Chicken Broccoli and swiss roll with bacon

Ok...I had been fiddling around with this idea for a couple of days. I wanted something like a chicken cordon bleu, but with broccoli and swiss. I also had some bacon that needed to be used up and this is the end result.

Ingredients:

1 boneless skinless chicken breast
1 bunch fresh broccoli
1-2 slices of domestic swiss cheese, sliced thin to medium
1-2 slices of bacon, uncooked
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
black pepper
garlic powder
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
herbs de provance

Directions:

Slice the chicken in half, but not completely. Place the chicken between a folded piece of clear wrap or parchment paper. Grab a meat tenderizer and pound the chickken breast until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Take the broccoli and cut the florets off. Set them aside. Take the stalks and julianne cut them as thin as you can get them. Place the swiss cheese on the chicken and then place the broccoli spears on top of it. Roll everything up as tight as possible. Take the bacon and roll it around the chicken breast. brocc

Take the panko bread crumbs, add in the spices and toss to mix. Place them onto a spare plate and coat the chicken breast with the seasoned bread crumbs. Make sure every inch is coated. Bake in over at 350 for about 15-20 mins or deep fry for about 10 mins or until a nice brown colour. Serve with the left over broccoli florets, steamed rice or other veggie of your choice.

Pineapple chicken and broccoli

I got this idea from a chinese all you can eat buffet we went to the other day. Their pineapple chicken was coated and fried, however, the meat was kinda dry. It was good, but I prefer my chicken to be moist. After I finished, I immediately announced to my friends that even though it was good, I could do better. This is what I came up with and man, was it good!!

Pineapple chicken and broccoli:

1 can crushed pineapple in juice
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 bunch fresh broccoli
1/2 sweet yellow onion
1/2 can sliced mushrooms (optional)
minced garlic
crushed red pepper
sweet and sour sauce or hoisin sauce
lite soy sauce

Directions:

In a wok, Sautee 2 tablespoons of minced garlic and a tablespoon of crushed red pepper in extra virgin olive oil over medium high heat. Cut the florets off of the broccoli stalks, slice onion into strips and toss into the wok. Chunk up the chicken and add into the wok. Add in mushrooms and 1/2 can of crushed pineapple and juice. Stir until chicken is almost done. Add in 2-3 tablespoons of sweet and sour sauce or hoisin sauce(or both). put in several dashes of lite soy sauce to taste. Add salt and pepper if you wish. Serve over cooked rice, ramen noodles or lo mein noodles.

Whiskey Batter Fried Fish and chips

It's odd when something small can bring something so huge to my kitchen! Over the holidays, I had somehow come into not one, not two, but three bottles of Jack Daniels (yay me!!). Knowing that I could never drink all that, I decided to see what I could do with it cooking wise. I already know it rocks in my chili con carnage and I could make a bbq sauce with it, but what else could I use it for. Out of the blue, it hits me: batter fried fish!!! I went to my local fish store and decided on swai, a korean catfish that is thick but looks kinda like tilapia. It's very mild and doesn't flake! Next time I make it, I will have to make a few changes but otherwise, it came out awesome!!

Ingredients:

1-2 lbs of firm fresh whitefish (cod, scrod, whiting, orange roughy, or swai)
2 cups of all purpose flour
6 oz whiskey
6 oz ginger ale, cola, club soda or seltzer
salt
pepper
cajun spice
garlic powder

Directions:

Take 1 1/2 cups of flour, 6 oz of whiskey and 6 oz of ginger ale, cola, club soda, or seltzer and mix in a bowl until it has the consistency of a thick pancake batter. Add seasonings to taste. Take the remaining 1/2 cup of flour and place into a seperate bowl and season to taste. Cut the fish into sections. Dredge fish in seasoned flour, then dip into batter. Let the fish soak a bit in the batter. In a skillet (cast iron preferred and recommended), heat a half inch worth of oil at medium. Pull the fish out of the batter and shake off the excess. Place in the oil and fry until golden brown on both sides. Serve with fries, cole slaw, and or hush puppies...and don't forget the malt vinegar!

*Cook's addendum:
After doing this recipe, I have discovered that a much smoother and milder whiskey would work well for this. I would recommend Tullamore Dew or maybe even Crown Royal, which has a bit of sweetness to it.

Easy Italian Stew

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp.Zesty Italian Dressing
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
2 cans (14-1/2 oz. each) fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen stir-fry vegetables (white onions; sliced green, red and yellow peppers)
1 can (15 oz.) cannellini beans, rinsed
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup elbow macaroni, uncooked
1 cup Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese


Directions:

HEAT dressing in large saucepan on medium heat. Add sausage; cook 8 to 10 min. or until done, stirring occasionally to break into small pieces.

ADD broth, stir-fry vegetables, beans and tomatoes; bring to boil. Stir in macaroni; simmer on medium heat 8 to 10 min. or until macaroni is tender, stirring occasionally.

TOP with cheese. Serve with Crackers.