What's Cookin' Wednesday ~ Chicken Quesadillas

Chicken Quesadillas

 

 

 A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I made chicken quesadillas and they were seriously amazingly delicious and super easy.

 

I made them for dinner and made rice and black beans with it.

This would be great as is for lunch.... or as a quick snack.

So here is the recipe and how you whip them together...

 

What You Need

 

2 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

2 Tablespoons Taco Seasoning

Butter for frying

Vegetable Oil for sautéing

1/2 medium onion sliced super thin

1/2 red pepper, sliced thin

1/2 green pepper, sliced thin

4-6 whole Small Flour Tortillas (fajita Size)

 Grated Cheddar-Jack Cheese or whatever you fancy

Salsa, For Serving

Sour Cream, For Serving

Jalapeno Slices, For Serving

 

You of course can add or remove any of these items....but this is what I did.

Also, you can double the recipe if you need to feed more...

 

What You Do

 

Heat vegetable oil in a skillet over high heat. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken with taco seasoning. Add the chicken to the skillet and sauté over medium-high heat until done, about 4 minutes per side. Remove from the skillet, allow to cool slightly, shred or dice. Set aside.

In the same skillet over medium-high heat, throw in the onions and peppers and cook until the veggies are golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Melt 1/2 tablespoon of the butter in a separate skillet or griddle over medium heat and lay a flour tortilla in the skillet. Build the quesadillas by laying a good amount of grated cheese on the bottom tortilla, and then arranging the chicken and cooked peppers on the cheese. Top with a little more grated cheese and top with a second tortilla.

When the tortilla is golden on the first side, carefully flip the quesadilla to the other side, adding another 1/2 tablespoon butter to the skillet at the same time. Continue cooking until the second side is golden.

Repeat with the remaining tortillas and fillings. Cut into wedges and serve with salsa, sour cream, jalapeno slices, and cilantro.

 

 

These were so so soooo yummy!!
I hope you make them and enjoy them soon!!

 

Happy Wednesday Folks!

 

~Tiffany~

 

Chicken Tortilla Soup

So I'm about to type "What's Cookin' Wednesday" in my post title, and I realize it's Thursday.

That's exciting... haha but anyway.

On Monday I made Chicken Tortilla Soup for dinner and it was delicious!
It's another Pioneer Woman recipe which I modified a tad to satisfy our taste buds...

Here is my version....

You can find PW's here

 

Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

About 1 1/4 teaspoons chilli powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 package of Chicken Breast tenderloins

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small diced onion

Half of a green bell pepper, diced small

Half of red bell pepper, diced small

3 cloves garlic, minced

One 10-ounce can diced tomatoes and green chiles, such as Rotel

3 cans of low sodium chicken broth

4 cups hot water

1 can of tomato paste

Half a 15-ounce can of black beans, drained

(Use more beans if you like them, I hate them so I only put them in for Ted)

2 tablespoons cornmeal

2 tablespoons of Masa

5 small white corn tortillas

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees

 

Start by mixing together the cumin, 1 teaspoon of the chilli powder, the garlic powder and salt. Drizzle the chicken tenders with some olive oil. Then sprinkle with some of the spice mixture. Set the rest of the spice mixture aside. Bake until the chicken is cooked all the way through, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove it from the oven. Shred chicken.

 

Next, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.

Throw in the onions, green and red peppers and garlic.

Throw in a tablespoon of the spice mixture used to season the chicken.

Add a little extra chilli powder (about 1/4 teaspoon) for heat.

Stir to cook the vegetables until they begin to turn golden brown, about 5 minutes.

Add the shredded chicken and diced tomatoes, juice and all.

Add the chicken broth, hot water and tomato paste.

Stir to combine and bring the mixture to a boil.

 

Reduce the heat to low.

Add the drained black beans.

Next, mix together the masa with 4 Tablespoons of liquid from the pot.

Add the mixture to the pot.

Give it a taste and add salt or seasonings as needed; be sure to not under salt it!

Then mix together the cornmeal with 4 Tablespoons of liquid from the pot.

Add the mixture to the pot to thicken.

Simmer the soup for 10 to 15 minutes.

 

Cut the tortillas into uniform 2- to 3-inch strips.

Stir most of them into the soup just before serving.

This is what makes tortilla soup tortilla soup!

Turn off the heat and get ready to serve it up.

Ladle the soup into a bowl, then add avocado, red onion, sour cream, cilantro, cheese, and extra tortilla strips to the top.

Enjoy!!

~Tiffany~

 

 

What's Cookin' Wednesday ~ Pasta Salad

One of my all time favorite summer side dishes is this pasta salad.

I make it all the time in the summer.
It's great to have for lunch the next day too.

 

 

 

Here is what you need:

1 box tri-color spiral pasta

2 slices of provolone cheese cut 1/2 inch thick

2 slices of genoa salami cut 1/2 inch thick

Grape Tomatoes, halved

Small black olives, pitted and halved (or buy sliced)

1 Packet of Good Seasons Italian dressing mix

Vegetable Oil

Red Wine Vinegar

 

*

 

What you do:

Make the salad dressing as indicated - good seasons has their own bottle, so if you don't have one, pick that set up up at the grocery store. It gives you the measurements on the bottle. So make that and stick it in the fridge to set.

 

Next, boil your water for the pasta & toss in the pasta

While the pasta is cooking, cut the salami and cheese into small chunks.

Next, slice the grape tomatoes in half

And lastly slice the olives if you didn't get the pre sliced ones.

Once the pasta is cooked and cooled, throw all the ingredients into the bowl.

Then pour the dressing on top and mix up well.

Chill in the fridge before serving!

Enjoy!

 

 

 

What pasta salads do you love in the summer??

 

~Tiffany~

WCW ~ CoCo Shake

The Best Drink Ever!

Coco Shakes

 

We had these on the way to our hotel from the airport in Aruba.

 

{side story}

Ted's parent's have a timeshare in Aruba and go every year. Sometimes twice.

They became friendly with a guy who lives down there who used to work at the hotel they have the timeshare in.

He and his lovely girlfriend picked us up from the airport for our honeymoon, complete with a sign and all - it was so adorable!

Once we were in his truck and heading to the hotel, absorbing the amazing Aruba air, taking in all the beauty and completely on cloud 9 because we had just gotten married, Eddie pulled off the road rather abruptly and was like, "hey you guys like coconut??"

We both said yes, and next thing ya know - we had these amazing drinks from a tiny roadside stand...something I never would have thought to do as a visitor, but something I totally trust the judgment on coming from a local!

The Coco Shake Cart

Lots of Coconuts! (and a machete)

Tons and tons of coconuts!

We totally staged this photo!

The ice shaver - so amazing

Dr. Coco mixing our drinks!

Dr. Coco

Enjoying our pre-airport coco shakes before heading home!

~
Ok -  

So this is how the Coco Shake is concocted!

It tastes extremely similar.

It's not as out of this world as Aruba, but it's darn close.

They are a bit tricky to whip up - and I always make a mess doing so,

but they are worth it!

 

What You Need:

A coconut

10 oz Sweetened Condensed Milk

Whole Milk
Vanilla

Ice

Cinnamon

 

What You Do:
Retrieve your coconut meat from the coconut.
Not gonna lie, I had to YouTube this one...
OR you can buy the frozen fresh coconut from the grocery store.
Add it to your blender.
Cover with milk til the coconut is just about covered.
Strain the mixture over a bowl or large glass measuring cup so what you are left with is coconut infused whole milk (basically)
Put a couple of scoops of the meat from the strainer back into the milk mixture for texture.
Whisk in the sweetened condensed milk
Add a few splashed of vanilla extract (1-2 tsp) and whisk
*This is where mine is different from the video*
I then place that back in a blender with lots of ice to get that smoothie texture instead of straight up poured over ice.
Once I reach a good consistency (adding more meat/liquid as needed)
I pour it into a cup and top it with cinnamon!
It's so darn yummy!!!
 

 ~

 This is the YouTube video I googled when we got back from Aruba.
Again, close...but not quite the same
 

 

Stop what you are doing and make one of these RIGHT NOW!

Happy Wednesday!!
Stop back tomorrow for something fun!

~Tiffany~

What's Cookin' Wednesday

What's Cookin' Wednesday
 

Quick Chicken Marsala

What You Need:
1 package of chicken breast, thinly sliced
1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 pepper
fresh parsley
2 TBSP Olive Oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup of mushrooms
1/2 cup Marsala wine
Chicken Stock for thinning

What you do:
Combine flour, salt and pepper in a large zip lock or bowl.
Coat chicken breasts in flour mixture
In a skillet, add oil until hot
Add in mushrooms and garlic
Cook for 5 minutes, add parsley
Sauté for a few minutes more
Add chicken to skillet - cook about 8 minutes, turning once
Add wine and cook 10 minutes
If at this point you don't have a lot of sauce, or it's too thick, add some chicken stock until you get the consistency you desire.

I served this with roasted potatoes and veggies!
You can add prosciutto to this also...
Or you can serve it over pasta!
I love this over pasta...you just may need a little more wine and stock to make enough sauce!

So yummy!!

~Tiffany~
 

Recipe Club & Whats Cookin' Wednesday

What's Cookin' Wednesday

&

Recipe Club

 

Cajun Jambalaya

 ~This recipe is compliments of Mr. Emeril Lagasse, with my slight twists :)

 

Photo Credit

 ~

 

What You Need:

12 medium shrimp, peeled, deveined and chopped

2 large chicken breasts, diced

1 ring of Andouille sausage, sliced

1 tablespoon Creole seasoning (recipe below) or store bought

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

2 stalks of celery, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped fresh garlic

1 can petite diced tomatoes

3 bay leaves

2 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce

1 teaspoon hot sauce

3/4 cup rice (I used brown)

3 cups chicken stock, more or less to your liking

Salt and pepper

 

What You Do:

In a bowl combine shrimp, chicken and Creole seasoning, and work in seasoning well.

In a large saucepan heat oil over high heat, add onion, pepper and celery...

Sauté for about 3-5  minutes.

 

Add in your garlic, tomatoes, bay leaves.

Then splash in the Worcestershire and hot sauces.

 Stir in rice (yes rice first) then slowly add broth.

 

Reduce heat to medium and cook until rice absorbs liquid and becomes tender, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. This is the point where you may need more liquid, if so add a little, if not, proceed to the next step...

When rice is just tender add shrimp and chicken mixture and sausage.

Cook until meat is done, about 10-15 minutes more.

Season to taste with salt, pepper and Creole seasoning.

**This is spicy - taste as you go along!**

 

Creole Seasoning

Emeril's ESSENCE Creole Seasoning (also referred to as Bayou Blast)

1 1/2 tablespoons paprika

1 tablespoons salt

1 tablespoons garlic powder

1/2 tablespoon black pepper

1/2 tablespoon onion powder

1/2 tablespoon cayenne pepper

1/2 tablespoon dried oregano

1/2 tablespoon dried thyme

*You can double this if you want more spice... I halved Emeril's original recipe

~

I made this last week for Ted & I

It's typically a fall/winter dish, but I was in the mood for it for some reason.

So I whipped it up pretty quickly and we enjoyed it on our bistro table outside one night with an iced cold beer. It was a nice change up/break to all the grilling we've been doing.

 

Linking up with Andrea today

 

 

Have a Wonderful Wednesday!

 

~Tiffany~

What's Cookin' Wednesday ~ Homemade Pickles!

Crisp Cuke Pickle

For about 4-5 mason jars

 

Ingredients

About 20 Kirby cucumbers, speared – NOT peeled

Fresh Dill

Fresh Garlic (about 2 heads)

For the brine:

1 cup of white vinegar

½ cup of sugar

½ cup of salt

2 quarts of water

 

 

Boil all of the brine ingredients together (vinegar, sugar, salt, water) let cool completely.

~

Spear the cucumbers and place them in the mason jars.

Add 3-5 cloves of garlic to each jar.

Add the dill - I did a good clump per jar

Add the cooled brine

Close the jars & refrigerate right away

 

Pickles are ready in 2-3 days!

~

These were very yummy!!
I did a few variations with them as well.

If you like spicy, you can add jalapenos or red crushed pepper

(I did both, and both were great!)

 

These are great for the summer for all those BBQs!

 

Enjoy!!

~Tiffany~

Grilled Hawaiian Pork Chops

This recipe is one of my absolute FAVORITES! It's so full of flavor and screams summer! My mom found this recipe in a tiny "grilling" cookbook YEARS ago. They are truly delicious! So here it is...

Hawaiian Pork Chops

2 packages of thin cut boneless pork chops

1/2 cup of soy sauce

1/4 cup of vegetable oil

1 clove of garlic (minced)

1 small onion, sliced thin

2 TBSP brown sugar

1 can of Pineapple slices in juice

What I do, and what my mom did was this:

Mix soy sauce, vegetable oil, a splash of the juice from the can of pineapple, garlic onion and brown sugar in a 9x13 Pyrex dish. Then simply trim the little bit of fat that may or may not be on the chops off, and toss them around in the dish to  coat them.

 

After that, I like to take the slices of pineapple and put them on top. That way some of the marinade gets on them which makes them so very delicious when you grill them!

 

At this point, it all smells so delicious

Then cover them up tightly with plastic wrap and stick them in the fridge for a good hour or two.

(the longer the better)

Once they have marinated and are basically the color or the marinade itself, throw them on the grill!

Don't mind my grill, it gets used A LOT! (photo bomb of the zucchini!)

Since they are thin, they do cook quickly. I do just a few minutes on each side until they are marked well by the grill. As soon as I flip them all over, I put the pineapple slices on the grill for about 2 minutes each side just to heat them a little. (I spoon on the juices from the marinade several times throughout the grilling process to add flavor) Once the chops are cooked and the pineapples are charred a little bit, place the pineapple on top of the chops, and pour some more juices on top to finish them off! These are so yummy I promise!

Don't mind the cheesy paper plate, I wasn't feeling dishes last night!

I made these a few nights ago! They were delicious as usual! I grilled some local zucchini that I tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with garlic pepper and made some brown rice. I've made these with corn on the cobb and pierogies. Or boiled red potatoes and asparagus. The possibilities are endless!! Just trust me on this recipe! It is insanely good!!

WCW ~ Roasted Poblano Adobo Grilled Chicken

What's Cookin' Wednesday...

 

Roasted Poblano Adobo Grilled Chicken!

Whew! That was a mouthful!

 

 

This recipe was one that I caught on Pioneer Woman 2 weekends ago.

Ted happened to walk into the room and see Ree mixing up the marinade in the blender and looked at me and said, "You're making this!"

So I looked up the recipe and it seemed easy enough....so I went out a few days later and got a few things that I needed to whip it up.

 

Here is what you need:

1/2 cup Olive Oil

3 Tablespoons Lime Juice

2 whole Chipotle Peppers In Adobo Sauce

2 cloves Garlic

1 teaspoon Ground Cumin

1 teaspoon Salt

1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper

6 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

(I used 3 large and split them in half to make them thinner)

6 Poblano Chiles

1/2 pound Monterey Jack Cheese, Cut Into Slices Or Grated

Pico De Gallo Or Salsa, For Serving

Beans, For Serving

Rice For Serving

 

What You Do:

 For the chicken marinade:
Combine olive oil, lime juice, chipotle peppers, garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper in a blender and mix until it's totally pureed.
(I used the nutribullet because it wasn't much and thought the huge blender would make a big mess. So if you have a small mixer type thing like a ninja or bullet, use that)

Pour into a large Ziploc bag with the chicken breasts.
Seal the bag up, mush it around to coat the chicken, and stick it in the fridge to marinate for at least 4 hours (overnight if possible.)

 

Once that is all done....and ready to grill...

 

 Roast the chilies on the grill turning frequently.

When the skin is totally blackened, place the chilies in a large Ziploc and seal the bag to allow the chilies to sweat for a good 20 minutes. Remove them from the bag and use a knife to scrape off most of the blackened skin. Slice the chilies in half lengthwise, and scrape out the seeds and membranes. Lay out the roasted, seeded  halves so they'll be ready.

Grill the chicken over medium-high heat until completely cooked.
At this point, you can top your chicken with the roasted pepper and cheese while it's still on the grill. I didn't do this, I did it once I brought it inside so my cheese didn't melt right away.
But Ree's recipe says to do it while it's on the grill

The finished product

I made brown rice and grilled asparagus 

 

 

 I made this with about 5 adobo chilies and it was SUPER hot.

Definitely only use two for the marinade!



 

ENJOY!

 

~Tiffany~

WCW ~ Grilled Bruschetta Chicken

What's Cookin' Wednesday

 

Grilled Bruschetta Chicken
~

 This recipe was something I sort of thought up in my head because I had a craving for bruschetta and didn't think it was suffice for a meal for dinner haha. I'm sure theres actual recipes floating around and it exists elsewhere, but this is my version :)

 

What You Need:

~

FOR THE CHICKEN
1 Package of Chicken Breasts

Balsamic Vinegar

Olive Oil

Dried Basil

Garlic Powder

Balsamic Glaze
(so much easier to buy this in the grocery store near the oils)

 

FOR THE BRUSCHETTA

Tomatoes (I used grape a container of grape tomatoes)

Fresh Garlic

Olive Oil

Fresh Basil

 

 

What You Do:

~

Marinate the chicken

Slice your chicken breasts in half to make them thinner.

Place them into a large zip lock bag

Pour in enough balsamic vinegar and olive oil to coat

(I'd say about 1/2 cup of each, give or take)

Sprinkle in about a half teaspoon of garlic powder

Add a pinch of dried basil

Mix all around until coated well, refrigerate for at least an hour

Prepping the Bruschetta

Get a medium sized bowl ready...

dice up your tomatoes removing as many seeds as possible
Throw into a bowl

finely chop two cloves of garlic, add to bowl
drizzle in a tiny bit of olive oil and toss around
chiffondale some basil - I used about 4-5 big leaves
Mix up again
Done!

Putting the meal together...
Remove chicken from marinade and grill until cooked
Once cooked remove and put on a plate
Top the grilled chicken with prepared bruschetta
Top that with shredded mozzarella (optional, but trust me, do it )
Drizzle on Balsamic glaze

Sides to accompany your meal:
We had brown rice and grilled brussell sprouts on this night.

Brown Rice: Cooked according to Minute Rice box ;)

Brussells: I mentioned this in Fridays Post but this is how I did them...
I cut the sprouts in half then in half again. Placed them onto a large piece of foil, drizzled heavily with EVOO, threw on a clove of fresh chopped garlic, sprinkled on some salt and garlic pepper, then just closed the foil up loosely like a tent and placed on the grill.
I kept an eye on them until they browned up a bit and flipped them once or twice.
They were SO good this way!

Enjoy!!!!

This was great the next day for lunch too... (minus the sprouts, they were gone that night!)
I just cut the chicken breast up and put it over some brown rice in a little pyrex container.
In a separate containier I put the cheese and bruschetta
I heated up the chicken/rice combo then dumped the bruschetta/cheese combo on top

 

Soo yummy!

I hope you give this a try!

 

~Tiffany~