DoughSeeDough

a balanced plate with room for dessert

Tag Archives: chicken


by 2 Comments

Race Recap // Chicken Sausage with Peppers and Easy Spinach Pasta Salad

This post two-for-one deal. It’s a running and recipe post all rolled into one! Let me start the race recap with my Saturday. In my last post I talked about my nervousness and how I planned on dealing with it. So, what did I do all weekend?

Well, like I had said before, Mike and I went to the Cellcom Race Expo and picked up my race packet. We bought a running hat (for him) and some more running capris (for me) there. We then headed over to Hinterland for some beer & food. It was so good. We decided to sit in the lounge and I’m so glad we did. The space is really neat – we snagged a corner booth that had a nice view of the downtown area. The service and food were amazing. We’re already planning on next trip back – I’m sad they are a 40 minute trip away, but it’s definitely worth it.

hinterland beer, goat cheese curds, smoked chicken pizza

We drank: Cherry Wheat (Crisp, cool and refreshing. Brewed using tart Door County cherries from Seaquist Orchards) and Bourbon Barrel Dopplebock (Dark amber color. Full-bodied. Pronounced notes of caramel and oak with a smooth bourbony finish. Aged 10.5 months). Both were delish.

We ate: Caprine supreme goat cheese curds with kimchee ketchup and Nueske’s smoked chicken pizza (maple bock barbecue, mango, chives, goat cheese). The cheese curds were different than any cheese curd I’ve had before – they were light and fluffy and the kimchee ketchup was awesome. The pizza was, of course, delish as well. I loved the addition of the mango.

Saturday, we wasted the day away at home and ran some errands. I felt sick with anticipation almost all day. I was refreshing the weather on my iPad every hour (definitely wasn’t helping). I ended up throwing together dinner early at around 5:00 so we could eat early and get to bed by 9:00.

Some people have certain foods they need to stay away from before race day. I’ve found that I can eat almost anything, but it’s best if I stay away from fiber and copious amounts of grease. I ended up making a dish with chicken sausage and bell peppers with a pasta salad side. I loved that this meal was filling, easy, and my stomach handled it perfectly.

healthy chicken sausage with peppers | doughseedough.net

Chicken Sausage & Peppers 

1 teaspoon canola oil
1 large onion, chopped
12 ounces fully cooked chicken sausage*, cut into 1 1/2 – 2″ pieces
2 bell peppers, sliced
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

  1. Heat oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add in onions and cook for 3 – 4 minutes or until they start to soften.
  2. Add in sausage and bell peppers and cook until sausage is heated through, 3 – 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

*I used Johnsonville’s Chicken Sausage – Chipotle Montery Jack in my dish. I’ve had this type before and love it so I used it again instead of trying something new.

healthy chicken sausage & peppers with easy spinach pasta salad | doughseedough.net

Easy Spinach Pasta Salad

12 ounces farfalle or other small pasta
1 teaspoon garlic olive oil or plain olive oil*
3 cups baby spinach
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
3 roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

  1. Cook pasta according to package directions in a large pot of boiling salted water. Drain and immediately toss with garlic olive oil. Toss warm cooked pasta with spinach, onion, tomato and Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

*I used a garlic evoo from a local store, The Olive Cellar. Love the place and will never buy olive oil (or balsamic) from any other place.

After eating a fair amount of this, Mike and I turned in for the night. He tried to calm my nerves by playing the Fun Run episode from The Office. It worked 🙂

Now, that brings us to Sunday: race day. Mike and I rolled out of bed at around 4:00 that morning and I nervously ate a banana and some Quaker Oatmeal Squares. I chugged a little water and then we were off to Green Bay. We weather was beautiful at first. Here’s a picture of me – all happy that it was race day and ready to conquer Cellcom once again.

cellcom half 2013 - before

I got about 2 miles in before I realized just how hot and humid it was. Last year was hotter, but this year was much more humid. I do not handle humidity or heat very well. Put the two together and well… I’m a goner. Let’s just say that there aren’t many pictures I want to post of my grossness mid-run. I will, however, share with you the pics Mike snapped during my last mile in Lambeau Field!

cellcom half - lambeau field

I may look happy and full of energy in the above photos, but miles 2 – 12 were killer. I was dragging and just mentally d-o-n-e with it all. After I crossed the finish line and found Mike, I loaded up on brats and beer. I got my picture taken with a complete stranger (??) and then changed into dry clothes before heading back out to Lambeau and cheering on the marathoners and snapping a few more pics.

cellcom half 2013 - finish

I wish I could say that everything was perfect. That I hit my goal time. That I PRed. But none of that is true. I debated sharing my time with the world because I was embarrassed at first. Then, I realized that all runners have good days and bad days. I just happened to have a bad day. And even though my time was 2:27 and I finished nearly 15 minutes after my goal time, I still did better than the person I was just 2 1/2 years ago. I used to be someone who couldn’t run for 20 seconds straight and struggled through Day 1 of Couch to 5k for a solid week.

I don’t run to be first. I run to finish.


by 2 Comments

Garlic Lime Chicken Enchiladas

Wow, I can’t believe it’s May already! Time has been absolutely flying by. I feel like whenever I have deadlines looming in future time just gets away from me. Right now the deadlines are mostly work-related, but my impending half marathon is also out there. I have been only half-heartedly training so it should be interesting. I’m just hoping the weather will be nicer this year! Last year, they shut the race down just minutes after I crossed the finish line due to the extreme heat.

Last Friday I spoke briefly about how I had found so many great recipes on Kim’s blog, Feed Me, Seymour. I had to choose just one recipe for the swap, but I couldn’t stop myself from making another dish. So, today I share with you the other dish – garlic lime chicken enchiladas.

I adapted her recipe slightly and made a homemade enchilada sauce and used Mexican rice instead of plain white rice. If I’m ever short on time I will definitely use a canned sauce and white rice – this dish is so full of flavor that I’m sure it’s just as tasty the original way!

If you notice that the enchiladas seem a bit squished in the photo, well, it’s because they are. I couldn’t find my 9×13 pan anywhere.  I tore the kitchen apart looking for it and finally settled on using a smaller pan. I “found” the 9×13 pan a week later when my mom returned it to me 😉 Guess I need to keep better track of my bakeware, huh?

garlic lime chicken enchiladas | doughseedough.net

Garlic Lime Chicken Enchiladas
adapted from Feed Me, Seymour

enchilada sauce:
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 cup chili powder
8 ounces tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mexican rice:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 cup uncooked white rice
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup tomato sauce
2 cups low sodium chicken broth

3 cloves minced garlic
1 thinly sliced red onion
juice of 1 lime
2 tsp. cayenne pepper
3 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
2 cups cooked Mexican rice (recipe above)
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped and divided
2 cups enchilada sauce (recipe above)
1 tsp. olive oil
6 whole wheat flour tortillas
1 cup shredded cheddar jack cheese

  1. To make the enchilada sauce, heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in flour and chili powder and cook, stirring constantly, until lightly brown. Gradually stir in remaining ingredients and stir until smooth. Cook for 10 – 15 more minutes, until slightly thickened.
  2. To make the rice, heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add in onion and saute until translucent, 3 – 4 minutes. Add in garlic and rice and cook until rice is slightly toasted, about 2 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook until rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Remove pan from heat and fluff with a fork.
  3. To make the enchiladas, preheat oven to 375°F. Heat olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Saute onions until slightly soft. Add in garlic and saute for an additional minute. Stir in lime juice, cayenne pepper, and tomato paste.
  4. Remove pan from heat and add in chicken, Mexican rice, and half the cilantro. Stir to combine.
  5. To assemble: place tortillas on a clean surface. Put 2 large spoonfuls of filling onto each tortilla and roll tightly. Place seam side down in a 9×13-inch baking dish. Pour enchilada sauce on top of tortillas and top with shredded cheese. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.
  6. Sprinkle with remaining cilantro before serving.

 


by 2 Comments

Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese

Ok, so this recipe was a total accident. A wonderful, delicious accident. You see, last weekend we went shopping and bought four types of cheese. Yes, four. I was supposed to buy cheddar, cheddar jack, mozzarella, and smoked gouda. But instead of buying smoked gouda, I accidentally bought buffalo jack. So, we went back to the store and got smoked gouda. So we ended up buying five types of cheese this weekend. They are now sitting happily with 3 other types of cheese in our fridge. I guess we really, really like cheese or something.

I had plans for four of the cheeses that we purchased, but since I wasn’t planning on buying a buffalo cheese, I obviously didn’t have anything to do with it. Yet. As I was making barbecue sauce it suddenly dawned on me – buffalo chicken mac & cheese. Bingo.

I encourage you to make this delicious, messy goodness. I definitely do not encourage you to calculate the nutritional info for this. It will make you cry. If you can’t find buffalo jack cheese, feel free to sub in a sharp cheddar.

Welcome to Wisconsin, folks.

buffalo chicken mac & cheese | doughseedough.net

Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese
adapted from Food Network

1 pound whole wheat macaroni
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
1 pound cooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, shredded
3/4 cup Frank’s Red Hot or hot sauce of choice, divided
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced, divided
1 jalapeño, minced
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 teaspoons dry mustard
2 cups skim milk
2 cups shredded buffalo jack cheese, divided
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F and lightly coat a 9×13″ baking dish with olive oil. Set aside.
  2. Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain.
  3. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add in celery and onion and cook until soft, about 3 – 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and chicken and cook until garlic is fragrant, about 2 more minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup of the hot sauce and 3/4 of the sliced green onions.
  4. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a small pan over medium heat. Whisk in flour and mustard until smooth. Whisk in milk and remaining hot sauce and cook, stirring frequently, until thick, about 3 – 5 minutes. Whisk in 1 1/2 cups of buffalo jack cheese and 3/4 cup of the cheddar cheese until smooth.
  5. Spread half the pasta into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with half the chicken mixture and half the cheese sauce. Repeat with the remaining pasta, chicken, and cheese sauce.
  6. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in a small dish and toss with panko to combine. Toss with remaining 1/2 cup buffalo jack cheese and 1/4 cup cheddar cheese. Sprinkle panko cheese crumbs on top of casserole.
  7. Bake in preheated oven until bubbly, 30 – 40 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with remaining green onions before serving.


by 9 Comments

BBQ Chicken Pizza

BBQ chicken pizza | doughseedough.net

This pizza kicks some serious butt. I stumbled across it in Food Network magazine a while ago (ahem, a year ago) but never got around to making it because our pizza stone cracked in half. I don’t even know what happened. I baked a loaf of bread on it, took it out of the oven, set it down and… it died. We actually kept the larger half for a while, baking sad little loaves of bread on it. We finally got around to buying a replacement, but it just sat on our kitchen cart for months. I finally got around to using it this weekend!

Anyway, this recipe is supposed to be the copycat of California Pizza Kitchen’s BBQ Chicken Pizza. I can’t attest to whether or not this tastes like CPK’s pizza (I’ve only been there once a million years ago), but I will say that it is really, really good.

I opted to make the pizza dough and BBQ sauce from scratch, but store bought will do just fine! I don’t think I will ever buy bottled sauce again – I absolutely love the recipe that I have now. It’s tangy with the perfect balance of sweet and spicy. I’ve retyped the recipe for dough and sauce below. The dough recipes yields about 1 pound of dough and the sauce will yield 1/2 cup of sauce.

BBQ Chicken Pizza | DoughSeeDough.net

BBQ Chicken Pizza
adapted from Food Network

for the pizza dough:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 – .25 ounce package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup warm water (~110°F)

for the barbecue sauce:
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
3/4 teaspoon lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

for the pizza:
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 8-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breast
3/4 cup grated smoked peppercorn gouda cheese or smoked gouda cheese
3/4 cup grated part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

  1. To make the dough: Fit stand mixer with dough hook. Combine dry ingredients in mixing bowl. Pour in oil and water. Mix on low speed until dough pulls away from side of bowl and gathers around hook and is smooth and elastic. Place dough in a large lightly greased bowl and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Set aside and let rise for 30 – 40 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, make the BBQ sauce: combine all sauce ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 – 40 minutes or until thick.
  3. Preheat oven to 425°F and position rack in lower third of oven. Place a pizza stone on rack and let heat for at least 30 minutes.
  4. Lay out a sheet of parchment paper and lightly grease with olive oil. Transfer dough to parchment and roll and/or stretch it out into a 12-inch round. Gently roll up edges to form a crust. Lightly brush with olive oil and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise for 30 minutes.
  5. Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Cook chicken until juices run clear. Remove chicken and cut into 1/2-inch cubes. Lightly toss with 1/4 cup of barbecue sauce. Set aside.
  6. Uncover pizza dough and spread remaining barbecue sauce on top. Top with gouda, mozzarella, red onion, and chicken. Slide pizza (on parchment paper) onto the preheated pizza stone. Bake for 25 minutes, or until crust is lightly browned and cheese is bubbly.
  7. Sprinkle with cilantro before serving.


by 8 Comments

Honey Mustard Chicken Skewers

Happy Friday! It’s time for another recipe swap! Before I get into that though, I have a funny story. I had first typed up this post over the weekend and (stupidly) wrote about how wonderful the weather was and how excited we were to start grilling again. Fast forward to Tuesday night/Wednesday. Ice storm. What the what?!?!

That said, Mike was such a trooper and grilled this for me so I would be able to post this as planned. I’m just thankful he didn’t get impaled by a falling icicle or tree branch. When is winter going to be over?

ice storm appleton | doughseedough.net

I loved that Jen at Becoming Pigzilla used a chardonnay jalapeno mustard, but I have no idea where I would even find something like that. I also don’t think I can justify another jar of mustard in my fridge, taking up very valuable fridge real estate. When I get around to buying more mustard, I’ll have to keep my eye out for more interesting flavors! I ended up using a small jar of sweet & hot mustard that we received a long time ago as part of a gift basket. It was absolutely perfect! I’m hoping to make this again soon… without the nasty weather!

honey mustard chicken skewers | doughseedough.net

Honey Mustard Chicken Skewers
adapted from Becoming Pigzilla

1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 cup honey
3/4 cup mustard
2 teaspoons curry powder
salt and pepper, to taste
3 – 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut in 2-inch pieces

  1. In a medium bowl, mix together olive oil, honey, mustard, and curry powder. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  2. Place chicken in a large dish and cover with 3/4 of the mustard sauce. Reserve the remaining sauce in an airtight container for serving.
  3. Marinate chicken for 4 – 24 hours in the refrigerator.
  4. Soak skewers for 30 minutes before grilling. Preheat grill to medium heat. Skewer chicken and grill until cooked through, about 12 minutes, turning every 3 – 4 minutes.
  5. Serve hot with remaining sauce.

Thanks to Taste of Home Cooking for organizing! Make sure to check out the other recipe swap posts!




by 1 Comment

Chicken Gyros & Homemade Pocketless Pita

chicken gyros | doughseedough.net

I love gyros. I love watching the cooks shave off pieces of the tender lamb from the… meat cone or whatever you might call it. This time, I tried making my own at home. I chose to make the pita versus buying it, but if you’re looking to save some time then by all means use a pocketless pita from the grocery store!

pocketless pita | doughseedough.net

The entire process took me just under two hours, but the results were so worth it. My schedule was like this: marinate chicken and refrigerate, mix dough for pita and let rise for 30 minutes, make tzatziki while waiting for chicken and dough. Refrigerate finished tzatziki, roll out dough for pita, cook chicken and pita simultaneously. In between flipping pitas, slice tomatoes and onions. Assemble and serve.

Sure, it’s quite a bit of multitasking, but I think I made pretty good use of my time and when I got around to assembling, the chicken was still piping hot and the pitas were perfectly warm. The best part? I had all ingredients on hand already. Yes, I do keep a huge tub of Greek yogurt in my fridge at all times.

chicken gyros | doughseedough.net

Chicken Gyros
adapted from Elly Says Opa and Kalofagas

For the chicken:
1.25 pounds chicken breast
4 cloves garlic, smashed
juice of 1 lemon
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon dried oregano
salt and pepper

For the tzatziki:
1 – 17.6 ounce tub of plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1 cucumber, seeded
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
juice from half a lemon
salt and pepper, to taste

For the pita:
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cup warm water (110°F)
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
canola oil

For toppings:

1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
3 roma tomatoes, thinly sliced

  1. Make a marinade for the chicken by whisking together garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, oil, yogurt, oregano, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add the chicken and rub the marinade in. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour. 
  2. Heat a large nonstick pan over medium heat and lightly coat with olive oil. Brown chicken on both sides and cook until juices run clear, about 4 – 6 minutes per side.  Let rest before slicing into strips.
  3. To make the tzatziki: shred or grate the cucumbers and squeeze excess moisture out. Make sure to get as much liquid out as possible! Mix together yogurt, cucumbers, garlic, vinegar, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving to allow flavors to meld.
  4. To make the pitas: in a large bowl, mix together yeast, salt, sugar, olive and water and let stand for 5 minutes or until top is foamy.
  5. Using your hands, gradually add in flour 1/2 cup at a time to the wet ingredients. Knead until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Cover with a damp towel and let rise in a warm spot for 30 minutes.
  6. Divide dough into 6 pieces and roll out on a floured surface into 8-inch rounds about 1/4 inch thick. Lightly poke the surface with the tines of a fork, being careful not to poke through the dough.
  7. Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly coat the skillet with oil and place one dough round into the skillet and fry the bread until it starts to puff and bubble, about 1 – 2 minutes. Flip and fry the other side. Repeat with remaining dough.
  8. Assemble gyros by piling a pita with chicken, tzatziki sauce, tomatoes, and onions. Enjoy!


by 2 Comments

Baked Chicken Nuggets

Chicken nuggets bring out the kid in all of us! Mike told me that he used to put down a 20 piece McD’s chicken nugget “family” sized box like it was nothing. Gross. Impressive, but gross. I decided to cook him a little pick-me-up after I got him sick (oops). These little bites are far from the nuggets that you would find in a drive-through. They’re made with chicken breast and packed with flavor. Best of all, they’re baked, not fried! And there’s no limit to how much dipping sauce you can have either 😉

baked chicken nuggets

Baked Chicken Nuggets
adapted from Martha Stewart

4 chicken breasts
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3/4 cup skim milk
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3 large eggs, whisked

  1. Lightly pound chicken breast to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut into 1.5 – 2″ pieces. Set aside in a large bowl. 
  2. Combine lemon juice and milk in a bowl, stir to combine. Let sit for 15 minutes. Stir in garlic powder, Worcestershire, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pour over chicken and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  3. Preheat oven to 475°F. Spread panko on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes or until golden brown, being careful not to burn.
  4. Transfer panko to a shallow dish. Once cool, mix in grated Parmesan and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Set aside.
  5. Set out flour in a second shallow dish and whisked eggs into a third shallow dish.
  6. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  7. Remove chicken from the fridge and discard marinade. Working a few pieces at a time, dredge chicken through flour and shake off excess. Dip in the egg, and then lastly coat with panko. Transfer to baking sheet. Continue until all chicken has been coated.
  8. Bake for 12 minutes, turning halfway through, until panko is lightly browned and chicken has an internal temperature of 165°F.
  9. Serve with spicy ketchup and honey mustard dipping sauces, recipes below.

Spicy Ketchup

1/4 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons Sriracha
2 tablespoons low fat mayonnaise

  1. Combine all ingredients and stir well to combine. 

Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce

1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup Dijon mustard

  1. Stir honey and mustard together well to combine. 


by 5 Comments

Chicken Pot Pie Soup

I love pie crust.

Love it.

LOVE IT.

I don’t even like pie that much, but I will take a slice of it just to eat the crust. Then I’ll mash the rest of it around on my plate to make it seem like I ate it. Or I’ll shovel it onto my husband’s plate (while at the same time stealing his crust).

I’m that crazy person that will sit and stare at your piece of pie and then creepily ask if I can eat your crust.

Needless to say, this is my kind of soup. It’s filling and creamy and flavorful and… Real talk though. This dish is mainly about the crust. This soup is what makes it acceptable for me to eat massive amounts of pie crust for dinner. As an added bonus, this was super easy to whip together and it made for a ton of leftovers. Leftover soup that is. There will be no leftover crust. Oops.

chicken pot pie soup

Chicken Pot Pie Soup

for the crust:
2 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup shortening
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup skim milk

for the soup:
2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
2 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced (2 cups)
3 celery stalks, diced (1 cup)
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced (1 cup)
1 medium onion, diced (3/4 cup)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
5 cups chicken broth
2 ears of corn, kernels removed or 1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1 1/2 cups frozen peas
salt and pepper, to taste

  1. To make the crust: in a large bowl, stir together flour and salt. Cut in shortenings until well blended and mixture is crumbly. Gently stir in milk with a fork; mix until just combined. Pat dough into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 45 minutes.
  2. Preheat oven to 425°F. Roll dough out on a well-floured surface to 1/8″ thick. Cut into 15 3″ circles with a biscuit or cookie cutter. Lay dough on ungreased baking sheet and bake for 12 – 15 minutes, or until lightly browned on top. Set aside.
  3. To make the soup: heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Add in potatoes, celery, carrots, and onion and cook until onions are soft and translucent.
  4. Stir in flour to coat vegetables well. Slowly stir in chicken broth 1 cup at a time. Bring soup to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer until soup thickens and add in corn and peas. Stir and cook until peas are heated through.
  5. Serve soup hot with pie crust.

recipe adapted from Food Network

P.S. Be a crust monster like me a bake up the extra scraps left over from when you’re cutting out the pretty circles. They’re just as tasty 😉

pot pie soup with crust


by 2 Comments

Chicken Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing

This was a super easy dish! I was excited to be able to use up some more goodies from our CSA box (lettuce and cucumbers this time). I’m a big fan of easy, no-fuss dishes in the summer. What made this dish even better is that I had every single ingredient in my kitchen already! I love it when I don’t need to make a trip to the store to make a dish 🙂

I was impressed with how long the lettuce from our CSA lasted. They sent it to us with roots (and a little dirt) still attached and wrapped in some plastic wrap. It didn’t look wilty or sad when I finally got around to using it a week and a half later. I wish all lettuce looked this good after such a long time!

PS – Mike and I are en-route to Myrtle Beach today! I’m so excited for a week of sun and relaxation. There are some new recipes scheduled to be posted during the week I’m gone. Hope you all enjoy 🙂

Chicken Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing

1 head lettuce or salad greens of choice
2 limes, juiced
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cups diced cooked chicken
1 cucumber, seeded and diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/4 red onion, minced
1 large mango, diced

  1. In a small bowl, whisk together lime juice, mayonnaise, honey, mustard, salt and pepper. Slowly add in oil, whisking constantly.
  2. In a large bowl, toss chicken, cucumber, bell pepper, onion, and mango with the dressing.
  3. Place greens on plates and top with chicken salad. Serve immediately.

*adapted from Food and Wine


by 2 Comments

Spicy Chicken with Kale

I had previously said that I don’t really like kale. I would like to take back that statement. It turns out that I just didn’t like whatever dish I had made with kale. I really really like this chicken and kale dish!

I ended up throwing this together after I spent a good 5 minutes staring at our (empty) fridge. I pulled out a few things that we did have (chicken, scapes, and kale for starters) and got cookin’!

Spicy Chicken with Kale

1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon Shao Hsing rice wine
1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon cornstarch
salt and pepper, to taste
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2 – 3/4 inch pieces
2 teaspoons olive oil
5 garlic scapes, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, thinly sliced
1 bunch kale, stemmed and washed
2 teaspoons sesame oil

  1. In a small bowl, combine soy sauce, rice wine, chicken broth, cornstarch, salt and pepper.
  2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Cook chicken until no longer pink in the middle and juices run clear.
  3. Add in garlic scapes and jalapeno and cook for 1 – 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
  4. Add in kale and cover, stirring occasionally for an additional 3 – 5 minutes, or until kale is cooked.
  5. Add the soy sauce mixture and sesame oil and stir fry for one more minute.
  6. Remove from heat and serve immediately with steamed rice.