White "Chili"

I found this recipe in one of my parenting magazines, but tweaked it, because that's what I do. I'll post my recipe and I'll note what I changed it from. I don't know why they call it chili, to me it's more of a chicken/bean Italian dish.

2-3 chicken breasts, diced into bite size pieces (1 lb ground chicken)
1 can cannelini beans
1 can northern beans
1/2 box chopped spinach (2 cups spinach leaves)
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup diced onion
2-3 cups water and chicken bouillon powder (2-3 cups chicken broth)
I also added a bit of bay leaf, dash salt & pepper

• Chop chicken and cook over medium heat with some olive oil in a deep skillet.
• Crush garlic and add to chicken along with onion
• Let chicken cook until pink is gone
• Add beans and spinach
• Add broth or water + bouillon (because I used frozen chopped spinach there was water in there so I lessened the water it called for)
• Let cook until water/broth becomes mostly absorbed. Or if you want it more soup-like, eat it before water absorbs. I liked it thicker.

It was delish, and quick and easy to throw together, with all these things I always keep in my house anyway. Kevin liked it, and he's hard to please. Kian loved it too! I love one pot meals!

Sweet/Spicy Stir Fry

Of course I made this up, modeled after may other recipes and meals I've tasted.
You can use chicken, pork or beef. I prefer chicken or beef, as they have milder taste and pick up the other flavors better. And cook faster!

Ingredients:

2 cups rice (cook as directed by package) 1 bag frozen stir fry vegetables (wegmans makes a variety so you can choose the veggies you prefer) *I use about half of the bag for me and Kevin, with some leftover

1 lb chicken or pork, boneless, cut into bite-size pieces

Sauce:

1/2 cup apricot preserves (I use wegman's triple fruits with apricot, peach, and some other orange fruit)

1/2 tsp ground black pepper (I use Jane's crazy mixed up pepper)

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4-1/2 tsp garlic powder

dash salt to taste (salt after meal is together for best flavor)

few tablespoons of water

*all spices to taste, if you want it spicier, add more ginger and pepper

1. cook rice according to package directions.

2. while cooking rice, saute' meat in frying pan, on medium, with tiny bit of olive oil

3. add veggies to frying pan, may need to add a few tbsp of water

4. while that is cooking, in a small bowl mix all ingredients of sauce together. if it's really thick, add a bit of water.

5. when meat is done and veggies are almost done, add sauce into frying pan.

6. I put the rice in a bowl, and top with veggies and meat and some sauce. You may have to play with the measurements of the sauce if you want some leftover to drizzle on top of the meal. It can cook into the meat and veggies fast if the heat is up high.

Roasted Potatoes

How can you not love roasted potatoes? They're much healthier than fries, mashed potatoes, possibly even baked potatoes-unless you're one of those weird people who eat baked potatoes plain-who does that? I made these for just Kevin and I, and Kian had one little piece. It would probably feed 3 as a side dish. So, double if you have more than that. Anyways, without further ado:

The Ingredients:

4 medium Red potatoes

about 1/2 tsp Rosemary

about 1/4 tsp Thyme

about 2 tbsp Olive oil

about 1/2 tsp Garlic salt

*I say about because I don't measure, I dash a few things in here and there, but I use my eye to guess about how much it is. But, we've been over this before. I also went light on the herbs because Kevin doesn't really care for herbs the way I do. If things are too covered in herbs he says I have "put birdseed and grass all over his food". Hmph!

Cut potatoes in quarters or eighths, (meaning smaller ones can be quartered, but larger ones should be cut into eighths so that they're all about the same size and cook uniformly)

I then toss them in a bowl, add the seasonings, stir, then add just enough olive oil to coat them lightly.

Then I dump them into a pan, any old pan will do really.

I baked/roasted them at 400 for about 40 mins. Just check with a fork or knife before bringing out. If they're starting to stick to the bottom, add a bit more olive oil. I turned them over and stirred them up about half way through.

Then Eat!! Easy AND Delicious, who could ask for more?