Chicken and Bacon Ranch Pizza

I've always been a big fan of Subway. One of my favorite subs there is the Chicken and Bacon Ranch, except that it can become pretty full of calories pretty quick. I have been thinking about making chicken and bacon ranch subs at home for a few weeks now and it actually sounded really good for dinner tonight. But, sadly enough, I had already planned on having Buffalo Chicken Pizza, with a pizza dough ball and 8 oz. of chicken defrosting. Dinner kept getting closer and closer, and my beloved Buffalo Chicken Pizza was still not sounding so good, so I tried thinking of other options. My mind just kept going back to the Chicken and Bacon Ranch subs, and then I thought, "Why not a Chicken and Bacon Ranch Pizza?!"

Well, this pizza was great! I'm not going to lie and say that this will keep me away from the subs from Subway (loaded with ranch dressing and cheese!), but maybe make my trips a little less frequent. I will definitely be making this pizza again!

Chicken and Bacon Ranch Pizza
Original Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tbsp. olive oil
8 oz. chicken breast, chopped into small pieces
1 lb. ball of pizza dough
1/4 c. ranch dressing
2 pcs. bacon, cooked and chopped into small pieces
8 oz. Italian blend shredded cheese

Heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Cook chicken until just done. Let cool slightly.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll dough ball into a circle. Spread with ranch dressing, leaving about 1/2" around the edges. Top with chicken and bacon. Sprinkle cheese evenly over the pizza. Bake on pizza stone for about 30 minutes, or until cheese starts to brown and get bubbly.

Vietnamese Style Caramel Chicken and Coconut Lime Rice

Mr. Z and I eat a lot of chicken...and I do mean a lot! We eat chicken probably five times a week, which means if I am not constantly on the lookout for new chicken recipes, we get bored very quickly. I usually lean toward something buffalo style or something I've at least heard of before. But, lately I've tried to get out of that comfort zone, and I've ended up finding so many new things that I like! Not that you can really tell by my blog, but I am a very picky eater, so this is a big feat for me!

This meal was excellent. I was pretty nervous about using fish sauce, because I've only used it once before. In fact, when Mr. Z walked in the door from work as a was starting the chicken, he said, "What is that smell!?" It smelled like fish sauce and nothing else for the first little while, so that made me even more nervous, but I am glad I finished cooking it and tried it, because it was delicious! I served this with Coconut Lime Rice after seeing a comment on the recipe on Joelen's blog.

Vietnamese Style Caramel Chicken with Coconut Lime Rice
chicken recipe from Joelen's Culinary Adventures, written as I made it
rice recipe from MyRecipes.com, written as I made it

Vietnamese Style Caramel Chicken
Ingredients:
1/4 c. dark brown sugar
1/2 c. water, separated
2 tbsp. fish sauce
1 tbsp. grated ginger
1 clove of garlic, minced
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1" pieces

Heat brown sugar and 1/4 c. water in a large pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Cook until mixture is bubbling.

Stir in the remaining 1/4 c. water, fish sauce, ginger, garlic, and cayenne pepper and stir well. Add chicken. Cook until chicken is cooked through and sauce starts to thicken. Turn heat up to medium-high and cook until sauce gets very thick and sticky.

Coconut Lime Rice
Ingredients:
1 c. light coconut milk
1 1/4 c. water
1 tsp. lime zest
1 tbsp. lime juice
1 c. instant rice

Bring coconut milk and water to a boil. Add rice and cook according to package instructions. In the last minute of cooking, add lime zest and lime juice.

Chicken Parmesan

I think chicken parmesan is very hard to mess up. I mean, it's pretty great no matter where you get it or who made it. However, that said, there are some places that are much, much better than others. Mr. Z and I both especially love homemade chicken parmesan. Mr. Z loves when I make it, and I love when Mr. Z makes it from time to time.

We don't really use a recipe per se. It is so simple to make, that we just kind of made up the recipe as we went along the first time we made it, using many different recipes as inspiration. I wasn't sure if I should post a recipe for this dish because of the fact that it is so easy and simple. But I figured, what the heck? I may help someone make a delicious meal if they don't already have a good recipe!

Chicken Parmesan
Original Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 c. Italian style breadcrumbs
1/4 c. parmesan cheese
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied then cut in half
1/2 c. flour
1 egg, beaten
mozzarella cheese for topping
1 lb. spaghetti
16 oz. spaghetti sauce

Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Mix breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese together in a shallow bowl. Dip chicken in flour, covering completely. Dip into beaten egg, then in breadcrumb mixture.

Put chicken into the oil, and cook for about 6 minutes on each side, or until chicken is cooked and the outside starts to brown. Take chicken out of the oil, and set aside for several minutes to let the oil drip off. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put chicken on cookie sheet and top with mozzarella cheese. Bake for about 8 minutes or until cheese starts to bubble.

Cook spaghetti according to directions on box. Mix in sauce. Serve chicken over spaghetti.

Cashew Chicken

After a long day yesterday, I did not feel like spending an hour making dinner. But, I had already taken chicken breasts out for dinner, so I wanted to make something instead of going out. I did what I do every time I need to find something to make for dinner...searched my Google Reader!

Luckily for me, last weekend I went through all my starred recipes and labeled them so it's much easier for me to find what I need. I was really looking for a recipe using ingredients I already had on hand, and this one fit the bill. I had everything at home already, except for the green onions, which is why I left them out. I also didn't feel like waiting around for the chicken to marinate for 30 minutes like the recipe says, so I didn't. This meal was great served with rice. I've never actually tried cashew chicken at a Chinese restaurant, so I don't have anything to compare it to. But now that I have this recipe, I won't even need to get it at a restaurant!

Cashew Chicken
from Milk & Honey, written as I made it

Ingredients:
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1" pieces
2 tbsp. dry sherry
1 tsp. ground ginger
3 1/2 tsp. cornstarch, separated
pinch of kosher salt
1/2 c. chicken broth
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. rice vinegar
2 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 tbsp. vegetable oil, separated
2 garlic cloves, minced
2/3 c. cashews

Mix sherry, ginger, 1 1/2 tsp. cornstarch, and salt in a small bowl. Toss chicken with the mixture and set aside. In another bowl, mix chicken broth, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and 2 tsp. cornstarch.

Heat 1 tbsp. vegetable oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Cook chicken until it starts to brown, or about 8 minutes. Remove chicken from the pan and set aside. Add 1 tsp. oil, garlic, and cashews to the pan. Cook until garlic softens, or about 1 minute. Add chicken back to the pan, whisk the chicken broth mixture, and add sauce to pan. Cook until sauce starts to bubble and thicken (about 3 minutes). Serve over rice.

Chicken Piccata

I never actually tried chicken piccata until about two and a half years ago. Mr. Z and I went to a meeting with a potential caterer to do a taste test, and they prepared samples of their most popular foods. We ended up using them to cater our wedding. To me, the decision was made after I tasted the chicken piccata. I wondered why I waited 20-something years to try this amazing dish. Honestly, I don't think anyone's rendition could ever measure up to the one at our wedding, but this one comes pretty darn close.

I have been making this since right after our wedding on a pretty regular basis, but I just checked back and realized I never blogged about it. We like to serve this with pasta to make a full meal. I could definitely eat this a couple times a month with no complaints.

Chicken Piccata
from SimplyRecipes.com, written as I made it

Ingredients:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied then cut in half
salt and pepper
1/4 c. flour + 2 tbsp. flour, separated
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. butter, separated
1/2 c. chicken broth
splash of white wine
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. capers, drained and rinsed

Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Dredge in 1/4 c. flour. Heat olive oil and 1 tbsp. butter over medium high heat. Add chicken breasts to the pan and cook about 6 minutes on each side, or until browned. Set chicken breasts aside.

Add 2 tbsp. flour, 1 tbsp. butter, chicken broth, wine, lemon juice, and capers, and deglaze the pan. Cook until sauce starts to bubble. Add chicken breasts back to the pan and cook for about 2 minutes on each side. Serve immediately over pasta.

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

Ok, this recipe is hands down, one of the best things I make. It is so simple, so quick...and SO good! I have said many times that I love, love, love buffalo chicken anything. And pizza's alright too. I don't love pizza, but every once in a while, I do crave it. But, one way to make something go from alright to amazing is to buffalo chicken-ize it!

I've been making this pizza since Mr. Z and I got married, and it's on our regular rotation. We have this pizza about once every few weeks. For some reason, I've never thought to blog about it because it's so simple, but when I made it a few days ago, I decided to go ahead and blog it. My buffalo chicken pizza is all buffalo chicken-y. No tomato sauce, onions, or celery...not my style. This recipe is great! If you are a huge buffalo chicken fan like I am, you have to try this recipe!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza
Original Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tbsp. olive oil
8 oz. chicken breast, chopped into small pieces
2 tbsp. butter or margarine
1/2 c. Frank's Buffalo Wing sauce
1 lb. ball of pizza dough
1/4 c. bleu cheese dressing
8 oz. Italian blend shredded cheese

Heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Cook chicken until just done. Add butter and buffalo wing sauce and mix well to fully coat all of the chicken. Let cool slightly.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll dough ball into a circle. Spread with bleu cheese dressing, leaving about 1/2" around the edges. Top with chicken. Sprinkle cheese evenly over the pizza. Bake on pizza stone for about 30 minutes, or until cheese starts to brown and get bubbly.

Angelo Pizza

Yes, I do realize that it has been over a month since I've updated my blog. But, you have to forgive me...I've spent much of the past month on several trips out of town, helping people move, helping fix up a house, and well, you get the point. Anyways, I hope to get back into the groove now that I'm home on a regular basis again.

We used to have a Buca di Beppo about 10 minutes down the road, until they tore it down and put another big chain restaurant there. It was one of those places that we'd pass by every time and say, "oh, we should go there sometime soon," but when it came time to choose a restaurant to go out to, we'd forget about it. I liked it...it wasn't my favorite, but it was pretty decent compared to most restaurants we have around here. Every time we went there, we ordered the same. exact. thing. We got chicken parmesan and...Angelo pizza! We'd always have a ton of leftovers, but chicken parmesan was non-negotiable for Mr. Z, and Angelo pizza was non-negotiable for me.

The other day, when I drove by where Buca di Beppo used to be, I thought about that pizza, and couldn't get the darn thing out of my head. I decided to attempt it on my own...and, oh my goodness, was this pizza amazing! It was even better than the Buca di Beppo version. I came up with this recipe up from what I remembered the pizza being.

Angelo Pizza
Original Recipe, idea from Buca di Beppo

Ingredients:
1 lb. ball of pizza dough
1/2 c. alfredo sauce (I used jarred sauce)
8 oz. Italian blend shredded cheese
4 oz. chicken breast, cooked and chopped into small pieces
1 c. frozen corn
1/2 c. baby bella mushrooms
2 slices prosciutto, chopped
1/2 medium potato, sliced very thin

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Pour corn on a cookie sheet and lightly spray with cooking spray. Bake for about 8 minutes, or until it starts to brown, stirring halfway through.

Roll dough ball into a circle. Spread with alfredo sauce, leaving about 1/2" around the edges. Sprinkle cheese evenly over the pizza. Top with chicken, roasted corn, mushrooms, prosciutto, and potatoes. Bake on pizza stone for about 30 minutes, or until cheese starts to brown and get bubbly.

Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

Here I go again with the buffalo chicken kick. I have actually decided that I love buffalo chicken anything so much, it deserves its own category!

I have been seeing quite a few versions of this recipe floating around the internet and I have always thought it looked amazing. But most of the recipes looked pretty involved. And I was right about that- it took about an hour and a half from start to finish and dirtied a bowl, a Pyrex dish, a pot, and 2 pans, not even counting the plates and silverware we ate with (...and the bowls we had dessert in). While this recipe was excellent, it's something I will probably only make again when I have a lot of time to prepare it. Last night, we didn't end up eating dinner until 9pm by the time it was done!

Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

from Noble Pig, written as I made it

Ingredients:
5 tbsp. butter
1 lb. elbow macaroni
1 lb. chicken breast, cooked and shredded
1 tbsp. minced garlic
3/4 c. Frank's Buffalo Wing sauce
2 tbsp. flour
2 tsp. dry mustard
2 1/2 c. half and half (I used fat free)
8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
6 oz. shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
2/3 c. sour cream (I used fat free)
1 c. panko
1/2 c. bleu cheese crumbles
cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously spray a 9x13 Pyrex pan with cooking spray. Cook pasta in salted water, until al dente. Drain and set aside. Meanwhile, melt 1 tbsp. of butter over medium heat. Add chicken and garlic, cook for about 3 minutes, or until brown. Add 1/2 c. wing sauce, stir, and cook until it starts to thicken.

In another pan, melt 2 tbsp. of butter over medium heat. Add flour and mustard and stir until smooth. Whisk in the half and half and remaining 1/4 c. of wing sauce. Cook until it starts to thicken. Mix in cheddar cheese, Monterrey Jack cheese, and sour cream and cook until smooth. Pour chicken mixture and cheese mixture over the pasta and stir until well mixed. Pour the macaroni into the Pyrex dish.

In a small bowl, melt the remaining 2 tbsp. of butter. Stir in panko and bleu cheese crumbles. Sprinkle mixture over macaroni. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until top starts to brown and bubble.

Boneless Buffalo Wings

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...I love, love, love anything and everything buffalo flavored! I love buffalo wings, but boneless buffalo wings are so much less messy and easier to make (in my opinion, anyway).

I buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts for $1.97/lb. at Sam's Club on a regular basis, but I usually only cook for the two of us, and as we all know, Sam's Club only sells things in huge quantities. So I freeze most of them in Ziploc bag, with two chicken breasts in each, so I can easily defrost just enough for dinner. And usually, when I thaw out chicken breasts for dinner, the first thing that pops in my head is some kind of buffalo chicken. This recipe is great, and not so bad for you because it is baked. I have combined several different recipes to make something that sounded just right to me, so I'm calling this an original recipe.

Boneless Buffalo Wings
Original Recipe

Ingredients:
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
1 c. flour
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese
1/4 c. breadcrumbs
1/4 c. BBQ Pringles, finely crushed
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c. buffalo wing sauce, or more to taste
2 tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
Cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Mix flour, parmesan cheese, Pringles, and bread crumbs in a gallon-sized Ziploc bag. Dip chicken pieces into beaten egg, then drop in Ziploc bag, about 1/4 of the chicken at a time. Shake bag until all pieces are fully coated.

Place coated chicken on a greased cookie sheet. Spray tops with cooking spray. Bake for 7-8 minutes, turn over, spray tops with cooking spray, and bake 7-8 on the other side. Put chicken in a large bowl, cover with wing sauce and butter, and mix well until all pieces are coated. Put back in the oven and bake for 3-4 minutes.

Chicken Lo Mein

Here we go again with my Chinese food obsession. I just can't help it! I've been wanting to make lo mein for a little while now, but have had little luck finding lo mein noodles in the grocery stores around me. Then, three days ago, I happened to walk through the Oriental aisle of the grocery store and whaaaat? Lo mein noodles!

Right away, I set out to find a good recipe for lo mein. After a little while spent searching, I picked up the box again and well, what do you know? A great recipe right there on the box! I really liked this recipe. It wasn't a difficult recipe, but I have a small problem multi-tasking in the kitchen. This sent me into a small frenzy because there are several things going on at once, but in the end, it came out good! Not the healthiest of recipes, although again, it has to be healthier than the lo mein from the Chinese takeout place!

Chicken Lo Mein
from the China Boy Lo Mein Noodle box, written as I made it

Ingredients:
1 lb. bonless, skinless chicken breast, cut into small chunks
1-8 oz. box of lo mein noodles
1 1/2 c. frozen stir-fry vegetables
1 tblsp. canola oil
4 oz. baby corn
2 tbsp. cornstarch
5 tbsp. soy sauce
4 tbsp. dark brown sugar
3/4 c. chicken broth
4 tsp. sesame oil
1 tbsp. minced garlic

Combine cornstarch, soy sauce, brown sugar, chicken broth, sesame oil, and garlic in a small bowl. Mix very well. Heat oil over medium-high heat. Stir-fry chicken until almost done. Add frozen vegetables and baby corn. Stir-fry until everything is hot. Meanwhile, in another pot, boil lo mein noodles until al dente, or about 4 minutes. Add cooked noodles to chicken and vegetables. Add sauce to pan; mix well until everything is coated in sauce.

Easy Chicken Alfredo

Chicken Alfredo is yet another one of those things that I love, but rarely order when we eat out because of the calorie content. I decided a couple months ago to try to make it on my own. When I was making it, I thought it seemed like too much cream cheese compared to other ingredients, but the recipe had such good reviews, I thought it'd turn out ok. When I tasted it, though, it tasted like biting into a block of cream cheese. Don't get me wrong, I like cream cheese and all, but I prefer it on bagels, not pasta. It was pretty awful.

Since then, I have shied away from making any more alfredo sauces...until today. Mr. Z and I were both home at lunch time today, so I searched for something quick and easy to make. I happened to stumble upon a new recipe for alfredo sauce and figured I'd give it another try. I am glad that first incident didn't stop me from trying again, because this one was worlds better than the first. Actually, Mr. Z and I both thought it was pretty great, especially since I made the saue in less time than it took to boil the pasta.

Easy Chicken Alfredo
sauce recipe from Cooks.com, written as I made it

Ingredients:
1 lb. pasta (I used cellentani)
8 oz. cooked chicken, cut into strips
4 oz. cream cheese (I used light)
1/2 stick of butter
1/3 c. grated parmesan cheese
1/2 c. milk (I used skim)
1 tbsp. minced garlic

Cook pasta in salted water until al dente. In a small pot over medium heat, add cream cheese and butter, stirring until melted completely. Add parmesan cheese, milk, and garlic, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour over cooked noodles; stir to mix well. Add chicken to top of pasta.

Chicken Fried Rice

If I have not mentioned it before, Mr. Z and I LOVE Chinese food. Actually, truth be told, I may even be considered obsessed. It's really pretty bad. But it is definitely one of those things I can only eat every once in a while because of the insane amount of grease and calories. Luckily for me though, I am learning to make some things myself. That way, I get to eat it much more often! I have made Baked Egg Rolls, Beef with Broccoli, General Tso's Chicken, and Orange Chicken, although the latter three were prior to starting this blog.

Homemade Chinese food is still not the healthiest meal, but I am completely confident that my homemade versions of my take-out favorites have less than half the amount of calories than the real thing, while still being just (well, almost) as good. This recipe didn't come from just one place. When I first got married, I looked for a good fried rice recipe, but ended up mixing and matching to suit our taste.

Chicken Fried Rice

Original Recipe

Ingredients:

3 c. cooked rice, cooled (I used white this time, but usually use brown)

1 tbsp. olive oil

2 eggs

1/2 c. frozen peas

1/2 c. frozen carrots

1 tbsp. soy sauce

1 tbsp. oyster sauce

1 c. cooked chicken, cut into small pieces

Heat oil on medium-high heat. Saute rice for 2 minutes. Add soy sauce and oyster sauce and mix well. Push rice aside. Scramble two eggs and mix into rice. Add peas, carrots, and chicken. Cook for 5 minutes, or until vegetables are hot.