3 cloves of garlic

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

1 bunch of green onions chopped

1 onion thinly sliced and chopped

1 tsp salt

1 pound boneless skinless chicken

1 cup chicken broth

2 tbl soy sauce

2 tbl sugar (I did one white, one brown)

2 tbl cornstarch

Heat peanut oil in wok or skillet. When oil begins to smoke quickly stir in 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1 tsp of ginger, salt and yellow onions. Stir fry until onion becomes translucent, about 2 minutes. Add chicken and stir until opaque, about three minutes. Add remaining clove of garlic and green onions. Stir in 1/2 cup of chicken broth.

I cooked 2 double batches of this meal to accommodate 4 families. On the first batch I for sure burned the garlic because I put it in first with the ginger instead of cooling the pan down with the onions. And I added both types of onions at the same time. The green onions wilted but the overall effect was a great caramelization and mixing of colors. This batch came out so much more beautiful and flavorful than the second where I followed the directions exactly. But I don’t know if I can replicate….

At this point I set the chicken mixture aside to cool, then I separated it into four ziplock bags.

I also provided 1 cup of jasmine rice

1/2 cup roasted and salted peanuts to go on top

Frozen Trader Joe’s Stir Fry Vegetables

AND

The soy sauce mixture from the remaining ingredients above.

In a small ziplock I combined:

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons soy sauce (I used Kikkoman)

2 tablespoons sugar (1 white, 1 brown)

1/2 cup chicken broth

Then I labeled this the “Soy Sauce Mixture”

On the day of serving I will defrost my chicken, rice and soy sauce mixture bag the night before but leave the Trader Joe veggies in the freezer.

At dinner time I’ll start the rice first. After the rice is simmering for 10 minutes I’ll heat my wok/skillet up and prepare 3/4 of the bag of Trader Joe’s stir fry veggies as directed. In a separate pan I’ll warm up the chicken and add the soy sauce mixture and heat until thickens then I’ll layer my stir fry with rice, veggies and chicken/sauce then sprinkle peanuts on top.

Yum!

2 15 oz cans of Northern White beans, drained and rinsed

1 medium onion, chopped

1 8 oz can of diced green chiles

1 tsp oregano

4 tsp chopped cilantro

4 stalks of celery diced

2 cloves of garlic minced

3 cups of chicken broth

salt and pepper to taste

Put everything in a large pot and bring to a gentle boil and simmer for 20 minutes to an hour. Garnish with tortilla chips, sour cream and shredded monterey jack cheese. Maybe some avocado? Why not!

I’m going to make this chili today times four and separate into ziplock bags. On the day of the swap I will buy the garnishes to maintain freshness.

1/2 cup canned coconut milk

1 1/2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp yellow curry sauce

1/2 tsp chili oil

1 lbs skinless boneless chicken breast halves cut into strips

1 t/l fresh cilantro

1 tbl chopped peanuts

1 tbl sesame oil

1 tbl soy sauce

1 tbl brown sugar

2 cloves garlic

2 tsp lime

12 wooden skewers soaked in water

In a zip lock back  stir together all ingredients except for the fresh cilantro and peanuts. Add chicken strips and put into fridge to marinate or into the freezer. When ready to cook, place onto soaked skewers and grill until cooked through. If cooking under a broiler cook for four minutes on both sides or until there are nice crispy edges and meat is cooked through.

Thai Peanut Sauce

1 1/2 cups peanut butter

1/2 cup coconut milk

3 tbl water

3 tbl fresh lime juice

3 tbl soy sauce

1 tbl fish sauce

1 tbl hot sauce

1 tbl minced ginger root

3 cloves minced garlic

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

In a bowl, mix peanut butter, coconut milk, water, lime juice, soy sauce, fish sauce, hot sauce, ginger and garlic. Mix in cilantro just before serving.

Coconut Rice

1 (14 oz) can coconut milk

1 1/4 cup water

1 tsp sugar

1 pinch salt

1 1/2 cups uncooked jasmine rice

In a saucepan, combine coconut mild, water, sugar and salt. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Stir in rice. Bring to a boil over MEDIUM heat  and simmer 12 – 18 minutes until rice is tender.

Serves 12

12 c. water

10 chicken bouillon cubes

4 chicken breasts

-Boil until chicken is cooked through.

-Take chicken out of broth and chop.

-Boil 8-10 oz. egg noodles in a separate pot.

-While noodles are cooking, put the following into the broth:

3-4 carrots, peeled and sliced

3-4 celery stalks

1 med. onion, chopped fine

-Cook until veggies are soft.

-Add:

1 c. milk

3 cans cream of chicken soup

-then add back in the chopped chicken and noodles.

-Add salt and pepper to taste.

-Simmer for 15-20 min.

I love this served with cheddar biscuits.

FROM FROZEN:

Thaw soup overnight in refrigerator. Boil ½ bag of egg noodles. While noodles are cooking, heat up soup until hot.  Add egg noodles and simmer for 15-20 min. Add salt and pepper to taste.

What is a Navajo Taco? It is a frybread topped with chili, sour cream lettuce and cheese. You can use your favorite chili recipe or even canned chili but this is sure to make your husband HAPPY!

Ok so first I took the recipe from Julie Cooks! for Crockpot Chili and then I multiplied it by 5. But here is the recipe for one family.

Brown & drain 1# extra lean ground beef.  While it’s cooking, put into the crockpot: 16 oz of kidney beans (rinsed, drained), 16-20 oz tomatoes (undrained), 8 oz tomato sauce, 1 chopped onion, 1/2 chopped bell pepper, 3 cloves garlic (or 1 1/2 t minced bottled garlic), 1 T chili powder, 1 1/2 t salt and fresh ground pepper.  Drain beef well, add to crockpot.  Mix well.  Cook on low 6-8 hours.

For Freezing: I cooked the ground beef and drained the fat and added all the other uncooked ingredients into a Ziplock bag. I doubled bagged this and laid flat. Be sure to squeeze out any air on both bags. On cooking day just dump contents of defrosted ziplock bag into the crockpot and cook for 6-8 hours on low as directed.

Then I bought 6 loaves of Bridgeford Frozen dough and sprayed some pam into large Ziplock bags and put one loaf into each bag for each of the 5 families. On cooking day they will need to spray pam into a large bowl and cover it to let the dough rise for at least 4 – 5 hours so it is nice a fluffy to pull and make scones.  15 minutes before dinner time heat up oil (on medium) in a deep skillet for frying the bread. When oil is heated pull some of your risen bridgeford dough and make a 5″ circle with it pulled like you would a pizza dough. It should be 1/2 ” - 1″ thick and 5″ diameter and gently drop into hot oil. When one side is lightly browned, flip to the other side which will cook much faster. Remove from oil and have a plate with paper towels ready to pat off some oil when slightly cooled. Make as many scones as you can with the dough and if you have leftovers serve as dessert with butter and honey. So Good!

I also provided a refrigerator bag with sour cream, chopped romaine lettuce and grated cheese to go on top of the scones and chili.

Enjoy.

DIRECTIONS:
1. Combine first eight ingredients in a container suitable for marinating. Add chicken breasts and marinate refrigerated overnight. Remove the coated chicken from mixture and roll in cracker crumbs. Arrange in a single layer in a 9×13 pan. Melt butter and pour half over the chicken. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Spoon the remaining butter and the poppy sees over the chicken and cook 15 minutes longer.

FOOTNOTES:
I have made this recipe with chicken tenders instead and it turns out great – just reduce total baking time by one half to two thirds. Also, if you double the chicken in this recipe, it isn’t necessary to double the marinade. If you do more, then increase marinade accordingly. You can also make a lower fat version of less butter and it’s great too.

In honor of the 2008 Olympics…

INGREDIENTS:
2-3 Chicken Breasts, cubed – I cheat sometimes and buy the already cooked strips at Costco–Heaven!
1 can of Mandarin Oranges
Toasted slivered almonds and sesame seeds
Wontons–I buy mine and fry them in oil at my house.
Cha-Cha Ching Chinese Salad dressing–my favorite
Romaine Lettuce

DIRECTIONS:
1. Fry the Wontons
2. Cook the chicken and dice it
3. Put all the ingrediants into the fridge for a few hours to get them nice and cold–only for best results.
4. Toss and enjoy!

DIRECTIONS

1. Pour the cream of chicken soup into a blender along with the green chiles, olives, jalapeno, and lime juice. Puree until smooth, then pour into a saucepan, and warm over medium-low heat while proceeding with the recipe.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the cream cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, and taco seasoning until well blended. Fold in the chicken. Evenly divide mixture among the 8 tortillas. Fold each tortilla into a rectanglular packet around the filling.
3. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Fry 4 chimichangas at a time until golden brown, then drain on a plate lined with paper towels.
4. To serve, place a chimichanga on a plate, and ladle the warm sauce overtop. Sprinkle with Cheddar cheese and green onions. Finish with a dollop of sour cream.

But this week I made Regular old Chicken Salad to be stuffed inside garden fresh tomatoes. I really play this recipe by ear, but here goes.

For 2 families or 1 party here are the portions:

3 lbs boiled chicked diced into 1/2″ or smaller pieces. I used my hands and pulled when chicken cooled.

3 stalks of celery diced

(1) 3.8oz can of Sliced black Olives – drained

1 LARGE pickle or 2 mediums quartered lengthwise and then diced

1 Bag of Oven Roasted Sliced Almonds. (Found in the salad section of the grocery store)

1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice

Lots of Mayonaise

Season to taste with the following seasonings: Minced Onion, Garlic Salt, Ground Black Pepper and Cayenne Pepper. (I just love the Cayenne – it leaves a great punch at the end) So like at least 3 shakes of that puppy.

OK so I’m overly generous with the mayo. I keep adding in mayo till it looks heart attack worthy. But you can ease off of that and start with 1 cup and then add incrementally till it looks like your type of chicken salad.

I doubled this batch to make enough for 4 families and provided store bought tomatoes (but your garden tomatoes would be so much better!) As well as Croissant rolls for kids and leftovers, 4 ear of corn for each family, and Sliced orange wedges!

I had it tonight and loved it myself. Good job me.