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Food, Savory

Chicken and Green Pepper Tacos

pepper tacos

“Why don’t we just order something?”

It’s the daily dinner call I get and the question I am always trying to battle.

I hate that argument. That one of, “It would just be quicker.”

Why is quicker better? I’d rather not forgo good food for fast food. Plus, by the time I made it to the restaurant, picked up the food, and came home, I’d probably already be done cooking. It’s the illusion of “faster food” sometimes.

“Well, it’s too much effort.” That’s the other complaint I get. My response, “But it’s not.” Not for you anyway. And for me? Well, I hate to burst your bubble, but I actually enjoy cooking. Like the other day when Andy came over and said he was hungry. He was ready to call in Chinese food when I went to the kitchen, grabbed a few things out of the fridge and started making tacos.

In less than 10 minutes, I had three ready for him. And I have to admit, he might have only had two-and-a-half by the time he started to eat. I might have snagged one of them for myself. The saving grace? Chicken sausage that all I had to do was reheat with some peppers and onions. Voila! Lunch is served!

Chicken and Green Pepper Tacos

3 small flour tortillas
1 link of Al Fresco Jalapeno Chicken Sausage, minced
1/4 green pepper, diced
1/4 of a sweet onion, diced
Shredded Cheddar cheese
1 Roma tomato, diced

Heat green peppers, onions, and chicken sausage in a skillet until chicken is browned. Microwave tortillas to soften. Sprinkle cheese inside, then fill with chicken, peppers, and onions. Fold in half and place in medium-high heat skillet.

Cook on either side until cheese is melted and tortilla is browned, slightly crunchy. Remove from pan, open and fill with diced tomatoes, and enjoy.

March 31, 2014 by Roni

Food, Savory

Bacon Wrapped Chicken Bites

It turns out that all you have to say to get a guy to put together a new clothing rack for you is to say “bacon wrapped chicken.”

Let me back up. Two years ago one of my roommates decided he didn’t want the $20 clothing rack that was holding his button-ups and sweatshirts. So I took it. It was free and there was nothing really wrong with it. Sure, it swayed a little to the left, but if you put the heavy clothes on the right, it stayed up. And it worked… until the other day.

Over the weekend, I went out for the day, came back and had to hold a funeral. I don’t know if the Earth shifted or if a fly landed on it and it was too much weight, but either way it went down. And it went down hard. Nothing left to it. Gluing it together was not an option and Duct Tape wasn’t gonna do it.

So, I went to Target, got a new clothing rack and figured spending a little extra cash was totally worth it. Considering I made it two years on a free clothing rack, it was worth it. Then I got it home and realized I had to put it together. Total IKEA moment. So I pulled out the big guns and started cooking. Seemed a whole lot less effort than attempting to read the directions and put it all together. Word to all the women out there, learn to cook and you’ll never have to build anything ever again.

Bacon Wrapped Chicken Bites

Gather:
3 chicken breasts
9 strips of bacon
1/4 tsp Black Pepper
1/4 tsp Garlic Powder

Preheat the oven to 375.

Slice each chicken breast into three pieces, slicing it lengthwise. Place piece of bacon on top of chicken, then roll up the chicken, creating a spiral. Lay down in a glass dish. Repeat for each piece, so you end up with 9 pieces of chicken.

Sprinkle top of chicken with black pepper and garlic powder. Place dish in oven. Back for 40-45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and bacon is crispy. Remove and let cool. Serve.

March 24, 2014 by Roni

Food, Savory

Buffalo Chicken “Hot Pocket”

This is delicious. You’ve been warned.

Turns out, that after I made the Philly Cheesesteak Stromboli, I was destined to continue creating similar dinners, like this Buffalo Chicken Hot Pocket. So when one of my friends came over today, we decided chicken was going to be our main subject. Buffalo chicken, to be exact. But I had this feeling that I couldn’t just stuff some buffalo chicken in some dough and call it a day. So we went all the way: carrots, celery, ranch dressing, and cheddar cheese stuffed inside, too. The result? A very fabulous adult version of a Hot Pocket.

Buffalo Chicken “Hot Pocket”

Gather:
1 chicken breast
1 roll of whole wheat dough
1/4 cup of Franks Red Hot sauce
1 tablespoon of butter
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
3 tablespoons of Parmesan peppercorn ranch dressing
1 carrot, peeled and minced
1 stalk of celery, cut into small pieces

Topping:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon garlic powder
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 450.

In a skillet, cook diced chicken cubes. Add butter and hot sauce, cook until chicken is cooked through and sauce has thickened. Should not be runny.

Cut dough in half. Roll each half into a 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness. Place on a cookie sheet.

In a bowl, add celery, carrots, cheddar cheese, ranch dressing. Mix. Add chicken from skillet into bowl. Mix.

Evenly scoop out mixture onto dough.

Fold dough over chicken to enclose the filling. Flip over. Score two lines on the top.

Mix melted butter and garlic powder. Pour over the top of each “pocket.” Grate Parmesan cheese over the top.

Place in oven. Bake 12-15 minutes, or until dough is golden brown. Remove from oven. Let cool for 5 minutes. Serve.

March 23, 2014 by Roni

Food, Savory

Philly Cheesesteak Stromboli

Every night is another cooking battle. What do I make? Another pasta dish? Tacos because they’re easy? Or do I attempt something new? Well, the other night was not one of those nights. But I did create something I haven’t done in a long time, and that’s make a stromboli. Now bear with me, I don’t make them like everyone else. It really ends up becoming what one of my friends called as “a big Hot Pocket.”

I don’t put mozzarella in it, and I don’t place cold cuts in the stromboli. I kind of make a Philly cheesesteak, stuff it inside, and call it a day. So if you’re up for something fairly easy, and kind of Italian, kind of an upgrade to your frozen food section, here ya go:

Philly Cheesesteak Stromboli

Gather:
Whole wheat pizza dough (A ball of dough you can roll out.)
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 pound of strip steak
1 green pepper, diced
1/2 red pepper, diced
1/4 onion, diced
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1/2 tablespoon of garlic powder
2 teaspoons of black pepper
1/2 teaspoons of cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon of cumin

For topping:
1/4 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons of butter or margarine, melted
1 tablespoon of garlic powder

Preheat oven to 500. Cut dough in half. Flour and roll each half to a quarter to a half inch thickness. Place each on a cooking sheet. In center of dough place cheese (1/4 cup on each piece.)

In a skillet, add olive oil, onions, green peppers, and red peppers. Saute until onion is carmelized. Cut steak strip into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces and add to skillet. Add spices and cook meat all the way through.

Pour meat and veggies on top of cheese in the middle of the dough, placing half on each section of dough. Fold in sides of dough toward the middle, then do the same with the other two sides to enclose the meat, veggies and cheese inside. Flip over so that the fold is on the cooking sheet side.

Mix melted butter and garlic powder. Spread evenly over both strombolis. Top with Parmesan cheese. Cut three slits in the top of each stromboli. Place in oven and cook for 10-15 minutes, or until dough is golden brown, crispy, and cheese has melted. Let cool for 5-8 minutes. Serve and enjoy.

March 19, 2014 by Roni

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