Day 1- Stuffed Chicken with steamed Kale and cheesy mashed potatoes

So far, a success!

The menu for last night was the title of this post. The chicken was smashed to 1/4 in thickness with my cast iron skillet (who needs a hammer!), coated on one side with egg to make it sticky and then with bread crumbs. I then mashed a healthy tablespoon of goat cheese to 2tbs diced spring onions and a little salt of pepper, formed it into a small log and rolled the un-breaded side of the chicken around it. The sauce I made for the chicken to bake in consisted of 5tbs butter, a splash of white wine (probably no more then 1/4cup) 1 can of diced artichoke hearts, 3tbs of spring onions, half & half, salt and pepper. I heated the butter and wine to a simmer, let it cook out for a few minutes, then added the artichokes, spring onions, salt and pepper and then, as an afterthought, I added a tablespoon of half & half. I wanted to slightly thicken the sauce and it did just the trick!

For the potatoes, I used 7 small red, peeled (I HATE peeling potatoes but this time I had to) half & half, 1tbs butter, 1tbs minced garlic and a handful of cheddar.

I steamed the Kale.

Would I make this again?

Sure, but with a few adjustments. As always, my serving portion was WAY to large...

I needed the mashed potatoes for tonight's dinner but I should have used a smaller chicken breast with less filling. It was very very rich so it would have been good to have some crusty bread to go along with the meal. The kale... I just don't enjoy it! Joshua loves it for its anti-inflammatory benefits so I get it for him, and usually he eats it every night! There's probably 4 night worth of kale left and I really don't want it to go to waste. This might be the week that I learn to love it.

THIS MORNING!

I was very proud of myself. I really wanted to grab something on the go but as my budget is $25 I don't want it depleted on silly things like fast food. So to the fridge I went! A Smoothie with OJ, Carrots, Celery, Pineapple and Strawberries? Yes Please! My sister-in-law Lauren gives her picky eater son Sawyer smoothies hiding good-for-you things, so why not I? Oh yes, because I am usually too busy and rushed to make one. Well today, I was late because of my smoothie skills, and I couldn't feel better about it!

Who needs to be on time anyway?

Chicken Rice soup

Ingredients:

• Lots of chopped Celery and Carrots
• 2 Large Leeks
• 1 pint of sliced mushrooms
• A splash of white wine
• Leftover roasted chicken bits
• Chicken broth (I used Tristin's recipe found here)

Heat up you're soup pot with a few drizzles of Olive oil to medium high and throw in the celery, carrots, leeks and mushrooms. Cover and let cook, stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes. This allows the steam to soften the carrots and celery.

Add the White wine and let it cook uncovered for 5 more minutes.

Throw in the broth and chicken and cover the simmering soup for 30 more minutes stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, cook 1 1/2 cups of dry rice in 2 1/2 cups of water. A rice cooker works perfectly for this. You want a sticky rice, not fluffy so cook accordingly. :0)

The soup should cook a total of 45 minutes. Believe it! Josh is terribly sick today, so this was made for him.

Scoop in the rice to the bowl,

then add the broth over the top.

A delicious way to feel better in no time!

maybe...

It is a very plain soup so feel free to add whatever spices or seasonings you'd like. Josh needed it to be very plain so that's why I made it the way I did.

Mater-Choken-Chicken

This is what I'm planning on making to tonight. I made it up last week for Joshua and he came up with the fantastic name for it.

Here is what I used:

Drizzle of Olive Oil

2 Chicken Breasts sliced into strips

1 Sweet Onion chopped

5 Roma Tomatoes quartered then sliced

1 can of quartered Artichoke hearts

A good handful of fresh spinach

1/2 Cup white wine

a splash of lime juice

Salt and Pepper.

Shaved Parmesan Cheese (as much as your heart desires)

Add the olive oil and sliced chicken to a medium hot pan, cover and cook for about 4 minutes.

Add the onion, turn the chicken and cover for a few more minutes, stirring every so often. when chicken is all white throughout, add the tomato and white wine. Cook uncovered until tomato starts to loose it's shape. Add the artichoke, lime, salt and pepper and cook for 3 more minutes, and just when everything looks like it might be done, add the spinach. Right before serving from the pan, add the cheese. Serve and enjoy!

The great thing about this recipe is that it only takes about 30 minutes to make, so once I get home I can run the dishwasher, defrost the chicken, scrub my kitchen counters clean (I'm a little OCD about the cleanliness of my kitchen counters...) do a load of laundry, unload the dishwasher, take care of the dog and make myself a cup of Chai tea all before Joshua has left work! (At least that's what I'm hoping will happen today, especially the laundry part...)