Beer Braised Chicken

I was on the fence about this recipe. As much as I love beer I don’t always love food cooked with it; neither does my husband. I’m so glad I went through and made Beer Braised Chicken for dinner tonight. It was out of this world. Whipped mashed potatoes completed this meal. Only thing that would make this better are cooler than 80 degrees temperatures – bring on the fall-like weather please!

For the mashed potatoes I simply boiled the potatoes until tender then whipped them with butter, milk and Wildtree Rancher Steak Rub.

Hers is the recipe for the chicken:

Beer Braised Chicken

1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
6 ounces Andouille chicken sausage, diced
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, (about 1 ½ pounds)
1 (12 ounce) bottle stout beer
½ cup Wildtree Red Bell Pepper Sauce
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Preheat oven to 350°F. Combine onion, red bell pepper, and chicken sausage in the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish. Place chicken breast on top. Pour beer over the entire dish, cover with foil, and bake for 1 hour.

Whisk together the Red Bell Pepper Sauce and cornstarch until smooth. Remove foil from baking dish, stir in Red Bell Pepper/cornstarch mixture, return pan to oven, and cook for 20-30 more minutes or until sauce has thickened.

Can be served with rice.
Calories 250; Fat 6 g; Saturated Fat 1.5 g; Carbohydrates 11 g; Fiber 1 g; Protein 31 g; Cholesterol 95 mg; Sodium 370 mg

Halfway Through September/Time Crunch Tuesday

Today marks the mid-way point of September so I wanted to give an update on my grocery budget experiment. So far, for the month, I’m at $495. Thankfully I don’t need to buy much more before the end of the month. Sadly this amount is about what I figured I was spending on groceries prior to running this little exercise! Whatever that number ends up being I need to do better in October!

The goal is to drive this number down while still preparing delicious, practically clean meals.

Here are some things I learned:
1) Having to ‘run out for lunch’ even when going to the grocery store or Target adds up fast. I will keep things handy at work for when lunch plans fall through.
2) Buying extra organic/grass fed meat when it’s on sale adds up but is a lifesaver when having to throw dinner together in a pinch. Also saves us from ordering takeout which is never a healthy options!
3) Planning to this degree has made life so much easier. I plan once for the month and I’m done – I will continue to do this!

In other news…I’m calling today Time Crunch Tuesday! I went to a Barre class after work and didn’t get home until 8:00; I was really hungry. Thankfully I had a bag of Costco Organic Potstickers in the freezer. I steamed them in mixture of 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil and 3/4 cup water. Once the water evaporated they were cooked then the oil crisped them up in the pan! I had bottles of Wildtree Sweet and Spicy Chili Sauce and Outrageous Orange Sauce open so used a little of each for some sweet heat! The Chili Sauce only has 15 calories per tablespoon! Served with salad and it was a nice, light dinner. Not totally clean eating but practically clean 🙂

Case of the Mondays

I really had a case of the Mondays today. I didn’t want to get out of bed this morning. This is nothing new but today was especially tough; it felt like fall, we had the windows open and my doggies were being extra cuddly. After working all day then going to the gym I didn’t have a ton of desire to mess around with dinner.

As part of my September meal plan I was set to make Chipotle Chicken Mac-N-Cheese Stuffed Peppers…what I ended up making was more of a casserole. I took the time to roast the peppers with the Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil and made everything as the instructions indicated. When it came time to stuff the peppers I decided to layer them (next time would just dice the peppers and mix it all together) and the pasta mix into a casserole dish, sprinkle with the cheese and bake for 13 minutes until the cheese was melted.

The ingredients are pretty simple and if I didn’t love the Spicy Chipotle Ranch mix and Kidz Cheez after the baked chimichangas last week I certainly love them both right now! The Wildtree products can be purchased online at http://www.mywildtree.com/eateasy.

The only other modification I made was adding crushed red pepper flakes to the cheese sauce mixture because I add them to everything!

It was delicious – my husband at two helpings and I have leftovers for lunch later this week! These are some lunch leftovers worth getting excited about 🙂

The finished product isn’t very pretty but it was tasty and that’s all that matters around here!

Chipotle Mac & Cheez Stuffed Peppers – Click here for recipe!

Cupcake Kind of Day

I love fall! I love football!

My husband and I love craft beer and it seems these days there’s a trend with aging beers in Bourbon barrels. When I saw this recipe for Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Cupcakes I knew they’d be a perfect treat to bake on Sunday while watching football.

The ingredients are simple and straightforward. I didn’t have Bourbon so that required a trip to the liquor store; I ordered the Wildtree Heavenly Chocolate Mousse Mix in advance. The Mousse Mix comes with 2 packets so you can make the cupcakes and have enough leftover to make the mousse. The mousse is a delicious and decadent treat…but so are these cupcakes!

First you make the cupcakes:

I loved the texture of the batter and they scooped nicely into the cupcake liners. They baked perfectly. My oven bakes slowly so I always bake things for the maximum amount of time – they were in the oven for 20 minutes.

Since the oven was hot and set at 350 I made the pecans next.

The pecans aren’t the prettiest when they come out of the oven but they smell like heaven and are quite tasty. Next time I’m making extra to use as an ice cream topper – they were that good. I also highly recommend lining the pan with foil – it cleans up in seconds and having spent hours in the past trying to clean caramelized anything out of a pan/baking sheet I’ll never skip this step!

The frosting came together pretty quick – just make sure to beat it long enough. When the heavy cream and butter first combine it almost seems curdled. If you keep beating it it will get smooth – I promise 🙂

The end result are beautiful and tasty cupcakes – enjoy!

I’m pretty proud of these little gems!

In a total coincidence I was also making Meatloaf Cupcakes for dinner; however I got lazy and ended up making mini-meatloaves with mashed potatoes. I didn’t take any pictures but if you want the recipe it’s posted below. They were delicious, super easy and quick to make! Enjoy 🙂

CHOCOLATE BOURBON PECAN CUPCAKES

Cupcakes:
½ cup bourbon
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 package Wildtree Heavenly Chocolate Mousse Mix (purchase at http://www.mywildtree.com/eateasy)
1 cup flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/3 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
½ cup sugar

Pecans:
1 tablespoon bourbon
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
½ tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon brown sugar
½ cup chopped pecans

Frosting:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons bourbon

To prepare the cupcakes, preheat oven to 350°F and line a 12 cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. Whisk together bourbon, melted butter and Heavenly Chocolate Mousse Mix. In a second bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. In a third bowl, beat together the egg and Greek yogurt with an electric hand mixer until smooth. Beat in the bourbon mixture followed by the sugar. On low speed, slowly beat in the flour mixture until just incorporated. Divide batter among 12 muffin cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Move to a wire rack to cool.
To prepare the pecans, preheat oven to 350°F and line a sheet pan with foil. In a small bowl, combine the bourbon, cinnamon, vanilla, and brown sugar. Add the pecans and toss to coat. Spread on the foil-lined sheet pan and bake for 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool.
To prepare the frosting, beat together the butter and cream with an electric hand mixer until smooth. Beat in the powdered sugar until completely incorporated. Beat in the bourbon and half of the candied pecans. Chill before frosting the cupcakes if necessary.
Frost the cupcakes and top with remaining candied pecans.

If you must know the nutrition information is listed below but realize these are an indulgence and should be treated as such!

Calories 380; Fat 20 g; Saturated Fat 11 g; Carbohydrates 44 g; Fiber 2 g; Protein 34 g; Cholesterol 60 mg; Sodium 160 mg

mini meatloaf cupcakes – Click here for recipe!

Thrifty Thursday

I’ve been calling Thursday’s Thrifty Thursday because it tends to be the night I cook from the pantry. I made this dish tonight because I had some chicken thighs in the freezer and mushrooms that needed to be used.

http://www.bhg.com/recipe/three-herb-chicken-and-mushrooms/

I didn’t have the fresh herbs so I used Wildtree Herbs de Provence blend – it’s a great substitute and of course added crushed red pepper flakes.

I made corn on the cob as a side and dinner was on the table in under 40 minutes. I love nights when I can get dinner pulled together, prepared and done in under an hour.

I was in such a hurry to get dinner made and eaten I didn’t take any pictures. Thankfully Better Homes and Garden did 🙂

Baked Chimichangas

It’s often a difficult balance between clean eating, eating nutritious food and keeping calories in check especially while keeping to a budget. Sometimes I get conflicted and want to abandon my resolve to eat clean in order to cut calories. Dairy is one of those areas where I’m tempted to cut corners but when I read the ingredients it seems the fewer calories the more ingredients I don’t recognize. I’ve finally gotten over this and will not compromise unless I absolutely have to…hence practically clean!

Tonight’s dinner was a perfect example of this conflict. I love Tex-Mex…especially cheese smothered and fried. I was excited to find this recipe because it had everything I love about Tex-Mex with none of the guilt.

The ingredients were simple…

Notice the full-fat sour cream (yum!) and 2% grass fed milk 🙂 I was happy to find organic tortillas at Target. When I make these next time I will soften them in the microwave for a few seconds before rolling the chimichangas. The recipe said this would make 6 chimichangas (it actually made 7) and each one with the accompaniments would be 300 calories. I think the fuller-fat versions of the dairy and it making an extra cancelled each other out and still came to about 300 calories…that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Before I get to the finished product I’m most proud of the accompaniments…minus the lettuce because quite frankly it’s not that exciting. I’m talking about the pico and cheese sauce…

Brushing the chimi’s with a small amount of grapeseed oil helps them turn really crispy in the oven. Don’t skip this step and I encourage using it when making other things – I know I will! Here is the glorious outcome.

The Wildtree ingredients used in this recipe are Kidz Cheez Blend, Spicy Chipotle Ranch and Garlic Grapeseed Oil. They are so versatile and can be used in so many ways! Stay tuned for a recipe using these 3 next week 🙂 they can be purchased at http://www.mywildtree.com/eateasy.

Simple.Healthy.Dinner. – September 2015 – click here for recipe!

Chicken & Couscous Stew

I have a mental calendar that tells me in September temps get cooler and in February they get warmer. This is never the case and each year I am disappointed the weather doesn’t do what I think it should. Today was the hottest day of the summer but since my mind is already in fall I made chicken couscous stew for dinner.

It was delicious and so super easy!

Here are all the ingredients necessary…

Once again the Wildtree Roasted Garlic Grapeseed oil is used – this time along with fresh garlic! I love that the Alfredo mix is so versatile but gives the stew a nice creamy texture. It turned out more like a soup than a stew (not quite thick enough in my opinion) but was worthy of second helpings by the husband!

Sorry about the spinach stuck to the side of the pot 😦 it looks about as attractive as it is when it gets stuck in your teeth!

Here is the recipe! Enjoy!

Chicken & Couscous Stew
Serves 5

2 tablespoons Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil
1 onion, sliced
4 ounces mushrooms, sliced
½ cup Israeli couscous
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups Wildtree Chicken Bouillon Soup Base, prepared
according to package directions
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 cups chopped spinach
¼ cup Wildtree Alfredo Extraordinaire

Heat Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil in a large pot over medium
heat. Add the onion, mushrooms, and couscous; sauté for 8
minutes, stirring often. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
Add the prepared Chicken Bouillon Soup Base and chicken breasts.
Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes or
until chicken is cooked through: 165°F. Remove chicken, shred, and
return to pan. Remove pan from heat; stir in spinach and Alfredo
Extraordinaire.

Calories 260; Fat 9 g; Saturated Fat 1.5 g; Carbohydrates 18 g;
Fiber 2 g; Protein 26 g; Cholesterol 55 mg; Sodium 410 mg

All Wildtree products can be purchased at http://www.mywildtree.com/eateasy

Creole Jambalaya

An unintended benefit of planning meals for a month in advance is I’m able to be nimble with meal planning. Traditionally I am one of those people who likes structure, needs to have a plan and needs to stick to that plan to feel successful.

This weekend we had planned to go out to watch the Wisconsin Badger football team open the season up against Alabama. The game wasn’t until 8 and we had a wedding to attend on Sunday so we spent the day wedding gift shopping. We ended up eating out while shopping and decided to watch the game at home. Previously I would’ve ordered pizza since I didn’t have anything planned for dinner but the beauty of planning meals and shopping for them a month in advance meant I had everything on hand to make dinner.

I used another package of the Wildtree Creole Skillet meal blend to make Jambalaya! I added hot pepper flakes and cayenne – because we like our food spicy! Otherwise this was a super easy and delicious meal I was able to put together in minutes. My husband had 3 platefuls throughout the night – success!

I forgot to grab the Wildtree Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil for the above picture…this stuff is amazing and a must if you ever want to impart a rich, garlic flavor to food without chopping it fresh! The garlic oil and Creole skillet meal blend can be purchased at http://www.mywildtree.com/eateasy. For the month of September there are ways to get each of these products half off…feel free to comment below if you’re interested in finding out how to get these great products!

This was a great make-ahead meal that we were able to snack on all night while watching the game. I was disappointed my the outcome of the game (Wisconsin lost 17-35) but not the outcome of our impromptu dinner! This monthly planning thing just might work 🙂

Sorry for the dark picture…but you get the idea…recipe below!

jambalaya – click for recipe!

Louisiana Fish Tacos

Tonight for dinner I made fish tacos using Wildtree’s new seasoning skillet meal blend…Creole! This was my first time using this seasoning and it was delicious – I prefer more heat but in the future I will add pepper flakes!

I modified the recipe and used cod instead of mahi mahi…the store didn’t have mahi and cod is more economical anyway!

I started by making the coleslaw…

I strive to use all organic ingredients and it actually causes me stress when I can’t find the ingredients I need in an organic version. Since this happens every so often I’ve become ok with the 80/20 theory hence the coleslaw that’s non-organic.

I cut the fish and seasoned it with the Creole Skillet Meal blend then assembled the rest of the ingredients. The tortillas are also non-organic but verified Non-GMO through the Non-GMO Verification Project.

Was really excited to replace the 2 Roma tomatoes with yellow heirlooms!

Here is the finished product – I also put the recipe below. I did make corn on the cob to accompany the tacos but that didn’t make the picture. The Creole Skillet Meal blend and Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil can be purchased at: http://www.mywildtree.com/eateasy. It comes with 3 pouches of seasoning so after making this recipe I have enough for two more…one to come next week!

In honor of it being Friday I enjoyed a beer with my dinner 😉

Happy Weekend!!

Louisiana Fish Tacos – click for recipe!

Clean Eating Magazine

I need to take a minute to put in a good word for one of my favorite clean eating resources – Clean Eating magazine!

This publication has helped me tremendously on my clean eating journey. It comes in so handy on nights when I’m cooking from the pantry. Last night I made the Tex-Mex Quinoa bake and it was delicious!! It was from their September 2014 issue which was also their budget issue.

Here is the recipe! It is great the next day as leftovers 🙂 for extra spice I added hot pepper flakes (like I do with everything) and put Tapito on it – YUM!

Tex Mex Quinoa Bake

Source: Clean Eating

Ingredients

Cooking spray

1 cup quinoa, rinsed

1/2 tsp plus 1/8 tsp sea salt, divided

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

2 tsp olive oil

1 small sweet onion, finely chopped

1 small red bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped

1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper

1 cup frozen corn kernels

1 15oz BPA-free can black beans, drained and rinsed

4 oz shredded Mexican cheese blend, or a mix of half cheddar and half Jack cheese, divided (about 1 cup packed)

1/4 cup packed chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350. Mist an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray. In a medium saucepan on high, bring 2 cups water to a boil. Stir in quinoa and 1/2 tsp salt. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and rest, covered, for 5 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl. Add cumin and coriander and stir gently to combine.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet on medium-high, heat oil. Add onion, bell pepper, black pepper and remaining 1/8 tsp salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Add corn and 1/4 cup water and simer until most of liquid evaporates and corn is heated through, about 3 minutes. Add beans and cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 1 minute.

Add mixture to bowl with cooked quinoa and stir gently to combine. Stir in 3oz cheese and cilantro.Transfer quinoa mixture to prepared baking dish and sprinkle remaining 1oz cheese over top. Bake until cheese is melted, 10 to 12 minutes. Rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Servings: 6

Nutrition Information (per serving):Calories 273.00 Fat 9.00 g Saturated Fat 4 g Cholesterol 18.00 mg Sodium 345.00 mg Carbohydrates 35.50 Fiber 6.00 g Sugars 2.00 g Protein 13.00 g