Sugar Snap and Beef Stir Fry

This is another great "Chinese Food at Home" recipe! Pam, over at For the Love of Cooking, has not disappointed me yet. I always know I'm going to love her recipes. This dish had an incredible flavor and was really easy to make. My one suggestion wold be to let your meat sit in the marinade for as long as possible. A very busy day (and a scattered mind) resulted in mine marinating for only about an hour and a half. It was wonderful, but would be so much better if allowed to sit longer, as Pam suggests.

Hope everyone is doing well! I haven't had as much time to post comments as I would like, but I am still checking out your blogs to get wonderful dinner ideas for my family! I promise to be better about checking in on your sites once I grow more accustomed to the new schedule!

Sugar Snap and Beef Stir Fry
For the beef marinade:
1 lb flank steak, thinly sliced against the grain
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon chili sauce
1/4 teaspoon white sugar
1 clove of garlic, minced

(Combine all ingredients in a large zip lock bag and place in refrigerator for 1-6 hours.)

For the stir fry veggies:
Sugar snap peas, trimmed
Broccoli florets, steamed until tender
1/4 cup of shredded carrots
2-3 baby bell peppers, sliced
1/4 red onion, sliced
2-3 green onions, sliced (divided)
1 clove of garlic, minced
1-2 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated

(Steam broccoli florets. Clean and chop all vegetables then set aside until ready to cook.)

For the sauce:
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons white sugar
2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon chili sauce

(Combine all ingredients and whisk until mixed thoroughly. Set aside.)

Remaining ingredients:
Sesame oil (to cook meat and vegetables)
Sesame seeds (garnish)
Brown rice, prepare according to the directions (I used white rice to keep my husband happy!)

Heat 1 teaspoon of sesame oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add beef to the pan; stir fry for 2 minutes or until done. Place beef in a bowl and set aside. Add the last remaining teaspoon of sesame oil to the pan. Add onion and sauté 1 minute. Add the remaining vegetables along with half of the green onions, and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add minced garlic and freshly grated ginger, cook stirring continuously for 45 seconds. Add beef and stir fry sauce then cook for an additional minute or until thoroughly heated. Serve over brown rice and garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.

Source: For the Love of Cooking

Skillet Chicken Pasta with Broccoli

When I looked over the list of ingredients in this dish, there was absolutely NO doubt that this would quickly become a favorite. The sauce is nice and delicate, yet there is a little bit of an after-bite thanks to the red pepper flakes. . . completely unexpected but the perfect complement to the dish. It came together quickly, so it is definitely one for the weeknight rotation once school starts up again in the fall. The other nice element is that it does reheat well. My only recommendation would be to have a little extra cream and broth left in order to moisten it up while heating. So good!

Skillet Chicken Pasta with Broccoli
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch squares
Salt and ground black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, minced (I used 2 small/medium onions)
4 medium cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
12 ounces ziti (Like Christy, I went ahead and used the full 16 ounces-- it reheats well!)
4 1/4 cups water
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
4-5 cups broccoli florets
1 1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed and chopped coarse
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the chicken in a single layer and cook for 1 minute without stirring. Stir the chicken and continue to cook until most, but not all, of the pink color has disappeared and the chicken is lightly browned around the edges, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to a clean bowl and set aside. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil, onion, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to the skillet. Return the skillet to medium-high heat and cook, stirring often, until the onion is softened, about 2 to 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, oregano, and pepper flakes, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the pasta, 3 cups of the water, and the broth. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until the liquid is very thick and syrupy and almost completely absorbed, 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the broccoli, sun-dried tomatoes, and the remaining 1 1/4 cups water. Cover, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the broccoli turns bright green and is almost tender, 2-3 minutes. Uncover and return the heat to medium-high. Stir in the cream, parmesan, and reserved chicken with any accumulated juices and continue to simmer, uncovered, until the sauce is thickened and the chicken is cooked and heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, topped with grated parmesan cheese.

Source: Christy's Kitchen Creations, originally posted at My Kitchen Cafe

Sausage Skillet Supper

This is a great recipe for those days when you have to throw together a quick meal. The cookbook I found it in says to allow 5 minutes for prep and 15 minutes total cooking time. A lot of times when a recipe says that, it isn't necessarily an accurate estimate. I was thrilled to find that this one truly was! It had a really good, comfort food kind of feel to it and consisted of ingredients that I normally would have in the house at all times. Even better, the whole meal is made in one skillet making clean up a breeze!

Sausage Skillet Supper
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 bag (24 ounces) frozen diced potatoes with onions and peppers
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano or basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups broccoli flowerets
1 ring (about 3/4 pound) smoked sausage, cut into 6 pieces
4 slices American cheese, cut diagonally in half

Heat oil in a 10 inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add potatoes, oregano, salt and pepper. Cover and cook for 6-8 minutes. Stir occasionally, until potatoes are light brown. Stir in the broccoli and sausage. Cover and cook for about 8 minutes, or until the sausage is heated through. Top with the cheese. Cover and heat until the cheese is melted.

Source: Adapted from Betty Crocker - Quick and Easy Cookbook

Sausage, Broccoli, Brown Rice and Parmesan Dinner

I truly had every intention of making this meal exactly as it was posted. It looked wonderful and sounded like something my husband would love. The recipe called for cheese filled chicken sausage. This is the second time that I have been on a mission for chicken sausage and I have yet to locate any in our local grocery stores! It's been quite frustrating! :) If anyone has any ideas, please feel free to share! I decided, instead, to go with a turkey Italian sausage (which is the same thing I substituted in the last dish as well). While the prep work on the meal was a bit more difficult using this option, the flavor was incredible. Looking at the pictures on Picky Palate, it seems that the sausage she used was cooked through, making it easy to slice and brown as part of her directions describe. My turkey sausage was uncooked and as I tried to slice it, it was sliding out of the casing. I was afraid that if I cooked it first (before slicing) it would dry out. Instead, I used a serrated knife and slowly cut my slices. My sausage pieces looked more like meatballs in my finished dish, but they held together well and the flavors worked really well together.

Sausage, Broccoli, Brown Rice and Parmesan Dinner

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1.25 lbs turkey Italian sausages, thinly sliced

4 cups broccoli florets, steamed until fork tender

4 cups cooked brown rice

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil into a large skillet over medium heat. Saute bell pepper for 5 minutes or until softened. Stir in garlic; cook for 1 minutes then add sausage slices. Cook for 5 minutes or until sausage is browned on both sides and all pink is gone. Add broccoli, rice and parmesan cheese. Cook for 2 minutes or so, then season with salt and pepper to your liking.

Source: Adapted from Picky Palate

Chicken Con Broccoli

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I need a lightbox-- or to start making dinner earlier in the day so that I can get a decent picture of it! :)

I've yet to find an Olive Garden dish that I didn't love. . . it's one of those places where I can blindly point on the menu and be satisfied every time! My sister forwarded me this recipe years ago for an imitation of one of the Olive Garden's famous dishes. It's been so long since I have been there that I can't even tell you if this one is still on the menu, but the knock-off recipe did not disappoint! There were a few minor changes that I would make in the future. To begin with, the pasta that the recipe calls for (orecchiette) fell victim to my husband's grocery shopping (which I do LOVE him for doing for me while I'm home with our newborn). In place of it, I used medium shells. I do have to say that this worked out well, as it trapped more of the sauce in each delicious bite. I did go ahead and partially cook the broccoli before adding it to the pasta-- I was afraid it would be too 'raw' if I didn't do so. Giving it just a few minutes really worked well and gave it a nice bite. You would have to be careful, though. If it were to overcook, it would fall apart in the pasta or be too mushy. This time around, I cut the chicken breasts into slices. The next time I would definitely cut into bite-sized pieces. One final change, I did add some parmesan cheese to the sauce while it was thickening. This gave the sauce a little extra kick and definitely was a positive addition.

Chicken Con Broccoli

1 pound chicken breasts

2 teaspoons olive oil

4 ounces orecchiette pasta (I used about 8 ounces)

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons butter

2 teaspoons minced garlic

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 cup broccoli florets

salt and pepper to taste

3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese (plus additional for sprinkling as garnish)

Spice Mixture:

1-2 teaspoons dried basil, parsley, and rosemary

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

Combine ingredients from spice mixture. Rub onto the cleaned chicken breasts. Cook the chicken in the olive oil until cooked through and browned on both sides. Set aside. Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water until it is almost done. Drain and return the pasta to the pot. Stir the butter and garlic in the saute pan, cooking until the garlic carmelizes. Add the cream and cornstarch at medium heat and cook until the sauce begins to thicken. Add the parmesan cheese and mix well. Add the sauce to the pasta, along with the chicken and broccoli. Simmer until the pasta is done and remove from the heat. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper to taste.

Source: Adapted from That's My Home

Garlic Chicken Stir Fry

One of the biggest downfalls of living in central Indiana is the lack of truly authentic, good-quality Chinese food. Other than PF Changs, where the closest location is 30 minutes away, there really aren't any options that I can get too excited about. Due to this, I am always on the lookout for a good Chinese food recipe! When my sister, Rachel, emailed this one-- I knew it was one that I would have to try fairly quickly. She commented that the chicken had a taste and texture that was more like a Chinese restaurant than anything else she had made at home before. I would have to agree with her! The dish was very fresh, had great flavor, and was very easy to throw together. She did mention that mushrooms would be a great addition, but she left them out as her husband is not a fan of them. I wanted to make it her way for the first time, but would definitely add mushrooms with my next attempt.

Garlic Chicken Stir Fry

2.5 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast halves

12 tablespoons cornstarch

8 tablespoons soy sauce

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon garlic powder

3 tablespoons cooking oil, divided

4 cups broccoli florets

4 stalks sliced celery

4 thinly sliced carrots

2-3 small onions, cut into wedges

3 cups water

3 bouillon cubes

minced garlic (to taste)

Cut chicken into 1/2-in. strips; place in a resealable plastic bag. Add cornstarch and toss to coat. Combine soy sauce, ginger and garlic powder; add to bag and shake well. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In a large skillet or wok, heat 2 tablespoons of oil; stir-fry chicken until no longer pink, about 3-5 minutes. Remove and keep warm. Add remaining oil; stir- fry broccoli, celery, carrots, onion, and minced garlic for 4-5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Add water and bouillon. Return chicken to pan. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.

Source: Rachel Guajardo