December 22-Crockpot Cashew Chicken

I'll be the first to admit, I've slacked off on finding new recipes over the last few months. Between work, the holidays, family gatherings, and day-to-day routine, it was easiest to stick with our tried and true favorites. I still cook at least 2-3 times a week, but I've fallen into a routine of cooking the same 15 favorites over and over and over and...

This week I was inspired to try something new.  I usually crave Chinese food around the holidays (why is that?) and found this recipe for Cashew Chicken on Sally Cooks. It looked tasty and simple enough, so I gave it a shot. It was great!

Crockpot Cashew Chicken

By Sally Cooks

1.5-2lb boneless chicken breasts, cut into smaller pieces

1 bag frozen broccoli

1 cup carrots, sliced

1/2 cup unsalted cashews (We really like nuts, so I put in a whole cup)

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup soy sauce

4 tbsp rice wine vinegar

3 tbsp ketchup

1 tbsp brown sugar

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tbsp ginger paste

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup water or chicken broth

1. Layer chicken and vegetables in the crockpot. 

2. Combine remaining ingredients, except water and cashews, and pour over chicken and vegetables in crockpot. 

3. Add water or broth if necessary so mixture is almost completely covered. 

4. Cook for about 6-7 hours on low. Add nuts when there is about an hour left. (I added the nuts from the beginning and there were completely cooked through and soft. I'd suggest adding them later if you like the crunch.)

5. Enjoy over rice. 

April 8-Orange Chicken

Everyone loves orange chicken. When I found this recipe for a healthified, yet yummy, Orange Chicken on Gimme Some Oven I had to try it! It was quick, easy, and did a great job satisfying those takeout cravings. 

(I made a few slight tweaks to match the ingredients I had on hand.) 

Skinny Orange Chicken

2lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized pieces

salt and pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

orange chicken sauce (see below)

toasted sesame seeds

thinly-sliced green onions

Orange Chicken Sauce

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup honey

1/3 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup rice vinegar

3 tbsp cornstarch (I ran out of cornstarch and substituted flour)

1/2tsp ground ginger

pinch of red pepper flakes

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and sauté until chicken is browned and nearly cooked through, about 4-6 minutes. 

2. Meanwhile, whisk together orange chicken sauce ingredients. 

3. Pour orange chicken sauce into the skillet and stir to combine. Let the sauce come to a boil for a few minutes until thickened. Remove from heat and serve immediately. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds. (I forgot that I had bought green onions until I was washing the dishes. Oops!)

September 4-A Middle Eastern Celebration

I've mentioned many times how much my husband and I LOVE Middle Eastern cuisine. There is a Middle Eastern Market about 15 minutes from us that we like to visit to stock up on a few essentials. It's always worth going out of our way for quality olive oil, tahini, fresh pita, and authentic seasonings.

Last weekend we were inspired to test our ability to make our favorite cuisine at home and dined on this miniature feast of chicken shwarma, homemade hummus, rice, and fresh pita bread. The hummus was amazing and the rice turned out great. My shwarma was yummy but a far cry from authentic. The seasoning was a little different than I expected...Good for a first attempt!

Our Mini M.E. Feast

Chicken Shwarma: Chicken, tomatoes, and onion marinated with Sadaf Shwarma Seasoning

Hummus: Our recipe from April 2013

Rice: I prepared white rice as directed, but added a little bit of garlic, cumin, and parsley to spice it up.

Pita Bread: Fresh baked Arabic Bread from the local market

April 22- Hummus

I'll admit it. I am a hummus snob.

When we were college students, my husband and I each had the opportunity to travel abroad and taste delicious, authentic, made-with-love hummus. Store bought hummus just hasn't been the same ever since. We were thrilled when I found this recipe.

Authentic, easy, delicious hummus, created with ingredients purchased at the local middle eastern market.

Hummus

1 16oz can chickpeas

1/4 cup liquid from can of chickpeas

3-5 tbsp lemon juice (vary for taste)

1 1/2 tbsp tahini

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbsp olive oil

Drain chickpeas, saving some liquid. Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend/pulse on low until smooth. Serve in a bowl, topped with a sprinkle of paprika, additional olive oil, and parsley. 

April 20-Spiced Chicken Pitas

This started out as one recipe and evolved into something completely different. While browsing Barnes & Noble yesterday I stumbled across a treasure; a cookbook of Middle Eastern cuisine for $10. For those of you who know my husband and I, we are obsessed with Middle Eastern food. Having both been to the region, we now make it our goal to try every ethnic restaurant in the area in search of the most authentic. I was SO excited about my new cookbook that I immediately began to create tabs to mark the recipes that I wanted to try first.

I came across a recipe for Palestinian Chicken w/sumac and I wanted to give it a try. Until I realized that the average grocery store is limited on its stock of spices, tahini, and other necessities. Epic fail.

Okay, plan B....I still have pita, hummus, pickles, and amazing olive oil from the Arabic market waiting for me at home. The craving will be fulfilled someway, somehow.

Inspired, I created these Spiced Chicken Pitas. I used the original recipe for inspiration with some of the spices, but made a few improvisations. The recipe is a work in progress. It was good,  but not perfect. Too much cinnamon, not enough....something? Either way, it passed as a good meal. Until next time!

Spiced Chicken Pitas

2 tbsp olive oil

2 onions, sliced

2-3 cloves garlic, crushed

1.25lb chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

2 tsp Moroccan seasoning 

1/2 tsp allspice

2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tbsp lemon juice or 1 lemon, squeezed

salt and pepper

flat leaf parsley, chopped

pita bread

(somewhere in the mix after tasting a sample I added a dash of cumin and chile)

1. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and stir in the onions. When the onions begin to cook, add garlic and sauté until the onions are golden. Add the chicken and stir fry 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the seasonings and the lemon juice. Cook until chicken is done. 

2. Warm pita pockets. Fill each pita with the chicken mixture. Garnish with parsley.

3. Serve with hummus, pickles, and/or tatziki.