Chicken and Raspberry Spinach Salad

Chicken and Raspberry Spinach Salad

1/4 cup raspberry vinegar or white wine vinegar
5 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp finely shredded orange peel
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (abt. 12 oz.)
8-10 cups torn spinach or torn mixed greens
1 cup fresh raspberries
1 papaya*, peeled seeded, and sliced

In a screw-top jar, combine the vinegar, 4 Tbsp of the oil, the honey, orange peel, salt, and pepper. Cover and shake well. Chill until serving time.
In a medium skillet, cook the chicken in the remaining 1 Tbsp of oil over medium heat for 8-10 minutes or until the chicken is tender and no longer pink. Turn the chicken often to brown evenly. Remove the chicken from the skillet. Cut into thin, bite-size strips.
In a large bowl, toss together the warm chicken strips and the spinach or mixed greens. Shake the dressing well. Add the dressing and raspberries to the chicken mixture. Toss lightly to coat well.
Divide the chicken mixture among 4 salad plates. Arrange the papaya slices on each plate.

*You may substitute 2 medium nectarines, pitted and sliced, or 2 peaches, peeled, pitted, and sliced for the papaya

Gingered Chicken Breasts

Gingered Chicken Breasts

1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
2 cloves garlic
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

Combine lemon juice, ginger, pepper, and garlic in a small bowl. Place the chicken breasts in a deep bowl. Pour the ginger mixture over the breasts, turning once to coat both sides. Cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 2 hours.
Spray a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Heat the skillet on medium-high until hot. Add the chicken. Cook, turning once, until tender, about 8 minutes.

Salsa Chicken

Salsa Chicken

8 cups finely shredded iceberg lettuce
3 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1” pieces
2 large egg whites
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
8 oz chunky tomato salsa
1/2 cup sour cream
Cilantro sprigs (optional)

Divide the lettuce among 4 individual plates, cover and set aside. In a large bowl, combine the chili powder and cumin. Add the chicken, turning to coat. Lift the chicken from the bowl, shaking off the excess coating. Dip the chicken into the egg whites, then coat again with the remaining dry mixture.
Heat the oil in a wide nonstick frying pan or wok over medium heat. When the oil is hot add the chicken and stir-fry gently until no longer pink in the center. Cut to test (5-7 minutes). Remove the chicken from the pan and keep warm. Pour the salsa into the pan; reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring, until the salsa is heated through and slightly thickened.
Arrange the chicken over the lettuce; top with the salsa and sour cream. Garnish with Cilantro sprigs if using.

Lop

4 chicken breast, ground
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp oil
Oyster sauce
Red Rooster sauce
1 bunch cilantro, minced

Cook ground chicken in oil and garlic. Add cilantro. Add Oyster sauce (1-2 cups) and Red rooster sauce to taste. Red rooster sauce is spicy so use in moderation.

Serve with sticky rice & peanut sauce

Honey Glazed Chicken

2 chicken breasts, cubed
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp seasoning salt
1 Tbsp oil
1-2 Tbsp honey

Mix flour and seasoning salt in bowl. Add chicken and stir to coat. Heat oil in pan, add chicken and saute. Once cooked thru drizzle with honey, stir, cover, turn off heat. Let sit for 5 minutes stirring occasionally.

Fajitas

3-4 chicken breasts, sliced
1 cup oil
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
3/4 tsp salt
1 dash steak sauce
4 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
1 large onion sliced
2-3 bell peppers sliced

Mix oil, chili powder, pepper, garlic, salt and steak sauce together as marinate. Marinade chicken for 2 hours. Drain marinade and discard. Add 4 Tbsp butter to skillet. Add chicken and lightly dust with flour. Cook until browned and tender. Remove chicken and set aside. Saute vegetables in same pan until tender. If desired mix chicken and vegetables. Serve with warmed tortillas, sour cream, salsa, & guacamole

Hot Wings

10 wings
1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup hot sauce (Louisiana)
1 dash pepper
1 dash garlic powder

Rinse and pat wings dry. Mix flour, cayenne pepper, and salt together. Coat wings with flour mixture and let sit in refrigerator 1 hour. Fry in 1" of oil for 10-15 minutes. Place on paper towel. Melt butter, add hot sauce, pepper and garlic powder. Stir well. But wings in bowl and pour sauce over wings to coat. Serve with ranch or blue cheese dressing and celery.

Chicken Broccoli Casserole

This is a family favorite, and it's REALLY easy to put together. 

  Chicken Broccoli Casserole

4-6 chicken breasts 

2 bunches of fresh broccoli, chopped 

2 cans cream of chicken soup 

1 cup mayonnaise 

1 tsp lemon juice 

1 cup shredded sharp cheese 

 Bake chicken 1 hour, set aside to cool. Cook broccoli slightly. Mix soup, mayonnaise, 1/2 cup shredded cheese, and lemon juice. Shred Chicken. Layer chicken and broccoli in baking dish. Pour soup mixture over. Cover with remaining shredded cheese and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. *2 bags of chopped frozen broccoli may be used. *The bags of broccoli florets from Costco work great. *may substitute a whole roasted chicken shredded.

African Peanut Soup

African Peanut Soup 

 1 med. onion, chopped 

1 lg carrot, peeled & diced 

1 rib celery, diced 

1 green pepper, seeded & sliced 

3 Tbsp flour 

5 c chicken broth 

2/3 c peanut butter 

1 can (28 oz) chopped tomatoes 

2 c chopped chicken 

1 c milk 

pepper 

cayenne pepper 

 Saute onion, carrot, celery, and pepper. Stir in flour. Slowly add broth. Stir frequently, heat to boiling. Add peanut butter and simmer 15 minutes. Add tomatoes, chicken, and milk. Season to taste and simmer 30 minutes.

Pollo Loco

Crazy chicken. This was one of Marco and my favorite meals from a restaurant back in Raleigh. It's not exact, but it's the closest thing.

Pollo Loco 

4 chicken breasts, fillet and pound flat 

juice from 1 lemon 

juice from 1 large orange 

2 Tbsp vinegar 

1 tsp worchestershire sauce 

3/4 c chili sauce (I substitute ketchup with a LOT of chili powder) 

2 tsp sugar 

2 tsp garlic powder 

1 dash tobasco sauce 

2 Tbsp oil 

 Wisk all ingredients together and marinade 4-24 hours. Grill on medium high, 6-8 minutes each side. Serve with spanish rice, pico de gallo, and a salad. This also makes a great freezer meal.... prepare the chicken, throw together the marinade. Place it all in a plastic bag and throw it in the freezer... it marinades as it thaws.

Italian Chicken

This is a great crock pot recipe. It was passed on to us from my sister-in-laws aunt. It's great for Sundays... Put it in the pot before you go to church and dinner's ready when you get home! 

Italian Chicken 

 4 chicken breasts, boneless & skinless 

1 pkg dry Italian salad dressing mix 

1/2 cube butter 

1 can cream of mushroom soup 

milk 

1 pkg cream cheese 

 Melt butter in crock pot, mix in seasoning. Add chicken and coat well. Cook 6-7 hours on low or 3-4 hours on high. 1 hour before serving, mix soup, milk to dilute, and cream cheese in sauce pan and pour over chicken. Serve over rice, pasta, or baked potato.

Green Chili Chicken Soup

I got this recipe from a roommate in college. She taught me a lot about cooking, and I have many favorite recipe's that she passed on. 

Green Chili Chicken Soup 

 2-3 Tbsp vegetable oil 

1 small onion chopped 

1/2 tsp cumin 

1/2 tsp pepper 

pinch oregano 

2 medium potatoes peeled and cubed 

1 can diced green chilis 

5 cups chicken broth 

2 cloves garlic minced 

1 lb chicken cooked and shredded 

 Heat oil in 2 quart sauce pan and add onion and garlic. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes. Uncover and raise heat to medium. Stir in cumin and pepper. Let cook 2-3 minutes stirring occasionally. Add oregano, chili's, chicken, potatoes and broth. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer 25 minutes. Serve hot with Monterey Jack cheese as a garnish. Note: We love this with fresh homemade breadsticks!