Orange Chicken

Pin It

 

I love ordering Chinese food and trying new things, but I've never been a fan of Orange Chicken. It's usually too sweet for me and something about putting orange juice in the sauce just turns me off.

I did, however, try a Chinese food place recently that changed my opinion of this. The sauce was only a tad bit sweet and didn't ruin the flavor of the chicken at all. After that, I was on a hunt to find the perfect recipe.

This Orange Chicken will probably change your perception of this classic Chinese dish if you have never been a fan. The sauce is sweet, but once you pair it with the chicken it mellows out and the two blend together perfectly. I found the sauce a bit too sweet on its own, but Chris enjoyed it. I think it's just a preference thing! I just added some extra soy sauce to mine before sprinkling it over the rice, and it was perfect. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

For the marinade and sauce:

• 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 3/4 cup orange juice
• 1 tsp. finely grated orange zest
• 6 tbsp. white vinegar
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• ½ cup brown sugar (dark or light)
• 3 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 1/2 lbs. boneless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 tbsp. plus 2 tsp. cornstarch
• 2 tbsp. cold water
• 8 thin strips orange peel (optional)
• Rice, cooked, for serving (optional)

For the coating and frying:

• 3 large egg whites
• 1 cup cornstarch
• ½ tsp. baking soda
• ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2 cups peanut or canola oil

To make the marinade and sauce, combine the chicken broth, orange juice, orange zest, vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger and cayenne pepper in a large bowl. Whisk to blend well.  Measure out 1/2 cup of the mixture and transfer it to a large zipper lock plastic bag.  Add the chicken pieces to the bag, pressing out the excess air and sealing well.  Refrigerate and let marinate 30-60 minutes, but no longer.  

Place the remaining mixture into a saucepan with the remaining mixture on the stove. Leave alone for now. 

To prepare the coating, place the egg whites in a pie plate and whisk until frothy.  In a second pie plate combine the cornstarch, baking soda and cayenne pepper; whisk to blend.  Drain the chicken of the marinade in a colander or large strainer; pat dry with paper towels.  Place half of the chicken pieces in the egg whites and turn to coat.  Transfer the pieces to the cornstarch mixture and coat thoroughly, shaking off the excess.  Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.

To fry the chicken, heat the oil in a 11- or 12-inch round Dutch oven or straight-sided sauté pan until the oil reaches 350˚ F.  Carefully place half of the chicken pieces in the oil and fry until golden brown, about 4 minutes, turning the pieces halfway through cooking.  Remove from the oil with a skimmer or slotted spoon and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.  Return the oil to 350˚ F and repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.

While chicken is cooking heat the remaining sauce mixture over medium-high heat.  Bring to a simmer.  In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and water until smooth.  Add the mixture to the saucepan with the sauce. Continue simmering until the sauce is thick and translucent, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the strips of orange peel, if using.  

Toss sauce with the cooked chicken pieces.  Serve over rice, if desired.

Source: Adapted from Annie's Eats

Monkey Muffins

Pin It

One little round is missing. I may or may not have eaten it before I could snap a picture.


Christmas morning is always here and gone before you know it. Especially if you have a large family like I do. When we were younger the whole process of waking up, opening presents, cleaning up, putting toys together and taking pictures can take up a large chunk of your morning. My dad always used to make Sausage McMuffins when we were done, but he did all the prep work beforehand so all he had to do was heat them up for us. If you're looking for another recipe that you can easily put together and not fuss over so you can enjoy time with your family, I've got the recipe for you.

Recipes that require no mixing, limited kitchen tools and hardly no time to make are my favorites. Especially since they're finished cooking before you know it and there's hardly any clean up! For these muffins, all you have to do is layer (that's right, layer!...no mixing, blending or combining) the ingredients inside a muffin tin and pop them in the oven. The frosting is simply sweetened condensed milk (I NEVER would have thought to use that), which is an amazing icing substitute. Hope you give these a try Christmas morning so you can spend more quality time with your family!

Here's the pan lined up before baking. So easy...just layer the ingredients and you're set!

Finished muffins with a drizzle of sweetened condensed milk.

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• Refrigerated biscuit dough, cut into quarters
• Butter
• Sugar
• Ground cinnamon
• Sweetened, condensed milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Add 1/2 teaspoon butter to muffin tins. Sprinkle in about 1 tsp. sugar and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon.

Cut dough into quarters. Roll each piece into walnut sized balls. Place three into each muffin tin.

Top with 1/2 teaspoon butter. Sprinkle on about 1/3 tsp. sugar and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon.

Allow dough to rise, if applicable, or just go ahead and bake for 15 minutes, or until golden and bubbly.

Remove from oven and immediately drizzle plenty of sweetened condensed milk over the top of each one. Be generous! Allow rolls to sit for a little while before serving.

Scoop out with a spoon and serve.

Source: Adapted from Pioneer Woman

Cilantro Lime Shrimp

Pin It

It's that time of year again! Christmas cookies, holiday parties, fancy cocktails...all recipes for a beautiful disaster. And by disaster I mean weight gain. We all do it.

Since I know the kitchen at work is going to be overflowing with baked goods the next few weeks and I have more Christmas get-togethers lined up than I can fit in my schedule, I thought it would be smart to at least make dinner somewhat healthy. At least that's one thing I can control.

Shrimp is always my go-to when trying to eat healthy because it's so easy to make and Chris and I both love it. Cilantro and lime are one of my favorite combinations on seafood, and this recipe is no exception. I served this over Cilantro Lime Rice and they were perfect together. It would also be great with some warm, crusty bread. Try this recipe out and maybe it will help save your waistline, too!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 2 lbs. shrimp, shelled and deveined
• 6 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 lime
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat a large frying pan on medium-high heat.


Season shrimp with salt and pepper. Add oil to the pan and add shrimp when hot. When the shrimp is cooked on one side, about 2 minutes, turn over and add garlic. Sauté another minute or two until shrimp is cooked, careful not to overcook. Remove from heat. Squeeze lime all over shrimp and toss with cilantro. Serve with Cilantro Lime Rice.

Source: Adapted from Skinny Taste

Grilled Cheese with Fried Ham

Pin It

This was a staple in our house growing up.  Not just ordinary grilled cheese, but grilled cheese with fried ham. If you've never had it, it will change your world. My mom would also make it with fried bologna once in a while, but that only works if you have the fresh, thin-sliced bologna from the deli. Both are amazing.

It took me a few times to learn that the trick to making perfect grilled cheese is cooking it for a long period of time over low heat. This way allows the bread to slowly brown, but gives it enough time to let the cheese melt. I used to be so impatient that I would cook it over medium-high heat, but I'd be left with really crisp bread and cold cheese. Not the ideal grilled cheese sandwich. So take your time and you'll wind up with this pretty looking and delicious tasting thing!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 slices white bread
• 1/2 tbsp. plus 1 tbsp. butter, softened
• 5-6 slices deli ham
• 2 slices American cheese (or your favorite cheese)

Melt 1/2 tbsp. butter over medium heat in a small frying pan. Once melted, add ham and cook until browned on both sides, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat.

Spread remaining butter on one side of both pieces of bread. Heat a pan to medium-low heat. Place the first piece of bread butter side down in the pan. Put the cheese on top and then top with the ham. Place the second pieces of bread, butter side up, on top of the ham.

Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes or until the first side is brown. The trick to perfect grilled cheese is to cook it for a long period of time over medium-low heat to allow the cheese to melt without the bread getting brown too quickly.

Once the first side is browned, flip the sandwich and cook the second slice of bread. Once brown and cheese is melted, remove from heat and serve with your favorite chips!

Source: My mom

Baked Scallops

Pin It

Here's another one for the rotation.

My favorite dinners are those that come together in no more than 20 minutes, are reasonably cheap, use basic ingredients, and are, for the most part, healthy. This dish fits all four criteria and has great flavor on top of all that! The only thing I had to buy at the grocery store were scallops, which were on sale for $8. Talk about a bargain. Serve this with some crusty bread and you're in business!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• Flat leaf Italian parsley, chopped
• 1 lb. bay scallops
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 4 tbsp. breadcrumbs
• 2 tsp. unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, parsley and scallops. Season with salt and pepper. Stir well to combine. Set aside.

Spray your ramekins with cooking spray. Using a slotted spoon place enough scallops into each ramekin so that they are 3/4 full or equally divided between the four ramekins. Top with 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs per ramekin and a 1/2 teaspoon butter each.

Bake until golden and bubbly, approximately 10-15 minutes.

Source: Bell'alimento