Orange Chicken

We celebrated my sister Stephanie's birthday yesterday. This is what I made for dinner and everyone LOVED it so much I am posting it on Betsy! It is a healthy version of Panda Express' orange chicken. I served it over rice with a side of steamed broccoli.

1/2 c chicken broth

6 tbsp hoisin sauce (in the oriental section)

4 tbsp sugar-free apricot jam

4 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce

1 tsp orange zest

2 large oranges

3 tbsp chopped cilantro

4 chicken breast, defrosted and cut into cubes

Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Mix and set aside. Place cubed chicken in a frying pan and pour sauce over chicken. Cook on stove on high heat. Liquid will evaporated some, forming a sauce you can use to pour over rice. If you want more orange sauce add a little more water as the chicken cooks. Serve over rice. Combine orange slices and cilantro in a small bowl and toss. Place on top of chicken and rice or on the side.

Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken

I got this off pinterest and it is so so good.
And so easy.

1/2 cup grated chicken
1 package good seasons Italian dressing mix
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I did just 4 and I thought it was a good ratio)

Preheat oven to 400. Mix cheese, dressing and garlic. Moisten chicken breasts with water; coat with cheese mixture. Place in a shallow baking dish. Bake 25 minutes or until done.

Healthier Chicken Salad

I like to buy rotisserie chicken from Costco because its an easy meal. I am always looking for recipes to use the leftover chicken pieces. I came across this one while sitting in the doctors office this week and wanted to give it a whirl. Filling and delish!!

1/4 c. greek yogurt

1 tbsp light mayo

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp curry powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 packet truvia (opt.)

2 cups rotisserie chicken (you can also use 1 can of chicken, drained, the Kirkland brand from Costco)

1 cup red grapes, halved

1/2 c sliced almonds (I used walnuts because I had it on hand)

1 mango, diced (opt.)

chopped romaine

In a bowl, whisk together yogurt, mayo, lemon juice, curry powder and salt. Fold in chicken, mangom grapes and nuts. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or more. Place lettuce on plate and place chicken mixture on top.

I also have a wonderful Chicken Noodle Soup recipe using Costco's rotisserie chicken I made up coming soon.......

If you like more healthy recipes, check out my blog at http://sweatyornot.blogspot.com/

Poppy Seed Chicken

I just tried this last night. Definitely a keeper! 

recipe found via blog and pinterest

5 cups chicken breasts, cooked and cubed (4 or 5 chicken breasts)

1 cup sour cream (I used fat free)

2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup

2 cups crushed Ritz crackers (about 1 1/2 rolls of crackers)

1/2 cup melted butter

1 T poppy seeds

Additional Ingredients to make it fancy:

1 tsp Worchestire sauce

1 tsp celery salt

1 tsp minced garlic

1 T lemon juice

1/4 tsp pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Boil raw chicken breasts with salt and pepper until done. I like to boil it with half an onion cut into large chunks to give it more flavor. Let chicken cool slightly and cut into one inch cubes. Place cubed chicken in a 9x13 casserole dish.

Stir together the condensed soup and sour cream. If you wish to add the additional flavorings stir in the worchestire, celery salt, garlic, lemon juice, and pepper to the soup and sour cream mixture. Pour over the chicken.

In a separate bowl, stir together the crushed crackers, poppy seeds and melted butter. Sprinkle over the chicken and sauce.

Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until the top of the casserole is browned and the sauce is bubbly. Serve plain or over rice or with mashed potatoes. 

Kabob Marinade

I am posting this recipe due to popular request. I had some family members over for dinner this past week and they LOVED this one! It has always been one of my favorites. It was in a recipe book that came with the treadmill.

1/2 c. olive oil

1/2 c. lemon juice

1/2 onion (quartered)

1-2 tsp minced garlic

1 tbsp thyme

Place marinade divided into 2 ziplock bags (one for chicken and one for veggies) and add the following:

1 lb chicken, cubed

1 pint cherry tomatoes

1 pint button mushrooms

1 green pepper, cut into chunks

1 red pepper, cut into chunks

1 red or white onion

Marinade at least 2 hours (I usually do it overnight). Soak kabob skewers in water for at least 15 minutes before threading if using the wood ones (so they don't catch fire). Thread chicken and veggies on kabobs and grill over medium-high heat. We add canned pineapple chunks at this time too. I am sure you can bake it in the oven at about 400 degrees and cook until chicken is done and veggies are crisp tender. ENJOY!!

Ginger Sauce

I crave the ginger sauce from Noodle Express in Spokane!! I found this recipe in hopes to recreate it. I can't wait to try it!

This Creamy Ginger Soy Sauce is great as a dressing for a fresh salad, or as a sauce for your favorite Asian cuisine featuring meat or fish.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger root, minced
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 cup mayonnaise

Instructions

1. In a small bowl, combine and thoroughly mix white wine vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, minced garlic, minced ginger root, cayenne pepper, and black pepper.
2. Gradually whisk in mayonnaise until completely blended.

Balsamic Vinaigrette Crock Pot Chicken

*This has quickly become one of my favorite dishes. Very flavorful and super easy! And not to mention pretty healthy.

Ingredients:
1 bottle Kraft Light Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
3 or 4 tomatoes on the vine (cut up)
1 tub feta cheese
4 to 6 chicken breasts (frozen)

Directions: Place all ingredients in crockpot on high for 4 hours. I've found if you do it for 8 hours the chicken tends to dry out. Serve over rice.

Healthy Stuffed Chicken

This is another recipe I got from Maria Menounos. Yeah, I'm a big fan of hers! Love her!! My husband said this recipe was a definite keeper and a "home run" (he associates everything with sports. Hahaha!)!! If he approves then it must be good!

Ingredients:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, flattened

Stuffing:

3/4 lb low-fat feta cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup packed, chopped baby spinach

1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp ground black pepper

Sauce:

one 14oz can tomato sauce

1 diced mango, peeled and seeded

1/4 tsp seeded and diced jalapeno pepper (I left this ingredient out)

salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Mix all the stuffing ingredients in a bowl. Spoon out half of the mix onto each flattened chicken breast. Wrap the chicken around the stuffing and place in a small greased baking pan. Bake for 40 minutes.

While the chicken is baking, prepare the sauce. Combine all the ingredients in a pot over medium heat. Bring just to a boil, then turn heat down to low and simmer, stirring off and on, for 15 minuted or until sauce becomes thick.

Spoon the sauce over cooked chicken and serve.

Yield: 2 (the stuffing makes a lot, so you could even get 3-4 stuffed chicken breasts)

Venetian Apricot Chicken

Yesterday, before our little brother Scottie left on a Mormon mission we all went to the Olive Garden. The sisters all ordered the same thing! It is by far one of the best tasting dishes they have to offer. Here is the recipe!

Venetian Apricot Chicken

Ingredients
Apricot Sauce:
1/2 cup chicken stock (broth)
1/2 cup apricot preserves
Salt and pepper to taste

Tomato Mixture:
1/2 lb roma tomatoes, cut into 1” pieces
6 basil leaves, cut into 1/2” pieces
1 tsp garlic pepper
Salt to taste

Garlic Herb Seasoning:
3 tsp garlic pepper
1 tsp Italian seasoning

1 bunch asparagus (remove bottom inch of stems)
1/2 lb broccoli florets
1Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Chopped parsley to garnish

Procedures

1. COMBINE Garlic Herb Seasoning ingredients in a small mixing bowl and set aside.
   
2. BLEND chicken stock and apricot preserves in a sauce pan. Add salt & pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and remove from heat.
   
3. COMBINE tomatoes, basil, garlic pepper and salt in a separate mixing bowl and set aside.
   
4. BLANCH asparagus and broccoli for 1 minute in a pot of salted boiling water. Transfer immediately to ice bath to stop cooking.
   
5. COAT sauté pan with 1Tbsp olive oil. While keeping ingredients separated in pan, heat cooled asparagus, broccoli and tomato mixture and until hot. Do not overcook.
   
6. GRILL chicken until internal temperature reaches 165°F.
   
7. PLACE grilled chicken on a platter next to hot broccoli and asparagus. Sprinkle Garlic Herb Seasoning on broccoli. Pour tomato mixture on top of vegetables.
   
8. TOP chicken breasts with apricot sauce and garnish with chopped parsley.

Here we go...

I hope mom doesn't kill me for naming this blog Betsy's Recipes. Pretty much anything with "Johnson" in it was taken. But I like it! Let me know what you think.

Also I think it would be good if we label what we post (i.e. cookies, main dish, salad, etc.). I think will be easier to refer back to when looking for a specific recipe. I already made some up, but feel free to add as we go. Sound good?

Here is to the beginning. I'll go first.