Root Beer Baked Beans with Bacon

Oh hahaha. My first title read, "Toot Beer Baked Beans." Ain't that the truth?

I generally like baked beans. What makes me not like them is when people ruin them by putting green bell peppers in them. Blech. While this recipe has said onions, this girl did not include them.

I made this for May's Sunday dinner. And almost, almost didn't follow the recipe and added one more can of beans.

A couple things about this recipe:
1. I couldn't find root beer extract. So instead I tried to reduce rootbeer to get a stronger flavor. That didn't work at all. And so consequently I don't think you could taste the root beer at all in this recipe.

and

2. The recipe says it feeds 12. No way. I had 7 and had about a serving left. 

Root Beer Baked Beans with Bacon

Photo from Cuisine at Home

Recipe from Cuisine at Home - June 2015

4 strips thick sliced bacon
2 c diced onions
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 T minced fresh garlic
2 c root beer
2 cans pinto beans (15.5 oz each), drained and rinsed
1 can tomato puree (10.75 oz)
1/2 c ketchup
1/4 c packed dark brown sugar
2 T Worcestershire sauce
2 T cider vinegar
1 T prepared yellow mustard
1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce
1/2 tsp root beer extract
Salt and pepper
3 slices white bread, buttered
2 T minced fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 425F.

For the beans, cook bacon in a nonstick skillet until crisp; transfer to paper towel lined plate and discard all but 1 T fat.

Sweat onions, bell pepper and garlic in drippings over medium heat until soft, 5 minutes.

Deglaze skillet with root beer and bring to a boil; reduce until nearly evaporated, 10 minutes. Stir in beans, tomato puree, ketchup, brown sugar, W sauce, vinegar, mustard, Tabasco, root beer extract, salt and reserved bacon; bring to a simmer. Transfer beans to baking dish.

For topping: pulse bread in a food processor to crumbs. Add parsley; pulse to combine. Top beans with bread crumb mixture; bake until crumbs are toasted and beans are bubbly, 15 minutes.

Asian Peanut Noodles with Chicken

This turned out a bit like phad thai.  And delicious...the problem with this recipe was portion control. The serving size is a cup and a third.  A cup? Seriously?

It's another recipe from the SkinnyTaste Cookbook. I swear I'm going to cook every recipe in this book.

This recipe requires a little bit of planning...a little bit. You need to make the peanut sauce and allow it time to reduce.

Asian Peanut Noodles with Chicken
Recipe from The Skinnytaste Cookbook

Serves 6

Photo of the photo in the Skinnytaste Cookbook

1 1/3 c = 359 calories

Peanut Sauce:
1 c fat free chicken broth
5 T Better n' Peanut Butter (found at Trader Joe's)
2 T honey
2 T soy sauce
1 T sriracha sauce
1 T grated fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, crushed

Chicken and Vegetables
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into thin strips
salt and pepper
1 T sriracha sauce
1 T soy sauce
Juice of 1/2 lime
4 garlic cloves, crushed

1 T fresh ginger
1/2 T sesame oil
3/4 c chopped scallions
1 1/4 c shredded carrots
1 1/4 c broccoli slaw
8 oz rice noodles
2 T chopped unsalted roasted peanuts
6 lime wedges
6 sprigs of fresh cilantro, for garnish

For the peanut sauce: In a small saucepan, combine the chicken broth, peanut butter, honey, soy sauce, Sriracha, ginger, and garlic. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the flavors blend and the sauce is slightly thickened, 8-10 minutes.

For the chicken: Season with salt and pepper, then transfer it to a large bowl and add the Sriracha, soy sauce, lime juice, 2 garlic cloves and the ginger.

Heat a large nonstick skillet or wok over high heat. Add the sesame oil, then add the chicken. Cook, stirring, until cooked through, 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Add the remaining 2 garlic cloves, the scallions, carrots, and broccoli slaw and season with a pinch of salt. Coo, stirring, until the vegetables are crisp-tender, 1-2 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Cook the noodles in a large pot of water according to package directions. Drain and put them in the hot skillet or wok.  Add the chicken and peanut sauce and cook, tossing everything together for a minute.

Divide among 6 bowls. Top with 1/3 c vegetables and 1 tsp peanuts. Serve with lime wedges and a sprig of cilantro.

Chicken Marsala on the Lighter Side

I probably haven't mentioned it enough but my new favorite cookbook is The Skinnytaste Cookbook. I've read the SkinnyTaste blog for years and have loved every recipe I've made from the site.

I expected this recipe to be just as delicious for many reasons. 1. it's SkinnyTaste and 2. It's chicken marsala.  What's not to like?

This recipe is easy and scrumptious. If you are a fan of chicken marsala, you will not even notice this is "on the lighter side". In fact, I liked it better than many of my other chicken marsala recipes.

I will admit, however, I didn't use marsala. I have all this madeira wine so figured I might as well use it. It did not disappoint.

Chicken Marsala on the Lighter Side

Picture of the picture in the cookbook

Recipe from The Skinnytaste Cookbook (buy this book)

Serves 4
Serving size: 1 breast + mushrooms and sauce
Calories: 241

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
kosher salt
ground pepper
1/4 c + 1 tsp flour
1 T unsalted butter
2 tsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 c finely chopped shallots
8 oz sliced cremini mushrooms
3 oz sliced shiitake mushrooms
1/3 c marsala wine
1/2 c fat free chicken broth
2 T chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 200F.

Slice the chicken breasts in half lengthwise to make 4 cutlets. Put each cutlet between two sheets of plastic wrap and lightly pound them until they are about 1/4" thick. Season with salt and pepper.

Put the flour in a shallow bowl and lightly dredge the chicken pieces in flour, shaking off the excess. Set aside. Reserve 1 tsp of the flour to use later.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 tsp butter and 1 tsp olive oil to the pan and swirl the pan until butter has melted.  Add the chicken and cook until golden on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to an oven safe place and put in the oven.

Add remaining 1/2 T butter and 1 tsp olive oil to the skillet. Add the garlic and shallot and cook until soft and golden, about 2 minutes.  Add mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes.  Sprinkle in the reserved 1 tsp flour and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds.

Add the Marsala wine, chicken broth, and parsley. Cook, stirring and scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until thickened, about 2 minutes.

Return the chicken to the skillet with the mushrooms, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer in the sauce to let the flavors blend, about 4 to 5 minutes.

To serve, put a piece of chicken on each of 4 serving plates. Spoon the mushrooms and sauce evenly over the top.

Tandoori-Style Chicken with Cucumber-Yogurt Sauce

So book club #2 girls are coming to dinner tonight. I wanted to make kebabs and I wanted some yogurt marinade.

Weight Watchers Ultimate Chicken cookbook came through with this recipe. Simple recipe, but you should allow for longer than an hour to marinade.

According to the cookbook a serving  is 1 chicken thigh and about 2 T sauce to be 213 calories. I didn't use thighs so with chicken breast maybe it's a bit less.

Tandoori-Style Chicken with Cucumber Yogurt Sauce

Photo borrowed from My Fiance likes it So it must be good blog. 

Recipe from Weight Watchers Ultimate Chicken Cookbook

1 1/2 c plain fat-free yogurt
2 T lemon juice
1 T paprika
1 T minced peeled fresh ginger
1 T pickled jalapeno pepper, minced
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 skinless boneless chicken thighs
1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and grated
1/2 tsp salt

Combine 1 c yogurt, lemon juice, paprika, ginger, jalapeno, garlic, curry, cumin and cinnamon in a bowl. Add chicken and sauce to a zip loc bag and refrigerate for an hour or more.

Meanwhile, mix the remaining yogurt and cucumber in a bowl with salt. (JW note: I added some lemon juice to this too).

Preheat the oven to 450F. Line a large shallow baking pan with foil. Place a wire rack in the pan; spray with nonstick spray. Cook chicken and discard marinade. Bake until chicken is cooked through 25-30 minutes. Serve with yogurt sauce.

JW note: I grilled the chicken on kebab skewers. With the yogurt marinade you need to do one of two things. Either wipe off a good portion of the yogurt marinade that clings to the chicken (not my favorite thing to do). Or be sure there's enough space between the pieces of chicken on the skewers so the heat can get to the yogurt marinade. If you don't, you get this weird pasty substance between the pieces of chicken. It not only looks weird, but has a weird texture.

Or it could just be me.

Herb Vegetable Orzo Salad

I've been making this salad for years...like almost 10 years.  It first shows up on my blog in 2009 but I am sure I made it for Mom and Dad's 30th wedding anniversary in 2001. 

At any rate, I made it again today for some friends coming to dinner. It always makes me think of summer. It's a refreshing little salad that makes a light side on a hot summer day.

Herb Vegetable Orzo Salad

Picture from Taste of Home

Recipe from Taste of Home

1 c uncooked orzo pasta
2 c frozen corn, thawed
1/2 c cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 c pitted kalamata olives (or greek olives work well here too)
1/4 c chopped sweet red onion
1/4 c basil chiffonade
2 T minced fresh parsley
2 T balsamic vinegar
1 T olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta according to instructions. Drain and rinse in cold water. Toss it and everything else in a bowl and mix.

Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Side note: Red onions can often get over bearing in a salad like this. I cut my onion in half and submerge the cut side in cold water for 15 minutes. It really cuts down on the onion bite and leaves you with a great texture and a nice onion flavor.

Mom's Macaroni Salad

The Niece asked me for my macaroni salad recipe today...and I have to admit, it's actually my Mom's recipe.  Well, "recipe" is loosely what it is. I have never written it down and am sure mom probably hasn't either.

So here it is Niece, but it's a taste and fix type of recipe.

Mom's Macaroni Salad

1 box elbow macaroni
1 can chopped black olives
1 small jar chopped pimientos, drained
4 green onions, chopped
2 hard boiled eggs, chopped
a couple of spoon fulls of mayo

Cook your macaroni, drain it and rinse with cool water. I've found letting the mac dry allows the mayonnaise to stick to it better.

In a bowl, mix cooled/dried mac, olives, pimientos, onions and eggs. Add a couple of spoons of mayo, mix. The end result should be creamy, but not overly creamy.

Salt and pepper to taste. Put in the fridge overnight.

Before you serve, mix it and add some more mayo if necessary.