Stove-Top, Broccoli, Cheddar, and Chicken Casserole

Once upon a time, my college roommate / best friend and I lived in this super run-down red house in Minneapolis.  It was pretty bad… the floors were slanted, there was a hole, yes a hole, in our shower, and once, the ceiling leaked from the toilet in the upper unit right down into our kitchen – disgusting.

I was almost always done with class before her and would almost always be sitting on the couch watching Food Network when she got home.  She would walk in, say hello, and shake her head at me thinking “you really need to watch that every night?!”

Well, if you ask her now, she knew why.  I would cook up a storm, and now, so does she.  So much so, that back before we were both East Coast transplants and both still living in Minneapolis, she had me over and whipped up this little doozie.

Super easy, super fast, and super tasty – what could be wrong with chicken, broccoli, cheese, and a little stuffing.  This quick casserole (or hot dish, as they call it in Minnesota) comes together in no time – dice some chicken, cut some broccoli, dump in some soup, cheese, and milk, top it with stuffing… and into the oven it goes.

So last night’s dinner gives a shout-out to The Adventures of Liz and Molly – four years (and then a couple post-college) never to be replicated…

Stove-Top, Broccoli, Cheddar, and Chicken Casserole

Stove-Top, Broccoli, Cheddar,
and Chicken Casserole

What You Need:

• 3 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, cut into small cubes
• 2 crowns, fresh broccoli, broken apart
• ½ c milk
• 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1 ½ c shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 6oz package stove top stuffing

How You Do It:

1. Combine chicken and broccoli in a baking dish.
2. In a medium bowl, combine soup, milk and cheese; pour over chicken and broccoli mixture.
3. In another bowl, add 1 ¼ c hot water to stuffing mix and stir to combine; top casserole with stuffing.
4. Bake at 400*  30 min. or until chicken is done and casserole is heated through.

Stove-Top, Broccoli, Cheddar, and Chicken Casserole recipe adapted from Kraft.

Ramen Vegetable Lo Mein

Sometimes the best cure for a rough day is dinner with friends.  So when I got a text from a girlfriend that she was going to be around tonight and wanted a hug, I offered to ease up the rest of the of the night with dinner at our place. 

Knowing I had to make a meat-free meal (she’s a Chopra, look it up!), I stopped at the store on my way home to pick up some vegetables to make a stir-fry and remembered yet another pin for a recipe using Ramen noodles. 

I couldn't believe how quickly the HUGE bowl of stir-fried vegetables and noodles cleared.  While I thought the meal was just mediocre, apparently I was in the minority.  I thought the sauce I used was a little sweet and could have used a hit of red pepper flakes, my dinner “guests” said not to tweak a thing. 

So, here’s the recipe, without tweaking a thing.

Ramen Vegetable Lo Mein

 

Ramen Vegetable Lo Mein

What You Need:

• 4 packages Ramen noodles
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced
• 1 package shredded carrots
• 1 package broccoli florets
• 3 large cloves garlic, pressed
• 1 c chicken broth
• ½ c teriyaki sauce (I used this)

How You Do It:

1. Boil noodles according to package, discarding seasoning packet.  Drain and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat sesame oil in large skillet.  Add onion and sauté until slighted softened.  Add broccoli and carrots and continue to sauté until tender.
3. Add garlic and sauce, stirring to combine and soften garlic.
4. Add noodles and chicken brother, toss to combine and heat through.

Orange-Basil Chicken

Meet my basil plant:

Basil!

While it might not look like more than a basil plant to you, you must understand - I cannot keep plants alive.  My mother-in-law buys me a fresh basil plant every year and I almost always kill it off.  The first year she pitied me when I killed off the first one and came later in the season with a second, I then killed as well.   Last year, while we were away cruising the Mediterranean on our honeymoon, my basil plant stayed with my MiL, which was a treat, as when we got back, it had doubled, yes doubled, in size!  She really knows how to keep 'em healthy! 

So this year when she came over for our Memorial Day BBQ, she brought me my plant - and lo and behold, it's growing like crazy!  So with all this basil, I started on my search for basil-infused recipes that didn't include red sauce - something non-Italian.

Insert tonight's dinner - while the basil wasn't at the forefront (and honestly, I could have used more), this was a great balance of orange, soy, ginger, and basil.  The fresh broccoli added a nice crunch and the rice soaked up the sweet, yet salty sauce.

A good use for basil - but yes, stay tuned, we'll get my favorite bolognese and pesto recipes eventually.  Until then, say a prayer (if you believe in that sort of thing) for the well-being of my basil plant!

Orange-Basil Chicken

Orange-Basil Chicken

What You Need:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
• 3 tbsp cornstarch, divided
• 2 small broccoli crowns, cut into pieces
• 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 3/4 c orange juice
• 5 tbsp soy sauce
• 1/4 c honey
• 3 tbsp grated fresh ginger
• 1/4 c chopped fresh basil
• 1 tsp grated orange rind

How You Do It:

1. Toss chicken with 2 tbsp cornstarch, and set aside.
2. Sauté broccoli in 1 tbsp hot oil in a large skillet, stirring occasionally until crisp-tender, remove from skillet and set aside.
3. Sauté chicken pieces in remaining 1 tbsp hot oil, stirring occasionally, 8 minutes or until done. Reduce heat to medium.
4. Whisk together orange juice, soy sauce, honey, ginger, and remaining 1tbsp  cornstarch. Add orange juice mixture and broccoli to chicken, and cook, stirring occasionally until sauce is thickened. 
5. Stir in basil and orange rind.

Orange-Basil Chicken recipe adapted from MyRecipes.com.

Broccoli & Chicken Foil Packs

My mom used to make foil pack chicken for dinner every once and a while.  Hers included a chicken breast, some spaghetti sauce, and some mozzarella cheese.  As kids, and even as adults, we loved it.  Everything just dumped out of the foil and on to our plates.

Let me tell you two great things about foil-pack cooking:

1. Easy cleanup.  No need to dirty ten pans when cooking in foil.  Most of the time (although tonight I needed to cook some [turkey] bacon and mix the stuffing, you only have one pan, on which you simply put the foil packs, to clean… and really, it just needs a wipe-down.
2. You can build an entire meal in one little foil pack.  Brilliant.  No need for five pans with the entrée, vegetable, and starch – you can get it all in one spot!

Tonight’s are no different – stuffing on the bottom, chicken, broccoli, cheese, bacon, ranch… what could be wrong!  NOTHING!  And the best part, little-to-no-cleanup.

Chicken & Broccoli Foil Packs

Broccoli & Chicken Foil Packs

What You Need:

• 1 package stuffing mix
• 1 1/4 c water
• 1 package raw chicken tenderloins
• 4 c broccoli florets
• 1 c shredded cheddar cheese
• 4 slices cooked bacon; crumbled (I used turkey bacon)
• 4 tbsp ranch dressing

How You Do It:

1. Combine stuffing mix and water in bowl.  Put ¼ mixture on 4 large sheets of foil.
2. Top stuffing with chicken tenderloins.
3. Top chicken with broccoli.
4. Top broccoli with cheese and bacon.
5. Drizzle each with 1 tbsp ranch dressing.
6. Bring up foil sides and fold to seal, leaving room for heat circulation inside and place on baking sheet.
7. Bake at 400* for 30 minutes. 
8. Let stand 5 minutes, then carefully open releasing steam.

Broccoli & Chicken Foil Packs recipe adapted from BigOven.com.

Cheesy Salsa Chicken with Cheesy Broccoli Orzo

Tonight's dinner was brought to you by cheese!  Not only was the chicken stuffed with cheese in a three-ingredient chicken dish, but the orzo was packed full of it too!

Stuffed chicken offers an open door of possibilities and flavors... tonight's was simple:  cheese and salsa.  Yum and yum.  And a delicious chicken dish it did make.

As for the orzo, over the weekend the hubs and I indulged ourselves at the New Jersey Jazz It Up Festival.  Not only was there live music, but there were 21 different wineries sampling at least ten varieties each.... that's a lot of wine tastings!  We had an awesome (and delicious!) time... and came across a stand selling flavored pasta.  We picked up a few bags, including the Lemon Garlic Orzo I used in tonight's side dish.

A complete meal totally worth a try!

Cheesy Salsa Chicken

Cheesy Salsa Chicken with
Cheesy Broccoli Orzo

What You Need:

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 4 wedges Laughing Cow Light Swiss Cheese
• 1/2 c salsa

How You Do It:

1. Carefully split each chicken breast making a pocket inside, mindful not to cut all the way through the chicken.
2. Spread one wedge of cheese on one side of the chicken (inside).  Top with salsa.
3. Place in a baking dish and cover with foil.
4. Bake at 350*, covered 20 minutes.  Then remove foil and bake an additional 20 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked.

Cheesy Broccoli Orzo

What You Need:

• 1 c orzo
• 2 cups fresh broccoli florets
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/4 c shredded cheese
• 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
• 1/3 c milk

How You Do It:

1. Cook orzo in boiling water about 3 minutes.
2. Add broccoli and cook until broccoli is tender and orzo is fully cooked.  Drain well.
3. Return mixture to pot and add milk, butter, and cheeses.  Stir until butter and cheese is melted.

Cheesy Salsa Chicken adapted from Hungry Girl.
Cheesy Broccoli Orzo adapted from IowaGirlEats.com

Garlic Turkey-Broccoli Stir-Fry

Here's a make-your-own-take-out recipe for the books.  While everyone loves Chinese food, it doesn't always come with the healthiest of ingredients and/or preparations.  This recipe, however, is not only delicious, but easy to make and quite healthy.  Lean turkey tenderloin accompanied by fresh veggies and a light sauce, make for a balanced and healthy entree.  I served mine with some brown rice.

Garlic Turkey-Broccoli Stir-Fry

Garlic Turkey-Broccoli Stir-Fry

What You Need:

• 2 tsp sesame oil, divided
• 1 (1 lb) turkey tenderloin, cut into thin strips
• 1 cup chicken broth (I used fat-free, reduced sodium)
• 4 large garlic cloves, pressed
• 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 bell pepper, cut into thin strips (I used orange)
• 2 cups fresh broccoli florets
• 1 (8 oz) can diced water chestnuts, drained
• 2 tbsp soy sauce (I used low sodium)

How You Do It:

1. Combine broth, garlic, cornstarch, and red pepper flakes.  Stir until cornstarch dissolves and set aside.
2. Heat 1 teaspoon sesame oil in large skillet until hot.  Add turkey and stir-fry until cooked through, about 5 minutes.  Remove from pan and set aside.
3. Add remaining teaspoon sesame oil to skillet and add pepper strips and broccoli.  Stir-fry until slightly tender, about 3-4 minutes.
4. Add water chestnuts and stir-fry another 1 minute.
5. Stir broth mixture and add to skillet, along with soy sauce, turkey and remaining juices.
6. Bring to a boil; cook 1-2 minutes or until thickened.

Garlic Turkey-Broccoli Stir-Fry recipe adapted from: MyRecipes.com