Orange Chicken - Crock*Pot Cafe 9

As you know, I just love my slow cooker!  It is so easy to just throw some ingredients in it and let it cook dinner for me.  Oranges were in season when I made this, so I decided to devise my own healthy, fresh, orange chicken crockpot dinner! I used my small crockpot, but you can easily double, triple, or quadruple the recipe and just place it in a larger slow cooker.

Slow Cooker Orange Chicken

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (mine were frozen)
• zest of 1 orange
• juice of 4 naval oranges
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 clove grated garlic
• 1 1/2 inch knob of ginger, grated
• 1 tsp sesame oil

Directions:
Mix together zest, garlic, ginger, oil, honey, and juice together in bottom of your slow cooker. Add in chicken breasts.  Toss in sauce.  Cook on low for 4-6 hours.  Serve with rice.  Enjoy!

Garlic Lime Chicken - Pinterest Pick #15

Like a lot of people, I am always looking for new ways to prepare my boneless skinless chicken breasts for dinner.  I was perusing Pinterest as I do, and came across a recipe I had pinned awhile ago for garlic lime chicken.  I had all the ingredients on hand except the jalapeno.  It was quick and cheap to grab one at the store.  You can find the original Pin HERE and the original recipe HERE. The only tweaks I would make to the recipe is next time I would add the whole jalapeno instead of just half and I would add the juice and zest of another lime.  I have included these changes in the recipe below.

Garlic Lime Chicken

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
• salt and pepper
• Mrs. Dash original seasoning (my addition)
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 1 small red onion, finely diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 medium jalapeno, de-seeded and diced finely
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 limes, zested and juiced
• 1 tsp dried cilantro (or 1 tbs fresh)
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions:
Heat oil in skillet over medium.  Season chicken with salt, pepper, and Mrs. Dash on both sides.  Cook chicken 5 minutes per side then remove from skillet.  Add onions, garlic and jalapeno, saute for a couple of minutes.  Add chicken broth, lime zest, lime juice, cilantro, and paprika.  Stir well then add chicken back into pan.  Simmer chicken for 8 minutes in sauce, stirring occasionally.  Add in cream, and additional salt and pepper to taste.  Simmer another minute or two then serve.  I served mine with rice.
Enjoy!

Lemon Pepper Chicken - Pinterest Pick #13 BONUS RECIPE TOO

A post where you get TWO recipes at one time?  Yup, it's happening!  I was reviewing all my recipes to make that I had pinned on Pinterest, and I found two that complimented each other to make a great dinner.  So one night, I made them both!  The tangy lemon pepper chicken breaks up the creaminess and richness of the pasta.  This chicken is simple, and great for any dinner or lunch.  You don't have to serve it with pasta.  It would be great on a salad, with rice, or whatever side you want to serve it with. You can find the original pin for the chicken HERE and the original pin for the pasta HERE.

Lemon Pepper Chicken

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 tbs lemon pepper seasoning (I use Lawry's)
• 1 lemon juiced
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 2 tbs grated parmesan

Directions:
Place all ingredients except parmesan in a ziploc bag or airtight container and mix well.  Marinate chicken for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350.
Place chicken on foil-lined backing sheet and sprinkle with parmesan. Bake for 30-45 minutes.
Enjoy!

BONUS!!!
Four Cheese Garlic Spaghetti
Ingredients:

• 8 oz thin spaghetti
• 1 cup cooking water
• mix of chicken and broth in water to cook pasta in 
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbs butter
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 2 cups four cheese Italian cheese blend (shredded)

Directions:
Cook pasta in mix of chicken broth and water until pasta is al dente.  Reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid.  Drain pasta.
Saute garlic in olive oil and butter for 1 minute.  Add in pasta, pasta water, and heavy cream.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce to a simmer and stir in cheese.  Cook for a couple of minutes so sauce can thicken.
Enjoy!

Tzatziki - Home Cooked Recipe #70

I have loved Greek food ever since I can remember.  I remember growing up in upstate NY and my favorite restaurant was Symeon's, a delicious Greek place.  My mom used to buy their house seasoning and make us chicken with it, and then make her homemade tzatziki.  A few years ago I looked up the restaurant online and found I could have the seasoning shipped here to FL.  For mother's day I shipped my mom a jar.  And I shipped one for myself!  Thinking about these food memories, I decided to come up with my own homemade Tzatziki recipe.  If you don't know what that is, it is a creamy cucumber dip.  It is delicious as a dip for veggies or pita bread, and it is even more tasty drizzled over Greek seasoned chicken (or pork, or beef, or lamb!).  It's healthier than a mayo or sour cream based dip. Easy to make, try it soon!


Tzatziki

Ingredients:

• 16 oz plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon sour cream
• 1 cucumber, peeled and seeded
• 1 teaspoon dried dill (or 1 tablespoon fresh, finely chopped)
• 1 garlic clove, finely minced
• salt and fresh ground black pepper
• ***optional - squeeze of fresh lemon juice, or lemon zest, or mint, finely chopped

Directions:
Grate cucumber.  Place in cheesecloth (or dish towel) in fine mesh sieve and squeeze out extra moisture.  Stir together yogurt and sour cream.  Add in minced garlic and and dill.  Fold in grated and drained cucumber.  Season with salt and pepper.  Serve with veggies, pita, chicken, or gyro meat.
Enjoy!

Simply Sides 17 - Cheesy Garlic Grits Casserole

If you have never had grits before, you're missing out.  Now when I say this, I say it with the disclaimer that grits must be prepared properly.  Cooked and seasoned with care and love.  I never ate grits until I was in my 30's.  First, I grew up in NY as a child where grits aren't as common as they are in the South, and second, the idea never appealed to me.  But now that I am older and more open to culinary adventures, I have discovered all sorts of yummy delights.
This casserole is based on a recipe from Paula Deen and it is delicious!  I spice it up with extra black pepper and a dash of cayenne.  I have also toyed with the idea of adding some cripsy bacon bits to it, and next time I make it I think I'll do just that.  This is a great dish as a side, especially with something like shrimp (as in shrimp and grits).  It's also a great main dish for breakfast.  And frankly, I just like to snack on it too.

Cheesy Garlic Grits Casserole

Ingredients:

• 2 cups regular grits (do NOT use instant)
• 6 cups chicken broth
• salt and pepper (extra black pepper if you like it)
• dash of cayenne (can be omitted)
• 1 tbs garlic powder
• 16 oz shredded cheddar
• 4 eggs, whisked
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 stick butter, sliced 

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Grease 4 quart casserole dish.
Bring chicken broth and seasonings (salt, pepper, cayenne, garlic) to a boil.  Add grits, stir well, reduce heat to medium low.  Let simmer for 10 minutes.  Add in milk, and 3/4 (12oz) of cheese.  Stir until well combined.  Add butter and eggs.  Whisk for a couple of minutes until everything is well incorporated.  Pour into greased baking dish.  Top with remaining cheddar.  Bake for 45 minutes.
Enjoy!

Simply Sides 9 - Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks

Who doesn't love a cheesy garlicky bread stick??? I could live off them if my body would let me (sadly, it won't).  These are super simple to make, and are a great addition to any pasta or pizza meal (any meal really!).

Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks

Ingredients:
4 tbs garlic compound butter (see recipe below pictures)
1 batch of pizza dough (you can make your won or get it at a grocery store like I do, my local Publix has great dough for under $3)
1/4 parmesan, grate
1/2 cup shredded cheddar (or mozzarella, or your favorite cheese)

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 500.  Let dough rise for at least an hour (up until all day) - if you don't, you'll have the big puff ball I did!  Punch dough down, and with your hands or a rolling pin, flatten onto a well-greased baking sheet (or pizza stone).  Spread softened butter (leave at room temperature for an hour or two, or microwave for 10 seconds) all over dough.  Sprinkle on parmesan, sprinkle on cheddar.  Bake at 500 for 10-15 minutes.

Enjoy!

Garlic Compound Butter
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
pinch of salt and pepper
*Blend all ingredients until thoroughly combined.  Roll up in wax paper and refrigerate.  Use as needed!

Pork Roast - Home Cooked Recipe 38

Ok, I'll admit, I have been super lazy and haven't posted in a month!  I always mean to but then I get caught up in doing other things, such as work and social activities.  But I have been cooking and eating out, and hope to bring you a lot more posts from here on out.
Today I am going to be giving you a recipe for something I tried for the first time.  A pork roast!  I do not have much experience with cooking large pieces of meat such as roasts and whole chickens, etc.  I've decided that in 2013 part of broadening my culinary horizons is to attempt these roasts, and my ultimate goal is to roast a whole chicken (and possibly a turkey!).  Hopefully I'll discover it's not as intimidating as I think, and be able to provide you with some great recipes!
Now, I do have to say, when I came up with this recipe, it's because I got the wrong kind of pork roast.  I meant to get a pork roast (a butt - not really the butt of the animal but the name for the cut of meat!) that you can pull apart to make pulled pork.  What I ended up with was a pork loin roast, which can really only be sliced (kind of like a large pork tenderloin).
So I scrapped my original plan and decided to go with a lemon-garlic roast!  The flavor was excellent, but next time I'll be more careful to select the exact kind of roast I want.

Lemon-Garlic Pork Loin Roast

Ingredients:

• 1 2-3lb pork loin roast
• 2 lemons, 1 sliced, 1 cut in half and juiced
• 1 cup chicken broth (or veggie broth)
• 2 tbs garlic powder
• 1 tbs onion powder
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• salt and pepper (to taste)

Preheat oven to 325. Combine garlic powder, rosemary, onion powder, salt and pepper.  Place roast in pan. Rub spices all over the pork roast, massaging it into meat.    Place lemon slices all over the top of the roast.  Pour chicken broth and lemon juice over meat, letting it settle into the bottom of the pan.  Roast in oven for 2 1/2 to 3 hours.  Baste with juices from the bottom of the pan every 30 minutes or so.  Let rest 30 minutes before slicing and serving.  Enjoy!
***I served my roast with roasted potatoes and a green salad, feel free to serve with whatever sides you like.