Chicken Potpie

It's winter, even if the weather here doesn't feel like it, and it's time for great comfort foods. Well here's a great recipe for you. In fact it made plenty of left overs that were fought over for days to come, it almost got ugly let me tell ya'! I will be making this one again for sure, in fact it will likely be in my weekly rotation for many winters to come.

Prep: 40 minutes
Cook: 1 1/2 hours

Ingredients
9 cups water
1 tablespoon black pepper corns
2 1/2 pounds chicken pieces, skinned(making a stock?! I used bone in skin on chicken thighs)
3 celery stalks, each cut into 4 pieces
1 small onion, quartered
1 bay leaf
1/2 cups diced unpeeled round red potato
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup thinly sliced carrot
1/2 cup chopped leek (about 1 small)
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1/2 cup frozen green peas
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup 1% low-fat milk
Cooking spray
Biscuit Topping

Directions
1. Combine first 6 ingredients in an 8 quart Dutch oven or stock pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and cook, uncovered, 1 hour. Remove from heat.
2. Remove chicken pieces from broth. Place chicken in a large bowl, and chill for 15 minutes. Strain broth through a cheesecloth-lined colander into a bowl; discard solids. Set aside 4 1/2 cups broth; reserve remaining broth for another use.
3. Remove chicken from bones; cut meat into bite-size pieces.
4. Preheat oven to 400º.
5 bring 4 1/2 cups broth to a boil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add potato, chopped celery, bell pepper, and garlic; cover and cook 5 minutes. Add carrot and leek; cover and cook 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and peas; cover and cook 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
6. Combine flour, salt, and black pepper in a medium bowl. Add milk, stirring with a whisk; add to vegetable mixture. Cook over medium heat 3 minutes or until thickened and bubbly, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; add chicken.
7. Spoon into a 13/9 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Drop Biscuit Topping onto mixture to form 16 biscuits. Bake at 400º for 30 minutes or until golden. Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1 cup chicken mixture and 2 biscuits).

Biscuit Topping
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpse flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup 1% low-fat milk
1 1/2 tablespoon stick margarine or butter melted

Directions
1. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and garlic powder in a bowl. Stir in milk and margarine just until flour mixture is moistened. Yield; 16 biscuits.

Make-Ahead Ooeh-Gooey Sticky Buns!

I made these for the morning that we celebrated Christmas, which was actually Christmas Eve as I had to work on Christmas Day. My wife and I always tried to have something delicious before we had our daughter and that was used to be the packaged cinnamon roles. Well with my daughter's peanut allergy it's safer and easier to fix everything from scratch, like I need more reasons! Well I found this recipe in my go to cook book, The Complete Cooking Light cookbook, that has almost any recipe I would want to make. This recipe is great and I am hard pressed to go looking for another recipe. I will be doing this recipe again because it's so GOOD!

Prep: 40 minutes
Rise: 8 hours 45 minutes
Cook: 23 minutes

Ingredients
1 package dry yeast
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/4 cup warm water (100º to 110º F)
4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup evaporated fat-free milk, divided
14 cup water
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Cooking spray
1 1/4 cups packed dark ground sugar, divided
1/2 cup dark corn syrup (I used dark Agave Nectar with excellent results)
2 tablespoons stick margarine or butter
3/4 cup chopped pecans (I omitted these for my daughters peanut allergy)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Directions
1. Dissolve yeast and 1 teaspoon granulated sugar in 1/4 cup warm water in a small bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups level with a knife. Place 3 3/4 cups flour, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, nutmeg, and salt in a food processor; pulse 2 times or until blended. Combine 2/3 cup milk, 1/4 cup water, and egg. With processor on, slowly add milk mixture and yeast mixture through food chute; process until dough forms a ball. Precess 1 additional minute. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic (about 8 minutes); add enough of remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will be tacky).
2. Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place(85º), free from drafts, 45 minutes or until doubled in size. Combine remaining 1/3 cup milk, 1 cup brown sugar, corn syrup, and margarine in a small saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Divide pecans evenly between 2 (9-inch) round cake pans coated with cooking spray. Top each with half of brown sugar mixture.
3. Punch dough down; let rest 5 minutes. Roll into a 24x10-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface; coat dough with cooking spray. Combine remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl; sprinkle evenly over dough, leaving a 1/2 inch border. Beginning with a long side, roll up jelly-roll fashion; pinch seam to seal (do no seal ends of roll). Place long piece of dental floss or string under the roll; slowly pull ends to cut though the dough. Arrange 12 slices, cut sides up, in each pan. Cover with plastic wrap coated with cooking spray; let rise in refrigerator 8 to 24 hours or until doubles in size.
4. Preheat oven to 375º.
5. Bake rolls at375º for 23 minutes. Run a knife around outside edges of pans. Place a plate upside down on top of each pan; invert onto plate. Yield: 2 dozen

Pizza Dough

I have been interested in getting into bread making, but I'm a little intimidated by the whole process since I'm not at all familiar with making bread. Well I decided to take the plunge and try pizza dough from scratch. I found the recipe in my favorite cook book, The Complete Cooking Light Cook Book, since it pretty much has a recipe for everything. The recipe is titled Basic Pizza Crust, which pretty much tells the whole story right there. The recipe was incredibly easy to follow and the end product is very nice crust that crisped up nicely and had a very pleasant chewy consistency. 

The day we made this pizza I got the whole family involved in decorating up our pizza. My little girl, Sammie, wasn't at all interested in evenly distributing the pepperoni she liked the grab and toss method. Which looked more like she was attempting to imbed the pile of pepperoni into the pizza. Needless to say we all had a blast making the pizza and even had more fun eating it.

Ingredients
1 package dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup warm water (100º to 110ºF)
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon olive oil
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon cornmeal

Directions
1. Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water in a large bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Stir 2 1/2 cups flour, salt, and oil into yeast mixture to form a soft dough.
2. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. knead until smooth and elastic (about 5 minutes); add enough of remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel tacky).
3. Place dough in a bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover; let rise in a warm place (85º), free from drafts, 35 minutes or until doubled in size. (Press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, the dough has risen enough.)
4. punch dough down; cover and let rest 5 minutes. Divide dough in half; roll each half into a 12 inch circle on a flour surface. Placed ough on two 12 inch pizza pans or baking sheets that are each coated with cooking spray and sprinkled with 1/2 tablespoon cornmeal. Crimp edges of dough with fingers to form a rim. Let ries 30 minutes. Top and bake according to recipe directions.
Yield: 2 (12 inch) pizza crusts, 4 wedges each (serving size: 1 wedge)
Calories 163

Chicken Parmesan

Here's a recipe from Cooking Light and this is not the first time I've fixed this recipe. I actually fixed this recipe a few years ago when I did not have this blog. The first time I fixed it we loved it and I've made it a couple of times since, but since having our dear daughter we have not had the time for more involved meals. That is slowing starting to change, Sammie is slowly becoming more independent and has begun with the independent play. Which opens up time for meals that are a little more involved. The recipe claims to be a 30 minute meal from start to finish, but the first time I fixed it I ran a little longer and with practice I was doing it in 30 minutes. This makes it a great weeknight meal for this fall and winter, but it is a bit heavy in calories at 614 for a serving.

Ingredients
4 skinned, boned chicken breast halves
1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons olive oil
4 cups cooked spaghetti
3 cups Pasta Sauce
1 cup pre-shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions
1. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; flatten to 1/4 inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin.
2. combine breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, and pepper in a shallow dish. Dredge 1 chicken breast half in flour. Dip in egg whites; dredge in breadcrumb mixture. Repeat procedure with remaining chicken, flour, egg whites, and breadcrumb mixture.
3. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken, and cook 5 minutes on each side or until done.
4. Preheat broiler.
5. Place 1 cup spaghetti in each of 4 gratin dishes. Spoon 1/2 cup Pasta sauce over each serving. Top each with 1 chicken breast half. Spoon 1/4 cup sauce over each serving. Sprinkle each serving with 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese. Place gratin dishes on a baking sheet; broil 3 minutes or until cheese melts. Garnish with basil, if desired. Yields 4 servings.

Grilled chicken with Mango-Pineapple Salsa

I've started to dig into my new Cooking Light; Cooking through the Seasons cookbook and I am loving this book. Which I think has more to do with all the fruit and veggies that are starting to come into season. I always have so much fun in the produce section of the grocery store when the fruits and veggies start getting fresher and fresher looking.

I wound up fixing this recipe for a spur of the moment get together with the in-laws. It was a great hit with everyone, including our little girl, so it's tot approved! We served it up with a side of frozen mixed veggies, did I mention I can't wait for all the fresh produce to roll in?

Salsa
2/3 cup diced peeled ripe mango
2/3 cup diced fresh pineapple
2 tablespoons minced red onion
1 tablespoon minced seeded jalapeno pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Chicken
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup pineapple juice
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
dash of crushed red pepper
cooking spray

1. To prepare salsa, combine first 8 ingredients. Cover; refrigerate 30 minutes.
2. To prepare chicken, place each chicken rest half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2 inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Combine pineapple juice and next 5 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic gab. Add chicken to bag; seal. Marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes.
3. Prepare grill.
4. remove chicken from bag, reserving marinade. Place chicken on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 3 minutes on each side or until done.
5. Place reserved marinade in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook until reduced to 1/4 cup (about 5 minutes). Drizzle over chicken. Serve salsa with chicken. Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 chicken breast half, t tbsp sauce, and 1/4 cup salsa)

New Cook Book!

That's right I have a new cook book and it's from Cooking Light, "Cooking through the Season". My lovely wife picked this up for me while she was at one of the local Borders for it's big going out of business sale. The book is filled with recipes for every season and I can't wait to dig into it. Once I get a chance to look through it I will be sure to post a complete review.

Chicken With Linguine, Leeks, and Tomatoes

Here's another delicious chicken recipe that will have you coming back for more. The best part it, it's Tot approved! That's right, my little girl loved this recipe as did my wife and I.

4 skinned, boned, chicken breast halves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons stick margarine or butter
3 cups sliced leeks (about 3 medium)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 (14.5 oz) can fat-free, less sodium chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 (14.5 ounce) can no salt added whole tomatoes, un-drained and chopped
4 ounces linguine, uncooked and broken into 2-inch pieces

Directions
1. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; flatten to 1/4 inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Combine 1/4 teaspoon salt and next ingredient; sprinkle over both sides of chicken.
2. Melt margarine in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken, and cook 1 1/2 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Remove chicken from pan.
3. Add leeks and garlic to pan; cook over medium-high heat 5 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add chicken, chicken broth, and remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook 20 minutes. Uncover, and increase heat to medium-high. Simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes or until liquid evaporates and pasta is done. Yeild:4 servings (serving size: 1 chicken breast half and 2.3 cup pasta mixture) 326 calories, 4g fat

Chicken Parmigina

I have had a Cooking Light cook book setting on my shelf for sometime now, like 6 years. Sadly it's been very underutilized as I have only prepared a small number of recipes from it, there's nothing wrong with the recipes I just never paid it much attention. But that changed this year for two reason's, one I realized that it's recipes are all designed to be light and healthy, and two the wife and I have both made new year resolutions to lose some weight. While flipping through the book I came across this recipe and I knew I had to try it.

The final result was delicious, juicy, and full of flavor. The best part is that a serving is only 312 calories which leaves plenty of room for a small bed wheat pasta or a side salad.

Ingredients
 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
 1/4 teaspoon paprika
 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
 6 (4 ounce) skinned, boned chicken breast
 2 egg whites, lightly beaten
 3 cups cornflakes, coarsely crushed (I used some dried bread crumbs as I didn't have cornflakes, I doubt that it will change the calories much if any.)
 1 (26 ounce) bottle low-fat spaghetti sauce
 3/4 cup (3 ounce) preshredded part-skim moxxarella cheese
 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

 Directions
 1. Preheat oven to 350º
 2. Combine first 4 ingredients in a shallow dish. Dredge 1 chicken breast half in flour mixture. Dip in egg white; dred in cornflakes. Repeat procedure with remaining chicken, egg white, and cornflakes.
 3. Arrange chicken in a 13x9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes or until done.
 4. Place spaghetti cause in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until thoroughly heated. Pour sauce over chicken. Sprinkle with cheeses. Bake an addictions 5 minutes or until cheese melted. Yield: 6 servings ( serving size: 1 chicken breast and 1/2 cup sauce)