Cheesecake Factory's Romano Chicken

INGREDIENTS

2 Chicken Breasts
1/2 C. Flour
2 Tbsp. Romano Cheese - You can use Kraft in a jar
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 Egg beaten
2 tsp. Water

DIRECTIONS

Whisk together the egg and the water.

Pound out chicken breasts to, at most, 1/2 inch thick. Season the flour with salt and pepper, and coat the chicken lightly. Then dip in egg, and cover with shredded Romano.

Place in frying pan on medium high, with a little bit of oil. Cook until golden brown. Top with either marinara or Alfredo sauce.

VERDICT

We topped it with alfredo- yum! This was a delicious recipe. Not too many ingredients (but a lot of plates to clean up from the preparation. Definitely a keeper!

NUTRITION

I assume this is not a healthy recipe when you get it at Cheesecake Factory. But making this at home it's not too bad.

Calories (without the sauce): 295
Protein: 39g
Carbs: 8g
Fat: 10g

Lighter Penne with Vodka Sauce

Another re-made recipe this week. I have to admit I was skeptical because I make THE BEST Vodka sauce. Now that we're trying to eat healthier we gave this recipe a shot.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tsp butter
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 shallots, minced
• 3 oz prosciutto, chopped
• 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
• 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 14 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup vodka
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 12 oz uncooked (6 cups cooked) whole wheat or high fiber penne

DIRECTIONS

In a large sauté pan heat butter on a low flame. Add garlic and shallots and sauté until soft, about 2 minutes. (I disagree- heat needs to be on at least medium)

Add prosciutto and red pepper flakes and cook another minute. Add tomatoes, vodka, salt and pepper and cook on low, covered about 20 minutes. (Again, I disagree. Heat needs to be on medium or medium-high)

Add basil and half and half, mix well and cook another 5 minutes.

Serve this over pasta and top with grated cheese.

VERDICT

There's just no faking the good stuff. Without the heavy cream this sauce didn't get the nice pink hue that vodka sauce should have. And despite all the red pepper flakes I added (A LOT), there wasn't much flavor. It wasn't bad, it was just a good recipe.

On another note, this makes a LOT of sauce. I poured half into a freezer bag and stashed it in the freezer for a quick meal another night.
NUTRITION

Serving Size: 1 cup pasta, 1/2 cup sauce •Calories: 356

Stuffed Chicken Breasts

It's another Slow Cooker Sunday!

Up this week another recipe from a cook book we got at our family white elephant party. The last recipe we tried out of this book was the Herbed Cannelloni recipe last week and it wasn't a big hit- so we were hoping this was better. Otherwise the book goes in the trash!

INGREDIENTS
7 oz fresh ricotta cheese
1 cup chopped arugula (I used a salad mix with spinach and arugula)
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (didn't use this- I think they're still on recall at Wegman's)
3 oz roasted red pepper, chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 chicken breasts, skin on
2 TBS butter
1 cup chicken stock
2 TBS minced garlic (not included in the recipe, but I'm sure that was an oversight on the publisher's part.)
DIRECTIONS
Combine the ricotta, arugula, pine nuts, bell pepper and salt and pepper in a small bowl and mix together until smooth.

Place 1-2 TBS of ricotta mixture under the skin of each chicken breast. (Now here is where I had my first issue. The picture in the book shows a boneless chicken breast with skin. I have no idea if your grocery store sells boneless skin-on chicken breast... but mine doesn't. Either they're boneless/skinnless or they have bones and skin. I could forsee a problem already. Bone-in chicken takes a lot longer to cook. But moving on...)

Place the chicken breasts in a slow cooker set on high, sprinkle with more salt and pepper. Place 1 tsp of butter on each breast and pour the stock around the chicken. Cook for 2 hours on high.Serve the chicken with juices and a arugula salad.

VERDICT
Turns out the concern over the cooking time being inaccurate wasn't a problem after all. I cooked two chicken breasts in my smaller crockpot and they were cooked perfectly after 2 hours. The chicken was tender, the filling was delicious, and the meal was a hit with my husband.

Next time I'll probably skip the whole skin-on chicken thing and just cut a pocket into a regular boneless, skinless chicken breast. But this recipe is definitely a keeper.
NUTRITION

Calories: 291
Protein: 34g
Fat: 12g
Carbs: 4g

Herbed Canneloni with Tomato Sauce

Another Slowcooker Sunday Recipe. This time- pasta!

INGREDIENTS

8 oz cottage cheese (or ricotta)

1 oz parmesan cheese

1 tsp Italian seasoning

6 green onions, freshly chopped

Salt and freshly ground pepper

8 cannelloni tubes (or manicotti)

Sauce:

1 cup canned crushed tomatoes

3-4 green onions, chopped

2 tsp Worchestershire sauce

1 large clove garlic, crushed

DIRECTIONS

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to boil, add the pasta tubes and cook until al dente. Drain, set aside and keep warm. Place the cheeses, seasoning, green onions, salt and pepper in a bowl and mix thoroughly.

To make the sauce, mix together all sauce ingredients

Lightly butter the base of the slow cooker. Spoon cheese mixture into cannelloni tubes. Spoon a little tomato sauce into the cooker, and then arrange the stuffed tubes in the cooker and add sauce. Cook for 1-1 ½ hours on high, or 2 – 2 ½ hours on low. Serve sprinkled with extra parmesan cheese and parsley sprigs.

VERDICT
The pasta was good, but with a cooking time of only 1 1/2-2 hours... why bother with the slow cooker? When I use the slowcooker I want something I can make in the morning- or during lunch break- that is ready for dinner.

The recipe was good, but the sauce had a strange flavor (from the Worcestershire I think). I doubt we'll try this again.
NUTRTION
Per Cannelloni (manicotti shell): Calories: 186 Protein: 11g Fat: 8g Carbs: 18g

Jamaican Chicken Stew

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup uncooked long-grain rice
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 1/2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
• 1 pound skinned, boned chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 1/4 cup dry red wine
• 2 tablespoons capers
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained

DIRECTIONS

Prepare rice according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.

While rice cooks, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté 3 minutes or until tender. Combine chicken and the next 5 ingredients (chicken through black pepper) in a bowl. Add chicken mixture to pan; sauté 4 minutes. Stir in wine, capers, beans, and tomatoes. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until tender. Serve over rice.
VERDICT

Meh. That cumin really ruins every dish for us.NUTRITION

• Calories: 465
• Calories from fat: 10%
• Fat: 5g
• Saturated fat: 1g
• Monounsaturated fat: 2.2g
• Polyunsaturated fat: 1g
• Protein: 38.5g
• Carbohydrate: 66g
• Fiber: 5.9g
• Cholesterol: 66mg
• Iron: 6mg
• Sodium: 799mg
• Calcium: 101mg

Spicy Island Shrimp

It's been a mild winter. Can you blame us for being in a tropical mood? This dish apparently originated in St. Croix, and there is definite spice to this shrimp!

INGREDIENTS

· 1 large green pepper, chopped

· 1 large onion, chopped

· 1/2 cup butter cubed

· 2-1/4 pounds uncooked large shrimp, peeled and deveined

· 2 cans (8 ounces each) tomato sauce

· 3 tablespoons chopped green onions

· 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley

· 1 teaspoon salt

· 1 teaspoon pepper

· 1 teaspoon paprika

· 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

· 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

· 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

· 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon white pepper

· 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Hot cooked rice

Note: I halved this recipe- except for the cayenne powder

DIRECTIONS
In a large skillet, saute the green pepper and onion in butter until tender. Reduce heat; add shrimp. Cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato sauce, green onions, parsley and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until slightly thickened. Serve with rice.

VERDICT
Spicy, fairly nutritious, and easy to make. It's similar in taste to jumbalaya, and I loved the mix of spices. It wasn't hot enough for my husband though (and I used the full 1/2 tsp of cayenne powder!) so he added Red Hot. Enjoy!

NUTRITIONRice not included in calculations

Serves: 8
Calories: 229
Protein: 1g
Fat: 13g
Carbs: 10g

Herb-Crusted Pork

I purchased a club pack of pork tenderloin from Wegman's this week- 4 big tenderloins for $16. I prefer tenderloin over pork chops because they're usually juicier, and they're usually super easy to throw on the grill low and slow.

INGREDIENTS

4 (4oz) pork medallions (or a pork tenderloin cut into 1-inch thick pieces)
1 lime, juiced
4 TBS olive oil
1/2 cup flour
pinch of salt
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tbs cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 sweet onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 TBS grated ginger
1/2 cup olive oil
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
zest of one lime

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven on 375. Salt and pepper the pork and squeeze lime juice on all sides.In a shallow dish mix together salt, cinnamon, cumin, cayenne and flour. Dredge pork in flour mixture.

Heat the oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat, then brown the pork until golden all over. When finished, arrange in a baking dish.In a large saute pan over medium heat, cook onion, garlic and ginger in olive oil for 5 minutes. Add the chopped cilantro and lime zest, then cook about 2 minutes. Press the herb crust on top of each piece of pork until cooked through, about 8 minutes.

VERDICT

It's the cumin. We aren't fans. First it was the Middle Eastern Stew, then the Jamaican Chicken Stew, and now this. The pork was tender, and the topping had great flavor, but the pork itself tasted like cumin.

I think I'm going to throw it out of my spice cupboard tonight.

And then I'll make this recipe again without the cinnamon and cumin.

Easy Fried Rice

This recipe comes from Parents Magazine (yes, I'm at that stage in life apparently), which I really like aside from their occasional politicized articles - Read my rant HERE.

The picture I have for this recipe isn't very good, but don't be put off. This is easy, tasty, and relatively healthy!

Edit:  New, pretty pictures!  
Edit INGREDIENTS

2 TBS peanut or canola oil
2 bell peppers (red and yellow are preferable), cored, seeded, and cut into strips
Salt and pepper to taste
3-4 cups white or brown rice, chilled at least for a few hours
2 TBS soy sauce
1 TBS dark sesame oil

DIRECTIONS

Start with day-old rice, if you can.

Put the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When it's hot, add the peppers. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and raise the heat to high. Cook, stirring occasionally until they being to brown, about 10 minutes.

Add the rice, crumbling it with your hands as you place it in the skillet. Cook, stirring and breaking up the rice lumps until the rice is hot and begins to brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in the soy sauce and sesame oil.

VERDICT

I never eat fried rice when we get take out because it's always pork fried rice. But eating this might change my order more often to get vegetable or shrimp fried rice. This is GOOD!

The only problem I had was with my pan. I have a skillet that's not coated in non-stick teflon. And it burns everything. Completely. I had to pull the peppers out, peel off the black char, and nearly start over. But the recipe was still a hit and there was nothing left over from the SEVEN cups I used to feed the party crowd!

NUTRITION

Serving size: 1 cup
Calories: 314, Protein: 6g, Fat: 10g, Carbs: 50g, Fiber: 5g, Calcium: 32mg, Iron: 1mg, Sodium: 300mg