Dinner: Sage + Fennel Chicken Pasta

Ingredients

1 bag of fussili pasta

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic

Handful of baby carrots cut in half

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

Pinch of fennel

Pinch of sage

Pinch of rosemary

1/2 onion

1/2 tbsp of sugar in the raw

1/4 cup shaved Parmesan cheese

Preparation

Cook noodles according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and keep warm.

Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Place chicken breast halves in a shallow dish. Combine 1 tablespoon flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper, stirring well with a whisk. Sprinkle flour mixture over chicken; toss to coat.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until browned. Remove chicken from pan.

 Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to pan. Add garlic, onion, and carrots to pan; sauté for 3 minutes or until liquid evaporates and mushrooms darken. Add white wine to pan; cook 1 minute. Stir in remaining 1 tablespoon flour, fennel, sage, rosemary and sugar; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in broth, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper; cook 1 minute or until slightly thick, stirring frequently. Taste and add what's needed.

Return chicken to the pan. Cover and simmer 2 minutes. Uncover; cook 1 minute or until chicken is done. Stir in noodles; cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated. Place about 1 1/2 cups chicken mixture on each of 4 plates; top each serving with 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese.

Dinner (Slow-Cooker): Pulled Pork Loin

(From video)

Ingredients:
4lb Pork Loin
1 TBSP basil
1 TBSP oregano
2 TBSP garlic
2 TBSP olive oil
3 TBSP soy sauce
1/2 cup honey
2/3 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 TBSP salt
For sauce:
2 TBSP cornstarch
1/2 cup chicken stock

Directions:

1. Put pork loin in slow cooker
2. Mix all other ingredients together
3. Pour over pork loin
4. Cook LOW for 6 hours
5. Put loin in dish

To make sauce:

1. Strain leftover juice and trash the pieces left in strainer 
2. Put juice into pot on stove on medium/low heat
3. Add cornstarch and chicken stock
4. Mix
5. Simmer until thick
6. Pour sauce over pork

Side Dish - Lebanese Mint and Cucumber Yogurt

Ingredients

• 500 gGreek or European-style yoghurt
• 1large clove garlic, minced
• ¾ tspsalt
• 2 cupssliced Lebanese cucumbers
• ½ tspdried mint or 1 tbsp fresh mint, finely chopped
• shredded mint leaves, to serve
• extra-virgin olive oil, to serve

Instructions

Chilling time 30 minutes

In a serving bowl, combine yoghurt, garlic, salt and mix until smooth. Add cucumber and mint and mix to combine. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes until chilled.

To serve, scatter over shredded mint and drizzle with olive oil.

Dessert - Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes

**All baking ingredients should begin at room temperature**
**Make ahead of time and keep in fridge. Remove and bring to room temperature before baking**

Baking spray, for spraying custard cups
1 stick butter
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate
2 ounces semisweet chocolate
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
2 whole eggs
3 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Vanilla ice cream, for serving

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Spray four custard cups with baking spray and place on a baking sheet. (Pull out ice cream to let it soften while making this.) Microwave the butter, bittersweet chocolate and semisweet chocolate in a large bowl on high until the butter is melted, about 1 minute. Whisk until the chocolate is also melted. Stir in the sugar until well blended. Whisk in the eggs and egg yolks, then add the vanilla. Stir in the flour. Divide the mixture among the custard cups. Bake until the sides are firm and the centers are soft, about 13 minutes. Let stand 1 minute. Invert on individual plates while warm and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Recipe courtesy of Ree Drummond

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/chocolate-lava-cakes.html?oc=linkback

Dinner - Non-spicy Mexican Soup

Ingredients:

• 4 Chicken Breasts
• 2 cups water
• Chicken bouillon 
• 1 whole bunch of garlic (many bulbs) (minced)
• Mexican spices
• Canned diced tomatoes (large can)
• Frozen corn 
• Black beans (optional)
• Peppers (any combo of red, green, yellow or orange) 
• 1-2 large onions (minced)
• Optional: Cheddar or Mexican blend cheese
• Optional: Tortilla chips

Steps:

1. Mince onions and garlic. 
2. Using a large soup pot, sauté onions and garlic in olive oil until smells begin to develop and they turn light brown. 
3. Mince peppers and add to pot. 
4. Add Mexican spices. 
5. Add can of tomatoes and water and bring to a simmer. 
6. Add 1 large spoon of bouillon. 
7. Once simmering, add chicken breasts and wait 20 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
8. Let chicken breasts cool.
9. Add corn and beans. 
10. Taste broth and add salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder to taste.
11. Shred chicken with a fork and add it in.
12. Bring to a simmer and serve with cheese and tortilla chips. 

Lunch: Cranberry Chicken Salad

 

Rachel's Cranberry Chicken Salad

• Prep
  15 m
• Ready In
  15 m

Recipe By:Rachel

Ingredients

• 2 cooked chicken breast halves, chopped
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise, or to taste
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1/2 cup sweetened dried cranberries (such as Ocean Spray(R) Craisins(R))
• 1/4 green apple, shredded

 1/4 cup chopped and toasted raw blanched almonds

• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 pinch salt and black pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon dried dill weed

Directions

Toast almonds in separate pan and let cool. Mix together the chicken and mayonnaise in a bowl, stir to coat well, then stir in the green onions, dried cranberries, apple, almonds, lime juice, salt, pepper, and dill weed. Serve immediately, or refrigerate several hours or overnight (the flavor just gets better).

Dinner: Kibbee (Lebanese Dish)

Ingredients: 

• Bulgar wheat
• 4lbs of 90% fat beef
• 4 yellow onions
• Lebanese spices or salt, pepper and cinnamon
• All Spice 
• Olive Oil
• Pine nuts
• Salt / Pepper

1. 1lb Bulgar #1 in pan
2. 2.5 lbs meat (PLUS an extra 1.5 lbs meat for hushwee)
3. Cut 2 large yellow onions into food processor and pulse until chopped. Will need 2 more onions
4. Throw chopped onions, meat and a 1/3 cup of salt and ground black pepper into bulgar bowl
5. With bare hands, mix everything in bowl together.  Add water slowly in.
6. Once mixed put meat into food processor a few scoops at a time (not all the meat at once). Pulse it to the consistency you like. Put it back into the bowl.
HUSHWEE TIME
7. Chop 2 onions (don't mince them too small). In the meantime put 1.5 lbs of meat into pan on high heat. Add salt and break up meat in pan like you're making tacos. Let simmer for a few minutes. Lower heat to medium high and break up more. 
8. Drain the meat from the excess water in the pan. Keep meat in strainer and add 1tbsp olive oil to pan. Add onions to oil in pan until they are soft and then add the meat in to the pan once the onions start turning a little yellow.
9. Add 1/4 tsp of AllSpice from Stop n Shop (buy it from anywhere) and 1/4tsp of Cinnamon. Mix all together. Lower the heat to medium low for a couple of minutes.
10. Add 1/4 cup pine nuts into pan and mix on very low. Add a little salt and pepper to taste.

BACK TO KIBBEE
-Put water on hands to make raw kibbee softer and press it down into pan. (See photo) Spread cooked hushwee on top. Add raw kibbee on top of hushwee. Smooth it with hands. Cut designs ALL THE WAY THROUGH meat. (See photo) -put olive oil on top of kibbee (some pple use butter)
-Cook for 60 minutes at 350 degrees

(Bay Sweet in West Roxbury has spices)