Recipe: Chipotle Garlic Chicken and Mexican Rice Casserole

Being a born and bred So-Cal girl, I have always considered Mexican food as an essential staple of my diet. College was full of late night Taco Bell runs and post-grad life involves a healthy dose of Chipotle on a regular basis. The numerous but equally wonderful combinations of chicken, cheese, and carbs make my mouth water every single time. Unfortunately, many of these dishes also run on the wrong side of the calorie/fat track, particularly the restaurant-style dishes. Not only are the portions enormous, but the all the extra cheese, oil, and sour cream are basically a recipe for disaster (aka a heart attack).These days I've been trying to cook as much as possible and eliminate all mysterious ingredients and empty calories from my diet. So when I came across this recipe for One Pot Mexican Rice Casserole from DamnDelicious' blog, I was beyond excited! I decided to pair it with a simple Chipotle Garlic seasoned chicken breast, and the results were delicious.

Ingredients:
-1 tablespoon olive oil
-3 tbsps minced garlic
-1 onion, diced
-1 zucchini, diced
-1/2 cup corn kernels (I used frozen)
-1 tomato, diced (I went with fresh)
-1 cup brown rice
-2 cups water
-1 tbsp chili powder (or to taste)
-1 tsp cumin
-Sea salt and black pepper, to taste
-1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
-Optional: chopped cilantro

1.) I started out by dicing all the vegetables I wanted to throw into my pot. This recipe can be adjusted to include whatever vegetables you prefer. The original recipe calls for bell peppers, but I hate bell peppers and so I substituted mushrooms instead.

2.) After all the chopping and dicing, heat 1 tbsp of oil in a nonstick pan (couldn't find mine, clearly), and toss in the garlic and onions, stirring until the onions turn translucent.

3.) Next is round two of the vegetables. Toss in the zucchini, carrots and corn and stir for another 2-3 minutes until the veggies become nice and tender.

4.) Lastly, toss in the tomatoes and mushrooms, along with the brown rice, 2 cups of water, and spices.

5.) Bring everything to a nice rolling boil, before lowering the heat, covering and cooking for about 25 minutes or until rice is tender (You could also transfer the mixture to a rice cooker and cook it in there).

6.) Once the rice is done, gently fold in the 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese, stirring until well mixed and cheesy all around =].

Super Easy Chipotle Garlic Seasoned Chicken:

Ingredients:
-Chicken breast
-Olive Oil Spray
-Chipotle Garlic seasoning
-Lemon Pepper seasoning
-1 tbsp lemon juice

1.) Spray olive oil on both sides of the chicken breast and thoroughly coat in Chipotle Garlic seasoning and Lemon Pepper Seasoning



2.) Cook for about 7 minutes before covering the chicken breast with lemon juice and re-seasoning a little bit.



3.) Cook for another 4-5 minutes or until done, and enjoy!

Recipe: Easy Chicken and Veggie Stir-Fry

While I immensely enjoy the relaxation and wonderful smells that accompany cooking endeavors, I can’t stake a claim at being the best chef in the house (that title goes to Grandma, hands down). In truth, I’m a much better baker than I am a chef. However, I try and cook at least 3-4 times a week, mainly because I find it relaxing but also because I enjoy trying new recipes and love knowing exactly how much of what is going into my food. Mostly I’ll cook just enough for one meal, because I prefer fresh food and fresh ingredients to leftovers or microwaved meals, but on occasion, I’ll make enough for dinner that night and lunch the next day. This happens to be one of those recipes that really refrigerates well and keeps for the next day (it even tastes good cold).

I absolutely love stir-fry and after much research and many attempts with different recipes, I've finally developed my own, rather simple yet delicious version. I usually use whatever fresh vegetables are in my fridge that day but this can definitely be customized to anyone’s personal tastes.

Chicken and Veggie Stir-Fry:

1 tsp sesame oil or olive oil (I use olive because I always have it on hand)

½ cup chicken broth/vegetable broth

1 boneless, skinless chicken breast

¾ cup of broccoli

½ cup julienned carrots

½ cup mushrooms

2 cups spinach

¾ cup zucchini

1 tsp garlic powder or 1 tbsp. freshly minced garlic

½ tsp lemon pepper

1 tsp curry powder (optional)

1 tsp red chili powder (optional)

2 tbsp. Hoisin Sauce

1 tbsp. Soyaki Sauce

Instructions:

1.)    Dice the chicken breast into cube sized pieces and cut the vegetables into bite size pieces

2.)    Season the diced chicken breast using the garlic powder, lemon pepper, curry powder and chili powder

3.)    Heat the pan over medium heat, coat the pan a little with a tiny bit of oil, and toss the chicken breast in. Get a nice sear going on both sides and then pour in the chicken broth a quarter cup at a time, cover, and let the chicken cook until its done (I prefer using this method because it’s quick, involves very little oil, and the chicken retains its flavor and the spices-feel free to cook with more oil or without the broth or bake the chicken)

4.)    As the chicken is finishing up and there is still some broth remaining toss in the carrots and mushrooms and spinach. Once the spinach wilts and cooks to desired texture, go ahead and throw in the broccoli and zucchini as well (Again, this depends on how you like your vegetables cooked – I prefer my carrots, mushrooms, and spinach well cooked, but enjoy the crunchiness of raw broccoli and zucchini).

5.)    Right before taking everything off the heat, drizzle in the soyaki and hoisin sauces. Once the sauces have warmed and thoroughly coated all the vegetables and chicken, turn off the heat.

6.)    Serve over warm brown rice or rice noodles.