Parmesan Chicken Mini Pies

Italian flavored mini pies made easy with frozen chicken bites.

Ingredients:

1

can (8 oz) Pillsbury™ refrigerated seamless dough sheet or 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury™ refrigerated crescent dinner rolls 

12

Tyson® frozen popcorn chicken pieces

1 1/4

cup tomato pasta sauce

3/4

cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Heat oven to 375F. Grease 12 regular size muffin cups with cooking spray.
• Remove dough from can; press to 8x18 inch rectangle. Cut dough evenly into 12 squares. Press dough squares into muffin cups.
• Microwave chicken pieces on microwavable plate 1 minute on High. Place chicken pieces in muffin cups; top each with 2 tablespoons sauce. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake 15 to 18 minutes of until golden brown.

Source:  pillsbury.com

Pecan Pesto

Toasted pecans kick up the flavor of ordinary pesto. Use this recipe for homemade pesto, or as a shortcut add toasted pecans (coarsely chopped in a foor processor) to store-bought pesto.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
• 1 cup (4 oz.) freshly shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup toasted pecans
• 1 cup olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Direction:

1. Process all ingredients in a food processor until smooth.

Southern Living
NOVEMBER 2009

Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta

Ingredients:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
4 ounces linguine, cooked al dente
2 teaspoons cajun seasoning (your recipe, Cajun Seasoning Mix or store-bought)
2 tablespoons butter
1 thinly sliced green onion
1 -2 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Place chicken and Cajun seasoning in a bowl and toss to coat.
2. In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken in butter or margarine until chicken is tender, about 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Reduce heat add green onion, heavy cream, tomatoes, basil, salt, garlic powder, black pepper and heat through.
4. Pour over hot linguine and toss with Parmesan cheese.

Quinoa Kale Patties

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
4 eggs, whisked
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
3 spring onions, sliced thin
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup steamed kale, chopped
1 cup breadcrumbs ( GF friends, be sure to use GF breadcrumbs. See my note at the end of the recipe for making your own.)*
1 teaspoon olive oil
optional toppings: avocado, cilantro, lemon juice, salsa verde, garlic oil

 Directions:


If you happen to already have leftover cooked grains on hand, this recipe calls for 2 1/2 cups. Otherwise, whip up some quinoa from scratch. Rinse 1 cup of quinoa thoroughly and place the grains in a medium sauce pan with 2 cups of water. Allow quinoa to soak for 15 minutes. Then, with the lid on the pan, bring the water to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook until quinoa is tender and has absorbed the liquid - about 20 minutes. Let cool to room temp.

In a large bowl, mix together cooked quinoa, eggs, Parmesan, spring onions, garlic, salt, steamed kale, and breadcrumbs. Let everything sit for a few minutes to absorb the liquid. You want the batter to be moist, but not runny. Form patties and get your pan ready for cooking.

Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Cook up to 6 patties at at time (don't overcrowd the pan). Cover the pan and let the cuties cook for 7-10 minutes until the underbellies are a deep rich brown. Flip and cook the other side for another 7-10 minutes until both sides are nice and brown. Let patties rest on a cooling rack while you finish the next batch.

I ate my patties topped with avocado, lemon juice, cilantro, a drizzle of really nice olive oil, and sea salt. If you want to pack your patties to eat for lunch at work and want an easy topping, just chop up some avocado and place it in a container with salsa verde and you're ready to go.

Note: If you don't want to eat all the patties right away, go ahead and refrigerate the batter and cook patties up to order at a later moment.


*A Note on gluten-free breadcrumbs... For my gluten-free friends that are new to making your own breadcrumbs, here's how you do it. Toast up a few slices of bread (or those lonely end-pieces) until they are dry. Tear the toasted bread up into chunks, toss them in the blender. Pulse a few times and you've got homemade breadcrumbs. So easy... and I love to put scraps to good use!

makes 12 small patties

Melt In Your Mouth Chicken

Ingredients:

1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 cup Greek yogurt -plain
1 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp seasoning salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Directions:



Spread mixture over chicken breasts, bake at 375 degrees for 45 mins

Lemon Chicken Lasagna

Ingredients:

Nonstick cooking spray

1 16-oz. jar roasted garlic alfredo sauce

1 Tbsp. drained capers

6  no-boil lasagna noodles

1/2 of a 15-oz. container ricotta cheese

6 oz. fontina cheese or mozarella shredded (1 1/2 cups)

1-1/2 tsp. finely shredded lemon peel

1/4 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese

1 9-oz. pkg. refrigerated or frozen cooked chicken breast strips (thawed, if frozen)

Directions:

 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat a 2-quart square baking dish with cooking spray; set aside. In a saucepan combine alfredo sauce and capers. Bring to boiling over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Spoon 1/3 cup of sauce mixture into prepared dish. Top with 2 lasagna noodles. In a bowl stir together ricotta, 1 cup of the fontina cheese, and 1 teaspoon of the lemon peel. Spoon half the cheese mixture over noodles. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Top with half the chicken. Spoon half the remaining sauce over chicken layer.

2. Top with 2 more noodles, remaining ricotta mixture, and remaining chicken. Add 2 more noodles, remaining sauce, and sprinkle with remaining fontina and Parmesan.

3. Cover with foil. Bake for 40 minutes. Let stand, covered, on wire rack for 20 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with remaining lemon peel. Makes 6 servings.