Honey Balsamic Chicken and Brussels Sprouts Sheet Pan

 I’ve recently figured out that I have no self control around food, and that I need help to lose weight. I’ve joined Weight Watchers and Bob’s Gym. The current Weight Watchers plan uses Smart Points. I’m way over my smart point budget most days so far, but I’m starting to figure it out and cut back. This recipe is one I found through Pinterest and modified, and it’s pretty low in smart points. It’s also pretty tasty and used up some Brussels sprouts I needed to use up.

INGREDIENTS

2 half chicken breasts, split/filleted to less than 1” thickness

1 pound Brussels sprouts, split lengthwise

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp Italian seasoning

Salt & pepper

Honey/Balsamic Glaze

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

2 Tbsp honey

Dash garlic powder

Dash salt

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In large bowl, mix together chicken breasts, Brussels sprouts, olive oil, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Spread out on baking sheet. Baking 10 minutes, flip everything, bake additional 10 minutes. Change oven to broil and broil about 5 minutes. 

While chicken and sprouts are cooking, make glaze. Place Balsamic vinegar in small saucepan and cook for about 5 minutes, or until reduced to 1/4 cup. Add honey, garlic powder, and salt. Mix well.

Drizzle glaze over chicken and sprouts before serving.

4 servings, 7 smart points each

Blackberry Balsamic Grilled Chicken Salad with Crispy Fried Goat Cheese

This is my Wednesday company-is-coming dinner for this week. We had fresh, sliced peaches over Biscuit shortcakes with vanilla ice cream for dessert. Then we played the 1st year of our new game, Hogwarts Battle. Tasty food and very pleasant evening.

The chicken salad recipe was found through Pinterest and is available at http://www.closetcooking.com/2016/07/blackberry-balsamic-grilled-chicken.html. I made several modifications - using 1/4 cup seedless black raspberry jam instead of actual blackberries in the dressing/marinade (this to avoid crunchy seeds unexpectedly), and using coconut aminos instead of soy sauce in the dressing/marinade. The crispy fried goat cheese is really good.

This recipe makes 4 or so servings.

INGREDIENTS

Marinade/Dressing

1/4 cup seedless blackberry or black raspberry jam (or 1/2 cup blackberries)

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

2 Tbsp honey

1 tsp coconut aminos

2 tsp Dijon mustard

1 clove garlic, minced

Sal & pepper to taste

Goat cheese

8 oz goat cheese, sliced to 1/4" thick discs or formed into small balls

1/4 cup flour

1 egg, beaten

1 cup Panko breadcrumbs

Olive oil for frying

Salad

6 cups lettuce (I used Romaine, with some spinach mixed in)

12 oz thin or filleted chicken breasts

1/4 onion (red or Vadalia), sliced

1 avocado, peeled and sliced

1/4 cup walnut pieces

1 cup blackberries

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Mix together Dressing/Marinade ingredients. Place chicken in plastic bag with 1/2 the dressing/marinade. Save the other half as the salad dressing. Marinate the chicken overnight in the refrigerator.

To make the crispy goat cheese, place the goat cheese in the freezer for about 15 minutes. This makes it easier to slice. Slice into 1/4" thick discs, or form into small balls. Dredge the goat cheese in the flour and coat in egg followed by breadcrumbs, Heat a thin layer of olive oil to medium-high heat in a skillet (I used a non-stick 10" one). Fry the prepared goat cheese until lightly golden brown before setting aside on paper towels to drain.

Grill the marinated chicken over medium-high heat until cooked and slightly carried, about 2-5 minutes per side. Set aside to cool, and then slice.

Assemble the salad: lettuce, avocado, onion, walnuts, blackberries, chicken, goat cheese, dressing.

Mustard Greens, Carrots, Cauliflower, and Lentils (Vegan)

We just returned from a 9-day vacation, and I both gained a lot of weight and got spoiled eating several unusual and delicious meals that were trigger-free. This is a recipe I found through Pinterest at grownandgathered.com.au http://www.grownandgathered.com.au/blog-archive-1/mustard-carrots-cauliflower-lentils that sounded like it might be good, somewhat unusual, trigger-free, and not too calorie-laden. I ended up bumping the oven temperature to 325 degrees F after an hour, and continued roasting about 30 minutes at that temp. Next time I would probably increase the time and/or temperature. Before serving, Jean asked if we like mustard greens. I didn't know. Now I do - Jean doesn't, Nancy doesn't but like these better than others she's had, and I like them okay, so will probably get most of the leftovers.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 head cauliflower

12-14 oz small carrots trimmed to leave 1/4-1/2 inch of green stem (I had about 6 oz of the small carrots with green tops, so I made up the rest with regular ready-to-eat baby carrots)

2-1/2 cups (loosely packed, or 120 g) mustard greens, coarsely chopped 

1-1/2 cups cooked green lentils

Mustard Dressing:

1 Tbsp yellow mustard seeds (didn't have, so used ground mustard)

2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp honey

1/4 lemon (peeled, seeded, and chopped)

Vinaigrette

2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Juice from 1 large lemon

Freshly ground salt and pepper to taste 

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Make the dressing: Grind the mustard seeds with mortar and pestle until about 1/2 are ground and other half cracked. Mix all the dressing ingredients together.

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Cut cauliflower into roughly 1-1/2" florets and 1/2" thick pieces of stem. Add to bowl with prepared carrots. Add the mustard dressing and combine well. Spread in single layer on baking sheet. Roast approximately 1 hour, till veggies are soft and beginning to brown. This was either too low a temp or too short a time.

While veggies are roasting, whisk together vinaigrette ingredients and pore over mustard greens in bowl. Roughly massage the mustard greens, bruising them. Add the cooked lentils, toss, and set aside.

Once veggies are roasted, add them to the greens and lentils and serve.

Strawberry and Rhubarb Dream Bars

I found a recipe for rhubarb bars on Pinterest that sounded pretty simple and good. But I didn't have a lot of rhubarb, and it's strawberry season, so I modified the recipe to include both, to use a little less sugar, and to use Earth Balance Soy-free buttery spread instead of butter. The recipe is vegetarian, and soy free, but it does contain eggs and wheat flour. The Pinterest recipe can be found at http://noshingwiththenolands.com/rhubarb-dream-bars/

INGREDIENTS

Crust

1 cup flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup Earth Balance soy-free buttery spread

Filling

2 large eggs

1/2-3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour

1/4 tsp salt

2 cups diced rhubarb and strawberries

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of an 8"x8" pan with parchment paper, bringing it up the sides so that it will be easy to remove the squares. Whirl the crust ingredients in a food processor. Press dough into the prepared pan. Bake for 15 minutes (crust will still be very pale).

While the crust is baking, mix together the eggs, sugar, flour, and salt and whisk well. Stir in the rhubarb and strawberries. Pour into hot crust and continue baking 40-45 minutes.

Let the bars cool and remove from pan with parchment paper. Cut into squares.

Slow Cooker Honey Bourbon Chicken

The "Bourbon" in this recipe does not refer to whiskey but to Bourbon Street in New Orleans. I found this recipe through Pinterest, and it's from the persnickety plates blog,   http://www.persnicketyplates.com/crock-pot-honey-bourbon-chicken/, adapted to my dietary needs.  I'm making slow cooker dishes the next couple of days because it is Petsmart's National Adoption Weekend event, and I have three animals getting ready to go get adopted, plus have volunteered to help a couple of days. So no time to cook.

INGREDIENTS

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Salt and pepper

1 cup honey

1 cup coconut aminos

1/2 cup ketchup 

4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup onion, diced

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Trim any fat from chicken breasts. Season with salt and pepper and place in the slow cooker.

Mix together all the other ingredients. Pour over chicken. Cook on low 3-4 hours.

Cashew Chicken Stir Fry

This is another recipe I found through Pinterest. It is from the Spend With Pennies blog, http://www.spendwithpennies.com/cashew-chicken-stir-fry/. I served it over brown rice, and with baked veggie egg rolls and sweet and sour chicken

INGREDIENTS

1/3 cup chicken stock/broth

1 Tbsp coconut aminos

1 Tbsp Hoisin sauce (or 1/2 Tbsp sweet BBQ sauce plus 1/2 Tbsp teriyaki sauce)

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp sugar

2 tsp corn starch

3 tsp olive oil, divided

1 medium onion, chopped

8 oz. mushrooms, quartered

2 small zucchini, quartered, then sliced into 1" pieces

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1" cubes

Salt

Pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup lightly salted, roasted cashews

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Prepare the sauce: whisk together chicken stock, coconut aminos, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, sugar, and corn starch (I put the ingredients in a jar and shook them up, then re-shook them before adding to the wok). Set aside.

Heat 1 tsp olive oil in wok over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, 3-4 minutes. Add mushrooms and zucchini and cook, stirring, another 4-5 minutes. Remove the vegetables to a bowl. Wipe out the wok. Heat 2 tsp olive oil in wok. Add chicken, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, about 30 seconds. Add the veggies back to the wok. Shake up or stir the sauce ingredients and pour over all. Increase heat to high, stirring, and simmer 1-2 minutes. Stir in the cashews. Remove to serving dish/bowl, and serve over rice.

Paleo Sweet and Sour Chicken

We had baked veggie egg rolls, brown rice, cashew chicken stir fry, and this Paleo sweet and sour chicken for dinner tonight. I found this recipe on Pinterest, and it comes from the A Saucy Kitchen blog, https://www.asaucykitchen.com/sweet-and-sour-chicken-paleo-low-fodmap/

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup vinegar (apple cider vinegar)

2 Tbsp coconut aminos

1/4 cup ketchup

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast cut into 1" cubes

1 large egg, beaten

1/2 cup arrowroot powder (or cornstarch)

1/4 cup coconut oil

1 red pepper, cut into chunks

1 cup pineapple chunks

3 scallions/green onions, sliced, green parts only

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Prepare the sauce: In a saucepan, mix together sugar, vinegar, coconut aminos, and ketchup. Bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer. 

In a large plastic storage/freezer bag, mix together chicken and beaten egg. Add arrowroot powder and shake bag to coat chicken chunks. Heat coconut oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and fry 4-8 minutes. Add red pepper and pineapple chunks and continue to sauté until chicken is browned and cooked. Add the sauce, cover, reduce heat, and simmer a few minutes. 

Pour into serving bowl/dish and top with scallions.