Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde

Terry has been craving my Mexican Rice and I am always craving his guacamole, so I needed to find a great main dish as a vehicle for our favorite sides. I was originally going to make the Black Bean and Chicken Enchiladas that are always a hit, but then I remembered the recipe that my best friend Christy had made for me over the summer. She prepared Cooking Light’s Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde, and they knocked my socks off! They were creamy and rich, due to the addition of light cream cheese. I decided to see if I could replicate my friend’s dish, she is an excellent cook and I was excited to see how my version would turn out.

Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde

Julianna Grimes Bottcher, Cooking Light, APRIL 2006

“A squeeze of lime juice brightens the flavor of this hearty Mexican dish. The enchiladas are mild, so serve with hot sauce, if desired. If you can't find queso fresco, use 1/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese or Monterey Jack with jalapeño peppers. Total time: 45 minutes.”

Ingredients

• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (7-ounce) bottle salsa verde (such as Herdez brand)
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
• 1/3 cup (3 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
• Cooking spray
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled queso fresco
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 4 lime wedges
• Cilantro sprigs (optional)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425°.

Combine first 4 ingredients in a blender; process until smooth. Combine chicken and cream cheese in a large bowl. Stir in 1/2 cup salsa mixture. Reserve remaining salsa mixture.

Bring broth to a simmer in a medium skillet. Working with one tortilla at a time, add tortilla to pan; cook 20 seconds or until moist, turning once. Remove tortilla; drain on paper towels. Spoon about 1/4 cup chicken mixture down center of tortilla; roll up. Place tortilla, seam-side down, in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining tortillas, broth, and chicken mixture.

Pour remaining salsa mixture over enchiladas; sprinkle evenly with queso fresco and chili powder. Bake at 425° for 18 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve with lime wedges. Garnish with cilantro sprigs, if desired.

Servings: 4

Nutritional Information

Calories:327 (26% from fat)

Fat:9.5g (sat 4.4g,mono 2.9g,poly 1.3g)

Protein:28.5g

Carbohydrate:31g

Fiber:3.3g

Cholesterol:78mg

Iron:1.8mg

Sodium:493mg

Calcium:149mg

Yum, yum, YUM!! I really enjoyed these Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde. I have been experimenting lately with making a lot of my own sauces; this was unnecessary in this case because the addition of the cilantro to the bottled salsa verde took it to another level. After mixing the cream cheese, salsa and shredded chicken together, Terry couldn’t stop picking at it. The filling is truly flavorful. I was intrigued by the preparation method for the tortillas, never having worked that way before. Dipping each tortilla into warm chicken broth may seem like a tedious task, but it is well worth the trouble. This method caused the tortillas to become pliable and almost sticky, holding tight to the filling, not allowing any of it to drop out during the transfer to the pan. Towards the end of the cooking time my cheese did not brown up in the way that I wanted so I ran it under the broiler for a few minute and it came out exactly as I had hoped. Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde is a definite repeater and will be made often, it is a nice creamy change from my usual enchilada recipe. I would recommend trying this recipe and pairing it with my Mexican Rice, mix yourself up a bowl of guacamole, and if you are like Terry and me, you will be in heaven!

-Heather

Barley Risotto with Asparagus and Parmesan

Well…I have always heard that Risotto was a time consuming and touchy dish to prepare. Steaks were on sale so I picked up a few. Knowing Terry would be in charge of grilling, I decided to give this dish a whirl. Apparently I am not a member of the successful Risotto maker’s club. This flavor of Barley Risotto with Asparagus and Parmesan was excellent, but I think I need a bit more practice before serving it to company. The battle between Risotto and I is not over!!

Barley Risotto with Asparagus and Parmesan

Real Simple

5 cups vegetable broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups dry barley
1 cup dry white wine
1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut diagonally into 1" pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 ounces fresh grated Parmesan cheese

In a small saucepan, warm the broth over medium-low heat.

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the barley and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Mix in the wine and cook until the liquid is absorbed, about 3 minutes. Add the broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring occasionally and waiting until it is absorbed before adding more. When you add the last 1/2 cup of the broth, also stir in the asparagus and continue to cook until tender. It should roughly take about 30 to 35 minutes for all the broth to be absorbed. Remove from heat and season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the Parmesan and stir to combine.

Makes 4 servings.

This dish tasted amazing, which is why I am planning on trying it again. I used chicken broth instead of vegetable, as that is what I had on hand. This recipe took me about an hour and a half, even after it was “done” the barley still seemed a bit too chewy. I ended up having to add almost another full cup of extra broth towards the end. I thought that maybe I was cooking the Risotto on to high of a heat, but the recipe never stated turning the flame down after the initial temperature of medium. Because the recipe took so much time our steaks were done early and dried out a little. All in all I would say that cooking Barley Risotto with Asparagus and Parmesan was not a pleasant experience, but I will try it again because the flavor is worth it. If anyone would like to leave comments as to how this could be improved, I would love to hear them!

Happy Cooking

-Heather

Chicken Breasts Arrabbiata

I am always in search of new ways to prepare boneless, skinless chicken breasts. This is my go to protein; it is cheap, healthy and extremely versatile. During a normal week at the Williams house I tend to cook about 5 dinners, out of those dinners you will find boneless, skinless chicken breasts in at least 4!

Thanksgiving weekend was SOOOO relaxing. Since meeting Terry and Kylie seven years ago, I usually spend my Thanksgiving break watching Kylie play in her softball turkey tournament. This year was different because the tournament that Kylie’s team participated in was the weekend before Thanksgiving. This left our entire break open for lying on the couch and watching football. While I do enjoy the occasional game, I took this opportunity to peruse through my cookbooks and see if there were any hidden gems that I had not tried.

Chicken Breasts Arrabbiata has the requirements that I look for in a recipe. It is chuck full of vegetables, has good flavor, is very low fat and low calorie, and it’s made with boneless, skinless chicken breasts!

Chicken Breasts Arrabbiata

Prevention’s Ultimate Quick & Healthy Cookbook

1 Tablespoon Extra -virgin olive oil

1 cup chopped red bell pepper

1 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup seeded, chopped peperoncini

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper

3 cups coarsely chopped plum tomatoes

1/4 cup chicken broth

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley

Preheat the broiler and broiler-pan rack

In a large skillet, warm the oil over medium-high heat. Add the bell peppers, onions, peperoncini, garlic, basil, sugar, 1/4 teaspoon of the black pepper, 1/8 teaspoon of the salt and the red pepper flakes and stir to combine. Reduce the heat to medium and saute for 3 to 4 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

Add the tomatoes, broth, and tomato paste, increase the heat to medium-high and saute for 1-3 minutes longer or until the tomatoes start to release their juices.

Reduce the heat to medium, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally and mashing the tomatoes with a spoon, for 10 minutes, or until the tomatoes are reduced to sauce.

Meanwhile, season the chicken on both sides, with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Broil the chicken 4 to 5 inches from the heat for 5 minutes per side, or until browned and cooked through. Add the chicken to the tomato sauce, spoon the sauce over the chicken and bring to a simmer. Sprinkle with the parsley and remove from heat.

To serve, place a piece of chicken on each of 4 plates and top with the sauce.

220 cal

5.6 fat

4 servings

Chicken Breasts Arrabbiata has a nice heat without being spicy. I really enjoyed the fact that the flavorful sauce was produced from fresh vegetables and utilized the jar of peperoncinis that I have had lingering in the pantry. As always, I veered from the original recipe and had Terry grill the chicken outside for me. Let’s face it, when the weather is nice enough to be outside grilling at the end of November, you better take advantage of it! We served this with mashed potatoes and green beans and were pleased with the results. This was not Terry’s favorite dish, but he did appreciate the flavor in contrast to the low fat and calories. I brought my leftover Chicken Breasts Arrabbiata for lunch on Monday and the flavor seemed to be more impactful the next day.

Happy Cooking!

-Heather

November Update

I must apologize for my neglect towards this blog. My camera memory card has been “misplaced.” I often wonder how I achieve such randomness. I am fairly certain that I will be getting a new one soon, so the logging of my recipes will begin again shortly. I am trying something new tonight, so I have borrowed one of Jon Box’s memory cards.

Almost everything seems to be going right lately. Many of my family and friends know of my recent struggles with General Motors, having bought a defective Saturn. When a 2008 Vue ends up in the shop 7 TIMES for the same problem….well you can imagine my annoyance and frustration. We demanded that GM buy our Vue back from us and with no lawyers involved, it actually happened! We purchased a new Rav4 and have been happily driving since. The puppies are really comfortable in the far back area and traveling with them has been a breeze.

My little brother, Derrick just bought his first home. He is only 23 years old, has an awesome engineering job and is really moving in the right direction. My parents are flying out from Chicago to help him move and organize so Terry and I will be headed down to San Diego to see everyone and help out. Shortly after that we will be headed to Chicago for a frosty Christmas trip. I know at some point that these trips may not be feasible, but I am certainly happy that they currently are. There is just something about being in Chicago with my crazy fun family that makes the holiday for me.

The pups are getting HUGE, 41 and 43 pounds. They are too much fun, I adore spending my days with them. They spend their time exploring, retrieving, digging holes, and getting into trouble.

I hope this post finds all well and again, I promise to post more recipes soon. I have a “feeling” that I may be getting a new camera as a Christmas gift, so my pictures should be improving!

Best wishes,

Heather

Basil Beer Bread

Bread has always seemed very scary to me....so much potential for failure! When I read a thread on the Cooking Light BB posted by someone who shared my thoughts this recipe for Basil Beer Bread was recommended. It was originally posted by Elizabeth 13 and the source is Real Simple, and that is exactly what this recipe is. The name of the recipe says it all, Basil: Good, Beer: Good, Bread: Good, how can you go wrong!!??

Basil Beer Bread
Source: Real Simple


3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4-ounce package active dry yeast
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated Parmesan
1 12-ounce bottle beer, preferably ale
Flour for the work surface
1 cup chopped or torn fresh basil


1. Heat oven to 400° F.

2. In the bowl of a standing mixer on low, or in a large bowl using a spoon, combine the flour, yeast, salt, pepper, and Parmesan. Add the beer and mix just until the dough comes together. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle with the basil (or rosemary if subbing) and knead gently just until incorporated. Shape the dough into a round loaf and transfer to the prepared sheet. Bake until the loaf is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Turn the loaf onto a wire rack. Let cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing.












I used two cups of whole wheat flour and used all purpose while flour for the remaining cup and 1/4. Basil Beer Bread is a perfect way to use all of the basil that I have growing out back. For years I planted basil plant after basil plant with my typical "black thumb" results. Kylie thought she would give it a try and she clearly has the magic touch! It has been flourishing in an almost out of control way. The basil really makes this dense bread taste fresh and the beer deepens the rich flavor. This Basil Beer Bread is excellent on its own, dipped into soup, or used to make a great ham and swiss melt. It is a crucial element in satisfying a comfort food craving!

-Heather