Teriyaki Chicken & Vegetable Kabobs

I couldn’t wait to try out my new grill! What better to start out with than one of my favorites, Kabobs!



I was not expecting this at all! I used ready light charcoal and with one match it went ablaze! I lost some arm hair but no burns! I will be ready next time.



I had some leftover vegetables so I decided to try out my grilling bowl.



It works great. But make sure to use a pot holder when taking it off the grill it gets hot!



While I had the grill going I thawed out a tilapia fillet, poured a little olive oil, garlic powder and lemon pepper on it, wrapped it up in foil and threw it on the grill.



It cooked to perfection and I packed it up for lunch tomorrow.

Teriyaki Chicken & Vegetable Kabobs

by Brittany Ray

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Keywords: grill entree sauce chicken vegetables

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 large sweet yellow onion
• 1 medium purple onion
• 2 zucchinis
• 1 large green bell pepper
• 1 large red bell pepper
• 1 1/2 cups pineapple, chunked
• 2 medium vine ripened tomatoes
• 1 bottle Kikkoman Teriyaki Baste and Glaze
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tbs. honey

Instructions

Light the grill!

If using wooden kabob sticks go ahead and put them in water to soak.

Chop up all vegetables and chicken into large enough pieces so that they won't fall off the stick but not too large. (See pictures)

Start loading the sticks, rotating vegetables and chicken. I really like putting the pineapple next to the chicken. The pineapple sweetness soaks into the chicken.

In small bowl pour bottle of glaze, brown sugar, garlic and honey. Mix well. Make sure to break up any clumps of brown sugar.

Rub glaze over kabobs. Make sure not to contaminate the glaze with raw chicken. You may want to use the remaining glaze to dip your cooked chicken and vegetables in.

Enjoy!

Powered by Recipage

For dessert I had a handful of my favorite candy!



Good thing Mini Eggs are only available for a couple of months. They are so addicting!

Now it’s time for Once Upon a Time!

Chicken Enchiladas

This weekend Trey and I cooked a lot instead of eating out. We wanted to save money plus we enjoy cooking together. Friday night we made chicken enchiladas.

Chicken Enchiladas

by Brittany Ray

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Keywords: bake entree chicken Mexican

6020113

Ingredients (8 enchiladas)

• 2 1/2 cups chicken, cooked and chopped
• 2 cups reduced fat 4 cheese Mexican blend cheese
• 1 cup plain greek yogurt
• 2/3 cups fat free sour cream
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup onion, chopped
• 1 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1 (10 3/4 oz.) can condensed reduced fat cream of chicken soup
• 1 (4.5 oz.) can green chiles, chopped and drained
• 8 (8 inch) tortillas
• 1 tbs. canola oil
• Cooking spray
• 1/2 cup reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese, finely shredded
• 1/4 cup green onions, chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the first 10 ingredients and stir until mixed. Remove 1 cup chicken mixture and set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Coat a 13 x 9 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Take one tortilla at a time and brush oil on both sides. Place tortilla in skillet and heat on each side for 5 seconds. Tortillas should be slightly browned and soft.

Spoon about 1/2 cup of the chicken mixture down the middle of the tortilla. Roll tortilla seam down in baking dish. Repeat with the remaining 7 tortillas.

Once all tortillas are rolled and in baking dish, spread the 1 cup chicken mixture over the top of the enchiladas.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes.

Uncover and sprinkle the top with cheddar cheese and green onions.

Bake uncovered for 5 additional minutes or until cheese is melted.

Powered by Recipage

Trey is out for Spring Break this week so he got to stay longer than usual. We cooked a lot of yummy things. He left yesterday to go back to Mobile.

Chicken & Vegetable Casserole

My Mom makes a really good chicken casserole that I love. We always have it with rice, English peas and rolls. I was really craving it but wanted to try a healthier version. I added vegetables into the casserole to make it more filling without the need for rolls and rice. I also swapped the sour cream for plain Greek yogurt. The yogurt gives it a more tangy tart taste but it is not overwhelming.

Chicken & Vegetable Casserole

by Brittany Ray

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Ingredients (serves 4-6)

• 1 lb. boneless, skinless, chicken tenders
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1 cup broccoli florets, chopped
• 1/2 cup English peas
• 1/2 cup carrots, chopped
• 2 10 oz. cans of reduced fat cream of chicken soup
• 10 oz. plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 sleeve butter crackers, crumbled

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Fill a medium sized boiler halfway with water. Add chicken into the boiler.

Boil until chicken is completely done. Depending on the size of the chicken this should take 8 - 10 minutes.

Once chicken is done, drain water off and set aside and let cool.

In a medium bowl, add all vegetables, soup and yogurt. Stir until all ingredients are mixed.

Pull chicken apart into bite sized pieces and place on the bottom of a casserole dish.

Pour soup mixture over chicken and spread evenly.

Sprinkle crumbled crackers over the top of casserole.

Place casserole into oven and bake for 45 minutes to an hour. Until casserole starts to bubble and the top is browned.

Powered by Recipage

Trey was here this weekend and tried it. He said he could taste the yogurt but really liked it. So it is boyfriend approved!

P.F. Chang’s Lettuce Wraps Take 2

Yesterday I was craving lettuce wraps from P.F. Changs. I made them before like this. Those are good but these are even better! Not to mention easier and faster.

P.F. Chang's Lettuce Wraps

by Brittany Ray

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Keywords: saute appetizer entree turkey Japanese

6017109

Ingredients (serves 2-3)

• cooking oil
• 1/2 lb. ground turkey
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 1/2 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp. ginger, minced
• 1/2 tbs. red wine vinegar
• 1/4 tsp. chili powder
• 2 tbs. soy sauce
• 1 tbs. hoisin sauce
• 1 tbs. honey
• 2 tbs. green onions, chopped
• iceberg lettuce

Instructions

Place cooking oil in medium skillet and heat on medium low.

Place all ingredients (except for the lettuce) one by one into skillet stirring after each addition. Make sure to chop up meat and not let it cook together.

Place lid on skillet and simmer for 4 - 5 minutes.

While simmering, pull lettuce leaves off in whole pieces. Wash and set aside to dry.

Serve turkey mixture in lettuce leaves.

Sprinkle extra soy sauce on top for extra flavor.

Powered by Recipage

I had the leftovers for lunch today and it was just as good the second time.





I wore another new outfit today. I just love wearing clothes for the first time! I have had the yellow jacket for a while but it is a favorite. So comfy and warm. My mom made the scarf/cowl. She sells them if you are interested shoot me an email!



My mom and little cousin came by my work and brought me some Valentine’s Day cookies they had just made!



I saw this on Pinterest. Chopped lettuce will supposedly stay fresh longer when put in a mason jar. Have you tried this? I packed the jar full and put the remaining lettuce in a zip lock. I will keep you guys posted:)



Sorry this picture is super bright but it was my dinner. Baked scoops, black beans, cheese, lettuce and salsa. Quick and tasty. If you haven’t already noticed, quick and easy has been a usual for me lately.

Question:

• Do you have any quick and easy go to dinners? If so, please share!

Oven Fried Chicken

This is another dinner I made a week or so ago.



Oven Fried Chicken
(Printable Version)

Makes enough for 2

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 2 oz. milk
• 1 1/2 cups cornflakes
• 4 – 6 chicken tenderloins
• dried chopped onion
• garlic powder
• salt
• pepper
• cooking spray

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a bowl mix egg and milk.
3. Put cornflakes in a quart sized or larger ziplock bag. Mash up until cornflakes are crushed into smaller pieces. Add onion, garlic, salt and pepper to taste.
4. Dip chicken into liquid mixture and then into dry mixture.
5. Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.
6. Spritz the chicken with cooking spray to increase the browning.
7. Bake for 10 minutes then flip chicken over. Bake 5 more minutes or until chicken is completely cooked and browned on the outside.

Question:

• Do you have any tradionally unhealthy comfort food recipes you have transformed into healthy ones? Please share!

Russian Inspired Chicken

My mom made this from our church cookbook when I was growing up. There are a ton of recipes for “Russian Chicken” on the internet. The main ingredient is Russian dressing. I went to target and could not find Russian dressing anywhere. I spent at least 5 minutes looking for it and had a random woman on the isle helping me search. No luck. I decided to mix Catalina and Italian dressings and make my own Russian dressing. Close enough right?



Russian-ish Chicken (Not sure what to call it)
Makes enough for 4

Instructions:

• 4 skinless boneless chicken breasts
• 12 oz. jar of apricot preserves (I have also used apple jelly before)
• 1 envelope Lipton onion soup mix
• 1 cup fat free Catalina dressing
• 1/3 cup fat free Italian dressing
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• salt to taste

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Place chicken flat into a baking dish
3. In a medium sized bowl, mix the remaining ingredients.
4. Pour mixture over chicken and bake for 1 hour.

This weekend my sorority is having an Alumnae Weekend. I am looking forward to seeing all of the girls!

Now I have a ton of laundry, cleaning and DVR catching up on. I better get busy.

Turkey Chili

I invited some friends over for dinner on Thursday night. They were my first dinner guests!

Turkey Chili
Makes enough for 6

Ingredients:

• oil
• 1lb ground turkey
• 1/4 cup chopped onions
• 29oz tomato sauce
• 6oz tomato paste
• 16oz can reduced sodium kidney beans
• 16oz can fat free black beans
• oregano
• chili powder
• garlic powder
• cumin

Instructions:

1. In a large pot cover the bottom with oil. Not a lot just enough to coat bottom. Heat on medium.
2. Place ground turkey in pot. Season with garlic powder. Chop up pieces with a spatula or mash with a potato masher while cooking. Add onions after meat is almost done.
3. When meat is completely done add tomato sauce and tomato paste. Stir until mixed.
4. Add beans and seasonings to taste.
5. Cook on medium until chili begins to bubble and is thoroughly heated.
6. Simmer on low until served.

Serve with cornbread, tortilla chips, sour cream, shredded cheese, hot sauce or any other toppings you like.



I made Jiffy corn muffins.



For dessert Ashley brought cupcakes from Gigi’s.



These are the Italian Cream Wedding Cake cupcakes.



This morning I finally made it to the gym workout room. My apartment building has a fitness center. It has 3 treadmills, 1 elliptical, 2 bikes, 1 stair stepper and a really old full body weight type thing. Not sure what it is actually called. I think parts of it were broken or else I just didn't know how to work it.

It felt good to workout after several weeks off… Also it is pretty nice being able to walk to the fitness center instead of having to drive. Very convenient.

When I got back to my apartment I found $5 beside my patio! It was pretty windy this morning so I have no clue where it could have come from.

For breakfast I had these amazing eggs with onions, spinach, tomatoes and cheese. I had a side of turkey bacon and grapes.



I am going over to my friend/ex-roommate/new neighbor, Leigh’s apartment to watch the game. She is making a taco salad bar. I am making Pumpkin Banana Bread with Pumpkin Spice Cream Cheese spread to take. It’s in the oven as I type so stay tuned for the recipe. That is if it turns out good! I have already tried the Pumpkin Spice Cream Cheese spread to go on it and it is really good!