Skillet Chicken with Broccoli, Pasta and Parmesan

I don't really have any fruit recipes right now, but next month I'll post some other great dessert recipes I have. But, I was making up my menu and shopping list for the week and thought I should at least post a couple of my favorite recipes that I'm making this week. I got it from mykitchencafe.blogspot.com. I've found a lot of great recipes on this blog.

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch squares

Table salt and ground black pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, minced

4 medium cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

12 ounces ziti, penne, or bow-tie pasta. Original recipe called for 8 oz, but the blog author I got this recipe from increased the amounts to feed her family, so you can scale it down. I just make the recipe with the amounts listed and we have leftovers; this reheats great.

4 1/4 cups water

2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

4-5 cups broccoli florets (depending on how much broccoli you want)

1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed and chopped coarse

3/4 cup heavy cream

3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (asiago was the cheese in the original recipe and can be interchanged, but I always have parmesan on hand so I used that)

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (I've used bottled and it was fine)

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the chicken in a single layer and cook for 1 minute without stirring. Stir the chicken and continue to cook until most, but not all, of the pink color has disappeared and the chicken is lightly browned around the edges, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to a clean bowl and set aside.Add the remaining tablespoon of oil, onion, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to the skillet. Return the skillet to medium-high heat and cook, stirring often, until the onion is softened, 2 to 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, oregano, and pepper flakes, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.Add the pasta, 3 cups of the water, and the broth. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until the liquid is very thick and syrupy and almost completely absorbed, 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.Add the broccoli, sun-dried tomatoes, and the remaining 1 1/4 cups water. Cover, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the broccoli turns bright green and is almost tender, 2-3 minutes.Uncover and return the heat to medium-high. Stir in the cream, parmesan, and reserved chicken with any accumulated juices and continue to simmer, uncovered, until the sauce is thickened and the chicken is cooked and heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, passing more grated parmesan at the table, if desired.

Pancakes

Ok, so this isn't officially from the orchard, maybe a tropical orchard. :)

My kids LOVE pancakes, and I'm always trying new things to make them healthy. Here are two recipes to get you started. I use a wheat mix (Krusteaz), but you could do homemade as well.

*Note- If using a mix, you need to adjust the amount of water listed on the package due to the wet ingredients added. My recipes are adjusted.

This is a pic of Linc, post-pancakes. He had syrup everywhere! All clean.

Banana Pancakes: (Makes 12-13 4-inch pancakes)

2 cups wheat pancake mix

1 cup water

2 pureed bananas (you can mash, Carmen just hates chunks)

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

Butter both sides immediately after cooking

*You could also add nuts if your kids are more daring than mine

Sweet Potato Pancakes: (Carmen's favorite hands-down)

2 cups wheat pancake mix

1 cup water

1/2 large sweet potato, cooked and pureed

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or cinnamon, but pps is better)

Mix well with wire whisk. I like to wrap my sweet potato in plastic wrap and throw in the microwave for about 6-8 minutes to cook. Then scoop out the insides and mash or puree. Butter both sides while cooking or right after. These end up tasting like pumpkin pie pancakes, and are so good for you!

Peach Crisp

Sorry, no picture. Before I could remember to take one it was all gone, it's seriously that good!

Glaze:

6-8 fresh peaches- peeled, pitted, sliced

1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup water

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 Tbsp butter

Topping:

2 cups oats

1 cup brown sugar

2/3 cup melted butter

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

2/3 cup flour

Preheat oven to 375, and begin preparing glaze. Combine cornstarch, brown sugar, and water in saucepan over med high heat. Whisk until thickened (about 5-7 minutes), then add butter and lemon juice. Place peaches in 9 x 13 pan, and pour glaze over top, coating peaches well. In a separate bowl, combine topping ingredients, pouring butter on last. Mix well and spread over peaches. Bake 20-25 minutes.

Kneaders Bakery French Toast

Okay, so I know the topic this month is desserts, but this SHOULD be a dessert. These are amazingly decadent and exactly like the Kneaders french toast. I hope it's okay to post this month! :)

Kneaders Bakery French Toast

1 Loaf Kneaders Chunky Cinnamon Bread cut into 8 slices

6-7 eggs

2 1/2 cups milk

1 Tbsp brown sugar

3/4 tsp salt

1 Tbsp vanilla

2 Tbsp butter

Butter a glass 9x13 pan. Place slices flat in pan. Mix all remaining ingredients, reserving the butter and pour over the bread. Cut butter into pieces and dot over the tops. Refrigerate overnight. Bake 45-50 min at 350.

Bonnie's notes: First off, I can't fit it all in a 9x13, I end up using a 9x13 plus an 8x8. Also, I like it best when I refrigerate it overnight and then turn the pieces of bread over and let them sit an hour before you bake it in the morning so both sides really soak up the egg mixture. It is great with maple syrup or with strawberries and whip cream!

Paradise Bakery Lemon Zest Cookies

I went to Paradise Bakery last night and just couldn't get enough with one lemon cookie, so I found a recipe to be able to make more! It's not from the restaurant, but they're pretty darn close! Here you go:

Paradise Lemon Zest Cookies

2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
Zest of 4 lemons
2 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. lemon extract
¼ cup lemon juice
1 egg + 2 egg yolks
3 cups flour
1tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder

Cream butter and sugar till light and fluffy, at least 5 minuets. Add lemon zest and extracts, mix to combine. Add egg, mix, add egg yolks one at a time mixing after each. Sift flour, baking soda, and baking powder into bowl and mix, add lemon juice to form a soft dough. Refrigerate for 30 minuets to an hour. Bake for 8-15 minuets. Cookies should be very soft and not browned. Let cool on cookie sheet for 5 minuets, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

*note: I added a few drops of yellow food coloring to achieve the lemon color.

Ooey Gooey Chocolate Trifle

So, I'm not a chocolate fan, but every once in a while I break down just to keep the rest of the fam happy. This is a recipe that Dave's family makes, and it's more word of mouth so here goes...

Devils food cake

Cool Whip (2 tubs)

Chocolate Jello pudding (1 big box)

Hersheys syrup

3-4 Skor bars (or other candy bar for crumbling)

Bake a devils food cake in 9 x 13 pan according to directions (boxed or homemade)

Cut cake into 2-3 inch cubes.

Layer in glass dish as follows:

1. Cubed cake

2. Drizzle with chocolate syrup

3. Layer of pudding

4. Cool whip

5. Crushed candy bar

Continue layering until you've filled the dish. I suggest a flat bottomed bowl to get enough layers. Refrigerate 1-2 hours. Serve cold.

Corn on the cob cupcakes

I am making these this week. Here's the book's Photo. I got this recipe from " Hello Cupcake!".

-1 can store bought frosting (homemade just doesn't hold up as well) use food coloring to make it a light yellow
-24 cupcakes wrapped in yellow wrappers
- 3 1/2 cups yellow, creme, or white jelly beans
- 4 pieces yellow fruit chews, like starburst or laffy taffy
-1 Tablespoon black decorating sugar
-1 Tablespoon white decorating sugar
-8 sets of corn holders

You arrange the cupcakes into groupings of 3, giving you 8 'ears' of corn. You frost the cupcakes and make 5 rows of jelly beans per cupcake. You then pinch the laffy taffy slightly on one side to flatten it. (giving it a melting look). and you finish out by topping the cupcakes with the sugar, and adding the corn holders.

I have made other cupcake ideas from this book, and this one is the simplest one. It looks really fun. I'll let you know how it goes.