Mozzarella, Roasted Red Pepper, and Basil Stuffed Chicken

I apologize for not posting any recipes in awhile - I've had my hands full the past few months! But since having a baby, I appreciate even more the importance of finding healthy recipes that are fast and easy to make (ideally, 10 minutes or less of prep time, since that's about as long as Little Man will allow me before he gets fussy!). 

I discovered this recipe a few months ago, and was amazed at how delicious it was for less than five minutes of prep time. I love mozzarella cheese, and chicken is a staple in my house, so it was bound to be a winner! The first time I made this recipe, I used store-bought roasted red peppers, but this time I made my own and they were also very easy to make. I made the peppers over the weekend, and they kept well in the refrigerator for two days until I was ready to make the chicken dish. 

Luckily my husband loved the meal as well, since I plan to add this into the regular rotation! I served it with a simple side of roasted broccoli (I use a version of this recipe, but without lemon juice and with garlic salt or a Parmesan seasoning).

Mozzarella, Roasted Red Pepper, and Basil Stuffed Chicken

(from Barbells and Bellinis)

Ingredients

4 large chicken breasts
8 0z. fresh mozzarella, cut into 8 slices (it's easiest if you buy a fresh mozzarella log)
6 oz. roasted red peppers (jarred or make your own)
fresh basil leaves
approx. 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
approx. 2 tbsp grated parmesan

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Slice chicken breasts in half through the long side of the breast, stopping just short of the other side, to butterfly the breast. Open up each chicken breast and lay them in a greased baking dish or on a greased baking sheet.
3. Place 1/4 of the roasted red peppers, basil, and one slice of fresh mozzarella on the inside of each butterflied chicken breast. 
4. Fold the top half of the chicken back over, and sprinkle the top of each breast with Italian seasoning.
5. Bake chicken for approximately 30-35 minutes, until the juices run clear.
6. Take the chicken out of the oven and set the oven to broil on high. Place the remaining slices of mozzarella on top of each chicken breast, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. 
7. Broil for approximately 5 minutes, until the mozzarella is brown and bubbly. Enjoy!

Serves 4 (you can easily cut this recipe in half or double it, as desired)

Light Chicken Parmesan Casserole

Is anyone else sick of the cold weather? We finally got a joyous reprieve from the cold in DC yesterday, but I know not to trust that it's here to stay - especially since we still have snow piles from Monday's snowstorm! I decided to take advantage of the cold weather and a snow day last week, though, and try out a casserole recipe that I've had my eye on for awhile.

This chicken parmesan casserole met my basic requirements for a good recipe - few steps, little preparation time, one dish, and lots of cheese! I also knew that I have a busy couple of weeks coming up, so I wanted to load up my freezer with some easy-to-reheat dishes, and I love casseroles for that purpose.

The original recipe seemed a little weak on the flavor front, so I thought it would be good to add some additional Italian spices to the dish. I was suspicious about how the croutons would taste, but they added a nice, buttery crunch to complement the dish! I served the casserole with a side salad, which made for a delicious meal. I look forward to having these leftovers soon!

Light Chicken Parmesan Casserole
adapted from Emily Bites

Ingredients:

2 lbs raw chicken breasts, cubed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (or more to taste)
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 cup fresh basil, finely chopped
2 cups marinara sauce 
1 1/2 cups 2% reduced fat shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
3 1/2 oz garlic croutons (such as New York Texas Toast brand Garlic & Butter), roughly crushed

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Lay the cubed chicken pieces on a lightly sprayed 13x9 inch pan, so that they fully cover the bottom of the pan in one, even layer.
3. Spread the minced garlic, red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, and basil evenly over top the chicken. Pour the marinara sauce evenly across the chicken and seasonings. Then add half of the mozzarella cheese and half of the Parmesan cheese over the casserole. Top with an even coating of croutons, and finish the casserole with the rest of the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.
4. Cover the casserole with aluminum foil and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Take the casserole out of the oven, remove the foil, and bake for another 10-15 minutes.
5. Let cool for 5 minutes, and enjoy!

*Serves 8

Chicken Lo Mein

In my daily search of Pinterest recipes a few months ago, I came across a few "one pot" recipes for various pasta dishes. Because I hate having to use more than one pot or pan when I'm cooking (and Rick hates it more so, since he has to wash said dishes!), I was intrigued but skeptical. I pinned the recipes and moved on.

This weekend, I found myself with some defrosted, uncooked chicken and no planned menu for dinner. I went to my trusty "Favorite Recipes" page on Pinterest and came across the "One Pot Wonder Chicken Lo Mein" recipe in my pins. After a quick trip to the grocery store for green onions, I had all the necessary ingredients and was good to go.

True to its name, it only required one pot, and was pretty tasty! I had read in the comments that there tended to be too much liquid still in the pot after the meal cooked, so I made some adjustments, but it was still a little more liquid-y that I would have preferred. I also added more chicken than the initial recipe called for. Rick enjoyed it, but we both agreed that it could have used some additional vegetables. The next time I make this, I will add snow peas and possibly broccoli.

All in all, I was happy with the recipe. It was extremely easy and fast to make, the sauce was delicious, and it seemed much healthier than if we ordered it from a Chinese restaurant. I served it with a bowl of steamed edamame (a microwave-ready bag from the frozen vegetable section of the grocery store) and it made for a pretty well-balanced meal!

Chicken Lo Mein

(Adapted from The Wholesome Dish)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. uncooked chicken breast, cut into small chunks
10 oz. uncooked whole wheat linguine, broken in half
12 baby carrots, cut lengthwise into quarters
1 bunch green onions, white portion removed and green portion chopped into 3 inch strips
Additional vegetables, as desired (suggested: snow peas, broccoli, baby corn)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp corn starch
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
3 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil

Directions:

1. Add the uncooked chicken, then the linguine, then the rest of the ingredients to a large pot and cover.
2. Bring to a boil over high heat, then stir and reduce to a simmer. Cook for approximately 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked and the liquid is mostly gone. Enjoy!

*Makes 5-6 servings

Light Chicken & Waffles

I have a real affinity for Southern style cooking, and luckily in the DC area we have a number of amazing restaurants that specialize in Southern cuisine. Soul food is not exactly known for being healthy though, so I have to limit how often we eat out at Southern style restaurants.

So imagine my delight when I stumbled across a healthy chicken 'n waffles recipe in my other new Hungry Girl cookbook! Chicken 'n waffles is one of those meals that always looks so delicious in restaurants, but typically too calorie-laden for me to justify ordering. (Instead, I make Rick order it so that I can sneak bites off of his plate!)

I was skeptical that this shortcut healthier version would taste good, especially when I picked up the box of Fiber One bran cereal at the grocery store - it honestly looked like something I would put in a bird feeder. I trust Hungry Girl though, so I followed her recipe and was very happy that I did!

The bran cereal made for a delicious, crispy coating for the chicken, and the flavor worked perfectly with the waffles and syrup. I often have difficulty with cooking chicken on the stove, because it seems to take forever for the chicken to cook through, but the key here was to use very thin-cut chicken breast cutlets (you can also pound the chicken very thin if the grocery store doesn't sell the thin-cut ones). 

This recipe only made 2 servings, but you can easily double or triple the recipe. I made 4 servings, and Rick enjoyed the meal so much that he agreed to have the leftovers the very next night, which is rare! The entire meal took less than half an hour to make, and while I won't claim that it is a match for the chicken and waffles at Marvin, it is definitely healthier and worth making!

Light Chicken & Waffles

(from Hungry Girl "300 Under 300" Cookbook)

Ingredients:

1/3 cup Fiber One Original bran cereal
1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
2 5oz raw boneless skinless thin-cut chicken breast cutlets (the thinner, the better!)
2 tbsp. liquid egg whites
2 frozen low-fat waffles
1/2 cup lite pancake syrup (I used Aunt Jemima lite syrup)

Directions:

1. Place cereal in a Ziplock bag and seal. Crush cereal with a meat mallet until it is a breadcrumb-like consistency. Add 1/8 teaspoon each of salt, black pepper, and garlic powder to the crumb mixture and shake well. Pour the crumbs onto a plate and set aside.

2. Place chicken cutlets in a bowl and season with remaining 1/8 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Pour liquid egg whites atop of chicken, then flip cutlets over to evenly coat. Transfer cutlets one at a time to the breadcrumb plate and evenly coat with the mixture on both sides.

3. Spray a large skillet with nonstick spray and bring to medium-high heat on the stove. Add breaded chicken and cook until the chicken is fully cooked and the outside is crispy, approximately 4 minutes per side.

4. While the cutlets are cooking, toast the waffles and place each on a separate plate. Pour syrup over each waffle, and when finished, place one of the chicken cutlets atop each waffle. 

Light Chicken with Tomatoes & Artichokes

The other night, I found myself with some chicken breasts that needed to be cooked, as well as a can of artichokes and a can of diced tomatoes. I did some googling and found a few recipes that combined those three ingredients, looked easy to make, and sounded good. I chose the recipe that was the quickest to throw together (it had been a long day at work!), made a few small changes, and came up with a new, delicious chicken dinner to add to my repertoire.

I can’t even explain how ridiculously easy this chicken was to make. You mix together a handful of ingredients (all of which I typically keep on hand), pour the mixture over the chicken breasts, and bake. And the best part was - it tasted great!

The chicken had an Italian taste to it, so I served it over a side of pasta, which was a perfect complement to the meal. I didn’t add any additional sauce, assuming that the tomato and artichoke mixture from the chicken would be enough flavor to coat the pasta. The next time I make this, I may add some additional tomato sauce to the dish, but it wasn’t really necessary. Also, I used a thin-sliced provolone cheese because that is what I had in the refrigerator, and it melted perfectly and tasted great, but I’m sure that mozzarella cheese would be really good as well.

Light Chicken with Tomatoes & Artichokes

(adapted from http://aaronandjillw.blogspot.com/2011/08/italian-chicken.html)

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts

1 can artichoke hearts, drained

1 can diced tomatoes

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. sugar

2 tbsp. flour

Salt and pepper, to taste

Thin-sliced provolone cheese

Fresh or dried basil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Place chicken breasts in a 9x13 baking dish, and season with salt and pepper.

3. Mix the remaining ingredients (except for the provolone cheese and basil) together in a medium-sized bowl.

4. Pour the mixture evenly over the chicken breasts.

5. Cook for approximately 30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked.

6. Take the chicken out of the oven and top each piece of chicken with a slice of provolone cheese. Put back in the oven for another 2-3 minutes on the top rack, until the cheese has fully melted.

7. Sprinkle with basil and serve!

Slow Cooker Shredded Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

Last weekend, some of Rick's extended family came over for dinner. I needed a meal that could easily serve 8 people (including a few teenage boys) and that didn't require me spend hours slaving over a hot stove. My first thought was to grill out, but the weather forecast called for thunderstorms, so that was a risky proposition. My second thought? Something in the slow cooker, of course! I love that I can throw a huge amount of meat into the slow cooker, leave it for hours, and come back to an easy-to-assemble dinner. 

For this particular meal, I decided to make slow cooker shredded buffalo chicken sandwiches. The recipe is ridiculously simple, it feeds at least 10 people, everyone can prepare their own sandwiches with as much meat as they want from the slow cooker - everyone wins. Also, it can be served multiple ways, and can be made to work for any level of tolerance to hot sauce. I am a total wimp when it comes to spiciness, so I'll typically top my buffalo chicken sandwich with a little bit of light ranch dressing (I'm partial to Bolthouse Farms ranch dressing), which tones down the spice. If you want to kick it up a notch, feel free to add extra Frank's Hot or other hot sauce.

If you are looking for a low-carb option, the buffalo shredded chicken also tastes delicious in a lettuce wrap (the lettuce also mellows out the spiciness level). For this, big leaves of romaine lettuce work perfectly.

I served the sandwiches with corn on the cob and a spinach & berry salad, and there were no complaints from our guests. In fact, since Rick's cousin asked me to post this recipe on my blog so that his mom could make it for him, I would say the dinner was a success! Here you go, Erik!

Slow Cooker Shredded Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

(adapted from Emily Bites)

Ingredients:

3 1/2 lbs. raw chicken breast (can be frozen or defrosted)
12 oz. bottle of buffalo sauce (I used Frank's Hot)
1 oz. package of dry ranch mix
2 tbsp. light butter

Hamburger rolls (or romaine lettuce) to serve
Light ranch dressing (optional)

Directions:

1. Place the raw chicken breasts in the slow cooker. Pour the sauce evenly over the chicken, and top with the dry ranch mix. Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 7-9 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours, until you can easily shred the chicken.
2. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and shred it using 2 forks. Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker, add in butter, and stir. Cook on low for another hour to allow the chicken to soak up the sauce. (Don't worry if it looks like there is a lot of sauce when you first shred the chicken - it will all get soaked up!)
3. Serve on a hamburger roll (or in a large piece of romaine lettuce to make a carb-light wrap). If you would like, top with light ranch dressing.

Chicken Parmesan Burger

Like any standard American, I like a good old fashioned hamburger. However, I try and limit my red meat intake, so I will often cook up a turkey burger when I'm at home and in the mood for a burger. Then one day I stumbled upon ground chicken in the grocery store, and since I am always looking for new ways to eat chicken, I decided to give it a try. 

After doing some Pinterest searching, I found this recipe for chicken parmesan burgers. A combination of a burger and chicken parm? Yes please! These burgers are juicy, flavorful, and ridiculously easy to make. You simply combine the ingredients in a bowl, form four patties, let them refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, and then throw them in the oven! I don't like to heat up my kitchen unnecessarily when it's this hot and humid outside, so I used the convection oven and they came out perfectly. 

The first time I made the burgers, I forgot to buy a shallot, and the burgers were still delicious, but I think they were even tastier the second time with the chopped shallot. Rick discovered how easy it is to chop shallots (as well as onions) in the food processor, so I didn't have to spend forever dicing it up by hand. (Just make sure that you chop in small bursts and don't totally pulverize it!)

This recipe makes 4 burgers, so I cooked up all 4 at once, but didn't add the sauce or cheese to 2 of them and just froze those cooked chicken burgers for later. They defrosted and microwaved perfectly a few weeks later.

Chicken Parmesan Burger

(adapted from Annie's Eats)

Ingredients:

For the burgers:1 lb. ground chicken
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup bread crumbs
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
3 tbsp. chopped flat leaf parsley (fresh or dried)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 shallot, finely diced
Salt and pepper, to taste

For serving:
Pasta sauce
Part-skim mozzarella cheese (sliced or shredded)
Hamburger buns

Directions: 

1. Combine all of the burger ingredients in a medium bowl. Mix well by hand until thoroughly combined. 2. Form the mixture into 4 patties. Refrigerate for approximately 30 minutes.
3. Preheat the broiler. Spray the broiler pan with cooking spray. (I cooked mine in the convection oven. You can also grill them on an outdoor grill.) 
4. Broil the burgers for approximately 5 minutes on one side, then flip and broil for approximately 5 more minutes on the other side until fully browned and cooked through. 
5. Remove from the oven, and top each burger with pasta sauce and cheese. Place back under the broiler for 1-2 minutes until the cheese is melted. Serve on hamburger buns.

*Makes 4 burgers

Mexican Chicken Stuffed Bell Peppers

I was never a big fan of vegetables growing up, but as an adult I have forced myself to expand my veggie horizons, and discovered that most of them aren’t all that bad! Now I look to incorporate vegetables into as many meals as I can, since they are both low in calories and high in nutrients.

One of my favorite discoveries was bell peppers. I love them raw and cooked, in salads, fajitas, omelets...you name it, I enjoy it. Hence why I was so excited to try a recipe for stuffed bell peppers. 

I tried one basic stuffed pepper recipe, but it was a little bland, so I decided to create my own recipe with a Mexican twist. The taco seasoning gave it a nice kick, and it made a deliciously healthy, lower-carb alternative to Taco Tuesday. 

Two bell pepper halves made a complete (and very filling) dinner, but you can easily have just one half of a pepper as a side dish. And the leftovers tasted just as yummy after being microwaved the next day for lunch.

Mexican Chicken Stuffed Bell Peppers

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups chicken, cooked and shredded (I used the leftover shredded chicken from my chicken fried rice recipe)

1 cup cooked brown rice

3 red bell peppers

1 package reduced sodium taco seasoning

1 cup shredded reduced fat Mexican cheese

¼ cup onions, diced

fat free sour cream, for serving

salsa, for serving

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  
2. Prepare the cooked chicken according to the instructions on the taco seasoning packet. 
3. Remove stems and seeds from the bell peppers, and cut the bell peppers in half lengthwise.  
4. In a large bowl, combine taco-seasoned chicken, rice, 1/2 cup of cheese, and onions.  
5. Spoon mixture evenly into bell peppers.  
6. Top with remaining cheese.  
7. Bake for 25-30 minutes.  
8. After it is finished baking, serve with a spoonful of salsa and a dollop of fat free sour cream. 

Makes 6 servings (or 3 dinner-size servings).

*Note - you can also add the salsa on top of the stuffed peppers before you bake them.

Light Chicken Fried Rice

I love Chinese food, but Chinese restaurants aren’t exactly known for their healthy options! However, I’ve found that it’s relatively easy to make some basic “healthified” Chinese dishes at home. I have made my fair share of stir fries, but last night I wanted to try making fried rice.

A few things that you should know about me and my cooking:

1. I often don’t start making dinner until I’m already starving, and I’m not the most patient person when I’m hungry, so I look for recipes that are quick to make.

2. My husband Rick hates doing dishes (and our agreement is that he cleans when I cook) so I try to find recipes that use a minimal number of pots and pans.

3. I try not to spend hundreds of dollars at the grocery store each week, so I seek out recipes that use ingredients I already have and/or could see myself using again in the near future.

Many of the fried rice recipes that I found used way too many dishes, took too long to make, or asked for ingredients that I didn’t have or want to buy. So when I came across this recipe, I jumped on it! I already had shredded chicken (I use this recipe to cook up large batches of shredded chicken and have it ready to go), popped some rice in the rice cooker, and the rest of the meal was prepared in one (pretty large) skillet. I did have to invest in sesame oil - I think it’s possible to make the recipe with a different kind of oil, but the sesame oil gave it just the right flavor. Quick, easy, healthy, and delicious - Rick and I happily ate it up!

Light Chicken Fried Rice

(Adapted from SkinnyMom)

Ingredients:

2 cups rice, prepared (I used brown rice, but white rice is also fine)
1 cup cooked and shredded chicken breast (I used this slow cooker shredded chicken)
1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil
1/2 cup frozen peas & carrots
1/2 small white onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 egg
1/8 cup lite soy sauce

Directions:

1. Prepare rice according to package instructions to yield 2 cups of cooked rice.
2. Heat sesame oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Add onion, garlic, peas and carrots and saute until the veggies are tender (approximately 5 minutes).
3. Crack egg into skillet and scramble, mixing with the vegetables.
4. Once the egg has scrambled, add rice, chicken, and soy sauce to skillet. Mix well.

*This made 3 servings of approximate 1 ¼ cups each. It can easily be doubled to make 6 servings.