT TIME:
1. Broiler is fine, but GRILL! That way I don't have to do the cooking :)
2. Make sure not to cook the bacon too crispy. Mine got a little too crispy due to child interruptions. Oh well!
3. Timing is everything: I'd be sure to saute the mushrooms and cook the bacon while the chicken is cooking. That way everything is hot when the chicken is done... once again, child interruptions!
4. I'd probably coat the mushrooms with the dressing leaving it a little runny like a sauce and heat it up a tad. Otherwise it's like you put salad dressing on your chicken. It tastes the same either way, but sometimes presentation is important.

Well, that's all I have to say about that... well, that and we'll definitely be making this again ;)

Cream Cheese Chicken with Broccoli - Crock Pot

Oh. My. YUM! But may I begin with these disclaimers:
1. Don't try this if you're trying to lose weight or you're watching your cholesterol.
2. Because this is so rich, make sure it's eaten up -in moderation!- in one night... invite friends over!
3. Michelle Obama probably wouldn't approve, but like I said, moderation!!

Ok. Back to business. This is seriously SO GOOD. It smells good. It's easy. It tastes good. It goes in the crock pot. What more could you want? The recipe is from Rival's Best Loved Slow Cooker Recipes

RECIPE:
4 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 in pieces
1 t olive oil
1 pkg (1 oz) Italian salad dressing mix
2 c sliced mushrooms
1 c chopped onion
1 can (10.75 oz) condensed low-fat cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 bag (10 oz) frozen broccoli florets, thawed
1 pkg (8 oz) low-fat cream cheese, cubed
1/4 c dry sherry
hot cooked pasta (I used fettuccine)

1. Toss chicken with olive oil. Sprinkle with Italian salad dressing mix. Place in 5 quart slow cooker. Cover; cook on low 3 hours.

2. Coat large skillet with nonstick cooking spray. Add mushrooms and onion; cook 5 min over med heat or until onions are tender, stirring occasionally.

3. Add soup, broccoli, cream cheese and sherry to skillet; cook until hot. Transfer to slow cooker. Cover; cook on low 1 hour. Serve chicken and sauce over pasta.

This was a pot of creamy goodness. I wouldn't do anything different (except not have leftovers because it's not an every day meal). I'd follow exactly what the recipe says. I'm sure you could use chicken broth instead of dry sherry, but the sherry adds some zip to the recipe. Seriously. I think it's worth the splurge.

Slow Cooker Chicken Marsala

If you know me, you know I love my slow cooker (a.k.a. crock pot). I actually have 3 of them. In fact, I've nicknamed this winter "the winter of the crock pot" because they've been working overtime. I'm always looking for new things to make in the slow cooker, so you'll probably see many slow cooker recipes in this blog! (Check out the tried and true page for some of my staple recipes - slow cooker and otherwise.)

This recipe comes from Pillsbury.com. It says the prep time is 10 minutes... I guess it may take that long  if you can't find the can opener or something like that. It's more like 2.5 - 5 minutes of prep - does it get better than that???

http://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/slow-cooker-chicken-marsala/d00785b5-3bcb-4a19-a752-d175d763441f/ or search pillsbury.com for Slow Cooker Chicken Marsala

Notes: I did exactly what the recipe said (except for the use of parsley) and used Holland House Marsala Cooking Wine not chicken broth. It was served over rice.

A confession: I've had this recipe before, but I didn't make it. My mother-in-law did. So is this a new recipe for this week? I guess that's up to you. But do note, I made another new recipe this week, so my resolution is not broken. :)

The verdict? 3 words: OH YEAH, BABE! I'll be making this again (you need to make it twice to use up all the cooking wine anyway :) ). It smells good. It tastes good. It presents well. The mushrooms soak up all that marsala wine goodness. YUM.

NEXT TIME: I might use more mushrooms. I love mushrooms. And when the mushrooms taste like they've been marinated in wine, well, then I just don't think you can have too many mushrooms! I'd also purchase some fresh parsley and invite people over for dinner... it's that good!

If you end up making this (or any of the recipes on my blog) please comment and let me know how it went for you!