Chicken with Tomatoes, Fennel and Basil

This dinner tasted (and smelled) restaurant-quality. It is based on Amanda's Spiced Chicken and Mezzi Rigatoni, with a few changes. Total cook time is 35 to 40 minutes, unless you have an enormous pan to cook the chicken. I had to do the cooking in batches so the chicken would saute instead of steaming.

CHICKEN WITH TOMATOES, FENNEL AND BASIL
Serves 6

Get the recipe and nutrition facts at Cook and Count!

52 in 52: Apples and Squash

My New Year's Resolution this year is to try to eat more fruits and vegetables. To make it a little more interesting, I thought I'd mix in trying some new-to-me fruits and vegetables. So the goal is to taste-test 52 new varieties of produce by the end of the year--one for each week.

I'll probably be spending a lot of time at Wegman's this year, and I'm posting here for accountability.

I've already gotten in two new ones, and it's only January 3:  Macoun apples and butternut squash.

Both of them get only 2 stars in the All-Star Produce Lineup. Here's why:

Macoun apples are probably better for baking than eating out-of-hand. They are like a Macintosh apple, with very white flesh, but are kind of sweet and the flesh is not very firm and crunchy. (I prefer Winesap and Granny Smith apples for eating).

Butternut squash deserves another trial, perhaps with a different recipe. I tried it spiced, with garlic, cumin, cinnamon, pepper, brown sugar and olive oil, and roasted. I think there was too much going on in that recipe. Next time I will just roast it with a little butter and a little olive oil and let it caramelize a bit more.

I'm open to suggestions for that butternut squash.

Here's to 52 in 52 and a healthier 2013! (And if I manage to lose 25 pounds this year, so much the better!)

Would you like to join me in this venture? Let's make it a recipe party!

Healthy Wheat Bread (for Beginners)

This is an original recipe.  The challenge:  to make a healthy bread without too much added sugar.  This bread can be made on the dough cycle in a bread machine (just add ingredients in the order recommended by the manufacturer.  Often, it's liquid first, then dry, with yeast on top.)   Directions below are for hand mixing or mixing with a stand mixer using a dough hook.  Baking directions will be the same regardless of whether the dough is hand mixed, done in a mixer or in a bread machine.

Makes 2 loaves.  I have not yet worked this recipe out for a single loaf.  Just cutting each ingredient in half doesn't always work.

Get the recipe and nutrition information for this bread at Cook and Count!

Secret Recipe Club: Roasted Garbanzos

My Secret Recipe Club blog for August is A Vegan Obsession. The recipes on this blog are both vegan and gluten-free, which is pretty much the complete opposite of how I cook. Fortunately, there were some side dishes and snacks to choose from, and I found a great 3-ingredient recipe for a delicious, different, healthy snack: Roasted Chickpeas.

ROASTED GARBANZOS

1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed
coarse salt
garlic-pepper seasoning

Use a kitchen towel or paper towels to dry the garbanzos.  Spread them on a cookie sheet (I covered it in foil) and season generously.

Here's how they looked before cooking.  You could probably fit 2 cans' worth on a large cookie sheet.  I had lots of room to spread them out.

Bake at 400 for at least 20 minutes, opening the door and shaking the pan 2 or 3 times during baking to move the garbanzos around.

They'll cool off quickly and be ready to eat!  These are crunchy and tasty, and a good lowfat snack.  Or you could smack them once or twice with your meat mallet and sprinkle them over a salad.

I like to call these "garbanzos" because that's just more fun to say. I didn't change much from the original except my use of seasoning; the original recipe called for "herbsalt" and ground black pepper.

This makes about 3/4 cup when cooked, so if you're planning to serve these to a crowd, you'll need to make several cans of beans.

Enjoy this unusual, crunchy, and frugal snack!

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