Inspiring People to Cook Again
As most of my readers already know, I am not a vegetarian or a vegan. I like meat. My london broil or chicken cacciatore recipes make that pretty clear. Having said that, I am aware of some of the benefits that vegans experience because of […]
I’ve been drinking one or two protein shakes a day and for years now I have only been able to drink vanilla because the flavor of all the chocolate protein I have tried has been horrible and hard on my stomach. This all changed when I […]
Chicken Cacciatore is one of my all time favorite Italian dishes. I love the rich flavor of the sauce served over rice. I also like this dish because it is so versatile. See my cook’s notes for all of the various ways to shake up this dish.
It is also a great dish to make in a crock pot or slow cooker. You can easily brown the chicken and then add your sauce and everything and cook on low for about 5-6 hours or on high for about 3-4 hours.
Ingredients:
Directions:
Sprinkle each side of the chicken parts with salt, pepper and a light dusting of flour.
Heat a large heavy Dutch oven pan or large pot over medium high heat. Brown the chicken a few pieces at a time until they turn the color of a brown paper bag. You aren’t cooking the chicken completely you are just browning it. As each piece is browned place the chicken on a separate plate and continue until all the chicken is browned and removed from the pot. Turn down the heat and in that same pot add the butter, onion, garlic and pancetta.
Cook the onion mixture until brown over medium heat then add the chicken back into the pot. Pour in the white wine and cook for a minute or two then add the tomatoes and the chicken stock.
Season again with salt and pepper. Add the sugar, oregano and basil.
Stir a little, cover the pot and simmer for about 1 hour and 30 minutes over medium low heat. At this time you can add the sliced red pepper, mushrooms, peas, or any other twist you would like to the recipe. Cover again and cook for another. 30 minutes.
Once cooked transfer the chicken to a serving plate and serve with rice.
Cook’s Notes:
I like to vary my recipe from time to time so it isn’t boring. Here are some other things you can add to this recipe. One sliced green pepper, 1 Rosemary Stalk, a few sage leafs, or a cup of frozen peas.
Baked Salmon is a simple, healthy dish and so easy to prepare in just minutes. I love pairing it with this cucumber salad because it gives this dish a great crunch and texture. We eat a lot of fish in my house and […]
Roasted eggplant and chickpeas taste so great together. It can be served as a side dish or over rice or pasta as a main dish. It’s a great vegetarian recipe that also makes for a wonderful appetizer over crusty bread. See my “Cook’s Notes” below […]
Stuffed zucchini squash is a light, healthy Mediterranean dish that can be made with any type of ground meat. I prefer ground chicken because it does have some fat but if you want to go real lean, use ground turkey. It’s easy to prepare and can even be made ahead of time and just popped in the oven when you get home.
I made this dish last week and brought it over to my neighbor’s house and we ate every bite of it. Even the kids loved it. As always, don’t be afraid to get creative with this dish. You can add some basil, parsley, and hot red pepper. You can even make this a vegetarian dish by just replacing the ground meat with one chopped squash. Just buy and extra squash and chop it up for the filling.
Ingredients:
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Trim ends off of the zucchini. Cut the zucchini in half long ways and slice a small sliver on the back of the zucchini creating a flat base so they won’t roll around. See my photos below for example.
Scoop out center with a tablespoon, leaving 1/4-inch shell. Place in a greased baking dish with open centers facing up. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place uncovered in the oven and bake for about 10 minutes while you make the stuffing.
Chop the zucchini that you removed from the center and set aside. In a large frying pan over medium high heat add oil and Sauté ½ of the onion and garlic (save the other half for the sauce.) Add the chopped zucchini and cook for about 5 minutes. Add ground beef, bouillon, cumin, salt and pepper. Cook for another 5 minutes until meat is mixed with veggies and cooked. Add the white wine and cook for another minute or two. Remove from heat and place meat mixture in a large bowl and set aside.
Remove the zucchini from the oven. In the same frying pan you cooked the meat add the remainder of the onions and the garlic with a little olive oil. Sauté for a few minutes over medium high heat being sure not to burn. Add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, oregano and sugar. Simmer for about 5-10 minutes.
Remove from heat and set aside. Add the egg and the breadcrumbs to the meat mixture. You are now ready to assemble.
To assemble zucchini, add a little tomato sauce to the bottom of the pan that the zucchini are in. You may have to move them out of the way to do that. Then using a tablespoon fill the zucchini with the meat mixture, being sure to divide it evenly over the dish. Top with some of the remaining sauce, making sure it isn’t swimming in sauce. If you have extra sauce save it to serve on the side. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese, cover with foil and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes remove the squash, top with the cheese and place back in the oven uncovered until cheese is melted. You can even broil for a minute but don’t burn the cheese or it will get chewy and hard.
Once the cheese is melted, remove from the oven and allow the dish to cool a few minutes before serving.
Cook’s notes:
Most adults will eat a half of the squash, as a serving so one squash should be two servings. This recipe makes about 6-8 servings.
Chicken vegetable soup with chicken spinach meatballs, is a great healthy dish for a light dinner or lunch. I like to use ground chicken because it has great flavor and less fat than beef but any ground meat will work. You can also use ground […]
Vegetable soup with Escarole and beans is an easy, healthy vegetarian soup recipe that can be made for a quick dinner or a light lunch. Any small pasta like orzo, tubatini or shells works great in this dish, but most of the time I like […]
