Chicken Curry in a Hurry

Originally from RealSimple.com, this my favorite find in the last year. It originally uses rotisserie chicken to cut down on prep time. I just use regular defrosted chicken breast though. I've added some other spices too to make it more of an Indian curry. But you can add different ones to give it more of a Thai taste.

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2 cups white rice cooked in 4 cups water

1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil

1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced

1-2 chicken breasts, chopped

2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp cardamom

1/2 cup plain yogurt
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes, drained
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

optional: Add carrots and peas at the same time as the tomatoes and let it simmer a little longer.

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1. Cook rice according to package directions.

2. Heat oil in skillet over medium low heat and add the onions and chicken. Cook, stirring occasionally for 7-10 minutes.

3. Add the curry powder, turmeric, and cardamom and cook, stirring for 2 more minutes.

4. Add the yogurt and cream and allow to simmer gently for 3 minutes. Stir in the salt, pepper, and tomatoes.

5. Serve over rice and sprinkle the cilantro on top.

Blueberry Boy Bait Cake

This is a delicious mix of blueberry cobbler and cake from Our Best Bites.

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Ingredients:

Cake:

2 cups (10 ounces) all-purpose flour, lightly spooned into measuring cups and leveled with a knife
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces) light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk or whole milk
1/2 cup (2 1/2 ounces) fresh or frozen blueberries

 Topping:

1/2 cup (2 1/2 ounces) fresh or frozen blueberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
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Instructions: Preheat the oven to 350. Grease and flour a 9×13″ baking pan and set aside.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl.

In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on medium high speed for about 3 minutes or until light and fluffy (scrape the bowl as necessary).

Add eggs one at a time, beating until just combined after each addition.

Reduce speed to medium and add 1/3 of the flour mixture, mixing until incorporated. Mix in 1/2 cup milk. Repeat with another addition of flour, the rest of the milk, and ending with the final addition of flour.

Gently fold in the blueberries and spread the batter into the prepared pan.

Scatter the additional topping blueberries over the batter. Combine the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the blueberries.

Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely (at least 20 minutes) before cutting into squares and serving. Serve warm or at room temperature, plain or drizzled with cream and blueberries or topped with sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Baked Sweet Hawaiian Chicken

Prep time
20 mins
Cook time
1 hour
Total time
1 hour 20 mins

This is as close to Mom's delicious recipe-less pineapple sweet and sour as I've been able to find. The chicken breading is rather time consuming, so if you can find pre-breaded somewhere that would cut a significant amount of the cooking time. I adapted this from: http://therecipecritic.com/2015/07/baked-sweet-hawaiian-chicken/

Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
* 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
* Salt and pepper to taste
* 1½ cup cornstarch
* 3 eggs, beaten
* ¼ cup canola oil- I use avocado oil
* Sweet Hawaiian Ingredients:
* 1 cup pineapple juice
* ½ cup brown sugar
* ⅓ cup soy sauce
* 1 tablespoon (or more!) minced garlic
* ½ tablespoon cornstarch
* 1 red pepper chopped
* 1 onion chopped
* 1 pineapple (the recipe calls for a can of tidbits, but the fresh stuff is so much better)
* Other veggies according to preference: carrots, peas, etc.

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees*. Cut chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces and season with salt and pepper.
2. In separate bowls, place cornstarch and slightly beaten eggs. Dip chicken into cornstarch then coat in egg mixture. (yes you dip the chicken first in the cornstarch. I promise this method is amazing.)
3. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook chicken until browned. Place the chicken in a 9 x 13 greased baking dish.
4. Sauté onions, red peppers, other veggies, and minced garlic
5. In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together pineapple juice, brown sugar, soy sauce, minced garlic, and cornstarch. Add the sautéed stuff and pineapple. Pour over chicken and bake for 1 hour*
6. *Stir the chicken every 15 minutes so that it coated them in the sauce.

*I have never baked this, I just add the chicken back in the pan after sautéing the veggies and then pour the sauce in and allow the sauce to thicken up on the stove. It turns out delicious and cuts back the cooking time.

Sugar Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting

We're picky about sugar cookies - they have to be worth the calories. So here are the two recipes that we love, the cookies are soft and chewy, with a hint of almond, and the frosting isn't overly sweet. The cookie recipe comes from Our Best Bites, and the frosting is from a recipe that has been passed down in our family.

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1 cup real butter (no substitutions!) at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 egg (make sure to use a large or extra large egg)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
3 C flour, lightly spooned into measuring cups and leveled (don’t scoop it!)
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
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3 Tbsp butter (softened)
8 oz neufchâtel or cream cheese (softened)
1 tsp vanilla
3-4 cups powdered sugar
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1. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy- about 2 minutes.

2. Add in egg and extract and mix to incorporate.

3. In a separate bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt. (Use a regular sized spoon and spoon the flour into the measuring cup and then level it off with a knife. Otherwise the cookies will be too dry)

4. Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until completely combined.
When you’re ready to roll out dough lightly sprinkle flour onto your work surface and roll out dough with a rolling pin.

5. Bake at 350 for 8-12 minutes. The baking time really depends on how you like them. If you like them really and slightly chewy, about 8-9 minutes does it. If you like them slightly crisp and buttery, then go for 10-12.

6. For the frosting, beat the butter and neufchâtel cheese together until combined and smooth.

7. Add vanilla.

8. Gradually add powdered sugar until you get the sweetness and consistency you like.

9. Spread the frosting on your cookies while they are still a little warm.