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Everyone has a go-to weeknight dinner right?  I mean something other than fried eggs on toast…though that is also one of my faves!  Well, this chicken & broccoli dish is really easy and quite delicious.  It’s hard to go wrong with chicken and pasta in general, but when I discovered this flavor combination, it quickly became a repeat dinner.

First, cut a boneless skinless chicken breast into ½” cubes. (One breast should be enough to serve 2 people)  Sauté with some olive oil and McCormick Montreal Chicken Seasoning.  Add in a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes or some Turkish biber (a dried red pepper) to give the chicken a little kick!

At the same time, boil the pasta of your choosing (I like whole wheat penne or whole wheat orzo), and either sauté or steam some broccoli.  When everything is cooked and the pasta is drained, combine everything in one pot.  Add more olive oil and either milk or cream.  You need just enough milk or cream to make everything come together – probably a couple turns of the pan as you pour (maybe ¼ - ⅓ cup).  Add a generous amount of freshly grated parmesan cheese, stir to combine and heat through just until cheese melts and becomes creamy.  Salt and pepper as needed.

Not the prettiest dish out there, but super tasty – enjoy!

So I’m not sure if you’re a fan of Food Network, or in particular, Bobby Flay’s Throwdown, but he did one a while ago against Mike Maroni of Maroni’s Cuisine in Northport, NY and the battle was meatballs.  I loovve a good meatball – warm, tender, flavorful – yum. (TWSS!  Sorry, couldn’t help myself)

Anyway, I thought the Super Bowl would be the perfect opportunity for these.  People can eat them just with sauce, or in subs.  I’ve had them once before and they were really delicious, though I didn’t make them myself, so I wanted to try them on my own as I don’t think I’ve ever actually made meatballs before….  They’re actually pretty simple – just mix up all the ingredients, form into golf-ball sized balls (or larger if you prefer) and bake.  That’s right, no frying, another reason to love these.

I decided to mix things up a bit and stuff some of them with cheese, because really, can you ever have too much cheese?  I just cut some fresh mozzarella into small chunks (about ½” pieces) and formed the meat around the cheese – very easy and so worth the extra work! Don’t they look good?

Once these are done, either serve them as is and top with your favorite sauce, or undercook them just slightly and let them simmer in the sauce to cook through and soak up even more flavor.

As for the big game?  Well good luck to whichever team you prefer, but I’ll just sit back with friends, eat and wait for the hockey playoffs.  J

Creamed corn?  From a can?  Uhhh, no thanks!  Well, until I had this soup….seriously, it’s delicious.  I had it a couple weeks ago when I was up on the Cape visiting my parents.  My mom made it for us.  It was a bitterly cold day and this really warmed me to the bone.  (I promise, I’ll get off the soup kick once it starts getting a little warmer!)  The great thing is, it doesn’t use any heavy cream and you can even use fat free evaporated milk without sacrificing any of the flavor or richness.  When I make this myself I’m planning to play around a bit with frozen corn and see if it turns out ok.  Even though this tasted delicious as is, I still have a huge bias against the canned stuff…     

3 slices bacon, diced

1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced

2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced, need about 2 cups

¾ cup water

1 can cream-style corn

1 ½ cups evaporated milk

2 Tbsp butter

½ tsp sugar

1 ¼ tsp salt

⅛ tsp pepper

In medium saucepan, sauté bacon until crisp.  Remove from pan, drain and reserve.  In bacon drippings sauté onions until golden.  Add potatoes and water.  Bring to a boil and cook about 10 min, until potatoes are tender but not mushy.

Add remainder of ingredients and simmer, covered, until heated through.  Serve in soup bowls and top with crisped bacon.

*The source of this recipe is unknown, but it’s very likely from an old Washington Post.

The holiday binge is over and eating habits are getting back to normal….thank goodness!  I got a fabulous present this year – a gorgeous Le Creuset Dutch Oven that I have been wanting for years (thanks again!!), so of course I keep trying to come up with things to make in it.  So far, it’s just been soup (butternut squash was first), but my next endeavor will be the whole wheat bread mentioned in my last post – can’t wait to see how that turns out!

In the meantime, let me tell you about this soup.  Since I’m trying to get back to my normal (relatively) healthy diet I wanted to make something simple and low-cal but still tasty.  I remembered this recipe from an old Women’s Health magazine (Jan/Feb 2010) and thought it would be perfect for this weekend.  It has to simmer for quite a while and I knew I’d be inside most of today taking down Christmas decorations, hauling the tree to the curb (sad!) and getting my apartment back in order.  Everything is done and my dinner was delicious!  Here’s how it’s done:

2 tsp olive oil

1 pound chicken breast, cut in bite-sized pieces (I doubled this recipe and used 3 boneless skinless breasts)

1 large carrot, diced

1 celery stalk, diced

¼ leek or 3 scallions thinly sliced (I used scallions)

⅓ cup brown rice

2 tsp dried thyme

1 can (14.5oz) no-salt-added diced tomatoes, including juice

6 cups low-sodium chicken stock

Salt and pepper to taste

Pinch of cayenne pepper (my addition, optional)

Pinch of garlic powder (my addition, optional)

Heat olive oil in saucepan.  Add chicken and sauté until just cooked.  Transfer to a dish and set aside.  Add carrots, celery and leeks/scallions and sauté about 3 minutes.  Add rice and thyme and sauté another 5 minutes or so, stirring occasionally.  Add the chicken back to the pot.  Add tomatoes and chicken stock.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer 30-45 minutes until rice is cooked.  I continued to let it simmer for another half hour or so to let all the flavors meld.

As mentioned, I added a little cayenne and garlic.  I think it needs the garlic to mellow out the thyme, and as for the cayenne – well I seem to like everything with a little kick these days.  The result?  Very good.  Hearty and comforting yet still light….just what I needed today.  Enjoy!