Buffalo Chicken Meatball Sliders

It is time for another round of Secret Recipe Club. This month we were assigned Cookin'Mimi. Micha has a lot of great recipes and originally I was thinking about breakfast so I was tempted to try her Breakfast Pot Pie, or the Cinnamon Pecan Biscuit Twists but I ended up picking Buffalo Chicken Meatballs with Blue Cheese Dip. Instead of making them mini and serving them with the dip at a party I made them normal meatball size and served them for dinner as sliders. They were quick and easy to make with very little prep and few ingredients, perfect for a busy weeknight dinner paired with salad and fries.

Ingredients for Meatballs:
1 lb Ground Chicken
1 Cup Panko Breadcrumbs
1/4 Cup Buffalo Wing Sauce
1 Large Beaten Egg
2 Cloves of Garlic - Minced
1 Tsp Salt
1/4 Tsp Pepper
1 Tsp Onion Powder

Slider Rolls
Romaine Lettuce
1/3 Cup Buffalo Wing Sauce

Ingredients for Blue Cheese Sauce:
1/2 Sour Cream
1/2 Mayo
1/2 Cup Blue Cheese Crumbles
Big Pinch of Salt

Preheat the oven to 350 F. In a large bowl combine the ground chicken, panko, garlic, beaten egg, buffalo sauce, salt, pepper and onion powder. Using your hands gently mix all of the ingredients together.

Form into medium sized balls which you will get about 9. Place them on a baking tray that has an rim.Bake 30-35 minutes depending on the size of the meatball. They should look slightly browned with a bit of  a crust. The internal temp should be about 165 F.

While the meatballs are baking you can make the blue cheese sauce. In a medium sized bowl, combine all the ingredients together. Use the back of your spoon to mush some of the large blue cheese crumbles. If you are putting the sauce out as a dip you can make it a little thinner by adding a Tsp or two of milk.

Allow them to cool for a few minutes then toss them in the remaining buffalo wing sauce.

If you are serving them as a slider, place them on a roll that has the blue cheese sauce slathered on the inside and a piece of nice crispy romaine lettuce.

Enjoy!!

An InLinkz Link-up

Copycat Carrabba's Chicken Bryan

Happy First Day of Spring! It's supposed to snow a few inches this afternoon but hopefully this is the last snow of the season and we can move on quickly to sunny, warm weather.

When we used to go to Carrabba's in Florida by my Mom's house this was the dish I would always order. The Carrabba's near us in NJ is always so crowded and my husband doesn't like to wait long for a table so I only go to Carrabba's when I'm visiting my Mom.  I found this recipe on Pinterest from www.allrecipes.com.

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
2 tbsp Italian seasoning
PAM cooking spray
12 pieces sun dried tomato pieces diced
lemon butter sauce
3 oz. goat cheese (cut into 4 slices)
4 basil leaves, chopped

Sauce
4 tbsp butter, cut into pieces
1/2 medium onion, chopped
2 tbsp garlic, chopped
6 tbsp white wine
2 lemons juiced

Directions:
Season chicken breasts with Italian seasoning.  Spray PAM cooking spray on grill and heat until grill is hot.
While chicken is cooking make the lemon sauce.

In a saute pan add 2 tbsp butter and sauce the onions and garlic until soft.  Add white wine and lemon juice. Cook for 3-4 minutes on medium low to reduce.  Let cool slightly and add remaining butter stirring constantly until butter melts.  Do not let butter get too hot or it will separate.  Add sun dried tomatoes and basil and cook another minute.

When chicken is almost finished cooking add goat cheese slice to chicken.  Chicken should be cooked to at least 165 degrees before being taken off the grill.  You want the goat cheese to be softened and warm.

Take the chicken off the grill and place on a plate. Spoon lemon butter sauce over top, making sure each chicken piece has enough sun dried tomatoes, onions and basil on it.  Serve while warm.  I chopped a few extra pieces of basil to put on top.  This chicken goes nicely with mashed potatoes.

Enjoy!!

Slow Cooker Chicken and Potatoes

This chicken and potatoes recipe is warm, comforting and a complete meal full of flavor. There is nothing better than to come home from work or school and dinner be ready for everyone to eat. You won't even need to make a side dish to go along with it which is an extra perk. Now that I'm working part time I try and use the slow cooker as much as possible. I'm sure there will be lots of different chili's, stews and soups made this weekend in slow cookers with the upcoming storm. I hope everyone stays warm and enjoys the snow!!

Ingredients:

4 Small Bone-in Chicken Thighs

1 Cup Baby Carrots

3/4 Cup Pearl Onions

8 oz Mushrooms

1 1/4 lb Baby Potatoes

3/4 Cup Low Sodium Chicken Broth

1 Tbsp Herbs de Provence

1 Tsp Garlic Powder

1/4 Tsp Pepper

3/4  Cup Flour

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

Adpated from: http://www.culinary.net/

In a shallow dish combine the herbs de provence (thyme, fennel, basil and savory) with the garlic powder and pepper. Put the flour in another shallow dish. Coat each piece of chicken in the herb mixture than in the flour. In a large pan over medium heat add the olive oil and brown the chicken on both sides about 3-4 minutes.

In the bottom of the slow cooker arrange the carrots, potatoes and mushrooms. Put the browned chicken on top and pour the chicken broth over top. Place the lid on and allow everything to cook on high for 4 hours or  low for 8.

Enjoy!!

Linked at: http://www.thecountrycook.net/

Old Fashioned Chicken Noodle Soup

I have never made Chicken Noodle Soup before and I can tell you, you don't need much practice because this was delicious.  I wish I would have doubled this so we could have had the soup around for longer.  Now I will just have to make it again soon.  This is not a soup that has to simmer for hours.  And I used rotisserie chicken to make it even easier. The important thing is to use chicken broth that is NOT low sodium.  I made the mistake of making turkey soup with that and it tasted very bland. You can make this soup creamy by adding the milk or just make it regular and skip the milk. I wasn't sure how I would like the creaminess so I only put in a cup of milk but you could certainly add more milk or half and half to make it even more creamy. This recipe is adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp unsalted butter
3 carrots peeled and sliced
2 stalks celery sliced
1 yellow onion chopped
3 cloves garlic chopped
1 potato diced
1 tbsp flour
1 tbsp parsley
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp dried thyme
8 cups chicken broth (not low sodium)
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 cup 2% milk
5 cups uncooked egg noodles

Heat the butter in a large dutch oven over medium heat and add onion, celery, carrots and garlic.  Saute until tender and add flour, parsley, pepper, and thyme.  Stir and cook for another few minutes.  Add potato.

Add broth and stir.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Reduce heat.  Cover pot and allow to simmer for 30 minutes.

Add chicken and milk.  Mix and cook for 10 minutes.

Add noodles and cook for another 12 until noodles are tender and soap has thickened.  If you want the soup creamier add more milk.  I wasn't sure how I would feel about the creaminess of the soup so I stayed with this amount of milk but you could definitely add more.

Add more pepper if desired.  Serve warm.

Enjoy!!


Linked at: http://www.thecountrycook.net/

Mediterranean Chicken with Tomatoes and Cannelloni Beans

This recipe is adapted from A Spoonful of Thyme.  As soon as we got our assignment from the Secret Recipe Club last month I picked this as the dish I wanted to make and then Nicole said it was her turn to pick so I put the recipe aside. The other day Sam and I were in the mood for a new chicken dish so we decided to make this one. It was delicious with the lemon and oregano flavors and the longer it sat and the flavors got together the more delicious it was.  The first night my husband said it was okay.  The second time he had it as a leftover he said it was much better and he really enjoyed it.  Just like stew or chili or spaghetti sauce.  The longer it sits the better it gets so its perfect for a make-ahead meal.  
Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic crushed
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp hot sauce
1 tsp kosher salt
2 medium lemons, very thinly sliced
2 - 15 oz cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained
2 pints cherry tomatoes, red and yellow
1/2 cup chopped parsley

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Mix together the olive oil and all the spices in a small bowl.  Rub each piece of chicken with about 2 tsp of the olive oil/spice mixture.  Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large saute pan.  Place the chicken in a heated pan and saute for several minutes until golden brown.  Remove from pan and place in a large oven safe dish.

In a large bowl combine the remaining olive oil and spice mixture with the beans, tomatoes, lemon slices and 1/2 of the parsley.  Stir gently to coat.  Add this mixture to the baking dish with the chicken.  

Roast until the chicken is cooked through, about 30-35 minutes.  Sprinkle with remaining parsley.

Enjoy!!

Linked up at: http://www.thecountrycook.net/

Slow Cooker White Bean Chicken Chili

 Winter is the perfect time for warm and filling comfort foods and my go to meal on a cold snowy day always is a big bowl of chili. I usually make my Slow Cooker Chicken and Bean Chili which has a tomato base, tons of veggies like peppers and corn, and both kidney and black beans. I had an old friend contact me for a chili recipe a few months ago and I realized we only had one kind of chili up on the blog for almost 3 years. Her request inspired me to branch out and try a new kind of chili that has a white sauce instead of a red. Since then my mom has posted Playoff Chili which is beef, pork, beans and tomatoes so now we have a total of 3 different kinds to appease everyone's different tastes. This white bean chicken chili is hearty and creamy with the perfect amount of heat from the jalapenos and cayenne pepper. I hope you're give it a try sometime soon, I promise it won't disappoint.

Ingredients:

1 Large Onion - Diced

16 oz Bag White Cannellini Beans - Soaked overnight

7oz Can Jalapeno Wheels

3 Cloves of Garlic - Minced

2 1/2 Tsp Cumin

1 Tbsp Chili Powder

1/2 Tsp Cayenne Powder

1 Stick I Can't Believe it's not Butter

8 Tbsp Flour

3-4 Large Chicken Breasts - Cut into large pieces

3 Cups Low Sodium Fat Free Chicken Broth

6oz  Low Fat Plain Greek Yogurt

S&P

Adpated from: http://ovenlovinblog.com/

Start by mincing your garlic and dicing your onion. If you bought whole canned jalapenos by accident like I did you can dice those into wheels. Strain and rinse your beans if you've had them soaking overnight or if you don't want to use dried beans 2 15oz cans of beans are fine as well. Dump all that stuff in your largest slow cooker bowl. 

Then add your stick of butter which I ended up cutting in half as well as all of your seasonings. Salt & pepper the bowl and give everything a big mix to combine it all together.

Next it's time to add your large chicken pieces and the flour which will end up making a nice white sauce for your chili. Pour your chicken stock over the top of the bowl and give it another few stirs. Put the top on and set it to low heat. This will cook for 5-6 hours all together but the first 4 hours will be uninterrupted.

Once it has cooked for about 4 hours, use a slotted spoon to retrieve all of your cooked chicken. Dice it up into small bite sizes pieces and return it back into the bowl. Then add your Greek yogurt. Give everything a few good stirs and allow it took cook for at least another hour.

 If you feel like it's not thickening up you can always take the top of your slow cooker off or turn it onto a higher heat seating. I served it with some tortilla strips which gave it a nice crunch but a big piece of crusty bread would work as well. This recipe made a lot so after both John and I had it for a few meals we took the other half froze it. It tasted wonderfully both fresh and after being frozen, we will certainly be making it again sometime this winter.

Enjoy!!

Linked at: http://www.thecountrycook.net/

Italian Wedding Soup

I don't make homemade soup very often.  If I am in the mood for soup I usually just open a can of Campbells Tomato Soup. But I have always wanted to make Italian Wedding Soup so the other day I did. Its a little time consuming having to make 40 mini meatballs but its so worth it.  My whole family loved it.
And it made enough that we had it for a few days.  This recipe is from Ina Garten's Back to Basics.

Ingredients:
1-1/2 lbs ground chicken
2/3 cup bread crumbs
2 tsp minced garlic
3 tbsp chopped parsley leaves
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 tbsp milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Soup:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup minced yellow onion
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced celery
11 cups chicken stock
3/4 cup dry white wine
1 cup small pasta such as stars
1/2 cup minced fresh dill
12 oz spinach, washed and trimmed

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make the meatballs by combining the ground chicken, bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, cheese, milk, egg, salt and pepper in a bowl and gently combine with your hands.  Form 1-1/2" meatballs by rolling them in your hands and using a teaspoon as a guide if necessary.  Place meatballs on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  You should have about 40 mini meatballs.  Bake for 30 minutes until cooked through and lightly browned.  Set aside.

In the meantime heat the olive oil over medium low heat in a large heavy soup pot.  Add the onion, carrots and celery and saute until softened, about 8 minutes.

Add the chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil.  Add the pasta to the simmering broth and cook for 6 to 8 minutes.

Add the fresh dill and then the meatballs to the soup and simmer for 5 minutes.

Stir in the spinach and cook for 1 minute until the spinach is wilted.  Serve in soup bowls.  Top with more Parmesan cheese if desired.

Enjoy!!




Linked at: http://www.thecountrycook.net