Barbecue Chicken Salad

Have you ever had barbecue chicken salad at California Pizza Kitchen?  It's one of my favorite entree salads to order out a restaurant.  I've had it at other restaurants and I think the CPK salad is hands down the best version.  All the flavors complement each other...sweet, tangy, crunchy, cheesy.  It's a filling (a half order is plenty for me or if Hubby wants to share we get the full order) and oh so delicious meal.

Hubs and I eat salads for dinner (as our entree) at least 1 or 2 times a week.  Most of the time it's a basic salad with romaine lettuce, tomato, cucumber, onion, red pepper, sometimes mushrooms, topped with grilled shrimp or chicken.  I sometimes add a sprinkle of feta or cheddar cheese and or some croutons if I have them.  Our favorite salad dressing is one I get in the produce section at my grocery store by Litehouse.  They have a lite ranch dressing that is low in calories and doesn't taste like a "light" ranch dressing.  I was getting a little bored with our basic salads so I started thinking about alternative options...

I had ranch dressing and barbecue sauce in the fridge and chicken in the freezer and thought why not make barbecue chicken salad at home?  I didn't consult a recipe for this one.  I went from memory and crossed my fingers. 

You start by baking the chicken in barbecue sauce.  Once it's cooled, chop it and toss it in more barbecue sauce.  There is one other cooking component to this recipe.  I like to roast sweet corn and it's easy to do right on the stove top.  I keep frozen white sweet corn on hand at all times (I have found the C&W brand to be the sweetest).  To roast, drizzle a little olive oil in a non stick pan and throw in the frozen corn (don't thaw) and cook about 10 minutes on medium high heat, stirring once in a while until the corn takes on a roasted, caramelized color on some of the kernels.  If fresh corn is in season that would be even better, just toss your husked corn cob right on the grill and turn every couple of minutes until that charred color starts to appear (also about 10 minutes).

The rest comes together easily.  While your chicken and corn are cooking, prep the rest of the ingredients. 

Tip of the day - Freeze Your Chips!

One of the ingredients in the salad is crushed tortilla chips.  I have a tip to share for storing chips.  Once you've opened the bag, use a chip clip to close the bag and store it in your freezer.  This works great for both tortilla chips and potato chips.  In our two person household it can take a while for us to eat up a bag of chips before they go stale.  The chips will keep nicely in the freezer for up to 3 months. 

*****

So how did my version of barbecue chicken salad compare?  Both Hubby and I gave it two big thumbs up.  In fact I've made it twice already and it's officially been added to our salad rotation.  I'm loving it! 

The salad is very similar to my beloved CPK version.  I just went to the CPK website to compare ingredients and I came pretty darn close.  The only thing my version didn't have was jicama and basil (which I didn't really miss).  At CPK avocado is an add on ingredient for extra money.  Since avocados were on sale at the market, they were a definite add in my version of the salad. 

Oh, and I can't forget to tell you, the squeeze of lime takes this salad up a level.  It gives it a little tang that goes nicely with the creamy ranch and sweet barbecue sauce from the chicken.  Don't skip the lime!

Enjoy!

Barbecue Chicken Salad
from The Ginger Snap Girl, inspired from California Pizza Kitchen

Serves 4 entree portions

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 pound)
1/4 cup plus 1/3 cup barbecue sauce (I used Lucille's)
1 large head of romaine lettuce, washed, air dried, and cut into 1-2 inch pieces
1 tablespoon of finely chopped cilantro (optional)
1 cup frozen petite white corn
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup black beans, drained and rinsed
1 large avocado, peeled and sliced into chunks
2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
4 green onions, thinly sliced on the bias (at an angle)
1/2 cup grated monterey jack cheese
12 round tortilla chips, crushed
Ranch dressing, about 1 cup (I used Litehouse lite ranch dressing, found in the refrigerator section of the produce section)
1 lime cut into 4 wedges

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly spray an 8 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Spread half of the 1/4 cup of barbecue sauce on the bottom of the baking dish.  Place chicken breasts on top of the sauce and spread the remainder of 1/4 cup of sauce on top of the chicken breasts.  Bake for 30 minutes, or until cooked through and clear juices run out of the chicken.  Transfer chicken from the baking dish to a cutting board and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes.  Once chicken is cooled, cut into 1 inch chunks and place in a medium bowl.  Toss the cut chicken with 1/3 cup barbecue sauce.

While the chicken is baking, heat a small nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and add olive oil to the pan.  Add the frozen corn (do not thaw) to the pan and stir.  Allow corn to cook over medium heat for about 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally.  You want to allow the corn to roast and get lightly browned.  You can also grill fresh corn on the cob if it's available.  Remove corn from heat and allow to cool.

In a large bowl toss the lettuce with the ranch dressing.  Add cilantro and toss to evenly distribute.  Divide lettuce amongst 4 entree portion bowls.  Top lettuce with tomatoes, black beans, roasted corn, avocados, cheese and green onions.  Divide barbecue chicken amongst the 4 bowls and sprinkle each evenly with crushed tortilla chips.  To finish place a lime wedge in each bowl.  Don't forget to squeeze the lime over the salad....it's what makes it!

Chicken Piccata

It's been a busy week at work.  I rarely mention work on the blog, mostly because I when I blog I get to immerse myself in a different world that has nothing to do with work.   Like I can pretend that I don't really have a full time job in corporate America.  Don't get me wrong, I really like my job and adore the people I work with (and yes, my boss reads this blog...hi Amy).  But it's nice to get away to blog land several nights a week and think about all mouth watering sweet treats and savory eats that can be made.  Unfortunately this week has cut into my precious blog time and I'm a little behind with a backlog of 6 posts sitting in my drafts folder.  I also didn't get to spend as much time in the kitchen as I would have liked.  Something I plan to rectify on Saturday. 

Now, let's get on with the important business.  Chicken piccata.

Hubby LOVES chicken piccata.  He has a handful of dishes that he gravitates to and this is one of them.  I'm not sure why I've never tried to make it at home before.  But I'm glad I finally did.   A little wine, a little lemon juice and zest and a few capers and you have a delicious chicken dish. 

You start by pounding out chicken breasts out thin or about 1/4 inch thick all around (see instructions below on how to pound out the chicken).  Pounding out the chicken breasts allows them to cook evenly and quickly.  Lightly season the chicken and coat it in flour.  Be sure to season the chicken before you flour it.  I like to cook mine in a non stick stainless steel skillet (like All-Clad) because all the good bits of chicken that brown and stick to the pan get released when you pour in the wine and other sauce components.  More browned bits equals more yummy flavor. 

I served the chicken over mashed potatoes but next time I would use angel hair pasta.  I thought the wonderful lemony wine sauce got a little lost in the mashed potatoes.  The chicken would also be good with rice.  And I might also double the sauce component next time because the sauce was really delicious and I wanted more, more, more.  I'm kind of a sauce girl.

This recipe is a keeper!

Chicken Piccata
adapted from Eat Yourself Skinny

Serves 2-4
Ingredients:

1 pound chicken breasts, pounded out thin (see below for instructions)
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 tablespoons of canola oil
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed
2 medium cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine (I used 3/4 cup)
4 two inch wide strips of lemon zest (see below for instructions)
4 teaspoons lemon juice (I used 2 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon chilled butter

Getting Ready:

Pound out chicken:
Place a long piece of plastic wrap on a cutting board and place your chicken breast face down.  Plastic wrap should be long enough to fold in half and cover the chicken breast.  Using the smooth side of a meat mallet or a small heavy bottomed pan, slowly pound chicken starting in the center and working your way out.  You want to get an even thickness across the entire piece of chicken, just under 1/2 thick.  I like to cut my pounded out chicken into 2-3 pieces.  Repeat process with remaining chicken.

Zest lemon:
Use a sharp vegetable peeler to remove a wide strip of the outer skin of the lemon, being careful only remove the yellow part of the skin and not white part, which is bitter.

Prepare remaining ingredients for the sauce:
Squeeze lemon juice, rinse the capers, mince the garlic, measure the chicken broth and wine and measure out 1 tablespoon of flour and 1 tablespoon of chilled butter.

Start Cooking:

Make the Chicken:
Season chicken cutlets with salt and pepper.  Place 1/4 cup of flour in a shallow dish (large enough to hold a chicken cutlet).  Dredge chicken cutlets in the flour and shake off any excess.  Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Place floured chicken in the heated oil and cook for about 3-4 minutes on one side and turn chicken and continue cooking for an additional 1-2 minutes, until just cooked through.  Remove chicken to a plate and cover the plate loosely with foil to keep warm. 

Make the Sauce:
Once chicken is removed from the pan, add the capers and minced garlic to the oil left in the skillet and heat to medium.  Cook for about 30 seconds being careful not to burn the garlic.  Stir in the remaining tablespoon of flour.   Whisk in broth, wine and lemon zest strips.  Be sure to scrape all the browned bits off the bottom of the pan for additional flavor.  Bring sauce to a simmer and cook for 10-15 until slighly thickened and reduced to approximately 1/2 cup.

Bring it all together:
Turn off the heat and remove strips of lemon zest.  Stir in lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of butter until fully incorporated.  Return the chicken cutlets to the pan with the sauce, including an juices from the chicken. Heat through for 30 seconds to a minute.

Serve:
Serve your chicken cutlets and sauce over mashed potatoes or angel hair pasta.

Chicken and Creamy Mushroom Wild Rice Casserole

I'm not good at planning ahead.  Especially when it comes to dinners during the week.  You see, I'm in charge of dinner in our household.  Most days I don't decide what to make until the morning of (if I'm lucky) or afternoon that day.  It can be stressful at times.  And it doesn't really allow any pre-preparation such as marinating when you take a frozen piece of meat out of the freezer a few hours before you want to cook it.  Hubby has suggested a little strategic planning to make things go more smoothly during the week. Can you say procrastination?

A few weeks ago I made my first real attempt at true dinner strategy.  I was inspired by my friend Shannon who gave me some plan ahead tips and one of her recipe successes.  I had my big cook day on a Sunday and made enough food for 7 meals for the two of us.  Granted, it wasn't 7 meals to eat in the same week, but it was multiple portions of two dishes, most of which went into the freezer for future weeks.

I started off with Shannon's recipe recommendation for Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole.  It makes 6 portions...so that's 3 meals for Hubby and me.  I kept one portion out for the current week and froze the other 2 portions. 

The second dish I made was actually a sauce.....this delicious tomato cream sauce.   I tripled the recipe and it made 4 pouches.  Each pouch is enough to generously sauce 1/2 pound of pasta.  I kept one pouch out and the other 3 went into the freezer.  I was a little concerned that a sauce containing cream might not freeze well, but it fared pretty well.  The one thing I would change next time is to hold the fresh basil until the day the sauce is used. 

Back to the chicken dish.  I'm going to be frank.  It didn't turn out perfectly.  Well half of it was perfect and super yummy.  The creamy, mushroom, wild rice half.  It was almost like a wild rice risotto.  Just a note about the wild rice....this is pure, straight up wild rice.  Not a rice blend with a few grains of wild rice tossed in.  The real, healthy (and somewhat expensive), deal.  Apparently wild rice takes FOREVER to cook.  It cooks for an hour on the stove top.  Then it goes into the casserole dish and gets topped with smoked paprika chicken and a delicious creamy mushroom wine sauce.  The casserole goes into the over for another 55 minutes.  The rice was creamy perfection.  And I'm sure you can guess that after 55 minutes in the oven, the chicken was not so perfect.  It was dry.  Super dry.  So next time I have to make some tweaks on the chicken portion.  I think I cut the chicken in too small portions and cooked it too long before going into the oven.  Or next time maybe I'll just make wild rice mushroom creamy goodness!  Who needs protein?

Lite Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole
Adapted from cooks.com

1 cup wild rice, uncooked
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon pepper
6 (4 oz.) chicken breast halves, skinned, boned
Vegetable cooking spray
1 tablespoon butter
1 (14 oz.) can artichoke hearts, drained, cut in half  (I omitted the artichokes)
4 cups fresh sliced cremini mushrooms
3 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons flour
2 chicken broth
1 cup dry sherry or dry white wine (I used Sauvignon Blanc)

Rinse wild rice and drain. Combine rice and 3 cups water in medium pan, bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 1 hour. Spoon into 7x11x2 inch baking dish, set aside.

Sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon salt, paprika and pepper over chicken, set aside. coat a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray, add butter, melt over medium heat. Add chicken, cook 4 minutes each side until lightly browned.

Arrange chicken on top of rice, top with artichokes, set aside. Add mushrooms to skillet, saute 5 minutes.

Combine 1/4 teaspoon salt, flour, next 3 ingredients. Stir well. Add to skillet, cook 3 minutes until thick and bubbly. Spoon over chicken. cover and bake at 375 degrees for 55 minutes. 6 servings.

French Fridays with Dorie: Roast Chicken for Les Paresseux

This is my first time roasting a whole a bird. The recipe was choosen as November pick for the online cooking group French Fridays with Dorie. This recipe is roast chicken for the lazy (or les paresseux). Seemed like a good way to roast my first chicken. I have mixed feelings about the process. It took forever...90 minutes. It made the bottom of my pan black and splattered all over my oven. And I'm pretty sure the high heat was the cause of my pan cracking the next day when I took it out of the water where it was soaking. I used a pampered chef stoneware 9x13 casserole dish which is now destined for the trash can...I'm a little sad about that. The flavor of the chicken was not anything to write home about. It's not all bad though. It was easy. The skin was brown and crispy. And the infamous piece of bread that cooked under the chicken was pretty tasty. But I could only eat a few bites because you know its soaked with chicken fat that has gotten crispy and delicious. My feelings aren't really mixed. I didn't think the chicken warranted the effort, mess and waiting time that went into it.

I'm not giving up on cooking whole chickens. But will be looking for a different technique and flavoring elements next time.

I made this chicken along with homemade green bean casserole. Somehow I forgot to take pictures of the casserole....which turned out fabulous! For a beautiful photo and the recipe check out Michelle's blog, The Brown Eyed Baker. This recipe beats the canned soup version. The creamy mushroom sauce has a wonderful garlic flavor and pairs perfectly with the green beans and cripsy onion and breadcrumb topping. It's so so good.

Chicken Diable

We eat a lot of chicken in our house but only prepare it a handful of different ways. Marinated in Italian dressing and grilled, BBQ'd with a little sauce, breaded with Italian or panko breadcrumbs and pan fried or hubby's personal favorite, Shake n Bake (yuck). As I was flipping through Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table and honed in on a new chicken preparation. Chicken Diable. Shallots, garlic, wine and dijon mustard lured me in.

Chicken Diable is thinly pounded out chicken breasts lightly salted and peppered and pan fried in a bit of butter and olive oil. The chicken goes into a 200 degree to keep warm while you whip up a quick sauce. The sauce is really easy and most importantly it's delicious! For the sauce saute 1 medium finely chopped shallot and 1 finely chopped clove of garlic in the remaining olive oil and butter in the pan you cooked the chicken in. Season lightly with salt and pepper and cook for about 2 minutes. Pour in 1/3 cup white wine and bring to a simmer for about a minute. Add 1/2 cup heavy cream and return to a simmer. Then stir in 3 tablespoons of dijon mustard (I only used 2) and 2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce until heated through. Add additional salt and pepper if needed. Remove from heat and spoon sauce over chicken. The sauce is rich and velvety with a hint of dijon mustard and garlic and shallots in the background. It's definitely on my repeat recipe list. Though Hubby didn't love it...but I guess he can just eat chicken sans sauce.

I can't emphasize how easy this mustardy gravy is. Easy and tasty. Sounds like a winner to me.

Chicken Chili

Ground turkey doesn't do it for me. It's a very popular substitution for ground beef when you're looking for a healthier take on a meal. But what I do really like is ground chicken. Ground white, skinless, boneless chicken breast. And if you have a Kitchen Aid, you can buy an attachment that lets you grind your own.

This chicken chili recipe is easy and healthy. It's actually take on weight watchers recipe for Taco Soup. But I'm not so into soup so I modified it and turned it into a thick, hearty chili.

To make it extra special (and not quite as healthy) add shredded cheddar or jack cheese, a dollop of sour cream, fresh diced or green onion and crumbled tortilla chips on top.

I always make the full batch and we eat it throughout the week for dinners and lunches too.


Chicken Chili

1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 pound ground chicken breast
1 large onion diced
1 red pepper diced
1 bag of frozen white sweet corn
1 can of chili beans (in chili sauce)
1 can of kidney beans, drained
1 can of white beans, drained
1 can of diced tomatoes with juices
1 can of tomato sauce
1 packet of ranch dressing mix
1 packet of taco seasoning mix

Brown ground chicken in olive oil in large pot. Add ranch dressing mix and taco seasoning to the ground chicken and cook until chicken is cooked through. Add onions and peppers and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add all remaining ingredients and bring chili to a simmer. Simmer for 30-45 minutes. Serve hot or let chili cool and store in the fridge. I think the chili is better on the second day so I always make it ahead.

Mac n Cheese with Chicken & Bacon and Berry Banana Smoothies

I have special guest blogger today. My niece, McKenzie is an aspiring young cook at age 12 and prepared her first meal from start finish this weekend (well 99% on her own...apparently grandma (my mom) was hovering a bit while Kenze was using the stove). I'm just sad I wasn't there to enjoy it. But Grandma raved about how yummy it was. Without further adieu...


I am taking foods class as my elective and our first recipe was to make a berry smoothie. In the smoothie are frozen berries, milk, vanilla yogurt, and one banana. It turned out pretty tasty (these were served for dessert).


Mac and cheese- This was very easy. You just have to boil some noodles and add velveeta cheese, evaporated milk, bacon bits, and chicken. Sprinkle some bread crumbs and plop it into the oven at 350 degrees. This was my favorite.



For dinner I served the mac n cheese with corn and peas mixed together. These were just leftovers from the night before. It made the mac n cheese taste very good! Everyone I cooked for which was my family loved the meal. Hope you enjoy. :)

Chicken Marsala, Orange and Gorgonzola Salad with Garlic Croutons

I am in love with the Chicken Marsala served at Romano's Macaroni Grill. I know... Macaroni Grill is only one small step above Olive Garden in the Americanized world of Italian chain restaurants. But this stuff is good $hit! Yep, you heard me.

It's all about the sauce. The sauce is a rich gravy with a hint of sweetness and swimming in whole cloves of soft roasted garlic and gorgeous sauteed portobella mushrooms. I was determined to replicate this dish at home and searched online for a Macaroni Grill knock off. After making a few tweaks I think it's an excellent alternative to sitting at Macaroni Grill while your server displays their talent for writing their name upside down in crayon your paper table cloth. Not that that is not a good skill to have in your back pocket! Anyway, this recipe made a dinner appearance at last week's girl's getaway vacation.

This is no low calorie affair, but the entire stick of butter in here is worth every extra minute spent on the treadmill! I like mine extra saucy so I up the chicken broth and marsala wine quantities. I also add a little butter flour mixture to thicken up the sauce a bit. This go round it didn't turn out quite as saucy as I would have liked. But the flavor was all there!


Served over orzo pasta (leftover from our Shrimp Baked with Tomatoes and Feta dinner) and alongside a wonderful salad, this was a meal that I completely overstuffed myself on. The salad, made by one of the girls, was dee-lish! And the gals made homemade croutons from the french bread leftover from our Croque Monsieurs).





RECIPES

Orange, Tomato and Gorgonzola Salad
Ingredients:
Lettuce mix of your choice (Romaine holds up well)to serve 6 people
1 pint mini heirloom tomatoes or grape tomatoes
2 avocados sliced
2 mandarin oranges, sectioned
4 ounces of gorgonzola cheese
4 green onions thinly sliced
Garlic Croutons (see recipe below)
Creamy Balsamic Dressing (store bought)

Directions:
Toss all ingredients together, except the croutons. Squeeze left over orange juice from the rinds over the top of the salad and top with croutons. Serve creamy balsamic dressing on the side.

Garlic Croutons
Ingredients:
French bread cut into 1 inch cubes
Olive oil spray
Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper
Garlic Powder

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Place croutons onto a foil lined baking sheet. Spray generously with olive oil spray. Season to taste with sea salt, pepper and garlic powder and toss with your hands to evenly distribute seasonings. Bake for about 15 minutes or until lightly golden brown.

Chicken Marsala
Adapted from Irish Rose's recipe

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts , cut into 8 pieces
ground pepper and salt
flour, for coating chicken plus 1 tablespoon for sauce
7 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups portobella or cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
4-6 garlic cloves, minced
1 large shallot, minced
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated
1 1/2 cups marsala wine, sweet not dry
1/2 - 3/4 cup chicken stock

Directions:
1. Place chicken pieces between waxed paper or plastic wrap and flatten to 1/3 inch thick with a meat mallet. Season each piece with salt and pepper and then coat in flour. Shake off excess flour.
2. Melt 3 tablespoons butter and the oil in skillet and fry chicken in batches on medium heat for about 5 minutes each side.
3. Remove chicken from pan and arrange in a single layer in shallow ovenproof pan. Put in low oven (275-300 degrees) to stay warm.
4. Add 2 tablespoons butter and garlic to skillet and saute (do not brown) for a few minutes until soft. Add mushrooms and saute about 5-7 minutes. Use slotted spoon to lift mushrooms out of skillet and arrange on top of chicken breasts. Sprinkle with cheese and put back in oven until you finish next step.
5. Pour Marsala wine into skillet along with chicken broth and remaining 1 tablespoons butter and boil rapidly until reduced by half. Mash 1 tablespoon of butter with 1 tablespoon of flour and whisk into sauce. Simmer until sauce thickens, about 1-2 minutes. Remove chicken from oven, plate it and pour wine mixture over the chicken breasts.

Serve alongside angel hair or orzo pasta.

Chicken Curry! Salad

Oh my Curry! I have never used curry in my cooking and have only had it a handful of times out at restaurants. In high school I worked for the mom of one of my friends at her sandwich shop/catering business for one summer. I remember her making a curry chicken salad that the customers would go nuts for. I was drawn to the creamy golden yellow salad mixed with grapes and other things I can't remember now. The chicken salad was delicious. When I came across this recipe on the Cook Yourself Thin website...I remembered that sunny yellow salad from my summer job in high school and I wanted to try this recipe.

It's easy to make. Mayo, orange juice and zest and curry powder come together to coat the shredded chicken, diced granny smith apples and raisins. Top it off with toasted slivered almonds for a nutty crunch. I was so excited to try this lucious salad.

I am a bit of wimp when it comes to spicy foods...so 2 tablespoons of curry powder was a little more than I bargained for. I added in a heaping spoonful of sour cream to cool it down a bit. I'm not sure how much cooling effect it really had. The salad definitely had a kick! It was nice to try something new and Hubby even gave it the thumbs up!

Unfortunately it appears that curry and I don't get along. After eating it for dinner and then again the next day for lunch I felt like I was slowly moving into a curry coma. The best way to describe it is I felt like I had a curry hangover that carried me into the following day. Though it was tasty, I'm not sure I will be making this again. But if you are a fan of curry and it doesn't send your body into shock...give this flavorful and healthy Curried Chicken Salad a try.

Healthy Sloppy Joes and a Kitchen Aide Stand Mixer

I'm trying out a few new recipes this week. This one comes from Ellie Krieger's The Food You Crave cookbook. I bought this cookbook last year to assist Hubby and I in our journey to better health and fitness. If you aren't familiar with Ellie's work, she provides healthy and tasty recipes for dishes that are often not considered healthy. This book is pretty stinkin awesome. For those of you in doubt, you CAN eat yummy delicious food without consuming mass calories. Did I mention the food is still yummy and delicious? Without all the calories? Really, it is. I have tried and loved numerous recipes in this book. And now I can add another to the list. Sloppy Joes.


In Ellie's version of Sloppy Joes she recommends ground beef, 90% lean. I have nothing against beef. In fact I'm a big fan. But we generally don't stock beef in the house. But we do have endless supplies of boneless skinless chicken breasts, shrimp and even scallops on hand in our freezer for easy defrosting. All courtesy of Costco, by the way. Gotta give my props to Costco!

What does everyone automatically think of for a substitute for ground beef in recipes? Turkey. Ground turkey. I like turkey at Thanksgiving and occasionally on sandwiches, but I'm not really down for it in "ground" form. It just makes me feel like I'm sacrificing flavor and eating diet food. Not good. BUT, have you ever tried ground chicken? So, so, sooooo much better than ground turkey! In fact I've been making chili exclusively with ground chicken for the past few years. And it's a big hit with friends and family. In fact they don't even realize it's chicken unless you tell them. And I figured why not try it in Sloppy Joes. I think Ellie would be proud. ;)

Here's a tip on ground chicken. I learned recently that store bought ground chicken can be sometimes be worse than ground beef. Apparently they grind up some of the dark meat and fat in there too. So if you are buying it at the store, look for ground (boneless skinless) chicken breast. Or if you own a Kitchen Aide stand mixer....invest in the food grinding attachment. I love this add on! Once you have the grinder you can add on the pasta maker fittings to make homemade spaghetti, fettuccine and elbow macaroni. Anyway, it's a cinch to grind your own meat. Just slice it up in 2 inch slices and drop it in the machine.



I did make a couple of modifications to the recipe. Obviously I swapped ground chicken for the ground beef. I omitted the beans (it was feeling too chili-like). I added a few extra dashes of Worcestershire sauce and added my salt seasoning the food along the way at each layer rather than adding it all at the end. For the bun I tried out whole wheat sandwich thins (by Orowheat) for the first time. These save about 70 calories compared to a standard wheat bun. I liked the thin bun, but it's not quite as satisfying as a full fledged fluffy bun.



Hubby and I both gave this meal a thumb's up. Ellie's original recipe runs at 265 calories per sandwich. I have a feeling mine is closer to the 200 mark....which leaves plenty of room for lots of roasted vegetables, like Zucchini Parmesan AND dessert!

This recipe is packed full of flavor and fresh ingredients and is super healthy and delicious! Check it out here. Will I make it again? Absolutely!

Asian Chicken and Roasted Pepper Sandwich

I can't quite recall what originally prompted me to put this sandwich together. But it's been a house favorite for the past five years or so and is really easy to make. This sandwich is all about the mayo. Asian seasoned mayo. Pampered Chef Asian Seasoning and mayonnaise are a match made in heaven. The seasoning packs a nice punch with garlic, red & green bell pepper, sesame seeds, soy sauce, orange and lemon zest, lime, green onion and ginger. So add as much or as little to your taste. We like a lot!

We hadn't had this sandwich in quite some time because we ran out of the Pampered Chef magical blend. I finally broke down and ordered some online and just a few days later we were back in yummy sandwich makin business! As a side note, the shipping on my order cost nearly as much as the seasoning....so I stocked up to make the most out of my purchase. I also ordered a greek seasoning blend that I'm excited to try out.

Now that the spring is officially here....grilling has kicked into full swing at our house. 3 of the 4 components of this sandwich are done on the grill so Hubby plays a big part in the creation of this meal. Generally I prep everything for the grill and Hubby does the grilling, then I assemble it all. So I did my part and had it all ready to go to the grill...but guess what? The grill was out of gas. So we had to to turn to plan B. The grill pan. I have to say the results weren't quite the same as the hint of charred goodness you can only get from a grill...but it was still quite good.

The chicken is marinated in a store bought teriyaki sauce then grilled. I prefer a sauce that has pineapple juice in it. But any asian inspired marinade (store bought or homemade) would do just fine. The chicken is sliced and topped with tender roasted red and yellow peppers (also courtesy of Hubby's fine grill work). Sandwiched between two asian mayo slathered pieces of freshly grilled ciabatta bread....it's delicious! Don't skimp on the mayo. Really!

Asian Chicken & Roasted Pepper Sandwich Recipe:
1lb boneless skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup of store bought teriyaki sauce (with pineapple juice)
2 red, orange or yellow peppers
4 sandwich size ciabatta (La Brea Bakery ciabatta at Costco is our favorite)
2/3 cup mayo
2-3 Tablespoons of Pampered Chef Asian Seasoning

Marinate chicken in teriyaki sauce for 4 hours up to 1 day. Combine mayo and asian seasoning in a small bowl and set aside in the fridge. Roast peppers on high heat on the BBQ until skins are charred black and interior flesh is tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer the peppers to a deep bowl and immediately place plastic wrap over the top sealing in the heat. When peppers are cool enough to handle, remove the charred skin and cut into 2 inch strips, removing seeds, ribbing and stem. Grill chicken until done, about 10-12 minutes. Allow chicken to cool for at least 5 minutes and slice 1/2 inch strips. Cut ciabattas in half and (lightly brush with olive oil if desired) toast on grill 2-3 minutes to desired toastiness. Generously spread mayo on bread and top with chicken and peppers. And most importantly.....Enjoy!