Asian Salad with Chicken

This is a very informal recipe & mainly a reminder for me personally of an easy, healthy, and delicious meal.

INGREDIENTS
chicken breasts
mixed salad greens (ideas: romaine, spinach, baby leaf lettuce, iceberg, etc)
shredded cabbage (coleslaw mix without the dressing)
matchstick carrots
mandarin orange segments
snap peas
roasted almond slices
wonton strips

DIRECTIONS
1. Marinate chicken breasts in Cardini's Roasted Asian Sesame Dressing the night before cooking or up to 24 hours in advance. Grill or cook in skillet.
2. Combine the rest of the ingredients along with chicken and serve with the Asian Sesame dressing.

Curried Rice with Shrimp

*Adapted from Real Simple magazine. View the original recipe here.

PREP: 45 minutes
SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS:
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp. curry powder (use 2 tsp. if you prefer more spice)
1 cup long-rain white rice
Kosher salt and pepper
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped

DIRECTIONS:
1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 6 to 8 minutes.
2. Add the garlic and curry and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 2 minutes.
3. Add the rice, 2 1/2 cups water, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Season the shrimp with 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper and nestle them in the partially cooked rice. Cover and cook until the shrimp are opaque throughout, 4 to 5 minutes. Fold in the basil and serve.

NOTES: You can easily use frozen raw, peeled, and deveined shrimp--just thaw using the instructions on the package while rice is cooking.

Hoisin-Glazed Chicken Thighs

*Adapted from Parenting magazine, June 2010.

PREP: 30 minutes hands-on + 1 hour marinating
SERVES: 6

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp seasoned rice-wine vinegar
1 Tbsp honey
2 tsp minced fresh ginger (or 1/8 tsp dried ground ginger)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
black pepper, to taste
12 small boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 2 lbs), trimmed
1/4 cup minced scallions (green onions)
2 tsp toasted sesame seeds (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Combine the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, honey, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, and pepper in a large plastic bowl (with lid). Pour 1/4 cup of the mixture into a small plastic container with a lid and reserve in the refrigerator for coating the chicken later. Add the chicken to the larger container and coat with the rest of the sauce. Cover and refrigerate the marinated chicken for 1 hour.
2. Heat a grill or grill pan to medium-high (or, alternatively, heat the broiler). Grill the chicken 3 minutes per side, or until just cooked through. Brush with some of the reserved glaze, turn, and cook 30 seconds more. Move to a platter, shower with the scallions and sesame seeds, if desired.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS:
Serve with steamed rice and steamed vegetables such as snow peas, carrots, broccoli, corn, or edamame.

Easy Chinese Stir-Fry

*Adapted from the winter 2008 Kraft Food & Family magazine.

SERVES: 4 (1 cup each)
PREP: 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS:
1 tsp. oil
1 lb. pork tenderloin or 2 chicken breasts, cut into thin slices
3 carrots, sliced
1/3 cup Light Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
1/3 cup hoison sauce
2 green onions, thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS:
Heat oil in large skillet or wok on medium-high heat. Add meat and carrots; stir-fry 5 minutes. Stir in dressing and hoison sauce; stir-fry 7 minutes or until carrots are crisp-tender. Add onions; cook 1 minute.

Serve over hot cooked rice noodles (also called rice sticks), rice, or angel hair pasta.

Eryn's Turkey Meatballs

Serves: 10-12

INGREDIENTS:
4 lbs. ground turkey
3 eggs
2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. pepper
1 small onion, chopped
3 Tbsp. olive oil
9 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
8 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 large green peppers
2 15-oz. cans pineapple chunks

DIRECTIONS:
Mix turkey and eggs in large bowl. Roll into balls and place in crock pot. Cook on high for one hour. Then mix and add remaining ingredients. Let simmer all day, or at least for 4 hours.

Serve over rice.

Faster cooking alternative:
Instead of using a crock pot, place meatballs in a large saucepan and cook on medium until browned around outsides. Then add and mix in remaining ingredients. Simmer 20-30 minutes and serve. This option works best when recipe is halved.

Note: This recipe can easily be halved.

Speedy Chicken Stir Fry

From kraftfoods.com.

Serves: 4
Prep: 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

8 oz. angel hair pasta (capellini), uncooked

2 cups small broccoli florets

1 lb. (or 3 large) boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

1/2 cup KRAFT Asian Toasted Sesame Dressing

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1/4 tsp. each: ground ginger, garlic powder, crushed red pepper

1/3 cup chopped PLANTERS Dry Roasted Peanuts

DIRECTIONS:

COOK pasta as directed on package, adding broccoli to the boiling water for the last 3 min. of the pasta cooking time.
MEANWHILE, spray large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; heat on medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 6 to 8 min. or until cooked through, stirring occasionally. Stir in dressing, soy sauce, ginger, garlic and crushed red pepper; cook 1 min., stirring occasionally.
DRAIN pasta mixture; place in large bowl. Add chicken mixture; mix lightly. Spoon evenly into four serving bowls; sprinkle with the peanuts.

*Instead of broccoli, substitute whatever vegetables you have on hand, such as snow peas, sliced bell peppers, sliced carrots or chopped red onions, for the broccoli.

Asian Lettuce Wraps

Prep: 20 minutes
Serves: 4
Ready in: 35 minutes

INGREDIENTS:
16 Boston Bibb or butter lettuce leaves
1 lb. lean ground beef or turkey
1 Tbsp. cooking oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 tsp. minced pickled ginger
1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
Asian chile pepper sauce (opt.)
1 8-oz. can water chestnuts, drained and finely chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 tsp. Asian (dark) sesame oil

DIRECTIONS:
1. Rinse whole lettuce leaves and pat dry, being careful not to tear them. Set aside.
2. In a medium skillet over high heat, brown the ground beef in oil. Add the onion and saute 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the garlic, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger, vinegar, and chile pepper sauce. Stir in chopped water chestnuts, green onions, and sesame oil, and continue cooking until the onions just beginning to wilt, about 5 minutes.
3. Arrange lettuce leaves around the outer edge of a large serving platter, and pile meat mixture int eh center. To serve, allow each person to spoon a portion of the meat into a lettuce leaf. Wrap the lettuce around the meat like a burrito. Have napkins ready, it can be a bit messy.