Jalapeño Roasted Chicken with Broccolini

Pin It

I know ham is the traditional protein served on Christmas day, but if you want to switch things up a bit I suggest trying out roasted chicken! It's super moist and delicious, not to mention it is extremely easy to make. This version is a little spicy from the jalapeño (but not too bad since the seeds are removed) and it's paired with deliciously moist roasted broccolini. The pan juices are a perfect sauce to accompany the chicken. Everyone will be fighting over the crispy, blistered parts. They're the best. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

Jalapeno paste:

• 1/2 cup packed fresh oregano leaves or 1/3 cup dried oregano
• 1 shallot, peeled and roughly chopped
• 4 tsp. garlic, minced
• 4 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 jalapeno, stemmed and seeded
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper

Chicken:

• 1 (5 1/2 lb.) roasting chicken
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 2 shallots, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth, plus more if needed
• 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 2 lbs. baby broccoli (broccolini)
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• Salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Jalapeno paste: In the bowl of a food processor, combine the oregano, shallot, garlic, butter, 2 tbsp. olive oil, the jalapeno, salt and pepper and process to form a coarse paste.

Chicken: Pat the chicken dry and then put it, breast side up, on a rack in a large roasting pan. Using your fingers, loosen the skin from the chicken breast, legs, and thighs without detaching it. Spread half of the jalapeno paste under the skin. Put the rosemary and the shallots in the cavity of the chicken. Tie the chicken legs together with kitchen twine. Spread the remaining jalapeno paste all over the exterior of the chicken. Pour the chicken broth and wine into the roasting pan.

Roast the chicken for 1 hour, basting with the pan juices every 20 minutes, adding more broth to the pan if it begins to dry out.

Remove the roasting pan from the oven. Arrange the baby broccoli snugly around the chicken on the rack. Drizzle the olive oil over the florets and season them with salt and pepper, to taste. Roast the chicken with the baby broccoli, basting occasionally with the pan juices (adding more broth to the pan if necessary), until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the innermost part of the chicken thigh, without touching the bone, registers 160 degrees F, about 30 minutes. Remove the roast chicken from the oven, tent it in foil and let it rest for 15 minutes.

Arrange the chicken on a platter, and surround it with the broccoli. Serve.

Source: Adapted from Food Network

Snickerdoodles

Pin It

I'm currently at the hospital getting induced and getting ready to meet our little girl!! YAY! I've set up some posts for you all until I get back at it, but until then…ENJOY AND MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

I never knew such a simple cookie could taste so good. Snickerdoodles really just consist of all your standard cookie ingredients (sugar, flour, vanilla, etc.), but then they're rolled in a cinnamon-sugar combination for a sweet crust. These are fluffy and light with a perfect amount of sweetness. My husband took some to some of his friends and a few proclaimed they were the best snickerdoodles they've ever tasted. I'll count that as a win. And they're an excellent choice for the Christmas dessert table. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. cream of tartar
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 3 tbsp. white sugar
• 2 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Cream together butter, shortening, 1 1/2 cups sugar, the eggs and the vanilla. Blend in the flour, cream of tartar, soda and salt. Shape dough by rounded spoonfuls into balls.

Mix the remaining 3 tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon. Roll balls of dough in mixture. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until set but not too hard. Remove immediately from baking sheets. Store in an airtight container.

Source: Adapted from All Recipes

Cheesy Veggie-Packed Baked Farfalle

Pin It

The past few months I have been stocking up our freezer in anticipation of baby girl's arrival, and that usually means doubling what we're eating for dinner and freezing half of it. Pasta dishes and casseroles work great when freezing, and this recipe fits both criteria. It contains a lot of vegetables, and I opted for turkey sausage instead of pork sausage to save some calories. Plus it allowed me to put some extra cheese on top :) Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 box (16 oz.) dried farfalle pasta
• 1 lb. uncooked ground Italian turkey sausage
• 1 cup eggplant, chopped
• 8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 large red pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 3 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp. dried basil, crushed
• 1 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 2 tbsp. Parmesan cheese, grated
• 2 cups reduced-fat Italian blend cheese, shredded, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 13x9 inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting any salt or oil. Drain; set aside.

Meanwhile, in a very large skillet cook sausage, eggplant, mushrooms, sweet pepper, onion and garlic over medium heat until sausage is browned and vegetables are just tender, stirring to break up sausage as it cooks. Drain off any fat. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, dried basil, dried oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off heat and stir in Parmesan cheese.

In a very large bowl stir together the pasta and sausage mixture. Stir in 1 cup of the Italian blend cheese. Spoon mixture into prepared baking dish.

Bake, covered, for 35 to 40 minutes or until heated through. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining 1 cup Italian blend cheese. Bake about 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted.

Source: SK Original

Crockpot Bourbon Chicken

Pin It

No, you didn't misread the ingredient list. There really is no bourbon in this bourbon chicken recipe. I chose to exclude it because honestly…I don't love the taste, and most of the other "Bourbon Chicken" recipes I looked at didn't contain bourbon in them either. So weird. But whatever you want to call this chicken, it's just plain delicious. Chicken thighs get so tender, especially when slow cooked, and the combination sweet/savory sauce is amazing. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1/4 tsp. ginger
• 4 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1/3 cup apple juice
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 3 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 3 tbsp. corn starch
• Rice, cooked, for serving

Place the chicken in a slow cooker.

In a small bowl, mix the ginger, garlic, red pepper flakes, apple juice, honey, brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar, water and soy sauce. Pour sauce over chicken.

Cover and cook on LOW 6-7 hours or on HIGH 3 hours.

When done, remove chicken from the crockpot. If desired, cut into bite-size pieces or you can keep them whole.

Meanwhile, put the cornstarch in a small bowl. Remove about 1/4 cup of liquid from the slow cooker and add it to the cornstarch. Stir very well. Pour the cornstarch slurry into the remaining liquid in the crockpot and stir to combine. Add the chicken back into the crockpot and stir to combine. 

Serve over rice.

Source: Adapted from Spend with Pennies

Fall Baked Acorn Squash

Pin It

My friend, Christy, posted this recipe on her Instagram page one day, and I couldn't get it out of my head! As soon as I found some acorn squash in the store, I bought them and needed to replicate the recipe. I added my own twist by adding some stuffing to make the filling heartier, but you can totally leave that out and double the rest of the filling ingredients if you want! We really enjoyed the filling with the flavorful stuffing, though. Perfect for this time of year. And it paired so well with the tender acorn squash! Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 acorn squash
• 2 tbsp. olive oil, divided
• Sea salt, to taste
• 1 (6 oz. box) savory herb flavored Stove Top stuffing mix
• 4 links apple flavored chicken sausages, casings removed
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1/2 Granny Smith apple, chopped
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 

Cut the acorn squash in half and scoop out the guts. Place cut side up on a baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 tbsp. olive oil and sea salt. Bake for 40 minutes and remove from oven.

Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

Meanwhile, cook the stuffing according to the package directions and set aside in a large bowl.

Heat 1 tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet. Add the chicken sausage, celery, onion and garlic. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until chicken is browned and vegetables are tender, breaking up the chicken into small pieces. Add to the bowl with the stuffing mixture.

Add apple and Parmesan cheese to the stuffing mixture and stir to combine. Divide the stuffing mixture equally among the four acorn squash halves. 

Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until the tops begin to slightly brown. Serve immediately.

Source: Adapted from my friend Christy