Cajun-Spiced Chicken Fettuccine

So, D made this last night. (Actually he made it in the morning and we heated it up when we got home from work). He has made it many times. It is a good comfort food. And it makes a lot. We had it with a Caesar Salad.

Cajun-Spiced Chicken Fettuccine

Photo by ALB

Ingredients
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning (D useds Hotter than Hell Seasoning or something like that)
Cooking spray
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (8-ounce) package presliced cremini mushrooms (you can use regular too)
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon Creole mustard
3 cups 2% low-fat milk
1 cup thinly sliced green onions, divided
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley, divided
8 cups hot cooked fettuccine (about 1 pound uncooked pasta)Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with Cajun seasoning. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add chicken to pan, and cook 7 minutes on each side or until done. Cut chicken into 1/4-inch-thick slices; set aside.
Melt butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper and next 4 ingredients (bell pepper through garlic); sauté 7 minutes or until tender. Sprinkle with flour, and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in the Worcestershire and mustard; gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer 3 minutes or until slightly thick. Remove from heat; stir in 3/4 cup green onions, 6 tablespoons cheese, and 3 tablespoons parsley. Add chicken and pasta to sauce mixture; toss well to combine.
Spoon mixture into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup green onions, 2 tablespoons cheese, and 1 tablespoon parsley. Cover and bake at 350° for 20 minutes; uncover and bake an additional 5 minutes.


Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups)

CALORIES 469 (17% from fat); FAT 8.8g (sat 4.7g,mono 2.2g,poly 0.6g); PROTEIN 41.6g; CHOLESTEROL 85mg; CALCIUM 233mg; SODIUM 632mg; FIBER 4g; IRON 3.5mg; CARBOHYDRATE 54.2g

Cooking Light, JUNE 2004

Green Beans with Bacon

We had these for Christmas. It was adapted from a Cooking Light Recipe except I added more bacon. It was very tasty but as expected the bacon went to the bottom. Also next time I will add 2-3 cloves of garlic.

Green Beans with Bacon

It is 0 Points even with adaptations.

1 1/4 pounds green beans, trimmed
4 bacon slices
1/4 cup chopped shallots
1/4 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cook green beans in boiling water for 5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and plunge beans into ice water; drain.

Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan; crumble. Add shallots to drippings in pan; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Add beans, juice, salt, and pepper to pan; toss to combine. Cook 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring often. Remove from heat. Sprinkle bacon over bean mixture; toss.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 2/3 cup)


Adapted from Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 2007

Pappardelle with Wild Mushrooms

We had this for Christmas dinner. It was very good, but the milk mixture wouldn't get thick. Next time we will add cornstarch.

Pappardelle with Wild Mushrooms

2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup diced shallots (about 2) (we used 3)
2 garlic cloves, minced (we used 6)
1 (4-ounce) package presliced exotic mushroom blend (such as shiitake, cremini, and oyster)
1 (8-ounce) package cremini mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano (we used 1/2 tsp dried)
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups 1% low-fat milk
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded fontina cheese
12 ounces uncooked pappardelle (wide ribbon pasta) (we used rotini)
Chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, shallots, and garlic to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until tender. Add mushrooms; sauté 5 minutes or until mushrooms are tender. Add wine, oregano, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook 2 minutes or until liquid evaporates. Set aside.

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour to pan; cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add milk and broth, stirring with a whisk until smooth; bring to a boil. Cook 2 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly with a whisk. Remove from heat. Add cheese, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper; stir until smooth. Stir in mushroom mixture. Keep warm.

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Place 3/4 cup pasta in each of 8 shallow bowls. Top each serving with 1/2 cup mushroom mixture. Garnish with parsley, if desired. Serve immediately.

Yield: 8 servings

CALORIES 336 (31% from fat); FAT 11.5g (sat 6.3g,mono 3.5g,poly 0.6g); PROTEIN 15.3g; CHOLESTEROL 33mg; CALCIUM 189mg; SODIUM 383mg; FIBER 2g; IRON 2.2mg; CARBOHYDRATE 44.1g

Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 2007

Tandoori-Style Chicken

So I prepped this dish and D made it. I thought tandoori was red, but this was green. We really liked it. We had it with couscous.

Tandoori-Style Chicken from the American Cancer Society

2 garlic cloves (I used 5)
1/4C Fresh Cilantro
1 jalepeno, stemmed and seeded (I sorta seeded it)
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
1/2 onion, quartered
1C nonfat plain yogurt (I used 6 oz)
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 chicken, cut into 8 pieces (I used boneless skinless thighs)
1 tsp canola oil

In a food processor with the motor running, add garlic. Add cilantro, jalepeno, ginger and onion and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add yogurt, cumin, coriander, salt, turmeric and cayenne pepper and pulse to combine, scraping down sides to blend. Transfer to a bowl or zip-top bag.

With a sharp knife, slash chicken diagonally along the grain about 1/2-inch dee[ and 1 inch apart (I didn't do this). Add chicken to marinade and turn pieces to coa. Refrigerate 4 to 24 hours.

When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 450 degress. Remove chicken pieces form marinade and place in roasting pan. Drizzle with oil.
Bake for 30-40 minutes or until cooked through.

(D cooked everything in a grill pan including the marinade, which I guess can be dangerous but neither of us got sick, so all is well.)

Vietnamese-Spiced Pork Chops

D made these the other night. Very good. The only thing is they tended to burn in the pan, so they came out rare and we had to microwave them to finish them off. However, they were still good. A sweet and hot mix... D used fresh ginger.

We had with Basmati Rice and Broccoli.


Vietnamese-Spiced Pork Chops

4 (4-ounce) boneless center-cut loin pork chops (about 1/2 inch thick)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons ground coriander
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon bottled minced ginger
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
Cooking spray
Sliced green onions (optional)

Lightly score a diamond pattern on both sides of pork. Combine sugar and next 6 ingredients (sugar through garlic); rub evenly over pork.

Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add pork; cook 4 minutes on each side or until done. Garnish with sliced green onions, if desired.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 pork chop)

CALORIES 199 (29% from fat); FAT 6.4g (sat 2.1g,mono 2.7g,poly 1g); PROTEIN 25.3g; CHOLESTEROL 62mg; CALCIUM 42mg; SODIUM 491mg; FIBER 1.1g; IRON 1.4mg; CARBOHYDRATE 9.2g

Cooking Light, OCTOBER 2003

Rudolph's Chocolate Truffle Cake

When Bro and I were little, my parents used to have a Christmas Party every year and get a Midnight Layer Cake from Bun Penny. I have not thought about that cake in many years until I made this. A picture will be coming...

It is a bit expensive as it required 6 bars of Ghiardelli Semi-sweet chocolate squares...but well worth it.


Rudolph's Chocolate Truffle Cake

8 (1-ounce) semisweet chocolate squares
2 1/2 cups milk
1 cup butter, softened
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Chocolate Truffle Filling, divided
10 (1-ounce) semisweet chocolate squares, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons whipping cream
1 to 2 (1-ounce) semisweet chocolate squares, finely grated

Stir together first 3 ingredients in a large heavy saucepan over low heat, and cook, stirring constantly, 8 to 10 minutes or until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat, and let mixture cool slightly (about 10 minutes).

Whisk together eggs and vanilla in a large bowl. Gradually whisk in melted chocolate mixture until blended and smooth.

Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; whisk into chocolate mixture until blended and smooth.

Pour batter into 3 greased and floured 9-inch round cakepans.

Bake at 325° for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake layers in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and let cool completely on wire racks.

Spread 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons Chocolate Truffle Filling evenly on top of 1 cake layer. Top with 1 cake layer; spread 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons Chocolate Truffle Filling evenly on top, reserving remaining 1/2 cup Chocolate Truffle Filling. Top with remaining cake layer.

Microwave coarsely chopped semisweet chocolate squares and cream in a 2-quart microwave-safe bowl at HIGH 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, stirring after 1 minute and then every 30 seconds until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth and slightly thickened. Let cool slightly (about 15 minutes).

Spread warm semisweet chocolate mixture over top and sides of cake. Chill cake 30 minutes or until chocolate glaze is firm. Pipe border using a rosette tip around bottom of cake with remaining 1/2 cup Chocolate Truffle Filling. Sprinkle finely grated semisweet chocolate evenly over top of cake.

Yield: Makes 12 servings (more like 20 servings)
12 servings = 22 points each
20 servings = 13 points each

Chocolate Truffle Filling

4 (1-ounce) semisweet chocolate squares
6 tablespoons butter
1/4 to 1/2 cup whipping cream, divided
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

Microwave semisweet chocolate squares and 6 tablespoons butter in a large microwave-safe bowl at HIGH 1 1/2 to 2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring every 30 seconds. Stir in 1/4 cup whipping cream. Stir in 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, adding remaining 1/4 cup whipping cream, 1 tablespoon at a time, if necessary, until mixture is smooth and creamy. Let mixture cool completely.

Note: I didn't use the microwave...just a sauce pan.

Yield: Makes 1 3/4 cups

Baked French Toast Casserole with Maple Syrup

My friend Robin raved about this recipe and gave it to me. I made it...very easy. Robin had adapted it from Paula Deen but didn't use the 1800 sticks of butter that a Paula Deen recipe usually entails. Below is the adapted recipe...If you want the original go to Food Network.
Neither D nor I felt Syrup was necessary.

Baked French Toast Casserole with Maple Syrup
Makes 8 servings (big)

1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces) (Kroger sells it pre-sliced in 1/2-inch slices)
5 large eggs
1 1/2 cups half-and-half
3/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Dash salt
Praline Topping, recipe follows
Maple syrup (didn't use)

Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. (I had 3 layers).

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.

Praline Topping:
1/4 pound (1 sticks) butter
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. Makes enough for Baked French Toast Casserole.