Chicken Tonight!

 

We make a lot of chicken in our house (mostly because my picky eater little boys will almost always eat it). Here are some great recipes for chicken breasts that I have recently discovered.

Grilled Caesar Chicken Breasts

Ingredients:

1/2 cup creamy Caesar salad dressing
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
6 garlic cloves, minced
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (5 ounces each)

Directions:

In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the dressing, oil, mustard, and garlic. Add the chicken; seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

Drain and discard marinade. Grill chicken, covered, over medium heat or broil 4 inches from the heat for 6-8 minutes on each side, or until a thermometer reads 170 degrees F.

Yield: 4 servings.

Source: Taste of Home. You can find it here.

Notes: I opted to broil this rather than grilling it. However, next time I might try baking it in a baking dish along with the marinade. This was so flavorful. Very good!

Country Barbecued Chicken

Ingredients:

3/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon molasses
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon canola oil
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 garlic clove, minced
1 1/2 to 2 pound boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions:

In a small bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Brush chicken with butter. Grill, uncovered, over medium heat for 3-4 minutes on each side or until browned. Baste with barbecue sauce.

Grill 4-6 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer reads 170 degrees F, basting and turning often.

Yield: 4-6 servings.

Source: Taste of Home. You can find it here.

Notes: I chose this because it is a great pantry recipe. I always have chicken in my freezer and I had all the ingredients for the barbecue sauce on hand in my pantry. The barbecue sauce was really good. It had a great flavor.

Broiled Chicken Cordon Bleu

Ingredients:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (4 ounces each)
1/4 cup butter, melted
4 thin slices deli ham
4 tablespoons honey-Dijon salad dressing, and additional for dipping, if desired
4 thin slices Swiss cheese

Directions:

Broil chicken 4-6 inches from the heat for 3 minutes on each side. Brush with butter. Broil 4 minutes longer, or until a meat thermometer reads 170 degrees F, turning and basting occassionally.

Place a ham slice on each chicken breast; broil for 1-2 minutes. Spread each with 1 tablespoon dressing; top with cheese. Broil for 30 seconds or until cheese is melted.

Yield: 4 servings.

Source: Taste of Home. You can find it here.

Notes: I didn't really get a good picture of this one. It isn't because it was ugly, but because I made it during the darkest part of winter and when it is pitch black at 5:30 p.m. at night with no natural lighting to be found, the pictures turn out a little dreary too. However, this chicken was anything but dreary. It was super easy and really tasty.

Also, in order for a prettier piece of chicken, I would suggest spreading the chicken with the honey-Dijon dressing first and then topping it with the ham followed by the Swiss cheese. If you go ham, dressing, and then cheese (as instructed in the recipe), your cheese will look yellow, as mine did. No matter though, it was delicious any way you layer it. I used a honey mustard dressing because I couldn't find one that was specifically honey-Dijon.

Bonus...

Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:

4 yams or sweet potatoes
Butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Wash and pierce yams or sweet potatoes with a fork. Bake in a 400 degree F oven for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until tender when pierced with a fork.

Scoop out the yams/sweet potatoes into a bowl. Mash with desired amount of butter and salt and pepper.

Source: My stepmother does this for Thanksgiving. I LOVE sweet potatoes this way.