Fire Up the Grill!

One of my favorite times of the year is Summer. Although I am not a fan of the heat, I love being able to grill chicken and eat fresh vegetables from the garden. I thought that I would share one of my favorite meals that I love to eat when it is warm enough to grill.

Grilled Chicken and Mushrooms

Ingredients:

Chicken

Fresh Mushrooms

Italian Dressing

Dales steak seasoning

Directions:

• Marinate chicken in 2 parts Italian Dressing and 1 part Dales for at least one hour in the refrigerator.
• Thirty minutes before you cook your chicken, take your chicken out of the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature.
• Cook the chicken on the grill but save 1/2 cup of the marinade from the chicken.
• While the chicken is cooking on the grill, in a skillet on the stove, add sliced fresh mushrooms and the 1/2 cup marinade.
• Cook until mushrooms are tender and marinade is cooked down.
• Pour the mushrooms and juice over the chicken.
• Serve with a salad and fresh corn on the cob and YUMMY!

Not Your Ordinary Chicken Nuggets

My oldest son used to love to eat broccoli and other vegetables. When he was 18 months old, he would walk around with a stalk of broccoli and just chow down. Well something happened and now it seems like I have to force him to eat his vegetables.

The one thing I never have to force him to eat is chicken nuggets. What kids don't like chicken nuggets? Even I love to have a good chicken nugget every now and then. I think the recipe below causes my son to enjoy what he is eating, and I am still happy because he is eating healthy ingredients.

As I was making these today, my son looked at the pan and said, "Those are my favorite chicken nuggets." Then as I was trying to take a picture of them, he kept saying, "Mommy, hurry up!" I guess that tells you how much he likes them.

I adapted this recipe from the cookbook Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld.

Chicken Nuggets

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat, white or panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup flaxseed meal
1 tbl grated Parmesan
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 large egg
Milk
Salt
1 lb boneless skinless chicken cut into small chunks
Nonstick cooking spray
1 tbl olive oil

Directions:

• In a bowl, combine breadcrumbs, flaxseed, Parmesan, paprika, garlic and onion powder.
• In another bowl, lightly beat egg and add a small amount of milk.
• Sprinkle the chicken with salt, coat them in the egg mixture and then coat them with the breadcrumb mixture.
• Spray a large skillet with nonstick cooking spray and set it on medium high heat. When it is hot, add the oil.
• Place the breaded chicken into the skillet being careful not to get the pan too full and cook until crisp and golden brown. About three to four mintues on each side, depending upon how thick your chicken pieces are.
• Serve with dipping sauce and enjoy.

Variation:
I have also made this recipe with Italian bread crumbs instead of plain and served them with pizza sauce.

First Up: Garlic Chicken Prosciutto Pasta!

I started this blog in order to share recipes with my friends and, possibly, total strangers. I love to cook, and since in real life things don't always turn out as planned, I promise to post the flops too. I don't consider myself to be a great chef. I don't even know all the proper techniques. When I cook, I usually dirty every pot in the house. But it is all about having fun and good food. If only I can figure out how to get someone to clean up after me.

This recipe I thought would be the perfect start to a blog. When I first got married, I knew how to cook the regular stuff: spaghetti, roast, tacos, etc. So I started searching for new and different things to try. This was the first recipe that my husband and I really enjoyed. I hope you enjoy it to.

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup minced garlic
5 tomatoes chopped
3 oz prosciutto chopped
3 chicken breasts cubed
2 tbl. butter
1/3 cup basil
8 oz bag Linguine
1/3 cup Parmesan Romano grated cheese
Salt and Pepper

Directions:
Cook Noodles. Don't overcook them as you will add them in the skillet at the end. Heat oil in large skillet. Salt and pepper your chicken to taste and then saute chicken and garlic until chicken is cooked through. Add tomatoes, prosciutto, and butter and saute 5 to 10 minutes. The tomatoes will cook down and form a sauce. Add basil and cook another 5 minutes. Add drained Linguine and toss. Add cheese and toss.

Enjoy.