Le Menu (April 10-16)

This is another week of Our Best Bites yumminess.

As always, click on "read more" for the recipes.  :o)

CHICKEN CORDON BLEU

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 3 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella, swiss, or provolone
• 6-12 slices thinly sliced ham
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 1/2 tbsp butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Place a breast on a cutting board and place your non-dominant hand on top of it.  Using a sharp knife, cut each breast completely in half horizontally.  Place each piece between two pieces of plastic wrap and, using a meat mallet, pound until the piece is 1/4-1/2 inch thick.  Repeat with remaining breast halves; you should have 6 pieces of chicken.
3. Combine seasonings and sprinkle evenly over one side of each chicken piece.  Divide shredded cheese among all pieces, layering on top of the spices.  On top of the cheese, layer 1-2 pieces of ham.  Roll each chicken piece up and secure with toothpicks.
4. Place flour in a shallow bowl, eggs in another bowl, and both panko bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese in a third, stirring to combine.
5. Working with one piece of chicken at a time, dredge in flour, rolling the chicken around to cover the whole piece, then in eggs, and finally in bread crumb mixture.  Use your fingers to press bread crumb mixture in on all sides of the chicken.  
6. Place chicken on prepared baking sheet.  Drizzle melted butter evenly over chicken.  Bake for about 25-35 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.  If desired, place place pan under the broiler to lightly brown the tops of the chicken.
7. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.  Remove toothpicks.

ROASTED BROCCOLI

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

4-5 cups broccoli, cleaned and stems trimmed

3 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/8 tsp (does anyone really measure this?  I don't measure any herbs/spices!) black pepper

1-2 tbsp shredded parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Place broccoli on a foil-lined baking sheet.  Drizzle the broccoli with olive oil (I spray mine with olive oil spray) and then toss to combine and coat each piece.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place the baking sheet in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until stems are golden brown and slightly crisp looking.  Remove broccoli from oven and immediately sprinkle with parmesan cheese.  Toss and serve.

THAI PEANUT NOODLES

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 3 tbsp creamy peanut butter
• 1-2 tsp Sriracha chili sauce (1 is mild with a bite, 1.5 is medium, 2 is hot)
• 1 1/2 tbsp honey
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tbsp fresh minced ginger
• 2-3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 8 oz Udon or linguine noodles
• Chopped green onions
• Chopped cilantro
• 2 limes, cut into quarters
• Chopped peanuts

Directions

1. Cook noodles in salted water. 
2. In the meantime, combine chicken broth, peanut butter, chili sauce, honey, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk until smooth and remove from heat. 
3. Toss cooked noodles with sauce and divide among 4 bowls. 
4. Sprinkle with green onions, cilantro, chopped peanuts, and garnish each serving with 2 lime quarters. 
5. Before eating, squeeze lime juice over noodles and stir to combine.

*If desired, you can add meat to this dish by stir-frying shrimp or very thinly-sliced chicken (partially freeze it first) in some olive oil with a couple cloves of garlic, some fresh ginger, some green onions, soy sauce, and a small squirt or two of Sriracha chili sauce.

SWEET AND SOUR MEATBALLS

Serves 4-6

Ingredients


Meatballs

• 1 pound extra-lean ground beef
• 2 tbsp dehydrated onion
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 cup bread crumbs

Sauce

• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 tbsp flour
• 1 1/2 cups water or pineapple juice
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 3 tbsp soy sauce

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, combine meatball ingredients.  Shape into 1-inch balls and place on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.  Place under the broiler in your oven for 5-7 minutes or until the meatballs begin to brown.
2. In a large saucepan, whisk together the sauce ingredients and bring to a boil.  Add the meatballs and reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring often.  

CHIPOTLE-CHOCOLATE CHILI

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground turkey
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, minced
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 15-oz cans diced tomatoes
• 2 14.5-oz cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 15-oz can beef broth
• 3 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (NOT Nesquik! That would be very bad!)
• 1/2 tsp freshly-ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
• Chipotle sauce (from the can of chipotle chilies)
• 1/2 oz unsweetened chocolate (1/2 unsweetened baking cube), chopped (optional; use to taste as needed; be careful, because too much will make your chili bitter)
• Light sour cream
• Chopped green onions
• 3-4 tbsp red wine vinegar
• Shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Heat some olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. 
2. Saute onion, garlic, bell pepper, and ground turkey until meat is cooked through. 
3. Add salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, brown sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, tomatoes, beans, and beef broth. Add all of the chipotle sauce from a small can of chipotle chilies. Heat to boiling and then reduce to a simmer (uncovered), stirring occasionally, until thickened as desired (about 30-40 minutes). If desired, add some chopped chipotle chilies. 
4. Add 3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar and a small amount of chopped chocolate at a time until desired richness is reached. If necessary, add more red wine vinegar to cut the sweetness of the chili. This is where you can play around a little with the flavors.
5. When thickened and seasoned as desired, serve with chopped onions or green onions, sour cream, and shredded cheddar cheese.

Serve with this cornbread, and only this cornbread!  

BACON ARTICHOKE WITH PENNE BAKE

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

• 8 oz penne or bowtie pasta
• 1 recipe Guiltless Alfredo Sauce*
• 2 chicken breasts, grilled and chopped - about 2 cups (I'm omitting the chicken this time)
• 6 oz (half a package) cooked bacon, chopped
• 1 (14 oz) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare pasta according to package directions.
3. While the pasta is cooking, prepare Guiltless Alfredo Sauce.  When pasta is done, drain and add to the sauce.  Toss with chopped chicken, bacon, artichoke hearts, green onions, and 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese.  Season to taste.
4. Transfer mixture to an 8x8 baking dish and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes or until heated through and cheese is bubbly.  

*GUILTLESS ALFREDO SAUCE

Ingredients

• 2 cup low-fat milk 
• 1/3 cup (3 oz) low fat cream cheese
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp butter
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Toss the milk, cream cheese, flour, and salt in a blender.
2. Process until smooth and set aside.
3. In a non-stick sauce pan, melt butter on med-high heat and add garlic. Stand above the pan (but not close enough to scald your face) and inhale. Ahhh…butter and garlic. Okay, now get cooking again. Let the garlic saute for about 30 seconds, you don’t want to burn it. It should be nice and bubbly.
4. Then add milk mixture to the pan. Stir constantly for about 3 or 4 minutes or until it just comes to a simmer. Keep stirring and let it cook for a few minutes more. It should be much thicker now.
5. When it’s nice and thickened remove the pan from the heat. Add the cheese, stir it up and then cover immediately. Let stand for at least 10 minutes before using. It will continue to thicken upon standing. Also, if you have leftovers in the fridge, the sauce will thicken almost into a solid. Just re-heat and add a little milk and it will be back to normal again.

BREADSTICKS

Makes 12 breadsticks

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup warm (105-115 degrees) water

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp yeast

1/2 tsp salt

3-4 1/2 cup flour

Directions

1. In a large bowl (the bowl of your mixer, if you have one), combine water, sugar, and yeast. Let stand for 10 minutes or until yeast is bubbly.
2. Add salt and stir. Add 1 1/2 c. flour and mix well. Gradually add more flour (usually between 3-4 cups, depending on your elevation and your humidity) until dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and it barely sticks to your finger.
3. Spray a glass or metal bowl with cooking spray and place dough in the bowl.
4. Cover and allow to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk.
5. Remove from bowl and place on a lightly-floured surface. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Roll into a rectangle and cut into 12 strips with a pizza cutter.
6. Roll out each piece of dough into a snake and then drape over your forefinger and twist the dough. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining 11 pieces of dough. Try to space them evenly, but it’s okay if they’re close; pulling apart hot bread is one of life’s greatest pleasures!
7. Cover pan and allow dough to rise for another 30 minutes. Look how fat and happy they are…
8. When there’s about 15 minutes to go, preheat your oven to 425. When done rising, bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Rub some butter on top of the breadsticks (just put a ziploc bag on your hand, grab some softened butter, and have at it) and sprinkle with garlic bread seasoning or the powdery Parmesan cheese in a can and garlic salt (or 

   cinnamon sugar).