Tag: chicken

Strawberry Chicken Salad

DSC002511

This has to be one of my favorite times of the year.  My favorite fruit is in season here in Florida.  I believe Plant City, Florida has got the sweetest most beautiful strawberries I have ever had.  This is great for me, because Plant City is only about a 20 minute drive from Tampa.  Of course our stores are filled with fresh strawberries right now, but I love going out to the farmers markets, or even the strawberry growers and getting mine.  They seem so much better when they aren’t in a plastic wrapped container, transported by truck, and sitting in a pile in the stores produce section.

From my freshman year of high school, till college, I grew up in Troy, Ohio.  Now every spring Troy has an annual strawberry festival along the Miami River that runs right through the heart of Troy.  I always looked forward to the festival and all the strawberries we would get from Fulton Farms.  As I said in another post, mom used to take me and my sister Paula out to Fulton Farms to pick my favorite berries.  Of course by the end of the picking, I think Paula and I had eaten more than we had in our little baskets.  No matter, mom always had so many berries that we would be cutting, cleaning and freezing what we didn’t use up fresh.

So today I was looking at the weather up in Ohio, and they actually  mentioned Troy.  That got me to thinking of living there and the strawberries.  Then it hit me, it’s strawberry season here, get off your butt and go get those delicious, sweet berries.  So after a quick trip to get fresh berries , it was time to create my dish.

I decided to make it a little lighter so I didn’t use mayonnaise.  Instead I used Greek yogurt.  I must say that it turned out very good.

 

Ingredients:

  • 4 chicken breasts (15.5 oz.)
  • 1 cup strawberries
  • 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
  • 2 green onions
  • 2 tablespoons pecans (crushed)
  • 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon poppy seeds
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper

I began by poaching my chicken breasts.  You could also broil them, but this was quick and easy.  Once cooked I placed in a bowl of iced water to cool.

Dice strawberries.

DSC00219DSC00224

Chop your green onion and crush your pecans in a food processor if you have whole pecans.  You might want to just get a small bag of crushed ones at supermarket if you’re not going to be using them to soon.  Store unused pecans in freezer so they don’t go bad as quickly.

DSC00227DSC00236DSC00237

Your chicken should be cooled by now, remove from ice bath and pat dry.  You don’t want any extra water in your salad, it will make it too runny.  I got out the ole scales so you could see my chicken breasts came out to about 15.5 oz.

DSC00241DSC00243DSC00244

Now put chicken in large bowl and add all your remaining ingredients:

DSC00245DSC00246DSC00247DSC00248

Stir will to combine.  Don’t crush up your strawberries while doing this.  Once finished, it is great on a sandwich, or some butter or bib lettuce.  I hope y’all enjoy.

strawberrychickensalad
 

Loading

“Home For Dinner with Jamie Deen”

Commissioned Photographer

Y’all, this morning was the premier of Jamie Deens’ new show on Food Network.  I was so pleasantly surprised by the easy going layout of the show.  I don’t know why, but I was expecting it to be more of a studio/fake set looking show as most of the new cooking shows do.   I should have known that with the same producers and team that works on his mamma’s show, it would be amazing.  Even the quaint kitchen that was minimally staged was beautiful.  From spices he needed sitting on the shelf just above his work area to the cute bowl of cherry tomatoes on the back counter, neatly set on a hand towel.  I had to laugh at his “air conditioning” of two open windows.  Y’all, he made us all feel so comfortable and almost a part of his family in his delivery.  I wish he had more time so he didn’t seem so rushed though.  He did such a good job telling stories about his family and their eating habits, while demonstrating to us how to prepare his delicious chicken and lemon tart dishes.  By the way.  Did y’all notice how simple the recipes were?  These are things we can all easily throw together and have a great healthy home cooked meal. 

JamieFamDinnerTable

Having his family there with him had to be the most amazing part of the whole show for him.  Sharing his cooking with his son Jack, the way his momma shared hers with he and Bobby.  You can see this is a family that has been blessed with so much love and nurturing from not only each other, but their parents and grandparents as well.

I have to say the best thing about this whole show is that it is about a family sitting down at the dinner table together.  Sharing their days events with each other and bonding over home cooked meals.   How many people out there could say their 5 year old says “yum” when they eat a piece of lettuce or other healthy food?  Jack does because his family has shared with him healthy eating habits and not junk food.  That is what is missing so much in today’s world.  If we could all get back to this family dinner mentality and healthy eating habits,  I believe our family’s would only grow and be so much closer than they are now.

Jamie, I commend you on sharing your relationship with not only your momma, but your love that shows so much for your family as well.  It’s about time we see this nurturing type of male figure on television.  Your momma has got to be so proud of you and Bobby for all you both do and have become.

Y’all, it looks like the Deen family is now a triple threat with Paula, Bobby and now Jamie all having great shows.

Loading

Black Bean Salsa

I decided to grill some chicken for dinner tonight.  It’s a beautiful night with a light breeze, so I didn’t want to be trapped in the kitchen.  I also didn’t want a lot of heavy carb laden food.  So I rounded up a few fresh veggies, and pickled corn, and pickled jalapeno’s and made a fresh black bean salsa for the chicken.  Needed a starch so I made some spicy grilled sweet potato chips.  Y’all, there is nothing better than grilling out on a nice spring evening.

IMG_0658

I found myself eating this salsa right from the bowl before I realized it.  I loved the combination of the fresh tomatoes and onions with the pickled corn and the spice of the jalapeno’s.   I think I’ll be eating more of it tonight with some tortilla chips.IMG_0663

I snuck an extra few slices of tomato.  Growing up, mom always had fresh tomatoes out of the garden.  I don’t think we ever had a summer dinner with out fresh tomatoes.

IMG_0671

Black Bean Salsa:

  • 1 can black beans rinsed and drained
  • 1 small sweet onion diced
  • I green or red pepper diced
  • 2 plum tomatoes diced small
  • 1/2 cup pickled corn (fresh or canned is ok)
  • 1/2 cup pickled jalapeno’s (fresh or canned is ok)
  • 2 cloves garlic diced small
  • Juice of 1 lime (I used 2 key limes)
  • salt and pepper to season to taste

Mix all ingredients well and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.  Use over chicken or fish.  Great with tortilla chips too.
 

Loading

Sweet Pepper Pork Chops

Dsc00627

Y’all, I love pork chops.  I guess growing up with a farm in the family, I kind of got used to real fresh meats.  I can still remember going out to Grandpa Norm and Grandma Jeans farm on weekends.  After dinner, grandma always gave me a big bowl of scraps and leftover that wouldn’t be eaten and had me go put them in the pigs trough.  There was never anything that went to waste out there on their farm.  What we didn’t eat, the animals did. 

So we always had a couple chest freezers full of beef, pork and chicken fresh from the farm.  I laugh at everyone today saying we need to learn to eat organically.  Heck, people my age, with family farms did.  We just called it eating though.

So here’s one of my recipes for pork chops.  It is so easy and great to do on the grill, oven or in todays case, slow cooker.  I had to much to do today to grill, so I just pulled out the slow cooker and used one of my moms tips to cooking while doing other things.  Slow Cookers are a wonderful invention.

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs bone-in pork loin chops, about ½ inch think
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 4 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 cup orange juice

Combine all the ingredients (except chops) in small sauce pan and bring to a simmer.  Stir and cook for about 2 minutes.  Pour about 1/2 of your sauce in a bowl to reserve for dipping or drizzling over chops. 

Bring your grill to medium high heat.  Brush one side of your chops with remaining sauce and place on grill.  Brush the tops of your chops with sauce and cook for about 4 minutes.  Turn chops and coat again with your sauce.  Cook for another 4 minutes and turn/repeat.  Your total cooking time should be about 15-20 minutes.  You do want your pork chops to have an internal temperature of at least 145°F to 150°F.    You should let your chops rest for about 10 minutes, then you can brush some of the reserved sauce onto your chops.  Do not use the sauce you were basting with, it could cause cross contamination.

Alternately, you could do what I did this morning, after mixing the sauce, I placed my chops in my slow cooker and then poured all the sauce over the chops and cooked on high till done.  My house has smelled wonderful all afternoon.  And my belly was quite happy with the end result.  I think y’all will love this recipe. 

Loading

Cajun Jambalaya

This is one of those dishes where you can switch things up depending on what ingredients you have on hand. For example, you can use any type of sausage or chicken. If you don’t have any shrimp you could throw in some other type of seafood instead or leave it out completely. This is the type of dish where you can be creative and you can make Jambalaya substitutions as you see fit…and best of all don’t forget to freeze the leftovers!.
Ingredients :


  • 2  pounds  boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped in 1” squares
  • 2  tablespoons  olive oil
  • 2  pounds  sausage, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices ( I buy the spicy links)
  • 2  medium onions, chopped
  • 1 lb of Shrimp
  • 1 large tomato diced small (or 1 large can diced tomatoes)
  • 1  large green or red bell pepper, diced bite size
  • 2  cloves fresh  garlic, chopped
  • 2 small cans red beans
  • 3  cups  rice ( I use family size yellow rice)
  • 8  cups chicken stock ( I like to make mine fresh and freeze for just this recipe)
  • 1/2  to 1 teaspoon ground red pepper
  • 2 tablespoons smoked paprika
  • 2 tablespoons chili powder
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • Hot sauce to taste.

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat,brown the chicken and season with salt pepper.

2. Add sausage and cook, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes or until browned add the onion and bell pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.

3. Add garlic and rice; cook, stirring constantly for approximately 2 minutes. Add broth, tomatoes, ground red pepper, paprika and chili powder.

4. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover, and simmer 15 minutes, add the shrimp and beans and simmer another 5-10 minutes or until rice is tender and all liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat; let stand, covered, 5 minutes.

5. add hot sauce to taste individually.

Loading

Cuban Style Black Beans and Rice

DSC00502

 

Y’all know that I am a southern boy at heart.  I can’t even thinking of going a full week without one of my mom’s or grandma’s southern recipes.  Now, I have lived in Tampa, Florida since 1988.  I have fallen in love with so many new things that come from the kitchen.  Needless to say, seafood tops that list.  I never knew how great fresh from the dock fish and shrimp and crabs could taste.  Now any of you who know anything about Tampa, know that Ybor City is a part of it’s history.  Home to cigar factory’s in the early years, to the shops and restaurants that are up an down famous 7th Ave, Ybor City has added its special touch to shaping Tampa.

ybor1ybor2ybor3ybor

I have fallen in love with Cuban style food thanks to Ybor City.  One of my best friends of over 24 years has her roots here in Tampa and Ybor City.  So I have been treated to many hidden treasures that I would have missed if I hadn’t met her.  The best Cuban sandwiches, and deviled crab come from right here.  I have fallen in love with black beans and rice.  I make it all the time, it is so easy, yet so great tasting.

I like to take a chicken breast and slice it into strips and sauté it and place over the black beans and rice.  I think once you try this, you’ll be hooked as well.

 

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup rice
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 package Vigo rice flavoring/coloring
  • 2 chicken breasts
  • 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon season salt
  • 1 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon oregano
  • pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
  • 2 cups seasoned black beans (canned are easy)
  • 1 small red onion

Place the rice, Vigo, and water in pan to cook approximately 15-20 minutes.  I like to rinse my rice in a strainer till the water runs clear before cooking it.  It gets rid of a lot of the starch that makes it sticky.  While the rice is cooking, cut your chicken breasts into strips.  Dice your onion and sauté for about 5 minutes in large skillet.  Add the chicken strips, Cajun seasoning, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and oregano and cook till just done.  Don’t over cook, it will make the chicken too chewy.

DSC00500

Meanwhile, have your beans heating in a small sauce pan.

Once all is cooked just make a nice pile of rice in the center of your plate, making small indentation for holding beans.  Ladle on your beans and then layer with the chicken and onion mixture.  I like to add a bit of vinegar and a little more of hot sauce to mine once dished up.  But then again, I like spicy.

*You can use Vigo saffron yellow rice, but it is high in sodium, so I just use their flavoring/coloring which only has 5mg sodium.  I hope y’all enjoy.

 

vigo 1.28 oz flavoring & coloring

Loading