All Seasons Chili

Chili? In the summer? If you ask me, chili is for all seasons! This one is super quick and easy. It's also worth noting that you can make this ahead of time and reheat. You can also double the recipe and freeze in serving size portions.

All Seasons Chili

- 1 lb of extra lean ground beef (98% fat free)
- 1 medium sweet yellow onion
- 1 minced garlic clove
- 1 can of dark red kidney beans
- 1 can of pinto beans
- 1 can of Old El Paso Enchilada Sauce
- 1 can of diced tomatoes
- S&P
- Ground cumin
- Cayenne pepper
- Garlic powder
- Dried cilantro leaves

1. Rough chop the sweet yellow onion.

2. Saute in a medium size pot with olive oil over medium heat.

3. Add the minced garlic and saute until softened and almost translucent.

4. Add the ground beef and S&P. Cook until meat is brown and crumbly.

5. Drain and rinse both cans of beans.

6. Drain can of diced tomatoes.

7. Add cumin, garlic powder, cayenne, cilantro leaves, and S&P to taste.

8. When meat is seasoned appropriately, add beans and tomatoes. Stir.

9. Add enchilada sauce. Stir.

10. Taste. Add seasoning where appropriate.

Best served with finely shredded Mexican blend cheese (2% milk, of course!) and maybe a little dollop of light sour cream.  See?! You CAN enjoy chili no matter what the weather is outside!

Bon appetit!

Spectrum Breakfast Smoothie

Here's another smoothie option for those of you who like smoothies for breakfast or as meal replacements. It is one we used to make when I worked at the Spectrum, a gym back home. Oh! Did I mention I used to work for Jamba Juice?!

Here's what you put in your blender:

- 1/2 cup of plain low-fat or non-fat yogurt
- 1 cup of frozen strawberries, unsweetened
- 1 ripe banana
- 1 T (tablespoon) of honey
- 1/4 cup of instant oats
- 1 T of peanut butter
- 1 cup of ice

Blend baby, blend!

Hot Cheesy Chicken

And I'm back with another chicken recipe! This one's pretty easy. :-)

1. Take your chicken breasts and cut them as though you were going to butterfly them. However, don't cut them all the way through. You are ultimately going to "stuff" them so you'll fold the chicken back over the ingredients.

2. "Stuff" your chicken with 2% cheddar or 2% pepper jack cheese. Fold back over so that the cheese is in the middle of the chicken breast.

3. Preheat a skillet or cast iron pan with olive oil. As with yesterday, try to use regular olive oil as opposed to extra virgin.

4. Season your chicken breasts. You want to season with salt, black pepper, and a little bit of garlic powder. I prefer kosher salt. Great flavor and not super expensive. If you're using garlic salt (as opposed to powder), skip the salt.

5. Sear each side of the chicken breast until brown. Probably about 3 minutes on each side with a hot pan.

6. After you sear the chicken, turn the heat down to medium or medium low and leave the chicken in the pan.

7. Dump an entire can of Rotel into the pan. I like the "Hot" version, but "Mild" or "Original" will also work just fine.

8. Drain a can of diced tomatoes. Dump the drained tomatoes into the pan with the Rotel and chicken.

9. Cover and let simmer in the pan with the chicken until the chicken is completely cooked. Probably another 5-8 minutes.

10. Serve with a tossed green salad over brown rice. Layer the rice, chicken breast and top with some of your sauce.

This one's pretty easy and also relatively quick. Should be simple enough to do after work. :-)

Happy cooking!

How many ways can you cook a chicken breast?

I lied. I wasn't back "sooner than later." I have an excuse. I'm getting married! Since Chef Boyar-Reid and I have gotten engaged, lots has happened. Life, you might say, has happened. Our big day is December 18th. We can't wait! I can't believe that it is already August.

Another development is our decision to build a house. YAY! We are super excited but now suddenly feel loads of our disposable income is no longer "disposable." It is making it's way into our savings accounts. Which brings me to my post today.

Did you know that you can get chicken breasts for $1.99/pound? Fresh, all natural chicken breasts. This equates to filling meals all at relatively low costs. Which finally means, more left over to feed the pig. Who doesn't want that in this economy anyway?!

So... since we've been cooking so much chicken lately, I've had to get creative so as not to be bored to tears with it. Not to mention, Chef Boyar-Reid has always been a beef eater. Creative chicken recipes are a necessity!

My next few posts will likely be about chicken and my creative chicken recipes. Here's one of our recent favorites...

Parmesan Crusted Lemon Chicken


1. Get a couple of bowls or pie pans out. Fill one with a couple of beaten eggs to use as an "egg wash." Fill the other with grated parmesan cheese, a little bit of garlic powder, a little bit of flour, and a very small amount of cayenne or chili powder. Make sure to mix these ingredients together.

*Tip: Do not use garlic salt in the mixture and do not preseason your chicken breasts with salt. Parmesan cheese is very salty on it's own, and preseasoning with salt will result in something that will taste way too salty.

2. Preheat a cast iron pan with olive oil. Use regular olive oil if possible. It has a higher burn point.

3. Dip the chicken breasts in the egg wash. Make sure all sides are covered. The egg wash will help the parmesan mixture to stick.

4. Dredge the chicken breasts in the parmesan mixture making sure to cover all sides.

5. Take the chicken breasts and put them in the hot pan. Sear the chicken breasts on each side for about 5 minutes per side.

6. Keep a lid over the chicken. It will keep steam in making the chicken cook more quickly and stay more moist and juicy.

7. Throughout the cooking process, open the lid and squeeze lemon juice into the pan. This will infuse the lemony flavor and help keep the chicken moist.

8. Once cooked, serve with steamed veggies or a salad and some wild rice.

More chicken ideas to come...

Bon appetit!