Chicken Broccoli Bake

Adapted from This Hungry Mama Bakes.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked and shredded chicken
• 1 can Fit & Active cream of chicken soup
• 1/2 cup mayo made with olive oil
• Curry powder to taste
• 2 cups cooked broccoli
• Shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups corn flakes
• 1/2 T butter, melted

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350.
• Spread shredded chicken in bottom of 2 qt baking dish.
• In a bowl, mix soup, mayo, and curry powder.  Spread over chicken.  Top with broccoli and cheddar cheese.
• In another bowl, stir melted butter and corn flakes.  Sprinkle over cheese.
• Bake 25-30 minutes.  Serve over rice.

Southwestern Chicken Stir-Fry

Ingredients:

• 2 TBS lime juice
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/2-inch strips
• 1 small zucchini
• 1 small yellow summer squash
• 2 TBS vegetable oil
• 1/3 c medium picante sauce
• 2 TBS chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions:

• Mix lime juice and chili powder in resealable bag; stir in chicken.  Refrigerate at least 15 minutes.
• Cut zucchini and yellow squash into thin slices.
• Heat 1 TBS vegetable oil in wok over high heat.  Add chicken and marinade.  Stir fry until chicken is no longer pink in center.  Remove from wok.
• Add remaining tablespoon of oil to the wok.  Add zucchini and yellow squash.  Stir fry until vegetables are crisp-tender.  
• Add chicken, picante sauce and cilantro to the wok.  Cook and stir until heated through.

Chicken Fried Rice

This is a very easy recipe! Just make sure you use cold cooked rice, so PLAN AHEAD! If you have one, you're going to want to use a large wok for this recipe; otherwise, it's hard to keep it all contained once you put all the ingredients together!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked white rice, COLD (I like to do half brown, half white rice)
• 5 or 6 green onions
• 2 or 3 eggs
• 2 or 3 TBS water
• Butter
• 1 cup peas, cooked
• 1 cup carrots, cooked
• 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast (should yield about 1 cup chopped cooked chicken)
• Ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 or 3 cloves garlic, minced
• About 1 TBS vegetable oil
• Soy sauce to taste

Instructions:

• Cook rice and refrigerate until completely cooled.
• Chop green onions.
• In a small bowl, beat 1 egg with 1 TBS water. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium low heat. Add egg and leave flat for a couple minutes. Remove from skillet and cut into shreds. Repeat with second egg. Set aside.
• Cook peas & carrots to desired tenderness. Drain & set aside.
• Meanwhile, cook chicken breast in wok, seasoning with black pepper and adding minced garlic toward the end of the cook time. Chop chicken and set aside.
• Heat oil in wok. Add rice, onions, peas, carrots, chicken, and soy sauce. Stir fry together for about 5 minutes. Stir in egg. Serve hot.

Yield: This recipe will serve 2-3 people.

Chicken & Pepper Fajitas

Ingredients:

• Olive oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced
• 1 or 2 jalapeño peppers, sliced
• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut in thin strips
• 2 TBS lime juice
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 8 flour tortillas, warmed

Instructions:

• In a large non-stick skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Sauté onion, bell peppers, and jalapeño peppers about 12 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove from pan and set aside.
• Heat more olive oil in the same skillet and add chicken. Sauté chicken until cooked through. Return pepper mixture to pan and add lime juice, chili powder, and cumin. Cook a minute or two until heated through.
• Serve in tortillas. Garnish to taste with cheddar cheese, cilantro, lettuce, and sour cream.

Tuscan Chicken Simmer

Ingredients:

• 4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (about 1 lb)
• 4 oz cream cheese, cubed
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup pesto
• 2 cups grape or cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup shredded Italian five-cheese blend or mozzarella cheese
• 4 servings of penne or fettuccine pasta

Instructions:

• Cook pasta according to package instructions.
• Cut chicken into bite-sized strips. Saute in olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.
• Add cream cheese, water, pesto and tomatoes to skillet. Cook on medium heat about 2 minutes or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with shredded cheese and serve over pasta.

Grilled Bruschetta Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup + 2 TBS Kraft Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette dressing
• 4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves
• 1 tomato, finely shopped
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil or 1 tsp dried basil leaves

Instructions:

• Place chicken breasts in resealable plastic bag with 1/4 cup of dressing for 10 minutes-1 hour to marinate in the refrigerator.
• Remove chicken from marinade; discard bag and marinade.  
• In a bowl, combine tomatoes, cheese, basil, and 2 TBS of dressing.
• Place a large sheet of heavy-duty foil over half of the grill grate.  Preheat grill to medium heat.
• Grill chicken on uncovered side of grill about 6 minutes.  Turn chicken over; place cooked-side up on foil on grill.  Top evenly with tomato mixture.  Close lid.  Grill an additional 8 minutes.

*Serve with buttered egg noodles.

Tuscan Garlic Chicken (Olive Garden's Recipe)

Ingredients:

• 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 TBS salt
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp Italian herb seasoning
• 1 pound penne pasta
• 1 TBS minced garlic
• 1 red pepper, julienne cut
• 1/2 cups white wine (can substitute white grape juice)
• 1/2 pound whole leaf spinach, stemmed
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Instructions:

• To prepare the chicken:
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Combine the flour, salt, black pepper, and Italian herb seasoning in a shallow dish.  Dredge the chicken in the mixture, shaking off any excess.
• Saute the chicken in a large, non-stick oven-proof skillet with enough oil to coat the pan over medium-high heat for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and crisp.
• When finished, transfer the oven-proof skillet to the oven.  Cook for approximately 15 minutes or until cooked through.
• To prepare the pasta:
• Cook according to package directions.  Drain and set aside until needed.
• To prepare the sauce:
• While the pasta is cooking, heat some oil in a saute pan.  Add the garlic and the red pepper and cook for approximately 1 minute.  Slowly add a tablespoon of flour and stir to combine.  Add the white wine and bring to a boil for about 1 minute.  Add the spinach and the cream and bring mixture to a boil.  The sauce is done cooking when the spinach appears wilted.  Stir in the Parmesan cheese.
• To finish the entree:
• Parly coat the pasta with the sauce and transfer to a large bowl.  Cut up the chicken and put it on top of the pasta.  Cover with the remaining sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Creamy Bow-Tie Pasta with Chicken & Broccoli

Ingredients:

• 3 cups bow-tie pasta, uncooked
• 4 cups broccoli florets
• 4 TBS Italian dressing
• 2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
• Italian seasoning and black pepper
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups tomato-basil spaghetti sauce
• 4 oz. cream cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

• Cook pasta as directed on package, adding broccoli to the cooking water for the last 3 minutes of the pasta cooking time.
• Meanwhile, heat dressing in large nonstick skillet on medium heat. Add chicken, and sprinkle with pepper and seasoning. Turn all pieces over and repeat on the other side. Allow to cook about 5 minutes. Add garlic to the skillet and cook about 3 more minutes.
• Add pasta sauce and cream cheese to chicken in skillet. Cook on medium-low heat 2-3 minutes or until cream cheese is completely melted. Mixture should be well-blended and the chicken coated with sauce.
• Drain pasta and broccoli. Return to pot and add chicken mixture. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve.

*Serving suggestion: Butter ciabata bread and sprinkle with garlic powder, Parmesan cheese, paprika, and parsley. Broil on high until bread begins to brown.

Ultimate Chicken Fingers

Ingredients:

• About 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut crosswise into 1/2" strips
• 2/3 cup biscuit mix (i.e., Bisquik)
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 tsp. garlic salt
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1 egg
• 2 TBS butter

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.
• Melt butter in a small dish; set aside.
• In another small dish, crack and lightly beat egg.
• Dump all dry ingredients in a 1 gal. zip-lock bag and shake to mix.
• Dip about half of the chicken strips into the egg and then put into the bag. Shake well to coat the pieces of chicken, then lay each piece on the cookie sheet. Repeat with second half of strips. Drizzle butter over chicken strips.
• Bake for 12-14 minutes, turning about half-way through the time.

Parmesan-Crusted Chicken Penne

Ingredients:

• 6 servings penne
• 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
• 1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs
• 3 TBS flour
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 1 cup milk
• 6 TBS butter
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 6 TBS flour
• 2 tsp. garlic
• 1 cup water
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 cups half-n-half
• Mozzerella cheese

Instructions:

• Cook pasta according to package instructions
• Mix breadcrumbs, flour, and parmesan in a bowl. Dip the chicken strips into the breadcrumb mixture, then into the milk, and then back into the breadcrumb mixture. Saute the strips in olive oil.
• Melt butter in a saucepan; add olive oil. Whisk in flour. Add garlic, water, and salt until blended. Mix in sour cream and half-n-half until smooth.
• Toss the pasta with the white sauce. Top with chicken and mozzerella cheese.

The Best Chicken Fettucine Alfredo EVER

Ingredients:

• 3 oz. cream cheese
• 3 TBS butter
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup milk
• Parsley, Italian seasoning, and black pepper to taste
• 8 oz. fettucine (8 oz. held together and looked at from the end is about the size of a quarter in diameter)
• 1 - 1 1/2 lbs. chicken breast, cut in bite-size pieces
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Instructions:-Prepare fettucine according to package directions.
-Saute chicken in olive oil in pan over medium-high heat, seasoning with Italian seasoning and black pepper. Add minced garlic to saute for the last 2 minutes.
-To prepare sauce, slowly melt cream cheese and then add the butter (which will melt much more quickly). Stir often to keep it from separating. Once they are both melted, add milk and cheese. Stir in parsley and black pepper to taste. Add chicken pieces and minced garlic. Pour sauce over fettucine.

Yeild: 2-3 servings (doubles/triples easily!)

Chicken Crescent Roll Pockets

Ingredients:

• 1 - 1 1/2 lbs. chicken breast
• 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 2 TBS butter, softened
• Chopped onion, to taste (or minced onion can be substituted)
• 1/2 TBS milk
• Parmesan to taste
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 package refrigerated crescent rolls (8 rolls)

Instructions:Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cut chicken into bite-size pieces. Season with black pepper and/or other seasonings that you like and saute in olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. In another bowl, mix the next 6 ingredients together. Open the package of crescent rolls and separate them into squares (keeping every 2 triangles together). Pinch the seams together to make the triangles into squares. When the chicken is done, add it to the cream cheese mixture and then spoon the mixture into the squares. Bring the corners of the squares together, pinching together the sides. Turn the square over (so that the pinched seams are underneath) and brush the tops with melted butter.
Bake for 20 minutes or until golden-brown.

Yield: 4 Pockets (serves 2-3 people)