Nadia's Mango Chicken Stir-Fry

INGREDIENTS

1-2 lbs boneles, skinless chicken breast
¼ cup pineapple juice or orange juice
3 Tbsp soy sauce
¼ tsp ground ginger or 1 Tbsp fresh ginger (minced)
1 clove garlic (minced)
1 red bell pepper (cut into strips)
1 green bell pepper (cut into strips)
2 mangoes (cut into chunks) (I like to use frozen mango)
¼ cup slivered almonds (toasted)
3 green onions (chopped)
Black pepper to taste
1 Tbsp Olive or grapeseed oil
Cooked brown rice to serve

INSTRUCTIONS

In a large wok or skillet, heat oil and sauté chicken over medium heat until cooked through,
about 10 minutes.

In a small bowl, stir together juice, soy sauce, ginger and garlic.

Add sauce and red and green bell peppers to the skillet. Cook and stir for about 5 minutes until
peppers are crisp-tender.

Add mangoes and almonds to the skillet and cook until hot. Season with black pepper and green
onions.

Serve over steamed brown rice.

Nadia's Baked Chicken Pesto

Nadia Moya-Krahl has given me several easy and delicious recipes over the years! Here's a favorite.

INGREDIENTS

4 chicken breast
½ cup pesto
2 tomatoes (sliced)
1 cup mozzarella cheese (shredded)
Salt & Pepper (to taste)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish and place chicken breasts in the dish. Sprinkle with salt and
pepper.

3. Smear 2 tablespoons of pesto on each breast.

4. Place 1-2 tomato slices on each breast.

5. Top each breast with ¼ cup of shredded cheese.

6. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Cole's Favorite Chicken Piccata

Cole, Mandy, Givonna and I shared this Chicken Piccata for Valentine's Day Dinner this year! It's much faster if you have someone chop things for you while you pound and bread the chicken.

Video here:




Chicken Piccata Recipe

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 pounds Thin Cut Chicken Breast
(or use 4 6ounce whole chicken breast and pound thin with a meat mallet)
¼ cup Lemon Juice
½ cup White Wine
1 cup Chicken Stock
6 Thin Half Moon Slices of Lemon
3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
5 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, divided
2 Tbsp Capers
3 Tbsp Fresh Chopped Parsley
All Purpose Flour, for dredging
1 Medium Shallot, chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

1) On medium high Heat, preheat the olive oil in a large deep nonstick skillet,

2) Season the flour with salt and pepper. Dredge 2 tbsp of butter in the seasoned flour and set aside.

3) Dredge the chicken breast into the flour shaking off any excess flour and set aside.

4) When the oil is hot add 1 Tbsp of butter, when the butter is melted add the chicken and cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until the chicken is cooked through. (You might need to do this in batches) Remove the chicken from the pan and add the shallot in with the pan juices. Cook the shallot until soft and translucent about 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.

5) Add the wine and let it cook for 2 minutes, just until all the alcohol cooks out and the wine reduces by half. Add the chicken stock and 2 Tbsp of butter and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the liquids reduce by half about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the chicken back in with the liquids and add the capers, 2 Tbsp of the dredged butter and the lemon juice. Cook for 2 minutes or until the sauce thickens, add the parsley and lemon slices and cook for 30 seconds. Serve this amazing chicken piccata with a side of angel hair to soak up all those delicious juices.

Pomegranate Garlic and Herb Roasted Chicken

This is a new favorite in our house! It needs to marinate for 24 hours, so this is a good one to make ahead on Sunday for Tuesday's dinner. Watch the video here, because the girl is hilarious.

• ½ cup loosely-packed fresh mint

• ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped

• 2 tbsp fresh sage, chopped

• ½ tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped

• 2 tbsp fresh thyme

• Juice and zest from 1 lemon

• Juice from 1 orange

• 1 to 2 scallions, chopped

• 8 large garlic cloves, finely minced

• ½ to 1 tbsp crushed red pepper

• 3 to 4oz Pomegranate Molasses per chicken (if using two small, 6 oz for one large bird)

• 3 to 4 tbsp neutral tasting oil (such as canola, vegetable, or grapeseed)

• *Brown sugar or honey, to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Mix all ingredients (except chicken and brown sugar or honey) together in a medium to large bowl, thoroughly.

Place chicken in a large ziploc bag or container, pour marinade over chicken and refrigerate for 4 to 24 hours.

Preheat oven to 350. Place chicken on a baking rack over a foil lined baking sheet. Tuck the wing tips under the breast meat to prevent burns. Pat excess surface moisture, add a final sprinkle of kosher salt and black pepper. Place in oven on the lower-middle rack, for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, reduce your reserved marinade in a saucepan over high heat until it comes to a boil. Reduce to a low-simmer for 10 minutes or until it reduces by about half. Add brown sugar or honey to the mixture to balance the tartness of the pomegranate. This amount will be up to you. Taste as you go, adjust seasoning.

Take the chicken out of the oven after 30 minutes, and baste it with the pomegranate glaze.

Place back in oven and finish cooking until done. White meat should register 160-165 degrees on an instant read thermometer, and the dark meat should register 170-175.

Allow chicken to rest for at least 10 minutes before serving. 

Elise's Roasted Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Capers

This recipe comes from Epicurious, and Elise says it is delicious!

Chicken thighs are an inexpensive and delicious alternative to chicken breasts. This one-pan dinner is perfect for a weeknight because it's so simple to put together and cleanup is a breeze.

INGREDIENTS

2 (15-ounce) cans white beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons capers with brine
8 teaspoons Dijon mustard
8 skin-on bone-in chicken thighs (about 2 pounds)
1 large lemon, thinly sliced, seeds removed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh parsley

PREPARATION

Position rack in upper third of oven and preheat to 425°F. Toss beans and capers in a 13x9 baking dish and spread out evenly on bottom of pan. Spread 1 tsp. mustard on skin of each chicken thigh and nestle, skin side up, into beans and capers. Arrange lemon slices under and around chicken and add enough water (about 1/3 cup) to come up sides of chicken by 1/2". Drizzle chicken with oil and season whole dish with salt and pepper.

Roast chicken, stirring and shaking dish halfway through, until skin is browned and an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of chicken registers 165°F, about 35 minutes. If chicken skin starts to burn, move pan to a lower rack to finish cooking.

Transfer chicken, beans, lemon slices, and capers to a serving platter. Spoon some of the pan sauce around chicken and sprinkle with parsley.

Double-Dipped Fried Chicken

My recipe for fried chicken is a first effort. I pulled it from Paula Deen's recipe on www.foodnetwork.com and made a couple changes.

• 2 chicken breasts with rib meat and bones
  
• Salt and pepper
• Cayenne pepper
• If you like it hot, some red pepper flakes
  
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup milk
  
• 3/4 vegetable oil, 1/4 bacon grease for frying

Directions

Cut the chicken breasts in half, keeping the bone on, so that you have 2 pieces, each the size of a fist, from each. Liberally sprinkle with a mixture of salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper. Watch the salt, since bacon grease is salty.

Place the flour in a plastic kitchen storage bag. Beat the eggs with the milk. Dip the chicken pieces into the egg mixture, then place each piece in the bag. Shake until chicken is coated. Set the floured chicken on a plate for about 10 minutes. Then, dip the chicken in the egg wash again, and into the flour again. Let sit again while you heat the oil.

Heat the oil: Put some bacon grease, I used about 1/2 cup, into a deep frying pan. Pour enough vegetable oil into the pan to come only about halfway up the sides. Turn the heat to medium; test by adding a drop of water to the oil. If it sizzles, the oil is ready; this takes about 4 to 5 minutes. Place 2 pieces of chicken into the hot oil. Allow to cook on the meat side about 10 minutes, and on the bone side about 7 minutes, until brown and crispy. Remove the chicken from the oil and drain well on brown paper bags. Cook the second batch of chicken.

I served it with Bisquick biscuits and broccolini.

Review: Bryan says it is very flavorful and crunchy! He said it was better than he expected for fried chicken.