Five Pepper and Garlic Chicken

Hy-Vee is a beautiful place. It has so many amazing oils and seasonings that I cannot leave the store without purchasing. I also purchased some pasta this week that I plan on using in future recipes.

Five Pepper and Garlic Chicken



This recipe has two major ingredients. This, Loriva's 5-Pepper Oil:


And this, Loriva's Garlic Oil:



I found both of them at Hy-Vee, and they are fantastic. This chicken was very good. I also roasted some potatoes that were tossed in the garlic oil.

Ingredients
-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
-1 cup oil
-1 teaspoon oregan
-1/2 teaspoon sage
-1 Tablespoon paprika
-1 Tablespoon bacon salt
-2 teaspoons soul food seasoning
-1/2 Tablespoon garlic salt
-1 teaspoon 5-Pepper Oil
-1/2 teaspoon garlic oil

Directions
1. Combine first 9 ingredients and keep refrigerated for 1-24 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
3. Place chicken in 9 by 13 inch baking pan lined with foil. Drizzle with garlic oil and bake for 15-20 minutes or until centers read 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.

Italian Seasoned Chicken

Time for another "let's throw random spices together" marinade!

Italian Seasoned Chicken



This doesn't taste Italian. In fact, it tastes kind of like KFC, but not fried. Pretty decent, overall. I roasted some potatoes with it (just some garlic salt and pepper, some butter, and some chopped potatoes...baked at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes), and it was a great meal.

Ingredients
-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
-1 cup oil
-1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
-1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
-1 teaspoon paprika
-1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
-1/2 teaspoon oregano
-1/2 teaspoon sage
-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
-1/4 teaspoon pepper
-1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Directions
1. Combine all ingredients. Let set in refrigerator for 1-24 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
3. Place chicken breasts in 9 by 13 baking pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until center of each breast registers 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.

Honey Teriyaki Chicken

Sometimes I crave the Mongolian restaurant, but if we ate there every time I did, we'd be broke. To remedy, I make my own Asian cuisine.

Honey Teriyaki Chicken



Usually I use a store bought marinade for teriyaki chicken. This week, I decided to make my own. It did not taste the same as the store bought, but it was still delicious. I served it with fried rice, which is Walter's favorite.

Ingredients
-2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
-1 10-ounce bottle of teriyaki sauce
-5 Tablespoons Hoisin sauce
-1 Tablespoon honey
-1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
-1 teaspoon curry powder
-1/4 teaspoon sesame seed oil

Directions
1. Combine teriyaki, Hoisin, honey, lemon juice, sesame seed oil, and curry powder and mix well. Add chicken and marinate for 1 to 24 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake chicken in a 9 by 13 inch baking pan for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the middle of the breast reads 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.

Chicken Salad

Chicken salad is my fall-back lunch. If we have no leftovers, I make a batch and eat on it for a couple of days. I like to experiment with it, and this is my best recipe so far, hands down.

Chicken Salad



I have a secret ingredient that makes this the best chicken salad ever. That ingredient is bacon. Not real bacon, but this:



It makes it fantastic, especially with the tomato. And the jalapeno adds just a little kick to it. Oh, I could eat this for every meal.

Ingredients
-1 9-ounce can white meat chicken
-1 medium onion
-8 dill pickle hamburger-cut slices
-5 slices of jarred jalapeno
-1 small vine tomato
-1 small red bell pepper
-3 Tablespoons mayonnaise
-1/8 teaspoon bacon salt
-Dash of cinnamon
-Curry powder, salt, and pepper, to taste

Directions
1. Chop all vegetables.
2. Combine all ingredients. Stir until thoroughly moistened. Keep refrigerated. Makes about 3 sandwiches.

Curry Chipotle Chicken and Lemon Chipotle Potatoes

I love seasonings. I want them all.

Curry Chipotle Chicken



This recipe is my own. I think it could have used a bit more kick, so I may change it a bit next time, but it was still very good.

Ingredients
-2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
-1 cup vegetable oil
-2 Tablespoons Southwestern Chipotle Mrs. Dash seasoning
-1 teaspoon curry powder
-1/4 teaspoon sage
-1/2 teaspoon cumin

Directions
1. Combine oil and seasonings and marinate chicken for 2 to 24 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 425 degree.
3. Place chicken and potatoes (recipe to follow) in a 9 by 13 inch baking pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Lemon Chipotle Potatoes

I wanted the side to be a bit lighter than the main course, and I think I achieved that with the lemon pepper seasoning. All in all, it was a pretty decent dish.

Ingredients
-3 medium red potatoes, chopped
-1/2 cup vegetable oil
-2 Tablespoons Southwestern Chipotle Mrs. Dash seasoning
-1 Tablespoon lemon pepper seasoning

Directions
1. Combine oil and seasonings. Toss potatoes in mixture. Drain off excess.
2. Place potatoes with chicken in a 9 by 13 inch baking pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Honey Mustard Chicken

I love honey mustard on chicken. It is one of my favorite condiment-food combinations. And while this is the first time I cooked with Panko, I found that I love it, too.

Honey Mustard Chicken



I LOVE this recipe. It came from Joelen's blog. All of her food is just so fantastic. I cannot wait to try more of her recipes!

Ingredients
-2 chicken breasts
-2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
-2 tablespoons honey
-garlic powder, onion powder, salt & pepper to taste (I, of course, used lots)
-1 cup panko breadcrumbs

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Combine honey and mustard. In a separate dish, place panko.
3. Season chicken to your liking. Dip and coat in honey mustard mixture. Coat chicken in panko.
4. Place chicken on greased baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165 when placed in center of each breast.

Bacon-Wrapped Chicken Breasts

Now that Christmas is over, I have some time for real cooking again. Thank goodness.

Bacon-Wrapped Chicken Breasts



I adapted this recipe from the one I found here at Elly Says Opa. I added some seasoning to mine and used the remaining seasoning on the baked potatoes I made with the chicken. I also didn't use smoked mozzarella, as the fake mozzarella I have to use does not come in the smoked variety.



Ingredients
-Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
-Bacon
-1/4 teaspoon curry powder
-1 Tablespoon poultry seasoning
-1/4 teaspoon garlic and pepper
-1 teaspoon dried cilantro
-1/2 teaspoon paprika
-Mozzarella cheese

Directions
1. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
2. Cut a slit in each chicken breast, making a pocket. Stuff each chicken breast with mozarella cheese.
3. Rub each breast with the dry seasoning and wrap two to three pieces of bacon around it. Place each breast on a baking pan (place another pan under it, if necessary, to catch drippings).
4. Bake breasts at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or until done.

Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

Today is not my day to cook. While cooking the chicken, I set off the fire alarm. Then, while cutting onion for my sandwich, I sliced my thumb. However, the food, somehow, turned out delicious. Amazing and maybe a little lucky. We also had no buns, only bread, which caused the sandwiches to be pretty messy, but it worked out.

Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches



I got this recipe from Rachael Ray. I can't stand to watch her show, but I love her food.

Ingredients
-Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
-Salt
-Pepper (I used garlic pepper)
-1 teaspoon sweet paprika
-1 teaspoon chili powder
-Olive Oil
-2 Tablespoons butter
-1/2 cup cayenne pepper sauce
-2 cups sour cream
-4 scallions, thinly sliced
-1/2 pound blue cheese, crumbled
I ommitted the last three ingredients, although Walter did use sour cream on his sandwich. I also added 1 teaspoon of barbecue sauce.

Directions
1. Combine salt, pepper, paprika, and chili powder in a bowl, and coat chicken in mixture. Toss seasoned chicken in olive oil and cook in a skillet over medium heat for five minutes on each side until done.
2. Melt butter. Mix butter, cayenne pepper sauce, and barbecue sauce (if using). Toss cooked chicken, coating each breast evenly.
3. If using, combine sour cream, scallions, and blue cheese. Spread on bun or bread. Top sandwich with preferred vegetables.

Lemon Cilantro Chicken

Tonight, I was going to make garlic chicken with a bottle of marinade, but I was cleaning up the kitchen and found this recipe on the back of my jar of cilantro.

Lemon Cilantro Chicken



I found this recipe on the back of my jar of McCormick cilantro leaves. It was originally cilantro-lime chicken, but I had no lime juice, only lemon juice, so I modified it a bit. Walter got ahold of the better-looking breast before I could snap a picture, so ignore his gigantic baked potato.

Ingredients
-1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
-1/3 cup oil (I used Olive Oil)
-1/4 cup lemon or lime juice
-1 teaspoon garlic powder
-1 teaspoon cilantro leaves
-1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
-1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
-1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt (I used poultry seasoning here)

Directions
1. Combine ingredients and toss chicken in mixture. Refrigerate for thirty minutes.
2. Grill or bake (400 degrees) chicken for ten minutes or until the center of each breast is 165 to 170 degrees.

Sweet-Hot Asian Noodle Bowl

Before I begin, I must apologize. I don't know where I got this recipe. When I first started cooking, I checked a lot of cookbooks out at the local library and wrote down the recipes I wanted to try. So, if anyone knows where this recipe comes from, or has seen a similar one elsewhere, let me know.

Sweet-Hot Asian Noodle Bowl



This is a fantastic, colorful, flavorful dish. It reheats well (or is great cold!) and is very versatile. It works well as a vegetarian dish (just remove the chicken) and goes well at parties. It is a little spicy (if you do it right, according to Walter), but as you have probably noticed, most foods I make are.

Ingredients
-3/4 cup vinegar
-1/3 cup soy sauce
- 1/3 cup honey
-2 Tablespoons minced ginger
-2 Tablespoons dark sesame oil
-1 Tablespoon Asian chili-garlic sauce
-1/4 cup dried chopped cilantro
-16-ounce package of Spaghetti or any long noodle (Asian noodles work great!)
-1 large red bell pepper, sliced or chopped
-1 large red onion, sliced
-1 Tbsp. sesame seeds (I omitted)
-2 to 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
I also used an additional 4 Tablespoons of chili-garlic sauce, 1 Tablespoon garlic Hoisin sauce, and 2 Tablespoons of lemon juice.

Directions
1. Whisk together the first seven ingredients (And, if using, the hoisin and lemon juice). Set aside.
2. Cook chicken, onion, and bell pepper together until chicken is cooked thoroughly and onion and pepper are soft (but still retain their color). I cooked the chicken, onion, and pepper in the additional 4 Tablespoons of chili-garlic sauce for more flavor. Boil pasta until soft.
3. Combine sauce, pasta, chicken, and vegetables. Toss to coat.

Spicy Cajun Chicken Breasts

This recipe came from me staring at the food we had in the kitchen and saying, "How can I make this a meal?" I've seen similar recipes around since then, so apparently it's good for others, too. I usually dip mine in dijon honey mustard, but I do that with many kinds of chicken. It's a very simple, easy, and cheap recipe, and it's great if you like a little spice.

Spicy Cajun Chicken Breasts

Ingredients
-2/3 cup flour
-1 Tablespoon Cajun seasoning
-1/2 Tablespoon ground red pepper
-1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
-1/2 teaspoon onion powder
-1/4 teaspoon paprika
-1/4 teaspoon seasoned meat tenderizer
-2 to 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine first eight ingredients in a bowl.
3. Bread chicken breasts in dry mixture, making sure each breast is thoroughly covered.
4. Cook at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until center of each breast reaches 170 degrees or higher.