Tag Archives: whole wheat

Jul18

Chicken Spaghetti

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Chicken Spaghetti

Chicken Spaghetti

Who loves cheese? Well then this chicken spaghetti recipe is for you! It has an ooey gooey cheesy sauce that is absolutely delicious! Also, this is a great recipe to chop up veggies into tiny pieces and hide them in the sauce so your kids eat them. I’ve got lots of squash and parsley in my garden right now and my son had no idea either were in this dish. I think you could easily substitute zucchini, peas, chopped asparagus, finely chopped broccoli, finely chopped spinach, or any combination of those veggies into this dish easily!

Ingredients:

1 sweet onion finely chopped

1/4 c roasted red peppers chopped (or two jars pimentos)

Additional chopped veggies of your choice (I used one yellow squash and a few sprigs of chopped parsley)

1/2 lb linguine pasta (I used whole wheat)

4 oz Velveeta

1 can cream of mushroom

2 T cream cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 package boneless skinless chicken thighs (about 2 lbs)

Chicken bouillon cube

Salt and pepper

2 chopped garlic cloves

3 T butter

1 T garlic and herb seasoning

Additional mozzarella or other Italian cheese for topping

Italian breadcrumbs

1. First we’re going to season the water you’ll be using to cook the chicken (and later the noodles). Bring a pot of water with chicken bouillon and garlic herb seasoning to a boil and add chicken to pot. This will need to boil about 20-25 minutes.

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2. Add chopped onion, chopped veggies of your choice, butter, salt, and pepper to a sauté pan. Cook until veggies become tender and add chopped garlic and roasted red peppers and cook a few more minutes on medium high heat.

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3. Turn heat down to medium low and add cream of mushroom, cream cheese, mozzarella, and Velveeta. Stir and allow mixture to melt and come together.

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4. Pull your chicken out of the boiling seasoned water and cut into bite size pieces.

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5. Add chicken to sauce mixture.

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6. Add linguini to the boiling seasoned water and cook using directions on the box. Once it’s done, add the drained pasta to the chicken and cheese mix.

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7. Pour this into a buttered 9×11 baking dish and top with more cheese and sprinkle top with Italian breadcrumbs.

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8. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes or until top is golden brown.

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Mmmmmm would you look at that beautiful masterpiece?! It’s delicious with a hunk of crusty garlic bread and large glass of red wine 🙂

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May27

Jalapeño Cheddar Biscuit Sandwiches

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Jalapeño Cheddar Biscuit Sandwiches

Jalapeño Cheddar Biscuit Sandwiches

Have y’all seen that Whataburger commercial with the jalapeño cheddar biscuit? That’s what I’ve been dreaming about for weeks now, and being pregnant hasn’t done anything to help distract my cravings. However, in the spirit of being quasi-healthy and definitely easier on the pocketbook than daily stops to Whataburger, I decided to make these from scratch and with whole wheat flour. Also, I made a bunch of these and wrapped them in plastic wrap once they cooled and put them in a big ziplock in the freezer so I can take them out one at a time for my husband’s breakfast on the go. Go me! This recipe makes about 2 dozen biscuit sandwiches.

Ingredients:
4 cups of flour
1 T plus 2 tsps baking powder
1 tsp salt
3/4 c cold butter
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp paprika
2 jalapeños seeds and stems removed
10 oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 c buttermilk
2 packages of your favorite breakfast sausage cut into patties

1. First, let’s talk about your flour. If you want to use good ‘ole white bleached flour because it’s delicious, go ahead. Also, it looks prettier than whole wheat flour. I like this kind because it’s less whole wheat more normal looking. The King Arthur Brand is what I recommend whatever flour you end up using.
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2. Start fryin up your sausage. If you’re brand new to cooking breakfast sausage, you should know it’s much easier to slice the colder it is, and also use the tick marks on the plastic packaging to help cut uniform slices.
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3. Combine your cold butter into the flour and other dry seasonings using a pastry blender. Now, if you’re like me and misplaced your pastry cutter along with other important things you rarely need but can never seem to find when you need them, dice up your butter with a knife into pea sized pieces before cutting it into the butter with a fork. Also, add pastry cutter to your shopping list. Then add your cheese, jalapeños, and buttermilk. Combine it all together.
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4. You’re going to have a fairly wet loose dough, but that’s ok because you’re going to knead it on a slightly floured surface. Once you’re happy with the dough, roll (or use your hands – seriously does anyone still have rolling pins?) your dough into about a 3/4 – 1 inch thickness.
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5. Next, get your handy dandy biscuit cutter (or top of a drinking glass if you don’t have one) and start cuttin’ them biscuits!
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6. Have you been keeping an eye on your sausage patties? I hope so! Don’t forget to drain them on a paper towel. Also, keep that oil at the bottom of your pan to make a delicious gravy for these biscuits if you really want to be bad. (Does my hypocrisy know no bounds?)
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7. Pop these puppies into a 400 degree oven for 15-18 minutes depending on how hot your oven gets and how evenly it cooks. Every oven is different, so just be sure to keep an eye on them towards the end.
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8. Your biscuits are done! Now just add your sausage patties to them to complete the sandwiches. If you like extra cheese (who doesn’t?) slap on a slice of American or add a fried egg on top of your patty. The possibilities are endless!
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Oct14

Blueberry Banana Bread Made With Whole Wheat Flour

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Blueberry Banana Bread Made With Whole Wheat Flour

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My son is a year and a half and I’m always trying to make sure the food he eats is nutrient rich and good for him. He loves banana bread, so I decided to try and make it a little healthier for him and use whole grains, add antioxidant rich blueberries to it, and cut down on the sugar. This bread is perfect to take to a brunch or just to keep around the house for your family to eat. I keep mine covered in cling wrap in the bread pan I baked it in for up to a week in the fridge, and reheat a slice at a time whenever my son is ready to eat it.

Ingredients:
3 bananas
3/4-1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
2 tablespoons of honey
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1/2 stick melted butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Using a hand mixer on low mix together melted butter, egg, bananas, vanilla, honey, and sugar.

2. Once blended add dry ingredients and blend again using hand mixer.

3. Using a spoon or spatula add 3/4-1 cup of blueberries (depending on how berrilicious you like your bread). Be careful not to break open the blueberries or crush then. It should only take you 3-4 stirs to incorporate them into batter.

4. Pour batter into bread pan that has been sprayed with your favorite non-stick cooking spray. Bake at 350F for one hour.

Oct9

Crispy Fried Chicken Made With Whole Wheat Flour

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Crispy Fried Chicken Made With Whole Wheat Flour

Crispy Fried Chicken Made With Whole Wheat Flour

I’m so excited for this fall weather and all the yummy foods that go with it. I love making a yummy dinner of fried chicken with mashed potatoes, and this recipe is slightly healthier than most fried chicken recipes because it uses whole wheat flour versus white flour. It’s better for you and you really cannot tell a difference whatsoever in taste.

The key to juicy and tender fried chicken is to marinate it in buttermilk. I usually marinate mine overnight in a ziplock bag that I place in a bowl in the refrigerator but if you start marinating the morning of the day you’re going to cook it that’s alright too. Pour just enough buttermilk in there to cover whatever you’re cooking. This recipe cooked 10 chicken thighs for me and I purchased one of those value sized Pilgram’s Pride chicken thigh packages which is roughly 2 1/2 lbs of chicken. You can substitute your favorite cut of chicken (breast, tenders, drumsticks, wings) in place of the thighs for this recipe. Whatever cut you get I highly recommend you get with skin and bone because the skin helps the batter stick and makes for a tastier crust. However, for a lower calorie idea use tenders which are boneless and skinless.

Ingredients:

Roughly 2 1/2 pounds of your favorite chicken cut (this recipe used 10 thighs with bone/skin)
Buttermilk (I used 1/2 a quart to marinate all the thighs)
4 cups whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon each of garlic salt, paprika, and pepper
Your favorite frying oil (I like to use sunflower oil because it’s better for you to fry foods in – see http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/240753.php)

1. Pour enough oil in a pot or dutch oven so that it rises 1-1 1/2 inches from the bottom. Heat just slightly above medium heat on your stove top. If you’re the technical type with a thermometer you want to get the oil to 350 degrees. Note: you never want to pour oil more than halfway up whatever you’re frying in – this is how oil bubbles over and kitchen fires happen!

2. In a ziplock bag combine flour and seasonings and shake well. Once distributed place 3-4 pieces of chicken in the flour and shake well until chicken pieces are well covered with flour.

3. Once your oil is heated properly (I always dust a little flour mix into oil and see if it starts frying/bubbling since I never use a thermometer) get your chicken pieces ready to drop in by shaking off any excess flour. Place 3-4 pieces of chicken in and allow to fry for 10 minutes or so until you flip to the other side. You’ll want to make sure you’re not overcrowding your pan because this can cause the temperature to drop and then you won’t get a crispy crust. It will take anywhere between 15-30 minutes to fry your chicken based on the size and density of the pieces you’re cooking. For example, a chicken wing will be finished much faster than a chicken breast or thigh. Also whenever a bone is in the chicken it will take longer to cook as well.

4. Once your chicken is done (I always just take out a piece and cut into it to see if it’s done, but again if you’re the technical type with a thermometer the temp you’re looking for is 165 F) take out and place onto a baking sheet lined with paper towels to allow it to drain. Salt immediately with a pinch of salt and place in your oven at 200 F to keep warm. This will keep crust crispy if you’re cooking several batches of chicken before serving.