Easy Chipotle Chicken Fold Overs -Super Fast Dinner!

I really enjoy easy, healthy food; especially when it fits my Trim Healthy Mama plan and the whole family likes it. This quick, chicken dish was mildly spicy, just add more chipotle peppers to boost the heat if you like. Mix it up, pop it under the broiler to melt the cheese and away we go!

Ingredients:
Flour tortillas or Joseph's Pitas (for THM) or a nice bed of lettuce
1/2 cup diced onions
2-4 cloves garlic, pressed
2 tablespoons butter
2-5 tablespoons minced chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1/2 chopped bell pepper, red, yellow, or red
2 cups cooked, chopped chicken
Toppings:
Chopped tomatoes
Shredded lettuce
Fresh onions
Diced avocado or guacamole
Olives
Sour cream
Saute the onions in the butter.

Add the garlic after the onion is cooked; garlic scorches easily.

Then the chipotle pepper

and bell pepper.

After all the veggies are cooked through, then add the chicken.

Mix and continue to cook until all is hot throughout.

Chop the toppings while cooking and set aside.

Top the chicken with cheese and put under the broiler for 5 minutes or so. Keep checking so the cheese doesn't get too crisp.

Fill your tortilla, pita, or pile it on the lettuce.

Open wide! Enjoy.

Easy, Salsa Chicken

This was so easy, I saw it on Mennonite Girls Can Cook, a great foodie blog, especially for the home style cook. I saw this several months ago and have made it twice, both times in large quantity so I could freeze part of it for later use. It freezes well cooked like this, tastes great now or later! Their original recipe concluded with enchiladas which I tried, they were delicious. I have omitted the creamed corn and instead added it fresh to the end recipe.

I am still having some camera issues so forgive out of focus or mis-focused photos, some of it is the camera and some the operator.

This is so incredibly easy! For Trim Healthy Mamas it could fit E, S, or FP, as it is there is no fat and not enough tomatoes to make it an E exclusively. Be careful what else you are serving, the rice and bean combo was for most of my family, however it would be great in a low-carb tortilla with lots of veggies and guacamole for S or without for FP. You decide.

Ingredients:
large package of boneless, skinless chicken breasts (5-6)
Large jar salsa, or two small jars (24 oz, more or less)
Procedure:
Place all the chicken in a 5 quart crock pot on high. Pour salsa over chicken.

Cover and cook for 5-6 hours.

 Uncover and stir with a fork to break it up and mix all the salsa throughout.

 Not having fun with the editing program either, just turn your head and pretend these are right side up.

 This night I served the shredded "salsa chicken" over rice and black beans then topped with cheese, tomatoes, and avocados.

Some other suggestions would be: enchiladas, soup, sandwiches, burritos, on top of nachos,even cold on a salad. Freeze what you don't eat leftover and enjoy a quick meal in a few weeks.
Thank you "Mennonite Girls", you sure can cook!

Another Simple Bowl Meal, Chicken with Fresh Corn and Veggies

 "Uni-meals"(everything in one bowl, pile, or casserole) are so appealing to me because it just seems simple, almost too simple, really, how could you not like them, all the flavors mingled together, lots of veggies on top of a bed of rice...yeah...

Loads of options here, skip the chicken to make it vegetarian, with or without a sprinkling of cheese for lactose free or vegan, white rice or brown, quinoa if you prefer instead of rice. I like choices. 

I rarely plan a "bowl meal", usually it has been a busy day and not enough of any one thing to make a meal, but a variety of little bits, which put together are plenty. I'll give you the ingredients to this one but, as always, make whatever substitutions you care to, that's what makes a recipe your own.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked, chopped chicken

1/4 cup thinly sliced leeks or chopped onion

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 cup chopped red pepper

1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn

1 teaspoon herbs de provence

a dash black pepper

salt to taste

2 tablespoons olive oil or butter

Monterey Jack cheese

1 avocado, chopped or mashed

3-4 cups cooked rice or quinoa

In a large skillet, heat oil and toss the leeks, red pepper and corn for 2 minutes. Add garlic and chicken, stir. Add herbs de provence, pepper, and salt. 

Spoon over hot rice, top with cheese and avocado if you are using. 

 I served this for lunch with fruit and confetti bread http://hearthandhospitality.blogspot.com/2012/07/confetti-batter-bread.html they looked so good together with all the little bursts of color. Thanks, Gail for having lunch with me, you and your family make life as fun and colorful as our meal.

Easy, Lighter, Buffalo Chicken with Blue Cheese Dressing

This was so tender and packed with flavor that we will be having it again very soon!

I made this spicy but not excruciatingly hot, you can use more hot sauce if you prefer, so if you like the flavor without a lot of heat this would be the one for you!
Ingredients:
4 tablespoons hot sauce
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons brown sugar (THM use dash stevia)
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup bread crumbs (THM use almond flour or toasted Josheph's Pita crumbs)
2 teaspoons parsley flakes
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders
additional hot sauce for serving
First whisk the first four ingredients in a large bowl and set the raw chicken tenders, turn to coat, refrigerate for 30 minutes to 8 hours, whichever fits your day.

 Not exactly appetizing photo...

Mix the crumbs, parsley, garlic, and salt in a flat, open container or plate. 
As you remove each piece of marinading chicken just drop it onto the crumb mixture, turn to coat well, and place on a cooling rack on a baking sheet.

Now bake in the oven, preheated to 400F. for 20 minutes or until the fattest one is no longer pink in the middle.
While baking, or the day before, whatever is convenient, make the dressing. This will keep in the fridge for several days.
Lighter Blue Cheese Dressing:
1/2 cup mayo
1/4 cup plain fat free yogurt or sour cream
3 tablespoons low fat buttermilk
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1 clove garlic
sprig parsley
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
dash black pepper
4 oz. crumbled blue cheese

 Everything except the blue cheese into a blender, or use a smart stick...love my hand blender :), and whirl away. Stir the crumbled blue cheese in last.

I served a salad with the chicken and used the dressing on both, YUM!
Chicken out of the oven, it appears a bit red but that's the hot sauce it soaked in, it is completely done, and has a wonderful fragrance, mmmmm.

 Crisp on the outside and moist inside, mildly spicy.

Drizzle dressing over chicken, a little more for dipping ;), a bit more hot sauce...Yowsa!

Saucy Red Pepper Chicken with Rice

Spicy, creamy, and loaded with both chicken and veggies, makes a great "uni-meal" (a one dish meal) or serve with a crisp green salad for more nutrition.
For Low Carb or Trim Healthy Mamas use Dreamfield's Pasta instead of rice.

For 4 servings:
1 red pepper, sliced
1 yellow pepper, sliced
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, grilled
3 tablespoons parsley
1 onion, diced
1 tablespoon flour, all purpose, spelt, rice flour, or a pinch of xanthan gum
2 tablespoons butter
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2-1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup cream
salt and pepper to taste
white or brown rice, cooked according to package directions
Caution: blurry photos ahead because this meal goes together so quickly it was hard to photograph and cook!

In a medium heavy bottomed skillet, saute the onion and peppers in the butter until they begin to "sweat" (throw off some juice), add the garlic, saute for a few seconds more.

 Reduce heat to medium. Add the flour, salt and pepper, stirring constantly for a minute until the flour cooks and starts to thicken.

 Add the milk and cream.

 Stir and cook on medium until thick and all is well coated.

 Reduce heat to low. Cut the grilled chicken into slices.

 Either in a large serving bowl or individual bowls, place a bed of rice with the chicken.

 Spoon sauce on top.

 Sprinkle with parsley.

Serve, enjoy!