Apple Honey Maple Chicken Thighs

Just a reminder that today is still the lose-a-palooza through Weight Watchers. I'm hoping to be a part of the $75k being raised for organizations like Share Our Strength.

This is a fall favorite around here. I take a cup of applesauce, a couple of tablespoons honey and maple syrup, a couple of tablespoons of ketchup and mustard and a shake of ginger and cinnamon, some salt and pepper to taste and whatever herbs and spices happen to be lying around. Tonight I used Dr. Gonzo's Beaver Rub. Just mix it all up and toss it all in the crockpot for 4-6 hours at high or 6-12 hours at high. (About 5 points plus a serving)

I also bought a Kabosha squash, similar to a sugar pumpkin, and roasted it at 375* for about 45 minutes or so until it was soft. First I scooped the seeds out and brushed it with a little olive oil. When it was soft, I scooped it out of the shell and pureed it with a shake of cinnamon, ginger and a pinch of brown sugar. Add a little brown rice and you have a nice healthy fall meal with little effort.

Beer braised chicken thighs

OK... did I think to take pictures? No, I was too busy eating. :)

I wanted something different, so I did a quick search on the food network site and found Rachael Ray's "Beer Braised Chicken Thighs." One look at her list made me realize that her recipe was not in the offing; however, mine was.

Taking some chicken thighs, I browned them on both sides in a deep pan. I then took them out and sauteed chopped onions, celery and garlic before tossing in a cup of chicken broth, a 14 oz can of diced tomatoes and a 12 oz bottle of Guiness I found hiding in the back of the fridge. I also tossed in a few shots of hot sauce and a couple of tbs of Dr. Gonzo's Wild Beaver Rub to the mix. After letting it come to a boil, I threw the chicken thighs back in and turned the heat down to a simmer for 25 minutes or so.

The Dr. Gonzo's balanced the beer nicely and gave the dish a bit of a kick.

I did not work out the points... yeah, I wasn't in the mood. I do know the veggies are 0 points, a chicken thigh is 2 and the whole bottle of beer is 5 points. I'm guessing it was 3-4 points+ for a chicken thigh heaped with the veggies from the pan. Now if I can get the taco recipe from my niece, I think I know what I'm making next week.

Simple Crockpot Chicken Stew

First some business matters. I'm going to be changing the look of things shortly, so keep an eye out. Also, I'm starting to label dishes with key words. Eventually the goal is to add some videos.

Sorry about not posting this last week, things got a bit crazy and the thought of actually sitting down to plug in the camera, etc. was one too many things to do. It happens, life happens. So it goes. I did remember to document one of my standard crockpot chicken recipes.

Start with:

Chicken (I used 5 chicken thighs)

Diced tomatoes

Onion

Green and Red Bell Peppers

Frozen Green Beans

Italian Seasoning and

Chicken Stock

/begin rant/

Now here's the thing about stock and broth, I don't make my own. Yeah, it's probably easy and there are times when I have, but why make extra work for yourself when you don't have to? I'm also one of those annoying people with a calculator in the supermarket comparing labels by like measurements. Seriously, who calculates liquids by the pound? Pound is a dry measurement so you compare quarts to quarts, not pounds to quarts. Yes I do the math and it's amazing how many of your pennies go into the market's pocket instead of yours.

Why should you care? If you are losing, on average, a buck a trip to the market then that's $50 a year. That's a nice dinner out, a bleacher seat and a dog at Fenway or a whole host of other things. Here's the thing, if 1,000 people a day lose a buck a trip to the market, that's 7k a week for the market. Since they aren't passing the savings onto you, you're helping to pay someone's bonus. Seriously people, you need to care.

/end rant/

This is pretty basic, you chop up your peppers and onions. I usually cut them into slices rather than dice them up when I use green beans because I like how the pieces all feel uniform to me. In the crockpot, layer the beans on the bottom with your veggies. Sprinkle a palm full of Italian seasoning, salt and pepper over them and lay your chicken thighs on top. Then pour your diced tomatoes over the top and then pour in a couple of cups of chicken stock.

It looks pretty in the pot:

I like low and slow for 10-12 hours, stirring it about halfway through to make sure everything mixes well. The chicken will break up nicely when you go to serve it and it works nicely over brown rice or with potatoes.

This ends up being 3 points plus per serving plus your sides, not bad for a filling dinner that gives you some good veggies and protein for the day. Plus it reheats well the next day for lunch.

Chicken with Leeks

This is a variant of something I saw in one of Martha Stewart's magazines recently. She used a lot of butter and proscuitto (a fatty, but yummy, Italian ham) - so I tailored it my needs and everyone really liked it. I mixed this in with some whole wheat pasta, but I imagine it can be served with anything.

2 lbs boneless chicken breast - grilled and broken into pieces
2 or 3 leeks - the white to light green parts only
box of frozen peas
juice of one lemon
extra virgin olive oil

Trim away the roots and dark green parts of the leeks, cut the remaining pieces down the middle and soak in cold water for 15 minutes to clean. Once clean, slice the leeks into 2" long pieces and slice into thin slivers. Pour a little olive oil in a pan and sautee the leeks with a little salt and pepper until soft (about 3 minutes or so). Add lemon juice, peas and chicken and toss together, heating until everything is warmed through.





WW Points Values: 4 pts. per serving

Pineapple Chicken

OK - so what do you do with the juice you drained from the can of pineapple rings? You use it to marinade your chicken.


Juice drained off of 20 oz can of pineapple rings
2lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast
2 Tbs groud ginger
1 Tbs ground cinnamon
1 Tbs Bell's seasoning (or poultry seasoning)
1 tsp ground cloves
salt and pepper to taste


In a 1 gallon plastic bag (or bowl or whatever you use for marinading meat), mix the pineapple juice, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, seasoning, salt and pepper together until well blended. Then place your chicken in the marinade for as long as desired.

Grill you chicken and serve with the grilled pineapple slices, a nice salad and brown rice.




+ 1 point for the pineapple juice

WW Points Values: 5 pts. per serving

Chicken with Dried Peaches

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/8 cup Extra virgin olive oil
8 oz dried peach(es)
6 clove garlic clove(s)
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp table salt
4 serving(s) madeira
Instructions

Mix together the vinegar, oil, thyme (or substitute herbs de provence), crushed garlic, cumin, ginger salt and madeira wine and whisk together in a bowl.

Place chicken breast and peaches in bottom of the crockpot and pour the contents of the bowl over the chicken.

Cook on low for 8-12 hours or high for 4-6 hours.



+ 1 point for the peaches

WW Points Values: 7 pts. per serving

Crockpot Salsa Chicken with Brown Fiesta Rice

Chicken

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 4-6 hours on high; 8-10 on low

5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts halves
1 jar salsa
1 can low-fat, low sodium chicken broth

Place chicken in crockpot. Pour in the Salsa, pour in the broth - cover it up and turn the pot on.


WW Points Values: 3 pts. per serving




Brown Fiesta Rice

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: approx. 45 minutes

In a 2qt (or larger) sauce pan, pour in a little Extra Virgin Olive Oil - about a tablespoon. Then, pour in 1 cup brown rice and toast it a little over medium heat. Add 1 cup of liquid from the crockpot and 1 cup water, cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.


WW Points Values: 2 pts. per 1/2 cup serving


Serve the chicken over rice with vegetable and/or salad.