#FoodieToosdy Week 8

Ree Drummond’s Ranch Chicken Sandwich

What you need:

4 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup Dijon mustard (or country/grainy mustard)
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Juice of 1 lemon
Crushed red pepper, for sprinkling, optional
1 pound thick-cut bacon, sliced in half
2 cups grated sharp Cheddar
8 soft whole grain buns

How to:

With a very sharp knife, cut the chicken breasts in half down the middle. This will result in 8 chicken breast pieces that are thinner and uniform in size.

Next, make the marinade. In a large bowl mix together the honey, mustard, paprika, salt, pepper to taste, lemon juice and crushed red pepper flakes if using. Stir to combine.

Add the chicken to the marinade and toss to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and marinate in the fridge, 2 to 4 hours.

While the chicken marinates, fry up the bacon until chewy. When finished cooking, reserve 1/4 cup of the bacon grease and pour off the rest of the grease (but do not clean the skillet).

When you are ready to cook the chicken, remove it from the marinade and cook it in the skillet over medium-high heat, 3 to 4 minutes each side. Brush a little reserved bacon grease on the chicken as you cook it. (Or you can grill the chicken breasts on an indoor or outdoor grill.)

When a couple of minutes grilling time are left, lay 2 pieces of bacon onto each chicken breast. Top with some Cheddar and allow it to melt on the grill (if you need to remove the chicken you can finish melting the cheese under the broiler).

Halve the rolls and immediately load with the bacon-and-cheese covered chicken.

This is what mine looked like:

Sandra Lee’s Zucchini al Formaggio

Now I definitely thought this was Giada’s recipe, but when I went back to find it I couldn’t, so who knows I may be delusional. Anyways, I found Sandra Lee’s that just might be as good!

What you need:

4 medium zucchini, sliced 1/4-inch thick
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (recommended: McCormick)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan (recommended: DiGiorno), plus shaved Parmesan, for garnish
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

How to:

Heat a large saute pan with olive oil over high heat. Add zucchini slices and saute for 5 minutes until slightly brown and tender. Add remaining ingredients, except shaved Parmesan, and toss to combine.

Remove to serving bowl with slotted spoon. Top with shaved Parmesan and serve hot.

Here’s how mine looked:

See they are a little different, but I liked it so much I just had to find you a recipe!

Aldi’s Mini Southwest Stratas

What you need:

• Carlini Canola Cooking Spray
• 1 tablespoon Carlini Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 cup diced yellow bell pepper
• 1 cup diced red onion
• 1 cup Season’s Choice Super Sweet Corn, thawed
• 1 cup Dakota’s Pride Black Beans, drained and rinsed
• ½ teaspoon Stonemill EssentialsGround Cumin
• ½ teaspoon Stonemill EssentialsGround Paprika
• 2 ½ teaspoons Stonemill EssentialsIodized Salt, divided
• 2 ½ teaspoons Stonemill EssentialsGround Black Pepper, divided
• 6 Goldhen Large Eggs
• 1 ½ cups Friendly Farms Half & Half
• 10 ounces L’oven Fresh Mini Butter Croissants, cut into ¼-inch cubes
• 1 cup Happy Farms Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• Tuscan Garden Real Bacon Bits (optional)

Make it the night before, freeze it and microwave them at your leisure.

How to:

Preheat oven to 375°. Prepare a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray.
In a skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Sauté the bell pepper, onion and corn for 5 minutes. Add the black beans, cumin, paprika, 1 ½ teaspoons salt and 1 ½ teaspoons pepper. Stir until well combined.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, half & half, remaining salt and remaining pepper.
Add the croissants, vegetable mix, cheese and bacon bits. Divide the mixture among the muffin cups. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Allow to cool.
TIP: Freeze the muffins for future breakfasts. Thaw overnight, then pop in the microwave to reheat.

This is what mine looked like:

 

 

Every single one of these recipes was DELICIOUS! Mmmmmm, happy eating!

#FoodieToosdy Week 4

Grandpa doesn’t have wifi so I wasn’t able to post yesterday, so here we are today!

#FoodieToosdy this week is going to be fish recipes for dinner. Yum yum!

Fish #1: Ina’s ‘Mustard-Roasted Fish’

Get:

• 4 (8-ounce) fish fillets such as red snapper
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 8 ounces creme fraiche
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
• 2 tablespoons minced shallots
• 2 teaspoons drained capers

How to:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. (You can also use an ovenproof baking dish.) Place the fish fillets skin side down on the sheet pan. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.

Combine the creme fraiche, 2 mustards, shallots, capers, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a small bowl. Spoon the sauce evenly over the fish fillets, making sure the fish is completely covered. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish, until it’s barely done. (The fish will flake easily at the thickest part when it’s done.) Be sure not to overcook it! Serve hot or at room temperature with the sauce from the pan spooned over the top.

Fish #2: Melissa D’ Arabian’s ‘Fish en papillote’
Get:

• 1/2 red onion, julienned
• 1 zucchini, julienned
• 1 large carrot, julienned
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 (4-ounce) sole fillets, hake, flounder or other white fish
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds removed
• 8 sprigs fresh thyme
• 4 pats butter
• 1/4 cup white wine

How to:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a bowl, mix together the onion, zucchini, carrot and garlic. Adds the oil, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and toss to combine. Put each fish fillet in a large square of parchment paper and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Arrange the vegetables on top, dividing evenly. Top the vegetables with 2 lemon slices, 2 sprigs thyme, a pat of butter and 1 tablespoon white wine, layering in order. Fold the parchment paper around the edges tightly in 1/4-inch folds to create a half moon shape. Make sure you press as you crimp and fold to seal the packets well, otherwise the steam will escape. Arrange the packets on a baking sheet. Bake until the fish is cooked through, about 12 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. To serve, cut open the packets and serve directly in the parchment on a plate or remove the fish to the plate using a spatula, being sure you don’t leave the juices behind.

Fish #3: Tilapia salad
Get:

• Tilapia (we get the independently packaged from Costco)
• Strawberries
• 1 Cob of Corn
• Lettuce that you prefer
• Bacon bits
• 1 T Olive Oil

How to:

After your fish is thawed, heat a tablespoon olive oil on a skillet (mine is in the background of this picture if you can see it) and cook the fish until the inside is opaque. While the fish is cooking cut your lettuce and place at the bottom of the bowl. Cut the corn off the cob and place in on your lettuce. Slice a couple strawberries based on your own personal preference. Once your fish is finished cooking cut it into pieces and place it on top. I heated some bacon up in the microwave and cut it into pieces. That’s it. It sounds nasty, but I enjoy it! I just used a balsamic dressing, but I think a honey mustard would taste good. Mom put flatbread on the side with a pesto sauce and melted cheese, which was just her own concoction.

P.S. Forgive me for not being a very good food photographer.

Happy Cooking, friends!