Chicken with Creamy Mustard Sauce-Pioneer Woman Recipe

Last night for dinner I made Pioneer Woman's Chicken with Creamy Mustard Sauce.

This meal...was delicious. It took a little bit for the white wine to condense but wow. The flavor was delicious, very rich. Very filling too. The only thing I didn't do was half the chicken, so there were only 4 breasts. I might try this again and make some chicken tenders maybe? Not sure. But this will definitely be something I make again! 

The Cast of Characters

Cooking the chicken!

Bag Salad...woot woot! 

Chicken cooking in the sauce

My meal, yes my chicken is cut up like a child's LOL

For those that don't want to go to the site for the recipe, here it is:

Pioneer Woman Chicken with Musard Cream Sauce

• 4 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 3 whole Garlic Cloves, Minced
• 1 cup Brandy (or White Wine If Preferred)
• 1 Tablespoon (heaping) Dijon Mustard
• 1 Tablespoon (heaping) Grainy Mustard
• 1/4 cup (to 1/2) Heavy Cream
• 1/4 cup (to 1/2) Chicken Broth
•  Salt And Pepper, to taste

Preparation Instructions

*Amount of cream and broth has slightly decreased; add more as needed.

Cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise so that you have eight smaller, thinner chicken cutlets. Salt and pepper both sides.

Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook cutlets on both sides until nice and golden brown and cooked through. Remove chicken from the skillet and keep on a plate.

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic to the pan and saute it for a minute, stirring to make sure it won't burn. Next pour in the brandy (or wine if using) being careful if cooking over an open flame. Then just let the booze bubble up and cook until it's reduced by half.

Throw in the mustards and stir to combine, then pour in the cream. Stir in chicken broth, adding more if the sauce seems too thick. Taste sauce and adjust whatever you think it needs. Add chicken breasts back to the pan, nestling them into the sauce. Allow sauce to cook for another few minutes, shaking the pan if needed to move things around.

Serve chicken with a green salad, spooning the sauce over the top.

Cherry Pomegranate Habanero Marinaded Chicken

So the other day at Costco, this was bought...

NOM NOM NOM!

 And it was turned into this:

Put salt and pepper on one side of the chicken breasts (cut in halves or leave them whole).

Put some sauce in the pan, lay the chicken seasoned side down into the sauce. 

Cover the rest in sauce (as you can see, we still have half a bottle left!)

Bake 350 degrees and then the last 10 minutes, broil it to give the top that crispy taste.

Serve with your favorite sides (it was served with corn and baked potatoes in my house).

Easy dinner done! 

Bottle can be bought at Costco. I thought about buying a bottle and doing a giveaway for it...it was THAT good. Whatcha think? 

What's for dinner tonight? 

We have AWANAS tonight so we are doing something quick and easy like chicken tacos.

Pot Roast Recipe from Pinterest

Lots of recipes are flying around from Pinterest on my news feed on Facebook and the various blogs I read. It really seems that they are hit or miss. Sometimes they are AH-MAZING and other times you are like Welp, we can still get a Little Ceaser's pizza and salvage this night!

I am still fairly a noob when it comes to cooking pot roast. I normally leave that up to Other Chef cause he makes an amazing one but lately, I have been giving it a try. For the longest time now, Pioneer Woman's Perfect Pot Roast has been my absolute fave to cook. But given how hot its been around here lately, which is completely abnormal, I haven't wanted to touch the oven. So I was looking for something in the crock pot (which OMG its going to be fall soon and I can't wait to start using that more and more again!). I found this recipe a long time ago on Pinterest and it looked fairly simple. So finally decided to give it a try.

Its really simple. In fact, not sure who's recipe this is as its just a picture on Pinterest with a tag under it on how to make it. You mix a package of ranch dressing, italian dressing (I actually used garlic and herb dressing packet) and a package of brown gravy. Cover the roast in it and add some water, voila. Done. Cook for 8 hours and love the smells that it creates for your kitchen. 

The meat is so juicy and tender, it literally just melts with a fork. Literally. I was a tad skeptical, as was Other Chef, about the ingredients but honestly, perfect flavor. Serve with some mashed potatoes (or scalloped like I did) and a veggie and you have a perfect meal. Enjoy! 

Summer Shish Kabobs

One of the best things about the summer is grilling. I am a firm believer in that and no one will be able to tell me differently! There is just something about the smell of the grill fired up, the food cooking, the BBQs you have and how BBQs always bring out the best in everyone! No matter what kind of day you are having...BBQs are a definite mood changer :D

Course this could just be my fat pregnant ass talking but psh, whatever!

I haven't had these in so long (about 3 years now) and I have been craving some delicious shish kabobs. There is always two different meats, steak and chicken. And of course any type of vegetables you want to add! Ours include green, red and yellow peppers, cherry tomatoes and whole mushrooms (with the stems taken off). Put them on the skewers and then rub them down with some olive oil. Add salt and pepper and that is IT. The flavor of the vegetables is all you need :D

Is your mouth watering? Cause mine is again! 

Apparently in one of the many moves I have undertaken, the skewers have become amiss. So we had too much food and not enough skewers. So instead of just reusing the ones we had already used, we made stir fry! OMG, nom. That recipe I can't give you because I have NO idea what was put in it (I didn't make it as I was getting homework done) but next time, I WILL get it for you! 

Completely filling! Pair it with some couscous or wild rice and there you go! Quick. Easy. Delicious and SO healthy!!

The problem with trying new recipes....

I love trying new recipes. I really do. That's the entire reason this blog was started. I am not a good "experimental" cook. Nor do things come to me easily. Like no joke, I just started adding spices (besides garlic and onions) to my ground beef when I cook it. I am not joking when I say that I am a SUPER cooking nubsauce. So when I cook, unless its something I have cooked a hundred times before or something quick throw together...its a recipe. Let's face it, cooking the same things all the time is just downright boring. And I try to limit that. We have no set rotation. I have no set menu each week (other then what I make). Honestly, every two weeks its 90% brand new stuff. Which is awesome in this house but not so awesome for picky eaters (ahem, Little Man!). 

Trying new recipes, however, can come at a cost. And sometimes, it does. You will find some amazing dinners and then other times you will be like Umm...anyone for takeout? I get my recipes from all over the place too. Some of them are blogs I read, some are Pioneer Woman's, some are Pinterest, Tasty Kitchen, Facebook, Taste of Home. And some of them are from those pesky little Pillsbury, Kraft, Jell-O books that are at the check out counter at the grocery store. Yes, I manage to bring home one or two new ones every single I hit up the commissary. Obsession? Slightly. But I call it material. Now only if I got paid for this blog then I would call it a tax deduction :-P

Anyway, I decided to try this Layered Mac 'n Cheese with Beef recipe I found in a Pillsbury book I have. It looked delicious enough so I went with it. Little Man is obsessed with Mac and Cheese. Like if he could eat it breakfast, lunch and dinner...I think he would. I threw it all together, which was very easy by the way. But as I was cooking, I saw the reviews that the recipe had on Pillsbury.com. A lot of people said it was bland so to add an onion and garlic (which I already do) and maybe some spices. So I did that. 

Nope.

I didn't care for it. In fact, I disliked it so much, I couldn't continue eating it. I hate like half and I was good to go. Little Man had given up long before me so he was just sitting there. Other Chef put Tony Chacere's on it and scarfed it down. Course he's used to eating bland, nasty MRE's so I didn't take his opinion to heart :D 

Verdict: Meh. I mean honestly, if you want to try it, by all means go for it. If you can someone make it taste delicious, let me know and I can try that again! I personally didn't care for it though :( 

Recipe:

INGREDIENTS

2

 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (8 oz)

1

 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef

1

 teaspoon salt

1/8

 teaspoon pepper

2

 tablespoons butter or margarine

2

 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2

 cups milk

1/2

 cup Progresso® chicken broth (from 32-oz carton)

3

 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (12 oz)

1

 cup soft bread crumbs (about 2 slices bread)

DIRECTIONS

1Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 2-quart casserole with cooking spray. Cook and drain macaroni as directed on package.2Meanwhile, in 10-inch skillet, cook beef, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and the pepper over medium-high heat 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until beef is thoroughly cooked; drain if desired.3In 2-quart saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly, until bubbly. Stir in milk; cook 5 to 6 minutes, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens slightly. Stir in broth and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Remove from heat; stir in cheese. Fold in macaroni.4Spoon 1/3 of the macaroni mixture (about 1 1/3 cups) into casserole; top with half of the beef (about 1 1/2 cups). Layer with another 1/3 of the macaroni mixture, remaining beef and remaining macaroni mixture. Top with bread crumbs.5Bake uncovered 25 to 30 minutes or until bread crumbs are golden brown.

Chicken Salad Sandwiches

I have never been one for Chicken Salad before. It's not because I haven't had a good recipe, no. Its because I honestly just never tried it and been turned on to it. Which is quite tragic because this is the perfect throw together summer meal. Its light, its delicious. Its AH-MAZING.

 Other Chef throws together some delicious chicken salad that is utterly amazing. No joking. And you should feel special because the recipe is down below :D

Close up of the deliciousness.

Nom Nom Nom

Recipe:


Chicken Salad Sandwiches


What you need: 
4-6 Chicken Breasts
Grapes
Granny Smith Apples
Almonds


Now the rest of it is really eyeballing it and to taste.


Mayo
Relish
Tony Chacere's 
Italian Seasoning
Dijon Mustard


What you do!


Boil the chicken breasts. When done, cut into cubes.
Next add all the seasonings (including mayo), taste. Everything will be to your personal taste! 
Then add the grapes and apples and almonds.
Add into a whole wheat PITA (I prefer the soft ones like shown).
Bite into that and SAVOR the flavor :D

I love four day weekends!!!

I love four day weekends. 

I love sleeping in because I don't have to get up with Little Man.

I love it even more when its absolutely BEAUTIFUL outside!! 

We had a week of cold and rainy weather so seeing sunshine and 63 today...yes. Greatly appreciated!! 

What I do like is that in ONE WEEK I find out what Gummy Bear is! 20 weeks today, 20 more to go. EEEK! 

What I don't like is that this 425 class is KICKING. MY. BUTT. Now granted sitting downstairs watching season 1 disk 1 of House for 4 hours probably didn't help any the other day BUT I was up until 1230am doing homework. And that sounds like getting a lot done right? Wrong. That only got one section of lesson 1 done. Each section is about 60 pages of reading, plus online supplemental reading, plus daily journal PLUS exercises that must be turned in with 30-35 questions for each one. In addition to all of that, I also have 7 papers due over the course of this class (which is 16 weeks). The light at the end of the tunnel, I guess, is that my daily journal also counts as my final so there will be none for this class. That's something to be happy about...right?

What are your plans for this weekend? Ours is going to be filled with the park, maybe some Baskin Robbins or Menchies, getting Little Man's room all set up, will more then likely do some grilling, homework and HOPEFULLY some reading of my book. 

I have TONS of food recipes I need to sit down and blog about this weekend as well. So be looking for those!

What's I am jamming to...BRiley took me to see her last year in concert for my birthday and it was amazing. What would I do without my BRiley!!

BK Gift Card Winner AND Ode to Sidekick...

I hope you all had a great weekend!! Mine entailed getting better, cleaning and getting homework done. Ah college, how I did NOT miss thee! 

First, the winner of the BK Gift Card. Random.org selected winner number:

#3

Wendy Rozema

Congrats to winner and thank you for the entries! I will be emailing her today and if I hear nothing back in the next 48 hours, I will be choosing another winner. 

Next on the blog agenda...

My Sidekick died. And by died I mean that it spiked the pavement.

Apparently, it didn't have a lot to live for. And that put me in a rock and hard spot because come April of 2013, TMobile loses this customer. So did I deal with that ghetto fab phone OR just buy one off of craigslist? 

So I did what any respectable person would do and bought one off of Craigslist! 

I scored a Blackberry Bold 9700 for 130$ so I am happy. I love it. I didn't think I would like going from Android to Blackberry but I do. The email and texting is so convenient. The camera is blah but oh well. Its gonna hold me over until April when we can sign on with Verizon. Then its iPhone 5!! 

Can you tell I am slightly excited??? 

What's on your menu tonight? 

Tonight we are having Mediterranean Chicken (in the crockpot), scalloped potatoes and some veggie (thinking some corn or something). Maybe even a ceaser salad to go with it. Not sure yet! 

Heathers Corner on Sunday!

Heather has been SUPER busy working for an amazing restaurant in Savannah BUT after much hounding, I got her to finally set up another recipe (nah, she loves that she gets her own spotlight!). This is her newest:

Shredded Chicken for Mexican Yumminess!

4 Chicken Thighs

1 Medium Yellow Onion

4 Tomatillos

1/2 Tbsp Red Pepper Flakes

1 Tbsp Cumin

2 Tbsp Minced Garlic

1 Tbsp Chili Powder

1/2 Tbsp Salt

1/2 Tbsp Pepper

1/2 Cup Tequila

1 49.5 oz Can of Chicken Broth

8 oz Pepper Jack Cheese

2 Limes

Cast of Characters:

Clean the tomatillos and cut them into quarters.

 Take the skin off of the onions, and dice.

 Put everything except the cheese and limes into a pot and give it a good stir. 

Cover and simmer on low heat for 2.5-3.5 hours, or until the chicken shreds apart easily.

 Raise the heat a bit until the broth and tequila have almost completely evaporated. Turn the heat off and add the pepper jack cheese into the mix and melt.

 Zest and juice the 2 limes and add to the mix as well! Make quesadillas, chicken tacos or chicken burritos! YUM!!!

Like with any of her recipes, if you try them, let me know how they are and I will post the review!! :D 

ENJOY!! 

No Color Run :(

So no Color Run this year for me :( Registration for Seattle sold out in less then 24 hours. Its on their Seattle page website that apparently it set some record selling out. Poo. Poo on that. BUT at least people got in and that is cool. Maybe next time! 

So the recipe for the Cajun Chicken Alfredo is insanely simple. It makes a ton of food and leftovers in this house are always good (makes for delicious lunches). I will have the recipe posted at the end of this post. No pictures as by the time it was done, I was dying of hunger. No really. My stomach was growling up a storm!

Game of Thrones on Sunday WAS amazing. I like that I am still on the 1st book of the series (so far there are 5 out) because for the most part, I have NO idea what is going on. But at the same time, I looked up certain characters to see their fate and it pains me to see some of them. The thing that anyone must know about George R.R. Martin is he is NOT scared to kill every one. He really is not! LOL In all honesty, that kinda makes me mad because I am like But but...he was awesome!!! If you haven't started watching yet, you must. Its amazing and it totally has me waiting each week for Sunday night! Plus one of the character is named Arya and that is definetly a front runner for a little girls name ;-D

Tonight is Wednesday so that means AWANA night. Next year he starts First Communion classes. I see my schedule totally being eaten up by various sports and classes...fun times. But going to be totally worth it! 

Tonight on the menu is Hamburger Helper. Yes I know. Not the healthiest but Wednesdays are either grab and go or whatever can be cooked quickly :D 

What are you having for dinner? 

Cajun Chicken Alfredo with Penne Pasta

1 package of chicken breasts or chicken tenders

1 box of penne pasta 

1 jar of your favorite alfredo sauce (I use Classico Four Cheese Alfredo)

Cajun Seasoning (liberally)

1. Dice up chicken into bite size cubes. Put into frying pan with some EVOO.

2. Start the water for Penne Pasta. When boiling, add pasta and cook al dente.

3. Add cajun seasoning, as much as you want. (I use Tony Chacere's and its amazingly delicious). Cook chicken thoroughly.

4. Once chicken is done, add alfredo sauce. Heat up.

5. Add everything to cooked pasta and voila, done :D

Enjoy!

Guess what???

I can eat again!! 

Its so glorious to be able to eat food and not worry about how I am going to feel later. LOVE IT! 

This morning I started it off with ham and mushroom scrambled eggs with some colby cheese. AH-mazing. N and her 18 month old thought so too since I made enough for us all :D

So I want your favorite recipes since I am making my menu again, since I can actually eat. So spam me! Give me your favorite recipe!! 

GO!

Scentsy Winner, A Recipe and my Menu

First I will start off by saying thanks for the quick entries for the Scentsy Beach Plugin Warmer. The winner is...

(now its weird, one of my comments didn't have a number next to their name (if anyone knows why, please let me know how I can fix that) so I had to count. Thank goodness it was only 9!!)

#7!! 

#7 is mommysap! Please contact me as soon as you see this so I can get it mailed out in a timely fashion (hoping as early as tomorrow!!). Email me at soljersterATgmailDOTcom. Thanks!! 

I know I have been slacking in the cooking department and that is...well that is nothing except pure laziness. I have made quite a few new recipes but sadly, no pictures. I tried to take a few with my phone but that just didn't work. I will still post the post about them but sadly, no pictures. Yes, bad food blogger.

About a week ago, I made Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole . One word...AH-Mazing. I loved it. Other Chef loved it. Little Man loved it. Definetly a keeper for sure!! It was kinda funny watching Little Man put all the mushrooms to the side and say to me "Here Momma, you can have these." Aww, aren't you a sweetheart? Nothing really to report about it except its amazing. Seriously. And so easy and quick to make!! You won't be disappointed!! (Recipe at the link!)

Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole

This grocery period is full of a LOT of new recipes. A lot of which, I have never cooked before. So that makes this food blogger extremely excited and nervous all at the same time! Most of my recipes came from Tasty Kitchen again, seriously...how amazing is that website? And almost ALL the recipes I have gotten off of there, have been amazing. If you haven't checked it out yet, you need to! 

Upcoming Menu Choices (mostly dinners but there are some breakfasts and lunches too):

Flank Steak with Snow Peas and Jasmine Rice

Killer Club Sandwiches

Fried Round Steak, Potatoes Au Gratin

Make-Ahead Muffin Melts (I'll make Wednesday night)

Skillet Parm Cheese, Broccoli and Rice

Eggs in Ham Cups

Bacon, Hashbrown and Egg Casserole

Italian Chicken Soup

Bacon, Egg and Cheese Wrap

Hot Ham and Cheese Sandwiches with Onion Butter

Creamy Chicken and Broccoli over Rice

Cheesy Potato Fritatta

Ranch Potatoes (will go with steak and steamed broccoli)

Chicken Noodle Soup Casserole

Nutella Oatmeal with banana

Broccoli Cheddar Chicken Crescent Braid

Creamy Chicken Casserole

Creamy Chicken Spaghetti

Ricotta Scrambled Eggs

Poppy Seed Chicken

Risotto

LOTS of good eats which means LOTS of happy stomachs around here! Which also means lots of cooking, lots of messes and lots of picture taking :D 

Randomness (with a new recipe)

I was tagged in the 11 things by Running with the Girls and I run like a girl but for some reason whenever I posted it, their questions to me have big white boxes over the front of it so you can't see it anyway :( Boo.

I recently got this Babycakes Donut Maker and am eager to make some donuts! Maybe today me and Little Man will. How cute are those little donuts? (crap I just realized I passed out yesterday before blogging...ugh. Guess I am blogging twice today). Which made me think that I signed up for a thing called a foodie penpal and was just assigned my penpal this morning. I can't wait to get a box together for her and mail it!! I love getting mail and I love it even more when its goodies and not just junk!

Really nothing new or interesting to report honestly. Tomorrow I will have (well maybe later today since I missed my post yesterday) a review for PureFit energy bars. I am cooking Sour Cream Chicken Enchilada Casserole (yes I can hear my ass hating me) tonight for dinner which is a new recipe so should be interesting. Last night though..oh last night...

So on Pinterest, my friends have been tagging this recipe a lot. I love Mexican food and especially tacos so I clicked on it to check it out. THREE INGREDIENTS PEOPLE! Three. Chicken breasts, taco seasoning and a jar of salsa. AND the best part is...your crock pot does ALLLLL the cooking. Yes ma'ma, that is a winner right there. I put it in the crockpot really early, around 10 and it was done by 4. Early dinner for us but I also have this weird image of my ass tripling in size if I eat anything past 7. Make sure when you spoon the chicken out, you use a slotted spoon. I didn't and they were kinda messy but man, were they delicious. Definetely a keeper in my book :D

Since I am a bad blogger and have let my camera's battery die, I will leave you with a video of my fave song at the moment. Video is DEFINETLY weird but I love this song. Its been playing on repeat in my ear for the last 10 minutes.

Hope you are enjoying your weekend!!

What is your fave recipe at the moment?
What is your fave song at the moment?