Oven "Fried" Chicken Just Like Mom Used to Make!

I've been craving fried chicken, so I decided to do my mom's version that we used to eat all the time when I was a kid. It turned out just as delicious as I remembered!

INGREDIENTS:
Chicken pieces (bone-in and skin on)
You can use any pieces you like. I had two breasts, two thighs and two legs.
1 stick of butter
Seasoned Salt (Lawry's, Ms. Dash, whatever you like)
Sage
Garlic powder
Black Pepper
All-purpose flour put into a quart sized Ziploc bag

DIRECTIONS:
1. Turn oven on to 400
2. Put a stick of butter into a glass baking dish and place in the oven to melt
3. Make sure your chicken is completely dry and liberally season the "meaty" side with seasoned salt, sage, garlic powder and black pepper
4. Place chicken - one piece at a time - into the bag of flour, seal bag and shake it around to coat chicken
5. When butter has melted and starts bubbling, place chicken in baking dish with the seasoned side down
6. Check in 20 minutes - flip if browned; if not browned well, check in another 10 minutes
7. When browned, flip chicken and cook for another 15 minutes
8. Check with a fork to be sure the juice that runs out is clear (that means it is done) ;)

It should look like this:

You can serve with any side dish(es). I braised fresh broccoli and mashed potatoes. It was an awesome Sunday supper and took me back to childhood - except for the broccoli. :)

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Mushroom Artichoke Smothered Chicken

Since it's getting to be winter time, I don't get my beloved grilled chicken anymore. Instead, I try to come up with creative INDOOR ways to cook boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Here's what I came up with last night.

INGREDIENTS:
4 small or 2 large chicken breasts
1 regular-sized box of baby bella whole mushrooms
1 jar of marinated artichokes
1 can of mild diced tomatoes & green chiles (Ro-tel)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp salsa seasoning, minced onions or onion powder and cumin
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 Cup Montery Jack cheese, shredded, or mexican blend cheese
Cilantro
Seasoned Salt (Lawry's, Mrs. Dash, whatever you have on hand or prefer - just make sure it's not spicy, since you're using the Ro-tel) and black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:
1. Cut or pull the stem off the mushrooms and slice very thin
2. Saute mushroom slices in olive oil over medium heat in skillet to release some of the moisture; only for about 3-5 minutes
3. Preheat oven to 350
4. In a mixing bowl, combine mushrooms, drained and chopped artichokes, drained tomatoes and chiles, salsa seasoning, minced onions and cumin
5. Add flour to mixture and stir (the flour will help soak up the liquid so the baking dish won't be full of liquid after cooking)
6. Sprinkle seasoning salt on both sides of chicken breasts and place in glass baking dish (I like to line to dish with foil treated with non-stick spray for easy clean up, but that's your choice)
7. Light add pepper to the top of the chicken breasts (optional)
8. Spoon mushroom-artichoke-tomato mixture on top of chicken
9. Bake on middle rack for about 25-30 minutes
10. Remove baking dish from oven and sprinkle montery jack cheese on top
11. Turn off oven, turn on broiler (high) and place dish in oven to melt and lightly brown the cheese

Sprinkle with cilantro (try parsley or basil if you don't like or have cilantro) and serve with a salad, green veggie, potatoes, rice, pasta, eat it alone - whatever will work!

I roasted asparagus that was tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with black pepper and lemon-garlic seasoning. For Ryan, I also mashed potatoes with butter, chicken broth, minced garlic, fat-free sour cream, salt and black pepper.

This dish was a hit! The chicken was moist and went well with the smothered veggies and cheese. I liked it so much, it's all I ate for my meal. I was too full to finish the asparagus! Will definitely do this chicken again...and maybe mix up the ingredients. I hate to do the same thing over and over.

Let us know how you mix it up with your chicken recipes!

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Pineapple Pulled Pork Perfection (Nachos)

As I've told you before (and you know anyway if you know us), Ryan and I love, Love, LOVE mexican food! One of our favorite dishes is Nachos Barucas from Don Pancho. It's nachos with pulled pork, onions, pineapple and fresh cilantro. We weren't 100% sure how they prepare it, but Ryan took a shot guessing at it. His shot was perfect - in fact, I think his version turned out better than the restaurant's! And the best part is it's easy! Get out the crockpot, folks...

INGREDIENTS:
4 lb pork roast (boston butt)
Ask your butcher to cut the roast down to 4 lbs. The average is around 8 lbs.
20 oz can pineapple chunks in 100% juice
1/2 tsp each of black pepper, white pepper, red pepper flakes and cayenne powder
2 tsp salt
1 cup dark beer
1 medium onion, sliced and cut in half so you have long pieces
1 head garlic, peeled and crushed
A few dashes of seasoning salt (whatever you have on hand) and Tony Chachere's More Spice Seasoning (optional)
Fresh cilantro
Tortilla chips
Cheese dip
Whatever kind you like best from your grocery store will work. I, typically, get something that is with the international foods and looks more authentic than Tostito's or Frito-Lay. Not that those aren't good, but for this dish, I want as close to the real mexican restaurant cheese dip as I can get!

DIRECTIONS:
1. Place roast in crockpot
2. Mix pineapple (don't drain), all spices, beer, onion and garlic together in a mixing bowl and pour over the roast
3. Cook on high for one hour, and then turn down to low for 7 hours
4. Roast should pull apart very easily with a fork when it's ready
5. Put tortilla chips on your plate, drain the pork in a collander and place on top of the chips (be sure to include the pineapple chunks and onions)
6. Pour heated cheese dip over the chips and pork - amount is up to you
7. Sprinkle fresh cilantro over everything - amount is, again, to your liking
This serves approximately 5-6 people.

Above is exactly how Ryan ate his nachos. Instead, I left the chips off the plate and used Tostito's Scoops Baked. I got the pork, cheese and cilantro off my plate with a fork and put in the scoop individually as I ate - YUMMY! That way, not only did my chips not get soggy, but I also got even distribution of all the ingredients in each chip. PERFECT.

Also, this pork is excellent on it's own without making it nachos or using the cheese dip. Try it by itself or on Hawaiian Rolls, onion rolls - whatever! It will be delicious no matter how it's served. Promise.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

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Chili Con Queso Pasta Bake

Originally, this was a Rachael Ray recipe, but I changed it up some, and the outcome was delicious! It's, also, not too, too bad for you, which is always a plus.

INGREDIENTS:
1.5 lb lean ground beef or sirloin
1 yellow onion, diced
1 jalapeno, diced
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp cumin
1 Tbsp coriander
1 box (approximately 8 servings) of whole wheat pasta I used medium shells. Also, you could use penne, bowtie, elbow - anything like that.
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
2 Cups 2% milk
1/4 Cup fresh cilantro or 2 Tbsp dried
1/4 Cup fresh parsley or 2 Tbsp dried
2-2.5 Cups 2% sharp chedder, shredded
1 Can of fire-roasted, diced tomatoes
Black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:
1. Cook beef until almost completely browned
2. When beef gets to that point, add onion, jalapeno and garlic to skillet; cook until onions are clear
3. Cook pasta as box instructs - a little bit past "al dente"
4. While beef and pasta are going, melt butter in medium-size pot on stove over medium heat
5. Add flour to completely melted butter and stir w/ a whisk til blended well
6. Add milk and whisk w/ flour/butter
7. When onions in beef skillet are clear, drain and add chili powder, coriander and cumin; stir well and remove from heat
8. Preheat broiler on high and move rack to the next-to-bottom level
9. Pasta should be finished by now; remove from heat and drain it
10. When milk begins to bubble, add cheese and stir w/ milk til melted
*Don't use your whisk for this step. A wooden utensil is best. 11. When cheese is melted, add cilantro, parsley, black pepper and tomatoes; stir
12. Combine pasta, beef mixture and cheese sauce in a large mixing bowl; stir together well
13. Pour contents of bowl evenly into a large glass baking dish
14. Sprinkle the top w/ a light amount of cheese (optional)
15. Put dish in oven and broil until the top is browned - about 5 minutes

Let the dish set for about 2-3 minutes. It won't need to cool very long, since it's not baked, and everything was still warm when combined. Serve alone or with a small salad.

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Next time I make this dish, I might add another jalepeno and another can of tomatoes, or I might even use rotel instead of the fire-roasted.

Please comment if you make this dish, and definitely let me know if you add your own flair! Have fun with it. ENJOY.