Recipe for Slow Cooker Russian Chicken

Do you remember growing up that there were several recipes that your Mom, Grandma, Aunt, or friend's Mom used to make all the time?  The perennial favorites, they showed up in Junior League Cookbooks, at potlucks, or church suppers.  I think we know more about nutrition now but back in the day, many of these weren't exactly "clean eating" or "whole food".  This is one of those for me, a sweet chicken recipe that I've tried to make a little healthier.

I saw a recipe for Sticky Chicken on one of the blogs I read and realized it was what I used to know as Russian Chicken (I don't think it comes from Russian roots, but it has Russian salad dressing in it).  As I recall, and as that recipe called for, it was a "low and slow" oven dish.  I thought I'd try it in the slow cooker.  The original recipe calls for a packet of onion soup mix, a whole bottle of Russian dressing, and a jar of apricot preserves.  The sodium in the soup mix is off the chart so I sifted most of the powder out and just used the flakes.  I cut down on the amount of dressing (not sure if it would make a difference cooked in the oven) and I used "all fruit" and less of it for the apricot preserves.

Because my slow cooker is a massive one and I wasn't feeding a large crowd, I used the crock inside the crock method (see pictures).  I also shredded the meat, unlike the oven version which keeps the chicken pieces whole.  This is nice, like a sweet barbecue chicken.  We had it with steamed broccoli and brown rice and ate left overs on whole wheat buns.  Enjoy!

Time: 5 minutes plus 6 hours in slow cooker

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 package onion soup mix, onion flakes only (sift through a strainer or fine mesh colander)
• 5 oz. apricot “all fruit” (½ a jar)
• 4 oz. Russian salad dressing

Method:

• Place chicken in slow cooker.
• Cover with onion flakes, “all fruit”, and salad dressing.
• Stir to combine.
• Cook on low for 6 hours.
• Shred chicken and stir back into sauce.
• Serve plain or on whole wheat buns.

What recipes from your childhood are you cooking?

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Inspired by Dixie Caviar

Black and White Wednesdays

Ultimate NYC Street Food

Submitted to Black and White Wednesdays

Recipe for Pear and Prosciutto Appetizer

When I move to San Francisco, one of my neighbors ended up being a co-worker and good friend.  She is part Italian and introduced me to prosciutto wrapped melon which we used to lap up as an afternoon snack with a glass of wine on our roof top deck (on those days when you could enjoy the sun outside in San Francisco without a coat on).  The light and salty flavor of the prosciutto complemented the sweetness of the melon perfectly.  Those Italians know how to do food right!


Now in Maui, we can enjoy the outdoors pretty much any day we like (don't hate me!).  I still love prosciutto wrapped melon and thought it would be perfect as a nibble for when our friends were coming over to do some trip planning.  (Oh, and also some wine drinking).  However, I couldn't find a decent melon to save my life, so I improvised with the pears.   Turns out, the Mr. of the couple doesn't like ANY melon...things work out for a reason sometimes-I've learned not to fight it!  And the pears were beautiful with the prosciutto!


Yield: 4 appetizer servings
Time: 10 minutes


Ingredients:

• 2 firm pears


• 1 (4 oz) package Prosciutto di Parma (or fresh sliced from the deli)

Method:

• Trim both ends off pears and peel.


• Slice into wedges and remove seeds and core.


• Wrap slices of prosciutto around pear wedges.


• Serve chilled.

This is about as easy as it gets for a simple yet elegant appetizer.  It goes great with a crisp white wine or champagne.


What recipes of your friends have you made into your own?
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Recipe for Slow Cooker Indian Spiced Lentils and Chicken

I haven't used my slow cooker for a while but it's been hectic lately, catching up from my trip back to Atlanta to meet Miss E. (my first grandchild) and planning for our upcoming vacation (Ireland, Scotland, and England).  So, a perfect time to pull it out.  I love plopping all the ingredients in the crock, turning it on and not thinking about it until it is time to serve.  Continuing on my Indian flavors kick, this comfort food recipe hit the spot.

This stuff is great when you don't have fresh herbs

Yield: 6 servings
Time: 7 1/4 hours (15 minutes to prepare, 7 hours in slow cooker)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups green lentils, rinsed (I had a mix of small French green and regular organic green lentils)


• 3 cups chicken broth


• 1 1/2 cups water


• 1 small yellow onion, diced


• 1 cup diced celery


• 2 tsp ground roasted cumin


• 1 tsp ground coriander


• 2 tsp kosher salt


• ½ tsp dried mustard powder


• 1 tsp turmeric


• 1 tsp ground cardamom


• 4 garlic cloves, smashed


• 1 (4 oz) can diced fire roasted chiles, undrained


• 1 TBSP parsley herb blend


• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut in half


• 2 sticks of cinnamon


• Chopped cilantro for serving (optional)

 Method:

• Add all ingredients to slow cooker except cilantro.


• Cook 7 hours on low.


• Shred chicken and stir back into lentils.


• Serve sprinkled with chopped cilantro.

Easy!  And tasty.  As we head into fall, try this flavorful combination.  As someone says "set it and forget it".  (Who does say that BTW?)

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Adapted from A Year of Slow Cooking

Black and White Wednesdays

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies, Sweet Auburn Bakery, Atlanta

Submitted to Black and White Wednesdays

Recipe for Breakfast Quinoa

When I was on the mainland recently, I saw Breakfast Quinoa on a restaurant menu.  I didn’t try it but was intrigued.  I like quinoa-it’s healthy (more protein than any other grain and contains all eight essential amino acids), adapts well to whatever you put with it, and is easy to make.  I wondered how it would do following the method I use for my overnight oatmeal.

And the answer is--- not well.  It really just sat there overnight in the fridge and didn’t do anything.  The next morning the little quinoa pearls were all on the bottom of the bowl and the liquids all on top.  Boo.

Undeterred, I poured it all into a saucepan and cooked it for 15 minutes.  Now that’s more like it!  I dressed it up with some almonds and raisins and enjoyed a hearty warm bowl for breakfast. 

However, it is summer so I stuck the leftovers in the fridge and tried it cold the next day.  Not bad, not as good as overnight oatmeal but certainly enjoyable.

Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Yield: 2 servings

Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• ½ cup organic quinoa, rinsed and drained


• 1 cup light vanilla soy milk


• ½ cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt


• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract


• 2 tsp ground cinnamon


• 1 TBSP agave


• Sprinkle of raisins, almonds or other tid bits

Method:

• Mix all ingredients in a saucepan, except the sprinkles, and bring to a simmer.


• Cook for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.


• Serve warm or cold with your choice of sprinkles.

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Recipe for Cauli-Kale "Surprise"

Have you ever had colcannon?  It's mashed potatoes and cabbage, of Irish roots I believe.  There was a restaurant in San Francisco that served it frequently and I grew to love it-made me feel less guilty about eating potatoes!


When I was on the South Beach diet, a favorite was South Beach "Surprise", mashed cauliflower with Laughing Cow cheese.  We still eat a lot of it.  Mr. ELEB likes it and it is one of the only ways I'll eat cauliflower.  I have roasted some from time to time and can eat that.  Oh, and I love cauliflower soup! And I loved the cauliflower sformato I made a while ago.  OK, I guess I like cauliflower.


So, all that by way of introduction of how I came up with this recipe.  I had a head of cauli and some kale.  I had Laughing Cow, but opted instead to use herbed goat's cheese.


This was a hit and I'm sure it would be good with cabbage too.  Or spinach for that matter.  If you're on South Beach, use the Laughing Cow but if not, the goat's cheese in here is divine!  Who needs potatoes!?

Time: 25 minutes

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:

·         1 medium cauliflower, cut into small florets

·         1 ½ cup chopped kale

·         2 oz. herb and garlic goat’s cheese (or plain goat’s cheese, or Laughing Cow)

·         Salt and Pepper to taste

Method:

·         Cook cauliflower in boiling water until softened about 20 minutes.

·         Steam kale for about 1-2 minutes while cauliflower cooks.  Drain well.

·         Mash cauliflower and cheese together until smooth.

·         Add drained Kale.

·         Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.

We had this with some bison burgers.  I think it would be really good with roasted chicken too!  Try it and let me know what you think.


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