Skillet Pork Chop Saute with Peaches

Besides the Funky Fusion Fajitas recipe, this is by far the best new meal that we've had in a very long time. It was light, yet had incredible flavor. The peaches, shallots & thyme together created an amazing taste, without being overwhelming or too sweet. A definite family pleasing dinner. Can't wait to make again. And only 235 calories and 8.6 grams of fat per serving (makes 4 servings)!

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons olive oil
4 (4oz) center cut boneless pork loin chops, trimmed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2 TBS thinly sliced shallots
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
2 peaches, each cut into 8 wedges
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup fat free, low sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons butter

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan, swirl to coat. Sprinkle chops evenly with the salt & pepper. Add chops to heated pan; cook for a few minutes on each side until done. Remove chops from pan & keep warm.

2. Add shallots, thyme & peaches to pan, cook for about 2 minutes.

3. Stir in wine, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Bring to a boil. Cook until reduced to 1/3 cup (about 2 minutes). Then stir in broth & honey; bring to a boil. Cook until reduced to 1/3 cup again.

4. Remove from heat; stir in butter. Spoon sauce over chops. Enjoy!


*Recipe courtesy of Cooking Light Magazine

Pretzel and Peanut-Crusted Chicken

This is a Rachael Ray recipe. It is super yummy and quick! I made a homemade honey mustard sauce to go with it.

Ingredients
2 Cups salted pretzels, any shape
1/2 cup coarsely chopped honey-roasted peanuts
pepper
2 eggs
16 chicken tenders or 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips half an inch thick
1/4 cup EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil (eyeball it)
Honey mustard or barbeque sauce, for drizzling

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°F
Place pretzels and peanuts in a food processor or blender and grind until fine. Transfer to a shallow dish, season with pepper, and mix to combine.

Crack and beat 2 eggs in a second shallow dish with a splash of water.

Coat the chicken in the egg, then the pretzels.

Place coated chicken in a baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for 30 minutes.

Homemade Honey Mustard

1/4 C prepared mustard
2 TBS honey
1 TBS dijon mustard
2 TBS fat free dijon mustard dressing

Grilled Corn on the Cob with Roasted Jalapeno Butter

Wow! This was amazing!! You grill the pepper first before adding it so it kills the hotness, but adds the best amount of flavor ever! We ended up using this butter on multiple things!!!! We served this with the Indian Inspired Chicken Kabobs, amazing combo!

1 Jalapeno pepper
Cooking Spray
7 teaspoons unsalted butter, softened (that is for a serving of 6 - we cut our recipe in half)
1 tsp grated lime rind
2 tsp honey
1/4 tsp salt
6 ears chucked corn (or less if you are cutting recipe in half)

1. Preheat grill to medium - high heat.
2. Place jalapeno on grill rack coated with cooking spray, cover & grill for 10 minutes or until blackened & charred, turning occasionally.
3. Place jalapeno in small paper bag and fold tightly to seal. Let stand for 5 minutes. Peel & discard skins, cut pepper in half lengthwise. Discard stem, seeds & membranes.
4. Finely chop jalapeno.
5. Combine jalapeno, butter, lime rind, honey and salt in small bowl, stir well.
6. Place corn on grill rack. Cover & grill for 10 minutes or until slightly charred, turning occasionally. Place corn on serving plate, brush with jalapeno butter.

*Recipe courtesy of Taste of Home Magazine

Lemon Garlic Chicken Breasts - Slow Cooker

This was a light and easy meal for a weeknight. It went great over brown rice with broccoli. The flavor wasn't too bold, it could use a bit more lemon.

Ingredients
1 tsp italian seasoning
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup water
3 tbsp lemon juice
lemon zest - about 1 TBSP
1 TBSP minced garlic
1 Cup low-sodium chicken broth


Directions:

Place chicken breasts in crockpot. Sprinkle with italian seasoning. Zest lemon over top of chicken. Mix remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. Cover, and cook on low for 6 hours (3 hours on high).
Chicken is very tasty served on a bed of brown rice with steamed broccoli!

Spicy Peanut Chicken Salad

This was a family winner! Everyone had seconds and the entire dish was gone at the end of the meal. We'll be making this again, frequently.

The original recipe had you placing the chicken & noodle mixture on top of a bed of the spinach. I changed it because my family wouldn't eat raw spinach leaves. That's why "salad" is in the name.

This recipe would work great with any protein if you don't want to use chicken.



Ingredients:

2 medium to large chicken breasts, cut into strips
evoo
salt & pepper
2/3 C chicken broth
2 T low sodium soy sauce
2 tsp hot sauce (I used Frank's Red Hot)
2 cloves minced garlic
2 tsp sesame oil (I didn't have any and used evoo)
1/3 creamy peanut butter

1/2 box spaghetti
1/2 bag of fresh spinach
1 C matchstick carrots (shredded is fine)
1/2 C green onion, diced
Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce (optional)

Directions:

Saute chicken strips in evoo. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Add carrots and green onion.

Bring to a boil 2/3 cup chicken broth, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tsp tabasco or hot sauce, 2 cloves minced garlic and 2 tsp sesame oil. Remove from heat and whisk in 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter.

Cook spaghetti, adding spinach to the last 3 minutes. Drain.


Toss chicken, carrots and green onion with peanut butter sauce.

Add to drained pasta and toss.

Serve, top with Sriracha and ENJOY!

*A gread addition to this dish would be crushed peanuts for added texture.

 courtesy of Jen over at Three Pugs & A Baby

Easy Chicken Marinade

This marinade was simple, healthy and kept the chicken very moist and flavorful. Perfect for grilling season!

1/4 cup Balsamic vinaigrette dressing
1 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 TSP garlic powder
1/2 TSP black pepper

Combine the ingredients in a bowl. Stir well. Put chicken breasts (we had 3 large ones) in a resealable bag and pour marinade over. Squeeze all the air out of the bag, seal tightly and mix around to make sure all the chicken is covered. Best to let it go at least an hour in fridge before cooking. I had to pull one out early to cook for my daughter and after only 30 minutes, it rocked! The rest are still marinating for our later dinner! Yum!